American soldiers think our press is bad to them, but we get off light compared to the Brits. One British soldier told me that when he made a journey of several hours across London, in uniform, not a single person acknowledged him. I said he should go to America where British soldiers are always welcome.I must admit this observation rings true with me. The British public does not seem to care to be very aware of the remarkable bravery and professionalism of it's citizens in uniform which is, well, it's just appalling. On the other hand I can't remember the last time I saw someone in military uniform where I live or near where I work in Central London. I wonder if there's some cause and effect there?
This site Support our Soldiers seems a worthy way to make your thanks count. Of course the Americans always seem to take these things to the next level. That said, I think Adopt a Sniper is also a worthy effort. I wonder if my vicar will let me put their flyer up? Hmmm...
3 comments:
It's worth noting that until comparatively recently it was against regs for British servicemen to wear uniform off duty, as this was seen as in invitation to Irish Republicans to shoot them in the back of the head.
Also, I think it's fair to say that it's just generally the case that British servicemen tend to wear civvies when off base far more than, say, their American cousins.
That said - yes. We've all heard the stories of soldiers coming back and getting hassled by aggro Muslims and pinkos with too much time on their hands. There's no doubt that British troops are generally treated very shabbily in comparison to the Americans. Noting that it's arguably always been the way doesn't really do much to excuse it. You also don't really see supporting the troops as a theme at election time either, in contrast to the USA.
A couple of years ago I was in Baltimore MD airport (the cheap way to get to Washington DC) and saw a long line of cammy-clad men and women clearly heading for Iraq. I was a bit choked up and called out, "Travel safe!" to them. Then I noticed a man in an American Legion (i.e., World War II) cap, working the line and thanking them. They looked a bit embarrassed, but I'm sure it was better than being a Vietnam vet returning to San Francisco in 1970 and being told not to wear your uniform downtown for fear of causing a riot.
But of course that was two years ago. I'm not sure the support would be as overt today.
Blue skies! -- Dan Ford
Intuition can be a dangerous and damaging thing. One the one hand the British Army are seen as the physical embodiment of some, apparently unsavoury, aspects of contemporary British Foreign Policy, whereas on the other we are simply doing our job (ie, that which we are told to do (and doing it well, IMO)). The connection between an unpopular war and those who are physically engaged in it at the operational level is intuitively attractive (even obvious to the point of being accepted as a given) but it is nevertheless flawed. The general population should confine their protests to the Government of the day rather than the military, for, at the operational level and above, the purpose of military activity is to create conditions for peace not war. The message to protesters should be clear; stop wining or pick up a weapon and man a post.
Also related is the idea that ‘if there were no soldiers/armies there would be no wars’. This is, of course, also a complete nonsense.
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