Omaha Beach D-Day landings from above; Victor Davis Hanson column. (Updated with more info.)



(Above) Some sources list this as Omaha Beach, but this is most certainly Utah Beach. The small dots on the beach are men standing and the longer ones are bodies laying down. Since troops moved quickly off Utah Beach and there was not quite as much debris buildup as on Omaha Beach where the beaches were covered with destroyed vehicles, it is probably Utah Beach. Omaha was covered with wreckage by the third wave.  TD

(Above) Taken a few days after June 6th, this view is over the hedgerows of the Normandy bocage where so many thousands of lives were lost. Look back toward the beaches at the massive amount of ships involved in the landings. The area in the foreground was the graveyard of much of the 29th Infantry Division in the drive toward St. Lo.  TD
 

The National Collection of Aerial Photography  (UK)  Labelled elsewhere as the Vierville draw at Omaha Beach, it is actually the neighboring landing site, the Les Moulins draw, where Gen. Cota went ashore, worked his way to the top of the bluffs, then moved west to the Vierville exit, where the worst slaughter took place. This beach is distinguished by the immense, 18-foot-wide anti-tank ditch inland.  (Gen. Cota was portrayed by Robert Mitchum in the movie, "The Longest Day".)  TD

Robert Capa photo of French fishermen gazing at the aftermath of the Normandy landings.

UK Daily Mail photos

US Army D-Day site

AwesomeStories.com

This photo and many more at Boston.com

Updated Aug 20th: My educated guess about the above photo is this: At the top, just right of center is the bulge in the shoreline known as the Point et Raz de la Percee. About an inch or so to the left of that is the Vierville Draw where the Bedford boys and Co. A, 116 RCT, 29th Division were annihilated. The next draw to the left of that and close to the left margin is the Les Moulins Draw where General Norman Cota (or was it Robert Mitchum?) personally led his men off the beaches. This is either very early on D-Day as there do not seem to be many vehicles and boats jamming the beaches. (Or it is several days after as the line of sunken ships off the beach at Les Moulin would indicate? They were placed there for a breakwater.) More here. And here.  TD

 Link replaced with this from History News Network:    What We Might Remember This Memorial Day  by Victor Davis Hanson

(Link fixed)    "The list of American wars, interventions, and campaigns, past and present, is endless — a source of serial political acrimony here at home over the human and financial cost and wisdom of spending American lives to better others. Sometimes we feel we are not good when we are not perfect, whether trying to stop a Stalinist North Vietnamese takeover of the south, or failing to secure Iraq before 2008. But the common story remains the same: For nearly a century, the American soldier has often been the last, indeed the only, impediment to butchery, enslavement, and autocracy." . . . (National Review article no longer good

Oldie, but a goodie: www.partamian.net

Rich Terrell on D-Day plus posts from MilBlogs Mudville Gazette and Blackfive

TerrellAfterMath.com

D-Day posts  from Mudville Gazette.

Added: Omaha; posted on Blackfive
"Omaha, bloody, Bloody Omaha. Thank God for those that fought and died on you."

Leading the Democrats into Battle: Debbie Wasserman Schultz; Demagogues Ryan plan

Pajamas Media "Born in Queens, New York, Wasserman Schultz, a former legislative aide, was, at one time, the youngest female legislator in Florida history. A prolific fundraiser — she reportedly raised more than $17 million for her congressional colleagues in 2006 — she nonetheless seems an odd choice to lead the national party. She is not terribly well-known, is not considered an expert on the less-than-gentle art of politics, and, as she has shown in recent days, is somewhat gaffe prone." ....

"These are the kind of hypocrisies that voters understand intuitively. The hypocrisies that reflect one set of rules for the people we don’t like and another set of rules for the in clique. They don’t like it and they remember it when they vote.

"Wasserman Schultz has some time yet to “grow into the job.” As long as the White House is happy with what she’s doing, she’s not going anywhere because, at the end of the day, she works for the president — not the party. Meaning he bears some responsibility for what she says and does."

DNC Chair Wasserman Schultz Has No Clue That ‘Undocumented’ Immigrants Being In Our Country Is Currently A Crime  Video.

WashPost Fact Check: Wasserman Schultz 'Scaremongering' on Ryan Plan "U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s claims that the GOP plan to remake Medicare would throw seniors “to the wolves and allow insurance companies to deny you coverage” are bogus, The Washington Post concluded in a fact check of the assertion."

