Yesterday was Armistice Day.
Along with many other people, I stopped work at 11am and stood for two minutes in silence remembering the atrocities of war and the valour of the young men and women who to this day continue to lay down their lives in the service of their country to preserve the safety, security and democratic rights of millions.
This year, I have been sickened by the very vocal objections to this commemoration by those who only have the right to voice their opinions because of the brave individuals who have fought for them. “It’s terrible” they opine “that you are celebrating war, which is a bad thing”.
That statement could be seen to be a moot point, of course. War may, in some circumstances, be the right thing to do. Was it right for instance, that Adolf Hitler be allowed to hasten his relentless march across Africa and Europe by invading and oppressing native peoples and quashing the diversity of mankind in his pursuit of the Aryan Dream? Of course it wasn’t, and in the end there was no option but to use military force to stop him. Is it ever right that one race try to enslave another or threaten its survival by sheer brute force and impose its beliefs and views upon others? Of course not! Believe what you like – believe little green men live on Mars if you like or believe that eating meat is sinful – but don’t try and impose your belief on me at the expense of my own. There is no situation, in terms of beliefs, where yours are right and mine are wrong. We are just different.
But the main issue is that they have missed the point of 11th November. It’s not about celebrating or glorifying war at all. It’s about remembering the best of the human character – bravery, dignity, sacrifice and friendship - and how our society is able to be what it is today because of it. It is about remembering the atrocity that is war, why it is sometimes necessary and providing a dignified means to show respect for those we have lost as a result.
Over the weekend I watched both the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance from the Royal Albert Hall and also the Sunday morning service at the Cenotaph. It always touches me that the veterans exhibit such pride in attending and I can imagine them as young men, full of bravado and outwardly confident, quaking inside at the prospect of going into war but doing it anyway not because they had been ordered to do so, but because they believed it was right. At the Albert Hall, the real tear jerker is the parade of war widows and orphans, people that have lost someone especially dear to them, and how they take such pride in wearing their late husband’s / boyfriend’s medals. I cry every time.
On a slightly more populist note, who hasn’t watched the final episode of the World War I Blackadder series and been touched by it.
I have no problem with someone not sharing my view that 11th November is something to commemorate (and I use the word ‘commemorate’, not ‘celebrate’) but I do have a problem with them trying to force others not to do so or rubbishing other perspectives about it. I also have a problem with them not recognising the amazing work done by charities such as the Royal British Legion or Help for Heroes, and how important it is. And I also have a problem with them trying to destroy the symbolism of the red poppy, surely the most potent and relevant symbol of remembrance there could possibly be and one which came about through a natural event in a very special place.
And so we come full circle. The objectors are able to say what they say because someone else has laid down his life and fought for his belief in a free world. It’s tragic that they can’t recognise that.
Tuesday 12 November 2013
Tuesday 5 November 2013
I'm sick of it......
Is anyone else sick to death of the phone hacking scandal?
I know I am. Every time I turn on the TV news, listen to the radio or open a newspaper there is the smug face and ginger Ninja mane of Rebecca Brooks looking back at me with her equally smug husband learing over her shoulder and Andy Coulson smirking in the background.
In my opinion, of course they did it and knew all about it! And if they didn’t they should be sacked for gross incompetence, because if one of my staff wanted to d something so momentous I’d certainly want to know about it and sign it off. We all know the media are crooks, up there with estate agents and running bankers a very close second. They manipulate, misrepresent and distort almost everything they report because by and large and barring enormous natural disasters like tsunami and earthquakes which cause immense human suffering, news is boring and dull and doesn’t sell papers. So it’s all spiced up, sexed up and amended to be more existing and juicy.
It would come as no surprise to me to learn that in actual fact the hacking is far worse than we even now realise and more ‘big’ names come out of the woodwork. Recently it has been revealed that police and palace officials have been selling confidential lists of mobile numbers belonging to public figures so maybe even Her Maj herself has been hacked. Now what a coup that would be!
