D-Day anniversary
When we published our June 6 post on the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the primary purpose was to remember the extraordinary sacrifices of ordinary Americans -- now known as "The Greatest Generation" -- who came together to eject Hitler and his Nazi forces from France and Western Europe in what would become the decisive battle of World War II.
The US Department of Defense calls D-Day the “successful beginning of the end of Hitler's tyrannical regime. Without victory in that bloody battle -- which began in the early hours of June 6, 1944, and was recreated by Director Steven Spielberg in the opening scenes of his epic film, Saving Private Ryan -- we likely would have been living in an America, for the past 80 years, that hardly any of us today would recognize.
D-Day resonates deeply here in our Legal Schnauzer household for several reasons. My father, William J. Shuler, was part of a squadron that arrived on the Normandy beaches three days after the D-Day battle. Here is how I described it in our June 6 post:
How significant was D-Day? It's almost impossible to overstate it. The US Department of Defense calls D-Day the “successful beginning of the end of Hitler's tyrannical regime.” How different would life in America be if Allied troops had not been able to liberate France? That is a disturbing question to contemplate, but my father, William J. Shuler, was there, and he played a role -- I'm quite sure it was a dangerous role -- in securing the freedoms we enjoy today.
William J. Shuler
As I was growing up, I knew about my dad's military service, but I did not know many details. He had a Luger, the distinctive-looking pistol German troops used, and he showed it to me one time. It looked scary to my eyes, and I've never been much of a gun guy, so I did not ask to see it again and did not want to know where he kept it. I think he might have had a Nazi arm band, but I'm not sure about that. (The Luger and arm band, if it actually existed, were part of my family's war-related artifacts mentioned earlier.) As for the Luger, my brother, Paul, almost shot his foot off with the thing, so I was glad we all survived that episode -- especially since the bullet went through our parents' bedroom floor and landed in the basement, barely missing our fish aquarium, which was a fairly heavily trafficked area, where quite a few folks (including me) made a habit of gathering to watch the fish.
My dad died in 2008, and about 10 years later as my mother was nearing the end of her life, she told me that Dad was in a unit that landed on Normandy beach three days after the D-Day invasion. I've looked online several times for information about Dad's unit, but I haven't found anything so far. My best guess is that they were on what might be called a "recovery mission," to recover bodies, equipment, perhaps German intelligence. I can only imagine the kind of danger my father was in on that mission.
I imagine that unexploded land mines and other munitions dotted the beach. One wrong step, and my father's life would have been over -- and the lives of my siblings and I never would have started.
My story is not the only one in our household that connects to World War II. My wife, Carol, had an uncle (her mother's brother) who was captured and was held in a German prison camp. The trauma of that experience as a POW led to struggles with alcoholism for the rest of his life.
Carol's father, Mark Tovich, was in the South-East Asian theater of World War II, serving in India, Burma, and nearby locales. To our knowledge, he was not wounded in action, but he did contract a near-fatal case of yellow fever or malaria.
As for the troubling current events noted above, they come with dark irony that should cause all Americans, of whatever political persuasion, to ponder the direction our nation is headed.
The D-Day anniversary is a time to honor those Americans who risked everything to secure the freedoms we enjoy today. How significant were the contributions of Americans to defeating Hitler, his Nazi troops, and the fascist ideology they represented? Perhaps we can answer that question by noting the 80th Anniversary commemoration was held at Normandy American Cemetery.
What about those of us living on U.S. soil today? Do we ever consider the sacrifices our forebears made to defend our Constitution and the rule of law that is found therein? Do we ever stop and think that the relative peace and stability the United States and Europe have enjoyed since the end of World War II came at an extremely high price?
If the answer to those questions is yes, how do you explain polls that show a significant chunk of Americans, as of now, support Donald Trump in our 2024 presidential election?
