Ahead of the event, the 16 nations involved in the commemoration agreed a proclamation to mark the 75th anniversary. The statement, coordinated by the UK, recognises the sacrifice of those who took part in the second world war and salutes the surviving D-day veterans.
In the proclamation, countries undertake to work together to find common ground and recommit to the shared values of democracy, tolerance and the rule of law.
It says: “Seventy-five years ago, our countries were about to embark on a decisive battle. On 6 June 1944, 160,000 allied troops landed at Normandy, signalling the beginning of the end of the war in Europe. Casualty figures on all sides were immense, with hundreds of thousands of soldiers, sailors, aviators and civilians killed or wounded in the days and weeks that followed.
“We stand together today to honour the memory of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice on D-day, and those many millions of men and women who lost their lives during the second world war, the largest conflict in human history.
“Over the last 75 years, our nations have stood up for peace in Europe and globally, for democracy, tolerance and the rule of law. We re-commit today to those shared values because they support the stability and prosperity of our nations and our people.”
The text has been agreed by the 16 countries attending the Portsmouth commemorations: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Poland, Slovakia, the UK and the US.
also from the guardian link
The prime minister is to call for unity in western Europe, adding: “The global challenges we face today are different in their origin and nature. But as we confront new and evolving threats to our security it is more important than ever that we continue to stand together in upholding our shared values and way of life.”
also on this day with regard to Europe and us
1917 – American men began registering for the World War I draft.
1924 – Ernst F. W. Alexanderson transmitted the first facsimile message across the Atlantic Ocean.
1940 – During World War II, the Battle of France began when Germany began an offensive in Southern France.
1947 – U.S. Secretary of State George C. Marshall gave a speech at Harvard University in which he outlined the Marshall Plan.
on the lighter side from the guardian today
Mayor Max spends his days promoting local businesses and charities and attending town events in Idyllwild, California. Photograph: Courtesy Phyllis Mueller
The mayor of Idyllwild, California, was “born into public service”, according to his top aide. He took office at just 11 weeks old and spends nearly every day engaging with his constituents and spreading his hopes for world peace. He does it largely in the nude, though he wears a tie and an array of hats.
Mayor Maximus Mighty-Dog Mueller II, age six, is a golden retriever on a mission: “In his heart, he would like to see peace on Earth in his lifetime,” said his chief of staff and human companion, Phyllis Mueller.
Reached by the Guardian, the mayor was playing outside. He accepted the call but had little to say on the phone. Mueller, however, relayed his charter: “to make the world a better place by conveying unconditional love and doing as many good deeds for others as possible.”
It’s not an easy job. “We come out into the public every day, including in bad weather, snow and rain,” in an effort to spread happiness, Mueller said. Residents meet the mayor and take photos. He also helps promote local businesses and charities; participates in town events, such as a popular Fourth of July parade; and visits homes, schools and retirement communities in the tiny, community-oriented town.
[continues]
Growing up, my family included WWI, WWII and Korea veterans. Slowly it dwindeled to WWII and Korea veterans. We had friends whose relatives served all over the world during WWII, including Omaha Beach. In my thirties I used to drink with a WWII Medal of Honor recipient. Now there are few of the WWII and Korea vets alive. The memories of horror are alive in Vietnam and SW Asia veterans. It never stops.
Also on this day in history: The assassination of Robert Kennedy
in case you missed it, the house critters CAN chew gum and talk the I-word at the same time
House passes immigration bill to protect ‘dreamers,’ offer a path to citizenship
but senate critters? neither chewing nor talking let alone accomplishing anything thanks to myrtle mc.
the hill: Trump trails Biden, Sanders, other Dems in Michigan: poll
A number of 2020 Democratic contenders would beat President Trump in Michigan, a key state in which he narrowly defeated former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016, a new poll found.
Former Vice President Joe Biden, Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D-Ind.) and Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) all topped Trump in the Glengariff Group poll, The Detroit News reported late Tuesday.
Biden and Sanders both led Trump by 12 points, according to the poll, which also found Buttigieg had a 6-point edge over the president.
The leads for Warren and Harris over Trump were 4 and 3 percentage points respectively, falling within the survey’s 4-percentage-point margin of error.
Just more than one-third of likely Michigan voters — 36 percent — said they would vote to reelect Trump while 51 percent said they intended to vote for someone else.
[continues]
Watching Chernobyl on HBO which started me wondering about the current conditions there and at the Japanese Fukushima plants.
Things are not pleasant at either place as cleanup still continues for both.
Chernobyl: https://nuclear-energy.net/nuclear-accidents/chernobyl/current-status
Fukushima: https://phys.org/news/2019-03-fukushima-current-state-clean-up.html
wapo: Trump, Macron, Merkel, May and Queen attend stirring commemoration marking 75th anniversary of D-Day
PORTSMOUTH, England — British royalty and leaders from around the world gathered in Portsmouth on Wednesday to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, honoring the men and women who participated in what is still the largest naval, air and land operation in history.
President Trump and Prime Minister Theresa May were among the 16 world leaders who attending several events throughout the day to mark the anniversary of the allied invasion of northern France.
The morning kicked off at an amphitheater, near the Portsmouth harbor, where Queen Elizabeth II wore a bright pink dress and sat next to Trump and Prince Charles. Other leaders from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland and Slovakia were in attendance.
Addressing the crowd from her box, the queen said that when she attended commemorations for the 60th anniversary of the D-Day Landings, some thought it would be the last. “But the wartime generation — my generation — is resilient, and I am delighted to be with you in Portsmouth today,” she said.
