(04-29-2015 12:05 AM)ecumbh1999 Wrote:  WWI was probably the worst war ever fought, the tactics used for so long were massively out dated with the weapons used lead to utter carnage on the battle field. It was also, one of the most preventable war and dumbest war ever fought, IMO.

True. It was an unmitigated nightmare and it unleashed all of the horrors to come -- genocide, the Soviet/Nazi dictatorships, etc. -- in the remaining years of the 20th century. Churchill later wrote that cannibalism was about the only means of attack that the warring nations did not employ against one another.

Quote:Side note, 306 British soldiers were shot by firing squad for cowardice during WWI, despite nearly every vet saying they were no more a coward than I. In 2006 the British Government issue Pardons to all 306. Many are believed to have had PTSD or shell shock as it was known at the time.

True. As a footnote, the Viennese shrink Sigmund Freud was brought in by British authorities to try and help explain why so many soldiers were turning into emotional basket-cases. (I think "shell-shock" might even be a phrase that Freud came up with, but not 100% sure). WWI was actually a huge professional opportunity for Freud, and he made the most of it. Pre-1914, he was basically unknown outside of German-speaking medical/academic circles. Post-1920 (and ever since) he has remained one of the most famous people in the world.