askhistorians

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Lack of oil is often discussed as a major factor in the defeat of Nazi Germany. Did the Allies ever run into large stores of unused vehicles as a result of this? If production was so high later in the war wouldn't there be large warehouses of unused hardware?	1520
Americans often say that older generations didn't express emotion like we do nowadays and that's why PTSD wasn't discussed. The Korean and Vietnam wars took place less than a decade from each other, however, and Vietnam is seen as a conflict that resulted in more soldiers with PTSD. Why is that?	1306
Was there any sort of generalized smoking etiquette in the US when cigarettes were (sort of) universally smoked? When was it OK to smoke and when was it not? Were you looked down upon for holding your cigarette a certain way?	470
Omaha beach was named after the native Omaha people. US soldiers applied Native American warpaint and shaved their heads into mohawks before the landings. Was this sort of tribute to the Native Americans common during WW2 and other conflicts in the past	430
Are conclusions reached by historical reenactors or people who are "living history" taken seriously by modern scholars? Have legitimate advancements in our understanding of historical life been the result of things like this before?	193
Is it true that the Confederacy tried to experiment with pike formations in the American Civil War? If so how did this idea develop?	138
Did "Duck and Cover" exercises during the Cold War inspire any change in desk design for children?	128
Why weren't the South Vietnamese able to use the same insurgency tactics to the effect that the North did during the Vietnam War? Was their doctrine completely reliant on US influence or did they not have the knowledge or experience?	126
Why is the white flag a symbol of surrender? Is this confined to the west or is it universal? Do armies carry around white flags just in case or do they just use whatever?	119
Was Winston Churchill unusually more racist than his contemporaries?	108

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