PzLdr History Facts

[jafo2010]

Perhaps the greatest decision made by a president in our history.  My view, if it meant saving one Allied life, it was worth it.  The projections for an invasion of Japan was 1 million Allied casualties.  1 MILLION DEAD OR WOUNDED!

And the liberal revisionists would have you believe it was not necessary.  Fact is, Japan successfully tested a nuclear weapon in Korea.  And Japan had been testing biological weapons in China and planned an eight engine bomber that would have a range that would reach halfway across the continental USA.  Had Japan had just six more months, the whole outcome of the war could have been altered.

There are people today, per a History Channel program, still dying in China as a result of the bio weapons unleashed by Japan upon China. 

Finally, the USA is completely on the wrong side of the dispute between Japan and China, which still exists today.  Japan murdered 40 million Chinese during World War II.  China suffered more in terms of loss of citizens than any other country.  I have no love for Japan.  NONE!

My father fought in the Pacific during WWII, and he went to his death without ever uttering a single word to me regarding the war.  He refused to talk about it.  He was at Saipan, which was horrendously bloody for our troops, Okinawa, Leyte Gulf and Luzon, as well as two other landings.  He drove a landing craft, and I know he saw hundreds, if not thousands of USA dead as he drove his craft to the beaches.

Japan has NEVER answered for what they did to China.  That day will come one day in the future.  And in my humble opinion, it would be criminal for American politicians to send Americans to their death defending Japan.  What is truly sad is that 98% or higher in America are clueless about history from any period, let alone WWII era.  The young today are lucky they can find their posterior to wipe when needed.  Uggh.  America could not be dumber if it tried.  Sad!

[PzLdr]

He had beaten them in a previous war lasting some five years. So when the Visigoths rose in revolt against the Eastern Roman Empire, the Emperor Valens thought he could do it again. So sure was he of success that he moved out without waiting for troops from the Western empire to reinforce him. his confidence was his undoing.

Valens found the Visigoths near Adrianople, and he found them divided, since many of their warriors, especially cavalry, were missing. without bothering to ascertain where the missing troops were, Valens decided to attack what was in front of him, expecting to inflict a massive defeat on them before the rest of their army appeared.

The Visigoths had first appeared in the eastern empire as a result of the pressure from the Ostrogoths, who were fleeing westward under pressure from the Huns. Allowed to cross the Danube, the Visigoths became "Foederati", allies who sent men to serve in the roman Army. But as more and more Visigoths crossed the border, Roman alarm, and antipathy rose, the Visigoths found themselves abused,exploited and starved. Hence the first war, and then the revolt that brought Valens to Adrianople.

At first it seemed Valens had made the correct decision. His legions pushed the Visigoths in front of them back. Victory appeared imminent. But victory proved ephemeral, because at that moment the Visigothic cavalry returned to what was now a battlefield, and hit the Romans from the rear. Retreat turned to rout, discipline to panic. Some two-thirds of the Roman force, including Valens, were killed.

Adrianople resulted in the Eastern Empire being thrown into chaos. The Visigoths sacked and plundered the Balkans while Valens' successor sought to stop them. But the most important result of Adrianople was far more lasting. Adrianople established the supremacy of the cavalry over the infantry until the Hundred Years War, over 1,000 years in the future. And it took the longbow men of Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt to change that.

[PzLdr]

It had already started by July. But in a sense, it was a false start. The Luftwaffe had begun operations, largely successful, to sweep British shipping from the English Channel. And those operations allowed the German Me 109s to provide fighter cover for the bombers [He 111s, Do 17s and Ju 87s] that pounded the British ships they found in  the Channel. By August, Channel shipping was largely shut down.

Then on august 13th, 1940, Hermann Goering arrived at the Pas de Calais to observe the first round of 'Eagle Day', the opening of the air offensive against the British mainland, with the objectives of attaining air superiority, if not supremacy, over England's south coast [the proposed invasion area for 'Sea Lion'], reducing the Royal Air force to insignificance, and helping to force a surrender on the British government.

The opening day saw massive waves of German aircraft attacking England from several directions: Kesselring and Sperrle from France and Belgium, and Stumpf from Norway [Luftflotte V], with some successes and some failures, particularly Stumpf. Airflotte V's bomber force was composed, almost exclusively of Ju 87 Stukas. They proved easy pickings for the British Hawker Hurricanes and Supermarine Spitfires, being excruciatingly slow and underarmed defensively. Airflotte V was soon withdrawn form the attack, having suffered heavy losses. and the Luftwaffe High Command [and the world] learned that Germany's primary attack aircraft was only viable if air supremacy, air superiority with fighter cover, or heavy fighter cover was involved.

