WWI, the first world war, it was called. The Great War. The war to end all wars. Men fought. Men died. A lot of men, a lot of Americans, had their lives taken from them (I hate that phrase "they gave their lives...")while defending their country.
The war to end all wars was followed a couple dozen years later by another world war, WWII. Admittedly, the United States leaders, in my humble opinion, buried their heads in the sand, refusing to recognize the threat of the rapidly advancing nazi army as it marched across Europe. We failed to act even knowing what oppressive acts of depravity were occuring to literally millions of civilians.
When we finally entered this second world war, it was only because of that infamous sneak attack on our most western outpost, Pearl Harbor, on the territory of Hawaii. Once we were in the fight, though, the young men of that day fought tooth and nail to bring an end to the nazi forces. Using modern weapons of that era, along with some leftover weapons from the first war, our men took on the enemy and killed them. By air, by sea, and by land, U.S. warriors stood tall.
For several hundred years, armed forces have utilized marksmen, those men who are "real good" with rifles, to not only kill, but to instill fear in the enemy. They are collectively known as snipers. We have all heard about them, they're a specialized group of highly trained, well disciplined fighters who can seek out and destroy individual enemies from hundreds of yards away. There have been a number of confirmed kills from more than a mile.
In WWII, snipers were typically equipped with the old 1903 Springfield. Some had the semi-automatic M-1 rifles. Both fired a heavy bullet. Its civilian equivalent is caliber 30-06. Many say, and I agree, that the Springfield is one of the most accurate military rifles ever. The "03A3" that I once owned, was a fine rifle, solid and accurate.
Not too long ago, a distinguished sniper from WWII days was awarded a special honor. He was given a ball cap. And, a gun. At 86, a modern day sniper team wanted to see what the old guy was made of. The attached video 'bout says it all. Take a few minutes and check it out. Can he still get the job done?
http://www.wimp.com/veteransniper/
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