I realise this is a bit out of your usual area of military interest,
but it will add context to a song (anthem to us down under) that you once described as just another war song.
Yeah an interesting vid is that mate…thanks
I don’t think the Australians get the credit or even the recognition, that they deserve for their contribution to and their part in the Vietnam war, many prople think it was just fought by the US.
Did I ?..if I did mate I didn’t intend to cause any offence …you know what I’m like with my size 11s.
Yeah a good track, …must be kin awful witnessing all sorts of sh in a war, trying to come to terms with it, then having to adapt to civilian life among people who will never understand what you have gone through…I have utmost respect for guys like that.
No offence taken, mate. I understand that music can be regional and topical.
MacArthur was also guilty of downplaying Australia’s role in the Pacific during WW ll. He would direct Australian troops to battles he didn’t expect to win and claim Australian victories as American wins.
Personally, I wouldn’t fart in MacArthur’s mouth if he was gasping for breath.
I aint read up much about McArthur tbh,… what I have read is that he wasn’t even popular with his own troops, …a bit of a meglomaniac in fact.
Much of his actions and character were ‘Trump like’ I have heard.
That’s a pretty fair comment, from what I’ve read and heard from people who were around back then,
His first priority was himself, it didn’t matter who suffered or died as long as he came up smelling of roses.
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Horrible man, at least he got sacked from Korea. He is closely followed by that Max Hastings who pours scorn on all involved in WW2 except the Germans and the Russians.
Typical loud mouthed yanks.
Yeah I see the point there …Yanks taking credit overly.
I’m a patriotic Brit, but I am also a realist.
If the US had not come into the war in Europe, the UK would have been eventually occupied as the rest of Europe…fact.
The Battle of Britain is mentioned in the vid, a year or so before the Americans entered the war, (they may or may not have entered the Europe campaign at all if it had not been for Pearl Harbor.)
Not taking anything away from the brave British, Polish, Canadian, Australian and American pilots of the RAF, …but if Hitler had continued with his superior numbers in the Luftwaffe, and not turned to Barbarossa in Russia, the BoB may well have been a different outcome.
Britain was fighting only for it’s own survival initially, they needed allies, they NEEDED the US in Europe.
That vid is from a US perspective, but bizzarelly so with a hint of anti US agenda, but thankfully (and rightfully so ) gives a lot of credit for the large and valuable contribution Brits gave towards the war in Europe.
If Hollywood crap and US history books in schools want to take full credit for D.Day, and the liberation of Europe, as unfair to us as Brits that is, it is a small price to pay for me and others not walking around in brown shirts today shouting ‘Sieg Heil’.
I obviously was not around at those times, but I still feel a gratitude to the US on behalf of my family who were around and involved at that time.
I aint sure of the relationship or attitudes towards the US in Australia, I’m getting the vibe SDU that you aint keen … but I think us Brits over here owe them a lot, …(which is why I get arsey at these anti US lefty clowns on here.)
Apart from that it was a good vid with food for thought.
Cheers.
The Film Battle of Britain gets this right. While it can be argued that Germany lost the Battle as much as Britain won it, the Germans found that alhough they had mainly been fought by Keith Park’s 11 Group pilots in little more than squadron numbers, they were encountering opposition whether they attacked the South East, the South West or the North East. Leigh Mallory’s 12 Group massed formations came as a considerable shock as they believed that they had virtually annihilated the RAF. Instead they were meeting the RAF in ever larger numbers.
More important however, was that the Luftwaffe’s loss rate of aircraft and pilots was unsustainable: British aircraft production was exceeding that of Germany. Every Luftwaffe aircraft lost meant a pilot or crew loss as well; while RAF losses frequently resulted in the pilot being able to fly again in a replacement aircraft and damaged aircraft being returned to front line service. Britain had achieved the air superiority the Nazis thought was theirs by right.
The reality of trying to cross the channel while opposed by the RAF and the Royal Navy without air superiority was starting to sink in, as was the unfortunate fact that the Germans did not possess the necessary naval forces to carry out an invasion on the scale required.
In fact by the last week in December 1940 the RAF had increased its offensive from just Bomber Command raids, to fighter Rodeo, Circus and Rhubarb sweeps across the channel with the intention of bringing the Luftwaffe up to fight.
As do we, without them we’d be speaking Japanese. But they didn’t save the world singlehandedly. Our Prime Minister, robert Menzies, declared war on Germany in immediate response to Chaimberlain.
What the Yanks finally bought to the fight was brute force. They had provided, at no risk, resources and capacity, since1939, for a profit.
