Patriot retort: I confess yesterday even after writing about it, I was spitting mad over that stupid hit piece about Heisman trophy winner Kyler Murray’s old tweets.
Maybe it’s because I haven’t been well that it bugged the living crap out of me. Who knows?
So yesterday afternoon, I needed a break from our modern-day thin-skinned, easily offended culture.
I have the miniseries “Band of Brothers.” So yesterday I sat down and watched all ten hours of it marathon-style. Sure, it kept me up until midnight to do it. But it was worth it.
If you’ve never seen it, “Band of Brothers” was an HBO miniseries from about eighteen years ago that chronicled the 101st Airborne’s Easy Company during World War Two. It begins with their training in the states then follows from their drop into Normandy on D-Day to their operation in Holland then in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge. And it concludes with their entrance into Germany and Austria at the end of the war.
It is very well done. Some of it can be hard to watch, to be sure. Seeing a man’s leg blown off by a mortar – even if it is special effects — is not pleasant viewing. But “Band of Brothers” is powerful and moving from beginning to end.
These ordinary men chose to put their lives on hold to join the fight against Germany. more
I’ve seen the photo at the top of the thread somewhere captioned:
‘American teens leaving their safe space.’
Fantastic series.
One of the most memorable parts for me is when one of the injured soldiers returns to the unit shortly after the wintertime Battle of the Bulge. He has been through D-Day and many other scary times with them, but because he didn’t suffer through that winter with the rest he is considered no better than a new soldier. Meanwhile, Garnier snuck out of the hospital before he was declared healthy just to be with his brothers, suffering through the winter siege with them.
The companion story is The Pacific. Great/hard/bittersweet to watch that series, too.
Yes, but if they were all 6′ 6″ tall, could they put a ball in a hoop 3.5 feet over their heads?
The real heroes.
I too have that miniseries and I make it a point to watch it at least once a year, especially in the Winter when The Battle of The Bulge occurred. The late Dick Winters is one of my heroes, what he and The 101st Airborne did was extraordinary in stemming the tide of the Nazi’s attempting to break thru The Ardennes and make one last push to defeat the Americans and their allies. They didn’t call them “The Battling Bastards of Bastogne” for nothing, they earned that costly and bloody victory. One of my Uncles was in The Airborne in World War 2 but was in training at end of end of the war but he did do occupation duty in Japan after the war had ended. He was 18 at the time he enlisted in 1944. I don’t think I could do what he did even though I served in the Navy in the mid 70’s. A year or so before he died I had a good talk with him about his experiences in World War 2 at my mom’s 90th birthday party. It was the first time I heard his stories about WW 2 and made me appreciate him even more than I had before.
Band of Brothers?
Dianny you rock!
For those that like to read books… Dick Winters’ Memoirs
https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Band-Brothers-Memoirs-Winters/dp/0425213757/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1544565634&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=dick+winters&dpPl=1&dpID=51-WAfJ9zlL&ref=plSrch
When fighting a foreign war on the side of communists becomes “patriotism” then someone has been badly fooled.
From Anonymous: “When fighting a foreign war on the side of communists becomes “patriotism” then someone has been badly fooled.”
Well numbnutz, what the hell did you expect us to do after Germany bombed Pearl Harbor?
America has not had a President who killed for America since Ike. America has changed. Change is sometimes bad. Even very bad!
What these men did was not considered extraordinary 60 years ago. Millions of Americans did, or tried to do what these guys did OVER AND OVER AGAIN from 1776 to 1945! They did not consider killing for America extraordinary. Nor did they think getting maimed for America was extraordinary.
I had dozens of relatives who did just that from 1776 to 1945. None of them felt that they did anything “extraordinary”… they felt they did “what had to be done”!
A significant part of this change in America has to do with our dishonest leaders (since we elected them it really has to do with us, huh?)
The liberal ATLANTIC did a very good (I agree mostly; therefore its good!) analysis of The 4 wars America has lost since 1945. ATLANTIC says we started these wars not for military reasons, nor for defense of America, but to distract from serious problems here! The last 3 wars IMHO were just such wars, one is still going on after 15 years. America did not start Korea! Mao started the Korean War. Doug counterattacked – against HST’s direct orders. HST fired Doug and warriors lost confidence in the war. America in real terms lost ( the war is not over, it was an armistice – not a peace treaty).
I have direct, personal experience in the next war. Which , to me, was the first America started. After being there several months I figured out JFK started the war to divert attention, his friend from Ford, who he made Sec Def, admitted such in his memoir about 20 years ago. I have a direct, personal, reason to hate Bobby – I was at Way (spelled HUE) in ’68. So did not read his book; but others who are combat vets have read it and told me my opinion was right on!
What the men in BAND did was what ordinary America loving men did then; and had been doing for 150 years! I know none of them – I had 4 relatives killing for America, all killed Japs – but I am confident that The Band felt – unlike Spike – they were “doing the right thing”! Common, ordinary patriotic duty. Or at least 60 years ago it was:common, ordinary and patriotic.
Change is frequently not progress!
an olexjhd –
Thank You!, sir, for your service.
Dianny, now that you’ve seen that excellent series and if you want more, read Dick Winters’ (.45-70 is spot on) and Ambrose’s books about the Band, as well as Ambrose’s Citizen Soldiers. Then, if you can stomach it, read Rick Atkinson’s trilogy about our war against the Germans, starting in N. Africa. Take it in small doses if you are unable, as I was, to separate yourself from thoughts about what was going through the minds of our often ill trained, misled and ill equipped troops, especially at the start. There’s a good paragraph about war bringing out the weaknesses in leaders’ personalities in the third volume. And then, there’s the constant backstabbing betrayals of Eisenhower and others of our high command by the execrable B. L. Montgomery, his sycophants and, sometimes, Churchill, looking for personal and national advantage at our expense. And, much worse still were the french “allies”. Very tough stuff to read but information that too damned few of us know. Even our “cannon fodder”, thrown into the line ill trained and with no experience or links to the units they found themselves in, were unsung heroes.
I hope you feel better soon!
AND – RIGHT ON olexjhd! Thank you!!
My Dad never spoke about the War, but once, when my sons were watching a show about the Battle of the Bulge, he walked in behind them – watched for a couple of minutes – said “That was the coldest winter of my life” – and walked out.
On the other note: Murry should have simply said “Sorry I used Al Sharpton’s words.”
izlamo delenda est …