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Rusty, regarding "The Thin Yellow Line.........
It's rather a strange book, isn't it, in that it's obviously been very well researched - there are historical references on every page - but it isn't an easy read as it's somewhat disjointed and doesn't flow.
(Mind you, with the subject matter being as it is and so many isolated incidents, I guess this isn't surprising but rather inevitable)
With such arbitrary commands for executions - hangings , shootings ( sometimes almost at the drop of a hat; sometimes well- disciplined and timed) - I am getting a sense of unreality....an "Alice in Wonderland " feeling....
..........you know, with the Queen of Hearts " saying "Off with Their Heads!" throughout the book.
I have a strong feeling of anger.........and injustice........
And I've a long way to go yet.........
What emotion did you mainly feel on reading it? I'm struggling with a sense of incredulity?

Well, I am incredulous that you did not know it went on!
I share your feelings of anger and injustice.
But, as I said, the past is a different country.
What was acceptable then, would never be that way now.
They were shot not for their crimes, but "to encourage the others". As a deterrent. And history teaches us that that capital punishment, whether military or civilian, was no deterrent whatsoever. I can even think of two executioners who were executed themselves!
Maybe you should just pass it on to someone else, Elle.
No point letting a book distress you?
Not been a great week for you, so far!
You will find 1914 a lot better, and no courts martial in it!

Yes, Rusty, I knew that it went on but not to such a huge extent!
In my innocence / ignorance, I thought it to be on a much smaller scale, and for it to be as hard for the people calling the shots (so to speak)as for the victims who are being court-martialled.
But a lot of it was so kind of hail-fellow-well-met, so casual, so arbitrary, I cannot see any sane pattern or justification at all.
Yes, I guess one could see the logic for some kind of deterrent, but not this!
I wanted to read the book to find out what really went on, I was looking for explanations, but (so far anyway) there aren't any. It's horrendous and inexplicable. And not consistent!
This last is perhaps the worst of all? - the inconsistency?
Am I making any kind of sense?
But I think I have to finish reading the book......as a kind of tribute?

I do not think you should finish it.
It is disturbing you. Throw it away.
Keep in mind this was one hundred years ago.
People thought very differently then.
Women did not even have a vote, then.
The people at home were not told of the executions.
The relatives of the shot men were not told.
It was a different world to what we know.
What happened was awful.
To their credit, Australia refused to allow any of their soldiers to suffer execution.
I do not think you should read any more.

rusty: Perhaps you should ditch the Ted Kennedy book too. He was my senator here in Massachusetts for far too many years. What a degenerate sleazebag.

I totally agree, Aristo.
An appalling man. It's the Kennedy women I feel sorry for.
Mind, I knew that before I got the book!
"Senatorial Privilege: The Chappaquiddick Cover-Up"
A good read, though!
Came from a Houston bookseller.
1 penny + £2.80 p&p.

A Kennedy-worshipping friend of mine once went to a fundraiser Teddy was hosting for his son Patrick at Hammersmith Farm in Newport (Jackie's family home) and bragged about everyone he'd rubbed elbows with. I asked him (in my driest tone), "Were the Kopechnes there?" Some time afterward Patrick rented a boat for a party on Narragansett Bay and returned it with over $100,000 worth of damage. The owner was interviewed on the local news and said he wasn't going to do anything about it because it was such an honor to rent to a Kennedy. Can you imagine having so malfunctioning a brain?

Aristo, I am not in the slightest surprised.
The male Kennedys were treated like gods.
And yet, to me, Jack and Teddy were despicable creatures. Have not read up on Bobby yet!
There is a quote on the back cover of my book by George Killen, a former State Police Detective-Lieutenant, "Senator Kennedy killed that girl (Mary Jo), the same as if he put a gun to her head and pulled the trigger."
All the action in the book up to now is all his aides, lawyers, etc trying to cover up for him.
Mary Jo was not considered. Dreadful!

Morning, Rusty!
I am nearly halfway through the book........ I didn't see your last message until this morning (the battery was flat on my Hudl)
Yes, I think you are right - enough is enough....I've read sufficient now to get the idea - more of the same will not help, but will only prove more distressing.
It's opened my eyes to the incredible difficulties and insensitivities that soldiers of those times suffered in being brave enough initially to fight for their country.
I knew about courts martial and the death penalty but not what it actually entailed, not what sometimes led up to it.
This morning, I've been back to the book and read the "Postscript".
I see now where the title of the book comes from........a very fitting end.
I'm glad I've read a large part of it, even if I don't finish it.
On a lighter note....it's a beautiful day today, blue skies and sunshine...and thankfully warmer!
How is it with you? anything nice planned for the day?
We were going to the dentist, but the car broke down whilst we were out this morning.......(yes, I know... definitely time for a new one!)

Great news, Elle!
Throw the book in the bin! Sorry for suggesting it!
It is a fine day here, too. Seems to be a lack of wasps this year?
Yes, another car seems a good idea, Elle.
It has had a few problems and time for a more reliable one.
No plans for me, but going to a "new" cafe tomorrow with granddaughters. It is on Forestry Commission land and they sell Christmas trees, too.
So, a bacon roll deep in the woods!
BT News is reporting continuing controversy over Matisse/Chase. Ofcom may investigate.
Simon Cowell is far from happy!