ISALC: ESL 382: Computer Applications

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Culture Capsules: People, Places, and Processes Abdulaziz AlUsaimi and Atsumi Terasaka

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Can we speak with you for a few seconds?

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Weapons in the Gulf War
Abdulaziz AlUsaimi

On August 2, 1990 the Iraqis invaded Kuwait and started the Gulf War by destroying and stealing almost everything of value in Kuwait. The Iraqis set fire to many oil fields¹. The oil prices went up and the Americans came with their Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and help from other nations. The American Army in the Gulf war was about 1,500,000 men, 5,000 tanks and 1,000 aircraft. The Americans used many kinds of weapons in Kuwait during the Gulf War, such as missiles, airplanes and tanks.

The American military used different kinds of missiles like Tomahawk ²and the Iraqis used Scuds. The Tomahawk cost very much, about 1.3 million dollars each and is 20-feet-long and can be fired from ships or submarines. It has a precise guidance system. In the Tomahawk there are different computer chips, one which guides it out of the water and then switches to another one in the air. The Scud was the best missile that the Iraqi army used in the Gulf War. The Soviets were the first people who invented the Scuds in the middle of the 1960s. The first use of Scud missile was in the Arab-Israeli Yom Kippur War in 1973.

Also, the American army used different kinds of aircraft in the Gulf War. One of them was the B-52 Stratofotress³. It was the biggest airplane in the war. Development of this airplane was in the 1940's, when the American army needed airplanes to carry nuclear bombs for long distance. The B-52 Stratofotress was developed more and could carry bombs for more than 4,000 miles. After that change, the airplane entered the service in the Army in 1954. The Americans used this airplane in the Gulf War against the Iraqi army. The Army called this airplane the "Big Ugly Fat Fellow." The plane carries more than 60,000 pounds of bombs and because it was strong and powerful, it could reach a top speed of almost 600 miles per hour.

Another kind of weapon that the Americans used in the Gulf War against the Iraqi army was the tank. The kind of tank that the American used was the M-1A1 Abrams. The M-1 was very useful in the Gulf War because the war zone was almost all in the desert. The tank doesn't have wheels but has tracks to help it to move in the desert. This tank entered Army service in February, 1980. The Abrams was made for chemicals weapons; it has protection against chemicals. The protection is a computer that shows where the chemical weapon are in the ground while the tank is moving. The weight of the M-1 is 63 tons and it is 26 feet long. This tank has a very great engine, so it can reach a speed of about 45 miles per hour. It is a good speed for such a heavy tank.

In conclusion, all the weapons that the American Army used in the Gulf War were working together. Kuwait ⁴is located in the Arabian Gulf so all kinds of weapons can work well. The Tomahawk missiles were launched from submarines in the Arabian Gulf. The tanks were on the Saudi Kuwaiti border. All the weapons were new and had the latest technology so they were successful in doing their job.

1 http://www.desert-storm.com/Gallery/260034.jpg

2 http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/gulf/weapons/tomahawk.html

3 http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/gulf/weapons/b52.html

4 http://www.lonelyplanet.lycos.com/middle_east/kuwait/map.html

World War II ended fifty-six years ago. It was a really terrible war involving most of the world. Japan is the only country that has been bombed by atomic bombs¹. Japan went to war with the U.S., which already had nuclear power. I wonder how did Japan fight the powerful nation of the U.S?

The Japanese army had many kinds of aircraft, such as the Kawanishi "Shiden" and the Nakajima "Hayate." The most famous plane was the Mitsubishi "Zero-sen²." The Zero was armed with various guns, but a common setup was two 20-mm cannons in the outer wings and two 7.7-mm machine guns in the fuselage. Even though the U.S. Air Force had superior equipment, for example, the American Boeing B-29 Superfortress³ (B-29 that had brought the atomic bombs to Nagasaki and Hiroshima), the Zero survived hard battles during the war.

