[Closed] Show some respect you twit

no one in my office seemed to take any notice.

I went to a nearby memorial. A large number of people gathered, fell silent as the bells tolled.

It matters.

[b]We will remember them[/b]

I was driving at the time, but I was going to visit a memorial:
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if people can,t spend two minutes of thier lives paying respect for all the sacrifices people have made then we,re all ****ed.

Ooops. I forgot. Too busy.

Did do it at church on Sunday though.

Two minute silence reminder on a tannoy message here. Seems to have gone as quiet as a power station gets!

Think it is each to their own on this but most of us at work observed it.
Remember going to the WW1 cemetries when I was 16 and the scale and the loss when you look at them and realise how few days battle that was changed my view on war forever. War is always a tragedy and very rarely justified.
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if people can,t spend two minutes of thier lives paying respect for all the sacrifices people have made then we,re all ****.

I agree. Partly. There's no reason why it should be only on a fixed day at a fixed time, that's just an easy way of getting everyone to do it at the same time.

No chance to do it in the office here and not really the right environment anyway. I'll do it myself on my own later.

The point is to remember. The exact time is irrelevant (for me).

Just had an assembly at school with 1500 kids. Despite having sat through almost an hour of speeches and presentations, they were excellent; very respectful. You could hear a pin drop through the whole two minutes. Not a murmur.

They were great.

Exactly the same here. He then stopped using his mouse and moved to the touch pad.

Went to a local memorial here. The local youff past by quietly, which surprised everyone. However a group of 4 college girlies screamed and laughed when the cannon went off.

GrahamS - Member

No chance to do it in the office here and not really the right environment anyway. I'll do it myself on my own later.

The point is to remember. The exact time is irrelevant (for me).

Our office went quiet, apart from those few who were too busy to realise and carried on...

"There's no reason why it should be only on a fixed day at a fixed time"

that's when the armistice was signed, 11 minutes past the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, so's people would remember it and share that moment of rememberence as a nation, you don't have to remember at just that time, but that's why it's a fixed time and date.

We had one here too CF apparently.

She spent the whole time chatting to a friend on the phone about x-factor, even though we had a tannoy reminder here!

Glad she does not work on my floor, its pretty frosty up there at the moment.

My whole class turned off their monitors and were silent for the full 2 minutes.

Well-attended ceremony here at the University.

We will remember them.

I observed the silence at the cathedral in Durham where I was at at the weekend, I sat quietly for a private couple of minutes here today. I am lucky; all my relatives that i can remember fought in the 2nd war and survived to enjoy old age, many do not.

The remaining question to me is what to do with my poppy? When is it correct to stop wearing them? As per usual, I will wear mine through the rest of the day and then add it to the wreaths at the memorial near to my home when I pass it later. It feels wrong to just bin it.

i don't get angry at people who ignore it, millions died to make this a free country where things like 2 minutes silence are optional.

I don't hold people who ignore it in very high regard though, i've marched with scouts, cadets and brass bands on armistice day and played Rivale in church which was one of the hardest things i've had to do.

SFB to the thread please

SFB to the thread please

perhaps he is obeying his own kind of silence?

Junkyard - Member

SFB to the thread please

perhaps he is obeying his own kind of silence?

We can but dream....

Large open plan office here containing several hundred people of all ages and nationalities, not a peep for 2 minutes, well done to everyone and as said before

we will remember them

Hate admit it but missed the whole thing.

Went through a lot of the battlefields on Old Man - Jungfrau. A lot to think about. Its not just the big memorials - Ypres (above), Passendale (above), Canadian Memorial (on the Ian Hisslop programme on Channel 4) - the scale is just mindblowing. Chemin des Dames - just a blood bath. What struck me most though wasnt the big memorials and cemetries but the smaller ones on the roadsides and in the field corners, all prefectly cared for but they are just every where. There was a bit on breakfast news about the impact of repatriation of the dead on how people view the war in Afag. I think burying the dead on the battlefield gives a greater impact of the scale of the war - an its cost.

I arrived at Rutland Cycling on Sunday morning - their large shop at Whitwell and as we walked in, we were reminded of the 2mins silence.
Was excellent - everyone kept quiet & people walking in who didn't realise were made politely aware of it.

I just had a 2hr meeting this morning and we all stopped at 11 to observe the 2 minute silence.

I never used to consider it before - I used to do it, but would just stay quiet & not really think about what it meant. I think as I am getting older though, you realise the significance of what those people did.

Last place I worked, failed to mention a 2 min silence. I e-mailed HR & they quickly sent an e-mail round. Unfortunately only to the Cambridge office. In the building I was in, production carried on as normal - the managers obviously felt that was more important. I stood outside on my own - all the managers in that building went even lower in my estimations on that day.

noone seemed to notice in the computer room i was in...monitor off eyes closed deep thought. We will remember them.

I was asleep my youngest wanted a snooze, I made this mistake of lying down beside her. Zzzzzzzzzzz!

But yeah some decency when others are giving some respect is called for.

