Honors

From an AP article posted at foxnews.com, edited by yours truly: RIP Medal of Honor recipient Hiroshi Miyamura, 97. Born in Gallup, New Mexico, his parents operated a 24-hour diner near the Navajo Nation along Route 66. He joined the Army late in WWII when the Feds lifted restrictions on Japanese Americans serving. A father of three, he was called from the Reserves to active duty in the Korean War. On the night of April 24, 1951, his company came under attack by the Chinese. He ordered his squad to retreat while he stayed behind and fought, giving his men enough time to evacuate. He and fellow squad leader Joseph Lawrence Annello were captured. Though wounded, Miyamura carried the injured Annello for miles until Chinese soldiers ordered him at gunpoint to leave Annello by the side of a road. Miyamura refused the orders until Annello convinced him to obey. Annello was later picked up by another Chinese unit and taken to a POW camp, from which he escaped. Miyamura was held prisoner two years, four months. He received the medal from President Eisenhower. More than 5000 people came to meet his train. He spent much of the rest of his life working in Gallup as an auto mechanic. Awesome, sir. Photo from Google Images:

RIP NFL QB John Hadl, 84. Born in Kansas, he was a two-time All America for the Jayhawks, also playing DB, punting and returning punts. Drafted #1, tenth overall, by the Lions in 1962, he chose to play for the AFL’s Chargers, was a backup on their 1963 championship team, and played in two other title games before the merger. He spent eleven seasons with San Diego, two each with the Rams, Packers and Oilers. His record was 82–75–9. He threw 244 TD passes and had 268 INTs, a ratio not uncommon before the rules changes that accommodated offense. Also common during the era, his completion percentage was only 50.4. He was a four-time AFL all-star, led the league in passing yards twice, TDs once. He was the NFL leader in passing yardage and TDs in 1971. He was first team All-Pro in ’73. He was named twice to the Pro Bowl. He is a member of the Chargers Hall of Fame. His #21 was retired by Kansas. When his playing career ended, he was an assistant coach at his alma mater for several years, then served in the same capacity for two years in the NFL. He was head coach of the USFL’s Los Angeles Express for two seasons, record 13–23, 1–1 in the playoffs. He ended his career as associate AD at Kansas. Well done, sir. Photo from GI:

Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales indicate Americans have adapted to the new normal of higher prices, and GDP came in at 2.9% for the third quarter, wins for Dems, who have been on a role since election day. Given holiday sales, the fourth quarter should be solid as well. I wish some of that cash would go to my books. Oh, well.

Amusing headline from nypost.com: “Republicans denounce new House Dem leader Hakeem Jeffries as an ‘election denier’.” Turnabout is fair play. Selective outrage rules politics.

Sad headline from newsmax.com: “Troubling Sign at Troubled Border: 3 Agents Killed Selves in Nov..”

The wind was stiff and the sunshine intermittent, so I spent most of today’s session of the floating book shop in the car. Business was a lot better than I’d expected. My thanks to the lovely young woman who bought three kids pictorials on the animal world, and to the one who purchased Look and Feel Fabulous Forever: The World’s Best Supplements, Anti-Aging Techniques, and High-Tech by Oz Garcia and Sharyn Kolberg and Grace the Table: Stories and Recipes from My Southern Revival by Alexander Smalls and Hettie Jones; and to the young man who took home two large tomes on nutrition, and Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith by Henri J. M. Nouwen; and to the lovely elderly lady library volunteers, who donated a handful of books.

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