...

Thank for that warm and
you
generous introduction. And now I
have a favor to ask of you. I hope
you and everyone else will take a
deep breath for me, too, please.
You didn't need it, but I might -
this is a very emotional day.

I would like to salute the mem-
bers of my Cabinet that are here
today, particularly Dick Cheney,
our able secretary of defense, who's
done so much for the military, so
much in terms of leadership for our
nation. I want to salute Gen.
(Colin) Powell, the chairman of our
Joint Chiefs of Staff, and, again, take
this opportunity on this historic day
to thank him for his leadership, his
inspirational leadership, for all the
men and women that serve in the
armed forces. I want to thank the
commander-in-chief of the Pacific
Fleet, ADM (Charles R.) Larson.
And I especially want to single out
all the fellow veterans here, particu-
larly those who were the survivors,
the survivors of this historic day.

End of Innocence

I expect if we went around the
room, all of us would remember. I
remember exactly when I first heard
the news about Pearl Harbor. I was
17 years old, walking across the
green at school. And my thoughts
in those days didn't turn to world
events, but mainly to simpler
things, more mundane things, like
making the basketball team or
entering college. And that walk
across the campus marked an end
of innocence for me.

When Americans heard the

news, they froze in shock. But just
as quickly we came together. Like
all American kids back then, I was
swept up in it. I decided that very
day to go into the Navy to become
a Navy pilot. And so, on my 18th
birthday - June 12, 1942, I was
sworn into the Navy as a seaman
second class.

-

And I was shocked I was
shocked at my first sight of Pearl
Harbor several months later
April of '44. We came into port on
the CVL-30, on the carrier San
Jacinto. Nearby, the Utah was still
on her side, parts of the Arizona
still stood silent in the water.
Everywhere the skeletons of ships
reached out as if to demand
remembrance and warn us of our
own mortality.

Over 2,000 men died in a matter
of minutes on this site a half a
century ago. Many more died that
same day as Japanese forces
assaulted the Philippines and Guam
and Wake Island, Midway, Malaya,
Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong.
On that day of infamy, Pearl Harbor
propelled each of us into a titanic
contest for mankind's future. It
galvanized the American spirit as
never ever before into a single-
minded resolve that could produce
only one thing - victory.

(British Prime Minister Winston)
Churchill knew it as soon as he
heard the news. He'd faced the
Nazi conquest of Europe, the blitz
of London, the terror of the U-
boats. But when America was
attacked, he declared there was "no
more doubt about the end." He
knew then that the American spirit
would not fail the cause of
freedom. The enemy mistook our

diversity - our nation's diversity
for weakness. But Pearl Harbor
became a rallying cry for men and
women from all walks of life — all
colors and creeds. And in the end,
this unity of purpose made us
invincible in war and now makes
us secure in peace.

The next day, President (Franklin
D.) Roosevelt proclaimed the
singular American objective: "With
confidence in our armed forces,
with the unbounding determination
of our people, we will gain the
inevitable triumph so help us
God." It was the steadfastness of
the American people that would
"win the war" and "win the peace
that follows."

We triumphed in both, despite
the fact that the American people
did not want to be drawn into the
conflict "the unsought war." it's
been called. Ironically, isolationists
gathered together at what was
known in those days as an
"America First" rally in Pittsburgh

at precisely the moment the first
Americans met early, violent deaths
right here at Pearl Harbor. The
isolationists failed to see that the
seeds of Pearl Harbor were sown
back in 1919, when a victorious
America decided that in the
absence of a threatening enemy
abroad, we should turn all of our
energies inward. That notion of
isolationism flew escort for the very
bombers that attacked our men 50
years ago.

Again in 1945, some called for
America's return to isolationism
as if abandoning world leadership
was the prerequisite for dealing
with pressing matters back home.
And they were rudely awakened by

the brutal reality of the Iron Curtain, the Soviet blockade of Berlin and the communist invasion of South Korea.

