People keep saying as the war progressed desertions were more numerous. That is wrong, desertions were numerous before we started sending troops to the ETO. It was such an issue that it was kept secret from the American Public. It got worse once we were in the ETO starting in North Africa, but really progressed once we hit mainland Italy. The outlier was the PTO were it was virtually not possible to desert once on an island unless you hid but there is so little evidence that it happened. What transpired was the amount of loss from Italy, the fight across France, the Hurtgen forest and the start of the bulge PLUS the amount of desertions caused the Army to panic even more. Slovik should not of been executed, even the judge after the war said so. What strikes me interested was the mere fact that despite having every chance to desert whether stateside, especially home on leave for 20 days( he mentions it dozens of times in letters to his wife) he did not until after that first night of artillery fire. Having read the book, it can be concluded had Slovik not been a replacement/ eased into the unit before hitting combat and having someone effectively hold his hand, he probably would of stayed. And that is coming from the Dean of the reform school slovik spent his teenage years at. He stated " once I taught him what i expected of him, he showed me". I don't think it was cowardice one bit, every man on the firing squad agreed he was brave for keeping his head held high, and walking calmly and quite chatty all the way up to the post. That made the firing squad even more confused why a man brave enough to walk to his death and not whimper, cry or beg could not handle the stress of combat. Sadly we will never know, it lies only with Slovik, If anyone wants to read more on the subject i highly recommend The Execution of PVT. Slovik by William Bradford Huie and the Deserters by Charles Glass, which is an amazing book basically laying out the problem of deserters, dodgers and combat Fatigue in WW2 across the allies.
I have read about firing squads where one or more blanks would be issued so that each of the men in the squad could believe that they did not fire a live round. The problem is that the soldier could tell the difference between the two rounds as the effect of firing a blank round was different to that of a live round. So those who fired a live round knew about it.
A powerful fictional film following a small group of GI servicemen in Europe during WW2 is called, "The Victors". TH-cam has the full length 1960s movie of 2 plus hours that you can watch. It also has on TH-cam a scene in the film alone of only a few minutes long about an Army deserter's execution that was certainly inspired by the Eddie Slovik incident, and while there are many powerful moments in that war movie, non is even close to being as powerful as that scene.
@@davidcooney6122 Because I empathize with him,you insensitive little fuck💀I never understood why people give their lives for a country that really doesn’t give a fuck about them.
Yeah, it's really sad. I was just going on a Wikipedia binge, clicking on all sorts of different things, and came across Eddie Slovik. I saw that he was the last person executed for desertion from the US Army, so I assumed there had to be some special reason, like that his actions lead directly to people being killed. When I realized that it was just because of a very flawed process, I knew I had to talk about him.
There’s recoil. Wadding is used instead of a bullet to hold the powder in place, so mass is still discharged out of the barrel. At close range, blanks can be deadly. Jon-Erik Hexum, star of the ‘80’s series “Cover Up” was killed on set (1984) when he was playing around with a handgun loaded with blanks. He foolishly put it up against his head, thinking it would do no harm, and pulled the trigger, killing him.
You were using military blanks which require the use of a blank adapter screwed onto the end of a barrel. The blank head is crimped instead of using wadding. There is still recoil, but much less. That is why none of the handguns ever had MILES gear. They couldn’t come up with blank adapters or figure out a way to count the shots fired. Hollywood uses a different method because the blank adapters are painted red and look super silly in the movies (though I was did see a grade z cheap war movie where they DID have the red adapters on their M-16’s). Recent years, due to safety concerns, blank firing handguns have stopped venting out the barrel. Instead, a small hole is drilled into the top of the chamber. It is a little disconcerting to see a small flame coming out of the top of the gun when fired. They still need the blowback to cycle the actions on semi and full auto action firearms. Even those are starting to disappear because advances in affordable computer graphics and the realism of airsoft guns has made action scenes with guns where your backyard home movie production can now turn out some pretty good quality results.
@@kennethcollins7665 so...what you’re saying is, that a military firing squad is using ...a non- military blank ? That kinda doesn’t make sense. I’m confused now. At funerals, with 1’s or 14’s, they don’t have the suppressor. You’re correct tho. The weapons I fired did have the device on the muzzle. Didn’t know two kinds of blanks were out there.
@@williamsimmons152, no. What you were using are blanks used for training with the MILES training system. When using MILES gear, there is also a laser that is mounted on the end of the barrel. When then blank is fired, the gas vents up and hits the sensor on the laser, causing it to fire. However, the U.S. Military is purpose driven. There are also military blank rounds that are used for ceremonies. Those are similar to the Hollywood blanks. As you’ll note, they will cycle the action. Now as far as the blank used for firing squads (remember, Utah has the firing squad as one of the options), I imagine each state has its own source for those. But it must generate enough recoil to simulate a real round being fired, otherwise it fails in its purpose. I only know a little about ammo reloading, but I’m sure you can probably find a reloading hobbyist that could give you the specifics.
I'm an ex soldier (not American) and this story is very depressing. He did not deserve to die so needlessly. I wonder if any of the officers that tried to make him tear up the note told him he could be executed, seeing that he was chocked by the verdict. I do believe this was done to make an example out of him, just as he said. I'm sure armchair warriors will think it was just.
He knew it was possible, it just hadn't happened since the Civil War so he didn't expect it to happen again. It really is sad though, he should have received the same punishment any other deserter did at the time.
There is nothing intrinsically wrong with making an example of someone. We put people in prison today and still execute some today in part to make an example. When a murderer gets a life sentence that is an example. Therefore this notion that it was just to make an example of him as evidence of some kind of injustice is nonsense. The fact is Slovak was his own worst enemy. He was so brazen and shameless about his actions. He made it clear to everyone he thought he would get a relatively light outcome. Most deserters actually spent some time in battle before they deserted and didn't brag afterwards how they would get a little prison time and a commuted sentence. Slovak's brazenness really gave the Army no choice but to execute him.
