A Few of FR's Finest..Every Day..02-6,7-07..WW2: The War, The Era, The Monument, The FReeper Vets

February 6, 2007 | Dolly Howard

[DollyCali]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Dutchess, DollyCali, GodBlessUSA, Aquamarine~

World War II (abbreviated WWII), or the Second World War, was a worldwide conflict fought between the Allied Powers and the Axis Powers, from 1939 until 1945. Armed forces from over seventy nations engaged in aerial, naval, and ground-based combat. Spanning much of the globe, World War II resulted in the deaths of over sixty million people, making it the deadliest conflict in human history. The war ended with an Allied victory .

Names & words like Adolf Hitler,Nagasaki, Normandy, the Holocaust, Pearl Harbor, Nazi, Adolph Eichmann, Rudolf Hess Auchwitz, , Iwa Jima, Atomic Bomb all bring sharp memories and often tears to those who lived through the time & bring images of a sad history for those of us who followed. .

Some 63 million people, or 3% of the world population, died in the war (though estimates vary): about 24 million soldiers and 38 million civilians. This total includes the estimated 9 million lives lost in the Holocaust. Of the total deaths in World War II, approximately 80% were on the Allied side and 20% on the Axis side.

Allied forces suffered approximately 17 million military deaths, of which about 11 million were Soviet and 3 million Chinese. Axis forces suffered about 8 million, of which more than 5 million were German. In total, of the military deaths in World War II, approximately 44% were Soviet soldiers, 22% were German, 12% were Chinese, 8% were Japanese, 9% were soldiers of other Allied forces, and 5% were other Axis country soldiers. Some modern estimates double the number of Chinese casualties originally stated. Of the civilian deaths, approximately 90% were Allied (nearly a third of all civilians killed were Soviet citizens, and more than 15% of all civilians killed in the war died in German extermination camps) and 10% were Axis.

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Many civilians died as a result of disease, starvation, massacres, genocide--in particular, the Holocaust--and aerial bombing. One estimate is that 12 million civilians died in Holocaust camps, 1.5 million by bombs, 7 million in Europe from other causes, and 7.5 million in China from other causes.[7] Allied civilian deaths totaled roughly 38 million, including 11.7 million in the Soviet Union, 7 million in China and 5.2 million from Poland. There were around 3 million civilian deaths on the Axis side, including 2 million in Germany and 0.6 million in Japan. The Holocaust refers to the organized state-sponsored murder of 6 million Jews, 1.8-1.9 million non-Jewish Poles, 200,000-800,000 Roma people, 200,000-300,000 people with disabilities, and other groups carried out by the Nazis during the war.

The Soviet Union suffered by far the largest death toll of any nation in the war, over 23 million. The Holocaust was the organized murder of an estimated nine million people, including approximately six million Jews. Originally, the Nazis used killing squads known as Einsatzgruppen to conduct massive open-air killings, shooting as many as 33,000 people in a single massacre, as in the case of Babi Yar. By 1942, the Nazi leadership decided to implement the Final Solution, or Endlösung, the genocide of all Jews in Europe, and to increase the pace of the Holocaust. The Nazis built six extermination camps specifically to kill Jews. Millions of Jews who had been confined to massively overcrowded ghettos were transported to these "Death-camps", in which they were either slaughtered on arrival or put to work until the Nazis could find no more use for them, at which point they were put to death by shooting or mass poisoning in gas chambers. .

In a short presentation such as this no attempt will be made to do a depth study of this war but rather to provide some links for those with an interest to know more.

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WW2 time line

WW 2 Europe

WW2 Pacific Timeline

Eyewitness to History WW2

Pacific Naval Battles

Wikipedia – WW2

Mini Biographies of Military & Political Leaders

Best of History Websites

Voices of WW2

The magnificent World War II Memorial Official Site was dedicated on May 29th of 2004, but this wonderful memorial cannot be shared with most WW II Veterans here in Ohio or elsewhere. They are now in their 80s to 90s.

The majority are on limited, fixed incomes, lack help. A twelve-hour bus ride is not an option for these heroes.

According to Veterans Affairs statistics, about 1,200 WW II Veterans die each and every day. The overwhelming majority of them will pass away without ever having an opportunity to visit the memorial they have waited over 60 years to see. We are changing that.

FReeper Warrior Queen works with the Cleveland USO & volunteers now with a remarkable group. Here are some of her comments…. We now fly WW II Veterans, one Saturday a month, in large commercial aircraft to the Washington, DC area. The program is called Honor Flight and the purpose is to fly America’s elderly veterans to visit the memorials dedicated to recognize their service and the sacrifices of their friends.

