They showed up

Stepping Off frequently lauds men who showed up for battle, irrespective of the outcome, and frequently criticizes journalists for hyping battles beforehand but minimizing them after the fact. The men who landed on Omaha Beach 75 years ago were brave. So were the men who landed on Utah, Gold, Juno, and Sword Beaches. I knew a WWII vet who spent his whole enlistment chasing around the Pacific trying to catch up with the ship he was assigned to. Would he have fought just as bravely as the men at Normandy? I think so.

I'm not diminishing the accomplishments of the men who took Omaha Beach. I've visited the cemetery there, spending many hours wandering the beach, rows of crosses, and the chapel. Designers of memorials alternate between nihilism and grandiosity, but the Normandy cemetery is perfect. Visit it if you haven't. Visit it again if you have.

The men who fought there had no access to these:

To say anything of these:

They fought and died with the equipment available at the time. By all means, raise a glass to them today. Remember, though, that four other groups of Americans, Brits, and Canadians hit the beaches that day expecting the same fate. Most were spared that day. Some were not and many went on to die in the next 10 months. As we remember the Great Crusade, remember all of the Crusaders who showed up.

Gary right before battle:

If my time is up, I should pay tribute to those around me. Tom believes 10,000+ will die, but he’s here (though snoring). I admire him and said so. Karl, silhouetted against the flames, is a warrior plain and simple. He’d have ridden stoically with Custer. Capt Moss had his minefield boo-boo; the CO visited three sets of breach lanes. Courage varies in any group, but we’ve all met Prerequisite #1: we’re here. I’ll rest happily under a tombstone reading, “He showed up.”

Gary after battle:

The hero-worship over a smooth war is overdone. We weren’t on Peleliu. SSgt Frain did more in Vietnam but received less recognition. I don’t feel too guilty, though. I did more than most by taking and returning fire, and I consider everyone who went courageous. Now it was child’s play, but when we deployed, it was certain death. Tom is “pissed” at the “douchebag newsreader” who condemned the victory celebration as “overblown” for a “minor skirmish.” Last year, this guy stated gravely that 20,000 servicemen would die.