@@TDL-xg5nn So you put a man to death because hes too afraid to fight in a war he never wanted to fight in in the first place? Death penalty seems overly harsh. Why not like a few years in prison to "set an example"? Seems hella barbaric to me. War is no joke its not call of duty people get their legs and arms blown off bro. I get that its world war 2 and it was a neccessary fight but putting someone to death is insane. I think the proper punishment is being banished from the country.
@@dr3armer When go around bragging how you are going to get a slap on the wrist with a little prison time and a cummuted sentence like he did it forces the military's hand. I don't think they wanted to give him the death sentence but he was shameless about it. If he would have gone in contrite and humble saying I did my best but just couldn't take it he probably would have received the same punishment as all other deserters. He had no one to blame but himself.
There is a film on this disgrace 'The killing of private Slovik' probably the most upsetting film I've ever seen. Strangely for such a powerful film it never gets a entry in any film guide books!
Everyone should see the TH-cam movie with Martin Sheen playing Eddie Slovik. His portrayal is a masterpiece. Only Johnny Depp or Brad Pitt might be able to come close to doing it as well. Nobody else could come close, maybe not even them.
Who deserves punishment more? Somebody who dont want to be harmed, who is forced to serve others and who was put in slavery by politicians, or somebody who forces others to get harmed, who enslaves them and profits from their suffering? States, people, and politicians who use forced draft instead of volunteers do not deserve to prevail or be left without punishment
The narrator left some things out. The morning of his execution he was again offered a chance to go back to his unit and he declined. If you read the book about Eddie it becomes obvious that Eddie was a guy who always thought he could get out of punishment and also thought that at times punishment with prison was not so bad given the ongoing economic depression he had a roof over his head and 3 squares a day. With his desertion Eddie really believed he would end up in prison like everyone else who was actually prosecuted for desertion. He would be safe, well fed, and eventually discharged. His line was "I am not cut out for this kind of work". Was his execution unfair. Several years ago I met a woman in the small town in Maryland where I live. She had had two sons killed in France during the last week of November, 1944. She had her third, and soul surviving son kept in the US. What happened to her wasn't fair. My father worked in a shipyard in Norfolk in 1942. He was deferred because of his welding skills. His father was a foreman and his uncle was the superintendent; thus, his deferment was certainly safe. However, he felt overwhelming guilt at not serving and eventually resigned. His father and Uncle accompanied him to the draftboard to help him change his classification to 1A so he could enlist. He served proudly in the Navy. He thought his being a deferred 19 year old was unfair. However, for sure this is not "black and white". Slovik's execution would be more acceptable if other soldiers had been executed all along. Desertion was occurring more frequently in late 1944. The Army had turned somewhat of a blind eye toward deserters and sent an implicit message that you would be forgiven. I cannot help but wonder about the many very frightened young men who did what was asked of them and in so doing lost parts of the body, or their lives, but helped eradicate Fascism.
Yet, rich kids Leopold and Loeb committed premeditated murder and avoided the death penalty!!! Slovic was right. He was chosen because he was poor, while those two rich kids got life imprisonment, with Leopold getting paroled after 33 years! Money has its privileges.
Well, that may be the official truth. Nevertheless, when troopers are in the fight for long periods and add to that the often very austere environments, I suspect there have been cases where troops on the ground "dealt with" soldiers who were putting the squad, platoon, etc. at risk. When during a bounding overwatch you see a team member "bounding" in the opposite direction, that is a very bad thing to just let slide.
Had the first deserters been immediately executed, Slovic might have made a different decision. As the War progressed, desertion became a serious problem, and the Military wanted to set an example, hoping it would be a deterrent. Unfortunate for Eddie Slovic, he was in the wrong situation at the wrong time. When he refused to return to combat, he knew it was possible he might be executed, but, based on the information at the time, highly unlikely. He gambled and lost. Had he returned to combat, he MIGHT have been killed. By refusing to do so, he sealed his fate.
@@ninjaked1265 No they were not! His widow found out 9 freaking years later that he had been executed for misconduct. Even then it took her even longer to find out the real reason. Yes she was notified as most other family members were, by telegram. It said "Private Eddie Slovick, service number etc. Was killed in the European theater. Go learn history before you spout off untrue statements. I've read many articles and books about this shameful episode.
He had numerous chances to change his mind and go back to his unit , but chose to go to trial , figuring he would get time only , he took a chance, figuring it would be the easy way out , it's sad, but he was the Author of his own misfortune
Basically he did everything possible to ensure he was convicted, because he was convinced he'd only be imprisoned till the end of the war. If he had actually tried to mount a legal defense, I'm sure he wouldn't have been executed. He thought he was smart, he tried to game the system, and he lost.
He used the logic if you run away you will live. it was countered by a different logic. If you run away there will be a real risk that you will get shot.
A military death sentence is a necessary evil. It serves the same purpose as a civilian death sentence does. Can you imagine the military or the world without such deterrent’s? It would be more chaotic than it already is. Yes it’s sad but it is in fact necessary. 🇺🇸
It's sad but they did warn him and you have to remember THIS IS EARLY 20TH CENTURY and this is the army THEY CANT HAVE FEAR RUNNING AMOK THE RANKS EVERYBODY WHAT MAKES YOU SO SPECIAL ABOVE EVERY OTHER SOLDIER WHO HAS THE SAME PROBLEMS AS YOU. I'm not making light of his execution and Idk anything about war or much about combat but they always make the little people to be the example of what not to do. I'm just saying
The name Wisniewski is pronounced “Veez-nesh-key” ( I have the same last name, and I’m from the same part of Michigan) and macomb is pronounced MA-Comb)
@@OttoByOgraffey He wasn't murdered. He deserted his comrades in time of war (a world war, no less)! Granted, he miscalculated the risk and paid a very heavy price, but if you play silly games, you win silly prizes. If only he had served with a bit more honour, he might very well have seen old age instead of dying at 24. He was given numerous chances and refused them. Poor spelling and grammar aren't the only reasons to conclude that Eddie wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.
