First post,and by way of introduction some pictures of my first bespoke.

[apropos]

I think all this remembrance affairs completely miss the point - that war is stupid, horrid, and so often unnecessary affairs, and that these men were cut short in the prime of their lives for something arbitrary and which - for the vast majority of them - had absolutely nothing to do with them.

This bit is often left out of remembrance ceremonies, or at least the ones I have been to. The Gallipolli campaign precisely exemplifies the hapless stupidity. For me, the most memorable thing would be that it was a colossal cockup in almost every way, and that in which the acts of bravery were incidental to the stupidity, not unlike causing a trainwreck to see the 'best' come out in a few people.

I'm sorry, but I just don't see the nobility in a bunch of Anzacs who signed up to sail halfway around the world to a place they at best have only read about in the papers to try to kill some conscripted Turks they had never met as part of a war which barely affected Oceania, only to be massacred en masse because their inept commanders botched up a landing.

You see the 'military families' which stand proudly by during these ceremonies - what are you proud of? That grandpa sailed off to kill some people he never met, people from 'military families' like yourselves? That he got killed while doing so?

I think something like that should be studied in schools, but as a testament to the folly/stupidity of man, not a testament to the bravery that sprouted like flowers in the killing fields.

I am genuinely sorry if this offends you, this is just my 0.02.

 

[usnawolfe]

"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."

- John Stuart Mill

 

[Don Carlos]

Apropos: if I remember correctly, you're Aussie, right? How can you be filled with such angst all the time when you're surrounded by hot chicks with sexy accents? If I lived there, I'd be even more glorious than I am today, which is to say, quite glorious indeed, mate.

 

[apropos]

Originally Posted by usnawolfe

“War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.” - John Stuart Mill
You really should pick up a history book and read about the causes & origins of WW I, instead of cherry picking quotes from historical figures to 'support' your argument. To re-iterate, I am not against war per se. It is necessary sometimes.

Originally Posted by Arrogant Bastard

Apropos: if I remember correctly, you're Aussie, right? How can you be filled with such angst all the time when you're surrounded by hot chicks with sexy accents? If I lived there, I'd be even more glorious than I am today, which is to say, quite glorious indeed, mate.
Good point.

 

[usnawolfe]

I know my history. More to the point, however, I posted that quote because, as a man who has experienced war firsthand, it has special meaning. If you find it contrived, that's fine. Personally, ceremonies and days of remembrance are important to me and are certainly not the forum or place to address the necessity or pointlessness of a specific conflict. I'll leave those debates to those more experienced citizens of the world to hold in their own venues of choice (like a bespoke first-timer's thread in a style forum.)