Hi Mike,
Where is the Polish Military site?
Excellant question and appreciation for the role of Poland’s military.
I WAS up in Glasgow the other week, and what hit me was the number of Poles working in the city.
May 7 2008 by Sue Scott, Evening Gazette
Waitressing in cafés, looking after bars and valeting in hotels, their accents were often easier to understand than the local lingo, charming as it is.
So why is there so much animosity against Poles?
It has no logic and no cause. And, sadly it is a prejudice that is being aided and abetted by the attitude of our military top brass, who are adamantly refusing to allow Poles ready and willing to enlist in the ranks, to do so.
I think the Generals and the Admirals should pause for a minute and remember the past. We live in a country that went to war 69 years ago to defend Polish freedom and that act was reciprocated by thousands of Poles laying down their lives: 195,000 Poles fought Hitler alongside us Brits, and in all three of the armed services. Arguably, the Battle of Britain would not have been won without the bravery of the 145 Polish pilots defending the skies over Britain. One all-Polish outfit, 303 Squadron, claimed the highest number of kills (126) of all fighter squadrons engaged in the Battle of Britain, even though it only joined the combat weeks into the battle. Just 5% of Polish pilots were responsible for a phenomenal 12% of all the total victories in the Battle.
Polish destroyers and frigates took part in the Battle of the Atlantic and escorted the hazardous Russian Convoys while Polish troops were among the first to set foot on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day.
So, if we were so ready to accept their help in wartime why not now? Our army is short of 5,000 soldiers. We already have 3,000 Nepalese Gurkhas, 2,000 Fijians, and several hundred South Africans, Ghanaians and Zimbabweans. So why not take the Poles? There is a precedent, after all. We already have the Irish Guards, and although getting the exact figures seems to be next to impossible, it is admitted that, under the euphemism of a “special dispensation”, there are plenty of citizens of the Irish Republic serving in the Army, Navy and RAF.
So, if it is fine to allow someone from Cork to wear our uniform, why should we discriminate against someone from Krakow ? My advice to the men in uniform: go and read some 20th century history.
http://www.nebusiness.co.uk/business-news/latest-business-news/gazette -business-news/2008/05/07/i-was-up-in-glasgow-the-other-week-and-what- hit-me-was-the-number-of-poles-working-in-the-city-51140-20869722/
