"John D. Giorgis" wrote:
> At 06:59 PM 5/24/01 +0200 J. van Baardwijk wrote:
{snip}
>> BTW, don't you ever grow tired of that "Americans who gave their lives"
>> rhetoric? I doubt many of them went to war to "give their lives"; they just
>> happened to be in the wrong place when the bullets started flying and the
>> bombs started dropping.
> No, "the Americans who gave their lives" rhetoric is entirely appropriate.
>
> Indeed, a great many Americans *did* volunteer - and a great many of them
> died liberating the Netherlands. {snip}
but did they volunteer to die? or did they volunteer to work very
hard in a dangerous profession? there is a significant difference
between the two.
> For those people, the situation is crystal clear - they willingly gave
> their lives.
which sounds to me like you believe that they went to the
Netherlands with the intention, the goal, of dying. not with the
intent of working hard, not with the intent of trying to kill enemy
soldiers, but with an intent to die....
{snip
> And no, neither the volunteers nor the draftees really wanted to die.
then they were not 'giving their lives', they were risking their
lives - which is something very different.
> Except for a few extraordinary people who, say, jump on a grenade to save
> their comrades, most never conciously decided "at this moment I choose to
> die for the good of my country."
the only cases i can think of where someone 'gave his life'. often a
very admirable thing when it happens, but not at all the same thing
as someone working hard in a dangerous situation and getting unlucky.
> Nevertheless, service in the Armed
> Forces meant acceptance of the risks involved, including the probability of
> death.
indeed. but accepting a risk of death is not the same thing as
seeking death.
> That is a prospect you and I are blessed to have never had to
> confront
at least so far....
> and the bravery with which those men and women accepted the high
> risk of death for the greater good is most definitely worthy of our
> commendation.
in my opinion that depends on, among other things, whether the brave
really are serving the greater good.
my impression is that a lot of the Nazi SS were both brave and quite
sincere in believing that they were serving the greater good - but it
would take some very very careful phrasing to get me to commend their
'bravery'. similarly, if brave people are risking their lives in an
activity which will not advance the greater good i would be cautious
about commending their bravery - even if i agree with them about what
the common good is.
i would rather recognize people for exactly what they did achieve
and mourn their loss for the loss that it is than assign to them
false glories and mythological status. i find it more respectful, and
their lives more inspiring.
cheers,
christopher
--
Christopher Gwyn
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
