# Is anybody proud to be an American today?



## SARGE7402 (Nov 18, 2012)

At just after midnight 70 years ago men of the 101 & 82 Airborne and 75 Rangers launched them selves out the door of their transports and began the invasion of Nazi Occupied Europe. Most of us had parents or grandparents or uncles who went in with those brave souls.

It wouldn't hurt to take a small moment out of our busy days to give thanks for those men of the Greatest Generation.


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## Beach Kowboy (Feb 13, 2014)

I couldn't even imagine what it must have been like. Much respect to every one of them. Apparently a 93 year old D-Day vet jumped over Normandy at Utah Beach for the anniversary.. That is ****ing awesome....


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## Eagles700LvL (Apr 10, 2014)

Beach Kowboy said:


> I couldn't even imagine what it must have been like. Much respect to every one of them. Apparently a 93 year old D-Day vet jumped over Normandy at Utah Beach for the anniversary.. That is ****ing awesome....


His jump Thursday in the same area was different and -- despite his being 93 years old now -- a whole lot easier.

"It didn't (compare)," Martin said, "because there wasn't anybody shooting at me today."


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## Beach Kowboy (Feb 13, 2014)

Eagles700LvL said:


> His jump Thursday in the same area was different and -- despite his being 93 years old now -- a whole lot easier.
> 
> "It didn't (compare)," Martin said, "because there wasn't anybody shooting at me today."


No inbound bullets would make it a ton easier..lol


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## jbrooks19 (May 22, 2014)

Respect to those brave and respected Hero's.. You will NOT be forgotten.


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## Seneca (Nov 16, 2012)

He probably enjoyed his second jump, his first jump maybe not so much.
Kudu's to the man and good to see that 70 years later he could still do it. 
Awesome simply awesome.


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## slewfoot (Nov 6, 2013)

Darn right I am a proud American. Had an uncle wounded in the pacific theater and my father served in the European theater, very proud of both and this is one reason I get fired up at the tin foil hat posters on here that put down our country and way of life. If they don't like it pack up and move somewhere else. Simple.


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

As a military history enthusiast I have read much about D-Day over the years.
Of all the guys who made the invasion, the ones that always first pop into my mind at the mention of D-Day are the riflemen of the 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division. These men were the first troops of the first wave to land on the bloody hell that was Omaha Beach. 
Their casualties were horrendous. Many never even made the shore. The Boys From Bedford were in this battalion, Company A, I think. Bedford, Va, population 3,200 in 1944, lost 19 young men in the first 15 minutes of D-Day.
When Stephen Spielberg made Saving Private Ryan he used the accounts of some 116th men to aid in his production. The depiction of the landing assault was no Hollywood fiction.

"I never talked about D-Day until 1988 when I went to that American cemetery. I leaned over my Lieutenant's grave and looked up at my wife with tears in my eyes and said 'Nobody will ever know who they were and what they did.' So when I speak, I mention each guy by name and where he came from."
Harold Baumgarten, B Company, 1/116 Infantry. Wounded five times on D-Day, one of only two survivors from his boat of 30 men.

SQUAD! Ten-Hut!
Pree-sent Arms!
(the sound of three rifle volleys followed by Taps being played)
Orr-der Arms!


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## SquirrelBait (Jun 6, 2014)

Today and every day. Forever without end.


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## Charles Martel (Mar 10, 2014)

I am proud of the actions of those brave men that fought, bled and died on the beaches of Normandy. I'm proud of the accomplishments of that generation but we dishonor their sacrifice daily. America is not the country it once was. She has become immoral, decadent, corrupt, and lazy. I'm personally disgusted by what this nation has become, and I derive no pride from my nationality. America is Rome before and during its fall. The brave deeds of our fathers and our grandfathers mean nothing, anymore. This country is a shell of what it once was.


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## Beach Kowboy (Feb 13, 2014)

Just imagine what those brave souls went through in WWII! Not just D Day but the entire war. They were VERY brave individuals and I am proud to say my grandfather and his brothers and cousins all fought. Not all came home. I have a great uncle that was killed in WWII and one of my grandpas cousins was shot down in a F 4 phantom in Vietnam and killed. The war in Afghanistan and Iraq has been very bad but WWII and Vietnam was a whole different ball game!

They were our greatest generation! Kids nowadays have no ****ing idea about sacrifice and aren't willing to stand up for this country. At least the MAJORITY of them anyway.. I am SO AFRAID to see what is going to happen with this country int he next 40-60 years!! I know years ago people said they were afraid for the country because of Rock and Roll and stuff... We are WAYYY beyond that now.. It is the liberal mindset that is what is endangering this country.. If we were to wake up tomorrow and EVERY liberal in the country were to have died in their sleep. That is ONE of the top 3 best things that could happen to this country.. We are killing ourselves as we go...


