Comments for Quite a day today!

Quite a day today!

2005-06-06T11:56:48Z

June 6th...

1775 NY patriots prevent the Royal Governor from removing weapons from the city - I wonder how many would stand up to the Governor today?

1813 US invasion of Canada halted at Stoney Creek (Ont). Heh. Someday we'll get it right... ;^)

1898 Marines land at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba - Prisoners abused - Korans mistreated!

1918 Marines secure Belleau Wood.

Midway! The Tide Turns in the Naval War in the Pacific.

1942 Japanese troops land on Kiska in the Aleutians. Along with Attu, the only bits of continental US dirt successfully captured during WWII.
1943 Japanese decide to evacuate Kiska, except for a small force that was ovewhelmed easily.
1944 D-Day: 150,000 Allied Expeditionary Force lands in Normandy, France.
-The Airborne Drops.

Pegasus Bridge, securely in British hands, is crossed by military vehicles on D-Day plus 1, June 7, 1944. The Trustees of the Imperial War Museum, London

-Brits:
Gold Beach

Special Service troops of 47 Royal Marine Commando land at Gold Beach near Le Hamel on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The Trustees of the Imperial War Museum, London

Sword Beach

Mine- and obstacle-clearing tanks of the 27th Armoured Brigade thread toward the shore at Queen sector, Sword Beach, on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The Trustees of the Imperial War Museum, London

-Canadians:
Juno Beach (en francais)

1st Hussars tanks and men of the 7th Infantry Brigade landing on a crowded beach at Courseulles-sur-Mer, June 6th,1944. Photo by Ken Bell. Department of National Defence / National Archives of Canada,

VAC site: Canada Remembers.

On board their assault landing crafts, men of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles heading towards their sector of Juno Beach, June 6th, 1944. Photo by Dennis Sullivan. Department of National Defence / National Archives of Canada,

-Americans:
Utah Beach

Soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division wade ashore at Victor sector, Utah Beach, on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Amphibious tanks are lined up at the water's edge. U.S. War Department/National Archives, Washington, D.C.

Omaha Beach

U.S. infantrymen wade from their landing craft toward Omaha Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944. U.S. Coast Guard/National Archives, Washington, D.C.

-Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., earns the Medal of Honor on Utah Beach. And, like his father before him, dies before it can be awarded. Can anyone name the other Father/Son Medal of Honor holders?

Freedom
isn't
Free.

1949 George Orwell's "1984" published

And, last, but not least, way too long ago for his taste... my brother-in-law Ed was born. Three kids! I reluctantly have to conclude he's been boffing my sister all these years, as there has been no mention of virgin births...

The picture of the Canadian Cemetery at Reviers was shamelessly stolen from these fine Canadians. I hope they can forgive me.

And this couple have some nice pics of the area as it looks today.

Oh - and no snarking regarding the French and D-Day. Not in the mood. So, quit it.

Comment from cowboy blob on 2005-06-07

2005-06-07T18:58:38Z

I think the cemetary scene at the end of SPR was necessary to show the bridge of the Greatest Generation from that frozen moment in the past to what they've become today. The visual narrative began with the Captain, but didn't stay with him exclusively, so it didn't feel wrong to me. The final scene is one of the most emotional moments in cinema for me, almost like Spock dying. I'm such a geek....

Comment from Fuzzybear Lioness on 2005-06-07

2005-06-07T17:46:15Z

I haven't watched either of those movies, for the reasons mentioned above. I had a strong interest in WWII as a child and read about it voraciously, so I doubt much of it would be new. But the emotional impact would just be too much for me. My high school history teacher showed us a documentary with graphic footage of the German concentration camps--the facilities, the bodies, interviews, etc. I was glad I saw it, but instantly knew that I never wanted to see anything like that again. I'll never forget the feeling of silently walking out of the darkened classroom and back the bright sunshine and the wrenching shift back into my little world that didn't include that kind of horror. Yes Kat, the knowledge of what people can do to each other... Strangely, I DO own a DVD of the soundtrack of Shindler's List. It was actually hearing the music that convinced me I wouldn't want to see the movie itself. Too much. I once played an excerpt of it for a writing exercise with 8th-graders. I simply told them it was a movie soundtrack (only one ended up already knowing anything about the film) and had them write what they thought was happening in the movie or what it was about. It was extraordinary how accurately they nailed the emotion and broad concepts of the movie, though most hardly even knew what WWII was. They used words like "Evil, horror, war, mass death, pain, cruel." The power of music...

