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Eric Bogle - The Band Played Waltzing Matilda - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WG48Ftsr3OI
And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda" is a song written by Scottish-born
Australian singer-songwriter Eric Bogle in 1971. The song describes war as futile
and ...
Tomorrow is Australia Day. Even that is subject to protests today, but this is a "Tribute" to all our politicians over the years who have sent our young men and women off to fight in useless foreign wars. The only one worth fighting was WW2 when we were actually under attack. Pick the version you like musically but the sentiment remains the same.
Comments
Something Went Wrong With My Editing Here
However I think the message still gets through.
Eric Bogle
Is a lovely man. He agreed to my using some of his lyrics with a smile and a handshake.
There's a great book set in WWII with the same title
There's a great book by HW Coyle by the same name available on Kindle.
https://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/blog/46847/while-band-played-...
Persephone
Non sum qualis eram
superb!
one of my favorites
Love, Andrea Lena
Link to Amazon
Here's a link to Nancy's book:
http://amzn.to/2kszqm1
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
Thank you. The song and
Thank you. The song and singer have always been favorites of mine. The YouTube slide show with the music is very moving.
Kris
{I leave a trail of Kudos as I browse the site. Be careful where you step!}
Pretty Sad!
(in the video/slide show), I guess it's also appropriate for the Canadians; (US and to a lesser extent UK make the wars).
I would have liked to see the whole slide show to be about the Aussies in WWI, WWII and Nam. It would have gone with the heart breaking song better.
Saw this before and was also affected. Thanks again.
Hugs and Bright Blessings,
Renee
The old saying is that soldiers fight for God and country.......
But in all honesty, most fight for the men that stand next to them.
Yes, there are those who enlist for all kinds of high moral reasons, just as there are those who enlist simply for a job, or for an education. But in the end, you fight for your brothers and sisters. You fight not for some lofty ideal, but because you develop a bond, a love if you will, for those who stand with you.
Yes, I have spoken often of duty and honor, but when the shit hits the fan it's duty to the man next to you, or those all around who depend on you, that drives you. Not some politician thousands of miles away.
Like Ray Bradbury wrote in his novel Starship Troopers, perhaps we really should limit citizenship and the right to vote to those willing to serve. To those willing to stand up with their brothers and sisters and face the elephant.
Just a thought.
Eden
D. Eden
Dum Vivimus, Vivamus
Ray Bradbury?
Ray Bradbury? Hardly. Robert Heinlein wrote "Starship Troopers". Imagine requiring joining and being indoctrinated in the Crips as a requirement for voting. (But if someone gets the idea that you're in the Bloods, you're dead.)
-- Daphne Xu
Couldn't Disagree More Vehemently
This thread is about an anti-war song. How can you go from that Youtube video to wanting a system governed solely by hawks? I can understand hating bureaucrats who never served creating wars, but would really be better served by a vote only of those with militaristic answers?
I have a lot of respect for John McCain and Lindsey Graham, two of the about 20% of our Congress who served. When I was in college about 75% of Congress were Vets. What happened?
Jill
Angela Rasch (Jill M I)
What happened?
What happened? The all-volunteer army. Without a draft, most can and do avoid serving. I have had jobs where I was the only veteran in the group. And I have worked for companies which didn't even observe Veteran's Day (Remembrance Day for those from Commonwealth countries). When only a small minority actually serve, it is easy to overlook their sacrifice.
ahhh but you have to read that book again
if you read it closer
Heinlein really states, work for the state doing what you do best and that might not be getting shot at---I can almost quote the line
"If you're blind and volunteer, we will find you a job counting hairs on a caterpillar'
that part just asks for a free sacrifice of time to all the nation around you to earn your citizenship.
Proud member of the Whateley Academy Drow clan/collective
Please
My point was that the lives of many of our young men and women over the years have been expended mostly in useless wars authorised by politicians who had no intention of getting personally involved themselves but were only too happy to sacrifice others. I don't think that this is something exclusive to Australia.
Which is why
..Eric wrote this other heartbreaking song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1VD84SLW8I