D-Day - 75th Anniversary

[Chad Fuck 17684]

2 hours ago, Eastwood said:

My grandfather was part of 1st Infantry and had participated in Operation Husky and, supposedly, participated in D-Day. At least, that is what the family says. My grandfather wouldn't talk about it and directed that he be buried with his Purple Heart and other medals he had. He showed me them when I was around 5 and the Purple Heart was the only one that was distinct enough for me to remember. Every year around Memorial Day and D Day, all the research websites run specials on free searches. The only thing I can ever bring up is his draft card. Been trying to convince my dad to request his father's records from the National Archives, but haven't been able to get him to budge on it.

I hope we never see all-out war on this planet again. Especially since I am almost beyond the age to be able to fight it and it would be my son that would have to do it, instead.

This book is very helpful.  You can find it at Half Priced books often.  

https://www.amazon.com/Finding-Your-Fathers-War-Understanding/dp/1612001998

[Eastwood 4394]

9 minutes ago, Chad Fuck said:

This book is very helpful.  You can find it at Half Priced books often.  

https://www.amazon.com/Finding-Your-Fathers-War-Understanding/dp/1612001998

Thanks! I'll look into it.

[JimmyHoffa 1188]

14 minutes ago, Sbbruin said:

Imagine what that boat ride was like on those landing craft (aside from the rough weather and seasickness).  Knowing there was a decent chance you were about to meet your end.  Makes me shudder.

 

Yeah, when the British dude said (18 minute mark) on the first drop off he made he watched every single one of the soldiers get killed is just mind blowing and then how hard the next wave of drop offs were because of the mines on top of all the dead bodies to maneuver around. 

[Brisketexan 105151]

Their wallets ALL had "Bad Motherfucker" written on them.

[Rusty Shackelford 414]

4 hours ago, BillyGoatHill said:

They will be dropping the WWII Airborne Demonstration Team during the remembrance...https://wwiiadt.org/

 

Also, a 97 year old D-Day vet made the jump again.

https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2019-06-05/american-british-veterans-recreate-d-day-parachute-drops

[TwiceHorn 31486]

2 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

Imagine what that boat ride was like on those landing craft (aside from the rough weather and seasickness).  Knowing there was a decent chance you were about to meet your end.  Makes me shudder.

Thing is, a great number of those young men had never seen combat, so they didn't really know what was coming or how.  And, once the ramp drops, I think your only thought becomes GTFO this boat.

From everything I gather from voluminous reading over the years, you just kind of go on autopilot in really intense combat.

[phdhorn 6224]

D-Day saved the world and civilization.  There is nothing I will ever be able to do to compensate in more than a microscopic part for what those troops did for us.  So all I can do is thank them - yet again.

[Hagbard Celine 10867]

9 hours ago, hookemATL said:

How is Saving Private Ryan not available on any streaming service?

It airs tonight at 6 and 10 on AMC.

[FartingMonk 3607]

I talked to a few World War 2 vets.  When they describe what happened they always say it's not the images that they remember.  It's the screaming of the wounded.  That's what torments them

[Brisketexan 105151]

8 minutes ago, FartingMonk said:

I talked to a few World War 2 vets.  When they describe what happened they always say it's not the images that they remember.  It's the screaming of the wounded.  That's what torments them

Every sense can be a trigger when it comes to intense -- especially traumatic -- events.  Sight is an obvious one, but sound and even smell can trigger much more intense memories.  Just last week, I was talking with a guy who was one of the military responders to the German airshow disaster in 88.  He was just a regular old sergeant, not a medical man at all.  But he was processing and handling triage as horrifically burned victims came in.  30 years later, the smell of aviation fuel breaks him.

The human mind is capable of handling only so much.  We send men into combat, and the injury done inside their heads can never be undone.  War is a fucking bitch.  And nothing about it is glorious.  Peace to every man who has ever experienced it.

[Parliament 14260]

1 hour ago, Hagbard Celine said:

It airs tonight at 6 and 10 on AMC.

Unedited I hope.