Elsewhere, however, the Germans fared better, scoring some major successes against British airfields in the  south. But the Germans failed to take notice of the significance of the British Radar stations strung along the southern coast. the attacks left them largely alone. and the attack pattern failed to follow a cohesive plan, jumping from one target to another, allowuing the British to repair bomb damage between visits.

The Germans also failed to appreciate the combination of British Radar and the command and control system the British had. Radar allowed the RAF to keep its fighters based further north, to keep its pilots on standby on the ground, only to be sent airborne, and vectored into attacking German formations, when  the radar told them where the Germans were, and were going.

The Battle of Britain also showed the weaknesses in the Luftwaffe's equipment [other than the Ju 87]. German bombers were all two engine machines. While very well suited for close support of the German Army, the Luftwaffe had no heavy bombers [they never would]. That dream had died with the death, in an air crash, of Walter Wever, the first Chief of Staff of the Luftwaffe. So Luftwaffe bombers had limited range, limited bomb loads, and very limited defensive armament. They were so suited for tactical as opposed to strategic bombing that the Luftwaffe rejected the U.S. Norden bomb sight, stolen by a German agent shortly before the war, because their bombers didn't bomb from high altitude. And all models, which first entered service in the mid-30s, relied on speed for defense. Unfortunately for their crews, by 1940, Allied fighter planes were now much faster than the bombers.

And the fighter situation wasn't much better. The principal fighter, the Me 109 was not as maneuverable as the Spitfire [it could hold its own with the Hawker Hurricane], although it could climb and dive way above the Spitfire's ability [fuel injected engines]. It's principal weakness was fuel capacity. Me 109s had a fairly limited flight time. and while this was not noticeable during the channel oprations, and not appreciably noticeable during the opening of the offensive, it was when hitler ordered a shift to bombing London and other population centers. An Me 109 could only stay over London for a short period of time. And when they withdrew, the British fighters, just to their north were free to fall on, and slaughter the German bombers.

And then there was the Me 110, the Zerstorer ['Destroyer'], a two engined 'heavy' fighter [possibly the brainchild of Goering himself] that was supposed to fly close support for the bombers. Unwieldy and slow, the Me 110 was incapable of coping with the Hurricanes and Spitfires. It was so poorly equipped for its mission that when attacked, the Me 110s would fly in a circular formation ["circle up the wagons"] to protect each other. On at least one occasion, Me 109s provided fighter cover for the Me 110s [they would, however make formidable night fighters latter in the war]. they were soon withdrawn from the battle.

Their withdrawal led Goering to order his Me 109s to fly close escort for the bombers, negativing their advantages over the RAF, and leading to increased losses for the Germans, which since they were flying over an enemy island , meant that every pilot parachuting from his plane was a loss, whether he died or not, since the Germans couldn't recover him.

And those aircraft losses, coupled with their losses in France, highlighted yet another area of vulnerability for the Germans, their inability to replace their aircraft losses at a rate commensurate with their losses over Britain.

In late August, a He 111 , attempting to bomb docking facilities in the Thames, missed, and bombed a populated area [contrary to Hitler's and Goering's orders [the pilot was court-martialed. But it served as a basis for Churchill to order the bombing of German cities, and Hitler took the bait. The Luftwaffe was loosed on London, and population centers. what attention had been paid to airfields and radar facilities disappeared [the cancellation of 'Sea Lion' may have had a contributing effect]. and the increasing German losses led to a changeover to night bombing. By Spring the bombing had largely ceased, since the bulk of the Luftwaffe had moved east - for Barbarossa. Whatever the goals and hopes of Eagle Day were done. Britain still stood. Her air force had blunted, then turned back the Germans. the air offensive over Britain had failed. All the Germans accomplished was to sow the wind. they would soon reap the whirlwind.

 

[PzLdr]

He came briefly in 1950. By the end of 1951 he was playing right field next to the man he would succeed in Center, Joe DiMaggio. His name was Mickey [for Mickey Cochrane, his father's favorite player] Charles Mantle. In his early days in the minors, he was called "The Commerce Comet". But for those of us who grew up with him, watched him, and worshipped him, he was "Mickey", or "The Mick".

