OldCoyote
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Post by OldCoyote on Aug 24, 2015 7:25:44 GMT -5
There is a joke about the WWII French weapons that goes, Never fired, thrown down just once.
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OldCoyote
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Post by OldCoyote on Aug 24, 2015 7:27:52 GMT -5
That said, I have a new customer, A young French couple, In France he was a Fireman, Believe me I would never question his bravery, He is a big man.
I think they are going to survive in this business even though they have no experience, One reason is how they listen to advice, how quick they use that advice.
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Tennesseer
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Post by Tennesseer on Aug 24, 2015 8:20:59 GMT -5
I will repeat it again for you if you did not comprehend it the first time-the train originated in the Netherlands. Most here would agree the employees/train worker(s) on this particular train are probably from the Netherlands.Now I comprehend. But what does France do with all Netherlands employees that only travel one way into their country, or if the train was going the other way all the French in Netherlands? While I have not ridden this particular type of high speed train on which the incident occured, I have taken the Amsterdam to Paris train in the past. It is a relatively short ride. The current travel time between those two cities riding the Thalys high speed train is about 3 and 1/2 hours including several stops in between. So because the total time for the complete trip is short, any one train and its crew will make the trip 2-4 times a day, minus the conductor . And there are several trains running between the two cities, both directions, at the same time. So there are multiple crews. There may be 10-12 trips a day each way between the two cities. As Happyhoix previously stated, at the end of the day, if the crew's trips do not end up in their home city, then they are put up at a hotel just like airline crews. And I would imagine, and just like airline crews, train employee trips may be three days long (away from home) with four days off (for example only). It's not a 9-5 job. Any nationality from within the 28 country European Union (or guest worker from outside the Union) may be a worker on these trains. These Thalys trains and their crews may even be used the same day and be sent (along with the train) to other destination once the Amsterdam-Paris leg is completed. Just like airline planes and crews on short and medium haul runs.
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deziloooooo
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Post by deziloooooo on Aug 24, 2015 14:43:50 GMT -5
There is a joke about the WWII French weapons that goes, Never fired, thrown down just once. Yeah, I get the joke, but it is not accurate. The joke is on the French high command, who were ready to fight the last war. (this is not an uncommon thing- American military doctrine for 25 years after the Cold War ended was still based on fighting two large land wars at once) They were all set to re-fight trench warfare and fixed positions. The French tanks, which were very good, and certainly well armored, were dispersed among the infantry. The French Air Force was called the "Army of the Air". They (and the Brits) failed to grasp the new lightening thrusts that were possible by using combined arms in new and concentrated ways.
Due to budgetary shortfalls the Maginot Line was not extended to the North Sea, but terminated at the Belgian border, so that it only defended at the joint Franco- German border to the south. The Ardennes forest in Belgium was considered virtually impassable by modern combat forces if adequately defended - which was a fatal error. The Belgian fortress at Liege was considered the bulwark that would hold the sector. The Allies (for the Brits bought the same flawed strategic thinking) compounded this error by having their forces advance when the Germans attacked the Low Countries. They marched themselves right into a giant trap.
In fact, the common French soldier fought, and fought well. However with the war plan as devised by their superiors they never had a chance to prevail. Nor did the British, but of course most of the British personnel managed to evacuate via Dunkirk, albeit without their heavy weapons.
Don't forget, if it weren't for the French, we'd all be speaking English right now!
You do a very good job in summing up the happenings in this period of time....and the why's..I also had read that the Germans did suffer heavy casualties during this time but since they won as they did this was not of concern at the time to the Germans...definitely loss of his men neither to their leader Adolf...Possible we won that war because of a few things...The wearing down of the German forces by the Russians..supposedly they suffered over twenty million dead in that war..and the incompetence of Hitler in the last years of the war..actually starting with his reaction of a retaliation by the Brits of bombing Berlin in retaliation of a accidental bombing of London..German bomber flight lost their way and unloaded on London..thus the Brits and then Hitlers orders to stop the attacks on the Brits airfields , concentrate on the cities ..It's said a few more raids on the airfields in Britain would have been all that was needed to take out the Brit Airforce...then his declaring war on USA after Pearl harbor..not needed at the time..then Barbarrossa..attack East into Russia...then not allowing the Generals to orderly retreat where needed..fight to the death..holding back the armor when allies invaded Normandy...instructing till to late the Jet aircraft developed be bombers rather then fighters..and on and on..Hitler became the allies secret weapon to the point of not wanting him replaced either by over throw or assasination..
