Topic: Google Criticized as "Anti-American" for Tetris Logo

[HairyHeretic]

To some degree maybe. It might have lengthened the war somewhat, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome a lot. By 44 the Russians were driving the Axis forces back in the East, and I think Italy was already invaded (I'd need to go check my dates, been a while since I did much WW2 reading).

The Russian sphere of influence in Europe might have been a bit bigger. Might make an interesting scenario to game out.

[The Overlord]

By the time D-day occurred, the US had been in the war for some time. Prior to that, Britain was standing alone against Nazi-occupied Europe in direct military confrontation.

Failure at Normandy would have pushed back the Allied timetables severely, but still, with mostly US manufacturing being as it was, the US and UK could have sent a continuous and increasingly deadly bomber strikes to level Axis cities.

I think the real question is if the western front hadn't opened, how far could the Soviets have gone? All the regiments that were placed to stop the Allies could have been turned east. Perhaps in time the Soviet army would have kicked the Wehrmacht out of mother Russia, but what about at the German border? An overextended red army facing everything the Nazis could throw at them would have been dicey.

The 1992 novel Fatherland and the resulting movie entertained the notion of Hitler winning and keeping Europe, and the Cold War erupting between the US and Nazi Germany. Interesting food for thought.


Fatherland - Part 1

[HairyHeretic]

Failure at Normandy would have pushed back the Allied timetables severely, but still, with mostly US manufacturing being as it was, the US and UK could have sent a continuous and increasingly deadly bomber strikes to level Axis cities.

And likely would have.

I think the real question is if the western front hadn't opened, how far could the Soviets have gone? All the regiments that were placed to stop the Allies could have been turned east. Perhaps in time the Soviet army would have kicked the Wehrmacht out of mother Russia, but what about at the German border? An overextended red army facing everything the Nazis could throw at them would have been dicey.

A quick google shows the Red Army advancing into Poland in June of 44, and the Allied forces in Italy advancing on Rome. Had the D Day invasions failed, the military forces in Western Europe probably wouldn't have been weakened that much, because to do so would increase the chances of the next invasion there succeeding.

Additionally, in the hours running up to D-Day, I believe that freedom fighters went heavily on the offensive against transport infrastructure, so even if the troops had been freed up to move, actually getting them to the Eastern Front would have proved tricky.

By 44, the German manufacturing infrastructure was weakened, and while some of their late war tanks were very good, they couldn't match the sheer numbers the Red Army could throw against them. Tanks, infantry, aircraft ... the Russians had a lot more than the Germans did, and as the saying goes, quantity has a quality all its own.

Spot the wargamer :)

The 1992 novel Fatherland and the resulting movie entertained the notion of Hitler winning and keeping Europe, and the Cold War erupting between the US and Nazi Germany. Interesting food for thought.

I've read the book. It's not bad.

[The Overlord]

Also dealing in the fact that the Ruskies moved all their manufacturing east of the Ural mountains and out of range of Axis bombers, they could have played a horrific game of attrition, and ground them down. Which of the two combatants would be the second power to develop nukes...that could have been the decider. As bad as the fighting was in the west, the Nazi/Bolshevik hatred was burning and intense. I have little doubt it would have eventually turned into a WMD fest, had it dragged out.


Fatherland is good, but IMHO it sells the UK out short. Even if the US decided not to make another go at invasion, we could have easily moved troops and assets to help defend the UK. Either way it could have gone, I do not believe Britain would have fallen. Americans and Brits have stood back to back on the battlefield for many many years, and I don't believe we would have left them to stand alone.

[HairyHeretic]

Also dealing in the fact that the Ruskies moved all their manufacturing east of the Ural mountains and out of range of Axis bombers, they could have played a horrific game of attrition, and ground them down. Which of the two combatants would be the second power to develop nukes...that could have been the decider. As bad as the fighting was in the west, the Nazi/Bolshevik hatred was burning and intense. I have little doubt it would have eventually turned into a WMD fest, had it dragged out.

