tankboy 2 things: 1 Danners got the spelling right(I could give a darn about that) and 2 I think Dan is still ahead on posts. I will make it easy on mc.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Bastogne for the battle
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_McAuliffe for the General
that is okay MC My brother knew guys in the 101st that didn't know what Nuts! was. He said that probally 10 people out of his company didn't know what was importent about that 4 letter word. that is ashame. When I was on active duty I had to figure out why my unit had 2 unit citation, platoon sergeant asigned me since I asked the question. Ended up on militarypolice.com and talked to some unit elumni to find out they where awarded for the TET Offensive in Nam'.
. I will make it easy on mc.
Ah, so you will make it "easy" on me, will you? Perhaps dear AB you should re-read my post. I am very much aware of what "Nuts!" meant in context with Bastogne, I was suggesting that the slang term "Nuts!" was part of the vernacular at the time of the battle, and for years before and after, but in our day there would be precious few folks who would use it in the way McAuliffe did, because it has gone out of common use -- it is no longer in the "vernacular", if you will. Would it be in the vernacular, i.e. would it be a common slang term in the 24th century? Who knows, but probably not. Thus, Cazombie could have used the expression on Lyons, and as professional soldiers they would would have understood it perfectly. But virtually none of the private soldiers and marines in both Cazombie's and Lyons's commands would have known what he meant, absent an explanation. Because it would have been an arcane and obscure use of the word.