D-Day: 75 years

[Frederick Skelly]

It's hard to believe it's been this long. I've never met anyone who landed on the beaches on D-Day. I've always admired their bravery - it couldn't have been easy to be a 20 year old facing that. There's a short article on D-Day that I found interesting from the FDR Library. LINK (https://www.fdrlibrary.org/d-day)

Thanks once again to all veterans.

Fred

[Lee Schierer]

I've known a few men that landed on D-day and others who fought in the war and to a man they are very humble about what they did and most are reluctant to talk about it. My Dad was in the Army Air Force during WWII in the Pacific and he told us little of what he did. There were a few photos in the family album of where he was stationed in Tinian.

[Keith Outten]

From the President:

410950

410954

My Dad was in the Navy somewhere in the Pacific on D-Day.
410951

[Andrew Gibson]

I knew a few men who were involved in the D-Day invasion. 5 of my uncles were all in the pacific, three in Hawaii when Pearl was hit. There is a reason they are the Greatest Generation. Now we have to tell teenagers not to eat laundry soap. My grandfather was carrying a BAR on the front lines in Korea when he was 17.

[James Pallas]

Without question, the bravest of the brave. To go onto an open beach knowing your enemy can see you and they are protected can hardly be imagined. We can be thankful that they were there. We can be just as thankful for those who serve today that have the will to do it if necessary.
Jim

[Jim Tobias]

It is even hard to try and imagine how different our lives would be if it were not for those brave soldiers. Bless them and their families for their bravery and for their willingness to do what needed to be done.
Jim

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

The young ones of today would never even have tried.

[lowell holmes]

I had uncles that served in WWII. They all came back.

[Rick Potter]

It seemed appropriate to hang my flag today. I used to work with a man who was on the Arizona at Pearl Harbor. A family friend was in the 'Graves' unit in the army. His job after D-Day, gathering bodies, must have been unbelievably soul rending.

[Mike Null]

I had 9 uncles and my Dad in WWII. At least 3 were involved in D-Day. One a paratrooper (shrapnel wounds from neck to heels), one an aircraft mechanic in the Air Corps in England, one an infantryman. Two served in the Pacific theater. Two were wounded but all came home.

My best friend received a battlefield commission after his outfit moved inland from the beaches. He was about 10 years older than me and a truly remarkable fellow.

I've been to the cemeteries in France twice. It is a sobering and tearful experience. I was 8 years old and remember more than one might expect about the times.

[Dave Anderson NH]

The gut wrenching fear of facing combat has remained unchanged since the first cave man picked up a rock or a stick. Modern warfare made it both better and worse. Facing into and moving forward under mortar and automatic weapons fire is the ultimate unnatural act. Honor all who have faced this daunting task whether they served at D-Day or elsewhere in WWII. D-Day is just the most well known symbol for dozens of other opposed landings.

[Nicholas Lawrence]

The young ones of today would never even have tried.

Mr. Hilbert, you should think before posting something like that. Plenty of young men today would and have demonstrated their personal courage on a hundred battlefields around the world.

You may not read about them the same way you read about the men who landed on Omaha Beach, but that is a reflection of current politics, not a reflection on those who have served under fire over the last two decades.

[Mike Null]

Right on Mr. Lawrence!

[James Pallas]

The young ones of today would never even have tried.
You should have been there to cross the river on landing craft at Hue during TET of 1968 and been first off when the ramp dropped.
Jim

[Ken Fitzgerald]

The young ones of today would never even have tried.

I would suggest you are mistaken sir. I have a son who is currently serving and 2 grandsons who are currently serving. In late July I will fly to Norfolk for a short 2 day stay where I will attend the our current CPO oldest grandson's commissioning ceremony where he is being commissioned as a Limited Duty Officer aboard the USS John C Stennis.

His younger brother just returned from duty in Kuwait with the Army National Guard, his second deployment.