In the last stage of World War II, in 1944, modified Zeros assigned to Air Group 201 in the Philippines became the first Japanese aircraft used on planned suicide⁴ missions against American fighters. This planned suicide attack was called the Kamikaze-Tokkou(squad). Kamikaze means "the Divine Wind." The mission of Kamikaze pilots was to make suicide attacks, driving with their planes to deliberately crash into fighters, carriers, or battle ships. It is not sure who suggested the Kamikaze attack first, but it is often thought to be Admiral Takijiro Onishi. In any case, he was in the position to command the first Kamikaze as well as suggest it. He had not thought Kamikaze to be an effective tactic, but he believed that it would be the best and most beautiful way for the pilots to die. He said, "If they (the young pilots) are on the land, they would be bombed down, and if they are in the air, they would be shot down. That's sad...too sad...To let the young men die beautiful, that's what Tokkou is. To give beautiful death, that's called sympathy." When he asked pilots to carry out the Kamikaze mission, it received unanimous approval. Onishi lived strictly during the war and blamed himself for the defeat. The next day after the Japanese defeat, he committed suicide. He left behind a letter, which started with these words. "I would apologize by my death for the war bereaved and pilots' brave-souls."

I think Kamikaze missions attacked the Americans psychologically. In America, it was unimaginable that soldiers would go into battle intent on killing themselves. Seeing Kamikaze pilots die in suicide flights was hard for Americans to psychologically accept. There were many theories why they did such a terrible thing: brainwashing, compulsion, volunteerism or affection for their country. Further, extreme patriotism must have been one factor for sure. They were educated in patriotism at training schools. Therefore, they came to consider that Kamikaze attack had been a privilege to die for the emperor, a god. From reading some letters of Kamikaze pilots, I feel that they were happy and proud of participating in such an honorable mission. Regardless, Kamikaze took 18,900 young pilots'⁵ lives during the war.

In my opinion, Kamikaze spirit was from Japanese Bushi-do(way of the warrior). Our ancestor, Bushi believed in the aesthetics of finding the most beautiful way to die. He was willing to commit Harakiri suicide(cutting open the stomach). It is this spirit that Kamikaze pilots had. Japan fought with the U.S., which had the atomic bomb that could kill thousands of people in a moment. Kamikaze operation might had been too primitive to fight them; however, I want to pay respect to the men who lived bravely in a violently changing time.

Author's note: Akiko Yosano(1868-1942), was a famous poet in Japan. She wrote this poem for her brother who was in a suicide corps during the Russo-Japanese war. At that time, this poem was criticized severely because it was against the war and the emperor. However, she never gave up writing passionate poems.

1 http://www.theenolagay.com/study.htm

2 http://www.qt.org/worldwar/weapons/japan/jaf/

3 http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/index.htm

4,5 http://www.geocities.co.jp/WallStreet-Bull/5410/

Last year I read an article about World War II. The war was really terrible and some countries lost everything. Then I remembered when I was young that the Gulf War was a very bad thing for my country, and many people had lost their lives. The goals of war are always the same. One country wants to take something from another country. All wars have a winner, but really everyone loses because people die. However, I have noticed more differences between the Gulf War and World War II than similarities. The differences between those two wars that I would like to talk about are the time that the war happened, the scope of the war, and, most importantly, the types of weapons that were used in the Gulf War and World War II.

The times were different between the Gulf War and World War II. The Gulf War was in 1990. World War II happened in 1941, almost 50 years earlier. Another difference between the Gulf War and World War II was the countries involved in the wars. In the Gulf War the countries were Kuwait, Iraq, the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and other middle eastern countries. But, in World War II, the countries were Japan, the United States, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Russia and almost every other country. However, the biggest difference between the Gulf War and World War II was the weapons which were used in the wars. The Gulf War had much more technologically advanced weapons than World War II. These included computerized missiles like the Tomahawk and very advanced tanks like the M-1-A-1 Abrams. Also, in World War II Kamikaze pilots used their planes like missiles in suicide attacks. Did they have to do such terrible attacks? Was it really an effective way to defeat their enemies? We are not sure if Kamikaze mission were brave or barbarous, but we are sure that war is war whether it was primitive or technologically advanced.

In conclusion, the Gulf War and World War II had many differences. Weapons in the war were in proportion to the progress of technology. Everything about war has changed, but we believe that the mind and wishes of all fighting soldiers was the same: Peace for their beloved people.

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