Free Republic

It has been 64 years since the end of the Great Patriotic War, better known in the West and the rest of the world as World War 2, but the debate over the victory and its debasement has never been stronger or more ruthlessly waged. It is time to set things straight. First we will work through the favorite Myths that the West loves to use against Russia. Myth 1: Poland was the first victim of the Nazi and Soviet regimes.First of all, let us set the stage on Poland. Between 1918 and 1924, Poland invaded all of its neighbors...

The following is an account of the retunr of SSgt Jimmie Doyle's remians to the United States after 65 years. Feel free to spread it around.

A veteran soldier who became trapped in a ravine for two days after a 250ft fall has survived, thanks to skills learnt 65 years ago during World War II. Great-grandfather Daniel Currie broke his elbow and shoulder after slipping during a walk at Fiddler's Elbow, near Abercynonon in Wales on Good Friday.Unable to move, and without food or water, Mr Currie protected himself using survival skills learnt while serving in the Army 65 years ago.The 87-year-old covered himself with leaves as temperatures plummeted to 3C overnight, and cleared surrounding undergrowth in order to make himself more visible to rescuers.Speaking...

The US has deported to Austria a former Nazi death camp guard, Josias Kumpf. The move sheds light on the continuing search - in some countries, at least - for World War II war criminals. Mario Cacciottolo examines a hunt now entering its final phase. "Looking for Nazi war criminals is the ultimate law enforcement race against the clock." Eli Rosenbaum, director of the Office of Special Investigations (OSI) in the United States, has a list of thousands of suspects. But working out whether any of them are alive and in the US is a laborious job. A full check...

BERLIN: German police say 15,000 residents were evacuated from their homes during the night in a northern town as experts defused a World War II-era bomb. Residents in parts of Celle were evacuated on Monday evening after the bomb was found on the grounds of an industrial property. Explosives experts defused the 2,000-pound (900-kilogram) American bomb early Tuesday in an operation that lasted 35 minutes. People were then allowed back into their homes. Though World War II ended more than six decades ago, it is still relatively common for unexploded Allied bombs to be found in Germany.

Jan. 22, 2009 MISSING WWII SOLDIERS ARE IDENTIFIED The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of two U.S. servicemen, missing from World War II, have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors. They are Pfc. Julian H. Rogers, of Bloomington, Ind, and Pvt. Henry E. Marquez, of Kansas City, Kan. Both men were U.S. Army. Rogers will be buried in the Spring in Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C., and Marquez will be buried on May 30 in Kansas City, Mo. Representatives from the Army’s Mortuary...

One of the purposes of education is to convey a society's mores, customs, morality, body of knowledge and traditions from one generation to the next. Public education alone is not going to get the job done. It takes knowledge of current events and their underlying causalities so we can understand how to repeat what is good and avoid what is unpleasant -- or even pure evil. That takes sophisticated communication, such as that provided by newspapers -- in print and online. Have the country's standards slipped? I began thinking about this after reading a column by Thomas Sowell, who appears...

Three Nazi bunkers on a beach have been uncovered by  violent storms off the Danish  coast, providing a store of material  for history buffs and military  archaeologists.   The bunkers were found in  practically the same condition as they were  on the day the last Nazi soldiers left them, down to the tobacco in one trooper‘s pipe and a half-finished bottle of  schnapps. (edit) They were located by two nine-year-old boys on holiday with their parents, who then informed the authorities. Archaeologists were able to carefully force a way, and were astounded at what they found.'What's so fantastic is...

Two men who changed history never met, but they should have. They had an enormous impact on each other’s lives. They both were men of war. One would survive. The other would not. The following gives voice to General Draza Mihailovich, the one who did not survive, and what he might have said to the one who did, the great Statesman Winston Churchill, had he had the chance to do so. Dear Winston, During a critical period in the history of the world, our paths crossed in a fateful way, though we would never meet. I would die first, without...

My 66-year life with the Second and Orange USO began at age 7 when my father, active in the war effort, served on its dedication committee in April 1942. The war dominated my childhood and indelibly shaped my personal and professional life as a naval officer and historian. As a boy, I played war games with friends in our Forest Hills neighborhood, and we followed every inch of the news. We boys believed our troops overseas won the war because of us. To see, touch and talk to real soldiers and Marines, we visited them at the county’s USOs, including...