Mickey Mantle was injured in the 1951 World Series. the Yankee manager, Casey Stengel told Mantle to go for anything in right, or right center, because DiMaggio was slowing down, and had an injured heel. what he failed to tell Mantle was that DiMaggio would not call for a ball until he was absolutely sure he could get it. The result? Mantle had to pull up short at top speed going for a fly when DiMaggio called him off. Mickey's cleats got stuck in a drainage grate and he tore up his knee. And DiMaggio's first words of the year to the kid were "Don't move. they're bringing a stretcher for you".

Although the injury took away his blazing speed [No one has ever beaten Mantle's time from the plate to first base lefty], Mick went on to a storied career. Triple Crown winner. MVP three times. 7 time World Series winner, and just a shade under a .300 career hitter [Mantle later said if he'd realized his last season would have dropped him below .300, he would have retired earlier than he did].

But there was a dark side to the Mick. His father  and Uncle died young. He believed he would too. As a result, he drank to excess [he became an alcoholic], caroused, cheated on his wife, and was an absent father.

And then, as it does with all ball players, the end of his career came. He retired in 1968. And from there, he earned his living at memorabilia events, and as a greeter [with willie Mays] in Atlantic City [for which he was suspended from baseball for a time].

But his welcome at Old timers' Day at the Stadium was always riotous [DiMaggio had it put in his contract that he always came out last. It did him little good. mickey had supplanted him with the fans]. And he had two Mickey Mantle Days.

But the hard life he lived caught up with him. His liver was failing, and after a transplant, he developed liver cancer that metasticized.

Mickey Mantle used his remaining time to do two things, lobby for organ transplants and donations, and to tell the young, and his fans, not to emulate him, or use him as a roll model.

Mickey Mantle died on August 13th, 1995. But in his last days, he lived out the last innings as he played, a hero.

I grew up with Mickey Mantle. He came up for good when I was in first grade. He retired the year I graduated college. In my [aging] eyes, we will not likely see his like again. Miss you, Mick...
 ,

[jafo2010]

When I was six years of age, I was visiting relatives in Washington DC.  We went to see the Washington Senators play the New York Yankees while there, and I saw Mickey Mantle and Roger Marris hit back to back home runs.  It was an exciting game.

Mr. Baseball for me was Roberto Clemente.  Saw him throw on the fly to the catcher while standing at the wall in right field, and the catcher would tag the base runner out virtually every time.  I have never seen anyone play like him in my life.  For me, he was the best.  I have many fond memories going to the Pirate games with my father as a boy.

[PzLdr]

1948: George Herman 'Babe Ruth dies of throat cancer-

Babe Ruth, the greatest baseball player in history, dies after a lengthy battle with throat cancer at the age of 53. Ruth , who started his career as a pitcher with the Boston Red Sox, gained his greatest fame as the slugging right fielder for the New York Yankees. He finished his career with the Boston Braves.

Ruth's records were legion. At one point he led all baseball in most homers for a season, most career homers and slugging percentage. But he had also held the record for the most shutout innings in World Series games, until eclipsed by Whitey Ford. He stole home ten times in his career. He won, or saved some five games for the Yankees as a pitcher

Famed for his work with children, Ruth's body laid in state in Yankee Stadium for two days after his death, and was viewed by thousands. He used no performance enhancing substances except beer and hot dogs. He is STILL the face of the game!



1977: Elvis Presley dies-

Elvis Presley, dies of a heart attack, most likely brought on by his drug addiction. Presley, the "King of rock 'n Roll" was a major force in bringing Rock to a height of popularity in the '50s. But a string of mostly forgettable movies, coupled with the inept management of Col. Parker, and a stint in the Army, slowed his career down in the '60s [The British Invasion didn't help]. A TV special in the 70s resurrected his concert career [his record career was spotty], and he toured until his death. He was 42.

[PzLdr]

It was briefly portrayed in a scene in the Mel Gibson movie, "The Patriot". It was the result of George Washington being overruled in his choice of general to lead the Southern Armies by the political cabals in congress. And it led to a disasterous defeat for the southern Continentals.

After campaigning mostly in the northern and middle colonies during 1776-1779, the British decided on a southern strategy [Their only foray there early in the war had been a failure]. the British commander, Sir Henry Clinton, reasoned that at least half of the southern colonists were loyalists, and that they could be rallied to the Royal cause. He also planned to raise Loyalist units, and, more controversially, free, and arm, runaway slaves who would fight for the Crown.

