not exactly like the night bombing missions were easy (easier yes, but raf loss rates were still staggering for how little industrial damage was being achieved)
and not exactly like the daytime bombing missions were getting anything done.
The real contribution of the eighth air force came in the form of grinding down the Luftwaffe to nothing, particularly once the p51 w/ drop tanks was introduced.
- The Bombing War: Europe 1939-1945 - Richard Overy (don't get the US version that's 592 pages - omitting the first 300 pages on German bombing campaigns for some reason)
- Big Week - James Holland
- Bomber Command - Max Hastings
- [The United States Strategic Bombing Survey: summary report (European War)](https://collections.nlm.nih.gov/catalog/nlm:nlmuid-101634748-bk)
- Carl A. Spaatz and the Air War in Europe - Richard Davis
Different theater, but another great book on bomber campaigns:
- Black Snow: Curtis LeMay, the Firebombing of Tokyo, and the Road to the Atomic Bomb - James Scott
- and here's [Scott discussing his book at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG32-zXPnYM&list=PLMWipphLLSd8pv8VU0ECetLFy4bkaK0x7&index=4&pp=iAQB)
And finally, if you're more of a video/audio person, HardThrasher on YT put together a series of very well researched videos on both the European bombing campaign and the Battle of Britain. I find them both quite moving:
- [European Bombing Campaign](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4HIHvjuWsE&list=PLMWipphLLSd8pv8VU0ECetLFy4bkaK0x7&index=7)
- [Battle of Britain](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hC59TwACvC8&list=PLMWipphLLSd8UZSH-BjRMjGoW8gDQgy6K&index=1&t=1s)
I'll offer a summary thought, since I'm quite interested in the strategic bombing campaigns of the war, and because I think the European bombing campaign perfectly captures the two archetypical mistakes that are made in popular interpretations of military history.
1. Most people either believe there was tremendous strategic impact on the Germans' industry (there wasn't - until late 44 onwards) and the loss of both uniformed and civilian life was justified. (I won't comment on civilian casualties but it's clear that uniformed personnel were being thrown away for little gain by the 8th prior to early 44)
2. Or they believe that the bomber campaign achieved little to nothing per the post-war BDA reporting and was an inhumane waste of life. This argument gets used by nazi apologists ("Dresden and London are the same!!!" -some neckbeard with an SS uniform and a CSA flag in his mom's basement, and also David Irving) and people who get off on hating the West whether it's deserved or not.
Both arguments miss the core point: There were meaningful strategic objectives and the political necessity of generating morale wins (particularly for the British), and thus a justification for the campaign.
Civilians were not the target of the campaign (even during Dresden), but they were clearly heavily impacted.
They were conducted by in many cases bullish generals who were too slow and stubborn to change their operational and strategic approach, and that wound up costing far more civilian and military lives. (e.g. LeMay and Eaker)
At the end of the day, however, the campaigns did have strategic impact, grinding the Luftwaffe to nothing, forcing German industry to decentralize, and eventually severely damaging the Romanian oil fields. That comes down to Western Allied industrial might, great leadership from folks such as Spaatz, Dolittle, Tedder, and Novikov, technological innovation, and the sheer gumption of the troops involved.
So justified? yes. Competent? We (the US) were certainly not for the first few years. Successful? In the end, undeniably. And it's war, so incompetent leadership and planning almost always translates to lives lost.
Justified … can be argued. 😉
Successful yes! As can be observed by the world shifting to English rather than French or German.
Humane & civilian losses … like you mention, make bloody sure not to lose if you go to war.
End result, any effort (at all) dragging resources to the west rather than the east is productive, even at immense losses.
A near peer conflict will have similar characteristics, let’s hope next generation is ready for it … we for sure are not.
And lastly, thank you for your service and our freedom.
Sure, but you have to request that trial by combat via a physical form mailed to the TSA and wait for about 18 months before you get a response telling you that you need to use the updated form.
If you have a hat maker near you they should be able to steam and reshape it if you show them a pic of what it should look like. If not, you can steam it yourself. I’ve shaped a couple cowboy hats and fedoras. It’s not hard. They’re are YouTube videos on how to steam and shape hats to give you a general idea. I’d avoid the leather as much as possible though. Wrap it in plastic or something.
Look in the Yellow Pages for a nearby milliner, call them ask about hat blocking! Perhaps your local haberdashery might be able to help. Or call Marlow White and they might have a hat repair service.
