OT: Military History Trivia Answers ** Bobbing For Hydrosols

[Guest guest]

Hi y'all,

 

Some folks been bugging me for the correct answers .. some are patient

but still sitting on the edge of the chair .. others probably don't care

a lick. ;-p One person told me they oughta known more of the answers

because of involvement by members of their family in significant events

during WW-II .. I told them that I didn't expect anybody to get a high

score cause it was not an easy quiz. The questions were tricky .. the

answers are true but are not what we would expect in normal situations.

 

I had a great uncle who was hanged by the Mexicans because he was caught

doing something that was considered to be highly patriotic at the time;

stealing Mexican horses and cattle and running them back across the

border to Texas. Today, he would be seen as a criminal by both sides ..

back then he was a hero to the Texans and not really a bad guy to the

Mexicans cause stealing from each other was a game. Times change.

 

We gotta keep this in mind about history in general .. today's truths

are today's truths because cultures evolve .. not because those truths

are universal or held in esteem by other cultures.

 

Same goes for winning and losing wars .. both sides see God as being on

their side and if all things proceeded according to plan then we'd need

no leaders .. we'd figure the opposition's strength, tally up supplies

of beans, bullets, blood and troops and bounce them off the opposition's

supply then wait for the flag to be raised over a conquered battlefield.

Evolution of societies hastens due to doing things wrong, not doing them

right .. and due to closing the holes in systems.

 

History is interesting (to me) in that it has so many surprises .. but

the boring manner in which its taught in most public high schools, by

bored teachers who learned from bored teachers and are now required to

follow boring lesson plans, does nothing but turn students off and they

stop learning this boring subject as soon as they can.

 

If I had been taught how to learn and how to appreciate history when I

was a young man .. I would be a smarter feller today. History is THE

path to tomorrow for all societies and cultures .. evolution will follow

the same forward path as did the ancestors of each group .. the only way

we can stray from that path is through revolution.

 

The what and why and how of today was defined and explained yesterday ..

be they honorable or dishonorable paths (by today's standards) the

social, political, religious, economic, military, agricultural and

ethical paths followed by our ancestors led to present day society.

 

Those who think they have all the answers and approach solutions to

issues/problems with what they see as unique, idealistic and lofty goals

(left thinkers maybe?) are facing barriers that can't be overcome in a

few generations .. we can redefine cultural standards and legislate

morality but we can't force cultural change .. it moves at its own pace

... a pace that has been clearly defined if we want to look at it .. a

pace that is a part of our social and economic and political evolution.

 

So .. teach your younguns to like history .. odds are their teachers

will not be able to do that. ;-p

 

The answers are as follows .. some I'll comment on .. others you can

check out yourself if you want more information.

 

1. Why am I doing this? You gotta choose one.

a. Cause I'm nuts.

b. Cause I'm sucking down a buncha ice-cold Turkish Efes Beers now.

c. Cause I think its a danged slick marketing tool.

d. Cause I wanna reduce stock afore 31 December inventory.

e. Cause its around Thanksgiving and I'm thankful for a lotta things.

** f. All the above.

g. None of the above.

 

No need for explanation. ;-p

 

2. How many days did the US bomb Iwo Jima in prior to the invasion?

** a .. 72

b .. 14

c .. 09

d .. 32

 

** Check out http://www.iwojima.com/battle/battleb.htm Also, the famous

photo of the Marines raising the flag was NOT the first raising on the

island .. nor the first raising at that spot .. nor the first photo.

 

3. What is considered the greatest naval battle in WW-II history?

a .. Coral Sea

b .. Java Sea

** c .. Leyte Gulf

d .. Midway

e .. Waterloo

 

** This battle signaled the end of the Japanese Naval power. Check it

out at http://history.acusd.edu/gen/WW2Timeline/LUTZ/leyte.html

 

4. What was the last American airfield taken by the Japanese?

a .. Henderson Field, Guadalcanal

b .. Kunming, China

** c .. Laohokow, China

d .. Ormoc Bay, Philippines

e .. Russell Island, Solomon Islands

 

** In April 1945, General Okumura captured this base .. in violation of

directives from the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters ** more at

http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/brochures/chinoff/chinoff.htm

 

5. The first German serviceman killed during or in events leading up to

WW-II died at the hands of:

a .. Americans

b .. Russians

c .. British

** d .. Japanese

 

** The first German serviceman killed in World War II was killed by the

Japanese .. in China .. 1937.

 

6. The first American serviceman killed during or in events leading up

to WW-II died at the hands of:

a .. Germans

** b .. Russians

c .. Chinese

d .. Japanese

e .. Witches

 

** The first American serviceman killed was killed by the Russians .. in

Finland .. 1940.

 

7. The highest ranking American serviceman killed during or in events

leading up to WW-II was ..

a .. Maj Gen George Patton

b .. Lt Gen Pickney Scranton

c .. Maj Gen John A. Campbell

** d .. Lt Gen Leslie McNair

e .. Brig Gen Samuel Snodgrass

 

** The highest-ranking American killed was Lt. Gen. Lesley McNair ..

killed in an aerial bombardment.