At first, Clinton's strategy was a smashing success. The British, reinforced from Florida, took Savannah, and moved on to several other Patriot enclaves. Most of the uniformed Continentals were killed, captured or fled. Guerilla warfare increasingly became the norm. and largely as a war among neighbors, it became increasingly vicious.

Congress needed to appoint a commander for those Patriot troops left in the south. and there was the problem. Washington wanted to send Gen. Nathaniel Greene. But certain factions in Congress opposed Washington, led on by a cabal of officers who thought there were others better suited for the job. their choice was Horatio Gates, victor and 'hero' of Saratoga.

Gates, a former British Army officer [long before the war], thought, in fact, he, not Washington, should have commanded the continental Army [as did Charles Lee and a host of others]. But he took up his command with alacrity, and joined his Army in south Carolina. He then force marched his troops, who were ill-equipped, ill-clothed and ill-fed through the hot humid South Carolina weather to contact with the British Army commanded by Lord Charles Cornwallis. And despite the fact that almost a third of his army was hors de combat due to dysentery, malnutrition and heat related illness, Gates attacked.

The result was a foregone conclusion. The local militia broke when the British launched a bayonet charge. Only the heroic defense [and death] of MG Johann De Kalb [a volunteer from Germany], allowed any of the Americans to escape. With niggling losses on his own side, Cornwallis killed, or captured almost half of Gates' force.

But not Gates. He fled the battlefield ahead of his fleeing troops, and did not stop until three days had elapsed, and he was in north Carolina, from where he notified the congress of his failure.

Gates never held a command again. His failure  was cause enough, but his flight  silenced his supporters. He was replaced by Nathaniel Greene, Washington's original choice for the post.

And Clinton's strategy? Camden was the high point. Greene, the former quartermaster of the Continental Army re-supplied, reinforced, and re-purposed his army. Additionally, the guerilla warfare behind Cornwallis' lines got worse. to the point where many Southern loyalists gave up the battle. And then there were the defeats. First King's Mountain. Then Cowpens. Then Guilford courthouse, where Cornwallis held the field [by firing artillery into his own troops], but lost over 25% of his army [and he had already burned his supply train]. Greene saw Cornwallis off to Virginia and eventual surrender to Washington.

[PzLdr]

The Indians we call Sioux [from a Chippewa or Ojibway word meaning 'snake'] originated in the woodlands of Minnesota. The three main tribal subdivisions were known as Dakota [those in Minnesota], Nakota [to their west], and Lakota [the Plains Sioux], and by 1862, the Dakota were having a tough time.

Living on a reservation that was a sliver of their former lands, the Dakota [or Santee Sioux]tried to make it in the White Man's world. They took up farming. Many, including their chief, Little Crow, attended church services. But the problems they were facing in 1862 were immense.

Their crops had failed, and people were starving. Their Indian agent was neither particularly honest, nor sympathetic [When told of their plight, he supposedly said, "let 'em eat grass"]. In short, it was a powder keg waiting to explode. And it did, on this date in 1862.

The immediate cause was several young warriors stealing eggs. Caught by the farmer, an argument ensued. That escalated to violence, and by the time the Indians rode away, five whites were dead. And when the tribal council heard of the act, fearful of the repercussions, and weary of their treatment by the whites, they decided war was their only recourse. Little Crow, initially opposed to war, wound up leading the Indians in their raids.

They started on their own reservation. The Indian agent, his mouth stuffed with grass, was later found dead in front of his office. the Indians then struck up and down the Minnesota River [where their reservation was], killing hundreds of white settlers. But because they burned the reservation buildings, settlers were aware that something was wrong, and fled ahead of the Indians.

The Sioux eventually attacked the settlement of New Ulm, but the settlers, having had warning, had fortified, as best they could, their town. and while the Indians breached the perimeter, and torched much of New Ulm, they neither took it, burned it all, nor drove the whites out.

The Indians had some success with the Army [and militia], laying siege for several days to Fort Ridgely, and ambushing some patrols sent out from the fort. At the same time, their raids encompassed more of the state, driving further and further north.

The Santee soon stopped mail traffic, destroyed stagecoach posts, and attacked, unsuccessfully, a Hudson's Bay fort [Abercrombie]. They also fought and defeated a military column looking for survivors, and bodies to bury. But that was their last success.

