Laurie Penny defends war memorial vandalism

While I think it's chavvy to disgrace a war memorial, I sympathise with people who think that war memorials are wrong. We shouldn't be celebrating 'war' as something positive, should we? Wars also usually have someone on the other end who may get offended, so they restrict political freedom too.


People should think of other methods to respect the dead. Since most soldiers are christian, maybe limiting 'memorials' to 'well-funded' cemeteries is a good idea.

I feel like current war memorials are slightly partisan. In Japan they have war memorials which simply 'respects all dead, regardless of which side they were fighting on' - I believe we should to the same.

I would rather we limited the memorials to the commemoration of the dead.

Instead of building monuments "against nazism" or "against communism" or "for the jews", we should simply respect the dead. So I would probably be more likely to fund an architect to design some well designed cemetery - we forced you to fight and this is our forgiveness.

Couldn't agree more. I'll **** on the Lockerbie and Dunblane Memorials.

Or alternatively I'll grow the **** up, act like an adult and not trash memorials for what ever reason they're there.

Ever been to the Menim gate? Hardly a celebration.

What a load of ****e Japan take that view because they know that their ancestors were the ones that were in the wrong and their actions don't deserve any praise.

Try to read all my posts on this thread... I'm not supporting what she did, I'm saying that there are more progressive ways of remembering war-dead.

While I think it's chavvy to disgrace a war memorial, I sympathise with people who think that war memorials are wrong. We shouldn't be celebrating 'war' as something positive, should we?

No idea who that guy is but his comment about women suggests he isn't aware of the fact that without the votes of women there'd have been no Tory governments between 1945 and 1979.

The graffiti on this public war memorial achieves little more than making the protesters come across as a clueless, immature, teenage vandals (as will defending it). Make a placard and deface that instead.

What's the bet it was a middle class kid who's going through a rebellion stage?

I don't care when war memorials get vandalised or otherwise 'disrespected'. I just don't understand why people get so angry about it. I don't think the graffiti was helpful in any way to the cause but at least their intentions were good. There is nothing praiseworthy about defending a piece of stone over the most vulnerable people in this country.

1) I'm not supporting what that person did. I haven't read the article properly and I'm not saying what the protester did was right.

2) I just feel uneasy about something that's close to celebrating war.

This is why I'm promoting 'special' cemeteries for commemorating the war-dead. They specifically target the soldiers and civilians and, in a way, are an apology for being forced to fight and die.

I'm not promoting 'Japan's culture of celebrating all war dead' because I support Japan in WW2, I'm promoting it because it's less partisan and more sympathetic.

Memorials should focus on the war-dead, and talk about how dying for a stupid war is wrong. They should try to be as neutral as possible.

How on earth were their intentions good? Why should you vandalise a war memorial which represents those who died in the war, and is nothing to do with the Conservative Party?

The intention was to show solidarity with those who will be affected by the Conservative government. People who are living and are going to suffer because of this governments policies. People who died in the war don't need that right now. They already have respect. The graffiti wasn't done with the intention to dishonour those involved in the war effort - it done there because someone was angry in that particular place. It being a war memorial was irrelevant to them, and it is irrelevant to me.

The intention was to show solidarity with those who will be affected by the Conservative government. People who are living and are going to suffer because of this governments policies. People who died in the war don't need that right now. They already have respect. The graffiti wasn't done with the intention to dishonour those involved in the war effort - it done there because someone was angry in that particular place. It being a war memorial was irrelevant to them, and it is irrelevant to me.

Would it be 'irrelevant' to you if one of them lashed out and punched a passerby who was wearing a suit and looked like a Tory? I mean, they were just angry and expressing their frustrations with a Tory government, right?

Eh, no. That actually causes someone harm - this doesn't.

Eh, no. That actually causes someone harm - this doesn't.