What a German soldier of WWII thought of US soldiers.

[feudist]

If You Survive by George Wilson. He goes in at D-Day plus 30 and then fights all the way in to Germany as an Infantry Lieutenant.

One thing he really shows is how the U.S. was constantly on the attack-against prepared fighting positions(The Hedgerows, The Breakout, The Hurtgen, The

Siegfried Line etc). This led to a meatgrinder for the Infantry and constant understaffing. As a Second Lieutenant, he was soon in charge of a "Company"

of 60-80 men-mostly newbies. The U.S. had vastly undermanned the Infantry. This led to hurried stripping of non combat units of men, giving them a brief

training session in Infantry tactics and tossing them willy nilly into the front line.The German's doctrinal superiority with machine guns meant that nearly every

step forward cost blood. Without organic mortars, Battalion artillery and to a lesser extent, Airpower, the Germans would have bled us dry.

Wilson thought Lieutenants should be trained in operating at 50% or less strength, and 2 echelons up in rank.

[Duelist]

If You Survive by George Wilson. He goes in at D-Day plus 30 and then fights all the way in to Germany as an Infantry Lieutenant.

One thing he really shows is how the U.S. was constantly on the attack-against prepared fighting positions(The Hedgerows, The Breakout, The Hurtgen, The

Siegfried Line etc). This led to a meatgrinder for the Infantry and constant understaffing. As a Second Lieutenant, he was soon in charge of a "Company"

of 60-80 men-mostly newbies. The U.S. had vastly undermanned the Infantry. This led to hurried stripping of non combat units of men, giving them a brief

training session in Infantry tactics and tossing them willy nilly into the front line.The German's doctrinal superiority with machine guns meant that nearly every

step forward cost blood. Without organic mortars, Battalion artillery and to a lesser extent, Airpower, the Germans would have bled us dry.

Wilson thought Lieutenants should be trained in operating at 50% or less strength, and 2 echelons up in rank.

Grandpa was an infantry LT, went in at D-Day plus like 2 or 7 or something. Constant fighting, lots of casualties. Got wounded several times. He didn’t talk about it much, except for the rare funny anecdote. Came home, raised ten kids.

[Cheap Shot]

Some outstanding books I've recently read about WWI and WWII

https://www.amazon.com/Could-Never-B...gateway&sr=8-1

I Could Never Be So Lucky Again
by James Doolittle (Author), Carroll V. Glines (Author)

"General Doolittle is a giant of the twentieth century. He did it all. As a stunt pilot, he thrilled the world with his aerial acrobatics. As a scientist, he pioneered the development of modern aviation technology.
During World War II, he served his country as a fearless and innovative air warrior, organizing and leading the devastating raid against Japan immortalized in the film Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo. Now, for the first time, here is his life story — modest, revealing, and candid as only Doolittle himself can tell it. "


https://www.amazon.com/His-Fathers-S...gateway&sr=8-1

The story of Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., a fortunate son who proved himself on the battlefields of two world wars.

"General Omar Bradley said of him, “I have never known a braver man or a more devoted soldier.” But for much of his life, Theodore Roosevelt’s son Ted seemed born to live in his father’s shadow. With the same wide smile, winning charm, and vigorous demeanor, Ted possessed limitless potential, with even the White House within his reach.

In the First World War, Ted braved gunfire and gas attacks in France to lead his unit into battle. Yet even after returning home a hero, he was unable to meet the expectations of a public that wanted a man just like his father. A diplomat, writer, and man of great adventure, Ted remained frustrated by his lack of success in the world of politics, witnessing instead the rise of his cousin, Franklin, to the office that had once seemed his for the taking.

Then, with World War II looming, Ted reenlisted. In his mid-fifties with a gimpy leg and a heart condition, he was well past his prime, but his insistence to be in the thick of combat proved a vital asset. Paired with the irascible Terry de la Mesa Allen Sr., Ted soon distinguished himself as a front-line general in a campaign that often brought him into conflict with another hard fighter, George Patton. On D-Day, Ted became the oldest soldier and the only general in the Allied forces to storm the beach in the first wave, hobbling across the sand with his cane in one hand and a pistol in the other. His valor and leadership on Utah Beach became the stuff of legends—and earned him the Medal of Honor."



https://www.amazon.com/Woman-No-Impo...s%2C274&sr=8-1

Woman of No Importance: The Untold Story of the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II

"In this fast-paced biography Sonia Purnell tells the story of Virginia Hall, an American spy who worked undercover in France during World War II for Britain’s Special Operations Executive (SOE). Hall’s story is a surprising one: she began her life in the United States with a mother who wished for the perfect debutante. Hall, however, was more comfortable studying languages, and found herself living abroad and working for the State Department when she lost half her leg in a hunting accident. This setback didn’t slow down Hall at all: she named her wooden prosthetic Cuthbert, drove ambulances in France, and was recruited by a recently formed SOE as a spy in occupied France. Hall posed as a newspaper reporter, enlisting civilians for the French Resistance and establishing an underground network of allies and becoming one of the most important spies during World War II. Purnell does an amazing job bringing Hall’s exploits to life and has crafted a gripping and cinematic biography for an unsung hero of wartime espionage. --Alison Walker"

Three examples (among many) of the greatest generation. We would not be here without them.

[Drang]

If You Survive by George Wilson. He goes in at D-Day plus 30 and then fights all the way in to Germany as an Infantry Lieutenant.