Expensive Isolationism

And now we stand triumphant for the third time this century this time in the wake of the Cold War. As in 1919 and 1945, we face no enemy menacing our security. And yet we stand here today on the site of a tragedy spawned by isolationism. And it is here, and we must learn and this time avoid the dangers of today's isolationism and its economic accomplice, protectionism. To do otherwise to believe that turning our backs on the world would improve our lot here at home is to ignore the tragic lessons of the 20th century.

The fact is, this country has enjoyed its most lasting growth and security when we rejected isolationism - both political and economic in favor of engagement and leadership. We're a Pacific nation. And next month in Asia, I'll discuss with our Pacific friends and allies their responsibility to share with us the challenges and burdens of leadership in the postCold War world.

The time has come for America's trading partners in Europe, Asia and around the world to resolve that economic isolationism is wrong. To the leaders of Japan in particular, I say: This solemn occasion should reinforce our determination to join together in a future energized by free markets and free people. And so I'll continue to speak out against the voices of isolationism and protectionism both at home and abroad.

Fifty years ago, we paid a heavy price for complacency and over

confidence. That, too, is a lesson we shall never forget. To those who have defended our country from the shores of Guadalcanal to the hills of Korea, from the jungles of Vietnam to the sands of Kuwait, I say this: We will always remember. We will always be prepared - prepared to take on aggression, prepared to step forward in reconciliation and prepared to secure the

peace.

In remembering, it is important to come to grips with the past. No nation can fully understand itself or find its place in the world if it does not look with clear eyes at all the glories and disgraces, too, of the past. We in the United States acknowledge such an injustice in our own history: The internment of Americans of Japanese ancestry was a great injustice, and it will never be repeated.

Today, all Americans should acknowledge Japan's Prime Minister (Kiichi) Miyazawa's national statement of deep remorse concerning the attack on Pearl Harbor. It was a thoughtful, it was a difficult expression much appreciated by the people of the United States of America.

we commemorate democracy's fallen heroes - the defenders of freedom as well as the victims of dictatorship who never saw the light of liberty. Earlier this year, when former adversaries joined us in the stand against aggression in the Persian Gulf, we affirmed the values cherished by the heroes of the harbor.

The friends I lost that all of us lost upheld a great and noble cause. Because of their sacrifice, the world now lives in greater freedom and peace than ever before. It is right that all of us are here today. And it is right that we go on from here.

As you know, I just paid my respects at the Arizona, where it all began. And behind us stands the Missouri - where it came to an end. But the Missouri was also a beginning. Soon after that, Emperor Hirohito went to call on Gen. (Douglas) MacArthur, who later noted that the emperor "played a major role in the spiritual regeneration of Japan." Their meeting made history, and a hopeful future for a democratic Japan began to take shape.

I thought of that meeting with MacArthur when I attended the emperor's funeral in 1989. I thought of it this morning, too, at the National Cemetery of the Pacific and then at the Arizona Memorial..

As you look back on life and retrace the steps that made you the person you are, you pick out the turning points, the defining moments. Over the years, Pearl Harbor still defines a part of who I am. To every veteran here, and indeed to all Americans, Pearl Harbor defines a part of who you

America's challenges are different. My father's attitude represents that of the United States: Do your duty, and raise the next generation to do its."

I can understand Bill's feelings. I wondered how I'd feel being with you, the veterans of Pearl Harbor the survivors on this very special day. And I wondered if I would

feel that intense hatred that all of us felt for the enemy 50 years ago. As I thought back to that day of infamy and the loss of friends, I wondered: What will my reaction be when I go back to Pearl Harbor? What will their reaction be- the other old veterans especially those who survived that terrible day right here?

Remarks prepared for delivery by Secretary of
Defense Dick Cheney for the Pearl Harbor
Survivors Association flag raising, Honolulu,
Hawaii, Dec. 5, 1991.

Pearl Harbor Marked End,
Beginning

The flag you raised today has 48 stars. And that number is the only difference between the flag we fought under in 1941 and the one that flew over our troops in Desert Storm in 1991.

