The Big War..

 This was written in the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month..Exactly 104 years ago today the armistice was signed ending WW I..

                  Veterans Day - 2022                         (This is an intense one Ladies - fair warning..)

  It was called The Great War, the War to end all Wars, and World War I - it was also called The Great Folly..                                                   Nine million soldiers died in Europe between 1914 and 1918..( That is a lot..)  The U.S. lost 375,000 in WW II in the entire war …            As usual it was Germany against everybody else - especially France.. They literally fought over yards of earth they called No Man’s Land.(They were incorrect - it was millions of men’s land because they died on it..)

The soldiers in the trenches of World War I endured the most incredibly squalid conditions ever recorded in the history of warfare.. They lived in 5 foot by 8 foot holes dug into the mud along side rats the size of small dogs, in ankle deep water teeming with feces, viscera, and disease..

Both sides used the new Maxim machine guns that could fire 500 rounds in less than 10 seconds..Artillery shells were filled with chlorine gas that seared the lungs of anyone or anything that breathed it..Tanks and militarized airplanes were used for the first time and the result of using the uniquely horrific flamethrower ( or trench clearer ), could be smelled for miles..

If you were in this place, dying could actually seem like a very reasonable option..Many soldiers on both sides would go “over the top “ alone..It was certain death and was looked down upon as cowardly - suicide was the easy way out.. When ordered to charge the enemy they were usually only about the length of a football field away..The scale of slaughter was so massive that a pink mist would hang in the air for hours afterwards..Mercy was often asked for but rarely given. The men were ordered to hurdle the dead and impale the weak or wounded with their bayonets..( A notable exception to this mayhem happened on Christmas Eve, 1914 when German and Allied troops met together, sang carols, prayed, played soccer, and even exchanged what few valuables they had as presents..When morning came they generally went right back to trying to kill each other..) 

When America finally joined the war in late 1918 it put the final icing on the German’s cake... Representatives from all countries involved met in a railway car and signed a treaty that was so punitive to Germany it would lead directly to the rise of Adolph Hitler, World War II, and the Holocaust - a short 15 years later..

The day the war began in 1914 both sides thought it would only last a few months and both sides were certain that they would be victorious..It lasted for four dreadful years and wiped out an entire generation..

The latest film edition of the 1929 novel All Quiet on the Western Front is a triumph..Be sure to find the 2022 version - there are several.. It’s not for the squeamish - there are very graphic combat scenes and human misery on an epic level..It is a long one and you’ll be emotionally exhausted by the end - but it’s worth it..An Oscar contender, streaming on Netflix now..Satisfaction guaranteed or price of admission free..      5 Kleenex.

JBS Blackheart

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