"The Poppy Bullies Have Excelled Once Again"

[Joe O'Rourke]

[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]It’s that time of year again when we have this debate about the rights and wrongs of wearing a Poppy; I did not intend to speak about it; but since reading the comments of that serial head banger David Leggat I felt compelled to comment.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]First of all I don’t have any problem with the Poppy or with anyone who wears one; and I have the utmost respect for all those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom and democracy.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]It’s the Poppy Bullies who really annoy me; it’s institutionalised now; it would appear that anyone who is seen on television must wear a poppy irrespective of what type of show they appear on; it’s political opportunism at its worst.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]We had the sight last week of the whole of the Parliament at Westminster wearing poppies with the notable exception of Ken Clarke; well that will be the first time they have all agreed on anything.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]We also have the English FA demanding that FIFA relax their rules on what can be placed on a football jersey; so that their players can have a poppy on their shirt in a meaningless friendly against Spain; a country who although the claimed to be neutral during WW11; were seen to be secret allies of Nazi Germany.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]It then got to the ridiculous stage where we had the Prime Minister and the Heir to the Throne getting themselves involved; does David Cameron not have more important issues to attend to? Like the economy and the collapse of the Euro; to name but two.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]These people are missing the most important message; and the message is that in a true democracy everyone should be equal; that’s what the people who fought in the two great wars were fighting for.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]Everyone who died in the armed services during those two conflicts were buried where possible under exactly the same headstone; from the lowest ranked to the highest ranked; that was the message; every life was worth the same; whether you were a Private or a General.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]Now when they sell poppies they have two sizes; and two prices; we also have the so-called celebrities wearing jewelled poppies; obviously implying that they contributed much more than the ordinary folk.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]They have by their actions created a division in the population; by their triumphalism they have alienated sections of the people; ordinary people who don’t wear a poppy because they disagreed with the most recent politically driven wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are looked upon with disdain.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]And what about Libya; the sight of a 69 year old man being summary executed; that act of barbarianism would have been abhorred by those who fought for freedom; no matter how much of a despot he was.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]Probably for me the most infuriating thing of all is the hijacking of the whole event by the Evil Empire, the sight of Sneaky Sally with veterans and members of the armed forces all kitted out in the Rangers regalia is nauseating.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]I wonder if their third choice goalkeeper Grant Adams was wearing a poppy when he was arrested for shouting sectarian abuse; I believe the people he was trying to abuse done some of the fighting for freedom as well.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]You would think there were no Catholics fought in the two great wars; why is it always a Church of Scotland Minister that conducts the Remembrance Day Service? The representatives of the other denominations only play a supporting part.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]In fact where I live; the parade is mostly made up of organisations which have no connection to the armed forces; like the Orange Order, the Rangers Supporters, the Masons; they should be leaving wreaths at the shipyards not the Cenotaph.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]It is time for a reality check here, Britain didn’t beat Nazi Germany on its own; it was an amalgamation of many countries who defeated them; lots of those countries were under the rule of the British Crown are now independent; countries like India and Pakistan which are now Muslim countries and if anything are anti-British.[COLOR=#000000:1aeacce1]Freedom and democracy covers many fields; and freedom of choice and speech are two of them; they are the basic fundamental rights of the citizens of any modern civilized country; maybe it’s time they were observed in this country.

[Guest]

we also have the so-called celebrities wearing jewelled poppies; obviously implying that they contributed much more than the ordinary


i think it just seen as a fashion accessory now and this is why the people on the TV are wear the jazzed up versions and pay the extra for this. its not that the feel they have given more than the joe bloggs in the street. but the real question i must ask for the blogger is
Why are your watching X factor and come dance with me ! cos this is wear you must have seen them.........

get over yourself people can wear them if they want or not... as my old gran would say "if wee jimmy stuck his arse in the fire would you"

any way ive got to go... buy a poppy and then go find a fire to stick my arse in.
hail hail

[Joe O'Rourke]

actually Breakfast TV, i don't watch the muck you refer to.

