D Day thoughts

[jpl458]

Casualties from D Day

The estimated battle casualties for the United States included 29,000 killed and 106,000 wounded and missing. The estimated battle casualties for the United Kingdom included 11,000 killed and 54,000 wounded or missing. The estimated battle casualties for Canada included 5,000 killed and 13,000 wounded or missing.

American casualties in WW 2 407,318 Killed

All those young men died to protecet freedome and democaracy, that allowed Trump to live a life of privilege, and then claim that they were "Losers" and "suckers", and "I don't get it. What was in it for them". The last quote explains everthing about Trump. He only cares about himself, and what he can get. I was in the military, and I resent Trump's comments. And please. Don't tell me my stats are wrong or that I made this up to make Trump look bad. He does that all by himself.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

My father-in-law went inland from Omaha Beach on D-Day, in one of the later waves. While there, he helped liberate one of the more southern camps. He came home, got married, started a family, and had a career in carpentry contracting. He died shortly after holding his first great grandson and being a proud G-grandpa. R.I.P, Roy T. You lived a long and eventful life.

@jpl458 - you are entitled to your opinion - and so is DJT. Those soldier died for ALL of us to remain free. Not just you, not just DJT, but all of us.

 

[Pat Hartman]

All those young men died to protecet freedome and democaracy, that allowed Trump to live a life of privilege, and then claim that they were "Losers" and "suckers", and "I don't get it.

You take as absolute truth the misquotes and out of context statements that become headlines and click-bait. They just suck you right in because your hatred of Trump blinds you. Anything negative must be true in your mind.

Find the quote you are referencing and put it in context and we can discuss it. NOT a reference to a quote, the ACTUAL quote from some speech IN CONTEXT.

You desecrate the names of the military men and women who died for us this day in June. You're the one who is making this about Trump, not him. Disgusting.

 

[jpl458]

You take as absolute truth the misquotes and out of context statements that become headlines and click-bait. They just suck you right in because your hatred of Trump blinds you. Anything negative must be true in your mind.

Find the quote you are referencing and put it in context and we can discuss it. NOT a reference to a quote, the ACTUAL quote from some speech IN CONTEXT.

You desecrate the names of the military men and women who died for us this day in June. You're the one who is making this about Trump, not him. Disgusting.

What's disgustaing is Trump. I am sure he and his dad bought his way out of being drafted. Bone Spurs. I knew a guy in the military that was killed in Soc Trang Vietnam. I can assure you that he was not a loser.

When President Donald Trump canceled a visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, near Paris, in 2018, he blamed rain for the last-minute decision, saying that “the helicopter couldn’t fly” and that the Secret Service wouldn’t drive him there. Neither claim was true.

Trump rejected the idea of the visit because he feared his hair would become disheveled in the rain, and because he did not believe it important to honor American war dead, according to four people with firsthand knowledge of the discussion that day. In a conversation with senior staff members on the morning of the scheduled visit, Trump said, “Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers.” In a separate conversation on the same trip, Trump referred to the more than 1,800 marines who lost their lives at Belleau Wood as “suckers” for getting killed.

 

[ColinEssex]

I agree with Pat.
A 100 year D day veteran was interviewed today and he said he wasn't a hero. The ones that didn't return were the heroes.
Col

 

[jpl458]

My father-in-law went inland from Omaha Beach on D-Day, in one of the later waves. While there, he helped liberate one of the more southern camps. He came home, got married, started a family, and had a career in carpentry contracting. He died shortly after holding his first great grandson and being a proud G-grandpa. R.I.P, Roy T. You lived a long and eventful life.

@jpl458 - you are entitled to your opinion - and so is DJT. Those soldier died for ALL of us to remain free. Not just you, not just DJT, but all of us.

