All posts by Rand Simberg

Some WW II History

The steward and the admiral.

I found the story interesting because it discussed the Porter, which some called the “unluckiest ship in history.” Before it was sunk in the Pacific, the destroyer was assigned to help convoy the Iowa across the Atlantic with Roosevelt aboard.

As it left Norfolk, it made too sharp a turn from its berth and tore off a lifeboat along with its crane. During the trip, it took part in demonstration exercises for the president, and accidentally fired an armed Mark V at the battleship. The Porter crew tried to warn the Iowa about the fish in the water with light signals, but they weren’t getting through, so it broke radio silence to tell them. Roosevelt insisted on being carried up on deck in his wheelchair to watch the torpedo approach. Fortunately, they managed to turn away from it and it passed the stern without incident. Some people thought there should have been courts martial over it, but Roosevelt pardoned the crew.

The Nuclear Problem With Britain

[Early-afternoon update]