Wootton Bassett Parades

[norby1]

We have seen the bodies of quite a few service personnel being brought home to RAF Lyneham, and then having the cavacade through Wootton Bassett recently, and I am always impressed by the quiet dignity of the people who line the streets in tribute to our fallen.

If only those useless muppets in the Commons would take some notice and properly honour our troops, rather than late, badly written soundbite letters to the bereaved, or speeches claiming that each death affects them personally..

Gordon Brown, this means YOU..

(BTW this is not a rant about the conflicts in the Stan and Iraq.Purely a post about those who honour our dead.)

[Uhura_Fighter]

It was good to see former head of the British Army General Sir Richard Dannatt pay thanks to the town on question time last night.

Watch the show from the town on iplayer or here

[Eric Mc]

norby1 said:

We have seen the bodies of quite a few service personnel being brought home to RAF Lyneham, and then having the cavacade through Wootton Bassett recently, and I am always impressed by the quiet dignity of the people who line the streets in tribute to our fallen.

If only those useless muppets in the Commons would take some notice and properly honour our troops, rather than late, badly written soundbite letters to the bereaved, or speeches claiming that each death affects them personally..

Gordon Brown, this means YOU..

(BTW this is not a rant about the conflicts in the Stan and Iraq.Purely a post about those who honour our dead.)

What should they do?

[Sam_68]

Is it just me, though, or is Wootton Basset now possibly the finest terrorist target available in the UK?

And I think we need to keep a sense of perspective; whilst no-one wants to see UK service personnel (or anyone else for that matter) killed unnecessarily, a year's worth of casualties in Afghanistan count for how many seconds in the openings of the major battles and landings in WWI and WWII, do you think? There is an argument that all this highly-publicised wailing and gnashing of teeth over a handful of casualties (relatively speaking) is a major propaganda coup and encouragement to the Taliban and Al Quaeda.

[CatherineJ]

I'm wondering what will happen when they shut Lynham in the next 2 years. Will somewhere near Brize take up where Wootton has left off.

I have been in Wootton twice to see the parades and it is the most moving thing i've ever experienced. I've also witnessed the convoy joining the M4 at Windmill Hill and the level of care that is taken is fantastic.

[munroman]

Sam_68 said:

Is it just me, though, or is Wootton Basset now possibly the finest terrorist target available in the UK?

And I think we need to keep a sense of perspective; whilst no-one wants to see UK service personnel (or anyone else for that matter) killed unnecessarily, a year's worth of casualties in Afghanistan count for how many seconds in the openings of the major battles and landings in WWI and WWII, do you think? There is an argument that all this highly-publicised wailing and gnashing of teeth over a handful of casualties (relatively speaking) is a major propaganda coup and encouragement to the Taliban and Al Quaeda.

Sir, firstly, the people of Wooton Bassett have my utmost respect for the dignity they have shown for our fallen.

Secondly, lest we forget, these fallen have come about through the lies and incompetence of our Government, and the thing they would most desire is that people accept this as the norm, and hide more deaths in amongst the general drivel we are fed in the news.

After WW1 and WW11, we were meant not to have wars as a means of 'willy waving', where only the local population and soldiers would suffer, not the politicians, or in the case of Iraq and Afghanistan, the Oil Company moguls for whom the conflict is being fought.

Well done Wooton Bassett!

[Sam_68]

munroman said:

lest we forget, these fallen have come about through the lies and incompetence of our Government

The same can be said of all wars, to a greater or lesser degree.

If you join the armed forces, you accept that you must, if called upon, fight any war the Government sees fit to engage in. And if, on that basis, you're expecting any Government to be competent and completely truthful, you're so naive that perhaps it would be better for Darwinism to take its course.

[Mojocvh]

Sam_68 said:

munroman said:

lest we forget, these fallen have come about through the lies and incompetence of our Government

The same can be said of all wars, to a greater or lesser degree.