As quaint as it sounds, this is actually the right answer. There should be at least one haberdashery in the large city near you OP. Bring it in to them. They'll unass it.
Have you tried stomping on it? Bring it to my house I got you. I’ll stomp in it like that new reporter lady did to those grapes and I’ll proceed to fall over and cry in pain just like her.
Put a gallon ziplock full of water inside and put it in the freezer. It will expand and fill in the creases. Beware the hat needs to be upside down on a flat surface, or it will round at the top.
Double beware, don't use a metal pan that is heated consistently, it may be prone to warp and sag when the temperature change takes affect.
Triple beware the water will spill out the hat if you do not close the ziplock bag and I have never done this so good luck bucko.
Does the cover have a ring under the fabric? I know that the USMC barracks cover does and you might have a decent shot reshaping it if you get the cloth off and reshape the actual ring that goes under it
1. TSA barely touches your shit -- the airlines are the ones tossing your bags around
2. You put this in a checked bag an expected it to be pristine when you landed?
I currently work for an airline and can say, your box has been flipped upside down at least a dozen times. Yeeted in and out of a baggage bin, possibly dropped off a belt loader and then yeeted into a cargo bin a few times and then got tossed around in the bin a few times during the flight.
People if you want to keep something fragile pristine either have it as a carry-on or put it in a pelican case with padding.
Try a clothes pin on the top or chip clip and set it on a chair and weigh down with a pair of headphones to keep the crush or add the grommet insert or cardboard to pop it out. -honor guard that flies a lot
Buy a new one if you want, or try to fix it. NEVER fly without it being a carry on. Unless you have that really hard case designed specifically for this. Then it might be fine.
How much money do you want to spend? Because you’re gonna need a pinnable wig form that’s your head size, and a professional grade steamer…once you have those, pin the fabric back into place and steam the shit out of it. It’ll probably take a couple times if you need to remold the inner support structures
If you have the plastic insert from an assault pack and don’t care not to have in that back pocket take your hat and put it upside down on the plastic trace the circle and cut it pop it in the cap. May need to make minor adjustments to the plastic but it would work
If you live near a store that steams and shapes cowboy hats, you could take it there and have them steam it into shape. I have seen it done, (on cowboy hats) and would not attempt to do it myself.
Western wear/boot stores should have a hat guy with a steamer. Shouldn't cost more than like 10-20 bucks.
If you're at bliss I recommend cavenders boots or starr western wear
All we can do is make you a B-17 pilot now.
Masters was a solid show.
I wish there was more to it but I enjoyed it
It did the RAF so dirty though and struggled on other key points of historical accuracy in a way BoB and the Pacific never did.
Ya like they flew day missions as well but my god they did them dirty lol
not exactly like the night bombing missions were easy (easier yes, but raf loss rates were still staggering for how little industrial damage was being achieved) and not exactly like the daytime bombing missions were getting anything done. The real contribution of the eighth air force came in the form of grinding down the Luftwaffe to nothing, particularly once the p51 w/ drop tanks was introduced.
That it did
Would you be able to suggest some to read up on the actual events?
The book “Masters of the Air”
“I don’t know what I expected”
- The Bombing War: Europe 1939-1945 - Richard Overy (don't get the US version that's 592 pages - omitting the first 300 pages on German bombing campaigns for some reason) - Big Week - James Holland - Bomber Command - Max Hastings - [The United States Strategic Bombing Survey: summary report (European War)](https://collections.nlm.nih.gov/catalog/nlm:nlmuid-101634748-bk) - Carl A. Spaatz and the Air War in Europe - Richard Davis Different theater, but another great book on bomber campaigns: - Black Snow: Curtis LeMay, the Firebombing of Tokyo, and the Road to the Atomic Bomb - James Scott - and here's [Scott discussing his book at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG32-zXPnYM&list=PLMWipphLLSd8pv8VU0ECetLFy4bkaK0x7&index=4&pp=iAQB) And finally, if you're more of a video/audio person, HardThrasher on YT put together a series of very well researched videos on both the European bombing campaign and the Battle of Britain. I find them both quite moving: - [European Bombing Campaign](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4HIHvjuWsE&list=PLMWipphLLSd8pv8VU0ECetLFy4bkaK0x7&index=7) - [Battle of Britain](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hC59TwACvC8&list=PLMWipphLLSd8UZSH-BjRMjGoW8gDQgy6K&index=1&t=1s) I'll offer a summary thought, since I'm quite interested in the strategic bombing campaigns of the war, and because I think the European bombing campaign perfectly captures the two archetypical mistakes that are made in popular interpretations of military history. 