As is traditional the first week or
two in November is dedicated to remembrance day activities which will culminate
in the ceremonies to mark Remembrance Day coming up this weekend , seeing as my
regular readers would probably already be aware of exactly how remembrance day
is commemorated via a previous post written by yours truly (see: http://jamaicatory.blogspot.com/2012/11/i-vow-to-thee-my-country-remembrance.html),
there is really no need to go over all of that again , however there is
something else that has caught my attention this week, that I feel the need to
talk about.
As was already explained in an
earlier post, one of the traditions associated with Remembrance Day (also
called Veterans Day and Armistice Day) is the Poppy appeal, which is launched by
veterans organizations across the Commonwealth (in our case the Royal Jamaica
Legion) , these poppies are normally used to raise funds to support those who
have served with Pride in their country’s armed forces and are now retired,
This year the Legion plans to donate the funds garnered from the appeal to the Curphey Home for ex-servicemen in Newport,
Manchester. Being a traditionalist and a patriot anything that will support the
cause of those who have served the Crown so ably is something that will
certainly receive my approval, from all indications, things seem to be going
well, as it is clear that the Legion is enlisting all the help it can get to
see the poppies distributed island wide.
However while it seems that the
Jamaica Legion is on track with it’s goal, the same cannot be said of all it’s
fellow Legions within the British Commonwealth Ex-Services League, it seems
that some of the legions are facing stiff competition from liberals who have
designed their own version of the poppy in order to compete with the legion.
Traditionally poppies are red with a black centre, designed to look like the Poppy
(Papaver rhoeas) plant , traditionally made from paper (British) or plastic
(Canadian), Jamaica uses both designs, The Poppy was used as a symbol for
represent fallen heroes, those who gave their all to defend their countries and
the liberties we now take for granted.
The white Poppy on the other hand came into being sometime later, it is
designed similar to the traditional poppy however this counterfeit is white
instead of red and has a green centre rather than a black one.
The rationale for the white poppy
is that it symbolizes peace, whereas the red poppy is used to glorify war, as
such the white is seen by some as a symbol of pacifism. But is that the real story
behind the white poppy? As was stated earlier the Red Poppy appeal is traditional
sponsored by veterans organisations and normally has the patronage of both the
government and the military, it’s purpose is to fund means of supporting veterans. That begs the Question, who sponsors the white poppy appeal? And where
do the funds go? The truth is that unlike the red poppy which has a clear
purpose, the only real purpose that the white poppy serves is to create
confusion and to distract from the real poppy appeal, as many so called peace
organisations jump on the bandwagon to distribute white poppies, which means
that some of the funds that would normally go into the poppy appeal are
diverted elsewhere, no wonder the Legions are annoyed by it’s existence.
Canadian veterans affairs minister
Julian Fantino was heard decrying the white poppy as being disrespectful, he
further continued by saying that “It really does show a total lack of respect
for what Remembrance Day truly stands for, and to try and intervene in this
fashion is totally disrespectful, and I would suspect that most
reasonable Canadians would see it that way.” To be frank, I agree entirely with
the minister, the symbol of the white poppy was not created as a means to
support peace at all, in fact it is the Red Poppy that was really created as a
symbol of peace, the peace that those who served in the armed forces earned
even at the very cost of their lives. Contrary to left wing propaganda that the
white poppy symbolizes peace while the red poppy glorifies war, in truth the
red poppy is used to represent the sacrifices that our veterans made to ensure
that we can have peace now, No false poppy can ever be more powerful symbol of
peace than that.
Though thankfully I cannot ever
say and I have ever seen a white poppy here in Jamaica and hopefully I never
will, the creation of this poppy goes to show just how much the left is really
offended by the idea of peace, freedom or even patriotism itself, they have
never failed to make their presence felt with their invention of this
counterfeit whose only purpose is to show just how contemptuous of those who have actually served their country and so try to malign them in his ghastly and underhanded
manner . The Left have again shown their true colours, so my advice is to
reject this farce, support your local legion
by getting a real poppy and join with our veterans this remembrance day
in singing that good old patriotic hymn:
I vow to thee my country, all earthly things
above, entire, whole and perfect the service of my love;The love that ask no questions,
the love that stands the test, that lays upon the alter the dearest and the
best; The love that never falters, the
love that pays the price, the love that
makes undaunted the final sacrifice. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiFpkn1QHAM
And we will remember them.....Lest We Forget
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