Podcasts about Vicker

Last time we spoke about the intense battle for Munda. The most important objective of the New Georgia campaign, the seizure of Munda had come at long last. The 43rd, 37th and 25th divisions all performed an envelopment offensive against Munda, but in their way were extremely formidable Japanese fortifications. It was a real slogfest seeing tremendous casualties for both sides of the conflict. However the Americans were able to breakthrough some of the Japanese bunkers, tunnels and pillboxes thanks largely to the use of flamethrowers which were becoming more and more popular on the battlefield of the Pacific. Munda was finally captured and now the Japanese had to withdraw to other areas like Vila to keep the fight alive. On the seas, commander Frederick Moosbrugger unleashed some improved mark 14 torpedoes at the IJN and scored a major victory sending 3 destroyed to their grave and countless sailors and soldiers.  This episode is the Komiatum Offensive Welcome to the Pacific War Podcast Week by Week, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about world war two? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on world war two and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel you can find a few videos all the way from the Opium Wars of the 1800's until the end of the Pacific War in 1945.    So last week we talked exclusively about the New Georgia campaign, so today as you guessed it we are diving back over to New Guinea. You know when it comes to the big and popular aspects of the war, Guadalcanal usually takes the leading role, but campaigns like New Guinea seem to always fall to the wayside as they say. Yet the battle for New Guinea was just as important, it took significant resources away from the Empire of Japan. We are soon to reach the climax of the Lae-Salamaua campaign, things are really starting to heat up. Now the last time we were over on Green Hell, Brigadier Moten had just ordered the 2/6th battalion to secure Bobdubi ridge, while the 2/5th assault Mount Tambu. By the end of July, the Coane Force was beginning to occupy Tambu Bay. The 3rd battalion, 162nd of Archibald Roosevelt were securing the Boisi area with two of their companies hitting slopes west of Tambu Bay, while the 2nd battalion assembled itself at Tambu Bay. By seizing Tambu Bay, the artillery could now take up a good position to better support the troops. Further north, Brigadier Heathcote Hammer was reorganizing his 15th brigade for a new attack against the Old Vickers position. On July 24th, he held an officers conference at Gwaibolom. Hammer laid out plans to employ the 58/59th battalion against Erskine Creek and Old Vickers. The commander of the 58/59th, Lt Colonel Patrick Starr received the order from Hammer, but also a letter directed at him. In the letter Hammer laid out a ton of criticisms against his unit, some of his officers and by implication Starr himself. The main criticisms were based largely on ineffective ground operations such as the unit lacking adequate knowledge of where their neighboring units were or that of the enemy. But as we know, this unit had not received proper training and it really was a baptism under fire kind of situation. But like they say about swimming, sometimes you gotta be thrown into the pool, and boy were they. Following some rather poorly planned and failed attacks back on June 30th, the 58/59th now adopted a more measure approach against the Old Vickers position. Hammer also helped with his reorganizing efforts. Hammer ordered Company A to head further north, while Major Warfe's commandos would take over the defenses for Gwaibolom; General Savige was assigned the 2/7th to help reinforce the 15th brigade; the 2/6th were ordered to advance along the Sugarcane Ridge to clear a way forward, but would run into a 100 Japanese strong position north off the ridge. On July 26th, the Australians concentrated their 25 pounders upon the ridge before launching a frontal assault. Meanwhile Brigadier General Ralph Coane renewed their attack against Roosevelt Ridge on July 27th. Coane ordered the still assembling 2nd battalion, 162nd regiment for the task. 100 men of E company advanced using a creek line parallel to the ridge, going through some thick jungle. They marched single file, hooking back towards a spur that led towards a small knoll on its crest, looking for a way to break the Japanese defenses. But once they reached the crest, they began taking heavy fire and although they established themselves firmly on a shoulder of ground below the ridge, they could advance no further. Meanwhile the 2/6th were lobbing 25 pounders accurately over the Old Vicker's position, forcing the Japanese to flee to the refugee of their underground shelters. It basically had become a routine of taking a bombardment and awaiting some screaming Australians or Americans afterwards for most of the Japanese defenders by this point. However no assault came. On July 28th another bombardment was on its way, but this one was directed on the Coconuts area. Starting at 2:45, two 25 pounders from Tambu Bay fired hundreds of rounds alongside some 3 inch mortars in an attempt to thwart the Japanese from sending reinforcement over to the Old Vickers position. During the final 5 minutes of what was a 15 minute bombardment, it turned into a creeping barrage allowing C Company of the 58/59th to advance. The bombardment made a ton of smoke aiding the men. Three platoons attacked the Old vickers position simultaneously. Platoon 7 of Butch Proby charged across some exposed ground at the center of the position; Platoon 13 of Lt Jack Evans attacked the left; while Platoon 15 of Sergeant Vic Hammond attacked from the right. The platoons managed to successfully overrun the Japanese forward bunkers and reached the crest just as the unsuspecting Japanese there were emerging from their dugouts. A heavy firefight broke out, but it was the defenders who began fleeing for their lives towards the Coconuts area. As the men consolidated the Old vickers position they found 17 dead Japanese, but also a large amount of abandoned booty. A 70mm gun with 300 shells, 4 light machine guns, 1 medium machine gun and 28 rifles which the Australians gladly grabbed. Hammer expected the Japanese to launch a vicious counterattack so he rapidly ordered the 2/7th battalion to send the fresh A Company of Captain Septimus Cramp over to relieve the exhausted C Company. Meanwhile B Company of the 2/6th were assaulting Sugarcane Ridge being supported by 3 inch mortars and 4 Vickers guns from the 2/6th field regiment along the Tambu Bay coast. Coming from Ambush Knoll, Platoon 10 led by Lt Clive Trethewie made a frontal assault, but machine gun fire from atop Sugarcane Ridge halted them quickly. Platoon 12 led by Sergeant Stan White and Platoon 11 of Lt Ted Exton were hooking around the ridge to attack the enemy's rear. The Japanese defenders had assumed the ridge was too steep in its rear position and were completely taken by surprise by the attack, seeing Extoons Platoon 11 overrun them. The Japanese were forced to flee for their lives. The Japanese attempted a dusk counterattack to reclaim the ridge, but it failed. On July 28th, with E Company stalled, F company was brought up to help out, taking up a position to E Company's left. They both tried to assault the ridge together, but gained little ground and were forced to dig in as the Japanese harassed them with counterattacks. The problem really was the Japanese were simply too well dug in. They held a steep narrow crest on the ridge, with the typical camouflaged pillboxes, mutually supporting machine gun nests, an intricate network of underground tunnels, lets call it the “Japanese special” haha, it will be seen quite often going forward into this war. The allied artillery and mortar bombardments could do little to actually hurt the Japanese, but it did cause them to take shelter within their tunnels, then there was the hope the assaulting forces got close enough before the Japanese stormed out again, which feels a lot like battles from WW1. In the meantime Major Roosevelt's battalion were working to cut off the Japanese supply routes to the ridge. He dispatched multiple patrols to take up positions along junctions and tracks between Scout ridge, Roosevelt Ridge and Mount Tambu. The men ran into skirmishes with Japanese supply efforts, greatly hindering them. But with the lack of progress by Coane's force concerned certain commanders like General Savige who began to criticize Coane for a lack of control and discipline over the men. Savige ordered him to push on immediately to capture Roosevelt Ridge, but in response Coane protested that he needed more reinforcements to seize the heavily fortified position. Likewise the lack of progress over at Mount Tambu was also annoying commanders. Taylor Force had just relieved the exhausted 2/5th battalion on the 28th. Several companies consisting of around 400 men from the 1st battalion, 162nd regiment coming over from Nassau Bay took up positions around Mount Tambu. Australian mortar crews and stretcher bearers remaining in the line to support their American comrades with one company of the 2/5th staying behind likewise. Moten planned for a new attack, slated for the 30th, to be followed with attacks against Goodview Junction and Orodubi by the 2/5th and 2/6th respectively. To open up the new attack, 8 105mm guns positioned at Buigap Creek Valley alongside 5 25 pounders position at Tambu Bay opened fire in the morning firing around 200 rounds per gun for an hour and a half. The Americans began their assault with Platoons 2 and 3 charging the ridge while Platoon 1 awaited in reserve. For 45 minutes the two leading platoons moved 150 meters across the Japanese front's right shoulder. They managed to knock out 6 out of 8 bunkers on the shoulder before attempting to advance further, but the defenders second tier line three meters higher up opened fire upon them and numerous grenades came rolling down the slope. The fire was too much, with the defenders using their tunnel and trench system to deadly effect taking up numerous positions to fire down on the Americans. The two platoons were halted dead in their tracks as the third platoon was brought up, but it made no difference. A legendary figure emerged from this action. For those of you from down unda, you probably already know the story, but for those of you who down, Corporal Leslie Bull Allen became a hero this day. Bull Allen was born in 1918, in Ballarant Victoria and when WW2 broke out he volunteered for service with the 2nd Australian imperial force. He served the 2/5th in Palestine where he became a stretcher bearer. He served in Libya and Syria where he received the nickname Bull for getting a reputation to having a cool head under fire. He was a fairly big boy, 5”11, laborer type build and he had a really deep laugh his comrades would remark “you could hear him a mile off! Bull was thus one of the battalion's most recognisable…and one of its most popular characters”. After facing the Italians, French and Germans, Bull was sent to New Guinea. He had served during the Wau battle where he received a Military medal for carrying out comrades under intense fire, his citation read “Private Allen's bearing and his untiring efforts in tending the wounded and helping with rations and stores were an inspiration”. On July the 30th when the Americans were storming Mount Tambu and got botched down, Allen was one of the stretcher bearers who came running up and by himself carried 12 American servicemen to safety. There's a famous photograph of Bull carrying an American soldier over his shoulders who had been knocked unconscious by a mortar, I do recommend googling it. And of course, I am a Sabaton fan and I would be remiss not to mention there is a song dedicated to Bull Allen, worth a listen. I got to sit down with Sabaton at a bar once in Montreal, the first time they came to north america, by the way, just gloating. Bull Allen received the Silver Star for his heroism from the United States. But as much as I'd like to end it there, I would also like to mention the reality of war. Bull put on a straight face and showed no fear as he saved the men, but as early as 1941 he was showing psychological issues. He had been admitted to a hospital in Libya, suffering from anxiety neurosis, again what we call acute combat stress or combat stress reaction. By the time he saved those boys on Mount Tambu his health was being taxed heavily. Towards the end of 1944, Bull would begin lashing out at superior officers and got himself court martialed and demoted to private. His psychological health, alongside a few bouts of malaria took a horrible toll on him creating numerous anxiety ridden episodes seeing him discharged from duty as he was not deemed medically fit. Bull found it difficult in the post war years suffering from post traumatic stress, and during one point he lost the ability to speak for 6 months. He spent his life after the war working as a laborer and then as a theater nurse at the Ballarat Base hospital. Bull became quite a popular fellow around Ballarant and would pass away on May 11th of 1982 from diabetes and other complications. He is a staple on Anzac Day and a famous image of the Australian war effort during the Pacific War. Mount Tambu was not taken that day, though the first line of bunkers were battered. Moten realized frontally attacking such fortifications was suicide, so he elected to cut off Mount Tambu instead. With the Americans failing, the 2/5th and 2/6th planned attacks changed to taking up positions to surround Mount Tambu. Back on the 29th, Major Warfe took his men to attack what was known as the Timbered knoll held by some Japanese. He sent A Platoon led by John Lewin south along its ridge. They were supported by artillery from Tambu Bay. At 4pm the artillery and mortars started blasting away for 15 minutes. The commandos assaulted the knoll from its northern side, but were quickly pinned down by machine gun fire. Around 10 men advanced along the Bench Cut track east of the Timbered Knoll and attacked it from the south, successfully surprising the defenders, forcing them to flee. Following the capture of the Timbered Knoll, Warfe wanted to press onwards to Orodubi, but Brigadier Hammer ordered his commandos to hold their position as he did not want to open up any gaps along the ridge. Also on the 29th, General Herring for the first time informed General Savige of the true offensive going on which was against Lae rather than Salamaua, indicating to him that the role of his 3rd division was to hold the enemy down in the Salamaua area. Likewise Moten had devised a new plan to drive the enemy from Mount Tambu. It turned out a patrol from the 2/6th had discovered a route going from Ambush Knoll to the Buirali Creek which would allow forces to cut off the Komiatum track, thus isolating the Mount Tambu and Goodview junction. The 2/6 sent 4 patrols out searching for how to ford the Buirali Creek going up to the Kiamatum ridge, some of which probed Japanese positions.  