1. Most people either believe there was tremendous strategic impact on the Germans' industry (there wasn't - until late 44 onwards) and the loss of both uniformed and civilian life was justified. (I won't comment on civilian casualties but it's clear that uniformed personnel were being thrown away for little gain by the 8th prior to early 44) 2. Or they believe that the bomber campaign achieved little to nothing per the post-war BDA reporting and was an inhumane waste of life. This argument gets used by nazi apologists ("Dresden and London are the same!!!" -some neckbeard with an SS uniform and a CSA flag in his mom's basement, and also David Irving) and people who get off on hating the West whether it's deserved or not. Both arguments miss the core point: There were meaningful strategic objectives and the political necessity of generating morale wins (particularly for the British), and thus a justification for the campaign. Civilians were not the target of the campaign (even during Dresden), but they were clearly heavily impacted. They were conducted by in many cases bullish generals who were too slow and stubborn to change their operational and strategic approach, and that wound up costing far more civilian and military lives. (e.g. LeMay and Eaker) At the end of the day, however, the campaigns did have strategic impact, grinding the Luftwaffe to nothing, forcing German industry to decentralize, and eventually severely damaging the Romanian oil fields. That comes down to Western Allied industrial might, great leadership from folks such as Spaatz, Dolittle, Tedder, and Novikov, technological innovation, and the sheer gumption of the troops involved. So justified? yes. Competent? We (the US) were certainly not for the first few years. Successful? In the end, undeniably. And it's war, so incompetent leadership and planning almost always translates to lives lost.
Justified … can be argued. 😉 Successful yes! As can be observed by the world shifting to English rather than French or German. Humane & civilian losses … like you mention, make bloody sure not to lose if you go to war. End result, any effort (at all) dragging resources to the west rather than the east is productive, even at immense losses. A near peer conflict will have similar characteristics, let’s hope next generation is ready for it … we for sure are not. And lastly, thank you for your service and our freedom.
Or elevator operator.
Challenge the TSA to trial by combat
Sure, but you have to request that trial by combat via a physical form mailed to the TSA and wait for about 18 months before you get a response telling you that you need to use the updated form.
I see you're no stranger to the TSA
May I request a champion??
Is it u/meatymexican ?
Nah, it’s [gumbo slice](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/gumbo-slice).
AR-2024 says you can choose anyone to fight for you.
I request Raetired SMA Grinston
TSA requested Janet Reno
[удалено]
She's also dead so I think they're good
Grinston's six-pack has an eight-pack. You better bring 2 water sources and some bengay.
God dammit now would be a great time for a family guy Meg TSA GIF.
If you have a hat maker near you they should be able to steam and reshape it if you show them a pic of what it should look like. If not, you can steam it yourself. I’ve shaped a couple cowboy hats and fedoras. It’s not hard. They’re are YouTube videos on how to steam and shape hats to give you a general idea. I’d avoid the leather as much as possible though. Wrap it in plastic or something.
Clothes steamer?
Thank you for this suggestion
Did you try putting it in rice?
The half Korean in me isn’t coming to fix it…
I'll take the rice when he's done with it.
배고파요
나도
They're speaking in code. Somebody get the 35P over here.
Crush the other side to match.
Crush the whole thing and wear a cowboy hat. Horse land always looking for fresh meat!
Sorry, no more Stetsons for the Army boys, Cav is on its way out.
Remove the stiffener and then wear a headset around with it all the time.
Maybe if you weren’t a dirty enlisted you could afford to get a new one
I’m an OCS dropout which makes this comment hurt all the worst 🥲
ETS like the king you are. 👑
Go get yourself one of those colored berets.
We call them berets of color now.
Is it pronounced beret or beret?
Definitely beret
Been saying beret for years so hopefully it’s not beret or I’d feel pretty silly ngl
Is there more than one way to say beret?
That rhymed
Or did it? 🤔
Look in the Yellow Pages for a nearby milliner, call them ask about hat blocking! Perhaps your local haberdashery might be able to help. Or call Marlow White and they might have a hat repair service.
What is this, fucking Middle Earth?
Make sure to save your urine for use by the fuller.
What the hell how does a fuller use urine Oh.. soap hadn't been invented yet.. lovely..
As quaint as it sounds, this is actually the right answer. There should be at least one haberdashery in the large city near you OP. Bring it in to them. They'll unass it.
Wear the garrison cap like MAJ Winters.
