in this issue red army sergeant never talked about horrors ... 20080405.pdf · · red army sergeant...

Volume - 2 Edition 13 Week Ending April 5, 2008

IN THIS ISSUE· Red Army sergeant never talked about horrors of war· Visions of family for troops· The last cavalry charge· Killing Fields journalist Dith Pran dies· Vimy was a turning point; Veterans gather to remember key First World War battle

· Canada's soldiers of misfortune· Veterans recall days at war, talk about Afghanistan mission· New Members Wanted for Branch 50's Colour Party· Another Executive Change· The Changing Face Of Branch 50's Executive.· TINA MARIE EMSLIE · U.K.: Veterans of all ages mark RAF's 90th Birthday.· Wounded vets get short shrift· Via Rail deal has fatal flaw, veteran says· Yes, It Was a Good War· Switzerland: Bumper Spaghetti Crop at risk of Late Frosts· U.S. veterans of Afghanistan Mission express disbelief at President George Bush's representations about War

· Comments On The Flag Vote· Tories set to lose Peace Tower flag-lowering vote· Lowered flag for all troop deaths opposed· Collingwood Locals Helping Wounded Warriors· The Red Baron flies back into role of the hero in Germany· Canada's flag should fly high· ALL BRANCH - A TOUTES LES FILIALES (08-007) - Half-Masting the Flag on the Peace Tower

· Osteoporosis often called the silent thief· Legion boasts many VIPs around the world· War ID at heart of dying wish· Commons votes to honour fallen soldiers, But Tories Ignore Motion· Lowering the flag for soldiers dilutes its importance· Command performance· Turkey's Last WWI Veteran Dies · FEEDBACK REQUESTED· Back To Vimy· Ste. Anne's Hospital Announces Affiliation with McGill University· Veteran: We shouldn't have to give up prayer· Veteran: Injuries of war extend from soldiers to families· Using soldiers as political pawns· Statement by the Minister of National Defence on the Ombudsman’s Report· Ombudsman’s Report: Reservists shafted on health· HMAS Sydney bathed in blue light· Canadian Artist Chosen To Create New 'Centrepiece' Sculpture For UK Memorial Gardens

· Book honours servicemen· Dreams King fought for are still unfulfilled · Saying goodbye Repatriation services filled with emotion·

Red Army sergeant never talked about horrors of war

He took part in the Battle of Stalingrad and immigrated to Canada in 1992 after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Peter Gitelman was a Red Army Master Sergeant who took part in the Battle of Stalingrad during the Second World War and who was decorated for bravery following the bloody Russian offensive against the Germans that claimed more than one million lives during the winter of 1942-43.

An X-ray technician, he came to Canada as a refugee in 1992 after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

He was was 90 when he died on March 10 at St. Mary's Hospital of complications following hip surgery.

"He always made the best of the worst possible experiences," said his niece, Anna Szpilberg,

"He was full of humour, full of life. In spite of everything he endured he was always upbeat. He was a practical joker who loved pulling childish pranks. Once, when I came back from a visit to Chernobyl, long after the the nuclear power plant there exploded, he had someone pose as a medical

The Royal Canadian Legion, Fred Gies Branch 50 (Ontario)

inspector to phone me and grill about whether I had been exposed to radiation. I was so gullible, I didn't realize it was him until he asked me if I was glowing at night."

Peter Gitelman was born in Glusk, Belorussia, on May 29, 1917. One of five children in a roving photographer's family, he went to Ukraine to learn a trade and before the war worked in Kiev as an electrical engineer. He tried to enlist in the Russian air force but was rejected because he had impaired vision in his left eye. After the Germans attacked Russia in 1941, Gitelman enlisted in the Red Army.

"He simply wanted to defend his country," said his nephew, Michael Tsarevsky. "The fact that he was Jewish had nothing to do with it. Like many Jews he was also a Russian patriot who loved his country. More Jews per capita were decorated by the Soviet Union for valour during the Second World War than any other ethnic group within the Soviet Union. While there was persecution under Stalin in 1937, '38 and '39, you have to be careful to separate the propaganda from the facts. Stalin purged everyone, not just the Jews."

When Stalingrad was attacked, Gitelman was sent to work as a technician in Soviet military field hospital #833.

"He was a very modest man, and he never talked much about the horrors of war," Tsarevsky added. "He would always say that Stalingrad was a good experience for him because it was there where he met his wife, Elena Gritsenko, who was a nurse working in the same field hospital."

They married in 1945 and his wife, whose military rank was just a notch above his, took part in the Prague offensive, the last major battle of the war.

When the war ended Gitelman was awarded the Soviet World War II Order, First Grade, and given medals for taking part in the liberation of Prague, the defence of Stalingrad and the Soviet Victory medal for distinguished military service.

He returned to Kiev and continued to do hospital work until he was well into his 70s.

It was only after the collapse of the Soviet Union that life became difficult for him and his wife and they came to Canada to be with family.

"He fit in well and made friends in spite of the language barriers," said Tsarevsky. "His only disappointment was that, after he became a Canadian citizen, the government didn't consider him a war veteran, and wouldn't recognize his military service record.

"Canada, he thought, had forgotten that Russians and Canadian soldiers were allies during the war, fighting the same enemy.

"Red Army veterans living in Canada created their own association, but it is little more than a kitchen club. Although he was invited several times to the Russian Embassy to take part in anniversary celebrations, he was ignored by the Canadian department of Veterans affairs."

Gitelman leaves his wife, Elena, and their son, Oleg, who lives in the United States.

© The Gazette (Montreal) 2008

Sunday, March 30, 2008ALAN HUSTAK, The Gazette

Section: Veterans

Visions of family for troops

Jennifer Shultz poses for a family portrait with sons Ethan, 2, and Jett, six months.

This one, and others, will be sent to husband and father Dave Shultz in

Afghanistan.Credit: Chris Schwarz, The Journal

Free portrait sessions keep soldiers in the picture.

When Warrant Officer Dave Shultz goes on tour -- to Bosnia, Kosovo and now to Afghanistan -- the 39-year-old brings a single photo album with him.

The album is the story of his life in

pictures, from the days before he married his wife Jennifer through to the arrival of his sons Ethan, 21/2, and Jett, six months.

It was his idea, Jennifer Shultz explained Saturday, for his family to take advantage of "Operation Homefront," providing free family portraits for Edmonton soldiers in Afghanistan.

"It's hard not having him in the family picture," Shultz said Saturday at Canadian Forces Base Edmonton, as Jett lay in his stroller running his fingers over the wedding ring on her finger and Ethan stretched out on the floor with toy cars.

This is Dave's second tour in Afghanistan, and it will be his last.

When he returns to Canada in late September or early October, he is scheduled to leave the military altogether.

Knowing it's almost over keeps her steady, she says. "The only thing that's getting me through it is, he's done. I never have to do this again. He's done."

About 30 families were scheduled to take advantage of the free photo sessions Saturday, courtesy of northern Alberta's Professional Photographers of Canada working with the Military Family Resource Centre.

Copies of the portraits will be sent to Afghanistan and given to the families left behind.

For the Dittrich family -- three generations of which came to Edmonton from Ardrossan on Saturday -- the portrait is another piece of "morale mail," like the parcels of Kraft dinner, homemade cookies and Gatorade they send Cpl. Darryl Dittrich every week.

"It's just a little bit of home," said Dittrich's fiancee, Mary Cerio. "He'll know we're thinking of him."

She was joined by Dittrich's grandmother Isobell, twin sister Darlene and parents Marion and Ralph. "I thought it would be a good idea to get everyone. ... It's going to be a surprise."

The family portrait will not be a


WEBNEWS Volume - 2 Edition 13 Week Ending April 5, 2008

surprise for Sgt. Dan Ferland of 1 Service Battalion. He e-mails his family almost every day, and hinted the portrait could be a good Father's Day gift.

"He said, 'Well, this sounds interesting,' " wife Liz Ferland said.

The Ferland children, 12-year-old Natalie and nine-year-old Nic, explained there are few family pictures with Liz in them, since she's always the one holding the camera. The professional shot will be a special treat.

"He's going to be like, 'Yeah, they didn't forget about me,' " Natalie said.

The project continues next weekend.

[email protected]

© The Edmonton Journal 2008Sunday, March 30, 2008

Trish Audette, The Edmonton JournalSection: Afghanistan

The last cavalry charge

During the First World War, Lord Beaverbrook arranged for the English

painter Alfred Munnings to be attached to the Canadian Expeditionary Force to record Canadians in action in France.

Munnings completed many oil paintings of Canadian soldiers, including this one,

entitled Charge of Flowerdew’s Squadron.

FOR THOUSANDS of years, men on horseback were an essential component of warfare. Mounted soldiers—cavalry—were used as scouts, reserves or attack forces, where speed, shock action or long distances were involved. The man-horse combination was a proven and necessary component of most armies.

Early in the First World War, the face of warfare changed dramatically. Machine-guns, barbed wire, trenches, minefields and artillery barrages not only led to huge increases in

casualties, they also severely restricted mobility, a key advantage of cavalry.

But the cavalry generals were not yet ready to concede that the day of the horse was over and give up their beloved mounts. As a result, long after the war started in 1914, all the belligerents maintained cavalry. For much of the war most mounted units were held in reserve, waiting for a gap to appear in the enemy’s lines through which they could charge into the rear areas.

Then, in the last year of the war, a rare opportunity arose to use cavalry units in their classic role — and Canadian soldiers made history.

AT 4:30 a.m. on March 21, 1918, a million Germans launched Operation Michael, a surprise attack against British and French lines on the Western Front. The Germans were desperate to gain the upper hand before America entered the war in strength.

The massive assault was aimed at the juncture of the British and French armies, to force the British north towards the English Channel ports and the French south towards Paris. One of the German intermediate objectives was the important rail centre of Amiens.

Facing the Germans was the British Fifth Army, weakly spread out along a 65-kilometre front. In the face of the overwhelming German advance, British units were overrun, decimated or forced back. Confusion reigned.

To halt the Germans, Fifth Army’s commander called on part of his reserves, the Canadian Cavalry Brigade, commanded by British Brig.-Gen. Jack Seely. The brigade consisted of the Royal Canadian Dragoons, Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians), Fort Garry Horse and a machine-gun squadron.

Known respectively as Dragoons, Strathconas and Fort Garrys, each cavalry regiment had three 150-man squadrons, each of four 36-man troops. All regiments were under strength, some by as much as 50 per cent.

As British troops pulled back, the Canadians were sent west of the small

village of Moreuil on the Avre River, about 20 kilometres upstream from Amiens, to await further orders. They weren’t long in coming.

On March 29, a five-kilometre gap had opened up in the Allied line, centred on a tree-covered ridge that overlooked Moreuil. The next day — Easter Sunday — the Canadians awoke to a cold, foggy dawn, the sun hidden behind a heavy mist.

At 8 a.m., Seely received orders to move forward to support French infantry in the area of Castel, just west of and across the Avre River from Moreuil Ridge. Leaving the brigade to follow later, Seely rode off to conduct a reconnaissance, taking with him his brigade major and signal troop. When he arrived at Castel, he found the French about to withdraw.

Seely convinced the French commander to remain, promising that he would attack the ridge shortly and needed the French to provide supporting fire. He quickly devised a plan and passed it to his brigade major, who would brief the brigade units as they arrived.

Seely then galloped up the ridge through enemy fire to set up his headquarters in a small outgrowth at the northwest corner of Moreuil Wood, which the Germans had not yet occupied. Five of his 12-man signal troop were cut down by enemy fire as they dashed towards the small copse. By 9:30 Seely was in location, a red pennant jammed into the ground marking his headquarters.

MOREUIL WOOD was a triangular-shaped wood, with its 1,500-metre-long sides facing north, west and southeast. Seely’s plan was to send a Dragoons squadron around the north and west sides and a third through the middle. One Strathcona squadron would gallop around the northeast corner to disperse any Germans trying to move into the trees, while the other two would clear the wood from north to south in a dismounted action. The machine-gun squadron would provide covering fire on the flanks and the Fort Garrys would remain in reserve.

The Dragoons led. The three squadrons deployed roughly as ordered. Squadron A made it well into the woods, dismounted and drove an


WEBNEWS Volume - 2 Edition 13Week Ending April 5, 2008

estimated 300 Germans from the trees. The other two squadrons were not as successful.

C Squadron ran into a German infantry battalion and its supporting artillery battery and was cut to ribbons at the southwest tip of the wood, while B Squadron — reduced to 80 men — entered the northern side and immediately ran into heavy German opposition, halting further progress.

C Squadron of the Strathconas, commanded by Lt. Gordon Muriel Flowerdew, headed for the northeast corner of the wood. He sent Second Troop ahead under Lt. Fred Harvey, who had earned the Victoria Cross a year earlier, to seize the corner, which was occupied by Germans.

On the way, Harvey and his men sabred five Germans. As he neared his objective, Harvey dismounted his men to attack when Flowerdew rode up.

Harvey briefed the squadron commander, who told him, "Go ahead and we will go around the end mounted and catch them when they come out."

Flowerdew then returned to C Squadron, which was waiting in a nearby draw.

Flowerdew led his men out of the draw and up a steep embankment. As they reached the higher ground, they saw about 300 German infantrymen deployed in two lines in the open some 300 metres to their front, supported by an artillery battery and a machine-gun company.

Flowerdew waved his sword in the signal for the squadron to deploy into line, turned in his saddle and shouted, "It’s a charge, boys, it’s a charge."

Riding directly behind him, the squadron’s boy trumpeter raised his horn to blow the charge but no sound came, as horse and rider were shot down.

Although it was certain death, the Strathconas galloped bravely forward, sabres drawn, directly into intense rifle, machine-gun, mortar and artillery fire. The toll on men and horses was terrible.

Afterwards, Trooper Albert Dale recalled that "everything seemed

unreal, the shouting of the men, the moans of the wounded, the pitiful crying of the wounded and dying horses."

Sgt. Tom Mackay later counted 59 bullet holes in one of his legs; the holes in the other couldn’t be tallied as they ran into each other.

As the squadron neared the first line, Flowerdew went down, wounded in the chest and both thighs. The squadron flooded past him, cutting down more than 70 Germans with their sabres.

Only one Strathcona made it through both lines. When Sgt. Fred Wooster found himself alone after running his sabre through one German and clubbing another on the head, he made his way back to Seely and reported the situation, before joining Harvey’s troop.

MEANWHILE, about 20 Dragoons had also joined Harvey at the northeast corner of the wood. Two of Harvey’s group retrieved Flowerdew and handed him over to four others who carried him back to a field ambulance unit.

As Flowerdew was evacuated, the sun finally broke through the mist, lighting up the battlefield.

To assist the troops still fighting inside Moreuil Wood, Seely committed his reserve. One Fort Garry squadron circled south along the west bank of the Avre to bring fire to bear on the southwest corner of the wood, while the other two were sent into the wood.

Losses for all three regiments were severe, in the order of one-third to one-half of their strength. Hardest hit of all was Flowerdew’s squadron, which lost over 70 per cent of its men.

Intense fighting continued for a couple of hours, until the British 3rd Cavalry Brigade arrived about noon and with the Canadians succeeded in pushing the Germans to the southern edge of the wood. Together, they held out against several counterattacks until relieved that night.

The German advance had been stopped cold and could go no further. Operation Michael ended on April 5.

Flowerdew died of his wounds the

next day, at the same time as his promotion to captain was announced.

For his gallantry in leading what became one of the last great cavalry charges in history, Flowerdew was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, Britain’s highest medal for valour in the face of the enemy.

For much of the war most mounted units were held in reserve, waiting for a gap to appear in the enemy’s lines.

John Boileau commanded Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) from 1985 to 1987.

Sunday, March 30, 2008John Boileau, The Chronicle Herald

Section: Veterans

Killing Fields journalist Dith Pran dies

New York Times photographer Dith Pran in a photo taken last month. Mr. Dith's death

from pancreatic cancer was confirmed Sunday by journalist Sydney Schanberg,

his former colleague at The Times. Credit: AP Photo/David M. Barron/

oxygengroup.com

NEW YORK — Dith Pran, the Cambodian-born journalist whose harrowing tale of enslavement and eventual escape from that country's murderous Khmer Rouge revolutionaries in 1979 became the subject of the award-winning film The Killing Fields, died Sunday, colleague Sydney Schanberg said.

Mr. Dith, 65, died at a New Jersey hospital Sunday morning of pancreatic cancer, according to Schanberg, his former colleague at The New York Times. He had been diagnosed almost three months ago.

Mr. Dith was working as an interpreter The Royal Canadian Legion, Fred Gies Branch 50 (Ontario)


and assistant for Mr. Schanberg in Phnom Penh, the Cambodian capital, when the Vietnam War reached its chaotic end in April 1975 and both countries were taken over by Communist forces.

Mr. Schanberg helped Mr. Dith's family get out but was forced to leave his friend behind after the capital fell; they were not reunited until Mr. Dith escaped four and a half years later. Eventually, Mr. Dith resettled in the United States and went to work as a photographer for the Times.

It was Mr. Dith himself who coined the term “killing fields” for the horrifying clusters of corpses and skeletal remains of victims he encountered on his desperate journey to freedom.

The regime of Pol Pot, bent on turning Cambodia back into a strictly agrarian society, and his Communist zealots were blamed for the deaths of nearly 2 million of Cambodia's 7 million people.

“That was the phrase he used from the very first day, during our wondrous reunion in the refugee camp,” Mr. Schanberg said later.

With thousands being executed simply for manifesting signs of intellect or Western influence — even wearing glasses or wristwatches — Mr. Dith survived by masquerading as an uneducated peasant, toiling in the fields and subsisting on as little as a mouthful of rice a day, and whatever small animals he could catch.

After Mr. Dith moved to the U.S., he became a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and founded the Dith Pran Holocaust Awareness Project, dedicated to educating people on the history of the Khmer Rouge regime.

He was “the most patriotic American photographer I've ever met, always talking about how he loves America,” said AP photographer Paul Sakuma, who knew Mr. Dith through their work with the Asian American Journalists Association.

Mr. Schanberg described Mr. Dith's ordeal and salvation in a 1980 magazine article titled “The Death and Life of Dith Pran.” Mr. Schanberg's reporting from Phnom Penh had earned him a Pulitzer Prize in 1976.

Later a book, the magazine article became the basis for The Killing Fields, the highly successful 1984 British film starring Sam Waterston as the Times correspondent and Haing S. Ngor, another Cambodian escapee from the Khmer Rouge, as Dith Pran.

The film won three Oscars, including the best supporting actor award to Mr. Ngor. Mr. Ngor, a physician, was shot to death in 1996 during a robbery outside his Los Angeles home. Three Asian gang members were convicted of the crime.

“Pran was a true reporter, a fighter for the truth and for his people,” Mr. Schanberg said. “When cancer struck, he fought for his life again. And he did it with the same Buddhist calm and courage and positive spirit that made my brother so special.”