[Parliament 14260]

1 hour ago, FartingMonk said:

I talked to a few World War 2 vets.  When they describe what happened they always say it's not the images that they remember.  It's the screaming of the wounded.  That's what torments them

My dad is a Vietnam vet.  He say Saving Private Ryan's beach scene gets everything right, other than the smell.  Fresh guts, rotting bodies, burnt gunpowder.  You can't get that in a movie.

[Trey3216 15346]

26 minutes ago, Parliament said:

Unedited I hope.

I watched it on Memorial Day.  Only the F-bombs edited 

[UpperWestside 6167]

It's hard to fathom what those men saw and encountered 75 years ago. An entire continent's liberation depended upon them walking right into a hailstorm of lead and yet they did it. They served the cause of freedom and many never saw another day beyond June 6th, 1944. 

 

[Party_Taco 3732]

if you get a chance to watch any kind of version of the red arrow performance today, holy shit. it's incredible.

Links?

[4th and 5 4914]

I will be standing on this beach soon, imagining what kind of a man could get out of an LC, wade thru water encumbered by gear, carrying an M1 Garand in a bag, just looking for some kind of cover from the fire above with their friends falling all around them. 

Probably gonna need a moment away from the wife and kids.  

Edited June 6, 2019 by 4th and 5

[Party_Taco 3732]

I will be standing on this beach soon, imagining what kind of a man could get out of an LC, wade thru water encumbered by gear, carrying an M1 Garand in a bag, just looking for some kind of cover from the fire above with their friends falling all around them. 

Probably gonna need a moment away from the wife and kids.  

The beach was one thing, the cemeteries entirely another - Highly recommend a visit!

 

On my end, both grandparents served, but only one member of the family hit the beach that faithful day in June: My great uncle. Though he passed when I was quite young, Uncle Bob’s stories lived on and there were some doozies.

 

On D-Day + 5 he was credited with shooting down a BF-109G with his Garand. The plane came low to rip up his column and, as others hit the dirt, he stood to raise his rifle and put a round through the windshield. The plane crashed overhead and his war went on, but it stuns me to think of the experiences these men had on a daily basis. That said, I’m happy they fought so I can fill my day with email and bullshit... heroes, every one.

[retread 2951]

28 minutes ago, Party_Taco said:

Links?

Video is shaky at times, but here's one. Starts around 19:00.  26:00 is nice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50WrSsI9QhU

Another w maybe better video

 

Edited June 6, 2019 by retread

[Pato del Muerto 52504]

I realize this is a solemn thread, but are we really going to ignore Dick Wank?

[usmc0331horn 953]

Ronald Reagan's 40th anniversary speech mainly about the Rangers is still an all timer.

 

 

[Trey3216 15346]

This song always gets me.  My grandad was a tailgunner (no pics).   But it hits the chords and the heart.   

 

 

 

[HouTex 1867]

To put it in perspective, allied deaths on June 6 were approximately 2,500 American and approximately 1,900 other allied deaths, mostly British. 2,000 of those American deaths occurred on Omaha Beach. The first couple of waives of landings on Omaha saw horrific casualties. 2,000 people is a small Texas town. Imagine all of them killed in a few hours of battle. Omaha was secure by around 3:00 pm on June 6. So as long as you weren't in first several waives of landings at Omaha you had a decent chance to make it to D-Day +1.

[AUS-97HORN 11765]

It really is amazing. 75 years ago, normal 17,18,19 year old Americans risked everything because their country and the world needed them.

Its the last great gathering of the veterans of DDay. 

 

If you have even been to Gettysburg, there are great pictures taken in 1938 of the 75th Anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg, where veterans from both sides made their way to PA to gather one last time and bury the hatchet.

The interesting thing about that is... it is pretty much guaranteed that several of our DDay veterans who attend the ceremonies this week, actually met at least one gettysburg veteran in their lives.   thats a 150 history spanned by just 2 lifetimes. 

impact full thought when you really think about it. 

[Buffsoldier 1895]

At this moment (just after 6:30 a.m. French time).  The landings began.

Never forget.

