I Ought To Post This One Every November 11th | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: Alex J. Ortolano is a former U.S. Army Medical Evacuation Helicopter Pilot in Vietnam and now a patient observer of life.

    We are pleased to announce that you will be able to find Alex here at BCN or at his blogspot here.

    First Posting...

         The Last Day of World War One

    The day humankind proved it is not too smart ... again.

    When did the First World War end? Many of you just said to yourselves...The 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month of 1918. It sounds like that was scripted by Hollywood.

    The most awful part of the story is that the armistice was signed at 5am on November 11th but was not effective until 11am and the fighting continued for those last six hours between 5am and 11am.

    After the war, in a Congressional Hearing, General Pershing blamed Marshal Foch but many said that, at the time, Pershing appeared to be gung ho about the last assaults.

    These were full frontal assaults as vicious as any on any other day of the war.

    The Germans were shocked when the assaults started but defended against them with all that they had.

    During these six hours, thousands of men were wounded or killed fighting for land on which they could have casually strolled smoking a cigarette at 11:01am on the 11th Day of the 11th Month of 1918.

    I wish I were kidding you.

    Smartfella


    Second Posting...

         No Foolishness, As My Mind Wanders Through This One

    After you read below, I will invite you to ask yourself a very sobering question.

    I published "The last day of World War One" commentary on April 23, 2008. It was about how WWI continued for six hours after the armistice was signed at 5 A.M. on November 11, 1918.

    At present I am reading a book by Joseph E. Persico entitled 11th Month, 11th Day, 11th Hour. The quoted excerpt that follows is from page 3 of this book...

    "The captain read the message twice. It must be a mistake. True, the night before, the U.S. 26th Division had received Field Order 105 to attack at 9:30 this morning. But at 9:10, just as they had been checking their ammunition and fixing their bayonets, word came that the armistice had been signed. Hostilities were to cease at 11 A.M. The attack had been cancelled. And here was another message telling the captain that the assault had been reinstated. His watch showed 10:30. A half hour remained in the war."

    Now for the sobering question ... If you were this captain, what would you have done?

    Would I kid u?

    Smartfella

      Foolishness...Or Is It? ... Where Silliness & Common Sense come together to make Funny.