How the Eton-educated wartime Aga Khan offered '30,000 armed Arabs' to help Hitler - but still evaded treason trialLast updated at 18:34pm on 8th March 2008 Secret plan to help Hitler: Aga Khan III, pictured at the races   Britain dropped a secret plan to charge the Aga Khan's grandfather with treason despite evidence that he offered to help Hitler in the war, documents just released reveal.  Ministers shelved the proposed prosecution of Sultan Muhammad Shah – who was Aga Khan III at the time – for fear it would inflame Muslims.  The spiritual leader of the world's Zizari Ismaili...

Florence Leal was a teenager when her brother, Sergeant Albert Forgue, a gunner on an A-20J Havoc aircraft, disappeared more than 60 years ago during World War II. Barely a day has gone by when Leal has not thought of him. "He was 20 when he was lost," said Leal, 78, of North Providence. Military officials announced yesterday that a shallow grave of bones and other remains found in 1975 near Simmerath, Germany, has been identified as three US airmen, including Forgue. The two other servicemen believed to be on board the two-engine bomber when it crashed over Cologne in...

PALMDALE - Getting into uniform to do your bit and help beat the Nazis gathered in fearsome strength just across the English Channel often meant being ready to lie about your age. And that's what Stella Slydell was willing to do to help win a war that had to be fought. "We all lied about our age during that time," Slydell said. "I was not quite 17 when I entered the Air Force (in) late '42 or early '43," the Palmdale resident remarked of her days serving in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force for the United Kingdom during World War...

MILTON - Nearly every morning since World War II, George M. Thompson has walked outside his two-bedroom townhouse to hang a US flag over his driveway. Before sunset, the 82-year-old Army veteran takes the flag inside, a ritual that he says has helped him hold on to memories of the fellow soldiers he watched die between the beaches of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. Sixty-two years after completing their mission, Thompson and six other veterans who helped liberate France will today be awarded the Legion of Honor, France's highest award. President Nicolas Sarkozy, who has sought improved relations...

Beheaded at whim and worked to death: Japan's repugnant treatment of Allied PoWs22:59pm 18th September 2007 The sheer brutality of the battle for the Far East defies imagination. And in a new book, historian Max Hastings argues that Japanese intransigence made it far worse.  Yesterday, he explained why America had to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Here, in the final part of our exclusive serialisation, he reveals how the West was stunned when it emerged how cruelly their prisoners of war had suffered...As the men of the victorious British 14th Army advanced through Burma on the road to Mandalay...

As the sun shone across London this weekend a number of events were taking place to commemorate the Battle of Britain, veterans standing shoulder to shoulder with serving military figures and civilians to remember their comrades who battled so doggedly for their country during the summer of 1940 and throughout World War II. A permanent reminder of the debt owed to 'The Few' was revealed on Saturday 15 September 2007 in Westminster when the Royal Air Force and Battle of Britain Fighter Association unveiled the Battle of Britain Heritage Walk. The 45 minute walk links five sites of significance to...

With his regular ongoing title cancelled 20 years ago, Sgt. Rock returns to DC Comics in 2008 in the six-issue mini-series, "The Lost Battalion," written and illustrated by Billy Tucci ("Shi"). In a somewhat ironic twist, CBR News spoke with the Eisner-award nominated creator on the sixth anniversary of 9/11 about the iconic military figure - a connection not lost on Tucci. "Above all else this is a human story," said Tucci of his factually-based Rock story. "It's based on actual events and I've worked very hard crafting around the truth. I want to pay homage to the men and...

My Dad served during WW2 in the US Navy from somewhere around June, 1943 until January, 1946 in the Pacific. He was assigned to the USS SAN JUAN, a cruiser, and his duty on board was that of storekeeper. The USS SAN JUAN received 13 Battle Stars for her WW2 service. My Dad was on board when the ship received 7 Battle Stars. Almost needless to say, he saw a lot of heavy, heavy action. The USS SAN JUAN went all over the Pacific during the time my Dad was on board. Here is a link to the website should...

