I love this series! It's shot like Saving Private Ryan, but each episode focuses on a different member of Easy Company.

Speaking of which, had an interesting "talk" with a co-worker of mine ... ex-Soviet army officer, came over in '87. Claimed there was no holocaust, that Americans made lousy soldiers, and won no wars without lots of help (he didn't respond to my question about the Civil War). Idiot.

To the best of my knowledge, no foreign troops participated ... and if they did, they didn't to any significant degree (as the French did -- that is, to a significant degree -- in the Revolutionary)

[ October 28, 2001: Message edited by: Malnurtured Snay ]

However, on the whole, foreign intervention in the American Civil War was minuscule as compared to the American Revolution.

The Confederacy spent much of the war trying desperately to have a foreign power intervene on their behalf. It had some success on the diplomatic front as that France and the United Kingdom were sympathetic to the non-slavery portion of the Confederate cause, yet, they were unwilling to send troops to fight due to that pro-slavery portion of the Confederate cause.

A number of British troops were sent to Canada as a result of the tension caused by the "Trent Affair" as Confederate commissioners John Slidell and James M. Mason were taken from the British merchant vessel, The Trent. As I recall the number of troops sent to Canada was around 10,000, which viewed in terms of the large armies fielded by both North and South was insignificant as a fighting force, but useful as a message.

While the Confederacy received diplomatic sympathy, even that only went so far. The Union saw the desperate Confederate need for foreign supplies and moved to quash that not only by blockade, but also by applying pressure on foreign power who were seen to be assisting the rebels. Most notably, the Union was able to stop the building of iron-clad rams in British shipyards. This severly limited the the ability of the Confederates to harass Union military and merchant shipping worldwide or to force open and generally weaken an effective Union blockade of southern states.

France on the other had did take the oportunity to make moves into Mexico in violation of the Monroe Doctrine and met with some success because of the fact Union's military priority was elsewhere.

On another note Mr. Snay, I would say that your former Soviet officer was more indoctrinated than knowledgeable. One can certainly point to the American war with Mexico in the 1840's as an example of American success without foreign assistance, but that would miss the point of a nuanced argument with this fellow.

If there is actually a point of such an argument, then you Herr Snay should be aware of the Soviet anger at both the United Sates and Great Britian for waiting as long as they did to open a second European front while the Soviets were taking the brunt of the German war machine. Here he would have a point and an interesting conversation.

To claim that United States soldiers were poor is again missing the greater point. As compared to Soviet tatics, the Allies of World War II saw no need of needlessly expending troops the way Soviet military command did. Soviet soldiers of war produced some trememdous acts of valor and heroism, but the question must be asked of how the Soviets might have faired against a Germany that didn't have interests in North Africa, the Aegean area and France. Needless to say of the question of how the Soviets would have faired in any case without the pre-American entry into the war Lend Lease aid and the huge amout of war-wide allied military assistance.

Still, the question of American and Allied soldiers should be addressed. The Allies took a great toll on German military manufacture and infrastructure with American daylight bombing and British night bombing. Both took heavy losses and achieved great affect. Not to mention the strategic and tatical significance of allied air superiority, both in the European theater and in the Pacific.

Speaking of the Pacific, the Americans did not go it alone, even in the Pacific, and it would have been foolish to do so. Austrailians, British, Coast Watchers, ect. all took part in the effort to defeat Japan. Same can be said for the defeat of Germany. The Gary Cooper, "High Noon" I'm doing it all by myself, attitude is for people who have no concept of strategy.

You should have your Soviet officer consider the Marines on Guadalcanal, Tarawa or Iwo Jima; the Army units at Bastone; the units at Inchon; the Marines at the Chosin Reservoir; the Marines at Khe Sanh.

[ October 29, 2001: Message edited by: Jay the Obscure ]

Okay, "my" Soviet officer is a dip-shit that everyone wants to fire.

Anyhoo, he denied Lend Lease ... "bottom of Balkans" ... in regards to the second front, he replied that the Soviets were kickin' ass and takin' names, and that Roosevelt and Churchill begged Stalin to renew their attacks on Germany in order to speed up the possibility of D-Day succeeding.