There have been signs that some individuals in government and the British establishment have been trying to hijack Armed Forces Day to justify and bolster waning public support for the failing Afghanistan political fiasco.
These comments, in the context of Edinburgh hosting the event in 2011, are a welcome antidote to that insidious perversion of the aims of Armed Forces Day.
Support our armed forces but not the failed military adventures that are killing young men and women needlessly to protect the reputations of politicians.
Support our armed forces by getting them out of harms way, and quickly - support the troops but not the war ...