# Simply amazing



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

http://swf.tubechop.com/tubechop.swf?vurl=8k9Si28k0Fk&start=0&end=438.55&cid=3753492

:smt1099


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## hillman (Jul 27, 2014)

I'm old and tired, and suspicious of 'drama'. I think there is a hokum element in this.

Sorry, Paratrooper.


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## hud35500 (May 8, 2010)

Our country would be a better place with more kids like this!


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## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

hillman said:


> I'm old and tired, and suspicious of 'drama'. I think there is a hokum element in this.
> 
> Sorry, Paratrooper.


I hear ya! In this day and age, everybody and everything is subject to suspicion and scrutiny.

Just thought I'd post it up and everyone can make of it what they want.


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## Goldwing (Nov 5, 2014)

This has been posted here before, and possibly on fox News. I doubt it is Hokum. (whatever that is?)

GW


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## SouthernBoy (Jun 27, 2007)

I saw this several months ago and didn't for a moment think it had a hokum element to it. In fact, more adults should do things which bring a tear to their eyes and a lump in their throats borne by feelings of love of country and patriotism... and do them often. About an hour ago I had a sudden urge to watch the second disc of the movie, Pearl Harbor. On that disc, the Doolittle raid is depicted. So I did just that. And then I saw that tomorrow is the 73rd anniversary of this heroic raid.

If you can watch the flag being raised during the Olympics while the National Anthem is being played, watch the cemetery scene at the end of Saving Private Ryan, or watch the men launching B-25's off of the deck of the Hornet without any emotion or tearing at your heart... well, you're probably not American.


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## Bisley (Aug 24, 2008)

My formative years were during a time when everybody's dad and uncles were WWII and/or Korean War vets. My dad worked at an air base and we were always watching the Thunderbirds perform, going to all the nearby air shows, and participating in the many patriotic celebrations that were so common in the late '50's, early '60's. It was great for a kid, and I still remember how proud I felt to be a part of such a great country. I still feel that way, despite all the indifference of later generations, and quite a few of my own generation. One of the few events I've shed a tear over in the last 20 years was the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown at Arlington. I found it to be absolutely profound in its simplicity and its meaning.

I believe the video was sincere, because I want to. I don't know the story behind it, but I can understand somebody wanting to pay tribute in a personal way, whether or not anybody sees it, or cares.


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

paratrooper said:


> I hear ya! In this day and age, everybody and everything is subject to suspicion and scrutiny.
> 
> Just thought I'd post it up and everyone can make of it what they want.


As I watched, I couldn't help wondering how much was the kid's idea, and how much was his Dad telling him what he ought to do. If it was genuinely all the kid, then more power to him. But I still wonder. I feel that way sometimes about kids who are pushed into sports they ultimately don't want to do - how much at the start was the parents wanting their kid to be a football star, or a champion skater, etc.

Disclaimer - I grew up in the UK (As I'm sure you're tired of hearing) where they have similar feelings about things, but go about showing it very differently. Just a different vibe over there.


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## BBtruck (Jul 4, 2014)

Don't know if the kid was manipulated or actually felt for those gave their lives for freedom, it got me. I'm so Proud to be an American. I cried.


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## SouthernBoy (Jun 27, 2007)

SailDesign said:


> As I watched, I couldn't help wondering how much was the kid's idea, and how much was his Dad telling him what he ought to do. If it was genuinely all the kid, then more power to him. But I still wonder. I feel that way sometimes about kids who are pushed into sports they ultimately don't want to do - how much at the start was the parents wanting their kid to be a football star, or a champion skater, etc.
> 
> Disclaimer - I grew up in the UK (As I'm sure you're tired of hearing) where they have similar feelings about things, but go about showing it very differently. Just a different vibe over there.


My lineage is English-Irish-Welch, but you will never hear me claim it. I'm a Virginian and we threw the British out of here... twice. Not too fond of what they did back then. But that was back then. Some of the British I have met over the years have tended to look down their noses at Americans. Some have actually made comments (one said we have too much freedom) while others have just had an air about them that projected perceived superiority.

The client at the last job at which I worked was the UK. A number of their people would frequently cross the pond to our installation for training, meetings, or just to see new features in the systems we created for them. Most were fine, a few... not so much.

I haven't a clue what it's like in England having never been there (the only foreign country I have ever visited was California). I know there are petty jealousies between our two nations. For example, American English for some years now, has been the standard around the world and the British don't like that from what I have heard. And we are more powerful than they are both in military and economics. Hell the whole of Europe just can't seem to stop thinking we are a bunch of recent upstarts where they have been around for over 2,000 years. Wonder if they know that 70% of the inventions of the 20th century came from here.