Mr. Dith spoke of his illness in a March interview with The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., saying he was determined to fight against the odds and urging others to get tested for cancer.

“I want to save lives, including my own, but Cambodians believe we just rent this body,” he said. “It is just a house for the spirit, and if the house is full of termites, it is time to leave.”

Dith Pran was born Sept. 27, 1942 at Siem Reap, site of the famed 12th century ruins of Angkor Wat. Educated in French and English, he worked as an interpreter for U.S. officials in Phnom Penh. As with many Asians, the family name, Dith, came first, but he was known by his given name, Pran.

After Cambodia's leader, Prince Norodom Sihanouk, broke off relations with the United States in 1965, Mr. Dith worked at other jobs. When Sihanouk was deposed in a 1970 coup and Cambodian troops went to war with the Khmer Rouge, Mr. Dith returned to Phom Penh and worked as an interpreter for Times reporters.

In 1972, he and Mr. Schanberg, then newly arrived, were the first journalists to discover the devastation of a U.S. bombing attack on Neak Leung, a vital river crossing on the highway linking Phnom Penh with eastern Cambodia.

Mr. Dith recalled in a 2003 article for the Times what it was like to watch

U.S. planes attacking enemy targets.

“If you didn't think about the danger, it looked like a performance,” he said. “It was beautiful, like fireworks. War is beautiful if you don't get killed. But because you know it's going to kill, it's no longer beautiful.”

After Vietnamese forces invaded Cambodia in 1979 and seized control of territory, Mr. Dith escaped from a commune near Siem Reap and trekked 40 miles, dodging both Vietnamese and Khmer Rouge forces, to reach a border refugee camp in Thailand.

From the Thai camp he sent a message to Mr. Schanberg, who rushed from the United States for an emotional reunion with the trusted friend he felt he had abandoned four years earlier.

“I had searched for four years for any scrap of information about Pran,” Mr. Schanberg said. “I was losing hope. His emergence in October 1979 felt like an actual miracle for me. It restored my life.”

After Mr. Dith moved to the U.S., the Times hired him and put him in the photo department as a trainee. The veteran staffers “took him under their wing and taught him how to survive on the streets of New York as a photographer, how to see things,” said Times photographer Marilynn Yee.

Ms. Yee recalled an incident early in Mr. Dith's new career as a photojournalist when, after working the 4 p.m. to midnight shift, he was robbed at gunpoint of all his camera equipment at the back door of his apartment.

“He survived everything in Cambodia and he survived that too,” she said, adding, “He never had to work the night shift again.”

Mr. Dith spoke and wrote often about his wartime experience and remained an outspoken critic of the Khmer Rouge regime.

When Pol Pot died in 1998, Mr. Dith said he was saddened that the dictator was never held accountable for the genocide.

“The Jewish people's search for justice did not end with the death of Hitler and the Cambodian people's



search for justice doesn't end with Pol Pot,” he said.

Mr. Dith's survivors include his companion, Bette Parslow; his former wife, Meoun Ser Dith; a sister, Samproeuth Dith Nop; sons Titony, Titonath and Titonel; daughter Hemkarey Dith Tan; six grandchildren including a boy named Sydney; and two step-grandchildren.

Mr. Dith's three brothers were killed by the Khmer Rouge.

Sunday, March 30, 2008RICHARD PYLE , The Associated Press

Section: Miscellaneous

Vimy was a turning point; Veterans gather to remember key First World War battle

Dan Turner (left), John Presley and Mel Pennell, members of Branch 76 of the

Royal Canadian Legion, chat before the start of a memorial service Sunday

commemorating the 91st anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

Credit: Carol mulligan/the sudbury star

The 91st anniversary of a First World War battle historians say was Canada's coming of age as a nation was remembered in a solemn celebration Sunday.

The annual memorial held by Branch 76 of the Royal Canadian Legion has become almost as well known in Sudbury as the story of how almost 4,000 Canadians lost their lives in the Battle of Vimy Ridge. Legion members, some of them veterans from other wars, marched along with cadets in a parade from Tom Davies Square to Church of the Epiphany, where the memorial service was held.

Rev. Tom Corston, pastor at the church and padre for Branch 76, invited about 150 people at the memorial to "pause a few short moments to commemorate the

passing of so many lives in the securing of peace."

Bugler Roger Pile sent chills down the spines of those attending as he played Last Post in memory of all those fallen in war.

Comrade Marg Pennell of Branch 76 brought the story of the epic battle at Vimy, France, to life by reading an account of it by military historian Tim Cook.

Cook said Canada's participation at that point in the First World War, when the Allies were losing badly, is considered one of Canada's defining moments.

The battle helped the young nation emerge from the shadow of Great Britain and "feel capable of greatness," read Pennell from Cook's work.

Canadian troops "carefully planned and rehearsed" for weeks before the attack staged April 9-12, 1917.

Cook described the Canadian onslaught as "a stunning success," but said it came "at a terrible cost."

As many as 100,000 Canadian troops were involved in the battle in which 3,598 lives were lost and 10,000 were wounded as they sought to capture the seven-kilometre ridge.

Canadian soldiers eventually captured Hill 155, the highest spot in the battlefield.

Monday, March 31, 2008Carol Mulligan, The Sudbury Start

Section: Veterans

Canada's soldiers of misfortune

Pte Brent Ginther was one of the Canadian soldiers wounded in Afghanistan.

Credit: Canapress

War wounded deserve better

compensation, say MPs.

OTTAWA -- Soldiers who lose limbs, sight or hearing to roadside blasts or training accidents deserve more cash, say MPs who are demanding changes to the military amputee and injury compensation program.

They also want to see parity in compensation for part-time reservists.

Under 2003 guidelines, most Canadian Forces members are eligible for a maximum lump-sum payment of $250,000 if they lose both feet or hands or suffer another permanent major injury.

The figure is $125,000 for the loss of a single body part.

Some classes of reservists on service of less than six months see their claims capped at $100,000 and are eligible for only half or, in some cases, one quarter of the dismemberment claims for regular forces.

NDP MP Peter Stoffer slammed the compensation figures as too low, and said disparity between full-time troops and reservists amounts to outrageous discrimination.

"I don't care if it's one mi -nute or one year, the minute someone puts that uniform on and they serve their country, whether it's domestic or overseas, if something happens to them they should be treated equally," Stoffer said.

'WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?'

"Whether you're losing your foot in Gagetown or Wainwright or Afghanistan, what's the difference to the person who lost the foot?"

According to figures obtained by Sun Media, as of the end of 2007, the Department of National Defence had paid out $2.6 million for 17 dismemberment claims.

That's up from $1.1 million paid out from the beginning of the Afghanistan mission in 2002 to the end of 2006.

Andre Bouchard, president of the Service Income Security Insurance Plan, which administers financial programs for Canadian troops, said a proposal to standardize compensation so that everyone qualifies for the maximum amounts is before Treasury



Board, but he could not say if it would be approved.

While other countries such as Britain have recently increased compensation, Bouchard said there is no current consideration to boost payments in Canada.

"Right now there's nothing in the works to change the maximum amounts, but there is something in the works to make sure everyone will qualify for a total of $250,000," he said.

The Afghan campaign, up to the end of 2007, has seen 395 non-battle injuries, 280 wounded in action, 66 killed in action and eight other deaths.

DND, for reasons of "operational security," does not release detailed information on how many injuries resulted in dismemberment.

But one Forces member said the level of compensation is a grave concern for those who risk losing limbs from improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and other blasts.

DND and Veterans Affairs provide pensions and programs to help amputees retain a job with the Forces or in the federal civil service, but many say it's still not enough.

Liberal MP Dan Mc Teague said Canadians should be "aghast" to learn the level of compensation for soldiers with debilitating wounds.

And after recently voting to extend the mission to 2011, he believes Parliament has a duty to ensure every amputee soldier is cared for financially for the rest of his or her life.

"To me this looks like a blatant ripoff of people who have selflessly given of themselves for what Parliament has asked them to do," he said.

McTeague also slammed the inequality in compensation for regular force and some reservists as "appalling discrimination."

'DISCRIMINATION'

Edmontonian Audra Franklin, whose husband Master Cpl. Paul Franklin lost both his legs to a roadside bomb in Afghanistan in 2006, praises the military's system of compensation and insurance.

She said it has worked relatively well, allowing them to buy a new house that could be made accessible for her husband, who continues to serve in casualty support with the Armed Forces.

But Franklin also said reservists certainly deserve the same level of support as their full-time comrades.

"I would hope it's that way because they're serving just like regular forces members do," she said.

Franklin added, however, that she can also understand some hiccups in updating the military's system of compensation - as it comes to grips with the scale, and the fallout, of the Afghan campaign.

"This is really the first time that Canada's been technically at war since Korea," she said. "So, we just don't know what everybody needs, and that's the problem."

Monday, March 31, 2008KATHLEEN HARRIS, NATIONAL BUREAU

CHIEF, The Edmonton SunSection: Afghanistan

Veterans recall days at war, talk about Afghanistan mission

Ron Pietroniro / Metroland OSHAWA -- Leighton Warren, a veteran from

Sunnybrook Hospital, takes part in the annual Oshawa Legion Branch 637's

luncheon. March 26, 2008.Credit: Durham Region News

Lunch for Sunnybrook vets is a tradition at Oshawa's branch 637.

OSHAWA -- It is fitting to hear talk of war at a legion hall.Sometimes, the conversations are of years long past and battles now recounted in history books.

Other times, they turn to the battles at hand -- especially when it has become an all too regular occurrence for troops to arrive home in Canada in flag-draped coffins.

"This isn't like the war we fought," sighs Oshawa resident Gordon Cormie, speaking of Canada's current mission in Afghanistan. "When I went to war, I knew who my enemy was, they wore uniforms. Our troops over there don't know who these people are. It's so different."â?¨ Mr. Cormie is a Second World War veteran, an Oshawa resident and an active member of Sir William Stephenson Royal Canadian Legion Branch 637.

This week, he and his fellow members at branch 637 welcomed dozens of guests from Sunnybrook Veterans



Hospital in Toronto for an afternoon of bingo and chicken pot pie.

The branch has been hosting the lunch for several years now, as a way to say thank you to their fellow veterans.

There was talk of many things as the Sunnybrook guests arrived at Oshawa's Simcoe Street North branch on Wednesday afternoon -- the mild spring-like weather, bingo rivalries and the battlefields each one had seen.

But conversation quickly turned to current events and Canada's troops overseas.

Mr. Cormie, who was stationed in North Africa and Italy during the Second World War, says the mission in Afghanistan is "in shambles" and doesn't know if there will be a winner when all is said and done.

It was a sentiment echoed by many of his colleagues.

"It's utterly stupid, people are dying, but they're not getting anywhere. I think we finished the last good war," said Russ Rogers, a Second World War navy vet.

Beside him, Elizabeth Staff nodded in agreement.

She spent five years in the Canadian Women's Army Corps during the Second World War and comes from a proud military family -- her father, brother and sister all served at the same time she did and her husband was a veteran too.

But that doesn't mean she likes what she sees happening in Afghanistan.

"I think we should bring them home," she says softly. "All these young people getting killed and for what? It's not like the war we knew."

Don Jacobs wants to be clear that he's very proud of the Canadian troops in Afghanistan and thinks they're doing a good job with the orders they've been given.

But this 84-year-old, who was wounded by a shell while serving in France, says there are as many cons as pros.

"We have to remember, there has been fighting in that country for years and nothing ever seems to get better,"

he says. "I'm proud of them being over there, but in that particular country, I don't think anyone will win. I hope I'm wrong."â?¨ Sir William Stephenson Royal Canadian Legion Branch 637 is one of two halls in Oshawa. It boasts 400 members, an ambitious annual poppy campaign that raised $53,000 in 2007, community service projects and a full activity schedule including dinners, league darts and Friday night karaoke.â?¨ For more information on branch 637, visit www.rclbr637.com

Monday, March 31, 2008Jillian Follert, Durham Region News

Section: Veterans

New Members Wanted for Branch 50's Colour Party

RCL Branch 50 is looking to expand its Colour Party. If you are a member of Branch 50, and are interested in learning more about joining the Colour Party, please email your intentions to [email protected].

Monday, March 31, 2008Gord Ross, Sergeant-At-Arms

Section: Executive

Another Executive Change

Ed is a veteran in our current times. Belva is a veteran of the U.S. Navy. (ED's

glazed look may now be permanent..T)Credit: Belva Christner

We are happy to announce another executive change in our midst.

This time not in our own organization but in the household of Ed Gorniak, our new Sergeant At Arms.

Ed has asked Belva Christner, our new Executive Secretary for her hand

in marriage, which she has graciously accepted.

The date of the wedding will be sometime next year.

Congratulations Ed and Belva.

Monday, March 31, 2008Webmaster

Section: Births Deaths and Marriages

The Changing Face Of Branch 50's Executive.

UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT: Due to a swath of resignations and the unfortunate passing of Reg Bielaski, our Youth Officer, the face of our executive changed markedly yesterday as the general body ratified the acceptance of five new members to the executive and the reallocation of a few of the positions as designated by Comrade President David Davidson.Comrade Michael Fenton, according to by-law protocol, has now moved up from Second Vice-President to First Vice-President replacing Comrade Don Walter. Michael will retain his current position of Poppy Campaign Chairman and is now also covering the Training And Organizational Development role in addition to chairing the Entertainment Committee.Comrade Gord Ross, former Sergeant at Arms, has been promoted to Second Vice-President and now chairs the Bar Committee. The latter now consists of Comrade Second Vice-President Gord Ross, Comrade First Vice-President Michael Fenton and Comrade Treasurer Jim Frasier.Comrade Ed Gorniak, previously House and Building, replaces Comrade Gord Ross as the new Sergeant at Arms.

The following comrades were sworn in as new executive members by Comrade District Commander Peter Gates.Comrade Belva Christner, replaces Comrade Lee Ewart as the



new Executive Sectretary.Comrade Deanna McCormick, replaces Comrade Reg Bielaski as Youth Education / Bursary Officer.Comrade Alfred Ash, replaces Comrade Gloria McKibbin as Public Relations Officer and Dugout Editor.Comrade Raymondé Hashey, replaces Comrade Gerry Prince as Sports Officer and also assumes Comrade Gloria McKibbin’s duty as Track and Field Officer.Comrade Chris Pickering, replaces Comrade Ed Gorniak as the new House and Building Officer.

In addition, following the meeting, Comrade Norma Ash was asked, and agreed to fill the role of Sick and Visiting Officer to replace Comrade Vivian Peddle.

At time of press, the role of Patio Chair was still undetermined though Lous Kuntz is a favourite.

This executive is now approaching it's half way point in it's term and has, by all accounts, gone through a significant change. Let us all wish the new executive members well and support them as best we can so that they may come up to speed and go forward for the remainder of the term.

Monday, March 31, 2008Webmaster

Section: RCL

TINA MARIE EMSLIE

Tina (TT) Emslie, passed away, Friday, March 28, 2008, at the age of 43 years.

She will be sadly missed by her mother Patricia Emslie.

Tina was predeceased by her father, John Emslie in 2000. Cherished by her nieces Melissa and Brittney and lovingly remembered by brothers John

Jr., Tim and sister-in law Kim. Tina will be fondly remembered by many friends whose lives she has touched.

Friends are invited to share their memories of Tina with her family during visitation at the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home , 171 King Street South, Waterloo, on Tuesday, April 1, 2008 from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m.

A celebration of Tina’s life will be held on Wednesday, April 2, 2008 at 2 p.m. in the chapel of the funeral home with a reception to follow in the Fireside Reception Room of the funeral home. Cremation will have taken place.

Condolences for the family and donations to the Association for Community Living or the MS Society may be arranged through the funeral home, 519-745-8445 or www.erbgood.com.

In living memory of Tina, a donation will be made to the Trees for Learning Program by the funeral home. Due to allergies, floral tributes with no scent would be appreciated.

Monday, March 31, 2008The Record

Section: Births Deaths and Marriages

U.K.: Veterans of all ages mark RAF's 90th Birthday.

Sqn Ldr Ian Blair was among those honoured at Hendon.

Credit: BBC News

The RAF Museum at Hendon, north London, is a fitting back-drop for the start of events to mark 90 years since the formation of the Royal Air Force.

Hendon was the original London Aerodrome, where pilots of the fledgling RAF delighted crowds by showing off their flying skills in the skies above.

The museum's cavernous halls are now a living timeline.

From Gloster bi-planes to the latest

Eurofighter Typhoon, the development of the RAF over 90 years is palpable - and made real by the smell of oil and paint.

But it is the wars the service has fought since 1918 that act as the punctuation in its story.

From WWI to the current fighting in Afghanistan, the RAF's 90th anniversary celebrations are focused on its achievements and its veterans.

At Hendon on Monday, the day before the service's birthday, 25 veterans of conflicts since WWII were honoured by the Defence Minister, Derek Twigg.

Each received a commemorative badge, flown to the museum by an RAF Chinook helicopter - a machine more used to the deserts of Afghanistan than the London suburbs.

Among those being honoured was 89-year-old Squadron Leader Ian Blair.

'Current aggravation'

Born in the same year as the RAF was formed, he joined at the age of 16 "and a quarter" in 1934.

Within five years he was fighting Nazi Germany - ending up flying the famous Spitfire.

As one of Winston Churchill's "few", Sqn Ldr Blair wears his campaign medals with pride.

And despite his advancing years, he still keeps up with what he terms the current "aggravation in the Middle East".

Events of the last 15-20 years have been "quite an eye-opener", he says, "but the spirit now is equally as good as it was in years gone by."

Yet he feels that understanding of the RAF's contribution to the defence of Britain "could be improved".

"We don't get much recognition", Sqn Ldr Blair adds.

Senior Aircraftsman Nick Williamson's desert camouflage is a visible reminder amid the museum's exhibits, that the RAF's history is still being written.

As a member of the Queen's Colour Squadron (QCS), Royal Air Force Regiment, he has been deployed to



Iraq twice, and came back from a tour of duty in Afghanistan before Christmas.

The RAF Regiment is responsible for securing operating bases in time of conflict - patrolling "beyond the wire" in places such as Basra and Kandahar.

But the QCS also carries out the RAF's ceremonial duties, be they guarding Buckingham Palace or repatriation services for fallen comrades.

The men and women of the Regiment spend six months "green" - engaged in front-line deployments - and six months "blue" (carrying out ceremonial duties) each year.

SAC Williamson describes his last tour of Afghanistan as "busy, hectic, interesting", but adds that he cannot say much because of what he was involved in.

'Special time'

His colleague Cpl John Stanley is a stark contrast, dressed in his formal RAF blue uniform.

He says that the ceremonial role has seen him travel the world, performing close-order drill in front of large audiences.

He has also been an honour guard for the repatriation of WWII fighter pilots, when their remains have been discovered in foreign lands.

But when asked what his "finest hour" in the RAF has been, it is more "green" than "blue".

