tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post3060267078845422390..comments2024-03-28T13:23:25.055-07:00Comments on Chant du Départ: Sieben Männer von Sachsen*OldAFSargehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-71481217219249854052020-08-21T06:06:03.070-07:002020-08-21T06:06:03.070-07:00No need to bring in the elite troops.No need to bring in the elite troops.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-79042318619367055882020-08-20T23:38:37.989-07:002020-08-20T23:38:37.989-07:00I hope some Rangers find those Germans I hope some Rangers find those Germans Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05720206407574457665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-86983105003772865002020-08-20T09:23:08.409-07:002020-08-20T09:23:08.409-07:00True indeed, one of the practice landings at Slapt...True indeed, one of the practice landings at Slapton Sands in the UK was attacked by German E-Boats. 749 American servicemen were killed. <br /><br />You're right, those lives were not wasted, training is necessary and accidents happen.<br /><br />I often think of those killed in the first moments of a battle, without firing a shot in return.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-83144790520204628242020-08-20T08:55:16.025-07:002020-08-20T08:55:16.025-07:00One of the chilling realities of war is that viole...One of the chilling realities of war is that violent death is lurking everywhere. I forget the exact details/numbers but lots of guys got killed in pre D-Day training accidents. All the hard work and dedication to support and defend in combat and they were gone in an instant without ever seeing the enemy. Kind of chilling and sad in a particularly different way. But none of those lives and futures were wasted. Liberty and freedom we enjoy today rests solidly on those strong and brave shoulders.PrairieAdventurehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06466447251827774900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-90539777453444062322020-08-19T21:30:19.637-07:002020-08-19T21:30:19.637-07:00It's the German copy of our bazooka, which the...It's the German copy of our bazooka, which they actually made in a larger caliber. More effective.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-45347377835985663292020-08-19T19:47:16.042-07:002020-08-19T19:47:16.042-07:00The Army entrenching tool we had would bend at 90 ...The Army entrenching tool we had would bend at 90 degrees - and imagine hitting that on someone's head. That could split it open no problem. To get hit like that means they had no SA. <br /><br />I think - having SA - is to be aware of what **could** happen and watch for it. <br /><br />Didn't realize the Sherman had a big radial engine - how did they solve the cooling I wonder? <br /><br />Those 2 soldiers at the top - wonder that that thing the guy in the rear is carrying - a stovepipe? ;-) Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05720206407574457665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-44574079014437218902020-08-19T19:03:53.581-07:002020-08-19T19:03:53.581-07:00That was more than enough.That was more than enough.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-76999050498645953542020-08-19T19:03:19.208-07:002020-08-19T19:03:19.208-07:00Enough energy to march and fight, that's the r...Enough energy to march and fight, that's the real point. The other you can get with empty calories.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-82196326742452826052020-08-19T18:47:00.485-07:002020-08-19T18:47:00.485-07:00In All Quiet on the Western Front, the main charac...In All Quiet on the Western Front, the main character describes going on raids armed only with an entrenching spade and grenades. I remember that from reading it as a youth.a bearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07871505359143633270noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-58178619079807262272020-08-19T18:32:42.438-07:002020-08-19T18:32:42.438-07:00To borrow the best Bean's quote I know: IMAT....To borrow the best Bean's quote I know: IMAT. And that's keeps my belly quiet.STxARhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04588850178293194825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-30946155604732293112020-08-19T18:23:56.234-07:002020-08-19T18:23:56.234-07:00I have a WWII era German entrenching tool, it has ...I have a WWII era German entrenching tool, it has a pretty good heft, wouldn't really need much of an edge to really ruin someone's day!OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-13642935721888904582020-08-19T18:00:07.189-07:002020-08-19T18:00:07.189-07:00Hey Old AFSarge;
