Overlord

I watch the news everyday; morning, noon, and night. When I watched this morning, there was nothing said about one of the most momentous events ever that happened on this day; June 6. The significance of today will probably pass without much mention. I hope I’m wrong, but the events of June 6, 1944 aren’t in the consciousness of many people still alive. After all, that was 74 years ago. I wasn’t even born then, and neither were most of you reading this.

But I bet your grandfather, or father, or possibly great-grandfather would know. Names like Utah, Omaha, and Point Du Hoc would still reverberate in their minds. For the British, Canadians, and Australians… the names Gold, Juno, and Sword would have been burned into their memories of those earlier generations.

Tom Brokaw has called them “The Greatest Generation.” I don’t know if they were the “Greatest,” but I do know that on this day in 1944; 153,115 men of the Allied forces went ashore in the largest amphibious invasion the world has ever known. It was the beginning of the end of Nazi Germany.

Maybe Tom Brokaw is right… maybe they are the “Greatest.” I can’t imagine what it must have been like. Soldiers of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions jumped out of airplanes into the black of night. No night vision goggles, no infrared images of what was below… they just jumped out into the blackness not knowing what was waiting below them. I have no idea where they got the guts to do it.

Think about the two hundred or so Rangers that had to scale the cliffs of Point Du Hoc with the Germans up on top raining “Potato Masher” hand grenades down on them. Their job was to get to the top cliffs and disable massive German artillery that could be destructive to the Americans landing at Omaha and Utah beaches. They had no idea how many angry Germans were waiting for them on top of the cliffs. They just knew they had to get to the top no matter what the enemy was throwing down on them. I have no idea where they got the guts to do it.

The rest of the forces going ashore knew that the Germans were waiting for them. The Nazis had planted mines, wooden stakes, tripods and anti-tank traps to stop invading forces. As the soldiers waded… sometimes swimming or drowning as the went ashore… the Germans fired down on them from the fortifications they built to stop any invasion. The soldiers going ashore knew the Nazis would use everything they had to kill them and keep them from the beaches. I have no idea where they got the guts to do it.

But they did do it. Over 150,000 soldiers from the US, Britain, Canada, and Australia went ashore on “D-Day,” June 6, 1944. The toll was high with over 10,000 casualties… at least 4414 confirmed dead. Many movies, books, and stories have been told that try to tell us what it was like to go ashore on that day. But I don’t think any of book or movie can tell us what it was really like. Only those that were there really know. It doesn’t matter to me if they received some kind of award, badge or formalized honor… everyone that attacked the Nazis that day was a hero.

If this map looks complicated, it's because it is. Landing 150,000 soldiers in a short time is complex.

If this map looks complicated, it’s because it is. Landing 150,000 soldiers in a short time is complex.

The success of Operation Overlord can’t be overstated. Within one week of D-Day, 326,000 men and 50,000 vehicles were put ashore. By the end of June, nearly a million allied soldiers were in France. It would still take another eleven months and many more sacrifices before Nazi Germany was defeated. But June 6, 1944 was the beginning of the end.

There are very few of those D-Day heroes still alive. Estimates vary, but at best, of the 150,000+ that went ashore that day… only a few thousand are alive. Of the 16 million who served in WWII only a bit over 500,000 were alive a year ago. As it will with all of us… age is catching up with them. All are over 90, and over 130,000 die a year.

Going ashore into the barrage of enemy gunfire.

Wading ashore into the barrage of enemy gunfire.

So today… no make that every day… go out of your way to find one of those old guys wearing a WWII Veteran ball cap. Shake their hand and tell them “thank you.” But more than that, take a little time to talk with them. Ask them where they were and what they did in WWII. Ask them about their life, their children and grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Listen to their stories if they will share them with you. Do it today… you don’t have much time left till those stories are gone.

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I Support the 2nd Amendment

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Maybe the most talked about topic in recent months is gun control… or perhaps the need to have more… or perhaps to have less of it. Sometimes I think it’s about supporting the person on your side of the fence.

Before I continue… I’m sure that many of the social media posts on the subject and some that repost them have never read the 2nd amendment. So, here it is:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

 That’s it… nothing more and nothing less. Nothing about hand-guns… nothing about AR-15s… nothing about tanks, bazookas or rocket-propelled-grenades. Go ahead. Check it out for yourself. I’ll wait right here till you get back from Googling it…

Now, here’s what I think. It’s clear to me that the “Founding Fathers” were afraid that the United States would not remain free without a “well regulated Militia.” There was no standing military at the time… only state Militias.

And the Militias of the time were not full time… these were citizen soldiers much like our reserves or National Guard. Most importantly here, these citizen soldiers used their personal weapons when called upon. So it was absolutely necessary for them to “keep and bear arms.”

Today, our militia… the military, reserves and National Guard… provide our soldiers and citizen soldiers any arms they need. Still, in a dire emergency… like when Mexico or Canada invades, we may need more than our Army, Marines, Navy, US Air Force, Coast Guard, National Guard and Reserves have.

