Dear Editor:
Re: Heed lessons from First World War, Opinion, The Record, Aug. 1.
Good day, I have served Canada in the Canadian Forces for 30 years, and I am appalled.
Your paper should be honouring the 60,000 Canadians that died in the Great War. In the Royal Westminster Regiment alone there were 998 killed in action. Yes, these were members of our community, like the Trapp family, for example. I really think comparing my great-uncle H.G.B. Miner, VC, to a slave in the Southern States of America is disgusting.
Is that what your paper thinks of Victoria Cross winners?
Mr. Bob Groeneveld should read and study his history before he puts in print that all our commanders were inadequate and generals didn’t care.
Well, you are wrong. We had some of the best commanders, Gen. Sir Arthur Currie was the best. He would plan battles and wasted ammunition before lives. This is well-known. Mr. Groeneveld would know this if he studied the Great War.
The battle tactics, at first, were outdated, but by 1917 they developed and we wasted more ammo than lives. Many of the tactics are still used today. Also you may want to mention that Canada executed 25 soldiers in the Great War, and none of them were shot for breaking a stride when going into an attack. They were shot for murder and deserting, prior to going into battle.
The majority of casualties in the war were artillery not machine gun fire. As for not being allowed to take cover, well, you are wrong again.
In 1917 when troops moved, they would have artillery fire in front of their advance and machine gun fire over their heads to cover the advance. They would also use shell holes to take cover if the battle stalled, then support fire would be called and sometimes acts of gallantry.
I think Groeneveld should read up on the last hundred days of the war. He would then learn how advanced tactics were and how the Canadian corps were the shock troops on the Western Front.
In conclusion, I am very unhappy with the article. You have insulted many veterans, then and now. War is not fun or good, but sometimes it needs to be fought. The Great War was one of those wars, like the Second World War.
When you have dictators killing and oppressing people for world domination, it’s our duty to stop this.
Robert Harley, via email
