You might need to sit down for this one. Ready? OK, here goes…
Soldiers aren’t heroes. There. Shocking, eh? Well, consider this; the army, like any organisation comprising hundreds of thousands of men and women, will contain almost as many different types as there are people. There will be the diligent and the lazy, the honest and the deceitful, the brave and the cowardly and the humane and the pitiless. They can’t all be heroes, you know. Not even all the dead ones.
Now I don’t know about you, but I’m sick to the back teeth of the emotional blackmail with which we are daily assaulted. Appeals to ‘Support Our Boys’ everywhere you look and every poor, duped and brainwashed unit of working-class cannon fodder, unfortunate enough to step on an IED in Helmand Province, virtually elevated to Sainthood. Even the BBC, laughably dubbed Bolsheviks Broadcasting Communism by the more unhinged and bellicose of our gin-soaked Colonels and their twin-set and pearl-adorned wives, seems to have turned itself into the Department of War Propaganda with never so much as a hint that there might exist, out there in the country in which it purports to report, an alternative view. I’d even bet it was a majority view, too, by now.
I’m also more than a little sick of the accusing and outraged responses my articulating of such sentiments provokes. There is, currently, no army anywhere on the face of the planet fighting for me or to keep me and mine safe. I wasn’t asked if I wanted UK troops in Afghanistan and I’m certainly not stupid enough to believe that now they are there, they’re fighting to protect my family and yours. Oh sure, there will be some soldiers, maybe even many, who believe that’s what they’re doing but, back in the real world, most of us know the real reason they are there is to secure and then protect by force cynical Western interests revolving, mainly, around resources and geopolitical influence in the region. By that, of course, I mean largely American interests, to which we become ever more subordinate.
Frankly, Afghanistan and the UK’s ongoing involvement there makes me angrier than I’ve been for a long time and I resent the frothing, rabid, racist idiots, drunk on blind patriotism and the bullshit dripping from the state’s propaganda tit. Expressly designed, of course, to keep the stupid proles docile, compliant and on-message. You sup if you want to but count me out.
Now I’m no wild-eyed, army-hating pacifist. I’m privileged to know some fine human beings who have served in the British Army. One, in particular, spending an eventful career involved in incidents that will definitely not be subjected to public scrutiny any time soon. Interestingly enough, though, they all seem to have a far clearer and much more accurate understanding of the motivations underpinning the UK’s military excursions than those who support them. Motives, they would assure you, which have nothing whatsoever to do with noble concepts like freedom, democracy and philanthropy.
But the point is this; currently doing the rounds on Facebook (where else?) is this…
“2000 tanker drivers are complaining that £45k a year and a final salary pension, is too little for a dangerous job? Yet our boys and girls out in Afghan get £24k or there about to get shot at? Round the 2000 tanker drivers up, send em out to Afghan, then ask 2000 soldiers if they want to earn £45k a year driving a fuel tanker about. Problem solved…. repost if u agree”
This is a ridiculous argument and one that cannot withstand even a moment’s scrutiny. Firstly, the idea that no one has a right to defend their wages and living standards from attacks by this vicious, greedy government of toffs, simply because they aren’t soldiers, is too stupid for words.
Secondly, tanker drivers earn between £20K and £25K per year. The mythical £45K the Tory media would have us believe they earn is a figure that applies to less than 20% of the industry. And at what price? Dangerously long hours and working during holidays and days off. But that’s not all, is it? The unions involved are also fighting to ensure drivers receive proper training and valuable health and safety inductions (you remember unions, don’t you? The people who brought you the weekend, the forty-hour week, paid holidays, sick pay and put an end to sending kids down the pits, to mention just a few of their achievements).
Meanwhile, back at the Tory ranch, unscrupulous employers are being egged on by the oil companies to undercut unionised firms by hacking back on training, health and safety as well as pay and conditions. So when a knackered and stressed out driver ploughs his tanker full of petrol through your front room, taking out your kids in the process, along with most of your street and that union jack you’ve got flying over the garden, hopefully you might then wish you hadn’t been an ignorant and resentful idiot, incapable of independent thought and seeing the bigger picture.
But back to ‘Our Boys’; as a parent I value my children’s lives above all else. It was for that reason I told all three of them that joining the armed forces was not an option. By sheer force of will I had my way. Wrong? Maybe. Should let them make their own decisions, right? Possibly. To be honest, I don’t care. I know I’ll never have to stand weeping over a box filled with bits of my kids. I’ll never feel the rage, guilt, shame and self-loathing that would come with knowing I let my kids die for ruthless, immoral, war-mongering governments who demonstrate every single day that they have nothing but contempt for me, my kids and our class. Let them send their kids, let the privileged officer class be the heroes, let’s see the Cabinet sending their sons and daughters to perish in the desert.
