'Poppy facists'

[redken1]

There are some stories in the news cycle that never vary, and Jon Snow's lack of poppy is one of them. If you google 'jon snow poppy', the first page that appears is from the BBC posted in 2006. The arguments are the same each time. Someone attacks Snow for not showing respect, and he defends himself by stating that he refuses to wear symbols on air, although he does wear a poppy in private. He is accused – more or less – of treason, and he then rebuts by saying that his accusers are 'poppy fascists'.

I will be making my usual contribution to the British Legion and paying my respects to all our fallen heroes from both wars. I agree with Jon Snow however, people should be allowed to choose as to whether or not to wear a poppy and not feel under pressure from others to do so.

People should be allowed to remember all those who paid the ultimate price to protect our freedom in their own way, without being dictated to. IMHO it goes completely against what the Poppy symbolises.

[wiltshire builders]

What like this?
I think these posters are disgusting and the Royal British Legion should be ashamed of themselves for allowing it.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage...l-posters.html

[Mitch9128]

To be fair, since H4H and their ilk came along, RBL and SAAFA have lost a lot of revenue. It is very difficult for them to claw this back, and as they don't limit their help to only recent troubles, they need the money more than most.

[Gooz]

I disagree, I think the posters are very good and highlight not only an absence of a poppy but an absence of mind, there are many political arguments for and against the conflicts our troops face and serve in ............ however only one thing remains constant, They choose to serve our country and defend its shores, they do not choose to wage war or which wars they would fight, I do know for a fact however that the moment something happens or goes wrong at home, the voices shouting the loudest against them soon end up shouting the loudest for help,
The british Legion are a charity relying upon your goodwill and donations, they serve across the board both serving soldiers, and no longer serving, they also help the families and businesses of people connected, H4H do not, they are only working with serving soldiers, nothing wrong with that either but legion Money works closer to home than any of you could possibly imagine and it was their support and Money that subsidised the Wiltshire Bikers First aid courses, as it was their money used to help set up my company for which I am truly greatful, and as such its Legion money that works 365 days a year , unfortunately their biggest infllux is around rememberance day and that has to stretch all year around, poppy police or facists are nothing compared to the suffering endured by the people gone before and continually growing list, most wars are not fought on the Island upon which we live, BUT , if we did not maintain our presence elsewhere it wouldnt be long before they were once more.
The poppy itself actually represents a resillience to fall or falter when surrounded by adversity, something of beauty to behold in a time of desperation in a place of desolation, perhaps if you alter your peception of it slightly you may see it differently, We all beleive in freedom, We all believe in right over wrong, so whats wrong witha mass display of unity at a poigniant time such as rememberance, that display itself is noticed by the rest of the world without combat, a unified state of mind and sense of belief, one not to be ignored or taken lightly by others, united we stand but divided we will certainly fall.

The sight of these delicate, vibrant red flowers growing on the shattered ground caught the attention of a Canadian soldier by the name of John McCrae. He noticed how they had sprung up in the disturbed ground of the burials around the artillery position he was in. It was during the warm days of early May 1915 when he found himself with his artillery brigade near to the Ypres-Yser canal. He is believed to have composed a poem following the death of a friend at that time. The first lines of the poem have become some of the most famous lines written in relation to the First World War.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

[wiltshire builders]

You can save the speech Gooz. Yesterday I ran 11k with a busted knee and raised over £160. I put a link up to my just giving site on the forum.
Do you know how many forum members donated?
None.
And it's their choice.
Who do we have to thank for having the freedom of choice?
The soldiers that the legion are helping.
These posters go against everything that the legion stood for. Charity is now big business and many people are losing sight of what it's about.

Wear your poppy with pride not guilt.

[bobf279]

Wear your poppy with pride not guilt.

What he said

[redken1]

Wear your poppy with pride not guilt.

Very well put Dan - that was the point of my initial post

Charities are treading a fine line when they adopt shock and awe tactics with the aim of raising additional funding.

Could turn out to be counterproductive if Joe Public perceives ‘pulling on the heart strings’ as emotional blackmail.

[Beamer]

You can save the speech Gooz. Yesterday I ran 11k with a busted knee and raised over £160. I put a link up to my just giving site on the forum.
Do you know how many forum members donated?
None.
And it's their choice.
Who do we have to thank for having the freedom of choice?
The soldiers that the legion are helping.
These posters go against everything that the legion stood for. Charity is now big business and many people are losing sight of what it's about.

Wear your poppy with pride not guilt.

Please dont take too much offence WB but
1, I do not use credit or debit cards and only deal with cash so am unable to donate to anything online...EVER.
2, I have already paid my money to the charity of MY choice towards todays annual event.
3, I am pleased you did your run, I am sorry you have a broken knee, Im glad you raised such a good amount
BUT
posting up the fact that no-one from the forum donated to your particular way of fund raising sounds like sour grapes to me.
Like you said, we all have a choice......you have no idea where, how or when every other member of the forum donated to the cause.

Soap box removed

[Gerry]

Agreed Tina.
Many people donate to charities without making it public or asking other people to donate to their efforts.
We all make our choices.

Well done on the run though [smiley=thumbup.gif]

[wiltshire builders]

[quote author=dan_geoghegan link=1352490872/4#4 date=1352661417]You can save the speech Gooz. Yesterday I ran 11k with a busted knee and raised over £160. I put a link up to my just giving site on the forum.
Do you know how many forum members donated?
None.
And it's their choice.
Who do we have to thank for having the freedom of choice?
The soldiers that the legion are helping.
These posters go against everything that the legion stood for. Charity is now big business and many people are losing sight of what it's about.

Wear your poppy with pride not guilt.

Please dont take too much offence WB but
1, I do not use credit or debit cards and only deal with cash so am unable to donate to anything online...EVER.
2, I have already paid my money to the charity of MY choice towards todays annual event.
3, I am pleased you did your run, I am sorry you have a broken knee, Im glad you raised such a good amount
BUT
posting up the fact that no-one from the forum donated to your particular way of fund raising sounds like sour grapes to me.
Like you said, we all have a choice......you have no idea where, how or when every other member of the forum donated to the cause.

Soap box removed [/quote]
Wow! Miss the point much?

I clearly stated that freedom of choice is the main point of my post and that I didn't bang on about my run in the way that the RBL posters do about wearing a poppy.
This post is about not being made to feel guilty about not giving to charity yet you have ignored everything I said and tried to manipulate it.
I would be mortified if anyone sponsored me because they felt pressured into it.

I find what you're implying both offensive and baffling as everything I have written points to the contrary.