"2003, across the border [from Kuwait to Iraq] and we achieved our mission", he says.

"But long-term, it has to the be the Battle of Britain."

Speaking at the veterans' ceremony inside the museum, the defence minister praised those receiving badges.

"It is a humbling experience to hear of the experiences many of you have had", Derek Twigg said.

"It is a special time for the RAF and this is a great opportunity to reflect on the greatness of the RAF.

'Different' RAF

"In Iraq and Afghanistan, there are amazing amounts of heroics, bravery and steadfastness of our Armed Forces."

While his words are welcomed, some of those in the audience remain concerned about the RAF being over-stretched.

Barry "Smokey" Furness served for 29 years in the RAF - 12 of those as a winchman in a search-and-rescue helicopter.

"I was what they call a Cold War warrior", he tells me. "I didn't get to do the war fighting, but I was doing the things the RAF does best".

His son, though, has just completed 22 years in the air force, including a six-month tour in Iraq.

"They are over-stretched", Mr Furness says. "It is a different air force.

"But over 90 years, we have an awful lot to be proud of."

Tuesday, April 01, 2008Rob Corp, BBC News

Section: Veterans

Wounded vets get short shrift

The federal government isn't treating wounded Afghanistan war veterans as well as their aging counterparts, a new study from the University of Alberta suggests.

"It's a matter of a very high levels of needs. They appear to be having difficulty accessing services and navigating the system," study co-author and human ecology professor Janet Fast told Sun Media. SERVICES UNAVAILABLE

"Services weren't available, they had applied for help and been turned down, and the supports they need were too expensive and not covered by their medical plan," said Fast.

Research conducted in 2007 surveyed

142 wounded veterans between the ages of 25 and 65 along with 115 of their main caregivers.

All of the veterans surveyed suffered at least 78% full body impairment and about 85% had related psychological problems - which represents about 5% of all veterans under age 65, according to Fast.

The findings indicate Veterans Affairs Canada is adept at helping veterans from the Second World War and Korea, but that aid to younger vets is lacking.

"Younger (wounded) veterans have quite different and more complex needs. They are more likely to have young families, be of employment age and unable to provide for families financially," Fast said.

"From our perspective we need to pay closer attention to the families supporting these people. They are the ones in the trenches so to speak ... they will be able to hang in longer, do a better job and not burn out so quickly (with more support)."

Veterans Affairs Canada has a copy of the report - entitled Wounded Veterans, Wounded Families.

ACCESS

"We are concerned about the findings. We want to ensure this group is accessing all the supports and benefits currently available so we are contacting them," said spokesman Janice Summerby.

She said the Veterans Charter introduced in 2006 offers more support in the realms of counselling, health insurance and vocational rehabilitation, and that the University of Alberta study will help guide future improvements in veteran care.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008Brookes Merrit, The Edmonton Sun

Section: Veterans



Via Rail deal has fatal flaw, veteran says

OTTAWA - A promotion by Via Rail that allows Canadian Armed Forces personnel and National Defence employees to ride the train for free in July makes it difficult for veterans to save money on overnight trips, says a former soldier.

Retired major Claude Soucy, 70, of Moncton served as a peacekeeper in Pakistan and Cypress. He said he and his partner, who is also a veteran, were contemplating a trip to Toronto this summer by train to visit family.

Soucy said he called Via Rail to ask about the promotion. That's when he discovered a "fatal flaw."

"Veterans are not allowed to purchase, at their expense, an upgrade to a compartment, berth or roomette," he said.

"This means that a veteran will have to sit in coach class during his entire journey to Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver or wherever."

Last week, Veterans Affairs Minister Greg Thompson, Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon and Defence Minister Peter MacKay, along with officials from Via Rail, touted the offer as the company's way of thanking Canada's men and women in uniform.

"It may be harsh to state that (they are) trying to boost their image at the expense of veterans," said Soucy. "However, simply allowing the veterans to purchase an upgrade when taking advantage of the program can rectify this oversight."

Thompson said he wasn't aware of the restrictions when the announcement

was made.

"Maybe there is some sort of compromise our veterans can be given by Via Rail," he said.

He said the terms and conditions of the promotion are the responsibility of the locomotive company.

Catharine Kaloutsky, a spokeswoman for Via Rail, said the popularity of the offer prevents the company from providing a place to sleep to aging veterans.

"Recognizing how popular we were anticipating the fare to be received, the only space we would be able to accommodate the numbers we are expecting is in economy class," she said.

Kaloutsky dismissed the notion that the promotion prevents older veterans from taking overnight trips.

"Understandably, they may not be interested in making a trip across the country," she said.

The deal also allows Forces personnel to bring up to five family members on the trip at half the regular cost.

Through the promotional offer, Soucy and his wife can travel in coach class from Moncton to Toronto for free. The same ticket, including the least expensive sleeping quarters available, would cost just under $1,000. The trip by train takes more than 20 hours.

Similarly, a veteran and non-military spouse travelling from Moncton to Winnipeg using the promotion would pay $612 roundtrip for more than 50 hours spent on the rails. The trip also includes a one-night layover in Toronto at the travellers' expense.

The same ticket with the least expensive available sleeping quarters would cost $2,925.

By comparison, two seniors can fly with Air Canada from Moncton to Toronto roundtrip for $883 or to Winnipeg and back for $1,509.

Soucy said the fanfare surrounding the promotion isn't fitting.

"It's just not even close to being a genuine offer for veterans," Soucy said.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008Marc Hudon, The Daily Gleaner

Section: Veterans

Yes, It Was a Good War

Graves of American troops at Normandy, France.

Credit: Remy De La Mauviniere -- Associated Press

Nicholson Baker, a supremely talented novelist, has written a surprising book of nonfiction titled "Human Smoke." It is composed primarily of snippets taken from contemporary newspapers in the run-up to World War II and makes the daring argument that the war -- our supposedly "good" war -- was not good at all. We shouldn't have fought it.

To my mind, the book is dead wrong and very odd. This, though, has not stopped it from getting a respectable front-page review in the Los Angeles Times Book Review -- "It may be one of the most important books you will ever read," wrote Mark Kurlansky -- or from grabbing the bottom perch (No. 15) on the New York Times's important bestseller list. Baker's a hit.

It takes a fair amount of audacity to challenge the conventional wisdom about World War II. This is especially the case since the war has become conflated with the Holocaust, the evil of which cannot possibly be argued. If you throw in the atrocities committed by the Japanese -- everything from massacres to the conscription of local women in conquered territories as sex slaves -- then World War II not only seemed right and urgent at the time but right and a bit too late now. Hitler could have been stopped earlier.

Baker, though, is a pacifist. He dedicated his book to the memory of "American and British pacifists" who, he writes, never really got their due. "They tried to save Jewish refugees, feed Europe, reconcile the United States and Japan, and stop the war from happening. They failed, but they were right."



No, they were not. But that, for the moment, is beside the point. A contemporary context for Baker's book may not be World War II but the war in Iraq. The former, of course, is the good war, and the latter is the bad one, but in Baker's view they undoubtedly are both wars that made things worse, not better. To make a further connection, countless neocons cited the pre-World War II Munich agreement -- appeasement! -- to suggest what would happen if Saddam Hussein and his regime were not confronted and brought down. Iraq was going to be yet another good war.

The parallels, strained though they may be, do not end there. Not only was the retro term "fascist" applied to Hussein, but it is now lathered on vast numbers of militant and anti-American Islamists: Islamofascists, they are called. It says something about the durability and plasticity of the term -- fascismo -- coined by Benito Mussolini in Italy in the early 20th century that it can be used to describe a goat herder in Afghanistan in the 21st.

The question, of course, is whether there is anything worth fighting for. Initially, I thought bringing down Saddam Hussein was a good cause. I was wrong -- not about the cause, but about its practicality. I still feel that anytime we can stop someone from killing someone else, we ought to try. I think, too, that such attempts help establish the expectation that the wholesale abuse of human rights will not be tolerated.

What's worrisome about the Baker book is that the attention it has gotten -- much of it critical -- is not just a testament to his reputation as a writer but also to the questions he has raised about war itself. Is any war, outside of direct self-defense, worth fighting? Baker suggests that even World War II was not -- that the Jews perished anyway and that the war consumed more lives than anyone could have imagined and that, somehow, pacifism would have worked its magic. (Gandhi, in a quote I got from another source, suggested in 1938 that Germany's Jews should commit mass suicide. That "would have aroused the world and the people of Germany to Hitler's violence.")

One casualty of a bad war such as that in Iraq is the growing feeling that no war is worth the cost. This was an important sentiment in Europe after the horrors of World War I, and it produced the supine response to Hitler and the celebrated 1933 declaration by the young debaters of the Oxford Union "that this House will in no circumstances fight for its King and Country." In the end, of course, they did. In the end, they had to.

The most horrible weapon in any arsenal is the madness of men. We see this time and time again, and sometimes the only way to stop them is by war. "War is an ugly thing," John Stuart Mill wrote, "but not the ugliest of things." Far uglier, he wrote, is the feeling that nothing in life is worth fighting for. World War II was fought for several reasons but above all -- and proudly -- because the only way to stop the killing was to stop the killers.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008Richard Cohen, The Washington Post

Section: Veterans

Switzerland: Bumper Spaghetti Crop at risk of Late Frosts

The spoof cost £100 to make

The art of fooling around

It's 51 years since Panorama pulled off the most celebrated April Fool's spoof and duped Britain - and beyond - about spaghetti crops in Switzerland. So what makes a great April Fool's joke?

Panorama's now infamous spaghetti-tree spoof is considered a broadcasting milestone as it is believed to be the first time television was used to stage an April Fool's hoax.

Made on a budget of just £100, it told the tale of spaghetti harvesting in Switzerland and described how the

seemingly bumper crop was at risk of late frosts, creating a disastrous situation for growers all over Europe.

The spoof documentary showed people in the Swiss Alps plucking strands of spaghetti from trees and laying it in the sun to dry. That it fooled so many was in part down to the fact that pasta, at the time, was deeply exotic in a nation reared on meat and two veg. Then there was the commentary provided in serious, hushed tones by that giant of broadcasting, Richard Dimbleby.

The hoax repeatedly tops lists of April Fool's gags, which typically include the one about moving Stonehenge to the base of Mount Fuji in Japan, plans to make the whole M25 run clockwise and anti-clockwise on alternate days, the internet being shut down for cleaning for 24 hours, whistling carrots, left-handed hamburgers and Big Ben going digital.

Part of the charm of April Fool's is that it's an equal-opportunity day, say fans. From whoopee cushions to TV pranks broadcast across the world, almost everybody has the chance to join in. It is a global phenomenon, with most cultures having a version of it.

Fool's equation

But only a few gags achieve the longevity of the Panorama stunt, which is still talked and written about across the world 50 years on. So what makes a great April Fool's joke?

A really good gag needs to be both ridiculous and believable, say those who have studied the craft. It's a hard trick to pull off and most pranksters end up with jokes that are ridiculous, but not at all believable, says Alex Boese, curator of the Museum of Hoaxes in San Diego, California.

"The really good ones succeed at making us believe something that we recognise, in hindsight, we really shouldn't have believed because it's completely preposterous," he says.

"In a humorous way they teach us something about the limits of our own knowledge. They show us how unfamiliar many of the things around us - that we take for granted - are." The question has employed some of the world's finest brains. The eminent wartime scientist Reginald Jones, who



headed the Directorate of Scientific Intelligence at the Air Ministry during World War II, researched the perfect April Fool's gag. He came up with the equation: induction followed by incongruity.

'Trustworthy style'

"Basically he was saying lull them into a false sense of security, then drop in absurdities that just keep getting more and more extreme," says Martin Wainwright, author of the newly published Guardian Book of April Fool's Day.

Both Boese and Wainwright rank the Panorama prank as the best ever. It pulled off the trick of not only fooling the easily persuaded, but also left the sceptics with a nagging doubt about whether it was true or not.

One of the things that makes it so great is that it was executed by a programme synonymous with sober and serious reporting. Getting the authoritative figure of Dimbleby to do the commentary was also a master move.

"Television was limited in those days to one BBC and one ITV channel and it was possible for a programme like Panorama to hold the nation's attention in a way inconceivable nowadays," says Wainwright.

"Small details like the ageing wicker harvest baskets added to the realistic air. In his engaging and entirely trustworthy style, Dimbleby told the audience 'we end Panorama tonight with a special report from the Swiss Alps'. Cue the marvellous film, brilliant commentary and the swelling music."

Political prisoners

There was always the risk that it might offend, and some people did complain to the BBC, but most loved it. Tony Frost e-mailed the BBC's On This Day website with his memories of the hoax - he was eight at the time.

"It wasn't until many years later, when I was in my late teens, that I realised this was perhaps not the case [that spaghetti grew on trees]. Even now, as an adult, I'm hopeful of spotting one or two trees as I drive around the country and the Continent. It's one of the great April Fool's jokes and one I'll always cherish."

An indication of its quality is that every time it's shown, people still fall for it, says Wainwright.

But there is a serious side to pulling off a successful prank. A gag should do no harm and should not place anyone in a dangerous situation, say the experts.

Disregarding these rules can have serious consequences. A town clerk in Canada had a heart attack after his colleagues played an April Fool's joke on him. They sent an e-mail saying the deadline for a big project he was working on had been moved forward a week. He survived, but the council passed a resolution banning April Fool's jokes.

This also applies to the emotional, as well as the physical, fallout. There is a fine line between catching someone out and humiliating them or hurting their feelings.

"In Romania, during the Ceausescu era, one newspaper printed an article as an April Fool's joke saying all political prisoners were being freed," says Wainwright.

"People started turning up at prisons and waiting for family and friends to be released. It didn't go down well when it was revealed to be a hoax."

Saddam Hussein's feared son Uday was also reportedly a big fan of the day and would pull pranks like telling people food rations were being lifted. Side-splitting stuff.

Online frenzy

The internet has given the day a whole new lease of life, says Wainwright.

Gags include advertisements for free coffee cup holders asking users to click their mouse on an on-screen button. This - somehow - makes their disk drive open, hence the free coffee cup holder.

Wikipedia, the online encyclopaedia anyone can edit, is particularly exposed. Last year someone swapped the "protect" and "delete" buttons on every page, so that anyone trying to stop an article from being edited ended up deleting it.

But ultimately people either love it or loath April Fool's Day. For all the

haters there is one consolation this year, it's not a work day so no mugs glued to desks and no phones covered with sticky tape - hopefully.

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO WATCH THE ORIGINAL BLACK AND WHITE BROADCAST.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008Denise Winterman, BBC News


U.S. veterans of Afghanistan Mission express disbelief at President George Bush's representations about War

Nothing "romantic" about it, say combat veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom

WASHINGTON - Veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) expressed shock that the President believes the war is "romantic" and "exciting." LINK

Below are just some of the reactions coming in to VoteVets.org, from those who served in the U.S. military: Brandon Friedman, OEF Veteran (2001 and 2002, Army):

We finally have empirical evidence proving that President Bush has absolutely no idea what war is all about. A Commander-in-Chief with such a child-like view of combat is in no way fit to lead America's Armed Forces during a time of conflict. Having served in eastern Afghanistan myself, I can assure you that there is nothing romantic about being decisively engaged with Taliban and al Qaeda elements for 15 months at a time.

While President Bush thinks it would be a "fantastic experience" to fight in Afghanistan, it is anything but fantastic for our troops currently there. They are undermanned and under resourced because the war in Iraq--a war for



which he is responsible.

If President Bush had any decency at all, he'd refocus our military efforts away from Iraq, so that we could once again take the fight to Osama bin Laden and those who attacked us on 9/11. Unlike the Commander-in-Chief, those of us in the military haven't forgotten our national priorities. Brian McGough, OEF Veteran (2001-2002, U.S. Army):

"As a combat wounded veteran who served in Afghanistan, I have to disagree with the President's assertion that the war in Afghanistan is romantic. There was nothing romantic about having to dig through our trash during operation Anaconda because we ran out of food and were awaiting a resupply. As American soldiers always do, we accomplished the mission; but there was nothing romantic about it." Jim Morin, OEF Veteran (2003, U.S Army):

"I didn't feel like there was anything romantic in not seeing my daughter grow up, in watching Afghan children starve to death, in explaining repeated deployment extensions to my soldiers, in explaining to Afghans that we were there to keep them safe - while knowing that we would never have enough troops to actually do so. No, Mr. President, there's nothing romantic about being sent on an important mission and not being given the tools to accomplish it." Will King, OEF Veteran, (2002, U.S. Army):

"President Bush is wrong. I seriously doubt any of us Infantryman in Operation Anaconda found it exciting or romantic when the Taliban and al Qaeda were firing mortar rounds at us and our fellow soldiers."

Tuesday, April 01, 2008Special to The Canadian

Section: Afghanistan

Comments On The Flag Vote

The Royal Canadian Legion's Bob Butt

A Canadian Legion official told CTV Newsnet's Mike Duffy Live on Tuesday that his group endorses the report's view that "the flag should come down once a year on Nov. 11, Remembrance Day."

Bob Butt said the Legion does not support the lowering of the flag for each individual soldier's death.

Constantly lowering and raising the flag "would debase its use," he said.

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JamesI served 30 years in uniform, including overseas and in other nations. Canada already does more to honour its fallen than any other nation on the face of the earth: November 111, the Book of the Dead, every coffin arriving from Afghanistan televised. And members of our military know it.

While the gesture is noble, I believe it unnecessary. Those that have served I should think would prefer to be remembered along with all of Canada's fallen on November 11.

A nice thought but there are more important issues pressing Parliament: 1000 troops, UAVs, helicopters, new equipment, and so on

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MurfIt's nice to see my fellow soliders & I are not " a person whom it is desired to honour" considering many of us have volunteered to serve Canada & Canadians at home and elsewhere in the world.

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JPCI agree with James...

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AnonymousIts a relatively small thing to do as a sign respect to someone who has died performing the duty the government set for them, and it might just be some symbolic comfort to someone's grieving family. The death in battle of one of our young soldiers who would otherwise have had a whole life in front of them is arguably more tragic

than the natural passing of a privy councilor in their bed at age 85.

Its not as though we're back in WWII when the casualties were coming so fast that marking them would have meant keeping the flag down all the time...

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JamesOkay, that is it! We have Canadian men and women who are serving and dying in a foreign country where the goals and objectives are as clear as Afghan coffee and where support at home is tepid at best. Now we have a couple of fuddie duddies sitting in a back room somewhere in Ottawa saying that the lives of Canadians killed in combat does not warrent immediate recognition from the very place that sent them into harm's way. I am opposed to sending any further Canadians to serve in Afghanistan with five exception Robert Watt and the other members of that committee. Watt states that the "coinage of half masting has been debased." What has been debased is Canada's reputation around the world for being involved in George Bush's debacle in Afghanistan. Bring the troops home and do away with the office of chief herald of Canada.

