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Saturday, June 6th, marks the 65th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy. On D-Day, June 6, 1944, Allied troops departed England on planes and ships, made the trip across the English Channel and attacked the beaches of Normandy in an attempt to break through Hitler’s “Atlantic Wall” and break his grip on Europe. Some 215,000 Allied soldiers, and roughly as many Germans, were killed or wounded during D-Day and the ensuing nearly three months it took to secure the Allied capture of Normandy. Commemoration events, from re-enactments to school concerts, were being held in seaside towns and along the five...

Some were able to march, others needed walking sticks or wheelchairs. But all held their heads high as they paraded proudly in Whitehall to remember their fallen comrades. Many of the veterans shed a tear yesterday as they attended the last memorial service the Normandy Veterans' Association will organise in London. Lean on me: Albert Rogers, 84, from North London, is given a helping hand Hundreds of D-Day veterans, smartly dressed in blazers and berets, their chests heaving with medals, gathered for the service. At least two collapsed as the humid weather and the long time they had to spend...

"This is a guy (former Weatherman terror-bomber Bill Ayers) who lives in my neighborhood ... the notion that somehow as a consequence of me knowing somebody who engaged in detestable acts 40 years ago - when I was 8 years old - somehow reflects on me and my values doesn't make much sense." -- Barack Obama on the Campaign trail, 2008 As President Obama prepared to commemorate D-Day, the Associated Press dug up old details and photos to write a warm fuzzy story about the WW2 service record of Obama's maternal grandfather and grand uncle. One could conclude that the...

U.S. President Barack Obama, left, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy shake hands as they participate in a bilateral meeting at the Prefecture in Caen, France Saturday, June 6, 2009. Obama and his French counterpart stood united Saturday in efforts to thwart Iran's disputed nuclear ambitions and bring about a Mideast peace that provides for separate Israeli and Palestinian states U.S. President Barack Obama speaks during the ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of the Allied D-Day landings in Normandy at the grounds of the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville sur Mer in Western France, Saturday, June 6, 2009. From...

D-Day + 20. Years, that is. CBS ran a one-hour special hosted by former President Dwight D. Eisenhower. It would be his last trip to the Normandy beaches that his troops captured at such terrible cost. Only one memory lingers: Ike waved his hand over a big stretch of beach. “Here, you could hardly find sand to walk on for the American dead.” D-Day + 40. President Ronald Reagan addressed veterans of the invasion at the place where it began. He spoke of the valor of the Rangers, boys mostly, who scaled the cliffs at Pointe du Hoc. There were...

Minnesota veteran Jim Carroll has no problem remembering where he was 65 years ago Saturday. "We started taking anti-aircraft fire shortly after we crossed the coast of France," he recalled. Carroll was one of 13,000 members of the 101st and 82nd Airborne who left England onboard close to 900 C47s heading toward the beaches of Normandy, France. "That's our main concern is getting on the ground and be battle ready when we hit the ground," he said. "We jumped down right on top of them." The Bronze Star-recipient said jumping out of an aircraft while enemy fire filled the air...

On June 6, 1944, 150,000 Allied soldiers clambered aboard heaving landing craft and braved six-foot swells, waves of machine gun fire, and more than 6 million mines to claim a stretch of sand at a place called Normandy. Their mission was to carve out an Allied foothold on the edge of Nazi-occupied Europe for the army of more than one million that would follow them in the summer of 1944. This army would burst forth from the beachhead, rolling across Europe into the heart of Germany, liberating millions, toppling a genocidal regime and ending a nightmare along the way. But...

In his D-Day address Barack Obama praised "the bravery and selflessness" of American troops from the Revolutionary War to Vietnam, but specifically refused to recognize the courage and sacrifice of American troops serving in Afghanistan or in either Gulf War--a remarkable slight for a Commander-in-Chief of the troops he sends into harm's way every day.

The head of the British Army choose to be at a service honouring the heroes of Pegasus Bridge instead of attending the official ceremony attended by Barack Obama and Nicholas Sarkozy.

Today marks the 65th anniversary of the D-Day invasion to liberate Europe from Nazi tyranny, and what does Google do? Instead of putting up an image to honor the sacrifices made and the triumph of good over evil, they honor Tetris? Tetris? It's a game for heaven's sake. The world owes a debt of honor to the brave men who stormed ashore at Normandy and parachuted in to roll the Nazi conquest of Europe. This is what they came up with for today?