Sat at home on my own but spent 2 minutes pondering the meaning of it all.

Worst case I remember was a young secretary a couple of jobs back who was yacking away and someone told her to be silent. she replied 'I don't know anyone who died so I can't remember them. Don't apply to young people does it?'

Big price to pay for Victoria's kids falling out with each other.

Popular music-hall song of the pre-war era:

"There's not going to be a war because Georgie is the king,
There's not going to be a war - he doesn't like that sort of thing..."

Afterwards, a different lyric:

"Dulce Et Decorum Est

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs
And towards our distant rest began to trudge.
Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots
But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;
Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots
Of disappointed shells that dropped behind.

GAS! Gas! Quick, boys!-- An ecstasy of fumbling,
Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;
But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
And floundering like a man in fire or lime.--
Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

In all my dreams, before my helpless sight,
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

If in some smothering dreams you too could pace
Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,--
My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
Pro patria mori."

Gulp, very sad.

I fell guilty as i was in the middle of a support call at 11. Will have a quiet 2 mins of contemplation later on my own.

The horrors those poor souls would have seen, brings me to tears.
Rest well in our eternal gratitude that we may continue to enjoy the lives we have.

So we have a two minute silence at work. Which is right. One of my staff loudly ignores it. Which is bad. This prompts a different manager to make a loud "spazz" shout. Not exactly the dignity that this day deserves... Actually really annoyed with this 🙁

And the reason she loudly ignores it? She was born in Ireland so she hates all British soldiers... Cow.

And the reason she loudly ignores it? She was born in Ireland so she hates all British soldiers... Cow.

You might want to point the ignorant cow at
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/iexec/?htx=List&dbid=1633
where she can search the lists of the Irish military casualties in WW1.

210,000 Irishmen served during WW1. 140,000 of these joined voluntarily during the war. 35,000 were killed.
-- http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/britain_wwone/ireland_wwone_01.shtml

You could also point out (as we did tongue in cheek to a very humorous german colleague) that it's to remember the deaths of all soldiers, of all sides, in all conflicts... He then replied "Oh, so it's not a celebration of your 2-0 victory then!"

We also have a humourless german, who thankfully isn't here today

And the reason she loudly ignores it? She was born in Ireland so she hates all British soldiers... Cow.

Words fail me sometimes....

Personally I can't stand this idea of enforced respect. Cheapens the genuine article. In my office today you could look around and almost see what was going through people's heads as they "respectfully" maintained their 2 minutes silence... "Wonder what's on telly tonight". "Eggs, butter, beer for the weekend..." "Might have a curry..." "She's fit..." "Yay, 2 minutes off answering the phones" A lot of silence but not a lot of actual respect and contemplation going on I reckon.

To quote my grandad, "I'd sooner have a hundred people fall silent off their own back, than everyone do it because they think they have to"

"And the reason she loudly ignores it? She was born in Ireland so she hates all British soldiers... Cow."

And have you ever paused for a moment and considered why she hated all British soldiers? She may have a damn good reason. But that's another thread I suppose. Still, she could stay quiet IMO for all the Irish who died in WW1/2 and keep her genuine complaints about British troops in Ireland for another time.

And have you ever paused for a moment and considered why she hated all British soldiers? She may have a damn good reason.

utterly irrelevant. As others said, it's about showing respect for ALL soldiers, ALL sides and ALL conflicts.

She may well have her own issues. Today at 11 was not the time to make a protest. 😡

but that's why it's a fixed time and date.

I know that 😆 What I was saying is that if for whatever reason people cannot "commit" to the 2 mins at all the 11s, theres no reason why it has to be the only opportunity, and that it might be a huge insult to automatically assume they just dont care and are a "twunt". There needs to be the symbolic "national" guideline time obviously, but I suspect you didn't find any A&E doctors pausing for 2 mins, likewise you wouldn't hold it against them if they sat down that evening and thought hard on it instead of at 11. I'm busy, I'm aware of the reasons, I'll respect it when I'm able to pay it justice, not faffing in work itching to get on with something.

"utterly irrelevant. As others said, it's about showing respect for ALL soldiers, ALL sides and ALL conflicts."

Does that include the IRA?

No, I thought not. Perhaps you could read my post again and educate us all.

Was at a conference, speaker stopped mid flow at 11 and we all stood for 2 minutes, not a peep.

But Northwind's grandad had it right, those people died so it wouldn't be compulsory.

Does that include the IRA?

Yup.

Perhaps you could read my post again and educate us all.

I'm pretty sure I was agreeing with you. No?

I think of it as 2 minutes to remember everyone who has died needlessly in some form of armed conflict. Whether his be a noble cause or not, there is more than likely a better way somewhere that he could have solved his differences with his enemy.

Would we deny the Germans, the Japanese, the Italians, the Hungarians, the Serbs their right to stop and remember their fallen?

Remembrance it is, but it should also be two minutes for everyone to hang his or her head and contemplate the sheer stupidity of man when he stops talking and picks up a gun.

Well said dd.

"I'm pretty sure I was agreeing with you. No?"

