V J Day

[Halfhound 128]

3 minutes ago, WILF said:

It’s a hard one mate, one of the kindest, warm, genuine blokes I knew was a catholic priest and he was my pal…..he knew the score, was realistic.

But the flip side is places like the mother and baby homes like near where I live where they are digging up hundreds of discarded infants……that’s pure f***ing wickedness carried out under the cloak of an all powerful church and can’t be excused.

My pal used to say to me “Not seen you at church” and I’d say “No, because most of your Christian’s ain’t very Christian” and he would just smile we’d move on. 

There a great line in a film it’s says ‘years ago we had the church but that’s just another way of saying we had each other’. I’ve met some great priests and have had nuns in my family on both of my parents sides and by god I met some nasty ones as well. Anyone who was involved in the mother and baby home stuff I’m sure there’s a special place in hell reserved for them well I’d hope there is anyway. I don’t want to sound like I’m defending any of that stuff because I never would. I’m just saying there was a time the church did do some good in the community and it created a far better culture in it than what we have now the place is gone to hell

[mushroom 14,076]

 

I'm told right before his deployment for D-day. Combat medic, mum told me he had nightmares but never once spoke about it or asked for help. After the war he continued his mission to help his fellow man.

 

[WILF 49,934]

1 minute ago, Halfhound said:

There a great line in a film it’s says ‘years ago we had the church but that’s just another way of saying we had each other’. I’ve met some great priests and have had nuns in my family on both of my parents sides and by god I met some nasty ones as well. Anyone who was involved in the mother and baby home stuff I’m sure there’s a special place in hell reserved for them well I’d hope there is anyway. I don’t want to sound like I’m defending any of that stuff because I never would. I’m just saying there was a time the church did do some good in the community and it created a far better culture in it than what we have now the place is gone to hell

Good post mate, I agree.

[WILF 49,934]

Just now, mushroom said:

 

I'm told right before his deployment for D-day. Combat medic, mum told me he had nightmares but never once spoke about it or asked for help. After the war he continued his mission to help his fellow man.

 

Fair play, can’t even fathom what sights that man witnessed mate.

[mushroom 14,076]

Just now, WILF said:

Fair play, can’t even fathom what sights that man witnessed mate.

Zoom in and look at his eyes.. says it all!

[jukel123 9,415]

15 minutes ago, WILF said:

My old man’s regiment got sent to Burma, but he had already been captured in Belgium with the BEF before that…..not so much a lucky escape as just a different type of shit.

Anyway, my old man and his pal before they got sent to France and me and my pals on VJ Day 50th anniversary in London 

Christ your dad and his mate are babies mate.

A good workmate of mine was mistreated by the Japanese during  the war. He was starved and could not bear to see food uneaten. He would scrape all the crumbs from the whole table where we ate our dinner and scoop them in his mouth. If anybody discarded a sandwich in the bin he would fish it out and either eat it or take it home.

I had some guinea pigs and rabbits. He came round one day they were begging grub at the cage wire.

From then on he used to bring me loads of grass regularly for them. Couldn't bear to see them hungry.

He was nicknamed the' gannet'. But his logic was that shops are full of food today but who knows about tomorrow?

Edited 2 hours ago by jukel123

[WILF 49,934]

Just now, jukel123 said:

Christ your dad and his mate are babies mate.

A good workmate of mine was mistreated by the Japanese during  the war. He was starved and could not bear to see food uneaten. He would scrape all the crumbs from the whole table where we ate our dinner and scoop them in his mouth. If anybody discarded a sandwich in the bin he would fish it out andeither ear it or take it home.

I had some guinea pigs and rabbits. He came round one day they were begging grub at the cage wire.

From then on he used to bring me loads of grass regularly for them. Couldn't bear to see them hungry.

He was nicknamed the' gannet'. But his logic was that shops are full of food today but who knows about tomorrow?

He would have been around 19 in that picture mate, and likewise he hated waste.

He was one of the blokes who did the Long March and was in a camp for 5 years…..they was eating cats and leftover pig swill on that long March so it’s understandable. 

[mushroom 14,076]

He was in action I believe from the word go. I posted his war paybook a couple of weeks ago. I've loads of shit to go through of his record and service. Imagine this, the British gov denied him a war pension because he was a non-combatant. All the horror you see in Saving private Ryan and such films, times it by a 1000 and that's what these men were seeing daily. These men stormed the beaches, villages,  towns etc exactly the same but to save lives of their men. My grandad was shot and given the option to end his service....