 

8. The above general officer was killed by ..

a .. Germans

** b .. Americans

c .. Japanese

d .. British

e .. Arabs

 

** LTG McNair and around 100 other Americans was accidentally killed in

an

aerial bombardment by the U.S. Army Air Corps .. check it out at URL

http://www.americanheritage.com/AMHER/2002/05/over-under24.shtml

 

** So .. considering 5, 6, 7 and 8 above .. we gotta say .. so much for

allies. ;-p

 

9. The youngest U.S. serviceman to actually serve in combat during

WW-II was:

** a .. Calvin Graham ....... US Navy ........... age 12

b .. Johnson Squires ..... US Army ........... age 13

c .. Colin O'Conner ...... US Marine Corp .... age 14

d .. George Shackelford .. US Army Air Corp .. age 15

 

Yep .. the young feller was but 12 years old.

 

10. The above young man was wounded in combat and received a Purple

Heart and a ..

a .. Promotion

b .. Reassignment

** c .. Dishonorable Discharge

d .. Invitation to meet Betty Grable

e .. Film Contract in Hollywood

 

** Calvin Graham, was wounded and then given a Dishonorable Discharge

for lying about his age. His benefits were later restored by act of

Congress.

 

11. At the time Pearl Harbor was attacked, the U.S. Navy Command

Headquarters in Hawaii was called ..

a .. US Navy Forces Pacific .......... (USNAVFORPAC)

b .. US Navy Security Element ........ (USNAVSECELM)

c .. US Navy Task Force Pacific ...... (USNAVTACFORPAC)

** d .. US Navy Command Pacific ......... (USCINCUS)

 

** Though the official title was " Commander-in-Chief, United States

Fleet and United States Pacific Fleet " .. the top U.S. Navy Command was

referred to as US Navy Command Pacific .. and called CINCUS (pronounced

" Sink Us " .) Not unusual in the military to look for such names within

names. When I served with the US Army Strategic Communications Command

- Middle East (USASCC-ME) we affectionately called it U Suck Me. ;-)

 

** President Roosevelt's famous speech http://pearlharborattacked.com/

This is an award winning site .. nice information.

 

** http://www.ibiblio.org/pha/pha/congress/part_0.html pertains to the

Congressional Hearings following the attack on Pearl Harbor.

 

12. The shoulder patch of the US Army's 45th Infantry Division was ..

a .. A Diamond with a 45 in the center

b .. A Lightening Bolt

** c .. A Swastika

d .. A Full Moon

d .. A Dove with lightening bolts in his beak

 

** Yep .. a Swastika it was. Check out " From Swastika to Thunderbird "

http://www.m38a1.com/thunderbirds.htm

 

** The 45th was an Oklahoma-Colorado National Guard unit .. many First

Americans were members and the Swastika emblem has significance in the

history of the Indians of the Southwest USA. Later the unit patch was

changed to the Thunderbird http://www.45thdivision.org/

 

13. At beginning of WW-II, Adolph Hitler's private train was named ..

a .. Berliner

b .. Richthopf

** c .. Amerika

d .. Liebfrau

e .. Schisskopf

 

** The train was named Amerika. The names of the Naval Headquarters,

the train and the patch were later changed for PR reasons. ;-p

 

** Go here http://mike.medic.mie-u.ac.jp/~huh/eboard/ About half way

down the page .. and this is really trivia.

 

14. During WW-II, odds were greater of dying if one served in the ..

a .. US Army Infantry

b .. US Marine Corps

c .. US Army Rangers

** d .. US Army Air Corps

e .. Red Cross in Bronx, New York

 

** More U.S. servicemen died in the U.S. Army Air Corps than in the

Marine Corps or U.S Army ground fighting units. While completing the

required 25 missions your chance of being killed was 71 percent. The

movie " Catch-22 " was based on these events.

 

15. During WW-II the average days per year a ground force soldier

actually spent in combat with an armed enemy was ...

** a .. 74

b .. 126

c .. 90

d .. 210

 

Twas 74. In WW-II units moved as Corps and Armies .. rarely did they

move in groups as small as Divisions. Movement was difficult and over

rough and muddy terrain and by foot and slow moving vehicles .. took

many days to get from one point to another and prepare a defensive or

offensive position to face off with the enemy.

 

16. During the Vietnam War the average days per year a ground force

soldier actually spent in combat with an armed enemy was ...

a .. 74

** b .. 178

c .. 94

d .. 90

 

Twas 178. Movement of troops in Vietnam was in units generally company

size, platoon size and down to even squad sizes of 5-6 men. The enemy

would be located, troops were thrown on a helicopter and dropped off to

do combat with whatever enemy they could locate. They might be picked

up as many as three times in a day and moved to another location ..

these rapid movements were called " Eagle Flights. " Odds of drawing fire

and returning fire were extremely high on each of these days .. far more

action was seen than was the norm during an average day in WW-II.

