Durham Light Infantry Museum to Close...CONFIRMED

Discussion in 'Durham Light Infantry' started by Mr Jinks, Oct 22, 2015.

  1. PaulE

    PaulE Senior Member

    Hello again Jonathan , so after trying and failing to inflame the Facebook page that has been created by many thousands of passionate people to Save the DLI Museum of one of the most well known fighting Regiments of the British Army you have now decided to come here and attempt to force your negativity and opinions onto the contributors of this page and forum.

    The problem you have is that your opinion is based on a lack of real facts , you say the picture is a complete mess and that the situation is a total impasse both of which are completely incorrect ! Let me assure you that the commitee of this group is exploring many avenues to take the debate with DCC , Museum Trustees , other interested parties and the longevity of the Museum forward , most of which you are not party too , everything will be revealed in the fullness of time.

    Passions are running very high amongst many people whose fathers , Grandfathers , Uncles fought in the DLI many making the ultimate sacrifice and unfortunately as this has been a decision made by a majority Political party in DCC they are the butt of much of the anger and disappointment but in many ways that is understandable considering the lack of engagement by DCC and in particular the Trustees and the lack of consultation prior to the decision with the families whose relatives medals , uniforms etc including original Victoria Crosses that have been loaned to the Museum collection.

    I am not a Political person myself but it is impossible to keep politics especially local politics about which i assume you have little understanding seperate from this issue.

    What i don't understand Jonathan is your need to voice your opinions on this matter as you clearly have no interest in the DLI , Durham itself or the Museum so why have you joined a group that has Save the DLI as it's title other than to in some way enhance your own reputation.
     
  2. Swiper

    Swiper Resident Sospan

    Paul,

    Once more you completely miss the point. If you would copy/paste my post you would see that it was not an attempt to 'inflame' simply ask simple questions. One does not have to just go along with the Group Think. If you read above, I had already previously aired concerns. It is quite legitimate to ask questions of all parties involved, not to do so would be exceptionally naive in of itself.

    Its rather difficult to read your comment as much more than a blithe attempt to silent any other comment. Criticism does not have to be negative, or to inflame. Indeed your committee threatened to ban me from the group for simply asking questions of cashflow/fundraising etc. You accuse the Council of behaving like bigots, stifling debate when you do so yourself.

    Thank you for not addressing any of my concerns.

    Once more you state I 'have no interest in the DLI, Durham or the Museum'. No idea why you believe that, quite how asking questions would be to 'in some way enhance your own reputation' is frankly laughable.

    Then there is the issue of quite how Facebook works, 27,000 likes does not give you a mandate - especially with the inherent structure of Facebook groups... you can argue it is an indication but nothing more. Nearly 5 million like Anon on Facebook, I doubt few if any actually are members, but this is an issue with a misunderstanding of how social media works. Its an enabling tool, not the crutch to rely on. Further indications are that 27,000 struggled to raise £5k, one can argue that itself is an illustration of the difficulty in turning sentiment into the cash necessary to fund legal approaches.

    Perhaps if you actually read, and absorbed, what I have scribbled - you would see a great deal of sense there. Although by surrounding yourself with a group with 'passions... running very high' you will quickly lose all sense of decorum and objectivity that such entities need to survive and thrive.

    Everyone has the right to an opinion Paul. The issue here is some opinions are more influential than others, and the current approach seems to be falling well short. Sadly the DLI are falling into the same traps as many, which are a general trend befalling museums pending the 'Great Amalgamation' as its referred to. You can try and buck the trend but even an influx of visitors in the next few months would struggle to justify anything more than a temporary reprieve. The buildings concept, structure and location all seem tremendously flawed pitfalls - but again you have still not answered any of my questions I asked several weeks ago.

    Sadly your above response highlights why this campaign is likely to fail. Attempting to tie my comments and make some form of slur against my character borders on the offensive.

    Currently much reads like some diktat from Moscow Central.
     
  3. PaulE

    PaulE Senior Member

    Jonathan i'm not going to argue on here about the same points and theories that you made on the Facebook page over 1 month ago as there is nothing new from you . You were asked then what your interest is regarding to the DLI Museum and the campaign to Save it , a question you either ignored or chose not to answer !

    The Campaign which is being run by a Group of experienced Professional people , not a bunch of Yokels fresh off the boat , who are working with a number of Organisations and Agencies to find a long term future for the Museum collection whether in it's present location or in a new location within Durham City Centre whilst fully realising all the problems that will have to be and are being faced and progess is being made.

    If you have anything further to add to that which you have posted here which is only a repeat of your previous posts then please post them on the Facebook Campaign page , your questions will be answered in detail if you feel that the numerous previous answers on FB were inadequate . Can i also suggest that you address some of your questions and opinions to DCC , Durham university and the Trustees of the Collection as you stated " as It is quite legitimate to ask questions of all parties involved, not to do so would be exceptionally naive in of itself "
     
  4. Swiper

    Swiper Resident Sospan

    Once more I am disappointed by your response.

    They were hardly 'theories' but you can read above concerns I aired back in August. You did not answer my questions then and seem incapable of answering now. Indeed I don't believe I received any coherent answer to the questions I aired then, as I explained earlier.

    As stated it appears that the organisation has the same problems as the Council does in your mind.

    I'd to thank you for confirming my current suspicions as to the future direction of the campaign.
     
  5. PaulE

    PaulE Senior Member

    I'd like to thank you for your help in securing a future for the History ,Tradition and Heritage of the Durham Light Infantry , if you would like to help further please visit the facebook page or website BW where i'm sure we could discuss things further if you so wish !!