With the world's eyes turned to Normandy as President Obama and European leaders honor the sacrifice of Allied soldiers on June 6, 1944, Internet giant Google chose to honor this 65th anniversary of D-Day by memorializing the birth of a video game. The search engine's homepage, often the site of commemorative graphics interwoven with its Google name on special occasions, chose this day to display the multi-colored blocks of the classic game Tetris, which was created by Russian computer programmer Alexey Pajitnov and made playable for the first time on June 6, 1984. Scrolling over the blocks reveals the words,...

<p>Never mind that there was a French military band playing in the background, for a moment the D-Day images that the cameras were capturing in Caen became surreally interchangeable with shots from a catwalk show.</p> <p>Two tall women, one of them a model, were swinging in step in classic “paired” runway formation. Both were almost identically dressed in knee-length cream with belts, bare legs and heels. They could almost have been modelling some designers’ collection named “First Lady Spring 2009”. Undoubtedly the choice of colour worn by Mrs Obama and Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy was a coincidence. Hell would surely freeze before two such self-confident dressers would confer over what to wear.</p>

Sixty-five years after Hitler failed to make Britain’s D-Day effort a footnote in world history, France and America finally realised his dream yesterday. As thousands of British veterans paid their final respects to the men they left behind on Normandy’s beaches, President Nicolas Sarkozy and President Barack Obama presented D-Day – the turning point of the Second World War – as a Franco-American affair Despite months of diplomatic wrangling between London, Paris and Washington, the Queen remained absent from the official commemoration of the 65th anniversary, held at the American cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach at Colleville-sur-Mer. And Prince Charles, without...

If George Bush had invoked the kingdom of the Almighty, today’s so-called liberals would have destroyed him. But in 1944, a Democratic icon prayed for salvation and nobody blinked. D-Day, June 6, 1944, is the defining moment in America’s imperfect but unending quest for human freedom: a day when the nation’s youth fell from the skies and crawled from the seas to liberate a continent.

President Reagan was a master of stagecraft. But this speech transcends appearances and breaths with sincere and powerful emotions no other President can match.Reagan's Pointe Du Hoc speech delivered on the 40th anniversary of D-Day from the cliffs overlooking Normandy beach in France is widely cited as his best D-Day speech. As powerful and emotional as that speech is, there is a second address he delivered later in the day that is even more touching. The speech delivered on the grounds of the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial centered around the story of Private Robert Zanatta, of the 37th Engineer...

As Allied troops were storming the beaches on D-Day, FDR was leading the nation in a prayer for victory. {video at site} Transcript below the fold. My Fellow Americans: Last night, when I spoke with you about the fall of Rome, I knew at that moment that troops of the United States and our Allies were crossing the Channel in another and greater operation. It has come to pass with success thus far. And so, in this poignant hour, I ask you to join with me in prayer: (Excerpt) Read more at floppingaces.net ...

Fifteen years ago on May 31st, 1994, Serbs and Americans commemorated the 50th Anniversary of the Halyard Mission rescue operation, a glorious moment in their common history as allies. As we mark the 65th anniversary of D-Day with so many of our American and Serbian WWII veterans that celebrated together that day in May of 1994 no longer with us, let's remember them, their heroism, and the historical milestone they shared... Aleksandra Rebic____________________________________ Americans and Serbs from all over the United States and Canada gathered together on May 31, 1994 in Chicago to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 'Halyard...

On June 6, 1944, the crucial Normandy Landings that formed the spearhead of the Allied invasion of Nazi held Europe occurred. D-Day ultimately led to the victory of the Allies over the despotic Nazi regime. Now here we are on June 6, 2009 and, in its inimitable way, Google has decided to memorialize the important occasion by adding an image on its homepage depicting... the computer game Tetris.Yes, it's far more important to Google to celebrate the anniversary of the invention of the video game Tetris than to memorialize D-Day. It just warms the heart, doesn't it?

It was the time of the Final Solution. It was the time of Hitler, Stalin, Tojo and Mussolini. It was the time when tyranny and totalitarianism, and a form of government determined to dominate every aspect of the human spirit, threatened the world. And all who stood against the conquest of the human spirit were the fighting men of the Allied Forces. June 6, 1944 was a day that great men changed the future. It was the day that American, British, and Canadian fighting men began to pry the claws of Adolf Hitler off of Europe, one finger at a...

