The real truth about working with the French Army

[RoyGBiv]

Thanks for that.

Watching an A&E show on the American Revolution (James Armistead) last night I was reminded that it's unlikely we would be a country separate from England if it were not for the French.

[MoJo]

The brave French soldier has been much maligned by the actions of the French government and high command. They fought with valor and distinction in the first world war. World War II came along and once allowed to fight, albeit too late, they again fought with valor and self-sacrifice. A little-known fact, the French fought a brilliant holding action during the evacuation of Dunkirk. Without this almost suicidal battle, there would have been many more British POWs and KIAs and far fewer reaching the safety of Britain so they could fight again.

Make fun of the French Government, and the French High Command if you must; but, leave my brave brother warriors alone, the French soldier is second to none.

[E.Marquez]

The brave French soldier has been much maligned by the actions of the French government and high command.

This in a nut shell is as accurate and complete as it gets.

I can not relate specifics, but suffice it to say in my last assignment, a Joint operation.. The French on the ground will willing, able and in between top level orders to cease and desist were HIGHLY effective.
It was crushing to the French leaders and men on the ground to be told stand down, stay on your patrol base "safe"

[Pawpaw]

From the other side:

A French Soldier's View of U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistan.

[The Annoyed Man]

I am half French. My mother is French. I was born in a French protectorate (Morocco), and I have dual citizenship. I have lived there, and gone to school there.

Since the last Napoleon, the French government has always been in a delicate balance between socialism and full on fascism, and some French leaders have behaved singularly badly. It is also true that France has had its share of collaborators with invading armies. But try and convince me that some Americans would not do exactly the same in similar circumstances. Furthermore, they have the government they elected. So do we. In that light, convince me that American voters today are any better at political decision-making than the French....... who by the way, have very little use for Obama and don't understand American voter fascination with this guy.

But other than a few stuck up Parisians, I've never met a Frenchman I couldn't get along with. But hating/disrespecting the French for the snobbery of a certain class of Parisians is like hating/disrespecting Americans for the arrogance of a certain class of New Yorkers. It's just dumb.

The French are fiercely proud of their military traditions and history - just like we are - but they have something we do not. If you walk into the smallest town out in the largest part of the French countryside, there will be a monument somewhere in that town dedicated to that town's war dead from two world wars, most of whom died within a short distance of that monument...... and not in some far off land. If anyone wants to talk "cheese-eating surrender-monkeys" in any other way that as a gentle joke, I have a suggestion for you. Go visit the town of Oradour-sur-Glane (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oradour-sur-Glane) as I have, and walk those quiet streets, and then come back and tell me that they are surrender monkeys. Don't just look at what the Germans did there, but look at WHY they did it. They did it as retaliation for actions taken by ordinary civilian French citizens in support of our D-Day landings in Normandy, 536 kilometers away, as part of the overall D-Day plan. These patriots could have sat out their war and just waited until the Allies arrived. They didn't.

If you visit the chateau at La Rochefoucauld, you'll learn something about the local Duke's friendship with Ben Franklin and his direct contributions to the creation of our Constitutional form of government. And by the way, one of his linear descendants didn't do too badly in WW2: http://www.badassoftheweek.com/rochefoucauld.html.

And I'll tell you something else.... The average Parisian elitist may turn his nose up at America, Americans, and things American, but the average Frenchman does not. They are intensely curious about life in the U.S. They will pay more for a pair of Levis or Nikes than they will for their own domestic brands. Even their own music imitates our own. French rockers and rappers compose and play songs that imitate a form originating here. Their jazz-lovers musicians revere our Jazz composers and performers. And never forget that some of our own great musical performers of color in both jazz and opera chose to live and perform in France instead of the U.S., because they could not catch a break even in post-slavery America. The French even think that American muscle cars are cool, even if they can't afford to drive them. And the VAST majority of them are in generally better physical condition than we are. Obesity in France is almost non-existent.

We even share a certain percentage of linguistic heritage, both in terms of historical etymology, but also in terms of developing etymology. There is a term for it there: "Franglais", the fusion of contemporary American english with traditional French....... much to the horror of the "Alliance Francaise", France's official guardian of all things cultural. In France, common people talk about listening to "le rockandroll", causing snobs to roll their eyes.

We eat beef in Texas. Where does the word "beef" come from? It comes from the much older French word "boeuf" which means either the domesticated bovine animal, or its flesh. In Commie-fornia, they eat a lot of mutton...... a word descending from the French "mouton", meaning a sheep. Our use of the word "Metro" even comes from the name for the Parisian subway, "le Metro", which it was called back when I was a child, LONG before the word entered common usage here to describe men of a certain kind. In France, they talk about listening to "le rockandroll".

France is also an independent country trying to make its way in the world, and it has insisted on doing so without making its every move subservient to approval in Washington DC. Why should it not? This causes irritation to some Americans, but perhaps it shouldn't. Would WE (absent a canker sore like Obama) do any differently?

[Dadtodabone]

I'm always conflicted when faced with opinions about "La Belle France". I speak the language, read the literature, enjoy the food and fashions, and with a few exceptions appreciate her fine arts. That her fighting men have courage and resolve, I have no doubt. I saw evidence of this during my service in Europe. That the vast majority of her citizens have respect and appreciation for "Les forces Armées des États-Unis" that fought and died for her liberation is not ever a matter in doubt.

That said, I lost an uncle at Safi, French Morocco. The mission, of which I had a small part, of defending Western Europe, was vastly complicated by French/Gaullist perfidy and outright appeasement of our common enemy. France following her own course, reduced by 2 Corps the frontline forces in NATO's forward defense scheme, making our stance at the FRG/GDR border tantamount to suicide.

And then Voilà! François Mitterrand! A Socialist! Recognized the danger and while German youth protested and terrorists bombed, worked for deployment of U.S. Pershing II and Cruise missile systems to counter Soviet SS-N-20 missiles. Stiffened the Germans in his speech to the Bundestag, helped Kohl keep the lid on domestically and singlehandedly reversed almost all the negatives of the 5th Republic to date.

Like I said I'm conflicted.