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Sign up with Google Sign up with FacebookQ: 11 11 11. remembering.
Wilfred Owen... went over the top on 4.11.18. died.
His words captured it.
'for Doomed Youth
What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?
Only the monstrous anger of the guns.
Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle
Can patter out their hasty orisons.
No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells,
Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs, -
The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;
And bugles calling for them from sad shires.
What candles may be held to speed them all?
Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes
Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.
The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall;
Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,
And each slow dusk a drawing down of blinds'
The war to end all wars ended 100 years ago.Wilfred died. I just wanted to share his poetry with you.
ambivalentmace:
great poem, also like the poem from the doctor in canada
"in flanders field", a few things I had to memorize that I never forget, strangely in 3rd grade Psalms chapter 23, probably against the law now to memorize bible chapters, seventh grade, in flanders field and the road less traveled. I don't think any body memorizes great literature anymore. my favorite was "fear" by George S Patton.
ambivalentmace:
In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie, In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields.">http://In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie, In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields
This song by the Fureys always makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
Well, how do you do, young Willie McBride,
Do you mind if I sit here dawn by your graveside,
And rest for a while neath the warm summer sun,
I've been walking all day and I'm nearly done.
I see by your gravestone you were only nineteen,
When you joined the great fallen in nineteen sixteen,
I hope you died well and I hope you died clean,
Or young Willie McBride was it slow and obscene.
Chorus:
Did they beat the drum slowly, did they play the life lowly.
Did they sound the dead march as they lowered you down,
And did the band play the Last Post and chorus,
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest.
2. And did you leave awife or a sweetheart behind,
In some faithful heart is your memory enshrined.
Although you died back in nineteen sixteen,
In that faithful heart are you forever nineteen.
Or are you a stranger without even a name,
Enclosed and forever behind the glass pane,
In an old photograph, torn and battered and stained
And faded to yellow in a brown leather frame.
Chorus:
3. The sun now it shines on the green fields of France
There's a warm summer breeze, it makes the red poppies dance.
And look how the sun shines from under the clouds
There's no gas, no barbed wire, no guns firing now.
But here in this graveyard it's still no-man's-land.
The countless white crosses stand mute in the sand,
To man's blind indifference to his fellow man,
To a whole generation that were butchered and damned.
Chorus:
4. Now young Willie McBride I can't help but wonder why
Do all those who lie here know why they died.
And did they believe when they answered the cause
Did they really believe that this war would end wars.
Well the sorrows, the suffering, the glory, the pain
The killing and dying was all done in vain.
For young Willie McBride it all happened again,
And again, and again, and again, and again.
Chorus:
Mustard Gas
TO THE MILLIONS OF MEN FIGHTING IN FLANDERS in 1917, it would have been hard to imagine how the hell of trench warfare could be made any worse. But worse it would get that year, thanks to the introduction of a new and particularly horrifying chemical weapon.
On July 12, German gunners lobbed more than 50,000 artillery shells containing an experimental poison gas into the British and Canadian lines near Ypres. Unlike the widely used chlorine or phosgene agents, which attacked the eyes and lungs, this new terror burned its victims bodies both inside and out. And because of the unmistakable pungent aroma that accompanied its release, soldiers in the trenches soon had a name for the weapon: mustard gas.
Initially, those in the path of the unfamiliar and faintly yellow vapour had little idea they were even in danger. But within hours, the gas’ lethal effects would be all too obvious. Shortly after its first use, dressing stations up and down front were overflowing with more than 2,000 victims suffering from excruciating and untreatable blisters on their arms, legs and torsos. Most were blinded; others were slowly suffocating. Nearly 100 of the casualties succumbed to their wounds within a few days. Over the next several weeks, 1 million mustard gas shells would land on the Allied lines near Ypres leaving thousands writhing in agony, disfigured and unfit for duty. More than 500 deaths would be recorded.
Stiggs:
That was some nasty stuff.
I think I read, or it might have been a movie - don't remember, about guys jumping into a shell hole or ditch or similar for cover and it would be full of the gas. It must have been heavier than the air so it would pool up in the low lying areas. Like life wasn't hard enough already, now they couldn't even look for cover from the machine guns without worrying about another horrible way to die.
diverdude1:
yeah, I read about the pooling effect too. They say that is why it was extra effective it pooled in trenches and wouldn't disperse like the chlorine gas,,, or I mean not disperse as qucikly.
mechanical aparatus,, Bullets/Artillery/Bombs rip the body apart,,,, but something has to be said for Chemical/Biological agents. If you really wanna do away with folks,, gotta look into Chem/Bio.
ScotsAlan:
I recall it was mustard gas that temp blinded Hitler. Terrible how the technology driver is how to kill people.
I worked for a Japanese company in the mid 90s. In a UK factory. I asked about observing 11 11 once when it landed midweek. The answer was no. Against company policy. But ok to go to a side room.
We lost over 60000 during the war and another 60000 in the next couple of years after from war related issues. ..and our population at the time was about 5million ....
A very interesting article, basically China provided labor for support to France, Britain and Russia thinking that when Germany fell, they would get Qingdao back and when the got screwed by the Europeans on the deal, they never trusted any one again this directly sent them to communist ideology. His hypothesis that the armistice agreement screwed China is correct but if China had gotten what was promised, the government and the world would be very different today.
ambivalentmace:
http://www.realclearlife.com/daily-brief/woodrow-wilson-shouldnt-celebrated-wwi-anniversary/
yes, woodrow wilson was a democrat neocon asshole, sent troops into 13 countries during his reign and pissed off Russia by sending 18000 marines to Russia. Democrats always blame the Rupublicans for wars in the states because nobody remembers history.
ScotsAlan:
Why do you always forget the southern stratagy split. The full reversal of values.