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Spellbound454
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Post by Spellbound454 on Aug 25, 2015 7:02:43 GMT -5
I think different countries are reporting it in different ways
There was a Brit involved.....Not a trained marine or anything.....just a random middle aged businessman who thought he would get involved ...or die. He also got a medal from the president....that's him there in the grey suit.
Two others up for medals......Mark Moogalian, a US professor in Paris (The guy who got shot and is fighting for his life) and someone who wishes to remain anonymous....who is French.
As for the war .....again different reporting by he looks of things. Many of our cities were bombed to rubble........but we kept fighting and managed to beat the Luftwaffe in the battle of Britain. We and our Allies would probably have lost if the US hadn't joined in...but bravery was not the problem.
As for France...they were occupied but had an excellent resistance which helped thousands of our displaced fighters get back home.
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deziloooooo
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Post by deziloooooo on Aug 25, 2015 10:31:18 GMT -5
Well I think Hitler sealed his fate when he invaded Russia, but surely he compounded his errors in the ways you recount above. There was a program on the History channel the other day ..possible a repeat ..but the first time I saw it..regarding the use of drugs during WW2 by the countries involved ..both sides ..to get soldiers to perform better...Brits used Benzedrine..Germans something else..pervitin...speed...."Pervitin, a stimulant commonly known as speed today, was the German army's -- the Wehrmacht's -- wonder drug........supposedly Montgomery ordered over 100,000 pills of Ben and actually at one time sent out a post allowing soldiers to take as many as they wanted..A unit that did performed heroically but eventually ceased to exist... In the report they discussed the injections Hitler took by his Doctor...a Doctor Morell I believe ..morphine I believe and for the past few years of the war he was completely under the influence which made him even more irrational...thus along with others ..his orders to never retreat like at Stalingrad...Also Goering too....where at the beginning , while a shi*t as a person and doings..was a brave soldier..earned his medals WW1..but by7 the time of Stalingrad..drugs had gotten to him...kind of removed himself from the war... did drugs..interest in aquiring stolen Art...less interest in the job of head of German Airforce...poor decisions...so two top leaders of Germany..drug addicts under the influence...
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deziloooooo
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Post by deziloooooo on Aug 25, 2015 10:40:20 GMT -5
I think different countries are reporting it in different ways
There was a Brit involved.....Not a trained marine or anything.....just a random middle aged businessman who thought he would get involved ...or die. He also got a medal from the president....that's him there in the grey suit.
Two others up for medals......Mark Moogalian, a US professor in Paris (The guy who got shot and is fighting for his life) and someone who wishes to remain anonymous....who is French.
As for the war .....again different reporting by he looks of things. Many of our cities were bombed to rubble........but we kept fighting and managed to beat the Luftwaffe in the battle of Britain. We and our Allies would probably have lost if the US hadn't joined in...but bravery was not the problem.
As for France...they were occupied but had an excellent resistance which helped thousands of our displaced fighters get back home. I believe I read that the airmans unit has put him up for the Air medal..highest award for bravery in non war setting...am sure the Army national guard unit will also be doing the same for that individual ..solders medal..same rated award...plus if the French deside that it is a terrorist attack then the one wounded would be eligible for the purple heart..Am sure th government will be awarding a civilien medal to the young friend who is a student.. All of these folks went above and beyond...attacking a person armed with a military automatic weapon..to much....even more so when youn sit back and think about it..That the gunman was not familer with his weapons and all...unimportant..the participants had no idea of that...I was having a thought though..best to leave Europe and get home as fast as possible..believe two service men are now in Germany at our large hospital there...to continue to travel in Europe...not that wise IMHO..to many there who would like to take revenge...
