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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Nov 16 2012 - 2:40pm

Sonny Eliot, a long time Metro Detroit weatherman and TV personality famous for his quirky personality died at his Farmington Hills home at the age of 91. An icon in the Metro Detroit region, with a broadcasting and radio career dating back to the late 1940's what many may not know is that Eliot, born Marvin Schlossberg, also spent 18 months as a POW (prisoner of war) during WWII.

Eliot enlisted after Pearl Harbor and because of some pre-war flying lessons quickly found himself in the USAAF

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Nov 11 2012 - 6:07pm

Last week the keel laying ceremony for the USS Detroit took place in Marinette Wisconsin. The USS Detroit is the fourth Littoral Combat Ship built by Marinette Marine. The U.S. Navy expects to take delivery of the ship in 2015.

As a native of the Metro Detroit region I am proud to have the name of the city attached to a brand new warship. That said, I am a bit apprehensive about the Detroit. The LCS class of warships have come under a healthy dose of criticism; particularly in regards to their

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Oct 22 2012 - 8:35pm

Antoni Dobrowolski, the oldest known survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp died today in Debno, Poland. Born on October 8, 1904 Dobrowolski was 108 years old when he died. In a world where today the word "hero" is almost casually applied Dobrowolski truly was one.

A teacher, Dobrowolski practiced his profession during the World War II German occupation of Poland.

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Sep 28 2012 - 1:07am

There are few things cooler than a fighter jet. Growing up, I was fascinated by, and proud of, all sorts of things about the US Military but, being a kid, few things drew my attention as did it's fighter jets. And for good reason.

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Sep 10 2012 - 9:25pm

In August and September of 1939 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland and divided up the country between themselves. The Germans quickly went to work murdering tens of thousands of people. Meanwhile, Josef Stalin's Soviet Union more quietly, but still brutally, subjugated its part of the former Polish state. To this day the German atrocities garner the bulk of the attention, and rightly so in many respects.

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Sep 2 2012 - 6:58pm

Observed on the first Monday in September, Labor Day is a U.S. Federal holiday honoring the contributions of America's workers. In celebration of Labor Day 2012 we will take a look at one of the biggest and most spectacular industrial efforts in U.S. history: the Willow Run Manufacturing Plant.

During the massive rearmament drive ordered by U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt prior to the U.S.

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Aug 16 2012 - 7:37pm

At the storied Powazki Cemetery in Warsaw, Poland (where many of Poland's greatest citizens are buried) a hunt is on for Witold Pilecki; and for others like him believed to have been murdered by Stalin's post Second World War Polish police state and then unceremoniously dumped in unmarked graves.

Though a veteran of the early 1920's war fought between Poland and the Soviet Union, Witold Pilecki remains today best known for his heroism during WWII; when during the 1939-1945 German occupation he

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Aug 6 2012 - 3:08pm

Yesterday evening the Cold War Era US Navy Destroyer USS Edson passed through Detroit (picture below) along the Detroit River, the river also separates the US and Canada, on its way to its final berth as a floating museum at the Saginaw Valley Naval Ship Museum. Pulled and pushed by tugs, the Edson left Philadelphia on July 18th on a 2,500 mile journey to its final destination.

Launched in 1958 the Edson is a Forrest-Sherman Class Destroyer that most notably saw extensive service in the South

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Aug 2 2012 - 7:18pm

A letter from William Patrick Hitler, he would change his last name following World War II, to U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt has been making the rounds this afternoon. This is mostly because in the letter William Patrick Hitler is practically begging the U.S. President to allow him to enlist and go fight against his Uncle Adolf, yes that Hitler - the Third Reich's infamous Führer.

The letter is reproduced below and it is actually quite eloquent at times.

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Submitted by
Steve Mercatante
on: Jul 30 2012 - 12:06am

World War II era German submarine U-550, a Type IX C-40 U-boat, was found this past week roughly 70 miles off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts.  On April 16, 1944 U-550 discovered Allied convoy CU-2, which had departed from New York for the United Kingdom.

Straggling behind the convoy was the massive tanker SS Pan Pennsylvania, which U-550 promptly discovered and torpedoed; causing the tanker to begin to sink. The convoy's escorts, The US Navy's USS Gandy and Coast Guard's USS Joyce and

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