Americans have fought under the Stars and Stripes since the early years of our republic. For more than two centuries, it has represented the pride and independence of our free people.

All that our flag represented was put in jeopardy here on Oahu 50 years ago. For the first time in our history, we were subjected to a massive sneak attack. As enemy planes roared overhead, young sailors, soldiers, airmen and Marines struggled to grasp what

War II, we averted our eyes from militarism and aggression around the world. We dismantled the expeditionary forces we built during World War I and cut back on the training, equipment and maneuvers that would have ensured our forces were ready for combat.

When we finally began building up in 1940 and 1941, it was too late to deter the enemies of freedom. In Asia and in Europe, their policies of aggression and conquest threatened to overwhelm the democratic world.

That was the threat borne by the dive bombers and torpedo planes which attacked our parked aircraft and the ships lying peacefully at anchor that Sunday morning long ago.

It took months to turn the tide and 3 1/2 long years before our free nation was again secure. By war's end, we had assembled the most magnificent fighting force in history. Twelve million strong, it won victories on both sides of the globe.

Military Preparedness

But in the peace that followed, we ignored the lesson of Pearl Harbor. We took it for granted that the victories we won for freedom would endure. Our forces were dismantled. Our equipment and weapons were left to rust. And we neglected the training that kept our troops ready for combat.

Just five years later, we faced a new threat when communist North Korea invaded the south. U.S. forces had to struggle just to keep a foothold on the peninsula. In less than two months, more than 1,300 Americans died and that was just a fraction of the lives lost by the conflict's end.

We must never pay that kind of price again.

Pearl Harbor showed us that failing to be ready to fight brings a high price. And that's a lesson a young naval aviator of the era, George Bush, took to heart.

A little more than a year ago, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and poised his forces to dominate the strategic region of the Persian Gulf. This time, we were ready to act. President Bush declared that Saddam's aggression would not stand. And we deployed sufficient forces to the gulf to back up our words with deeds.

We know the result. A sweeping campaign that made military history - victory in six weeks, with mercifully low casualties among American forces.

Our people in the gulf were volunteers, like most of you who served in Hawaii in December 1941. Like you, they represented all the services, regular and reservists, men and women. I hope you are proud of the legacy of service you left them. I can tell you, they are proud of the standard you set 50 years ago.

Changing World

Today, a new era of freedom is changing the face of the globe. We are reducing our force structure to take advantage of the new opportunities for peace. But while we are changing the size of our military, we are not changing its character.

Our servicemen and women must remain trained and ready to ensure we can respond to crises quickly and in force. We must have forward-deployed units to enable us to defend our interests and alliances. We must keep our technological edge to ensure we can prevail in a world of increasingly sophisticated weaponry. And we must have the strategic capabilities to deter nuclear conflict, as we continue to develop a strategic

defense against this threat.

We can reduce our military and still meet these goals, as long as we restructure our forces carefully. What we cannot do is slash the defense budget mindlessly to pay for other programs or save pet projects to benefit local constituencies at the cost of our troops' readiness and safety. It will take discipline for political leaders to stay the course. But our servicemen and women deserve no less.

Just as important, we must be prepared to reconstitute our forces if a violent and changing world requires us to meet a worsening threat. Any signal that we are not ready to defend ourselves will invite aggressors to act. You can depend on it.

As my friend and former colleague Sen. Dan Inouye said last year at the 49th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, we must not "tempt tyrants with messages of weakness."

Like many of you, Sen. Inouye paid the price when America's hesitation in the 1930s seemed to send such a message of weakness to the Axis powers. In the war that followed, he served with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. It was one of several units in which Americans of Japanese ancestry served with valor. These included some of the most decorated units in the European theater, as well as the language specialists who volunteered for frontline service with our forces in Asia and the Pacific.

The future U.S. senator was charging a machine gun nest in Italy when his right arm was shattered by enemy fire. He survived to devote his courage and integrity to a life of public service to the nation.