To the north, Captain Edwin Griff's B Company of the 58/59th advanced to Buggert preparing to attack the Coconuts area. On the 30th as they began their attack, they were met with heavy fit around 80 yards south of the South Coconuts. Forced to dig in the Australians spent the night repelling 3 counterattacks with a handful of men receiving some nasty bayonet and knife wounds. By the morning of the 31st Griff was down to 38 effective men and at 7:20am a 4th Japanese counterattack consisting of a hundred or so men overwhelmed his position. Griff was forced to withdraw to a village west of the Old Vickers position. While this was going on, Hammer had sent companies over to cut the Komiatum and Bench tracks using his A company and C Company. Moten reinforced him with A company of the 2/7th in the hopes such actions would press the Japanese to move more units from Lae over the Salamaua area. It was a huge success as by the end of July the Salamaua area counted with more than 8000 troops. However with all of these troops at Salamaua also required the allies to boost up their commitment in the area, thus Brigadier Raymond Monaghan with the 29th brigade were landed at Nassau Bay for the task. They were assigned to reinforce the Coane force which was still struggling against Roosevelt ridge. Over on the Japanese side, General Adachi decided to reinforce Lae's defenses. He deployed the 2nd battalion, 80th regiment who would be coming over from Finschhafen, however they would never make it to Lae as by the time they were going to depart they were forced to stay put because the Australians were threatening  the region. Adachi also ordered the Shoge detachment of Major General Shoge Ryoichi to depart Wewak. His force consisted of the 1st and 2nd battalions of the 238th regiment and a battalion of the 41st mountain artillery regiment. Elements of the 238th regiment began leaving Wewak traveling in groups of 3 motor landing crafts every two nights. Each MLC had 50 men and their supplies packed in like sardines. Soon small fishing boats were also carrying 20 men, by late July the 2nd battalion, 238th had all moved from Wewak to Alexishafen. From Alexishafen they traveled again by night and by MLC to Finschhafen and from there finally to Lae. However due to increased attacks and losses upon the MLCS countless men would be left at Finschhafen. Some were ordered to march overland to Lae, but it was a nightmare of a trip. On August 1st, the 1st battalion, 80th regiment had taken up positions along the side of the Old Vickers position and began firing upon its defenders. They were covered by mortars as they charged up the steep terrain in an enveloping movements towards Grassy Knoll. Captain Edwin Griff's B company harassed them from the west, and by the following morning the 2/7th battalion were able to push the Japanese back. To the north in the Coconuts, Pimple Knoll and the Sugarcane Knoll more Japanese attacks were occurring, but the defenders held the former Japanese fortifications giving them a distinct edge. By the afternoon the Japanese were sniping men in the Old Vickers and Sugarcane Knoll, trying to cover their assault units. By August 3rd, the Japanese unleashed another assault against the entire perimeter, seeing the fiercest fighting take place in an area in front of the 8th Platoon led by Corporal Alan Naismith. Alan ended up crawling forward with grenades in hand before tossing them down the steep slopes of Old Vickers killing many Japanese. Seeing the battle going nowhere, the Japanese unleashed a banzai charge at night as a last ditch effort to break through, but were ultimately forced to withdraw. Seeing three full days of frontal assaults fail, the Japanese then elected to advance further south along a ridge and dug in between the Old Vickers and Buggert. This threatened to encircle the 2/7th, so Griff's B Company were ordered to restore the line of communications to Old Vickers. Griff ordered a concentrated bombardment of 30 mortars before his company stormed the slope the Japanese dug in on. Two platoons quickly broke through towards Sugarcane Knoll and in the process forced the Japanese to withdraw back over to the Coconuts area. Griff then ordered his company to perform mop up operations as some Japanese had stayed in their foxholes. Yet the performance overall for the 58/59th had displeased Hammer who now decided to place them under Major Warfe's command. They would also be redeployed over to the Gwaibolom area, while the commandos would take over their Old Vickers position. For a few days the 2/7th performed patrols around the Coconuts area to prepare for a final attack against it. Over at Mount Tambu, on August 4th, Captain Cam Bennett's B Company and Walters A Company of the 2/5th successfully surprise attacked the defenders atop a small knoll known as Hodge's Knoll. However they were soon met with heavy counterattacks from three sides dislodging them in the late afternoon. The next day, Moten ordered the 2/6th battalion to advance along the Stephens Track, while its D company led by Captain Harold Laver would take an alternate path towards the Komiatum ridge heading north of Goodview. During the afternoon, a forward patrol of Company D found a route through the jungle to Komiatum village, but the route proved very difficult for the full company to traverse. Alongside this discovery, a patrol from Taylor Force found a small ridge north of Komiatum that was unoccupied named Davidson ridge. By August 6th, Moten and Savige concluded their plan to isolate and reduce Mount Tambu. The 2/6th would secure Komiatum ridge to the northwest; Coane Force would hit Roosevelt and Scout ridge; Lt Colonel Charlie Davidsons 42nd battalion would hit a key ridge to the north, Ie: the one that was to be called Davidson; the 2/5th would hit Goodview junction and the 15th brigade would contain assault the Coconuts area containing the enemy at Tambu knoll and Orodubi. General Herring liked the plan and urged General Savige to quote "drive Coane on to the capture of Roosevelt Ridge even if the cost is higher than he cares about". Herring also added that he could take Savige's requests to the higher authorities and upon stating that Savige immediately requested Coane and Major Roosevelt be relieved of their commands. Again a lot of the interpersonal and command issues were due to MacArthurs tampering with Alamo Force. Brigadier Coane was told by Fuller he was a separate command from MacKechnie and Colonel Roosevelt continuously refused to obey orders from MacKechnie stating he was not under Australian command. It took until July 19th, for Herring to clarify things that the Australians were in charge of operations in the Nassau Bay area. Combine this with the lack of progress and it was no surprise people were gunning to sack another. On August 7th the first units of Davidsons 42nd battalion landed at Nassau bay at 2am and Coane requested that Davidson immediately march north. Davidson refused to do so until his men got a hot meal and some sleep angering Coane. Then when Davidson and his men reach Duali he was informed Major Stephen Hodgman was waiting with orders from Moten that it was he who was taking operational command. Coane was only to have command over supply communications and rations. When Davidson reached Tambu Bay on the 8th he met with Coane who was greatly frustrated that he was unable to use Davidsons units to hit Roosevelt ridge. Coane told him “If I can't do as I want with you, I don't consider you under my command at all”. It was quite fortunate as MacArthur soon relieved Coane and Roosevelt of their commands. As General Savige would later write “MacArthur asked me for my views on Coane and Roosevelt and I gave them strongly…I had my bags packed but MacArthur supported me”. Thus MacArthur sides with Herring and Savige and as a result Colonel MacKechnie was given back command over the 162nd regiment which was taken away from the 41st division directly under Savige's command. So much sneaky maneuvering going on by MacArthur's team. On August the 9th Savige visited Motens HQ, then Hammers, then the 58/59th battalions and finally the 2/6th. He was making a tour of the front lines trying to raise morale for the Australians. The next day, the 42nd battalion finally got into position at Tambu Bay where they received confirmation of their orders to seize Davidson ridge. By the 11th the men were climbing the ridge, facing no opposition and it was fully occupied by the 12th. Also on the 12th, MacKechnie began his attack against Roosevelt ridge deploying his 2nd battalion on the right flank and the 3rd on the left. The 2nd battalion established a position on the ridge crest rappelling several counterattacks throughout the day. After a 1.5hr artillery barrage of over 2000 rounds the 2nd battalion charged the ridge and successfully breached the Japanese line in three points. Meanwhile the 3rd battalion, 66th regiment were fighting for their lives, but by nightfall two Australian companies were now occupying high knolls around 500 yards apart. The 3rd battalion, 238th regiment had just begun arriving to Salamaua and were quickly redirected to help out the men on Roosevelt ridge. It would all be for naught however as by the 14th, the Australians pushed the Japanese to the eastern end of the ridge. From a Historian who covered the 41st division “At about 13:15 the jungles north, south and west of Roosevelt Ridge shook and shivered to the sustained blast. The mountains and ridges threw the echo back and forth, down and out, and the quiet white-capped sea to the east, ringing the outer third of Roosevelt Ridge, grew dark a s it received the eruption of earth and steel on that stricken shoulder of land. Scores of guns—75-mm howitzers, Aussie 25-pounders, 20-mms, Bofors, light and heavy machine-guns, even small arms—had opened up simultaneously on the enemy-held ridge. A score or more Allied fighters and bombers had swooped low to strafe its dome and tons of bombs released from the B-24s and B-25s fell straight and true, to detonate, shatter, rip and tear and to deliver certain death at that moment on an August afternoon. Those who watched from the beach saw the top fourth of the ridge lift perceptibly into the air and then fall into the waiting sea. In a scant twenty minutes all that remained of the objective was a denuded, redly scarred hill over which infantrymen already were clambering, destroying what remained of a battered and stunned enemy.” By the late afternoon, Roosevelt Ridge was finally firmly in the hands of the allies. MacKechnie could not however advance any further as his lines were already overextended. The Japanese withdrew to the nearby Scout Ridge where the 238th regiment reinforcements also came to defend.  While this was occurring the 2/7th were advancing upon the Coconuts area. Captain Andrew Rooke led the Bena platoon of Company A alongside Platoon 9 to hit the steep eastern approaches of the South coconuts; Captain Fred Barr's B company advanced upon the North Coconuts from the west. August the 14th began with a heavy airstrike made up of 22 B-24's and 7 B-17's. Starting at 9:30am as told to us by Axel Olsen observing from the Old Vickers “with a noise like the rushing of a great wind', the bombs passed over the heads of the waiting assault troops. ‘Trees, logs and other rubbish flew through the fall [sic] of dust which now cloaked the target.' The observers at Old Vickers observed, ‘It seemed that nothing could have lived in the midst of devastation loosed by the planes.” At 10:10 artillery began to bombard the area for an hour and half. As the artillery ceased, 3 inch mortars continued to fire covering the approach of the infantry who were using smoke bombs. As Axel Olsen wrote observing from the Old Vickers  “came a terribly fierce raking with Vickers guns firing through the haze from smoke bombs”. The Australian assault battered the north coconuts position which was guarded by two pillboxes connected to weapon pits using crawl trenches. The area had suffered hard from the bombardments easily allowing the Australians to seize it. However the southern defenses of the south Coconuts found defenders resisting hard in their trenches. The center Coconuts position like the north had nearly been obliterated by the bombing allowing B company to make progress, but soon they were pulling back to the north coconuts position. During the night, allied platoons came across a Japanese communication line going over the Salamua-Bobdubi track, so they cut it to prevent reinforcements. For the next two days, patrols and mortar fire were harassing the south coconuts defenders gradually forcing them to evacuate. By August the 17th the Coconuts and northern end towards Bobdubi were firmly in Australian hands. With all of these gains in hand, Moten was finally ready to attack Komiatum. On August the 15th,  Captain Edgar's A Company, Captain Laver's D Company of the 2/6th battalion took up a position due west of Laver's Knoll. Yes the future names of these knolls and ridges really does seem to give away what happens in the stories haha. Laver's Knoll was a key feature of the Komiatum ridge and taking it would allow the allies to apply more pressure upon the enemy. On the morning of the 16th, the 2/5th battalion performed a diversionary attack against Goodview, while A and B Companies advanced up the Komiatum ridge under a creeping barrage. The men were fortunate as the Japanese were forced to flee during the artillery fire, allowing Laver's knoll to be seized quite easily. The men dug in immediately allowing Lt Les Johnson's platoon 17 to capture, you guessed it Johnson's knoll. During WW2 if you really wanted something named after you, all you had to do was travel to Green Hell. Johnson and his men dug in on the knoll and soon Japanese fire was directed at them. Japanese counterattacks were lobbed from their south and west before nightfall, but they managed to hold on. During the night the 42nd battalion began using Vicker guns and mortars from Davidson ridge to help harass the enemy. Around dawn on the 17th, the Japanese unleashed another counter attack against Johnson knoll, this time the enemy got within just meters of the Australian defenders. After dusk even more counterattacks were made seeing 217 deaths, 380 wounded and 301 sick Japanese after all was said and done. The attacks were tossed back and soon Vickers machine guns were brought up to Laver's Knoll to add to the Japanese misery. Unable to break the allied push onto the Komiatum ridge, the Japanese began to become more and more desperate. Artillery and aerial bombardment on top of enveloping maneuvers by the Australians were taking a heavy toll. The Japanese had suffered over 900 casualties since July 23rd and with more and more men dying by the minute, General Nakano ordered a withdrawal from Komiatum to be carried out on the night of August 19th. Nakano was still under the illusion Salamaua was the main target. The next day the Taylor Force and 2/5th found Mount Tambu and Goodview suddenly unoccupied and finally seized their objectives. General Savige personally came over to congratulate the men who took Laver's knoll, but this was to be his last action in command of the 3rd division. Blamey decided to replace  Savige with the commander of the 5th division General Edward Milford. Milford would later find out the reason for Savige's sacking was because General Herring was greatly annoyed that a supply line to the coast had not been opened, which was desperately needed to relieve supply aircraft for the upcoming attack on Lae. Herring told Milford that Savige had never visited the front line because he was too old, but as I just mentioned this was false, Savage had in fact visited Mubo and Komiatum. Major General Frank Berryman working in Blamey's HQ, who remained quite close to the man, who often sought out his advice believed General Herring was unjustified in his sacking of Savige. Berryman would point out “ Herring ‘not giving Savige a fair burl… Savige having to fight Herring as well as Japs. Savige had done well and we had misjudged him'.Savige bitterly handed over his command, greatly disappointed he would not get to see the final capture of Salamaua. But he did not depart unrewarded, as he received a Companion of the order of Bath for his services during the campaign with his citation reading; Maj-Gen. Savige had control of the Battle for Salamaua from 30 Jun. 43 till his relief on 26 Aug. 43. The battle was finally won on 11 Sep. 43—the credit for victory must rest with Maj-Gen. Savige during whose period of command, the back of the enemy's defence was broken. The nature of the country rendered great assistance to the defender, and careful planning alone enabled the defences to be overcome. The supplying of our forward troops was also a terrific problem. Maj-Gen. Savige triumphed over all these difficulties, his men were kept supplied, they were encouraged to endure the most dreadful hardships, and to overcome great difficulties of terrain. Maj-Gen. Savige's plans were well conceived and he saw them carried through. The success achieved is of the greatest importance to the Allied cause, and Maj-Gen. Savige by his fine leadership has made a very real contribution to the ultimate success of the United nations. The victories won over the enemy at the battles for Mubo and Komiatum were due to his well conceived plans and energetic execution. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The battle for Salamaua and Lae was drawing ever closer. The boys down unda had seized control over vital positions forcing the Japanese into more and more desperate defensive measures taking horrifying casualties in the process. 