At 96, former Army Sgt. Fred Wedhorn still describes himself with the phrase "Freddie is always ready." He was ready six decades ago as a combat engineer on the beaches of Normandy. And he was ready in a flash when he recently learned he was being honored with a trip from Tucson to Washington, D.C., for the 65th anniversary of D-Day. "I'm already packed," Wedhorn declared with a chuckle five days before his scheduled departure to see the national World War II memorial. He's due to attend a ceremony there today. Among the prized items that went with him —...

"Primo Victoria" by Sabaton: http://artists.letssingit.com/sabaton-lyrics-primo-victoria-lj969hc "The Longest Day" by Iron Maiden: http://www.metrolyrics.com/the-longest-day-lyrics-iron-maiden.html Both are about the Normandy Invasion

Sixty-five years ago, Allied troops landed in Normandy to begin the liberation of Europe from Nazi occupation. The United States lost, on a single day, more soldiers than it lost in Iraq since 2003. This is a good time to ask the world, and especially those parts that denounce American "imperialism," a bit of historical trivia: How much land and territory did the United States demand in exchange for Woodrow Wilson's crusade to "make the world safe for democracy," the liberation of Europe from Nazism, the defense of South Korean independence, its efforts to save Southeast Asia from Communist oppression...

Every D-Day, I like to re-read the S.L.A. Marshall article “First Wave at Omaha Beach” to remind me of the great sacrifices made by real American heroes on this day. I was glad to see someone post the link to the article earlier (http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/196011/omaha). However, every year, I attempt the same unsuccessful search for more information on the “forty-seven immortals” referenced in the article

Go figure that the one day Obama doesn't talk about himself is during a D-Day tribute. Good for him, and us: Over at Aarrggh there is a copy of an email sent to members of the Combined Joint Task Force 82, who are currently in Afghanistan, from the French: To Combined Joint Task Force 82, 65 years ago, at 2h30 (French Local time), you jumped from hundreds of DAKOTAS in the dark skies over Normandie in order to liberate France and Europe. That D-Day, you wrote the most glorious page of your history and the name of your Division is...

On June 6, 1944, 150,000 Allied soldiers clambered aboard heaving landing craft and braved six-foot swells, waves of machine gun fire, and more than 6 million mines to claim a stretch of sand at a place called Normandy. Their mission was to carve out an Allied foothold on the edge of Nazi-occupied Europe for the army of more than one million that would follow them in the summer of 1944. This army would burst forth from the beachhead, rolling across Europe into the heart of Germany, liberating millions, toppling a genocidal regime and ending a nightmare along the way. But...

Surely, in the dawn before any theatre action, so much must run thru the minds of our warriors. The scale of D-Day is humbling, and much is captured in this video on the Army's website. Visit the page for more photos, maps and historic data on the June 6th, 1944 airborne and beach assaults on Omaha, Utah, Gold and June Beaches by American, British and Canadian forces. [video at site] Again from the US Army's webpage on D-Day, a General's message to his troops. The page has a link to the audio. Below, the transcript. Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of...

"You are about to embark upon the great crusade toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you...I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle." - GEN of the Army Dwight Eisenhower. Today is the 65th anniversary of D-Day. Why is this such a big deal? Well, I am certain you know the history of it and how it was a major victory in preventing the Nazis from taking over the world. Beyond that, though, is the personal stories. After writing about the military - and covering...

H/T to Old Trooper and his travel updates from Normandy By now, the current POTUS/TOTUS has landed in France... set to address another world audience on the 65th anniversary of D-Day. Regardless of the political scrutiny of Obama's performance, this is as it should be. Our CIC *should* be there to pay honor to our heroes, resting on French soil. But I will say this... considering Obama's track record of speeches across Europe as POTUS, and as a candidate, I'm not looking forward to his D-Day Obama comments, and his half-baked pride in America that gets buried under platitudes during...

‘Obama Beach’: British Prime Minister Makes Major Slip at D-Day Ceremony "So next to Obama Beach we join President Obama..."

NEW ORLEANS | It's "A Gathering of the Greatest Generation" - though this year only a small group of that era's aging heroes will commemorate the invasion of France at Normandy 65 years ago. On Saturday afternoon, veterans will attend a National World War II Museum ceremony in New Orleans recognizing soldiers, sailors and airmen who made that invasion a turning point for Allied forces. However, organizers acknowledge few members of an already dwindling population are hardy enough to make the trip. "We won't have a veteran from each state, unfortunately," said William Detweiler, who is in charge of the...

