There’s no glory in war

British troops in silhouette march towards trenches near Ypres at the Western Front during the First World War.

I am sure the British Legion has raised plenty of funds to aid forces victims through their high profile Red Poppy fund-raising campaign. This money should be used to pay for those special extras and not for essential care which is the job of the Government that put them in harm’s way in the first place.

I am sure the ordinary people of Britain wish for peace and prosperity in their lives and support the maintenance of high standards of social justice.

Unfortunately, the government of Britain currently conducts its foreign policy to ensure there will be plenty more injured by war in future, mainly civilians.

Britain promotes war in many ways that are not often highlighted in the Press by selling arms to countries with poor human rights records, by allowing the research departments of universities to become skewed towards promoting the military machine instead of promoting the welfare of the human race, by supporting jobs in the so-called “defence” industry rather than investing more in, for instance, the renewable energy sector and small firms and by continually vetoing resolutions proposed at the United Nations that, if passed, would promote peace.

I want to use the anniversary of the start of the Firsy World War, not only to remember the dead, but to learn lessons about why the war happened so war is not needlessly perpetuated.

I support the No Glory in War initiative whose website is www.noglory.org. I hope there are some among your readers who feel the same.

Joan West