His answer was "I'm not leaving my boys out there alone" he went straight back into active service with a bullet wound in his back and a bandage covering it. Lived to be 81. My mum told me the only thing he ever said to her about his experience was that all men scream for their mums.

[jukel123 9,415]

1 minute ago, WILF said:

He would have been around 19 in that picture mate, and likewise he hated waste.

He was one of the blokes who did the Long March and was in a camp for 5 years…..they was eating cats and leftover pig swill on that long March so it’s understandable. 

I knew a bloke who managed to survive the long march. I knew his son as well. He told me his dad never uttered a word about it. Neither would he answer any questions about his experience.

[jukel123 9,415]

1 minute ago, mushroom said:

He was in action I believe from the word go. I posted his war paybook a couple of weeks ago. I've loads of shit to go through of his record and service. Imagine this, the British gov denied him a war pension because he was a non-combatant. All the horror you see in Saving private Ryan and such films, times it by a 1000 and that's what these men were seeing daily. These men stormed the beaches, villages,  towns etc exactly the same but to save lives of their men. My grandad was shot and given the option to end his service....

His answer was "I'm not leaving my boys out there alone" he went straight back into active service with a bullet wound in his back and a bandage covering it. Lived to be 81. My mum told me the only thing he ever said to her about his experience was that all men scream for their mums.

Top man! 

[mushroom 14,076]

Just now, jukel123 said:

Top man! 

They all were and we allowed the state to fail their sacrifices.

[jukel123 9,415]

1 minute ago, mushroom said:

They all were and we allowed the state to fail their sacrifices.

Absolutely!  Without a doubt.

I'm always amazed how heroes rose to the surface and showed the best qualities of mankind. Millions of acts of bravery and selflessness.

Women who were parachuted in darkness to work behind enemy lines. 

Computer and maths geeks who worked night and day to solve enemy codes.

Are those qualities  still among us or are they gone forever? Lost in cynicism and I'm alright Jack?

[WILF 49,934]

12 minutes ago, mushroom said:

He was in action I believe from the word go. I posted his war paybook a couple of weeks ago. I've loads of shit to go through of his record and service. Imagine this, the British gov denied him a war pension because he was a non-combatant. All the horror you see in Saving private Ryan and such films, times it by a 1000 and that's what these men were seeing daily. These men stormed the beaches, villages,  towns etc exactly the same but to save lives of their men. My grandad was shot and given the option to end his service....

His answer was "I'm not leaving my boys out there alone" he went straight back into active service with a bullet wound in his back and a bandage covering it. Lived to be 81. My mum told me the only thing he ever said to her about his experience was that all men scream for their mums.

Similar, not similar….because my old man was a volunteer from 1936, when he came home they wouldn’t let him out despite 5 years of deprivation in a POW camp.

So he had to pretend to be mental and drove them mad until they slung him out….give him something like a fiver and demob suit and told him to f**k off ! Lol 

A little factoid is that because they were POW’s they wasn’t entitled to any medals, but years ago apparently they worked out they were entitled to some and some nice old duffer from the British Legion (I think ?) came round and said to my old man “You are entitled to medals and I’ve come to help you claim them” 

My old boy said “Shove them up your arse” and the poor old sod left ! lol 

 

Edited 2 hours ago by WILF

[WILF 49,934]

9 minutes ago, jukel123 said:

I knew a bloke who managed to survive the long march. I knew his son as well. He told me his dad never uttered a word about it. Neither would he answer any questions about his experience.

Mine didn’t either, I had to research it myself.

[mushroom 14,076]

2 minutes ago, WILF said:

Similar, not similar….because my old man was a volunteer from 1936, when he came home they wouldn’t let him out despite 5 years of deprivation in a POW camp.

So he had to pretend to be mental and drove them mad until they slung him out….give him something like a fiver and demob suit and rold him to f**k off ! Lol 

A little factoid is that because they were POW’s they wasn’t entitled to any medals, but years ago apparently they worked out they were entitled to some and some nice old duffer from the British Legion (I think ?) came round and said to my old man “You are entitled to medals and I’ve come to help you claim them” 

My old said “Shove them up your arse” and the poor old sod left ! lol 

 

You would believe me if I told you my grandad had similar. 

Gave their lives and sanity for a government who didn't respect them... Sound familiar?