I was pretty sure that you were not, and I'm glad to be wrong if that's the case.

I can't help feeling though that in Ireland and many countries there are many people who do not feel any obligation to acknowledge the dead soldiers of the British army. I can hardly blame those with that opinion, there may well be a damn good reason for it as I said before. Many Irishmen fought and died in the world wars including members of my family so I whilst having reservations I feel no problem in observing rememberances in my own way.

However I doubt that ALL soldiers in ALL wars are in the mind of those with poppy fever.

However I doubt that ALL soldiers in ALL wars are in the mind of those with poppy fever.

I think you will find it's all victims of the wars and I would say a large majority of observers include everyone.

And have you ever paused for a moment and considered why she hated all British soldiers? She may have a damn good reason.

Some maybe but not all. All sides had to work for peace.

Here here soda

Things should be so much different.

I stopped today for a few minutes and thought about Irishmen who fought and died for a better life, the futility of it all. The futility of the current 'wars' and the futility of conflict and the years of hatred it engenders.

Completely forgot about the 2 minutes silence today - had even ditched my poppy thinking it had happened on Sunday. Was facilitating 10 professionals in a focus group this morning and none of them mentioned it. Only realised when we finished and went into a nearby cafe which had the service on TV. Felt very guilty about forgetting, especially as relatives fought and died (including one I am named after) in WW2.

....even ditched my poppy thinking it had happened on Sunday

TBH the 2 minute silence is on Armistice Day is a very recent thing imo. As a child, only the 2 minute silence on Remembrance Sunday was ever observed. That after all, is the whole point of having a Remembrance Sunday as close to Armistice Day as possible - observing the 2 minute silence on Armistice Day, makes the 2 minute silence on Remembrance Sunday pointless imo.

ernie_lynch - Member
...TBH the 2 minute silence is on Armistice Day is a very recent thing imo.

Parade on Remembrance Sunday, plus 2 minutes silence on the actual day.

If you don't want to think about the soldiers, think about how big government can take control of your life and put you in the situation of those young blokes in 1914-18. Couldn't happen these days, eh....

To quote my grandad, "I'd sooner have a hundred people fall silent off their own back, than everyone do it because they think they have to"

Doesnt really make sense. Those 100 would still do it off their own back, but the "enforced" silence makes others aware of the reasoning and sacrifice, who may otherwise never even think about it in their entire life. The wars were about choice, choice to ignore it and carry on working if you disagree, not apathy and forgetting.

I was at Chill Factor in Manc. I was having a lesson at 11, but the instructor said we'd start 2 minutes late due to the silence. Fine by me.

Then 2 stupid bints talked all the way through it at the tops of their voices. Cretins.

Showing respect shouldn't be compulsory, it should be part of your humanity. If you haven't got that there's something missing from you as a person.

Recently lost a relative who served in WW2, was at a service on Sunday (at which he usually joined us). Had tears streaming while the last post played.

The funeral was on Monday and again once the bugle started up I again couldn't stop the tears.

My job doesn't enforce a 2 min silence, but the noise level dropped considerably as many people chose to observe the silence.

Personally I dont mind if people choose not to participate in the 2 min silence, however if someone goes out of there way to make lots of noise etc while others around them are showing their respect it annoys the hell out of me, and this year I might have got the bombers out (pun intnended) on them!

It the same for anything though, I wouldn't think of ****ing about moisily while someone was showing their respects at a graveyard etc, and this should be no different.

It's not. We were doing it in the '50s and it wasn't new then.

Fair enough. But although I remember as a kid once being in Oxford Circus at 11am on Remembrance Sunday and seeing all the traffic coming to a complete standstill for 2 minutes, I don't ever remember my school observing a 2 minute silence at 11am on Armistice Day. Still, maybe I've just forgotten .....

It certainly wasn't prevalent in the 70s or 80s and remembrance sunday was the ceremony. However there was a newspaper campaign to reinvigorate (probably the Sun) in the 90s and it is more widely observed again now.

observed it here - always do (4 mins late though as we got distracted by a call)

halfway through the bloody fax machine went off 🙁

I was in my LBS, 2 minute silence observed by all staff and the customers who were in the shop. I too always think of it as a chance to reflect on all the fallen from all sides across the world. My Granny lost 3 brothers in WW1, though I didn't know them the thought of them still makes me terribly sad.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

For the first time anyone could remember the prison I work in had 2 mins silence. It came over the radio, 'all stations, we will now observe 2 mins silence for those who have given their lives'..etc. Except it was slightly early & about a minute in, a prisoner shouts from the 2's landing, 'boss, are we having 2 minutes silence today!' followed by, 'f*ck, didn't know it had started, sorry' We all smiled.

Except it was slightly early & about a minute in, a prisoner shouts from the 2's landing, 'boss, are we having 2 minutes silence today!' followed by, 'f*ck, didn't know it had started, sorry' We all smiled.

Excellent!

I can honestly say that I've never heard of anyone stopping work for a silence at any school, college or workplace that I've ever been at.