[Trey3216 15346]

Yep.  Drinking a whiskey in their honor.   Probably will have one for breakfast.   Will also stop by the local VFW post tomorrow and buy a shot and a beer for “the table”.   I didn’t serve, but many in my family did.   

[HornPhD 1368]

36 minutes ago, Buffsoldier said:

At this moment (just after 6:30 a.m. French time).  The landings began.

Never forget.

My kids and I took a moment at H-Hour to remember the brave souls who risked and gave their lives for the freedom of the world

[HornPhD 1368]

3 hours ago, 4th and 5 said:

I will be standing on this beach soon, imagining what kind of a man could get out of an LC, wade thru water encumbered by gear, carrying an M1 Garand in a bag, just looking for some kind of cover from the fire above with their friends falling all around them. 

Probably gonna need a moment away from the wife and kids.  

We're planning on being there for the 76th anniversary. Already told my 11-year old son and 8-year old daughter we'll be on the beach before 6:30 AM. 

[HornPhD 1368]

Three great movies are on TMC tomorrow: The Longest Day, A Bridge Too Far, and Battleground.

[WhatTheBuck 28783]

Something about the audience hooting and hollering seems wrong. We celebrate the survivors, but we're there to honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. All the survivors will tell you that they're the real heroes. This should be a somber event. 

Macron getting us back on track. 

[WhatTheBuck 28783]

Home run by Macron. Damn. 

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

My grandfather was a navigator on a bomber during WW2. Couldn’t hear for shit much after that so we’d be out to eat and the conversations got a little loud.

Made my first trip to Normandy a month ago. Spent a full day around Omaha and Utah beach with an amazing guide and military historian. Walking on the beach and looking up at the cliffs and picturing what these guys did is unreal. The American cemetery is beautiful and peaceful and a powerful reminder of the ultimate sacrifice of the greatest generation.

Woke up early today and caught the entire ceremony. Good stuff.

[EuroHorn 3265]

 

[Moby Ric 2058]

We all owe every single one of those men a debt of thanks.  We would not be here if not for them, and the world would be a very different place.

[MNLonghornFUKM 8817]

Any good YouTube videos about DDay from the nazis point of view?

[Chad Fuck 17684]

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/05/opinion/d-day-movies-75th-anniversary.html?fbclid=IwAR0b32sbQHcAV9lUqAiwwa3d-acyyeE-JP8pDzlOsSSlX1yuEUQiejG4p8o

This is a pretty good overview of the better movies covering the topic.

@jimmyjazz one of the best books about D-Day I've read is The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan.  It's dated, but he went around collecting stories from those who were there, and not too terribly long after.  If you want a thorough academic study, you should probably look elsewhere.  But as far as "boots on the ground and smelling the smoke,"  you'd be hard pressed to do better.  There's a reason why they adapted it into the movie.

[Chad Fuck 17684]

18 hours ago, Eastwood said:

Thanks! I'll look into it.

Here's a pretty good story on doing background work as well:

Quote

Their Fathers Never Spoke of the War. Their Children Want to Know Why.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/05/us/world-war-2-history-research-archives-.html?action=click&module=Top Stories&pgtype=Homepage

Edited June 6, 2019 by Chad Fuck

[hayden_horn 11362]

better to read the longest day before ambrose's book?

[Trey3216 15346]

Trump and Macron both were absolutely fantastic this morning.  

[Armybrat 40850]

16 hours ago, FartingMonk said:

I talked to a few World War 2 vets.  When they describe what happened they always say it's not the images that they remember.  It's the screaming of the wounded.  That's what torments them

One of the severely wounded on the first day at Omaha Beach was a good family friend, Bryan Fox of Granger, Texas. He spent about a year in an Army hospital recovering from his D-Day battle wounds. Later he became a rancher and educator in his hometown. He passed away at age 80+ doing what he loved - on a trail ride near San Antonio.

RIP Bryan, you made a difference.

[Trey3216 15346]

Damn...

https://www.foxnews.com/world/american-paratrooper-dday-normandy-church

 

I didn't know they had this as the constant reminder. Pretty damn cool  

Edited June 6, 2019 by Trey3216

[AUS-97HORN 11765]

33 minutes ago, hayden_horn said:

better to read the longest day before ambrose's book?