Tunes: William Vickers: The Bonny Miller, Terry Tully: Ass in the Graveyard Patrick MacDonald: The Mermaid Song, Fisherman's Song for Attracting Seals, Spoigan, Joseph McDonald's Jig, Tune 6 & 7 (Lord Reay's Jig, and The Goatherd) and Flowers of the Forest Johnny Cock up thy Beaver Robert Bremner: Cuzle Together Donald MacDonald: Taladh, Bundle and Go, William Dixon: An Thou Were my Ain Thing, Will You take a Wife Donald, Dark Girl of the Sheep, Tail Toddle, Early Marischal's Reel Gordon Mooney: Linkumdoddie Rob Edward: Is This Yours? Setting a Course for Lewis David Young: Jolly Robin If you're interested in buying the set of Herriot and Allen Smallpipes I played at the beginning of the episode, Email Rob Edwards here. He's also making excellent bellows and furniture presently, and likely small pipes soon as well! rcedward@gmail.com Of the several makers who's instruments I was able to play for this episode, Robert Felsburg is I believe the only one actively taking orders. https://www.thequietpiper.com/ You may still technically be able to get on Fin Moore's waitlist, but I'm not sure how you'd go about it. On Robert Felsburg (Quietpiper) small pipes owned by John Charles 1776: The Bonny Miller from William Vicker's Manuscript http://www.farnearchive.com/show_images.asp?id=R0309101&image=1 +X+X+ Terry Tully's Ass in the Graveyard (I'm not sure Where I heard this tune, but you can find settings on the Session) https://thesession.org/tunes/7539 1784: The Mermaid Set (From Bannocks of Barley Meal) 1784: The tunes are: The Mermaid Song, Fisherman's Song for Attracting Seals, Spoigan, Joseph McDonald's Jig, Tune 6 & 7 (Lord Reay's Jig, and The Goatherd) from Patrick MacDonald's Collection of Highland Vocal Airs: https://books.google.com/books?id=XCvLHYWLkFcC&newbks=0&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false The reprinted edition with the tune names in the notes can be found here: https://www.scotlandsmusic.com/Product/SM-V7M9GD/the-patrick-mcdonald-collection +X+X+X+ Tunes with Rob Edwards Hey Johnny Cock up Thy Beaver on a Burleigh Set of Northumbrian Smallpipes I sorta make up my own setting but here is Playford's: 1686: John Playford, Dancing Master rendition of Johnny Cock thy Beaver here: https://www.cdss.org/elibrary/dancing-master/Dance/images/Play1138.gif You can also listen to my whole episode on this tune here: https://www.wetootwaag.com/s7e9 +X+X+ 1757: Cuzle Together. Robert Bremner's Setting: https://digital.nls.uk/special-collections-of-printed-music/archive/105003230 Performed on Denny Hall Scottish Smallpipes in D +X+X+ 1828: Taladh, Bundle and Go From Donald MacDonald's book 1828: Bundle and Go (Now Jenny Lass My Bonny Bird) From Donald MacDonald: https://digital.nls.uk/special-collections-of-printed-music/archive/105682484 1828: Nurses Song from Donald MacDonald https://digital.nls.uk/special-collections-of-printed-music/archive/105682946 +X+X+ An Thou Were My Ain Thing, From William Dixon, Matt Seattle's Arrangement from The Master Piper https://lbps.net/j3site/index.php/lbps-publications/the-master-piper +X+X+ Will You take a Wife Donald, Dark Girl of the Sheep, Tail Toddle, Earl Marischal's Reel From Donald MacDonald and Eliza Ross Performed on John Rutzen Scottish Small pipes 1812 Will you Take a Wife Donald, Dark Girl of the Sheep From Eliza Ross: https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/library-museum-gallery/cultural-heritage-collections/school-scottish-studies-archives/archive-pubs/eliza-ross-manuscript 1828: Tail Toddle, Earl Marischal's Reel from Donald MacDonald Available here: https://digital.nls.uk/special-collections-of-printed-music/archive/105682473 +X+X+ Gordon Mooney: Linkumdoddie https://lbps.net/j3site/index.php/lbps-publications/gordon-mooney-s-collection +X+X+ 1730s Jolly Robin from David Young on Ray Sloan Scottish Smallpipes Drummond Castle Manuscript: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~rja14/musicfiles/manuscripts/drummond1.pdf +X+X+X+ Hamish/Fin Moore Pipes Mermaid Song (see Above for links, the set form Patrick MacDonald) +X+X 1828: Rusty Old Gun From Donald MacDonald Available here: https://digital.nls.uk/special-collections-of-printed-music/archive/105682473 +X+X 1780s, 1770s: Mucking of Geordie's Byre, Lads With the Kilt, Joiners Tune on Hamish Moore Border Pipes Aird's for Tam Glen and Lads Wi' The Kilts: https://archive.org/details/selectionofscotc00rugg/page/39/mode/1up?view=theater Joiner's Jig from Vicker's as part of a set of Mucking of Geordies's Byre and Lads with the Kilts: http://www.farnearchive.com/farneimages/jpgs/R0316100.jpg FIN ++X+X++ Here are some ways you can support the show: You can support the Podcast by joining the Patreon page at https://www.patreon.com/wetootwaag You can also take a minute to leave a review of the podcast if you listen on Itunes! Tell your piping and history friends about the podcast! Checkout my Merch Store on Bagpipeswag: https://www.bagpipeswag.com/wetootwaag You can also support me by Buying my First Album on Bandcamp: https://jeremykingsbury.bandcamp.com/album/oyster-wives-rant-a-year-of-historic-tunes or my second album on Bandcamp! https://jeremykingsbury.bandcamp.com/album/pay-the-pipemaker or my third album on Bandcamp! https://jeremykingsbury.bandcamp.com/album/bannocks-of-barley-meal You can now buy physical CDs of my albums using this Kunaki link: https://kunaki.com/msales.asp?PublisherId=166528&pp=1 You can just send me an email at wetootwaag@gmail.com letting me know what you thought of the episode! Listener mail keeps me going! Finally I have some other support options here: https://www.wetootwaag.com/support Thanks! Listen on Itunes/Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wetootwaags-bagpipe-and-history-podcast/id129776677 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5QxzqrSm0pu6v8y8pLsv5j?si=QLiG0L1pT1eu7B5_FDmgGA

