Daniel M. White

In 1945 there was a fierce battle with many casualties. Twenty years later there was another fierce battle with only a few casualties.

Many people have discovered that the lockdowns and isolation from Covid-19, have caused serious emotional and mental problems. The recently released book, “What Rotten EGGS” is a novel that takes place in 1965. It tells the story of a young Coast Guard Lieutenant trying to improve the moral and well-being of his crew. When he takes over as the commanding officer of Loran station Iwo Jima, Japan, he is faced with a challenging problem. Many of his crew members are not successfully dealing with the isolation of Loran duty. At that time Iwo Jima, Japan was the largest of the worldwide Loran network. It also was one of the most isolated.

The island was 700 miles from Tokyo to the north and 700 east of Okinawa. It was very small only ten square miles. The island had no civilians, no towns, or villages. There were no cell phones, no internet, no liberty and the only way to communicate with friends and family was by mail.

Some don’t make it, a few barely survive, then there are the ones that really thrive

The young sailors had lots of free time on their hands which sometimes lead to heavy drinking and other destructive behavior. To relieve the boredom and loneliness, the leadership of the base implemented many new off duty activities such as a softball team, tennis matches, a gym, building a music library and upgrading the food. There was a small improvement, but a huge problem still existed. After many months and many new ideas, they discovered a silver bullet.