If you join the armed forces, you accept that you must, if called upon, fight any war the Government sees fit to engage in. And if, on that basis, you're expecting any Government to be competent and completely truthful, you're so naive that perhaps it would be better for Darwinism to take its course.

That is SO insulting to the Fallen and the Maimed I take it that was your twisted purpose.

Quoted for posterity

[smn159]

Sam_68 said:

munroman said:

lest we forget, these fallen have come about through the lies and incompetence of our Government

The same can be said of all wars, to a greater or lesser degree.

If you join the armed forces, you accept that you must, if called upon, fight any war the Government sees fit to engage in. And if, on that basis, you're expecting any Government to be competent and completely truthful, you're so naive that perhaps it would be better for Darwinism to take its course.

The Darwinism reference is bit harsh IMHO, but I can see where you're coming from. As a rule we fight wars in support of the foreign policy of the government of the day (WW2 being an exception); members of the armed forces know this and accept this when they sign up.

Yes they are serving the country and we should support them in what they do, but then so are farmers and construction workers, who also have a high mortality rate. Should we have a parade for them too?

[BruceV8]

Sam_68 said:

If you join the armed forces, you accept that you must, if called upon, fight any war the Government sees fit to engage in. And if, on that basis, you're expecting any Government to be competent and completely truthful, you're so naive that perhaps it would be better for Darwinism to take its course.

Here we go again.

What you have just said is that if you join the armed forces you are stupid and deserve to die.



Back to the original post. Three of my friends have been killed in Afghanistan in just over a year and been repatriated through Wootton Bassett. I attended two of those repatriations. One was for my Troop Commander, Capt Dan Shepherd, and I commanded the bearer party that brought his coffin off the plane, as well as at his funeral at Lincoln Cathedral. The other was for SSgt Oz Schmidt. On both occasions I was deeply moved by the dignity and respect shown by the good people of Wootton and those who travelled there as well. It is a rare thing these days and a shame it has to be in these circumstances. Thank you Wootton Basset.

[BruceV8]

smn159 said:

Yes they are serving the country and we should support them in what they do, but then so are farmers and construction workers, who also have a high mortality rate. Should we have a parade for them too?

It isn't a formal parade at Wootton Bassett. It was started as a small show of respect by the local British Legion and snowballed from there. If you want to have a parade for farmers and construction workers who die at work then feel free. No one is stopping you from organising something like RBL do at Wootton Bassett.

[Uhura_Fighter]

BruceV8 said:

Stuff

Thank you for what you have done and do.

[smn159]

BruceV8 said:

smn159 said:

Yes they are serving the country and we should support them in what they do, but then so are farmers and construction workers, who also have a high mortality rate. Should we have a parade for them too?

It isn't a formal parade at Wootton Bassett. It was started as a small show of respect by the local British Legion and snowballed from there. If you want to have a parade for farmers and construction workers who die at work then feel free. No one is stopping you from organising something like RBL do at Wootton Bassett.

I have no issue with the parade at Wootton Bassett, and the dignity with which the whole thing is carried out. I do feel uneasy about the overly sentimental way that the whole thing has been taken up by the press and TV though.

[Six Fiend]

smn159 said:

BruceV8 said:

smn159 said:

Yes they are serving the country and we should support them in what they do, but then so are farmers and construction workers, who also have a high mortality rate. Should we have a parade for them too?

It isn't a formal parade at Wootton Bassett. It was started as a small show of respect by the local British Legion and snowballed from there. If you want to have a parade for farmers and construction workers who die at work then feel free. No one is stopping you from organising something like RBL do at Wootton Bassett.

I have no issue with the parade at Wootton Bassett, and the dignity with which the whole thing is carried out. I do feel uneasy about the overly sentimental way that the whole thing has been taken up by the press and TV though.

Don't forget the people of Wootton are also against a royal title for the town. Their dignity is real and genuine. It's not a Diana-esque howling for the cameras and is thus all the more poignant.