We are a federal nonprofit (501c3) organization. We are doing everything we can to make this activity FREE for the veterans. Sadly, Honor Flight does not receive any corporate or government sponsorship. We are asking for donations to cover airfare, tour bus services, food, tee shirts, scooter/wheelchair rental, oxygen and operational costs. We’re hoping that, by getting the word out, public support will continue to grow.

The more support we receive, the more veterans finally get to visit their memorial. Over the past two years, we have transported a total of 463 members of “the Greatest Generation.” We are now joined by other programs in North Carolina, Utah, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Illinois. Next year, our combined goal is to fly over 5000 WW II Veterans.

We conduct regular operations out of Dayton and Columbus. We plan to expand to Cleveland in 2007. Round trip, same day flights from Cleveland into Baltimore Washington International (BWI) would cost about $120.00 per seat. We then handle ALL the ground operations/logics from BWI, around Washington DC and back to the airport. We provide a deluxe motor coach, meals, tee shirts, name tags, motorized scooters, oxygen, etc. Our cost is about $50.00 per person.

It is our hope that we will pick up the cost of all ground expenses so that organizations from around the country pay only for their airfare. The cost will be about $120.00 a piece< to make the dreams of hundreds of WWII Veterans from Cleveland come true. Our policy is that the WWII Veterans don't pay a penny. . We will be serving as the "parent" organization to similar programs across the country. Recently we had about 20 people from across the nation that want to learn about how to proceed with an Honor Flight, HonorAir, Hero Flight, etc. program.

An office is opened that is staffed with volunteers to answer the phone, a national toll free number (1 888 FLY-VETS) and a national web site (presently under revision) www.HonorFlight.org. .

Time is NOT on our side. Since early January 2005, thirty-seven World War II veterans on our waiting list have passed away without visiting their memorial. In another 3 to 7 years, almost all WW II Veterans will be gone.

We remain committed to do everything we can to help those surviving veterans view their precious memorial. They are ordinary men and women who collectively and literally saved America and the
world.

If you would like more information or would like to help, please visit our web site at www.HonorFlight.org, email me at HonorFlight@aol.com
or call (937) 864-7261.

Erwin (Earl) Morse, Captain, USAF Retired
Founder of Honor Flight, Inc.
P.O. Box 214
Enon, OH 45323
Phone: 937 864-7261

More Honor Flight Information

Submitted by FReeper Bev ..the Bev in Bevlar; wife of Larry.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1012827/posts He is also registered at: http://www.wwiimemorial.com. The above site is where Freepers paid tribute to him. I cherish this website!!!

Lawrence Fredrick Zacker was born in Carroll Iowa November 4, 1915. He was 26 years old, married with children on December 7, 1941. The ARMY, NAVY AND MARINES wouldn't take him because he had very flat feet. He quit his job as Used Car Manager at a Los Angeles car dealership and went to work at Northrop building the P-61 Black Widow planes. He was doing his part for the war effort but felt he needed to participate as a soldier/sailor. In the summer of 1942, the United States Merchant Marines took him - flat feet and all after he begged the examining doctor to pass him.

He served in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters during the war years and was "bosun" on a ship off the coast of Normandy June 6, 1994. His service to his country did not go unnoticed and at the end of the war, he was contacted by the US Navy and given the opportunity to enter the Navy as an Ensign. He declined and returned to civilian life but often regretted his decision. He was a true flag waving patriot!!

After returning to civilian life, Larry became a Realtor and lived in Sana Diego for many years. In 1973, he retired and we moved to the mountains of N CA to the little town of Fall River Mills. We received an offer we couldn't refuse - Columbia Helicopters needed a watchman and we would be paid while we literally vacationed in our motor home. All we had to do was look after the helicopter during the evening hours. We traveled with Columbia for 4 years and had the time of our lives. In 1979, we decided to settle down once and for all. We bought a small acreage on the river - just a mile from the ocean on the beautiful north coast of Oregon.

In 1994, he received a special invitation, including a seating badge, to attend the 50 year remembrance of the Normandy invasion. He refused to attend because the draft dodging Bill Clinton was going to be there to strut around.

Larry will always be my hero because I knew his heart. I was Blessed to be his wife. He served his country with pride and honor. Larry died 10/31/03.

MY WAR
by William Barrows

Submitted by FReeper Wheelbarrow. A short excerpt presented here from the essay

FOUND HERE

"…..we pulled into what I thought was Liverpool (but later documents said it was Grenock, Scotland). En route we fought off and sank a German submarine that Hitler had boasted sank us, so when a British search plane came out to find us (or the remains) it was a jubilant dockside welcome that greeted us on arrival.

In England our troop train took us to a camp near North-witch for about a week, then again we were put on a train and taken to Southampton and loaded on assault ships to take us to Utah Beach in France where, like the guys who took the beach head, we had to climb the cliffs to get to the trucks that would take us to the combat area.

