What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?

— Only the monstrous anger of the guns.

Only the stuttering rifles’ rapid rattle

Can patter out their hasty orisons…

– Wilfred Owen

  • trjek@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Reminds me of the quote by Thucydides: “The society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting by fools."

      • wombatula@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

        -Robert A. Heinlein

        • RegularGoose@sh.itjust.works
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          1 year ago

          How many brain sugeries did he perform? How many spaceflight trajectories did he calculate? How many high speed computer processors did he engineer?

          • wombatula@lemm.ee
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            1 year ago

            I don’t know, I’ll go ask the dead man about his immortal fictional character.

          • wombatula@lemm.ee
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            1 year ago

            Wow what a smart and useful comment, we should never listen to any quote from a fictional character unless their writer can do all the things they can. Did you ever read an inspiring comment from Superman? Well guess what buddy, it’s all a lie! The writer of that character can’t leap tall buildings in a single bound so how dare they suggest that the human spirit is indomitable, or that people should work together, they can’t even shoot heat rays from their eyes!

            Thank you so much for your intelligent and helpful reply, you truly are a beacon of truth in this tangled web of lies we call “fiction”, whatever would we do without you?

              • wombatula@lemm.ee
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                1 year ago

                So in other words you have nothing to say, and resort to reddit meme babble.

                Truly, you are a luminary of our time, thanks again for this incredible comment, you have bettered us all with your submission!

      • irmoz@reddthat.com
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        1 year ago

        Thinking isn’t a specialty, nor is strength

        They are qualities that can be possessed by the same person