 

This information in no ways reflects negatively on the efforts of the

soldiers and citizen-soldiers who participated in combat in WW-II. The

odds of dying during a major encounter were greater then .. and odds of

dying from disease and minor injuries were far greater. The point to be

remembered here is that the helicopter revolutionized modern warfare due

to increased mobility. Helicopters were able to get troops into the

action faster .. and get them out of the action and back to the medics

faster. Modern medical science and technology has greatly increased the

survival rate of battlefield casualties.

 

17. When the allied armies reached the Rhine River in Germany, the

first thing they did was ...

a .. Take a break

b .. Get drunk

c .. Sing God Bless America

** d .. Pee in it

e .. Take a bath

 

** When the allied armies reached the Rhine River in Germany, the first

thing men did was pee in it. It was universal, from the lowest private

to Winston Churchill (who made a big show of it) and Gen. George Patton

(who had himself photographed in the act). I first peed in the Rhine in

1986, during a Reforger Exercise .. and was also photographed. ;-p

 

18. During WW-II, German Me-264 bombers had a long-range capability but

they never tried to hit the Continental USA because ..

** a .. Hitler thought it was not worth the effort.

b .. American Air Defense systems were too strong.

c .. They didn't have in-flight refueling capabilities.

d .. They planned to give them to the Japanese.

e .. Were afraid of capture as they didn't like American beer.

 

** This is a historical fact .. and its still argued as to why he made

that decision.

 

19. The famous German submarine, U-120. was sunk by ...

a .. A British Destroyer.

** b .. A malfunctioning toilet.

c .. An American torpedo.

d .. A German submarine.

e .. An iceberg.

 

** A pressurized toilet exploded. Its around 1/3 the way down this page

http://www.georgecarlin.com/snitz/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=3799 & whichpage=32

 

20. Among the first soldiers captured wearing German uniforms at the

Battle of Normandy were several ..

** a .. Koreans

b .. Frenchmen

c .. Japanese

d .. Somalis

e .. Austrians

f .. Turks

 

** Captured Koreans had been forced to fight for the Japanese Army until

they were captured by the Russians and then forced to fight for the

Russian Army until they were captured by the Germans and further forced

to fight for the German Army until they were captured by the U.S. Army

and freed.

 

And the tie-breaker .. which didn't help to break a tie.

 

21. Following a massive US Naval bombardment, 35,000 U.S. and Canadian

troops stormed ashore at Kiska, in the Aleutian Islands .. they quickly

took the island and only twenty-one troops were killed in the firefight.

This was the smallest number of casualties of any island assault during

WW-II. The reason was ...

 

a .. The Naval bombardment destroyed all active resistance.

b .. The Japanese force only consisted of one battalion.

c .. The Japanese commander decided to surrender on the first day.

d .. The Japanese forces were starving prior to the assault.

** e .. There were no enemy soldiers on the island.

f .. They were dressed as Japanese soldiers and surprised the enemy.

g .. They sprayed the island with Lavandula angustifolia and Rosa

damascena so the Japanese forces were relaxed and dreaming.

 

** Yep .. faulty intelligence information. Casualties would have been

much higher if there had been any Japanese troops on the island. This

is much like one famous " combat jump " we had in the 'Nam .. surprised a

heckuva large herd of water buffalo. ;-)

 

** Recalling Kiska - The Battle That Never Was .. can be read about at

http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/091703/nei_kiska.shtml

 

Thanks for participating .. hope y'all had fun. :-)

 

Happy Thanksgiving to you all. Today and tomorrow are also religious

holidays here in Turkey .. its Seker Bayram (Sugar Holiday) in Turkish

and " Eid Al-Fitr " in Arabic .. the holiday of fast breaking .. the week

following Ramadan (The Holy Month of Fasting). Similar in some small

ways to the events of Christmas though moreso similar to Thanksgiving.

 

I often joke with Turkish friends .. tell them its a holiday cause folks

are happy to not have to hear the loud drummers walking up and down the

streets at 3 in the morning .. waking folks up so they can eat afore the

fasting begins. ;-p This is an old custom that dates from the time

folks didn't have clocks .. similar to the call to prayer .. or even the

church bells we're all accustomed to. Though we have clocks today we're

not going to see any serious movements to get rid of church bells .. or

those noisy butt drummers. ;-)

 

Today the streets are empty except for families scurrying about visiting

the sick and the elderly .. it is customary to do this and these old

folks rightly expect it. ;-p Candies and cakes and puddings and all

kinds of rich calorie laden sweets (by the tons) will be given away and

consumed today and tomorrow. Here's an interesting slant on it by the

editor of Turkish Daily News .. he's sorta slamming Islamic terrorism

http://www.turkishdailynews.com/FrProbe/latest/politics.htm

 

Y'all keep smiling. :-) Butch http://www.AV-AT.com