Comments on: Battle of the Bulge

By: James E.

James E. — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 19:39:48 +0000

Cookie, you said wooden boats across the Atlantic.
Words have meaning. When you say Atlantic, I can only assume you mean Atlantic.

By: cookie65

cookie65 — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 13:45:08 +0000

James, I think you know what I mean. To suggest that I am saying they took wooden boats to Omaha beach is spin.

By: James E.

James E. — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 19:29:18 +0000

Cookie, they didn’t cross the Atlantic in a wooden boat, they crossed the English channel and debarked ships into the wooden landing craft. And, they endured the Normandy landings just so their descendants could become moochers? Really?
You are indeed the queen of spin.

By: cookie65

cookie65 — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 15:34:53 +0000

Last month I attended the funeral of my uncle who was there. His name is on the memorial in Ione. If you ever drive thru Ione stop and look at all the names on that wall. I read somewhere that more kids from Ione served in WWII than any town in America. Amazing what some have endured for the cause of freedom. From crossing the Atlantic in a wooden boat to Omaha beach just to have their descendants be willing to trade it for a handout.

By: James E.

James E. — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 20:36:59 +0000

Interesting thing about the Battle of the Bulge. The Germans had them surrounded with overwhelming force. But, strangely, the Germans would attack from from 2 o’clock and then be beaten back. Then they would attack from 6 o’clock and would be beaten back. Then they would attack from 11 o’clock and be beaten back. Always, single attacks from various positions on the ring. Most strange because if they had attacked from multiple positions they would have overwhelmed the 101st. Could it be that if they did so they would be firing into the circle from various positions and thereby shooting into themselves? Who knows but the Germans?

By: James E.

James E. — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 20:16:56 +0000

Mr. Riordan, if my memory serves “Big Berta” was moved and fired on railroad tracks. Too big to move otherwise. Not sure if it was employed during the Battle of the Bulge, but possible.

By: Jim Riordan

Jim Riordan — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 20:10:57 +0000

Col. James, according to my grandma, her brother, my grand (or great) uncle was killed in one of our tanks by a direct hit from a German “Big Bertha Gun” in the battle of the Bulge. She seemed to think it was a “railroad gun”.

By: James E.

James E. — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 19:02:43 +0000

The 11th Armored Division — “Thunderbolt.”

By: James E.

James E. — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 18:45:19 +0000

The suggestion to reply to the Germans with “nuts”
was recommended to the general by Colonel Harry W. O. Kinnard, the division Chief of Staff. Nearly 20 years later, I served under Major General Kinnard in the 11th Air Assault Division. Unlike many generals of my experience, General Kinnard was a gentleman.

By: Monument

Monument — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 16:41:02 +0000

Col. Wray F. Sagaser USA ****

By: Battle of the Bulge

Battle of the Bulge — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 16:33:13 +0000

The capture of Bastogne was the ultimate goal of the Battle of the Bulge, the German offensive through the Ardennes forest. Bastogne provided a road junction in rough terrain where few roads existed; it would open up a valuable pathway further north for German expansion. The Belgian town was defended by the U.S. 101st Airborne Division, which had to be reinforced by troops who straggled in from other battlefields. Food, medical supplies, and other resources eroded as bad weather and relentless German assaults threatened the Americans’ ability to hold out. Nevertheless, Brigadier General Anthony C. MacAuliffe met a German surrender demand with a typewritten response of a single word: “Nuts.”
Enter “Old Blood and Guts,” General Patton. Employing a complex and quick-witted strategy wherein he literally wheeled his 3rd Army a sharp 90 degrees in a counterthrust movement, Patton broke through the German lines and entered Bastogne, relieving the valiant defenders and ultimately pushing the Germans east across the Rhine.

By: Friends of the Veterans Monument

Friends of the Veterans Monument — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 16:30:15 +0000

Col. Waey F. Sagaser lead the 11th Armor Division on be-half of General Patton relieving the American Forces at Bastogne. Col. Sagaser lived in El Dorado County before his death and is honored with a bronze plaque mounted in front of the El Dorado County Veterans Monument.