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SteveWhile it is a good thing to debate, why doesn't Parliment declare November 11th a National Holiday not just another day that in most provinces is business as usual.This would be a reminder to us of the Supreme Sacrifice our soldiers are making.

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Jim in OttawaI believe that Rememberance Day is the day to honor these brave soldiers who risk their lives for our freedom. I totally agree with James, well said. For those who will post negative things about the war or our soldiers please think before you post this story is about lowering the flag, not the war.

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ETThank you James for your service and perspective. However, I must disagree on the base of the issue for the following two reasons:

1) I don't believe it lowers the meaning of Rememberence Day, rather it fortifies the fact that we have soldiers currently in harm's way and paying the ultimate price. Peace and Freedom are not free.

2) As a citizen of this country, one whom you have fought for, I think that if there is ANYTHING more we can do for our fallen soldiers, we should do it. Canadian humility aside, "on the death of a person whom it is desired to honour" definitely applies to those who make ultimate sacrifice for this country and our world (specifically noting the reason Canada enters conflicts is when it is the RIGHT THING TO DO).

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J.C.Remembrance day was established to "Honour all who have served" and for those who have given their lives. Let's keep it that way!It is a special day to remember all and soldier's who have given their lives in the past wars deserve honour too. If we lower the flag for every soldier that dies then Nov 11th will likely lose that special tribute "for ALL who have served and for All who gave their lives". It is important that ALL be remembered. ALL who fight and ALL who give their lives for OUR COUNTRY!

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GABIf the MPs want to honour the fallen troops, the best thing they could do is stop debating this ridiculous issue and give the forces what it needs to keep safe the guys who are still alive.

If you really care about the military, forget symbolism and put your money where your mouth is.

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J.C.To Murf,

You are honoured, just as all who serve are honoured. But to lower the

flag every time a soldier dies would only tend to devalue the honour given every Nov 11th. It is human nature to have such things become routine if we lowered the flag every time instead of the once a year remembrance.You deserve the honour and so does my father and his brothers who served in WWII. Where would we as a country be today without the men and women who we rely on to protect and serve our country. I and many others are very proud of ALL our Soldiers and highly respect ALL!

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NeilIt kind of grinds my gears that there was a panel of experts formed on this issue. I bet the money spent on the panel could have been used to better effect by our armed forces for newer equipment and updated comms, etc.

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rlIt doesn't require much of a brain to figure out what November 11th stands for. We all remember the soldiers and those who died to keep our country, our continent free.

Is it such a horrible thing to do, honour those who are fighting and dying so we can have the freedoms we have? I don't think so.

The government as usual is trying to stir up more controversy about something that is basic. Honoring those heroes who have died in the name of peace is not such a difficult thing to do.

I honor all military men and women each year on November 11 and often think of them during the year. It's the same as a loved one who dies, you don't just remember them on the anniversary of their death, you remember and think about them all the time.

Honoring a soldier who dies needlessly like they are in Afghanistan is something we should be doing. Honoring some senator who doesn't really do a lot in my opinion isn't even the same ballpark.

Shame on the government (as usual).

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Joe - WinnipegYou need not look further than the example set by the Royal Canadian Legion. Half Masting is done when a Branch Member passes on. If a Branch Officer passes on such as a Branch President, Branches in that Zone Lower to half mast. If a Provincial or Dominion Officer then Provincial and National Branches then follow. Consider what is appropriate and add accordingly. I do not believe it would be disrespectful to the Royal Canadian Legion if it were to be only lowered on November 11th or in the case of a Head of State or other appropriate dignitary.

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RaymondLower the flag(s) on November 11. Period.

Enough of this 'perpetual' grieving.

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Go Navy!As a currently serving member of the Canadian Forces, I agree with the recommendation to only lower the flag on Remembrance Day. If the government and the public really want to support those who serve, give us the right equipment to do the job being asked of us and give us your moral support. There is no need to lower the flag every time a serviceperson dies in Afghanistan.

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Mark_in_OttawaI'm surprised no one is commenting on the most infuriating part of this article: that Harper ordered the Peace Tower flag lowered when one of his Republican Conservative pals passed away, but refuses to bestow the same honour upon our troops.

Is it Harperite policy to commerorate the lives of the Conservatives who wreak havoc upon our economy, our well-being and our international reputation, but to spit in the face of the troops that fight to defend our freedom?

This prime minister and pathetic government should be ashamed! I



await their apology to my father and all other soldiers and veterans for the true Harper agenda: putting their ideology and Conservative pals ahead of the lives of our troops. SHAME!

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whatifMaybe the flag should be at half mast full time until everyone is back from the 'war-zone'.

Or one can look at it this way: If the flag is lowered when a MP dies, someone who has made promises and broken those promises (over and over again) - is it really an honour to have the flag lowered for our worthy soldiers?

Just a thought.

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CRemembering those who have given their lives for our country and our freedom is important, and is done so each November 11th. However, we are currently at war and I feel that each time another Canadian soldier is killed we should honour them by lowering the flag. If our government can't be bothered to do this, then perhaps we should not be over there at all.

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Serving Military Member11 Nov is sufficient. I do not need to see our flag half-masted for every military death.

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DaveSaskAs a person who has served in uniform for several decades, I think that 'Joe in Winnipeg' has inadvertently identified exactly the problem with lowering the flag upon the death of every person who dies. He notes that the Royal Canadian Legion does this for every Branch member at his or her death. Two problems: not every member of the Legion is necessarily a current or former member of the Armed Forces (or RCMP, etc); and, I can't pass our local Legion branch without seeing the flag at half staff because it the age of

members is reflected in the daily death toll.

A flag at half staff for every fallen soldier? I wonder what our World War I and II veterans think about that. Our flag would be at constant half-staff for centuries if that had been the notion back then.

The sacrifice of the members of our current Armed Forces, in the cause of global peacekeeping, is rightly recognized in many different ways (see the comment of James: "I served 30 years in uniform"), and it is right that we do so. But the Canadian flag on the Peace Tower represents the nation corporately, not individually, and it should remain flying proudly, reminding us all that we have a great heritage to protect, and multitudes of heroes serving us with valour and passion.

If we lower that flag on the Peace Tower for our fallen soldiers, it must be with solemnity and dignity on Remembrance Day, November 11th. And I agree with Steve, who asks the federal parliament to declare Remembrance Day a national holiday, making our remembrance more significant, no matter what province or territory we live in.

This private member's action is political in the extreme, not an honest effort to provide a national focus on the service of our peacekeepers: living, badly wounded, and dead.

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MaryEach of us think our answer is "the" one. However has anyone acknowledged that this half-masting happens for all manner of occasions including, politicians, etc. Seems to me the whole business of lowering the flag is being lessened in value - something like giving a standing ovation to everyone who performs some type of entertainment - good or bad.

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David fm NSAs a retired member who served in the former Yugoslavia and in the Middle East, I too agree with James. It should be up to us after all.

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IanThe day for honouring war dead is Nov 11th. Half-mast the flag on that day.

The flag was not half-masted for every casualty of any wars previous, why should the present policy be any different?

Honour is important. Humility is also important.

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ToriLowering the flag other than Rememberance Day only serves to remind those who really don't pay much attention that lives are being lost in the name of peace.

This should not even be a debate but something the Canadian people and it's government are proud to do for the families of the lost ones. After all, a soldier is not a soldier for glory.

A family left to grieve needs to feel the love of the country and know that their son/daughter's lives were not in vain and that through a small gesture will be remembered, even if only for a short few hours.

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Jim McBI spent 36 years with the Tribe. My vote is once a year for the half masting and that should be the only reason the flag comes down.

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DavidIf we had followed the practice of half-masting during WWII, the flag would have been permanently at half-mast for 6 years. We are fully aware of the sacrifices made by Canadian soldiers and we honour them all daily in our own way. Let's leave it the way current protocol demands and leave it for that single important day, November 11.

In this case, I believe the Conservatives are acting properly, and the Liberal motion is merely an effort to embarrass the government for political gain.



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MikeI am also a current serving member of the Canadian Forces and I thought I would add my two cents here.

The flag is indeed a symbol of this country, its values, its military and everything else that makes us Canadian. It is for this reason that every Canadian soldier past, present and future fight to keep that flag flying high. Under no circumstances whatsoever should that flag be lowered. It is our symbol, honor it and the soldiers who fight for it by keeping it flying high. The only exception to this should be rememberance day as already stated by others.

I don't know of any soldier out there that wants to see the flag go down.

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ScottI agree with James, but I have one thing to add. If all of these people making comments of how shameful it is to not lower the flags, where are you at 11:00 on Nov.11? Every Nov.11 it's business as usual at 11:00. Nevermind a whole holiday, make it mandatory to stop what you are doing at 11:00. 60 years ago, traffic stopped, worked stopped and everyone respected the day. That would make an impact. Lowering a flag hundreds of miles away does nothing for me.

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BettyI feel that the flag should be lowered on Remembrance day,Nov.11....I also feel that Nov.11 should be a National holiday...Perhaps then we would see more people attending the services in the communities across canada and realize how lucky we are that we live in a free country...

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Bernard RomanyciaJihad. This procedure has kept me informed of every Canadian soldier that has given their life serving our Nation in this useless war. If you don't want to lower the flag then bring the troops home. Peace.

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BettyI agree with Scott...Too often we see people going about their business on Nov.11 at 11 am and not even bother to pause for 2 minutes to show respect for our fallen soldiers..

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DC"oppose a move to lower the Canadian flag on the Peace Tower whenever a soldier dies in Afghanistan because it would debase the honour."

Perhaps if not for the fact they want to keep the event rare simply to honour the political aristocracy rather than great canadians.

Black tie dinners trump the ultimate sacrifice for your country.

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BKAll must be well in this country if all our government has to do is spend time on this silly debate. Remembrance Day was meant for all fallen soldiers so let's just leave it that way.

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MikeI agree with James, also if the flag is lowered all the time it will become all to common and people won't notice. I have all the respect in the world for our fallen men and women let's respect them and remember them on Remembrance Day. Other wise to me the lowering of the flag will have no meaning and it will be like any other day.

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LuluUnless you are on a ship, the flags are lowered to half STAFF. Ships have masts, therefore a ship will lower its flag to half mast.Lower them when you want. Just support the soldiers, even if you don't support the mission.

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Michael GregoryIf our soldiers are willing to die for this country I don't think it's to much to ask to honour that death with a simple flag lowering.

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IanAs usual those who are blaming the government for this have got it all wrong and are using this as a forum to slam the Conservatives. Even the Royal Canadian Legion and the panel studying the proposal see lowering the flag each time as debasing its use and they don't want it to happen. So stop making this a partisan issue and remember that the present government is actually taking concrete action to support our military, ie equipment and funding.

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Old SoldierHaving served in 4 decades I'm going to jump in. The flag should be lowered on Nov 11 only. And, if it's not to be lowered for soldiers' deaths, then it sure as hell shouldn't be lowered for ex Pm's, GG's, or Surpreme Court judges. Without our soldiers, past and present, there would be no need for the other 3 positions.

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JudyWhy should the flag be lowered on any given day?Is the flag only meant to honour those in the service and those who are member of the government?Is this not a symbol for all Canadians from all walks of life?--doctors, nurses, firefighters, police officers, clerks, secretaries, the homeless, etc. etc.Why should this symbol be used to honour one specific group of people?Don't lower the flag at all-keep it flying high for all to see.

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JohnWe have the Remembrance Day tribute, which I attend every year, and the National Police Memorial, which I also attend every year, which serve to pay tribute to our fallen military and police personnel. I think as a country



we do an awful lot. We have wear red fridays, which I'm sure alot of the pro-flag lowering crowd here probably doesn't back, which also shows our thanks and support for our military. This flag issue is nothing more than political grandstanding plain and simple.

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Doug BCTHis is an emotional issue that should be discussed and debated WITHOUT the party or political partisanship.I,for one,agree that there are more important issues facing Parliament,but think reasonable people can put proper protocols in place without seriously impeding the other business at hand.For me,I think the flag should be lowered less often.I guess that means someone has to decide when,and for whom.And someone will feel slighted if they aren't included.I have the highest regard for every one of our military people.I have not served,but my late father served in Europe in WWII.He was not in favour of lowering the flag for every loss.He felt it diminished the significance of the action.I tend to agree with that.I mean no disrespect for our military people,but as my dad said,"many of my friends died trying to keep that flag flying high".There are other times and other ways to do right by our citizens and our soldiers.Let's all make sure we do that.But most of all,let's make sure we don't denegrate people who hold opposing views.I suggest we take heed of the military,and perhaps the veterans opinions.Frankly,I don't give a damm what the MP's in Parliament think.They'll do and say anything that they think will get something for themselves.

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RonI beg to differ in regards to there being only one day to mourn the sarifices our service men and woman have made. Anyone hear about the National Day of Mourning? Posters at may place of employment displays two helmets. One the troops wear and one your avg construction worker wears.

For those who haven't heard of this day, it's on 28 Apr.

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ChristinaI think Nov.11th is the day to honour and thank the people who have given their lives so that others might have theirs. And though I am not oppose to the lowering of the flag to pay our respect, I firmly believe that Nov.11th should be a National Holiday. I do take the day off and attend a service but we should all be doing it.

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chadI am currently serving in the Canadian Forces as a soldier in an Infantry battalion. There are two things a soldier asks for; to be remembered on Nov 11, and to have his nations colors adorn his casket at his funeral. While he is alive he asks for the support and commitment from his country. This is hard to do when Cabinet bickers over if it is right or not to lower flags after a soldier passes on. There are more important bills to be decided upon now, ones that could effect the lives of more soldiers. It's time for Cabinet to grow up and afford us support so that we can get the mission done with.

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DonAs a former service member and descendant of decorated Canadian Boer, WWI, WWII, and Korea casualties and vets I can assure Canadians the flag at the Peace Tower should only be lowered on Nov 11th. Lowering the national flag is an enormous honour and the Peace Tower flag is "owned" by all those Canadians who have lost their lives in service to their country. It is wholly impertinent to suggest that the passing of a mere politician or privelged representative of the queen is on equal footing to or, in fact exceeding the import of a death in service. Those of us who have been on the pointy end of things resent the honours of our predecessors being bestowed on those who aren't truly worthy. Winning an election or being appointed to high station doesn't cut it. Nov 11th only.

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WindexI am still stuck on the fact that we paid to have a report done on this.

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MHRWhy should I have day off on Nov 11th since I think this war is illegal. I don't think we should support this usa illegal war. I will rather see us trying to bring our troop back to home where they can serve their job as defense to Canada is when Canada being attacked by invader. I don't support way soldiers act in these day and I think I have right to protest against Nov 11th. I meant no disrespect to soliders.

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The SpouseAs a military spouse and community member, I do know that most in service do not feel the need to have the flag lowered in their honor. They serve our country becuase they want to and love what they do. But in contrast, military families would feel a sense of comfort and pride in knowing that their loved one is receiving an honor such as the flag lowering. With the loss of a soldier comes very little comfort for the families. It is a small gesture that not only repays the soldier who gave the ultimate sacrifice but to the family who feels a devastating loss.

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johnCouldn't agree more with Mark_in_Ottawa. Well said Mark!

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ChrisJudy,

How rude you're comments are. Flags flying at half mast is a REMEMBERANCE! Not only for us who serve our country, but also those whose serve its citizens such as police, firefighters, medical personnel, and all who contribute to keep this country safe. To say the flag doesn't need to be lowered at half mast is an



insult to everyone!

The flag should only be lowered on REMEMBERANCE DAY. That's the only day of the year. And if there's another time to lower it, would be when someone of great stature of our country has past on. But to lower the flag for the homeless... come on!!! We will continue to find homes for these people a positive way, not a mournful way!!!!

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IT ManagerYou people are missing the point here - Harper lowered OUR flag for an AMERICAN REPUBLICAN, someone with the same partisanship as himself, but he won't do it for our soldiers. How can you not find that disgusting on every level??

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HelenFly our flag high for all the world to see, but lower it down on Rememberance Day, again for all to remember why it flys in the first place.

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David HI am in my 39th year of military service. I agree with James and the other serving members and veterans who have posted here today. We should continue to half-mast our flag on Parliament Hill on 11 Nov only. We keep our Fallen in our hearts everyday for "in the morning, and at the going down of the sun - we will remember them"

Please keep partisan politics out of this. Thank you.

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AdrianWith all due respect to a previous comment, the military is not a voluntary service. It is a paid position and a career. We do not honour the lives of doctors, advocates, and other Canadians who have added a great deal of value to Canadian society. While I believe the military is a very important arm of any government, lowering the flag for fallen soldiers is not necessary. Setting a precedent

concerning who is important enough to have the Canadian flag lowered in their honour is an insult to other honourable Canadians and is generally very archaic.

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MichaelOur dishonorable opposition has now turned a sacred act of respect for our country's heroes into a political sideshow. Our dishonorable opposition had made no bones about how negatively they felt about our servicemen and women. They have called them the worst names and now they want to feign respect to them, just to spite the one government in our recent history that has tried to govern effectively. I am ashamed of Canada, that there are Canadians who support such politicians.

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Grateful CanadianIt grieves me that our heroes should not be remembered and honored for the service they have given to this great country,and to the people in it, by a lowering of the flag. Why should there be only one day for rememberance? I remember every day. To lower the flag for those in Parliament who pass on and not for those who fight for us is an insult to all Canadians. It's a much needed sign of respect in a world gone hard.

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PaigeOur country is currently involved in a war and I think it is important for us to honour those men and women as they do sacrifice their lives for our country. These extra lowerings would not be permanent but only continue as long as Canada is at war.

Lowering the flag for each soldier that dies does not devalue Remembrance Day at all because that day is about much more than just lowering the flag. Lowering the flag is about commemorating the dead, not something reserved only for Remembrance Day to me.

Lowering the flag on days other than November 11th does not "debase it's use" but not lowering the flag for each

soldier than dies does debase their ultimate sacrifice.

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Makinaw DandyI do not think this is a good idea. If Canada is involved in a war and losing many people on a daily basis, what will we do? Fly the flag at half mast every day for years? If we do that, then it will have no special meaning. There is a good possibility that one day we will be involved in a large war again. You think not? That is what they though in 1918...League of Nations...ring a bell?

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19 year reg force memberJames said it best

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Chris (Arte Et Marte)Harper also promised that he was going to a lot of things for veterans that he didnt follow through with. But as to debate the lowering of our flag after a death of a soldier..??Come on where are the priorities.....How can we trust a guy like that.

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HeleneMy apologies to John Donne:

No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Canada is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

Therefore we should lower the flag for all who are lost.

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JohnPerhaps they should ask the armed forces, since it is about its fallen members. Oh wait, thats the proper way to do it, that's not allowed in our government, must be done the wrong



way.

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whitewolfwith all the upcoming wars we would have the flag at half mast on a continious basis

november 11th is the day to do this

you are correct James

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Ben MFlag should only lowered for commissioned officer's & fallen diplomats

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SeanMHR...