So, you want to support ‘Our Boys’, eh? Then do it in the only way that matters; bring them back from Afghanistan. Oppose this pointless, unwinnable, immoral and dirty war. Give your kids the chance to live or you aren’t a parent; you’re a monster. A disgusting individual prepared to sacrifice your children for the hollow lies sold you by the governments of the UK and USA. Are you real? What kind of human being are you that you’d do that but presume to judge me for my lack of patriotism? Dulci et decorum est pro patria mori, eh? What is wrong with you people?
Troops out of Afghanistan now. And while you’re at it, support the tanker drivers.
All well said, and quite possibly the most courageous writing I’ve seen on the subject. Thanks for posting.
A brilliantly written piece which articulates everything I feel better than I ever could.
Thank you
Brilliant
Thank you!
Had it right up to the back teeth with this crap and I’m not I’m the habit of stringing together such a coherent argument without losing my cool.
Too much of that was too true…
Well put
Well researched and well argued. Couragous and much truth. I hope this opinion can at least be respected if not agreed with. We don’t belong in anyone else’s country, the army should exist to defend our shores only. Strategic forms of ‘attack’ should not be contemplated. Too much death on all sides and too much glory for little cause.
Harry is mostly right in his points, but they are chosen to support his own argument. None of us joined up to get killed, but sometimes found ourselves in circumstances that demanded courage, a quick wit and bravery in the face of danger. The majority of civilians are not put in those positions.
Not all soldiers are heroes, or brave by default, they are trained, and well trained, to look after your buddy – in return for friends for life.
The tanker driver argument is a little immature – it was only a Facebook post and doesn’t serve his greater argument. If we believed everything on Facebook, then we would be idiots.
I admire our service people because they are put in harms way, not because they are ‘default brave’ Bravery is often thrust upon us from the situation that we find ourselves in – the opportunity for bravery happens to be greater as a soldier – There are those that know what we did for our medals, and those that sat on the sidelines.
A valid point from an ex squaddie…
Harry is mostly right in his points, but they are chosen to support his own argument. None of us joined up to get killed, but sometimes found ourselves in circumstances that demanded courage, a quick wit and bravery in the face of danger. The majority of civilians are not put in those positions.
Not all soldiers are heroes, or brave by default, they are trained, and well trained, to look after your buddy – in return for friends for life.
The tanker driver argument is a little immature – it was only a Facebook post and doesn’t serve his greater argument. If we believed everything on Facebook, then we would be idiots.
I admire our service people because they are put in harms way, not because they are ‘default brave’ Bravery is often thrust upon us from the situation that we find ourselves in – the opportunity for bravery happens to be greater as a soldier – There are those that know what we did for our medals, and those that sat on the sidelines.
I’m afraid Harry does only support a very narrow view. He is right in a lot of areas, but to use a post on Face Book as a reason for abusing some very brave people is unforgiveable. Face Book comments are a joke and should be taken in that manner.
If every person followed Harry’s ideals, we would not have a way of defending our children. Anyone with a modicum of common sense, knows why we are in Afgan, but that does not reduce the support we should have for our forces. Harry is very articulate in his articule, but reading between the lines; he just wants to vent off against the faceless morons who run this fading Country. Once again; do not use our stretched forces and their family’s as a way of freeing your conscience. You should feel ashamed.
Stuart Ellis, I wonder if you’ve properly digested the article if you think the author is abusing brave people. Unless you think that the tories or the oil companies, or the “frothing, rabid, racist idiots” are a particularly brave bunch.
STUART
You have not read the article properly. there is no reason for anyone to feel shame for putting forrward a very balanced and logical point of view. In debate you put your point to be answered. That is what Harry did and quite bravely I thought
Soldiers are trained murderers.
and you are an ignorant fool
Jim, I can see that you have spent months nay years studying the problem. Your research has obviously been deep and far reaching. I can only question whether the Beano was the best place to start your research?
Another superb piece of ranting, Harry … It ain’t gonna please those who buy into the jingoistic propaganda of course, but for many it articulates the frustration felt at present, where “support of our boys” supercedes logical debate
Right in some cases.
As an ex squaddie i feel the wages for soldiers are insanely low considering the risk. However i do agree that upon joining the armed forces you are made aware of the risks and nature of the work.
I do support the argument that soldiers know the risks and should not become complacent because they have a weapon and some ammo.