Ryan's book is a shitload better, and a hell of a lot smaller.    Ambrose is way too verbose, and keeps telling the same basic story over and over using different soldiers stories.

Ryan tells the whole story, using very specific soldiers' stories that help move the story along with "funny" anecdotes.

 

I actually had to write a report comparing on the 2 books back in one of my history 350 classes,  so I remember the stories pretty well.

 

The only advantage Ambrose had was he was privy to a lot of declassified info that wasnt available to Ryan (specifically all the subterfuge regarding the Calais landings)

example of Ambrose telling the same story.  There are no fewer than 10 identical soldier stories in the Ambrose book telling the story of the soldier getting out of the landing craft in the middle of the water, having to drop everything to not drown, get to the beach, hide behind the obstacles and shell holes, and making their way to the sea wall that existed, where they all hunkered down exhausted.

 

Ryan does have a few of those stories, but each one of his was the advancement of the story, each soldier who made that trek then went on to do something else (get a bangelor torpedo, blow up the barbed wire, move to the base of the fortifications, attack the fortifications and kill the germans, then move inland)

 

[Nueces River Rat 5539]

16 hours ago, FartingMonk said:

I talked to a few World War 2 vets.  When they describe what happened they always say it's not the images that they remember.  It's the screaming of the wounded.  That's what torments them

Many of them (like my Dad who did his duty in the Pacific) would not open up about their experiences until late in their own lives and they are doing so even more now because they want to make sure if someone from the younger generations is listening,  they might get a new appreciation for what they and their generation went through during that era because they sure in hell don't focus a whole lot on it in history classes, etc.    

 My Dad died in his 50's and I was too young  ( was eight years old) at the time when he died to sit down with him and talk about his experiences.  And really he didn't talk about in real depth with my mother either and from knowing a few other WW II Vets as I got older and spoke with them and tried to get them to open up,  that was kind of their MO.... They did their job and they wanted to come home and build their lives which in many cases had already been hell because of the Great Depression and decade of economic turmoil which followed.    Really it wasn't until my mom passed away and I found Dad's  discharge papers  and other stuff related to his service that I really pieced together his service.   

[hayden_horn 11362]

17 minutes ago, AUS-97HORN said:

Ryan's book is a shitload better, and a hell of a lot smaller.    Ambrose is way too verbose, and keeps telling the same basic story over and over using different soldiers stories.

Ryan tells the whole story, using very specific soldiers' stories that help move the story along with "funny" anecdotes.

 

I actually had to write a report comparing on the 2 books back in one of my history 350 classes,  so I remember the stories pretty well.

 

The only advantage Ambrose had was he was privy to a lot of declassified info that wasnt available to Ryan (specifically all the subterfuge regarding the Calais landings)

example of Ambrose telling the same story.  There are no fewer than 10 identical soldier stories in the Ambrose book telling the story of the soldier getting out of the landing craft in the middle of the water, having to drop everything to not drown, get to the beach, hide behind the obstacles and shell holes, and making their way to the sea wall that existed, where they all hunkered down exhausted.

 

Ryan does have a few of those stories, but each one of his was the advancement of the story, each soldier who made that trek then went on to do something else (get a bangelor torpedo, blow up the barbed wire, move to the base of the fortifications, attack the fortifications and kill the germans, then move inland)

 

ok, thanks for the advice! posrep, i'll download the book now.

i'll get to ambrose a bit later. most of my wwii reading has been centered on the pacific.

[CHEF DIESEL 126]

1 hour ago, hayden_horn said:

better to read the longest day before ambrose's book?

I would read Cornelius Ryan's book first. Ambrose seemed to have cut and pasted a lot of interview material out of Ryan's book. Both are great reads and compliment one another. The Ryan book is more complete.

From there, a number of unit action historical books are available as well.

[Trey3216 15346]

6 minutes ago, Nueces River Rat said:

Many of them (like my Dad who did his duty in the Pacific) would not open up about their experiences until late in their own lives and they are doing so even more now because they want to make sure if someone from the younger generations is listening,  they might get a new appreciation for what they and their generation went through during that era because they sure in hell don't focus a whole lot on it in history classes, etc.    

