By Jackie McConlogue (Jackiem) (67.86.125.150) on Monday, June 02, 2003 - 01:29 am:

I wrote this following article just an hour ago. I want submitt it to my local newspaper which comes out every thursday. It meant a lot to me to be able to say what I did and I owe so much of it to not only this website but to BOB for truly starting a spark within me. Here it is...


Have We Forgotten?

Tomorrow is the 59th anniversary of D-Day. Did you know that? Fifty-nine years ago men and boys from all over America, Britain, France, Canada and Poland participated in the largest invasion in the history of the world. In all six million people were involved with the invasion and their unrelentless duty is why we can sit here on a Thursday morning and enjoy our Redding Pilot in relative peace. Have we forgotten? Are we even supposed to celebrate on one of the bloodiest days that have ever come? There are things about war that no one will ever understand. But, imagine for one moment what it was like to be on the British landing craft headed by Major C.K. King as he shouted excerpts from Henry V to his men as they looked apprehensively at what for some would be their last hours and for others the start of the rest of their lives as "Day of Days" survivors.
Scene from Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers are probably popping into your heads. Bodies littering the beaches and deep red waves washing over landing crafts and corpses. It is Hollywood, but even within these images something must have been done right if veterans refused to see the films for fear of what it may awaken within themselves. Memories that they have learned to live with everyday because the only other choice was to let the venom within the memories eat the soldiers alive. In the end of Saving Private Ryan a dying Tom Hanks looks to Matt Damon who portrays the soldier he just saved and says, "Earn this." But I direct the same question to another? Have we, and by we I mean the descendants of the World War II generation, earned the right to live in such peace? Do we honor the sacrifices made by our ancestors day in and day out? Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.
My questions fall at my own feet and I don't know if any relatives of mine were even involved in the D-Day invasion. My grandfather was in the Navy and on his way to the Pacific when Truman made the decision to drop the Atomic Bomb on Okinawa. My other grandfather was living his own life in Peru, quite distanced from the feuds of the Second World War. I have read a fair amount about the Second World War and in particular the ETO (European Theatre of Operations), but even I cannot claim that I have earned the right to live as I do. When was the last time any of us even said, "Thank You,"?
There is no doubt that the respect and passion of those such as Stephen Speilberg, Tom Hanks and Stephen Ambrose have fueled the recent influx of memorials designated towards the Second World War. But, honoring these men should not be a trend in Hollywood, nor should it begin with the opening credits to a film. There are veterans in your neighborhood or at your place of worship. Find one, ask them what it was like, if they will talk, listen intently and in the end offer simple praise with, "Thank you."
This article began as a plea to the generations of today to take and interest in our past because we are the last generation that will have direct contact with the World War Two generation who is growing older and sadly passing before our very eyes. But it has become something more in its own formation. A request to reflect on what we have done and what we are doing right now. It is unfortunate that I only can offer questions without answers, but perhaps in another and another something of substance can be reached.

This is what I know of D-Day. The invasion was given command by Eisenhower to General Bernard Montgomery, a Britain, who earned the respect of Eisenhower when his Eighth Army helped to secure North Africa in Allied hands despite many setbacks. Montgomery and his advisors fed the Germans hearty meals of false information for months before the invasion so that Hitler would think that the invasion could come anywhere along the Western Coast of Europe and at any time. Hitler began the buildings of fortifications along the beachheads known as the "Atlantic Wall." However, the landmass where the possible invasion could come from was so vast that he had to spread his troops thinly along the coast.
The original invasion was planned for June 5th with the twenty US division landing on codename Utah and Omaha beaches and fourteen British divisions designated to land on codename Juno, Sword and Gold beaches. However foul weather forced Eisenhower to postpone the invasion until the next day. The night before though, The US 101st Airborne and 82 Airborne along with the British 6th Airborne division parachuted into France behind the "Atlantic Wall" with the objective to help knock out the machine gun emplacement that would be firing on the troops landing on the beaches. In all 13,400 American paratroopers boarded C-47s hardly knowing what to expect when they landed in Normandy, if they were even to make it out of the plane. Because of artillery fire from the ground many of the paratroopers who did get to jump were in planes that were moving too fast and at an almost suicidal low altitude. They were scattered along the Normandy region many miles away from their DZ (designated landing zone). St Mere Eglise was the first town to be liberated in France after a four year Nazi rule.
Rushing the shores through mines and gunfire of all kinds the infantrymen met many different fates on that most fateful day. On Juno Beach the Canadians stormed so furiously that they had control seven miles inland by nightfall. On Omaha Beach the Americans had only moved 1,200 yards deep by that time. However the constant push from leaders and words of wisdom from Colonel Taylor such as, "Two kinds of people stay on this beach, the dead and those who are going to die," kept the men pushing past the "Atlantic Wall" and onto fighting through the rough hedgerow terrain of the Normandy. By D-Day plus six all the beachheads were secured and linked creating a secure territory that was six miles wide and fifteen miles deep. The war was far from over, but the Germans were in retreat towards the Seine River and the Allies had supplies and reinforcements coming across the channel at a much faster rate than the Germans could move anything east to their front line.
Allied casualties in Normandy amounted to 209,672 of which 37, 976 were killed. The Germans suffered far worse losing 400,000 men half killed and the other captured. As the Allies pressed on in Europe they persevered through Operation Market Garden, the Battle of the Bulge, the race across the Rhine until V-E day on May 7th 1945.
Remembrance should starts today and doesn't end with D-Day. Everyday we should take one moment to think about one night in a foxhole in the middle of December in the Ardennes forest. Or what the faces of replacements looked like when they were not even old enough to shave. Think of pride, sorrow, loss, misery, defeat, victory, retreat and think of what they all wanted: for the war to end so they could go home and do what they did before it all started. In short, their greatest desire during the years of fighting was to have what we have. Honor them by giving something back no matter how large or small. This is our time to repay debts long forgotten by prosperity and peace.
I'll start. Thank you to all those who served for our country and for the Allies. Thank you to those who served in every war that has shaped America to the point where I can live in it so comfortably today. I write this on my bed at 12:30 in the morning surrounded by my World War Two books and maps pleasantly haunted by faces I will never see, but will also never forget.


