Today 600 people died of a disease that our leaders have chosen not to contain.
For context, that is two passenger planes crashing. 4 months worth of UK road deaths, or the monthly suicide total.
In a single day.
Why do we only care about some avoidable deaths?
#COVID19
For context, that is two passenger planes crashing. 4 months worth of UK road deaths, or the monthly suicide total.
In a single day.
Why do we only care about some avoidable deaths?
#COVID19
It is also the combined total of all UK service personnel killed in action in both Afghanistan and Iraq combined, over a 13 year period.
Every single SP death overseas was / is catapulted onto the front page of every newspaper. Yes the death of a colleague was (and remains) a very sad event, the papers reporting these deaths did not help the soldiers or the Army by reporting in this way.
The Armed Forces enjoys top-level support from the public, but this does not translate into trust of our soldiers capabilities, understanding of the amazing opportunities open to us, or a brief that we were making the world a better place.
Instead, it led to the public feeling sorry for us poor soldiers being deployed overseas, and having to fight really horrible people. Sorry for us, getting to do the one thing we signed up for. Certainly, getting rocketed or mortared wasn’t much fun, but it was our job.
So I ask, why the double standard? Why does every single soldier killed need to have a centrefold, when the hundreds of daily and avoidable deaths from COVID-19 barely get ripple?
Writing this today might draw criticism. I get that. But ask any soldier whether they would, if killed, rather be honoured and remembered, or felt sorry for. We don’t want sympathy for doing an outstanding, highly skilled, fun, and often dangerous job overseas. We do it gladly.
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