The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1942-09-04
COMMANDO RAIDS ARE NOT A
WESTERN FRONT

cuSSed TO some degree at least, Cd
ceive no consideration for publicatio
COMMANDO RAIDS ARE NOT A
WESTERN FRONT
Do the Commando raids offer any
threat to the Axis powers or draw any
considerable. German troops from the
Russian front? If not, does the risk
involved compensate for the damage
inflicted on the enemy? Aside from
the raid destroying a submarine base
in France, which was of strategic i'm
portance, the destruction of some wire
entanglements, blowing up some land
mines and even putting some heavy
guns out of commission is only of
temporary value if not followed up
and can be repaired within the day.
While they have proven that contin-
entail invasion is possible, they have
also put Hitler better on guard and
inspired false hopes in the occupied
countries to their detriment.
a Bona Eide Invasion
In taking Fort Eben Emael in Bel
GUM in less than SO hours, fort re-
puted impregnable and able to with
stand a seige for months, Hitler
showed how an invasion could be
started under difficult circumstances.
To relieve the congestion of man
and material on the British Isles, an
invasion across the English channel is
imperative and the logical solution;
in fact, where the armed forces sta
toned there are now an actual liza
bility, fighting across the channel
they would form the best protection
England could have.
1t would be possible by the aid of
aerial maps to lombard a couple of
potential invasion spots from the air
and put some of the coastal guns out
Of action one day and next day just
ahead of the invading forces loosen a
string of demolition aerial bombs
forming row of foxholes clear across
No Man 's-Land, the open three mile
strip of sandy beach separating the
coast-line from the interior where ma
tural shelter would be more available.
This could enable advancing troops to
run from fox hole to hole until finding
a place to dig in and make a stand
cedure of storming Fort Eben Emael
and very likely the tactics employed
by our marines in getting foothold
on the Japanese held Solomon Islands.
OF course this should be followed up
by landing million men,
or more, before starting a victory
march to Berlin. Had Great Britain
this pattern when her navy
silenced the Turkish forts guarding
he Dardanelles in the last World war,
could have occupied the straits with
out a small loss instead of retiring
o renew the assault weeks later and
osing $4,000 men to no purpose, even
he Japanese could have occupied
infested Hawaii during the
confusion of December 7, 1871,
nance they will never have again.
Even the Axis powers can give us
ome pointers in military tactics as
proven from the very beginning of
he present hostilities. They concen-
rate on definite detectives while
,eeping the Allied Nations scattered
rom the Aleutian and Solomon Is
ands to Libya and Iceland including
very nook and corner of the World
While Hitler has but to cross the
mediterranean with his troops from |
,rete to Libya on days journey,
Churchill has to send his men $4,000 |
niles on a two months trip to reach |
he Libya battlefront and we are
tarting major battlefront around
he Solomons, which, even if success
I'll, will not open the route to the
China or the Dutch East
ndies and can't have the effect of
Western Front in Europe and while
drew many Japanese ships from the
indian ocean, it still leaves Japan
lore than a thousand islands under
mandate in the Pacific ocean.
A big majority of people see no
God reasons why the Commando
aids could not be turned from grue-
ONE jokes to real invasion. 1t
yould inspire hope in the enslaved
ations and give Russia a chance to
end few divisions to the Far East
nd put the nazi hordes between two
ronts as well as have a tendency to
lduce Turkey to join the Allied Ma
ons. If Hitler has two hundred di-
isions on the Russian front and three
l Libya he can't have many left in
-estern Europe and we should be
BILE to take on Franco Spain, Vichy
rance and Mannerheim Finland on
le side thus drawing definite lines
nd knowing whom we are fighting
don't seem fair to Jail Dick and
ON for what little harm they do
nd let the Finnish ambassador have !
lie run-of-the-woods. Think of the
lange in general morale if the U. S.
sclared war on Finland, Vichy !
rance and Franco Spain; how murky {
lies would brighten for the Allied {
ations, wrest the offensive from nazi t
lnds and put Hitler between two i
onts Give India her independence l
Id a chance to arm herself and not /
enact the mistakes of Burma. Hong
ong, and other colonial nations. To E
Omit that thew were dominated