To think there are a lot of people out there who have no grasp of WW2 history

[Stripyseagulls]

My grandfather fought in WW2 and I have visited the Normandy sites & it’s extraordinary how moving they are.

Today on Facebook/Twitter I have seen loads of really disturbing posts saying stuff like ‘our war hero’s didn’t fight world war 2 to live in a country full of muslim/ foreigners’ etc. Really really disturbing and horrible.

Aibu to think people don’t understand history and that the war was fought to defeat facism and these kinds of beliefs. Hitler didn’t start off gassing people- it was a long propaganda campaign against religious and ethnic groups that ended up with the holocaust.

Aibu to be disturbed by the lack of understanding of why the war was fought and what it was fought against. I find some of the attitudes in the UK today so troubling.

Some people are just idiots, and full of shit, Seagull, but I honestly think 95 % of people do know, care and remember the sacrifices made in WW2 , especially when they see the coverage on tv at the moment.
My DS is a teenager and knows a lot about both world wars, and the Korean War due to my dad who was a veteran of that war, and his father, my grandfather had their small boat taken by the navy to use at the Dunkirk rescue in 1940, so ds has heard a lot over stories, and has great respect for veterans.

I think you are probably right. I'm in my 50s so born not long after the war. I was taught nothing about either of the WWs, and I was at a grammar school. Everything I know I have learnt from family stories, reading and TV documentaries. I hope I understand the basics, but it's only because I have been interested enough to find out bits for myself

I was very pleased that my DS covered bits for his GCSE last year.

And of course the bloody idiots write bullshit have no idea that people of many faiths, and none at all , from many countries and colours fought to stop the tide of facist ideology.

Seagull, you're right. I go into schools to talk about WW1 and 2. So many seem unable to differentiate between them. (talking about teaching staff here) Did a WW1 day at a primary school, and was told not to frighten the children. When we arrived we were told that the children had been studying WW1, so i asked them what they knew - apparently the Titanic was sunk by Germans. With regards to WW2 so many have no idea about rationing and how little people had. I do a Christmas presentation and the horror when they see how few things children had. I saw a post today that asked "Where is Normandy?" Oh and we went to war to save the Jewish people. I can't understand how people can be so lacking in knowledge when all they have to do is Google it!

I don't know much about the wars, we weren't really taught about it at school in the 80's/90's, it was all Tudors as we live in a Tudor heavy city.

None of my family fought, my Grandfather was in the military police but didn't see action.

As a young girl I had no interest in learning about wars, I liked boys make up and ponies. I know more now but only from TV really.

It's the deliberate plan of the education system.
Little mention of the role of Russia, in making the Germans fight on two European fronts.
Also of the role of the Irish soldiers, Muslim soldiers, Aus and NZ, etc. Resistance people in France, Spain, Greece and Italy especially.

The image is that brave little ENGLAND did it all.

Bollocks.

And it's concerning that the mind set is picked up by brexiters as proof we can "go it alone".

More bollocks, and will end this UK.

Some don't know any geography, either - my sister was sitting next to a couple of young women on a bus who were going to vote Brexit that day so that Pakistani people would have to leave the country.

My dd and I both did GCSE history and both did the build up and effects of Ww2 but not the actual war itself.

The Internet and Brexit make it easy for people to be openly racist

^It's the deliberate plan of the education system.
Little mention of the role of Russia, in making the Germans fight on two European fronts.
Also of the role of the Irish soldiers, Muslim soldiers, Aus and NZ, etc. Resistance people in France, Spain, Greece and Italy especially.^

The image is that brave little ENGLAND did it all.

Completely agree.

There is a lot of biais in history. If you are French, you believe that the war was almost already won when the Brits and Americans landed in Normandy. If your British, you believe that the war was won thanks to them. If you are American, you are taught that Thank God the Americans were there to save us all as without them there wouldbe no France or UK to visit!

Fuck, that is awful.

It's the deliberate plan of the education system.
^*Little mention of the role of Russia, in making the Germans fight on two European fronts.
Also of the role of the Irish soldiers, Muslim soldiers, Aus and NZ, etc. Resistance people in France, Spain, Greece and Italy especially.^
*
The image is that brave little ENGLAND did it all.

I was an adult before I'd heard of non-UK groups fighting for the British Army like the Gurkhas

Op your not wrong.

Tbh it's not as easy to Google as you think.
I was taught nothing about the war.
I was trying to Google the evacuation of Dunkirk and Normandy landings. Why did they evacuate and why reinvade?

It's only just twigged there was a big anniversary of the former a few years ago. I couldn't find a clear time line between them.

Ive noticed the airbrushing out of Russia as well. Which is ludicrous really, because we couldn't have won the bloody war without them! They were as much a part of the allies as the Commonwealth and the USA.

I can't agree more with you MrPan

Another one that boils my blood is that Brits btoke Enigma code. As always, all by themselves, genious!

Uhm, no, you didn't

www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-28167071

I'm missing something
If Russia and America were allies, what kicked off the cold war?

YANBU. Much of what is taught in schools is biased towards British history. It was only when I studied history at level 3 that I actually learnt the whole story.

Some people like to use soldiers and wars to fit their racist agenda. They’re bigoted morons.

I was an adult before I'd heard of non-UK groups fighting for the British Army like the Gurkhas

It isn't exactly a secret, then or now.

There's a lot of thickies about who don't have much of a grasp of anything beyond Love Island and Britain's Got Talent.

Russia didn't make Germany fight the war on two fronts. The Germans took Paris much quicker than expected. The Nazis always wanted Lebensraum in the East and needed Russian resources. They completely underestimated how difficult it would be...hence operation Barbarossa.

Communism kicked off the Cold War.

Ive noticed the airbrushing out of Russia as well. Which is ludicrous really, because we couldn't have won the bloody war without them
Indeed, yet they suffered the largest headcount deaths.

One of my pet hates is people who use the deaths of those who died in ww1/2 to validate their opinions ‘our great grandfathers didn’t die for this!’, just fuck off - you don’t speak for what they stood for. Don’t weaponise their deaths.

I don't have much understanding, it doesn't interest me at all. I hate the glorification of war. I think it promotes further wars. I am a pacifist. There is no excuse for war, that's all we really need to teach.

I've never seen those images Erich. I grew up overseas but studied GCSEs - perhaps that means my knowledge is skewed?