At the end of the day it’s warfare…..people die…. Damn good skills and drills can prevent this and they do. Unfortunately you do come across soldiers who managed to somehow slip through the system and couldn’t really be trusted with a spoon let alone a weapon.
The argument of why the armed forces are in Afghanistan is irrelevant and personally should remain irrelevant to a soldier. A soldiers job is to do and follow orders so the government is fully responsible for the actions of the armed forces in my opinion. The guys at land, sea and air levels are just there to do the task given. They aren’t the decision makers.
I think your wording and the context of it is quite angry and frankly i have taken offence to your incredibly narrow view.
As i said before, it’s war and people die.
Dan, A good point well made. A lot of people joined the armed forces because they could not get a job. Workers in uniform should have the same respect as any worker
A very untrendy viewpoint, but one I generally share.
“the opportunity for bravery happens to be greater as a soldier”
For the simple reason that society has been engineered that way. I agree with previous commenters, the armed forces should exist to defend our country, not attack others. But that wouldn’t be quite as glamorous would it.
I can agree with the claim that the war on Iraq was motivated by natural resources, but the Afghanistan war in the wake of 9/11 had full international support. Furthermore any form of terrorism has to have an infrastructure to support it, this was true for the IRA in Ireland and it was true of Al Qaida in Afghanistan, so removing or disrupting the infrastructure is most certainly an effective means of hampering terrorist activity. How is it then that ‘you and yours’ have nothing to thank the military for?
Regarding the tanker drivers. Transporting fuel very slowly by road is not and has never been efficient, these things are better done by rail which is the most carbon efficient form of transportation we have. Much like the coal miners and steel workers before them, tanker drivers are part of an industry in decline and unnecessarily propping them up is not going to help anybody.
Bayan, terrorist is a wide term that should be looked at closely.
In Occupied Europe during the War, the Germans called the Resistance movements terrorists. Were they? In Ireland the British invaded the country under Cromwell and began a planned genocide that went on for hundreds of years. Were the workers & peasants that rose up to fight for their countries independance terrorists or freedom fighters?
Nelson Mandella was the head of the spear of the Nation, the ANC fighting wing. He was responsable for bombings and shootings. was he a terrorist?
the victor writes the history. it is not always accurate
I dont like the taxmen who take a large slice of my pay to pay for rubbish like schools and hospitals and all the other trite demands of a modern society but i certainly wouldn’t consider that the job they do is a blight on our nations dignity.
The Armed forces aren’t the ones who start these wars, thats Westminster’s job, so if you don’t like what they do then produce a viable alternative, start your own party or better yet go convince the politicos that they are wrong and that we should all listen to you now
Chances are you would never have been born if it wasn’t for the British armed forces, and if you had then you would have been a slave in a work camp; unless of course the Third Reich listened to your cast iron logic and dismantled themselves in the face of such overpowering logic, putting an end to all conflict then and now.
Paragraph 1. Really? I don’t mind, actually. Medical care and education (for all) free and at the point of use is something I wholeheartedly endorse. In fact, I think they are noble concepts and worthy of our support but to each their own, I guess…
Paragraph 2. Er, yeah I know. Which is why I kinda made that very point in a rather obvious way.
Paragraph 3. Sigh…not that old chestnut again. Really, so predictable not to mention irrelevant. What on earth the Third Reich has to do with Afganistan, or indeed anything I wrote in the article, is beyond me. Unless, of course, you’re responding to a point that I very clearly did not make, that of equating condemnation of the war in Afghanistan with all conflicts fought by the Brits?
Anyway, I thank you for your visit and hope you enjoyed your stay. To extract maximum enjoyment from any future visits you make, I’d suggest you respond to the points made rather than the ones you think have been made and/or the ones you wished had been made.
All I can say is, if there wasn’t someone else asleep in the house, I would have just cheered out loud.
You have my wholehearted sympathy. I also happen to be silly enough to get worked up about, and argue with, the sort of nonsense people post on facebook. Any vaguely anti-military statement is always met with the same sort of vitriol as you usually only find accompanying things like references to paedophilia or Twilight fandom….
As you mention guilt-tripping, I’d like to bring up the Poppy as a pet-hate of mine. It’s bad enough that they’re compulsory wearing for every adult in the public eye when the time comes around, but what’s more troubling is the fact that they’re sold by and to primary school children, in classrooms. When I was a child I never really understood why my mum got so cross about that, why everyone except me took in money to buy one, and I can even remember on one particular occasion spending my own pocket money on one, so as not to be left out. I realise this isn’t quite the same thing as what you’re arguing about here, but it’s a similar instance of blind ‘patriotism’ and targeting of the unavoidably ignorant that people just get angry about if you start to question.
