Joe Biden believes that his uncle, Second Lt. Ambrose J. Finnegan Jr., could have been eaten by cannibals after being shot down over Papua New Guinea during World War II. There is no evidence for the claim, and current PNG prime minister James Marape protests that “my country does not deserve to be labeled as such.” While this plays out, let me tell you about my uncle, World War II veteran James Richard Billingsley.
In the spring of 1942, uncle Jim left his university studies and signed up with Canada’s 8th Reconnaissance Regiment, known for being “first in, last out.” Uncle Jim was wounded twice in action, once by a German sniper. Army brass tapped him for intelligence work, but he returned to his regiment and fought on. Behind the lines, the Nazi foes had been busy.
From July 1942 until September of 1944, the Nazis deported 97,776 Jews from the Westerbork transit camp in Holland. A full 54,930 were shipped to Auschwitz, 34,313 to Sobibor, 4,771 to the Theresienstadt ghetto and 3,762 to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. On April 12, 1945, troops of the 8th Reconnaissance B squadron liberated the Westerbork camp, saving 876 Jews. American units liberated other death camps and American troops joined Canadians in the First Special Service Force. The FSSF was the elite unit that swept Nazi forces from Monte La Difensa, and other strongholds, opening the way for the Allies to move north.
Any WWII vets still around are doubtless shocked to see Nazi-style mobs on college campuses, screaming for a second Holocaust. The vets understand the perils of appeasing totalitarian aggressors, and Biden’s appeasement of Iran and China surely leaves them troubled. The vets would appreciate Lt. Finnegan, but Biden’s cannibal claim would have sprung a laugh from uncle Jim.
He served until 1946, finished his university studies, and earned a good living for his family. Uncle Jim died in 2017 at the age of 94, still bearing the scars of battle. Joe Biden and Justin Trudeau are not worthy to carry his shoes.
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