Comments by "Colonel K" (@Paladin1873) on "The History Guy: History Deserves to Be Remembered" channel.

  1. Books such as "1984", "The Population Bomb", and "Silent Spring" capture our darkest imaginations more than they do reality. The current and most popular bugaboo is the climate change crisis. Whether one believes the dire warnings or not, man has the capacity to intelligently and wisely alter his path so that the future need never be as bleak as the prophets forecast. Only when we succumb to dogma do we risk failure and annihilation, for dictators do not tolerate differing opinions and alternative solutions.
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  2.  @dougsfriendskeeter  WWI did not start until 1914 and the USA was very much opposed to entering it when it did.
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  3.  @steveclark4291  I used to drive through Climax, GA. It's near Bainbridge, GA.
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  4.  @cogitoergospud1  I'd love to hear his story. As an aside, my family was close friends with the Griffin family in Georgia, the patriarch of which was Marvin Griffin, Lt Governor and Governor of Georgia throughout most of the 1950s. After I saw the movie on DVD a few years back, I asked his son if he remembered anything about it. He said some members of the syndicate put out feelers regarding moving their operations to Georgia after things got too hot for them in Alabama. He said his Dad warned them they'd get a very uncomfortable reception if they stepped foot over the state line. That was the end of that.
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  5. Canada, like the UK, simply could not afford to stay on the cutting edge of aerospace technology. It boils down to simple economics, which remains the true cold equation.
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  6. That's one tall tale.
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  7.  @kurtvanluven9351  So was my Grandpa, but he served on a minesweeper. Other than sweeping and detonating some mines, I don't think his ship saw any other action in "The Big One".
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  8.  @cm-hw5ww  Kudos to both of your parents.
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  9. I still remember when I told my Dad I had heard on the news that Congress had passed a law authorizing two-letter abbreviations for states. His reply was "Don't they have anything better to do?"
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  10.  @-oiiio-3993  I still have to double-check before abbreviating Missouri and Mississippi.
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  11. Lady Macbeth?
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  12. So far the number is one.
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  13. This episode read like one of the late Paul Harvey's "The rest of the story". I wasn't aware of the effect the pigeons' demise had on the American landscape. Maybe I'd better stock up on bourbon before the white oak barrels become extinct.
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  14. Wasn't the Battle of the Tennis Court fought during this invasion?
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  15.  @rationalbushcraft  I don't think you can. All we know for sure is the man received a well-deserved caning for his inept effort.
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  16. Straighten up, child!
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  17.  @megupdike1414  Many sailors served on multiple vessels before, during, and after the War. According to Wikipedia, Borgnine did serve aboard the USS Lamberton prior to WWII but he was discharged from active duty in Sep 1941. As I recall from his interview, he ran into some bureaucratic roadblocks when he tried to reenlist in the Navy after Pearl Harbor, but eventually he received an assignment as a gunner's mate aboard a converted yacht that was used for antisubmarine duties in the Atlantic. I believe this was in 1942. According to Wikipedia this was the USS Sylph (PY-12). I don't know how long he served aboard her or if he had any other shipboard assignments before the War ended. It would be interesting to find out.
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  18.  @popefacto5945  She doesn't recall the brand, but her Mom bought them at their local Jewish deli. Right now I'm enjoying COSTCO all beef hotdogs. They are such a far cry from the dyed red dogs of my youth that leeched their colors when boiled. I have a hotdog rotisserie that does a great job if one has the patience to wait 30-40 minutes for them to reach the ideal state. It even has a bun steamer (sort of).
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  19. In many cases, roads and paths didn't exist.
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  20.  @chuckaddison5134  Chuck, you are applying rational logic to the discussion. I suggest you heed the adage about never arguing with stupid people; they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.
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  21. Matt, we were awake; we just weren't armed. That's one of the dangers of a peacetime mentality.
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  22. I can think of another appendage some scorned ex-lover would have removed form Picasso if given the opportunity.
