MOSCOW DISSOLVES COMMUNIST INTERNATIONAL; JAPANESE ON ATTU SPLIT INTO THREE GROUPS (5/23/43)

Microfilm-New York Times archives, Monterey Public Library | 5/23/43 | Ralph Parker, Frederick R. Barkley, Robert Trumbull, Brooks Atkinson, Julian Meltzer, Sidney Shalett

[Homer_J_Simpson]

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THE NEWS OF THE WEEK IN REVIEW

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[Homer_J_Simpson]

Free Republic University, Department of History presents World War II Plus 70 Years: Seminar and Discussion Forum
First session: September 1, 2009. Last date to add: September 2, 2015.
Reading assignment: New York Times articles delivered daily to students on the 70th anniversary of original publication date. (Previously posted articles can be found by searching on keyword “realtime” Or view Homer’s posting history .)
To add this class to or drop it from your schedule notify Admissions and Records (Attn: Homer_J_Simpson) by freepmail. Those on the Realtime +/- 70 Years ping list are automatically enrolled. Course description, prerequisites and tuition information is available at the bottom of Homer’s profile. Also visit our general discussion thread.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Red Parties Freed (Parker) – 2
Fighting Near End (Barkley) – 3
Following in the Warpath of His Father (photo) – 3
‘Dead’ Ships Rise at Pearl Harbor; Miracle in Salvage Cuts Loss to 3 (Trumbull) – 4-5
Huge Loot Seized by Japan’s Forces (Atkinson) – 6
War News Summarized – 6
Couple Recruited for Work in Navy – 7
The Texts of the Day’s War Communiques – 9-10

The News of the Week in Review
Twenty News Questions – 11
Palestine Zionists Find Outlook Dark (by Julian Meltzer, first-time contributor) – 12
Strategy of Offensive in Pacific Area Posed (Shalett) – 12-13
Japanese Camps Under Fire – 13
Answers to Twenty News Questions – 14

The New York Times Magazine
A Tour of the Road to Victory (by Hanson W. Baldwin) – 15-18
Blueprint for a World Government (by Harold E. Stassen, first-time contributor) – 19-22

[Homer_J_Simpson]

http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1943/may1943/f23may43.htm

British bombers strike Dortmund
Sunday, May 23, 1943 www.onwar.com

Over Germany... The Battle of the Ruhr. More than 2000 tons of bombs are dropped on Dortmund in the heaviest RAF Bomber Command raid to date.

On the Eastern Front... In the Caucasus, the German 17th Army continues to counterattack. Soviet forces continue to hold the offensive.

In the Aleutian Islands... On Attu American forces make some progress along the Clevesy Pass.

In the United States... Mississippi river flooding continues. In total, 150,000 people become homeless.

In Washington... The Trident Conference continues.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/frame.htm

May 23rd, 1943 (SUNDAY)

GERMANY: Berlin: Dönitz orders all U-boats to be fitted with anti-aircraft guns.

Tonight the RAF drops 2,000 tons of bombs on Dortmund. 100,000 tons of bombs have been dropped on Germany since the war began.

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: ALEUTIAN ISLANDS:

On Attu Island, the Americans begin a two-pronged attack on Fish Hook Ridge located southwest of Attu Village between Chichagof Harbor and the east arm of Holtz Bay. The 4th Infantry Regiment attacks the west face while the Southern Landing Force attacks the east face. The attacks are stopped cold by the Japanese.

The USAAF’s Eleventh Air Force dispatches six B-24 Liberators and 12 B-25 Mitchells to fly three air-ground support missions over Attu but due to bad weather, they are rerouted to attack Kiska Island. Weather there is also poor and only one B-25 bombs the Main Camp area. Next, three B-24s and 18 P-38 Lightnings fly three air cover missions to Attu. The last of these missions is notified by a USN PBY Catalina that 16 Japanese bombers are west of Attu and five of the P-38s intercept the bombers over the island; the bombers jettison their bombs and close formation but five are shot down and seven are listed as probables; two P-38s are lost.

A Navy construction battalion lands on Attu to begin construction of an airbase.
U.S.A.: The USS New Jersey BB-62 is commissioned. The sister ships of the Iowa class are: USS Iowa, USS Missouri and USS Wisonsin. She displaces 45,000 tons, with a length of 887 feet 7 inches, a draft of 38 feet and beam of 108 feet 1 inch. Powered by 4 Westinghouse turbines fired by 8 boilers, with 212,000 shaft horsepower, she has a top speed of 33+ knots. She will carry a crew (WWII) of 120 officers and 3,000 enlisted men. Nine 16”/50 cal guns in 3 turrets are the main armament, with 20 5”/38 cal dual purpose guns in twin mounts for the secondary armament. AA weapons include 64 40mm AA guns in 16 quad mounts and 49 20mm AA guns. She carries 3 Vought OS2U Kingfisher floatplanes.

Frigate USS Reading laid down

Submarine USS Dorado launched. (Dave Shirlaw)

ATLANTIC OCEAN: A Fairey Swordfish Mk. II, aircraft “B” of No. 819 Squadron in the escort aircraft carrier HMS Archer, damages the German submarine U-752 in the North Atlantic with rockets and the sub is scuttled by her crew in position 51.40N, 29.49W; 17 of the 46-man crew survive. This is the first successful sinking of a U-boat using rockets. (Jack McKillop)

[BroJoeK]

May 23, 1943:

• May 21: "Three thousand Jews driven from Brody, Ukraine, to a waiting transport train revolt, killing four Ukrainians and a few Germans.
  Many of the Jews break free after being put on the train, only to be machine-gunned.
  The remainder are killed upon arrival at the Majdanek death camp.