Abraham Lincoln sent MG John Pope [loser at Second Manassas] to put down the uprising. Rallying several Minnesota volunteer regiments, he went in search of the Indians. He found, and crushed them, at Wood Lake, in September. Most of the Indians surrendered. Some fled to the Plains [Inkapuda comes to mind], embroiling the Army in the opening moves of war with the Lakota that lasted a decade plus, some to Canada. Little Crow disappeared.

The Minnesotans howled for blood [how times have changed], and 300 Indians were sentenced to death after trial. but Lincoln commuted all but 38 of the death sentences. Yet the hanging of the 38 was the largest single execution in U.S. history. As for the rest, the Santee Sioux were banished from Minnesota, first to one place, then another [except for one band that had remained neutral or helped white settlers]. And Little Crow? He was killed almost a year later by a farmer, while he and his son were picking berries. His skull and scalp were not returned by the state to his descendants until 1971.

Little Crow's War [along with Cochise's war in Arizona], was the first taste of what would be decades of hostilities between the United States and various Indian tribes. Its ferocity, coming as it did from supposedly pacified Indians, shocked at surprised the Americans. Nobody knows exactly how many settlers and soldiers died, but it was in the hundreds. And it could have been avoided.

[PzLdr]

It was called Operation 'Husky'. It was the latest success by Winston Churchill in getting FDR to overrule his generals' desire to land in France and open the second front. It was the only invasion of WW II that relied in part on the cooperation of an American gangster and the Sicilian Mafia. It was the invasion of Sicily. And it brought into the open a simmering dislike of field level American generals with the hero of Britain, GEN Bernard Law Montgomery.

Churchill had previously obtained FDR's agreement to an invasion of North Africa, with U.S., French and Commonwealth troops landing in Morocco and Algeria and driving east to trap Rommel's Panzerarmee Afrika, which was retreating from Montgomery's 8th Army after El alamein. But German reinforcements to Tunisia, coupled with Rommel's [largely untouched] retreat and juncture with the new troops [5th Panzer Army], prevented the quick victory anticipated, and a string of German victories, culminating in Kasserine Pass made the cost of 'Torch' higher than it might have been. Yet by Spring of 1943, the Allies bagged more Axis prisoners in Tunisia than the Russians took at Stalingrad.

The question was what next. George Marshall and the U.S. generals wanted to invade France. but Churchill, enamored of the 'soft belly of Europe', argued that with all the Allied troops in north Africa, Sicily was a good target. FDR bought it, and Husky was planned. And that began the Patton-Montgomery rivalry.

In 1943, Patton was the senior field commander in the theater. Bradley worked for HIM. But Patton would share the 'honors' in Sicily [he commanded Seventh Army] with Monty and the 8th. And Monty, who didn't like the original invasion plan, rewrote it, giving 8th Army the major role [and best beaches and shortest route to Sicily's capitol, Messina], and leaving Patton as a flank guard on his left. Needless to say, George wasn't happy.

He was even less happy when Montgomery demanded [and got] from Eisenhower, what was to be Patton's major supply road up the island. both Patton and Bradley were livid, especially since 8th Army's progress was, to put it charitably, measured. Not only were the Brits engaged with some of the better German units, they were fighting their way northward around Mt. Aetna. And the Americans, shuttled further left, had a bad supply problem [roads], and were being ravaged by malaria.

So Patton, being Patton, cut loose, and drove northwest to capture Palermo. He then swung east and headed along Sicily's north coast toward Messina. And capturing Messina ahead of Monty became an obsession to Patton, an obsession that led him to undertake operations [amphibious landings, etc.], that cost his troops dead and wounded that might not have been necessary [In Patton's defense, the lack of pressure from 8th Army, and Patton's slowed progress allowed the Germans to evacuate almost their entire force, AND their equipment to mainland Italy.

But on 17 AUG 1943, when advance units of 8th Army reached Messina, an honor guard from Seventh Army was there to greet them. Patton had beaten Montgomery to the city by a few hours.

The results of all this were not clear at the time, but the ramifications were long lasting. A mutual dislike between Patton and Montgomery was evident. One between Monty and Bradley was not. Montgomery again promised much, but delivered little, being slow to attain HIS objective, Messina, and allowing major German armored formations to escape. And there was trhe false reporting tio higher HQ that became a hallmark of Monty in France and Belgium in 1944. Patton began to display the singleminded ruthlessness that when uncoupled from sound strategic or tactical reasons [think Himmelburg] darkened his record [As some of troops would declaim "Our blood. Our guts"].

