The Poppy | Cake Stop | Road | Forums - BikeRadar

nasahapley · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 8:51 pm

I simply don't understand how not wearing a poppy means you are not respecting those who have fought for Britain. Respect is something you either feel or you don't and is unrelated to whether you spend a quid to display a cheap bit of plastic on your breast. I bet there are a good many people who wear poppies not because of any deep respect for servicemen but because they feel compelled to by certain newspapers, and don't really think too much about the sacrifices made at all.

I've given what for me is a fair bit of money to the poppy appeal and HFH but I don't wear a poppy; isn't it infinitely more important to actually try and understand and appreciate the sacrifices that have been made for us rather than make sure our respect is conspicuous? All these attempts to bully people into wearing a poppy is rather ironic since the nazis themselves were also quite keen on making people wear certain symbols (stars of david, pink triangles etc). So frankly I don't care a jot for those who think that by not wearing a poppy I can't have respect for the fallen or that I should be ashamed, because you're bang wrong.

djbarren · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 8:56 pm

I am originally from the republic of Ireland, and on remembrance day we always wore a poppy, as a mark of respect to those fallen during WWI and WWII and I still do.

Now that I live in N.Ireland it seems to me that Roman Catholic are the only ones who do not wear them. Why? They are all bitter, bitter to anything that they see as British. If they were to look up the following http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remembrance_Day they would see that the poppy is worn world wide and is just not a British thing.

When we see a poppy worn, Let us reflect on the burden borne. By those who gave their life.
That we at home in peace might live.

Convert to the Religion of all things carbon.....

dmclite · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:00 pm

nasahapley · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:06 pm

dmclite · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:11 pm

volvicspar · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:23 pm

I have to agree with nasahapley

I suppose you could argue it is disrespectful to veterans and the like actually wearing a poppy. All the sacrifice they made and people will waste their time and money on worthless bits of plastic when those could be better spent on actually helping people. (of course the poppy probably cost about 0.00001p)

But then there is the publicity of the poppy - how many people would even know this charity existed if there were no poppies ?

Not saying that this is right or wrong - just a different view I suppose (which fortunately we can express).

dmclite · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:29 pm

johnfinch · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:45 pm

GavH · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:54 pm

Seems to me that there is a lot of people here arguing over the symbolism of the poppy and forgetting about the charitable aspect that the Royal British Legion sells them for in the first place.

In the 6-7 months that 19 Light Brigage were deployed in Afghanistan, over 900 soldiers were injured, over a hundred of those came home without limbs and organs that they had arrived with and over 70 did not come home at all. I have personally had to work out how much money the family of a KIA gets, it ran to just over £400,000. That included over £150,000 from a private policy, NOT government funded. The balance was largely from pension payments and continuation of the deceased salary for 6 months. Not a lot when you consider that a wife and kids have just lost their home (Married Quarter) and long term income not to mention husband and father. The injured guys are lucky if they get more than the 6 months and 10 days worth of Operational Allowance at £13.08 per day plus whatever personal accident insurance they took out pre-deployment. How does a family manage when the bread winner loses both his legs above the knee, his right arm, his left hand, his eyesight and part of his genitalia? I personally don't have clue, but I do know there is one family out there right now struggling to work out the answer to that because they have to. It's those guys AND their families who rely on the RBL to help and the only way they can do that it through the funds raised from the Poppy Appeal. If you don't like wearing the poppy, or what it symbolises, then just donate money to the RBL, the ABF or H4H or similar organisation. Here in NI, its an accepted fact that most Republicans and Nationalists won't wear a poppy because of the association with the British Army, considered very much an enemy force for long. I respect their right in this regard in much the same way as I'm quite sure they'd respect the fact that I won't wear anything commemorating PIRA dead, like the Hunger Strikers et al.

I don't want this to become political, but it seems to me that a few here are simply shrugging their sloping shoulders and saying "I didn't send them to Afghan, so it's not my fault!" Actually, if you voted Labour, technically you did.