D-Day; Omaha Beach then and now photographs (Updated, 12/3/2011)

Dec, 2011 Update: Normandy, 1944; then and now photos   "Our previous emphases (below) on Omaha Beach gave short shrift to the other landing sites. This should do a bit to fill in some of those gaps with photos. Click on some of the WW2 photos of the site, "Men of D-Day" and you will also see that location as it is today. Don't you love stuff like that?"  TD


Omaha Beach  "Of the invasion beaches, Utah,Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword, the issue was in doubt only on Omaha Beach.  Bad Allied decisions could only do so much harm on other beaches, but they nearly resulted in a disastrous defeat on Omaha Beach.  Many lives were needlessly lost, and the whole invasion was threatened with failure by the difficulties there.  In "Omaha Beach - A Flawed Victory", Adrian Lewis convincingly shows this."

jewishvirtuallibrary.org

1. Omaha Beach - Vierville Draw  D-1 Beach exit. The beach featured in the movie, "Saving Private Ryan". It was also the beach that saw the annihilation of 95% of the men in 'A' Company of the 116th RCT of the 29th Infantry Division, including a score of young men from the tiny town of Bedford, Virginia.

Some raw film of the landings..

2. Les Moulins and St Laurent Draws
3. Colleville Draw

4. Cabourg Draw
The above draws pictured on the map below, including the landing zone designations and the
German resistance nests: 
In depth details here.


Much more on this topic in the Tunnel Wall posts for June 5th and 6th.

Our emphasis has been primarily on the struggle for Omaha Beach. This in no way disregards the valiant efforts of the British and Canadians who took Sword, Juno, and Gold Beaches nor the men of the 4th US Infantry Division and the Paratroopers who took Utah Beach.

Many more conservative posts about American history, politics and culture here at the Tunnel Wall

Higher Education and its state

Victor Davis Hanson: Now That’s a Higher Education Bubble  "The point is not to bash the students or the faculty, but to ask the university to reexamine the way it does business.

"Maybe raising admission standards would improve the quality of student, end the trend toward watered-down classes, and encourage those who do not belong at CSU to invest their time more productively in the work place. As it is now, over 50 percent of incoming freshmen in CSU must take remedial classes to qualify for university courses; why are they there in the first place?"

We can't reverse the spiral unless we strike at the causes of decline.
"The situation is rather dire: the products of our education system administer, teach, vote, and otherwise direct the course the country is to take. The social harm inherent in that process is set to continue at an accelerating pace."....
"There are other concerns, too, lest we forget. While they lie at the root, we bemoan their consequences and say little about causes. Truly better education for all who are capable of benefiting from it provides the only realistic path out of the morass." Dan Miller

UC Santa Barbara Student Government Tries to Derail David Horowitz Event, Lies About It "The University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) student government has unconstitutionally discriminated against the UCSB College Republicans by twice denying funding for a lecture tonight by David Horowitz because of his conservative views."  Foundation for Individual Rights in Education

David Brooks: It’s Not About You  "...many graduates are told to: Follow your passion, chart your own course, march to the beat of your own drummer, follow your dreams and find yourself. This is the litany of expressive individualism, which is still the dominant note in American culture.
"But, of course, this mantra misleads on nearly every front. "

D-Day Monday UPDATED with more links

Watch the Tunnel Wall on Monday for some historical photos of the landings at Normandy on 6 June, 1944. The photos were released in 1949, but I just found them last month.
The aerial photos of the landings and their aftermath that will show you the magnitude of the operation known as Overlord and what great things were accomplished by the industrial might of the allies.  The Tunnel Dweller  
Some D-Day links added below and if you search the words "D-Day" in our search box, you will find more.


http://tunnelwall.blogspot.com/2011/06/omaha-beach-d-day-landings-from-above.html
http://tunnelwall.blogspot.com/2011/05/d-day-and-beyond-airborne-site-one-of.html
http://tunnelwall.blogspot.com/2011/08/25-photos-of-d-day-from-robert-capa.html
http://tunnelwall.blogspot.com/2011/06/d-day-omaha-beach-then-and-now.html

The liberal mindset hits reality again

American Thinker  "There are two constants in dealing with the liberal or socialist mindset: 1) they can never admit a mistake, always blaming it on others; and 2) regardless of the situation, they can ignore historical facts or the tenets of economics and achieve what others have not."

Companion article to the above: Telegraph View: a Budget windfall tax spectacularly backfires. "...this is an object lesson in the way tax rises can prove economically harmful. While South Morecambe is not producing, it is delivering no tax revenues; meanwhile, the shortfall will be filled by imported gas. So the tax take goes down and the cost to the consumer goes up: not a happy combination."

How much empirical evidence does it take for the left to realize their economic policies are ill-informed, envious and bankrupt?

