The Poppy

[lynchbhoy]

Hmmm, interesting to see who* played the entire 90 minutes at Centre Back for the "Rest of the World XI" in Reading last week:
http://www.readingfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10306~1874414,00.html
The game was in aid of these people:
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/
* - With a name like "Kenneth Edward Cunningham", d'ye think there's any chance he's a Prod? 

I'm friendly with cunninghams who are prod and cath ...
anyhow so what !

"So what"?

Considering that certain posters such as yourself get so agitated by your fellow Irish men and women in Northern Ireland who choose to wear a Poppy etc, I'm surprised there wasn't more comment at a Southern Irishman like Cunningham, with 70 Republic of Ireland caps to his name, including as Captain, helping out a cause such as this one.

Some sort of a "Fcuk You!" message, perhaps? 

that doesnt make any sense - rather childish I would have thought

as per usual there is not one jot of a reason for posting that , no context, no point and again, so what if someone prod/cath/islamic/jewish or jedi wore a poppy !
its not the worst thing in the world - some may disagree and say that is shouldnt represent the current (illegal?) wars being picked by us and british against sitting (oil rich) ducks like iraq etc but
as you have pointed out that the poppy is to commemorate all the dead from all sides from all the wars etc (including the dead of the british/german/us/japanese/IRA volunteers/french partisans etc etc)
but the question still remains (rhetorical it is though) that why are there so many 'badge wearers' by proportion in th enorth of Ireland in comparison to the amount not wearing these millions of bought poppies in England ?
badge wearers indeed
You can quote wiki or noddy or even hand christian anderson  for your answer - though doubtless is will as usual contain no content or context ! 

[Evil Genius]

that doesnt make any sense - rather childish I would have thought

as per usual there is not one jot of a reason for posting that , no context, no point and again, so what if someone prod/cath/islamic/jewish or jedi wore a poppy !
its not the worst thing in the world - some may disagree and say that is shouldnt represent the current (illegal?) wars being picked by us and british against sitting (oil rich) ducks like iraq etc but
as you have pointed out that the poppy is to commemorate all the dead from all sides from all the wars etc (including the dead of the british/german/us/japanese/IRA volunteers/french partisans etc etc)
but the question still remains (rhetorical it is though) that why are there so many 'badge wearers' by proportion in th enorth of Ireland in comparison to the amount not wearing these millions of bought poppies in England ?
badge wearers indeed
You can quote wiki or noddy or even hand christian anderson  for your answer - though doubtless is will as usual contain no content or context ! 

Can I take it from that "stream of (un)consciousness" that you have no disagreement with, or even comment on, a Dubliner like Cunningham, who captained his country on a number of occasions, publicly supporting a cause like "Help For Heroes"?

Remarkable. 

[lynchbhoy]

that doesnt make any sense - rather childish I would have thought

as per usual there is not one jot of a reason for posting that , no context, no point and again, so what if someone prod/cath/islamic/jewish or jedi wore a poppy !
its not the worst thing in the world - some may disagree and say that is shouldnt represent the current (illegal?) wars being picked by us and british against sitting (oil rich) ducks like iraq etc but
as you have pointed out that the poppy is to commemorate all the dead from all sides from all the wars etc (including the dead of the british/german/us/japanese/IRA volunteers/french partisans etc etc)
but the question still remains (rhetorical it is though) that why are there so many 'badge wearers' by proportion in th enorth of Ireland in comparison to the amount not wearing these millions of bought poppies in England ?
badge wearers indeed
You can quote wiki or noddy or even hand christian anderson  for your answer - though doubtless is will as usual contain no content or context ! 

Can I take it from that "stream of (un)consciousness" that you have no disagreement with, or even comment on, a Dubliner like Cunningham, who captained his country on a number of occasions, publicly supporting a cause like "Help For Heroes"?

Remarkable. 

whats remarkable about people having their own thoughts and preferences - oh I forgot that this was not allowed up until recently in the apartheid-esque statelet you were brought up in - so how could you therefore understand any such notions and such freedom of choice !!

