out of interest did mertesacker and podolski wear a poppy?

Another Internet Warrior!!

Did not ordinary Irish catholics (like my grandfather SSgt Tommy Kelly) not fight and die alongside their British cousins ?? Any public figure asked to wear it who doesn't should take a good look at themselves. I'd be willing to bet Mcleans relatives fought in those wars - he disrespects himself and his own like it or not

its an opinion freddie - he will have relatives who served in those wars. As will anyone whose family existed in these islands at that time. whether he wears one or not is entirely his shout, I simply observe that it shows a lack of looking at the "bigger picture"

Lest we forget

The Easter Rising in 1916 was specifically planned to take advantage of Britain's involvement in the First World War so the people he identifies with were fighting the British at the time and definitely not serving in "those wars".

McClean has previous for this. Refused to wear an orange change strip when in the reserves previously, and also refused to drink champagne at a function because it was in a flute.

No place for his type in the Prem imo

Beware the Poppy Nazis!

There is an annual Poppy Appeal to raise funds as you say.

However the remembrance poppy has wider significance to commemorate the fallen.  That is why people wear it.

I agree the legion sell them to raise funds.  I'm just saying many people wear them as a symbol of commemoration (they can of course donate but not wear the poppy).

how many would make their own if they were not so readily available

i would take one from my garden but they long since stopped flowering



dont get me wrong , i know the poppy was chosen as a symbol of remembrance
as it was the first flower to readily grow on the wasteland of the 1st world
war battle fields, but it has other meaning these days as well as those,and
thats why fifa didnt want england wearing them last year, and why people
dont want to wear them, they should not be forced to do so or we may as well
get hitler back with his forced wearing of stars on shirts

I'd rather people in general took a more anti-war attitude, thereby saving conflicts (and more importantly, soldiers lives) for if/when somebody actually attacks our country, than just wear a poppy. A token mark of respect is anything but, imo.

Most people wear it because they think they are supposed to, especially those in the public eye.

I don't make an effort to wear them and I have friends in the armed forces. It's not a particular point I'm trying to make by not wearing them, I just think it would be a bit contrived if I did.

So, all in all, who cares?

Fair play James McLean. Stick by your principles and dont bow to the British media agenda.

I wear a poppy, but I'm getting fairly sick of poppy fascism. Now you've even got "designer poppys," boils my piss seeing some rich **** using what should be a quiet, dignified symbol to flaunt their wealth with diamond studded poppys.

When did this all start? I don't remember about 5 years ago having everyone **** themselves with excitement when they spotted someone who had failed to adorn a poppy for ten minutes withing 2 weeks of the 11th.

Shortly after my Mother opened her shop in a small Irish town in the early 60s, some of the local Protestants came around selling Poppies. This presented my Mother with a quandary. My Granny's brothers had fought against the Black and Tans in West Cork during the War of Independence. My Mother went into our kitchen and asked my Granny, who was sitting by the fire, what she should do. She knew that buying the Poppies might upset my Granny but, on the other hand, not to do so would alienate a substantial section of her new customer base.

My Granny's instructions were definitive : "Buy them and burn them !", and so my Mam bought the Poppies, went back into the kitchen, gave them to my Granny and the fire did the rest.

I can understand James McClean's actions give his background. Perhaps, if he thought that his non-wearing of the Poppy would seriously impact on his future earnings he might have adopted a similarly pragmatic approach. I think Tony Blair would agree.

I noticed Aguero and I think Tevez did have the poppy on their shirt.

Why would a guy from an occupied part of Ireland wear a poppy in support of the occupying troops that he and his family and friends have despised all their lives?

shudacuda Date Joined: 31 Oct 06
The Irish need to get into the 21st century.

Do the British still hold grudges against the Germans or Japanese?

Times move on.


shudacuda, lots of Irish have moved on. As far as I know James McClean was the only Irish player in the Premiership yesterday who opted to wear a poppyless shirt.

maybe it's time for the poppy to be replaced by a dog lead, as the americans lead our army into every war they start to steal other countries natural resources

shudacuda     11 Nov 12 16:33 
Why do so many Irish come here if they are so badly treated then?

A lot of it is due to the fact that they DID go to England, not so much anymore. A lot of it would have been due to the fact that we were left with very little after the English invaded us and were eventually removed. People have to live. As Horusisis said this is all about natural resources. There is a darker side to war and that comment cannot even be put into context without understanding there are people in the US delighted with the invasion on Iraq added to the fact Tony Blair was Bush's lap dog and sent the British soldiers in also.

rather than embroidering a poppy into football shorts in an overly ostentatious display of commemoration, why don't the Premier League clubs invite representatives of the British Legion into Premier League dressing rooms and allow the players to make donations commensurate with the size of their wage packets and the strengtrh of their feelings of respect for those who fought for their country...or not, as the case may be.