Document Type
Article
Publication Date
January 2014
Abstract
Military euphemisms have been around for a long time. The current "collateral damage" is one used to describe civilian casualties resulting from military action. The terms "acceptable losses" and "acceptable damage" are euphemisms used to refer to a casualty rate that is deemed justifiable, in the view of the high command, by virtue of the nature of the objective. I have opted to use the more honest term "Acceptable Casualties" as my title. In the Great War, very high casualty rates were often accepted to achieve objectives of trivial importance. This book is dedicated to the memory of my father's generation; the Canadian men and women, long since departed, who served and fought in the Great War of 1914-1918. They covered themselves and their country in glory, but at a horrendous cost. They put Canada on the map and guaranteed her a place on the world stage. Out of a population of less than eight million, 450,000 answered the call to arms and served overseas and 64,976 of them were killed or died of their wounds. Another 150,000 were wounded but survived. Countless more, although they had no visible scars, carried psychological ones to their graves. Our memories of them are fading, replaced by those of more recent conflicts. They deserve to be remembered.
Richard Philp