Cristobo,

i think Franco's intentions were not all that bad, but his method for implementation was *fundamentally* broken! the idea of a unified Spain is/was great. ...such force and brutal murder... unspeakable.

it's strange, i know people that grew up in that
era; some republican, others facista. the bickering between them continues, and it even continues among their children, who remember the end of the Franco era too. geez it wasn't that long ago!

the story that Toddy cited at the beginning of this thread is very sad, and there are so many other stories equally as sad. my buddy's father told us stories of his experiences from that
era, and to think of such a nice man going thru such horror is unimagineable. he died a few years back, but i'll never forget his face as he recounted the stories where members of his own family 'disappeared,' only to be found dead later, etc... horrible.

i can't remember who said it, but it was something like 'we cannot forget the past, or we are doomed to repeat it in the future.' (ironically, i believe Rommel said something like this. little did he know it could be so applicable to his leader's regime). I think many historical figures/writers have said this.

it's ok to remember past and painful things, let's just not debate about it as if it were today.

andrew
:wq