Photo from my personal collection. It purportedly shows a Japanese reconnaissance party somewhere in China in 1939, though the scene looks staged. In the foreground, there appears to be an camouflaged pillbox or machine gun nest. Of possible interest to @eugenpinak.bsky.social.

Photo from my personal collection. Chinese troops marching along the Burma Road in Yunnan, 1944. Note that several of the men seem to be wearing captured Japanese helmets.

The existence of a wizarding school named Mahoutokoro in the Rowlingverse bothers me more than it should. Also, it's supposed to be located near Iwo Jima. World War II and American occupation must have been awkward.

Our foster Wendy decided to take over my nightstand. #cats

More Pumpkin cuddles today. #cats

Went cold turkey on caffeine a few days ago and have been dealing with withdrawals, but at least Pumpkin is here to comfort me. #cats

So I ordered these two items for you but (because I'm tired and was confused about how it worked) also accidentally set one purchase for each under the "buying it from elsewhere" option, so the number of each item you need is probably wrong now. Sorry for being an idiot 😞

A photo from my personal collection: Japanese troops of the Shanghai Special Naval Landing Force engaged in combat during the 1932 Shanghai Incident. Of possible interest to @bafriedman.bsky.social and @eugenpinak.bsky.social. Feel free to use or share the photo elsewhere.

Americans have long worshiped "Buff Jesus," and this has more to do with sports, nationalism, and male insecurities than Christianity.

Found time to scan and process part of my collection of historical photos. Here's one taken from the deck of the Japanese battleship Mutsu, with the carrier Akagi visible in the background (not sure about the date).

Two of our fosters, Frosty and his mama Wendy (who just got spayed, hence the cone). Wendy's three kittens were all born with health issues (a fourth was stillborn), and only Frosty ended up surviving; he has a crooked tail and slightly malformed nose. He may get adopted by a good family next week!

By the way, Earl Hess' *The Civil War in the West* (University of North Carolina Press, 2012) is a great overview of the Western Theater. Hess makes the case (convincingly, IMO) that the West was more important to the outcome of the war than the East.

Du uses some harsher language in his 1960 memoir of the campaign: "It was only on the 8th, upon reaching Katha-Indaw (?), that I learned that Stilwell and Luo had already abandoned the troops three days earlier and fled on their own to India..."

Darkly amusing telegram here from the First Burma Campaign, in which Gen. Du Yuming (Deputy C-in-C of the 1st Route of the Chinese Expeditionary Force and CO of the Fifth Army) explains to Chiang Kai-shek that his superiors, Gen. Joseph Stilwell and Gen. Luo Zhuoying, have fled the battlefield.

See e.g. Denis Kearney and the Workingmen's Party of California.

Wendy, one of our current fosters, really loves my feet for some reason. #cats

I have the whole set! They're by far the most expensive books I own, and getting them shipped from Japan to California took a very long time.

"...but also led to the conclusion of the war without the Japanese mainland becoming a battlefield." Anyway, that's the end of this thread, though I'm happy to try to answer any questions. @bafriedman.bsky.social @eugenpinak.bsky.social @axe99.bsky.social

Newly raised SNLF units often received minimal training. In the Pacific, they often found themselves cut off from supplies and ravaged by disease, while others suffered "honorable deaths" (gyokusai 玉砕) alongside IJA forces.

Two of these combined formations were created in 1937 and 1938 and ten more during the Pacific War. Among those ten, four saw combat, while the remaining six were formed shortly before the end of the war in the Japanese home islands and at Jinhae in Korea.

The Ordinance also created the Special Base Forces (tokubetsu konkyochitai 特別根拠地隊), which apparently functioned as garrison and occupation units. They were named after the locations where they were stationed (e.g., the Hainan Island Special Base Force).

The Shanghai SNLF received "modern equipment for ground combat" and training from "battle-hardened warriors." Personnel of the Shanghai SNLF would eventually form the core of the Landing Forces employed in the Second Sino-Japanese War and Pacific War.

I came across this neat lighter while helping out at my church's rummage sale. I'm guessing it belonged to someone involved in the nuclear tests at Eniwetok Atoll.

Section 3 explains how the "offensive spirit" and high morale can help overcome a numerically superior enemy. Section 4 notes that the Landing Forces often face "complex and difficult situations," requiring personnel to be "alert, resolute, thorough, and decisive" and follow regulations and manuals.

Part 2: (1) General Principles of Combat; (2) Attack; (3) Defense; (4) Pursuit and Retreat; (5) Night Fighting; (6) Landing and Withdrawing from the Shore; (7) Mountain, Riverine, and Forest Warfare; (8) Urban Warfare; (9) Irregular Warfare; and (10) Horse, Artillery, and Anti-Aircraft Operations.

Scans of both the "Land Warfare Drill" and "Land Warfare Manual" are available through the National Diet Library's Digital Collections. Judging from its table of contents, the "Land Warfare Drill" seems to mostly deal with basic training and combat tactics.

Two other manuals, the "Appendix to Naval Rifle Unit Drill" (kaigun jūtai sōshiki furoku 海軍銃隊操式付録) from 1893 and "Naval Land-Based Work Manual" (kaigun rikujō kōsaku kyōhan 海軍陸上工作教範) from 1903, formed the basis of a "Land Warfare Manual" (rikusen kyōhan 陸戦教範) that accompanied "Land Warfare Drill."