As someone who served if the US Navy for 8 years, 1968-1976, I sailed aboard the USS Carl Vinson for 3 days in 2000. There I observed a lot of young women and men who are serving as honorably, and as well as my generation did. My wife would argue against your statement in much stronger language than I as she sailed in January 2002 aboard the USS Carl Vinson for 10 days from Pearl Harbor to San Diego to Bremerton, WA as it was returning from flying missions over Afghanistan where it's 3 squadrons dropped over 20 million pounds of ordinance. From "vultures row" she observed carrier landings, takeoffs of jets, prop jobs and helicopters. With my oldest grandson's service in the US Navy, he is the 4th consecutive generation of my family to proudly serve in the US Navy.

We have also had 3 generations serve in the US Army in our family. Our oldest son served 9 years in the US Army including duty in Operation Desert Shield and combat in Operation Desert Storm where he ended up in Iraq.

You realize that our entire military is all volunteer, no draftees?

I would suggest we would never know how a generation might react until the world is placed in a similar situation.

Don't condemn an entire generation because of the drivel you might see on television. Get out and experience the world.

[Edwin Santos]

The young ones of today would never even have tried.


Mr. Hilbert, you should think before posting something like that. Plenty of young men today would and have demonstrated their personal courage on a hundred battlefields around the world.

You may not read about them the same way you read about the men who landed on Omaha Beach, but that is a reflection of current politics, not a reflection on those who have served under fire over the last two decades.

Right on, Nicholas.
Heroism lives in every generation, country, ethnic group, religion, gender and so on.
The D-Day anniversary is a day to remember a certain special group of heroes.
But heroism is all around us all the time and as others have pointed out, every generation of military, including the current one, deserves the gratitude and respect of all.

[Tom Stenzel]

The young ones of today would never even have tried.

This old one of today wouldn't want to try either.

My Dad was late to the party but still went to Europe on the Uncle Sam Plan. He was in the Armored 3rd, driving a tank for Patton.

The only stories we heard involved stealing a jeep to go into town, trading fuel with the farmers for some fresh eggs and maybe a chicken and antics like that. He did say that in training they were told the tank was bullet proof. It was a vile lie. They were also told the American machine guns were better than the German machine guns. He said that was a lie too.

My Mom's youngest brother was a Marine somewhere in the Pacific. Her middle brother was on the Bergall when it was hit by a shell and opened a hole in the pressure hull. Her oldest brother was on a light cruiser when it was hit by a kamikaze. That they all made it home was by pure miracle.

It was years after my father passed away I was told he was in some "nasty scrapes", as describe by someone that been through some horrible battles. When Dad was alive didn't want his children to know about the bad stuff that happened. Respecting his wishes I haven't pursued it.

Edit: I just spent the last weekend at a paralypics, competing with and against a lot of disabled veterans. Our armed forces have a lot of heroes today whether we recognize it or not.

-Tom

[Dave Anderson NH]

Kudos Nicholas. Todays military has been at continuous war since 9/11. Many have seen from 3 to as many a 10 tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. I served a single 13 month tour as a Marine grunt in Vietnam. I'm not sure that I could serve the multiple tours of today's men and women and still maintain my sanity. These folks too deserve our utmost respect and gratitude and are by no means any less strong and noble than our forefathers.

[Jim Koepke]

Many of today's young not only take on the challenge of being in the military they have made many sacrifices for our country.

My father, brothers, nephews and son have been in various branches of the military and some still are. My son is in Korea and last I heard, one of my nephews is in Germany.

Please do not sell the millennial generation short just because of the ones at the mall with their pants hanging low.

jtk

[Bruce Wrenn]

Never forget that the United States has the largest ALL VOLUNTEER army in the world. Most of the guys in WWII were volunteers, either on their own, or at the direction of their local draft board. Very few shrugged their call to duty. My dad was put out of the Army (he fell in a mess hall and broke his leg,) so his youngest brother could be drafted. Dad was 32, married with four children when he was drafted. FIL never made into service as his job (bus driver) was considered to be "war critical." Wife's aunt served in England during the war. All sacrificed, some more than others. Thanks to all who served. Sometimes I remind some of our French friends, that if it wasn't for the GI's, they would be speaking German, instead of French.

