1960, Robert Menard was a Commander aboard the USS Constellation when he was part of a meeting between United States Navy personnel and their counterparts in the Japanese Defense Forces.

"Fifteen years had passed since VJ day, most of those at the meeting were WWII veterans, and men who had fought each other to the death at sea were now comrades in battle who could confide in one another.

"Someone at the table asked a Japanese admiral why, with the Pacific Fleet devastated at Pearl Harbor and the mainland US forces in what Japan had to know was a pathetic state of unreadiness, Japan had not simply invaded the West Coast.

"Commander Menard would never forget the crafty look on the Japanese commander's face as he frankly answered the question.

"You are right", he told the Americans. "We did indeed know much about your preparedness. We knew that probably every second home in your country contained firearms. We knew that your country actually had state championships for private citizens shooting military rifles. We were not fools to set foot in such quicksand."

Those of us who remember Pearl Harbor also remember the fear and expectation that the Japanese WOULD invade the West Coast. This is why the Japanese-Americans were hurriedly removed from the areas on the West Coast near military bases. Thirty-seven percent of the Japanese-Americans had close relatives, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, in Japan. It was known that some of them supported Emperor Hirohito. It was also known that, in the event of an invasion, the Japanese would use the same torture tactics on the California Japanese that they had used in other nations they invaded to get them to reveal any military information they knew.

Yet, the Japanese never attacked by land, although they did patrol our Western shores with their submarines.

Is it likely that the story is true? It is an historic fact that Adolf Hitler did not invade Switzerland for the same reason the Japanese Admiral mentioned - the civilians of Switzerland were heavily armed. Every Swiss male, for hundreds of years, has been required, by law, to be armed and to serve in the militia. And, they kept their rifles in their homes, ready to use in case on an invasion.

In spite of all the efforts that have been made in recent years, the average American home today, as in 1941, is apt to be armed. Wherever there have been invasions, the level of arms among civilians have often been a determining factor in military decisions.

It's a history lesson worth thinking about.