Last time we spoke about actions in New Guinea and the Japanese counteroffensive in Arakan. The good ol boys down unda were getting ready to launch a major offensive aimed to seize Lae and Salamaua. The Australian and American forces gradually built up enough strength to commence the offensive and high command decided to launch some feints, such as at Mubo to distract the Japanese from their real intentions. Over in Arakan, Irwins disaster was still paying dividends to the Japanese as General Koga launched a massive counterattack. Things were continuing to get worse for the British in Burma, though General Slim was beginning to make improvements. Lastly the British began a propaganda campaign to boost morale in the far east using the mad onion man Wingates recent adventure with the Chindits. Things were looking rough in the CBI theater.  This episode is the Operation Postern, the drive to Salamaua Welcome to the Pacific War Podcast Week by Week, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about world war two? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on world war two and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel you can find a few videos all the way from the Opium Wars of the 1800's until the end of the Pacific War in 1945.    I just want to say before we begin, this episode will feel a bit like one of those old tv episodes that rehashes what happened during that season. You've heard me say it a few times, but because we do this series in the week by week format sometimes we get into these messy weeks where either not much occurs or too much occurs. Regardless this episode is about multiple ongoing operations that culminate into the drive upon Salamaua and for the sake of coherency I am going to have to summarize a lot of what occurred in the south west pacific area for early 1943.  General Blamey devised a plan to capture Lae, codenamed Operation Postern. General MacArthur approved of the plan, which was quite complex and reflected the growing power of the allied forces in the southwest pacific. Blamey moved to New Guinea to take overall charge, reverting Herring to commander of the 1st corps, responsible for tactical operations. The key to quick success lay in convincing General Adachi, that Salamaua was the primary target for any major offensive. To accomplish this, it was necessary for the Australian and American forces to press upon the Japanese around the Salamaua area, but not Salamaua.  Operation Postern was preceded by three simultaneous operations occurring in the South west pacific area and the south pacific area. Together the three operations helped set up the conditions necessary to allow for an amphibious landing at Lae, by tying up the Japanese ground, naval and airpower in the region alongside creating important feints. The invasion of New Georgia was the first of these operations carried out by Admiral Bull Halsey and the 1st raider battalion. That offensive codenamed operation Toenails took up a lot of the Japanese ground, sea and air forces and would gradually see the allies capturing Munda. The 2nd was operation Chronicle, the seizure of Kiriwina and Woodlark islands located just northeast of Milne Bay. With their seizure, the allies were able to create new forward airfields from which to launch air strikes against Rabaul and provide air cover for multiple other operations in the region. Lastly the third operation was to be an assault on Nassau Bay, which we will talk about a bit later. Now back to the ground forces.   The 8th Area Army at Rabaul sent General Adachi and the 18th army to secure important areas west of Lae and Salamaua and to do so an offensive was launched against Wau. This prompted the Australian high command to send Brigadier Moten and the 17th brigade over to defend Wau in January of 1943. The battle to defend was tough, but the allies were able to prolong the Japanese advance long enough to transport enough troops to save Wau. The Japanese were sent retreating over to the Mubo area, but instead of pursuing the enemy, Moten limited his men's actions to patrols. The New Guinea force wished to pursue the Japanese, but was prevented by logistical difficulties. As the Australians gathered more strength, the Japanese prepared a second attempt to capture Way. This time the Japanese planned to approach Wau from the north, building a road from Markham point into the snake river valley. From there the Japanese advance would hit Wau. The 51st division was earmarked for the task, but the battle of the Bismarck sea had caused devastating losses to the convoy bringing them over in March of 1943.  The battle of the Bismarck sea had pressed upon the Japanese high command the increasing allied airpower, leading them to reformulate their plans. The Japanese began to construct a road to compensate for their inability to transport men and materials to New Guinea via the sea. As the Japanese did this, on the other side, the allies now felt very secure at Wau and were willing to perform some offensives. General Savige's 3rd division was given command of the Wau-Bulolo area. For this task he had the 17th brigade, the 2/3rd, 25th and 2/7th independent companies. It was believed the Japanese had around 5500 men around Lae and Salamaua with around 6-8 thousand at Madang and 9- 11 thousand at Wewak. Savige was ordered not to attack Salamaua directly, so he decided to establish firm bases as far forward as possible to harass the Japanese, basically you can see this as forward offensive patrol actions. Now the Japanese had dug in some defensive positions in places called the Pimple, Green Hill and Observation Hill which were along the main track from Wau to Mubo. On April 24th, the 2/7th independent company were given a new mission; to clear the Japanese from the vicinity of Mubo. Moten approved a plan for the seizure of the Pimple and Green Hill, ordering Major Warfe and his 2/3rd company to harass the Japanese logistical routes in Mubo as a distraction as the 2/7th hit the Pimple. The Japanese had made the Pimple a nightmare for the allied forces. They had taken defensive positions on commanding ground allowing for concealed ambushes. They cleared firing lanes to enable their machine guns to gundown anyone who took a forward approach. By holding the high grounds they also thwarted the allies from utilizing grenades effectively.   On the morning of April 24, after 20 minutes of air attacks by Boston aircraft against Green Hill, Stony Creek, Observation Hill and Kitchen Creek, the offensive kicked off with a two pronged attack. The 2/7th would start from the Vicker's ridge track, moving in two columns: one going along the Jap track towards the Pimple; the other would move north along the Laws track, a very difficult and quite unknown trail to try an encircle the Pimple from the west. When the two columns got within 100 yards of the pimple, they were met with light machine gun fire and snipers. The Australians attempted an all out assault in the late afternoon, but were unable to gain any ground. The next morning 3 Bostons came roaring in to strafe and bomb Green Hill while allied artillery began to bombard the Pimple. Despite the increased firepower the Australians still were unable to dislodge the enemy with their proceeding assaults. It turns out the Australians had greatly underestimate the defensive capabilities of the Pimple position. Reconnaissance had failed to pinpoint the enemy positions prior to the offensive. A major lack of communication between the two columns because they had no telephone lines or wireless communications led to a lack of coordination, neither allied column knew the plight of the other. Runners were used, but they were too slow and extremely vulnerable to Japanese snipers. The offensive was quickly falling apart as the Japanese continued to reinforce their lines. Meanwhile Warfe's men conducted a number of raids and ambushes in the Missim area, Komiatum Hill and Bobdubi Ridge. Warfe then sent a patrol from Namling along the Bench Cut track to ambush the Japanese at the junction between the Francisco river and the Buirali Creek. The ambush was a large success leading to the deaths of 18 Japanese. Warfe tried to perform an identical operation on April 28th, but this time his men were ambushed by the Japanese at Goodview junctions suffering considerable casualties. As a result of the forward patrolling of Warfe's men, the allies had learned the Dobdubi ridge area was defended quite lightly. Having learnt this, Ware decided to order a second platoon to capture the northern part of the ridge on April 27th. By the end of the month Warfe had two platoons spread over the Bobdubi ridge area, with a 3rd platoon held in reserve at Missim.  Over in his headquarters, Moten now realized the offensive against the Pimple was far too costly and he decided the men should simply bypass it. However the commander in the field, General Savige continued to launch attacks. The reason why Savige pressed on was because on April 28th, one of his reconnaissance patrols found a position on Pimple unoccupied and kicked seized it before the Japanese could return to man it. Colonel Guinn on the ground there deduced the Japanese must have been expecting an airstrike and momentarily left their positions. He therefore elected to order another company led by Captain Leslie Tatterson brought forward to assault the pimple. This time however, the allies used deception. Instead of launching an airstrike and artillery against the Pimple they passed over it and bombarded Green Hill. The deception did not work as planned and Saviges men yet again were unable to make any ground against the pimple. By early May the 2/7th battalion had lost 12 men dead with 25 wounded against the pimple with no end in sight. Meanwhile on May 3rd, an offensive was launched against the northern part of the Bobdubi ridge. The Australians were able to  fight their way close to the mouth of the Francisco river, prompting the Japanese to pull up reinforcements in the form of 70 SNLF marines from Salamua. A battle was fought in a place called the South Coconuts on May 5th. The Australians performed encircling maneuvers, managing to surround large pockets of the Japanese whom they smashed with artillery. The Australians were met with 3 major counter attacks but held their ground successfully occupying another place called the Center Coconuts by May 7th. However the Japanese then performed another counterattack, utilizing mortars to great effect, pushing the Australians back. The Japanese further reinforced the area with 60 additional men coming up from Salamaua, but they were ambushed by the Australians at the North Coconuts location suffering 20 casualties.     On May 9th, Captain Tattersons men were struck a lethal blow when they ran into a Japanese booby trap along the Jap Track. The Japanese opened fire upon the Australians on the track and began to encircle them. Colonel Guinn led a small force along the track to break the encirclement while Tatterson's men resisted tenaciously against the Japanese. Tatterson's force had been completely surrounded by the afternoon of May 9th and were in a state of desperation. The Australians utilized booby-traps, fire control and mass grenade attacks to force the Japanese to give them breathing room. The next day the Japanese launched a fierce attack against Tatterson's rear. The Australians could hear Japanese officers screaming orders as their riflemen poured lead upon them. As the Japanese pressed upon them they were receiving 500 additional reinforcements from the 102nd and 115th regiments. Meanwhile the 3rd battalion of the 102nd regiment in Nassau bay received orders “to capture the high area on the right bank of the Buyawim River fork” to be done in coordination with the May 9th attacks. This action would have endangered the allied positions at Lababia camp, but luckily the Japanese commander decided instead to hold a defensive positions at the bank of the Bitoi mouth. This allowed Colonel Guinn to concentrate some of his forces at Lababia camp. By May 11th, a company of 60 men managed to break the Japanese encirclement of Tatterson's men. According to Tatterson, by 7am on the 11th, the Japanese had continued to fire heavily upon his force, but made no further attempts to advance. It seemed to him the Japanese were actually withdrawing and the increased rifle fire and mortars was a cover. Tattersons men had been battered, he himself was wounded. His force received 12 casualties and estimated they had inflicted 100 casualties upon the enemy with possibly 50 deaths. Having saved Tatterson, Guinn reorganized his forward units and began to dig in along the Jap track and Lababia camp. From May 15th onwards the 17th brigade focused on aggressive patrolling in all sectors. Aggressive patrols each day harassed the Japanese around the Pimple and Observation Hill. The Australians set up booby-traps, practically paralyzing the Japanese troop movements outside their trenches. General Okabe received some much needed reinforcements over the course of the week and began to launch some limited attacks against the south, central and north Coconut areas. Okabe's forces were repelled on the 12th and 13th, but things would greatly change on the 14th.  The 14th saw a heavy shelling of the Bobdubi ridge area before Okabe launched a full scale attack that overwhelmed the Australian defenders forcing them to make a fighting withdrawal from the north and central area further down in the south coconut area. General Nakano was displeased with his troops and issued an address of instruction of May 17th, it is as follows  "In the attack at Bobdubi, although a certain group was advancing on a height on the enemy's flank, instead of really carrying out the attack in such a way as to prepare the way for an assault by our main force, they went no further than a vain firing at the enemy with their weapons. The spiritual and physical strength which was worn down in the Wau campaign is at the present time still lower, but I believe it can easily be restored if the officers will take the initiative, set an example and command as leaders of their men." Despite Nakano's criticism, his men would take a lot of ground forcing the Australians further south, dangerously close to Warfe's headquarters. Warfe realized maintaining the position would lead to heavy casualties, so he pulled his force out and took up a position at Namling.  It was quite fortunate as the day after he made this decision, 20 Japanese dive bombers strafed and bombed the village of Bobdubi. This was part of a Japanese heavy air raid that began on May 15th, culminating in over 100 Japanese aircraft hitting multiple Australian positions over the course of a few days. Three heavy raids were performed, but these air attacks focused general far into the Australian rear, leaving the forward positions rather untouched. On may 17th and 18th large formations of Japanese aircraft performed a raid against Wau's airfield. Although the Australians ultimately were forced to withdraw from many forward positions, such as Warfe's units, they managed the ultimate objective of operation Postern, to take Japanese resources away from Mubo and Lae. They had inflicted numerous casualties upon the Japanese including against Major General Okabe who had stepped on a booby trap that put a bullet through his right foot. Okabe had to be evacuated on the night of may 16th as a result, flown back over to Rabaul. Command was handed over to Major General Muroya Chuichi of the 51st division. The battle for Dobdubi was nowhere near done. General Nakano sent 170 soldiers of the 115th regiment on May 17th to attack Hote via the Malolo track. Nakano estimated the Australians had around 50 men defending Hote. The Japanese force ran into 25 Australians at Cissembob along the way and the defenders inflicted 50 casualties upon the Japanese before withdrawing towards Ohibe. One Australian commander at Cissembob had this to say about the engagement  "During this running fight, all men were under very heavy fire, but once again it was brought out what rotten shots the Japanese were. Not one of our boys were hit, and believe me things were hot." The Australians would return to the Hote area on the 22nd to find it completely deserted, so they simply reoccupied their lost positions. That is it for the New Guinea campaign, but other significant events unfolded for the Pacific War during this time period. On April 21st, with a heavy heart President Roosevelt announced to the American people the Japanese had executed several airmen from the famous Doolittle raid. To refresh your memories, 8 of the Doolittle pilots had been captured in Jiangsu province and put on military trial within China and sentenced to death “because of their act against humanity”. They were then transported to Tokyo where the Army ministry reviewed their case. Hideki Tojo initially opposed the death sentences for fearing the Americans would retaliate against Japanese living in America, he would be right about this. Sugiyama and the rest of the Army general staff however insisted on executing all 8 of the pilots who had contributed to the deaths of around 50 civilians and thwart possible future air raids against Japan. The executions would be authorized by an ex post facto military regulation specifically drafted by the army ministry. What is interesting to note, is Emperor Hirohito chose to intervene and commuted the punishment of 5 out of the 8 pilots. Why he allowed the other 3 to die in violation of international law is unknown as the Japanese destroyed nearly all documentation pertaining to prisoners of war by the end of the war. Some historians theorize Hirohito wished to demonstrate his benevolence. Yet again, this is one of those moments that showcases Hirohito was a very active participant, despite the claims made for decades after the war that he was merely a powerless hostage. The 3 men were executed via firing squad at a cemetery outside Shanghai in China on October 14th of 1942. It was not until april of 1943 that the Doolittle Raid operation was fully disclosed to the American public. The US war department said the chief reason for not explaining the full details of the Doolittle raid sooner was the need to bring the Doolittle pilots safely home and to prevent reprisals against their Chinese allies who aided the pilots. In April of 1943 the 5 surviving pilots were moved to Nanjing and in December of 1943 Pilot Robert Meder died of beri beri. He had been starving for months and rejected medical assistance. His death would result in improvements of conditions for the remaining 4 pilots. A truly tragic part of this war and to add to this I would like to read a short piece written by one of the pilots who survived the captivity and became a Christian missionary in Japan after the war.   I Was a Prisoner of Japan   By Jacob DeShazer   I was a prisoner of war for 40 long months, 34 of them in solitary confinement.   When I flew as a member of a bombing squadron on a raid over enemy territory on April 18, 1942, my heart was filled with bitter hatred for the people of that nation. When our plane ran out of petrol and the members of the crew of my plane had to parachute down into enemy-held territory and were captured by the enemy, the bitterness of my heart against my captors seemed more than I could bear.   Taken to prison with the survivors of another of our planes, we were imprisoned and beaten, half-starved, terribly tortured, and denied by solitary confinement even the comfort of association with one another. Three of my buddies were executed by a firing squad about six months after our capture and 14 months later, another one of them died of slow starvation. My hatred for the enemy nearly drove me crazy.   It was soon after the latter's death that I began to ponder the cause of such hatred between members of the human race. I wondered what it was that made one people hate another people and what made me hate them.   My thoughts turned toward what I heard about Christianity changing hatred between human beings into real brotherly love and I was gripped with a strange longing to examine the Christian's Bible to see if I could find the secret.   I begged my captors to get a Bible for me. At last, in the month of May, 1944, a guard brought me the book, but told me I could have it only for three weeks.   I eagerly began to read its pages. Chapter after chapter gripped my heart. In due time I came to the books of the prophets and found that their every writing seemed focused on a divine Redeemer from sin, One who was to be sent from heaven to be born in the form of a human babe. Their writings so fascinated me that I read them again and again until I had earnestly studied them through six times. Then I went on into the New Testament and there read of the birth of Jesus Christ, the One who actually fulfilled the very prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah, and the other Old Testament writers.   My heart rejoiced as I found confirmed in Acts 10:43, "To Him give all the prophets witness, that through His Name, whosoever believeth on Him shall receive remission of sins." After I carefully read this book of the Acts, I continued on into the study of the epistle Paul wrote to the Christians at Rome.   On June 8, 1944 the words in Romans 10:9 stood out boldly before my eyes: "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."   That very moment, God gave me grace to confess my sins to Him and He forgave me all my sins and saved me for Jesus' sake. I later found that His Word again promises this so clearly in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."   How my heart rejoiced in my newness of spiritual life, even though my body was suffering so terribly from the physical beatings and lack of food! But suddenly I discovered that God had given me new spiritual eyes and that when I looked at the enemy officers and guards who had starved and beaten my companions and me so cruelly, I found my bitter hatred for them changed to loving pity.   I realized that these people did not know anything about my Savior and that if Christ is not in a heart, it is natural to be cruel. I read in my Bible that while those who crucified Jesus had beaten Him and spit upon Him before He was nailed to the cross, on the cross He tenderly prayed in His moment of excruciating suffering, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."   And now, from the depths of my heart, I too prayed for God to forgive my torturers, and I determined by the aid of Christ to do my best to acquaint these people with the message of salvation that they might become as other believing Christians.   With His love controlling my heart, the 13th chapter of 1 Corinthians took on a living meaning: "Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in truth; beareth all things, believeth all things. Love never faileth."   A year passed by and during that year the memories of the weeks I had been permitted to spend with my Bible grew sweeter and sweeter day by day. Then, one day as I was sitting in my solitary confinement cell I became very sick. My heart was paining me, even as my fellow prisoner had told me his was paining him just before he died of starvation.   I slid down onto my knees and began to pray. The guards rushed in and began to punish me, but I kept right on praying. Finally they let me alone. God, in that hour, revealed unto me how to endure suffering.   At last freedom came. On August 20, 1945 parachutists dropped onto the prison grounds and released us from our cells. We were flown back to our own country and placed in hospitals where we slowly regained our physical strength.   I have completed my training in a Christian college, God having clearly commanded me: "Go, teach those people who held you prisoner, the way of salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ," and am now back in that land as a missionary, with one single purpose--to make Christ known.   I am sending this testimony to people everywhere, with the earnest prayer that a great host of people may confess Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.   Alongside the unfortunate news for the Americans on May 14th a major tragedy occurred for the Australians. At 4:10am on the 14th, the Australian Hospital Ship Centaur was on a run from Sydney to Port Moresby when she was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. The torpedo struck her portside oil fuel tank below the waterline, creating a 10 meter hole, igniting fuel and setting the ship ablaze. The ship was luckily not carrying patients, but held her normal crew staff, around 332 personnel on board. Many of those on board were killed instantly from the concussion blast, others from the blazing inferno. Centaur quickly took on water from her breach, rolled to port and sank bow-first, submerging within 3 minutes. Her rapid sinking prevented the deployment of lifeboats, though two would break off as she went down. According to Centaurs second officer Gordon Rippon, she was hit 44km northeast of Point Lookout. Of the 332 people onboard, only 64 would survive, most of the crew had been asleep when she was hit, giving barely a chance to react. It is estimated that 200 people may have been alive inside Centaur as she sank. Several who escaped the ship would die of shrapnel wounds or drown having found nothing to support them in the water. The survivors spent 36 hours in the water clinging to barrels, wreckage and two damaged lifeboats. The survivors drifted around 36 kms in the water going further north east. On the morning of May 15th, the destroyer USS Mugford departed Brisbane, escorted the New Zealand freighter Sussex when she saw some of the shipwrecked survivors. Sailors aboard the Mugford took up positions with rifles fending off sharks from the survivors. It took an hour and 20 minutes to rescue all 64 people. One of the survivors was sister Ellen Savage, the only surviving nurse from 12 aboard the Centaur. In 1944 Ellen Savage was presented the George Medal for providing medical care, boosting morale and displaying courage during the time they waited for rescue. The identity of the attacker was suspected to be a Japanese submarine. At the time of the attack three KD7 Kaidai class submarines were operating off Australians east coast; The I-177 commanded by Hajime Nakagawa, the I-178 commanded by Hidejiro Utsuki and the I-180 commanded by Toshio Kusaka. None of these submarines survived the Pacific War; the I-177 was sunk by the USS Samual S Miles on october 3rd of 1944; the I-178 was sunk by the USS Patterson on august 25th of 1943 and the i-180 was sunk by the USS Gilmore on april 26th of 1944. In December of 1943 following protests, the Japanese government issued an official statement denying any responsibility for the sinking of the Centaur. The sinking of a hospital ship was a war crime, and investigations were conducted between 1944-1948. The conclusion of the investigate suspected the I-177 of Nakagawa to be the most likely culprit, but there was not enough evidence, thus the case was closed on december 14th of 1948. Nakagawa survived the war and until his death in 1991 refused to speak about the suspected attack on the Centaur. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Australian and American forces in New Guinea were fighting tooth and nail towards their ultimate goal of Salamaua, trying to deceive the Japanese the whole while. Soon battles for Lae and Salamaua will be fought to rid New Guinea of the Japanese menace. 

