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whale hunting


Irish Pat

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I received a nice book on the B-29s in WWII. Has plenty of color pictures of nose art. One of my friends dads was a flight engineer on one in the Pacific. we were looking at the pictures and he told me his dad told him when they were training off California if they spotted whales the gunners would open up and practice shooting them. Times have changed

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Yes, times have changed.

While visiting our son at Ramstein AFB is Germany, we stayed in Kaiserslautern.

There is a monument in town listing all of the town's residents and their ages that were killed in WW2.

It included old folks and young kids that were killed in the bombings.

Then, back at home, I saw a tv show about the Allies and the bombing missions into Germany.

It featured a pilot that had a mission to Kaiserslautern. He was considered a hero for his bravery.

His mission may have put those names on the monument.

 

I will not argue the right or wrong of the war and the bombing of civilians during WW2. 

I was just moved by seeing the results from both sides of the conflict.

Fortunately, times have changed.

 

 

 

 

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58 minutes ago, Brazos John said:I was just moved by seeing the results from both sides of the conflict.

I was just moved by seeing the results from both sides of the conflict. 
Fortunately, times have changed.


Not so sure, I am reading daily briefings on Ukraine and wouldn’t be surprised to see the same in Taiwan within the next ten years.

 

Strongly recommend watching “The Fog of War” about about the life and times of former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. The line that I have always remembered was his comments about the fire bombings of Tokyo, “the only reason that we were not prosecuted for war crimes was because we won the war.”

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I served in the last 3 wars this country has fought: Desert Shield/Storm, Iraq and Afghanistan, I served from 1988 to 2013 in both The Army National Guard and Active Duty Air Force (for most of it).  Having seen what humans are capable of doing to one another, sometimes you have to do terrible things to bring the other side to their knees.  It brings to mind a quote from Gen Robert E. Lee    “It is well that war is so terrible, or we should grow too fond of it."  

 

I feel bad for the whales though...

Saddam's chair.jpg

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16 hours ago, Irish-Pat said:

I received a nice book on the B-29s in WWII. Has plenty of color pictures of nose art. One of my friends dads was a flight engineer on one in the Pacific. we were looking at the pictures and he told me his dad told him when they were training off California if they spotted whales the gunners would open up and practice shooting them. Times have changed

 

My uncle was stationed in Alaska in WWII. He told of Army pilots strafing bears on the Aleutian Islands and going back with a Jeep to get the bear!:(

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17 hours ago, Itchy Trigger said:


Not so sure, I am reading daily briefings on Ukraine and wouldn’t be surprised to see the same in Taiwan within the next ten years.

 

Strongly recommend watching “The Fog of War” about about the life and times of former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. The line that I have always remembered was his comments about the fire bombings of Tokyo, “the only reason that we were not prosecuted for war crimes was because we won the war.”

 

I wouldn't read a damn thing that McNamara wrote. That stupid sob and LBJ got more Americans killed with their stupid ROE than the gomers did. There should be only 2 ROE:

Win

Come home

 

PF

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i dont know anything of whale hunting and never heard anything of it from my father , he was left gunner   ...........is that book a blue bound 20th air force albumn by chance ? i have one that has the photos you describe as well as a red bound version for the 73rd wing , somewhere i have some 40th bomb group data but i dont recall it being bound material - i could be wrong ,

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Personally, if I were aboard a plane and some butthead was shooting at whales I would probably be standing Captains Mast or Court Martial. Same for any other innocent creature that some jackhole wants to practice on. 
 

I know when I was in the Navy we towed a LARN Target for the planes off the Ike to practice shooting at sometimes. I recall strafing runs being canceled due to whales and dolphins in the area. 

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On 1/11/2023 at 10:21 PM, Brazos John said:

Yes, times have changed.

While visiting our son at Ramstein AFB is Germany, we stayed in Kaiserslautern.

There is a monument in town listing all of the town's residents and their ages that were killed in WW2.

It included old folks and young kids that were killed in the bombings.

Then, back at home, I saw a tv show about the Allies and the bombing missions into Germany.

It featured a pilot that had a mission to Kaiserslautern. He was considered a hero for his bravery.

His mission may have put those names on the monument.

 

I will not argue the right or wrong of the war and the bombing of civilians during WW2. 

I was just moved by seeing the results from both sides of the conflict.

Fortunately, times have changed.

 

 

 

 

My father was in the Air Force.... We lived in Birkenfeld in mid 50's and there were still tanks and fun things for kids to play on. There was a pillbox up the hill behind the military housing up the hill that  still had some bodies inside. we got in trouble for finding it and not  telling adults about it.  The best part of living there was recreating WW2 with the German kids by throwing coal back and forth at them into the bombed out couple of blocks of houses they occupied vs. our military housing with full coal bunkers .   Well it all came to a truce in the winter when we ran sleds down the frozen ice flow down the hill (the same one that had the pillbox) Then it was ok for all us kids to run sleds down the ice across the street and dodge the tank convoys. The American tankers were pretty slow... the German tankers were out for blood.

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