fair suck o' the sav, legacy!
Here in Australia we have an organisiation called Legacy. They do good work helping the families of Armed Services personnel killed whilst obeying orders.
Legacy's cranking up their fundraising campaign right in the middle of an election campaign which will be fiercly contested about the rights and wrongs of our military personnel going to Iraq. They should have been a bit circumspect in the wording of their current campaign. But they went down the jingoistic path. So now I will cream them for it! Why? Because this is my blog!
Don't get me wrong. I will be buying a Legacy badge, and I strongly recommend every Australian to do likewise. That is absolutely important and is not at all under dispute here.
What is under dispute is their pathetic appeal to jingoism. What am I on about? Glad you asked. In a TV ad I saw this evening, Legacy used the line that "Legacy stands by the families of those who died defending our way of life." Come again? "Died defending our way of life" ??? Really?
The Boers died defending their way of life. The Turks died defending their way of life. The Germans died defending their way of life. The Japanese died defending their way of life. The Vietnamese died defending their way of life. Iraqis are dying
defending what they believe to be their way of life.
Just because someone dies "defending their way of life" doesn't make their death noble or holy. It all depends on what aspect of "our way of life" was under attack.
At this time in Australia's drunken, staggering way towards a just future, it would be highly conceited to suggest that those who do not share "our way of life" should be attacked and killed. Surely we have not yet reached that level of enlightenment as a nation, that "our way of life" is beyond question.
And another thing: Some died in conflicts where the attacked country did not in any demonstrable way threaten "our way of life". It all reeks of propaganda-speak.
And so, I resent Legacy's fundraising propaganda implying that every Australian soldier who was killed died for good reasons. It is so one-eyed! So bigoted! So jingoistic!
Nevertheless, I urge you all to go buy Legacy badges. Especially for the families of any Australian servicemen/women who died for no good reason!!!
Legacy's cranking up their fundraising campaign right in the middle of an election campaign which will be fiercly contested about the rights and wrongs of our military personnel going to Iraq. They should have been a bit circumspect in the wording of their current campaign. But they went down the jingoistic path. So now I will cream them for it! Why? Because this is my blog!
Don't get me wrong. I will be buying a Legacy badge, and I strongly recommend every Australian to do likewise. That is absolutely important and is not at all under dispute here.
What is under dispute is their pathetic appeal to jingoism. What am I on about? Glad you asked. In a TV ad I saw this evening, Legacy used the line that "Legacy stands by the families of those who died defending our way of life." Come again? "Died defending our way of life" ??? Really?
The Boers died defending their way of life. The Turks died defending their way of life. The Germans died defending their way of life. The Japanese died defending their way of life. The Vietnamese died defending their way of life. Iraqis are dying
defending what they believe to be their way of life.
Just because someone dies "defending their way of life" doesn't make their death noble or holy. It all depends on what aspect of "our way of life" was under attack.
At this time in Australia's drunken, staggering way towards a just future, it would be highly conceited to suggest that those who do not share "our way of life" should be attacked and killed. Surely we have not yet reached that level of enlightenment as a nation, that "our way of life" is beyond question.
And another thing: Some died in conflicts where the attacked country did not in any demonstrable way threaten "our way of life". It all reeks of propaganda-speak.
And so, I resent Legacy's fundraising propaganda implying that every Australian soldier who was killed died for good reasons. It is so one-eyed! So bigoted! So jingoistic!
Nevertheless, I urge you all to go buy Legacy badges. Especially for the families of any Australian servicemen/women who died for no good reason!!!
posted by The Editor at
9:22 PM
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