Lack Of Recognition For RN/RNR

[stan_the_man]

onHere Here
God bless them all
Well said Gazer

 

[hookyh]

Agree wholeheartedly with the praise for the medics.

Well done ladies - And well done to all who serve on the frontline. You do our country proud, even if the country doesn't particularly show it sometimes.

God bless you all!

 

[Northern_Part_timer]

Have just come back from pre-Iraq training in the US. You want to see the way the public treat their Military! Discounts in the majority of outlets, free entry into public parks, ie Seaworld and banners in the Supermarkets saying "we welcome our heroes, thank you for doing a good job". Cant imagine Tesco and Asda doing that! We'd get asked to leave if we went in wearing uniform! (slightly off the track of the thread, but the point is to highlight the fact that the Military there are appreciated and very high profile!)

 

[promsan]

Is there anyone out there who agrees with me that there is a general lack of recognition/appreciation for the endeavours of the RN/RNR from those above? It's become increasingly notable to me that over the years there have been considerably less names put forward by the 'senior service' for rewards generally. I'm talking about recognition for bravery as well as long-term commited service, over and above the call. For instance the Marines who strapped themselves to an Apache being disgustingly overlooked for medals by their superiors for what were incredibly brave acts (despite earning themselves eternal legendary status within the corps) right down to the individuals within the RNR who constantly put themselves forward in support of the fleet, particularly at junior rate level, who never recieve as much as a sniff from Commarres/Dnres when it comes to more than a verbal 'well done' on visiting units. I realise that none (or very few) join for medals, but surely it's high time the RNR started seeing recognition for it's most commited individuals, not just those at Warrant Officer and above. There are too many people in our organisation whose morale is low at present, particularly individuals who have served two or more mobilised tours in the last four or five years. My thinking is that if we were to see individual endeavour rewarded, especially to those with long, distinguished service at junior level, it would give a lift to the service in general to see that the highest levels of the organisation don't just look after their own, but also look after and recognise the lower levels who are making them look good, for instance those mobilised within FPGRM who are dramatically improving the RNR profile and image. I have personally noted the performance of individuals for years who have never had so much as a nod in their direction from above. Anyone got any thoughts on this?

Let's be honest, the way the forces are tret is entirely connected with the same attitude that infests the establishment controlled by New Labour/IngSoc cuckoos that is a full-blown assault on the structural integrity of our entire nation.

Before I get flamed... what I mean is:
The fact that the general thrust of laws has been in favour of rights over responsibilities, encouraging people to self-divide into minority interest groups in order to get access to any kind of support be it political, financial, or "moral"... leading to:
+ an excess of rights for children, making some schools and areas at least appear to be "unsafe" areas;
+ the disintegration of the family and "celebration" of lone-parenthood and loss of rights for fathers;
+ an increase in dependence on the state through increased taxes and increased tax credits to give the state more control over our lives;
+ isolation of people from each other, especially the elderly
+ the use of human rights legislation to give rights to those who commit wrongs, and deny rights to those who are "hard working law abiding citizens" to deploy the stereotype;
+ the selling off of our culture and infrastructure to transnational concerns to make us dependent on the EU and other even dodgier places like Russia and China for our essential imports;
+ building an economy on credit cards and housing avarice to make us all slaves to perpetual debt;
+ the denial and deletion of our distinct historical identity like the Chinese are trying to do in Tibet, and rewriting of history, so as to turn us into a petit-USA.

...it's all divide and conquer; population management and bureaucracy for it's own sake. They talk to us like children, and manage us like animals, all the time, give the impression that they are on a gravy train busily stuffing their fat mouths and deep pockets with whatever they can.

Alright, maybe I'm exaggerating, but almost everyone I know and encounter, seems to be stressed out and even depressed with work pressure, low wages, and high prices; and no-one feels as safe walking around as they did 10 or 20 years ago.

People have been put under so much stress; isolated from each other with these gadgets: ipods and mobiles... that they have moved so far away from having meaningful senses of unity, and into the cult of individuality, consumerism, and "celeb"-worship, that they don't understand things like the military any more... it's a complete anathema to them; and as Yoda says... ignorance leads to fear, fear leads to anger, and anger leads to suffering...

The process of trying to dismantle the idea of Britain and even England, has left people unsure and afraid whom their in-group is... they owe more loyalty to Tesco and eBay than to the UK, so why would they risk their next purchase or eBay sale by going to war?