Comment from kat-missouri on 2005-06-07

2005-06-07T16:45:55Z

Sanger...I saw it like you're wife. I couldn't watch it again either. It had me up and down so many times that I thought I was going to throw up. It was like being assaulted for 2 hours. Assaulted with the knowledge of what people can do to each other. I was thinking half way through "OMG! Just save them already!" Even though I knew that so many were never saved or even had the chance. It was like being there. I agree about the very end, when he's staring at the grave, but I think that I had the story as coming from different memories of those that left, not just that one guy. He was just the add on in the end to make it come together. The "earn it" scene was the "last scene" for me, but I have wondered if the view of the cemetary was just supposed to be a reminder that, the story was about one group of men and there were thousands of men like that.

Comment from SangerM on 2005-06-06

2005-06-07T04:28:09Z

My wife and I saw Schindler's List together, but we discovered later we watched it through very different eyes. For her, a lot was new and very unexpected, and she said many times it was like being physically assaulted for 2+ hours. For me it was different. Imagine, if you can, being told all through your childhood about a horrible event that occurred before you were born, and reading about that event from the time you learned to read, and thinking about that event, and dreaming about that event, and crying for the people who lived and died in that time and place, and hating the people who were responsible for murdering your WHOLE family, then living for six years in the place where it occurred, with the people who did it, and then, after nearly 30 years of all that, being able to travel back in time to actually witness the event. Without being seen by the people there. That is exactly how it felt. My wife saw it as something new. I, on the other hand, watched it with the eye of a hobbyist/ historian, looking for the inconsistencies, seeking the flaws, and mentally checking off the things I expected to see as they occurred. It was almost like watching old home movies in some ways, which made it all the worse, in many ways. It was horrible, and I don't need to see it again. I can close my eyes and replay a good deal of it, even now. ~SangerM

Comment from John of Argghhh! on 2005-06-06

2005-06-07T03:49:03Z

Every now and then, when I wonder if I should have chosen soldiering, I'll watch Schindler's List. Answers the question for me, every time.

Comment from SangerM on 2005-06-06

2005-06-07T03:32:44Z

You know, Kat I really hated the ending of Ryan. It was out of place, and really set me off in a bad tone. 1) From the beginning, you are led to believe that this was being remembered by Hanks' character and then at the end you realize it was someone who could not have remembered all of that stuff--even that was too hard for my willing suspension of reality to overcome; 2) the ending was just too sappy "Am I a good man?" Give me a break. Bah. In fact, I am convinced the opening memory sequence and the ending were added after the fact to help set the stage, and to give people time to wipe their eyes and get composed before the lights came up. Frankly, I think the movie would have been loads better if Spielberg had just dropped the modern day bits. For my part, I skip those when I watch it. As for the rest, the D-Day landing sequence was more powerful than anything I have ever seen on a screen, save for Schindler's List. In fact, I saw Ryan twice in one day. The first time alone, to see if my wife would want to see it, and then with her, when she decided she had to because her father had been with the Marines in the Pacific and in Korea, and she wanted to at least once get some idea of what it might have been like for him. Suffice to say she did. We were supposed to go to dinner that evening, but she was too shook up to do that, so we just went home. It was more than three years before I would watch it again. I have never watched Schindler's List again. I don't think I ever will. ~SangerM

Comment from kat-missouri on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T23:28:00Z

I watched Saving Private Ryan last night on 52" TV with surround sound. Everytime I see that movie, I get emotional. The hardest part, for me, was when the military car drove up to the Ryan house with it's four star flag in the window. It was too close to home these days. Made me think of the number of times that has happened over the years and more recently. That, and the last scene: Earn it. I always knew Hanks character and the ghosts of millions were speaking to me, to us, in that one sentence.

Comment from origen on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T19:35:51Z

And here's a comment on the French, now that John has assured me I wasn't snarking. By chance today, I was watching French TV and fell upon a programme on D-Day. I watched it till the end. It was good, informative, they had a bunch of veterans talking (some French, but many more Americans) and they made a point of talking about all the sacrifices made by the Allies. I would have been surprised except that for ever since I can remember (though I am not sure about these last few years as my American husband doesn't much like French TV - despite the above average amount of bare skin usually shown), the French have commemorated D-Day by showing documentaries or the Longest Day. My Dad always used to watch it and so did we.

Comment from Cricket on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T18:34:32Z

Midwifery in the 18th cent. is just so primitive. Where was John Edwards?

