Grandaughter

[Python 357]

View attachment 195540
Family sending her off, her brother and Mom and Dad.

I thought Mom was a second daughter until i read the caption...

 

[anotherbob]

View attachment 195540
Family sending her off, her brother and Mom and Dad.

weird how much the dad looks like he needs a beard. And I am not an all men should have beards kind of guy. (more a crazy big side burns kind of guy myself.). But it really feels missing here.

 

[gubbyduffer]

Well written Sir, we beat them bastards didn't we!

I stayed away from the forum for a couple of days following my post.I didn't know how it would be taken. Tentatively looking back in this evening. My post was heart felt and impulsive but I am glad things have not descended into insult, because at the end of the day we enjoy fine tobacco and enjoy a nice pipe. I can fly off the handle, but its interesting gaining a perspective from across the pond, and I truly hope your granddaughter enjoys Europe. I travelled around the globe in my early 20's and felt it was the making of me. If interested here is my grandad upon his return.

 

[jpberg]

I take massive issue with this. I seriously hope you are not suggesting Europeans should visit a Normandy cemetery to gain a sense of gratitude towards an American saviour. Firstly, I am sure Russia would take umbrage this. Slaughter on an epic scale on the Eastern front was pivotal in deciding the outcome of the war. Also my own grandfather fought for the Scots Guards, and was captured fighting against Romell in Africa. He spent years in, by his account, a lice ridden POW camp in Poland whilst my gran was back in Scotland praying daily for his safe return. I dont know if you are aware, but in Scotland and across the UK for example, pretty much every town and village has a war memorial which generally has the names of every fallen soldier from WWI and WWII from that town. Often entire families are listed. Every year, events commemorate all those that served through sombre reflection at these memorials on 11th November (same as your Veterans Day) or the nearest Sunday, called Remembrance Sunday. We all have a 2 minute silence at 11am. I imagine you may as well. I think of my grandad. Hundreds of millions of people from across the globe at some point may commemorate relatives that fought and died, whether French, Russian, British, Indian, Canadian, Australian American, and plenty of other countries. I am thankful for America's belated entry to the war following Pearl Harbour a full 18 months after British and European troops were fighting and dying on beaches in Dunkirk. Americas entry was hugely influential, but we have millions dead in Europe, and with the war being fought here, scars are hard to heal, and the fallout still often visible. I am thankful to all those that fought the Nazi's in WWII, but America is not the sole saviour and being only human I reserve the greatest degree of thought and gratitude to those local to me and those personally close to my heart.

Sorry if this is unpopular, but America was the sole savior. That doesn’t take a thing away from those brave souls who perished in the Nazi march over Europe, but you’d be using a translator from your native German to English right now if it weren’t for America.
Again, my apologies for historical accuracy, but without Americas intervention, Europe was lost.

 

[FurCoat]

Madrid was pretty much in the Nazi side.
But anyway
It's a pretty , jovial and safe city to live in. Amazing city to live being young, she's going to enjoy it.

No. Franco utilized German soldiers against the people. Spain remained neutral during the war and refused to help Germany. I am a Spaniard and my grandfather fought proudly against Franco. Argentina harbored Nazis....but anyway.

 

[FurCoat]

I hope your granddaughter has a grea time. My mother’s family lives in Seville. Beautiful country, lived there for many years.

 

[Alejo R.]

No. Franco utilized German soldiers against the people. Spain remained neutral during the war and refused to help Germany. I am a Spaniard and my grandfather fought proudly against Franco. Argentina harbored Nazis....but anyway.

Franco was the caudillo of Spain by the grace of God, or didn't the coins say so? Franco was the boss of Spain and was a crony of Hitler. His friend lent him the Lutfwaffe to bomb Guernica, or am I lying? That's why I said Madrid, why is it true. I didn't say that the Spanish were on Hitler's side, but those in charge were. In the Post War period, more than 3 million immigrants arrived in Argentina in a decade (half Spanish), the calculation of Nazi criminals who entered is more or less 70. All of them entered with false passports and visas delivered by European governments, or the Vatican or the Red Cross of Europe, were Europeans who protected them. We who receive, welcome and integrate are millions of your compatriots.

 

[Alejo R.]

Franco was the caudillo of Spain by the grace of God, or didn't the coins say so? Franco was the boss of Spain and was a crony of Hitler. His friend lent him the Lutfwaffe to bomb Guernica, or am I lying? That's why I said Madrid, why is it true. I didn't say that the Spanish were on Hitler's side, but those in charge were. In the Post War period, more than 3 million immigrants arrived in Argentina in a decade (half Spanish), the calculation of Nazi criminals who entered is more or less 70. All of them entered with false passports and visas delivered by European governments, or the Vatican or the Red Cross of Europe, were Europeans who protected them. We who receive, welcome and integrate are millions of your compatriots.

What we received, welcomed and integrated was millions of your compatriots.

 

[Alejo R.]

