How to react - when finding untruths

[Finley 1]

yes  --- it is easy to judge  -- from this distance


 thank you all - brilliant 'roots' again, put things into perspective...  

xin

[Ruskie]

I think it's perfectly understandable that he might try to avoid joining up.

If he was from Switzerland, which was neutral during the war, he may have retained the beliefs of his country, and he may not have felt loyal to Britain. 

I wouldn't blame him no matter what his reasons. 

[IgorStrav]

Just to say

my father was a Conscientious Objector in WWII.  He had to argue his case in court, and present character witnesses and justify his position as a pacifist with people who were keen to call him a coward.

He was sent to work on the land, but felt that he was too safe and comfortable whilst everyone in cities particularly were suffering in the bombing, so he requested a change to work in the ARP, and spent the war working very hard as a labourer, and being in as much danger as the rest of the population, if not more, as he had to assist in the demolition of buildings after bombs and so on.

I have always had the greatest respect for him.  In some ways it is harder to stand up for what you believe in than go along with what everyone else is doing.

And I am afraid I have no sympathy for the 'white feather brigade' of women in WWI who sent men into war with no concept of what they were sending them to.  More to the point, if they felt they should have their country defended, to go and fight themselves.

O tempora, o mores!  I appreciate other times, other customs, but even so.

I know this is off your topic a bit, Xin, but I just had to say

[Nanna52]

Just been reading this and I can't find the reference at the moment but my cousin was on the stage during WW1 and during intermissions they would be promoting the cause and encouraging men to join up.  I believe he joined under the Derby scheme in mid 1916, he was born in 1881, married with a child at the time.

[Erato]

"but contrived to remain in this country safe...... "

My father also had a safe job in WW2.  I'm sure he was glad to be assigned as a clerk in the US Army's gas mask supply office in England rather than being sent to the front lines but it wasn't something that he had contrived.  Draftees didn't get an opportunity to contrive anything; they did what they were told to do.  It was just his luck that he was a college chemistry student when he was drafted and, fortunately, they didn't assign him to work with chemical weapons.

[Mowsehowse]

Xin said : quote.......
addendum,   I have considered the reality of all this a bit more today and I too understand more - he had just got married and there was a young child involved, so maybe they judged him too harshly  and we will never know........

That is exactly what I was trying to suggest.  Really we can never be sure we have knowledge of all the circumstances. 
Perhaps I should have specified:
Was my "fallen woman" willing or under duress??
Was my convicted felon light fingered or starving, desperately trying to find a way to feed her family.

I fear many of the young men who signed up eagerly to fight in WWl never considered the ramifications, but there will have been some who were realists and saw the hideous truth clearly.

[a-l]

I think the conscientious objectors were very brave to stand up for their beliefs and as for the feather givers , who did they think they were ? Did they want the male generation obliterated ?. Too much brainwashing altogether .

[Finley 1]

I have followed him about as far as I can now... And he lived until 1971 - his wife until 1975  and his daughter until 1998...

I haven't followed his daughter - apart from her marriage.  So unsure if she had descendants....

So I will leave him now and say 'bless you'  for what ever reasons, it was your choice, and we should all be allowed choice in life.

Somewhere out there - (maybe someone even reading this post) there is possibly a close relative and I feel glad now I didn't name him to specifically..

#
Belonging to roots and hearing all your opinions -- has this very day - given me a greater understanding... I thank you all xxx 
xin