Titles

My GF and I had a bit of a discussion/argument this morning about Titles. I don’t mean in a Word document or anything, I’m talking about people who have managed to get themselves some kind of Title.

I’m willing to concede that my perspective on this is probably due to a long military career, and the importance we place on individual’s achievements.

I was watching TV yesterday, and one of those entertainment channels was on, talking about the Royal Wedding – Prince William and Kate Middleton. The woman doing the voice-over of the official portrait announced Prince William’s Grandmother as Queen Elizabeth.

And that annoyed me. Prince William’s Grandmother is Queen Elizabeth II. Small point, I know, but it just irked me. Why? Because the voice-over was stating the lady’s TITLE. And her TITLE is Queen Elizabeth II.

In Australia, the Prime Minister’s official title is The Right Honourable Julia Gillard (with any post nominals she may have). When they talk about her on the news, and call her Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, I have no problem with that, because they’re not stating her Title, their stating her position and her name.

Nobody meets The Queen and says “How do you do, Queen Elizabeth II”, do they? Of course not. But the woman has made it to the highest position possible in the Commonwealth, and probably deserves to be addressed correctly.

The same with postnominals. If you don’t know what they are, they are the initials that appear after someone’s name on a document. For example, Mark Donaldson VC. The reason for postnoms is that you have to do something pretty bloody amazing to earn them. Just take Mark as an example.

The guy jumped off a perfectly safe vehicle to run INTO the kill zone to rescue a wounded person. F**k me. The guy has earned the right to see the letters VC appear after his name on pretty much everything.

And Ben Roberts-Smith VC MG. Young Ben, who apparently IS ten feet tall and bullet proof, did what most gamers do at some point. They’re playing a war game on PS3/XBox/Whatever, and they’re pinned down. Eventually, they just go “F**k it”. They stand their character up and they just charge at the enemy. At that’s what Ben did. For something like three hours.

I’m not sure exactly what he did to win his Medal for Gallantry (MG), but it’s something along the same lines usually. So Ben DESERVES to have his postnoms listed everytime he gets a letter, I think.

It’s probably a small thing to civilians – I don’t know. My perspective has been skewed by the fact that I have been exposed to Titles for my whole life (not that I have one), and the fact that I actually know a few people who have them. After hearing about what they have done, I have the utmost respect for them.

What I’d like to see, is a little more respect for these individuals from the world at large. And not just the war heroes, but everyone – including Queen Elizabeth II.

ANZAC Day

I’ve let slip in a previous post, that I am a military man. 20+ years so far, although I plan to bring it to an end this year when I find a civilian job. So being in the military, I couldn’t let ANZAC Day go by without a post.

For those readers outside Australia, and for those IN Australia who for some reason are unaware of WHY we commemorate this day, here’s the quick rundown. On 25 April 1915, the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps launched an attack on the Gallipoli peninsular, with the intent of capturing Constantinople (now known as Istanbul in Turkey).

The planning didn’t go so well, and as all Australians know, we were cut down and spent the next eight months fighting an insanely dedicated force. Despite our laid back nature, when Australians are put to a task, we never give up. NEVER.

Traditionally, on the anniversary of that landing, we commemorate the sacrifice given by so many men. After WWII, Australia really only played very minor roles in wars until Vietnam when, once again, we proved our tenacity on the battlefield. Very quickly, ANZAC Day came to include commemorations for our Vietnam deceased as well.

After Vietnam (c. 1972), Australia still really played no major part in armed conflict until we deployed into East Timor (now Timor Leste) to help the Timorese learn to defend themselves against Indonesia. With our assistance, Timor Leste became the newest independant country on Earth.

Since then, Australia has taken a stand and played major roles in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Our two most recent Victoria Cross (VC) winners proved their mettle in Afghanistan. Like everyone says, Mark Donaldson and Ben Roberts-Smith are keeping the ANZAC spirit alive.

I have no problem with our society not supporting the decision for Australia to get involved in the middle east. I believe that everyone has the right to their own opinion, and I would never argue with these people or try to convince them of a different viewpoint.

What I DO have a problem with is these so-called objectors, who try to tell us that THEY are the informed ones, whose brains have not been corrupted by the USA. They think they’re more intelligent than the rest of us. And maybe they are.

Actually, no they’re not. I’d like to THINK that they’re smart, but really, they are ignorant. What the vast majority of these people seem unable to do is differentiate between the Australian Government deciding to contribute to the “War against terror” and individuals who go overseas to do a job.

Feel free to hate the Government for their decisions. If you vote, you have the right to challenge the Government. But don’t hate the soldiers. They are the men and women prepared to put themselves in harms way to defend and assist those who can’t do it themselves. In these midde eastern countries, the bad guys (Al Qaeda, Taliban) are like the big, schoolyard bully. The locals can’t stand up to them and they need help. So we go over there to achieve the Government’s mission.

When I was in Iraq, my unit was co-located with British forces. Even Americans would probably work out that it didn’t take long until we started playing cricket against each other. A healthy competition began, and before we knew it, both sides were trying to outdo one another.

My CO wrote to Ricky Ponting. He explained where we were, what we were doing, and asked if the ACB were prepared to send over some uniforms or equipment. The response shocked pretty much every one of us.

Ricky wrote back and said that they would NOT send anything over, as they didn’t want to be seen supporting the war in Iraq. The CO, being a man of his convictions sent a pretty scathing letter back to young Mr Ponting. He unashamadly berated him for his response and made it quite clear that soldiers should not suffer because of a decision made by the Government. Within three weeks, we had two bags full of equipment and uniforms to show up the Poms.

So this ANZAC Day, spare a thought for our men and women who have given thier lives so you can have your own opinion as to whether their actions deserve a minute of your time once a year. Hate the Government, but love the soldiers.