November 11 is not only for soldiers serving and giving their lives now. It is first and foremost for the soldiers who gave their lives in WW1, WW2 and Korea, the soldiers who made all your rights to say what you feel and put idiotic comments like this up and not be prosecuted. And as for actions of soldiers these days i think they are very patriotic and even though you have some kind of ill-will against them they would still protect both you and your rights.

The Flag should be only lowered on 11 November to remember ALL who gave thier lives in serving their country

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WWI am currently with the Canadian Armed Forces. I have 9 years in the military and I served in two missions in oversees. To me, anyone who serves the country ,protects the freedom and saves human lives and pay the ultimate sacrifice should be honored at all times. I honored always the 11 Nov of every year, but to me it is not enough, not lowering the flag is a slap in the face to anyone who serves under the flag. That proves that the government doesn't care about the men and women who serves this country.

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ChrisMHR,

You mean EVERY disrespect to our soldiers, our traditions, our honour of this great country of ours by protesting Rememberance Day!!! You may not like our involvement in Afghanistan, but it's because of our forefather's that fought and paid the ultimate price for your right to say something like that, OBLIGATES you to pay your respects on Rememberance Day. If you don't like it, get out of our country!!!

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ShamaroAs a retired member of the Canadian Forces, I will have to agree with everything that James has said. Well put James, I couldn't of said it better myself.

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RRRTo Mark in Ottawa:I must have missed something. For which Republican did Harper lower our Canadian Flag for?

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Prairie boyLower the flag on Nov 11, Otherwise it will be lowered for cops, firemen, Montreal massacre(and if they dont Harper will be accused of hating women)IT manager! Harper is partisan?? Have you noticed the liberal argueing and crying foul over every issue that comes up lately. You really think they care about policy for us or just stealing back power?

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NancySoldiers died to have that Flag fly high.

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Paul in MississaugaTypical Canada, 10 years late into a silly debate. The British tried to force the Queen's standard down at the death of the Princess of Wales. (The sovereign's flag does not descend at the death of a sovereign as the

successor reigns).

Rememberance Day is appropriate; each sad and terrible death of a soldier is not. If such a passing must be marked, should not all military training deaths be included? If the death of a soldier is commenorated, should we not mark the murder of any Canadian, serving as a citizen of this country? Should four soldiers killed on the same day all be noted on one day (25% the attention of a solo death) or should they get four days, and in what order by day? (Rank, age at death, date of province entering Confederation?) The nation is sustained by those who serve. They are all honoured on Rememberance Day.

This pathetic issue might go nuclear if the mighty political brain trust were to realize the Canadian flag completely disappears from the Peace Tower when the GG or the Queen appear in Parliament!

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Roland GodinNous sommes en Afganistan pour l'honneur,la gloire et la fierté selon les pro-guerre. We are in Afganistan for honnor and pride...not for reason.

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Tylere, Kandahar, AfghanistanI would prefer that we only lowered our flag on 11 Nov. If a large war were ever to break out again our flag would be constantly half mast when it should be flying high.

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Bill GerdsonBeing a Veteran, I feel all active Military personal as well as Veterans would accept Rememberance Day as the day to respect the fallen. However, we mustn't forget others that risk their lives everyday to protect out safety. The fallen from these organizations are also heroes to me. When it comes to MPs, Senators,Supreme Court's chief justice etc.; I question why they should take priority over the above. After all, without the sacrifice of our people in uniform, these people would not have the freedom to enjoy such a



good living while making laws so the majority of people in this country struggle to survive.

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DisgustedMHR: Reading your ignorant commentary made me so angry I shake as a type this. 11 November has nothing to do with the war in Afghanistan. Instead it has everything to do with the people who every day put their life on the line, and ask for nothing in return, so pathetic whelps such as yourself can enjoy the freedom to spit on their memory.

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RobertMark. You are holding in alot of hate. Let it all out, and take a deep breath.

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KDIt is a flag, this would have never even been an issue if the liberals didnt have a guilty conscience from getting us into the war again. Im a soldier, Ive done the overseas but I am talking as just a plain citizen (stop pretending that you speak for the rest of us by telling people you are in the army, we are just as diverse as the rest of the country). Putting a flag half way up a pole does not equal respect or gratitude. Remembering their sacrifice and supporting them in life is.Stop being so outraged about everything people!

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Tuesday, April 01, 2008CTV News Service

Section: Veterans

Tories set to lose Peace Tower flag-lowering vote

Panel recommends honouring fallen soldiers only on Remembrance Day.

The House of Commons is expected to pass a Liberal motion on Wednesday that would require a moment of silence and the lowering of

the flag above the Peace Tower on any day a Canadian soldier is killed.

If it is passed, the Conservatives are likely to ignore the motion, which both other opposition parties have indicated they will support.

"I think it is the least we can do to show our respect for them and their families," Liberal MP Larry Bagnell told CBC News on Tuesday.

"We believe it's a sign of respect," NDP Leader Jack Layton said. "Canadians feel the same."

The Tories have stated they support the recommendations made by an expert panel headed by the former chief herald of Canada that opposes the move on the grounds that it would debase the honour.

But Conservative MP Jason Kenney, secretary of state for multiculturalism and Canadian identity, said the government was merely aiming to return the policy to what was the practice in Parliament during Canada's participation in two world wars and the Korean conflict.

"This should not be a political issue," Kenney told CBC News' Don Newman on Tuesday in Ottawa.

"Anyone who would suggest that the government is not interested in honouring our fallen I think would want to reconsider that."

In its report submitted this week, Robert Watt's panel advised the federal government to maintain the previous tradition of a lone anniversary to mark Canadian war dead by lowering the tower flag to half-mast on Nov. 11.

The Conservatives commissioned the panel to examine the issue following a public outcry in 2006 when they first announced they would not lower the flag to half-mast each time a soldier died.2002 friendly-fire deaths sparked reversal.

For more than 80 years, Canada honoured its war dead by lowering flags on federal buildings on Remembrance Day.

But former prime minister Jean Chrétien changed that in April 2002. When four Canadian soldiers were

killed by U.S. bombs in Afghanistan, the flag on the Peace Tower was lowered to half-mast.

Despite enormous public outpouring of anger and grief over the soldiers' deaths by U.S. fire, veterans' groups were not happy about the Chrétien government's decision to reverse the Remembrance Day-only tradition.

Officials with both the Royal Canadian Legion and the National Council of Veteran Associations opposed the idea, arguing it was unfair to the memories of those who died in other wars and who were not given the same show of respect.

But the Peace Tower flag was not lowered in November 2006 when Pte. Braun Woodfield was killed in a vehicle rollover in Afghanistan, and the practice has not been picked up since the Conservatives came to office.

The panel also recommended flag-lowering on so-called "special days" — including the annual National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women, and Police and Peace Officers' National Memorial Day — should be scrapped.

Tony Cannavino, president of the Canadian Police Association, said he intends to fight such a move.

"To even think about changing it back or changing the rules and protocol, I think it is very disrespectful and we are going to be strongly opposed to that," Cannavino told CBC News.

The day to commemorate women is Dec. 6, the anniversary of the 1989 murders of 14 young women, all engineering students at L'Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008CBC News

Section: Veterans

Lowered flag for all troop deaths opposed

OTTAWA: An expert panel has advised cabinet to oppose a move to lower the Canadian flag on the Peace Tower whenever a soldier dies in



Afghanistan because it would debase the honour.

In a report to Secretary of State Jason Kenney, a former chief herald of Canada urged the government to keep Remembrance Day as the lone anniversary to mark Canadian war dead by lowering the tower flag to half-mast.

The Commons is poised to vote tomorrow on a flag-lowering motion proposed by a Liberal MP.

Former chief herald Robert Watt, with the support of four other experts, recommended a new protocol that would limit half-masting the Peace Tower flag to mourning the deaths of current and former representatives of the Crown, the prime minister and the chief justice of the Supreme Court.

Under the recommendations, the flag would no longer be lowered on the deaths of senators and MPs, or former senators and MPs.

"In addition, we also strongly believe that there is only one commemorative day each year where the National Flag needs to be half-masted,'' Watt wrote.

"That is Remembrance Day. Our rationale in this case is that the coinage of half-masting has been debased.''

A debate has been simmering over Liberal MP Andrew Telegdi's motion to declare that the Peace Tower flag should be lowered to honour "Canadian Forces and other Canadian government personnel who were killed while serving in overseas peacekeeping, peacemaking or humanitarian missions.''

Tuesday, April 01, 2008Tim Naumetz, The Canadian Press

Section: Veterans

Collingwood Locals Helping Wounded Warriors

Downtown Collingwood.

A Collingwood business is going the extra mile to do something for our troops.

Paul and Wendy Thurston of Thurst-Ts Leather on First Street is holding a Ride To Rally Fund-raiser for the Wounded Warriors Fund - which supports families of Canadian troops - on June 7 from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Paul said he became involved after reading the disquieting news that families of Canadian soldiers killed while in Afghanistan were being billed for funeral costs by the federal government.

"I just thought that was unacceptable," he said. "Whether you believe in the war or don't believe in the war I don't care. I'm not a politician. I just couldn't believe it. I thought guys like us might be able to do something."

That's where the Wounded Warriors Fund entered into the picture. The program originally began in the United States and the organizations assist American and Canadian veterans wounded or killed in the line of duty and their families.

"When an injured soldier leaves an operational theatre, they do so quickly and without warning. Often they have with them just the clothes on their back and it is here where they are at their most vulnerable," the Wounded Warriors web site reads.

"This special fund sets out to alleviate this inconvenient deficiency by contributing quality-of-life items to the soldier.

"Many of you may be wondering if this should be the responsibility of the Department of Defence or the tax payer," the site states. "Although this is a reasonable question the answer needs explanation. This fund raises monies to purchase gifts and needs to support the wounded and their morale. It is very much the same as you sending a gift to a soldier in theatre over seas.

"Should the taxpayer or DND pay for your gifts? Simply no. We would rather send the gifts from Canadians who wish to show they care as you would too."

That's a sentiment supported by Paul.

"They're doing their job and somebody should look after them," he said.

"That's how it all got started. It's kind of mushroomed from there. It's going to be great for Collingwood and great for the veterans.

The event will be held in the A&P parking lot. The Carpet Frogs and Stone Soup will be two of the live bands performing that day. Other events include a fashion show and barbecue.

Wednesday, April 02, 2008SHAWN GIILCK, The Enterprise Bulletin


The Red Baron flies back into role of the hero in Germany

It was chocks away last night for a film that aims to shatter a taboo of more than half a century by openly celebrating a German war hero: the fabled flying ace known as the Red Baron.

The €18 million (£14 million) adventure epic Red Baron feeds into a new national mood that has become less hesitant about honouring German



battlefield bravery. The Government is even talking of bringing back a modern version of the Iron Cross, the gallantry medal awarded in the First and Second World Wars.

The reason is clear: as the German Army moves into combat zones in Afghanistan and beyond, it needs to rediscover its military traditions – and create heroes. The film, the Berlin premiere of which was attended by members of the Richthofen clan, tries to square a very German circle: to extol the pilot’s virtues while declaring war to be evil. “There are strong voices in Germany that still say we should not be doing this,” Nikolai Mllerschön, who wrote and directed the film, said. But, he added: “The film makes a clear statement against war. Richthofen says that the world has been turned into a slaughterhouse.”

The Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen, shot down 80 British, Canadian and Australian aircraft between 1916 and 1918 – more than any other pilot of the war. Yet it was left to the British to keep the legend alive: the most popular German Ambassador to London since 1945 was Hermann von Richthofen, given the benefit of the doubt because of his family ties to the Red Baron. Perhaps it was the incident when the Red Baron opened fire on a British aircraft and, on seeing that his enemy’s gun had jammed, forced him to land, got out and shook his hand. A scion of a proud Prussian family, von Richthofen seemed to share the English view of aerial warfare as a kind of dignified blood sport.

The Germans were not so sure, not least because his exploits were trumpeted by the Nazis. After 1945, German films acknowledged Count Claus von Stauffenberg, who tried to blow up Hitler, as a kind of war hero.

The Red Baron of the film is happy only when he has an Englishman in his sights. Later he is allowed to develop doubts about the meaningless bloodshed at Verdun. “He is the forerunner of today’s megastars,” said actor Matthias Schweighöfer.

The Red Baron was 25 when he was shot down on April 21, 1918. A Canadian pilot, Roy Brown – played by Joseph Fiennes – claimed to have pulled the trigger, but an Australian

machinegunner, Sergeant Cedric Popkin, fired the fatal shot

Wednesday, April 02, 2008Roger Boyes in Berlin , Times Online


Canada's flag should fly high

Canadian soldiers who die serving Canada on foreign fields are owed the thanks and remembrance of their nation back home.

Kitchener-Waterloo MP Andrew Telegdi wants to ensure this happens by having the flag that waves above the Peace Tower in Ottawa lowered each and every time Canadian Forces or other Canadian government personnel are killed overseas, whether on peacekeeping, peacemaking or humanitarian missions.

Telegdi's heart is surely in the right place. But there are so many practical problems with his proposal that the House of Commons should reject it outright in a vote today.

What Telegdi advocates is not a longstanding Canadian tradition but a custom that was begun in 2002 under prime minister Jean Chrétien and that lasted a grand total of four years.

In 2002, when a half century had passed since Canada had lost soldiers in combat, the decision to lower the flag over the Parliament buildings when a Canadian soldier died in another country probably seemed appropriate and reasonable. Certainly the practice began with little public discussion.

But that practice was not the Canadian way for most of its history. It was not how Canada responded in the First World War when it lost 66,000 of its people in combat. It was not how this country behaved in the Second World War when another 40,000 Canadians fell in action defending this country.

Nor was it how Canada reacted when hundreds of its armed forces personnel were killed in Korea and in the decades of United Nations peacekeeping missions that followed. The Canadian tradition, which was

established after the terrible losses of 1914 to 1918 and continued for decade after decade after that, has had the Peace Tower flag lowered for all of the nation's war dead on one day of the year and one day alone: Nov. 11 -- Remembrance Day.

There is much to recommend in this approach, which was resumed in 2006. It recognizes all of Canada's war dead equitably, with the same gesture, on the day that the whole country stops to remember. It reflects the dignity and gravity of an entire nation in mourning. It is a meaningful break from the norm. On virtually every other day of the year, Canada's flag now flies at full-staff as a sign of national pride and confidence. Except for rare occasions such as state funerals, only on Remembrance Day should the Maple Leaf be lowered in profound mourning for every man and woman who has died serving Canada in wartime.

What Telegdi proposes, at least when Canada is in a conflict like Afghanistan where 81 of our Armed Forces personnel have died, would make the exceptional more ordinary, even commonplace. On the one hand, it could dilute the meaning of the half-masting ceremony. On the other hand, it could be used by opponents of a war as ongoing proof of that war's unacceptable cost. And so the flag lowering could, despite Telegdi's good intentions, become sullied by politics. Moreover, if Telegdi would honour all Armed Forces personnel who die overseas, even those who are killed in accidents, why should the same honour not be extended to soldiers, sailors or air force personnel who die accidentally in Canada?

Certainly, were Canada ever to enter another war like the ones it fought in the first half of the 20th century, there could be so many war dead that the Peace Tower flag could be stuck at half-mast for years at a time. In such a conflict, and we hope it never comes to pass, the message continuously sent from the most famous building in the nation's capital would be not that Canada is at war but that it is paralyzed in mourning.

A special panel, which includes a former chief herald of Canada who is a pre-eminent authority on such



matters, has recommended against the motion, arguing that if a half-masting ceremony is performed too often, it is "debased." The panel is right.

Parliament should reject the motion and, except on the rarest occasions, keep our Peace Tower flag flying proudly and flying high.

Wednesday, April 02, 2008Editorial, the Record

Section: Veterans

ALL BRANCH - A TOUTES LES FILIALES (08-007) - Half-Masting the Flag on the Peace Tower

Response To Query, 1 April 2008

The Issue of Half-Masting the Flag on the Peace Tower

The Royal Canadian Legion has endorsed a report to Parliament that recommends a policy for half-masting the Canadian Flag on all federal buildings and the Peace Tower. The final decision of the government on this issue has yet to be made.

While the report, in brief, recommends the events and times for lowering the flag on the Peace Tower, and the lowering of federal flags on all federal buildings and establishments, it also gives discretionary authority to the Prime Minister to authorize the half-masting of the Canadian Flag under exceptional circumstances.

The Royal Canadian Legion was very pleased to be asked to accept a position on this panel and the report has its full backing. It should be noted that at this time it is still a report and is in the process of making its way to the proper committees for review.

Wednesday, April 02, 2008Dominion Bulletin Board

Section: RCL

Osteoporosis often called the silent thief

There is a strong connection between osteoporosis and falls. Together, they can be a deadly combination. They share related risk factors and strategies for prevention.

Osteoporosis (porous bones) is a disease that makes bones thin and weak. If you have osteoporosis, it means you have less bone quantity (bone density) and the bone you do have is of poorer quality. Falls are especially dangerous as your bones can break (fracture) more easily. Most common fractures are the wrist, spine and hip. Called the "silent thief", there are often no signs of osteoporosis until you break a bone. Healthy, normal bones are quite strong. So if you break a bone from a simple fall - it's a warning sign.

By the time obvious symptoms appear, the disease is fairly advanced. That is why early diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis is serious because it increases your risk of breaking bones, which can result in major consequences.

Disability can result, especially from hip fractures. Up to 50 per cent of older people that survive a hip fracture are left with some kind of disability. Many people will require long-term nursing care. Up to 20 per cent of seniors who have a hip fracture die from complications within a year.

One in four women over the age of 50 has osteoporosis. At least one in eight men over 50 also has the disease. However, the disease can strike at

any age. Young people especially should start protecting themselves by decreasing or eliminating drinking soda pop and continuing to drink milk or calcium rich beverages.

No single cause for osteoporosis has been found. But some things seem to increase your chance of developing the disease. Some of these "risk factors" are more important than others. If you are over 50 and have one major or two minor risk factors, you should ask your doctor about having a bone mineral density (BMD) test for osteoporosis.

The five major risk factors are: age, female gender, bone mineral density, fracture history, long-term use of glucocorticoid medications. It one disease where being thin is not an advantage.

People with no risk factors may still develop osteoporosis.

Another sign of osteoporosis may be height loss caused from vertebral (spinal) fractures. Your posture is affected, making you look stooped and round-shouldered. This deformity can affect your breathing, make digestion difficult and affect other internal organs. That is why itmportant to measure your height on a regular basis.

You can't control all of your risk factors, but you can take steps to keep your bones strong: quit smoking, reduce your alcohol and caffeine intake and get the calcium and vitamin D you need.

Osteoporosis Canada recommends adults need 1,000 mg of calcium a day. Over the age of 50, OC 0 mg a day. The recommended amount of Vitamin D for adults is 400 international units (IUs) per day and 800 IUs for those over 50. Include regular weight-bearing activity in your life.