Patton was removed from command over the slapping incident [the Germans couldn't believe it]. He was left on the shelf until Normandy, when he commanded Third Army - UNDER Bradley. He proved to be the greatest Allied field commander in Europe.

And Churchill won one last round when he persuaded FDR to invade Italy. That campaign lasted two years. 

[PzLdr]

He had decided the insult could not go unanswered. When he had ridden west in 1220 to make war on the Khwaresm Empire, Genghis Khan [Chinggis Quan] had called on his vassals and allies to furnish troops for the campaign. The Uighers and Oriyats complied. The Tangut state of Xia Xia, also known as Kara Khitai did not. To add insult to injury, the rejection of the Khan's  request was couched in highly insulting terms. with bigger fish to fry, Genghis Khan rode west. But he did not forget.

And with Khwaresm broken and destroyed, the Khan had time to ruminate over Xia Xia's refusal. So, in 1226, he gathered his army yet again, and turned his sights on Xia Xia. The results were almost foreordained. The Mongol tumans rode roughshod over the enemy army, and Xia xia, being a more sedentary society, retreated into its cities once the army was routed in the field.

But all was not well with the Mongols. Genghis Khan had fallen from a horse during a great hunt before the campaign had started. He most probably had suffered internal injuries that festered. And in 1227, in his royal Ger in his field camp, he was dying. And he knew it. He was in his mid to later sixties, an old age for a Mongol who had lived the hard life he had. But he had already set up the succession, with the Supreme Khanship going to his third son Uggedai, and he had already put the final plans for Xia Xia into motion.

The ruler of Xia Xia was in the Mongol camp, seeking an audience [most probably to surrender]. Genghis ordered a subterfuge, keeping him away from the royal Ger until Genghis had died, while not telling him of the Khan's illness. And Temujin, Genghis Khan issued three final orders. First, upon his own death, the royal family of Xia xia was to be killed. Second, Xia Xia was to be turned to ash. No surrender, no terms. It was to disappear. Third, Genghis Khan ordered that his body be returned to his homeland for secret burial.

The Khan's wishes were carried out. As to the first, the Xia xia royal family never left the camp. As to the second, Genghis' three remaining sons [Chagatai, Uggedai, Tolui] and the redoubtable Subedei, swept Xia Xia from the map in a storm of arrows and fire.

And as to the third, Genghis' body was taken north by an honor guard of Mongol cavalry. They slew every passerby who saw the procession. According to the "Secret History", Genghis was buried in the Mongol heartland, with horses, grave goods and slaves to see him into the next life. Supposedly he was buried in a crevasse, a Mongol clan was exempted from military duty to guard the site, and a forest was planted to hide the location.

But is that what happened? The location of Genghis' burial site has never been found, nor has it been revealed by the Mongols. According to the latest theories, Genghis Khan's body may never have reached the Kurelen and Ordos river, let alone Burkhan Kaldun. The reasoning goes that the Khan, having died in August, well south of the Gobi Desert, would have been in a state of extreme decomposition very rapidly, and would not have survived into Mongolia. The discovery of a grave in the Ordos Loop in china may support the theory. Carbon dating shows the male skeleton and grave goods dates from the thirteenth century. and the man,, past middle age [for the time] is surrounded by dead horse.

But no firm conclusion has been reached, and the search for the great Khan's grave continues to fascinate and form the background to a cottage industry of amateur and professional archaeologists.

What is known, is that at this point Genghis' Khan's grave and remains have not been conclusively found. And that he died on this date in 1227.

[apples]

Mr baseball to me was the late Tony Gwynn. He played with the Padres his whole career. Still get sad thinking he is gone. Loved his laugh. He used to do Padre broadcasts on Channel 4 Padres. Used to watch all the time when I lived in San Diego.

I have other players that I really liked, but was able to go to home games and see him play for many years.

[apples]

1948: George Herman 'Babe Ruth dies of throat cancer-

Babe Ruth, the greatest baseball player in history, dies after a lengthy battle with throat cancer at the age of 53. Ruth , who started his career as a pitcher with the Boston Red Sox, gained his greatest fame as the slugging right fielder for the New York Yankees. He finished his career with the Boston Braves.