• "Members of the Jewish community at Drogobych, Ukraine, are exterminated in the Bronica Forest.

• May 23: "Nazi Aktionen kill thousands of Ukrainian Jews at Przemyslany and Lvov."

"The teacher of a heder (Jewish religious school) interacts with students in the Jewish Quarter of Casablanca, Morocco.
Most of Morocco's 200,000 Jews lived in the French-controlled part of the country.
Early in the war, Moroccan Jews were the victims of violence perpetrated by French nationalists.
Jews were attacked and many were deported to labor camps."

---

[BroJoeK]

page 15: "During a lull in battle, American fliers stoke up in a slit trench."

Somehow, I don't think this meant the same thing then as it does now.

[BroJoeK]

Lots of great articles today, including:

• "‘Dead’ Ships Rise at Pearl Harbor; Miracle in Salvage Cuts Loss to 3 (Trumbull) – 4-5"

• "Palestine Zionists Find Outlook Dark (by Julian Meltzer, first-time contributor) – 12"

• "Strategy of Offensive in Pacific Area Posed (Shalett) – 12-13"

• "A Tour of the Road to Victory (by Hanson W. Baldwin) – 15-18"

• "Blueprint for a World Government (by Harold E. Stassen, first-time contributor) – 19-22"

Harold Stassen... there's a name we may see again.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Somehow, I don't think this meant the same thing then as it does now.

I don't think I want to know what it means in 2013.

[Zuben Elgenubi]

National Loyalties Affirmed
The Comintern decision, it is commented here, also will provide the national Communist parties with an answer to those opponents who question their complete loyalty to their own countries. Communist parties all over the free world should find their positions strengthened by the Comintern decision, it is held. Finally, it is added, the decision should remove any suspicion that Russia is interested in interfering with other lands' ways of life.

Quite a statement when compared with the "Blueprint for a World Government" by Gov Stassen on pg 21.

[henkster]

Love the article on Pearl Harbor salvage. The Naval Historical Center has an excellent on-line library of photographs. The link to the general site (which I have bookmarked) is:

http://www.history.navy.mil/branches/org11-2.htm

There are a number of images at the site relating to the damaged ships of Pearl Harbor and the salvage operations. The salvage of the Oklahoma, in particular, was an impressive engineering feat and shows just how extensive the military resources of the United States were during the war. This ship could easily have been written off and left to rust while more important work was done on new ships. But we salvaged the hulk of a ship we were pretty sure would never see action at great expense and effort…because we could.

The link below shows photos of salvage of the USS Oklahoma:

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/ph-ok9.htm

The next link is of the damage and salvage of several other ships:

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/ph-salv.htm

The next link is photos of the salvage of the West Virginia:

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/ph-wv9.htm

Finally, this last link shows the before & after photos of West Virginia:
http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-w/bb48.htm

As badly damaged as she was, the reconstruction was remarkable. She was fitted with modern radar and fire control, her secondary armament and anti-aircraft suite were upgraded to modern equipment and standards. Except for her speed, which was not significantly upgraded, Wee Vee came out of the reconstruction a modern battleship. So too did Tennessee and California. Oddly enough, the ships at Pearl that had the least damage (Nevada, Pennsylvania) were also the least upgraded during the war.

[untenured]

Interesting in the article about objections out West to how cushy the Japanese-American internees have it that a whites-only sign is referred to by the author as a “trade barrier.”

[dfwgator]

Harold Stassen... there's a name we may see again.

...and again....and again...and again....

[dfwgator]

Finally, it is added, the decision should remove any suspicion that Russia is interested in interfering with other lands' ways of life.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiight.

[colorado tanker]

Today’s paper is the first time I recall the word “holocaust” being used to refer to what the Nazis were doing to Europe’s Jews.

[colorado tanker]

What was going on in the Japanese internment camps was hardly "pampering." Not exactly our finest hour.

On the other side of the ledger, Colorado Governor Ralph Carr (a Republican) welcomed the internees and said this in a public speech: "If you harm them, you must harm me. I was brought up in a small town where I knew the shame and dishonor of race hatred. I grew to despise it because it threatened the happiness of you and you and you."

Sakura Square is a place in Denver built by Japanese-Americans, with shops, restaurants and a Buddhist temple. There is a monument to Carr there:

Some internees stayed on out here. I've known a couple of people interned during the War and I have been amazed by their ability to forgive and move on.

[colorado tanker]

The Pearl Harbor battleships would take their revenge in the Battle of Surigao Strait, the last battleship to battleship surface action, part of the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Today’s paper is the first time I recall the word “holocaust” being used to refer to what the Nazis were doing to Europe’s Jews.

I haven't seen it used that way before either. ("Palestine Zionist Find Outlook Dark," pg. 12, para. 3.) A noteworthy find.

[BroJoeK]

colorado tanker: "Today’s paper is the first time I recall the word “holocaust” being used to refer to what the Nazis were doing to Europe’s Jews."

Thanks for pointing that out!
Here is the context:

"Undoubtedly Palestine Jewry, too, has been bitterly disappointed by the outcome of the Bermuda conference.
It is stated among Jews here, first, that the recomendations by American and British delegates as finally adopted by those governments were likely to be of insuffieient scope to provide for the rescue of any large number of the hundreds of thousands of European Jews still surviving the Nazi holocaust."