Just something that struck me over the weekend. I was out scouting a wedding band for my upcoming nuptuals and brought a friends with me as herself was working and doesn't trust my judgement (typical woman!). Anyways the fella along with me asked how I was getting on with the reserves and how the re-org was going to effect me. And one of the ladies then asked was I still in the FCA, followed by the sure ye only go there to go drinking.
I politely told her that the FCA was disbanded in 2005. "oh what are they called now?" was the reply. I proceeded then to tell her about the way kit has improved, we are being re-org'ed again, training courses I have done, things we get up to etc. and in that 5 min conversation I swung her opinion of the Reserves 180 degrees.
I know in general the military in this country are looked at like the dirt on the underside of ones shoes, and the reserve as the dirt that didn't even make it to the shoes.
My question to you fellow PDF/RDF and everything in between, is there anything we can do to boost the opinion the public have of us? Does it piss you off (like me) when you are still called an FCA man/woman? I recall doing a guard of honour 2 years ago and the TD escorting the guest when introducing us called us the FCA, I was ready to split him.
I don't want this to turn into a PDF v RDF slagging match and even to our PDF brothers is there anything collectively we can do (within reason and off our on bat) to improve the public's image of the Defence Forces, because to me it seems that it is:
Army: Sure all they do is go to the leb for a cushy tour, stand on the street with the banks and do the EOD.
Navy: detain fishing vessels, no mention of anything else.
Air Corp: Patient transfers, state trips, no mention of the other work they do.
All coupled with "sure we are neutral, why do we need an army/air corps/navy", never mind a reserve of any of them. Is it simply a case of the Irish mentality of being ignorant to anything other than what effects oneself? Have the Irish no pride in their Defence Forces anymore, once we got our independence that was enough and this has been passed down through generations?
The oh sure it's grand attitude. Or is it up to us as members who swore an oath to go out and change opinions? in one 5 min talk I swung one person around, if everyone did that it would be a start. I wonder in this year of the gathering and celebrating our "irishness" coupled with the founding of the Irish Volunteers, can our nations attitudes/opinions be changed?
This has probably been done to death in other threads, but it is my Monday rant!
I politely told her that the FCA was disbanded in 2005. "oh what are they called now?" was the reply. I proceeded then to tell her about the way kit has improved, we are being re-org'ed again, training courses I have done, things we get up to etc. and in that 5 min conversation I swung her opinion of the Reserves 180 degrees.
I know in general the military in this country are looked at like the dirt on the underside of ones shoes, and the reserve as the dirt that didn't even make it to the shoes.
My question to you fellow PDF/RDF and everything in between, is there anything we can do to boost the opinion the public have of us? Does it piss you off (like me) when you are still called an FCA man/woman? I recall doing a guard of honour 2 years ago and the TD escorting the guest when introducing us called us the FCA, I was ready to split him.
I don't want this to turn into a PDF v RDF slagging match and even to our PDF brothers is there anything collectively we can do (within reason and off our on bat) to improve the public's image of the Defence Forces, because to me it seems that it is:
Army: Sure all they do is go to the leb for a cushy tour, stand on the street with the banks and do the EOD.
Navy: detain fishing vessels, no mention of anything else.
Air Corp: Patient transfers, state trips, no mention of the other work they do.
All coupled with "sure we are neutral, why do we need an army/air corps/navy", never mind a reserve of any of them. Is it simply a case of the Irish mentality of being ignorant to anything other than what effects oneself? Have the Irish no pride in their Defence Forces anymore, once we got our independence that was enough and this has been passed down through generations?
The oh sure it's grand attitude. Or is it up to us as members who swore an oath to go out and change opinions? in one 5 min talk I swung one person around, if everyone did that it would be a start. I wonder in this year of the gathering and celebrating our "irishness" coupled with the founding of the Irish Volunteers, can our nations attitudes/opinions be changed?
This has probably been done to death in other threads, but it is my Monday rant!
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