Posted on 06/06/2004 2:13:09 PM PDT by SandRat
Sixty years ago today, nearly 175,000 American, British, Canadian and other Allied troops made their way toward the French coast of Normandy in what would be called Operation Overlord - or D-Day.
The rainy weather that had stalled the Allied invasion of mainland Europe for a day cleared so the warriors could make their first landings on beaches known as Omaha, Utah, Gold, Sword and Juno that morning.
It was a massive undertaking. The troops were supported by 6,000 aircraft and 6,000 naval vessels ranging from battleships to 32-foot landing craft.
The effort also was massive in the scope of its sacrifice. Each beach where troops landed they came under enemy fire. And the gunfire was deadly. By the end of the day, there were some 4,900 casualties.
What makes D-Day so poignant to this day is that those people who were there left a legacy that sacrifice against evil is worth the ultimate price. These people saw their mission as an effort to free people who were under terrible rule. Many didn't know what would be later found - the horrors of the Holocaust and concentration camps. But what they did know is that there was evil in this world and it had to be taken out by force.
That's just what they did in a big way on D-Day. They stormed the sandy French beaches and faced machine gun fire. They faced obstacles in the sea water - some of which remain to this day. And they faced an enemy who was battle-hardened and determined to keep its foothold in Europe.
Those who fought in D-Day didn't let obstacles stand in their way. They saw no other option but to succeed. They saw no other option but to defeat evil.
Today, we could learn a lot from this way of thinking. We face an evil - terrorists such as al-Qaida - that lurks in the shadows of the world. This evil recruits from within our own ranks and doesn't show mercy with its hate.
To defeat this evil, it will take sacrifice and courage. The lessons of D-Day help us learn how that can be accomplished on a human level. And it breaks it down to the simplest of terms - good vs. evil.
The United States will defeat terror. It may take time. But with perseverance, such as seen on D-Day, the wall of evil can been taken down. No obstacle can stand in our way.
Longest Day lays before us, we shall not falter until victory.
Why is this female dog on the air?
She goes on to continually attack the Iraq war and how we had a great alliance during WWII but a small failing coalition now!~!! What the hay, does she not understand history and who fought who during WWII??? Dang, have the french were against us, German, Italy and Japan were against us. Now we still have England and Scotland on our side, plus Italy and dozens of other countries. What an agenda driven trash mouth.
Again, my apologies.
Im afraid you are correct in seeing that the longest days lie ahead.
Not just for us but our children.
With free will and Gods blessing we will secure the future.
"Had D-Day failed the Soviets would have had even more leverage and the war's end would have been a disaster for freedom."
You got that right. The invasion was about getting the Western allies on the ground in Europe. Although Stalin pleaded for a second front, the Western Allies did it in their own good time.
They could have gotten Hitler out via cooperation with the German resistance, incl. Rommel's offer to surrender the Western front, avoiding so many deaths. Which Roosevelt wouldn't allow, being truly a brother of Stalin, and giving the Soviets half of Europe. Half: but not all. Once those US Armies were on the ground, at great cost, there was force against force to face down the Soviets, after Roosevelt was gone and keener minds realized the seriousness of the Soviet enemy.
Spot on my friend
The appeasers do not comprehend that you must negotiate with an upper hand in order to win
"Today we did what we had to do. They counted on America to be passive. They counted wrong" -- Ronald Reagan
"President Bush is just solid as a rock." -- Rummy
"Life's a roller coaster." -- Rummy
"I merely took the energy it takes to pout and wrote some blues." -- Duke Ellington
"you must negotiate with an upper hand in order to win"
the appeasers certainly DON'T understand that. Remember the ruckus when Reagan got the missles into NATO to counter the Soviet missles? The liberals screamed bloody murder, Reagan the war-monger, etc. Too dense to realize that the purpose of putting the missles there was in order to NOT have to use them!! To preserve the PEACE against a growing threat from the Soviets . . .
The purpose of an adequate defense budget and adequate forces during the Reagan build up during the Cold War, was to HAVE them so the Soviets did not miscalculate and jeopardize the peace. Reagan WON the Cold War with such strategy, and with very little blood, even though with some treausure in the Defense budget.
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