Members Alimantado Posted January 23, 2009 Members Share Posted January 23, 2009 I don't personally have anything against France or the French of those of French background' date=' but it is good to face the truth.[/quote'] So the French weren't victorious in many of their later battles. That says nothing about the individuals who fought. The Somme was probably one of Britain's biggest military disasters, but we wouldn't say (I hope!) that the 300,000 or so (just UK) men who died there 'didn't amount to much'. I'd certainly agree with the spirit of Happy Christian's posting, which was to point out that the sacrifice of those who fought in the wars is too often forgotten. And it's true that the US saved Europe, including Britain. That doesn't make the sacrifice of the Europeans, including the French, who fought alongside the US any less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members John81 Posted January 23, 2009 Members Share Posted January 23, 2009 I mainly posted that to check your feathers. :Green Even so, it's yet true that overall the French military has performed rather dismally since Napoleon lost the cream of the French in his failed quest to dominate Europe. Of course that doesn't nullify the great accomplishments and heoric efforts of some French soldiers. It could be noted that even though France gave up, and many French agreed to cooperate with the Nazis, there was yet a number of French who refused to take this course and formed a fomidible underground resistance network; brave and noble folks. No doubt, England made blunders, but overall their performance showed metal and perseverance, which is more than can be said for the overall French performance. It might be noted that Chruchill's pet project, the attack against the Turks, was a complete fiasco, wasted the lives of many brave men (many Australians) and came close to sinking Churchills future, yet England moved beyond that and persisted to victory (as Churchill would himself do later). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kevinmiller Posted January 24, 2009 Members Share Posted January 24, 2009 Alimantado, I don't think those stories are necessarily true. These kinds of stories and jokes are common as many Americans have bad opinions of the French. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kevinmiller Posted January 24, 2009 Members Share Posted January 24, 2009 An ancestor of my wife was a mayor of London. I can't recall the date off hand, but I do know it was well before America was even a colony. One of my great, great, etc. grandfathers was a duke in England, but I'm not sure where. My mom has the coat of arms somewhere since she's the firstborn of her family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators HappyChristian Posted January 24, 2009 Author Administrators Share Posted January 24, 2009 One of my great, great, etc. grandfathers was a duke in England, but I'm not sure where. My mom has the coat of arms somewhere since she's the firstborn of her family. Sir Francis Drake is in my family tree, on my maternal grandma's side. And my maternal grandpa's mom came over here from Wales when she was 15. I love to look into genealogy. I cannot believe some of the really neat stuff in my family tree! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pneu-engine Posted January 24, 2009 Members Share Posted January 24, 2009 H-C, :Green Thank you for posting those stories. :thumb It is things like that, and ongoing as they are, they are happening all of the time by America's finest. These are only the ones we hear about. They just prove that the spirit that made America great is not dead after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators HappyChristian Posted January 24, 2009 Author Administrators Share Posted January 24, 2009 H-C, :Green Thank you for posting those stories. :thumb It is things like that, and ongoing as they are, they are happening all of the time by America's finest. These are only the ones we hear about. They just prove that the spirit that made America great is not dead after all. :thumb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pneu-engine Posted January 24, 2009 Members Share Posted January 24, 2009 To the naysayers I have to say this::::::::: Did you do your part to help preserve America's freedom??? I.E. Did you enlist in any branch of the military services??? I say enlist, because there is not a draft anymore. If you did, then how is it that your memory is short for what you pledged to uphold. If you did not, then SHAME ON YOU! "Any able bodied young man who will not give up his freedom (as in military service for his country) to defend his freedom does not deserve his freedom." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 1Timothy115 Posted January 25, 2009 Members Share Posted January 25, 2009 To the naysayers I have to say this::::::::: Did you do your part to help preserve America's freedom??? I.E. Did you enlist in any branch of the military services??? I say enlist, because there is not a draft anymore. If you did, then how is it that your memory is short for what you pledged to uphold. If you did not, then SHAME ON YOU! "Any able bodied young man who will not give up his freedom (as in military service for his country) to defend his freedom does not deserve his freedom." I could be emphatic too but, I won't. I retired from the Navy. I have 3 sons in service. 2 in the Air Force and 1 in the Army. We are a military family but, we are fighting for folks we may not entirely agree with in every way especially their ammendment rights...right? I really enjoyed your OP articles and the French have been forgetful of our nation's sacrifice for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JerryNumbers Posted January 25, 2009 Members Share Posted January 25, 2009 Actually, I believe there is only a few who appreciate the American soldiers and the sacrifices that has been made to give them the freedoms of which they enjoy. Prior to the Vietnam War the same could not be said. Most young Americans today say they don't have time to served in the America Military service. On January 24 in the history of this country 115 service members made the ultimate sacrifice so that we could be a free people. Click on the link and you will see a list of 115 names, but remember, this is much more than a list of names, the people gave their life for your freedoms you now enjoy.http://www.vvmf.org/index.cfm?SectionID ... yOnly=true Without many of our Military members making a sacrifice with their life, right now Hitler just might be the dictator of both Europe and America. I promise you if he was, everything about your life would be different and you would actually have many things to complain about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pneu-engine Posted January 25, 2009 Members Share Posted January 25, 2009 Actually, I believe there is only a few who appreciate the American soldiers and the sacrifices that has been made to give them the freedoms of which they enjoy. Prior to the Vietnam War the same could not be said. Most young Americans today say they don't have time to served in the America Military service. On January 24 in the history of this country 115 service members made the ultimate sacrifice so that we could be a free people. Click on the link and you will see a list of 115 names, but remember, this is much more than a list of names, the people gave their life for your freedoms you now enjoy.http://www.vvmf.org/index.cfm?SectionID ... yOnly=true Without many of our Military members making a sacrifice with their life, right now Hitler just might be the dictator of both Europe and America. I promise you if he was, everything about your life would be different and you would actually have many things to complain about. Jerry :thumb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Alimantado Posted January 27, 2009 Members Share Posted January 27, 2009 Alimantado' date=' I don't think those stories are necessarily true. These kinds of stories and jokes are common as many Americans have bad opinions of the French.[/quote'] Thanks Kevin--I understand they are not accounts of real events, but rather stories designed to make a point. That was my argument! The naysayers on this thread? I'm the only one who objected and then only to the stereotyping of the French inherent in the stories. And we are all forgetful of the sacrifices made by people from other countries, including France, who fought and died alongside the allies in both world wars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kevinmiller Posted January 27, 2009 Members Share Posted January 27, 2009 The naysayers on this thread? I'm the only one who objected and then only to the stereotyping of the French inherent in the stories. I'm confused by that, as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.