The poppy battle.

Overshadowing our honourable veterans by fighting over poppy colour seems pretty dishonourable to me.

Let me start by publicly offering my sincere and humble thanks to all those who have served for their country.

Thank you.

Today is Remembrance Day in Canada (and Veterans Day in the US, and I’m sure something equal in many other countries around the world.) I’ve never been one to put my appreciation for, well, anything on display with these kinds of things. I don’t wear ribbons. I don’t have any bumper stickers. I don’t grow a mustache in November. I don’t wear ties, let alone tie tacks.

And I’ve never bought or worn a poppy, the traditional show of support for war veterans on and around Remembrance Day in Canada. I haven’t often even verbalized my appreciation for those that have fought in a war as I did to open this letter.There are plenty of reasons for this, most of which are my own and will remain that way. In fact, if I’m being brutally honest, I’ve struggled with the very notion of aggrandizing the act of war itself with these types of displays.It seems to me that a vast majority of veterans are men and women who had war thrust upon them. It’s not something many people would gladly volunteer to do once they witness first hand the horror that it truly must be, I suspect. Still, I can appreciate that wearing a red poppy pin is a simple way to show ones appreciation for the sacrifice of the veteran, personal political views of war notwithstanding. I get that. I’m glad people do it. I see the value in it.There is actual value in it, too, since the pins are sold on a donation basis, with the monies going to aid various war veteran causes. Great. We all know they could use our support, financially as much as verbally and visually.

But recently, in Canada anyway, a counter movement has crept in.A movement that I am going to declare my general ignorance about right off the bat. I haven’t followed it too carefully, I haven’t investigated it too deeply because, well… it annoys the shit out of me and doesn’t deserve my attention.

On the one hand, the red poppy pin, which tradition alone has dictated as the “acceptable” symbol of loss and remembrance.On the other hand, the white poppy, which its proponents claim symbolizes peace (the ultimate goal for the world, I suppose.) The upstart white poppy camp claims the red poppy glorifies war and should therefore be done away with. While the stalwart red poppy camp claims the white poppy is disrespectful of our veterans’ sacrifice.

Who cares?

Because do you know who really loses the longer this inane battle over which colour correctly shows support rages on?

The veterans.

While we’re all at each other’s throats about what the right thing to wear on our lapels, we’re taking focus away from the reason Remembrance Day was created in the first place. It makes this ocassion about you and your choices, not them and their sacrifices. Remembrance Day (or Veterans Day or whatever it may be called where you live) is not about you. You’re here, walking around, having the right to say whatever you want about the decisions of the people on the other side of your argument, at least in part, BECAUSE of the sacrifice of war and the people who fought it. For me, this whole things rings a little to close to the argument of marriage equality that the world is struggling through right now. If you’re the type that is drawn to showing your support in one way or another, show it. But where do you get off telling other people how they should choose to support it, or not? It just doesn’t affect you. To wit: if you think gay marriages shouldn’t be legal, don’t have one. Likewise, if you think white poppies or red poppies are offensive or miss the target or don’t represent the right ideal or symbology for you, don’t wear one! It’s that simple. But the longer and louder you rail against the “other” side, the greater and greater disservice you are doing to those you are claiming to support. No matter what side you’re arguing for, if you’re arguing for a particular side, you’re wrong. The right ones are those that choose to convey their support in a personal way that suits them… while letting everyone else decide for themselves.

Let’s put the remembrance back in Remembrance Day. And let’s leave our agendas out of it.