National service

I would have been called up for National Service but I signed on for extra years so I could join a Military Band.

I served for two years in Hong Kong !958-60.

Looking back they were years that were very informative, and broadened my mind no end.

Not a complete waste of time .

I was glad I was there.

What do other 68's year olds and older think?

Good idea National Service, put all the Poles working over here in the Army.

bit rasist, but you did say working when i was living in uk the only ones that would work was the Poles just could'nt count on 80% of the lazy english & i am 100%english born & bred

I had to wonder where Nimrod was coming from with his comment about Poles.

I read that in London you couldn't get a tradesman to do a job for love nor money.

Now I read that all the Plumbing trades vacancies are full and the Polish are doing a great job.

The churches where there were only an handful of elderly worshippers attended every Sunday and now full of Polish people with their families.

I think there are a lot more different nationalities living in the Uk who do not work or have similar values to us, to have a go at.

They even fought alongside of us during the war. more than I can say for others.

Why pick on the Polish?

I only JOKE about the Polish, I work with a lot of them. They are hard working, polite, friendly and a credit to their country. I joke with them at work, they have a sense of humour not unlike ours, thats why we get on so well with them.

But, and its a big but, their willingness to work for minimum rates is not helping the British worker maintain his standard of living. My employer is as bad as the rest, exploiting foreign workers as much as he thinks he can get away with.

I thought this was about national service.

I remember me dad going on about NS and to him it did him the world of good.Personally i think todays generation would miss there computers and tvs.

Quite right lazyherbert, I was wondering what all that business about the Polish people had to do with it.

I was called to do National Service with the RAF in August 1948, and to say it was a culture shock is quite an understatement but I survived the "Squarebashing"the bull and the demoniacal DIs and learned a lot, how to live with other blokes,even those I did not like nor they me, I worked servicing transport aircraft who were on the Berlin Airlift and remember one occasion having to repair an auto-pilot with a bloke from Luton who hated anyone from the north,but we worked together for about 16 hours non-stop to get the aircraft serviceable, that what it was all about, I went in a lad and came out a man,broadened my mind taught me to take pride in myself, and the greatest discipline of all, self-disicpline, and what is more I would not have missed National Service for anything

I went in the Signals, July 1951. I've got to say, I had a great time. Learned a lot about people, got to travel, the experience colored my life completely. Loved it.

Kowloon was a great place to 'broaden your mind' !

I went in the army in1956.Cannot say I enjoyed it but it certainly turned you into a man. I learned self discipline & self respect which is sadly lacking in todays world. It also taught me to think for myself instead of being lead all the time.

I went in the army in1956.Cannot say I enjoyed it but it certainly turned you into a man. I learned self discipline & self respect which is sadly lacking in todays world. It also taught me to think for myself instead of being lead all the time.

Afraid I can't agree with you there lazyherbert.

In basic training we were on the firing rang and I was left to stay in the butts at lunch time.

It started to rain .I thought the rain would wash off all the patches that are applied over the bullet holes, seeing as how the paste was flour and water.

So I pulled out all the targets and put them under the overhang at the butts..

This was no mean feat because there are two trargets, one counterbalancers the other. When you pulled out the bottom target the one on display shot down .

Feeling very proud of myself for showing this initiative.

I received a Bollocking from the Officer for doing this without being ordered