Growing up in the Republic of Ireland, Poppy wearing was not a tradition I ever practiced. In fact, to wear a Poppy in Ireland was seen by many as pro-British and therefore by extension anti-Irish. This narrow minded view of the tradition sadly still persists in many quarters of Irish society even to this day.
Since moving to the UK in 2006, I have proudly embraced the tradition and worn a Poppy each and every year. I have done this not to conform to the local customs, but, because I feel that it is right that we remember the fallen. For me the Poppy is a remembrance of our fallen ancestors from all wars across all of human history. I remember both the soldiers and the civilians that should make up the real numbers when we count the dead. Too often, as in Iraq, the civilian dead simply get forgotten. The Poppy is a reminder for me that war is always a failure of diplomacy and never a real solution.
This year being the 100th anniversary of the First World War has seen a fantastic display of the Poppy at the Tower of London. What has been less impressive is the many voices in both media and politics who have sought to portray the British soldiers of the First World War as heroic martyrs whose sacrifice has benefited us all up to this very day. Historically, nothing could be further from the truth. The historical truth is that the First World War was a massive, needless loss of human life. The hatred it generated and its eventual settlement ultimately led directly to the 2nd World War and the subsequent division of Europe during the Cold War. Nothing good at all came out of the First World War and the sacrifice made by soldiers on both sides was anything but heroic. It was tragic.
The glorification of war still persists to this day with veterans of both Iraq and Afghanistan being spoken of as 'heroes'. These are men and women who have no doubt fought bravely and risked their lives, but, they are not heroes. They are unfortunate victims of a flawed government policy that led us into an illegal war in Iraq and a protracted war in Afghanistan with no clear objectives or outcomes. They are victims who often suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and a range of other medical and psychological conditions upon their return to civilian life. Yes they should receive our support and our prayers, but, let’s not call them heroes. The act of killing other human beings is never heroic. It is always tragic.
The Poppy is an interesting symbol for the very reason that it means different things to different groups of people and individuals. I must admit that for me personally, the Poppy as a symbol also has a very close association in my mind with the Opium Wars. The First Opium War 1839-1842 and the Second Opium War 1856-1860, were fought between China and Britain. The result was that Britain effectively forced the Chinese to open up their markets to the sale of Opium by the European powers. Almost 50,000 Chinese were killed between both wars along with approximately 3,000 soldiers from the European powers. The Poppy also reminds me of the many covert wars fought in the shadows. In particular, the ways both the CIA and other intelligence agencies have controlled the Heroin trade to fund many of their covert operations. Finally, the Poppy reminds me of the ‘War on Consciousness’ that has led to worldwide bans on many plant medicines, used in traditional societies for thousands of years. Plant medicines such as Psilocybin Mushrooms, which modern studies (http://www.maps.org/) are showing has a dramatic positive benefit for the treatment of patients suffering from PTSD. PTSD affects many of our troops returning from the wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan, yet the ‘War on Consciousness’ means that effective treatments like Psilocybin or MDNA cannot be utilized to treat these veterans in a clinical setting.
My embracing of the Poppy as a symbol of remembrance will continue. However, going forward I have also decided to embrace another plant symbol in order to show my support for the victims and heroes of another war – the ‘War on Consciousness’. Starting in December 2014 and continuing every month bar October and November when I will wear the Poppy, I shall wear a Cannabis leaf on my left lapel to indicate my opposition to the ‘War on Consciousness’. I hope others who support the legalization of this plant medicine and an end to the war on adult human beings sovereignty to choose their own state of consciousness, will follow suit.
Let us never forget the fallen. If ever they died for a dream, then that dream was freedom. We all should stand up for the greatest freedom there is – freedom of thought and the ability to determine our own states of consciousness! Let’s demand an end to the ‘War on Consciousness’ and let us never forget the tragedy that war always brings to those whom we love most dear, and our brothers and sisters whom we may have never met, but, with whom we are ultimately one.