[BruceV8]

smn159 said:

I have no issue with the parade at Wootton Bassett, and the dignity with which the whole thing is carried out. I do feel uneasy about the overly sentimental way that the whole thing has been taken up by the press and TV though.

Thats a fair point.

[DocJock]

What MoJo said.

That Darwinism remark is well out of order.

[Sam_68]

BruceV8 said:

What you have just said is that if you join the armed forces you are stupid and deserve to die.

Not necessarily.

Plenty of people (my brother was one of them - served several tours in Northern Ireland in the late 70's/early '80's and watched most of his mates be killed by the IRA) join because it's a career that gets them out of a dead-end social background/see the world/give them a surrogate family/sense of purpose and structure to their lives/steady income in a difficult economic climate, etc., etc..

Joining the army is far from certain death, and if you believe that the benefits of the above or any other factors of importance to you outweigh the risks involved, then that's all well and good.

But, if you join the army, you must accept a high potential risk of death or injury; it's your choice (since we no longer have conscription), therefore I don't see any particular reason why you should expect the sympathy and respect of the wider population.

And; if you join the army in the belief that the Government (any Government, and as smn159 says, you're there to deliver the foreigh policy of whatever govenment is in power) is scrupulously honest and will only engage you in just wars for the greater benefit of mankind, with no selfish underlying agendas, and that they will enter into and manage those wars with total competence, then yes, you are either stupid or unbelieveably naive and it will be no great loss to mankind if you are removed from the gene pool.

I wouldn't wish an early death on anyone, but we all die eventually, and if that's the choice you've made...

[statts1976uk]

Well Sam, everyone in HM Forces does understand the increased risks and are willing to put their lives on the line for other people who will never know the identity of the person making that sacrifice. A lot of people in the forces, myself included when I served, want to make a bit of difference to the world and to show the world what a great country this can be when people put that bit of effort in.
The Darwinian jibe is a low one as many of the lower ranked guys are from poorer backgrounds wanting to make more of themselves and deserve your respect for just doing that. I joined with my eyes wide open after several years of university education and turned down a few better paid jobs in the aerospace industry as I felt the RAF offered a much more interesting life.
On the subject of Wooton Bassett would it not be a nice gesture for the town as a whole to be honoured by either this government or the next for their dedication and respect for guys who are willing to pay the ultimate price in the name of this country.

[Sam_68]

Mojocvh said:

Sam_68 said:

munroman said:

lest we forget, these fallen have come about through the lies and incompetence of our Government

The same can be said of all wars, to a greater or lesser degree.

If you join the armed forces, you accept that you must, if called upon, fight any war the Government sees fit to engage in. And if, on that basis, you're expecting any Government to be competent and completely truthful, you're so naive that perhaps it would be better for Darwinism to take its course.

That is SO insulting to the Fallen and the Maimed I take it that was your twisted purpose.

Quoted for posterity

Re-quoted for posterity, with the emphasis changed to stress what was meant, not what you chose to see when your piss boiled.

And I note from your profile that you are so patriotic that you've fked off to live in France?

[Sam_68]

statts1976uk said:

are willing to put their lives on the line for other people who will never know the identity of the person making that sacrifice.

That's very noble of you; just so long as you realise that the people you are willing to sacrifice your life for are, ultimately, the government and business interests of this country.

I sense, though, that you perhaps believe that there are always more altruistic beneficiaries?

statts1976uk said:

A lot of people in the forces, myself included when I served, want to make a bit of difference to the world and to show the world what a great country this can be when people put that bit of effort in.

Well, Statts, that was your choice and your judgement, of course.

Personally, I can't think of any UK-involved wars since WWII that have shown the world what a great country we are, more than they've shown the world that we have a habit of interfering in other countries' culture and politics for our own (and U.S.) self-interest, but each to their own.