Honor Betrayed by 19Paul

Other Apps • Military • posted on Aug 28, 2004

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Description

This image is dedicated to Captain William L. McGonagle, and the men who served under him on the USS Liberty, when on June 8, 1967 the ship came under attack by air and naval forces of the state of Israel. The Liberty was strafed, torpedoed, and bombed with napalm and conventional munitions, killing 35 US sailors and seriously wounding many others. Among the wounded was Captain McGonagle, who stayed at his station, supervised the defense and damage control efforts, and only allowed himself to receive medical treatment after the Liberty had reached an American destroyer, and only then after he was sure the more seriously wounded members of his crew had received treatment. For his selfless actions, Captain McGonagle was awarded the Medal of Honor; his crew was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, the highest US unit award, and the organizational equivalent of the Medal of Honor. However, due the lingering controversy surrounding the event, Captain McGonagle was presented with his medal by the Secretary of the Navy at the Washington Naval Yard, rather then by the President at the White House as custom dictates. Even McGonagle

Comments (5)

adm5050

9:01PM | Sat, 28 August 2004

Thank you for the reminder and the history lesson, I really appreciate your dedication to these men.

boricua

5:44PM | Sun, 29 August 2004

Well, I know we shouldn't be talking about politics here, but one thing that gets me about this attack was the gunning down of the lifeboats by the Israeli's - a violation of the Geneva Convention. Even if this was an accident, such an action is inexcusable. Other than that, the collage was very neatly composed although it somewhat washed out.

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tempest967

7:32PM | Sun, 29 August 2004

Excellent tribute to those who served.

19Paul

8:26PM | Sun, 29 August 2004

Thanks for metioning the life boats Boricua, I had forgoten that little detial. Just another note about this image: the flag over-lay was taken from an actual photo of the flag that flew on the Liberty the day of the attack. It now hangs in the National Cryptology Museum.

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