This day in history - June 6, 1944: The Allied invasion of Normandy

By Richard K. Barry

Having been born just over a decade after the end of WWII, I grew up hearing stories about the war and watching documentaries like The World at War and Victory at Sea. I suspect that few of my generation would be unable to identify June 6, 1944 as the day of the Allied invasion of Normandy, which began and essential part of the bloody process of defeating the Nazis on Continental Europe.

The declaration of war in Europe, the bombing of Pearl Harbour, VE-Day, and VJ-Day all occurred on dates many of us still recall.

As I've remarked before, WWII has been called the last good war and it does seem to have been the last war about which so many of us took any significant interest in learning the history.

I don't exactly know what it means that so few of us have taken the time to learn much about our current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Are there likely to be remembered dates and battles that will be significant to people in 10, 20, 50 years? (Aside, of course, from 9/11, which is different).

It's not my intention to glorify war, it's only that the costs are so high that if we paid more attention we'd be in a better position to judge if the sacrifices are worth it. It is surely not something we should take for granted.

(Cross-posted at Lippmann's Ghost.)