Poppy appeal posters vandalised in Medway

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• Poppy appeal posters vandalised in Medway

  10/29/2009 12:09:53 PM
  by Heinrich Dorfmann

  Royal British Legion member Alan Collins says that protesting about troops fighting in Iraq and elsewhere should be "done in a legal, peaceful and respectful way." But when millions of people not in favour of the war on Iraq made their feelings known, Blair, Bush and their cronies completely ignored the public and did what they wanted to anyway. And how can Mr Collins complain about this poster protest being a "criminal act" when you bear in mind the enormity of the criminal act committed by Blair's government in sending troops to fight to enrich American and British companies who wanted access to, and control of, Saddam's oil, in the first place?

• Disgusting

  10/29/2009 3:35:43 PM
  by Stu

  Whislt the media never seems to comment on this fact, there are many people like myself who do strongly believe the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are wholly justified. We are blessed to live in a society where we have the freedom to disagree with each other, but this hijacking of the Poppy Campaign is disgusting and disrespectful of those troops and their families who DO believe our forces are doing some good.

• Vandilising Poppy Appeal Posters

  10/29/2009 3:54:12 PM
  by Sarah

  How easy and trivial is doing this. A patheic little protest that bears no real reality on how to solve the problems. Next election get off your comfy chairs, in front of your DVD's etc and vote for the government you want instead of moaning. But, please remember that, unlike you, these people have suffered and their families are in need of support and while you are all quite happy to sit back and have patronising opinions not many of you would even consider getting out in your back yard (if a good Soap episode was on) and doing something constructive. I am not in favour of this war at all but I do appreciate the distress and financial problems this causes for army personnel families and also the grief that they have to try and explain to their children that the loss of a parent was in vain and not appreciated by ignorant members of the community.

• if you make the rules you don't have to break any

  10/29/2009 5:52:24 PM
  by chris pannell

  How can you protest legally when Blair and his ilk declare every effective means of protest illegal? Blair asked MI5 to "sex up" the evidence of mass destruction in Iraq, so he misled the public and the people brave enough to go and do the fighting. If Blair did not make the law himself he would have broken it by now. He'll never answer for it though.

• Poppies

  10/29/2009 6:18:46 PM
  by Lisa

  What an offensive comment - the people the RBL, Remembrance Day and the Poppies represent have nothing to do with the actions of the world leaders. They serve and have served their country which is more than some amongst us have done. If it wasn't for these brave people you would not be able to think how you do, let alone voice your opinion. I hope those who defaced the posters are caught and dealt with.

• Not forgetting...

  10/29/2009 11:38:19 PM
  by Bill Ashcroft

  While the likes of the Daily Mail and Telegraph have expressed outrage about the actions of those who raised the issue in this way, they have all failed to mention that 222 British soldiers have lost their lives in Afghanistan. However, those responsible for the subvertising clearly didn't forget since the Canterbury Street poster at least had also adorned with the figure (221 at that time). It's all very well for the Royal British Legion to say they don't get involved in the rights or wrongs of the conflicts our troops get sent to but fortunately the British public are concerned. Recent polls showed that the majority of people question why we are still keeping our troops out there and think they should be brought home. A little minor criminal damage to a poster is hardly a big deal compared to those suffering due to the continued conflict, both there and at home.

• poppy poster vandalism

  10/30/2009 12:28:57 AM
  by simon

  It isn't just a criminal act, it was also cowardly and shameful and the excuse of it being a 'protest' is pathetic. If you can't seperate the issue of the annual Poppy Appeal from the rights and wrongs of the Afghan/Iraq wars then you've not got much of a sound arguement to start with. When I donate money to a service charity, I want my money to be used to help servicemen and women, who don't have much of a choice about where they are sent. I dont want my money to be spent replacing posters that have been damaged by some idiot that can't protest with integrity and honesty.

