D Day

[Patrick L]

Let's all take a moment to remember those that gave so much for the freedoms we enjoy today.

Personally I usually like to get to the range on significant days like this and fire off a few rounds in tribute through a Garand or a carbine, but I can't get there today.

[44fanatic]

Was trying to pass on a history lesson with my 9 and 13 yr old girls the other night. They were not to interested in it.

For all that were there, they are remembered.

[DLCTEX]

I lost an uncle that day at Normandy.

[6.5 mike]

The man that lives next door to me is one of "the band of brothers" that jumped into normandy. He was a combat medic.

[Eagles6]

A somber day. Had a great uncle that was an LT. with the 2nd ID that went in on D Day +1 and was killed on either June 12 or 18.
Before my time but I'll never forget what these brave guys did.
Sadly, about the only WW II history that's taught nowadays is how evil America was for dropping the bombs on those poor, defenseless, peaceful Japanese.

[docone31]

In my shop, I have three 8 X 10s of folks who landed at the beaches. I have met them all. They do not come by anymore. I suspect atrition is at work.
They were good folks, and their eyes lit up when I asked them to put up their photos. One of them, the son comes by frequently.
My way of thanking those vets who gave their lives for us.

[405]

Hear hear!
My closest neighbor landed on Utah Beach and survived the coastal assault. Later wounded in interior France. Got to rejoin his unit on outskirts of Paris where they were stopped short of marching on thru..... to allow de Gaulle to march down the Champs-Elysees in triumph of course.

Too bad many of the young are being taught some form of parallel universe history in our public schools... if they are being exposed to any history at all.

The calendar I'm looking at right now doesn't even list it nor VE day nor VJ day. All too politically incorrect I guess.

[waksupi]

Here is a good friend of mine, Norm "Rawhide" Allen. Jumped on D Day, and was with the smoke jumpers for many years after. I believe he told me last weekend, he is now 83.

[Heavy lead]

Too bad many of the young are being taught some form of parallel universe history in our public schools... if they are being exposed to any history at all.

The calendar I'm looking at right now doesn't even list it nor VE day nor VJ day. All too politically incorrect I guess.

Are schools are a joke. History, science, math, english are not taught at all.
Example: My 15 year old nephew goes to the same school system that President Obama is giving the commencement at this week in southwestern Michigan, the headline in the local paper today said Kalamazoo was getting the honor because of excellence in education. He (my nephew) has a earth science teacher who informed him (after I brought him back a chunk of petrofied wood from a trip last winter) that petrofied wood did not exist and it was a fake.
He was upset and wanted to take it to school, I said don't worry about it, he was ignorant and would never learn the truth and was incapable of a original thought or wouldn't have dissmissed it so quickly. People, if you don't teach your kids no one will, especially it the government run school system.
By the way, our area has many, many fine schools, Kalamazoo is known to be the worst of the lot in the 3 county area we are in.

[pmeisel]

May God bless all of them for their service.

[waksupi]

Another good friend, and WW2 veteran, from the Pacific Theater, Malcolm Alexander. Machine gunned going onto Guadalcanal. He said he was put on stateside guard duty during his recovery, and was more afraid of the guys he was guarding than the Japs.

[twotrees]

Pvt John Gianopolous, 1St Div Darby's Rangers.

His son's and I were working on a 37 ford in the same garage where My G. was working. His youngest son was having a bad time at school and was loudly saying he was joining the Army as soon as he turned 17. His dad came over and said to all of us. " I was taught to kill a man 17 ways with my bare hands, and what has that ever earned me? Go into the Air Force the Navy and learn something that you can sell when you get out."

I took that to heart and joined the AF ( 1965) his oldest son did too. But Jerry joined the Army and during is tour in that small Asian country got caught in a rocket barrage. 90% disabled, but he lived through it.

Maybe he should have listened to that D-Day Vet, like I did. I'm still making a living on things I learned in the AF.

Also had a Uncle that was a cook with the 101st, he made the jump ahead of D-Day and said that he never saw a cook tent for 3 months. I bet he cooked a few M1 barrels though.

[GLL]

I had my flag up today and three neighbors ask me why ? :( :(

I have this posted in my college classroom this week !

Jerry

http://www.fototime.com/23E44C699C9395E/standard.jpg

[beemer]

I had a great uncle that landed with the 2nd wave on Omaha Beach and a cousin that made several trips on a landing craft. I never met them but I am proud to be a member of their family.

Dave

[wiersy111]

My neighbor, friend and mentor Tom Sharnowski made the landing but his worst memories came from the Battle of the Bulge. I learned a lot of things from Tom over the years, we played cribbage for hours while he told me the stories of his time in Europe.

[DIRT Farmer]

Dad never said he was in combat, he went in D+3 through St Lo, Paris and on to the Bulge. He said he just fixed raidos and guarded his truck from the panzers with his .30 carbine

[pdawg_shooter]

I expected the History Channel to have something on about D-Day, but no, Ice Road Truckers all day. I am disappointed to say the least.

[gnoahhh]

My favorite uncle went ashore on Omaha Beach as a Sgt. in the 1st Inf Div. His battalion waded ashore around noon, June 6, went over the cliffs and into combat. It was his third beach landing, after North Africa and Sicily, still carrying the '03 Springfield issued to him during infantry school in 1940. (He was due to get out Christmas, 1941. December 7 changed that.)

Captured in N Africa. POW for 10 days, escaped. Lightly wounded by shell fragment in Sicily. Lightly wounded again by a "dead" German in France. Took a serious wound (which took 40 years to kill him) as his unit emerged from the Heurtgen Forest early 1945.

Every year on June 6 I swig water out of his canteen (one of the few items of gear he hung onto. Why, I don't know.) as a toast to what he and his buddies did to preserve the freedoms that you and I enjoy, and which the vast majority of Americans seem hell-bent on pissing away.

"Bless 'em all, bless 'em all, bless 'em all. The long and the short and the tall."

[Frank]

Stalin's bust is a new exhibit at the D-Day memorial in VA.
http://www2.godanriver.com/gdr/news/state_regional/article/some_protest_stalin_bust_at_d-day_memorial/21685/

[DCP]

All gave some, Some gave all

God bless you Uncle Chuck

My Uncle passed not to long ago, He was wounded when his tank exploded and lost a eye. He was with old Blood and Guts

I walk with heroes and giants as a young boy and didnt know until I became a man. They were just those old men and life was so good in the 50s and 60s. My generation may have change the world. They saved the world

They truly gave so much.
They never said much.
They did so much for us all
They were truly the greatest generantion

[nicholst55]

I met a gentleman a couple of years ago at a restaurant proudly wearing a jacket and hat that proclaimed his affiliation with the 502d Parachute Infantry Regiment (the Widowmakers), 101st Airborne Division, in WWII. I thanked him for his service, and asked him how many combat jumps he made; he replied 'All of them.'

He told me that he lied about his age and enlisted when he was 17; he first volunteered for the Infantry, and later for Airborne. He said that if he knew then what he knows now, he never would have done it. He said that he buried a lot of friends. He went on to retire from the Army after 20+ years of service, and then became a DOD civilian and served another 20 years.

The gentleman I met seemed to be in excellent health and had all of his faculties. We are losing the members of his generation at an alarming rate. Once they are all gone, we will have lost more than their numbers reveal.

http://www.airborne101st.com/

[missionary5155]

All Brave men ! Thanks !! I salute you all !
Armor 71-74

[GSM]

FYI:

http://radioatwar.net/

24 hours of stateside radio broadcast on D-Day.