Happy Russian Fighter's Day!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

What about people in the US who celebrate the Fourth of July who're married to UK citizens? Does that bring any problems up for them?

NO WAY! If you marry a UK citizen you have to renounce July 4...no burgers on the grill for you!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Overall, I have no issues with the Russian people but I will never honor the Red Army. The only reason they entered WWII was because Hitler broke the pact with Stalin and attacked Russia. If not for our help they may have failed in their defense. It's a tough call to say who was ultimately worse, Hitler or Stalin? Certainly Stalin wins in body count.

We did not enter the war until the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, we ignored what Germany did in Africa, Europe and the Soviet Union except for capitalizing on it to end the depression. We also ignored the horrible attrocities inflicted on our Chinese allies by Japan

We invented a reason to send you to Viet Nam to get shot. Too bad and I am sorry that happened to you and I respect your service, really I do, you should never have been in front of that Soviet made AK47, but let us not forget that the NVA and Viet Cong were also armed with over 1 million American made weapons that went missing for our aid to the Republic of South Viet Nam. You could just as easily have taken a hit from an M1 rifle or carbine.

At any rate the Soviets were doing even less to promote their agenda in Viet Nam than we were, so who is the bad guy? And in light of what happened after your sacrifice and that of many others I would say WE are the ones that messed up. And no I do not hate America, but running a war that way is a mistake.

I am keeping the gun !!!!

mox is married. i know this for a fact. now can we cease with the spanish inquisition?

Yo Quiro Taco Bell. Si man.

mox is married. i know this for a fact. now can we cease with the spanish inquisition?

Yeah but is he married to a Canadian?

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Yes, everyday. Something deserving of honoring in my judgment. How have you served your country. Oh yeah...complain and whine.

Link?

Actually, yeah, I got shot also by a kid with a Remington M700, .25-06 in a hunting accident. Thought I looked like a deer. Must have had a doe tag. At any rate, that was more than 20 years ago and my leg still hurts and I remember what kind of gun it was. I walked with crutches and braces for 14 months and was glad to do it because my oldest son was 12 at the time and was about 2 feet from me. It could have been worse

Yeppers I can understand that. And my Dad was shot by a German prisoner that had a little hideout gun, .25 Auto. (so yeah, it was a minor wound) He kept the gun AND the bullet they took out of his shin. Another soldier saw the prisoner pull out the gun and slammed the muzzle of his rifle down on the guys arm and the gun went off hitting my Dad in the shin. They took the bullet out in a field hospital. It's BENT. I still have the gun and the bullet.

People remember getting shot.

[james&olya 1,121]

I'll tell you Red Army saluters to say what you want here...but you aren't being sensitive to the fact a lot of Americans suffered and died from the actions of the Soviet Union. It's one thing to salute Russian VE Day (although I choose not to) but to honor, even casually, the Red Army is disgraceful IMO.

BTW, for the fuss budgets, whiners, teachers pets, and trouble-makers, this is not off topic...this is a direct response to to topic. And since when did topics on RUB not go off topic? "He who is without sin, cast the first stone."

The bad decisions of the leaders of the FSU do not diminish the nobility of service of those individual men who made up their military forces. As a Vietnam vet you, of all people, should understand the difference between the mistakes, lies, and deceptions used by the leaders to get us into war (Vietnam, Iraq, etc) and the nobility of service of those who gave their time, their blood, and sometimes their lives in service for their country! This is something that I think most of us can appreciate even in the face of those who we were told were our enemies. I, for one, consider the service of those who served in the red army to have been an honorable thing. And I certainly consider myself a patriot as well!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

The bad decisions of the leaders of the FSU do not diminish the nobility of service of those individual men who made up their military forces. As a Vietnam vet you, of all people, should understand the difference between the mistakes, lies, and deceptions used by the leaders to get us into war (Vietnam, Iraq, etc) and the nobility of service of those who gave their time, their blood, and sometimes their lives in service for their country! This is something that I think most of us can appreciate even in the face of those who we were told were our enemies. I, for one, consider the service of those who served in the red army to have been an honorable thing. And I certainly consider myself a patriot as well!