If you are on medication for osteoporosis, remember to take it regularly.

Many of those same steps will also help prevent falls. Conclusion: Falls are not an inevitable part of aging and neither is osteoporosis. Information, diet and exercise really can make a difference.



The Public Health website www.publichealthgreybruce.on.ca contains further information and a home safety checklist is good for all ages.

You can also get osteoporosis and falls prevention information by attending the seventh annual information tea with guest presenter, Osteoporosis Canada area manager, Judy Porteous, "Speaking of Bones", at Maxwell Community Centre on May 3, from 1:30 to 4 p.m. This event, also featuring exhibits and door prizes, is co-sponsored by the Osprey Women's Institute R.O. S. E. program. Fee by donation. Contact Public Health at 519-881-1920 ext. 246 for more information. For more information contact Osteoporosis Canada at 1-800-463-6842 or www.osteoporosis.ca

Add the following to increase calcium in your diet: Milk and milk products

Salmon, canned with bones

Sardines, canned with bones

Soy beverage, fortified

Almonds

Brazil nuts

Baked beans

Kidney Beans

Soybeans

Chickpeas

White beans, cooked

Tofu (check label)

Bok Choy

Oranges

Figs

Broccoli

Judy Porteous is the manager of Osteoporosis Canada Area. Marguerite Thomas is a public health nurse

Wednesday, April 02, 2008The Sun Times

Section: Seniors

Legion boasts many VIPs around the world

Although the majority of Legion members are ordinary folks like you and me, the Legion can also boast some well-known persons as Honorary Officers.

The Legion’s Patron is Her Excellency The Governor General. The Honorary Grand President is General (Ret’d.) Charles Belzile.

A well-known Canadian is an Honorary Vice President in the person of Chief of Defense Staff Hillier and another one is The Commissioner of the RCMP.

HH Prince Floris of the Netherlands is an Honorary Dominion Officer of The Royal Canadian Legion.

The Prince’s grandmother had been sent to Canada during the Second World War for her safety and it was in Ottawa that she gave birth to Princess Marguerite.

When Prince Floris was born, the Princess named The Royal Canadian Legion as his godparents.

So you see, as a Legionnaire you are in fine company.

The week of March 10, The Legion Branch #20, in Dauphin MB, hosted the Legion Dominion Curling Championship.

It was a week of great camaraderie for participants and onlookers alike.

It was a pleasure to see a former Terrace resident, now residing in Salmon Arm, Gord Duplisee skipping the BC/Yukon Command rink.

Although his was not the winning rink, he came through well against stiff competition.

Saskatchewan’s team from Saskatoon were the winners with Manitoba placing second.

The caliber of curling was excellent with some of the participants being former Brier contenders.

Closer to home, last Tuesday night

was the general meeting with delegates being elected to the Zone Meeting in Kitimat on April 11 and 12.

Although only elected delegates are able to vote at these meetings, any interested member of a Branch in the Zone may attend.

There is much of interest that happens including the attendance of a Command Officer to share knowledge and ideas with the Zone.

It is well worth attending and one more way in which we “REMEMBER THEM.”

Wednesday, April 02, 2008Terrace Standard

Section: RCL

War ID at heart of dying wish

Juno Beach, Landing at Bernières

Credit: N.A. Canada

A British man is trying to track down a Calgary family and return a Canadian Army ID card from the Second World War to fulfil his dead father's wishes.

William Brown's father served as a private with the Royal Army Medical Corps, a branch of the British army, during the war.

"My father wanted me to reunite the card with the family," said the 58-year-old son. "It was one of his final wishes."

William (Billy) Brown was attached to the Canadian Army as a medic and landed with Canadians on Juno Beach in the early hours of D-Day. He was later wounded.

While in hospital, Brown became friends with a Canadian named John Osudar.

When Brown left the hospital a few weeks later to be airlifted to England, Osudar gave him his Canadian Army



ID card as a memento. Now, 64 years later, Brown's son wants to return the ID card to its rightful owner.

The son has done some research and believes Osudar served with the Royal Winnipeg Rifles and belonged to the Calgary branch of the Royal Canadian Legion.

He thinks Osudar passed away in 1995, so he is now hoping to track down Osudar's family.

The resident of Sunderland, in northern England, said he had never heard of Osudar until recently, when his father was sorting through his war belongings and shared the story.

The former soldier died two weeks ago at age 84 after a battle with cancer.

"My father spoke fondly of (Osudar), as he did of all his former comrades," he said.

© The Calgary Herald 2008Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Cailynn Klingbeil, Calgary HeraldSection: Veterans

Commons votes to honour fallen soldiers, But Tories Ignore Motion

Government ignores motion, says it will go with panel's suggestion.

OTTAWA–A majority in the Commons voted last night to lower the Peace Tower flag to half-mast upon the death of a Canadian soldier overseas, but the government has said it will ignore the motion.

By a vote of 142-115, Liberals, NDP, and Bloc Québécois MPs supported a non-binding motion by Liberal MP Andrew Telegdi (Kitchener-Waterloo) calling for a change in the Conservatives' practice. All 114 Tories who were in the Commons voted against it, as did independent André Arthur (Portneuf-Jacques Cartier).

Jason Kenney, secretary of state for multiculturalism and Canadian identity, who commissioned a report that urged a more restrictive approach to lowering the flag, said before the vote the government wants the Commons

heritage committee to examine the issue in a "dispassionate, thoughtful" and "non-political" way and come up with a "consistent" policy.

Kenney said the motion had just one hour of debate in the Commons, and didn't address all aspects of the flag debate. "We shouldn't just rush to some emotional judgment on this very important issue."

Current protocol requires the flag on the Peace Tower and federal buildings be lowered on the death of the Queen, the governor general, the prime minister, the chief justice, other members of Parliament, like senators, MPs, and privy councillors, and lieutenant governors.

When Prime Minister Stephen Harper took power two years ago, he reversed a practice his Liberal predecessors Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin had adopted of lowering the flags on Parliament Hill each time a Canadian soldier was killed in Afghanistan or on other overseas military missions.

Critics charged that Harper was trying to draw attention away from the mounting casualties in Afghanistan. Kenney appointed a panel to recommend a consistent policy.

That panel, made up of the past and present chief government heralds, historians and a representative of the Royal Canadian Legion, has called on government to dramatically scale back the occasions on which the flag is lowered, to lend more weight to a gesture it says is diminished by overuse.

It would retain Remembrance Day as a day of national mourning for Canada's war dead, when the flag would drop to half-mast.

The panel said the flag should no longer be lowered for "special days": Vimy Ridge Day on April 9, Workers' Mourning Day on April 28, Police and Peace Officers' National Memorial Day on the last Sunday in September, and the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women on Dec. 6.

Kenney said veterans' organizations back the government's approach. He said they believe it is "appropriate" to equally honour all soldiers, including

the 110,000 Canadians who "gave their lives in the past century without having the flag lowered specifically following their deaths ... and the best way to do that is on Nov. 11."

Thursday, April 03, 2008tonda maccharles, The Star, Ottowa Bureau

Section: Veterans

Lowering the flag for soldiers dilutes its importance

As a gesture of support for our troops, the House of Commons voted yesterday on whether to have the flag atop the Peace Tower lowered to half-staff every time a soldier is killed in Afghanistan.

Rather than supporting our troops, I'd argue it was a cynical political ploy aimed solely at embarrassing the government of Stephen Harper, which has ruled that the flag be flown at half-mast only on Remembrance Day, Nov. 11, or on specific commemorative occasions, like the death of the Sovereign.

The motion to lower the Peace Tower flag to honour the death of soldiers, either collectively or individually, was made by the usually sensible Liberal MP for Kitchener-Waterloo, Andrew Telegdi.

It was supported by the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Quebecois, which are notoriously anti-military, and have long, varying records of cutting back our Armed Forces, crippling them with budget cuts, refusing new and better equipment, and ignoring their efforts not only in warfare, but in years of UN peacekeeping.

"We believe it is a sign of respect," the CBC quoted NDP Leader Jack Layton as saying in support of lowering the flag.

"Respect" for our military from Layton? Poppycock. He neither understands soldiers nor likes soldiers -- else he wouldn't be urging our troops be withdrawn from Afghanistan, where they are doing some good, and wanting them sent to Darfur where they'd be hamstrung.

Telegdi should also know better. He The Royal Canadian Legion, Fred Gies Branch 50 (Ontario)


says the Harper government "thinks it is okay to lower the flag to honour the likes of Lord Conrad Black ... while completely ignoring those who make the ultimate sacrifice in the service of their country."

Wottinell is Telegdi talking about? When was the flag ever flown half-staff for Black? Impertinent of him to assume he knows how soldiers feel, when he has never been one.

Cliff Chadderton, who heads the National Council of Veteran Associations (55 member groups), says the Peace Tower flag should be lowered only on Remembrance Day, otherwise it loses its symbolic significance if lowered for individual soldiers killed.

'DISTINCTION'

"We do not draw a distinction between a death in Afghanistan and one in Normandy (in World War II)," he says.

The Canadian Legion agrees.

While the Opposition MPs may think they have the Tories squirming over the flag issue -- they're wrong.

As has been pointed out, if Telegdi's motion was passed in WWII, there'd not have been a day throughout the war that the flag would not have flown at half-staff.

Canada's former chief herald (what the hell is a chief herald?) Robert Watt and four experts recommend a new protocol for the Peace Tower flag at half-staff.

They would limit it to the deaths of current and former representatives of the Crown, the PM and Supreme Court chief justice.

As it stands now, the flag is lowered on the deaths of present and former MPs, senators, and on the anniversary of the massacre of 14 women in Montreal, Vimy Ridge Day, Workers Mourning Day, and for Police and Peace Officers Mourning Day. (Telegdi would add lowering the flag for victims of the Asian Exclusion Act and Chinese Head Tax, all of whom he regards as "Canadian heroes and should be honoured as such."

Ridiculous.

The flag should be lowered in the regiments, the hometowns, the

workplace of those killed in Canada's name. The same for police officers and firefighters killed on duty.

Telegdi's motion would demean the meaning of the flag at half-staff, and I suspect most people who have worn their country's uniform would agree. But I bet no one has asked them. In the meantime, Harper is right not to dilute the symbolic importance of the Peace Tower flag at half-staff. After all, soldiers killed in Afghanistan (and before that on UN peace missions) are the comrades of soldiers who went before them in Korea, WWII, World War I and even the Boer war.

Thursday, April 03, 2008PETER WORTHINGTON, TORONTO SUN

Section: Veterans

Command performance

Singer Lori Anna Reid is surrounded by Afghan children during her recent trip to

perform for Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Credit: Yannick Beauvalet/Department of National Defence

Afghan experience a powerful one for Newfoundland singer.

Lori Anna Reid went to Kandahar to sing for the Canadian troops and was almost immediately confronted by death.

The first thing the St. John's native learned after getting off the plane in Afghanistan was that Sgt. Jason Boyes of Napanee, Ont., had just been killed.

He was the 81st Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan.

Reid and other members of her delegation were invited to his repatriation ceremony the next morning.

"It was the first time there was ever any civilians invited to these ceremonies," says Reid.

"I actually sang 'Amazing Grace' a cappella during Sgt. Boyes' repatriation ... and that was the first time they had someone do that, as well, so I felt really, really honoured and touched to be involved at all."

Reid says it was her way of serving.

For her, singing and music has always been about gratitude and praise and she's always felt music serves a higher purpose, as when it's used at weddings and funerals.

Her mind is still brimming with vividly fresh memories days later and you can hear it in her voice during a phone interview from her home in Toronto.

"Every single soldier that I met there knocked me out with his and her integrity and commitment, and gratitude that we were there."

The trip was almost a year in the making. Last April, Reid was invited to perform at the 90th anniversary of Vimy Ridge at the Cabot Club in St. John's.

She had recorded two First World War-era songs a cappella that her dad used to sing to her. The songs were "Valleys of Kilbride," written by a soldier after the war about a fallen comrade, and "Green Fields of France / No Man's Land," about a soldier who gave up his life.

At the time, she wasn't sure if she should sing the latter song because the last verse comments on the futility of war, which she thought was inappropriate and disrespectful because of the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan. She sang the song but left out the last verse.

After her performance she returned to her seat. Shortly after, she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Gen. Rick Hillier, the commanding officer of the Canadian Forces, and a fellow Newfoundlander.

Hillier told her "Willy McBride" is his favourite song and that he only owns four CDs, all of which have a version. Hillier told Reid that hers was his favourite.

From that meeting, Reid was invited to visit the troops in Afghanistan that May, but she had to cancel due to a severe case of bronchitis.



Hillier never forgot her and invited her to accompany him on the morale-boosting mission this year.

The weekend before Easter, Reid and her guitar player and musical collaborator, Gregg Lawless, boarded a plane for Afghanistan along with the band Blue Rodeo, French Canadian rocker Jonas, and a group of former NHL players - not to mention the Stanley Cup.

The repatriation ceremony for Sgt. Jason Boyes wouldn't be the last one Reid would witness during her week in Afghanistan.

But it wasn't all grim.

Reid took in three or four hockey games during Hockey Night in Kandahar. Soldiers and former NHL players, mostly enforcers, played the games on a dusty field, a long way from the frozen rinks that are as common as doughnut shops in Canada.

She also met up with two of her cousins - Cpl. Glen Butt of Port aux Basques, who's a communications technician, and Judy Reid, a civilian originally from Labrador who served with the forces in Bosnia.

Reid and each of the other visitors were paired with soldiers at mealtime.

One soldier asked Reid to tell the soldiers' stories upon her return to Canada. He was 54 and had retired from the Forces in 1994 and settled in Saskatchewan.

About a year ago, he and his wife sold their home and he re-enlisted. Reid says his dedication shows the troops' mettle.

The day before Good Friday, Reid and the other musicians performed for the troops.

She says more than 1,000 NATO soldiers - Americans, Dutch, Australians and Canadians - gathered to hear her, Blue Rodeo and Jonas play. In the back of the dusty field, soldiers pulled up in tanks which they sat on for a better view.

"I've sung all over the world and seen some amazing places, but this was unbelievable," says Reid. "By far the most incredible experience,"

On Easter Sunday, she, Jonas and

Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo got decked out in fatigues and safety gear and went outside the wire with some Canadian troops to distribute food, clothes and other supplies to Afghan children.

"The most incredible thing for me was just getting out of the Jeep and standing amongst these children, amongst these girls, 'cause you never see women and girls in Afghanistan," she says. "They're, like, invisible."

Reid made sure she reached out and held the hands of as many girls as she could, not sure if anyone had ever done so before. She tried to shake the hands with the boys, as well, but they knocked her hand away. She says in their culture, it's inappropriate for women to touch males.

On the return to the Canadian base, the Jeep drove through an old hangar. The soldiers told her it was the last stronghold of the Taliban and a place where they would hang educated women.

Later that evening, before they were to board the plane for home, the group received more bad news. Two American soldiers had been killed.

"The moon was shining and there were hundreds and hundreds of soldiers lined up while the coffins were brought down out of the aircraft," Reid says.

"It was incredibly beautiful and incredibly eerie and sad, and it just crystallized why we were there."

She says before the trip she wasn't sure she had much in common with the troops or the hockey players, but looking back, she says they all have one thing in common.

"The team spirit is what keeps the Forces going. It's how everything is gelled together. And that's true in hockey and that's true in music, in a band. That's true in an orchestra. It's not about one person and one person's ego.

"Gen. Hillier told me after the repatriation ceremony that they found out Sgt. Boyes had his limbs blown off and was lying there for a few hours before he died. While he was lying there he was still giving orders to his troops telling them what to do, how to

finish."

Reid says that shows unimaginable team spirit. "There's no question that those soldiers need to be there," she says

Thursday, April 03, 2008DAVE BARTLETT,The Telegram


Turkey's Last WWI Veteran Dies

World War I veteran Yakup Satar in a photo dated January 18, 2007.

ANKARA, April 3--Turkey's last surviving World War I veteran, who fought the British at Basra more than 90 years ago, has died aged 110, press reports said Thursday.

Yakup Satar, father of six and grandfather of some 50 grandchildren, died late Wednesday surrounded by his family in the town of Eskisehir, northwest of Ankara.

Hurriyet newspaper said Satar had been conscripted into the Ottoman army, allied to Germany during the 1914-18 war, and was sent to the Mesopotamian front.

As an infantryman, he fought British-led forces at Basra, now in southern Iraq and still a hotspot, and was taken prisoner at Kut in 1917.

His father Zeki Bey was a Crimean Tatar leader who fought for independence from Tsarist Russia.

After his basic military training, German officers selected him with 200 other recruits for a further special army course.

Yakup Satar told Hurriyet in 2003: "We had special uniforms and the Germans provided us with masks ... we found out later our company was



to be called 'gazcilar'-the 'gas soldiers'- chosen to attack the enemy with gas."

Top-level public figures led by President Abdullah Gul, published messages of condolence on his death.

He will receive military honors at his funeral, Anatolia news agency said.

Satar's death means that only eight men who served in their countries' armed forces during World War I are known to be still alive around the world.

They include three from Britain, two from Italy, one from the United States, one from Canada and one from Germany who fought in the Austro-Hungarian army

Thursday, April 03, 2008Alalam News

Section: Veterans

FEEDBACK REQUESTED

Greetings readers.

By now you should have noticed the new forum area and that you, as members, can add your comments on the various articles.

However, it appears that very few people are using the forum area, and nobody is posting comments on the articles. As webmaster, I am wondering why this is.

If you are having issues signing in as a member I’d appreciate it if you would contact me for assistance.

If there is some other reason that you feel unwilling to post comments or forum topics I’d REALLY like to know.

If you have any general comments on the website, or have suggestions for things you would like to see changed or added, please send that along too.

Click on the link below to contact me directly.All such correspondence will be treated as confidential.

Thursday, April 03, 2008WEBMASTER


Back To Vimy

Lt.-Col. Woodman LeonardÂ’s diary reveals how he changed as the First World

War progressed.Credit: MIKE HENSEN/Sun Media

Ten months before the battle of Vimy Ridge, Lt.-Col Woodman Leonard of London watched a German shell land on a machine-gun dugout.

"Helped get the bodies out and sent the wounded away," he wrote in his diary for June 16, 1916

"Poor Murray's body was badly mutilated, the others are worse. A terrible business and a great shock to me. (Murray's) body was the first we got out and I did not know who it was, he was so badly smashed up. Got some things out of his pockets but it was impossible to go through all. His ring and watch were apparently blown off. Wrapped him in blankets as decently as possible and sent him off on a wagon . . .

"Later the moon came up, almost full, cold and calm. Somehow or other, under present circumstances, it seemed more unfeeling than ever, almost uncanny.

"Poor Murray! Generous and capable. I wonder how many us will survive him any length of time."

