One of the stories in the news today makes me sad to be British. Airman based at RAF Wittering have been told not to wear uniform in public, after a number of them have received verbal abuse, while out on the street dressed in their uniform. The police have not received any complaints however; staff at the base have reported a number of incidents.
When I was serving we weren’t allowed to wear uniform in public, because of the security risk involved, at that time the wearing of uniform made you a target for Irish extremists. But the regulations have now been relaxed. I doubt that the abuse comes from the older generation as they tend to have great respect for our armed forces. No I would say this probably comes from gangs of youths who have little respect for anything and would do it because they would think it was funny. Or it would come from peace activists normally in their twenties or early thirties who would see the airmen as easy targets to vent they anger.
It does not matter who carries out the abuse, it must stop. It is like many things in this country today, totally unacceptable. While I think the wars we have been dragged into are wrong we must back our troops while they are out on operations. If they feel they are undervalued then they will rightly feel aggrieved. Let them get on with job they been ordered to do, give them the respect they deserve. If anybody deserves abuse and ridicule it’s the morons who have sent them out there.
I have the greatest respect for what our troops are doing I was one of them once.
Rabbit