No judgment either way. It's 2020 and our thinking has become much more liberal then it was in 1945. I do have an opinion but we all know about opinions.
Principle? The guy wasn't a pacifist or anything like that, he just wanted to save his own skin and thought that the punishment for desertion would be less dangerous than military combat. He tried to game the system and he lost.
Your research was on point. But i believe the part about.. the Squad members all having 11 rounds & one blank is inaccurate the portrayal in the movie said 11 blanks & one live round if I'm correct Never the less thanks for you're mini Documentary on such a sad event in our American history !! 🫡
Thing is, in conscript armies in particular, the negative outcomes of desertion need to persistently outweigh the negative outcomes of not deserving. If anything, the negative outcome of desertion needs to outweigh the negative outcome of not deserting at exactly the point the most negative impacts of not deserting becomes apparent, at the worst of battle/war It doesn’t need to be just penal, there are negative outcomes associated with petsonal shame, family shame, survivor guilt But, non officer conscripts are les likely as a group (certainly not individually) to feel as much personal or family shame at desertion (though one would think survivor guilt may come, but much later most likely) However, commenters who seem pleased and righteous at extreme and even capital punishments for desertion I think are being cruel. It’s a deeply sad necessity, as opposed to a glorious and righteous vengeance being visited upon a coward, for the most part Is what I think
Right, no one will deny what he did was criminal, but considering the circumstances and what other people received for doing the same thing be shouldn't have been killed for it.
Yeah, well, I doubt the others came walking up to their COs with signed confessions saying they were deserting and would desert again if they had the chance, I mean, make an administrative decision. I really do feel for guys who were forced to fight against their will when they could have performed other duties in the service to their country but Slovik is almost an insult to those guys. Just because the American army was lenient on deserters during WWII doesn't mean other armies were that kind.
@@abrahamedelstein4806 I feel worse for those who were constricted for Nam. They had it worse than anybody. While slavic clearly didn't want to be there and made it known, this war wasn't a police action like the majority of them but it was a war for the survival of democracy. For slavics part, he may have forced their hands but I still don't believe he deserved to die for sloth and cowardice.
In WW1 the British Army shot 306 men at dawn in this fashion (for supposed cowardice) its a national disgrace, when you consider most were suffering from shell shock, or should never been enlisted/conscripted in the first place because they were under age or patently unfit (because of their psychological make up/deficiencies) to be soldiers. Can you imagine anything more demoralising to your own side than killing your own people, its counter productive and never achieved its aim of stopping others.
307 were shot in WW1. but not all for desertion. 37 were shot for murder, 18 for cowardice, 3 for mutiny, 6 for striking an officer, 5 for disobeying a lawful command, 2 for sleeping at post,7 for quitting post, 2 for casting away arms. More 3,000 men were sentenced to death so the high command were really quite merciful. The case of the 2 shot for sleeping was due to many being caught asleep while on lookout duties. An example was made and there were no further cases after that.
@@anthonyeaton5153 The reason no more were shot after that was not because of the severity of the punishment having the desired effect but because plenty of others did get caught but a realisation by the chain of command that it was to severe a punishment (and because of the bad publicity) and so it didnt actually lead to an execution again!
such a punishment would make probably sense if the American soil would be invaded. I believe general Patton stated that the Americans defeated the wrong enemy in WW2. All wars are for power, dominion, depopulation and making the majority poor and an elect few stinking rich www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/just-8-men-own-same-wealth-half-world
Takes ALL kinds of people to make the world go around. He was a lightweight neighborhood hoodlum at worst. And as he said, if he was already written off as a habitual criminal, why did they draft him?
@@jaisbrennan7696 Actually, it does... It takes people just the opposite of ourselves, and everyone in between. Jesus witnessed to all, saint and sinner alike, and there's scripture about "The wheat and the tares having to grow together... That's for Bible believers. And if you aren't; scientifically, if everyone was an exact replicate of each other, the first generation wouldn't be able to reproduce...it probably wouldn't want to.
Pardon? How about a pardon for the thousands who died honorably fighting for our country. This guy was a coward and professional criminal who played a con and lost. Victim? Give me a break.
Even when surrounded by guns, war, tanks and death, and given wise counsel, Slovik couldn't get it through his head that the situation was very serious and that he was playing with fire by writing his note and announcing his desertion. To me it's a bit of a Darwinian situation -- like a guy who knows that the mob is real but refuses to pay his interest on time and offers an insult to boot. He was just too dumb to live.
You're not getting it. Regardless of how you feel about the morality of war, what he did is a very selfish act as he's abandoning the others in his unit as well as thinks only he should be exempt from serving. If he was truly a consiencious objector there are many ways to make that work fairly. He tried instead to con everyone and paid the price for it.
I find it hard to sympathize with this man. Desertion, especially in wartime, is quite an offense to one's unit and the military at large. To be honest I think it's fair Slovik got what he did, in fact the army probably should have lined up more deserters and shot them, or at least recieve an extended stay at Leavenworth. I had three uncles go overseas during WWII and never come back. In my eyes those deserters, and other cowards in the military were a disgrace to the service and their comrades who they let down.
