There is something in this article which needs re-stating:

“If the truth about events so recent is so hard to establish, how much more difficult is it to fully comprehend the talk about wars which were fought decades ago?”

Here is a reality check on Paul Keeting’s unknown warrior speech in Canberra. There was probably a 95% chance that whoever the man was in the casket did not go to war in 1915 to fight for our freedom.

[1] Unlike WW2, no country’s freedom was under threat in August 1914. It was honour which was being challenged after a century-long idiotic arms race which had got out of control which only took the assassination of a nobody to push Europe over the inevitable brink.

[2] The great majority of the volunteer army had in civilian life a hard, boring and low paid job from which there seemed to be no escape.

[3] Hardly anybody could afford overseas travel. Unlike today, the Middle East and even much of rural Europe was little different to what it was in the 18th century. In 1915, travel was a wonderful experience. To the great majority of the volunteer army, here was an opportunity for adventure.

[4] In 1915 clocks and rifles was the only high-tech in rural working class homes. Young men were obsessed with rifles as what young men of today are with computers [and used to be with home motor mechanics in the 1950s to 1990s]. Upon signing up many were heard to say – “When do I get my rifle?”

The poor ignorant young man in the casket was simply a sacrifice to support the ambitions of politicians and generals.

FYI... 'Kokoda' is an incredible waste of 2 hours of your life. Avoid it. Check out 'The Great Raid' instead.

There is a very interesting article in the current issue of Dissent Magazine---the title is Independent Histories.

The author discusses how, in recent years, the Department of Veterans Affairs has been taking a very active role in the shaping of how the his-story of war is "taught" and commemorated in schools and the society at large. War is/was good. The article doesnt specifically say so but it is not difficult to imagine where the driving force or directives for this approach comes from. The militarially correct Howard et al.

And then there is this absurd arrogance whereby we (our government) presumes, with typical white man's arrogance, that it has some god given right to interfere with how the Turkish government and people relate to the real estate at Gallipoli.

By the way, whenever I hear Howard open his mouth about the Anzac mythology,I want to puke. Fortunately I seldom if ever watch or listen to the "news" or current affairs programs.

I've had just about enough of the glorification of war. On Anzac day I might just think about the 60,000 Australian military personel who died in WW1. I'm not sure if the word 'heros' will come to mind. 'poor fools', probably wil.
But it's more likely I'll extend my sympathies to the 10 million civiallians who died during world war 1. That might lead me to think of the 46 million who died in WW2. Not to mention the innocent deaths that have come about from our efforts in Vietnam and now Iraq. Where are the memorials for the civillians that may have died at Australian hands? Where is there even a word about civillian casualties in the War Memorial? (ok - they are mentioned, for example - after a few very in depth display rooms at the War Memorial on WW11, the attrocities of the Nazis, japanese agression etc, there is a very small post-script with no details and no numbers: an easy way to sweep under the rug the attrocities caused by the only real use of WMD the world has seen - The two A bomb attacks in Japan).
I could go on. The point I'm trying to make is WAR SUCKS. Army personel are not 'Hero's', I cant see how any man could point a gun at another could be called a hero. Lets not celebrate. Lets commiserate. Let us not forget, but let us not glorify our memories with the aid of hollywood productions, soppy speeches and token gestures.

Go Ana. Anzac Day was almost a dying instution with a fair percentage of WW1 veterans refusing to march or join the RSL, which they considered a war mad jingoist bunch of reactionarys, and all they wanted to do was forget the war which unfortunately most of them never did, they also hated war and the glorification of it.
Enter the press and politicians and presto it is now bigger than ever, fuelled by jingoism, spin and the appeal of soppy sentimentalism.

Just recently in the course of my work I have been researching the lives of some WWI diggers. I have found it rather moving, deciphering a name from a postcard, searching records and discovering a life. Sadly, many ended their lives in the mud on the Western Front at Bullecourt, Ypres, Frommelles, along with nearly 50,000 other Australians.

This research has helped me see these men not as heroes, but as ordinary people. I would urge anyone who wants to know more about ANZAC Day to visit the National Archives http://www.naa.gov.au/the_collection/recordsearch.html and have a look at some of the 300,000-plus WWI service records now online (be warned, the servers are a bit overloaded). Find a relative, or someone who came from near where you live. You'll get a glimpse of the reality of war. Not very glamorous or heroic, but plenty of humor, pathos and tragedy