Maybe, maybe not. Even if the Germans had developed a nuke, they probably didn't have the resources for more than 1, and would they have used it so close to Germany?

Once they had used it, I half suspect Stalin would have thrown EVERYTHING at Germany to a) stop them doing it again, and b) capture the tech for himself.

Fatherland is good, but IMHO it sells the UK out short. Even if the US decided not to make another go at invasion, we could have easily moved troops and assets to help defend the UK. Either way it could have gone, I do not believe Britain would have fallen. Americans and Brits have stood back to back on the battlefield for many many years, and I don't believe we would have left them to stand alone.

Well, I read the book years ago, so can't remember the timeline in it that well.

In a hsitorical context, the UK was in no danger of falling in 44. Germany just didn't have the strength to threaten it, and Western Europe was a third open front, after Italy and the East.

[AKunoichi]

Tetris was invented by dirty communists. 

[Drake Valentine]

"I have to say, though, that this is no departure for Google, a firm that finds it nearly impossible to post images celebrating any American holidays or important milestones in American history," he continued. "So, what we have here is just one more example of Google's essentially anti-American policies."

Mmm, I digress, now and then I have seen plenty of Google celebrating American wide known holidays, in fact I even found it heart warming of them to do Independence day, and this was around 2008, which you can see here.

If I took it upon my time to save and bookmark every Google American holiday, than I am sure they will see their folly on making such a statement.



;/

Edit: My bad, it would seem they did that one in 2007. xD From the (C) thing.

[The Overlord]

We still talking about this? O_o

[Oniya]

Necro-thread, nothing to see here.

[Trieste]

This is not the thread-corpse you're looking for. *handwave*

[Drake Valentine]

Hum, my bad. I thought I saw it as 'July 30th' instead of June 30th on the responses, and at the time assume it was still actively going. Honest mistake when on a labtop and it being late at night. xD

[Callie Del Noire]

I think they might have just missed the date.

You know..'Carl the new intern goofed' sort of thing.

[Bayushi]

I don't see ANYONE putting up this much of a storm for Saipan, Guadalcanal, Tarawa or Okinawa.

Indeed.

Operation Overlord(The Invasion of Normandy) lead to about 4,600 deaths by Allied forces(United States, Britain, and Canada). Whereas the Germans are believed to have lost between 5,000 to 8,000 men at arms.

America lost almost 3,000 Marines retaking Saipan. The Japanese lost around 24,000 soldiers. America, Australia, and New Zealand lost about 7,000 at Guadalcanal, with the Japanese again losing approximately 24,000 men. But NEITHER of those compares to Okinawa. Okinawa saw over 12,000 Americans and Britons killed in action, with the Japanese suffering about 110,000 slain.

So that leads to about 12,000 killed at Normandy, on both sides. Where 27,000 were lost at Saipan, 31,000 at Guadalcanal, and 122,000 lost on Okinawa.

Some may say I am biased due to my dual citizenship between America and Japan. But the numbers speak far more horrific numbers. ALL of those invasions/battles helped bring an end to the war in which they were being fought in. I have nothing but respect for the honored dead in all of these campaigns.

But seriously... Okinawa was one of the bloodiest and most horrific battles in the history of modern warfare. The Marines and the Japanese sure knew how to fight.

/WarBuff Akiko
Back on topic...

Even if Google is an American corporation, based in America, with the Internet being an American invention, and yet being MOSTLY based in America on American servers....

Google is STILL a private corporation. They are under no obligation to mark any events whatsoever. They have all rights to mark whatever events they desire, by our own laws.

How did I memorialize D-Day? I sat down with the roommate and popped in his DVD of Saving Private Ryan. Not much else I COULD do, given the lack of means or ability.

As for why the 65th anniversary means something? Well, it is quite likely that many of these veterans will either be gone, or too feeble/incapable of attending events again in the future. Honor them while you can while they're still around to honor, I say.

But we should not forget the survivors of the other parts of the War, either.