Slovik was a selfish pos coward and got what he had coming. He could have fought, taken a bullet and died with honor or survived and lived with honor. My Uncle Ray joined the 82nd Airborne All Americans not even being a US Citizen until after the war. He fought in Italy, then parachuted into Normandy to fight in Sainte Mere Eglise the night and early morning of D-Day, fought in Market Garden and in the Ardennes in the Battle of the Bulge. He disobeyed orders to fall back when he found out a buddy was hit and went back to get him coming across two other wounded men carrying them one on each shoulder until he saw a Jeep put them on it and went and found his buddy. He stayed with a dying soldier in a store front in Market Garden because the soldier asked him not to leave him. Uncle Ray left after the soldier has passed. Much of this was under shelling, heavy machine gun and sniper fire. Uncle Ray was awarded 2 Silver Stars, & 1 Bronze Star for valor, 2 Purple Hearts, the highest honors from France, Belgium, Denmark, and the Netherlands. Uncle Ray confessed: "there wasn't a minute I wasn't scared." Slovik was exactly like the beta male Democrats in our country today. They are nothing but a bunch of cowards that have no ability to think properly and do what's right. Uncle Ray was from Detroit also.
Had private eddie slovik declared himself a ''Conscientious Objector'' (a person who is opposed to severing in the armed forces or bearing arms on moral or religious grounds) or basically he didn't want to kill another person perhaps ..? circumstance might have been different for him, they were certainty precedence in the ww2 of famous conscientious objectors , private first class Desmond Thomas Doss who was awarded the medal of honour 1945 There were a number of british citizens called up for duty in ww2 who refused to take up arms against another person as a conscientious objector one famous one was eric fletcher waters he served in ww2 as a second lieutenant a conscientious objector to the war who later decided to set aside his objections after witnessing the carnage at the allied landing on anzio beach seeing pals fellow soldiers die during a german counter attack and who later died during the fighting this was Roger Waters( father) of pink floyd in the film'' The Wall'' at the beginning he wrote a song ''when the tigers broke free'' in reference to the germans counterattack to push the allies back in to the sea At the end of the day private eddie slovik might have been many things but he faced his last moments on earth with fortitude and courage
With all other soldiers that deserted none of them were executed then the upper brass in the us army were guilt of murder you can,t execute one and not others.
The difference is other deserters would actually mount a legal defense. They would offer evidence of innocence or mitigation. Slovik did the opposite. He did everything possible to ensure he would be convicted, because he foolishly believed he's only be imprisoned till the end of the war. If he had tried to mount a legal defense, he almost certainly would have not been executed. Slovik thought he was smart. He thought he could game the system, and he lost.
keep playing your bag pipes and let dead men lie skirtman you have no idea what horrors this guy saw they just made an example of him like he wrote thousands of people desert bc they’re not mentally capable of handling war that doesn’t mean they should be shot down you got no idea what kinda horrors that man saw so just keep your hateful ass opinion to yourself
Every person is not the same. Some people can handle war and some can’t. I find it interesting that Donald Trump’s Grandfather was denied citizenship in Germany because he had refused to serve in the military. Trump found a doctor to lie so he would not be forced to serve. He becomes a hero. Is it money that makes the difference?
no he was not, his country was not endangered to be run over. America nowadays is full on injustice, maybe Eddie knew a thing or two back in the day. www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/just-8-men-own-same-wealth-half-world
No the reason Slovic was executed for desertion is he was the only moron dumb enough to put it in righting believing he had some kind of white entitlement and found out otherwise
Outstanding. I've a few Slovik videos and yours is by far the best. Very informative. Thank you.
he was from Detroit Michigan, at 22 he moved to Dearborn, Michigan for a plumbing job where he met his wife!
People keep saying as the war progressed desertions were more numerous. That is wrong, desertions were numerous before we started sending troops to the ETO. It was such an issue that it was kept secret from the American Public. It got worse once we were in the ETO starting in North Africa, but really progressed once we hit mainland Italy. The outlier was the PTO were it was virtually not possible to desert once on an island unless you hid but there is so little evidence that it happened. What transpired was the amount of loss from Italy, the fight across France, the Hurtgen forest and the start of the bulge PLUS the amount of desertions caused the Army to panic even more. Slovik should not of been executed, even the judge after the war said so. What strikes me interested was the mere fact that despite having every chance to desert whether stateside, especially home on leave for 20 days( he mentions it dozens of times in letters to his wife) he did not until after that first night of artillery fire. Having read the book, it can be concluded had Slovik not been a replacement/ eased into the unit before hitting combat and having someone effectively hold his hand, he probably would of stayed. And that is coming from the Dean of the reform school slovik spent his teenage years at. He stated " once I taught him what i expected of him, he showed me". I don't think it was cowardice one bit, every man on the firing squad agreed he was brave for keeping his head held high, and walking calmly and quite chatty all the way up to the post. That made the firing squad even more confused why a man brave enough to walk to his death and not whimper, cry or beg could not handle the stress of combat. Sadly we will never know, it lies only with Slovik, If anyone wants to read more on the subject i highly recommend The Execution of PVT. Slovik by William Bradford Huie and the Deserters by Charles Glass, which is an amazing book basically laying out the problem of deserters, dodgers and combat Fatigue in WW2 across the allies.
Thank you for this info.
Thank you for making this.
I have read about firing squads where one or more blanks would be issued so that each of the men in the squad could believe that they did not fire a live round. The problem is that the soldier could tell the difference between the two rounds as the effect of firing a blank round was different to that of a live round. So those who fired a live round knew about it.
A powerful fictional film following a small group of GI servicemen in Europe during WW2 is called, "The Victors". TH-cam has the full length 1960s movie of 2 plus hours that you can watch. It also has on TH-cam a scene in the film alone of only a few minutes long about an Army deserter's execution that was certainly inspired by the Eddie Slovik incident, and while there are many powerful moments in that war movie, non is even close to being as powerful as that scene.
