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Will you wear a poppy 2013?
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Just more grist to the mill from a football perspective, but making some of the points raised here.
http://quaer0.wordpress.com/2013/11/11/hypocrisy-that-knows-no-bounds/On the 11th day of November, Remembrance Day; many people throughout the UK will pause and reflect upon the fallen who gave the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.
And if you wander into the realms of Scottish Football, you will quickly arrive at the conclusion that there are those amongst us who deserve special praise for their patriotism and dedication towards this solemn occasion.
The Rangers Football Club for example has a large following of fine upstanding citizens who seem to become more dedicated each year towards Remembrance Day.
The club itself has in recent times allowed members of the armed forces into their stadium on match days so the adoring crowd can show their appreciation of the people who sign up to defend Queen & country. From the outset, a more dignified show of gratitude you could not possibly get.
However if you take a closer look, things aren’t what they appear to be.
Remembrance Day for many is today what it always was and what it ought to be. A moment to pause, reflect and pay your respects to those go gave their lives in the great wars so we could live in a democracy today.
But for many the whole thing has been hijacked and turned into a glorification of war. A decade ago, thousands paraded in the streets of London to protest against the war in Afghanistan.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1596810.stm
A few years later a million people marched against the war in Iraq
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/2765041.stm
This was not good news for the Government of the day, who were determined to take the country into war – even if they had to use lies to do so.
Weapons of Mass Destruction?
Six months before the invasion, the then Prime Minister Tony Blair warned the country about the threat posed by Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
“The programme is not shut down,” he said. “It is up and running now.” Mr Blair used the intelligence on WMD to justify the war.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21786506
It could be argued and it is certainly my belief that politicians used the Poppy as a means to gain support for current wars. The Poppy was no longer just about the fallen in the great wars; suddenly it was about showing your support to the current members of the armed forces and by doing so, showing support for the current conflicts.
http://www.stopwar.org.uk/news/how-politicians-use-the-poppy-appeal-to-make-today-s-wars-more-popular#.Un_WWfl7KtM
But there is a problem here. What if you don’t support current conflicts? Do you wear a symbol that is fast becoming synonymous with current conflicts? And let’s be clear about one thing – many innocent people have died as a result of the actions of this country going to war and the British military have been guilty of some awful crimes as well.
Perhaps some people do care and respect the fact that many people fought and died in the great wars so we could live in a free society today – but resent the fact that their respect, through the Poppy, is being used to show support to things that they are completely against.
People have a choice to make.
Eventually someone had to speak out and Jon Snow, the veteran Channel Four News presenter, has hit out “poppy fascism” and “intolerance” after he was criticised for refusing to wear the emblem on air in the lead up to Remembrance Sunday.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/8106634/Jon-Snow-veteran-Channel-4-News-presenter-in-new-poppy-fascism-row.html
Jon Snow was right. From a symbol of respect and reflection, the Poppy is now something that has been hijacked and used as a weapon against others who don’t hold the same view.
Suddenly all over the country people have started to take umbrage at people who choose not to wear a Poppy. Worse, there is a sinister undercurrent to the attitudes of many that wouldn’t look out of place at an EDL demo.
Take for example Wigan footballer James McLean who refused to wear a Poppy on his shirt whilst playing for his previous club Sunderland. Since James is from the part of Ireland where British soldiers infamously opened fire on innocent civilians in 1972, James has every right not to wear a Poppy. It’s his choice.
http://www.irishpost.co.uk/sport/sports-comment/why-would-a-son-of-creggan-wear-the-poppy
Today as his current team Wigan played against Yeovil Town, James wasn’t playing. Quickly many people decided the reason was because he refused to wear a Poppy. This is just some of the attitudes from the general public:
As it turns out, James was actually injured and could not play.
Wigan manager Owen Coyle says he was “embarrassed” to be asked in this “day and age” (About why James was not playing)
http://www.independent.ie/sport/james-mcclean-was-not-dropped-for-refusing-to-wear-a-poppy-owen-coyle-29742128.html
http://tinyurl.com/JamesMcLean
No wonder Owen is embarrassed. For when someone makes the decision not to wear a poppy, that should be their choice & that is the end of the matter.
When it becomes a major talking point in the mainstream media as well as the forums, blogs and social media – then there is a serious issue developing here.
What has the Poppy become? Is it a symbol of remembrance or is it fast turning into an emblem of fascism where you risk the wrath of others if you choose not to wear one?
The Poppy used to be something that was “opt-in” – but it’s fast becoming something that is “opt-out” and whilst that will be great news for the politicians who see this as a way to whip up support for the armed forces despite the fact the country went to war on a lie, it is sad news for people who believed we live in a democracy where we are free to make a choice.