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  23. Like you, I wasn't aware we lost any Army troops to the Kaiser's U-boats, but I am familiar with the loss of the USS Tampa, which sacrificed itself escorting them. There were no survivors. My grandpa, a WWI Navy veteran, was later the American Legion Post commander in Tampa, FL, where the ship was enshrined in a stain glass display. In 2018, a mural, “A Memorial to the U.S.C.G.C. Tampa and her Crew,’’ was put on permanent public display at the Tampa Bay History Center.
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  24. Wow, what a movie that would make.
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  25. I'd read that Capone ordered the flowers for O'Banion's funeral from the mobster florist's own shop. Now that's chutzpah.
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  26. Those bobby helmets were real corkers.
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  27. That's one story I'd never heard before. I did spot actor Arthur Kennedy in several of the training clips and movie star Clark Gable in another one (he was an actual gunnery officer in the 8th AF during WWII).
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  28. My mother met Dr Wassell after he became famous. I watched the movie, "The Story of Doctor Wassell" on TV many years ago. I have been unable to find anything other than bootleg copies of the movie on DVD, which is sad because it is a very uplifting film
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  29. Or brigands, which are just landlubber pirates.
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  30. I don't recall this engagement even though I've read "An Army At Dawn". Thanks for details.
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  31. When I was a student at Georgia Tech in the 1970s, my advisor and Human Factors professor was Dr. Randall Chambers. He was the former head of NASA's human factors research during the formative years of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs. With a little prodding he was always willing to regale us with anecdotes about the physical and psychological challenges faced by the chimpanzees and astronauts that his team was charged with testing. One such challenge was the ability of the human body to survive launch and landing when high G forces and sudden shock were involved. This led to the development of memory foam seats for NASA's cramped capsules. Professor Chambers had an original sample of one such seat, which was my first experience with the material. His research also resulted, perhaps indirectly, in an Army request to study the feasibility of launching shock troops into suborbital flight by rockets so they could land anywhere in the word within minutes. Dr. Chambers did not elaborate any further other than to say the request came to naught, but I would be interested in learning more about this intriguing idea which dates back at least to ancient China. With the advent of modern rockets that don't require high g forces and can land like a helicopter, perhaps the concept has some merit. The troops can always bring the mail bag with them. ;-)
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  32. The movie "Panfilov's 28 Men" can be seen on YouTube. I watched it last year. It's pretty good.
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  33.  @unappreciatedtreehouse821  There is an important difference. Only one person or team can win an Olympic gold medal in any particular event. Only one team can win the Superbowl or the World Series. Only one person can win an Oscar for Best Actor or the title of heavyweight champion of the world. There are no limitations on the number of decorations awarded in the military. Anyone who meets the standards is eligible for any given medal. It is not a competition between peers to see who is number one, nor should it be. Heroism is not limited to a single person, so neither should its recognition be limited.
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  34.  @williestyle35  Grandpa Parker worked the yard in Richmond, Indiana, until he was rolled between two rail cars that passed too close together. He was nearly killed, but miraculously survived his injuries, sued the company, retired, and moved to Tampa, FL during the land boom of the late 1930s. It sounds like both men served their families well.
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  35. Please forgive my being a nitpick regarding your excellent condensed histories and biographies, but I'd like to offer a few minor observations. While not publicly demonstrated, the first recorded flight of the Wright Brothers heaver-than-air powered flyer was on Dec 17, 1903. The Quest Expedition left England on 17 Sep 1920. Shackleton died along the journey on 5 Jan 1922. In 1969 a Russian-Italian financed movie, "The Red Tent", was made about the Italia disaster. Peter Finch played Nobile and Sean Connery played Amundsen. While taking some literary license with the actual events, as all films tend to do, it remains a fairly accurate and interesting recreation of the disaster. Two fictional period movies also worth viewing are "The Lost Zeppelin" (1929), whose lead character is patterned after Byrd, and the surprisingly well done (particularly the special effects) Dirigible (1931). The latter was written by famed Naval aviator and early aviation advocate, CMDR Frank "Spig" Wead, about whom was later made a biographical movie starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara.
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  36. I remember there was a Coast Guard Auxiliary unit in Bainbridge, GA, that kept their rescue boat in the marina on the Flint River. That would have been in the early 60s.