Did you do any research besides Wikipedia?
Kinda makes me sad 😞
I learned about this from the movie 🎥 the execution of private slovik.
It is a good movie.
th-cam.com/video/fbQWciHZzO0/w-d-xo.html
Great video. I’m gonna visit his grave one day I’m in Detroit.
@@davidcooney6122 Because I empathize with him,you insensitive little fuck💀I never understood why people give their lives for a country that really doesn’t give a fuck about them.
@@davidcooney6122 Because he wasn't executed for legitimate reasons. He was drafted against his will and didn't wish to kill or be killed.
Please take a bottle of the local Vernor's ginger ale with you when you go and pour out some from me.
Thanks
@@loes3000 The Axis attacked us.
@@DaInvisibleNinja The Axis attacked us.
Dying with 24years and executed by your own soldiers.... damn....
Yeah, it's really sad. I was just going on a Wikipedia binge, clicking on all sorts of different things, and came across Eddie Slovik. I saw that he was the last person executed for desertion from the US Army, so I assumed there had to be some special reason, like that his actions lead directly to people being killed. When I realized that it was just because of a very flawed process, I knew I had to talk about him.
The only sad part was him deserting his fellow soldiers
FUCK YOU TH-cam FOR SHADOWBANNING ME, THEN SHARING THAT INFO WITH FACEBOOK. FUCK EVERY ONE OF YOU COCKSUCKING BASTARDS ! EAT SHIT ! ! !
Sad that he chose to refuse to recant, and rejoin his unit, choosing instead to try to get off easy in prison. He forced the Army to execute him.
The guy who has the blank is going to know instantly. There would be no recoil.
There’s recoil. Wadding is used instead of a bullet to hold the powder in place, so mass is still discharged out of the barrel. At close range, blanks can be deadly. Jon-Erik Hexum, star of the ‘80’s series “Cover Up” was killed on set (1984) when he was playing around with a handgun loaded with blanks. He foolishly put it up against his head, thinking it would do no harm, and pulled the trigger, killing him.
@@kennethcollins7665 cool....I fired a few rounds of blanks. Never felt a thing. M14, m1, M60. Maybe I should lose some weight.
You were using military blanks which require the use of a blank adapter screwed onto the end of a barrel. The blank head is crimped instead of using wadding. There is still recoil, but much less. That is why none of the handguns ever had MILES gear. They couldn’t come up with blank adapters or figure out a way to count the shots fired.
Hollywood uses a different method because the blank adapters are painted red and look super silly in the movies (though I was did see a grade z cheap war movie where they DID have the red adapters on their M-16’s). Recent years, due to safety concerns, blank firing handguns have stopped venting out the barrel. Instead, a small hole is drilled into the top of the chamber. It is a little disconcerting to see a small flame coming out of the top of the gun when fired. They still need the blowback to cycle the actions on semi and full auto action firearms. Even those are starting to disappear because advances in affordable computer graphics and the realism of airsoft guns has made action scenes with guns where your backyard home movie production can now turn out some pretty good quality results.
@@kennethcollins7665 so...what you’re saying is, that a military firing squad is using ...a non- military blank ? That kinda doesn’t make sense. I’m confused now. At funerals, with 1’s or 14’s, they don’t have the suppressor. You’re correct tho. The weapons I fired did have the device on the muzzle. Didn’t know two kinds of blanks were out there.
@@williamsimmons152, no. What you were using are blanks used for training with the MILES training system. When using MILES gear, there is also a laser that is mounted on the end of the barrel. When then blank is fired, the gas vents up and hits the sensor on the laser, causing it to fire.
However, the U.S. Military is purpose driven. There are also military blank rounds that are used for ceremonies. Those are similar to the Hollywood blanks. As you’ll note, they will cycle the action.
Now as far as the blank used for firing squads (remember, Utah has the firing squad as one of the options), I imagine each state has its own source for those. But it must generate enough recoil to simulate a real round being fired, otherwise it fails in its purpose. I only know a little about ammo reloading, but I’m sure you can probably find a reloading hobbyist that could give you the specifics.
The movie made in 1974 with Martin Sheen was good. Look it up. The execution of Eddie Slovak.
I agree. Martin Sheen's performance is wonderful!
I'm an ex soldier (not American) and this story is very depressing. He did not deserve to die so needlessly. I wonder if any of the officers that tried to make him tear up the note told him he could be executed, seeing that he was chocked by the verdict. I do believe this was done to make an example out of him, just as he said. I'm sure armchair warriors will think it was just.
He knew it was possible, it just hadn't happened since the Civil War so he didn't expect it to happen again. It really is sad though, he should have received the same punishment any other deserter did at the time.
There is nothing intrinsically wrong with making an example of someone. We put people in prison today and still execute some today in part to make an example. When a murderer gets a life sentence that is an example. Therefore this notion that it was just to make an example of him as evidence of some kind of injustice is nonsense. The fact is Slovak was his own worst enemy. He was so brazen and shameless about his actions. He made it clear to everyone he thought he would get a relatively light outcome. Most deserters actually spent some time in battle before they deserted and didn't brag afterwards how they would get a little prison time and a commuted sentence. Slovak's brazenness really gave the Army no choice but to execute him.
@@TDL-xg5nn So you put a man to death because hes too afraid to fight in a war he never wanted to fight in in the first place? Death penalty seems overly harsh. Why not like a few years in prison to "set an example"? Seems hella barbaric to me. War is no joke its not call of duty people get their legs and arms blown off bro. I get that its world war 2 and it was a neccessary fight but putting someone to death is insane. I think the proper punishment is being banished from the country.
