Intro & Bob Rasmus

Intro:

In World War II, many people perceived the Germans as inhumane and different from Americans, but when the soldiers were close enough to see them, they were shocked that they looked just like each other. "They were no longer the Germans of the British faces and the helmets we saw in the newsreels. They were exactly our age. These were boys like us." This shows how the government has portrayed the Germans and the American citizens actually believed it because they did not know any other way. This situation is similar to ones where people have never seen a Jewish person. To them, many times, they think Jews have horns because they were raised that way and they didn't know any better. Many of the American soldiers went to war because they did not want to fail their peers, not because they wanted to kill the enemies. Many people respected one another for making that decision. During war, people meet many people from around the country and these people are interested by everyone's accents. All everyone talked about was food in war because that was something that they took for granted before. They would always be hungry and food was scarce and barely edible. Photographers took pictures of the war and published them in magazines. Many of these pictures were traumatizing and stick in one’s mind forever. One of the veterans said, "I went there a skinny, gaunt mama's boy, full of wonderment. I came back much more circumspect in my judgment of people. And of government." This quote explains that once people go into war, they will never come back as the same person. Many people become traumatized or have post traumatic stress disorder. Many people have even said war has disrupted their family.

Bob Rasmus:

Bob Rasmus was a World War II veteran who always wanted to join the army when he was old enough. At 13, his dream was to join the army because he thought it would be fun, not knowing about the horrors of it all. He had a wonderful sense of adventure. He went across oceans which always excited him. During the war, he was sick and contracted the flu right before they were to go to the battle of the Bulge. This battle was towards the end of the war in Belgium and was the bloodiest battle during World War II. After the battle, the Allies kept pushing ahead. He couldn't go because of the flu, but all of his friends went to fight. All of his friends died or were captured in this battle. Others were captured on the prisoner-of-war train in Germany. Rasmus was struck by the sheer beauty and the small villages in France, but he felt disturbed when he saw all of the dead Germans. After a battle, the Americans never let their soldiers die on the ground; they would move them to a safer place because they have respect for them. Rasmus said, "I know it’s made me less ready to fall into a trap of judging people by their style or appearance." He is talking about how the war made him realize that people can look very cowardly, but on the inside they are ready to fight and do whatever it takes to win the war. He was very greatly having witnessed and be part in a historical and monumental event.