“I have to profess ignorance as to whether German Americans or Japanese Americans served during WW2. Hmmm. Now I have to go look it up.”
Yes, Nisei (second generation, native born Americans of Japanese descent) DID fight in WWII and they DID fight in the Pacific. They fought bravely and were highly decorated. At least one of them was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously: “the 442nd Regimental Combat Team became one of the most decorated units in United States military history. Among the many awards and decorations received by the men of the 442 RCT are 52 Distinguished Service Crosses, 560 Silver Star Medals, over 4,000 Bronze Stars, 9,486 Purple Heart Medals, and 7 Presidential Unit Citations.
In 1945, American-born Sadao Munemori posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his service “above and beyond the call of duty.” His mother, Nawa Munemori, received word of her son’s death while living behind barbed wire in Manzanar concentration camp.”
source: http://janmstore.com/javeterans.html
I think there are major cultural differences between those Nisei and today’s Muslims in our military, including religion and “cultural orientation”. The Nisei saw themselves as Americans first. They did not maintain a cultural loyalty to the traditional worship of the Japanese Emperor which was a foundation of the Japanese military. [If the Emperor hadn’t surrendered, the japanese military would have fought to the last man.] I don’t see that identification as Americans first among Muslims.
Meant to include you in my reply on #27.
When asked about what he thought of the Fort Hood incident, Klawoon said he did not sympathize with Nadal Hasan. “What he did was heinous, wrong, unforgivable,” he says, pausing. “But when I read about the discrimination he experienced, I have to say, I can believe it. It doesn’t excuse what he did, but it explains maybe a tiny part of it...”
says it all for me