Ruth's records were legion. At one point he led all baseball in most homers for a season, most career homers and slugging percentage. But he had also held the record for the most shutout innings in World Series games, until eclipsed by Whitey Ford. He stole home ten times in his career. He won, or saved some five games for the Yankees as a pitcher

Famed for his work with children, Ruth's body laid in state in Yankee Stadium for two days after his death, and was viewed by thousands. He used no performance enhancing substances except beer and hot dogs. He is STILL the face of the game!



1977: Elvis Presley dies-

Elvis Presley, dies of a heart attack, most likely brought on by his drug addiction. Presley, the "King of rock 'n Roll" was a major force in bringing Rock to a height of popularity in the '50s. But a string of mostly forgettable movies, coupled with the inept management of Col. Parker, and a stint in the Army, slowed his career down in the '60s [The British Invasion didn't help]. A TV special in the 70s resurrected his concert career [his record career was spotty], and he toured until his death. He was 42.

I remember that day Evils died. I just didn't understand all the hype. Now as I age I see why. Love his songs now. He was another entertainer that served this country. Now most of them want it destroyed. How times have changed...

[PzLdr]

For Apples:

At the close of the Civil War, the United states Army, largely composed of volunteer regiments was largely demobilized, in part because the Volunteers did not want to stay in service [see George Armstrong Custer's problems with his cavalry Division in Texas]. And so the Army was restructured.

One of the issues facing the leadership of the Army was black troops. Blacks had served with distinction in the Civil War. Although largely limited to menial duties, they had fought well when given the chance. For many ex-slaves, the military offered a respectable career. For the Army, they offered motivated, disciplined troops. And for the Republican Congress, which had many abolitionists, denying Blacks a chance to serve was anathema.

And so when the Army was re-formed, there were two Black infantry regiments [24th and 25th], and two black cavalry regiments [9th and 10th] on the TO&E, staffed with white officers. Of the Black regiments, the two that gained the most fame were the 9th and 10th Cavalry, the latter commanded by Col. Benjamin Grierson of Newton Station fame [Grierson was a committed supporter of both abolition and blacks in the military]. Grierson volunteered for the assignment. Other officers, notably Custer turned down command of black troops, even though it meant his rank post war was reduced to Lieutenant Colonel, instead of Colonel, and his assignment was as Executive Officer of a Cavalry regiment, instead of its commander.

The black troops were, as before, largely given menial jobs, at least the infantry was. They spent long periods of time road building, putting up installations, etc. But when allowed to soldier, they proved up to the task. That truth was more so for the Cavalry. The sobriquet "Buffalo Soldiers was allegedly bestowed upon them by the Indians. I have seen the tribe responsible named as Comanche, Kiowa, Cheyenne or others. But regardless of where the name came from, it stuck.

Perhaps the most memorable contribution made by Buffalo Soldiers during the Indian Wars was the 10th's contribution to defeating Victorio and his Chihenne Apaches. Victorio was probably the ablest tactician in all Apacheria. And when he finally went to war, he ran circles around the U.S. Army.

Victorio played the border between the U.S. and Mexico like a violin. He fought from ambush. And when he did, he always had a back way out. and when he wasn't ambushing he was raiding. and when he wasn't raiding, he nipped over the border for more of the same in Mexico.

It was Grierson who realized one of the keys to defeating Victorio was to deny him water, and since Grierson's bailiwick was western Texas, water was finite, both in availability and location.

Twice Grierson did battle with the Apache over water. the first time he got a draw [but denied the Indians the water]. The second time, he drove them off with heavy losses. Victorio was forced back over the border into Mexico, where he was killed in battle by the Mexicans at Tres Castillos.

By now, assignment to a black regiment of a white officer was not seen as a negative. The troops were disciplined, professional and motivated. The problems, often endemic in white regiments, such as desertion were almost non-existent. One officer who joined and stayed with Black cavalry was John Pershing. He spent such a long time with them, he was called "Black Jack" by fellow white officers. And it was not meant as a compliment.

Pershing and the Buffalo soldiers fought in the Spanish-American war, and subsequently, the Philippine Insurrection. They were at San Juan Hill, where they performed exceptionally well, as well as Pershing's Mexican Expedition. They served in WW I, but were restricted to rear duties or service with the French Army.

The Buffalo Soldiers fought in both WW II and Korea, but the units had different designations, and with President Truman's desegregation of the Army, the units existed for a while but lost their racial composition.

A monument to the Buffalo soldiers can be found at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, the former training center back in the day for horse cavalry.