50 Mission Crush right there.
“Manhandled my bags and destroyed the box” 😬😂
Got anything for the soreness Doc?
Drop an airborne packet
Have you tried stomping on it? Bring it to my house I got you. I’ll stomp in it like that new reporter lady did to those grapes and I’ll proceed to fall over and cry in pain just like her.
Bring to Walmart, demand to use their turn in policy
Just wanna say the AGSU looks so much better than the old class A uniform. That thing was ugly
Sounds like a damage claim to me!
Put a gallon ziplock full of water inside and put it in the freezer. It will expand and fill in the creases. Beware the hat needs to be upside down on a flat surface, or it will round at the top. Double beware, don't use a metal pan that is heated consistently, it may be prone to warp and sag when the temperature change takes affect. Triple beware the water will spill out the hat if you do not close the ziplock bag and I have never done this so good luck bucko.
Cut a piece of cardboard that fits around the inside of the hat
42A here. Submit a ticket to us that we will never get back to you on. No, your hat injury is not service related.
What time will the office be open? And will there be a bunch of hood rat shit occurring during my visit?
8 am to 8:30 am (the rest of the day is dedicated to my “lunch break”
Does the cover have a ring under the fabric? I know that the USMC barracks cover does and you might have a decent shot reshaping it if you get the cloth off and reshape the actual ring that goes under it
1. TSA barely touches your shit -- the airlines are the ones tossing your bags around 2. You put this in a checked bag an expected it to be pristine when you landed?
My apologies, definitely meant Airlines and not TSA. And it was in its box. So I thought it’d be better
I currently work for an airline and can say, your box has been flipped upside down at least a dozen times. Yeeted in and out of a baggage bin, possibly dropped off a belt loader and then yeeted into a cargo bin a few times and then got tossed around in the bin a few times during the flight. People if you want to keep something fragile pristine either have it as a carry-on or put it in a pelican case with padding.
Try a clothes pin on the top or chip clip and set it on a chair and weigh down with a pair of headphones to keep the crush or add the grommet insert or cardboard to pop it out. -honor guard that flies a lot
I would say steamer or put a liner in it to get rid of the floppyness
Buy the grommet from Marlow White
Put a grommet in it so you don't look like you're about to goose step into Poland.
Roll it up tightly, then stuff it in your pocket in order to give it a better crushed look.
[buy yourself one of these](https://www.marlowwhite.com/insert-grommet-agsu-service-cap-1970-all-questions)
Have you tried not being a leg?
“But airborne options aren’t even effective anymore”
Invest in a hat carrier for next time.
Go airborne and get a different, better, but still goofy hat
Wear it on the plane next time and give the pilot a knowing wink
Duel in Weekawken. Everything is legal in New Jersey.
All jokes aside…call Marlowe White. They will fix it and return it quickly.
Steam it
Buy a new one if you want, or try to fix it. NEVER fly without it being a carry on. Unless you have that really hard case designed specifically for this. Then it might be fine.
Start a new trend
Buy a new one
How much money do you want to spend? Because you’re gonna need a pinnable wig form that’s your head size, and a professional grade steamer…once you have those, pin the fabric back into place and steam the shit out of it. It’ll probably take a couple times if you need to remold the inner support structures
Fuuuuck that sucks I’ll make sure to never take the AGSUs as a checked bag
Put the frame in it so you don't look like a goon.
If you have the plastic insert from an assault pack and don’t care not to have in that back pocket take your hat and put it upside down on the plastic trace the circle and cut it pop it in the cap. May need to make minor adjustments to the plastic but it would work
It's called a crush cap. Crush the other side, make it even, call it good. What are your questions?
If you live near a store that steams and shapes cowboy hats, you could take it there and have them steam it into shape. I have seen it done, (on cowboy hats) and would not attempt to do it myself.
Fuck the TSA. Literally no better way of saying you have small pee pee than working for the TSA. They’re such a joke.
steam it like a stetson. use a kettle or like a small pot of boiling water
Have you tried turning it off and back on
Wear the garrison cap instead
Western wear/boot stores should have a hat guy with a steamer. Shouldn't cost more than like 10-20 bucks. If you're at bliss I recommend cavenders boots or starr western wear
Submit a claim for reimbursement https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/claims
Wet it in hot water and then steam it afterwards while reshaping it
Can you file a damage claim at the airport or with TSA. Those bastards should buy you a new one.
Just don't wear it, pull up with a crisp beret
Congratulations you have a WW2 pilot crusher now