Please, God, especially on this special day, we humbly ask that You continue to bless America and our service personnel and their families, who wake up each morning willing to give their lives in defense of peace and freedom. Amen.
"Omaha Beach in Normandy, France—one of the most sacred places on earth, where bravery, sacrifice, and the fight for freedom came ashore on June 6, 1944."
I visited Normandy in 2004 and, too, was emotionally overcome with the mental image of that day and the price our youth paid to push back on the evil of Nazi Germany. My father was instrumental in the development of the troop carrying gliders that brought soldiers further inland that day. Therefore, I felt somewhat connected to it enough to pick up a well worn pebble from the beach. It remains on a book shelf in my office. Looking at it reminds me of that horrific day. Lest we not forgot.
Thank you for your 2 Hallowed Grounds commentary. My Dad was part of the Pathfinders B 17 group lighting the way for the heavier armed 17s. Attrition rates were extremely high for his group, but he came back alive w a wife and son (me) to follow on the Queen Mary now in Long Beach. My brother William Block wasn’t so lucky dying after a week on point at the height of the Tet Offensive.
We get hardly any coverage of Vietnam any more and even D’Day gets cursory acknowledgment. Read stats where the majority of the country doesn’t know the difference twixt Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day either. Make that almost 75% of Gen X
I have a copy of that iconic landing craft photo hanging in my office. When I need a jolt of reality and perspective I take a look at it. The caption on my copy reads: "Harden the $%#! Up". I thank God for those brave souls on that beach so far from home.
Thanks Jim, this is an important message. They had a special ceremony for my group at Normandy and I can still hear their playing taps. The lyrics "day is done, gone the sun..." are haunting.
D-day brings up a different memory for me. When I first learned of it in my youth, I formed an opinion that has guided my life.
Fight war, not wars.
I understood the need to fight in WWII.
Then I learned about Vietnam.
I did not understand the need to fight that war.
I solidified my position on Fight War, not wars.
I will never begrudge a person who dodged the Vietnam draft. I understand the need for the WWII draft and those who dodged it, but to me, it was something that a person had to do.
Much like you, I am fortunate. In my life, I am a direct descendant of fighters in the American Revolution, War of 1812, Civil War, WWI, WW2, Korea and Vietnam. All but my father survived the war.
The photo of the cemetery in this article reminded me of visiting with my wife and daughter and parents the cemetery in Liege where my Uncle Joe is buried with other soldiers killed at the Battle of the Bulge. It was a tearful moment for my parents who remembered receiving word of his death in a German prisoner of war camp. I am not sure actually when he arrived in Europe, and whether he was part of D-Day, but I do know that the Americans suffered more casualties at the Battle of the Bulge than they did at the Landing on D-Day--in fact the Americans suffered more casualties at the Battle of the Bulge than any other battle in World War II. We have a war raging right now in Europe between Ukraine and Russia. One of President Trump's virtues is his utter hatred of warfare, and I commend his efforts to try to stop the killing. His approach in my opinion is the right one--put pressure on, but avoid escalation of the conflict into a worldwide calamity. It has that potential. D-Day was a great military success for the United State and its allies, but most of all it is a reminder that war is hell, and as we try to maintain peace in the world, it is vital to have a thorough understanding of its horrible cost in human lives.
Another lesson learned is to avoid appeasing warmongers and to intervene early in order to avoid something much worse later on. If Europe and the US had confronted Hitler after he invaded Czech Republic, WW 11 might have been avoided.
Thank you, Jim, for the poignant reflection and remembrance of June 6, 1944. Upon graduating from Brooklyn Tech (Yes!) in 1942, Dad enlisted in the Army, intending to train in the Army Corps of Engineers. Following D-Day though, engineers were not needed so much as infantry, so in August, he shipped out aboard a Liberty Ship, landing at Cherbourg, to join thousands of other GI's to slog and fight and die their way across France, Belgium, and into Germany. The sacrifices at Utah and Omaha beaches made that final tidal wave push possible and at great cost. We will always remember.
Visiting the site was an amazing experience. My father was in the Navy, was aboard a hospital ship serving the troops in the South Pacific. He could never speak of what he saw. It is important to remember these days.
Thank you for this tearful essay remembrance of a time we will never forget. My late husband was drafted into the army and was fortunate to be sent to Europe. I was born on May 11, 1945 in Berlin to a Dutch father and a Polish mother. Raised in the Netherlands, we immigrated in 1957 because the Soviets were taking over Europe. Will aggression and wars ever end?
