The FReeper Foxhole Enjoys a Lazy Sunday with some "Amazing WWII Facts" - April 17th, 2005

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[snippy_about_it]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
.

FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer
for all those serving their country at this time.


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Amazing Wartime Facts from WWII



Feel free to discuss and rebut, don't shoot the messenger :-)

 

1. The first German serviceman killed in the war was killed by the Japanese (China, 1937)
2. The first American serviceman killed was killed by the Russians (Finland 1940).
3. The highest ranking American killed was Lt. Gen. Lesley McNair, killed by the US Army Air Corps.
4. The youngest US serviceman was 12 year old Calvin Graham, USN. He was wounded in combat and given a Dishonorable Discharge for lying about his age. (His benefits were later restored by act of Congress).
5. At the time of Pearl Harbor, the top US Navy command was called CINCUS (pronounced “sink us”), the shoulder patch of the US Army’s 45^th Infantry division was the Swastika, and Hitler’s private train was named “Amerika”. All three were soon changed for PR purposes.
6. More US servicemen died in the Air Corps that the Marine Corps. While completing the required 30 missions, your chance of being killed was 71%. Not that bombers were helpless. A B-17 carried 4 tons of bombs and 1.5 tons of machine gun ammo. The US 8^th Air Force shot down 6,098 fighter planes, 1 for every 12,700 shots fired.
7. Germany’s power grid was much more vulnerable than realized. One estimate is that if just 1% of the bombs dropped on German industry had instead been dropped on power plants, German industry would have collapsed.
8. Generally speaking, there was no such thing as an average fighter pilot. You were either an ace or a target. For instance, Japanese ace Hiroyoshi Nishizawa shot down over 80 planes. He died while a passenger on a cargo plane.
9. It was a common practice on fighter planes to load every 5^th found with a tracer round to aid in aiming. That was a mistake. The tracers had different ballistics so (at long range) if your tracers were hitting the target, 80% of your rounds were missing. Worse yet, the tracers instantly told your enemy he was under fire and from which direction. Worst of all was the practice of loading a string of tracers at the end of the belt to tell you that you were out of ammo. That was definitely not something you wanted to tell the enemy. Units that stopped using tracers saw their success rate nearly double and their loss rate go down.
10. When allied armies reached the Rhine, the first thing men did was pee in it. This was pretty universal from the lowest private to Winston Churchill (who made a big show of it) and Gen. Patton (who had himself photographed in the act).
11. German Me-264 bombers were capable of bombing New York City but it wasn’t worth the effort.
12. A number of air crewmen died of farts. (ascending to 20,000 ft. in an un-pressurized aircraft causes intestinal gas to expand 300%!)
13. The Russians destroyed over 500 German aircraft by ramming them in midair (they also sometimes cleared minefields by marching over them). “It takes a brave man not to be a hero in the Red Army”. Joseph Stalin
14. The US Army had more ships that the US Navy.
15. The German Air Force had 22 infantry divisions, 2 armor divisions, and 11 paratroop divisions. None of them were capable of airborne operations. The German Army had paratroops who WERE capable of airborne operations.
16. When the US Army landed in North Africa, among the equipment brought ashore were 3 complete Coca Cola bottling plants.
17. Among the first “Germans” captured at Normandy were several Koreans. They had been forced to fight for the Japanese Army until they were captured by the Russians and forced to fight for the Russian Army until they were captured by the Germans and forced to fight for the German Army until they were capture by the US Army.
18. The Graf Spee never sank, The scuttling attempt failed and the ship was bought by the British. On board was Germany’s newest radar system.
19. One of Japan’s methods of destroying tanks was to bury a very large artillery shell with on ly the nose exposed. When a tank came near the enough a soldier would whack the shell with a hammer. “Lack of weapons is no excuse for defeat.” – Lt. Gen. Mataguchi
20. Following a massive naval bombardment, 35,000 US and Canadian troops stormed ashore at Kiska. 21 troops were killed in the fire-fight. It would have been worse if there had been Japanese on the island.
21. The MISS ME was an unarmed Piper Cub. While spotting for US artillery her pilot saw a similar German plane doing the same thing. He dove on the German plane and he and his co-pilot fired their pistols damaging the German plane enough that it had to make a forced landing. Whereupon they landed and took the Germans prisoner. It is unknown where they put them since the MISS ME only had two seats.
22. Most members of the Waffen SS were not German.
23. The only nation that Germany declared was on was the USA.
24. During the Japanese attack on Hong Kong, British officers objected to Canadian infantrymen taking up positions in the officer’s mess. No enlisted men allowed!
25. Nuclear physicist Niels Bohr was rescued in the nick of time from German occupied Denmark. While Danish resistance fighters provided covering fire he ran out the back door of his home stopping momentarily to grab a beer bottle full of precious “heavy water”. He finally reached England still clutching the bottle, which contained beer. Perhaps some German drank the heavy water…