I never thought about using...Hey Old AFSarge;<br /><br /> I never thought about using an Etool as a weapon until I started reading Casca the Eternal Mercenary and the Germans were very good at using the E-tool in close combat, especially in the Eastern Front. Funny, when I went to the Gulf, I had an old E-tool with the wooden handle, I put a razor edge on that one and got good at using it overhand and at jabbing with it. Still have it in my bonus room, funny what you remember. I didn't know what to expect when we deployed and lessons from history and all. MrGarabaldihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05768774166065615995noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-67002769309296077582020-08-19T17:06:42.620-07:002020-08-19T17:06:42.620-07:00They provide calories, not enjoyment. I suppose fo...They provide calories, not enjoyment. I suppose for some of us, that's enough.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-7138986078482263512020-08-19T16:27:06.804-07:002020-08-19T16:27:06.804-07:00REFORGER83 we were eating the last of the C-rats. ...REFORGER83 we were eating the last of the C-rats. Repackaged 1943 procurement. They took out the cigarettes and changed some of the accompaniments but the main meal cans were all dated 1943-44. Five meals out of six after the mess section got there. The advance party was C-rats only for the first 5 days. 30 days in the field,3 moves per day minimum C-2/103 FA (155 Towed). I gained 10 lbs. Old GunsAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02690195704568635237noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-32499349011844672382020-08-19T11:56:05.310-07:002020-08-19T11:56:05.310-07:00Very spotty indeed.Very spotty indeed.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-84252694169951726082020-08-19T11:41:07.673-07:002020-08-19T11:41:07.673-07:00No, our rations were top quality and didn't ki...No, our rations were top quality and didn't kill the eaters, and spoilage wasn't much of an issue. Unlike other armies, whose food supply could be spotty at times.Beanshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15293778848879361153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-11564021617366403072020-08-19T10:08:08.474-07:002020-08-19T10:08:08.474-07:00Heh, rations weren't THAT bad. Better than som...Heh, rations weren't THAT bad. Better than some people on the Continent had during the Occupation. Still though, they could be awful.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-79764845686129370722020-08-19T09:29:35.977-07:002020-08-19T09:29:35.977-07:00This, this is the stupid deaths that occur during ...This, this is the stupid deaths that occur during 'quiet times.' A patrol gets lucky or unlucky. A mine. A troop gets crushed under a vehicle, that sort of thing.<br /><br />Mix just random chaos with determined enemies and you get death in mass. <br /><br />The Japanese were very good, in the Philippines, at leapfrogging past resistance. That's okay, because we did the same thing to them, and we made sure, like they did, to have 2nd line troops at the ready to invest the points of resistance.<br /><br />War is hell.<br /><br />At least, for once, you had to really work hard to get killed by the food (on the American's side, that is.)Beanshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15293778848879361153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-7277157935625021842020-08-19T06:26:29.872-07:002020-08-19T06:26:29.872-07:00"A smart man only believes half of what he he..."A smart man only believes half of what he hears, a wise man knows which half." - John Dean CooperOldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-63479375993225745102020-08-19T06:23:15.694-07:002020-08-19T06:23:15.694-07:00Mindset, the wrong mindset, will kill you faster t...Mindset, the wrong mindset, will kill you faster than most anything else. From a wartime air patrol down to walking on a neighborhood street in the middle of the day, you ALWAYS have to think, "It CAN happen here!". Many folks think Col. Cooper was describing situational awareness with his color codes, but he was really talking about being mentally prepared. As he said, condition yellows a state of relaxed alertness/awareness, but it is also saying to yourself, "I may have to shoot someone today." So both aware and mentally prepared...Tom in NChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03576958446243001152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-42985485522138229652020-08-19T05:59:04.374-07:002020-08-19T05:59:04.374-07:00Maintaining 360 degree situational awareness is cr...Maintaining 360 degree situational awareness is critical. It's the threat you don't notice that will get you.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-91820602788792845112020-08-19T05:46:17.186-07:002020-08-19T05:46:17.186-07:00Normalcy bias? I fight that every day. Proverbs ...Normalcy bias? I fight that every day. Proverbs notwithstanding, there IS a lion at the door, but I'm gonna work to see him first and be prepared to face him. <br /><br />I've read so many stories like that. Talked to folks that lived through things going sideways with no warning. Everyone needs a safe place to unwind. But outside the house, ain't that spot. Inside may not be as safe as I think it is. Col. Cooper had a neat game. Being aware of your surroundings like a cat is. It's tiring at first, but worth practicing.<br /><br />Gut punch to read how easy they took them out.STxARhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04588850178293194825noreply@blogger.com