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2010-06-06 Home Front: Culture Wars

June 6, 1944 - Remember

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Posted by logi_cal 2010-06-06 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11128 views ] Top

Posted by GolfBravoUSMC 2010-06-06 01:23|| 2010-06-06 01:23|| Front Page Top

#2 It is 0736 local time and I was at Omaha Beach this morning at 0630. I've been in Normandy for the past 3 days touring around with my family. We did a full-day tour with the second half of the day dedicated to the Band of Brothers - awesome.

Posted by Bangkok Billy 2010-06-06 01:38|| 2010-06-06 01:38|| Front Page Top

#3 Omaha Beach holds the remains of 9,383 servicemen and four women, their white gravestones a permanent reminder of war's terrible costs.

At 3 am on 6 June 1944, a huge armada of 6,000 ships including 864 converted merchant ships and 4126 landing craft set sail for Normandy in 47 convoys. They carried 200,000 seamen, 185,000 soldiers and 20,000 vehicles. The weather was still fairly bad. Many of the soldiers were so seasick that they joked that they would not mind going into battle, just to get off the ships!

A few Royal Navy ships raced back and forth between Dover and Calais to make Nazi radar operators think that the invasion was going to take place at Calais.

20,000 men were by parachute dropped or landed in gliders behind enemy lines to disrupt communications and seize key points. The invasion was supported by 11,000 planes, which attacked the Nazis from the air.

7 battleships, 23 cruisers and 105 destroyers laid down a massive bombardment of the Nazi shore defences.

More than 19,000 civilians in Normandy also died in Allied bombing before and after D-Day to soften up German defenses.

The concept of "Total War" to defeat an enemy was the watchword. Total defeat of ours enemies was a part of this concept. The war was not fought for stalemate or some kind of compromise. As a young boy during this time, I can recall that nearly all civilian and military efforts were geared towards defeating a ruthless enemy. Everyone felt the importance of winning this war. We had rationing of materials such as gasoline, tires, and many other things. Civilians collected such things as tins and lard which were placed at the curb and collected for the war effort. Our industrial might was mobilized and companies were churning out war materials. I can recall miles and miles of tanks passing our house in Farmington, Michigan as they came out of Detroit. I remember blackouts where air raids were simulated in case the real thing came along. Air raid wardens came by your house if they could see any lights coming from your house to tell you to turn off your lights. Any light allowed targeting from the air. There was no liberal press spewing out venom. The term political correctness did not exist. Our country was not split and Balkanized. After the war and into 1950s everyone was aware of the price paid for victory. You could go through the small town where we lived in Ohio after moving from Michigan and count the fatherless homes in the town. Everyone was aware of this terrible loss. Nearly all men and many women were veterans of WWII. Nearly all civilians took part in the war in some capacity. When men and women went to war it was for the durationuntil victory.

Posted by JohnQC 2010-06-06 10:45|| 2010-06-06 10:45|| Front Page Top

#4 There is nothing about D-Day on White House's website.

Posted by JFM 2010-06-06 12:52|| 2010-06-06 12:52|| Front Page Top

#5 While I was having a haircut I overheard a (French) guy telling he was a child living in Normandy and about his joy seeing Germans under Allied bombing shit in their pants.

Posted by JFM 2010-06-06 12:55|| 2010-06-06 12:55|| Front Page Top

#6 19,000 civilians in Normandy also died

Wow! Had no idea. And the French in the area aren't even rude to us (and certainly don't go blowing up our rental cars.) Is our problem in A'stan that we don't have enough collateral damage? (Or is it a religious thing?)

Posted by Glenmore 2010-06-06 13:26|| 2010-06-06 13:26|| Front Page Top

#7 Amazing sacrifice by the Allied troops. This was western civilization at its best. I also think of General Eisenhower, bearing the awesome weight of command, making the decision to go with the chance of a weather window.

Posted by Alaska Paul 2010-06-06 13:50|| 2010-06-06 13:50|| Front Page Top

#8 The greatest German general of WWII was Eisenhower. There is a lesson in that fact.

Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2010-06-06 15:01|| 2010-06-06 15:01|| Front Page Top

#9 19,000 civilians in Normandy also died

It wasn't so much during D-Day, though substantial, but in the two months of fighting before the breakout. The worst was at Caen.

Posted by ed 2010-06-06 15:22|| 2010-06-06 15:22|| Front Page Top

#10 19,000 civilians in Normandy also died

Wow! Had no idea. And the French in the area aren't even rude to us

Actually both communists and Gaullists have done their best to poison French minds about that.

However when I visited Coleville American graveyard in 2004 I remember a French about 70 who looked to be there for paying hommage not for tourism. I tend to believe the resentful people aren't in Normandy but in Paris.

Also some of those 19000 fell to German fire.

Posted by JFM 2010-06-06 15:40|| 2010-06-06 15:40|| Front Page Top

#11 JFM, I know that for some years there was an effort to destroy what the Brits would call "Pegasus Bridge", please tell me the bridge still stands.

Great pics GB.

D-Day starring Tom Selleck is a good flick.

Posted by swksvolFF 2010-06-06 21:25|| 2010-06-06 21:25|| Front Page Top

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