How Not to Choose a Presidential Candidate

Adam Graham  "Pundits and politicians make false assumptions like: a conservative can’t win the election. Also, “bird in the bush” theories propose that if the party jettisons social conservatives, then a large pool of voters would embrace the Republican Party. No proof is ever offered that this large pool of voters exists anywhere but in the minds of pundits. In the case of the abortion issue, the actual evidence suggests Republicans enjoy a large advantage because of their position on the issue.
"Voters are far more concerned about the condition of the country than the factors “electability” experts trumpet. Republicans should nominate a candidate who will put their best foot forward in representing the party. Unsubstantiated electability claims should be dismissed."
....
On identity politics, the author has this: Those who advocate a Cain candidacy on racial grounds are right that the GOP needs to increase its share of the black vote. However, they’re trying to take a shortcut. The Democrats dominate the black vote because they’ve politically organized in the black community. "Republicans must do the same. It will take time, money, and effort to reach out. There is no easy way to victory.

"Similarly, nominating a female candidate will not give the GOP any edge among women. To the contrary, women rate Sarah Palin more unfavorably than men.
"The GOP should nominate the best candidate regardless of race or gender. Basing nominations on identity politics thinking it will gain brownie points has been proven to be baseless." (Emphasis added)
Adam Graham is a contributor at Race42012.com and host of the Truth and Hope Report podcast. His personal site is Adam's Blog. He is author of novel, "Tales of the Dim Knight," from Splashdown Books

politicalhumor.about.com

Also by Mr. Graham:  How to Create Your Own Political Scorecard  He says if it worked for his state's elections, it can work for us. 

Best and brightest in the world call for redistribution of wealth

Iran calls for equal wealth distribution  "The president said that the wealth amassed in the US and European countries is “not the fruit of their hard work,” IRNA reported.

"“All of this wealth is the result of imposing poverty upon other countries,” Ahmadinejad said, adding that “the American and European people are too held captive by the cruelty and injustice of their corrupt leaders.” "

[Then-senator] Obama Calls for Redistribution of Our Wealth  "In this segment from NPR radio Obama is debating the best means to Re-Distribute the wealth of America – he prefers legistlative; but only because the courts would not have a way to administer it. So, when you vote for president, and when you vote for your Congresscritters, please take this into account – are you electing a Socialist whose idea of change is to destroy the engine of American productivity?"

Joe Biden on Taxes: You Call It "Redistribution of Wealth," I Call It "Just Being Fair" "It's a simple proposition to us: Everyone is entitled to adequate medical health care," Biden says. "If you call that a 'redistribution of income' -- well, so be it. I don't call it that. I call it just being fair -- giving the middle class taxpayers an even break that the wealthy have been getting."

Communist Party calls for it in the extreme   "I like to say that when workers enter the corporate board rooms to take over and the ruling class says: O.K. you're right, we made a mess of things and now you should run it all. Well then there won't be any trouble. But if the ruling class says: Forget it! And call out the army and the police and the national guard, then that is how revolutions become violent. It starts with the ruling class. Workers and their allies have to defend themselves and to fight for what is rightfully theirs."      Gus Hall,  former Communist Party head.

Gallup: Today’s Democrats Twice as Likely as Depression-Era Americans to Favor Redistributing Wealth "Although public support for taxing the rich to redistribute wealth is higher today than it was in 1939, it is a bit lower than it was at the beginning of the Obama presidency."
Please refer to the quote by Abraham Lincoln under the header at the top of the blog page.

Pres. Obama: With Assad Finished, Don’t Dare Pull a Jimmy Carter on Syria

Farid Ghadry "The Obama administration cannot get this wrong. Syrian liberals and seculars must lead the fight for the soul and future of Syria, not the Muslim Brotherhood or the weak Damascus Declaration. A new younger leadership is rising inside Syria, and once that youth sees through the fog, it will take charge of its own destiny.
"If the Muslim Brotherhood, working so diligently to exclude Syrians, is successful in managing to deceive the U.S. and the EU, I can guarantee millions of Syrians will look to emigrate to Europe and the U.S. in fear of detention, violence, murder, even women being stoned — all the horrors of present-day Iran."

Barack Obama's decision to play golf on Memorial Day was disrespectful and hardly presidential

Nile Gardiner, UK Telegraph. "The least the president can do on Memorial Day is spend the whole day with veterans and servicemen’s families while acknowledging their sacrifice.

" ...President George W. Bush stopped playing golf out of respect for the families of Iraq War dead. This demonstrated not only good judgment but humility and respect for the men and women who keep America safe.

" ...US military personnel and veterans give Barack Obama lower marks for his job performance than members of the general public. The president’s actions smack of poor taste, as well a lack of empathy and support for the US military, hardly the kind of leadership the White House should be projecting at a time of war."

Charles Krauthammer: Our salutary debt-ceiling scare

Washington Post  "Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner warns that failure to raise the limit would be disastrous. In that he is correct. But he is disingenuous when he suggests that we must raise the ceiling by Aug. 2 or the sky falls."
"There is no drop-dead date. There is no overnight default. Debt service amounts to about 6 percent of the federal budget and only about 10 percent of federal revenue. This means that for every $1 of interest payments, there is roughly $9 of revenue the government spends elsewhere."

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/chuckasay