That might be why I'm an avid buyer of
Poppy Appeal poppies[1], but have nothing to do with
Help For Heroes.
The former is (to me, despite the criticisms given in that Wiki page) a long-standing after-care organisation, the Royal British Legion commemorates those lost, their clubs support ex-soldiers in society (parallel to Working Men's Clubs, etc) and dependants - potentially from cradle to grave - and they did recuperative support long before H4H. Yes, I see the charges of Poppy Fascism, I've seen the "why aren't they wearing one?" comments of those on TV and note that those filmed in July for pieces scheduled for (first) broadcast as November hoves into view have started to be 'dressed' with token poppies, out of actual season, to forestall this, but this is not the fault of the Appeal.
H4H, though became (whether or not
its fault) pushed by the tabloids, "poppy-washing" their more tabloidy activities (c.f. News Of The World). And I think they even (mis)appropriated the Poppy for a while until forced not to by the Legion, who found themselves losing funds by the apparent association. (I still see H4H flags/murals featuring a poppy-silhouette, which I'm sure is naughty of the artists involved). They undoubtedly do good on the recuperation front, making up some of the gaps in national
and Legion coverage and modernising but by leaching support from them in the process and threatening the wider support systems. And if "Help For
Heroes" isn't glorifying, I don't know what is...
For me it's just not British. Not my era of British. Post "Empire Day", post "Flag Day", and prior to it becoming 'a thing' once more to hoist the Union Flag in a front garden, during something of an international sporting situation (or the St. George[2]) or put those little plastic flag-flutterers into a car's door-jambs. (It's Ok to wave it at the Last Night Of The PromsEurovision because loads of other flags get waved in both - even *gasp* the EU one!) Literally flag-waving for "Heroes" seems just wrong. Old (and infirm) soldiers deserve appreciation and support like old-everybody and infirm-everybody (that charity has to do some of this, is an inditement against the failings of the system that should exist, and 'trade specific' support charities who can cater for specific issues are an acceptible compromise given that the compromise is made necessary). Ex-soldiers in neither camp (assuming invisible issues are being invisibly dealt with, which I know is not a given) are citizens like the rest of us, for better or worse.
Which I realise may seem a bit of a mental muddle. But that's me.
[1] At least one a year, but as they're so easily losable in the run up to Armistice Day I'll probably buy another (and another, and another) to 'repoppy' myself, with a stop-gap of last year's poppy that
did survive the season. It's not much, but a fiver or whatever (and quids or two-quid coins for the replacements) is my habitual direct donation. Probably outpaced by inflation.
[2] The Saltire is Ok. As is the Dragon, the Cornish cross, the Yorkshire rose or the Black Country one (though
that one's symbology
looks dodgily 'unwoke', it isn't). But the British flag and the English one have a lot of recent misuse to be erased from my mind. But I'm leaving out Norn Irnd from this aside, 'cos politics and flags over there are
waaay too complicated to deal with here, and as potentially philosophically dangerous even more than Beaufort's Dyke is physically.