Sorry, bit behind on the news, but it appears a member of Labour's front bench has

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Originally Posted by Ganpati's Goonerz--AFC's Aboriginal Fertility Cult

Where have I ever criticised the Canadians, mate?

I've just written 4k words on what they did in the Hundred Days 1918, where they were our stormtroops and consequently the best troops on the planet, and I said the yank in our class is here cos his granddad joined the Canadians in 1914 and was gassed in 1917.

We (B and I and others) were taking issue that the fact that Brad from Bumfück, Alabama was drafted doesn't make him any better than Mr Brit, or M. Frog or Ruskie or Canadian or Convict or Sikh/Gurkha/Pathan.

But silly me, the Septics are better than all those races so they iz special and the above izn't.

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:nod: Consistently the best troops in the British Army throughout the First World War. Unfortunately for them, this meant they were usually used to spearhead any attack.

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Originally Posted by World's End Stella

The greatest generation argument is made at the personal level, not the national/political/economical level.

You are quite right that American industry did fantastically well, very often cynically, out of the war. That doesn't change the fact that millions of young, American men volunteered to serve in order to resolve issues in Europe and the Pacific that had little effect on their every day lives or the future security of their country.

The Americans, quite rightly, revere the contribution of that generation of Americans and you as a Brit should be equally grateful. Whether you wish to accept it or not, you never would have won the war without them.

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Hang on... they didnt volunteer, they were conscripted. Lets be clear about that. More important
Y, they steered well ****ing clear of the war precisely until the security of their country was threatened.

I am not America bashing here, but lets at least tell the truth.

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Originally Posted by World's End Stella

I recall with fondness my father telling me how quickly the publican in 1969 extended his hand across the bar and thanked him for our country's contribution to the war effort in World War 2 when he discovered that my father was not only Canadian but a member of the Canadian military. The emotion felt very genuine and my father, despite not having served in the war, was genuinely touched.

I'd like to think that his view was representative of the public generally in the UK, as opposed to you and Ganpati who would have refused to offer your hand at all and would have said something like 'yeah but you only helped out because your country told you to and you did pretty well out of the war anyway'.

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It is hardly news to discover that nations act in their own interest and their own defence. Nor is it a criticism from any on here.

The criticism is of this grandstanding notion of something altogether more noble and self sacrificial. We are all grateful the USA joined the war and it wouldn't have been won on the western front without them, or in the Pacific theatre.

We in Britain make a similar mistake with our heroism. I don't doubt the heroism of our soldiers, the bravery of every day Londoners facing the blitz....but compared to what people in other parts of the world went through during that war it is a day at the ****ing beach.

Its a sense of perspective that is needed. The yanks lack it, being a young and rather immature country with so little knowledge of the world.

Great bunch of lads though, all the same.

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Originally Posted by Peter

CLANG!! Its the 80s again :)

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Right. That's why they finally got around to electing Donald Trump, I suppose.