Last time we spoke about Operation Vengeance, the assassination of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. When the decrypted intelligence hit Admiral Nimitz desk about the vulnerability of his Japanese rival, he wondered what he should do. Was it moral? Would it even benefit the allies, Yamamoto was arguably losing the war on his own? In the end he ordered the hit and sent the job over to Admiral Halsey who enthusiastically took the bull by the horns. A special squadron of P-38 Lightnings were sent over to perform an extremely precise interception of Yamamoto's G4M Betty aircraft enroute to Ballale airfield on Bougainville. Yamamoto's aircraft was shot down killing him and all those aboard it. The death of the admiral was hidden from the Japanese public for an entire month and upon learning of it the Japanese people all mourned. It was a terrible moment for the Japanese, one of the greatest had fallen, how would the rest of the war play out?  This episode is the Japanese counteroffensive in Arakan Welcome to the Pacific War Podcast Week by Week, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about world war two? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on world war two and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel you can find a few videos all the way from the Opium Wars of the 1800's until the end of the Pacific War in 1945.    Before we jump back into the CBI theater some action was heating up in New Guinea. The Okabe detachment was defeated during the battle of Wau seeing the Australians controlling the area from Waipali to Buibaining and much of the Mubo Valley. However the Japanese remained resilient and would not give up Mubo without a fight. Vigorous patrolling and ambushes were all the Australians could perform, because they did not have the necessary numbers to launch a major offensive. In early March General MacKay sent word to Blamey, advising him he believed the Japanese might try another shot to seize Wau. He believed even with the projected arrival of the 4th and 15th brigades they would still be outnumbered by the Japanese. MacKay estimated the Japanese had roughly 7500 men in the Lae-Salamaua area and were maintaining a formidable defense in the Mubo region. Therefore he wanted to continue to restrict their activity to patrols to prevent the Japanese from surprising Wau again and allowing vital time to build up the defenses. The attack on Mubo in January had not accomplished its objectives, but it did show the Japanese at Lae and Salamaua how much of a hornet's nest they had stirred up by attacking Wau. The Japanese were not done however and hoped to launch a counteroffensive. They planned to bring the 51st division in a large convoy across the Bismarck Sea. But as we saw in a previous episode this was met with catastrophe during the battle of the bismarck sea, denying the reinforcements, equipment and supplies the Japanese at Mubo desperately needed. 800 units, mostly from the 102 regiment held various positions at Mubo and they could not hope to launch a counteroffensive.  The supply situation in New Guinea remained a nightmare for both sides. In January Blamey authorized the construction of a new jeep trail going from Bulldog to Wau and it would take months to complete the 68 mile path. By April the Australians improved their situation in the Mubo area by occupying the heights called Saddle and Vicker's ridge. They began placing artillery on the heights and on the 20th began to bombard the Japanese position on Green Hill. On the 23rd, Major General Stanley Savige of the 3rd division established his Headquarters at Bulolo. Kanga force had been officially dissolved, thus henceforth the 3rd division was responsible for offensives in the Wau-Lae-Markham area. For months the focus had been on reinforcing Wau, expecting a major Japanese offensive. But the Australians had also maintained a small force 11 miles from Salamaua guarding the entrance to the Markham valley. The 2/3rd independent company was occupying in the vicinity of Missim village along the Francisco river between the Powerhouse and Salamaua. In early april they began performing reconnaissance of the area. On the 21st the ambushed a column of 60 Japanese managing to kill over 20 of them and wounding 15. Soon after their commander was notified by Moten that they were going to launch an offensive against Mubo finally set for the 24th. The offensive against Mubo was actually part of something grander. General Blamey planned to capture Lae forming a plan codenamed Operation postern which was quickly approved by General MacArthur. For the plan to work, the allies needed to trick General Adachi that Salamaua was the primary target for a major offensive. Thus to accomplish this, the Australians had the ⅔ independent company operate just a few miles from Salamaua. General Stanley Savige would not even be aware of these grander planes until June of 1943. Postern called for a large pincer movement, involving an amphibious assault east of Lae and an airborne assault near Nadzab 50 kms to the west of Lae. Planning for Postern had begun in May, with Generals Blamey and Herring proposing to seize Nadzab as soon as possible with Brigadier Eather's 25th Brigade and a parachute battalion, while the 9th Australian Division, now under the command of Major-General George Wooten, was to take Lae in early August. Nadzab was an obvious target, undefended and of immense value, not only for the Lae operation but also for extending the range of Allied air power. In the meantime Blamey had various forces drive the Japanese from key areas, but not to attack Salamaua directly. The Japanese were going to be in for a major surprise. But now we are turning over to the CBI theater. Last time we were speaking about General Irwins Arakan disaster and the mad onion man Wingate's operation Longcloth. Irwins blunders had cost countless lives and provided General Koga's 55th division ample time to regroup. By March 20th, Wavell, Irwin and Lloyd were accepting they would have to withdraw the forces to the Maungdaw-Buthidaung line. Wavell was incredibly pissed off and decided to make Lloyd a scapegoat. Lloyd was dismissed and replaced by Major General Lomax who was ordered to simply carry on doing what Lloyd had been doing. Lomax came just in time to meet General Koga's counteroffensive which practically annihilated the 47th brigade. Irwin looking to blame anyone and anything but himself, shifted the blame to the brigade itself rather than his tactical blunders and tried again to bring Slim into his mess. The British forces were forced to flee east of the Mayu river and this severely beat India morale which was already horrible to begin with.   Now how bad was morale? By early April morale had plummeted to an all time new low. This was because of the series of terrible defeats, terrible casualties and growing more from malaria. The 6th brigade wsa evacuating 50 men due to malaria a day. Despite using mepacrine as a suppressive treatment alongside anti-moquito nets, cream and wearing long clothes at night, in 8 weeks the 6th brigade lost half its total strength. Desertions were on the rise from many units, causing the British commanders a lot of anxiety over their loyalty.  General's Slim and Lomax met at Chittagong as Koga was sweeping everything before him. Both generals scoured over the maps and agreed, Koga's next logical step was an assault on the Maungdaw-Buthidaung line. To meet this attack, Slim and Lomax devised a stratagem for catching Koga in a box along the Mayu peninsula. The box was to involve 6 battalions, two on the ridges of the Mayu hills, two along the mayu river and two in the hills south of the Maungdaw-Buthidaung road. The idea was to let the Japanese advance through the most likely location, some tunnels on a disused railway track. Once the Japanese were along the tunnels, they would close the lid on the box using a force of brigade level strength. The hope was to achieve a perfect encirclement, chasing the legendary glory of Hannibal's victory at the battle of Cannae. To do this they had exhausted and unbelievably demoralized men and would have to achieve a scheme of geometric perfection.  The troops Lomax came to command were shaken badly, malaria riden battalions, departing the disastrous Arakan campaign at the point of exhaustion. There were no trained formations available in India to replace them, thus they would have to be retained in combat. By early April, Lomax had skillfully managed to stabilize the front at the Maungdaw-Buthidaung. On April 14th Marshall Wavell had appointed General Slim's 15th corps to lead the British-Indian forces retreat. The Japanese sensing weakness amongst the allied forces continued their advance. On April 24th, the Japanese reached the British defenses at Buthidaung and Maungdaw. The 55th indian Brigade held the first attack at Kanthe while carefully preparing their entrapment box strategy, pushing the Japanese advance along the spine of the Mayu mountains; however it all went to shit. Two demoralized battalions gave way to Japanese pressure, breaking the box. This forced everything to come undone and soon the British-Indian forces were yet again performing a fighting withdrawal going north.  It was reported that the fighting efficiency was so low by April 28th, the men of the 8/13th frontier force regiment had literally fired off all their ammunition at an imaginary opponent, and when they actually were attacked the next day they had no option but to retreat. The withdrawal culminated with the capture of Buthidaung on May 9th. The 55th brigade narrowly escaped annihilation by abandoning their vehicles and heavy equipment while limping by foot over some jungle covered hills to safety. Five days later the port of Maungdaw was evacuated and the British-Indian defenders began to take up defensive positions in the open rice-field country near Cox's Bazar. As General Slim noted “Our only hope of stabilizing the front, if the Japanese really pushed us, was to hold the rice-field country. Our men were still untrained for the jungle; they feared it more than they did the enemy. We had to select areas where we could give our troops reasonable fields of fire and open maneuver.‘It was too much like 1942 over again, with the added bitterness that this time we had been defeated by forces smaller than our own.” Slim was very better about the entire ordeal. To make matters worse, the men only pulled out after Slim's incessant pressure applied to Lomax, because Irwin was counter arguing they should toss the kitchen sink for a siege strategy. All the way over in London Sir Winston Churchill had this to say “‘This campaign goes from bad to worse, and we are being completely outfought and outmanoeuvred by the Japanese. Luckily the small scale of the operations and the attraction of other events has prevented public opinion being directed upon this lamentable scene.” Churchill was writing at a time, after the Anglo-American victory in North Africa and the crushing soviet victory at Stalingrad. It was obvious to Churchill and the other allied leadership, Europe was won. Churchill was furious with Wavell, a man he never really liked. The Americans likewise were not happy with Wavell. Meanwhile Irwin kept blaming everyone except himself, even sending reports of how cowardly his troops were. Irwins last absurdity was to signal a recommendation that General Slim by removed from commanding the 15th corps. But Wavell, under severe criticism of himself by this point was determined that Irwin would be canned. Slim was ordered to report to Irwin's HQ. Slim told his colleagues around him he was about to be dismissed as he made his way. When he got to Irwin he was met with this ‘You're not sacked. I am.' Upon hearing this, Slim remarked: ‘I think this calls for the opening of a bottle of port or something if we have one.'   The British-Indians forces had  916 dead, 2889 wounded and 1252 missing; the Indian high command had suffered another heavy blow, with the myth of Japanese superiority, excellence and skill as a jungle fighter being strongly reinforced in the minds of British and Indian troops, something that gravely affected their morale General Slim held a rather remarkable ability, mental toughness with some extraordinary resistance to stress. The frustrations of all the defeats and the constant shuffling between HQs and the front was a lot to bear. Slim actually found something positive about the Arakan disaster. The British battle casualties were high, but they could have been a hell of a lot higher, given Irwins insistance to perform endless frontal attacks. The British had learnt valuable lessons about the Japanese and the lack of their own training in specific areas. There had been over 7500 cases of malaria and they were only truly learning on the spot how to deal with the pesky disease. Troops heanceforth would be routinely issued with mosquito nets, repellents and by autumn of 1943 a wonder drug was developed, Mepacrine which significantly helped with the symptoms of malaria.  But by far and large the most significant long term development in 1942-1943 was the gradual reasseration of allied air superiorirty. By the end of 1942, 150 new airfields were constructed, RAF pilots and aircraft began to arrive to them in large numbers and the Americans had sent 10,000 air force personnel to serve in the CBI theater. Heavy B-24 Liberator bombers began to appear at the battlefront for the first time and in November of 1942 some made the spectacular 2760 mile return trip after bombing Bangkok. The Japanese quickly realized their proposed Burma-Siam railway was very vulnerable. When the war in the middle east came to a close in early 1943, the US army airforce transferred a ton of their heavy bombers to the far east. Bombing raids on Bangkok, Rangoon and Mandalay were increased significantly by Christmas of 1942. The Japanese were gradually losing their air superiorirty and this was deeply troubling for them.  During the Arakan campaign a Japanese colonel issued the following orders ‘There must be no fear of aircraft. As long as you are not discovered you must seek to remain so. If once our position is revealed, the enemy planes must be shot down. It is not permissible to suppose that our soldiers are no match for aircraft.' The Japanese were forced to yield the skies over Arakan even though they had taken its ground. The RAG would conduct search and destroy missions over Thaitkido, Buthidaung, Sinho and Akyab island in June. 6 Hurricanes would escort some Blenheim bombers on a long range raid against Ramree island, even though they were not safe. Allied air superiority would eventually become the crucial factor to win the struggle over Burma. Now we cant talk about Burma without talking a bit more about the mad onion man Wingate. While the Arakan campaign was coming to its disastrous conclusion, Operation Longcloth had reached its own. The last remaining columns made their way back to allied territory. 2182 returned out of the original 3000 men that entered Burma; an estimated 818 men had been killed, taken prisoner or died of disease. There was a ton of criticism tossed at the operation and the effectiveness of the Chindits, but the operation was moderately successful. To be brutally honest, the Burma campaign had basically no success stories except for the Chindits, thus it got inflated quite heavily. Wavell was very pleased with the performance of Wingate's forces, so much so he put in an order to form the new Long Range Penetration group, the 111th Indian Brigade. Wavell handpicked their commander, Brigadier William Lentaigne who would come to hate Wingate and Wingate hated him haha. The success of the Chindits would be tossed in all the major headlines of every newspaper from England to India. The British had to do something to raise morale and the Chindits kind of just fell into it. Now one last major event that occurred during all of this was a major conference. Wavell had been flown to Washington to partake in the Trident Conference which was carried from May 12-25th. The main focus of the conference was on the European theater, in fact there was an obsession over the Mediterranean cross channel invasion plans. When it came to theaters like Burma there was little interest. In fact Churchill would often only talk about Singapore when the east was brought up, showcasing full and well he only sought to revitalize the prestige of the British empire over other things. Churchill was quite in favor of bypassing Burma which he viewed as only being beneficial to China, a subject he could not understand why FDR obsessed over. It seemed the Churchill FDR regarded China as the emerging dominant power in the far east, while he only regarded CHina as a pacific power, ignoring China's claims over Tibet, Mongolia and northeastern Burma, and of course Churchill would completely ignore any mention of Hong Kong. FDR was seen to be extremely Pro-Chiang Kai-shek, almost maniac by British accounts. The British began to adopt a machiavellian stance of supporting Chiang Kai-shek and Chennault's airpower idea, thinking it would surely fail, which served Britain just fine.  Meanwhile, Vinegar Joseph Stilwell also at the Trident conference, kept trying to persuade his president that Chiang Kai-Shek was cunning and quite evil. He stressed the danger of American becoming a solitary atlas bearing the burden of the world because the British were outplaying them. He underlined Chiang Kai-sheks ambitions to get rid of him and replace him with a “yes man”, so he could acquire lendlease material for his own ends without any pushbacks. Stilwell recommended sending US troops to the CBI theater; to get Chiang Kai-shek to make specific commitments and stop wiggling around issues and above all to stop Chiang Kai-sheks stab-in-the-back secret diplomacy antics. Stilwell would find the British at Trident very unimpressed with him and his opinions. Stilwell also chose to bitterly argue with Field Marshal Alanbrooke, the chief of the imperial staff and a rampant Americanphobe. It got so bad, George Marshall told Stimson ‘Stilwell shut up like a clam and made an unfavourable impression.'  During the conference FDR did ask Stilwell in private what he thought of Chiang Kai-shek to which Stilwell said ‘He's a vacillating, tricky, undependable old scoundrel who never keeps his word.' By contrast Chennault, when asked a similar question, replied: ‘Sir, I think the generalissimo is one of the two or three greatest military and political leaders in the world today. He has never broken a commitment or promise made to me.' Meanwhile Chiang Kai-sheks representatives including his wife were threatening to pull out of Burma and to make a separate peace with Japan, unless the British finally took action to seize Rangoon. Instead it was agreed, more supplies would be tossed over the Hump and for the future operation Anakim to be shelved, to which Stilwell argued that if the allies waited another year before launching a land-based campaign, China would collapse.  Trident was chaotic as hell. Admiral King slammed the table with his fists many times violently supporting Marshall and Stilwell. King and Marshall wanted the land route to China open, but the British kept tossing their support for the Hump operations. Stilwell was not having a good time, but then he had a surprising victory. Stilwell met with Churchill privately, complaining about the abysmal situation in Burma, and Churchill 100% agreed with his criticisms. Churchill acknowledged the high command in India was terrible and that he was going to replace Wavell. As Stilwell wrote after the experience.   “With Wavell in command, failure was inevitable; he had nothing to offer at any meeting except protestations that the thing was impossible, hopeless, impractical. Churchill even spoke of it as silly. The Limeys all wanted to wait another year. After the Akyab fiasco, the four Japanese divisions in Burma have been scared to death. The inevitable conclusion was that Churchill has Roosevelt in his pocket. That they are looking for an easy way, a short cut for England, and that no attention must be diverted from the Continent at any cost. The Limeys are not interested in the war in the Pacific, and with the President hypnotised they are sitting pretty. Roosevelt wouldn't let me speak my piece. I interrupted twice but Churchill kept pulling away from the subject and it was impossible.' Thus Wavell was as they say “kicked up stairs”, promoted to viceroy of India and replaced as commander in India with Sir Claude Auchinleck. Stilwell returned to China and participated on a celebrity tour arranged by George Marshall to heighten his profile. Once that was done, Stilwell fell into a depression writing this  “‘Back to find Chiang same as ever – a grasping, bigoted, ungrateful little rattlesnake.Any Jap threat will put the Peanut in an uproar, and if they are wise they will repeat their attempt, for this if for no other reason. And if they seriously want to gain the game, they can attack Kunming or Chungking, or both, with five divisions on either line and finish the matter. If we sting them badly enough in the air, they are almost sure to try it . . . The Peanut's promise of picked men for India is so much wind; last year 68% of the men sent were rejected for trachoma or skin disease . . . This is going beyond all bounds. This insect, this stink in the nostrils, superciliously inquires what we will do, who are breaking our backs to help him, supplying everything – troops, equipment, planes, medical, signal, motor services, setting up his goddam SOS, training his lousy troops, backing his dastardly chief of staff, and general staff, and he the Jovian dictator, who starves his troops and is the world's worst ignoramus, picks flaws in our preparations and hems and haws about the Navy, God save us.” Stilwell's frustration was a bit understandable as Chiang Kai-shek had still not replied to FDR about if or when he could commit forces into Burma again. Stilwell was baffled by his nations continued support of what he saw as a fascist regime in China, while simultaneously fighting the fascist regimes in Europe. What Stilwell really wanted was to be made field commander in China, and if he ever got that position, the first thing he would do was cancel the lendlease. Things were not going so well for the married couple of Vinegar Joe and Peanut. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Things were not going well in Burma to say the least. Well except for the Chindits minor success, but that simply could not overcome the incredible low morale of the far east allied forces in the face of what seemed an unstoppable Japanese goliath. 