Also part of this sacred time space for remembering, June 4, but in 1942 - The Battle of Midway - the critical turning point in the War in the Pacific. Wave after wave of our brave fliers and ships meeting their end without hesitation in those few hours on June 4, leaving four enemy carriers sunk in that devastating Pacific War turn-around.
Finally the course of the Pacific War was also heading to its conclusion, but only after even more bloody slogs to end the entirety of WWII, over a year after D-Day, finally in August 1945.. Leaving America with both great sacrifices, as well as the moral custodians of real weapons we now know can destroy all life on planet earth. We stood up, we fought and we remain forever humbled.
We War Babies, born out of this era, are also on the last links of our own mortal coils. Like the Greek God Janus, our lives have always looked in two directions - tempered by the searing past and experiences that our parents faced during the Great Depression and willingness to serve in the global conflict of WWII. But also forced to also look into a future that may not have been what we would have chosen out of that unique crucible.
Going to Normandy is on my bucket list. One very small correction: The only Major League team to play God Bless America in addition to Take Me Out to the Ball Game during the 7th inning stretch for every game is the NY Yankees. They started doing it after 9/11 and continued it thereafter. It would be nice if all other teams did it as well.
Thanks for the article, Jim. I had the opportunity to visit Utah Beach with my father just after the 30th anniversary of D-Day. We retraced some of the route his unit took during the war, including Bastogne and Remagen. We also visited the American Cemetery in Luxembourg where Patton is buried and the St. Mihiel WWI cemetery outside Thiaucourt, France, not far from where my grandfather was wounded in action. My father always referred to the wars as "World War, Part 1" and "World War, Part 2."
Truly “the greatest generation “. God bless them one and all
Please, God, especially on this special day, we humbly ask that You continue to bless America and our service personnel and their families, who wake up each morning willing to give their lives in defense of peace and freedom. Amen.
I read this article titled "Remembering D-Day" by Jim Buckley
Here are posts from X for D-Day June 6, 2025 >
"For many young men, this was their last day at the beach and for that sacrifice I am forever grateful."
https://x.com/sanderling68/status/1930760876153549138
Two Brother's Killed on Omaha Beach
https://x.com/kershaw_alex/status/1930663237260906816
"Omaha Beach in Normandy, France—one of the most sacred places on earth, where bravery, sacrifice, and the fight for freedom came ashore on June 6, 1944."
https://x.com/walkamongheroes/status/1930574833969995778
"Dog Green Sector, Omaha Beach, the deadliest place on D Day. 102 from 180 men in A Company 116th died here. @WWIIMemorial"
https://x.com/kershaw_alex/status/1930897449045872982
"He stood at salute on Omaha Beach for hours facing the cold wind."
https://x.com/ellie_bufkin/status/1930925921805942898
"All Gave Some, Some Gave All D-Day 1944, We WILL Remember Them"
https://x.com/ActivePatriotUK/status/1930898586385969458
Howard Walther Member of a Military Family
PS1 - SECDEV Pete Hegseth. At Omaha Beach today>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_SKOsJ4OH8&ab_channel=FoxNewsClips
I visited Normandy in 2004 and, too, was emotionally overcome with the mental image of that day and the price our youth paid to push back on the evil of Nazi Germany. My father was instrumental in the development of the troop carrying gliders that brought soldiers further inland that day. Therefore, I felt somewhat connected to it enough to pick up a well worn pebble from the beach. It remains on a book shelf in my office. Looking at it reminds me of that horrific day. Lest we not forgot.
Thank you for your 2 Hallowed Grounds commentary. My Dad was part of the Pathfinders B 17 group lighting the way for the heavier armed 17s. Attrition rates were extremely high for his group, but he came back alive w a wife and son (me) to follow on the Queen Mary now in Long Beach. My brother William Block wasn’t so lucky dying after a week on point at the height of the Tet Offensive.
We get hardly any coverage of Vietnam any more and even D’Day gets cursory acknowledgment. Read stats where the majority of the country doesn’t know the difference twixt Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day either. Make that almost 75% of Gen X
Dr. Jim Block
Jim-
I have a copy of that iconic landing craft photo hanging in my office. When I need a jolt of reality and perspective I take a look at it. The caption on my copy reads: "Harden the $%#! Up". I thank God for those brave souls on that beach so far from home.
Thanks Jim, this is an important message. They had a special ceremony for my group at Normandy and I can still hear their playing taps. The lyrics "day is done, gone the sun..." are haunting.
Jim,
D-day brings up a different memory for me. When I first learned of it in my youth, I formed an opinion that has guided my life.
Fight war, not wars.
I understood the need to fight in WWII.