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## tango (Apr 12, 2013)

Proud American? You damn right I am.

My grandfather, US Army, fought in Argonne and Verdunne in WW1.
I served in The Navy from 1965 to 1985.
I did not see anything like those men did and they get my respect every day.
Saalluute!


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## Beach Kowboy (Feb 13, 2014)

The majority of the kids these days would never even think about doing what those brave souls did back then!! They were all about serving this country. Fast forward to today and you would not have a fraction of the amount of ones from the same age bracket that would do today what they did back then! Today it is all about Facebooking and shit.. There wouldn't even be 20% of the people that would sign up to defend this country AND BE PROUD TO DO SO compared to then... Nowadays it is all about serving yourself instead of country..This country is so ****ed it isn't even funny!!!


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## Rigged for Quiet (Mar 3, 2013)

I am not alone in my love and pride of what this nation was founded on. As long as there are those of us who hold strong to our beliefs there is hope.

I hope to one day visit the Beaches of Normandy.


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## Chipper (Dec 22, 2012)

Everyday I wake up in this great country I'm proud to be an AMERICAN. That's what my family fought for to make me free.


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## Conundrum99 (Feb 16, 2014)

If your answer is that you are not proud to be an American. Then you have to choices stand up and do something about it or leave. The men that fought and died on D-day did so that you could be proud to be an American. 

Proud American!


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## Beach Kowboy (Feb 13, 2014)

Rigged for Quiet said:


> I am not alone in my love and pride of what this nation was founded on. As long as there are those of us who hold strong to our beliefs there is hope.
> 
> I hope to one day visit the Beaches of Normandy.


Same here. I have been all over the world but never to Normandy. I would love to see Normandy and many other places we fought in WWII,Korea and even Vietnam.. Those were the REAL warriors!!!!!!. Semper FI!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

Conundrum99 said:


> If your answer is that you are not proud to be an American. Then you have to choices stand up and do something about it or leave. The men that fought and died on D-day did so that you could be proud to be an American.
> 
> Proud American!


I'm with you, my Brother.
It's just a shame that so many choose to moan and whine about this country.
I am glad to be an American. It was a matter of pure chance. I could just as easily have been born a goat herder in Outer Mongolia. 
Instead I was born in the land of unlimited possibilities.
I was raised by parents who survived the Great Depression and World War II. They taught me such things as duty, honor and country. That being an American is a privilege, and that service before self is a way to repay this privilege.
In a way I feel sorry for those who carry themselves with negativity and self pity.
Proud to be American. Yes, but not in a boastfull way. Quietly proud.
And I love my country. I loved my country even when it didn't love me back.


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## Pir8fan (Nov 16, 2012)

He'll yes I'm proud to be an American and I'm proud to be the son of a member of The Greatest Generation. Sadly, too many of us have no clue as to what it means to be an American.


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## StarPD45 (Nov 13, 2012)

Proud to be an American? You bet.
Proud of our current government? Not a chance.
Both of my parents served in WWII. 
Dad was injured during artillery training and never left the country.
Mom was an Army nurse on Okinawa.

Now it's our turn. What are *WE* going to do to turn things around?


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## The Resister (Jul 24, 2013)

Charles Martel said:


> I am proud of the actions of those brave men that fought, bled and died on the beaches of Normandy. I'm proud of the accomplishments of that generation but we dishonor their sacrifice daily. America is not the country it once was. She has become immoral, decadent, corrupt, and lazy. I'm personally disgusted by what this nation has become, and I derive no pride from my nationality. America is Rome before and during its fall. The brave deeds of our fathers and our grandfathers mean nothing, anymore. This country is a shell of what it once was.


I agree with this statement 100 percent.

Now, with respect to those brave souls that participated in the greatest military action in our nation's history, I want to thank them and their families for their sacrifices. My only regret is that, seventy years later, we've all but lost our nation. I grieve the loss of our nation and get mad at the fact that so many sacrificed while others allowed our country to be taken over by evil people... and we didn't even put up a fight.

For the current situation, I am sorry. I apologize to the many veterans of WWII that my generation let you down. Not a day has gone by in my teens and adult life that I have not thought about what you gave. The sacrifice of so many to have insured our Liberty and Freedom cannot be contemplated without the sorrow for what we've let America become. As for me personally, I'm trying my best, every day, to honor the lives lost by making the most of the Liberties they insured with their blood.