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deziloooooo
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Post by deziloooooo on Aug 25, 2015 10:44:16 GMT -5
I think different countries are reporting it in different ways
There was a Brit involved.....Not a trained marine or anything.....just a random middle aged businessman who thought he would get involved ...or die. He also got a medal from the president....that's him there in the grey suit.
Two others up for medals......Mark Moogalian, a US professor in Paris (The guy who got shot and is fighting for his life) and someone who wishes to remain anonymous....who is French.
As for the war .....again different reporting by he looks of things. Many of our cities were bombed to rubble........but we kept fighting and managed to beat the Luftwaffe in the battle of Britain. We and our Allies would probably have lost if the US hadn't joined in...but bravery was not the problem.
As for France...they were occupied but had an excellent resistance which helped thousands of our displaced fighters get back home. ...."someone who wishes to remain anonymous....who is French."......Methink smart decision if he can get away with it...sorry to say...by living there as a citizen..possible be a target for some group or person who wants revenge....Actually the Brit i one who supposedly lives in France full time...same thing applies to him too..IMHO
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djAdvocate
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Post by djAdvocate on Aug 25, 2015 10:48:08 GMT -5
I will repeat it again for you if you did not comprehend it the first time-the train originated in the Netherlands. Most here would agree the employees/train worker(s) on this particular train are probably from the Netherlands.Now I comprehend. But what does France do with all Netherlands employees that only travel one way into their country, or if the train was going the other way all the French in Netherlands? same thing that United does when they fly to Rome. the crew spends the night, and gets a connecting flight home.
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Tennesseer
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Post by Tennesseer on Aug 25, 2015 11:43:29 GMT -5
I will repeat it again for you if you did not comprehend it the first time-the train originated in the Netherlands. Most here would agree the employees/train worker(s) on this particular train are probably from the Netherlands.Now I comprehend. But what does France do with all Netherlands employees that only travel one way into their country, or if the train was going the other way all the French in Netherlands? same thing that United does when they fly to Rome. the crew spends the night, and gets a connecting flight home. Airline crews will often have R&R at their flight's destination point for 24-36 hours and work a return international flight back to the States too.
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OldCoyote
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Post by OldCoyote on Aug 25, 2015 12:12:26 GMT -5
DJ, Tenn, You have no more idea whether or not the crew is French or from the Netherlands, It could have been a French crew returning back to France or could be as you say a crew from the Netherlands.
you don't know any more than I do.
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Tennesseer
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Post by Tennesseer on Aug 25, 2015 12:23:52 GMT -5
DJ, Tenn, You have no more idea whether or not the crew is French or from the Netherlands, It could have been a French crew returning back to France or could be as you say a crew from the Netherlands. you don't know any more than I do. DJ and I never said we definitively knew the nationality of the crew but you sure did. "Where were our brave Frenchmen?" That you admit now you don't know is at least better than what you originally said. The employee who ran could have gotten on the train when it stopped in Brussels and been a Belgium citizen-who knows?. Because train employees are not armed nor trained in terrorist prevention, I am not sure what you would have wanted the employee to do-take a bullet for the passengers? Flight attendants are not trained or told they must take a bullet for passengers on their aircraft either. But again, the train employee could have come from any of 28 EU nation members. The nationality of employees within the train transportation industry of Europe and the EU is pretty fluid. One does not need to be French to work a Paris to Berlin train. Just as one does not need to be German to work a Berlin to Paris train.
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OldCoyote
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Post by OldCoyote on Aug 25, 2015 12:39:29 GMT -5
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Tennesseer
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Post by Tennesseer on Aug 25, 2015 12:51:45 GMT -5
Stopping beating yourself.
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OldCoyote
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Post by OldCoyote on Aug 25, 2015 12:53:31 GMT -5
It was pointed in both of our directions.
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