Nearly six years after 9/11, what's striking is how little has changed in America - and in its war effort. And yet if we can't change ourselves, what are the chances that we can change others? When President George W. Bush declares that the Global War on Terror is "the concentrated work of generations," one has to wonder if he really means it. Certainly there's been little concentration on effective war mobilization, and other countries have noticed. As we look back to study wars that the United States has won - and why - the most obvious metric is the...

Flag Waving Democrats January 10, 2007 President Bush made his speech tonight outlining a new strategy for the War on terror in Iraq. Even before he made the speech, Democrats and RINOs were lining up in opposition to any increase in troop strength, labeled as a “surge” in their semantic laced calls. Newly ordained Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (D.Ca.) says, "If the president is proposing an escalation, we want to see a justification for the mission." She added that any funding for a surge would be "subjected to some pretty harsh scrutiny." What more “justification” does she need...

I have a quick two question poll I'd like to ask. I think I know what the answers will be but just to confirm how depsicable the NYT has become I thought I'd ask it anyway. 1:Bill Keller and the current times staff is in chrage in 1944. They become aware that we have broken the Japanese code through a secret program called MAGIC. Do they splash it on the front page? 2:Bill Keller and the NYT become aware that we have broken AQ's code and are able to listen in on their every plan and thought thorugh a secret...

Ernest Crews Lacy, Jr. No. 13068 • 6 June 1920 – 28 April 1945 Killed in action in Germany, aged 24 years Interment: American Military Cemetery, Margraten, Holland ON 28 APRIL 1945, BUCK LACY was killed by enemy small arms fire while leading a patrol across the Elbe River in Germany. The tragedy of his death was particularly untimely, coming only ten days before the cessation of hostilities in Europe and after the victory for which he fought had already been won. A brief review of his life is in order. Buck was born at South Boston, Halifax County, Virginia,...

James Emerson Bush, Jr. Graduate No. 13253 • 11 November 1921 – 27 May 1944 Died when shot down by Japanese Zeros over Shinshow, China, aged 22 years Interment: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia JAMES EMERSON BUSH, JR. (“Bushie” to his family) now rests in peace in Section 34, Grave 2403, of Arlington Cemetery. His West Point ring, with a touch of magic, brought him there from an obscure grave in Shinshow, China. “Bushie” was the first of three sons of Colonel and Mrs. James Bush to graduate from West Point. From his earliest days he had two loves —...

E-mail Author Author Archive Send to a Friend Version November 09, 2005, 8:10 a.m. Patriotism Is Not All That Question time. Let us now sing the qualified praises of questioning patriotism. Last Sunday, Mike Wallace of 60 Minutes fame appeared on Chris Wallace’s must-watch show, Fox News Sunday. Having the CBS liberal lion appear on the upstart Fox — particularly after Fox had so much fun with the 60 Minutes "Memogate" story — made it the journalistic equivalent of an exciting crossover episode. You know, like when Happy Days was continued on Mork & Mindy. The fact that Chris...

FREDERICKSBURG TEXAS — Another Hill Country native leading his troops into battle halfway around the world spoke this weekend to mark the 60th anniversary of Fleet Adm. Chester Nimitz’s homecoming at the end of World War II. U.S. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Michael W. Hagee told the crowd of nearly 200 at the National Museum of the Pacific War that the same leadership traits that made Nimitz a successful commander could be found today in the men and women fighting in the streets of Bagdad. “The world has changed because of advanced communication, and often young Marines cannot wait to...

THE Japanese were a "cruel enemy" in World War II, Prime Minister John Howard said today at a ceremony marking Tokyo's surrender 60 years ago. Without naming Japan, Howard said 20,000 Australians were captured in the space of a few weeks in 1942 – a reference to the sweep through South-East Asia by Japanese forces and the fall of Singapore in February. The Australians "passed into captivity only to endure years of forced labour, starvation and brutality at the hands of a cruel enemy," Mr Howard said at a ceremony at the war memorial in Canberra. "Our prisoners of war...

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Willard "Mac" McLain's story of survival after his bomber was shot down over occupied France is like the plot of a movie, a five-month journey of intrigue and danger, avoiding the murderous Nazi Gestapo while moving secretly through an underground network of French resistance fighters. As America observes the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II this month, the 83-year-old McLain is among a dwindling number of men and women still around to tell the tales. When McLain visits the VA hospital in Tampa, veterans of the Korean War, Vietnam War and the Gulf...