 

Contributed by Ronald Padavan, LTC, CAP MIWG Chief of Staff MSGT, USAF (Ret.) Past President Lodge 143, Fraternal Order of Police

 

As printed in, The Victory Division News.  No. 4. December, 2000.  

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FReeper Foxhole Armed Services Links

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning everyone. Enjoy your Sunday.

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[snippy_about_it]

"FALL IN" to the FReeper Foxhole!



Good Sunday Morning Everyone.

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If you'd like to drop us a note you can write to:

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[snippy_about_it]

Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization.

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Actively seeking volunteers to provide this valuable service to Veterans and their families.

Thanks to quietolong for providing this link.

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We here at Blue Stars For A Safe Return are working hard to honor all of our military, past and present, and their families. Inlcuding the veterans, and POW/MIA's. I feel that not enough is done to recognize the past efforts of the veterans, and remember those who have never been found.

I realized that our Veterans have no "official" seal, so we created one as part of that recognition. To see what it looks like and the Star that we have dedicated to you, the Veteran, please check out our site.

Veterans Wall of Honor

Blue Stars for a Safe Return

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NOW UPDATED THROUGH JULY 31st, 2004




The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul

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[tomball]

Hello WildBirds - from out of the blue . . .

I kept checking FR, and  thought I missed you. 

I  checked my calendar and everything,

Thought I was erased from the ping.

Good to hear from you this way.

Have a good laugh, and have great day

 

[tomball]

Hello WildBirds - from out of the blue . . .

I kept checking FR, and  thought I missed you. 

I  checked my calendar and everything,

Thought I was erased from the ping.

Good to hear from you this way.

Have a good laugh, and have great day

 

[snippy_about_it]

LOL. Very good poem tomball. It was worth reading twice. I posted the missing pic link into my URL and now I see the Blue Angels. Thanks.

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning everyone.

[Soaring Feather]

The first American serviceman killed was killed by the Russians (Finland 1940).



Wow, I did not know this.

[ken5050]

Le me add my fave....at the end of WW II, total US Armed Forces were about 11 million..compared to less than 2 million today. Yet the number of flag rank officers in the military today in more the twice the number at the end of WW II..

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Good grief....paper shufflers mostly I bet!

[StayAt HomeMother]

At the time of Pearl Harbor, the top US Navy command was called CINCUS (pronounced “sink us”) ... soon changed for PR purpose.

Commander in Chief, U.S. Naval Forces, Europe (CINCUSNAVEUR) STILL "plans, conducts, and supports, naval operations in the European theater and Middle East area during peacetime, contingencies, and general war."

[w_over_w]

Morning Glory Folks~

When allied armies reached the Rhine, the first thing men did was pee in it. This was pretty universal from the lowest private to Winston Churchill (who made a big show of it) and Gen. Patton (who had himself photographed in the act).

Incomplete fact. It was also one of the worst years for German Chardonnay wine, as the grapes had a brackish flavor. I'm series.

A number of air crewmen died of farts. (ascending to 20,000 ft. in an un-pressurized aircraft causes intestinal gas to expand 300%!)

Interesting . . . same thing happens when some of our friends and family eat my Texas Chili. Thankfully, nobody has died but I think we've discovered a new inert gas to add to the periodic table.

[Thanks for the FReepmail . . . please get some rest]

[Nowhere Man]

Love those facts, BUMP!