@@dr3armer When go around bragging how you are going to get a slap on the wrist with a little prison time and a cummuted sentence like he did it forces the military's hand. I don't think they wanted to give him the death sentence but he was shameless about it. If he would have gone in contrite and humble saying I did my best but just couldn't take it he probably would have received the same punishment as all other deserters. He had no one to blame but himself.
@@TDL-xg5nn
You're literally just excusing the inexcusable because he never chose to join the war in the first place, he was drafted
May he rest in peace.
Wish there wasn't any background music.
There is a film on this disgrace 'The killing of private Slovik' probably the most upsetting film I've ever seen. Strangely for such a powerful film it never gets a entry in any film guide books!
Everyone should see the TH-cam movie with Martin Sheen playing Eddie Slovik. His portrayal is a masterpiece. Only Johnny Depp or Brad Pitt might be able to come close to doing it as well. Nobody else could come close, maybe not even them.
There was a TV movie made in the 70s with Martin Sheen
Who deserves punishment more? Somebody who dont want to be harmed, who is forced to serve others and who was put in slavery by politicians, or somebody who forces others to get harmed, who enslaves them and profits from their suffering? States, people, and politicians who use forced draft instead of volunteers do not deserve to prevail or be left without punishment
The narrator left some things out. The morning of his execution he was again offered a chance to go back to his unit and he declined. If you read the book about Eddie it becomes obvious that Eddie was a guy who always thought he could get out of punishment and also thought that at times punishment with prison was not so bad given the ongoing economic depression he had a roof over his head and 3 squares a day. With his desertion Eddie really believed he would end up in prison like everyone else who was actually prosecuted for desertion. He would be safe, well fed, and eventually discharged. His line was "I am not cut out for this kind of work".
Was his execution unfair. Several years ago I met a woman in the small town in Maryland where I live. She had had two sons killed in France during the last week of November, 1944. She had her third, and soul surviving son kept in the US. What happened to her wasn't fair. My father worked in a shipyard in Norfolk in 1942. He was deferred because of his welding skills. His father was a foreman and his uncle was the superintendent; thus, his deferment was certainly safe. However, he felt overwhelming guilt at not serving and eventually resigned. His father and Uncle accompanied him to the draftboard to help him change his classification to 1A so he could enlist. He served proudly in the Navy. He thought his being a deferred 19 year old was unfair.
However, for sure this is not "black and white". Slovik's execution would be more acceptable if other soldiers had been executed all along. Desertion was occurring more frequently in late 1944. The Army had turned somewhat of a blind eye toward deserters and sent an implicit message that you would be forgiven.
I cannot help but wonder about the many very frightened young men who did what was asked of them and in so doing lost parts of the body, or their lives, but helped eradicate Fascism.
Yet, rich kids Leopold and Loeb committed premeditated murder and avoided the death penalty!!! Slovic was right. He was chosen because he was poor, while those two rich kids got life imprisonment, with Leopold getting paroled after 33 years! Money has its privileges.
Well, that may be the official truth. Nevertheless, when troopers are in the fight for long periods and add to that the often very austere environments, I suspect there have been cases where troops on the ground "dealt with" soldiers who were putting the squad, platoon, etc. at risk. When during a bounding overwatch you see a team member "bounding" in the opposite direction, that is a very bad thing to just let slide.
Had the first deserters been immediately executed, Slovic might have made a different decision. As the War progressed, desertion became a serious problem, and the Military wanted to set an example, hoping it would be a deterrent. Unfortunate for Eddie Slovic, he was in the wrong situation at the wrong time. When he refused to return to combat, he knew it was possible he might be executed, but, based on the information at the time, highly unlikely. He gambled and lost. Had he returned to combat, he MIGHT have been killed. By refusing to do so, he sealed his fate.
But George, as it's been noted, the Pentagon didn't disclose his execution for many years.
It was absolutely unnecessary.
@@kidmack1121 probably because they disapprove of Eisenhowers decision
@@tehzhixiang9452
Making the whole mess, unnecessary and unapproved.
@@kidmack1121 Slovik’s family was immediately notified of his execution so I don’t know what you’re talking about
@@ninjaked1265 No they were not! His widow found out 9 freaking years later that he had been executed for misconduct. Even then it took her even longer to find out the real reason. Yes she was notified as most other family members were, by telegram. It said "Private Eddie Slovick, service number etc. Was killed in the European theater. Go learn history before you spout off untrue statements. I've read many articles and books about this shameful episode.
He had numerous chances to change his mind and go back to his unit , but chose to go to trial , figuring he would get time only , he took a chance, figuring it would be the easy way out , it's sad, but he was the Author of his own misfortune
Basically he did everything possible to ensure he was convicted, because he was convinced he'd only be imprisoned till the end of the war. If he had actually tried to mount a legal defense, I'm sure he wouldn't have been executed. He thought he was smart, he tried to game the system, and he lost.
He used the logic if you run away you will live. it was countered by a different logic. If you run away there will be a real risk that you will get shot.
A military death sentence is a necessary evil. It serves the same purpose as a civilian death sentence does. Can you imagine the military or the world without such deterrent’s? It would be more chaotic than it already is. Yes it’s sad but it is in fact necessary. 🇺🇸
It's sad but they did warn him and you have to remember THIS IS EARLY 20TH CENTURY and this is the army THEY CANT HAVE FEAR RUNNING AMOK THE RANKS EVERYBODY WHAT MAKES YOU SO SPECIAL ABOVE EVERY OTHER SOLDIER WHO HAS THE SAME PROBLEMS AS YOU. I'm not making light of his execution and Idk anything about war or much about combat but they always make the little people to be the example of what not to do. I'm just saying
Appears he was given several options to avoid a trial. Feel it is easy to look back from 2020 and second guess.