They ought to just lock all these people up in cells which have 24 hour CCTV broadcasting live on the web and see how they like it if their every move, word and bodily function is available for all to view. Give ‘em a taste of their own medicine.
And while we’re about it, I am also sick of the ‘plebgate’ scandal which is following close behind phone hacking in news reports and the media generally. So what if some prat of a politician called a few coppers plebs and so what if he actually didn’t and they’re fibbing? Just like we know all of the media, estate agents and bankers are crooks, we also know that all politicians are idiots. How much is the bloody five second episode costing to investigate, is what I’d like to know? Shouldn’t they all just sit down together, say sorry (even if it’s not their fault), shake hands and agree to move on? That’s what we’d tell our children to do but we seem to be allowing this ridiculous episode to assume an importance far beyond what is deserved. Grow up Andrew Mitchell, and focus on what you were elected to do – run the country and represent your constituents instead of trumpeting your inflated view of your own importance!
A couple of years ago I resolved not to read a newspaper again or watch the news because it just made me frustrated and cross, and sometimes depressed. It’s a feeling I get when I’ve been on holiday and not read an English newspaper for two weeks, then get back on the plane, buy one and become increasingly bad tempered as I read through. In particular the Daily Mail, which never misses jumping on a band wagon and only really deserves to be called a comic and not a newspaper, produces this effect.
I think I am going to have to revisit my resolution. I can feel my blood pressure rising as I type. Doctor …….
I know I am. Every time I turn on the TV news, listen to the radio or open a newspaper there is the smug face and ginger Ninja mane of Rebecca Brooks looking back at me with her equally smug husband learing over her shoulder and Andy Coulson smirking in the background.
In my opinion, of course they did it and knew all about it! And if they didn’t they should be sacked for gross incompetence, because if one of my staff wanted to d something so momentous I’d certainly want to know about it and sign it off. We all know the media are crooks, up there with estate agents and running bankers a very close second. They manipulate, misrepresent and distort almost everything they report because by and large and barring enormous natural disasters like tsunami and earthquakes which cause immense human suffering, news is boring and dull and doesn’t sell papers. So it’s all spiced up, sexed up and amended to be more existing and juicy.
It would come as no surprise to me to learn that in actual fact the hacking is far worse than we even now realise and more ‘big’ names come out of the woodwork. Recently it has been revealed that police and palace officials have been selling confidential lists of mobile numbers belonging to public figures so maybe even Her Maj herself has been hacked. Now what a coup that would be!
They ought to just lock all these people up in cells which have 24 hour CCTV broadcasting live on the web and see how they like it if their every move, word and bodily function is available for all to view. Give ‘em a taste of their own medicine.
And while we’re about it, I am also sick of the ‘plebgate’ scandal which is following close behind phone hacking in news reports and the media generally. So what if some prat of a politician called a few coppers plebs and so what if he actually didn’t and they’re fibbing? Just like we know all of the media, estate agents and bankers are crooks, we also know that all politicians are idiots. How much is the bloody five second episode costing to investigate, is what I’d like to know? Shouldn’t they all just sit down together, say sorry (even if it’s not their fault), shake hands and agree to move on? That’s what we’d tell our children to do but we seem to be allowing this ridiculous episode to assume an importance far beyond what is deserved. Grow up Andrew Mitchell, and focus on what you were elected to do – run the country and represent your constituents instead of trumpeting your inflated view of your own importance!
A couple of years ago I resolved not to read a newspaper again or watch the news because it just made me frustrated and cross, and sometimes depressed. It’s a feeling I get when I’ve been on holiday and not read an English newspaper for two weeks, then get back on the plane, buy one and become increasingly bad tempered as I read through. In particular the Daily Mail, which never misses jumping on a band wagon and only really deserves to be called a comic and not a newspaper, produces this effect.
I think I am going to have to revisit my resolution. I can feel my blood pressure rising as I type. Doctor …….
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