From James Doohan At the outbreak of World War II, aged 19, he joined the Royal Canadian Artillery, and was eventually commissioned as a lieutenant. His first combat assignment was the invasion of Normandy at Juno Beach on D-Day. Shooting two snipers along the way, Doohan's unit made its way to higher ground and took defensive positions. At 11:30 that night, he was machine-gunned, taking six hits: four in his leg, one in the chest, and one through his middle right finger. The chest bullet was stopped by his silver cigarette case; he would later generally hide the amputated finger...

HOLTEN, Netherlands -- A helicopter showered 1,355 Canadian war graves with red poppies on Wednesday at the end of a memorial service to honour the sacrifice by Canadians in liberating the Netherlands from Nazi occupation 60 years ago. About 1,500 war veterans were on hand at the Dutch-organized event that highlighted the role children can play in keeping alive memories of wartime tragedy and heroism. During the ceremony at the Holten Canadian War Cemetery, Dutch children recited poems and placed white and yellow narcissus flowers at each grave. They also passed out traditional "May 4th" bread to each veteran attending...

SEELOW HEIGHTS, Germany (Reuters) - The remains of thousands of Soviet and German soldiers killed in a climactic World War Two battle outside Berlin are still being unearthed and identified 60 years after the fighting ended. German officials said on Tuesday they had found the skeletal remains of 1,080 Wehrmachtand 700 Red Army soldiers at the Seelow Heights battlefield since they began searching 12years ago for victims of the fiercest World War Two combat in Germany. A JS-2 on the Berlin highway during Spring 1945. "World War Two won't be truly finished until they've all been recovered and given a...

On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the firebombing of Dresden by Allied forces in World War II, a major neo-Nazi party in the city is seeking to reinvent history by calling the attack "Dresden's Holocaust of bombs." Problem is: the party is finding resonance in a city still deeply scarred by an attack that left at least 30,000 dead. AP A symbol of destruction: Dresden after the firestorm. At a meeting of parliament in the eastern German state of Saxony on Jan. 21, politicians wanted to debate the best way of commemorating the victims of the decimation of...

BELGRADE, ZAGREB -- Friday – Serbia has put veterans of the WWII Chetnik royalist army on the same footing as those of the Communist Partisan movement with new legislation passed this week. Chetniks are now entitled to the same pension and as Partisans under the new Veterans’ Rights Act. The new law also covers military and family disability payments. The rights now enjoyed by the Chetnik veterans were awarded to the followers of former President-for Life Josip “Tito” Broz at the end of the war. The amendments cover fighters who joined the Chetniks between April 1941 and May 1945 and...

Couple things. I was stationed at Pearl from 1991 to 1993 on the USS Chosin. During times when the ship went into the yards, the command had us sleeping in barracks at Ford Island. This was the early 90's and I do not recall a sign or anything signifying historical significance. When my wife came over from CONUS to visit, we toured the Arizona Memorial. Looking at pictures on the wall, I noticed an aerial shot of the same barracks I was sleeping in. The last time I was there in early 92 - and when I was in shape...

If this is not the right place to post this, please forgive me. With this being Labor Day, there are a lot of great war movies showing, (except Saving Private Ryan, in some cities.) I was just wondersing what everyones favorite WWII movies were.

Japan's patent office has blocked a company from making "pachinko" pinball machines named after Adolf Hitler, Moses and other historical figures, officials said Wednesday. Fuji Shoji Co., based in Osaka, submitted the names of 34 well-known people, including the Wright Brothers and Tchaikovsky, for trademarks on their garish, upright pinball machines. The Patent Office rejected the applications in May, Fuji said, but word of the decision was first publicized in Japan this week. The office is barred from granting trademarks that may disrupt public order and morals, a patent official said. He refused to provide further details. Kyodo News agency...

