Remember the Liberty!: Almost Sunk by Treason on the High Seas

On June 8, 1967, the USS Liberty was violently attacked in a fusillade of bullets and torpedoes. The communications ship had been told to travel to the unstable Mediterranean Sea just off the Sinai Peninsula. The Six Day War was under way. The attack on the ship left 34 dead and 171 injured. The attack was claimed to be the result of a tragic mistake. The prevailing notion has been that Israel made a tragic mistake and that anyone feeling different was an anti-Semite worthy of scorn. 1967 was a turbulent time for Lyndon Johnson, who faced mounting challenges before the 1968 election. Johnson had a friend in Israel. Johnson was also known to be unstable and capable of deceitful actions. Was there foreknowledge of the attack? Or worse? Did higher-ups in the Navy go along with the horrific cover-up? Fifty years later and the wounds are still felt by the survivors.

Remember the Liberty! is a book that may make the average reader cringe about the underlying history of the 20th century. The telling of the 6/8/67 incident is filled with horror and sadness, but heroics are present as well. Three survivors of the attack unburden themselves with the telling of the events. It is up to the reader to decide if there is enough evidence to conclude what might have once been unthinkable. A must-read when past is prologue but always important.