“On behalf of the entire country — indeed the whole free world — that I say to you all, thank you,” she said.
It was a poignant affair with military bands playing somber music as black and white film clips broadcast from the stage, showing the faces of young men running onto beaches and readying to jump out of planes.
When Trump took the stage, he read part of a prayer that then President Franklin D. Roosevelt read over the airwaves to the country on the eve of D-Day. “Almighty God: Our sons, pride of our nation, this day have set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our republic, our religion, and our civilization, and to set free a suffering humanity,” he said.
[continues]
Was that before or after he attacked Bette MIdler?
fake news from a fake president
Do anyone else think that Gordo is Trump?
ksg, certainly muy gordo from the looks of him lately. imo he’s more trollish than our old trail “friend” mr. G
well, well, well…
reuters;
WASHINGTON — Republican and Democratic U.S. senators said on Wednesday they would introduce 22 separate joint resolutions seeking to block President Donald Trump’s plan to sidestep congressional review and complete more than $8 billion in military sales to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan.
Backers of the effort said it was intended to “protect and reaffirm Congress’ role of approving arms sales to foreign governments.”
The effort is led by Senators Bob Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Republican Lindsey Graham, one of his party’s leading foreign policy voices who is often a close Trump ally.
Two other Republican senators — Rand Paul and Todd Young — and three Democrats — Chris Murphy, Patrick Leahy and Jack Reed — also joined the announcement.
Declaring an emergency because of tensions with Iran, the Trump administration informed congressional committees on May 24 that it was going ahead with the 22 military deals worth $8.1 billion, circumventing a long-standing precedent for lawmakers to review major weapons sales.
The decision angered members of both parties, who worried that Trump’s decision to blow through the “holds” process would eliminate Congress’ ability to prevent not just Trump but future presidents from selling weapons where they liked.
Announcing their plan to introduce the 22 resolutions, the senators said Trump’s “unprecedented” action is at odds with longstanding practice and cooperation between Congress and the executive branch.
Reuters reported on Tuesday that lawmakers were working on responses to the administration’s action and could file legislation within days.
Senator Biden and Representative Hyde apparently still friends and supporters of Mr. Hyde’s amendment
Go Joe back where you came from — the middle ages
Seriously he claims to support abortion but apparently only if you can pay for it yourself.
Germany celebrates D-Day ? ? ?
Well okay. So what’s wrong with Austria ?
hugh hewitt claims trump is a strong man on the world stage.
The weakest president since john tyler is more like it.
mrs tyler wrecked the tyler administration.
trump is his own mrs tyler.
While we’re arresting officers over inaction during school shootings…
the guardian:
Japan’s health and labour minister has defended workplaces that require women to wear high heels to work, arguing it is “necessary and appropriate” after a petition was filed against the practice.
The remark came when Takumi Nemoto was asked to comment on a petition by a group of women who want the government to ban workplaces from requiring female jobseekers and employees to wear high heels.
“It is socially accepted as something that falls within the realm of being occupationally necessary and appropriate,” Nemoto told a legislative committee on Wednesday.
The petition was submitted to the labour ministry on Tuesday. The campaign has been dubbed #KuToo, a play on words from the Japanese word “kutsu”, meaning shoes, and “kutsuu”, meaning “pain”. It is also a reference to the global #MeToo movement against sexual abuse.
The movement was launched by the actor and freelance writer Yumi Ishikawa and quickly won support from thousands of people online.
Campaigners say wearing high heels in Japan is near-obligatory when job hunting or working in many Japanese companies.
Some campaigners describe high heels as akin to modern-day foot-binding, while others have urged a broader loosening of dress codes in Japan, where business suits for men are ubiquitous in the workplace.
In 2015, the director of the Cannes film festival apologised after a controversy blew up over women being denied access to the red carpet for not wearing high heels. But Cannes kept the dress code, despite a protest by the Hollywood superstar Julia Roberts who went barefoot the next year.
maybe that’s why Theresa May lost her job and Hillary lost the election. they both wear sensible shoes.
not mel
as Robin Givhan wapo’s fashion critic wrote in 2017
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2017/08/29/there-was-no-pretense-about-melania-trumps-heels-but-sometimes-a-little-pretense-helps/?utm_term=.365b284f4e29
Melania Trump is the kind of woman who travels to a flood-ravaged state in a pair of black snakeskin stilettos. Heels this high are not practical. But Trump is not the kind of woman who has to be practical. Heels this high are not comfortable. Comfort is not the point. Neither hers nor yours.
Only the William Henry Harrison Administration was less successful than john tyler’s or dumold trump’s.
98% of domestic terrorist killings in the US in 2018 were by rightwing extremists*. Or, as republicans would say, ‘moderates’ or ‘leftists’ in ‘gun-free zones’.
*https://adl.org/murder-and-extremism-2018#murder-and-extremism-in-the-united-states-in 2018
It’s interesting that our President, draft dodger that he is, chose to spend the historic night in Ireland, the country that most stridently waved its flag of neutrality during the entire War.
The new Michael Wolff book trump Under Fire claims that melanoma doesn’t live with the adulterous pussypincher. Wolff writes, she and their son Barren live with her chain-migrant [commie] parents in Maryland. Wolff alleges that a new bimbo has found her [his?] way into the bigot’s much-stained bed.
kremlin watchers debate whether the woman beleaguered ‘strong’man donald trump is now sleeping with is former somebody nikki haley or the “great piece of ass” hope hicks.
XR, pls take a look at this Snopes on Gov Haley
Stars and Stripes is doing a D-day feature.
jack, thank you. excellent choice for our
NEW THREAD