or Powell's or me• • •
"Mike and Jon, Jon and Mike—I've known them both for years, and, clearly, one of them is very funny. As for the other: truly one of the great hangers-on of our time."—Steve Bodow, head writer, The Daily Show
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"The good news: I thought Our Kampf was consistently hilarious. The bad news: I’m the guy who wrote Monkeybone."—Sam Hamm, screenwriter, Batman, Batman Returns, and Homecoming
June 06, 2009
They Also Serve Who Only Take French And Play Baseball
Today the news is filled with remembrances of the heroism of the soldiers who stormed the beach at Normandy. But why have we as a society forgotten the heroism of those who, on that terrible day, took French classes and played baseball in the afternoon?
This question is particularly piquant for me because my grandfather was one of these heroes. Here's the cover of his journal from World War II:
Journal
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CA Det D3D1
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First U.S. Army
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Normandy
Northern France
Germany
Cour Z
And here's his entry for June 6th, 1944:
6 June 1944French class and road march made up morning schedule. Detachment played baseball in the afternoon, after which all members discussed implications of D-day.
Just imagining what it was like for those young men gives me chills.
(He did end up in France ten days later.)
—Jonathan Schwarz
Posted at June 6, 2009 03:02 PMMy guess is YOUR Grandfather's world turned sour after the ten days, but he probably would have rather been home with family than playing baseball and learning enough french to at least stay alive.
Posted by: Mike Meyer at June 6, 2009 05:37 PMso are you suggesting that the US national pasttime is not baseball, but rather killing people?
i'm telling george will on you.
Posted by: anonymous at June 6, 2009 07:51 PMIs this grandpa Lewis Hanke, or the other one?
Posted by: En Ming Hee at June 6, 2009 09:55 PM"Freedom isn't free" - in the case of the war against Hitler, we have an example of how that's true.
In all the wars the U.S. has been in since, we have an example of how an appeal to heroism and patriotism is used to justify mass murder by the MICFiC (M ilitary I ndustrial C ongressional Fi nancial Corporate media complex)
May the Creative Forces of the Universe have mercy on our souls, if any
Posted by: mistah charley, ph.d. at June 7, 2009 08:00 AMFree-range chickens still end their days as Chicken McNuggets.
Posted by: Oarwell at June 7, 2009 10:27 AMHow many of those guys in French class never made it back? How guys on his baseball team did your grandfather get to see being killed?
I'm not sure I understand your point. Are you saying that your grandfather's contribution was less than the contribution of someone who stormed the beach? Or, are you saying that we tend to over-value the contribution of those who participated in major events like D-Day? Or is it some combination of both? In my book, those guys get partial credit just for showing up.
I'm sorry, maybe it's my problem, but I just don't understand what you're saying and you come off a little smug here.
Posted by: Chris at June 7, 2009 11:21 AMI think our host was being reflective, and tossing a little joke in his grandpap's direction. After all, it was 65 years ago. Can we make jokes about Waterloo yet? The War of the Austrian Succession? What about the 100 Years War? Diet of Worms?
I had an uncle who went ashore at Omaha, had half his right hand blown off but survived. I was told several times, when young, never to ask him about D-Day. That warning always stood as mute testimony to the horrors he witnessed.
Posted by: Oarwell at June 7, 2009 11:44 AMDid your granddad ever tell you what was the subject of his talk following French class on June 3?
Posted by: Nell at June 7, 2009 01:43 PMdon't feel so sad about your grandfather because, we the human being have lost dignity and have forgotten how to show respect to the national heroes. i thank this is the reason why we as a society are going down day by day
Posted by: debanjan mukherjee at June 8, 2009 01:43 AMYou mean they actually had people taking French classes *before* invading France? That is so September 10th.
Posted by: john at June 8, 2009 09:54 AM@oarwell: I enjoyed Hogan's Heroes as much as the next guy.
Posted by: Chris at June 8, 2009 11:24 AMChris: Wonder when we'll see the equivalent "War on Terra" sitcom. Osama-qua-Col. Klink.
Hogan: Bill O'Reilly
LeBeau: Nicolas Sarkozy
Kinch: Barack Obama
Carter: George W. Bush
Newkirk: Tony Blair
Carter: George W. Bush
Sgt. Schultz: Saddam Hussein
Helga: Ann Coulter
Hilga: Laurie Dhue or any other Fox bimbo
Gen. Burkhalter: Mohammed Atta
Major Wolfgang Hochstetter: Charles Krauthammer
Jon: Any idea what 'Cour Z' is?
Posted by: Clint at June 8, 2009 04:59 PMClint, I have examined that doc image closely and I believe it may actually be COM Z, headed by one General Lee who was in charge of US Services and Supply. This would also fit because the support forces moved ashore somewhere around D+10.
However, I do not have General Omar N. Bradley's book 'A Soldier's Story' in front of me at the moment, so I am drawing on this from memory. But that book is where I read about COM Z. For what it's worth.
- Pat
Posted by: Pat at June 10, 2009 03:54 PMClint, I have examined that doc image closely and I believe it may actually be COM Z, headed by one General Lee who was in charge of US Services and Supply. This would also fit because the support forces moved ashore somewhere around D+10.
However, I do not have General Omar N. Bradley's book 'A Soldier's Story' in front of me at the moment, so I am drawing on this from memory. But that book is where I read about COM Z. For what it's worth.
- Pat
Posted by: Pat at June 10, 2009 03:54 PM
