Capitol Journal: At Pearl Harbor’s 75th anniversary, a reminder of how America proved its greatness — and why it’s still great

Think a Donald Trump presidency is scary? It’s Christmas pie compared with what confronted Americans 75 years ago.

Shock, anger and panic gripped the nation, especially the West Coast, when 353 Japanese airplanes attacked the U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor, propelling America into a world war that left at least 60 million people dead around the planet.

World War II killed roughly 419,000 Americans — and up to 3 million Japanese and perhaps 9 million Germans, military and civilian. The Soviet Union lost 24 million.

At Pearl Harbor, the Japanese sunk or damaged 19 ships, including eight battleships, destroyed 188 aircraft and killed 2,403.

The Dec. 7, 1941, surprise attack unified America like it hasn’t been since.

Political polarization didn’t exist. We were all about patriotism and sacrifice, defeating the enemy and bringing the boys home.

Yes, today those ideals seem like really hard concepts to grasp.

There’ll be a 75th anniversary commemoration at Pearl Harbor on Wednesday. And it will mark the passing of an era — from “Remember where you were?” to “It’s on the History Channel.”

Some Pearl Harbor survivors will be there, all in their 90s or older. It’ll be their final appearance at a major commemoration. It’s hard to imagine any at the centennial.

Put it this way: The time span between the Pearl Harbor attack and today is practically the same as the span between the end of the Civil War and when those Japanese war planes swooped down on Hawaii.

On average, 372 American World War II veterans are dying each day. Roughly 16 million served. Only 620,000 remain, 55,000 in California.

There aren’t many of us still around who were alive then — roughly 2.3 million Californians, less than 6% of the population. Fewer than 1.4 million, or 3.5%, have any memory of the attack, I figure.

Mine will be the last generation with any personal recollection of the war that thrust America into leadership of the free world.

I was 4, playing with my younger brother behind our house in Santa Barbara when Mom rushed out that Sunday. The Japanese had bombed Hawaii, she told us, kneeling at face level. We’re at war.

“Remember this day. It’s Dec. 7. It’s historic.”

And I’m sure her anxiety and passion are the only reasons I do remember.

The Pacific Coast was a sea of jitters. They could be on our beaches any day, we feared. And in one case, they effectively were.

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On Feb. 23, 1942, a Japanese submarine surfaced offshore 12 miles north of Santa Barbara and fired 16 shells at the Ellwood Oil Field. My dad was working there on a derrick. Nobody was hurt and the damage was light. But Dad was ticked.

He and his crew were handed pitchforks and told to go guard the beach. They were kept there all night. Dad didn’t get home until after sunup.

“What was I supposed to do with a pitchfork?” I remember him grousing to my worried mom at the door.

Everyone was edgy.

The next day the Great Los Angeles Air Raid occurred. Our military fired hundreds of antiaircraft shells at reported Japanese planes. The sheriff arrested 20 Japanese Americans, claiming they had shot up flares to signal the enemy. There were no flares. There were no planes. Only false rumors. And several buildings and vehicles damaged by shell fragments.

War can bring out the best and the worst. The U.S. government — cheered on by California politicians — shamefully forced 110,000 innocent Japanese Americans into detention camps, fearing sabotage.

One strong advocate of that injustice was California Atty. Gen. Earl Warren, then running for governor. He became a great governor and ultimately a historic U.S. chief justice. But his role in that incarceration was a black mark he later apologized for in a memoir.

“It was not in keeping with our American concept of freedom and the rights of citizens,” Warren wrote.

I used to think that America would never do that again. But after watching this last, depressing presidential campaign — and hearing all the hateful bombast throughout the land — I’ve changed my view. Demagogic politicians would do it again in a heartbeat.

There were only 7 million Californians back then, compared with 39 million today. Yes, it was quieter. But nerves were rumbling inside.

Every kid knew a classmate who had a father or other relative who had been killed or wounded in combat.

A college roommate, Frank Hoak, was a 4-year-old living in Honolulu during the attack. His father was a Navy code analyst attached to Adm. Chester W. Nimitz, who soon became commander in chief of the Pacific Fleet.

“My first recollection of the war was going into bomb shelters trying to wear an adult-size gas mask,” he says. “They were afraid of chemical gas attacks, so they made us wear masks. To make sure they worked, they released tear gas in the bunkers. It got in my eyes and hurt, and I cried. I remember my mother telling me to be ‘quiet, quiet.’ ”

Frank followed his father into the Navy and spent 29 years in active and reserve duty, retiring as a captain. He’ll be at Wednesday’s commemoration.

America re-proved its greatness after Pearl Harbor. And despite a mean-spirited angst by too many today, we’re still great.

Trump’s job is not to make us great again, but to accentuate America’s innate, positive spirit of unity and ingenuity to make us even greater. Surprise us.

george.skelton@latimes.com

Follow @LATimesSkelton on Twitter

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