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Frequently
Asked Questions (FAQ) Below
are some questions sent in from History
Guy website visitors and the
responses. 1.
What
does the "D" in "D-Day" stand
for? 3.
What
countries fought in the Vietnam
War? 4.
Why
is the French and Indian War considered a
seven year war if it lasted nine
years?
What does the "D" in "D-Day" stand
for? Given
the popularity of films like "Saving
Private Ryan" and HBO's "Band of
Brothers," this is a frequently asked
question. The D in D-Day simply means
"Day." It is used to signify the day of an
invasion or attack against enemy forces.
Military jargon uses M-Minute, H-Hour, and
D-Day for operations. This system was in
use long before and long after the
Normandy
Invasion
popularized these terms and introduced
them into modern vocabulary.
Communications over the radio are often
difficult to hear due to static, etc., and
these redundant terms are used to ensure
that everyone understands their
orders. The
term D-Day was used throughout World War 2
and is still used in the U.S. military
today. The
term D-Day was used recently during
Desert
Storm
to identify the day the U.S. launched the
ground attack against Iraq. Soldiers also
used this term during the campaign when
referring to days following the invasion.
For example, D + 3 = the third day after
D-Day, D + 4 = the fourth day, etc. Other
examples of this system include the way
army units are identified. "A" Company is
referred to as "Able" Company, "B" Company
is referred to as "Baker" Company, and so
on. Despite the continuing use of this
term, when people hear the phrase "D-Day"
it conjures up images of the Normandy
Invasion of 1944.
Supposedly
a war was started in 1969 over a disputed
call in a soccer match. What two nations
were party to that little bit of
foolishness? El
Salvador and Honduras fought in July of
1969.
Bad feelings had run between them for some
time, largely due to the fact that tens of
thousands of Salvadorans illegally
"squatted" on Honduran land and complained
of persecution from the Hondurans. The
soccer games (three games in a qualifying
round for the World Cup) only set the
torch to an already flammable situation.
One game was held in each national
capital, with rioting by fans and (in my
mind as an anti-soccer fan) violence
typically associated with the
sport. While
the soccer matches provided fuel for
public passions, the Salvadoran invasion
of Honduras really has more to do with the
harassment and eviction of the Salvadoran
squatters by the Honduran military. The
displaced refugees placed an economic
strain on and already overpopulated El
Salvador and the government had to "do
something" to look governmental. So,
supposedly to defend national honor ( and
to allow their people to return to the
land they were forced to leave) El
Salvador invaded Honduras on July
14. The
more powerful Salvadoran army pushed into
Honduras, but their air force was
basically wiped out by the Hondurans, who
then proceeded to destroy El Salvador's
oil storage facilities. Losing the oil and
command of the air, the Salvadoran army
pretty much ground to a halt. A cease-fire
was arranged on July 18 and the armies
stopped fighting. Over 100,000 Salvadorans
were expelled from Honduras and 2,000
people, mostly Honduran civilians from the
border region engulfed in the fighting,
died. By
the way, they call it the "Futbol War,"
since most of the world calls the game
Football. And
yes, it was a particularly foolish
war.
What
countries fought in the Vietnam
War? The
Vietnam
War,
also known as the Second Indochina War,
lasted from 1956 to 1975. Here
is a list of nations and rebel groups
involved in Vietnam and
Indochina. The
Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), the
United States, Australia, New Zealand,
South Korea, the Philippines and Thailand
(also, the non-communist governments of
Cambodia and Laos participated in that
they were attacked by the North Vietnamese
and the local Communist rebels aided by
North Vietnam's government). The
Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North
Vietnam), the People's Liberation Armed
Forces in South Vietnam (Viet Cong), the
Khmer Rouge (communist guerrillas in
Cambodia) and the Pathet Lao (communist
guerrillas in Laos) **China
and the Soviet Union contributed to the
Communist side through material
support.
The
French and Indian War (1754-1763) was
fought between the French and British for
control of their colonies in North
America. Each side had Indian tribes as
allies. This war did last for nine years.
The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) is the
European version of the war. The Seven
Years' War involved not only the British
and French, but also included Prussia and
Hanover on Britain's side and Austria,
Russia, Saxony, Sweden and Spain on the
side of France. The warfare between
Britain and France also extended to a
colonial war in India, where each nation
had colonies. In Europe, Prussia invaded
Saxony in 1756, which kicked off the
European side of the fighting. Eventually,
Britain and France, who were already
fighting in North America, joined the
fray. If
you read about the wars from a European
source, they often forego the French and
Indian War title, while American sources
often downplay the European title of the
Seven Years' War. So, basically, it was a
seven-year conflict in Europe and a
nine-year conflict in America.
Actually,
the opposite is true. When a nation's
Communist government falls, the immediate
result is a more democratic society and
government. After the fall of the Berlin
Wall and the end of the Communist
dictatorships in Eastern Europe, democracy
flourished. Russia became a democracy
after the Soviet Union fell, and, at least
until the rise of Putin (who WAS elected)
Russia had a free and democratic system.
When the Marxist Sandinista government
finally allowed real elections, Nicaragua
became a democracy. Most
Communist governments were preceded by
some form of a dictatorship, not by a
democratic system. The communist
governments in Russia, China, Nicaragua,
and Cuba were all preceded by
dictatorships which fell to Communist
rebels. "The
History Guy" is a Registered Trademark. Contact
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