PRIVATE JOHN BLAIR THOMPSON
Nick’s paternal great-great uncle John Blair Thompson, Otago Infantry Battalion. The photo was taken on the morning of the assault on Chunuk Bair, August 6, 1915. John was killed later that morning.
As commemorative dawn ceremonies took place across New Zealand yesterday, it’s natural to think on what our soldiers must have experienced. Their sacrifice underpins the freedoms and opportunities we enjoy today.
As the years pass, the numbers of veterans grow less; the first-hand stories and memoirs can be lost. Yet the significance of their sacrifice, and how it underpins our lives today, remains unchanged.
I've witnessed firsthand how the meaning can be lost. During the 80th anniversary of Gallipoli in 1995, what should have been a solemn pilgrimage felt more like tourism. I was perturbed by the lack of understanding and respect - some arguing that battlefield relics (even human remains) made acceptable souvenirs.
As the saying goes… every village has an idiot.
In 1994, the year prior to my visit, the peninsula was destroyed by fire.[i] This stripped it back visually to something close to 1915. Exposed bones were commonplace, especially on ridge lines and in recent land slips. I spent two days walking the ridge lines and burying bones. They were easy to see, as white as snow on the clay dirt.
There isn't a week that goes by without me thinking about how grateful I am for their service, and in the case of my three great-great uncles, their ultimate sacrifice. Two fell at Gallipoli to rest in unknown graves, and one in Flanders. We display their photographs in our hallway: Youthful embarkment photos, then war period photos with solemn men aged beyond their years. It’s a constant reminder of what was given so we may prosper.
This reflection led me to consider what exactly this "way of life" means - what our ANZACs fought to protect.
While individual perspectives differ, from an investment standpoint, two principles stand paramount: democracy and capitalism, underpinned by libertarian values of individual freedom and personal responsibility.[ii] These principles have served as cornerstones for the unprecedented wealth creation we've witnessed in the 80 years since World War II.
Resilience & reaching new heights
After WWII, New Zealand achieved the second highest standard of living in the world. However, the financial returns generated directly from the newly-humming machine of capitalism and progress would be impossible without democracy maintaining a healthy balance between capital and labour, keeping economies stable.
The libertarian ethos of minimal interference in personal economic decisions has further empowered individuals to pursue their own prosperity.
Famed investor Warren Buffett said that US$10,000 invested in an S&P 500 index when he began investing would now be worth US$51 million. By contrast, according to Business Insider, that same US$10,000 invested in gold would be worth approximately US$400,000 today.
However, to achieve these returns, investors needed resilience through at least eight major market corrections. So far, no correction has looked the same, even if it felt like déjà vu for some. No doubt the next correction will look different again – and it will inevitably come.
A legacy of freedom and opportunity to be realised
Despite the sacrifices made to protect our democratic freedoms, New Zealand's voter turnout in the 2023 general election was only 78.2% – meaning over one in five eligible Kiwis didn't cast their vote.
Even more concerning is our local body electoral participation, which has fallen below 40% nationwide, with some councils seeing turnout as low as 30%. These dire statistics suggest many New Zealanders are apathetic to the democratic rights our ANZACs fought to preserve.
Democracy becomes most valuable precisely when circumstances aren't going as we'd prefer – for example, during the cost-of-living crisis and now looking down the barrel of more geopolitical uncertainty.
Similarly, we have a tremendous opportunity to participate in capitalism, with no better avenue than through capital markets. Stock, bond, and property markets worldwide benefit from good regulation, transparency, and effective asset pricing mechanisms. For most New Zealanders today, KiwiSaver represents their primary connection to these markets. Yet, many don’t take advantage of this either, preferring to keep their would-be contribution in pocket rather than have it working hard towards future retirement.
Market prices will fall again. When they do, abandoning confidence and participation would be counterproductive. Counterintuitively, these downturns present the best opportunities for deeper engagement.
Difficult times affect people differently. Some ANZAC veterans never spoke about their experiences while others did. For many, the pain was too severe to revisit. Similarly, many who lived through the Great Depression never re-entered markets – to their significant financial detriment.
During or after traumatic events, we would do well to remind ourselves and those closest to us of Buffett's advice: "Many of these headwinds are transitory, so keep investing with confidence.”[iii]
A market downturn is nowhere near the battle our ancestors fought, but their sacrifices allow us to reap the benefits of the system nonetheless – so we should not let the opportunity pass us by.
Building a better culture of remembrance
To learn lessons from the past, we should know it intimately. As a start, we could upgrade the discussion of our military history in secondary schools. Don't sugarcoat it – the kids are too smart for that. Explain history with first-hand accounts from contemporary war historians and with the brilliant analysis and reporting from people like Christopher Pugsley and his classic history Gallipoli: The New Zealand Story.[iv]
This is not dusty stuff to bore students witless. It is written with clarity and power, showing you the terrified faces and explaining unfathomable bravery and suffering on both sides; exposing the futility of war while honouring our nation's specific contribution.
In World War I we held the sad honour of having lost the highest percentage of men of eligible age among Britain's dominions. 20% of those who served died, and 40% suffered injuries and wounds.[v]
Our RSA clubs are getting smaller.[vi] It’s a natural consequence as the number of veterans declines with each passing year. Our ANZAC Day services, however, remain powerful, solemn and meaningful.
Let's embrace the essence of the dawn service, not tart it up. The march turnouts reflect the declining number of service personnel, yet the public attendance at these commemorations continues to be strong.
Make the dawn service the focus, followed by traditional gunfire breakfast and a time for subdued remembrance. That's the mood we need to capture and defend, before the football and the party.
Please, look at the haunted eyes of some of the frontline Gallipoli soldiers in the photographs in Christopher Pugsley's book. There's no glorification of war in those eyes. The eyes from any soldier in any war will look tragically similar. We owe them a debt of gratitude.
The freedoms we enjoy, from democratic participation to market investment, were secured through tremendous sacrifice. Those photographs in my hallway aren't just family mementos – they're reminders of the price paid for the investment landscape we navigate today.
Our ANZACs laid the road to opportunity. The least we can do is walk it with confidence and gratitude, honouring their memory with the respect and solemnity it deserves.
Lest we forget.
[i] https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/525401/gallipoli-fire-threatening-war-graves-under-control
[ii] https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/libertarianism/
[iii] https://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-compares-stocks-and-gold-returns-2018-5
[iv] https://www.amazon.com/Gallipoli-Zealand-story-Christopher-Pugsley/dp/0790005859#averageCustomerReviewsAnchor
[v] https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/first-world-war-by-numbers
[vi] https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/rsa-clubs-get-blunt-message-of-survival-change-or-die/MGPKBPQXXBBNK364HBVIK75LMM/
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Nick Stewart (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Huirapa, Ngāti Māmoe, Ngāti Waitaha) is a Financial Adviser and CEO at Stewart Group, a Hawke's Bay and Wellington based CEFEX & BCorp certified financial planning and advisory firm. Stewart Group provides personal fiduciary services, Wealth Management, Risk Insurance & KiwiSaver scheme solutions. Article no. 404.
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