The name Wisniewski is pronounced “Veez-nesh-key” ( I have the same last name, and I’m from the same part of Michigan) and macomb is pronounced MA-Comb)
The more you know, thanks!
After reading Eddie's note, I find him guilty of crimes against spelling and grammar.
Not funny
@@OttoByOgraffey Not true.
@@daveferguson935 you're making fun of a man that was murdered. Not funny
@@OttoByOgraffey He wasn't murdered. He deserted his comrades in time of war (a world war, no less)! Granted, he miscalculated the risk and paid a very heavy price, but if you play silly games, you win silly prizes. If only he had served with a bit more honour, he might very well have seen old age instead of dying at 24. He was given numerous chances and refused them. Poor spelling and grammar aren't the only reasons to conclude that Eddie wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.
Hey, cut him some slack....he was a high school drop-out and a delinquent.
Ten years in prison hard labour would have been far more than enough.
No judgment either way. It's 2020 and our thinking has become much more liberal then it was in 1945. I do have an opinion but we all know about opinions.
So sad this story hè stand for his principel but it cost his life
Principle? The guy wasn't a pacifist or anything like that, he just wanted to save his own skin and thought that the punishment for desertion would be less dangerous than military combat. He tried to game the system and he lost.
Has anyone ever been killed on the battlefield for whatever reason...like in the movies when a solider is insubordinate and refuses a command?
Have you ever heard of the USSR???
He didn't want to risk dying like a Soldier in combat so he was killed by deth.
Your research was on point.
But i believe the part about..
the Squad members all having
11 rounds & one blank is
inaccurate the portrayal in
the movie said 11 blanks &
one live round if I'm correct
Never the less thanks for
you're mini Documentary
on such a sad event in our
American history !! 🫡
Thing is, in conscript armies in particular, the negative outcomes of desertion need to persistently outweigh the negative outcomes of not deserving. If anything, the negative outcome of desertion needs to outweigh the negative outcome of not deserting at exactly the point the most negative impacts of not deserting becomes apparent, at the worst of battle/war
It doesn’t need to be just penal, there are negative outcomes associated with petsonal shame, family shame, survivor guilt
But, non officer conscripts are les likely as a group (certainly not individually) to feel as much personal or family shame at desertion (though one would think survivor guilt may come, but much later most likely)
However, commenters who seem pleased and righteous at extreme and even capital punishments for desertion I think are being cruel. It’s a deeply sad necessity, as opposed to a glorious and righteous vengeance being visited upon a coward, for the most part
Is what I think
Plenty of keyboard warriors here. Desertion is a crime, but considering others were only prisoned, this is just great misjustice
Right, no one will deny what he did was criminal, but considering the circumstances and what other people received for doing the same thing be shouldn't have been killed for it.
The penalty was not justice.
Yeah, well, I doubt the others came walking up to their COs with signed confessions saying they were deserting and would desert again if they had the chance, I mean, make an administrative decision.
I really do feel for guys who were forced to fight against their will when they could have performed other duties in the service to their country but Slovik is almost an insult to those guys. Just because the American army was lenient on deserters during WWII doesn't mean other armies were that kind.
@@abrahamedelstein4806 I feel worse for those who were constricted for Nam. They had it worse than anybody. While slavic clearly didn't want to be there and made it known, this war wasn't a police action like the majority of them but it was a war for the survival of democracy. For slavics part, he may have forced their hands but I still don't believe he deserved to die for sloth and cowardice.
@@nocturnalrecluse1216 Well, at least the Vietnam war didn't end with the Soviet Union owning half of Europe, so much for democracy.
In WW1 the British Army shot 306 men at dawn in this fashion (for supposed cowardice) its a national disgrace, when you consider most were suffering from shell shock, or should never been enlisted/conscripted in the first place because they were under age or patently unfit (because of their psychological make up/deficiencies) to be soldiers. Can you imagine anything more demoralising to your own side than killing your own people, its counter productive and never achieved its aim of stopping others.
307 were shot in WW1. but not all for desertion. 37 were shot for murder, 18 for cowardice, 3 for mutiny, 6 for striking an officer, 5 for disobeying a lawful command, 2 for sleeping at post,7 for quitting post, 2 for casting away arms. More 3,000 men were sentenced to death so the high command were really quite merciful. The case of the 2 shot for sleeping was due to many being caught asleep while on lookout duties. An example was made and there were no further cases after that.
@@anthonyeaton5153 The reason no more were shot after that was not because of the severity of the punishment having the desired effect but because plenty of others did get caught but a realisation by the chain of command that it was to severe a punishment (and because of the bad publicity) and so it didnt actually lead to an execution again!
He most certainly deserved his Sentence. Desertion is a very serious Offense.
No he didn't. You're a pos.
such a punishment would make probably sense if the American soil would be invaded. I believe general Patton stated that the Americans defeated the wrong enemy in WW2. All wars are for power, dominion, depopulation and making the majority poor and an elect few stinking rich www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/just-8-men-own-same-wealth-half-world
@@MightybyGrace The Axis attacked us.
@@nocturnalrecluse1216 The Axis attacked us.
My Grandfather fought in WW2 with honor. Slovik was given multiple chances to go back. He was a thief and coward who cared for nobody but himself
Yeah how dare he not want to be forced to kill and die. You're a loser.
Takes ALL kinds of people to make the world go around.
He was a lightweight neighborhood hoodlum at worst.
And as he said, if he was already written off as a habitual criminal, why did they draft him?
@@DaInvisibleNinja The Axis attacked us.
@@kidmack1121 It doesn't take lightweight neighborhood hoodlums to make the world go around.
@@jaisbrennan7696
Actually, it does...