My biggest beef with the Yanks, apart from their distorted ideas of WW II history, is their hijacking of western cultures and USA-centric outlook.
FFS, it’s not mom or zee in this country and we are not geographically in the middle of Europe.
Yeah I get what ya mean, but it’s part of ‘‘their thing’’ to be loud and brash, and boastful …it’s yer stereotype Yank, but they aint ALL like that.
Same as Aussies all aint sterotypical, loud and brash in their different way, not giving a f who they offend.
Same as all Brits aint apologetic meek and well mannered…(look at me for instance.)
Same as Germans aint all arrogant b.stads.
And so on if ya get my drift.
As for their ways and culture spreading over here…, I aint got a problem with that tbh…it s better than the 3rd world stone age culture we over here are contending with at the moment.
If I had the notion (and the money) I would rather be living over there now under their no nonsence no b/s regime, than our pathetic woke sh show we have to put up with now.
Aussies aren’t like that, it’s only me! 
How do you feel about migrants diluting your culture?
I hate it…do you not read the political thread.
I aint got a problem with those who settle and fully integrate and add to our society, but like I said it’s this 3rd world stone age culture arriving over here with all the crap they bring that boils my pi55 big style.
But over here the woke minority unfortunately rule the roost, they see it ‘‘as diversity and multi culturalism’’ and if the majority dare to show disapproval they lable us ‘racist’ as a ‘go to default’…and many people kow tow to it to avoid confrontation…there ya go another sterotype Brit thing.
Does it really matter who eliminates your societal individuality? Picking the Yanks is choosing the least bad.
How will you feel when gridiron teams displace soccer clubs in your own country?
I have no interest in soccer, but will defend your right to follow the sport. Our differences make our relationships interesting, no single tribe should dominate.
During WW II the Yanks bought brute force and industrial abilities, the Poms defiance and brains, the Aussies defiance combined with the attitude that it’s not the size of the dog in the fight but the size of the fight in the dog, along with loyalty to your mates. No doubt other Commonwealth forces bought their strengths too. Each of these characteristics contributed to the ultimate victory. When the Yanks have flooded the rest of the western world with their culture, will we be able to rely on a combination of our differing strengths to stave off an aggressor?
Yeah but I don’t see American cultural influence as ‘‘elimination’’ , mainly because both cultures are similar in most ways and compatible…
In fact many aspects of US culture is actively welcomed over here instead of been forced upon us against our will , or with a view to actively change our culture.
I can watch English football, and I may or may not discover American Football and like it, as with most things American, they can run alongside our own ways.
For instance a McDonalds type US ‘burger joint’ looks in place on the same street as a traditional British Caff in the centre of a British city.
As for an alien 3rd world culture none of the above applies as around 90% of those ways are negative and sometimes even detrimental even hostile towards our own culture and ways.
An Eastern looking mosque with all the cacophony of noise every hour is not compatible with a British street…
Also you could open a British Caff in NY but you sure as hell could not build a church in Kabul…
There lies the difference between 2 cultures and ways living alongside each other and their compatibility.
To reiterate the UK is compatible with US and yeah, Australian ways, because we are similar, not so much with Eastern and/or 3rd world ways.
We’ll just have to agree to disagree on this mate.
As opposed to the events and culture depicted in the film American Graffiti are a much more aspirational view of what’s good about the Anglosphere than zb Wilson’s miserable Commy England.Ironically that Commy zb being why British forces weren’t helping our American and Ozzy cousins to fight off those laughably clandestine Chinese Commy forces in Vietnam.
Bearing in mind the resources which Germany later committed to Barbarossa and its logistics capability in moving forces into North Africa and Sicily.I’m quite prepared to believe my Father’s and Grandfather’s belief that Germany could and would enact Sealion regardless of the outcome of BoB and couldn’t believe that they backed off from it.They could easily have more than taken any of the losses that we could have inflicted after the Dunkirk retreat.The mission to take out the RAF would have been way different to the mission of interdicting Naval and air attacks against an invasion force.Had they chosen to enact Sealion first and without bothering with the seperate air campaign.Bearing in mind that we had no significant RAF ground attack capability at that time.303 armed fighters weren’t capable of penetrating tank roof armour or damaging an invasion fleet.As opposed to cannon armed German aircraft and fighter escorted Stuka dive bombers v Brit naval forces.
Couldn’t believe he didn’t go for it …. luckily.
We can, intelligently and civilly but unfortunately the two previous posts by the allien from the parallel universe will kill the conversation.
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