“Fight for Queen and Country, what does that mean? It is a jingoistic phrase dreamt up by some propaganda merchant intent on stoking the fire of that false religion patriotism. The idea of fighting for Queen and Country is held tight by those who never have and never will actually fight. It is held by those who long to bask in the reflected glory of war. It is held by those who have no experience of the suffering that war inflicts. It is an idea held up by those who gain the most from war, Politicians, Generals, The Arms Industry and The Media.” (Ex-SAS soldier Ben Griffin, in a speech he made at an Oxford Union Debate in 2013).

When the mainstream media broadcasted the two minutes silence in memory of all soldiers who have died in conflict, specifically in reference to the First World War, where the Armistice Day silence takes place on the 11th hour, of the 11th day of the 11th month, marking when hostilities ended in 1918; the hypocrisy of the attending war-mongering politicians was enough to turn the stomach of any informed citizen, and would have turned the stomach of ex-SAS soldier Ben Griffin.

Griffin informed his commanding officer in 2006, that he believed that the British government, led by former Prime Minister Tony Blair lied about the reasons for entering the war. In his speech at the Oxford Union Debate in 2013, he argued that war benefited politicians, the media and more importantly the arms industry. (Read: Ex-British soldier Ben Griffin: Why we will not fight for Queen and country).

The average citizen is probably oblivious to how war and conflict has become big business to arms corporations.

Chase Manhattan, J.P Morgan, Guaranty Trust Co. of New York, Bank of the City of New York, and Barclays are all major banks that were financing the Nazis during World War II. (Read: Bankers Hate Peace: All Wars Are Bankers’ Wars).

The late United States Marine Corps Major General Smedley D. Butler, wrote a booklet in 1935, which exposed the war industry titled, “War Is A Rackett.”

I spent 33 years and four months in active military service and during that period I spent most of my time as a high class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism. I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefit of Wall Street. I helped purify Nicaragua for the International Banking House of Brown Brothers in 1902–1912. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for the American sugar interests in 1916. I helped make Honduras right for the American fruit companies in 1903. In China in 1927 I helped see to it that Standard Oil went on its way unmolested. Looking back on it, I might have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on three continents.” (Read: Smedley Butler)

Butler continues:

“In the World War [I] a mere handful garnered the profits of the conflict. At least 21,000 new millionaires and billionaires were made in the United States during the World War. That many admitted their huge blood gains in their income tax returns. How many other war millionaires falsified their tax returns no one knows. How many of these war millionaires shouldered a rifle? How many of them dug a trench? How many of them knew what it meant to go hungry in a rat-infested dug-out? How many of them spent sleepless, frightened nights, ducking shells and shrapnel and machine gun bullets? How many of them parried a bayonet thrust of an enemy? How many of them were wounded or killed in battle? Out of war nations acquire additional territory, if they are victorious. They just take it. This newly acquired territory promptly is exploited by the few — the selfsame few who wrung dollars out of blood in the war. The general public shoulders the bill.”

These facts are never taught in our history lessons at school, college or university. They are never part of debate or reflection in the mainstream media to calculate the true cost that wars and conflict have on humanity. Instead, remembrance day is used to sell the public even more conflict and wars in the name of democracy and the war against terrorism. Yet when you follow the money trail to those who benefit immensely from wars, the smoked mirrors perpetuated by the mainstream media, the politicians and the behind-the-scene-actors in the form of the bankers or the financial elite, begin to evaporate.

Writer Lily Dane, (Blood Money: These Companies and People Make Billions of Dollars from War) lists the money made by the top ten companies. Airbus Group (France/Netherlands) made $15.7 billion in 2013 and was 7th on the list, BAE Systems (U.S./United Kingdom) made $26.8 billion, and was 3rd on the list, Lockheed Martin (U.S.), made $35.5 billion and was number one on the list.

When you view the immoral profits gained from bloodshed by the individuals who run these companies it no longer makes sense to support the idea that these wars and conflicts were fought to preserve democracy.

U.S. Correspondent Jay Janson delved even deeper into the dark side of business and banking during Word War II. (Read: US Economic Facilitation of Holocaust and Middle East Destabilizing Partition).

When you follow the money trail in these conflicts it can leave you disillusioned, it can leave you in mental limbo and it can leave you feeling powerless, that there is nothing that anyone can do to stop this level of corruption. It certainly will leave you feeling disgusted at the lies and deception that the mainstream media has fed you for years.

Wars are not about defending democracy or defending us from terrorism or terrorists. It goes back to the oldest and most popular human vice, greed.

If humanity is to hold a memorial for lives lost in wars and conflicts then we must identify the true enemies of peace. We must cheer on and support soldiers who expose the real horrors of war.

Soldiers like Ethan McCord, who exposed the fact that a US helicopter gunship opened fire in innocent civilians and children in Baghdad in 2007. This courageous soldier rescued two badly injured Iraqi children from the piles of bodies, in contrary to his commanding officer’s orders, and chose to follow the superior orders of his conscience. (Read: US War Crimes Exposed: Revelations of an American Soldier).

Soldiers like Ben Griffin who exposed the fact that racist ideology and names continues to be used in the military to justify the killing of people from Africa and the Middle East.

In my article U.S. military lied about war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan, published in 2010, more brave soldiers testified to the war crimes that they had witnessed and had partaken in.

These are the soldiers I hold up as brave men and women. These are the individuals that I would turn up for a parade and salute. These individuals make us truly remember, that we should never forget the lives sacrificed in the name of corporate greed.

For further research:

http://www.stopwar.org.uk/news/ex-british-soldier-ben-griffin-on-why-we-will-not-fight-for-queen-and-country

http://www.globalresearch.ca/bankers-hate-peace-all-wars-are-bankers-wars/5438849?print=1

http://www.globalresearch.ca/blood-money-these-companies-and-people-make-billions-of-dollars-from-war/5438657?print=1

http://www.globalresearch.ca/dead-poppies-militarism-false-patriotism-and-remembrance-lead-to-a-lack-of-peace/5359904

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smedley_Butler

http://www.globalresearch.ca/us-war-crimes-exposed-revelations-of-an-american-soldier/18907

http://www.globalresearch.ca/mike-prysner-courageous-testimony-from-an-iraq-war-veteran/22054

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