In Remembrance

I was watching the remembrance parade today on the television and one of the commentator's said a statistic that shocked me. He said that if all the people who are being remembered today were alive and part of this parade with the start being here at the cenotaph then the end of the line would be in Edinburgh. That's hundreds of miles. It's shocking that it's so long. Another thing another commentator said is that initially the ideal with the "we will never forget" motto was that the "great war" was the war to end all wars. That turned out to be "tragedly nieve". Especially when are far bloodier, more historic and moving war started 20 years later with the outcome of the first world war being a significant reason.
The two minute silence is for remembering those that have died but my mind always turns towards those that are dying now and are going to die. Yet more names to be added to memorials and cenotaphs. Especially more tragic when it's in at least pointless or, even worse, more sinister combat zones like in Iraq.

Edit: One week after remembrance day I look at the front cover of my local paper and I see the face of someone I went to school with. He had just been killed by a bomb in Afghanistan. I suppose next year I would have a face to remember.