[Evil Genius]

whats remarkable about people having their own thoughts and preferences - oh I forgot that this was not allowed up until recently in the apartheid-esque statelet you were brought up in - so how could you therefore understand any such notions and such freedom of choice !!

There is nothing remarkable about people having their own thoughts, preferences and freedoms imo. After all, I am the person who earlier posted:


Anyhow, I understand and respect why many people decline to buy a Poppy, or even object to it: that should be their right, without comment or prejudice.
I just wish those of us who do choose to wear the Poppy were accorded the same freedom and respect, without others casting their own petty and prejudiced motives on us, as though we were all "fenian-hating, f* ck-You Brits" etc,  solely preoccupied with flaunting our Britishness in the face of our neighbours.

However my point was not to question whethet Cunningham should be allowed  to act as he does.

Rather it was to wonder what other Irish people think about a notable Irishman like him raising money and publicity for "Help For Heroes" - something closely related to the Poppy Appeal, which seems to attract so much scorn and criticism from so many people on this site.

Any thoughts. LB? Are you reluctant to criticise his choice for some reason? Or perhaps if you accept his choice, the contrast in the way you scorn other Irish people who make similar choices would show you up for being a hypocrite?

[Keyser soze]

Having read most but not all of the thread I may be guilty of stating what has already been said. If so, beg pardon in advance.

My personal reason for not liking the poppy and the remembrance services is that for me it was just the winding up of the marching season and was used as a good excuse for unionists to have another parade.  Whether this is a true interpretation or not i imagine that it is a feeling shared by many nationalists and would be a strong contributing factor in their distaste for poppy wearing et al. Of course there is the distaste for the security forces who I believe oppressed our community in a none too subtle way during the recent war. Additionally when you have the BBC, for instance, forcing people to wear it, this also contributes to the resentment.

Having said that I would defend the right of any person or group to remember or honour their dead in a tasteful manner, and remembrance day is generally inoffensive and dignified, though on occasion it lapses into the realms of gunghoism from the commentators and is shamelessly used by politicians [on a UK wide basis] for their own ends. I would condemn outright the scumbags who desecrated the wreaths in Derry at the weekend, these people lack any decency, let alone a political agenda and i could guarantee that 99.9% of the population have no time for scum like these.

I have no problem with anyone who wears a poppy, or  attends a remembrance service, from whatever background. I do believe though that there are many people who wear it for all the wrong reasons, particularly in ni

[MW]

that doesnt make any sense - rather childish I would have thought

as per usual there is not one jot of a reason for posting that , no context, no point and again, so what if someone prod/cath/islamic/jewish or jedi wore a poppy !
its not the worst thing in the world - some may disagree and say that is shouldnt represent the current (illegal?) wars being picked by us and british against sitting (oil rich) ducks like iraq etc but
as you have pointed out that the poppy is to commemorate all the dead from all sides from all the wars etc (including the dead of the british/german/us/japanese/IRA volunteers/french partisans etc etc)
but the question still remains (rhetorical it is though) that why are there so many 'badge wearers' by proportion in th enorth of Ireland in comparison to the amount not wearing these millions of bought poppies in England ?
badge wearers indeed
You can quote wiki or noddy or even hand christian anderson  for your answer - though doubtless is will as usual contain no content or context ! 

Can I take it from that "stream of (un)consciousness" that you have no disagreement with, or even comment on, a Dubliner like Cunningham, who captained his country on a number of occasions, publicly supporting a cause like "Help For Heroes"?

Remarkable. 

whats remarkable about people having their own thoughts and preferences - oh I forgot that this was not allowed up until recently in the apartheid-esque statelet you were brought up in - so how could you therefore understand any such notions and such freedom of choice !!

Nurse! Nurse! He's off again!

BTW I think there's a massive case of egotism going on from some posters here - "themmus are doing that just to piss off ussuns"...

[Tonto]

but the question still remains (rhetorical it is though) that why are there so many 'badge wearers' by proportion in th enorth of Ireland in comparison to the amount not wearing these millions of bought poppies in England ?

I did a quick search on google to see if there was any evidence to back that up. Could you point me in the direction of said evidence or is your "evidence" merely anecdotal?