(This is just a PS) In the mid 1930's Hitler came to power and soon after broke many of the "rules" instated in the Treaty of Versailles at the end of the First World War and the world did nothing. We allowed them to re-build and army, to invade Poland, Czechoslovakia, and other eastern European countries and still did nothing. America stayed out of the war until our own land was devastated by the Pearl Harbor attacks. Fight we did after that, but it should not have even begun. I will maintain that history repeats itself and the best way to prepare for the future is to have a working knowledge of the past. In the mid 1980's we sold ammunition and weapons to the Hussein empire. We have acted, but was it only because of the September 11th attacks and the fear of losing our precious oil in the Middle East? Have we forgotten or simply not learned from what has happened in our past?

By Jackie McConlogue (Jackiem) (67.86.125.150) on Monday, June 02, 2003 - 01:31 am:

ps- i got excited tha ti had finished it and stuff so i didn't check it to well for mistakes, if you find any, let me know
Jackie

By irene vrinte (Gijoe) (131.174.208.196) on Monday, June 02, 2003 - 03:01 am:

just one: beginning o/t second paragraph should be sceneS not scene....

great article!

irene

By irene vrinte (Gijoe) (131.174.208.196) on Monday, June 02, 2003 - 03:04 am:

oops another one:

Remembrance should starts today and doesn't end with D-Day.

startS = start

that's it for now...be sure to show us a picture of your article if it gets accepted and printed!

irene

By Jackie McConlogue (Jackiem) (67.86.125.150) on Monday, June 02, 2003 - 12:55 pm:

Thanks Irene, I am submitting it today and it will be printed on Thursday, I will post it here then...

By Timothy Andrew Ross (Ghosthunter) (24.71.223.140) on Thursday, June 05, 2003 - 08:46 am:

It's great, it really shows that some of us still believe that there are many men that deserve our thanks for their bravery and courage under fire. My great gradfather was in the Second World War and I have no idea where he fought, you have put lots of thought and effort in this and hopefully lest we forget.
I am reminded of the words of Eisenhower, "The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. And lest us all the beseach the blessings of the almighty god in this great and nobale undertaking."

By robert hunt (Mulder) (195.92.168.172) on Thursday, June 05, 2003 - 10:19 am:

Tomorrow is the 59th anniversary of D.Day my father was in the British army, in a Scottish regiment, he was only 18 years old at the time and hadn't even met my mother yet. He saw his best friend killed in front of him his head was blown off and my dad says it will live with him for ever. He was captured by the germans and put in a P.O.W. camp but he did live to tell the tale. We should never forget the sacrifices made by all those who didn't come home so that we could live in freedom. Mariane

By Marigold Papa (Marigold) (203.160.183.79) on Saturday, June 07, 2003 - 08:29 am:

amen...

gold

By Joshua Eggleston (Jegg9032) (24.64.100.31) on Monday, June 09, 2003 - 11:32 pm:

I have a question about the responsibilities of high-ranking officers on D-day. Did Colonel Sink also jump on D-day or did he land in France at a later date? I know that Strayer did jump so was he then the CO of the 506th for a short time because it probably was difficult for orders to be handed out by Sink if he was not yet in France.

By Chris Langlois (Chrisdfw) (4.42.202.200) on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 - 12:49 pm:

Joshua,

Sink did jump on D-Day. Some of the Regimental staff may have landed in gliders but staff close to the Reg. and Bn. CO's would have to be near in order to take command and issue orders.

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