[irish eyes]

I used to wear a poppy when it was to remember the fallen in the two world wars. Since I've not been a supporter of getting involved in several other "conflicts" since then I choose not to buy or wear a poppy, my personal opinion is we should never have been involved in these other things iraq etc etc, so I don't contribute any money to buy a poppy any more. Just my own personal view.

[Guest]

[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]It’s that time of year again when we have this debate about the rights and wrongs of wearing a Poppy; I did not intend to speak about it; but since reading the comments of that serial head banger David Leggat I felt compelled to comment.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]First of all I don’t have any problem with the Poppy or with anyone who wears one; and I have the utmost respect for all those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom and democracy.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]It’s the Poppy Bullies who really annoy me; it’s institutionalised now; it would appear that anyone who is seen on television must wear a poppy irrespective of what type of show they appear on; it’s political opportunism at its worst.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]We had the sight last week of the whole of the Parliament at Westminster wearing poppies with the notable exception of Ken Clarke; well that will be the first time they have all agreed on anything.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]We also have the English FA demanding that FIFA relax their rules on what can be placed on a football jersey; so that their players can have a poppy on their shirt in a meaningless friendly against Spain; a country who although the claimed to be neutral during WW11; were seen to be secret allies of Nazi Germany.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]It then got to the ridiculous stage where we had the Prime Minister and the Heir to the Throne getting themselves involved; does David Cameron not have more important issues to attend to? Like the economy and the collapse of the Euro; to name but two.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]These people are missing the most important message; and the message is that in a true democracy everyone should be equal; that’s what the people who fought in the two great wars were fighting for.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]Everyone who died in the armed services during those two conflicts were buried where possible under exactly the same headstone; from the lowest ranked to the highest ranked; that was the message; every life was worth the same; whether you were a Private or a General.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]Now when they sell poppies they have two sizes; and two prices; we also have the so-called celebrities wearing jewelled poppies; obviously implying that they contributed much more than the ordinary folk.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]They have by their actions created a division in the population; by their triumphalism they have alienated sections of the people; ordinary people who don’t wear a poppy because they disagreed with the most recent politically driven wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are looked upon with disdain.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]And what about Libya; the sight of a 69 year old man being summary executed; that act of barbarianism would have been abhorred by those who fought for freedom; no matter how much of a despot he was.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]Probably for me the most infuriating thing of all is the hijacking of the whole event by the Evil Empire, the sight of Sneaky Sally with veterans and members of the armed forces all kitted out in the Rangers regalia is nauseating.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]I wonder if their third choice goalkeeper Grant Adams was wearing a poppy when he was arrested for shouting sectarian abuse; I believe the people he was trying to abuse done some of the fighting for freedom as well.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]You would think there were no Catholics fought in the two great wars; why is it always a Church of Scotland Minister that conducts the Remembrance Day Service? The representatives of the other denominations only play a supporting part.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]In fact where I live; the parade is mostly made up of organisations which have no connection to the armed forces; like the Orange Order, the Rangers Supporters, the Masons; they should be leaving wreaths at the shipyards not the Cenotaph.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]It is time for a reality check here, Britain didn’t beat Nazi Germany on its own; it was an amalgamation of many countries who defeated them; lots of those countries were under the rule of the British Crown are now independent; countries like India and Pakistan which are now Muslim countries and if anything are anti-British.[COLOR=#000000:a10f08e0]Freedom and democracy covers many fields; and freedom of choice and speech are two of them; they are the basic fundamental rights of the citizens of any modern civilized country; maybe it’s time they were observed in this country.

what a load of nonesense, my son is celtic crazy and in the army, like thousands of celtic fans in the british forces, will the green brigade celebrate when any of them, god forbid, get killed or maimed? i stood in silence at the minutes silence at mass last week , a proud man my son was out there protecting us from terrorists