[M.R.]

Originally Posted by Strengthandhonour

What Italy did in Slovenia was not heroic. I never claimed it was.
I never claimed mass murdering populations of people was heroic. But it happens in war. In Northern Italy near Torino there was a massacre done by the Germans against the Italian population. The trial was solved a year or two ago just now. It's one of the awful things about war.

No, it doesn't just "happen" in war. What Italians did was extreme even by war standards. Whining about Germans is pathetic to me, in the same way as some Italians whine about those Italians killed after ww2 by Yugoslav army, after all, you switched sides (like in ww1). It's not the same as if you just came to some country, occupy it and then murder innocent population.

If there is no morale behind a war, how are you supposed to win it?
Mussolini entered world war II for his own self-fish deeds. Everytime Germany took something, Italy took something smaller. When Hitler told Mussolini that he wanted to wage war, Mussolini told him to hold it for a year or two while he modernized the army. Hitler didn't wait. Mussolini out of jealousy threw his army that was completely unprepared at France and Albania.

I don't think that one year would change much. And I do believe that there was much morale in Italian army, I don't remember that they had any rebelion. Italians worshipped Mussolini after all.

As far as not seeing a point in fighting a war goes, what would happen if Slovenia went to war with a neighboring country just for the hell of it? a politician decided to do so? would you fight that war blindly if your country asked you? or would you step in as an individual and say no, I don't agree with this war? I for one, would not fight a war for the blind obsessions of the ruler of the nation. I would only fight for my country if it needs to be defended.

No, I wouldn't, but if I had to, I wouldn't surrender, but fight, for the sake of war yes. Better than surrender and let the enemy decide what will your faith be. After all, if not for everything else, you fight for your nation's honour, so no one can say that you're cowards. Slovenians did fought in such wars before, only time many of them surrendered and didn't want to fight was against Russia in ww1, because of pan-Slavic propaganda, I'm not proud on them. My great-grandfather was fighting there and didn't surrender though (he was more pro-German and also supported Hitler later in ww2).

Anyway, I guess Italians have different mentality, who knows, I wouldn't be surprised. I'm not really judging them because of that, I even defended them sometimes from people here shouting that Italians are pussies, after all they are descendants of Romans and I regard particularly southern Italians and Sicilians as tough people and have a lot of respect for them because of their values. However I wouldn't consider them good soldiers though as part of organized army. I said Italians were cowards in ww2, this is from my perspective and view as a Slovenian, by my standards of what soldier should be. Again Italians would dissagree and I wouldn't consider them as 'wrong', but is rather just because the difference in mentality and opinions, and that's the beauty of Europe.

I'm saying this not to be taken wrong by any Italian here, I always had a lot of respect for Italians on this forum.