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Praetorium Honoris

Sunday, January 27, 2019

Then and Now

Normandy, Summer 1944
Normandy, Spring 2015
(Source)
Having walked a battlefield or two in my life. knowing what it looked like in the past and seeing it as it is in the present, I have always enjoyed seeing these "Then and Now" presentations. The video below is very interesting. Where men once fought, and died, has returned to normality. Places where people lived and worked before the war, they live and work in peace once more. (Chase that link under the second photo, some good photos of the area today.)

Let us never forget the sacrifices of those who made it possible.



Speaking of some of those men, Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, United States Army.



Remember...



26 comments:

  1. Thank you for the reminder. May we never forget those who bought what we enjoy today.

    Thanks for the post.
    Paul L. Quandt

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  2. Somewhere in the electrons, I've got a picture I took from Omaha Beach looking up. Got to find that one.

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  3. Couple of good clips with music fit for a Sunday morning, had a bit of dust fly around the room now........... seconding Paul..... thank you Sarge.

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    1. Knowing that a lot of the men from Easy Company have passed since the series was made reminded me that there are so few of the Greatest Generation remaining.

      Yes, dusty.

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  4. "Let us never remember the sacrifices of those who made it possible."

    Aye tink youse mespiled forget

    George

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  5. Yes. Remember them. And let them know they will not be forgotten.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4PSQ81pD18

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    Replies
    1. Very nice tribute. It pains me greatly when I hear of the passing of these men.

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  6. Normal every-day guys who did extraordinary things when their country, their world, and their buddies needed them to do so.
    Then, they came home, and did great things here at home as well.

    Never forget.

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  7. Bookface has had a 10 year challenge thing going on recently, with people posting a picture from 2009 and 2019. Somewhat interesting to see people ageing, but no thanks. I either don't want to know how bad I've aged, or I don't want to help Zuck build some sort of facial recognition algorithm as some have guessed. I do like the then and now photos of places though. I follow a page on FB called Vintage San Diego which posts old photos of my hometown, as well as a link to google street view for the same place. Fun and interesting, but you can't stop progress. Btw, I'm heading down to the redneck riviera for my annual conference. I hope to get a Mustang again and no stories worth writing about (https://oldafsarge.blogspot.com/2016/02/planes-trains-and-really-nice-automobile.html). I say that because I may be even less present in the comments section than I usually am.

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    1. Then again, I'm bringing my better half with me so I hope there is something fun and interesting to write about!

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    2. Even the drole and mundane sounds cool when you do it. Plus that way I can live my travel life vicariously through you.

      Ah, well, hope you have a fun and trouble-free life. If you go to Nawlins, get in touch with Murphy. That will give you something to write about, if you survive without being arrested that is.

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    3. Yeah, the koobecaF ten year thing. Avoiding that like the plague I am.

      Trust me, Tuna hasn't changed a bit since I've known him. In pictures though, he, like me, had more hair when he was on active duty.

      And yeah, what Beans said, me too.

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  8. I've seen before and after photos of Kwajalein, and the island took such a horrendous pasting about the only thing really recognizable are the shell craters in the reef. Roi-Namur, on the other hand, suffered less horrendously and has had significantly less human habitation, so many of the original concrete-with-coral structures still exist to this day.

    Pearl Harbor, except for a few exceptions, looks nothing like that day.

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    Replies
    1. Things change, progress does a makeover, sometimes it's good, sometimes it isn't.

      Ah well, life goes on.

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  9. It is good to be reminded that at a time when incarnate evil had overwhelmed virtually all of European civilization there were men from far lands who took up arms to drive evil from the face of the Earth. They carried the torch of freedom to save Europe from the dark age, and they asked nothing in return. Their crusade was righteous, and their victory glorious.

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  10. Circa 1964-1966 a few of us Combat Engineers, under the supervision of a very experience senior sergeant, poked around some of the battlefields around Aachen. Usually we were accompanied by a Förstermeister. When I thought about those who fought there, I felt humble. Even more so after my return when I was talking to my oldest uncle who was there.

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    1. Some bitter fighting in that area in late 1944.

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  11. ...Never Forget."Hang Tough" (Major Dick Winters) "Strength and Courage" (Captain Carroll "Lex" Lefon)

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    Replies
    1. Both good men who set a fine example for those who came after.

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