A re-watch with an erotic novel, weird massages and wedding budgets. This one runs the gamut of comedy. Our list of general wondering-ments though! Ross, the bachelor, with a delicately prepared salad in a wooden salad bowl with matching wooden spoons for dinner? We have questions. Is anybody on Monica's side of the wedding budget debate with Chandler? What exactly is a Vicker? Joey climbing into Rachel's bed with his shoes on....ewwww! Joey stumbles upon an erotic novel that Rachel has hidden in her bedroom and he is never going to let her live this down. Phoebe moves in with Ross for a few days to give Monica and Chandler some privacy, but Ross didn't realize that also meant she would be massaging clients in his living room. Jack and Judy have spent all of the money in Monica's wedding fund so now she and Chandler must pay for it on their own. But, first, they have to agree on how much they are willing to spend. All clips are property of Warner Media. Find us on Insta! Leave us 5 stars and a review. Thank you so much for listening!

   Slam the Gavel welcomes new guest, Rhonda Vicker to the podcast. Rhonda has the unique perspective of having been involved in TWO different custody cases, in TWO different counties, each being on opposite ends of the “alienation” spectrum.  Because of this, she has been able to see firsthand the influence of the AFCC (Association Of Family And Conciliation Courts), in establishing “county culture” within the Family Court system.     Bringing awareness to the Family Court issues and banding together with other Family Court victims are key components to ultimately achieving necessary REFORM.  GAG ORDERS are the Court's WEAPON of choice to PREVENT this from happening.    Currently, Rhonda is embroiled in a custody dispute in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania,  where she recently became a Pro Se Litigant.  Court sanctioned ALIENATION is a very REAL concept and is a prevalent factor in her case.  Throughout the life of her case she has fought hard to make sense of it all and has begun to slowly peel back the LAYERS of Family Court CORRUPTION and wants to bring awareness and help other mothers and fathers also STRUGGLING with a SYSTEM that the general public falsely BELIEVES is inherently GOOD.  IT'S NOT!      **CORRECTION: The Parenting Institute was founded by Dr. Wilson, not Bliss**    Judge Jessel Costa (son of Senator Jay Costa) is her presiding Judge.  Recently Rhonda appeared in court for the first time before him as a Pro Se Litigant and it didn't take long for Rhonda to become painfully AWARE that justice will not be served in her case.  Litigation began in October of 2020 and currently her trial is continued generally.  Throughout this time Rhonda has uncovered several instances of CORRUPTION amongst the Family Court PLAYERS involved and fully expects RETALIATION in exchange.     Rhonda welcomes other protective parents to reach out to her on Facebook through the following link to her page:https://www.facebook.com/rhonda.vicker.7?__cft__[0]=AZWlI-pTBYWxgI5Ctytqa4_T0RHDH6nvXQbf8hc-4rgU_oKxLR8CE3xKHZfTB_wWqg8V8r7rjr_15LHr_3s3YA9TMs423IkyJwImVLrHmG47qx8b7nAjcHXGJloKKjm3PAtvNCYaj8gqyTCZL-alADycMmRPQkATM4W45ZgzjHVQmw&__tn__=-]K-ROr she can be reached by email at: stopthemadness15219@gmail.comSupportshow(https://www.buymeacoffee.com/maryannpetri)https://www.buzzsprout.com/1364944/subscribedismantlingfamilycourtcorruption.comSupport the showSupportshow(https://www.buymeacoffee.com/maryannpetri)http://www.dismantlingfamilycourtcorruption.com/

 Slam the Gavel welcomes new guest, Rhonda Vicker to the podcast. Rhonda has the unique perspective of having been involved in TWO different custody cases, in TWO different counties, each being on opposite ends of the “alienation” spectrum.  Because of this, she has been able to see firsthand the influence of the AFCC (Association Of Family And Conciliation Courts), in establishing “county culture” within the Family Court system.     CORRECTION: The Parenting Institute was founded by Dr. Wilson, not Bliss** Bringing awareness to the Family Court issues and banding together with other Family Court victims are key components to ultimately achieving necessary REFORM.  GAG ORDERS are the Court's WEAPON of choice to PREVENT this from happening.    Currently, Rhonda is embroiled in a custody dispute in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania,  where she recently became a Pro Se Litigant.  Court sanctioned ALIENATION is a very REAL concept and is a prevalent factor in her case.  Throughout the life of her case she has fought hard to make sense of it all and has begun to slowly peel back the LAYERS of Family Court CORRUPTION and wants to bring awareness and help other mothers and fathers also STRUGGLING with a SYSTEM that the general public falsely BELIEVES is inherently GOOD.  IT'S NOT!    Judge Jessel Costa (son of Senator Jay Costa) is her presiding Judge.  Recently Rhonda appeared in court for the first time before him as a Pro Se Litigant and it didn't take long for Rhonda to become painfully AWARE that justice will not be served in her case.  Litigation began in October of 2020 and currently her trial is continued generally.  Throughout this time Rhonda has uncovered several instances of CORRUPTION amongst the Family Court PLAYERS involved and fully expects RETALIATION in exchange.     Rhonda welcomes other protective parents to reach out to her on Facebook through the following link to her page: https://www.facebook.com/rhonda.vicker.7?__cft__[0]=AZWlI-pTBYWxgI5Ctytqa4_T0RHDH6nvXQbf8hc-4rgU_oKxLR8CE3xKHZfTB_wWqg8V8r7rjr_15LHr_3s3YA9TMs423IkyJwImVLrHmG47qx8b7nAjcHXGJloKKjm3PAtvNCYaj8gqyTCZL-alADycMmRPQkATM4W45ZgzjHVQmw&__tn__=-]K-R Or she can be reached by email at: stopthemadness15219@gmail.com Supportshow(https://www.buymeacoffee.com/maryannpetri)https://www.buzzsprout.com/1364944/subscribedismantlingfamilycourtcorruption.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/maryann-petri/support

Dave, Devan, Michael, and special guest Bradley Suedbeck hop aboard Vicker's lifeboat for some bubbly and continue the discussion on Prometheus, this time focusing on the characters and deleted scenes from the film.  The crew explore how well the various characters worked within the film, where they fell short, and who among them stood out the most.  They also examine some of Prometheus' many deleted and edited scenes, and which ones they felt should've been kept in the final cut.  Thank you again for listening and supporting us!  Stay frosty! 

You'll be shocked when you learn the Rolls Royce and Bentley sale details and what was sold, licensed, and protected. An epic story of Brand. Dave Young: Welcome to the Empire Builders podcast, teaching business owners the not so secret techniques that took famous businesses from mom and pop to major brands. Stephen Semple is a Marketing Consultant, story collector, and storyteller. I'm Stephen's sidekick and business partner, Dave Young. Before we get into today's episode, a word from our sponsor, which is, well, it's us. But we're highlighting ads we've written and produced for our clients. So, here's one of those. [Bolenhour Power Equipment Ad] Dave Young: Dave Young, alongside Stephen Semple here for another episode of the Empire Builders podcast. And Stephen, we're going upscale today. Huh? Rolls Royce. Stephen Semple: We're going highfalutin. Yep. Going to talk about Rolls Royce. Dave Young: Should I be looking out my window to see when it's going to come pick me up? Because we should be recording this in the Rolls Royce, shouldn't we? Stephen Semple: That would be fun, wouldn't it? That would be fun. Dave Young: Wouldn't it? Stephen Semple: Yeah. Have you ever had a chance to ride in a Rolls Royce? Dave Young: I may have one time. Stephen Semple: They are beautiful. But here's the interesting thing about Rolls Royce. You know how we often talk about brands having a value in that there's a value to the brand, and there's a value to the name and all those things. It's very difficult to actually quantify what that value is. But here's an interesting example, is Rolls Royce. Because back in 1998, Vicker sold Rolls Royce. Now, here's the thing, Rolls Royce was two brands. Was Rolls Royce and Bentley. And Vickers sold Bentley to VW. So, Volkswagen bought Bentley for 430 million pounds. And this included Bentley in all of the assets of Rolls Royce. So include the plant, the people, everything else, but it did not include the Rolls Royce name. Vickers refused to sell the Rolls Royce name to Volkswagen. And if we go back to episode 21, there may be some hints in terms of how the British felt about Volkswagen specifically. Dave Young: Yeah. Exactly. Right? And Vickers and Rolls Royce made all these big Rolls Royce V12s for the World War II fighters. Yeah. I can see a little hesitancy in not turning over the brand Rolls Royce to the Germans. Stephen Semple: Well specifically Volkswagen, but here's the thing. So the name and the logo was bought by BMW. Dave Young: Also German, but not Volkswagen. Stephen Semple: Yeah. So, here says interesting sale where one company buys Bentley and all the plants, and equipment, and real estate, and assets. And the other just buys the name and the logo. That's all they got and they paid 40 million pounds for it. So a really interesting example of the fact that there really, and truly is a value in a brand. Dave Young: And they had to not reinvent, but rediscover what a Rolls Royce car was after that. Right? It becomes not what it was. Stephen Semple: They had to build a whole factory. Now, the interesting thing is there was this three-year transition period where Volkswagen could continue to make cars for BMW and things like that. But what always gets me thinking, it's really interesting, as soon as a business starts to stumble or whatever, what's the first thing that they do is they go, well, let's cut expenses. And what's often one of the first expense that gets cut is marketing and brand building. And it's interesting how businesses view that as being an expense when in fact a brand has value. Stephen Semple: And the other thing that also amazes me is they'll buy a piece of equipment, and that piece of equipment is an asset even though it makes nothing. If it doesn't work, if there's not things going through it and it depreciates. One is an investment and the other is an expense and it's on...

My guest this week is Gus Vickery, MD In this episode, Gus Vickery, MD and I discuss optimizing your life through focusing on metabolic health, longevity and high performance. We talk about doing this through appropriate lab work, diet, peptides and supplements. We also touch on how to treat an active COVID-19 infection as well as long-haul covid. Dr. Vickery has a list of things he has seen work best in his practice to support adverse effects of COVID-19 like inflammation from covid, blood complications, and more! Learn more about Gus Vickery, MD at https://drgusvickery.com/ or https://wildhealthasheville.com/   SPONSOR OFFER DrinkHRW.com To get the most out of any therapy it is crucial to address the foundations of health.  Molecular Hydrogen addresses  these foundations through its ability to help to manage reactive oxygen species (ROS), inflammation and improve metabolic balance.  I drink molecular hydrogen water every morning before anything else and have my clients do the same.  Anecdotally we have seen improvements in blood sugar control, pain from arthritis and even cognitive function in a Parkinson's patient.  Ongoing research is demonstrating the many ways that molecular hydrogen can support human health.    Visit drinkhrw.com/superhuman and use code: Longevity for 15% off EPISODE TAKEAWAYS [04:44] Dr. Vicker's short story of how he got where he is today… [09:00] Metabolic health, longevity and high performance.. [16:30] How do you treat insulin resistance in an older athlete who is eating right, sleeping well and still has high blood sugar?.. [22:19] How to exercise before and after meals to help with blood sugar regulation… [24:32] What metabolic markers should people be looking for?.. [33:50] What is the truth about LDL?.. [40:35] Post covid and long haul covid healing strategies… [57:00] Healing tendons with BPC-157… [64:20] What are the top things you can do for your health?..   LINKAGE https://drgusvickery.com/ https://wildhealthasheville.com/   FOLLOW NAT Facebook Facebook Group  Instagram Work with Nat: Book Your 20 MInute Optimization Consult Nat Retreat

The crew of the Titan's Mercy experiences an odd encounter and Vicker's wild game of show and tell...

