MILITARY COMMODITIES

Military commodities

The Age letters 210415

Your editorial "The cynical selling of the Anzac tradition" (18/4) says Australian soldiers would "turn in their graves" at the commercialisation of Anzac. But in World War I Australian soldiers did not die fighting for freedom or for their country. Their country was never in danger. They died fighting for Britain and the Empire and, more specifically, for the Empire's trade and commercial interests.
As such the much complained about commercialisation of Anzac is completely consistent with how WW1 should be accurately remembered. The soldiers were commodities whose lives were spent so that the Empire wouldn't lose market share to its rival Germany.
Peter Martina, Warrnambool