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Poppy Watch 2020


NurembergVillan

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This is just a further problem of the poppy. It's seemingly been nudge nudge, wink wink'ed into just being about the world wars (probably not helped by the inherent relationship between the poppy and WW1 intimately, when the symbol is more born of the symbolic nature of all sacrifice in conflict being summed up by the poppy and it's association with the 'greatest' tragedy), but in reality it's an armed forces charity in general. Which is more troublesome.

It's a problem that will become more and more notable as the WW2 generation is lost ever more.

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20 minutes ago, NurembergVillan said:

What happens if you cross that?! Do you get mown down by German gunfire?

It can't be long until the trend to show how much you care about the poppy will be to turn some public park into No-Mans Land, complete with stinking artillery holes filled with chunks of former horse and last month's dead, barbed wire perimeters, and foreigners with guns on the other side, with toffs with whistles encouraging the Youth to run at the wall of lead to show how much they Remember.

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1 hour ago, blandy said:

I think that is so far off the mark as to be ludicrous, really. I think he's got the wrong reason completely. Poppychristmas isn't for War 1 dead people. It's for all conflicts victims - Falklands, Iraq, Afghanistan....are "meant to [be] remember[ed]".

The hype thing - sure, the "increasing hysteria" is real, but it's now't to do with time since War 1"allowing" people to hijack it - it's much more IMO to do with the same type of populism and nationalism that brought us the joys* of Brexit - it's not "allowed" by poppy day, any more than anything else "allowed" it. Perversely, people not recognising elements of patriotism are valid may be the main facilitators.

*not actual joys, obviously

I think you should read the article, not just my extract: he talks about how it is for people in all conflicts in the piece, but makes the obvious point that these are downplayed because of the, ah, moral complexity of the conflicts involved.

I mean, the broad point is just clearly right IMO. If you assume that we won't be having a rememberance day in the same way 1000 years from now, then the question becomes how we get from it existing in its current form now, to it not existing in the future, and one likely path is for it to become increasingly performative until it loses all meaning.

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2 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

I think you should read the article, not just my extract:

I would if I could. My work computer won't let me - it blocks twitter links and imagery :( I get a reduced version.

Capture.PNG

 

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4 minutes ago, HanoiVillan said:

Thanks. It's a bit of a mixed argument, still - some good points and some rubbish ones.

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And if the meaning of the wars has changed, the meaning of “remembrance” surely changes, too.

No. Not in my view.

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if the original purpose of the two minutes’ silence every 11 November was to remind us of our shared responsibility towards British veterans, then the government would probably use the welfare state to support them, rather than undermining them at every turn.

Very yes. He's much stronger on that side of things.

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On 09/11/2020 at 14:01, Chindie said:

It can't be long until the trend to show how much you care about the poppy will be to turn some public park into No-Mans Land, complete with stinking artillery holes filled with chunks of former horse and last month's dead, barbed wire perimeters, and foreigners with guns on the other side, with toffs with whistles encouraging the Youth to run at the wall of lead to show how much they Remember.

We already have that in Basingstoke, we just call them parks though.

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  • 1 month later...

Unless I'm seeing something, Sheffield United are still wearing poppies (armbands)

It's December 13th.

I imagine the Venn Diagram of those supporting that, and labelling Rainbow Laces as Virtue Signalling is a circle.

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