Words will never express the sentiment. Thank those vets and God Bless them all.


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## Guest (Jun 7, 2014)

My grandfather landed on Omaha beach on the second wave. He was a master sergeant combat engineer for the army. He fought in the battle of the bulge too. That man has all my love and respect for what he went through. He is past away a couple years back at age 92. I am exceedingly proud of him and our country in that time. America is different now, I am angry to see lies and criminals go unpunished. I am proud of honest, brave leaders that we do have and the good that is being done , but the nation is sick. The populace majority lacks a sense of morals and vision...what happened to the vision of the constitution? I went to class today and was very surprised no one mentioned ..hey it's June 6th..dday..nope there was nothing. You bet your ass if it was Martin Luther king jr day everyone would be talking about it.


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## SARGE7402 (Nov 18, 2012)

So did you enlighten them?


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## Guest (Jun 7, 2014)

They are all black and Hispanic..school located in the ghetto in Houston...I'd probably be labeled racist and stabbed in the parking lot for bringing it up. I only watched, should have said something anyways


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## PalmettoTree (Jun 8, 2013)

I am always proud to be an citizen of the United States of America.

It is like loving your children and grandchildren. They might do something that I disapprove of, disappoints me, do not understand or is even embarrassing but they can never do anything that would cause me not to love them.

Obama is not America. He is just a sorry excuse of a President or even a citizen.


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## bigdogbuc (Mar 23, 2012)

I'm proud to be one EVERYDAY.


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## Ripon (Dec 22, 2012)

Sad Day

My new class, 26 "kids" and one adult over 30 and all high school grads, at least half with AA degrees from JC (junior colleges) and yes 5-6 BA/BS university degrees and not ONE could tell me the relevance of June 6 in history. One freekin future cop noted it was national donut day I kid you not.


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## taps50 (Sep 28, 2013)

I am proud to be able to call myself an American! I love this country with every fiber of my being, don't like they way it is right now but still proud as hell to be an American. To any of the people that say they want to leave this country pack your bags and leave, if you need help I will gladly help move you. This country maybe in turmoil/tipping point but I would never ask move from this country.


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## bigdogbuc (Mar 23, 2012)

Ripon said:


> Sad Day
> 
> My new class, 26 "kids" and one adult over 30 and all high school grads, at least half with AA degrees from JC (junior colleges) and yes 5-6 BA/BS university degrees and not ONE could tell me the relevance of June 6 in history. One freekin future cop noted it was national donut day I kid you not.


I heard the same thing at work yesterday. My reply; No. It is not National Donut Day. It is the 70th Anniversary of D-Day and the allies storming the beaches of Normandy. WTF????

I did get to see three P-51 Mustangs fly over the school, followed by 2 Chinooks and a Black Hawk. They headed south, then 10 minutes later headed back north, so I got to see them twice. Those Mustangs sounded better than sex!


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## jimb1972 (Nov 12, 2012)

I am proud to be an American every day, of course I am also ashamed of many of my fellow Americans every day as well.


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## PaulS (Mar 11, 2013)

I am proud of the constitution and the United States that used to be America. I am not proud to be part of what America has become and what it is heading toward.
I am proud of those men and women that have given so much and ashamed of the treatment they receive in return. I am proud to stand and fight for a return to the constitutional ideals that this once great nation was founded upon and ashamed of those who are not.

I guess I am a regretful American today, looking forward to being proud in our return to the basics of what made us the greatest nation on the earth.


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## Ripon (Dec 22, 2012)

I can never really say anything good about the French. But I read this story
Veteran, GRC French teacher, students to attend D-Day celebrations - The Winchester Sun: Local

Now I'm not sure this is the same story, but it seems like it - where the kids in France helped raise money
to bring a man from the states over for this celebration for he couldn't afford the trip? I hope thats the same
one - I heard that on the radio and thought - wow - the French? WTF - the French? Everything I ever heard
about the French was "no way" they'd care about an old American, but it appears they did - give them their just
due.


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## nephilim (Jan 20, 2014)

I am in the position where I had grandfather's on both sides...one who stormed the beach with the British and the other who became a POW when captured by the Americans.


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## SARGE7402 (Nov 18, 2012)

Lest we forget the US forces landed at Omaha and Utah. The Brits, Canadians and others landed at Sword, Gold and Juno Beaches


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## Inor (Mar 22, 2013)

SARGE7402 said:


> Lest we forget the US forces landed at Omaha and Utah. The Brits, Canadians and others landed at Sword, Gold and Juno Beaches


The Aussies were there too. - Shout out to our friend Phoenix.