A bullet tore through Staff Sgt. Leonard Lomell's right leg as he stepped into the frigid Atlantic at Omaha Beach. "I had stepped in a bomb crater, and went to the bottom," Lomell, of Toms River, N.J., said this week. "As I came up, my guys pulled me [out] and pulled me onto the beach." It was June 6, 1944 -- D-Day. Lomell and his men were among the first American Soldiers to step out of landing craft and into the murderous German gunfire at Normandy. Today, 65 years later, the nation pauses to remember the largest water invasion in...

D-Day:Overlooking Normandy From the Air Today, June 6, D-Day, my thoughts, prayers are with those brave men who fought for us all, to all those who gavetheir lives on the beaches of Normandy. This is my heartfelt memorial, in eternal gratitude to all those who helped save the world from tyranny, evil. God Bless You All. God Bless America. Life Magazine has provided the public with a priceless treasure having opened up its complete image archives available via Google Images. Those of you unaware of the availability of Life Magazine's images are in for a rare treat. Life Magazine http://www.life.com/...

President Ronald Reagan delivers a remarkable speech commemorating the 40th anniversary of D-Day at Point-du-Hoc, Normandy, France. God bless them all who fought and died so that freedom may live, and may we never forget.

Ronald Reagan delivers remarks on June 6, 1984 comemorating the 40th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy.

We're here to mark that day in history when the Allied peoples joined in battle to reclaim this continent to liberty. For four long years, much of Europe had been under a terrible shadow. Free nations had fallen, Jews cried out in the camps -- millions cried out for liberation. Europe was enslaved, and the world prayed for its rescue. Here in Normandy the rescue began. Here the Allies stood and fought against tyranny in a giant undertaking unparalleled in human history. We stand on a lonely, windswept point on the northern shore of France. The air is soft, but...

President Obama's public schedule for Saturday, June 6, 2009 ET/LT 0810 1410 The President & First Lady arrive American Cemetery 0820 1420 The President & First Lady tour the Visitors Center 0855 1455 President & three other leaders stand at overlook with two veterans 0910 1530 President Obama, Sarkozy, Brown & Harper participate in 65th Anniversary of DDay

The sea swelled, the rain came down in torrents, but the skies were clear. Sixty-five years ago, when the first men of the 29th Infantry Division waded onto Omaha Beach, they faced terrible resistance – crack German troops, mines, mortars and artillery. There was, however, one vital element that was blessedly missing. There were no German airplanes flying above them on D-Day. This did not happen by chance. It had been planned long before – at the very start of the war – and it came at a terrible price. Just two years earlier, the Luftwaffe was the strongest and...

As Nicolas Sarkozy prepares for the hardest-won photo-op of his presidency – the D-Day commemorations on the Normandy beaches, starring Barack Obama, with the Prince of Wales and Gordon Brown as last-minute supporting players – he could be forgiven for thinking himself ill-used. What started as a mid-scale, bilateral event at the American military cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer (which is US soil, donated by France in perpetuity) has been successively targeted by the big guns of the Daily Mail, Downing Street, Sarkozy's socialist opposition, and the White House Communications Office. Admittedly, Sarko's own intentions weren't entirely selfless. Yes, he is the...

A time to reflect on the sacrifices made during WWII,especially on the anniversary of this momentous undertaking

Sixty-five years ago, Gen. Eisenhower prepared himself for D-Day with hope and trepidation. Having made the decision to go earlier on the day of June 5, he spent time during the afternoon with the paratroopers who would be the first to leave for France. Although he said that he found it hard to look men in the eye on the eve of battle, knowing that many of them would soon be dead, he forced himself to the task - - it was his responsibility; ultimately, all of what would happen the next day, for better or for worse, was his...

On a dreary, overcast June afternoon in Exeter, England, Cpl. William Wildes attached nozzles to the wings of the green and white C-47 Skytrain aircraft formerly known as the "Pride of Minnesota." Pouring approximately 100 gallons of fuel into each wing, he did it exactly like he had done several times before in the previous months for the training missions to prepare for the Normandy invasion. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, except the white invasion stripes and the large "6Z" that was painted onto the fuselage earlier in the day. "The planes were fueled in the afternoon of June...