    TTFN !!
     
    Paul Reed likes this.
  6. amberdog45

    amberdog45 Senior Member

    Disabled access seems to be a major issue for the new proposed home for the collection. If wheelchair access isn't resolved at Palace Green that would rule out a visit for my family and plenty others out there who wish to view the collection. Goodness knows what the relatives think, especially those whose loved ones ashes are scattered in the grounds.
     
    Mr Jinks likes this.
  7. amberdog45

    amberdog45 Senior Member

    Save the DLI museum group are holding a demonstration on Wednesday, 20th January at 9am at Durham County Council Aykley Heads HQ.

    Can anybody here attend to bolster the numbers and show the group some support?

    I took the information from their Facebook page.
     
  8. Mr Jinks

    Mr Jinks Bit of a Cad

    Video coverage here;-

    http://www.itv.com/news/tyne-tees/2016-01-20/durham-light-infantry-museum-to-close-in-april/



    Really?



    Kyle
     
    amberdog45 likes this.
  9. denwar1

    denwar1 Member

     
  10. denwar1

    denwar1 Member

    As a visitor to the museum for years, from the opening till present, plus doing research on the 68th Of Foot, THE MUSEUM SHOULD BE KEPT.
    But the people of DURHAM are not as DAFT as the LABOUR COUNCIL think we are.
    The museum is a monument to the fallen, not just the FALLEN, but all the men in all battle fronts who fought for FREEDOM.
    Only fools believe splitting the museum the way it is being split will keep our famous old Regiment ALIVE.
    Even a blind person can see the future here. The Museum in about 10 years will be nearly gone, and what about the medals of these brave men.
    Will labour sell them off to keep running the council.
    Its not just Medals that families trusted to the Museum, We have soldier's personal items given by families, trusting the Museum to keep them safe.

    Once more we see how our Councilors ( Labour ) can't be trusted.

    I am not for or against any party, lossing this museum is wrong.

    Splitting will not work, as soon as its not in the headlines our famous Regiment will disappear apart from the statue in Market Place.

    The folks on the Council should be ashamed of themselves, ( luckily we do have some Councillors who spoke up )

    And they say not, but we all know houses will end up being built up

    Around that area, and COUNTY HALL land.
     
  11. denwar1

    denwar1 Member

    One other note, Knowing how the council work, I am wondering how much material will be stored and lost, never to be seen again.

    Please don't any one say that will not happen.

    Just look at past advertiser reports were councils moving stuff, thing went missing.lost.
     
  12. Over Here

    Over Here Junior Member

  13. Mr Jinks

    Mr Jinks Bit of a Cad

    There`s a lot of speculation about `houses` being built on the site and the council refuting that claim ? I don't think houses will be built personally Why? Well theres already plans to build a business park ! Anyone remember July`s announcement that `County Hall` was to close because it was too big and used only for storage??? Storage including the Durham Light Infantry Records which the council took from The Museum? The site of the Museum is actually part of the Business Park plans the companys that are moving onto the site are already named here;-

    http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/durhams-county-hall-bulldozed-bid-9608402

    The Council have been eroding into the DLI Trustees for years now ,Part of the DLI Collection was already sold off to fund the `Statue` in the Durham market place (Personally I thought this was a disgraceful decision and my Grandfather refers to the Statue as the `false idol` )

    The Trustees handed over the DLI paper and photographic archive (After it had been left in a flooded storeroom) and the Council announced that the entire collection would be digitised and placed online .Lottery funding was obtained the collection photographed and the INDEX put online where for a fee (£7) you can buy prints ? When at the Museum you could sit and copy what you wanted Free!

    Now they are going to do the same for the Museum Collection, as mentioned above it will be `lost` and the remnants sold off to support other projects. The Council are just waiting for the Media to drop their interest and they will do (as usual) whatever they please :(

    Kyle
     
  14. Mr Jinks

    Mr Jinks Bit of a Cad

    [​IMG]

    Closure looms

    Durham Council (Hang your heads in shame!) ;-

    " the museum is heavily subsidised and the collection has outgrown it and our plans would allow the collection to be preserved......"


    Kyle
     
    The Cooler King likes this.
  15. The Cooler King

    The Cooler King Elite Member

    Just Joined the Facebook campaign .......if we could get as many people to join as possible!!! :salut:
     
  16. Swiper

    Swiper Resident Sospan

    From what I've heard the campaign to save the museum and raise £300k to sustain it for a year has started refunding donations. Frankly even if £300k had been raised it is unlikely this would have been anything more than a stay of execution.

    Provided a good archival service is run by the new facility that will be useful, although hopefully this will lead to rather more sensible discussions as to the region's military history and how best to preserve it as a whole.

    Sad news for the museum, but expected.
     
  17. Over Here

    Over Here Junior Member

    You mean apathetic Britons hang your heads in shame.
     
  18. Mr Jinks

    Mr Jinks Bit of a Cad

  19. ritsonvaljos

    ritsonvaljos Senior Member

    I saw the BBC 'Look North' news report about the museum's last day. It looked to be a sad day for all concerned.
     
  20. PaulE

    PaulE Senior Member

    The Museum has closed but that is not the end of things as the campaign will continue working with AMOT and DCC to look at alternernatives for the Collection to reappear in a new setting and buidling in the forthcoming years.

    Of course this can only be achieved in conjunction with the Trustees of the collection whose conduct sadly has disgraced the Regiment they purport to represent .
     

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