The long shadow of Victor Hanson

Victor Davis Hanson’s most recent book of military history is Ripples of Battle. The book just came out in paperback; I bought a copy and started reading it yesterday.
The introduction to the book is devoted to Hanson’s namesake — the first cousin of Hanson’s father — who served in F Company, 2nd Batallion, 29th Regiment, 6th Marine Division, and was killed in action taking Sugar Loaf Hill on Okinawa on May 18, 1945. Hanson dedicates the book to his memory.
When Ripples of Battle was originally published last year, NRO posted the heart of the introduction to the book in four excerpts. The introduction is all by itself a powerful, thought-provoking piece of writing. The first three of the NRO excerpts tell the story of Hanson’s namesake and of Hanson’s inquiry into the circumstances of his death in battle on Okinawa.
Here are the three excerpts from the introduction posted on NRO regarding the life and death of Victor Hanson: “Never forget,” “Ghosts & Survivors,” and “Vet bearing gift.”

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