British shopping center creates Christmas tree out of Remembrance Day poppies

[anotherone]

Does anyone else think that combining the remembrance of the birth of the Prince of Peace with the remembrance of those who fought and died in war is a bit messed up? It feels like a memorial to water created with desiccant.

[hawkeward]

That’s why this move is so nefarious!

[MadLibrarian]

No love for ANZAC Day?

[simonize]

@Ryuthrowsstuff

Internationally the poppies are more directly associated with Veterans. And the US equivilant holiday is Veteran’s Day. So its not exactly odd if the UK’s read has drifted closer to that.

And of course in the US it only became “Veteran’s Day,” in 1954. Previously it has been “Armistice Day.”

[anon73430903]

@L0ki

It used to be that you would only wear the poppy on the actual Remembrance Day, now we’ve reached a point where we’re apparently expected to wear it from about early October onwards and we get into spats with FIFA about whether our national team will wear jerseys emblazoned with a poppy or not.

Talking of which…

White poppy: How is it different from the red remembrance symbol?

[JonS]

@teknocholer

Showing “support for the Armed Forces Community” is a pretty distorted view of the meaning of Remembrance Day.

I don’t know how poppy day works in the UK.

Over here, the money raised selling poppies goes towards supporting veterans who - by definition - are part of the “Armed Forces Community”. From my perspective, the RBL spokesperson’s comment scans fine. But, as I said: I don’t know how poppy day works in the UK.

[teknocholer]

@JonS

I don’t know how poppy day works in the UK.

Neither do I, but Remembrance Day here in Canada puts the emphasis on the tragedy of war and the need to work for peace, while recognizing the sacrifice of those who fought.

In the US especially, but to a lesser extent here, the phrase “Support the Troops” is often right-wing code for “cheer on whatever current wars the government has sent the troops to die in”.

[Ryuthrowsstuff]

@teknocholer

the phrase “Support the Troops” is often right-wing code for “cheer on whatever current wars the government has sent the troops to die in”.

No it’s code for make sure to stand near the troops as often as possible. But also make sure to cut their pay, benefits, send them into unnecessary wars with out functional body armor or working equipment, force government shut downs that prevent them from being paid while requiring them to work, then fight them tooth and nail to avoid paying the back pay when you finally turn funding back on, and heavily incentivise that whole pay day loan thing that deliberately targets them. You know cause your buddy Craig runs that one, and Craig is a job creator.

[L0ki]

@MadLibrarian

No love for ANZAC Day?

Not in Britain, no.

I suspect most people wouldn’t have a clue what that is. A few more might go “Is that Gallipoli, wasn’t there a film with Mel Gibson?”.

I strongly suspect that we may start to see more reference to it in the next few years, now that we have apparently decided that we were all for our fellow Commonwealth members all along and they/you are now/have always been our very bestest friends.

For our fellow members of the Commonwealth it’s going to be a bit like having the school bully, who you thankfully have heard very little from since leaving school, popping up on LinkedIn twenty years later to reminisce about how great the good old days were and asking whether you can get him a job.

[FGD135]

#20 If you’re not willing to shell your own position, you’re not willing to win. [17]

[anon59592690]

Some funnies in that list; but missing “Incoming fire has the right of way.”