[MW]

Is it more than a coincidence that most of those people who I have based my observations on would be from Loyalist working-class areas as opposed to comfy middle-class areas ? Unionists from middle-class areas tend not to bother - it's either they have no relatives killed in the wars or they couldn't give a toss and I reckon it's the latter - they are more concerned with paying the mortgage and making sure daddy plays golf on saturday mornings while mommy has afternoon tea in the church hall on sunday afternoons

Also, I am not trying to be insulting or be a WUM, just telling it like I see it

Hmm, okay then...since you're imputing people's motivations, tell me why you think I might have gone to the cenotaph on Remembrance Sunday...

[Olaf]

Hmmm, interesting to see who* played the entire 90 minutes at Centre Back for the "Rest of the World XI" in Reading last week:
http://www.readingfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10306~1874414,00.html
The game was in aid of these people:
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/
* - With a name like "Kenneth Edward Cunningham", d'ye think there's any chance he's a Prod? 

I'm friendly with cunninghams who are prod and cath ...
anyhow so what !

"So what"?

Considering that certain posters such as yourself get so agitated by your fellow Irish men and women in Northern Ireland who choose to wear a Poppy etc, I'm surprised there wasn't more comment at a Southern Irishman like Cunningham, with 70 Republic of Ireland caps to his name, including as Captain, helping out a cause such as this one.

Some sort of a "Fcuk You!" message, perhaps? 

that doesnt make any sense -

as per usual there is not one jot of a reason for posting that , no context, no point and again, so what if someone prod/cath/islamic/jewish or jedi wore a poppy !
its not the worst thing in the world - some may disagree and say that is shouldnt represent the current (illegal?) wars being picked by us and british against sitting (oil rich) ducks like iraq etc but
as you have pointed out that the poppy is to commemorate all the dead from all sides from all the wars etc (including the dead of the british/german/us/japanese/IRA volunteers/french partisans etc etc)
but the question still remains (rhetorical it is though) that why are there so many 'badge wearers' by proportion in th enorth of Ireland in comparison to the amount not wearing these millions of bought poppies in England ?
badge wearers indeed
You can quote wiki or noddy or even hand christian anderson  for your answer - though doubtless is will as usual contain no content or context

???Your first sentence in this post as emboldened should really have been your last.

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

Its simple lads, if the Brits could manage not to start another war from this point on, in 60 years there will be f**k all need for these poppies and future generations can live on without this antiquated stupidity.

Also if British/Unionist culture could move on from anti-Catholicism and related marches and vendettas such as the 12'Th marches, the Apprentice Boys marches, the sectarian Guy Forkes Day or the belief that the Poppish Plot was real as opposed to the proven propaganda. Or as recent as World War I when Lloyd George tried to bring down the Asquith government on the basis of "a most Catholic of conspiracies" i.e. claiming the Catholics controlled the upper echelons of British society (sounds similar to Germany, 1930's and the Jews!!!). Or maybe remove its sectarian model for head of state (one that actually discriminates against women, divorcees, non-Anglicans etc.)

[lynchbhoy]

whats remarkable about people having their own thoughts and preferences - oh I forgot that this was not allowed up until recently in the apartheid-esque statelet you were brought up in - so how could you therefore understand any such notions and such freedom of choice !!

There is nothing remarkable about people having their own thoughts, preferences and freedoms imo. After all, I am the person who earlier posted:


Anyhow, I understand and respect why many people decline to buy a Poppy, or even object to it: that should be their right, without comment or prejudice.
I just wish those of us who do choose to wear the Poppy were accorded the same freedom and respect, without others casting their own petty and prejudiced motives on us, as though we were all "fenian-hating, f* ck-You Brits" etc,  solely preoccupied with flaunting our Britishness in the face of our neighbours.

However my point was not to question whethet Cunningham should be allowed  to act as he does.

Rather it was to wonder what other Irish people think about a notable Irishman like him raising money and publicity for "Help For Heroes" - something closely related to the Poppy Appeal, which seems to attract so much scorn and criticism from so many people on this site.

