£50 miilion to be spent on WWI commemoration

[SE25 exile]

Sorry title should be corrected thus "£50 million to be spent on WWI commemoration"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19913000

As much as I have great empathy for the relatives still living of those who died in that terrible war, this surely has to be a waste of money that could be better spent on more deserved areas in these supposed times of austerity and cuts.

All of the participants in that war are now dead, and for me, apart from the lessons our politicans and military should learn from it, it should be consigned to military history, along with the preceding Boar War.

WWII, and the Falklands, on the other hand, are quite different. There are survivors, and it is still within stark living memory, and in the case of the former our own country was threatened with invasion, but bravely defended. That is well worth commemorating, however, we already do that on the 11/11 every year. A 100 year commemoration of a long distant war for me, is not appropriate any more.

Any other thoughts on this?

[jamesc_24]

We should never forget, from what I caught on the news on the existing memorial there wasnt enough room to put all of the names up. £50 million is stupidly high though, I think if enough families know of this then they are easily capable to remember in there own way.

[dannyboy1807]

just because their are no survivors left doesn't mean we should forget about it, this country lost nearly 1 million men this should never ever be forgotten, this 50 million isn't over one day this is 4 years of commemorations.



I was at the Menin Gate this year and I had an old man next to me crying whilst the last post was being played he went to honour his father who was killed, these men deserve all the respect in the world for the hell they went through.

[chav_hater]

SE25, with respect, you're talking total shit. The Great War was one of the most horrendous conflicts in the history of the world (THE most if you count the end of WW2 as the end of the Great War). I would hope that a fair portion of whatever budget is eventually decided on would be spent on educating youngsters to avoid such pointless loss of life again.

I would implore anyone who hasn't done so to try and go to Ypres and visit the Menin Gate. Anyone who isn't moved by the playing of the Last Post in the evening should do some reading about the war and what the Menin Gate stands for.

We will remember them.

[Pistol Knight]

I agree it should and will not be forgotten, but that money sounds well over the top

[PalaceSi]

There was scarcely a family in the country not touched by deaths in the first world war. I reckon its worth a pound each.

[Maz]

Originally Posted by PalaceSi

There was scarcely a family in the country not touched by deaths in the first world war. I reckon its worth a pound each.

Quite.

Some people it would seem know the cost of some things but the value of nothing.

[Jordan's Jacket]

Infrastructure project.......

[TheJudge]

I can't go with you on this one.
The Great War was probably the worst exmple of man's stupidity and lack of respect for human life there is. It must be remembered for as long as it's possible. Yes it sounds like a lot of money, but it's not really.
We must not forget those men. If we do, then they fought for nothing. They were in most cases our close relatives after all. The two World Wars have shaped all our lives for better and worse and we must continue to recognise that.

[TC EAGLE]

we need to just for this

The Battle of the Somme started in July 1st 1916. It lasted until November 1916. For many people, the Battle of the Somme was the battle that symbolised the horrors of warfare in World War One; this one battle had a marked effect on overall casualty figures and seemed to epitomise the futility of trench warfare.

For many years those who led the British campaign have received a lot of criticism for the way the Battle of the Somme was fought – especially Douglas Haig. This criticism was based on the appalling casualty figures suffered by the British and the French. By the end of the battle, the British Army had suffered 420,000 casualties including nearly 60,000 on the first day alone. The French lost 200,000 men

[James]

We can remember the brave men who died in WW1 and all subsequent wars, without wasting this much money.

Better to spend the cash on the deserving living - those in poverty, the homeless and the sick.

[Princess]

It's important that future generations don't forget the sacrifices that were made for us. WWI was horrendous and none of us can imagine the horrors that were faced in the trenches by some who were little more than boys - Wilf's age to put it in perspective. Lest We Forget.

[weltklasse]

The Boar War sounds intresting

http://www.nwf.org/~/media/Content/N...534&h=350&as=1

[El Aguila]

Maybe we could remember it by not starting any bloody stupid new wars, and pulling out of the ones we are involved in?
Otherwise all this remembering isn't really much use, is it?

[Chief Brody]

Originally Posted by SE25 exile

All of the participants in that war are now dead, and for me, apart from the lessons our politicans and military should learn from it, it should be consigned to military history, along with the preceding Boar War.

Any other thoughts on this?

I think it is well worth the money should it mean that we can improve educational standards in this country, such as recalling the Boer war. Should we not undertake this project, we may be under the misapprehension that the 1914-18 war was also known as WWF1, Would Woar Won or the Goat war.

[kolinkins]

Anything that can be done to never forget those who battled, without choice, in WW1 and WW2, should be done

It was not like a modern day war where people volunteer to join up, get paid and go to another country. These were battles on our doorsteps with everything on the line - and not losing these battles has given us the world we have today.

£50m? Drop in the ocean really. There is some real waste out there, this is not part of that waste

[Vince Hilaire's Afro]

I think the money is well spent, as the lack of funding on commemorating the Boer War has resulted in no-one even remembering how to spell it.

[Pistol Knight]

It should still be taught in schools..............my fear is most of this money will be spent on the "world class advisory board" chaired by the Ms Miller and supported by "my own special representative" Andrew Murrison.

sounds like a jolly up club to me

[jone-zee]

Originally Posted by kolinkins

Anything that can be done to never forget those who battled, without choice, in WW1 and WW2, should be done

It was not like a modern day war where people volunteer to join up, get paid and go to another country. These were battles on our doorsteps with everything on the line - and not losing these battles has given us the world we have today.

£50m? Drop in the ocean really. There is some real waste out there, this is not part of that waste

Suggest you read up on your history regarding The Great War
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british.../pals_01.shtml

[eagle mart]

In the scheme of things it's not too much.

Conscription. 17,18 & 19 year olds had to quit their jobs / further education, and go to a office and register, got stuck on a bus to the training camps for a few weeks and then shipped out to the Western Front. Would you have been mentally prepared for that at 19? If you did a runner, you were shot anyway.

It was like shooting fish in a barrel. To gain 30 yards, you lost a 1,000 men - most probably more, and even then you probably wouldn't hold that for very long. Things have changed a lot since then, but it's only a small amount of time in history- a couple of generations. It should forever be in the psyche of the public of the countries involved.

edit: apologies if I have any factually incorrect - the sentiment is there