Poppy sales banned at a Kamloops dollar store

[samsquench07]

Apparently a dollar store in Kamloops did not want to sell these poppy boxes the legion brings around, and the President of the Army Navy vets did not like this, and brought this company into the news.

In my opinion, and of course there will be 2 sides to this, but this is wrong. Who cares if a business does not wish to sell poppies.

I personally respect the sacrifices the older generation gave to our country thru war.... but I choose not to wear a poppy, because in my opinion it symbolises war, and I do not support that.........

My counter point for those who disagree with me is this. When will war end?... we know better by now, that hostility does not win... War will never end if you keep going to war....

I respect the people that wear poppies, and I respect the people that don't. I just think its wrong to for this President of the Army Navy to slam this business in the news because they choose a different believe than him

[Veovis]

I don't blame the veteran for being angry. I don't have any living relatives that were in the war, and I don't even have any living relatives that knew them, I was lucky enough to talk to some before it was to late.

I still get a poppy each year anyways and donate money. My way of life is massively dependent on what those veterans did back then, and I don't take some ideological approach about it somehow being about "the war in Iraq" or "war is wrong" it's about donating money and acknowledging people who sacrificed more than we can even rightly imagine .

As for your "we know better now so when will war end", well part of it starts when people don't look at our old veterans and condemn them and deny them simply for having different beliefs and values. So sadly, no, apparently society overall hasn't learned yet.

There is no harm in having a poppy bucket and costs a business nothing and is part of Canadian heritage, perhaps Canadians shouldn't spit in the face of that heritage when it takes nothing to help.

[samsquench07]

Exactly. There is nothing wrong with wearing a poppy, and there is nothing wrong with not wearing a poppy.

The main thought, is to respect one another opinions and beliefs, even if they don't align with yours.

[motorhomebabe]

I will always buy a poppy. We would not be living with the freedoms we do today ,without our veterans.

[Veovis]

Exactly. There is nothing wrong with wearing a poppy, and there is nothing wrong with not wearing a poppy.

but they aren't deciding not to wear them, they are deciding to tell the veterans they don't deserve support and that others shouldn't wear them. There is no harm in providing people the choice for a short time each year.

To argue that disrespect to the people that gave you the life you have is ok is a sad sign of today's society. Remembrance day isn't about war, it's about "that war". It's even less about that was and more about love, dedication, sacrifice and pride in right against wrong.

[underscore]

I always support the poppy sales, to me they symbolize the thanks and respect that I have for those who have served, and the need to never forget. I think they are a very good reminder of how horrible, but occasionally necessary, war is.

[WhenWhatWho]

A wee bit off topic but one of my favorite sayings.....

If you are reading this, thank your teacher.
If you are reading this in English, thank a veteran.

[Merry]

The reason I wear a poppy is out of respect for those still alive who DID live through the Second World War (and the many wars since), who lost friends and relatives during that time. Even though it all seems like ancient history to many of us, as I get older I begin to realize just how short life is, and how things that happened many years ago can feel like it was only yesterday. Therefore, as I get older, I begin to realize how "raw" some of the emotions of many of the people who lived through that period must still be.

Imagine how it must feel to those who lost boyfriends, husbands, fathers, and/or old school chums, having been told that "they died for their country", to now feel that their country has forgotten that sacrifice, and simply doesn't care anymore. I don't think anyone who has lived through a war would advocate going to war again, but being made to feel that a loved ones death was not in vain is a way to help someone better accept a loss. And why would we, who have never been in the position of losing so many of our contemporaries in a very short time period, do anything to take away what ever little comfort survivors of such terrible conflicts may have?

The money goes to a good cause, and the symbolic gesture of having everyone wear a poppy brings comfort to those who have suffered terrible losses during times of war. Why would ANYONE object to that?

[Nebula]

Any business should have the option to have a poppy box or not. It's called choice.