So I say, we need to put people before profits, and if the purpose of a government is anything, it's to unite people around some basic structures of a nation, which means respect for certain professions and contributions that are not about money... like carers, nurses, and teachers, police, and of course, the forces.
Doing a normal job, and being a reservist, should be a prestigious respected thing... being prepared to give up a slice of your cushy life and do something useful, selfless, and patriotic, should be up there... instead the weak government, and the sordid rag trade have allowed a decadent world of the pop-star pantomime pantheon to take over... encouraging people to be focussed on "me, me, me", rather than "we, we, we".

Yes, lets have a big ticker-tape parade with soldiers marching down the main streets;
Yes, lets give forces members discounts and welcomes in supermarkets and everywhere they go;
Yes, lets arrest all those who'd try and stamp on it, and force them to give something back to society... perhaps doing a spell of compulsory "volunteer" work in the developing world to make them realise what's important... seeing as though they care so much.

 

[trehorn]

I also know another RNR rating who makes claims which i find hard to believe but would love to have clarification on.

The chap in question spent approx 5 years in the RN as a submariner (stoker i believe) ....................

..................i'd be grateful to know if my suspicion is misplaced and i should give this "war hero" the respect he deserves.

Would this be a fellow from a certain Northern unit?

Couldn't Possibly say :thumright:

 

[trehorn]

Let's be honest, the way the forces are tret is entirely connected with the same attitude that infests the establishment controlled by New Labour/IngSoc cuckoos that is a full-blown assault on the structural integrity of our entire nation.

Before I get flamed... what I mean is:
The fact that the general thrust of laws has been in favour of rights over responsibilities...

......encouraging people to be focussed on "me, me, me", rather than "we, we, we".

Yes, lets have a big ticker-tape parade with soldiers marching down the main streets;
Yes, lets give forces members discounts and welcomes in supermarkets and everywhere they go;
Yes, lets arrest all those who'd try and stamp on it, and force them to give something back to society... perhaps doing a spell of compulsory "volunteer" work in the developing world to make them realise what's important... seeing as though they care so much.

I'd vote for you!

Promsan for PM :worship:

 

[promsan]

sorry... too much caffeine!

I'll get back into my box,

love,

"Jack"

 

[sgtpepperband]

Just re-read this thread and... well, WHY do we 'need' recognition? Of course it is nice to be recognised for our efforts but who are we trying to impress? Are we doing this job because the job needs to be done, or are we that insecure that we 'desire' recognition? :?

Don't get me wrong - the way our former and current Colonial colleagues celebrate their Armed Forces is admirable, but let's be honest here: the British aren't good at self-congratulatory back-slapping exercises of public adoration. We just bite our chinstraps and get on with it.

These sort of threads pop up quite a lot these days, but I am cynical enough to believe that there is an element of sour grapes and jealousy by those who seem to 'demand' the recognition; I very much doubt that someone with a decoration/award has started a thread like this, as they feel that by doing their job - in a hostile environment - and coming out alive at the other end is enough for them...

 

[trehorn]

Couldn't agree more SPB.

See my post on the subject - Posted: Sat Apr 05, 2008 8:28 pm Post subject: Re: Lack Of Recognition For RN/RNR.

 

[Tall_bloke]

Think most of us aren't in it for the medals or the recognition. There are sadly one or two magpies out there who like to collect shiny things, but happily they're in the minority. Personally I'm just in it for the nectar points! :afro:

 

[ctfairway]

Just re-read this thread and... well, WHY do we 'need' recognition? Of course it is nice to be recognised for our efforts but who are we trying to impress? Are we doing this job because the job needs to be done, or are we that insecure that we 'desire' recognition? :?

Don't get me wrong - the way our former and current Colonial colleagues celebrate their Armed Forces is admirable, but let's be honest here: the British aren't good at self-congratulatory back-slapping exercises of public adoration. We just bite our chinstraps and get on with it.

These sort of threads pop up quite a lot these days, but I am cynical enough to believe that there is an element of sour grapes and jealousy by those who seem to 'demand' the recognition; I very much doubt that someone with a decoration/award has started a thread like this, as they feel that by doing their job - in a hostile environment - and coming out alive at the other end is enough for them...

Spot on SPB. Look after the job and the job will look after you.

 

[KLNA-Cessna-Jockey]

I remember when I was doing some management training years ago they identified that most organisations contain two main typed of staff - WARRIORS & HEROES.

Warriors just crack on, keep their head down, do what needs to be done and keep the wheel on to save it all going t!ts up.

Heroes go out and look for all the glamourous work and then seek recognition, pats on the back from senior management, bragging rights and medals.

Most organisations actually benefit from having a mix of both, but once I became aware of this it was really easy to identify who was who. The heroes (GLORY SEEKERS) really do stand out - most of them a complete bunch of strokers (in my humble opinion)