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## SARGE7402 (Nov 18, 2012)

Thanks Inor didn't mean to forget them or the belgian, french poles or any of the others


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## PalmettoTree (Jun 8, 2013)

When I was in school we were hammered with dates and events but little substance. It wasn't until a high school English teacher my junior year assigned D-Day as my term paper that I remotely understood it's meaning. Even then I did not comprehend the cost and necessity.

I would rather people understand the meaning and importance than the dates. A few important dates 4 July; December 7th; 11th day of 11th month at the 11th hour 1918 are just a few other dates to remember.

By-the-way I do not think any man's birthday should be a holiday Christmas being the only exception.


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## SARGE7402 (Nov 18, 2012)

What about Uncle Sam


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## Inor (Mar 22, 2013)

SARGE7402 said:


> Thanks Inor didn't mean to forget them or the belgian, french poles or any of the others


It is okay to forget the French. It is their damn country and we would not have had to invade on June 6th if they had done their damn job in the first place! Cheese-eating-surrender-monkeys!


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## bigdogbuc (Mar 23, 2012)

Inor said:


> It is okay to forget the French. It is their damn country and we would not have had to invade on June 6th if they had done their damn job in the first place! Cheese-eating-surrender-monkeys!


I can't stand the French. Or Canadians. Really don't like French-Canadians. Well, I like some Canadians. They're okay. I guess.

Red Green for President! ::clapping:: I mean, why not? Obama did it. He's not American either.


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

bigdogbuc said:


> I did get to see three P-51 Mustangs fly over the school, followed by 2 Chinooks and a Black Hawk. They headed south, then 10 minutes later headed back north, so I got to see them twice. Those Mustangs sounded better than sex!


Just for you, Bigdog

P-51's sound awesome. The Valiant Air Comand has an annual warbird show every spring at Ti-Co airport, Titusville, Florida. I haven't been in years, but its absolutely fabulous. I have seen years when there were as many as a dozen Mustangs.
So, here ya go for some Mustang sounds!! (Anybody that has never heard one, listen up!)





And this. The whistle sound is the air through the open gun ports in the wings, plus through the radiator.





And while I was there I wandered off and found one for the vets here who are over 50, the sounds of the Huey.


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## bigdogbuc (Mar 23, 2012)

rice paddy daddy said:


> Just for you, Bigdog
> 
> P-51's sound awesome. The Valiant Air Comand has an annual warbird show every spring at Ti-Co airport, Titusville, Florida. I haven't been in years, but its absolutely fabulous. I have seen years when there were as many as a dozen Mustangs.
> So, here ya go for some Mustang sounds!! (Anybody that has never heard one, listen up!)
> ...


Yep!!!! That's it. There is nothing sexier than a P-51 throttle up slicing through the sky. I love it!!!! Thanks RPD....

I would like to share that back in '02, I was assigned to the VA Regional Office as part of the protection contract I was on and I had the very distinct pleasure of meeting one confirmed, true blue, Honest to God, "Red Tailed" Tuskegee Airman. I almost couldn't speak.


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## PaulS (Mar 11, 2013)

It reminds me of the airplanes and the old "thunder boats". Those V-12 Allison and Rolls engines are a pleasure to hear - especially under a full load with the throttle wide. There will likely never be anything like them again.


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

PaulS said:


> It reminds me of the airplanes and the old "thunder boats". Those V-12 Allison and Rolls engines are a pleasure to hear - especially under a full load with the throttle wide. There will likely never be anything like them again.


I subscribe to a warbird website that several months ago had video of the roll out and start up of a recently restored British Mosquito bomber. These had two Rolls Royce Merlin engines. 
Heck, it may even be on you tube by now, but it's late and I'm off to bed.

Oh, what the heck, bedtime can wait.
Two Rolls Royce Merlins in a Mosquito





And you mentioned Allisons. They were found in P-40's, P-38's and the ground attack version of the P-51. 2 min worth of P-40's-


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## Lucky Jim (Sep 2, 2012)

_"Before America entered the war, I knew we could not win. After she entered I knew we could not lose"- Winston Churchill_


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

May God Bless the riflemen of the infantry.


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## Beach Kowboy (Feb 13, 2014)

This is an interesting article.. One of the more interesting carrier landings. - Modern Warships - World of Warships official forum I have heard stories of us pushing choppers,tanks and even p-51's and such overboard just because they had nowhere to put them when they got back..


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