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Omslagontwerp en uitleg deur Stella Stofberg

Op die agterblad van oud brig. genl. Jos Rabie se outobiografie pryk die woorde van Genl Stanley Mc Chrystal, US Army, in The Army Generals:

“If I look across the battlefield I’m always struck by the monuments, particularly at Gettysburg more than anywhere else. Many of these monuments have “Volunteers” on them. They put “Volunteers” because they were proud to have been volunteers. They were communicating that they were not drafted, they were here by choice.

The monuments were put up after the fight and for many years I had a tough time trying to understand because I thought they were about guys wanting credit for what they had done. Put a monument here, beat their chest and say: ‘I’m a hero’.

That is not what they are.

They were trying to simply mark a place where they had served and where they had made a sacrifice. They wanted some validation for what they had done. It mattered because it does not feel good at the time. It’s difficult, it’s dirty, it’s frightening and sometimes you’re not quite the soldier you want to be, and you’re part of things that you would never think you had to be part of – and you need some affirmation that it was important 150 years ago and that it is important today.”

Bestel by:

Jos Rabie

jrcr@vodamail.co.za