Sen. Inouye is not the only American to have lived the lessons of history. All of you have shared the dedication to a strong defense

Remarks by Gen. Colin L. Powell, USA, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association at a sunset ceremony, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Dec. 7, 1991.

Remember Pearl Harbor
Sacrifice

I am deeply moved to be here. today at the Arizona shoreside facility, awash in the waning Hawaiian sunlight. Sunsets in Hawaii are perhaps more beautiful than at any other place on Earth. And now, as the sun dips to touch the waves, its beautiful fading light signals the closing of the day of the 50th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

It has been a very busy day, with many emotional events, many emotional moments. I, for one, will remember this day for many, many years to come, and I am sure so will each and every one of you.

We are ending this day at precisely the right place and with precisely the right people. It is the right place because from here we can look out across the bay at the Arizona Memorial, which most poignantly reminds us of that fateful day 50 years ago.

As the sun rose this morning, I joined President and Mrs. Bush, Secretary and Mrs. Cheney, and one of your own members, retired Navy Capt. Donald Ross, as the president and the first lady scattered flowers on the sea from the memorial.

It was a most moving and heartwrenching moment for me because you find yourself standing there staring down at Arizona through the water almost as if you expected it to speak. In its own poetic way, perhaps she does, murmuring up to us her clear message of supreme sacrifice. The survivors of Pearl Harbor are the right people to close the day with because your memories most vividly recall the deadly events of that distant day in December of 1941. You have lived with those memories for half a century. Each of you has made peace with you in that day in your own individual way. Each of you has thoughts, prayers and hopes growing from your memories of that day.

I believe there are two very important reasons to remember to honor the survivors of Pearl

"Three generations of Americans have come of age, shouldered the responsibilities of power and liberty, and added their contributions, their sacrifices and, in some cases, their lives to this great struggle of freedom. You are the first generation, I am the second, and our sons and daughters, some of whom fought recently in Southwest Asia, are the third, and together we have brought tyranny to its knees." Powell

Harbor. First, because you made it through one of the darkest days in American history and second, because you remind us most strikingly that we should never let such a dark day come again.

Today, as we meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world, the message to bring to us is very, very important. We must never allow another Pearl Harbor.

There is a third reason why it is so very proper to close the day with my friends, the survivors of Pearl Harbor. Not only do you symbolize our nation's commitment to stay engaged in the world and to keep our armed forces trained, ready and proud, you are also living symbols of the great determination and courage which has carried America so successfully through the half century since Pearl Harbor.

In that half century, we have defeated fascism in two theaters of war, Europe and the Pacific, and we have fought and won a global war against communism. Our victory in that Cold War has irrevocably transformed our principal adversary, the Soviet Union. It has freed Eastern and Central Europe, and eventually it will end communism the world

over.

Generations Pay Dues

Three generations of Americans have come of age, shouldered the responsibilities of power and liberty, and added their contributions, their sacrifices and, in some cases, their lives to this great struggle of freedom. You are the

first generation, I am the second, and our sons and daughters, some of whom fought recently in Southwest Asia are the third, and together we have brought tyranny to its knees.

In achieving our magnificent victories over tyranny, we have had much help from free people everywhere. I believe that one of the most remarkable evolutions of the past half century is that our most bitter enemies in World War II became our strong allies in the Cold War.

Why do such transformations happen? Why do our mortal enemies become our steadfast friends? Why today are the Soviets trying to work with the world instead of working against it, and why do our friends and allies around the globe still want America to stay engaged in the world?

Because they know that our power can be trusted. Because they know that we seek no territory. We seek no position of hegemony. We seek no fortune. We seek no empire. Because they know we give and we do not take. Because they know that our power means continued peace and progress in an atmosphere of stability. And because they know we believe in freedom, and our power means the march of freedom will inexorably continue.

Is there an American here today who does not love peace, who does not want the world to rest from its hatred, its wars and its bitter feuds? I think not. And America is nothing more, nothing less, than the combination of millions of people