I don't know if we're getting the whole story here, but it seems shocking to think an organization supporting veterans is having a snit because a business chooses not to support their fundraiser. As the saying goes, veterans fought so we could be free... Now some are upset because a business owner exercises freedom of choice?

[Fancy]

KAMLOOPS, B.C.—The president of the Army, Navy & Air Force Veterans in Kamloops, B.C., is angry that some local dollar stores refuse to sell poppies in what appears to be company policy.

Gord Marsh says both the Dollarama and Dollar Tree stores in the city have turned away Remembrance poppy sales, saying they weren’t business related.

Marsh calls the move inexcusable and an insult to veterans whose sacrifice has made Canada a great place to live and do business.

He points out the poppy campaign raises badly needed funds for veterans’ rehabilitation and other programs.

Marsh says if it wasn’t for the veterans the dollar-store owners may not have those businesses and they would probably be speaking another language.

Management at the Dollarama and Dollar Tree Kamloops stores referred media to their head offices, but calls for interviews have not yet been returned.

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2013 ... _says.html

Another article said "Dollarama stores in Kamloops refusing to allow the sale of the poppies on the grounds that it was company policy."
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/10/25 ... 65139.html
Did Marsh go to those stores' head office? Is it company policy to refuse any sort of fundraising - a blanket policy? Is that not their right to do so? The Dollar Tree has reversed their decision but it's unfortunate that media pressure may be the cause.

[Merry]

Any business should have the option to have a poppy box or not. It's called choice.

I don't know if we're getting the whole story here, but it seems shocking to think an organization supporting veterans is having a snit because a business chooses not to support their fundraiser. As the saying goes, veterans fought so we could be free... Now some are upset because a business owner exercises freedom of choice?

Yes Nebula, of course any business should (and does) have the option about what kind of activities they will choose to support. But hand in hand with that, goes the option of the individual to decide whether or not to support businesses that make certain choices. And businesses would be wise to remember that.

The decision whether or not to buy or sell poppies is much more than deciding whether or not to support a particular fundraiser. There is so much history and human emotion surrounding the wearing of a poppy, that anything that could be perceived as not approving the practice needs to be treated with great sensitivity.

People don't wear poppies to glorify war. They wear them out of respect for survivors of past wars; people who lived through dreadful times and have dreadful memories. The poppy lets such folk know that the world hasn't forgotten what they were forced to live through, and the people they lost. It is designed to bring them a measure of comfort; and why would anyone deny them that?

Ordinary people didn't CHOOSE to send their loved ones off to war. They were TOLD by their political masters that they'd better do it or face the consequences. But they were also told that war was a necessary evil, if they were to protect their loved ones from being ruled by evil aggressors. History will decide whether or not what they were told was the truth, but the fact is that there are many people living today who suffered great heartache resulting from such human conflict, who don't deserve to be punished even more by having folk insult the memory of all those fallen loved ones by not wearing a poppy.

[matai]

Point is any business is allowed to accept or refuse to sell something: Capitalism.
Point is any individual is allowed to wear something or not: Freedom.

Not wearing one does not mean we don't support the veterans. It's the same as not going to church does not mean we don't respect and believe in God. It simply means... we don't go to church.

[Fancy]

Yes Nebula, of course any business should (and does) have the option about what kind of activities they will choose to support. But hand in hand with that, goes the option of the individual to decide whether or not to support businesses that make certain choices. And businesses would be wise to remember that.

If it is company policy to not support every single fundraiser so that there is not favouritism, then it would not be up to the manager to reverse that decision but to go to head office.

How many stores are participating in the campaign and how many have not even been approached?

[MAPearce]

I'm thankful , greatful and respectful to those who we wear poppies for......ALL of them.

So , I won't shop at the Dollar Tree OR Dollarama.

They have the choice not to sell them and I respect that . I have a right to choose who I support with my disposable income.

Good to know .

[Fancy]

Why wouldn't you shop at the Dollar Tree - they are allowing the poppies.