While you naïvely pay your respects to the so-called Greatest Generation, the Washington Post would like you to know just what kinds of people you’re thanking for winning World War II:
“Greatest Generation” survey on race, sex and combat during World War II runs counter to its wholesome image https://t.co/VHeJWCya4w
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) December 22, 2021
A Virginia Tech historian came across 65,000 pages of Army surveys in the National Archives in 2009 and has put them on a website. And — if you can believe it — some of the soldiers wrote some things that we would consider to be offensive now:
These harsh views, and others, from the segregated Army of World War II, emerge in a new project at Virginia Tech that presents the uncensored results of dozens of surveys the service administered to soldiers during the war.
Much of material is being placed on the Internet for the first time, and a lot of it runs counter to the wholesome image of the war’s “greatest generation.”
Big scoop by Wapo that old people and those who were in charge in 1960s were often racist and sexist. https://t.co/6g7oHRLp4B
— Carl Paulus (@CarlPaulus) December 22, 2021
Probably don't use pronouns either. SMH.
— Josh Dunn (@professordunn) December 22, 2021
Where’d we leave our shocked faces? They’ve gotta be around here somewhere …
You mean people in the past had different values and attitudes? My you guys really uncovered something amazing, I smell a Pulitzer here.
— ⚜️ Colonel Ramollot 🇫🇷⚜️ (@col_ramollo) December 22, 2021
The most pivotal and enlightening question we can ask when thinking about the past is why weren’t these people born 100 years ago modern the way we’ll certainly be 100 years from now?
— Carl Paulus (@CarlPaulus) December 22, 2021
Recommended
Look: racism is bad, full stop. But invoking it in order to minimize what the Greatest Generation did doesn’t seem like a productive use of time. While it may not be fun, it’s possible to separate their personal biases from their achievements.
They defeated the Nazi regime and the Japanese empire. https://t.co/NvKnziTBhV
— Jerry Christmas 🎄🎅🏽 (@JerryDunleavy) December 22, 2021
Should the fact that they weren’t sufficiently woke negate all of that?
Is the Left is finally starting to take a second look at ANTIFA https://t.co/2Z0Z98MNQV
— Fusilli Spock (@awstar11) December 22, 2021
So Antifa is bad now?
— Cox (@HOLYSMKES) December 22, 2021
Maybe the guys who stormed the beaches on D-Day weren’t the original Antifa after all …
Your grandparents are canceled. https://t.co/QdS4pIPN6n
— Noah Rothman (@NoahCRothman) December 22, 2021
DDay soldiers are cancelled. https://t.co/4vSpaHGuRr
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) December 22, 2021
"OK, OK . . . . I'll start using "people who menstruate" instead of "women", just please don't hit me again"
"You better, TERF!" https://t.co/mZqn67zYZD pic.twitter.com/GMXb19d74g
— bartleby (@ElderBartleby) December 22, 2021
"We canceled George F**king Washington, do you think we give a shit about doing it to you?
Time to take your medicine, bigot!" https://t.co/VAZaEA2dwz pic.twitter.com/xOSYqtXUat
— Flappr (@flapprdotnet) December 22, 2021
Guess it was bound to be their turn eventually.
Who thought these guys were wholesome?
— Sean Tague (@UnfoldedPie) December 22, 2021
Lololol "wholesome image" 😂😂😂 all one had to do was open their eyes to see that fallacy
— DaffyLily (@DaffyLilly) December 22, 2021
Whoever said they were wholesome?
— MaidMarian (@MarianTheMaiden) December 22, 2021
Did anyone? Ever?
They didn’t claim to be wholesome, or special, or heroes. I actually knew a lot of these guys, as they were my parent’s generation.
— paul foley (@lycaeon55) December 22, 2021
Leave them alone, FFS.
wow, it’s almost like they grew up in a time that requires historical context https://t.co/jVUBEKsAvW
— nick lindquist 🎅🏼🎄 (@nick_lindquist) December 22, 2021
“grandpa literally was dropped into normandy for D-Day and had to work as teen to help his family during the Great Depression, but he doesn’t buy that antifa is anti-fascist.”
— kaitlin believes taiwan is a country (@thefactualprep) December 22, 2021
Parting evergreen tweet:
The media is and always will be absolute garbage https://t.co/pzAq3qxMH0
— Ahmed Al Assliken (@assliken) December 22, 2021
Join the conversation as a VIP Member