IT is hard for Mittagong Primary school students to imagine the horrors of war. But seeing the sombre mood at Wednesday’s Remembrance Day service at Mittagong RSL would help them understand that war should not be glorified despite all the movies and computer games they are bombarded with making war seem like some form of sport.

The students were part of the service along with students from Frensham Girls and three Chevalier College cadets.

Personnel from HMAS Albatross, based in Nowra, were due to attend the service but were unexpectedly deployed late last week. Leftenant Matt Mcneil represented the Navy and gave an address before Frensham’s Sarah Lowey and Mittagong Primary’s Megan Delaney spoke.

Mittagong RSL sub-branch president Ross Spirou said he was amazed at the dedication and research the young speakers put into their addresses.

“They get right into it and do a lot of research for their talks,” he said.

Mr Spirou said Remembrance Day wasn’t only a time to remember those that never made it home but also the families who lost loved ones.

“The families suffer long after the soldiers have died,” he said.

Remembrance Day signifies the end of the war that was to end all wars, but with conflicts raging around the globe and Australia embroiled in Iraq, Afghanistan and peacekeeping duties in the South Pacific, Mr Spirou said the mistakes of the past have not been heeded.

“We haven’t learnt a damn thing. It’s all about greed and power. There are a lot of dictators around.”

“The biggest thing to learn is that we should be kind to each other and not carry on.”

Several servicemen at the RSL were upset that the Queensland RSL was selling the Last Post as a mobile phone ringtone. Many said it devalued what was a sacred and important part of military services.