Anyway, good work sir. It’s nice to know I’m not the only one. I can assure you that this post is making its way around facebook right now (that’s how I found it), and if it’s not proving to be a perfect antidote altogether, it certainly seems to be making people think a bit.
I think it easy to miss the point in anything involving the armed forces. We need them because if used in the correct way they are valuable and can make a difference for the better.
The poppy argument I think has been tainted by the blue of the Tory and the blood red of new labour (Tory) misusing the loyalty of men and woman wanting to fight for our country and maybe others should the NEED arise. It is important to protect the armed forces from politicians we elect cause the politicians won’t even if that’s funding for the after affects of fighting a war they did not deserve to fight.
Heroes are anyone who do something they should not be expected to do for the good of people as a whole whether charity fighting for liberty voting for a party of your choice not cause your parents did. The armed forces need liberated from the greed of politicians they need a hero, us the voter
A fair and reasonable take on the issue, Andy. When one considers, also, the abhorrent treatment injured soldiers, overwhelmingly working-class kids from poor estates, face on civvy street, my disgust at Tory (and Blue Labour) hypocrisy grows ever stronger.
Many end up homeless, destitute and poverty-stricken with serious problems involving addiction, mental disorders and social dislocation.
Interesting to see how the government treat their ‘heroes’ then when they’ve done what is required and are no further use.
Nicely put Andy I like your thinking on the situation
While I agree with most of this brilliantly written, well articulated article, I dont think that it looks at the whole picture.
I fervently support the troops out movement and am no lover of imperialist agression being of Irish stock. I agree that the hype, and pomp and ceremony is completly there to fool the masses.
That is where the problem begins. The masses are fooled.
There are those on the left that rave and rant against our soldiers instead of explaning the reasons WHY they are in Afghanistan and other places.
Instead of attacking the government, they demonstrate against soldiers parading on the streets.
This plays right into the hands of the right wing and secures them votes.
While a large percentage of the left try to force feed the masses with thier own brand of idealism, the right portray themselves as patriots and pick up the votes.
We must be careful not to attack fellow workers because that is what the bulk of the armed forces are ordinary working people..
My nephew and his wife have just been made redundant from the Navy. they now have no income and a new baby. That situation is happening all over the country with the defence cuts and the left are ignoring thier plight because they wear a uniform.
we must concentrate on explaining the politics of the situation rather than ranting against workers in uniform.
No argument from me, Rick. There’s the age-old Trot line of reasoning that soldiers are merely workers in uniform and in times of civil unrest they’ll split and fall in with their class etc…
Our argument is not with our own sons and daughters sent to die for big business and imperialism, not at all. Quite agree.
However…if soldiers are used to move fuel and supplies around the country in the event of a tanker-drivers’ strike, then I predict a riot in response to my follow-up piece addressing strike breaking and scabs…
I fervently believe that any attempt to break the Tanker drivers strike with scabs of any form should be oposed with any means at our disposal. We will all be picked off one by one if we allow the tanker drivers to go down
The same thing happens with every war we or the Americans ever fight. WWI and II, Falklands, Gulf War, Korea, Vietnam, the list goes on. At the time the government, the military and the media say “fight for your country, defend our freedoms, join up today!”. Then the war runs its course and lots of people die and after the war the same voices say “look at how many young people died, this is awful, war is a horrendous tragedy, lets try and make it never happen again”. Going by their track record, they’ve not done a very good job of never letting it happen again.
Also notable is the fact that soldiers are roundly lauded as heroes and saints, yet what about those who make a much greater contribution at home and yet receive no praise? Sure they might not risk death to the same extent every day but their tireless efforts contribute far more to our well being than the Army ever does. I’m talking about the Ambulance Crews working in excess of 14 hour shifts for £19,000/year; the people who foster children that aren’t theirs just so that the children may be looked after in a loving home; the thousands of people accross the country who act as full time carers for loved ones without pay or recognition; the people who give up their free time to provide mountain rescue; the people who already have a full time career yet still volunteer without pay as firefighters in rural areas; those who volunteer without pay to train plus maintain and man RNLI lifeboats at every hour of day and night in every weather condition and who, like the soldiers, risk death every time they venture out. Sure some of these people occasionally get a medal, sure sometimes they might get their name in the paper but for the vast majority of the time these people, especially those like carers and foster parents, get nothing in the way of the respect or admiration they deserve (never mind the elevation to near sainthood that servicemen get).