It’s ironic, but the people who who complain about others not wearing a Poppy, the people that hound the social media looking to berate anyone who dare not think like they do, the people who say “he should be shot” or “he should get out of our country”; these people are displaying all the hallmarks of a fascist ideology that the people of Britain fought and died to prevent us becoming.
Back to The Rangers Football Club.
The fans of this club also had their say on James McLean.
So, in a democratic country, people are now being dictated to on how they should think and act.
Does anyone see a problem here? Does anyone wonder how far this could actually go?
Let’s go back a few years to 2001 and the last game played before Remembrance Sunday between Rangers & Aberdeen.
Not a Poppy in sight.
So how did we arrive at today’s situation where people are being targeted for not wearing one? Well part of the reason lies with the way this has developed over the last 10 years. Slowly but surely the type of Poppy fascism has grown and people better take note before it gets out of hand.
Back in 2001 the club would’ve probably had a minutes silence to pay their respects. Today it’s canons at the side of the pitch and official videos of laying wreaths.
But hang on you might say! What’s the problem here? Why shouldn’t they do these things?
Well there are two things that are wrong here.
The first is the way the whole situation has developed over the last 10 years from something that used to be solemn & dignified into a situation where people are actually going out their way to pass judgement over others because they have a different viewpoint.
The second thing is the hypocrisy.
You may notice above I described this club as “The Rangers Football Club” and simply not “Rangers”. There is a good reason for that.
This is to make a distinction between the club that was formed in 1872 and the club that was formed in 2012. You see the original Rangers went into liquidation and a new club was formed that took on the old name.
Why did Rangers go into liquidation?
Over a long period of time, the then chairman David Murray used a scheme to pay players which quite literally meant they had to pay little or no tax. It was known as an Employment Benefit Trust where the players were paid “loans” from an offshore trust which meant they weren’t classed as earnings which meant they weren’t paying any tax.
Nice.
HMRC decided to challenge this which, to cut a long story short, eventually consigned the club to liquidation.
http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/rangers-ebt-timeline.2013024117
The club could owe HMRC anything up to £75m in total, depending on which way the HMRC investigation goes which is due to be heard between January and March 2014. (Even though the club went into liquidation, HMRC are pursuing this to the end because if they win this case then it could lead to similar cases against other football clubs)
http://news.stv.tv/west-central/239433-rangers-ebt-tax-case-hmrc-appeal-to-be-heard-in-public-judge-rules/
Now what does the Rangers tax affairs have to do with anything?
Well it was HMRC that eventually switched the lights out at Rangers. They were the biggest creditor and they voted against a CVA which consigned the club to liquidation.
But have you yet worked out the great Rangers hypocrisy?
Well first of all a new club was quickly setup to replace the old one and they have taken on the name and claimed historical titles that the old club won. But they didn’t claim the historical debt – much of which is still outstanding and owed to HMRC.
Today they will put on a jingoistic display with members of the armed forces, canons and all the pomp and ceremony that comes with it in their love affair with the British Military.
And woe betide anyone who refused to wear a Poppy and think and act as they want you to.
But for 10 years when they were dodging out of paying tax at a time when the army was in Iraq & Afghanistan and complaining of not having sufficient equipment.
Army denied vital equipment in Iraq and Afghanistan
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/7371543/Army-denied-vital-equipment-in-Iraq-and-Afghanistan-claims-former-SAS-head.html
Just five bullets for each soldier
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1229995/Leaked-Army-files-Iraq-reveal-appalling-failures-equip-soldiers.html
Troops sent to Iraq without sufficient body armour, Chilcot inquiry told
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/feb/01/iraq-inquiry-body-armour
And as the fans rush to their keyboards to complain about minute silences or footballers not wearing a Poppy, some even suggesting people should be shot (don’t you love democracy?) – the question has to be asked: “Do you have any respect at all for the military or do you just want to be seen to be showing respect?”
I have read many things since Rangers went into liquidation and the fight against HMRC. It has been all over the news for the best part of 2 years and anyone with a remote interest in football will know about the shoddy tax affairs with Rangers.
I’ll tell you one thing I haven’t read:
I have never read any comment from any Rangers fan suggesting that the club pays back the money owed to HMRC
No-one at the club, old or new, from the fans to the officials wants to pay back the money owed to the taxpayer which is owed in the name of Rangers.
The new club just after it was formed actually had a share issue where it raised a reported £21m.
Not one penny was offered to HMRC (or any other creditor for that matter)
Now I am slightly confused. You see, I would have expected that this set of fans, this group of defenders of the crown, to be the FIRST to not only suggest, but DEMAND that every penny owed to Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs be paid back in full.
I would have expected this elite group of people to be the very ones to ensure that every penny owed in their club’s name be paid back – we can’t have the armed forces going to war with insufficient equipment, right? You would think that this group of people who hold the forces in such high esteem would be DESPERATE to make sure all this money is paid back to HMRC.
