I like poppies. I like poppies because they are subtle and look really nice on people's lapels. I like them because, though they contain obvious British-Canadian 20th Century symbolism, they were also chosen for their universal appeal. Poppies, through their association with one of the worst examples of humankinds relentless capacity for inhumanity, make an excellent choice for a symbol of sacrifice.
If you have issues with modern imperialism, you can allow the poppies to remind you of all the people who have been killed by other people over the course of human history. Poppies could represent for you the First Nations peoples who died here in North America, or they could represent members of your religion or ethnic group who were persecuted and slaughtered centuries ago - it's happened to everyone at some point - or they could represent for you young men and women who bought into propaganda and found themselves in a very brutal situation doing what they could to survive.
There are no flags on a poppy, no logos, it's just a flower that happens to be the colours of blood and death and grows in cemetaries in Flanders.
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