It takes people just the opposite of ourselves, and everyone in between.
Jesus witnessed to all, saint and sinner alike, and there's scripture about "The wheat and the tares having to grow together...
That's for Bible believers.
And if you aren't; scientifically, if everyone was an exact replicate of each other, the first generation wouldn't be able to reproduce...it probably wouldn't want to.
Pardon? How about a pardon for the thousands who died honorably fighting for our country. This guy was a coward and professional criminal who played a con and lost. Victim? Give me a break.
he cucked up for sure
Even when surrounded by guns, war, tanks and death, and given wise counsel, Slovik couldn't get it through his head that the situation was very serious and that he was playing with fire by writing his note and announcing his desertion. To me it's a bit of a Darwinian situation -- like a guy who knows that the mob is real but refuses to pay his interest on time and offers an insult to boot. He was just too dumb to live.
How true.
Just read About this in a book and it broke my heart. Sad we can kill people for not wanting to kill other people.
You're not getting it. Regardless of how you feel about the morality of war, what he did is a very selfish act as he's abandoning the others in his unit as well as thinks only he should be exempt from serving. If he was truly a consiencious objector there are many ways to make that work fairly. He tried instead to con everyone and paid the price for it.
Well Slovik couldn't get right!
Ok if you want to desert ok then but that person should have been deported i feel like the us army murdered him just because
I find it hard to sympathize with this man. Desertion, especially in wartime, is quite an offense to one's unit and the military at large. To be honest I think it's fair Slovik got what he did, in fact the army probably should have lined up more deserters and shot them, or at least recieve an extended stay at Leavenworth. I had three uncles go overseas during WWII and never come back. In my eyes those deserters, and other cowards in the military were a disgrace to the service and their comrades who they let down.
You have an authoritarian mind.
Wtf why not just put them in jail why do you have to kill them?
you all messed up, military service as a career choice is completely something else as forcing people to shoot other people or be shot at
Hope you feel the same about the russian draft dodger cadet bone spur
@@randymoran67 They will NEVER criticize a coward that they can relate with?
Slovik was a selfish pos coward and got what he had coming. He could have fought, taken a bullet and died with honor or survived and lived with honor. My Uncle Ray joined the 82nd Airborne All Americans not even being a US Citizen until after the war. He fought in Italy, then parachuted into Normandy to fight in Sainte Mere Eglise the night and early morning of D-Day, fought in Market Garden and in the Ardennes in the Battle of the Bulge. He disobeyed orders to fall back when he found out a buddy was hit and went back to get him coming across two other wounded men carrying them one on each shoulder until he saw a Jeep put them on it and went and found his buddy. He stayed with a dying soldier in a store front in Market Garden because the soldier asked him not to leave him. Uncle Ray left after the soldier has passed. Much of this was under shelling, heavy machine gun and sniper fire. Uncle Ray was awarded 2 Silver Stars, & 1 Bronze Star for valor, 2 Purple Hearts, the highest honors from France, Belgium, Denmark, and the Netherlands. Uncle Ray confessed: "there wasn't a minute I wasn't scared." Slovik was exactly like the beta male Democrats in our country today. They are nothing but a bunch of cowards that have no ability to think properly and do what's right. Uncle Ray was from Detroit also.
Had private eddie slovik declared himself a ''Conscientious Objector'' (a person who is opposed to severing in the armed forces or bearing arms on moral or religious grounds) or basically he didn't want to kill another person perhaps ..? circumstance might have been different for him, they were certainty precedence in the ww2 of famous conscientious objectors , private first class Desmond Thomas Doss who was awarded the medal of honour 1945
There were a number of british citizens called up for duty in ww2 who refused to take up arms against another person as a conscientious objector one famous one was eric fletcher waters he served in ww2 as a second lieutenant a conscientious objector to the war who later decided to set aside his objections after witnessing the carnage at the allied landing on anzio beach seeing pals fellow soldiers die during a german counter attack and who later died during the fighting this was Roger Waters( father) of pink floyd in the film'' The Wall'' at the beginning he wrote a song ''when the tigers broke free'' in reference to the germans counterattack to push the allies back in to the sea
At the end of the day private eddie slovik might have been many things but he faced his last moments on earth with fortitude and courage
With all other soldiers that deserted none of them were executed then the upper brass in the us army were guilt of murder you can,t execute one and not others.
The difference is other deserters would actually mount a legal defense. They would offer evidence of innocence or mitigation. Slovik did the opposite. He did everything possible to ensure he would be convicted, because he foolishly believed he's only be imprisoned till the end of the war. If he had tried to mount a legal defense, he almost certainly would have not been executed.
Slovik thought he was smart. He thought he could game the system, and he lost.
Slovik got what he deserved.
keep playing your bag pipes and let dead men lie skirtman you have no idea what horrors this guy saw they just made an example of him like he wrote thousands of people desert bc they’re not mentally capable of handling war that doesn’t mean they should be shot down you got no idea what kinda horrors that man saw so just keep your hateful ass opinion to yourself
Every person is not the same. Some people can handle war and some can’t. I find it interesting that Donald Trump’s Grandfather was denied citizenship in Germany because he had refused to serve in the military. Trump found a doctor to lie so he would not be forced to serve. He becomes a hero. Is it money that makes the difference?
@@bentleyrevis6038 The Axis attacked us.
Troll
He was stupid.
Lmao okay “juju”🤣🤣🤡
no he was not, his country was not endangered to be run over. America nowadays is full on injustice, maybe Eddie knew a thing or two back in the day. www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/just-8-men-own-same-wealth-half-world
Maybe.
Maybe just desperate
No the reason Slovic was executed for desertion is he was the only moron dumb enough to put it in righting believing he had some kind of white entitlement and found out otherwise