 My Dad died in his 50's and I was too young  ( was eight years old) at the time when he died to sit down with him and talk about his experiences.  And really he didn't talk about in real depth with my mother either and from knowing a few other WW II Vets as I got older and spoke with them and tried to get them to open up,  that was kind of their MO.... They did their job and they wanted to come home and build their lives which in many cases had already been hell because of the Great Depression and decade of economic turmoil which followed.    Really it wasn't until my mom passed away and I found Dad's  discharge papers  and other stuff related to his service that I really pieced together his service.   

Almost verbatim with my Grandfather.  It wasn't until after he retired that he would talk about his stories.  The first time we heard about some of them was when he sat down with a local high school kid who was writing a paper for the 50th anniversary of V-E Day in '95.  He told most of his story to the kid before he ever told any of us.  

[Texas_Rocks 346]

97 year old Tom Rice repeating his jump 75 years later was amazing.

[Nueces River Rat 5539]

3 minutes ago, Trey3216 said:

Almost verbatim with my Grandfather.  It wasn't until after he retired that he would talk about his stories.  The first time we heard about some of them was when he sat down with a local high school kid who was writing a paper for the 50th anniversary of V-E Day in '95.  He told most of his story to the kid before he ever told any of us.  

And the irony is they open up more with complete strangers before they would with their own families which is something I don't think many of us can explain.  Same is said about Vets of even more recent conflicts albeit I've heard  more Vietnam Vets open up about their tours here now that many are now or approaching their golden years.   

[michaelpshayes 417]

he has a thread talking about the guys he met while writing band of brothers 

[hayden_horn 11362]

9 minutes ago, Nueces River Rat said:

And the irony is they open up more with complete strangers before they would with their own families which is something I don't think many of us can explain.  Same is said about Vets of even more recent conflicts albeit I've heard  more Vietnam Vets open up about their tours here now that many are now or approaching their golden years.   

i did not serve. i'm just an idiot on the internet.

but i would imagine that a lot of these guys lost friends and what they consider family members during wartime.

i imagine that surviving the horrors of war brings heaps of survivor's guilt, and i would imagine that many of them are of a generation that speaking aloud that guilt may spread it around to others, somehow. nearly to a man, they have said that they weren't the heroes - it was their fallen brothers that were the real heroes. as such, any pride we might assign to their experience would feel shameful to them, because here they are, and their brothers in arms are under the ground. 

but it is an endearing silence and a humbling one.

i cannot find the video, but i've been watching skynews overseas, and this old man gets up, and this is the memory he shares:

Quote

Frank Baugh, 95, from Doncaster, gave powerful testimony of arriving at Sword beach at H-hour, his words resonating with so many others there.

As a Royal Navy signalman with the Landing Craft Infantry, his task was to ferry in 200 troops from Newhaven, he said in an address at the service. As they approached the beach, they took a direct hit which caused a fire and holed the craft below the waterline. Many were injured. The others had to make for the beach. “My most abiding memory is seeing the boys we had been talking to a minute before cut down by machine gun fire. They fell into water, floating face down. We couldn’t get them out. We couldn’t help them. And that is my most abiding memory that I can’t forget,” he said.

 

[Trey3216 15346]

8 minutes ago, hayden_horn said:

i did not serve. i'm just an idiot on the internet.

but i would imagine that a lot of these guys lost friends and what they consider family members during wartime.

i imagine that surviving the horrors of war brings heaps of survivor's guilt, and i would imagine that many of them are of a generation that speaking aloud that guilt may spread it around to others, somehow. nearly to a man, they have said that they weren't the heroes - it was their fallen brothers that were the real heroes. as such, any pride we might assign to their experience would feel shameful to them, because here they are, and their brothers in arms are under the ground. 

but it is an endearing silence and a humbling one.

i cannot find the video, but i've been watching skynews overseas, and this old man gets up, and this is the memory he shares:

 

Out of rep for today.   Thank you