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N0KFQ > TODAY 26.12.16 15:38l 65 Lines 2980 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 16936_N0KFQ
Read: GUEST
Subj: Today in History - Dec 26
Path: IW8PGT<IR2UBX<F1OYP<ON0AR<GB7CIP<N0KFQ
Sent: 161226/1323Z 16936@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQ6.0.13
1972
Truman dies
On this day in 1972, former President Harry S. Truman dies in
Independence, Missouri.
Then-President Richard Nixon called Truman a man of
"forthrightness and integrity" who had a deep respect for the
office he held and for the people he served, and who "supported
and wisely counseled each of his successors."
Truman was born in Lamar, Missouri, in 1884. The son of a farmer,
he could not afford to go to college, so he too worked as a
farmer before joining the army in 1916 to fight in World War I.
After the war, Truman opened a haberdashery in Kansas City. When
that business went bankrupt in 1922, he entered Missouri
politics. Truman went on to serve in the U.S. Senate from 1934
until he was chosen as Franklin D. Roosevelt's fourth vice
president in 1945; it was during his Senate terms that he became
known for his honesty and integrity.
Upon FDR's death on April 12, 1945, Truman became the 33rd
president of the United States, assuming the role of commander in
chief of a country still embroiled in World War II. With victory
in Europe was imminent, Truman agonized over whether to use
nuclear weapons to force Japan to surrender. Just four months
into his tenure, Truman authorized the dropping of two atomic
bombs on Japan in August 1945. He and his military advisors
argued that using the bombs ultimately saved American and
Japanese lives, since it appeared that the Japanese would
fiercely resist any conventional attempt by the Allies to invade
Japan and end the war. The use of the new weapon, dropped on the
cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in early August, succeeded in
forcing Japan's surrender, but also killed, injured and sickened
thousands of Japanese and ushered in the Cold War.
Although harshly criticized by some for his decision to use the
devastating weapon, Truman also displayed integrity and
humanitarian virtues throughout his political career. In 1941,
Truman drove 10,000 miles across the country in his Dodge to
investigate potential war profiteering in defense plants on the
eve of World War II. As president, Truman pushed through the
Marshall Plan, which provided desperately needed reconstruction
aid to European nations devastated by the war and on the verge of
widespread famine. He also supported the establishment of a
permanent Israeli state.
Truman served as president for two terms from 1945 to 1953, when
he and his wife Bess happily retired to Independence, Missouri,
where he referred to himself jokingly as "Mr. Citizen." He was
hospitalized on December 4, 1972, with lung congestion, heart
irregularity, kidney blockages and failure of the digestive
system. He died on December 26. A very subdued and private
funeral, fitting for the down-to-earth Truman, was held in
Independence according to his and his family's wishes.
* Sysop Note: Happy birthday to Billie, KB0WSA.
73 - K.O., n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
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