After all, Trump has made it clear that he does not support American democracy and intends to usher in an authoritarian regime that borrows from dictators and fascist regimes, both past and present. Trump has openly stated that he might suspend the constitution and act as a supreme ruler in the mold of Hitler, Mussolini, Putin, and other "strong men." Trump repeatedly has stated his admiration for dictatorial rulers. We encourage readers to check out The Washington Post op-ed piece by Robert Kagan under the title "We have a radical democracy. Will Trump voters destroy it?
This is what I meant in the earlier references to troubling current events, filled with dark irony. After all, the United States has been a beacon for democratic principles since many of us have been alive. So, how can any of us actually think a Donald Trump presidency would be a good idea? This is the guy who has repeatedly said he could prosecute his political enemies, which would be unlawful on numerous grounds.
The November election is going to be unlike any we have seen before. It will not be about Democrats vs. Republicans or progressives vs. conservatives. It will be an existential moment, with the incumbent (Joe Biden) favoring democracy and the challenger Donald Trump, touting authoritarianism, featuring his own brand of scatter-brained, dysfunctional "leadership" -- and we have seen in his first term how that worked out, with Trump's botched handling of the coronavirus pandemic leading to more than 1 million American deaths and leaving our economy in dire condition, as outlined in this 2020 article.
Since this election, unlike any in our history, will be about democracy vs. authoritarianism, does that mean Trump supporters are against democracy, that they believe our country would be better off to usher out 250 years of democracy in favor of a glorified dictatorship, one built according to Donald Trump's whims. Since Trump is a liar of epic proportions, does anyone trust a single word he says? I find it hard to believe anyone would trust him with a corner lemonade stand, much less the presidency. I encourage readers to check out this post, which spells out the plusses and minuses of a Biden-Trump matchup.
So, how to explain the support Trump seems to enjoy? A simple answer might me to say all MAGA Republicans are stupid. But I know a number of Trump supporters, and I know they aren't stupid. What IS going on with them? I can only speculate, but my best guess is that they haven't thought through the repercussions of turning the wheel over to Donald Trump.
It's also possible they could benefit from examining their own family histories to learn about the sacrifices their forebears have made. I only know about my family's military service, some of it dating to the 1860s and the Civil War, because my mother and father preserved communications and artifacts that they instinctively seem to know had value for future generations. Many Trump supporters undoubtedly have similar family histories, and examining those might cause them to reconsider their support for Trump, who shows growing signs of being unfit (both mentally and physically) to serve in high office.
With the D-Day anniversary having just passed, now might be an appropriate time for all Americans to give serious thought to what is at stake in the 2024 election. The future of our country depends on it.
One final thought: Let's consider this account from the Washington Examiner of Ronald Reagan's speech from the 1984 D-Day anniversary:
In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy during World War II, President Ronald Reagan spoke from Point-du-Hoc on the Normandy shores, praising those who risked their lives to “fight for all humanity.”
“The men of Normandy had faith that what they were doing was right, faith that they fought for all humanity, faith that a just God would grant them mercy on this beachhead or on the next,” he said. “It was the deep knowledge — and pray God we have not lost it — that there is a profound moral difference between the use of force for liberation and the use of force for conquest. You were here to liberate, not to conquer, and so you and those others did not doubt your cause. And you were right not to doubt.”
“You all knew that some things are worth dying for. One’s country is worth dying for, and democracy is worth dying for, because it’s the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man. All of you loved liberty. All of you were willing to fight tyranny, and you knew the people of your countries were behind you,” he added.
Let's compare those words to those of Donald Trump, who has called military heroes "suckers and losers."
Is that what MAGA Republicans, Trump supporters, think of those who served in our military? Are they OK with Trump's words?
And what about Ronald Reagan, who spoke eloquently about the sacrifices that helped secure America's freedoms. Republicans used to lionize Reagan, wanted to name numerous federal buildings after him. Is Reagan just a relic of the past to postmodern Republicans? Does he stand for anything in their minds? Maybe MAGAs should take a hard look at their priorities.