[SAMWolf]

Morning Snippy.

[SAMWolf]

[SAMWolf]

Morning Feather.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Ken5050

The term "the whole 9 yards" came from WWII fighter pilots in the Pacific. When arming their airplanes on the ground, the .50 caliber machine gun ammo belts measured exactly 27 feet, before being loaded into the fuselage. If the pilots fired all their ammo at a target, it got "the whole 9 yards."

[SAMWolf]

LOL!

w_over_wium?

[w_over_w]

Operator: "911 Emergency Service . . . what is your emergency please?"

Uh . . . well . . . ya know how they say everythang is bigger 'n Texas?

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning feather. Good poetry about the Taxman on the "other" thread. ;-)

[snippy_about_it]

Thanks SAHM. What an acronym for the Navy!

[snippy_about_it]

I'm series.

LOL.

[snippy_about_it]

Glad you enjoyed the thread, thanks for "fallin in" to the Foxhole.

[E.G.C.]

((HUGS))Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Foxhole.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

"Amazing WWII Facts"

The number one scientific development out of WWII was the Atomic Bomb.....

The number two and hugely significant was the development of the miracle medicine Penicillin:

See a note regarding a new book:

The Mold in Dr. Florey's Coat : The Story of the Penicillin Miracle

American industry made it possible to finally mass produce the medicine in enough quantity to save many lives , using waste product from corn syrup and the brew-masters skills to brew the mold.....in 3 dimensions....

[SAMWolf]

Morning E.G.C.

The "on and off" rain continues.

[E.G.C.]

Good morning folks.

The weather's nice right now but t-storms are in the forecast for this week. We could sure use it thought. It's been dry the last few days.

How's it going, Snippy?

[GailA]

Good afternoon, went to Sunday school and church, then came home and mowed my grass. I'm tired.

[Peanut Gallery]

We (CT's) used to joke about what NAVY *really* stands for.

Never Again Volunteer Yourself. LOL!

[Diver Dave]

Uh . . . well . . . ya know how they say everythang is bigger 'n Texas?

That is udderly amazing!

[Professional Engineer]

He finally reached England still clutching the bottle, which contained beer.

Oops.

[Professional Engineer]

Uh . . . well . . . ya know how they say everythang is bigger 'n Texas?

Zoowie!

[snippy_about_it]

LOL!

[w_over_w]

You misspelled utterly. ;^)

[w_over_w]

I once dated a girl in HS named Zowie. She only had one "o" in her name . . . not TWO. ;^)

[Aeronaut]

Good afternoon Snippy.

[Colonel_Flagg]

Happy Sunday, foxhole!

Interesting facts today .. I've heard a number of these but I guess the moral of today's story is that you learn something new every day!

Sam, Snippy, I hope your Sunday is going well!

[snippy_about_it]

Good afternoon Aeronaut.

[snippy_about_it]

We heard he was in the "running" for the next Pope but that the Italians were pushing strongly for an Italian Pope.

Glad to hear you are relaxing this Sunday.

[snippy_about_it]

Good afternoon Colonel. Hope all is well with you.

[snippy_about_it]

:-)

[Professional Engineer]

C3PO would be proud! Bitty Girl is using R2D2 to beat the floor into submission. R2 is heavy protesting via beeping, but to no avail.

[snippy_about_it]

LOL!

[snippy_about_it]

Check in please, we worry about you when we hear this stuff.

Terrorists Strike Fuel Tankers in Afghanistan

[Iris7]

Good day, M,

Although Cardinal Ratzinger would be pleasing Pope, personally I would rather have the new Pope be someone much more conservative, more of the Right, than is Cardinal Ratzinger. The is a local priest in I respect, I carry his photograph in my wallet, who could be made a bishop tomorrow and Pope next week. He is a careful guy, would likely die of old age, say, at 95 years old, in 2065 AD. This man is to Cardinal Ratzinger as the Cardinal is to those horrible Belgian bishops. He is an easy going guy, just what is needed to clean out the Augean Stables.

It will take a miracle. Pray for a Pope who will lead us from sin.

[SAMWolf]

That is udderly amazing!

LOL!