[Stewie Simpson]

Lets not forget that for the "UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand" WWII commenced on September 1st 1939.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Lets not forget that for the "UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand" WWII commenced on September 1st 1939.

We can never forget our allies. My father was a crewmember aboard a LCI in the South Pacific. One of the few war stories he told was of landing Aussie troops on a island in the South Pacific. No one country won WW-II.

[John Stankus]

I teach a lot of veterans using their GI Bill benefits. Some share their stories, some are very quiet, but all deserve our thanks and gratitude for answering the call to serve.

[Frederick Skelly]

Lets not forget that for the "UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand" WWII commenced on September 1st 1939.

We remember Stewie. The Commonwealth fought long, hard and proudly.

[Dave Lehnert]

I saw this story on TV this morning getting ready for work.
People like this is the reason we won the war.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6lpx5POYjA

[Keith Outten]

I have known a large number of combat veterans from my Dad's friends to my own. The one constant that I have observed is that they never expect to receive praise for their service but a sincere thank you is always appreciated and when you show them just a little respect it goes a very long way.

[Mel Fulks]

I see Perry's comment not as insult, just recognition of the horrible task. Lots of young guys have thought
of such wars as a chance to travel and meet women. Lot of people in my family met their mates through
war travel. D Day survivors heard the dying calling for their moms. Every year D Day is a kind of sad
marvel.

[Mike Henderson]

We can never forget our allies. My father was a crewmember aboard a LCI in the South Pacific. One of the few war stories he told was of landing Aussie troops on a island in the South Pacific. No one country won WW-II.

That's absolutely true. The one country that never gets talked about here in the United States is the Soviet Union. It was the Soviet Union that defeated the Germans (the US defeated the Japanese). The Soviet Union lost somewhere between 20 and 25 million soldiers and civilians KILLED during WWII (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_casualties), about 13% of their population. By comparison, the United States lost less than 500,000 soldiers and civilians killed during the war, significantly less than 1% of our population.

The Soviet Union destroyed close to 200 German divisions on the eastern front.

If not for the destruction of all those German divisions, the invasion on D-Day might not have succeeded. It was the Eastern Front that defeated the Germans, not D-Day. But what D-Day did was keep the Soviet Union out of Western Europe - which was very important.

Mike

[The US supplied the Soviet Union with much of the material required for them to wage war (almost 18 million tons). But it was the citizens of the Soviet Union who did the fighting and dying.]

[Another point: The Soviet Union was a backward country (from an industrial point of view) prior to WWII. WWII made them a powerful country.]

[Aaron Rosenthal]

My father was drafted into the Canadian army as was my uncle. Leaving a new wife like so many others, in order to go to England to support his company, and face the German bombing raids along with the rest of the population.
Uncle Jack was a master cabinetmaker, so naturally he fixed up the Hurricanes (J for Jake) and had to endure outside temperatures because there were hard stands, not heated hangers.
Dad was 32 when drafted - and you all are right. The soldiers of today for whichever country are dedicated. Patriotic, giving and idealistic: it’s when they get home, disabled, shocked, many of them permanently marred mentally and physically that they are seen as useless.
“My” war was Vietnam, and the number of my friends and relatives who went over both from Canada and the United States and the treatment they got when returning was exactly what I was told 4F stay at homers did to our WWII vets.

[Brian Holcombe]

That's absolutely true. The one country that never gets talked about here in the United States is the Soviet Union. It was the Soviet Union that defeated the Germans (the US defeated the Japanese). The Soviet Union lost somewhere between 20 and 25 million soldiers and civilians KILLED during WWII (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_casualties), about 13% of their population. By comparison, the United States lost less than 500,000 soldiers and civilians killed during the war, significantly less than 1% of our population.

The Soviet Union destroyed approximately 200 German divisions on the eastern front.

If not for the destruction of all those German divisions, the invasion on D-Day might not have succeeded. It was the Eastern Front that defeated the Germans, not D-Day. But what D-Day did was keep the Soviet Union out of Western Europe - which was very important.

Mike

[The US supplied the Soviet Union with much of the material required for them to wage war (almost 18 million tons). But it was the citizens of the Soviet Union who did the fighting and dying.]