Skip to comments.D-DAY - June 6, 1944: the greatest generation saved the world from the Nazis dday dot org ^ | 6-5-07 Posted on 06/05/2007 8:57:58 AM PDT by doug from upland D-DAY HISTORY AND LINKS D-Day: It is hard to conceive the epic scope of this decisive battle that foreshadowed the end of Hitler's dream of Nazi domination. Overlord was the largest air, land, and sea operation undertaken before or since June 6, 1944. The landing included over 5,000 ships, 11,000 airplanes, and over 150,000 service men. After years of meticulous planning and seemingly endless training, for the Allied...

We're here to mark that day in history when the Allied armies joined in battle to reclaim this continent to liberty. For 4 long years, much of Europe had been under a terrible shadow. Free nations had fallen, Jews cried out in the camps, millions cried out for liberation. Europe was enslaved, and the world prayed for its rescue. Here in Normandy the rescue began. Here the Allies stood and fought against tyranny in a giant undertaking unparalleled in human history. We stand on a lonely, windswept point on the northern shore of France. The air is soft, but 40...

A popular historical portrayal describes General Dwight Eisenhower managing a political/military alliance, but reminds us he never lead troops in combat. However, his leadership sustained many unprecedented initiatives for successful Normandy landings. The air assault examples the frightful uncertainties of many critical hazards run on this “Day of Days”. The night before D-Day, 20,400 American and British paratroopers dropped behind the Normandy beaches from 1,250 C-47 aircraft plus gliders. This massive assault was attempted just 17 years after Charles Lindberg flew the Atlantic solo for the first time. To the last moment Ike's air commander, British Air Chief Marshall Leigh-Mallory,...

The Obamas turn up in Paris this evening, but have declined a dinner invitation from the couple next door: the Sarkozys. President Obama’s reluctance to spend more than minimum time with the French leader on his visit for the D-Day anniversary has come as an embarrassment to the Elysée Palace. America’s First Family will not be dining with President Sarkozy and his wife, Carla Bruni, even though they are staying at the residence of the US Ambassador, yards from the Elysée apartments where the Sarkozys spend their weekends. Mr Sarkozy’s staff were trying yesterday to arrange another private moment between...

~ D-DAY June 6, 1944 ~ Encyclopedia Britannica NORMANDY INVASION May 1944 had been chosen at the conference in Washington in May 1943 as the time for the invasion. Difficulties in assembling landing craft forced a postponement until June, but June 5 was fixed as the unalterable date by Eisenhower on May 17. As the day approached and troops began to embark for the crossing, bad weather set in, threatening dangerous landing conditions. After tense debate, Eisenhower and his subordinates decided on a 24-hour delay, requiring the recall of some ships already at sea. Eventually, on the morning of...

Okay, the professional civilian here, again. While reading more about D-Day and its aftermath, I'm finding that it was policy to constantly infuse already-existing Army units with new people, the units having been worn down by "attrition." I had always assumed that it was policy, once a unit was all torn up, battered up, decimated, that it was pulled back, and an entirely new unit was sent in. And while being pulled out of action, two purposes were served; that of giving the survivors a chance to catch their breath, and giving commanders time to build them back up to...

June 6 is upon us, but how many of us recognize the significance of the day? How many of us pause to remember the heroism shown and the sacrifices made that day? As I write these words and you read them, we are enjoying one of the freedoms that those men fought to preserve, but are we aware of how fortunate we are?

NORMANDY, France (Army News Service, June 1, 2009) -- When the time comes Saturday, to honor the servicemen who fought and died supporting the D-Day invasion of Normandy 65 years ago, thousands are expected to flock to the shores of Utah Beach and Omaha Beach to pay homage to the bravery and sacrifice of these heroes. The 18th Military Police Brigade, based in Germany, was designated to plan, coordinate and conduct all U.S. support to the Normandy ceremonies commemorating the 65th anniversary of D-Day. For the execution of Task Force Normandy 65, weeks of careful planning and coordination have gone...

By SUE LINDSEY, Associated Press Writer Sue Lindsey, Associated Press Writer – 39 mins ago BEDFORD, Va. – On the eve of the 65th anniversary of D-Day, the foundation that runs the National D-Day Memorial is on the brink of financial ruin. Donations are down in the poor economy. The primary base of support — World War II veterans — is dying off. And the privately funded memorial is struggling to draw visitors because it's hundreds of miles from a major city. Facing the prospect of cutting staff and hours, the memorial's president believes its only hope for long-term survival...