Rommel ran away from my uncle
My uncle was a Desert Rat in the North Africa campaign of World-War II. I believe he was involved in the Second Battle of El Alamein in 1942. Here is a description of the final stages of the battle written at the time:

"The desert, quivering in the heat haze, became a scene that defies sober description. It can be discerned only as a confused arena clouded by the bursts of high explosives, darkened by the smoke of scores of burning tanks and trucks, lit by the flashes of innumerable guns, shot through by red, green and white tracers, shaken by heavy bombing from the air and deafened by the artillery of both sides."

On November 4, the final assaults were underway. The British 1st , 7th and 10th armoured divisions passed through the German lines and were operating in the open desert. The Allies had won the battle. The axis were in retreat.

Thats right, my uncle (with 249,999 other men) made Rommel run away. For his part in the action he was mentioned in despatches and was awarded the bronze oak leaves. He fought on for the remainder of the war and was wounded several times. After the war he went back to his job as a lorry driver, got married, had kids and NEVER mentioned the war or his part in it. I remember him as a lovely man.

Although when I read about "Brave Kate Moss battling her coccaine addiction" he almost seems like a coward. (I'm being ironic BTW)

EDIT: or am I being sarcastic? Wasn't really 'ironic' was it. Yeah, sarcastic.
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Mon 14 Aug 2006, 14:55, Reply)