[visaveteran1 33]

The bad decisions of the leaders of the FSU do not diminish the nobility of service of those individual men who made up their military forces. As a Vietnam vet you, of all people, should understand the difference between the mistakes, lies, and deceptions used by the leaders to get us into war (Vietnam, Iraq, etc) and the nobility of service of those who gave their time, their blood, and sometimes their lives in service for their country! This is something that I think most of us can appreciate even in the face of those who we were told were our enemies. I, for one, consider the service of those who served in the red army to have been an honorable thing. And I certainly consider myself a patriot as well!

Does this "nobility" extend to the Nazi Germany soldiers?

[visaveteran1 33]

Unless someone has put they're boots in a combat zone, they're views on war nobility and honoring the enemy is an armchair exercise. In other words, they have no sense of nobility or the truth of war.

There's a "light bulb" joke I like to use sometimes. "Question: In Vietnam, how many US infantrymen does it take to screw in a light bulb?" "Answer: You don't know because you weren't over there!"

Nothing is noble in war. What is present is necessity.

Edited February 27, 2012 by visaveteran1

[slim 1,514]

I think this year is going to be a little slim since we're so close to the visa issuance.

A little slim? No way! I pull and pray every time.

I never even congratulate Russian/Ukrainian guys unless they served in the army. It's not men's day, it's more about military people.

My MIL congratulated me on this day. "Tell your husband good job for serving in the military."

So, I took it as more of a veterans day than anything. My wife explained that it's now a modern version of "mens day" since all men have to serve and womens day is coming up. "We make small present so man must pay back on Woman's day."

A celebration of the Soviet Union's military is not about men in general...no more than our Veterans Day is about "men"

Since ALL (well, most, anyway) men are conscripted, it has become a mens holiday in more modern times.

The best description of the Soviet Union has always been Evil Empire. And there is the very evocative term "Iron Curtain" to describe this empire. The Red Army has enforced labor camps and performed atrocities. They killed the Czar and his whole innocent family. Lowly dogs are better.

And the US is what? The bringer of peace and democracy to the world?

I've had boots on the ground in several countries around the world and I can assure you the last thing I was there to do was bring peace.

I remember your one liner about it

And I remember the picture of the hot brunette sitting on the suitcase with her blonde friend standing over her....

That one definitely needs to come back!

What about the Russians invading Afghanistan in the 1980s?

Are you honestly typing that with a straight face?

The magnitude of evil that flowed from 80 years of the Soviet Union is beyond measure. The US reacts to communism and sometimes it was ugly...but in our last 80 years, we've done far more good than bad.

I guess it's all relative. One man's freedom fighter is another man's tyrant.

[visaveteran1 33]

Views on this are generationally driven IMO. Many of you clearly didn't live through the 50s and 60s. And it was not so "cool" to hate America and kiss up to our common enemies in the 50s when my value system was set.

I'm done with this one.

[mox 298]

mox is married. i know this for a fact. now can we cease with the spanish inquisition?

Goddamit Charles, now why did you have to go and say that? There's not enough tai chi in the world that's gonna help VV un-asplode his head now! I've been purposely keeping this from him because I care!!!

Views on this are generationally driven IMO. Many of you clearly didn't live through the 50s and 60s. And it was not so "cool" to hate America and kiss up to our common enemies in the 50s when my value system was set.

Yeah, back in the "Cool to love America or Else" McCarthy era and oh yeah, separate drinking fountains for whites and "coloreds!" Yeah, good times if you were white and mindless.

Don't worry VV, those days are coming back. Unfortunately you'll need brown skin and worhip the dude that's not Jeebus to enjoy them to their fullest, but the "brown scare" (and I don't mean Rick Santorum) is coming to a detention facility near you. Don't worry, you're safe as long as you keep waving that flag.

[mox 298]

This WILL be my last post to this thread.

No it won't.

[Brad and Vika 129]

Locked for review. Based on what I am reading, probably locked permanently - with several posts containing personal attacks and baiting removed.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

After review this topic is remaining locked for multiple TOS violations.