I would have expected the club itself, the ones who now try to outdo themselves every year by putting on a display of patriotism, to set aside funds year after year to pay back HMRC so that in the end they can claim to owe nothing, to have paid their dues, to have wiped their debts, to have contributed to society like all other clubs in the United Kingdom.
But as mentioned near the start of this article, things aren’t what they appear to be.
It’s easy to put on a display and put on a show of propaganda. It’s another thing to actually pay your bills to HMRC. There are those in the country who contribute to the big pot and there are those who don’t contribute – but put on a big show to pretend they do.
Everyone has their own way of showing respect. For many it is a private thing.
For some it is a public display of sheer hypocrisy.
Since no Rangers fan actually wants the club to settle the debt with HMRC (I have never read anything to suggest they have) I can only conclude they were quite happy to see the club play its part in depriving the armed forces of much needed equipment.
And by that conclusion, not one of them has any right to cast judgement on any other member of the public on whether they choose to wear a Poppy or not – because without doubt, they are the biggest hypocrites on the island of Britain.
They want the image; the pomp; the ceremony; the regality.
They want to pay lip service.
They want to be seen.
But the truth is they were happy to see the club operate a tax scheme that deprived the very people they claim to support.
Up to £75m could be owed to the British Taxpayer in the name of Rangers. No Rangers fan cares a jot about the implications of this.
But if you choose not to wear a Poppy, well either you should be shot or you should leave the country, according to some anyway.
The Hypocrisy That Knows No Bounds
And it doesn’t end there either.
Because whilst this club ticks all the right boxes (in terms of public image) for promoting everything about Remembrance Day, the military, Queen & Country and all that, we have already established that a club called Rangers deliberately avoided paying tax for many many years. No-one from any Rangers club has any intention of paying any of that money back even though they managed to raise a share issue to the tune of £21m. So let’s get the facts right about this. There is propaganda, public perception & then there is the reality.
And the reality is – if anyone at this club really cared about the military, the forces, the honour; they would arrange to pay back every penny that is owed to the British Taxpayer.
But more worryingly, the end product to these jingoistic displays isn’t always the dignified and honourable outcome that they claim:
A recent “Armed Forces Day” at Ibrox. What kind of message does this send out to everyone?
http://tinyurl.com/lzhgdcn
Shameful: UK soldiers under investigation after they were photographed performing Nazi salute in Helmand
http://tinyurl.com/pzg7s9t
These members of the armed forces just happen to be The Rangers fans – The “Invicta Loyal” banner is from a supporters club in Kent.
Who has committed the biggest crime here – These soldiers, some proudly displaying a sectarian message, others displaying all the hallmarks of Hitler’s Third Reich, The Rangers Football Club for shafting the taxpayer for millions when the country was at war …..
….. or James McLean for not wearing a Poppy (even though he wasn’t playing so couldn’t wear one anyway)
You decide.
One last thing;
Today on the 11th hour of the 11th day; I shall pause for a moment and remember those who gave their lives so that I could live in a democratic country today. I will remember them in my own way, in my private way and not in the way that is being forced upon me by the fascist element of the country today.
I will not be conditioned into supporting every war or every military campaign that the British forces were involved in. In a free and democratic society, I have the right to oppose war.
To those who tell me I have to act and think as they do, I say to hell with you and to hell with the people who start war through greed and corruption. To hell with anyone who takes the country into war on a lie and to hell with fascism and all that it stands for and everyone who supports it.
Lest we forget.0 -
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SoulandForm wrote: »What right-wing Irish Americans say about Unionists and the British may well have a lot of truth in it but the fact that the nation they adore so much was founded on genocide and slavery, and they are usually incredibly racist towards people of colour at home so them going on about anything is just sickening; and its not only Ulster Unionists who feel that-
"I was not very long there until, like water, I found my own level. 'My people' – the people who knew about oppression, discrimination, prejudice, poverty and the frustration and despair that they produce – were not Irish Americans. They were black, Puerto Ricans, Chicanos. And those who were supposed to be 'my people', the Irish Americans who knew about English misrule and the Famine and supported the civil rights movement at home, and knew that Partition and England were the cause of the problem, looked and sounded to me like Orangemen. They said exactly the same things about blacks that the loyalists said about us at home. In New York I was given the key to the city by the mayor, an honor not to be sneezed at. I gave it to the Black Panthers."
Bernadette Devlin McAliskey.
So basically you are saying they cancelled one another out?
Should have took it to PM or got married or something.
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Hilly Bill wrote: »Whats wrong with that?Iwasfrozen wrote: »I don't get it. I'm not being obtuse or anything I literally don't see what's funny or why it's inappropriate.
So you think it's appropriate for people in fancy dress to take such a prominent position for a minute's silence?
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This discussion has been closed.
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