June 6, 1944: The total death count for Allied soldiers on D-Day (which included America, Britain, Canada, Australia, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, France, Greece, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Poland) was estimated to be at least 4,390 — of which 2,499 were Americans.
By contrast, a little over 4,493 U.S. soldiers were killed in combat during the entire war in Iraq.
D-Day planners were surprised by the low death count — they’d feared that as many as half the 156,000 Allied troops who had landed in Normandy would have been killed or wounded on the day of the invasion. Of the total invaders on D-Day, the American forces had landed 73,000 (23,250 on Utah Beach, 34,250 on Omaha Beach, and 15,500 airborne troops.)
During the summer of 1944 (from D-Day to 21 August) the Allies landed a total 2,052,299 men in northern France. During that time, the American armies suffered 124,394 casualties, of which 20,668 were killed. In eastern France lie the remains of 9,837 Americans, who rest at the Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France.
Throughout all of World War II, over 12 million American military personnel of the "Greatest Generation" served, of which 407,316 died — 291,557 during combat (KIA). As of a year ago, only about 1 million WWII Vets were still alive. "We all shine like stars, then we fade away." By 2036, the VA estimates there will no longer be any living World War II veterans.
* The video embedded on this page was taken from the credits of my full video, Mitt Romney: The Patriotic Chickenhawk (a mini-musical-documentary I created depicting all American wars). My father served in the Korean War (while in the Navy) and the Vietnam War (while in the Air Force). Mitt Romney believes that anyone who runs for president should have business experience. If that's the case, then I believe that anyone who runs for president should also be Vet.
Rest in peace dad.
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