"he should be placed on a charge"
What exactly charging him with? Come on, "Politics is a game"... The military plays it all the time.
Posted by Anonymous to Our Town and Its Business at 4 December 2015 at 08:35
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Well no....the game played by the military is not politics as we know it.
I had read the Rangers named an Honorary Colonel who had never seen military service. The name escaped me butthe impression was wealth and circumstance were the criteria because of fund- raising potential.
It was all about the money.
I re-call a recent photo of a small ,very round elderly woman, looking ridiculous in a uniform tailored to her excessively curvaceous form, too big at the neck, shoulders and sleeves. She confided she had to be persuaded to wear it. Probably the only time. It certainly could not have been easily re-fitted except for another small and excessively curvaceous male or female.
That name did not register either. Only the thought of how extravagant to construct such a uniform for an obviously solitary occasion.
Think of it. al the precision drills and military marching, magnificent uniforms, flashing medals and rows of coloured ribbons, curls and curlicues of gold braid and ornamentation.....how meaningful is all that stuff ?
How much of it the quintessential product of modernity of the military for time immemorial?
How much the irrepressible inclination of little boys to dress up to look the part, bedazzle friends and terrorize enemies?
Cowboys with pistols .....Sherrif with a star on his chest and a long gun....Indians with bows and arrows,...pirates with swords ...young adult males with paint guns.
In the film Braveheart, Mel Gibson painted his face blue and flapped up the front of his kilt to terrify the Prussians in the Butcher Duke of Cumberland's army.
A Monty Python image presents at this point of a little soldier in pointy helmet, leaning over the parapet of a castle shouting in tortured French at Richard the Lion Heart knocking on the door below , .
" I fart in your g-e-n-e-r-a-l direction " along with an endless stream of other maladictions.
BUT...to get back to the comment ....No ...the military do not play games like politicians.They have discipline ....punishable by law.
To avoid charges of treason,desertion, being absent without leave and myriad others, the military have rules that must be followed without question.
Prohibition against political activity is the one.
Using the might of the military to accomplish political objective is insurrection, no matter where or how it happens.
It is not permitted.
I think it's time for the ultimate sacrifice of young Canadians in Afghanistan to be channeled towards something more meaningful than a battle over the display of a war machine in a place of sanctuary.
Is that why they died ? For a monument to war?
btw ... I am informed, the web site of the Department of Veterans' Affairs informs about fundIng for maintenance of War Memorials. Funding for display of war machines is not provided.
The web site for display of war machines refers to Department of Veterans' Affairs for a source of funding for display if war machines.
"I re-call (sic) a recent photo of a small ,very round elderly woman, looking ridiculous in a uniform tailored to her excessively curvaceous form, too big at the neck, shoulders and sleeves. She confided she had to be persuaded to wear it. "
ReplyDeleteDo you mean Her Honour Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Ontario?
They are making money on the sale of the things.
ReplyDeleteAnd I think it was Mr Watts who pointed out that the sales were not going very well.
There was a list, single digits, of places that had purchased them. One was Fredericton.
So the Colonel was fund-raising in a way.
Ms Buck your ignorance (actual usage not defamatory) about the military questions your ability to talk about the issue intelligently.
ReplyDeleteA "Honorary Colonel" performs NO military function. Does not need to have any military experience. There was past Honorary Colonel who was the former Lt-Gov who happened to be wheelchair bound because of juvenile polio. Did HE have any military experience? No.
From the hand-book:
What is an Honorary Colonel? The appointment of Honorary Colonels serves to develop
and strengthen the ties between the military element and local and professional communities, businesses,industries and labour. Orders go on to state that they will be appointed by the Minister of National Defence and eligibility for consideration is limited to:
• a former commissioned officer of any of Her Majesty’s Forces;
• a distinguished Canadian citizen; or
• a British subject.
No where does that specify anything about "money". I am saddened that you think every thing that you disagree with is related to some unbecoming political underhandedness.
For those that like to learn for themselves and not get bogged down in the hyperbole that infects this board, here's the link to the program....
ReplyDeletehttp://lavmonument.ca/en/index.html
Recognizing the service and sacrifice of the Canadian Armed Forces in Afghanistan by providing up to 250 full-size replica LAV IIIs to qualifying communities throughout Canada. The program especially commemorates the Fallen who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
The town will be responsible for any maintenance involved - maybe painting, certainly insurance and possibly fencing
ReplyDeleteif the neighbourhood kids are drawn to the thing, We shall have to wait & see.
And 15:37
I am not going back to check but it was probably moi who mentioned the money factor because I knew the town had just committed to putting in the pad, [ which will require removing existing fencing for access and re-doing at least the
sodding.]