D Day 70 years on

Dinwar said:
These geologists snuck into German territory in order to do this--perhaps the bravest example of sedimentological sampling techniques in history.
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Neat story, I'd never heard it before.

However, I do think that the list of "brave examples of sedimentological sampling techniques" is probably a short one. ;)
 
Cleon said:
Neat story, I'd never heard it before.

However, I do think that the list of "brave examples of sedimentological sampling techniques" is probably a short one. ;)
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You'd be surprised. There's a long tradition of geologists going to war, or soldiers becoming geologists/paleontologists. There's an extremely tragic tale of a Civil War soldier studying geology, right up until his journals end at the time of his death (his brother, as I recall, completed the journals, though he wasn't a geologist). Then there are the ones who explored unknown territory in extreme conditions.

seayakin said:
As with many, I've wondered about the hypothetical if D-Day had failed.
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Assuming Russia didn't decide we were intentionally being holding back: it would have lenghtened the war, but my understanding is that it wouldn't have led to a German victory. The allies were also invading Italy at the time, and gaining some significant footholds.
 
Dinwar said:
Assuming Russia didn't decide we were intentionally being holding back: it would have lenghtened the war, but my understanding is that it wouldn't have led to a German victory. The allies were also invading Italy at the time, and gaining some significant footholds.
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Agreed. If the Normandy landings had failed, the war would have been longer and far bloodier but, even by June 1944, the outcome was pretty much inevitable.
 
Dinwar said:
You'd be surprised. There's a long tradition of geologists going to war, or soldiers becoming geologists/paleontologists.
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No question. I recommend Military Geology in War and Peace for lay reading, though I'm guessing you've familiar with more comprehensive histories.

Many people who take interest in military history -- myself included -- tend to think of the great Pacific amphibious campaigns of WWII when we think of military geology and hydrology and especially the epic failure at Tarawa during the Gilberts campaign but the contributions from the geology community played a similarly vital role in the ETO during the Torch, Husky, Avalanche and probably culminating during the Neptune landings. (not to leave out Shingle and Dragoon).
 
Dinwar said:
Assuming Russia didn't decide we were intentionally being holding back: it would have lenghtened the war, but my understanding is that it wouldn't have led to a German victory.
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As long as the Manhattan Project results in working bombs, and the Allies gain and maintain air supremacy in the skies over Europe, Germany loses. And only a few months later than it did historically ('Little Boy' ends up smashing a major German city rather than Hiroshima).
 
Dinwar said:
Assuming Russia didn't decide we were intentionally being holding back: it would have lenghtened the war, but my understanding is that it wouldn't have led to a German victory. The allies were also invading Italy at the time, and gaining some significant footholds.
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Rome was occupied by the US on June 4th, two days before Overlord.
That's a bit more than a foothold.

The Soviets always liked to ignore the Italian campaign as an irrelevance, but it absorbed 500,000+ Germans who would otherwise have been facing them in the East.
 
Also the Russians were being supplied by the Americans and British, so they could have ended the war in the East at any time by cutting off supplies.
 
rjh01 said:
Also the Russians were being supplied by the Americans and British, so they could have ended the war in the East at any time by cutting off supplies.
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Prolonged.

By 1944 Soviet manufacturing was far from negligible.
 
jimbob said:
Prolonged.

By 1944 Soviet manufacturing was far from negligible.
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True, but it was concentrated almost entirely on arms.
Rolling stock, trucks, transport in general were coming from their allies. Even fuel, to a large extent.
 
Tolls said:
True, but it was concentrated almost entirely on arms.
Rolling stock, trucks, transport in general were coming from their allies. Even fuel, to a large extent.
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Which is why I said "prolonged" rather than "ended"
 
MaGZ said:
I hope the D-Day veterans walk the streets of Europe and see the “liberation” they brought. A Europe flooded with non-Europeans and a zero replacement birthrate. The Jews won the Second World War and the White Race lost.
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Still whining over you Aryan Superman getting their butts kicked,are we?
 
Dinwar said:
You'd be surprised. There's a long tradition of geologists going to war, or soldiers becoming geologists/paleontologists. There's an extremely tragic tale of a Civil War soldier studying geology, right up until his journals end at the time of his death (his brother, as I recall, completed the journals, though he wasn't a geologist). Then there are the ones who explored unknown territory in extreme conditions.
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Bloody Geologist, they get all over the Earth...


I will get my coat
 
TjW said:
And vice-versa.
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Yeah....my wife has raised some fairly strong objections to that part. :D For my money, as long as the Earth stays outside of me I'm okay with it. When sand gets embedded into my skin, that gets annoying.
 
Corsair 115 said:
Gawdzilla said:
One of my professors at Purdue said "Killing Nazis was a good idea then, and it's still a good idea!"
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Yep, I remember you using that quote before. I'd have to agree with it.
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I'd have to disagree with it.

I think there was a narrow window in world history where killing Nazis would have been a criminal act, and rightly so, but still a good idea on moral grounds. I think there was a somewhat larger window where it was a good idea and not even criminal--the war itself. Now, today, I strongly disagree that it's a good idea to kill Nazis.

Are you serious about this idea? Is there any reason I shouldn't report your post for violating the MA prohibition against advocating criminal acts?
 
What's the problem?
Something decides to not be human any more.
The proper way to dispose of it is at the local pound, in the chamber they use to euthanize pets.
Of course, out of respect for the pets, do it on a different day.
Just put it to sleep.
Should work forever.
 
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