Then I learned about Vietnam.
I did not understand the need to fight that war.
I solidified my position on Fight War, not wars.
I will never begrudge a person who dodged the Vietnam draft. I understand the need for the WWII draft and those who dodged it, but to me, it was something that a person had to do.
Much like you, I am fortunate. In my life, I am a direct descendant of fighters in the American Revolution, War of 1812, Civil War, WWI, WW2, Korea and Vietnam. All but my father survived the war.
Fight war, not wars.
June 6, 1944 "D-Day" as the center piece of Allied destruction of the German / Japanese power grab.
At the same time Burma, West China (Nationalists), Midway and the "Slot" were grinding away the Japanese military and the infamous Bataan Death March.
Pause and reflect.
The photo of the cemetery in this article reminded me of visiting with my wife and daughter and parents the cemetery in Liege where my Uncle Joe is buried with other soldiers killed at the Battle of the Bulge. It was a tearful moment for my parents who remembered receiving word of his death in a German prisoner of war camp. I am not sure actually when he arrived in Europe, and whether he was part of D-Day, but I do know that the Americans suffered more casualties at the Battle of the Bulge than they did at the Landing on D-Day--in fact the Americans suffered more casualties at the Battle of the Bulge than any other battle in World War II. We have a war raging right now in Europe between Ukraine and Russia. One of President Trump's virtues is his utter hatred of warfare, and I commend his efforts to try to stop the killing. His approach in my opinion is the right one--put pressure on, but avoid escalation of the conflict into a worldwide calamity. It has that potential. D-Day was a great military success for the United State and its allies, but most of all it is a reminder that war is hell, and as we try to maintain peace in the world, it is vital to have a thorough understanding of its horrible cost in human lives.
Another lesson learned is to avoid appeasing warmongers and to intervene early in order to avoid something much worse later on. If Europe and the US had confronted Hitler after he invaded Czech Republic, WW 11 might have been avoided.
Thank you, Jim, for the poignant reflection and remembrance of June 6, 1944. Upon graduating from Brooklyn Tech (Yes!) in 1942, Dad enlisted in the Army, intending to train in the Army Corps of Engineers. Following D-Day though, engineers were not needed so much as infantry, so in August, he shipped out aboard a Liberty Ship, landing at Cherbourg, to join thousands of other GI's to slog and fight and die their way across France, Belgium, and into Germany. The sacrifices at Utah and Omaha beaches made that final tidal wave push possible and at great cost. We will always remember.
Visiting the site was an amazing experience. My father was in the Navy, was aboard a hospital ship serving the troops in the South Pacific. He could never speak of what he saw. It is important to remember these days.
Thank you for this tearful essay remembrance of a time we will never forget. My late husband was drafted into the army and was fortunate to be sent to Europe. I was born on May 11, 1945 in Berlin to a Dutch father and a Polish mother. Raised in the Netherlands, we immigrated in 1957 because the Soviets were taking over Europe. Will aggression and wars ever end?
Also part of this sacred time space for remembering, June 4, but in 1942 - The Battle of Midway - the critical turning point in the War in the Pacific. Wave after wave of our brave fliers and ships meeting their end without hesitation in those few hours on June 4, leaving four enemy carriers sunk in that devastating Pacific War turn-around.
Finally the course of the Pacific War was also heading to its conclusion, but only after even more bloody slogs to end the entirety of WWII, over a year after D-Day, finally in August 1945.. Leaving America with both great sacrifices, as well as the moral custodians of real weapons we now know can destroy all life on planet earth. We stood up, we fought and we remain forever humbled.
We War Babies, born out of this era, are also on the last links of our own mortal coils. Like the Greek God Janus, our lives have always looked in two directions - tempered by the searing past and experiences that our parents faced during the Great Depression and willingness to serve in the global conflict of WWII. But also forced to also look into a future that may not have been what we would have chosen out of that unique crucible.
Going to Normandy is on my bucket list. One very small correction: The only Major League team to play God Bless America in addition to Take Me Out to the Ball Game during the 7th inning stretch for every game is the NY Yankees. They started doing it after 9/11 and continued it thereafter. It would be nice if all other teams did it as well.
Thanks for the article, Jim. I had the opportunity to visit Utah Beach with my father just after the 30th anniversary of D-Day. We retraced some of the route his unit took during the war, including Bastogne and Remagen. We also visited the American Cemetery in Luxembourg where Patton is buried and the St. Mihiel WWI cemetery outside Thiaucourt, France, not far from where my grandfather was wounded in action. My father always referred to the wars as "World War, Part 1" and "World War, Part 2."