By the time he wrote those words, upset over the death of an officer and friend, Leonard had been on the front lines in the First World War for 16 months, had been injured several times, and had been in the thick of dozens of major battles.

Each day, he wrote his experiences and thoughts in a diary. After he died, his brother, Ibbotson Leonard, had it

typed and bound.

When Ibbotson died, his effects, including the diary, were passed on to his regiment, the First Hussars Regiment.

London teacher Joe Murray, a colonel in that regiment, lent a copy to The Free Press as the 90th anniversary of the battle of Vimy Ridge approaches.

The diary reveals the changes in Leonard, a member of a prominent and wealthy London family, wrought by the years of fighting.

He earlier complained of being awakened at night by shells, gunfire, cave-ins, and the sounds of too many men crowded into dugout pits.

By the time he entered his third year on the front, he could sleep through almost anything. Feb 16, 1917: "Terrific firing at 3 a.m., but we had been warned of a raid on our right, so I rolled over again and went to sleep."

The Canadians spent much of February and March preparing for the battle and making small raids to collect prisoners and information.

In those months, Leonard's diary entries are often terse, but it is unclear if that is because of the intense cold, exhaustion, or rising tension.

As Z day, the day of the assault on Vimy Ridge approached, Leonard began to understand the enormity of his own role in the battle. He commanded the 3rd Brigade, Canadian Field Artillery. March 18, 1917: "The ground to be taken between us and Vimy Ridge is of great depth and the field guns have to be moved forward before the final objective can be safely held, if gained The scheme is working out very minutely and will mean a lot of work. The nut we have to crack is a hard one." March 27, 1917: "Commanders confirmed my impression that 3rd Brigade will cross enemy's front line in advance of any other unit."

Leonard faced repeated changes in his orders, which forced him to change positions of batteries time and time again. He also struggled to find good roads to move up the batteries during



battle.

By the end of March, he started to sleep less, his hands swollen and in pain from the cold and wet.

In the grey skies above, the British and German flyers started what became known as Bloody April. In that month, the Royal Flying Corps suffered about three times as many losses as the Germans, led by Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen, the Red Baron. March 24, 1917: "(German) planes very active," Leonard noted.

"They have a small red one that can fly rings around ours, which flies so low that the observer can be seen. They certainly have the mastery just now."

Preparations for Z day intensified the first week of April. Supply lines moved forward. Eight tanks moved into the woods behind Leonard's batteries to support his attack. April 5, 1917: "The corps put on a test barrage at 8 a.m. and it looked pretty good, but we might just as well send (the Germans) a note telling them where we are going to attack."

The short, sharp entries reveal the surreality of war, especially in the trenches before the battle. As calmly as he writes about settling finances, Leonard writes about fighting.

"Paid some bills, which cleans up necessary arrears . . . Infantry patrols were over in the German trenches all p.m. trying to catch one alive."

The assault was delayed on Good Friday by bad weather. On Easter Sunday, April 8, 1917, Leonard made his last entry in th diary.

It was typical, a mixture of calm observation about the weather and the war.

Germans "shelled us every hour until dawn, but did no harm," he wrote.

"Very bright but still almost unpleasantly cold. After dinner I was seated on the horse bar in pleasant contemplation when a 5.9 (shell) landed and burst about 30 yards away. I made good time to a dug-out, thinking there were more due but the did not materialize. Renewed my subscription to London Times for six

months."

His last line is practical and prosaic, certainly speaks of Leonard's lack of foreboding. "Will get a weather report at 3:30 a.m." * * *

Brother Ibbotson Leonard was serving with the First Hussars only a few kilometres away. He wrote the last entries in his brother's diary, based on interviews with soldiers.

Leonard was up before sunrise on the roof of his dugout watching the bombardment.

The artillery led the 'creeping barrage' ahead of the four divisions on infantry in the 1st Canadian Corps.

As the great guns destroyed the enemy barbed wire and German posts, the infantry crept behind, ready to attack German soldiers.

Leonard took a breakfast at 7 a.m. then moved forward to the front lines to check the positions of the batteries. The batteries were to cease firing at 11 a.m., but be ready to move to cover the infantry in the afternoon.

"It was raining quite hard so he wore his old slicker and carried his cane," Ibbotson wrote.

"He had on his oldest clothes with a hypodermic needle, with two charges of morphia (a pain-killer issues to soldiers in the field) , which I believe he always carried. When found later, one charge had been used."

Leonard and some of his officers walked up a plank road, crossing the captured German trenches. He and another officer made a detour as the Germans were shelling one battery. Several shells fell closer than the one that killed him.

About 9:30 a.m., a shell fell about 30 metres away, killing one soldier, damaging the knee of another soldier named DeGruchy and hitting Leonard in the shoulder.

DeGruchy didn't see Leonard fall, and rushed to the body of the killed soldier. A minute later, he made it to Leonard.

"Look after yourself, I am done for," Leonard told him. "Tell Crerar to take over and carry on." (Henry Crerar was a lieutenant-colonel, and later

commanded the First Canadian Army in the Second World War.)

DeGruchy cut open Leonard's coat and the Sam Brown strap that crossed his chest and waist. The wound looked minor, and he applied iodine. He managed to get a stretcher in five minutes and two soldiers began carrying Leonard to a field station.

DeGruchy had to hold onto Leonard's hands, because Leonard couldn't seem to work his own arms

Is there anything on my chest? Leonard asked.

Are my legs straight out?

He was taken from the field station to a hospital, six kilometres away.

As Leonard was carried by ambulance to the rear of the front lines, his brother took the same road forward to the front.

"I must have passed (him) . . . on my way up," Ibbotson wrote.

Leonard kept asking: Are my legs straight?

He knew more than the others the trouble he was in.

I am done for. I have no feeling in my legs or arms, he told the stretcher bearers.

By the time he reached the field hospital, his pulse and heart were weak. The shell penetrated the back of his shoulder and where the arm joins the body, piercing his nervous system.

"As there were hundreds of cases waiting," doctors simply moved Leonard to a casualty clearing station, Ibbotson wrote.

By the time Leonard reached the clearing station, he was dead.

"I took charge of the dear remains about 3 a.m. on Tuesday, and spent a sacred 10 minutes with them. He looked very peaceful and had not appearance of suffering," Ibbotson wrote.

Leonard was buried in France the next day, Wednesday, April 11, 1917. On April 9, 1918, the first anniversary of Vimy Ridge, Ibbotson Leonard wrote about his brother:



"As I look back over the past year and the life together at home, at school and college, in business and latterly in Belgium and France, my feeling of pride in him, his character, his achievements and his sacrifice, and the beauty of our past friendship and intercourse, it makes me proud and happy to have had him as a brother, and seems to diminish the regrets and longings I know we all will feel in the future without the light of his earthly countenance."

* * *

Woodman Leonard carried several clippings of poems in his pockets, found after his death.

They included this verse, From the Dead to the Living, by Laurence Binyon:

"O you that still have rain and sun

Kisses of children and of wife

And the good earth to tread upon

And the mere sweetness that is life

Forget not us, who gave all these

For something dearer and for you!

Think in what cause we crossed the seas!

Remember, he who fails the challenge

Fails us too.

Randy Richmond is a Free Press reporter.

Thursday, April 03, 2008Randy Richmond , Sun Media Apr 2 2007

Section: Veterans

Ste. Anne's Hospital Announces Affiliation with McGill University

McGill University, Montreal

Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC - The Honourable Greg Thompson, Minister

of Veterans Affairs, is proud to announce that Ste. Anne's Hospital has affiliated with McGill University in a collaboration that will further enhance Canada's care for our Veterans. This affiliation formalizes a partnership that has been in place for several years and sets the stage for closer academic collaboration and research.

"Ste. Anne's Hospital has a proud history of providing a high quality of care to our Veterans," said Minister Thompson. "This agreement will enhance our support to Veterans who will benefit from the skilled professionals participating in the internship and residency programs at the Hospital."

Established in 1917, Ste. Anne's is the last remaining Veterans Affairs Canada hospital to administer care and services exclusively to Veterans. McGill University was ranked the best public university in North America in 2007 according to Times Higher - QS.

The affiliation will also intensify research activities at Ste. Anne's Hospital in important clinical fields such as dementia, nutrition, pain management and operational stress injuries.

"This important research will make a real and lasting difference in the lives of our Veterans, Canadian Forces Members and Royal Canadian Mounted Police," added Minister Thompson. "And the benefits will also help all Canadians through advances in areas such as pain management and mental health."

Thursday, April 03, 2008Veteran Affairs Canada

Section: Veterans

Veteran: We shouldn't have to give up prayer

Sir: I read with great interest and approval of Mr. Jim McIntyre's letter to the editor in the Chatham Daily News.

I am a Second World War veteran. I decided two years ago to visit some of the places I served in during the war.

This was a two-month trip; alone and for the most part, backpacking. I went to Ortona, Italy, the scene of one of the Second World War's major battles (all Canadians). An Italian schoolteacher, Servio Du-Tullo, and friend of a local teacher David Mekowetsky, very graciously drove me to the Moro River Cemetery; 1,400 Canadians are buried there.

I spent some time alone there; and had time to recall.

We had a church parade prior to Ortona, in a field, to the sound of guns. The padre spoke about prayer, (we needed plenty).

I talked to the soldier next to me, and we introduced ourselves, his name was Rob, but I can't recall the last name.

I heard one of his pals call him "Robbie." The Padre preached about prayer; Robbie turned to me and asked, "Do you believe in prayer?" I said I did. "Well", said he, "the only prayer I know I learned at school; I never went to a church."

We walked away after the parade, he turned to me and asked, "Did you go to church?"

"Yes", I replied.

Robbie said, "You know the way things are going, many of us will be down there," as he pointed to the ground.

"Do you think there is anything after?" I said I did. He replied " But what chance do I have? I never had any prayers, only at school." I replied "Robbie, you will always be in the front line."

That was 63 years ago - the Robbies today do not have prayer at school.

In two world wars, Canadian boys and girls fought and died to help people from other countries, now they come to "our Canada" and expect we should give up an important part of our life!

And we let our lawmakers do this. Oh,



yes, we are the mute majority. Our ancestors came to Canada with axe, saw, fire, and prayer and hewed from the wilderness, homes and schools with prayer.

Let's not give up this part of our heritage.

Tell our politicians, "Do not forget that we pay your wages." They might not remember.

Hugh Johnston

Blenheim

Friday, April 04, 2008Hugh Johnston, Blenheim, The Chatham Daily

NewsSection: Veterans

Veteran: Injuries of war extend from soldiers to families

As a war veteran, it's hard for me not to notice the United States has lost 4,000 young soldiers and not say a word about it.

Canada's mortality rate in the same "war on terror" is rising as well.

Whether it's a teenager just out of high school or a seasoned staff sergeant or officer, one death from war tears apart many homes. Mom's and dad's home, his aunt's and uncle's homes, his cousin's, his brother's and his girlfriend's homes and perhaps, most sad, the home of his children.

Each death brings at-home survivors to their knees in uncontrollable screams, each person with a terrible want to say one more thing to their lost child, husband, wife or father. So many caring parents mourn silently over what could have been, having known full well their child's plans and dreams, and most of all, their plans to come home safe and proud that they answered the call Canada asked of them.

War also sends home young men and women with injuries. How hard it must be for doctors to try to tell the parents and loved ones a prognosis. In too many cases the injured have to learn life skills, from walking to reading, all over again. Mothers remember bringing up the child, sitting up nights through sicknesses as their baby turned from toddler to teenager.

First visits to the injured loved one are the worst. Relatives don't know what to expect.

Unless they still have their faces, too many patients have to be pointed out by nurses and attendants. Some have to check the clipboard. Even a patient losing so much weight can largely distort the image remembered by the loved ones.

With four family members and a girlfriend I went to Walter Reed, the top U.S. Army hospital in Washington, D.C. to see my badly wounded brother. He had already spent months in hospitals overseas where doctors spent operation after operation in futile attempts to get him healthy enough to bring to U.S. hospitals - so serious was his condition he would not survive the long trip unless well enough.

For weeks and months before the doctors had him ready, we got so many messages: "He will, he won't, he will, he won't survive. His prognosis is very guarded."

I went to the local medical clinic to ask a doctor what "guarded prognosis" meant. "Don't hold out too much hope that he'll survive," was the answer.

At Walter Reed, we had to find him first. Although there were nurses, there were so many wounded, the head nurse told me only what floor to find him on. So, we had to look for the healthy young man he was when he left. We had no idea how he could possibly appear, not after the many "Western Unions" telling us he was not responding to treatment again. Each message caused untold fear and a darkness that would not go away.

On the huge ward, I walked right by him. He was in a wheelchair trying desperately to turn and call out to me at the same time. He recognized me. His girlfriend called to me and pointed out this "stranger" as my brother.

I had to look closely at his face to verify it was him. I didn't know what else to do. He was about 200 pounds when he left for war. When I found him he was 88 pounds. I just couldn't recognize him. But he was well. He was playing cards with others who could.

This is only one story. My brother and I went to war about the same time. When I got home I learned some church-goers prayed for our safety while we were over there.

My brother has learned to live with his injuries with little or no help. Others today and in past wars have to be treated as newborns or toddlers the rest of their lives. For some, it's not too long. For others, it is unmercifully long.

When I was over there, caught in many horrible firefights, the kind my brother got trapped in, I hoped only I could fight better than the soldiers trying to kill me. When I came home, I couldn't help believing the "enemy" hoped the same things we all did - that we could all go home to our families.

Bud Whiteye is a member of the Walpole Island First Nation and is a communications consultant for the Heritage Centre at Walpole Island.

Friday, April 04, 2008Bud Whiteye, Walpole Island First Nation, The

Niagara Falls ReviewSection: Veterans

Using soldiers as political pawns

There's a stretch of Highway 401 between Trenton and Toronto known as the Highway of Heroes. Renamed in 2007, the 172-kilometre stretch beginning at CFB Trenton is used by thousands of Canadians who wave flags and stand proudly as military vehicles carrying Canada's casualties from Afghanistan roll by, in a show of support for their families and our nation's mission there.

On March 6, as I was returning home from a ski trip in Quebec, I found myself just in front of a military convoy carrying the body of Trooper Michael Yuki Hayakaze, 25, of the Lord



Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians), based at CFB Edmonton, Alberta. The soldier was killed when his armoured vehicle struck an explosive device west of Kandahar City in early March.

It was a grey and cloudy day as I headed home, matching the emotions of this sombre stretch of highway.

People were amassed on every bridge crossing from Trenton to Toronto, waving flags and expressing their gratitude to a young soldier who paid the ultimate sacrifice for his country and for the people of Afghanistan.

Ordinary citizens, veterans, police officers, ambulance and fire crews; they were all there, taking time out of their days to honour this young man. There were pipers standing on guard, waiting to belt out Amazing Grace as the convoy approached.

It's a scene that has played out dozens of times over the past few years as the bodies of Canada's brave soldiers are repatriated.

As I drove down this Highway of Heroes, I was overwhelmed by feelings of pride. It's nice to know that many Canadians are willing to take the time to honour these fallen soldiers in a tangible way.

It's quite a juxtaposition to those who use Canada's dead war heroes as political pawns.

This week, the House of Commons voted on an Opposition motion calling for the flag to be lowered on the Peace Tower at Parliament Hill every time a soldier is killed in Afghanistan. This rather new practice was started about four years ago by former Primer Minister Jean ChrÈtien.

However, in my opinion, this motion is all about politics.

An advisory committee tasked by the government to report on protocols for lowering the flag at the Peace Tower advised against the current up-and-down practice.

The panel was headed by Robert Watt, the former chief herald of Canada and included non-partisan protocol experts and historians. The recommendations call for an even stricter policy that would shrink the frequency of flag lowerings to one day -

Remembrance Day. Other than that, the flag would only be lowered for the death of the sovereign, prime minister or the chief justice.

Aside from ending the practice of lowering the flag every time a soldier is killed in Afghanistan, the report recommends eliminating half-mast treatment for Vimy Ridge Day (April 9), the Police and Peace Officers National Memorial Day (last Sunday in September), Workers Mourning Day (April 28) and the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women (Dec. 6).

The Liberals are the thrust behind the motion that has basically made the gesture of lowering the flag with increased frequency pretty much a joke. Remember, this is the same government that while in power slashed military spending to all-time lows. The Liberals are supported by the NDP and Bloc, who both want Canada's soldiers pulled out of Afghanistan.

Did anyone bother to ask the soldiers what they think?

The National Council of Veteran Associations supports a minimalist approach to flag lowering.

"We do not draw a distinction between a death in Afghanistan and one in Normandy," said association chair Cliff Chadderton.

So if the military community isn't advocating for this, who is?

If these politicians are so concerned about honouring Canada's war dead, why not introduce a motion making Remembrance Day a national statutory holiday. Nov. 11 is the day we honour those who have served in the defence of our nation and for the good of others. And that includes soldiers killed in Afghanistan.

Our soldiers fight so that our flag can fly at full mast.

In my opinion, the politicians behind this motion are trying to use dead soldiers to embarrass the government. And that, in my opinion, is sickening. I can guarantee not one of these politicians has lined up on the Highway of Heroes to pay tribute to a fallen soldier.

Friday, April 04, 2008

Mark Cripps, Stoney Creek NewsSection: Veterans

Statement by the Minister of National Defence on the Ombudsman’s Report

Ottawa - The Honourable Peter Gordon MacKay, Minister of National Defence and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, issued the following statement today in response to concerns expressed by the Interim Ombudsman regarding treatment and compensation of injured Reserve Forces personnel.

"Reservists play an important role in Canada's security, both at home and abroad. Their quality of life is a priority for the Government of Canada. The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces welcome the Ombudsman's report on issues concerning these valued personnel.

We share the Ombudsman's concerns with respect to the treatment and compensation of Reservists, and are now looking at what must be done to correct the situation. In fact, we are taking action regarding one of the Ombudsman's recommendations.

Reservists injured while on deployment receive the same care, and are entitled to the same level of compensation, as Regular Forces members. A proposal to standardize compensation so that Reservists injured at home also qualify for the maximum amount of compensation is currently being reviewed.

This government is standing by our military personnel, and we have been proactive, with Labour Minister Blackburn actively moving on job



protection for reservists who work in the federal public service and federally regulated industries.

The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces appreciate the good work of the Ombudsman and her staff. We have put the wheels in motion to ensure that Reservists and Regular Forces personnel are compensated fairly following injury. We will continue to work closely with the Ombudsman to resolve challenges involving standards of care as quickly as possible."

Friday, April 04, 2008DND

Section: Veterans

Ombudsman’s Report: Reservists shafted on health

Military ombudsman finds major inequities in medical benefits

Military brass often trumpet that it’s impossible to tell reservists from regular-force soldiers in the field, but a damning report released Thursday shows the difference once some part-time warriors are injured.