TheBoyBilly · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 10:30 pm

Personally I think everybody should be forced to buy a Poppy.........and then give thanks that they weren't forced to enlist. (tongue in cheek, by the way)...go on, just buy the Poppy and stop being so bloody silly.

To disagree with three-fourths of the British public is one of the first requisites of sanity - Oscar Wilde

knedlicky · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 11:57 pm

I don’t wear a poppy. Although I’ve nothing against the idea of the poppy in itself, one big reason for me against buying/wearing one is the PC-type conformity expected of everyone nowadays, as exhibited by the wearing of it by newsreaders, Match of the Day commentators, anyone in the public eye being interviewed, etc. Also as exhibited by some of the opinions of posters here.
And, as teagar says, it seems to me there is certainly a jingoistic element in it in the UK. It should be a much more private thing.

Apparently the money raised is used by the British Legion to help disabled, and wives and families who lost husbands and fathers who were in the forces during the different wars. I’ve nothing against this either, but I think, at least for those wars where conscription was obligatory (part of WW1 and all of WW2, maybe Suez too?), it should really be governments who support those disabled, and wives and families.

I had 6 close relatives who fought in WW2, but by the 1970s onward, despite being ex-servicemen, all of them refused to ever buy/wear a poppy. When I was old enough to ask why not (in the 80s-90s), they all told me they wouldn’t buy one because they felt what had once been a valid cause had, albeit perhaps inadvertently, become to be used as a piece of political propaganda to help governments avoid the issue of helping ex-servicemen and their families, and become to be used as a piece of political propaganda to help promote the military cause.

Respecting and honouring servicemen who lost their lives because of the decisions of politicians when conscription existed is one thing, but after then I’m not so sure, because anyone who voluntary enlists should know the risks of the job and of the dangers of being subject to the whims, mistakes and biases of politicians. Why should one respect and honour a servicemen any more than anyone else who does a basic job for the good of the community?

(Before anyone starts to think I might have no links to the forces, although I’ve never been a soldier or sent to a crisis area, by my job I’ve been very closely associated with the military for years and have had friends and acquaintances who have been everywhere from Vietnam to Kosovo and Iraq/Afghanistan, so know first hand of their experiences and losses, and know some who returned disabled as consequence of their 'tour of duty'.)

GiantMike · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:10 am

Yes. From 4 Nov until 12 Nov. I even raced CycloCross wearing one today.

As much as a charity donation it's a statement of support and appreciation for those who have died in the name of this country since the First World War.

dmclite · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:35 am

Respecting and honouring servicemen who lost their lives because of the decisions of politicians when conscription existed is one thing, but after then I’m not so sure, because anyone who voluntary enlists should know the risks of the job and of the dangers of being subject to the whims, mistakes and biases of politicians. Why should one respect and honour a servicemen any more than anyone else who does a basic job for the good of the community?

Nice. Rolling Eyes

I'm actually speechless.

FCN 1

I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast but I'm intercontinental when I eat french toast.

dmclite · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 5:38 am

Ash_ · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 7:21 am

If people think - 'I don't need to wear a poppy to show my support' - then fair enough, but I think it's worth it. As a teacher, some kids do ask 'Why do people wear poppies?', and that's reason enough for me to pin one on.

Everyone posting on here knows the significance of the poppy, but as time goes on this awareness will diminish if it's not kept going.

softlad · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 8:40 am

iainment · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 10:16 am

Pross · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 11:20 am

I always wear mine but compulsion is pointless. The whole Daily Mail thing about trying to pressurise Man Utd and Liverpool into wearing poppies is OTT, if the person isn't wearing the poppy by choice then it isn't fulfilling it's purpose.

Slightly off topic but is there a chance that the Legion will lose donations with the excellent work that Help the Heroes has been doing or are the two linked?

GavH · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:12 pm

Richard_D · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 1:33 pm

I do not know about you but during the silence I tend to remember not only those in the armed services that gave their lives in the course of duty but also the those in the police, Fire brigade, RNLI , etc. who paid the ultimate price. Volunteer as against conscript is irelevant.

Skip menu

Cake Stop Forum