Judged by selection and training, which Allied WWI unit was the more elite: the First Special Service Force or Darby's Ranger?
Which would you say had the more illustrious record in battle?
I don't think its such an odd question, but wouldn't that be WWII?
Yeah, it should be WWII. That was a typo.
And I thought of the Alamo Scouts, too. But I decided I'd confine myself to the European theater.
Adolescent question? Maybe but a lot of non-juveniles spend a lot of time debating whether Dempsey would beat Ali. Don't see too much difference here.
because, in general, comparing two different services is not an apples to apples comparison. People ask a lot "Who's better, SEALs or Delta?" Well, they both specialize in different things, so you can't really say.
Ali by decision
or
Rickson by armbar
U.S.ARMY SPECIAL OPERATIONS IN WORLD WAR II, by David W. Hogan, Jr. (1992; 158 pp., illustrations, maps, bibliography, index). CMH Pub 70-42, paper, GPO S/N 008-029-00248-5, $6.00. A study of Ranger operations and U.S.-supported guerrilla operations in the Mediterranean, European, Pacific, and China-Burma-India theaters during World War II, including Darby's and Rudder's Rangers, the Jedburghs and Operational Groups, Volckmann and Fertig in the Philippines, the raid on Cabanatuan, Merrill's Marauders, and OSS Detachment 101. It appears online at http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/books/wwii/70-42/70-42c.htm.
See also
(Bibliography)
ebook dedicated to the 442nd/100th
So you say the FSSF and the WWII Rangers specialized in vastly different missions rendering any comparisons of their training and selection process imposible?
The question is more akin to who is the better chef Paul Prudhomme or Emeril. Or maybe who was the better pitcher, Koufax or Clemens.
Both the FSSF and Darby's Rangers were trained for commando actions but wound up being used mainly as light infantry. The Rangers fought exclusively in the European theater in WWII. The FSSF almost exclusively there. The remaining Rangers were eventually absorbed into the FSSF.
Chef by repeated stab wounds to the belly 0:20.
The knife thrower has trained only to miss and will probably throw away his blade.....
:D
Stu.