http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoyArnuYjjs
For Bot, wasn't your dad or grandfather on an AA mount?
Now imagine 12 quad 40 turrets going, plus a bunch of 5in, and about two dozen 20mm, made a bit of noise. Blow those Japanese planes out of the sky!
I was just reading during one night engagement which wasn't worth reporting they shot down 6 bombers and lost 5 sailors with another 50 wounded to friendly fire.
Today the media would eat that up with anti US story's, back than it was accepted for the greater good.
Having seen how they were set up on the Battleship MA, I beleive being a loader was a pretty hard job, you were exposed to the shrapnel and had to hump those heavy 5 round clips around. I think having a bunch of planes trying very hard to kill you was one heck of a good motivation to keep those guns loaded and shooting. Took some guts to do that.
No imagine being on the gun for 8 hours, its getting dark, than wave after wave comes in, and your loading none stop for another hour. You get 30 minutes off, than the next wave comes in.
One hell of a job.