The same government that you say sheltered Nazis, lent your country, the only country in the world that lent Spain at its hardest hour, 350 million pesos. Which became 400,000 tons of wheat in 1947 and 300,000 in 1948 plus 120,000 tons of corn in 1947 and 100,000 for 1948. Because at that time neither the United States nor Great Britain maintained diplomatic relations with Spain.

Why didn't the Allies maintain relations with Spain?

But if any Argentine emigrates to Spain they tell him there is no place here and they call him Sudaca. Enough for me, I'll leave it here.

 

[FurCoat]

The same government that you say sheltered Nazis, lent your country, the only country in the world that lent Spain at its hardest hour, 350 million pesos. Which became 400,000 tons of wheat in 1947 and 300,000 in 1948 plus 120,000 tons of corn in 1947 and 100,000 for 1948. Because at that time neither the United States nor Great Britain maintained diplomatic relations with Spain.

Why didn't the Allies maintain relations with Spain?

But if any Argentine emigrates to Spain they tell him there is no place here and they call him Sudaca. Enough for me, I'll leave it here

Argentina remained neutral during the war but sided with the axis powers. As did Spain. It wasn't until January of 1944 that Argentina, under pressure from the USA, denounced the axis powers. All of this stuff happened before our time and both nations were trying not get brought into the conflict. What I'm saying is, don't go throwing Spain under the Nazi bus when Argentina, along with many other South American countries, weren't innocent in the whole situation. Like I said, my family was spilling their blood to drive the Nazis out before the world knew what a Nazi was. Spain was a beta test for what was to come.

 

[Doctor Chopper]

What a great opportunity for your granddaughter. Spain is a great country for an extended visit. I had 2 daughters do study abroad in Spain and I got to visit while they were there. The culture is wonderful, and she will grow as a person during her visit. Hopefully she will get to see many places and have many positive experiences while she is there. What a great adventure! Love the photo.

 

[puff_not_snuff]

Sounds stressful.

 

[huntertrw]

Bradley:

Your advice is sage, and I hope that she takes and follows it. Best wishes to her for a safe journey.

HunterTRW

 

[huntertrw]

Bradley:

According to Google Maps, Madrid is just a bit over seven hours west of the late author Robert Ruark's burial place in Palamós, Girona, Spain. Mr. Ruark wrote The Old Man and the Boy, The Old Man's Boy Grows Older, and the Horn of the Hunter, to name but a few of his titles. Does she have any interest in hunting and fishing? If so, then I believe that would be a worthwhile side- trip.

Here's a link (Robert Chester Ruark, Jr.) to his page on the NCpedia.org Website.

 

[Alejo R.]

Argentina remained neutral during the war but sided with the axis powers. As did Spain. It wasn't until January of 1944 that Argentina, under pressure from the USA, denounced the axis powers. All of this stuff happened before our time and both nations were trying not get brought into the conflict. What I'm saying is, don't go throwing Spain under the Nazi bus when Argentina, along with many other South American countries, weren't innocent in the whole situation. Like I said, my family was spilling their blood to drive the Nazis out before the world knew what a Nazi was. Spain was a beta test for what was to come.

What I said is the strict truth. Madrid sympathized with the Nazis (you could read my first post). It is like when it is said that Washington did or supported something, it refers to the US government, it does not refer to the fact that each one of the Americans thinks the same as the government. I did not throw Spain under the bus of Nazism. But Franco was a sympathizer of Hitler, his collaborator and his friend, and Franco was the Absolute Leader of Spain and was so until 1975. The man who designed the modern Spanish state, who chose who would be the King, was a friend of Hitler. If you can show me a photo of one of the alleged war criminals sheltered with some Argentine leader, I'll wait here. In the meantime, I'll give you the one about Franco with Adolf (I'd better not upload it, but you've already seen it). It is one thing to play dumb in someone else's war (when one of the allies is the one who has a colony in your territory) and quite another to ask Adolf to bomb a city in your country to kill your enemies. It is very European to point the finger at the third world and say that they sheltered Nazis, when the government of your country was wallowing in the same mud as Hitler.

 

[FurCoat]

Oh I know what Franco did and I don't deny that. You just seem to be in denial as to your governments involvement in the situation as a whole.

 

[Alejo R.]

Oh I know what Franco did and I don't deny that. You just seem to be in denial as to your governments involvement in the situation as a whole.

This Argentina is so, so Nazi that it recognized the State of Israel on February 14, 1949. Spain recognized the State of Israel on January 1, 1986. Franco had been in the Valley of the Fallen for eleven years. That's more than 36 years later. The fifth largest Jewish community in the world lives in this country of Nazis. Only surpassed by Israel, the USA, France and the United Kingdom. The Jewish community in Spain is number 20 in the world. But of course the Nazis are the Argentines.

 

[Alejo R.]

Sorry I'm out.
I am very sorry that something as good as a girl's trip should lead to this. I accept the part that touches me. I apologize.