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Originally Posted by cashman
think its a wonderful story of a time long ago and gone forever probably,Britishness describes it perfectly to me, though younger ones will possibly not have a clue what we are on about.
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Not really all that long ago, just a shade beyond living memory. And the spirit of Oates did not die with him; it was still alive in 1940. I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes, from Len Deighton's "Blood, Tears, and Folly": "half a century has passed, and the time has come to sweep away the myths and reveal the no less inspiring gleam of that complex and frightening time in which evil was in the ascendant, goodness diffident, and the British - impetuous, foolish and brave beyond measure - the world's only hope." That's Britishness ... unfortunately it is, if not dead, at least on its last legs. When courage and self sacrifice have become something to smirk at and to question, we are in a sad state.