WWII U.S. Fighter Wreckage Found in Fiji ASSOCIATED PRESS SUVA, Fiji (AP) - The wreck of a World War II U.S. fighter plane has been found in the wild center of Fiji by a pig hunter, police said Wednesday. The villager from the central highlands of Fiji's main island of Viti Levu was hunting wild pigs when he stumbled across the wreckage, said police spokesman Mesake Koroi. He said the hunter first found an ammunition belt, then other pieces of plane wreckage. Koroi said the wreckage was believed to be from a U.S. fighter that took off from Nadi Airport...

Schröder's Private PilgrimageThe German Chancellor's very personal visit to Romania is the latest step in a painful journey for him and his countryBy ANDREW PURVIS REUTERS; RIC FELD/APFAMILY TIES:Schröder will visit the communal grave of his father, Fritz, inset Monday, Aug. 09, 2004It seems as if German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder has spent the entire summer publicly apologizing for World War II. He was the first German leader to participate in D-day ceremonies on the 60th anniversary of the Allied invasion in June. Last week, he became the first German Chancellor to honor the estimated 200,000 Poles killed by German troops...

GATES MILLS, OH - Baseball Hall-of-Famer and World War II veteran Bob Feller announced today his support for President Bush’s strong leadership: “While President Bush’s leadership in the War on Terror has made America’s veterans proud of our commander-in-chief, John Kerry's changing position shows he cannot be trusted with our safety and security. John Kerry voted to take action in Iraq, but later declared himself an anti-war candidate. Then, after saying it would be ‘irresponsible’ not to support our troops, he voted against the $87 billion to provide our troops with supplies like body armor. He explained that vote by...

“The Queen and I bid you a very warm welcome home. Through all the great trials and sufferings which you have undergone at the hands of the Japanese you have been constantly in our thoughts. We know from reports we have already received how heavy those sufferings have been. We know also that these have been endured by you with the highest courage. We mourn with you the death of so many of your gallant comrades. With all our hearts we hope that your return from captivity will bring you and your families a full measure of happiness which you...

The Battle of Midway, fought over and near the tiny U.S. mid-Pacific base at Midway atoll, represents the strategic high water mark of Japan's Pacific Ocean war. Prior to this action, Japan possessed general naval superiority over the United States and could usually choose where and when to attack. After Midway, the two opposing fleets were essentially equals, and the United States soon took the offensive. Yamamoto's intended surprise was thwarted by superior American communications intelligence, which deduced his scheme well before battle was joined. This allowed Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the U.S. Pacific Fleet commander, to establish an ambush...

Why Do We Fight? by Danny Clay Lee During World War Two, Hollywood produced a series of films titled Why We Fight produced by Frank Capra. Shown in theaters across the nation and to every soldier, sailor, airman and marine, few if any questioned why we fought. In this second round of the Gulf War, Hollywood has produced mainly protests. During the Second World War, many Hollywood stars enlisted in the armed services to fight for their country. Jimmy Stewart, Clark Gable, Tryone Power and David Niven, to name just a few, not only enlisted, but went into combat. Today's...

Was just channel surfing and caught Andy Rooney on a late nigth repeat of Larry King Weekend as he said that George Patton has little to do with the liberation of France and defeat of Nazi Germany! He then went into a ramble about Omar Bradley being the commander of Third Army...

Mixed feelings over San Pedro film event NO SHOW: Insensitivity to Japanese-Americans is cited. Vets are stunned. By Donna Littlejohn DAILY BREEZE It was going to be a night to remember. Ushers dressed in World War II military uniforms, vintage cars pulling up to the curb, Pearl Harbor survivors and a recently restored 1940s military searchlight would be on hand Dec. 7 to greet the crowds at a special anniversary showing of “Tora! Tora! Tora!” at San Pedro’s historic Warner Grand Theatre. The 1970 film — a joint American and Japanese production — is considered one of the most accurate...

June 11 — After the Philippines fell to the Japanese in 1942, U.S. Army Capt. Mel Rosen and 70,000 other U.S. and Filipino soldiers were forced to trudge 65 miles in tropical heat with no food or water — the notorious "Bataan Death March." Up to 10,000 died along the way. Rosen survived the march, but his suffering at the hands of the Japanese was far from over. Forced to farm and cut timber under harsh conditions, he eventually weighed only 88 pounds. Now 83 and living in Falls Church, Va., Rosen is still fighting battles from World War II...