Chronic disease globally is linked to the gut microbiome, so what if the food New Zealand produces could be sold at a premium if we move towards farming for nutrient density rather than per kilo of a product? “The microbiome is so important to human, animal and soil health, so let's reward forward-thinking farmers for producing nutrient-dense food,” explains the Vicker sisters. Our Sarah's Country Sister this week are actually sisters, twin sisters in fact! Sarah Perriam discusses with Katie Vickers, Head of Sustainability at Farmlands Co-Operative and Sarah Vickers, holistic health coach at BePure Clinic: Their farming upbringing with an alternative view of soil health from their farming father growing up in Marlborough after emigrating from the UK.Functional food is a growth area for both industries, as Katie explains, even more so now since she did her Kellogg's in nutrient-dense food as a market opportunity for New Zealand farmers.As a registered nurse, Sarah has seen first-hand how today's stressful lifestyles can lead to poor health outcomes and can't understand how we have lost touch from our ancestral knowledge. Katie explains the disruptive technology coming at farming food with consumers armed with spectrometers to select food based on its nutrient density and our need to get ahead of the curve. To read Katie's Kellogg report, https://ruralleaders.co.nz/putting-the-food-back-into-food-what-will-it-take-for-our-primary-industry-to-produce-nutrient-dense-food/ To learn more about BePure visit, https://www.bepure.co.nz/

Dr Finian Tan is a Singaporean venture capitalist and Chairman of Vickers Venture Partners: a VC he founded in 2005 with 4 other partners and which is now ranked the 5th most consistently performing fund manager worldwide. Prior to Vickers, Finian was inter alia: * Regional Director & Head at J.Aron - Goldman Sachs' Asian trading arm; * Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Trade and Industry for the Singapore Government, where he oversaw the creation of the $1 billion dollar TIF fund (he was subsequently appointed as chairman of the said fund); and * A Managing Director at Draper Fisher Jurvetson Eplanet & the founding partner of its Asia Pacific Operations, where he led the investment into Baidu and remained its largest backer until IPO. But how did it all begin? Born on St Finian of Clonard's Day, Finian had what might be considered an ‘unconventional' childhood for someone who grew up in Singapore. He would spend his days on the beach with friends and family crabbing, spearfishing, snorkeling, and swimming in the sea! He ended up studying engineering at Singapore Polytechnic before pursuing a degree at Glasgow University where he swept all of the academic awards. In this STIMY episode, Finian shares: * 4:10: What it was like growing up in Singapore in the 1960s * 6:14: How he ended up studying engineering at Singapore Polytechnic * 8:19: How the bankruptcy of his father's company impacted his family * 9:15: Planning it “like a war” to win all the academic awards at Glasgow University * 13:09: Completing his Masters & PhD at Cambridge University * 15:05: Working as a Chief Trader at Shell * 15:51: Being poached by Goldman Sachs & later heading J.Aron - the Asian arm of Goldman Sachs * 18:12: Why Finian decided to leave Goldman Sachs to become the Deputy Secretary of Singapore's Ministry of Trade & Industry * 24:21: Joining Draper Fisher Jurvetson Eplanet & figuring out where to invest by drawing a line in his book * 27:01: Why Finian chose Baidu to be his first & only investment (at $7.5 million!) * 28:57: Big decisions made by the Baidu board * 31:51: Founding Vickers Venture Partners * 34:15: Building Vicker's reputation in the VC space * 35:07: Best platforms to generate deal flow * 36:44: Why Vickers pivoted into the deep tech space * 44:24: Investing in Samumed, which is working to reverse aging by drugging the Wnt signaling pathway! * 47:05: How Emergex is involved in the COVID-19 vaccine fight * 55:31: RWDC - a company that is creating 100% biodegradable plastic that looks, feels & costs like plastic * 58:01: The silver bullet * 1:00:28: Spending time with entrepreneurs * 1:01:52: Values that Finian looks for * 1:03:01: What went wrong with 24 Quan (Finian's biggest investment failure) * 1:05:31: How Eavor is making breakthroughs in the geothermal space * 1:12:13: Plans for Vicker's Fund IV * 1:15:21: Institutionalising knowledge as part of Vicker's succession plan * 1:17:11: What Finian looks for when hiring someone * 1:32:17: “To whom much is given, much is required” * 1:37:16: Charity Water & education in Africa Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/30

Gabe is an outstanding distance runner for the Ankeny Centennial Jaguars. He is getting a jump start on his training for this fall cross country season in order to give himself the best shot possible to achieve his ultimate goal of winning a state title. Listen to him talk about what it was like to have the opportunity to run with his brother in the state 3200 meter race last spring.Twitter:@gabriel_vickerSponsor Information:Thank you to Final Surge for sponsoring the podcast. Checkout their outstanding training and coaching platform to help you organize your programs and find ways to increase your performance. Enter code: "XLR8" for 10% off of any coaching plan at checkout.https://www.finalsurge.com/Follow Us:Twitter: @LabXlr8Instagram: xlr8performancelabWebsite: www.xlr8-performancelab.com  Email: info@xlr8-performancelab.com

Have you heard that ads suck?  Yeah, yeah?  Well they do.  Especially this Frank Thomas gem.  What is the Big Hurt hocking?  A rock hard…paycheck.    https://deadseriousness.com/can-talk-creepy-frank-thomas-nugenix-commercials/   Advice starts this week with a question from our German fanboy, Moritz.  What should he watch out for on his mission trip to Guatemala?    Do you think that a FPD should be automatically placed with every extraction?  This one Redditor does.  We bet oral surgeons agree.  They are going to love prepping bridges and making temps!    Also, do you think that everyone has perfect teeth?  Do you think people have “gills of rotting teeth?”  Yeah, we don’t know what the hell that means either.  If people had gills, they could breathe with my handpick water spraying down their throat.  That would be a great evolutionary step in our eyes.    You cheese bags need to stay fresh..   

The Lonely EntertainerThe chemical bath was his favorite time of day. Yes, the specially treated water burned. He did have to strip naked in front of a team of scientists. And in the few months since he’d been brought here, the chlorine in the water had bleached his once gray-brown hair a strange shade of platinum-blonde -meets-muted-green. None of that bothered Harry Ludlow very much though. Because in spite of all the discomfort and inconvenience, the few minutes in that big plastic tub were the only time he had any real company. More importantly, it was the only time he had an audience.The scientists weren’t much for conversation. There must’ve been some rules that stopped them from chatting on the job. Besides, they all wore gloves and facemasks and full plastic hazmat suits from head to toe. Probably couldn’t talk in one of those things even if you wanted to. None of that stopped Harry from trying to get a reaction. In the beginning he’d gone for the low-hanging fruit. Fake drowning. Star Wars references. One day a scientist reached down, as always, to scrub his ballsack. Harry asked if he was gonna have to give him a tip. He thought he heard one of them snort, but he couldn’t be sure. Probably the best day so far had been when they’d come into the room and found his lips puckered, his legs artfully crossed, and his eyes reading an obvious “come hither”. He hoped they’d enjoyed that one as much as he did.After the first week or so locked in the facility, he burned through the easy material. Luckily, in his life before all this, Harry had been a comedian. Not a rich one, or a famous one, or if he was being honest with himself even a particularly good one. But he was comfortable on stage, heckled an audience in a way they enjoyed, and was at least alright with impressions. The last few days he’d enjoyed barking the scientists around in his increasingly convincing President Ward impression. No reaction. But this morning there had been a man in a suit standing in the glass observation area outside the washroom. When Harry proclaimed in the President’s signature Southern drawl that his “diet of corn and Omaha beef” was what made him immune to Vicker’s disease, the man in the suit definitely laughed. Harry tried to get a read on him but then the scientists yanked his attention back to the tub with their scrubbing.After the wash, Harry was dressed and lead back to his room. The door was vacuum-sealed, and once again he was left alone with his bed, his books, and a television. He chose the TV and put on a nature documentary. A giraffe fight was exactly what he needed. He’d burned through most of the good shows and movies in his first month or two, and he hated flipping channels. Even before all this, he especially hated the news. Now it was even worse. The same thing every day. Vicker’s Disease. No one wanted to talk about anything else. And considering his particular situation, Harry had heard more than enough. Giraffes were far better than talking heads.But before he could settle into watching the documentary, a flashing red box appeared on the center of the screen while a loud buzzing sound drowned out the audio. Harry groaned. The buzzing stopped and a familiar European man appeared on screen.“It’s Doctor Konig,” the voice squawked, “Are you there Harry?”“Yeah, I’m here.”“We managed to find some video that I want to walk through with you.”“Ok,” Harry said, happy to be doing almost anything, “Let’s see it.”There was a pause and then Doctor Konig’s face disappeared from the screen. In its place there was black and white security footage of a mall. A homeless man was stumbling around before he fell to his knees and started waving for help while he grabbed at his chest. Everyone ignored him. After another thirty seconds, he fell over face first in the middle of the marble floor outside the jewelry store. People formed a little circle around the man and eventually a pair of mall cops came over. They flipped the homeless man onto his back. At that moment a cloud of what looked like dust spurted from his mouth. Harry leaned forward in his chair. This was new information.The people in the video looked shocked, and the guards dragged the man’s lifeless body somewhere off screen.“Do you know this man?” Doctor Konig said.“I don’t think so.”The video sped up. People rushed around in a blur and for a while things seemed normal. Then in half a second everything changed. People started running around like they were mad. Just off screen and to the left he knew police had sealed the mall’s main entrance. All of the entrances in fact. Because of the speed it only took a minute or two before the people on screen started to get sluggish. Then they collapsed. And after that the bodies coughed their own clouds of dust. Soon there was no movement on screen at all. But Harry knew well that at this point other video showed a man still moving, still alive, but alone, scared, and very confused. Surviving on nothing but protein bars from the Equinox gym on the second floor. The video cut out once men in hazmat suits appeared on screen. Doctor Konig’s face returned to the TV.“Did you guys really have to leave me in there for a week?” Harry said.“That was a decision made be your government. I was completely uninvolved. Although my understanding is that they weren’t expecting anyone to be left alive. Finding you in that gym was a miracle.”“Oh come on, I’m not that fat.”“Very funny Harry, you do your profession proud. But no, please. Do you know this man? The first victim. We have never had a positive identification until now. It could be vital.”“I’m sorry. I’ve never seen him before.”“You’re absolutely certain?”“Yes! I don’t have anything to tell you. I’m sorry. Besides it’s not like he was patient zero. There’s nothing special about this guy.”“Harry,” Doctor Konig said, “Within 48 hours of infection, Vicker’s Disease kills everyone. Within 48 hours, everyone in that mall was dead. Everyone except you.”“Thanks for the new information.”“Among the 3 billion cases of Vicker’s Disease reported worldwide, the rate of-”“I know. I know. You don’t think I know all this?”“You don’t act like you know! Among the 3 billion cases of Vicker’s Disease reported worldwide, the rate of infection and fatality after exposure is 100%. Except for you.”“I know. I’m very lucky.”“1 in 3 billion?”“I’m very, very lucky.”“I agree. But there has to be something more to it than that.”“Well I can’t think of anything, and neither can you or any of the rest of the geniuses they locked me in here with. By the way what’s the point of being a scientist if you still have no idea what the fuck is going on!”“Harry, calm down. I didn’t mean to get you angry. I just want answers.”“And you don’t think I want answers? I’m sorry Doc but I don’t know what you want from me. There’s no secret message. I didn’t go on any exotic vacations. I’m just a lucky fuck. The world is dying and I get to live. For no reason. There is no reason. Let’s not kid ourselves and pretend that any of this makes sense. It’s all just one big joke.”Doctor Konig removed his glasses and rubbed his forehead.“I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”The screen went black for a moment before it returned to a battle between two male giraffes. Harry fell into his bed with a defeated thud.-The next day started the same as all the rest. A chemical bath, hot and burning as ever. But yesterday’s conversation with Doctor Konig really had gotten to him. For the first timw in weeks, he sat through the scrubbing without interruption. Even through their baggy plastic suits, the doctors seemed dejected when they got to the end and realized he wasn’t even going to try and get a reaction out of them. Today, he just didn’t have it in him.While they were towelling him off he looked out through the glass surrounding the area. That man in the suit from yesterday was still there. He gave Harry a nod and a little wave. A very interesting reaction from a man who’d just spent at least half an hour watching him take a bath.Harry was dressed and lead back into his sealed off rooms. He made himself a cup of coffee and considered spending some time on that running machine everyone kept telling him to use. Then a buzzer sounded.The man in the suit was standing outside the room, behind a few panes of glass. He was small and black and looked like someone famous. Like if Denzel fucked a hobbit.“Hello,” the man’s voice came from a speaker in the wall.“Hey,” Harry said, “I’m gonna guess you’re here to see me.”“Good guess,” the man said, “how long have you been here for?”“Pretty much since the beginning. I’m not sure they know what to do with me.”“I get that sense as well. How do you like it here?”“Honestly? It’s boring. Nothing to do. No company. Well, no good company. No alcohol. And they keep trying to get me to jog.”The man in the suit smiled.“You’re a singer right?”Harry tilted his head at the question.“In the shower maybe. At church if I’m trying to make my mom feel like she did a good job raising me. Which she clearly didn’t.”“You’re not a singer?”“No, I’m not a singer. Why do you think I’m a singer?”The man was visibly embarassed.“I thought… We found advertising with you as an opener at a jazz club.”“I’m a comedian,” he said, “I open for the jazz quartet on Tuesdays. A friend of mine plays saxophone there and he’s friends with the owner. He got me the gig. It’s a good gig. Fancy music types like to drink wine. Wine gets people drunk. And drunk people like to laugh.”Harry had been posting videos of his standup online for years. And all they could find about him was the fact that he sometimes opened at a jazz club? Sounds about right.“I can sing for you if you want. No promises about the quality.”“No, sorry, I should’ve caught that. Opener at a jazz club. I’m sorry. You don’t even know who I am.”“I guess you’re right,” Harry said, “I don’t. But you’re here. That’s something. The scientists aren’t much for talking.”“You don’t have any company at all?”“I think they all have work to do. I guess what’s in my blood is more important than my mental stimulation. I’ve got behaviorists and psychologists and social workers. That sort of thing. But they’re always taking notes. Or if they don’t, I’m pretty sure they’re recording or writing it all down later.”“Does that bother you?”“That and the fact they ask too many questions.”“Fair. I’m Jerome LaSalle,” the man in the suit said, “I work for the President’s Press Department.”“I’m Harry Ludlow. Thoroughly average comedian, and apparently world-renowned jazz singer. By the way, don’t you guys have Google at the White House?”“Apparently not. Or at least, the interns don’t know about it.”“So, Mr. White House, are you here to take my picture of something? I heard they wanted to keep me secret for security reasons.”“There might be pictures,” LaSalle said, “But I was thinking of something a bit more involved.”“One of these new fangled moving pictures perhaps?”“Well, yes. You said earlier that you don’t think they know what to do with you here. I think I might have an idea.”“Ok,” Harry said, “What do you have in mind?”“Well, when I first sold the Press Secretary on the idea of taking you public, I was thinking of something like you singing the national anthem. That was back when we thought you were a jazz singer of course.”“The good old days,” Harry said, “And the idea was that you’d take a video and send it out to people?”“That was the idea.”“Does it still have to be the national anthem?”“No. Probably not. It could be anything. Just a message from you to your country, and the world. Something to give people hope.”“Hope,” Harry said, “You’re sure we can’t do the national anthem?”-----The next day some of the scientists came in wearing hazmat suits and set up a camera on a tripod. Now a bunch of them were assembled outside his room and behind the glass. No giant suits though, just normal people in normal clothes. There were a lot of them, more than he’d ever seen at once since he’d been locked in her. It was nice to see ordinary people. Faces, messy hair, smiles. It had been too long. He was curious which of them was responsible for scrubbing his naked body.He could’ve done this for the camera and an empty room, but Jerome agreed that if Harry was more comfortable with a crowd, then the scientists would work well enough as an audience. They’d found him a blazer to wear on top of the sterile, blue pants and blue t shirt outfit he’d been provided while in the facility. Now he had that familiar anxious and excited buzzing feeling in his stomach and his fingers that he always got before he went up for a gig. People called it stage fright. He called it the feeling of being alive. He missed that feeling. He took one last drink of water and gave Jerome a nod. Mr. White House was behind the glass with all the scientists. He sent something from his phone and then held his hands together in a tight ball of stress and fingers. A red light on the side of the camera flicked on. Suddenly Harry thought he might faint. In that moment he had no idea why he’d fought so hard for the video feed to go out live.“Hello America,” he spoke slowly, staring into the lens, “You don’t know me. But my name is Harry Ludlow. I don’t know what you know about me. But I’m alive. If you’re watching this, most likely you are too. The difference though, between you and me is that I’m alive, and I’ve been exposed to Vicker’s Disease.”He let the moment hand. He looked at Jerome, and Jerome nodded.“That’s the real bad one,” Harry went on, “In case you’re out of the loop. I was exposed to Vicker’s Disease, not for any particular reason, but just because I was at the mall. I used to hate malls. Everyone in that mall died from an outbreak of Vicker’s Disease. Except me. I was sealed in there with all the dead people for three days. Now I really hate malls. I survived by eating energy bars from an Equinox gym. First time I’d been to the gym in months actually.”One of the scientists chuckled and Harry pointed at him.“That guys laughing because he’s been washing my fat ass for the last six months.”A few of the scientists burst into laughter. Jerome looked shocked.“I guess I’m probably not supposed to curse but what the fuck are they gonna do? I’m the miracle man and they’ve already got me locked up in here with nothing to do but jack off and watch nature documentaries. Not at the same time by the way. My life is sad, but it’s not that sad.”Someone guffawed and Harry couldn’t help but smile. He forgot how good this felt.“The point is this,” he said, “I’m alive. You’re alive. Billions of people are dead. Can’t change that. Now I haven’t been outside in months and I don’t watch TV anymore since I think Colbert kicked the bucket, but I’m gonna guess that certain things haven’t changed. Probably Republicans tryna blame this on people in Uganda, Democrats want you to feel bad about the fact you’re not dead yet, and President Ward just wants everyone to come together in his cornfield in Iowa.”Another gasp and this time someone even clapped. Even Jerome was grinning now between clenched fists.“The point is this. We’re all alive. We’re all still here. No matter how fucked up your life is, how fat and ugly you are, you’re still here. I’m a 40-year-old idiot with no car, a shitty apartment in Indiana, a minor drinking problem, I’m still paying off student loans for an overpriced liberal arts degree, and guess what, you idiots are all listening to me talk for one reason. I’m alive.”“The point is this. I don’t know what’s going on out there, but I bet there’s still life going on out there. Still people spending too much money on coffee, walking too slow, and telling you that stand up comedy’s not a real job. I’m sure the Saudi’s still hate the Jews, we still pretend not to hate the Saudis, and everyone still hates New Jersey. Can you imagine Newark now? Newark plus all the dead people? Fuck me. I’m lucky I’m in here.”Gasping laughter again.“The point is this. I’m a nobody. You’re a nobody. We’re all nobodies. And yet, here we are. I don’t know how many of us there are, after all, I’m just the world’s most famous mediocre comedian, not an accountant, but I know we’re not all dead yet. So let’s keep going. I know I keep hammering on this point, but I really am a nobody. And yet, out of everyone in the world, I made it. I survived. I don’t know why, and none of these genius scientists seem interested in earning their salaries and giving me an explanation. Maybe there is no explanation. But, here’s the point. What I know is that as long as we’re still here, we’ve got a chance. So fuck your wife for me, and say hallelujah. Good luck, and God Bless America.”-----Jerome left the next day. Harry only heard back from him a few times in the next week, and badly missed his company. Things started to get better at the facility though. Some of the scientists came by every now and again. A fat guy from Newark named Rob set up a chair by the intercom and drank a cup of coffee there at least once a day. He was a football fan and convinced Harry to start watching games again. He’d assumed they’d stopped playing them. The Colts were terrible that season, but Rob was a Jets fan so they suffered together.There was a lady scientist named Nicole who wore glasses and always laughed at his bad jokes. She was from Colorado and he asked if she get him some pot. She told him they were pretty strict about bringing stuff in from outside, but she might be able to cook him up some meth if he was really in the mood. He said that maybe a bottle of wine would be better. She agreed and they set a time. For the first time in years, he was looking forward to something.Someone suggested doing movie nights on Fridays in the hallway in front of his room. They set up a projector and Star Wars was the runaway favorite for the first night. Rob sat by the intercom and they joked all the way through. Afterwards Nicole stayed sitting by the speaker and leaning against the wall. They talked early into the morning.The next day there was a message from Jerome on his computer. The subject line was simple.“Read this”There was a PDF attached. About a page of text with an official looking header on top and a government logo. It was the Seal of the President. He read the letter.“To the Office of the Press Secretary,There were those who were skeptical about using Mr. Harry Ludlow in a public dispatch. But as the saying goes, if you haven’t seen him run, then you don’t know the dog. My advisors have informed me that nothing has changed regarding our understanding of human immunity to Vicker’s Disease. They still believe Mr. Harry Ludlow is the winner of a genetic lottery which leaves him completely resistant. As before, ongoing research hopes to identify, isolate, and reproduce this unique adaptation. Doing so may be regarded as critical to the survival of the human species. As such, your office is to continue publicizing this research, as you have done.However, after having watched the recent dispatch, it should be noted that this office regards Mr. Harry Ludlow, by mark of his disposition and prior occupation as an entertainer and comedian, perhaps uniquely suited to his current situation. In his so far only public appearance, his levity, humor, impetuousness, and perhaps most importantly his total disregard for the gravity of the global situation have shown to have a real positive impact on morale and the outlook of the public at large. Firstly we should count ourselves lucky that this astronomically unlikely immunity has arisen. Secondly, we should also count ourselves lucky that this immunity arose in Mr. Harry Ludlow in particular. His continued appearance in televised broadcasts to the public and to this Oval Office is hereby requested.Calling for Unity from a Cornfield in Iowa,President James Ward.”He finished reading the letter and screamed in joy. For the first time in his life, Harry Ludlow was a hit.Instagram: @mcgintyliveTwitter: @mcgintyliveWebsite: mcginty.live

