D Day - 69th Anniversary

The past few days, I'm not sure if it was the History channel or Discovery featured the documentary of "10 Days before D-day". Prior to that day, the US had done a trial shore launch to practice. Close to 700 men lost their lives in that horrific accident that occurred due to drowning. Hard to believe that could happen in a practice drill. Ken

RknRusty wrote:Thanks for that.
So many people and nations around the world love to hate us, its nice to know someone is kind enough to think well of us for something.

Oh yes, both of my grandfathers where fighting on the other side (nonvoluntary of course, the other choice was death). Without the Allies we would live in hell today. The german community should also thank all west Allies for their commitment after the war (candy bombers for engaged Berlin and marshallplan for example), without this Germany would not be what it is today. I still remember the iron curtain with the seperation of Germany, principally this war ended 1989 for us. Really a bad capital of our history, I still cannot believe that one insane person and many others around him can bring so much pain to a country and the entire world.

But our world is not safe against such schizophrenic persons.

In G. C. Marschalls words: Whatever the Weather we must move together

My cousins and I are all post WW-II babies. Both of my grandfathers fought in WW-I. My Mom's father was in an Army engineering unit stationed in France in 1916 and '17. He was an amateur artist and made hundreds of sketches of villages, farms and other sights around the country.

My Dad's father, also a WW-I veteran was declined by the Navy because of age and so joined the US Coast Guard and somehow, unclear to me, ended up involved in the South Pacific Okinawa assault. My Mom's brother joined the Army on December 8th, 1941, but would never discuss it. My Dad and his brother, both joined the Navy at that time and were also in the South Pacific.

So as a result, all of us post war boys had crewcut stubble for hair until the hippies invaded our culture in the '60s and '70s. I registered for the draft in '76 but due to impending kidney failure could not join the military, so I joined the hippies.

Ken Cook wrote: The past few days, I'm not sure if it was the History channel or Discovery featured the documentary of "10 Days before D-day". Prior to that day, the US had done a trial shore launch to practice. Close to 700 men lost their lives in that horrific accident that occurred due to drowning. Hard to believe that could happen in a practice drill. Ken

You may be refering to excercise "Tiger".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exercise_Tiger

Thanks for the D-Day reminder.

I was born about three weeks before Pearl Harbor, so I'm pre-WW2. My dad and uncle were WW2 Navy.
I was Viet Nam era Navy. Dad was PT Boats, I was Submarines.

George

There was time when military service was an obligation; now it's a choice and I believe it's been to the US's detriment.

Perhaps we wouldn't have gotten into so many wars if EVERYONE was called to service.

SD
six year USAR veteran

Thanks Lieven, nobody can forget...

I would like thank all who have served to keep the USA as free as it is. I wanted to join you in serves but was also declined due to health. How they found out about I don't know, and shouldn't have been a reason (but that's another story). Thanks again.

SuperDave wrote:There was time when military service was an obligation; now it's a choice and I believe it's been to the US's detriment.

Perhaps we wouldn't have gotten into so many wars if EVERYONE was called to service.

SD
six year USAR veteran

I agree Dave, it should be experienced by everyone. However, having been active duty for the last 19 yrs I truly feel that it's better to work with someone who wants to be there as opposed to somebody who is forced to be there.

Just my experience anyway.

We have at least 100 pictures sent back from my Grandma's brothers who served in WWII. There is also a little 7" cardboard 78 RPM record that was recorded and sent home by one of them, unfortunately it is very fragile and I believe that playing it once will be its last.

Admin wrote:We have at least 100 pictures sent back from my Grandma's brothers who served in WWII. There is also a little 7" cardboard 78 RPM record that was recorded and sent home by one of them, unfortunately it is very fragile and I believe that playing it once will be its last.

If it lasts once you could get the recording on DVD. Then it would last forever.

cribbs74 wrote:

Admin wrote:We have at least 100 pictures sent back from my Grandma's brothers who served in WWII. There is also a little 7" cardboard 78 RPM record that was recorded and sent home by one of them, unfortunately it is very fragile and I believe that playing it once will be its last.

If it lasts once you could get the recording on DVD. Then it would last forever.

Its a Wilcox Gay Recordio disc, they are not super rare so I have been waiting to find one at a thrift store to set my turntable up on. I want everything set up perfect just in case I only have one shot. Back in the 40s and 50s, you could get a record player/record lathe and they sold blank metal or cardboard discs coated in shellac. You could record the radio or from a microphone. I almost bought one of those record lathes from an antique store awhile back but besides having to deal with finding or making blank records, I would probably need to rebuild the circuit and rebuild or somehow replace the cutting needle. My 8-track player/recorder and reel to reel tape recorder already pushes the limits on obsolete crap.

Yesterday, 8th June, a statue was inaugurated near Pegasus Bridge at Bénouville of the piper Bill Millin who crossed Pegasus Bridge on the 6 June 1944 a little after noon time. He announced the arrival of the British troops that landed at Sword Beach to the British 6th Airborne division. This division landed in the early hours of the 6th at Bénouville at approx 50m from the bridge with Horsa gliders. The bridge was a strategic point for the defense of the eastern flank and to prevent German tanks to cross the river.


http://local.stv.tv/edinburgh/magazine/228556-d-day-piper-bill-millin-remembered-with-memorial-in-normandy/

Lieven

That's one brave Piper......

Germans thought he was nutty so they didn't draw down on him. That's funny. I need to remember that little trick.