The Men Who Saved The World
That's how I heard Steven Spielberg describe the men who stormed the beaches of Normandy 60 years ago yesterday and I really cannot put it better than that. We owe those men everything we hold dear today because if it were not for their bravery we'd be speaking German right now and so would much if not all of Europe.
But again I have to be the bearer of bad news. Sorry. While we celebrate the men who died taking those beaches, of the 1,000 French polled on whether or not they owe us a moral debt half said no.
But again I have to be the bearer of bad news. Sorry. While we celebrate the men who died taking those beaches, of the 1,000 French polled on whether or not they owe us a moral debt half said no.
PARIS - Fewer than 50 percent of French people think France has a moral debt to the United States 60 years after the Allied D-Day landings, according to an opinion poll published on Saturday.I'm sure the 10,943 men who are buried at Normandy Beach would beg to differ however.
The poll of 1,000 people on May 25 and 26 showed 48 percent of respondents thought France, which was liberated by U.S. and other Allied forces during World War Two, had a moral debt to the United States. Fifty percent thought it did not.
Replies: 10
All comments here are open and for the most part unmoderated. However, comments that are off topic or offensive will be summarily deleted at my discretion. The ideas and views expressed below do not necessarily express the views hootinan.com| 1 | Danny, resident of nuclear gro | Mon, 06/07/2004 03:33pm |
| They are French, what do you expect? It makes you wonder how a great man like General Charles de Gaulle ever came from that Gene pool! | ||
| 2 | Peter Bjørn Perlsø | Mon, 06/07/2004 06:42pm |
| Well, with DeGaulle's French Supremacism, it isn't hard to understand that the frenchies are hard pressed to acknowledge that the owe their freedom to the Anglais... tsk tsk. | ||
| 3 | Chevalier de St George | Wed, 06/09/2004 05:28am |
| Its time to dig them up and bring them vback home with the Iraqi dead. France needs a slap in the face Those boys should not be abandoned on French soil | ||
| 4 | Laura | Wed, 06/09/2004 09:09am |
| Remember also the France - the Betrayal! | ||
| 5 | Martin | Wed, 06/09/2004 04:56pm |
| I am sorry to see how French bashing remains popular. Please read again what was written in early 2003 on Irak. The plain facts show now that the bush administration was wrong with its justification. There was no WMD, terrorism is now widespread in Irak, american troops are not welcomed by the majority of the irakis althought their dictator was ousted... And Ossama bin laden is still at large. Where is "french betrayal" ? Just a reminder, France remains the main nation to fight with US troops in Afghanistan. This is the place where the job should have been done fully. Concerning the poll, I guess that 50% of the people of a country considering that they have a moral debt toward another people for an event which is 60 years old (before most were born) is not that bad. Especially if you account for the fact that the french were heavily criticized by the current administration during the last 18 months. Last but not least, concerning the casualty of WWII : - USA : 500,000 0.4 % of pre-war population - UK : 388,000 0.8 % - France : 810 000 1.2 % - USSR : 21 000 000 10.4 % Now that the iron curtain has fallen we should accept that the liberation of the world from the nazis was also in a great extent due to the price paid for by the former USSR. However I do not think that a vast majority of the people would consider that they have a "moral debt" toward the people of the former USSR... So, how do you measure the "moral debt" ? | ||
| 6 | Chevalier de St George | Thu, 06/10/2004 09:32am |
| There was no WMD Sarin gas not enough for you. but any case obviously the freedom of the iraqis mean nothing to you. Terrorists ? They are not terrorists they are Iranian and syrian backed Jihadist thugs who would attack any infidel even if they had been FRENCH INFIDELS who nowed to them and kissed their asses. They attack anyone who is not a Muslim. aS FOR oSAMA he has passed into history and is inconsequential. he has been replaced by younger men who are calling the shots. Goin after him is a waste of resources. The reason that you should thank the Americans is that witout them the french would be speaking RUSSIAN today. | ||
| 7 | jchilds | Fri, 06/11/2004 02:46pm |
| Umm...didn't we want the Europeans to be full partners in ww2? Quite right, Martin. | ||
| 8 | tom | Mon, 06/14/2004 07:04pm |
| Hey Martin....do us all a favour....jump in the lake! France's war casualty total consisted primarily of civilian deaths, including French Jew's who were sent to German concentration camps....Your figure of 500,000 consists entirely of American military men and women. You also failed to mention the 1,000,000 Canadians who were the only force consisting of 100% volunteers, many of which died during the liberation of France. ****! the French!!!!! | ||
| 9 | martin | Sun, 06/20/2004 03:26pm |
| I miss your point but if you want more details on the figures you can find it on : (to answer your question : military deaths from France 340 000 and Canada 34 000) As for the French Jew's exterminated by the nazis : 83000 . Just try not to oversimplify. | ||
| 10 | Larry | Mon, 08/16/2004 01:48pm |
| Martin, The French have always been an unstable people as a whole, There are always the exceptions to the rule. During WWI the following exchange took place. "Field Marshal, there are 10,000 French troops to our left flank. There are 10,000 French troops to our right flank. There are 30,000 French troops facing our front line." The Field Marshal asked, " And what are they doing?" "Waving 50,000 white flags" came the reply. Also why did the French plant trees along the Avenue des Champs Élysées? So the invading armies could march in the shade. Hey the French did not support the war in Iraq because it cost them millions of $$$$ by the lose of the oil for food bribes. I say next time theri fat gets in the fire, leave it there. | ||