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  37. Three years ago, while visiting at the Montana Military Museum with my family, I met a 97 year old WWII veteran and former musher by the name of David Armstrong . He had written a book, "Camp Rimini and Beyond", detailing his exploits as a dog trainer and handler at Camp Rimini where sled teams were being prepared to support the Canadian-American First Special Service Force (The Devil's Brigade). Dave was later sent to Newfoundland with his dog sled teams to locate the remains of missing aircrews in the remote wilderness. It is a little known and largely forgotten part of the tapestry of WWII stories.
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  38. I've read about him before. It's a good thing nobody in the 1950s challenged him to land at the Kremlin.
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  39. Dead people voting in Louisiana is a Long tradition. :)
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  40. I think it is fair to say Pulaski was a he-ro, not a her-o.
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  41.  @rabbi120348  I think those stats referred to western POWs (US and UK). When it came to the eastern front, the Germans and Soviets both were about as merciless as one can get.
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  42.  Philip Freeman  Phil, like you I was born in the 50s and grew up in the south when racism and segregation were still common, but my parents fought against it, as did most Americans from all over the country. Our nation remains a work in progress, and always will be as long as we are free to make our own choices, be they good, bad, or ugly. Each generation has to experiment and learn for itself. We're not born wise, but we can obtain wisdom, even if some never do. Hatred is a strong emotion, but it is one which can ultimately destroy a person, assuming he isn't killed by somebody else first. Racism and bigotry are learned behaviors. They can be taught by your parents, your friends, your teachers, or yourself through your own life experiences. I try not to hate or despise entire groups of people because I know that each person is an individual whose ideas and behavior are not always in lockstep with others in his group. But I must admit that some people are making it awfully hard for me to think kindly or respectfully of them when I see them so many of them behaving badly. I'm always willing to be polite and listen to somebody's story, but I do so while checking my back because sometimes it's just a ruse to get me to drop my guard. Long ago I learned that if you don't feel right about a person or situation you are in, maybe it's time to get the hell away. Most folks are decent, but there wolves among the sheep, so let your prejudices work for you, but don't let them rule you. It's a balancing act, to be sure.
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  43.  @SHAd0Eheart  I don't know if the building still stands. The original wooden structure burned down. That's when my great uncle bought it and built the hotel. I haven't been back to Bainbridge in about 25 years.
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  44.  @lizj5740  I would have been trying to save my model airplanes and comic books. I now live in fire country (Montana). Last year I had each family member draw up a list what they wanted to save if we have to bug out. The result is that I will need a long trailer and a dozen movers. 🙂
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  45.  @microdesigns2000  You could make a poem of your comments. If you do, may I suggest you title it "Oh Illinois, what will become of you?" P.S. Like you, my sister and her husband moved from IL to MN after 30 years, and they share your sentiments.
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  46. Some have argued the Taiping Rebellion in China was deadlier than WWII, but it really depends on which deaths are attributed to the war and how accurate those estimates really are. It's a fair bet that China and the USSR suffered the lion's share of casualties from 1937 - 45, though it's also true the Soviets tended to exaggerate battle deaths to further glorify their victories.
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  47. Sounds like Eustis was a real gasbag.
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  48. My wife is an accomplished artist, but you would not know it by seeing her or speaking with her. She is beautiful, articulate, and level-headed. She has spent much of her life trying to destroy the stereotype of the avant-garde artist, but it is an uphill battle.
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  49. The cruel reality of war is that height can matter, just as intelligence, strength, daring, and skill matter. It is rarely wise to form units of men who possess a unique characteristic unless the mission calls for that ability. In the case of the Bantams I've little doubt some of those men were killed by opponents who were bigger, just as some larger men died because their size made them easy targets. Audie Murphy was no Sergeant Rock or Sergeant Fury. He was underage, too small, and too light to get into the Marine Corp, and the Army was hesitant to take him, but he managed to bulk up just enough thanks to the nutrition he received during training. He volunteered for the infantry when the airborne refused him, and he went on to become America's most decorated hero of WWII.
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  50. My Mom was born during the St Valentine's Massacre.
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