I had a histery teacher when I was a senior in High School, that discovered that had read a lot of books about WW2. In a conversation he said the he was part of the invasion. I asked "you were at Normandy?" his olny answer was "Omaha beach Red 1". Later I learned that the unit he was in was nearly wiped out on D Day. I will never forget the look on his face when he told me that. While I was in I had the chance to talk with several GIs that had been in Viet Nam. An Army captain, a platoon leader, mentioned a statistic to me. "The life expectancy of a 2nd Lt in a hot LZ, was 15 seconds."

The difference is I don't denegrade those that died so we could all have jobs and families and live pretty good lives.

 

[Pat Hartman]

I am sure he and his dad bought his way out of being drafted.

Slander??? Too bad our laws are such that famous people don't have protection from remarks like that.

Trump rejected the idea of the visit because he feared his hair would become disheveled in the rain, and because he did not believe it important to honor American war dead, according to four people with firsthand knowledge of the discussion that day. In a conversation with senior staff members on the morning of the scheduled visit, Trump said, “Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers.” In a separate conversation on the same trip, Trump referred to the more than 1,800 marines who lost their lives at Belleau Wood as “suckers” for getting killed.

Hate speech and hearsay. Way to go.

 

[jpl458]

Slander??? Too bad our laws are such that famous people don't have protection from remarks like that.

Hate speech and hearsay. Way to go.

In less than 2,000 word tell me what it's like to be in a cult. Never had the experience.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

Never had the experience.

Ah, but that's the point. Cultists think their behavior is normal. Followers of Jim Jones or David Koresh thought they were doing the right thing even though so many died. You are LIVING the experience. I don't have to describe ANYTHING to you. Except your cult is not pro-Trump, but anti-Trump. I get it. You can't' see the forest for the trees. But you aint the first one with Political Myopia.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

I had a histery teacher when I was a senior in High School, that discovered that had read a lot of books about WW2. In a conversation he said the he was part of the invasion. I asked "you were at Normandy?" his olny answer was "Omaha beach Red 1". Later I learned that the unit he was in was nearly wiped out on D Day. I will never forget the look on his face when he told me that. While I was in I had the chance to talk with several GIs that had been in Viet Nam. An Army captain, a platoon leader, mentioned a statistic to me. "The life expectancy of a 2nd Lt in a hot LZ, was 15 seconds."

The difference is I don't denegrade those that died so we could all have jobs and families and live pretty good lives.

I had the honor and pleasure to meet Marvin J Perret when he was working as a living guide to history at the D-Day museum in New Orleans. Petty officer Perret (Bosun's Mate 2nd, USCG) was a steersman (coxswain) on a landing craft at Utah Beach on D-Day. He made more than one trip. But the part that I remember is that he told his story and then answered my grandson's questions. At the time, he was wearing his medals.

When the war ended in Europe, he transferred to the war in the Pacific and piloted landing ships for some of the island-hopping campaigns. You can look him up in Wikipedia. And a nicer guy you could never hope to meet. He's deceased now, but he landed on Utah Beach not once but twice on D-Day. And in the Pacific he took part in the Iwo Jima and Okinawa landings. What I took home from our museum visit that day was a grandson who heard about war from someone who lived it and lived to tell about it.

 

[jpl458]

Ah, but that's the point. Cultists think their behavior is normal. Followers of Jim Jones or David Koresh thought they were doing the right thing even though so many died. You are LIVING the experience. I don't have to describe ANYTHING to you. Except your cult is not pro-Trump, but anti-Trump. I get it. You can't' see the forest for the trees. But you aint the first one with Political Myopia.

I used to be a Republican, and was going to vote for John McCain, right up until the Alaskan gnitwit became his running mate. And I think the Dems are making the same mistake with Biden that they made with Hillary. "Put up the only biped on the planet that would lose to Donald Trump", quote from George Will. I have voted for both parties at some time or other. But, for me, DJT has neither the character nor the intellect to hold the job he is seeking. With that said I am out of here.