Any thoughts. LB? Are you reluctant to criticise his choice for some reason? Or perhaps if you accept his choice, the contrast in the way you scorn other Irish people who make similar choices would show you up for being a hypocrite?

am pretty sure he is not one of the problematic badge wearers -so again yours is another non-point !

maybe all you ooo's (orange order ostriches  ) might compare the wearing/buying of poppies in England to the north of Ireland next year(11 months time) and make the realisation yourselves rather than have a load of posters on here point it out for you !

[Evil Genius]

Its simple lads, if the Brits could manage not to start another war from this point on, in 60 years there will be f**k all need for these poppies and future generations can live on without this antiquated stupidity.

Also if British/Unionist culture could move on from anti-Catholicism and related marches and vendettas such as the 12'Th marches, the Apprentice Boys marches, the sectarian Guy Forkes Day or the belief that the Poppish Plot was real as opposed to the proven propaganda. Or as recent as World War I when Lloyd George tried to bring down the Asquith government on the basis of "a most Catholic of conspiracies" i.e. claiming the Catholics controlled the upper echelons of British society (sounds similar to Germany, 1930's and the Jews!!!). Or maybe remove its sectarian model for head of state (one that actually discriminates against women, divorcees, non-Anglicans etc.)

"Or as recent as World War I when Lloyd George tried..." 

Meanwhile, in other news from Mayo, a strange contraption known as a "horseless carriage" was reported as being seen in the main street in Ballintubber. It was said by amazed witnesses to be proceeding at an estimated 7 miles per hour (Irish miles) and caused a large sow to have to shift from out of the gutter rather more quickly than you might expect. Mrs. O'Grady reported that her hens have since stopped laying.

And in Belderrig, the local Priest, Father Casey, stuck a man to the road for four hours, as penance for confessing that he had been entertaining impure thoughts of a woman - and him only married to her for 28 years! (See page 7 for an artist's impression of the scene)...

[Evil Genius]

whats remarkable about people having their own thoughts and preferences - oh I forgot that this was not allowed up until recently in the apartheid-esque statelet you were brought up in - so how could you therefore understand any such notions and such freedom of choice !!

There is nothing remarkable about people having their own thoughts, preferences and freedoms imo. After all, I am the person who earlier posted:


Anyhow, I understand and respect why many people decline to buy a Poppy, or even object to it: that should be their right, without comment or prejudice.
I just wish those of us who do choose to wear the Poppy were accorded the same freedom and respect, without others casting their own petty and prejudiced motives on us, as though we were all "fenian-hating, f* ck-You Brits" etc,  solely preoccupied with flaunting our Britishness in the face of our neighbours.

However my point was not to question whethet Cunningham should be allowed  to act as he does.

Rather it was to wonder what other Irish people think about a notable Irishman like him raising money and publicity for "Help For Heroes" - something closely related to the Poppy Appeal, which seems to attract so much scorn and criticism from so many people on this site.

Any thoughts. LB? Are you reluctant to criticise his choice for some reason? Or perhaps if you accept his choice, the contrast in the way you scorn other Irish people who make similar choices would show you up for being a hypocrite?

am pretty sure he is not one of the problematic badge wearers -so again yours is another non-point !

maybe all you ooo's (orange order ostriches  ) might compare the wearing/buying of poppies in England to the north of Ireland next year(11 months time) and make the realisation yourselves rather than have a load of posters on here point it out for you !

So it's a problem if someone wears a Poppy to support the dead, injured and bereaved of myriad conflicts since the 1st World War, including the fight against Fascism etc (RBL).

However it's perfectly acceptable to raise money and publicity etc "Help For Heroes", which describes itself as an organisation "formed to help those who have been wounded in Britain's current conflicts" (NI, Iraq, Afghanistan etc):
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/

I'm still not sure why you are so reluctant to condemn Cunningham for his "treachery towards Mother Ireland" etc, but it doesn't half make you look a dickhead. 

maybe all you ooo's (orange order ostriches  ) might compare the wearing/buying of poppies in England to the north of Ireland next year(11 months time) and make the realisation yourselves rather than have a load of posters on here point it out for you !

