Rememberance Day

11.31.29am GMT Fri 27th Nov 2009

Rememberance Day provided a particularly poignant reminder this year of the cost incurred by so many to preserve our freedoms and way of life.

A recent book, however, based on contributions received from 150 veterans of the Second World War, suggests that those who made the ultimate sacrifice would now be turning in their graves at what has happened to this country.

The sense of disillusionment is profound and they despise what the country they once fought to save has become. One sailor who fought in the Far East reportedly replied 'I sing no song for the once-proud country that spawned me, and I wonder why I ever tried.'

It is very sad that those who gave so much for our country should feel this way. Like many, they deplore the erosion of our national identity and cultural heritage and resent the restrictions that are increasingly being imposed by this Government on our civil liberties and freedom of speech. They also dislike the growing influence of the nanny state and the decline in both personal and public values.

We own the war generation a great deal and while the country and the world may have moved on considerably since the war, they deserve to be heard and treated with respect. When one respondent, aged 85, says she no longer wishes to go on living and another feels that our 'Land of Hope and Glory' has become a haven for drop-outs, illegal immigrants and criminals, may be it is time to listen to what they have to say and take note.

The Unknown Warriors by Nicholas Pringle is available, price £11.69. For copies, go to the website www.theunknownwarriors.co.uk