US+Occupation+of+Japan+Post+WWII

Name: Eric Carson Age: 18 Hometown: Pasadena, California Highschool Attended: South Pasadena High School Birthday: March 17, 1924 Zodiac Sign: Pisces Relationship Status: Single Income: $1,500 Occupation: Soldier

Japan has surrendered...the war is finally over. It is August of 1942 and I am only 18 years old and had already my first expericence of war first hand. I am so relieved that this long dreaded war is over, but I have just been informed by General MacArthur that myself and the other guys are staying here in Japan to help restore their country. I guess it makes sense because we're cleaning up our mess, but at this point I'm just ready to go home. I miss my family, I missed my sister Haley's wedding and my brother Kyle's college graduation. These events are unforgettable and I am upset that I've missed them, but fighting for my country takes priority and if I'm a great soldier then I'm a greater American. I have no idea how long we are going to be here, but as long as it takes I'll work my hardest so I'm closer to getting home. General MacArthur has told us that our sole purpose of being here is to rebuild and reshape Japan's ancient civilization (Price 1). It was hard to survive over here...It's almost ironic how we all survived war but now we are all facing starvation. Japan's food import is not very fruitful so our job as rebuilders is to help the starving people ("Japan-Guide.com"). So far we have success. By 1946 General MacArthur had written a new constitution for Japan, and by 1947 the constitution was adopted into the Japanese government. The new constitution included woman suffrage and would guarantee basic freedoms for the citizens of Japan (Danzer et al. 587). People are giving us credit for jumpstarting Japan's economy and getting it back on its feet. It's nice to know that people are recognizing our hardwork and actions towards helping Japan. It is a great honor to serve for my country, but it is an even greater honor to be part of the infantry that helped to rebuild Japan. I love my country and I love serving for it.



“Japan-Guide.com.” __Basic Information__. 1996-2007. 25 Oct. 2007 <[|http://www.japan- guide.com/e/e2124.html]>. Price, Sean. "Under U.S. rule: the occupation of Japan; after World War II, American forces set out to rebuild a shattered, defeated nation". New York Times Upfront. March 7, 2003. FindArticles.com. 25 Oct. 2007. . Danzer A. Gerald, et al. __The Americans Reconstruction to the 21st Century__. Evanston, IL: McDougal Littell, 2005.