 

[ColinEssex]

This is not the thread for mentioning DJT and American politics.There are dozens of those. Forget republicans and Democrats for today.
This thread is for D Day thoughts. 80 years ago today thousands of young men died for us. Let's pause forum banter for today and just think of those and what they sacrificed for us to be able to have our freedom.
Col

 

[jpl458]

This is not the thread for mentioning DJT and American politics.There are dozens of those. Forget republicans and Democrats for today.
This thread is for D Day thoughts. 80 years ago today thousands of young men died for us. Let's pause forum banter for today and just think of those and what they sacrificed for us to be able to have our freedom.
Col

Well Said.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

Col, when you are wrong, you can be a total terror. But when you are right, you are absolutely spot-on. Today, sir, I salute you. And the thousands of American, British, French, Russian, and other soldiers who stood up to tyranny. Tyranny extreme enough to kill people in bulk just because of their ethnicity or their infirmity. (We cannot forget that at the time, Hitler ordered the killing of Jews, Gypsies, 7th Day Adventists, and handicapped people.) Today, we have to also reflect on the forces that still seek to impose their will through war or threats of war and those who find that they must now fight that war or be destroyed. Hatred and tyranny lost the battle 80 years ago, but they still lurk in many places.

 

[jpl458]

Col, when you are wrong, you can be a total terror. But when you are right, you are absolutely spot-on. Today, sir, I salute you. And the thousands of American, British, French, Russian, and other soldiers who stood up to tyranny. Tyranny extreme enough to kill people in bulk just because of their ethnicity or their infirmity. (We cannot forget that at the time, Hitler ordered the killing of Jews, Gypsies, 7th Day Adventists, and handicapped people.) Today, we have to also reflect on the forces that still seek to impose their will through war or threats of war and those who find that they must now fight that war or be destroyed. Hatred and tyranny lost the battle 80 years ago, but they still lurk in many places.

Bravo

 

[Isaac]

"I don't get it. What was in it for them"

This is a very profound quote that we should all meditate on. It's hard to believe all those would sacrifice everything for someone else - i.e. there was nothing in it for them, it's one of my favorite Trump quotes actually. The truth is none of us get it, that's why we meditate and ponder this amazing sacrifice.

Let's not turn d-day into a political nonsense thread, if you're going to start one let's remember those who died for our freedoms.

Believe it or not, not everything is about Trump.

 

[Isaac]

This is not the thread for mentioning DJT and American politics.There are dozens of those. Forget republicans and Democrats for today.
This thread is for D Day thoughts. 80 years ago today thousands of young men died for us. Let's pause forum banter for today and just think of those and what they sacrificed for us to be able to have our freedom.
Col

Great post Col, I read this after posting something similar myself. It's just thinking of the young kids who died for me and my kids, that's amazing enough in and of itself

 

[Pat Hartman]

My dad was 17 when he went off to war. Since he was underage, he needed my grandmother to sign for him. He wanted to be a marine but she wouldn't sign the papers. He eventually got her to sign him up for the merchant marine in June of 1942 the day after he graduated from high school. So, he never carried a gun but his convoys supplied our troops so they could defeat Hitler and the rest of the Axis powers.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

My father was a bit on the older side for the war, though they DID take some men older than him. Had he been taken, it would probably have been as an artilleryman because when he served in the National Guard that is what he did. But he had a skill that kept him home. He worked for the Higgins shipyards, most notably known for the landing craft type LCVP. But dear old Dad worked with the group that made the Liberty Ships - small tonnage freighters in such quantity that German U-boats couldn't sink them all before they would get targeted by destroyer and destroyer escort ships. Towards the end of the war, the U-boat threat was pretty much negated, so Dad worked for Delta shipyards making PBY aircraft for the U.S. Navy. For those not familiar, it was the big-bellied sea plane with overhead wings as opposed to centered wings. They were nicknamed "ruptured ducks" because of the ungainly way they landed.

 

[GaP42]

My father joined the Royal Navy underage, mid WW2. He was a fitter and maintained planes on the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious. The Illustrious took him through Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and onto SE Asia, Pacific. He did not talk much about his war experiences, and did not like to take part in public commemorations - it was too hard remembering those who did not come back. Always remembered.