To not understand the point of 'Armed Forces Day'?

[Runny]

I see Jeremy Corbyn is getting attacked by the right wing press yet again for going to Glastonbury (and getting a bigger crowd than Radiohead did last night) instead of attending Armed Forces Day in Liverpool.

Now pardon my ignorance but what is the actual point of 'Armed forces Day'? It sounds like the sort of thing that The Sun newspaper would campaign for, actually I wouldn't be surprised if they did. It's all a bit pointless, and we already have Rememberance Sunday to honour those killed in combat.

I don't know where this over sentimentally for the armed forces has come from over the last 15 years or so? Not saying they don't do a good job, but why are they coming in for special treatment? Why not an emergency services day, or an NHS workers day or a teachers day?

I'm prepared to get flamed for this btw, but I genuinely don't see why we even have it?

To all of those who doubt the need for armed forces Day - when you have first hand been to selly oaks hospital to see your family member laying there next to many other injured military personnel you will understand why we have an armed forces day and I hope you never have to go through it

Ryan I think you've got this recruitment thing wedged in your mind and no amount of explanation will shift it. The units who attend these Council run events are there, by and large, to show the local community what they get up to on their doorstep. If anything it's more about community relations than recruitment. And don't forget that your average squaddie is very proud of their Regt so are walking recruiters whether they're at AFD or down the pub.

It really pisses me off when people and the media refer to the Armed Forces collectively as "the Army" or soldiers.

There are 3 other Forces you know.

Military medicine is responsible for massive advances in trauma and orthopaedics, as well as plastics, wound care and emergency medicine. These advances feed through into the NHS, benefiting the general public.

Yes members of the Forces join up voluntarily to serve and protect, and you should all be bloody glad they do or we'd have compulsory military service and enscription. Then it would be your husbands, wives, sons and daughters being drafted in to work 24/7, 365 days a year for their country for a distinctly mediocre wage. Propping up the firefighters, hospitals, farmers, disaster relief management, sporting events and security.

So maybe just allow them one day a year of public support and awareness.

Well said @Sidge!

Yes, I also dislike the hounding of people who chose not to wear poppies. I wear one, but that's to honour my late grandfather who was a WW2 veteran. No one should be bullied into it though. We live in a free country, or at least I thought we did.

Ryan its clear you have no interest in AFD or understand the time effort and money the councils who do it put in.
Recruitment may be a bonus of the AF taking part that is not the purpose of the day. In truth fundraising is the main reason.
My city has a very large vets population and is located near the largest garrison and sadly they rely heavily on those charties.

Please let's not start the annual poppy debate 4/5 months before we need to!

I will tell DP to go tell his Major that he's got it all wrong. I've seen the light from this thread
Obviously the armed forces get no boost from recruitment, nor do they hold recruitment drives during AFD. I'm not going to argue with people that think they know better than someone on the inside, or that want to insist that this doesn't serve as a recruitment drive - intentional or not/named so or not.

Excellent post Sidge

In truth fundraising is the main reason
Maybe in your city. As I said, it's not here, there has been 0 fundraising.

Ryan I am on the inside!

I have organised 2 AFD with 2 different councils working directly with the regiments who are invited along.

You dont have any involvement in AFD and niether does your DP but as far as your concerned because he is serving you know everything

Well, I for one don't have a problem with having an Armed Forces day and not a day for other services such as the NHS.

Soldiers/Sailors/Air Men and Women go away for months at a time leaving their families behind and putting themselves in harms way.... for months in one go.

On a 6 month tour, it isn't unusual for some ranks to have fewer than 5 days off.

Yes, it's a career choice. But, for anyone who has served or more than 14 years, the 'biggest' thing in the horizon was Northern Ireland and Kosovo. Not Iraq or Afghanistan.