[jafo2010]

So do we tear down the monument to the Buffalo Soldiers because it is reminiscent of segregation in the Army?  I hope not!  This anarchy either ends soon, or America could well be destroyed as the country we once know. 

Remembering every facet of history is essential to moving forward as a nation.  To destroy our statues will set this country back and cause permanent damage to freedom in this country.

If there is one statue that should come down, it is the one of Lenin in Seattle.  This statue ended in America because it was removed from where it was installed initially.  Lenin was a monster who murdered over 10 million of his own people.  There should be no place for this monster, even on private land.

[PzLdr]

If someone asked what the U.S. military's greatest defeat at the hands of American Indians, many would say Custer's Last Stand. They would be wrong.

In the post Revolutionary War era, all eyes were on the Ohio frontier, which included Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana, as well as Kentucky. the area was home to a variety of Indian tribes and bands, the Pottowamani, the Sac, Fox, Delaware, Mingo [transplanted Iroquois sent to oversee thepeoples considered by the Iroquois to be vassals, the Miami, and above all, the Shawnee.

The Shawnee had been original occupants of the territory long before the Revolution. Defeated in war by the Iroquois, they had disappeared into the west and southwest. but they had returned to live in the Ohio territory, to live as "nephews" of the Iroquois.

One of the provisions of the Jay Treaty was that the British were to withdraw their forts from the old northwest territory [such as Ft. Detroit] and cease trying influence the Indians. The British did neither. Additionally, Iroquois efforts to regain their own influence over the Ohio Indians faltered badly, since the Iroquois, most of whom had sided with the British in the Revolution had been hammered and driven into Canadian exile. and nature abhors a vacuum.

That vacuum was filled by an expanding Indian alliance led by the Shawnee [Blue Jacket], the Miami [Little Turtle],and the Delaware. It included warriors, and insome cases whole tribes from the above lists.

The alliance had two basicgoals: end Iroquois interference in what the Ohio Indians saw as their affairs, and to limit U.S. expansion past the line proposed and ordered by the British before the war [and to take back Kentucky.

Over a period of time, councils with American emissaries were held, limited raiding took place along the frontier, and both sides readied for war [the Indians being encouraged by, and armed ,in part,by the British].

Within the United States, the military prepared for combat the same old way, i.e., mobilizing voluntary militia formations and sending them to fight under both volunteer and Revolutionary War officers.

The U.S's first attempt in 1790, under Josiah Harmer, ended in failure, when the Indians using sophisticated operational strategies [cutting off supplies],forced Harmer to retire.

The second attempt, led by Gen. Arthur St.Clair,ended in disaster. Attacked on three sides by  Indians led by blue Jacket and Little Turtle, Harmer's force was defeated, routed, and suffered the worst defeat at arms of any U.S. military force under arms by American Indians in U.S. history - with over 600 dead, and an army devolved into a mob fleeing the field.

When President Washington proposedagain, as he had before the St. Clair expedition, that a professional force be put together to attack the Indians, the congressional proponents of a militia based military were forced to vote for, inasmuch as militia forces had failed not once, but twice.

Washington's choice of commander for the operation was inspired. MG Anthony "Mad Anthony" Wayne had 'made his bones' in the Revolution, capturing Stony Point in an operation so chancy, he was thought mad. And after the Revoultion, Wayne had been involved in treay discussions with several tribes of Indians. He was also known as a strict disciplinarian who trained his troops to a high degree of efficiency.

Within two years of the St. Clair debacle, Wayne was ready. He marched some 3,000 men into the heart of Miami territory, stopping along the way to foertify supply posts. He reached the abandoned Miami capitol and made contact at a place called Fallen timbers [named for the heavy blowdown from a much earlier storm], near modern Toledo, Ohio.

Some of the Indians jumped the gun, and attacked, forcing other bands to support them. Wayne not only held them, but enveloped their right and attacked the center. A bayonet charge decided the issue. the Indians were routed. To add to their defeat was their surprise, when they were faced with the barred doors of a British fort they fled to initially, and denied entrance; before fleeing further away.

Wayne met the defeated Indians in dribs and drabs, the last to come in being Little Turtle. At the treaty of Grenville, the Indians gave up all claim to Kentucky, and were pushed further west. The British finally abandoned their old northwest territory forts. For all extents and purposes, the Ohio Valley, indeed the Old Northwest Territory was now American.