... lest we forget
I almost forgot, here in Spain, that today in the UK people will be observing the two-minutes' silence to remember those who have died in armed conflict around the world.
It is also the first time that I have actually sat back and considered what it actually signifies:
Is it a day to remember those who died protecting the United Kingdom from the threat of Hitler and the Nazis?
Or is it a day to remind ourselves that armed conflict, given the possibility (or inevitability, some might say) of innumerable casualties on both sides of the field of battle, should only be considered as a last resort and not as commonplace?
It should be the latter. But in my infinite cynicism, the former seems to always take centre stage. It is akin to a season of Dr. Who or Star Trek, where each episode there is always a baddie threatening the peace throughout the entire world or universe. Every now and again appears the 'philosophical' episode where the protagonists contemplate their actions and their impact on the whole proceedings. But inevitably, these are the ones that go totally unnoticed and end up collecting dust in the downstairs cupboard of the television centre archives instead of being re-run.
This is precisely what has happened to Remembrance Day.
The Queen, in her infinite compassion, will be laying a wreath on the Cenotaph. As head of state, it is her job to lead us in remembrance. Though at times I feel that this gesture is utterly empty, don't you think? As someone with virtually no political power whatsoever, how can she possibly communicate the message of "never again" to the folk of this country?
She will be followed, with a gesture equally as empty, by our PM, Tony Blair. The man with the power in this country. It is he who has the power, as he has shown in recent years, to lead us into war, to instigate numerous laws and acts to 'protect' his nation. And yet he leads us in remembrance. How can he be so hypocritical and presumptuous as to remember the countless dead of this country when he is the very person who has sent a portion of these people to their deaths? How will this man possibly be able to sleep tonight knowing that he will have just taken part in remembering those who have died due to his actions as head of this country?
Remembrance Day has lost its meaning. Nowadays it has much more to do with solidarity against the baddies in this world rather that what I'm sure it was originally conceived to be: a call for us to consider that war, under any circumstances, should be a last resort. Today anyone intent on declaring this will find that their message will simply fall on deaf ears as it has done in the past, year after year.