In that case, we may have to call on every able-bodied citizen to take the weapons out of their closets to defend our nation against the hoards attacking us.

Now, who should be allowed to have those guns in their closets? Well… here’s where the pissing contest begins. But I will start with some I think everyone will agree with me on.

  1. Terrorists that have claimed allegiance to an organization intent on causing harm to the United States or United States citizens SHOULD NOT HAVE GUNS.
  2.  Convicted violent felons that have committed armed crimes… particularly if they have already used a weapon in the commission of a crime SHOULD NOT HAVE GUNS.
  3.  Crazy and berserk persons who clearly intend violent harm to themselves or others SHOULD NOT HAVE GUNS.

OK… see that wasn’t so hard. We can all find some stuff we can agree on. Let’s see if we can find some more.

  1. Guns should not be allowed in a courtroom except for law enforcement officials.
  2. Guns should not be allowed at political rallies except for law enforcement officials.
  3. Six-year-olds should not be allowed to purchase guns… maybe not even seven-year-olds.
  4. No one, except law enforcement and military (militia), will be allowed to purchase 50 cal. machine guns, bazookas, or rocket propelled-grenades.

See… we can find ground for common sense laws. I think we can all agree on everything I’ve put out there so far. Well… except maybe that last one on 50 cal. machine guns. I mean, some may claim that they need that for hunting hawgs… or for their collection… or for self-defense of their apartment. But for now, I’ll assume 50 cal. machine guns should be banned from private ownership.

There are already lots of laws controlling guns. There are laws in every one of the 50 states and at the federal level that in one form or another are those I’ve mentioned above. In fact, if you re-read the 2nd amendment, there is nothing about private ownership… NOTHING!!! The founding fathers were very specific… they intended guns for the militia.

Lawmakers, Attorney Generals, and Supreme Court Justices have all agreed that the 2nd amendment does not provide for private gun ownership. Now you shouldn’t take my word for that. I mean, this is the internet. Anybody can say anything. So go ahead, look it up. Come back here when you’re done. I’ll wait for you.

Okay. You say we need guns so that the hoards from Canada don’t invade. We’ve all seen it… “No one would ever try to take over Merica because of all the guns here.” I do have a proposal for this contingency in a minute, but let’s look at how much sense this proposed defense makes.

Yep… if the hoards did invade, we would have a lot of guns for them to overcome. Since they know that, they would come at us with aircraft, tanks, and armored personnel carriers. How well do you think the guns you have at home would do against that. And… they would have 50 cal machine guns, bazookas, and rocket-propelled grenades. As you try to defend your apartment with your handgun, they would call in an air strike and make you disappear. Or that tank would put a round into your bedroom where your loved ones are hunkered down.

Now… about that proposal I have. You say you still want a gun for defense against the hoards invading our country. I say GREAT! I admire your patriotism. So here’s my proposal. Join our militia. (Reserves, National Guard, etc.) Buy your weapon of choice… pistol, AR-15 or even a bazooka. You will be trained in the proper use of many weapons and how to properly defend your apartment.

In fact, I think this should be required of every American. Stand up for your country by being willing to die for it. Once you’ve joined the military, the weapon(s) of your choice will be stored in the armory. You can check it out to go to the practice range on the military installation… any time you want. You need to maintain proficiency, so you will be required to check it out at least once a year to take it to the range.

If the hoards do make it ashore in Montana, then the weapons will be passed out to all our militia. Our great national defense will begin. With every man and woman armed, just let the hoards try something.

Now… if we can just find a defense against the zombie apocalypse.

Next up on the subject… More ways to support the 2nd amendment: a handgun in every home.

But first, I’ve got to take a little trip to the Florida Keys. After all, I seriously need an escape to a land the hoards won’t invade. Zombies are another thing. Zombies seem to like Key West, but at least I’ll have no worries about the hoards.

 

 

Donald… Do you think we’re stupid?

We interrupt the regularly scheduled blog to bring you this BS alert.
On May 29, 2018, Donald Trump gave a speech in Nashville. In  that speech he said:

“In the end, in the end, Mexico is going to pay for the wall. I’m just telling you that.”
“They are going to pay for the wall and they are going to enjoy it. OK? They are going to enjoy it.”

Now I don’t know about you, but I know bull shit when I see it… or in this case, when I hear it. I call bull shit… BULL SHIT.

What makes me mad is that Donald must think I’m stupid. There’s no way Mexico is going to pay for the wall. I know it… everyone knows it. I don’t care how you wrap it, spin it, or BS your way around it. Donald is spewing pure BULL SHIT.

Here’s what Mexico’s president said on twitter:

MexPresNoWallNow my question for you is… does Donald think you are stupid. Or… does he think you are gullible. Does he really think you will believe his BULL SHIT?

I know many Trump supporters. But the ones I know are not stupid… and I know they are not gullible. So you guys chime in. How is it you let this go by the wayside? How is it you let him insult your intelligence? I know you are too smart to believe this BS. So you tell me… why do you let him insult you?

Tomorrow back to our regularly scheduled blog:
I support the 2nd Amendment.”