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THE BATTLING BASTARDS of BATAAN” “No Mama, No Papa, No Uncle Sam, and Nobody Gives a Damn”

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THE BATTLING BASTARDS of BATAAN” “No Mama, No Papa, No Uncle Sam, and Nobody Gives a Damn” “THE BATTLING BASTARDS OF BATAAN” “No mama, no papa, no Uncle Sam, And nobody gives a damn” An Interview with Colonel Melvin Rosen M. Kleinman February 9, 2004 TABLE OF CONTENTS Biography Historical Contextualization Interview Transcription Interview Analysis Works Consulted Biography of Colonel Melvin Rosen Colonel Melvin Herbert Rosen was born on August 2, 1918 in Gloucester, Massachusetts. After attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for one year, he studied at West Point for four years. Upon graduating from West Point, Colonel Rosen was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant and was stationed in the Philippines. He served as a U.S. Army field artillery officer in World War II. Having surrendered to the Japanese in April of 1942, Colonel Rosen was taken prisoner of war until peace was declared in August of 1945. Having served overseas in World War II, Colonel Rosen continued to be an active participant in the United States Army. He worked for the Research Analysis Corporation, as well as earned his masters degree at George Washington University. Colonel Rosen was on duty at the Pentagon during the Korean War (1950-1953), and he worked as a part of defense intelligence during the Vietnam War (1957-1975). Having been in active military service for thirty-four years, he retired on December 8, 1970. For his service to the United States, Colonel Rosen was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, two Merit Honors, two Purple Hearts, the Army Consideration Medal, Service Declaration, and the Saint Olav Medal. Today, Colonel Rosen remains involved with the Army. He is the class scribe for the West Point Class of 1940 and the class representative for the Internet. He enjoys spending time reading and studying current events. He and his wife have two children, a son who lives in California and a daughter who lives in Virginia. Colonel Rosen and Mrs. Rosen currently reside in Falls Church, Virginia. Table of Contents Historical Contextualization: The Battles of Bataan The events that took place on the Bataan peninsula in the South Pacific during the spring of 1942 mark some of the lowest and most crucial points in American military history. On April 10, 1942, after the American troops stationed in the Philippines surrendered to the Japanese forces following five months of vigorous fighting, over 75,000 American and Filipino men and women were taken prisoners of war. They were then forced to endure the torture of what came to be known as the Bataan Death March. “Of the 75,000 men and women—about 100 nurses—who had startedd the Death March, only about 54,000 finished it” (Thompson 174). While 7,000 died from disease, wounds, and malnutrition (O’Neill 115), the majority of those who died were murdered by the Japanese. Yet, regardless of its significance, the Bataan Death March is often overlooked and is a hidden part of what historian Studs Terkel calls “The Good War.” Too many lives were taken and too much pain inflicted for the story of the Bataan Death March to be lost. It is a crucial element in the history of America that must be studied, as it represents not only suffering and pain, but also determination and hope. During the 1920s, the nations that had been involved in World War I (1914- 1918), concentrated on recovering from the devastation and destruction that resulted from the “war to end all wars.” Because of the global magnitude of the war, countries throughout the world had suffered greatly. Most damaging was the overwhelming loss of nearly 10 million soldiers. Not only was a generation of men destroyed, but also much European land, especially on the Western Front, was ruined. Economic devastation was another consequence of the war. The nations involved in World War I spent $337 billion, leaving many countries with financial problems. Even the victors suffered from this loss as they owed great sums of money to their ally, the United States. The debts that the Allies were unable to pay were so immense that they contributed to the greatest depression in American history. For the defeated nations, who had also exhausted all of their resources on the war, their economic crises only grew as the Allied forces demanded reparations. Politically, empires that once ruled Europe, such as Russia, Austria- Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire, were now shattered. Moreover, the last hope, invested in the treaties concluding the war, proved worthless as the treaties left problems unsolved, nations dissatisfied, and the world far from stable. Following World War I, countries such as Germany and Japan took advantage of the instability of the post-war world and began to expand their nations. Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, which officially began World War II. By the following year, Germany had already formed its alliance with Italy and later Japan to create the Axis forces. Throughout the next few years, the Axis forces successfully furthered their expansion, as they invaded opposing nations, most significantly attacking Great Britain and the Soviet Union. While Germany and the European nations of the Axis forces attacked in Europe and Africa, Japan targeted opposing countries in Southeastern Asia and in the Pacific. Having a military government and believing in the power of war, the Japanese saw fighting as the means by which they would take control of the lands they desired. They therefore initiated warfare by invading their target nations and were consequently able to obtain the offensive position. In Asia, having already conquered both northern and southern areas of China by late 1941, beginning in 1942 the Japanese attacked nations such as Thailand and Burma. They also had planned to seize control of the islands in the Pacific, specifically those that were American commonwealths, through a series of simultaneous attacks. The day after the invasions occurred, President Roosevelt announced to the United States in his “War Message to Congress” that, Yesterday the Japanese government…launched an attack against Malaya. Last night Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong. Last night Japanese forces attacked Guam. Last night Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands. Last night the Japanese attacked Wake Island. And this morning the Japanese attacked Midway Island. Japan has therefore undertaken a surprise offense extending throughout the Pacific area. (qtd. in Hofstadter 402) On December 7, 1941, after having attacked American commonwealths and its military base at Pearl Harbor, the Japanese had drastically changed the dynamics of war by pulling the United States into battle. Having been attacked directly, the United States had no other option but to join the war effort, thus making World War II a global war. Since 1939, as presented by President Roosevelt, America held a position of neutrality in the war. While, in general, they opposed the Axis forces, Americans, as described by historian John Garraty, wanted to remain as “non-belligerents.” They did not want to invest themselves in war or become involved in what appeared to be a distant conflict. President Roosevelt assured his people of this, as he stated in a speech that, “I have said this before, but I say it again and again and again: Your boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars" (qtd. in Hoar). Yet, as Japan not only threatened the security of the United States but destroyed its men and property, the country was forced to engage in the war. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, on December 8 and 9, the United States, Great Britain, China, and Canada declared war on Germany and the Axis forces, thus forming the Allied forces alongside the Soviet Union. Having forced the United States to commit to war, Japan had begun to execute its plan consisting of, what historian William O’Neill considered to be, a “complex and far-reaching network of operations designed to win the Pacific in short order” (110). Only nine hours after the bombardment on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese had attacked the American commonwealth in the Philippines. Lieutenant General Douglas MacArthur, the commander of the U.S. Army’s forces in the Far East, had been warned that a similar attack to Pearl Harbor would take place on Clarke Field, the United States air base on the Filipino island of Luzon. Despite the notification, “MacArthur did little to prevent the attack” (Brinkley 287). Rather than evacuating the base and taking the necessary precautions, he allowed the Japanese to destroy half of his aircraft. Before the fighting had even begun, the troops stationed in the Philippines, including 15,000 Americans composed of Philippine Scouts, men from the United States’ Air Force, American Marines, and enlisted Filipinos (Hurd), were already at a great disadvantage. “From the moment Japan achieved air supremacy over the island of Luzon…the die was cast” (“Bataan Falls”). The Japanese invaded the islands and began to destroy the opposing forces. Under Lieutenant General Masaharu Homma, the Japanese troops “landed the bulk of their invasion forces on the western coast of Luzon and began driving toward Manila [Bay]” (Brinkley 287). The strength of the Japanese was so great that within less than three weeks, on December 25, 1941, MacArthur had already put Orange 3, “the long-laid defense plan calling for the withdrawal of all American and Filipino forces onto the Bataan peninsula” into action (Brinkley 287). By January 2, 1942, the Japanese had conquered Manila and within four days were pursuing the American troops on Bataan. With the prospect of promised relief on its way, the Americans held their ground for three months. The troops were now suffering greatly and in desperate need of immediate aid. Yet, despite the promises, the troops on Bataan never received enough assistance to successfully defend themselves and their land.
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