Afaiaa, there is not a single member of the Orange Order who posts on this site, so you're about as accurate in your attempt to smear people like me as you are with your bogus rant about the number of Poppies sold in NI versus GB etc.

Or didn't you notice when I pointed out that the RBL sold 26 million Poppies last year? Maybe a million Ulster Prods did buy two dozen each, but I doubt it somehow...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8333733.stm

[AZOffaly]

It's very hard to get stats on number of people wearing the Poppy, which is why 'evidence' is all anecdotal. Mybe this is an indication

In 2006, Northern Ireland raised £885,000 for the appeal. I don't know how much per poppy to give a number sold amount. Also I'm sure it includes non-poppy donations.
In 2006 the overall figure raised by the Legion was 27.7 million. So, the Northern Ireland amount was about 3.2 percent of funds.

Given the fact that NI makes up approx 3% of the population of the UK as well (office of National Statistics for the UK - 2009), it would appear that at face value NI is raising approx it's fair share.

Of course the Caveat here is that in real terms, it's more likely that 1.5% of the population is raising 3% of the funds, but I'm sure a similar deduction could be made for various other groups in the UK that would not buy the Poppy.

anyway, there's a few actual numbers for ye to cogitate on

[lynchbhoy]

whats remarkable about people having their own thoughts and preferences - oh I forgot that this was not allowed up until recently in the apartheid-esque statelet you were brought up in - so how could you therefore understand any such notions and such freedom of choice !!

There is nothing remarkable about people having their own thoughts, preferences and freedoms imo. After all, I am the person who earlier posted:


Anyhow, I understand and respect why many people decline to buy a Poppy, or even object to it: that should be their right, without comment or prejudice.
I just wish those of us who do choose to wear the Poppy were accorded the same freedom and respect, without others casting their own petty and prejudiced motives on us, as though we were all "fenian-hating, f* ck-You Brits" etc,  solely preoccupied with flaunting our Britishness in the face of our neighbours.

However my point was not to question whethet Cunningham should be allowed  to act as he does.

Rather it was to wonder what other Irish people think about a notable Irishman like him raising money and publicity for "Help For Heroes" - something closely related to the Poppy Appeal, which seems to attract so much scorn and criticism from so many people on this site.

Any thoughts. LB? Are you reluctant to criticise his choice for some reason? Or perhaps if you accept his choice, the contrast in the way you scorn other Irish people who make similar choices would show you up for being a hypocrite?

am pretty sure he is not one of the problematic badge wearers -so again yours is another non-point !

maybe all you ooo's (orange order ostriches  ) might compare the wearing/buying of poppies in England to the north of Ireland next year(11 months time) and make the realisation yourselves rather than have a load of posters on here point it out for you !

So it's a problem if someone wears a Poppy to support the dead, injured and bereaved of myriad conflicts since the 1st World War, including the fight against Fascism etc (RBL).

However it's perfectly acceptable to raise money and publicity etc "Help For Heroes", which describes itself as an organisation "formed to help those who have been wounded in Britain's current conflicts" (NI, Iraq, Afghanistan etc):
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/

I'm still not sure why you are so reluctant to condemn Cunningham for his "treachery towards Mother Ireland" etc, but it doesn't half make you look a d**khead. 

maybe all you ooo's (orange order ostriches  ) might compare the wearing/buying of poppies in England to the north of Ireland next year(11 months time) and make the realisation yourselves rather than have a load of posters on here point it out for you !

Afaiaa, there is not a single member of the Orange Order who posts on this site, so you're about as accurate in your attempt to smear people like me as you are with your bogus rant about the number of Poppies sold in NI versus GB etc.

Or didn't you notice when I pointed out that the RBL sold 26 million Poppies last year? Maybe a million Ulster Prods did buy two dozen each, but I doubt it somehow...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8333733.stm

obv you dont like the fact that I wont condemn a man for exercising his right to freedom of choice !

also that you cannot comprehend that proportionally more wearers in the north of Ireland than wearers in England as viewed by more or less every person that has been in both places says it all !
I think you are more enid blyton than evil Gaafan !