Comment from Justthisguy on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T17:44:30Z

Oh, yeah, Pegasus Bridge, how to do it right, rather than land several miles away and march through lots of badass enemy soldiers, as they did at Arnhem. (And they almost succeeded, dangit!) Owwhell, that Market-Garden thing depended on absolutely everything going absolutely right. Yuck. I must try and get my ex-neighbor on the phone tonight. He's a prissy old guy who jumped at Normandy, June 6th, 1944. He complained about the heaviness of the Thompson, but gave up his one and only morphine syrette to a guy he shot with it. A real Christian gentleman.

Comment from Boquisucio on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T17:43:31Z

One Fast Feline Saved - Copy Loud & Clear JTG

Comment from Justthisguy on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T17:32:28Z

Umm, Boqui, save that kitten-bullet image for the next time we cat-bomb Acidman. Should be soon, he's been talking trash about kitties lately.

Comment from John of Argghhh! on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T17:16:00Z

We prefer the term, "Independent Contractors," John.

Comment from J.M. Heinrichs on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T17:11:54Z

Ha! Gunners were camp followers until c.1600 when attempts were first begun to legitimise them. Even today the effort has shown only partial success. Cheers JMH

Comment from Jude on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T16:47:44Z

Great photos. The expression on the faces of the men heading toward Juno Beach could fill the pages of a book.

Comment from Boquisucio on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T16:27:01Z

But seriously... I've read another plausible explanation on the phrase: SON OF A GUN. Back in the days when warships were manned by Iron Men in Sailing Ships, Women Folk were kept onboard for the very same reasons armies relied on camp followers to tend to domestic needs. (I know, very sexist - but this is the 18th Century). Anyways... When due to the congress between man & woman, the woman had trouble unburdening herself from child, the woman was bent over the barrel of a cannon, and a salvo was fired. The theory being, that the contusion and shock of the detonation would compel the child to propel thusly from its motherly womb. Thus, any recalcitrant and obdurate fellow, was affixed the moniker SON OF A GUN. It's difficult to discern the origins of saying like that, whose origins are obscured by history. Another example: THE WHOLE NINE YARDS. I have heard two origins which have been forsworn as the "true" reasons for this saying. The first one is prosaic. Construction crews, when laying-down the foundation for a large project, will require the full contents of a Cement Truck, whose capacity happens to be 9 Cubic Yards. Thus, you give it The Whole Nine Yards. The second one is more exiting. B-17 Gunners were given exactly 27 Feet of M2 Linked .50 Cal. Ammo for their missions. When the gunners encountered a particularly stubborn Messerschmidt, they emptied The Whole Nine Yards on it. Unless you are a Seabee, or in the construction business, most in this blog would prefer the other explanation. Take your pick.

Comment from Jude on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T15:37:02Z

Great photos. The expression on the faces of the men heading toward Juno Beach could fill the pages of a book.

Comment from Boquisucio on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T15:30:35Z

SON OF A GUN??? And all of these years, I though that THIS, was the meaning of that term. Or in this case Kitten of a Gun

Comment from Barb on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T15:08:03Z

Excellent post, John - great pictures! Can't wait to see Bill's pics from his travels... BTW - for history in the making here in WA state, I have some links on the court challenge. Ruling is due today...

Comment from MCart on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T15:04:07Z

Hmmm. I don't think i'd walk those beaches without a metal detector. Cause' You never know... Nice photo's, thank you.

Comment from John of Argghhh! on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T15:00:19Z

Snerk! Pure Envy, John, pure envy.

Comment from J.M. Heinrichs on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T14:47:28Z

Cricket As for "shamelessly stealing", remember that 'son of a gun' was not originally a compliment. Cheers JMH

Comment from AFSister on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T13:56:59Z

Why am I not suprised that JMH knew the answer to your trivia question? I would imagine that Sanger knows it too. We'll see.... As for the rest- what a day in history! Great D-Day pix... thanks!

Comment from J.M. Heinrichs on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T13:28:19Z

1. Arthur MacArthur 1864 Chattanooga(?) 2. Douglas MacArthur 1942 Philipines etc Cheers JMH

Comment from Cricket on 2005-06-06

2005-06-06T13:25:24Z

What is there to forgive? When it comes to paying homage and respects to those who have fallen in freedom's cause, I thank all our Allies who drove back Hitler's Hordes. May they all rest in peace and know that one more generation will be taught and the torch passed...