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melodysparks
Rememberance Sunday is here in the UK is the closest Sunday to 11 November. This years it is the actual day. In most towns and cities veterans will march and lay wreaths of poppies in rememberance on our war memorials. London hosts the largest and main parade of rememberance with leaders of the government, the Royal family and representatives of the commonwealth nations laying their wreaths at the Cenotaph in Whitehall in London, it was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. A cenotaph is an "empty tomb" or a monument. The Cenotaph in Victoria Park in London Ontario looks very similar.
The rememberance Poppy has been used since 1920 to commemorate soldiers who have died in war. The use of the poppy was inspired by the World War I poem 'In The Fields of Flanders' Its opening refer to the poppies that were the first flowers to grow in the earth of soldiers' graves in Flanders after the battles.
In 1918 Moina Michael who worked for the YWCA vowed to wear a red poppy as a symbol of remembrance for those who served in the war. She then campaigned to have the poppy adopted as a national symbol of remembrance in the USA. In 1921 she sent her poppy sellers to London, where they were adopted by Field Marshal Douglas Haig who was a founder of the Royal British Legion. It was also adopted in the British Commonwealth countries Australia, Canada and New Zealand whose own soldiers also fought alongside the British in the trenches.
Today, the Haig Fund support veterans from all conflicts and other military actions involving British Armed Forces up to today. Its members sell remembrance poppies in the weeks before Remembrance Day/Armistice Day.
Buy a poppy and wear it with pride and rememberance
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Date: 2012-09-24 07:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-24 07:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-24 07:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-24 07:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-24 07:56 pm (UTC)But it's that time of year again, isn't it?
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Date: 2012-09-25 06:07 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-25 01:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-25 01:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-25 02:02 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-25 09:57 pm (UTC)My grandad will probably be atending the local veterans memorial parade he doesnt get about half as much now as he used to, He served in the RAF attached to the Merchant Navy during WWII and after he was demobbed he joined The Territorial Army, or TA as it is usually known which is part of Britain's reserve land forces.
Many of my ancestors served in some form or other. My great great uncles (My grandmother's and grandfather's brothers) was fought on the Somme, My Great Grandad survived the trenches in WWI, but my Great, Great, Great Grandfather rode in the ranks in the Crimea and was the last Nottingham survivor of The Charge of the Light Brgade. He and a local politician began to create many of the local vererans associations and with the help of the Duke of Portland helped build a small buriel plot for the Nottingham and Notts Crimean and Indian Mutiny Vererans Association ground. That little plot has over 90 local veterans buried there and a handful of civillians my Great Great Great Grandmother is one of those civilians. He died on 12 Dec 1912.
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Date: 2012-09-25 10:14 pm (UTC)My dad's the first one in his family to serve in the military (that we know of, though there's some suggestion that his great, great, great grandfather might have been the cook for Ulyesses S Grant during the Civil War), but he did 24 years in the Army, most of it in the Special Forces. He's pretty much been in every active warzone that's happened during that time, plus a few places without.
The real odd thing about it though is the fact that they're asking him to speak at this thing. Which is just bizzare, not so much because of his military history or anything else, is because he's very... well, not your typical vet. Which is to say, he reached E9 in one of the most elite divisions of the military possible - something that very few people can say - and was like in charge of a whole Battalion and all that, but he's the most liberal and, well, not-typical-military thinker you could ever hope to find. Which could be okay, you know, 'cause the school he's at is the most liberal in the state, but still.. should be... interesting
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Date: 2012-09-25 11:32 pm (UTC)My Grandfather is one of the most easy going open minded lovely people you could meet but he and my great great uncles were conscripted into the forces to fight in the wars. My dad had to serve his manditory national service plus a few extra years. Not only in Malaya but also Northern Ireland
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Date: 2012-09-25 11:34 pm (UTC)It's not so much the liberal part that's surprising (there are more than you'd think) so much that my dad's very... unsubtle about it. And while I don't think he'd ever say anything disrespectful, well... people take even saying we shouldn't be fighing in Afghanistan as disrespectful these days.
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Date: 2012-09-25 11:42 pm (UTC)They are local lads to us from the Midlands all come from within 50-60 miles of Nottingham. A friend of mine's son was in the last rotation. We have had so many killed. We had someone killed over there only within the last week or so.
Thats more names on the memorial at Alrewas. How many more of our boys are going to die fighting over there?
Can we really ask is it our war?
The poppy was taken at the British Legion poppy rememberance field at Alrewas. The other flowers in the field were a mix of little blue flowers, white daisies and red poppies. In my picture you get red, white and blue.
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Date: 2012-09-25 11:46 pm (UTC)As to whether we ::should:: be fighting there, I really don't know. That's a question way above my pay grade. But I ::do:: think we went into it for the wrong reasons, and fought in largely the wrong manner for the situation.
I like that the Brits have the whole poppy tradition for Vet's Day. Here the day seems to have largely lost all meaning, and is just an excuse to be out of school or off work.