One thing he really shows is how the U.S. was constantly on the attack-against prepared fighting positions(The Hedgerows, The Breakout, The Hurtgen, The

Siegfried Line etc). This led to a meatgrinder for the Infantry and constant understaffing.

And, as Steven Zaloga shows in AmazonSmile: Armored Thunderbolt: The U.S. Army Sherman in World War II, is also the real reason we think the M4 Sherman was a piece of shit deathtrap
Could it have been better?
Sure.
Would we have been better off equipped with Pershings, and relegating Shermans to specialized uses?
Probably.
Would being equipped with Pershings as of D+1 have meant no dead tankers?
No. They still would have spent most of the period June 1944-May 1945 attacking prepared positions. On the rare occasions we were defending against German assaults, the kill ratios were reversed.
Even with Pershings as the main battle tank, attacking against prepared positions would have been costly.

[Pistol Pete 10]

My 2 cents as a "citizen soldier". I was drafted, did Vietnam 67/68 with the 1/1 Cav as a scout. The job as I saw it( and I haven't changed my mind ) was to get the job done. We were aggressive soldiers. I thought we would go into North Vietnam and take care of business, never happened. Wars are run by politicians and if your boss don't want to fight to win you don't win. LBJ had no intention of winning the Vietnam war. I do not know what his reasoning was but it was not to win. We could have bombed Ho into submission in short order. Yes, I'm still bitter, there are 50,000 plus names on the wall, a terrible waste and testament to Lyndon B. Johnson. It doesn't matter how good our troops are. Leadership is everything, good leadership will win wars otherwise you get a Vietnam.

[feudist]

And, as Steven Zaloga shows in AmazonSmile: Armored Thunderbolt: The U.S. Army Sherman in World War II, is also the real reason we think the M4 Sherman was a piece of shit deathtrap
Could it have been better?
Sure.
Would we have been better off equipped with Pershings, and relegating Shermans to specialized uses?
Probably.
Would being equipped with Pershings as of D+1 have meant no dead tankers?
No. They still would have spent most of the period June 1944-May 1945 attacking prepared positions. On the rare occasions we were defending against German assaults, the kill ratios were reversed.
Even with Pershings as the main battle tank, attacking against prepared positions would have been costly.

Exactly.

The general rule is that an attacker must have a 3-1 numerical advantage to dislodge prepared defenses...we never had near that.

The so vaunted Wermacht attacked without warning and swept through Europe. Then they stopped in Russia. From then on they fought defensively,

with interior lines. Postwar they talked a lot of shit, and historians ate it up(Liddell-Hart I'm looking at you.)

There is a book called When the Odds Were Even about the campaign in the Vosges. The terrain and weather stripped away our air cover and heaviest artillery.

Results: the Seventh Army whipped an entrenched and numerically superior German army.

[GardoneVT]

LBJ had no intention of winning the Vietnam war. I do not know what his reasoning was but it was not to win. We could have bombed Ho into submission in short order. Yes, I'm still bitter, there are 50,000 plus names on the wall, a terrible waste and testament to Lyndon B. Johnson. It doesn't matter how good our troops are. Leadership is everything, good leadership will win wars otherwise you get a Vietnam.

Not every war is fought to win. It is an unfortunate but pragmatic economic reality that the defense sector employs a lot of voters- and defense businesses don’t make money unless someone buys their product.

In the words of Ricardo Tubbs -

“We can close each other’s eyes real fast “ (meaning win a war quickly) - “but then ain’t nobody gonna make any money.”


Returning to subject :”Who Won the Battle of Britain” by HR Allen both directly cites the leadership failures which got a lot of English Airmen killed during that campaign, and points out the organizational mistakes which prolonged that conflict. Many of these mistakes I see the USAF making now ......

[Drang]

LBJ had no intention of winning the Vietnam war. I do not know what his reasoning was but it was not to win.

Because the only way to "win" that war would have been to invade North Vietnam, and that would have brought the USSR and PRC into it, the PRC would have gone for the ROC, north Korea would have invaded the ROK, and quite possibly the Warsaw Pact would have rolled west...

No satisfactory outcomes there, wouldn't you say?

OTOH, if the (democrat-controlled) congress had agreed to emergency funding to re-supply South Vietnam in 1975, possibly including air strikes, then maybe the whole thing wouldn't seem so futile in retrospect. I dunno, think I should the little old Vietnamese guy down the street...?

[Coal Train]

Fighter bombers and massive artillery also helped to defeat them, but the German Army of WWII was an extremely effective and efficient machine, and without overwhelming air and artillery power I'm not sure we would have beaten them.

The Wehrmacht was many things but efficient was not one of them. Their individual soldiers and small units were extremely capable but their logistical supply systems was a complete disaster at many levels.

[Joe in PNG]

The Wehrmacht was many things but efficient was not one of them. Their individual soldiers and small units were extremely capable but their logistical supply systems was a complete disaster at many levels.

See also "The Forgotten Soldier" or "The Wages of Destruction" for more details.

But yeah, logistically, Nazi Germany was (like most totalitarian states) a mess of corruption and petty kingdom building, with GROFAZ sticking in his utterly uninformed opinions at every possible opportunity. Stories of Wehrmacht clerks refusing to release supplies & ammo before a base is about to be overrun, because of a lack of proper orders abound.