ACG WebOps (26 May 2007)
Welcome to WebOps, Armchair General’s weekly recon of links to military history news, articles, websites, and more. James Dietz unveils a new painting at Fort Polk, Ancestry.com releases 90 million war records to the public, and the 2007 James E. Colby Military History Award winners were all announced this past week, along with so much more. Clicks away!
News
WWII Hero Finally Receives Silver Star – Military.com
Alderson, 80, will receive the Silver Star at 10:30 a.m. Sunday in the Hall of Valor at the Soldiers and Sailors Military Museum, 4141 Fifth Ave., North Oakland. It is the fourth-highest honor bestowed by the country.
{default}Military artist unveils painting of 509th Infantry at Fort Polk – Leesville Daily Leader
The 1st Battalion, 509th Infantry of Fort Polk held an unveiling ceremony for the painting on Friday, May 18 at the 1/509th Inf. Memorial Huff Hall, where it will remain on display.
Japan WWII sailors stay in wreck – BBC NEWS
The bodies of two Japanese sailors who attacked Sydney harbour during World War II are to be left in their wrecked submarine, Australian officials say.
Making History – The Frontlines
On June 14, the GLBT Historical Society in San Francisco will open its new exhibit, "Out Ranks," the nation’s first historical exhibit on the experiences of gays in the military.
Ceremonies, parades to honor local military veterans – The Sentinel Online
The Shippensburg community honors its military veterans in three separate ceremonies Monday and a Memorial Day parade will march down King Street beginning at 2 p.m.
Fire devastates Cutty Sark – Guardian Unlimited
Fire today ravaged the Cutty Sark, causing extensive damage to the world’s last remaining tea clipper and one of Britain’s most important maritime treasures.
Military Intelligence — Volunteers race to record war tales – The Frederick News-Post Online
Organizers are rushing to beat the clock as more than 1,000 World War II veterans die each day — many whose memories and war stories are lost as well. An upcoming collection of Maryland veterans telling their stories of war will feature several local men.
On Thursday, Ancestry.com unveils more than 90 million U.S. war records from the first English settlement at Jamestown in 1607 through the Vietnam War’s end in 1975. The collection includes the names and gravestone details of 3.5 million deceased U.S. soldiers, including 2,000 who died in Iraq.
Boat tour showcases New York City’s military history – WBOC-TV 16
NEW YORK (AP) – From the Revolutionary War to 9-11, New York City has a long military history, and a new boat tour of New York Harbor showcases it.
Military history group to sell hangar – mlive.com
GRAND RAPIDS — With money woes and plans for a $14 million museum in tatters, a local military history group is putting its hangar at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport up for sale at $1.75 million.
Canada’s New Government announces support for local military museum – Prime Minister of Canada
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, along with Defence Minister Gordon O’Connor, today announced that Canada’s New Government will contribute $5 million to The Military Museums in Calgary, Alberta. Speaking at a fundraiser for the museum, the Prime Minister spoke of the importance of supporting such local projects throughout the country.
Articles
Air Show gets lift from history – The Leaf Chronicle
The Week of the Eagles Air Show featured demonstrations and re-enactments that showcased the history of the 101st Airborne Division.
National Guard recruiter tapes soldier stories of older veterans – Waynesville Daily Guide
FULTON — It was the loss of a close friend, a Korean War veteran, that led Jeff Young, program director for Presbyterian Manor in Fulton, and Missouri National Guard recruiter Sgt. 1st Class Dave Strong, of Fulton, to think about videotaping what they call "living history."
Brick by brick, war memorial will be built – Bladen Journal
In a way, soldiers are like the bricks of this country. They form the foundation of freedom and build strong walls to keep enemies away from our homeland. So it is only fitting that a detachment of Bladen County veterans is building a brick memorial in front of the Bladenboro Historical Building.
The war on military history – Townhall.com
America as we know it might not exist without the battles of Saratoga and Yorktown, without Gettysburg and Antietam. The world the United States shaped so decisively in the 20th century might have looked different if it weren’t for Normandy and Midway.
Books – Movies – TV
2007 William E. Colby Military History Awards – CARL Book Beacon
The William E. Colby Military Writers’ Symposium honors fiction and non-fiction writers for stories in military history and intelligence operations. The 2007 awardees were Jon Glusman for "Conduct under Fire" and Ian Toll for his epic "Six frigates : the epic history of the founding of the U.S. Navy."
Blogs – Netcasts
Shamil Basayev-Chechnya’s Bin Laden (2) – Military History Podcast
Shamil Basayev became involved in the nearby Dagestan War after he lost his bid for president. This prompted Vladimir Putin to launch the Second Chechen War, which successfully reclaimed Grozny for the Russians. Since then, Chechnya has been officially under Russian control, but there is still a strong insurgency.
Everyone knows you can’t make a World War I game – Investigations of a Dog
Still catching up on things that I meant to write weeks ago. Last month there was a post at Glod’n’Epix about First World War computer games. Esther linked to this Guardian article about a planned WWI FPS and was rightly critical of its assumptions that there aren’t any WWI games and the spurious reasons for that. As she points out, there are loads of First World War games, but I’m going to attack from a different angle.
World War II: Bismarck Sunk! – about.com: Military History
May 27, 1941 – After a five day chase across the North Atlantic, British naval forces sink the German battleship Bismarck(left).
Short Stirling – Military History Blog on the Web
The Short Stirling was the first of the four engined "heavies" to enter RAF service, but was also the first to be withdrawn.
Pro-Union Southerners – World History Blog
I was surprised to read about the 1st Alabama Cavalry today. This unit was from the deep south and it fought for the Union during the American Civil War. I had no idea that such a unit ever existed!
Bad ACW history: an explanation – Civil War Bookshelf
The magazine Nature has gone a long way toward explaining why Civil War history (and other pop history) is so awful:
Military History Museum – Mango shake, anyone??
Saturday, on a sudden urge to be a tourist, I went to the Military History Museum. It is a couple blocks from the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, and across the street from a big statue of Lenin, with flowers and people playing badminton and people doing tai chi and ladies selling bananas and teenagers making out while perched on their motorbikes. Just like everywhere else in Hanoi.
Podcast: New York’s Military History – The New York Times (audio)
This is Fleet Week in New York. The city is teeming with men and women in spiffy uniforms, which means that romantics — gay or straight — who’ve been raised on old war movies can sidle up to any bar in midtown and finally get their chance to say: “Buy this sailor a drink.â€
Videos
American History Lesson – My Nero
WebOps is a weekly report linking to military history news and articles published in mainstream online media. Excerpts are taken exactly as they are on the noted source websites; quotation marks are not used. The hyperlinks are added by me as I can find them. Please visit the Armchair Forums to discuss the topics in WebOps and much more!
Stay Alert, Stay Alive!
Jim H. Moreno