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Date: 2012-09-25 11:56 pm (UTC)Canada have the poppy day too. They have a poppy printed on their quarters and have little plastic flock coated poppies. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Poppies_by_Benoit_Aubry_of_Ottawa.JPG
Our poppies generally are paper and plastic and all the donations from buying go to the Haig fund. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_British_Legion%27s_Paper_Poppy_-_white_background.jpg
Wikipedia says "The Haig Fund (more properly the Earl Haig Fund) is a charity set up in 1921 by Field Marshal Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig to assist ex-servicemen. Today, the Haig Fund continues to support veterans from all conflicts and other military actions involving British Armed Forces up to today. Its members sell remembrance poppies in the weeks before Remembrance Day/Armistice Day. The words Haig Fund are no longer inscribed in the centre of each poppy"
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:00 am (UTC)It's pretty much a Commonwealth thing, as far as I can gather. All I really know is, people never really take the time to ::think:: about these things anymore. There's a real disconnect from Vet's Day/Remembrance Day and what you're supposed to be remembering. WWI is little more than a backdrop for certain movies for a lot of people, and that's just sad, you know, 'cause war is more than entertainment value and... yeah.
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:02 am (UTC)I have numerous pictures from my travels in my flickr account of those memorials.
This is the major one for Nottingham and in my home district
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:08 am (UTC)though visiting all the memorials in DC, all of that concentrated mourning and memory all in one place... it's very overwhelming.
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:17 am (UTC)Then to top that in 1918 was the Spanish FLu pandemic that killed between 20 and 50 million people but 500 million were infected. The Spanish flu didnt kill weak and elderly though but most victims were healthy young adults just like those that died a few years ago from swine flu. It was a Cytokine storm an overreaction of the body's immune system that caused the fatalities. If you ever read Anne McCaffrey's drangon books Moreta and Dragon Harper they have similar pandemics to the 1918 pandemic. WHen Swine flu was around I was reading Dragon HArper and it really hit home what a pandemic can do.
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 12:21 am (UTC)I think that's the thing I hate most about the technological age: no one ever seems to remember anything. I mean, seriously, I checked Yahoo!News this morning and front-page news was Natalie Portman dying her hair blonde. Now don't get me wrong, I think she's a wonderful actress and acknowledge that Yahoo! isn't the ideal place to go to get serious reporting, but now is that news? We're lucky to even see a mention of serious things, and yet...
sighs. the internet gives people short memories.
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 12:28 am (UTC)Had to look it up to check the details here is the regiment details
The 1st Battalion is a light battalion part of the 4th Mechanized Brigade based at Catterick garrison in North Yorkshire.
The 2nd Battalion is also a light role battalion part of 19th Light Brigade based in Belfast Northern Ireland but made up of local midlands lads.
The 3rd Battalion is an armoured infantry battalion part of the 7th Armoured Brigade based in Bad Fallingbostel in Germany. It is set to be scrapped as part of the Army 2020 defence review
The 4th Battalion is the regiment reserve Territorial Army Light Role Infantry battalion
The mascot is Lance Corporal Derby, a swalesdale Ram he was inherited from the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment
That one was taken when their tour ended in 2009 they have been back again since. six months at a time over there
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:32 am (UTC)though I've got to admit, I like your guys' dress uniforms a lot more than ours.
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:32 am (UTC)Downpours flood hundreds of homes in the Midlands and northern England
Controvrsy of a MP calling a policeman a Pleb and the uproar about that
The arrest and investigation of the killing of two women police officers
The deputy PM Clegg to target rich pensioners and benefits
Missing Megan's school under fire a 15 year old and her 30 year old teacher fled to Europe
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:35 am (UTC)top five on yahoo?
Out of control college president's spending.
Levi Johnston poses with new baby.
super fantasy football players picking up.
csi creator's new series "cybergedon"
connery's rivals for bond role revealed
::shakes head::
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:39 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 12:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 12:42 am (UTC)Our policemen look good in full uniform but most have their stab vests on now that look just like tac-vests
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:44 am (UTC)tv is unrealistic, but on the rare occasions when it's not...
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:47 am (UTC)Missing Megan: Police Release Ferry CCTV.
PM Summoned Mitchell To Explain Police Row.
Danish sperm donor passes genetic disorder to five children.
UK Floods: Homes Evacuated And Travel Disrupted.
Missing Megan: Search Continues For Pair
and other stories
Ex-Murdoch editor Brooks due in court on hacking plot charges
Devon Gun Alert: Man In Police Custody
Gove blamed as action escalates
Campaign against long working hours
Child obesity fears prompt BMI call
Man arrested over firearms incident
Scottish 'Madam' Admits Prostitution Charge
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:48 am (UTC)even your yahoo has more news than mine
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 12:50 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 12:55 am (UTC)If you want to see more news from everywhere try the UK sites especially the BBC
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Date: 2012-09-26 12:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 12:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 01:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 07:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 08:47 am (UTC)My birthday is actually on Nov 11th so I've always felt a particular kinship to this event. It brings tears to my eyes to watch the parade at the Cenotaph every year.
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Date: 2012-09-26 04:30 pm (UTC)I went to the National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas earlier this year and looking at all the names on the memorial really upset me especially considering that 3 panels of names had been added since my previous visit last year.
I keep all my poppies as long as possible through October when I can first get a hold of one through until they fall to pieces usually around the start of December.