Iwo Jima Vets Slam Time Cover, Dismiss Global Warming As "A Joke"

Iwo Jima veterans are outraged over Time magazine's decision to use the iconic World War II image of American soldiers hoisting a flag at Iwo Jima for the latest cover on "the war on global warming." The Business & Media Institute reports Iwo Jima veterans call the Time cover a "disgrace" and dismiss global warming as a "joke":

Donald Mates, an Iwo Jima veteran, told the Business & Media Institute on April 17 that using that photograph for that cause was a "disgrace."

"It's an absolute disgrace," Mates said. "Whoever did it is going to hell. That's a mortal sin. God forbid he runs into a Marine that was an Iwo Jima survivor."

Mates also said making the comparison of World War II to global warming was erroneous and disrespectful.

"The second world war we knew was there," Mates said. "There's a big discussion. Some say there is global warming, some say there isn't. And to stick a tree in place of a flag on the Iwo Jima picture is just sacrilegious."

Another Iwo Jima veteran echoes Mates' reservations about global warming being a worth cause for a reprise of the famous scene:

Lt. John Keith Wells, the leader of the platoon that raised the flags on Mt. Suribachi and co-author of "Give Me Fifty Marines Not Afraid to Die: Iwo Jima" wasn't impressed with Time's efforts.

"That global warming is the biggest joke I've ever known," Wells told the Business & Media Institute. "[W]e'll stick a dadgum tree up somebody's rear if they want that and think that's going to cure something."

Time managing editor Rick Stengel defended the cover on MSNBC yesterday, saying:

"One of the things we do in the story is we say there needs to be an effort along the lines of preparing for World War II to combat global warming and climate change. It seems to me that this is an issue that is very popular with the voters, makes a lot of sense to them and a candidate who can actually bundle it up in some grand way and say, 'Look, we need a national and international Manhattan Project to solve this problem and my candidacy involves that.' I don't understand why they don't do that."

Watch:

Comments

[JackDanielsBlack]

God bless these guys. Tell it like it is, brothers!

[sonofsamphm1c]

My father is a veteran of Iwo Jima. He was in the same regiment as Lt. Wells, and my father participated in the assault of Mt. Suribachi. His WW2 service record includes: 7 battle stars, a Navy Unit Commendation, a Presidential Unit Citation, a Silver Star (assault of Mt. Suribachi), and a Purple Heart (assault of Mt. Suribachi).

Joe Rosenthal's photograph has been used in a similar manner many many times. My father and I see nothing wrong in that. Thanks to men like Lt. Wells and my father, this is still America.

Science is really America's backbone. Without it we would be nothing. It has driven the progress of this country. Without science, we never would have taken Iwo Jima. And, in fact, scientists were there on Iwo Jima helping the Marines win the war, as this photograph testifies:

http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/events/wwii/iwo_jima650.jpg

That device was put up by NOAA scientists just days after Lt. Wells' platoon scaled Mt. Suribachi. The flag in that picture, is the very same flag you see in Joe Rosenthal's iconic image. It's now at the Marine Corps Museum. Scientists from NOAA are in total disagreement with Lt. Wells as to global warming. Let him run a rifle platoon; let scientists do science - just as it was done on Iwo Jima.

[ejay579]

Amen, Brother!!!

[thatvisionthing]

My father was in the Navy in WW2. He left the farm in 1942 to join, served 30 years, and returned to the farm in 1973 for another 30+ years of farming. He loved the land. He died last year and I miss him terribly. In 1944 he was a seaman in the carrier task force that captured the German submarine U-505. He used to tell us how the Americans hoisted the largest US flag they had on the U-505, so the submarine was flying a carrier-size flag. The Germans thought they had scuttled the submarine and were taken belowdecks when they were rescued. The next day when they came up on deck, what a surprise, there was the U-505 flying that flag. I don't know if that's strictly accurate, after all my dad was belowdecks and we heard the story decades later, but here's a picture: http://www.uboatarchive.net/U-505.htm.

Just wanted to share my flag story, and to say that I am sure my father would appreciate the Time cover, and this New Yorker one even more: http://www.cartoonbank.com/product_details.asp?mscssid=UBNR0EL5CMHL8JUCE54KU8RWJAUJ9DC7&sitetype=1&did=5&sid=124001&pid=&keyword=blitt§ion=all&title=undefined&whichpage=29&sortBy=popular. As much as he cared for the land, he hated Bush and hated this war.