Dr. Joaquin Garcia has worked for many years to reach out to the Hispanic Community, encouraging civic participation, and the exercise of their voting rights. He is committed to ensuring that decisions that affect the lives of Hispanics are made by leaders who understand the richness they bring to the community and truly represent and understand the needs of Hispanics in Palm Beach County. In the Business arena, Dr. Garcia is the President of G & G Enterprises of Palm Beach, Real Estate Holding Company and Vice President of El Cid Animal Clinic, Veterinary Medicine Practice for Small Animals. He is a member of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and serves on the “Education Committee”. Being directly involved in the selection and adjudication of “Triunfo” scholarships for excellence; benefitting senior students throughout Palm Beach County. He is a regular speaker on the topic of AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases for the Police Department of the City of West Palm Beach in their highly succesful “Prostitution Impact Prevention Program”; Additionally, Dr Garcia has provided leadership to the HIV community by assisting organizations usch as the Comprehensive Aids Program (CAP) and COMPASS. He is a current member of the Palm Beach Advisory Committee Homeless Resource Center and served as Chairman for “Downtown Helping Hands”, for the betterment of the homeless population of Palm Beach County and a constant volunteer for the Vicker’s House to name a few. Born in Havana, Cuba, he lived in Spain and Puerto Rico and attended Medical School at Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, becoming a medical doctor in 1988. Dr. Garcia currently resides in West Palm Beach.

The crew are off-site this week at Melbourne United HQ where they catch up with Head Coach Dean Vickerman and discuss his coaching pathway all the way from the Warragul Gladiators to the NBL leading Melbourne United Basketball Club. We look over what he values, what works for him, and any advice he has for aspiring coaches in the pathway. The Split, Kick & Extra returns, seeking a sponsor. Mike Czepil Tweet Tracker: Zero activity.

In which I discuss casting, editing and Vicker's ridiculously expensive suit.

La storia di Vicker, piattaforma di servizi. Luca e il suo socio, in un momento di grande difficoltà economica, decidono di avviare un loro progetto nato da un'illuminazione. (seconda parte)

La storia di Vicker, piattaforma di servizi. Luca e il suo socio, in un momento di grande difficoltà economica, decidono di avviare un loro progetto nato da un'illuminazione. (prima parte)

La storia di Vicker, piattaforma di servizi. Luca e il suo socio, in un momento di grande difficoltà economica, decidono di avviare un loro progetto nato da un'illuminazione. (seconda parte)

La storia di Vicker, piattaforma di servizi. Luca e il suo socio, in un momento di grande difficoltà economica, decidono di avviare un loro progetto nato da un'illuminazione. (prima parte)

Dr. Janet Patterson (VA Northern California Health Care System) interviews Dr. Candace Vickers. Dr. Vickers is with the College of Allied Health at California Baptist University in Riverside, California. Formerly, she was part of the outpatient neuro rehabilitation team at the St. Jude Medical Center where she was the creator of the communication recovery groups program. In this episode, you will: Learn two benefits to providing a person with aphasia with the opportunity to share a conversation with a non-obligated communication partner.  Learn about the value of supporting opportunities for both exercise and conversation with people with aphasia. Hear Dr. Vicker's describe how being part of an aphasia group can decrease the risk for social isolation. Download the Full Show Notes

Episode 21 Guest Host Justin Proietti Interviews Dr. Lauren Vicker by MAC CAST

Dr Vicker sits down with Associate Professor of Media and Communications, Dr Dougie Bicket. They discuss Dr Bicket's life in Scotland, his move to the US, and the teaching and research interests that led him to St John Fisher College.

Dr Lauren Vicker sits downs with SJFC alumna Katrina Busch of Robert's Communications. She is a graduate of our program and chair of the Media and Comm alumni advisory board.  Before the last board meeting in November, she sat down with Dr. Vicker to talk about her time at Fisher, her career, and her commitment to the department and our students

Dr Vicker invites Documentary Film Production students Jordan Proietti, Justin Proietti, and Diana Russo on the show to discuss their experiences making documentaries for Prof Linda Maroney's Documentary Film Class.

Il SOUVENIR DIGITALE di oggi è https://www.vicker.org la piattaforma che mette in contatto domanda e offerta per i lavori analogici attraverso il digitale. Scopriamo insieme come trovare un idraulico o una beby sitter, oppure utilizziamo la piattaforma come strumento di marketing per la nostra attività di artigiano.☞ DIVENTA PRODUTTORE DEL PODCAST > http://youmediaweb.com/finanzia☞ SCRIVI UNA RECENSIONE > http://youmediaweb.com/recensioni☞ ​SEGUIMI SU SNAPCHAT > https://www.snapchat.com/add/giuliogaudiano☞ ACQUISTA IL MIO ULTIMO LIBRO > http://youmediaweb.com/youtubeperilbusiness

Il SOUVENIR DIGITALE di oggi è https://www.vicker.org la piattaforma che mette in contatto domanda e offerta per i lavori analogici attraverso il digitale. Scopriamo insieme come trovare un idraulico o una beby sitter, oppure utilizziamo la piattaforma come strumento di marketing per la nostra attività di artigiano.☞ DIVENTA PRODUTTORE DEL PODCAST > http://youmediaweb.com/finanzia☞ SCRIVI UNA RECENSIONE > http://youmediaweb.com/recensioni☞ ​SEGUIMI SU SNAPCHAT > https://www.snapchat.com/add/giuliogaudiano☞ ACQUISTA IL MIO ULTIMO LIBRO > http://youmediaweb.com/youtubeperilbusiness

Jordan Proietti fills in for Dr Vicker , and sits down with Jasna Bogdanovska to discuss her work in the media & communications field, creativity, and advice for students looking or internships.

Caitlin Murphy and James Bailey (CTV President and VP respectively) sit down with Dr Vicker to talk about Cardinal Television and how to get involved

INSPIRATIONS GENERATIONS 0061 Hosts-Bridgette Mongeon- Interview with Barbara McVicker Listening time approximately 35.29 minutes   SHOW NOTES Bridgette speakes with author Barbara McVicker about her book "Stuck in the Middle- Shared Stories and Tips for Care Giving Your Elderly Parents."   Sponsored by God's Word Collectibles http://www.godsword.net Give God's Word as a gift, collect God's Word in your heart! PLEASE NOTE:  You will have to turn your volume up to hear this podcast.  We are sorry for this technical difficulty, we are aware of it and hope to have this technical problem fixed in up and coming podcasts.  Don't forget to turn your volume down after listening.