Should the queen say sorry?
Discussion
Link to Yahoo news story
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/041029/325/f5joe.html
I think a gesture of reconciliation is perfectly in order but that a full public apology would be too much. What say the PH massive?
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/041029/325/f5joe.html
I think a gesture of reconciliation is perfectly in order but that a full public apology would be too much. What say the PH massive?
Why should she be sorry?
We were at war at the time.
Reminds me of the story about the BA Captain arriving at Dresden airport for the first time. Air Traffic Control asks why he is taxiing on the wrong taxi way. Captain replies only ever been here once before. ATC asks why if he has been before he does not know the right way?
Captain replies "Last time was in a Wellington and I didn't stop!"
We were at war at the time.
Reminds me of the story about the BA Captain arriving at Dresden airport for the first time. Air Traffic Control asks why he is taxiing on the wrong taxi way. Captain replies only ever been here once before. ATC asks why if he has been before he does not know the right way?
Captain replies "Last time was in a Wellington and I didn't stop!"
as long as they say sorry to all the merchant seamen they killed and all the gor blimey's they killed in the east end. War's a nasty experience, but i can't see how an apology from someone not responsible would change anything, war is a nasty business, bad things happen, from both sides.
No!!!!!
Greg
No!!!!!
Greg
They started it, they bombed our shed!
Father in-law being entertained by German clients in a recently opened roof top restaurant circa 1958
"I haven’t been this low over Cologne since 1945"
A stony silence ensued. He didn't fell it necessary to apologise, so why should HMQ, she couldn’t even fly a Lancaster
Father in-law being entertained by German clients in a recently opened roof top restaurant circa 1958
"I haven’t been this low over Cologne since 1945"
A stony silence ensued. He didn't fell it necessary to apologise, so why should HMQ, she couldn’t even fly a Lancaster
Iria said:
(add any other randomly or willingly bombed place)
Exactly, Laos, Vietnam, Hiroshima / Nagasaki, Pearl Harbour etc etc.
Iria said:
Sounds a bit too pointless really.
Completely pointless, it was a war. Just thank god / allah / budda / Darwin that it's over.
Iria said:
You never said sorry for sinking our Armada!
But you started that!
No we didn't!
Yes you did, you invaded Holland, and Italy and South America!
Jeje!
I can see both sides to this.
It is true to say that the Germans were entirely responsible for WWII.
It is also true that they bombed our civilian cities first (the Blitz, Coventry etc).
However, I think that bombing Dresden so late in the war was unjustified, and since we haven't been at war for some time, then some kind of reconciliation is a very good idea.
I think that the issue has been over-simplified by the media, and headlines like Krautrage are shameful.
It is true to say that the Germans were entirely responsible for WWII.
It is also true that they bombed our civilian cities first (the Blitz, Coventry etc).
However, I think that bombing Dresden so late in the war was unjustified, and since we haven't been at war for some time, then some kind of reconciliation is a very good idea.
I think that the issue has been over-simplified by the media, and headlines like Krautrage are shameful.
It does seem to be something of a modern trend to apologise for things that happened years ago and had nothing to do with the apologee (is that a word?) It all comes back to the guilt that we should supposedly all feel for things done by our forebears, I think it's nonsense personally.
I utterly hate this hand-wringing bullshit.
My Dad was a soldier in the "Army Of Occupation" (just after WW2) and helped keep the peace in Germany. Apparently this was not completely non-violent.
My "Taid" (Welsh Grandad) fought the Irish in the twenties I believe. Apparently he hated it and felt great empathy with his Celtic "relatives" but felt he had to "do his duty" and follow the chain of command.
Should I be apologising for their actions?
No.
And the queen does not need to apologise to Germany in any sense. What happened was awful. Saturation bombing was the technological option available at the time to destroy the industry/economy making the war possible.
Horrible but true.
The Americans took the same unpleasant decision when they dropped nukes on Japan.
Vile business - but how many lives of British and American soldiers and civilians on both sides were saved because those wars were brought to a more rapid conlusion.
There is nothing good at all about war. Even winning. But apoligising for it?
Pah!
My Dad was a soldier in the "Army Of Occupation" (just after WW2) and helped keep the peace in Germany. Apparently this was not completely non-violent.
My "Taid" (Welsh Grandad) fought the Irish in the twenties I believe. Apparently he hated it and felt great empathy with his Celtic "relatives" but felt he had to "do his duty" and follow the chain of command.
Should I be apologising for their actions?
No.
And the queen does not need to apologise to Germany in any sense. What happened was awful. Saturation bombing was the technological option available at the time to destroy the industry/economy making the war possible.
Horrible but true.
The Americans took the same unpleasant decision when they dropped nukes on Japan.
Vile business - but how many lives of British and American soldiers and civilians on both sides were saved because those wars were brought to a more rapid conlusion.
There is nothing good at all about war. Even winning. But apoligising for it?
Pah!
Leading on from 'vetteheadracer' ...
I was in the US in early 80's working for the summer (part of the Irish illegal alien invasion to the East Coast) and we wanted to get a job for a German girlfriend -- we worked at a top notch country club (so Irish illegals not Hispanic) and the manager said he'd give her a job -- during the 'interview' he said -- "I hear you are from Hamburg -- I saw it quiet a lot during the war, it was my favourite target" -- said with a straight face and no concept of how she was hearing it.
So I have never wondered how Reagan, Bush 1, Rumsfeld et al carried on as they did, and got away with the support of the American people
I was in the US in early 80's working for the summer (part of the Irish illegal alien invasion to the East Coast) and we wanted to get a job for a German girlfriend -- we worked at a top notch country club (so Irish illegals not Hispanic) and the manager said he'd give her a job -- during the 'interview' he said -- "I hear you are from Hamburg -- I saw it quiet a lot during the war, it was my favourite target" -- said with a straight face and no concept of how she was hearing it.
So I have never wondered how Reagan, Bush 1, Rumsfeld et al carried on as they did, and got away with the support of the American people
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