Saving Private Ryan facts and fiction

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdBEyitJ7Qc

The opening scene at Omaha beach at Normandy was almost horrific; and barely avoided an x rating for the film. However, it brought home the grim reality of that day June 6th 1944 will be stuck forever in my memory. The 75th anniversary of D Day has come and gone. I am still greatly saddened by the events of that day. I was in the middle of a conversation with a colleague when the real truth about that day hit me. I suddenly burst into tears amidst looks of confusion by my colleagues. Like what’s got into her all of a sudden? Fighting back the tears I tried to explain my sudden realization. It took me a few minutes to collect myself before I could actually begin to piece words together. I tried to explain as best I could in my current state of mind. I began You remember in the Pacific Theatre doing WW 2 that our battle ships could hit Japanese targets no larger than a pill box from at least 40 miles away with pin point accuracy. That’s when it hit me. Why didn’t they use a battleship to take out the German fortifications at Normandy. An over sight, gross incompetence or something even more sinister? Having a distrusting mind like I have have. I went with sinister. Someone on the home front wanted us to lose or at least slow us down dramatically. Along with the airborne mis drops they nearly succeeded. I think Patton would have figured it out and maybe he already had but “ unfortunately he was killed in an automobile accident while still in Germany. Just to damn convenient if you ask me. Good Damn automobile Kamikazes . They tried that same stunt with me on two occasions. The first attempt I wasn’t the intended target. It was my older brother Randy who was the mark. I wasn’t even on their radar at the time. I was still a sleeper. However, I was the driver as we were rammed from behind I maintained control of the car Nearly being knocked into on coming traffic. The thought I would have been merely collateral damage. After their second attempt years later I was the target. I walked away without a scratch . However, I did let my license expire and foreshore ever driving again. Let’s see did I get off track again? I have been known to do that. Let’s see where was I? Oh yeah, we could have lost the war if Field Marshal Erwin Rommel who was known as the Desert Fox for his exploits in Africa. Rommel was a honorable man who was faced with the difficult decision to serve his country or serve the whims of a mass Murderer. His conscious won out and he decided to try and kill Hitler; and was put to death for his efforts. Please let it be known that he never joined the Nazi Party.

Back to saving private ryan the movie had serious flaws from a military perspective. First of all the military would not risk the lives of a captain like Captain Miller or a very skilled sniper like Jackson on a lowly private even if he had lost four brothers. I now quote Jackson’s character. “ It seems to me this mission is a serious misallocation Of Military resources.” He was right and in truth they wouldn’t have. Another flaw in the movies plot was the ending. There’s no way they would have fought to the death over a bridge that small; not when the Army Corp Of Engineers could whip a new one in hardly no time at all. They would have just blown the damn thing and gone.They would have to make sure the Germans were stopped from rebuilding the bridge themselves however.

Still the movie did have some redeeming values. I greatly sympathized with Captain Millers character. The mission or the man? And I have had the same problem with a trembling hand she did in the movie. I wasn’t really pleased with Upham character when he froze up and was unable to help save his comrades. My first instinct was to say he should be court marshaled for cowardice in combat. Until I realized he was never meant to be in combat in the first place.