Brendan

tog_in_sox has a point. The question does cut close to the bone for me because for one Remembrance Day always held an important place in my upbringing but its observance was a lot less military focussed than what I see around me and far more focused on the society which the soldiers were a part of not mutually exclusive to. The prescriptive nature of it is also difficult, it seems that it is incumbent upon everyone to mark the day or they may as well be spitting on veteran?s graves but they have to do it in the prescribed way and give to the prescribed charity. That?s hardly the spirit of an international day of observance. I also don?t mind one bit donating money to the Legion but I object strongly to being made to feel as if I have to. Secondly I spent 6 years of my childhood not knowing whether my 2 brothers (who are 19 and 16 years older than me) were going to come home from their tours in Angola alive. I was also all set to join the army myself when I was 18, I even considered coming over here and serving in the British army, until I ended up in 2 situations where I had to use a gun to defend myself and got to thinking very seriously if I would be prepared to do that at the behest of some government?s political ends. So I do get quite emotive about the subject because we really, really do have to mark the tragedy of war and especially those great wars of the last century but this world is so sick with war and violence that I can?t see how any message can in all conscience not have an ultimate pacifist end.

Yes daizie it was unnecessarily argumentative and irrelevant to the discussion. I am so glad it made you, Lol.

Mick Mac Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Otherwise can you explain why they don't have a > peace message? That's the question I'm still asking. Perhaps some soldiers will be out of a job. But that?s not really going to happen now is it. And if it does it would be a good thing. Surely? Why is the mention of peace somehow seen as tantamount to treason?

Mick Mac Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Absolutley MP - but we don't think that the whole > of the rest of the world has the same peaceful > objective - hence we need strong armed forces. That is very much a matter of opinion and one that on some levels I don?t necessarily disagree with. But it doesn?t really have much to do with the marking of the end of the WW1 by a day on which we (that?s all of society) remember the people killed in wars especially those 2 massive testaments of human tragedy that were WW1 and WW2.

But it?s not their day is it. A soldier is a son, friend, father and brother first. If not we appear to be occupied.

There's a posh part of Glasgow? ::o

Let?s assume I?m not 5 years old and I know about armies and stuff and why we have them. My point is that it seems at the moment that mention of peace around Remembrance Day is somehow out of place or political and is even sometimes met with direct hostility. As if one is dishonouring someone or something. Why the demonisation of the concept? To what end? The people the day honours are as much my loved ones and ancestors as they are anyone else?s. I?m not dishonouring them be saying that war in general is a bad idea.

Why, when remembering the demise of people killed in war, does the assumption that violence and death are things that we as a society should do our damdest to avoid have to go unsaid? It wasn?t where/when I was growing up and would go to the yearly veteran?s service with my uncles and their friends who all fought in WW2. The priest would always give some of message peace. In fact there was a bloody great hanging with a white dove on it that they used to bring out every year and hang amongst the regimental banners.

Sory I really don?t want to cheapen the sentiment of Remembrance Day but I really don?t think a reminder that war and the military are not a good and/or glorious thing but rather a necessary evil is anything other than exactly what it should be about. How can that possibly offend anyone?

Or maybe I should just stop being so un-American.

Why in Christ?s name is mention of peace/the avoidance of conflict, political?

I?m not sure if Timothy Spall would be the right person to play Patrick Swayzee.

Yes it bloody does. It really, really does.

Perhaps it was Ewan McGregor playing Patrick Swayzee.

Well the last pretty one has gone now but at least Bros are still there.

There was actually some quality comedy on that thread.

That?s very good computedshorty but I reckon you could have worked ?flux capacitor? in there somewhere.

Yes all very moving sentiment and not a single call for peace amongst it, very fucking depressing indeed.

I've not bother to read all of this quids but if there is an inappropriate post, report it. Admin would have only taken action against users if their posts were reported as offensive and probably only banned them after getting post after post reported on a regular basis after issuing warning after warning.

Really? In London? Just goes to show how naive I am. I really do seem to believe people are better than they actually are.

?twas fun. Just a quiet night down the pub, got to meet weegee and the bobs and catch up with other assorted reprobates, drank good beer and whiskey, spoke nonsense and had a very in-depth but massively uninformed conversation about jazz with the ex ruler of India. So a successful evening all ?round.

?twas fun. Just a quiet night down the pub, got to meet weegee and the bobs and catch up with other assorted reprobates, drank good beer and whiskey, spoke nonsense and had a very in-depth but massively uninformed conversation about jazz with the ex ruler of India. So a successful evening all ?round.

But only if you have taken into account the transperambulation of pseudocosmic antimatter.

But only if you have taken into account the transperambulation of pseudocosmic antimatter.

I?ve kind of confused myself too Declan. I?ve re-read your post and what I thought you said is not what you actually said, if you see what I?m saying. You were actually qualifying you position in your second two sentences rather than asking question. Apologies for the confusion.