Goals

I hear you, Friedrich. The Waffen-SS was as well under the burden of political teaching, race matters and such.The Totenkopf men were ordered for a time period to "work" at concentration camps to understand how to treat "subhumans"
( Eicke´s ideas ).Yet among Waffen-SS grew a new system, comradeship, where officers and ordinary soldiers would be "equal".They could talk to each other every day things and yet the commander´s position was not questioned during the fight.I do think that was new?For German army quite NEW!I do have healthy respect for the Heer but all things have their good and bad points.
I do agree that many Waffen-SS high officers must have been total "asses" because they were promoted so fast. But as a combat unit, hardly ever failed the trust put in them.

 

Perfectly well said!

We could say that the Waffen SS represents the nazi Germany's new and modern armed forces.

And we could say that the Heer represents the old, professional and conservative German military traditions.

Both together made the most outstanding victories in 1939-1941.

 

panzergrenadier, for my long term goals: fabricate or acquire enough LAVs to form my own armored recon abteilung. though building a marder would be great if i could find the appropriate components; after i win the lotto. until then i guess i will continue to search for new parts for the SdKfz251 (ot810) so we have the best looking reproduction halftrack in the reenactment community. other long term goals: marderII or III. build a german ww2 armored car. submachine gun. lithuanian volunteer impression. blank firing mp40

short term goals: finishing the restoration of my steyr daimler puch motorcycle. get new ejector assy for my g43 reproduce affordable, durable, and good looking reproduction panzerfausts for all to enjoy!(final stages!)

 

Those are some good goals unitypunk. At the moment my goals area;

1. continue to improve my medical impression. ( get a 2nd helmet and more equipment)

2. recruit atleast 5 people for my unit.

3. get a third zelt.

4. save for a blank firing mp40.


Its alot and it'll take time to do all those things but I look forward to trying.

 

What's your medical impression like? Is your helmet painted? Armband? Smock? Weapon?
German medics had two leather pouches on their belts, right?

 

Yeah, they had two weird leather pouches with lids that open away from the body rather than towards the body as one would expect. Panzergren, we dont have many german medics over here, though one dragged me off a field last year. Do you carry a weapon? It is a little known fact that medics were entitled to 'take up arms in the defence of their casualty'. I do not think that means they can carry weapons all the time but they can pick them up in combat.

As for my goals, well my biggest goal at the moment is to aid in the tactical training of my unit and to go for promotion again some time soon. I want to work on my pioneer impression, get more grenades and such as well as finish my explosive charges. I also want to get some letters off to 12th SS vets, something I should get done in the next few days.

 

My short goal is to succeed my higher education this year. Then I would like to do a social project (6 till 7 months) in a foreign country.

And also very important to reach 1.000 posts before the end of July. Just to put a date on it.

 

we all still await a scan of Friedrich's OPA mit Ritterkreuz from the postings in September of 2002.......

~E

 

As for my medic or "sani" immpresion. I have the 2 leather pouches, the canteen, the armband and the vest. I'm gonna have the helmet by the end of the summer, I just need to save up money.

Doc, are you gonna be at lowell in a few weeks? I'll be doing medic there.

 

i can vouch for panzergrenadier, his medic impression is one of the best ive ever seen. keep up the good work!!! Tote! so what are you going to do with that blank firing mp40 when your a medic? look pretty?

 

Thanks unitypunk. If I ever get the blank firing mp40 I'd let my buddy wolfgang use it when I go medic.

 

im sure he will not argue.
i got the puch back from the painter a couple of weeks ago and have finally put her back togeather. it looks awesome! i plan to make a trip to Sears today to pick up all of the nuts/bolts i need to fasten everything togeather properly. as of now i only have mismatched hardware which looks fine if im going for a complete field repair impression. last night i started to load the bike down with my equipment. the A-frame pack fits nicely onto the luggage rack until i get the rear seat. i have some meat saddle bags from a museum in europe; but i want to use leather ones instead. since the bike is a 125, i am restoring it as a requisitioned machine. WH on the fenders and ALL! hopefully my friends come over to push me down the hill once i get a new rear tire!

 

Dennis, I'll be glad to push you and your bike down the hill (evil laugh).

As for now I've updated my goals to paying off the panzershreck I've recently aquired anc continued translating of a german red cross book that a friend loaned me so I can improve my medic impression (like making correct bandages and slings, etc).

 

It is inevitable that anyone portraying a Waffen-SS soldier is going to cop a lot of flak at public dos. By and large the general public don't take the interest in history that we do and tend to think in stereotypes. Having said that, I've taken a certain amount of flak for wearing a Heer outfit before now. Public shows really do test your diplomatic abilities.

Interestingly, I once knew a fellow from London, who came to a couple of our private events. He was togged out in full SS regalia, tarnjacke, the lot, and he told me of an event he attended where he came under the usual "do you realise what these people did to the Jews" argument. His reply left them flummoxed - he is a quarter Jewish himself!!!!

Re rooting for the feldgraus in the movies, I consider any film that shows them to be as human as the Allies, in an inhuman situation, is a step in the right direction. I was disappointed in Saving Private Ryan as Spielberg I think was playing to the gallery a lot in this film (though it has to be said that the opening 20 min on Omaha beach is as close an impression of what it must have been like on the day that we will probably get) but after all, he is making something that has to sell at the end of the day. I considered the Band of Brothers miniseries to offer a more balanced account overall.

 

The Imperial War Museum at Duxford has one at the moment, on loan from the Wheatcroft collection.
See also Missing Links:-

http://www.network54.com/Hide/Forum/thread?forumid=47207&messageid=1070989242

 

Jumbo i have no qualms about it however i am always nercous when i see veterans in the audience, however everytime we speak to them they are glad we are remembering what they did, many many times do vets come and say they are glad that somebody is doing the desert/italian campaign as from what they can see (there words) from the uniforms about at events the whole war was fought by paratroopers. the few veterans of the indian divisions we see are over the moon with what we are doing. as for W-SS well that is there choice and i have to ask there motives, is it a good smart uniform or are they glorifying the SS etc. some i know are great lads others are neo-nazi's. it is down to organisers to say what is acceptable and what isn't, but you cant hide the fact that they were there and fought. also atrocities were commited by boith sides in the war it is just the victor's who write the history books.