In France we traveled on mostly country roads (the German Air Force was still something to worry about, and there was a big German submarine post back behind at St. Nazzaire). We bypassed Paris and eventually wound up near Nancy (the last city of any size we’d encounter), the HQ. of General Patton’s Third Army and my 26th Division. Soon after to the east we were dropped from the trucks and began the march to the “front lines” some 20 miles away….."

1-09-07 ~ Hall of Fame #18

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 2-05-07 Military Monday

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' Every Thursday at the Finest The guy's good, folks!

[DollyCali]

[stephenjohnbanker]

B U M P !

[stephenjohnbanker]

B U M P !

[DollyCali]

Welcome to a 2 day Tribute to WW2 !!!

Tomorrow will feature more FReeper Vets and a survey of the era: the music, fashion, movies, life.

Please visit & share your stories and pictures of family or friends who served in WW2. And do share this thread with all WW2 vets you know!

[luvie]

[Las Vegas Dave]

Thanks Dolly!

My Father-in-law Frank C. (age 87) was in the battle of the bulge, (artillery), under General Patton. He had the nickname, "Mister Clean", for he would frequently wash his laundry.

[alwaysconservative]

Thanks for the ping, Dolly, and have a wonderful day! Gotta run!

[Osmium]

I do not personally have any relatives who fought in WWII, but for those who did fight in the war (and those US troops who foight in other wars), thanks.

[weston]

Thank You so much for this post.

My father fought in WWII. He was in Germany and France. His father served in Germany during WWI. I went to Germany during the Vietnam War and my son is now at Ramstein Germany.
My dad is now 83 and he really wants to see the memorial.

Your post just made me realize I'd better suck it up and foot the bill for him to get from the west coast to DC. Next year may be too late...

[The Mayor]

February 6, 2007

Spiritual Passion

ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download

READ: Revelation 2:1-7

I have this against you, that you have left your first love. —Revelation 2:4

Why does spiritual passion fade so easily? When we first experience God’s love, we spend hours thinking about Him, studying His Word, and telling others how much He means to us. Then it happens. Our busy schedules slowly dampen our passion. Our longing for Jesus and our study of His character become an occasional glance. Surely the object of our affection hasn’t changed!

The church at Ephesus wrestled with maintaining its spiritual passion. Jesus, through John, wanted to help them restore and maintain their love and zeal for Him. Although He commended this church for their work, Jesus saw that they had abandoned their first love—Him (Rev. 2:4).

The Ephesians had lost their spiritual passion for Jesus. It had become a cold and mechanical orthodoxy. I wonder if they had allowed the stealthy culprit of religion and busyness to enter their hearts. Whatever it was, something had stolen the affection they had once reserved for the Lord.

Have you allowed something to steal your passion? If so, it can be restored and maintained when you consistently remember His amazing love demonstrated at Calvary. Repent of your sinful, unloving attitudes, and out of love for Jesus repeat your "first works" (v.5).

What once was filled with wonder
Lies cold within my heart;
Return, O Lord, that wonder,
And may it not depart. —Sper

Devotion to Jesus is the key to spiritual passion.

Bible in One Year:   Exodus 39-40; Matthew 23:23-39

[The Mayor]

Well done Dolly.

[pissant]

Great post Dolly!!!

[PGalt]

Outstanding! America's finest BUMP!

[GodBlessUSA]

WOW!! Dolly this is Fantastic!! This is an awesome tribute :) I will be going down to DC to visit and I have to get to the WWII Memorial. I have not been there yet.




WheelBarrel and Bevlar
God Bless and Thank You!

[beachn4fun]

Good morning, everyone. I've been to WWII Memorial. It is a beautiful sight. Thank you, Veterans.

[jaycee]

Dolly, what a lovely thread this is and will be. I personally don't know any World War 2 vets but I love and honor them wherever they are. God Bless All of Them. They helped give me the privilege of doing what I am doing at this moment and we will never FORGET!!!!! Thanks, Dolly~~~~

[GodBlessUSA]

Good Morning The Mayor
I hope you have a fantastic day! :)

[GodBlessUSA]

Good Morning jaycee :)
How are you today?

I'll never forget our Brave Heroes of WWII also.

I hope you have a great day!

[GodBlessUSA]

Good Morning Beachn :) Great table and graphic! How are you doing this very cold day? There is hope. We may make it up to 30 Friday.

I hope you have a fantastic day!

[GodBlessUSA]

Hi Meg
How are you today?

I wanted to tell you, I saw this posted by you and I have the name now. I will be looking to purchase this rose for my garden. :) It's so beautiful. Have a terrific day!