But in the end, it is all rather petty, isn't it? Frankly, I don't care what Britain or Europe does for the most part. I'm too busy being concerned what our own servants in Washington are doing, and are trying to do, to us. I am pleased that we call the UK our friend and have hopes it remains that way. I do stand in awe at what they did to the Germans in 1940 during the Battle of Great Britain.


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## hillman (Jul 27, 2014)

SouthernBoy said:


> My lineage is English-Irish-Welch, but you will never hear me claim it. I'm a Virginian and we threw the British out of here... twice. Not too fond of what they did back then. But that was back then. Some of the British I have met over the years have tended to look down their noses at Americans. Some have actually made comments (one said we have too much freedom) while others have just had an air about them that projected perceived superiority.
> 
> The client at the last job at which I worked was the UK. A number of their people would frequently cross the pond to our installation for training, meetings, or just to see new features in the systems we created for them. Most were fine, a few... not so much.
> 
> ...


Europeans - including Brits for the purposes of this discussion - _tend _to exhibit a provincialism that most Americans (US and Canada) don't understand. Too many borders, too close together over there; an _official_ language change every hundred miles or so on the continent. Seems like in England the _local_ language makes a major change from town to town. The natives spoke the official dialect to me, and something incomprehensible to each other. The described differences between 'them and us' may seem petty, but they are real.


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## SouthernBoy (Jun 27, 2007)

hillman said:


> Europeans - including Brits for the purposes of this discussion - _tend _to exhibit a provincialism that most Americans (US and Canada) don't understand. Too many borders, too close together over there; an _official_ language change every hundred miles or so on the continent. Seems like in England the _local_ language makes a major change from town to town. The natives spoke the official dialect to me, and something incomprehensible to each other. *The described differences between 'them and us' may seem petty, but they are real.*


Yes they are and I didn't mean to sound like I was downplaying that fact. I always find it amazing, and strange, that anyone native to this country would want to move to some European nation, or any other nation for that matter. The U.S. has pretty much everything, from deserts to mountains to sea shores to vast forests. And our way of life, specifically small town America, is pretty hard to beat.

But some are no doubt, in search for that perfect something and perhaps some distant land has just that for them.


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## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

I spent the majority of my military enlistment stationed in Europe. I loved each and every minute of it. It's history is so old and runs so deep, that it makes the USA look like a new kid of the block. 

For the most part, I found the citizens to be friendly and curious, no matter which country I was in. Every country I visited or trained in, was a lesson learned and one to be remembered. 

I was in my early 20's and single. What better way to visit Europe than on Uncle Sam's dime. This was back in the mid 70's, and travel back then was pretty cheap, as was lodging and meals. 

For the most part, I found it to be laid back and easy going. A slower pace and less stress. I'm sure that it has changed much since the mid 70's. 

If we were more financially secure and had the means, I wouldn't mind moving to one of my favorite countries. My wife has never been out of the USA, except for Hawaii. I would love to take her to Europe for a tour. If things slow down in our lives and we get caught up on some things, we just may make that trip in the not too very distant future.


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## Bisley (Aug 24, 2008)

I think Great Britain and the United States have a unique partnership that allows each other to hold on to their national identities, while furthering the interests of both. They understand us pretty well and exploit us in many ways. We usually know it, and don't really care, because we think we can afford it, and we do admire their tenacity and common sense. On the other hand, they do a lot of complicated things very well, and we find ways to benefit from their sharing it with us, and we occasionally improve upon it by throwing huge sums of money and manpower at it, which we then share with them. We aren't exactly dear friends, but we do have enough mutual respect to maintain an enduring partnership. At the very least, we want each other to survive and prosper.


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## SailDesign (Jul 17, 2014)

Bisley said:


> I think Great Britain and the United States have a unique partnership that allows each other to hold on to their national identities, while furthering the interests of both. They understand us pretty well and exploit us in many ways. We usually know it, and don't really care, because we think we can afford it, and we do admire their tenacity and common sense. On the other hand, they do a lot of complicated things very well, and we find ways to benefit from their sharing it with us, and we occasionally improve upon it by throwing huge sums of money and manpower at it, which we then share with them. We aren't exactly dear friends, but we do have enough mutual respect to maintain an enduring partnership. At the very least, we want each other to survive and prosper.


Nicely said.


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