Well, I've been drinking copious amounts of beer today as Australia celebrates one of its greatest days in history.
Today is ANZAC day, the day that Australia and New Zealand remember their countless soldiers that were slain on the shores of Gallipoli, Turkey on 25th April 1915.

I am very proud and it is one of the few days of the year that I drink alcohol.... to the point of complete inebriation anyway :p

For anyone thats interested, heres an article (http://www.acn.net.au/articles/anzac/)

Happy ANZAC Day! I've Never heard of it before now. But I have heard it said that the Australians were quite impressive in the Vietnam war.

"I have never seen a finer group of men. I have never fought with a finer group of soldiers."
United States Commander, General Westmoreland on the Australian troops

Wow, I've never heard that quote from General Westmoreland before.

On ANZAC Day in Australia all of the RSL clubs (Returned Services League) have a dawn service for those who lost their lives in Gallipoli. It is a very stirring occasion, and an experience not quickly forgotten.

BTW - In the original post, perhaps I should've said
'saddest' day in Australia's history instead of 'greatest', but anyway....

We always seem to celebrate our saddest days. Strange isn't it?

We always seem to celebrate our saddest days. Strange isn't it?It is a comment on the Human Condition.

Are you in a mind to help change that? How might that happen?

It's interesting that you mention that. It's kinda like the news. It focuses way too much on sad or bad things. There are plenty of great things out there, but you rarely hear about them in the mainstream media or culture. Perhaps it is because most people are resigned and cynical to a certain degree, and don't believe they can make a difference in people's lives, or even in their own life (i.e. they think that circumstances control their life, not them).

That being said, it's good to remember the people who have served to protect us when we couldn't protect ourselves. But it is better to think of their lives rather than their death. But sometimes it takes death to make us realize that we are in fact alive.

Yes, I think it is important to remember those who served selflessly for the benefit of their country. I'm not sure about other countries, but whenever their is a day of rememberence in Australia, there are always huge crowds that participate in public services... both the old and very young get involved which I think is a good thing.

Hopefully one day there will not be any more lives lost through war, but maybe that is wishful thinking....

Hopefully one day there will not be any more lives lost through war, but maybe that is wishful thinking....I think that it can happen, just maybe not in our lifetime. It would require a transformation in how people think worldwide, but I think it can be done. If you take a look at war 2,000 years ago compared with war today, at least the developed countries and societies are much more tamer and less brutal than all societies back then. We have come a long way but we have so much further to go.

Yes, we have come a long way. Perhaps the key lies in continuing to educate our kids to find alternative solutions with human conflicts.

Yes, we have come a long way. Perhaps the key lies in continuing to educate our kids to find alternative solutions with human conflicts.I couldn't agree more. And also educating them that we are all human beings even if we look different, talk different, act different, believe different. Part of the problem is the "us" vs. "them" attitude, where "us" is obviously better than "them." In reality, on a global scale, there is no "them," we are actually all "us."