[Another point: The Soviet Union was a backward country (from an industrial point of view) prior to WWII. WWII made them a powerful country.]

I’ve listened to Dan Carlin’s Ghosts of the Ostfront, it’s very eye-opening.

My grandfather landed in France three days after D-Day. I’ll never forget the phone call I had with him where he detailed a few episodes of his war experience. I called him to ask questions for my forth grade history paper on WWII, got a lot more information than I had expected.

[Rick Potter]

I have mentioned my Uncle before, but he must hold some sort of record. He was a US citizen, but joined the Royal Canadian Air Force before we were in the war. They taught him to fly, and he was sent to London area where he flew for a short time before his group was transferred to the Royal Air Force. He flew Spitfires during the Blitz, and was shot down over the English Channel and rescued by a fishing boat.

When the US got into the war he was told he would lose his citizenship if he did not transfer into the US Army Air Corps, so he did, flying bomber escort, until he was transferred to somewhere in India, where he flew air
cover against the Japanese, for convoys going over the Hump.

At the end of the war he continued the fight flying transport planes for Chiang Kai Shek's Nationalist Army during their fight against Mao Tse Tung's Communist forces. He wrote about bullet holes in the plane received from Ho Chi Minh's forces helping Mao's. Yes, that Ho Chi Minh.

He went home in '49 , I think, and was reactivated for Korea, where he was a training officer, no combat. He stayed in the AF and served in occupied Germany, where his last excitement was the Berlin Air Lift.

Four different national militaries, several theaters, three hot wars, and a cold war. That must be some kind of record.

I was told he was an Ace, but with so many changes, if he was it got lost, as I cannot find any info to support that.

[Malcolm McLeod]

Lets not forget that for the "UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand" WWII commenced on September 1st 1939.


We remember Stewie. The Commonwealth fought long, hard and proudly.

My Canadian grandfather, who I never met, often wryly joked that the English were very brave and would 'fight to the last colonial'. He spent 4 yrs in the mud of WWI France, fighting Germans, to gain Canada's independence.

[Rob Luter]

My late father in law served in the European theater. The beaches had been cleared prior to his arrival, but he still saw plenty of ugly. He was with an armored company in the Ardennes and in Bastogne Belgium and was involved in the battle of the bulge. He never talked much about it to his family (all girls) but he shared a few things with me after I married his youngest and he grew to trust me. He saw Saving Private Ryan when it came out and was pretty stunned. When my wife asked him about it he started to cry and told her it was pretty real. He saw some terrible things over there and chose to bury the memories deep. Thank you for your service Private Baker.

[Brian Holcombe]

I saw an interview with a D-day survivor that had become friends, later in life, with one of the German machine gunners from the Pillbox positions at Omaha beach.

It helped me to understand the feelings my grandfather had overcome in casting aside his own grievances as life went on.

[Frederick Skelly]

I saw an interview with a D-day survivor that had become friends, later in life, with one of the German machine gunners from the Pillbox positions at Omaha beach.

It helped me to understand the feelings my grandfather had overcome in casting aside his own grievances as life went on.

You know, I've heard and read similar accounts of former enemies becoming friends later in life - infantry, pilots, sailors. I know the phenomena goes back a long time, for example there were joint Blue and Gray reunions after Gettysburg. But I'm sorry to have to say that I just don't understand it. I dont have enough "forgiveness" in me to befriend someone who may have gunned down my buddy. Maybe it comes with the wisdom of old age. Maybe time heals all wounds. Maybe I'm just different than everyone else. I don't know.

[Frederick Skelly]

Thank you for your service Private Baker.

+1. Thank you.

[Rod Sheridan]

My father and his brothers served overseas in WWII, miraculously, all came back. My mother's brothers also came back. I cannot imagine what their experiences were like, none of them would ever talk about them.

I've read "The Greatest Generation", it's not how I describe my parents, or my friends parents.

I call them the broken generation. They grew up during the depression, for the most part their childhood, developmental and educational aspects were missing or severely affected by that economic calamity.

