Someone You Should Know - Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader
Bader joined the RAF in 1928, and was commissioned in 1930. In December 1931, while attempting some aerobatics,
he crashed and lost both his legs. Having been on the brink of death,
he recovered, retook flight training, passed his check flights and then
requested reactivation as a pilot. Although there were no regulations
applicable to his situation, he was retired against his will on medical
grounds.[3]
After the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, however, Douglas
Bader returned to the RAF and was accepted as a pilot. He scored his
first victories over Dunkirk during the Battle of France in 1940.
He became an Ace. He was credited with 22 aerial victories, four shared victories, six
probables, one shared probable and 11 enemy aircraft damaged.
Read the rest...
The Germans so respected him, they allowed a bomber crew to drop a new artificial leg that was lost during his crash and capture in Germany.
I also understand that in his last written documents, he swore on his Mother's grave that should Donald John Trump ever be elected to the Presidency of the United States, he would Not request crayons, coloring books or play-doh to try to deal with such an event.
Franco, My apologies for not including this information with my comment on last post.
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing man....Talk about strong and determined...And that he fought for the rights of the handicapped says even more about him.
ReplyDeleteSome people really have it Z.
DeleteDoug Bader was a total hero, we all know this. He was also a diehard Brexiteer and a MAGA Trump fan.I love that.
ReplyDeleteLSP, I suspect he would be.
DeleteThere is no doubt this man was a natural flyer ... some people have an affinity for such skills, most don’t even though they can eventually become proficient. Bader went far beyond that. But there was so much more to this man, who refused to let his handicap stand in the way of his desire to be normal. In his quest to do that, he became a superman. I suppose out here in Texas, one would say simply, the man had sand. Thanks for the reminder of an epic human being.
ReplyDeleteAMEN!
DeleteIn his own way the late Charles Krauthammer was just such a man.
Ludwig van Beethoven who wrote his greatest music from the depth of his incredible imagnation while he was literally stone deaf is another.
Helen Keller I think qualifies too.
I know there have been others. It's too bad we hear little about the remarkable people who manage to excel, and become disstinguished despite insuperable odds against them.
Instead, we're fed a steady diet of victimology and incalculable loss. PHOOEY!
Mustang, I was happy to have remembered him the other day.
DeleteFranco, Sure seems that way these days.
Thanks, Kid, for providing this information on the guy you referred to in the last post.
ReplyDeleteI'd never heard of him before yesterday, yet he was a helluva lot more remarkable and distguished than many who got to be more famous.
Franco, I think there were many greats during WWII that we'll never hear about. A while back the Military channel had a series on the 10 best flying Aces of WWII. All incredible men.
DeleteMany on the ground too who we'll never hear of unless they'd gotten the Medal of Honor bestowed on them so we could look them up.
Yes, Kid. My current favorite proverb:
Delete"The great are rarely famous, the famous rarely great."
I would add those who actively seek fame as a primary goal are motivated by Vanity, while those who achieve something wonderful in which they truly believe don't really WANT or NEED the FAME they sometimes get.
Another favorite proverb taught to me a hundred years ago in Sunday School:
"Do not weary in well-doing."
Great Proverbs Franco. I'm sure no one was wondering about the MOH as they were doing whatever it was that resulted in them being awarded the medal. Far as I know they all say "I was just doing my job, and the people who didn't make it back are the ones who deserve the recognition".
DeleteOne only has to look at the "guest list" of the various Marxist congressmen for tonights State of the Union speech to get a glimpse of what now are considered "real heroes" in their minds. There could not be a better contrast then this post, one who was willing time and again to give it all for our Country.
ReplyDeleteBunk, yes they have a real goon squad lineup tonight. I'm looking forward to watching to hear what DJT has to say and to see how much of a sourpuss face pelosi can manage to make. I won't be listening to any rebuttals that's for sure. It'll be tough enough just skipping past those headlines tomorrow.
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