• Home Before Christmas

  10/30/2009 1:02:54 AM
  by Mrs S Conner

  I don't like the way this article uses the emotive terms 'vandalised' and 'defaced' as if the modifications were somehow mindless or disrespectful. I'm also at a loss as to why the Royal British Legion should complain since their appeal for people to buy poppies will clearly be unaffected - perhaps even boosted - by the extra attention the posters have been given. Asking the public to give a little cash in honour of the fallen and to help take care of injured veterans and their families is all well and good but I for one would rather have my loved one brought back home. Suggesting that our corrupt politicians should be held to account and our boys brought back home isn't in anyway dishonouring those who serve for our country. As the police spokesperson said, this is a time of year when we should all remember those sent to fight overseas and I think these modified posters are totally within that tradition. Further to that tradition, lets bring them all home before xmas!

• Poppy appeal posters vandalised in Medway

  10/30/2009 4:30:49 AM
  by Jon

  Mr. Dorfmann's logic is deeply flawed. Crime by a third party is no excuse for crime against some one else. I'm sure that he has heard the statement that two wrongs do not make a right. The RBL, of which I am a proud member, strives to support service men and women willing to place their lives down in the defense of others. If you don't like the political decisions being made by Blair or his successor, by all means vote for candidates/parties that support your view. Better yet, stand up, be counted and put yourself forward for office. There is no honour in sneak thieves destroying a charity's posters and pretending that they are doing something "good." "Millions" of people are quite capable of changing a government's mind through peaceful action. Pasting bits over someone else's posters won't do it and is childish, irresponsible and antisocial.

• Poppy appeal posters vandalised in Medway

  10/30/2009 12:12:53 PM
  by Alan Smith

  It is said there is a time and a place for everything, and this act was neither. The words "Lest we forget" are much used at this time of year and their meaning should be paramount above all else.

• "Lest we forget"??

  10/30/2009 5:50:09 PM
  by Scrumpy

  "Lest we forget"? Our politicians have clearly forgotten the horrors of past wars and are quite happy to send increasing large numbers of another generation to die in a directionless, pointless imperialist war - not to mention the countless innocent Afghan / Iraqi civilians murdered in the past 8 years. in the UK alone, at least 1million people marched in opposition to the Iraq war - they were ignored by our politicians - clear evidence that protest movements need a diversity of tactics. I'd rather the British Legion didn't have to put out appeals to raise funds for war veterans - so we should do all we can to oppose these wars. Some reading for you: http://www.mfaw.net/ http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/12/world/europe/12britain.html?_r=1 http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/oct/24/soldier-protest-war-afghanistan-london And some watching: http://video.aol.co.uk/video-detail/chomsky-on-pulling-out-of-afghanistan/10377495

• Timely Reminder

  10/30/2009 10:57:35 PM
  by Gary Owens

  I hate how easily people can be manipulated with talk of 'patriotism' and these posters a timely reminder that we don't have to support these mindless wars in order to care deeply about what happens to the young boys who get sent out to fight them. However I disagree with the notion that we should waste time and money prosecuting Blair. We should instead send him to Iraq or Afghanistan without body guards to work alongside the troops he sent there and see how long he lasts. In fact, lets send all the lying cheating war mongering politicians out there and send some of the soldiers home in their place.

• compensate soldiers& collateral damage from Oil corporations

  10/31/2009 8:57:56 PM
  by james

  the oil companies are getting pipelines through Afghanistan & oil from Iraq paid in blood & taxes. Nato ensured recent fraudulent elections & chucking out of Afghani female antiwar MPs+ new law allowing husbands in Aghanistan to starve wives if they refuse sex. Get a democratic UN international force in there to help clear up the mess & ensure proper democracy

• billboards

  12/3/2009 2:20:22 AM
  by Simon

  i think the billboards are stuck in between two arguments. i dont belive for one minute these were changed to cause offence or abuse but to maybe cast a veiw witch is over looked daily. in my eyes these could have be seen as a fighting hand to our troops. with our troops not beeing there in the first place, that child would still have his dad.

• Billboards

  12/30/2009 12:57:07 AM
  by Ellie

  Understandably, this is going to cause an uproar due to the controversiality of the topic and the means of putting the point across. However, I don't think it's justified to say that those who did this were intending for offence. It's obvious that this has created a reaction, and from that I feel that they have achieved what they set out to do. For me; this had only heightened my hatred for this sham of so called "defence", where the real definition for it is far more comparable to superfluous deaths. Lest we forget those who died for us - but in vain.

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