Then they had an all expense paid trip to Europe in 1939 where they saw, and participated in things that would permanently affect their personalities and outlooks on the world, if they were lucky. If they were unlucky they were either killed or came home mangled.

Following the above they came home to a rigid, inflexible society that expected men to be men, and just carry on with civilian life as if the previous 5 years didn't exist. No support, no recognition of PTSD, no help in trying to cope with their experiences. They were simply cut loose and discarded once they had done their duty.

We can glamourize it all we want, that generation was chewed up and spit out by a society that gave them precious little support. I'm amazed that any of them actually managed to cope.

Now my children have friends that have served in places such as Afghanistan, they've come home damaged as well. At least today there is some support for their mental health, and recognition of how it has affected them. A couple of them are doing well, one is not and I think of him often.

I am hoping that we provide better support for our military personnel than we did previously.

Regards, Rod.

[Frederick Skelly]

That's an interesting perspective Rod. Thanks for sharing it.

Yeah, they were expected to just suck it up and get over it when they returned. I read a very sad story last week about an 18 year old medic on one of the beaches. He had many guys die in his arms, while providing what comfort he could. When he came home, those scenes haunted him for 60+ years and he drank to forget them. He finally got help in his 80s and worked through it. He was at last week's ceremonies.

[Rod Sheridan]

Thanks Frederick, every year at the Cenotaph on Remembrance day I think of what my father said about the occasion.

He wished that I would live to see the day when there were no veterans to attend.................Unfortunately we don't seem capable of achieving that........Regards, Rod.

[Edwin Santos]

You know, I've heard and read similar accounts of former enemies becoming friends later in life - infantry, pilots, sailors. I know the phenomena goes back a long time, for example there were joint Blue and Gray reunions after Gettysburg. But I'm sorry to have to say that I just don't understand it. I dont have enough "forgiveness" in me to befriend someone who may have gunned down my buddy. Maybe it comes with the wisdom of old age. Maybe time heals all wounds. Maybe I'm just different than everyone else. I don't know.

Fred,
I've heard it said that the soldiers in a war are simply victims of another type. If you're going to hold a grudge, the real perpetrators are the politicians who instigate the war.
The guy that might have gunned down your buddy would have done so following orders, not out of a personal animus. The soldiers don't have much of a choice and in my opinion they pay a heavy price for their patriotism. It's no wonder PTSD is what it is.
I just don't think forcing human beings to slaughter other human beings is a natural thing to do and I hope our species evolves beyond it one day.
We should all wish that politicians would treat the act of military aggression as a grim and sacred responsibility, a very last resort.
Edwin

Another thought - Maybe the befriending is the soldiers identifying with each other's no-win predicament and not only avoiding taking it personally, but actually bonding because they can relate to each other in a way that nobody else can. If there's any merit to this hypothesis, it's an interesting paradox for sure.

[Frederick Skelly]

Another thought - Maybe the befriending is the soldiers identifying with each other's no-win predicament and not only avoiding taking it personally, but actually bonding because they can relate to each other in a way that nobody else can. If there's any merit to this hypothesis, it's an interesting paradox for sure.

Edwin,
Everything you said makes good sense. And after reading all of it a couple times, I kept coming back to this thought - it really resonated with me. Thanks for sharing it. I'll think about this today.
Fred

[Jim Andrew]

There used to be a barber in a city close by here, with a horrible facial scar. More scar than face. A friend told me he was hit in the landing craft on D Day, and did not make it out of the boat.

[lowell holmes]

If we were attacked again, I suspect the enlisting rate would be incredible. It always has been when we were attacked.

[David Dalzell]

I knew a man, a friend of my father, that was in the paratroopers and jumped into Normandy on D-Day. He never wanted to talk about it other than to say that it was very confusing and very scary. He also jumped into Holland for the Operation Market/Garden. He would talk about that a little, various incidents that happened during the fighting. He was also at Bastogne during the battle of the Bulge. To me the most amazing thing was that in all the battles/fighting he was in, he never got a scratch. (Or at least no battle injuries)