Many members of the forces... some who had served 18 years... had the one big attraction.... their pension... literallyvtaken from them. For those that don't know, a few years ago, if you served, for example, 24 years and retired as an RSM, you'd get a £1000 (ish) a month pension on retirement (pre-tax). That was changed so you have to be 55 to get a full pension. This, to repeat, happened for people who had already served 18 years.

Forces personnel get deployed all over the world, meaning family have to up and move with them, or repeated, lengthy seperations.

Do I begrudge living forces members one day? (Remembrance Day commemorates the dead). No I don't. It's nothing like NHS or firefighters.

Ryan PPs have already said that recruitment will sometimes be a by-product of AFD. Just because your husband was told by his boss that the only reason they're there is for recruitment doesn't make it gospel for the rest of the Armed Forces. It could well be just his personal opinion.

You dont have any involvement in AFD and niether does your DP but as far as your concerned because he is serving you know everything
He was told by his chain of command directly - of course I would trust what they say. Why would they lie?
Either way, it's pretty obvious it varies council to council obviously. Good on your council for doing fundraising, I'm shocked my city has done next to nothing compared to some then.

Firefighters risk their lives every single day of the week. That's certainly not an 'easy' career choice either.

I've just left the armed forces and I'm glad I have... no one cares about the armed forces in this country anymore. A lot of people don't really know what we do. For example, the RAF in the last decade has done more in a humanitarian capacity than 'war' (Nepal Earthquake, Ebola crisis, Mt Sinjar relief).
I've had some colleagues go through some truly awful things because they wanted to do good in the world (if you're an Afghan girl now attending school you would agree with this statement).

Armed forces day itself is a massive PITA, as no one care outside the armed forces cares about it and we always had to work. I don't think this country should be like the US where it's a bit too much, but in my local city I was told not to wear my uniform in public because of the abuse we got.

Final point, sorry this is a bit long! As others have said it isn't all 'soldiers' and the army, at this moment there are hundreds of RAF personnel protecting the UK sitting 'quick reaction alert', if anything comes into our airspace that's dodgey typhoons are scrambled to protect us. They regularly are scrambled and often escort the Russians out of our airspace.

What a coincidence is this thread! I just returned home a few hours ago from dropping my DH off. He now won't be home till January. We have two very young children. He doesn't moan or complain. This is what he signed up to do. But we won't be able to fly out to see him and he won't be able to fly home to see us.

Yes it is a career choice but you should be grateful every day that there are people willing to make that choice. In this day and age of individualism that there are still people willing to sign up and put themselves in harms way.

Sorry *no one outside of the armed forces cares that was meant to say

I have not accused you of lying.

What i have repeatedly said is the AF have no influence in the council holding an AF event. So to say its just a recruitment drive is wrong, that is not why the councils do it.

If your DPs reg see it solely as recruitment then fine but it is not the point of the day and to state it is as you did in your post shows he is misinformed.

Firefighters risk their lives every single day of the week. That's certainly not an 'easy' career choice either.

I didn't say it was

@MGFM bless you: I remember that feeling well. Always seems to be nighttime departures too, which makes it harder.

Lots of nice treats to look forward to over the coming weeks, I hope?

It obviously varies from council to council/different regiments sheep but it was being argued that there was no recruitment narrative/undertones. As I said, in our two regiments it has served as a recruitment drive. I'd argue it more as a professional and a personal opinion to be honest, but I wasn't aware other councils were doing extra and fundraising, so I took back the 'only' part of my statement a while ago. It is still a massive part of it though.

Runny if you think other public services should have "a day" then start a campaigne for one. I don't see why AFD should not exsist just because other public services does not have one.

I was In Liverpool today. My friend was one of the official city guests. I walked him down to it but then went elsewhere. While I appreciate what the forces do for us. And have utmost respect for any service personnel I get the sentimentality about it either.

but it was being argued that there was no recruitment narrative/undertones.

No it wasnt. I said recruitment happens.
What i disagreed with was your stance that all AFD is is a recruitment drive.