The last WW ! combatant dies at the age of 110.

[scouterjim]

Claude Choules was the last surviving WW 1 combatant. He passed away yesterday in Perth, Australia. Stand easy, sailor. Your duty is done.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/last-wwi-combatant-dies-australia-041304715.html

[Guest American Woman]

Claude Choules was the last surviving WW 1 combatant. He passed away yesterday in Perth, Australia. Stand easy, sailor. Your duty is done.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/last-wwi-combatant-dies-australia-041304715.html

Australian Defence Force spokesman Gary Booth, who is close to the family, described his death as the end of an era.

"He was a living part of history and with his death, it's gone. There is no more link with active service personnel," he told AFP.

"It's hard to imagine all the things he's seen in his life -- two world wars, horse and cart to man on the moon."

The end of an era, indeed; and it is really amazing how much the world changed during the course of his lifetime. He certainly did see, and live through, a lot.

RIP

[bud]

an amazing life. this is another interesting bit about him:

Despite his navy years, Choules made clear his dislike for war and the people who sent young men into battle, saying World War I for him was a "tough" life of privation and tedium, marked by occasional moments of extreme danger.

"He always said that the old men make the decisions that send the young men into war," son Adrian told the Herald.

[WIP]

The end of an era, indeed; and it is really amazing how much the world changed during the course of his lifetime. He certainly did see, and live through, a lot.

RIP

He seen alot, and I wonder if he seen any improvement in modern times, since it is even easier now for egotistical leaders to start senseless wars they don't know how to back out of!

When I was in highschool, our hallway monitors were a couple of WWI veterans. They, and most of the Great War veterans that I ever had the chance to talk to, did not like to talk much about the War, except for the loose consensus that they mostly felt ignored and disrespected as the politics and pop culture of my time were mostly reliving the glory of WWII.

They had come from a time when criticizing leaders, especially regarding decisions like going to war, just wasn't done....but if you talked to them long enough, you got to hear about the senselessness of war, and the leaders who were quick to march young men off to war for no clear purpose. Most of the veterans were the survivors of battlefield carnage, and some wondered why most of their friends died over there, while they returned home to restart their lives.

We knew the day would come when the last Great War veteran was gone; now, there are no more eyewitnesses left to teach future generations, and all we have are the books and written accounts to base our opinions on.