Talking down to people??

You said I had failed to find any record of a soldier named Tommy Kenny in answer to a post of mine where I had quite clearly stated that I had found not only one soldier named Tommy Kenny but six - clear example of Jim Carroll's inability to read and understand the English language and complete and utter lack of any powers of reasoning or logic.

"The army didn't need military policemen to force men to fight against their will - what king of stupid argument is that.
They had laws and the threat of imprisonment and the firing squad if, once enlisted or recruited, they refused to fight."

OK then Jim, when you first introduced us all to Tommy Kenny you did tell us all about Tommy telling you about MPs forcing British soldiers over the top at gunpoint? Did Tommy Kenny regale you with stories of MPs shooting British soldiers who refused to go over the top and for returning to their trenches? If he did he was lying because no such incidents EVER HAPPENED during the entire course of the First World War - if you think what I have said there is incorrect then please provide us with evidence that refutes what I have said - Please note: The word of one single man who YOU have not even been able to establish whether or not he even ever served as a soldier does not count. At the time of all the WWI threads none of your fellow travelers were able to come up with any other examples of this practice so how come YOUR Tommy was the only one to witness it? That sort of thing would have been impossible to keep quiet. Oh and here is another piece of information for you to consider, during the course of WWI the Military Foot Police and the Military Mounted Police never once shot a British soldier - not even those condemned to die by firing squad - soldiers from the condemned man's regiment had to form the firing squad. Standard and uniform issue of arms for the Military Police? A side arm, a service revolver.

"Tommy's story is identical to many accounts of World War One

Yet none of you who believe the myth about men being forced over the top at gunpoint can verify Tommy's story

" - young men not able to find work, dissatisfied with their lives tricked into joining up by the promise of a regular job and the romance of travel and a uniform to attract the girls - as old as warfare itself - utterly crass."

What on earth are you wittering on about? Is that seriously your argument? A bunch of tired old stereotypical cliches? Rather runs against the facts doesn't it with regard to the first two years of the First World War. Such as over 1,200,000 men rushing to join the British Army between August 1914 and December 1914 in overwhelming droves of VOLUNTEERS so great that the British Army of the day couldn't cope with the rush. By the time the War was over 2.6 million British men who had volunteered to join the armed forces and a further 2.7 million had been conscripted. EVERY other soldier who participated from Ireland, from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Newfoundland, India, South Africa, etc, etc - where conscription did not exist were ALL VOLUNTEERS.

"Please don't try to throw dust in my eyes with your supposed military knowledge"

For the purposes of this exchange Carroll it can clearly be seen who knows what they are talking about and who does not - you old son are absolutely clueless when it comes to this subject.

"THe lads who fought and died were, by and largely tricked into doing so with false promises of a better world and other enticements - there are enough examples of ex-soldiers saying so - Harry Patch being one of them."

Really?? Any documented examples of this? I don't think I will get any from you or your fellow travelers.

Your "Home before Christmas" was shown and clearly demonstrated as being a myth as far as the British Government and the British people were concerned.

The "country fit for heroes to live in"?? Never stated at any time during the war - so hardly a false promise - the line came from a speech delivered by David Lloyd George at Wolverhampton, Nov. 23, 1918 and subsequently quoted in The Times, Nov. 25, 1918. (Source: The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations" by Tony Augarde.)

Oh and Jim, and apologies to Eric Bogle, but not one single man who joined the British Armed Forces during the First World War, not one single General and not one single politician ever seriously believed for one single second that they were "fighting the war to end all war". Again here is David Lloyd George using the phrase:

"This war, like the next war, is a war to end war."

Harry Patch was one of the ones who said all that was he Carroll??

Well here is what Harry Patch did say about all that Jim:

Background - Harry Patch grew up in Coombe Down, near Bath. He left school at 15 and trained as a plumber. He was 16 when war broke out and reached 18 just as conscription was being introduced. Unlike many of the young men who smilingly signed up for death and dismemberment, he had no illusions.

What Harry DID say - "I knew what to expect. My mother had three sons. My oldest brother suffered from asthma. He didn't pass. My middle brother was a regular soldier. Royal Engineers. Serving in Africa. He was called home and wounded at Mons. I knew what it was going to be like: dirty, filthy, insanitary."

Those the words a man being told lies and coaxed with false promises and inducements?? Don't think so Jim.