Investigators working for the military ombudsman’s office interviewed almost 400 people — most of them reservists — since 2006 and reviewed mountains of documents to get to the bottom of complaints about how the Canadian Forces treats injured reservists.

Among their findings is the bombshell that compensation for reservists who lose a limb is only 40 per cent of what regular-force soldiers receive.

"If a part-time reservist and a regular-

force member are involved in the same accident and each loses one of their hands, the regular-force member would be compensated for up to $125,000, compared to the reservist who would receive a maximum of $50,000," Mary McFadyen, the military’s interim ombudsman, told reporters Thursday.

"This is unacceptable. The limb of a reservist is worth the same as the limb of a regular-force member."

The military has denied reservists care because they are technically not on duty, Ms. McFadyen said.

"Investigators were told of a case where a reservist injured himself one evening while on duty at his unit," she said. "At that time, no medical personnel were on duty.

"The next morning, he presented himself to Canadian Forces medical authorities for care. But since he was not considered to be on duty that morning, he was told he was not eligible to receive care for the injury. This is clearly unfair. Quite frankly, the rule should be if you break them, you fix them."

Reservists injured while on duty face many challenges when it comes to getting medical care, Ms. McFadyen said.

"Regular-force members do not face the same challenges," she said.

"These problems are not new. They have existed for decades, despite some attempts by the Canadian Forces to resolve them. Nevertheless, these issues continue to plague reservists and also health-care providers."

The probe reveals significant differences in the way the military provides health care to reservists.

"At some times and some places, reservists receive all aspects of medical care through the military health system, including followup care such as physiotherapy, transportation to medical appointments and pay for their time," Ms. McFad-yen said.

"At other times and in other places, reservists may receive initial acute care for their injuries and are then referred to the provincial system. This brings numerous complications,

including transportation difficulties, loss of training or duty time and ongoing care challenges."

The 64-page report notes that "more and more, reserve-force members are being called upon to assist the Canadian Forces in delivering on its mandate," and that about 20 per cent of Canada’s contingent in Afghanistan are reservists.

Ms. McFadyen said reservists injured in Afghanistan are entitled to the same treatment as regular-force soldiers. But that’s not the case across the board.

"In return for their commitment to train and serve their country, reservists rightfully expect to receive the best care possible when they are injured or become ill while on duty or away from their home while performing military service," says the report, titled Reserved Care.

Standards are different or applied differently to reservists when it comes to "periodic health assessments, immunizations, the treatment of injuries sustained while maintaining physical fitness, and medical record-handling and storage," says the report.

Health-care regulations governing reservists are confusing, it says.

"As a result, there are huge inequities in the interpretation of when health care will be provided, which is frustrating for medical officials and reservists."

"No one is really 100 per cent sure who gets what,"" the military’s director general of health services told investigators in January 2007. ""Nobody really knows, including me, and I run the system."

NDP MP Peter Stoffer was livid Thursday after reading that quote from the report.

"Un-friggin’-believable," said Mr. Stoffer, who represents Sackville-Eastern Shore.

The problem isn’t a new one, he said.

"The auditor general’s report came out a while ago slamming this and all we hear are platitudes — ‘Yes, we’re going to improve things.’ "

The report makes 12 recommendations to improve the



system, including that all Forces members should receive the same compensation for the same injury and that the military should develop a new framework governing the entitlement to and provision of medical and dental care for the various categories of reservists.

"These problems are serious. They affect morale and quality of life," Ms. McFadyen said. "Reserve personnel must be treated fairly and it is imperative that changes be made quickly."

The Conservative government "values the contributions of reservists in contributing to our safety and well-being and we care about the quality of their life," Dan Dugas, director of communications for Defence Minister Peter MacKay, said in an e-mail

"Minister MacKay has put the wheels in motion to ensure reservists and regular-force soldiers are compensated equally following injury, and that shows our determination to make things right for our reservists," said Mr. Dugas.

Friday, April 04, 2008CHRIS LAMBIE Staff Reporter, The Chronicle

HeraldSection: Veterans

HMAS Sydney bathed in blue light

History: This image shows the B gun turret of the HMAS Sydney lying in deep water

off the coast of Western Australia, 66 years after the pride of the Australian wartime fleet sank to the ocean floor leaving no

trace of the 645 crew onboard. Credit: AFP

HMAS Sydney sits proudly upright on the ocean floor, but the first images of the pride of the Australian fleet show the terrible destruction wrought by German guns during World War II.

Ghostly photos released yesterday

may only deepen the mystery of why none of its crew survived a battle with the raider Kormoran off the West Australian coast in November 1941.

They show all Sydney's lifeboats missing, suggesting sailors may have escaped the sinking warship to an unknown fate in boats possibly badly damaged in the battle.

The photos, released by the Finding Sydney Foundation, are coloured a deep shade of blue by the Indian Ocean.

They were taken 2.5km deep by a remotely operated vehicle, and clearly show the damage the Kormoran inflicted.

The pictures prove that Sydney did not simply explode into a million pieces.

But the foundation says funnels and masts are gone, shell holes have punched through gun turrets, the bow is missing and there is severe punishment to the bridge and superstructure, known to have been the targets of Kormoran's guns.

The peeling back of the ship's side could have been the result of a torpedo strike, says observer and naval historian John Perryman.

In his analysis of images from the survey vessel Geosounder, he said: "Although in a badly damaged state, this great warship retains a powerful aura."

The images show Sydney's four big gun turrets remain, its guns pointing to port -- the direction of Kormoran's attack -- indicating the warship fought to the bitter end.

Even the teak deck is visible in places.

Doug Price, from the HMAS Sydney Association, said the intact decking raised serious doubts over Kormoran survivors' claim that Sydney was "ablaze from stem to stern" as she limped over the horizon.

"Surely the teak would have burned," he said.

John Riley, a shipwreck deterioration expert, said the Sydney was the most intact wreck he had seen.

"She is upright, her teak decks are clearly visible and she is much more amazing than I expected," he said.

He thinks the images of a largely intact hull tell a tragic tale of large numbers of survivors perishing in the sea.

"It sank slowly and most of the battle survivors would have got off and that might have been two-thirds of the crew," he said.

That is up to 400 men.

"Now we know the wreck location, we can plot the data from the time of the search and see just how far off they were."

Search director David Mearns said the name Sydney was not visible.

The US shipwreck hunter said the footage indicated Sydney hit the seabed stern first before sliding 50m to her final resting place. The impact sheared off a huge propeller shaft and the funnels.

The wreck was found last month -- 66 years after it was lost with all 645 crew -- 250km off the coast of WA. The Kormoran wreck was nearby.

The team aboard the Geosounder has much more work to do in a limited time, with an uncertain period of calm weather ahead and a technical fault hampering the remotely operated vehicle.

"Nevertheless, the underwater visibility is superb and we intend to collect as much video and photographic imagery as we possibly can after the ROV is recovered and repaired," Mr Mearns said.

Retired Royal Australian Navy commodore Rory Burnett, the son of Sydney captain Joseph Burnett, said the images would comfort relatives.

Until yesterday, Mr Burnett had last seen the Sydney as an 11-year-old when his father gave him a tour.

"The images evoke a sadness again at the loss of my father and the whole ship's company, but the finding of the ship and the photographs provide a positive point for our mourning," Mr Burnett said.

What happened to the Sydney's crew will be considered in a fresh inquiry into the sinking.

Friday, April 04, 2008Mark Dunn, The Herald Sun

Section: Veterans

Canadian Artist Chosen To Create New 'Centrepiece' Sculpture For UK Memorial Gardens

Paul de MonchauxCredit: Norwich Evening News

An award-winning Canadian artist has been chosen to create a new centrepiece for Norwich's memorial gardens, to fill the space which will be left when the war memorial is finally moved and turned around.

Paul de Monchaux has been selected by a specially set up group to design a new commemorative feature within the gardens, which have been off limits to the public for years.

As part of the long awaited work to refurbish the gardens, the Sir Edwin Lutyens designed war memorial will be raised onto St Peters Street and turned to face City Hall - creating new space for a £65,000 commemorative feature.

A group set up to decide what happens in the gardens, including war veterans and representatives from the Peace Council, Norwich Society, Central Norwich Citizen's Forum, Norwich City Council and others, plumped for Mr de Monchaux.

Montreal-born Mr de Monchaux's works include Memorial to Wilfred Owen in Shrewsbury, London's BBC Memorial to Winston Churchill, and Memorial to WW2 Slave Workers in Jersey.

He said: “The source of much of my work is an interest in the way sculpture and architecture share a common ancestry, so I welcome the opportunity to make a piece for the Norwich Memorial Gardens site which is framed by some of the city's finest buildings.”

Ray Holland, chairman of the Eastern Region War Pensions Committee,

who represents veterans' groups on the steering group, said: “We are grateful that things are moving forward so fast on the memorial, and we are delighted with the appointment of Paul de Monchaux to create the commemorative feature.

“The steering group is now meeting regularly and work is progressing well on the memorial.”

Ben Webster, design quality manager for Norwich City Council, said: “We are very pleased to be able to announce the appointment of Paul de Monchaux, and we are looking forward to working with him on this project.

“Paul has not been told what form the feature should take. The brief gives ample scope for the expression of his creative talent. It is intended not only to commemorate the sacrifices and hardships of local people in war, but also mark the furtherance of peace.”

The design for the feature will be created in full consultation with the various groups represented on the steering group, and take into account the public comments on thoughts and emotions the gardens should evoke.

Visual arts development agency Commissions East managed the process of selecting the artist on behalf of Norwich City Council.

A concept design for the feature will be submitted to the steering group by May 28 and public consultation on the whole Memorial Gardens project will start in June.

Detailed designs for the new feature will be submitted towards the end of September, with planning applications and listed building consent earmarked for October and November.If consent is granted work on the whole scheme will start in April next year and finish in August 2010.

City council bosses will no doubt be hoping for a smoother passage for the new feature than that which the brain sculpture designed by French artists Patrick and Anne Poirier for Hay Hill endured.

That sculpture, a tribute to city philosopher and writer Sir Thomas Browne, sparked controversy and saw three councillors withdraw from the

planning meeting where it was given approval, claiming there was too much public pressure on them to make a decision.

Friday, April 04, 2008DAN GRIMMER, Norwich Evening Times


Book honours servicemen

Leonard Gamble is co-author of So Far From Home.

The book launch for So Far From Home by Leonard J. Gamble with L.R. Neden and Marc Tremblay will be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at the Royal Canadian Legion in Armstrong.

The book tells the stories of the men from the Armstrong area who died in the First World War, embedding each account in the larger story of the evolution of the Canadian Expeditionary Force itself. The book is 278 pages long with many pictures, both present day and historical. There are photos of more than half of the 62 servicemen featured included in the book.

Copies of the book will be available for sale for $25 and the authors will be in attendance to sign copies. There will also be book signings at Shamrock Books and Beyond in Armstrong on April 23 and 25 from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

After the launch, books will be available at [email protected] or L.J. Gamble, Box 516, Armstrong, B.C., V0E 1B0; The Armstrong Advertiser; Shamrock Books and Beyond; and the Armstrong Spallumcheen Museum and Arts Society.

Friday, April 04, 2008Vernon Morning Star

Section: Veterans

Dreams King fought for are still unfulfilled

I HAVE A DREAM!

It has now been 40 years since the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in Memphis, Tenn., and the passage of time has had a curious effect on his legacy - on our memory of the meaning of his message.

We now celebrate Martin Luther King Day and visit Martin Luther King museum exhibits. An MLK National Memorial is planned in Washington, D.C., and there are streets and schools across America named for the slain civil rights leader. Children today learn King's "I Have a Dream" speech in school.

King, who fought both the laws and spirit of racial segregation, was a controversial figure in his day. But four decades on, in our collective memory, he has become a saint.

It is easy for us to remember King as the man simply urging us to judge each other not by the color of our skin but by the content of our character. After all, is there an American alive today who would not embrace that sentiment?

But on the 40th anniversary of his death, let us also remember the parts of King's message that don't sit quite so easily - the sentiments that show us how far America and the world still must journey if we are to truly honor King's legacy.

This, for instance, was King's 1967 assessment of the great war of his time:

"Somehow this madness must cease. We must stop now. I speak as a child of God and a brother to the suffering poor of Vietnam. I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose culture is being subverted. I speak for the poor in America who are paying

the double price of smashed hopes at home and death and corruption in Vietnam. I speak as a citizen of the world, for the world as it stands aghast at the path we have taken. I speak as an American to the leaders of my own nation. The great initiative in this war is ours. The initiative to stop it must be ours."

This was King, also in 1967, on military spending: "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death."

And this was King on the gulf between rich and poor: "The curse of poverty has no justification in our age. It is socially as cruel and blind as the practice of cannibalism at the dawn of civilization, when men ate each other because they had not yet learned to take food from the soil or to consume the abundant animal life around them. The time has come for us to civilize ourselves by the total, direct and immediate abolition of poverty."

King worried, in 1963, about the damaging effect of conformity. He wrote: "Success, recognition, and conformity are the bywords of the modern world where everyone seems to crave the anesthetizing security of being identified with the majority.

He expressed frustration at those who would voiced support for racial justice but accepted slow - or no - progress. "The Negroes of America had taken the President, the press and the pulpit at their word when they spoke in broad terms of freedom and justice. But the absence of brutality and unregenerate evil is not the presence of justice. To stay murder is not the same thing as to ordain brotherhood."

And he was willing to talk, sharply, about not just what unites us, but also what still divides us: "A good many observers have remarked that if equality could come at once the Negro would not be ready for it. I submit that the white American is even more unprepared."

Forty years since King's death, much has changed for the better. But the news of the day - war without end, economic instability, a presidential election in which race is often an undercurrent - reminds us how much

of King's dream is yet to be achieved.

Friday, April 04, 2008Staff, Concord MonitorSection: Miscellaneous

Saying goodbye Repatriation services filled with emotion

Fallen comrades—The service to repatriate Canadian soliders who have

died in Afghanistan is time of great emotion and reflection for all, says Rev. Jim Short who is serving in Kandahar.

Credit: Ministry of Defence

Death is never far away in Afghanistan. Ramp ceremonies for repatriating the casualties of war are a wake up call to the reality of death in this ruggedly beautiful but treacherously dangerous country.

Along with the tragic deaths of Canadian soldiers, there is always someone else dying over here; soldiers from Coalition countries, members of the Afghan National Security Forces, or civilians who are the random targets of intimidation, bombings or the land mines that are debris of previous wars.

For those who live and work “beyond the wire” of the relative safety of the large bases, the reality of death through a “TIC” (troops in contact) or some form of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) danger is high on their level of consciousness. For those who live and work in KAF (Kandahar Air Field) it is the ramp ceremony that tells the story of death.

I have participated in two Canadian ramp ceremonies in the four weeks I have been here. It is a larger process than the 30-second news clip seen on TV. Though ramp ceremonies are neither a funeral nor memorial service, it is our unique way of honoring a fallen comrade and saying goodbye.

When I receive the call that a Canadian soldier is dead my heart

Page 35The Royal Canadian Legion, Fred Gies Branch 50 (Ontario)


sinks and my mind rips into action. I silently ask God to be present as I execute my various duties. A communications lockdown is in effect. Through the mysterious ways of the ‘camp grape-vine’ and tell-tale sign of the lockdown, many Canadians in KAF know something bad has happened. We both pray and hope such days will not come, and simultaneously we await their inevitability with dread.

Trooper Michael Hayakaze died near the end of his tour and Bdr Jeremie Oullett shortly after he arrived. After retrieving the next of kin form, we travel to the Role 3 Hospital – a multinational medical facility in which the uniforms of various military personnel resemble a quilt of different camaflogued patterns.

In the case of these two soldiers the designations were “VSA” – vital signs absent, and we proceed to the morgue. There, with another Canadian chaplain and encircled by the staff, scriptures is read and prayers are said. I will always remember moments like the one where I read Psalm 139 for one of these soldiers:

“Where can I go from your spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even then your right hand will guide me your right hand will hold me fast.”

The ERG (Emergency Response Group) meets to plan the Ramp Ceremony. The ceremony takes place quickly and efficiently as we are in a theatre of operations, but also because we know that a grieving family in Canada waits anxiously for their loved one to return home. Meanwhile, the deceased’s comrades practice their bearer party drill. “Padre,” a soldier says later when I comment on the precision and professionalism of the bearer party, “We can’t bring them back…we can only send them home with dignity.”

Before the ceremony, the casket rests in a small building; backdropped by a Canadian flag, and beside it a table holding their picture, beret and Afghan Campaign Star. To this tent come

Task Force members to pay their personal respects. They stand at attention, touch gently the casket and say a few quiet words. The team of Padre’s and Mental Health workers are present for support.

At the airfield, the Hercules airplane is ready with its rear ramp down. Military personnel from other coalition nations gather in formal configuration. As the sun comes up I walk onto the field, and I hear the sound of birds chirping. These are the first birds I have heard in Afghanistan and they take my heart to a line in the poem In Flanders’s Fields – “…and in the sky, the birds still sweetly singing fly, scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the dead.”

The crunching march of soldiers falling into ranks, five deep to the drill commands of Sgt Majors. Officer’s fall in, call me back to the moment. The Canadian chaplains gather on the right side of the plane, backed by other coalition chaplains. Yet, even death and ramp ceremonies cannot slow war, and the roar of planes and helicopters continue to land and take off.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the solitarily LAV (light armored vehicle), a Canadian flag on the aerial, making the slow drive onto the airfield. One chaplain says a few words and the unit chaplain offers a prayer. At that point the casket is slow marched up the ramp, tears falling from the eyes of the some of the bearer party, as everyone salutes.

Standing at attention, my thoughts are with the waiting family and their unimaginable grief. The piper plays “Amazing Grace” accompanied by jet roars and chopper blades.

Then, as the plane prepares to take off and the parade has been dismissed, it’s back to work. It’s back to desk, computers, convoys and various other military duties. The conflict continues.

n Ladner United Church Rev. Jim Short is Team Leader for the Roto 5 Chaplains for the Canadian Armed Forces in Afghanistan.

Friday, April 04, 2008Rev. Jim Short


Veteran Ombusdman Now Has A Blog

The official website of Colonel (retired) Patrick B. Stogran, the new Veterans Ombudsman, has recently been updated.

It now includes a particularily interesting BLOG which the Ombudsman intends to keep up to inform the veteran population on the progress of the development of the office and, presumably, cases which are pending.

The site also includes a new section listing the Ombudsmans Order In Council, complaints procedures and forms.

Friday, April 04, 2008Webmaster. RCLBR50

Section: Veterans

Veteran’s legacy

Compensation sought—Weeks before he passed away on April 11, 2007, Harvey Friesen vowed to continue lobbying the government to help veterans suffering ill health due to asbestos exposure aboard

Canadian naval vessels. Credit: Tyler Garnham

Almost a year after he passed away, Harvey Friesen’s battle to win compensation for fellow Canadian Forces personnel continues.

Harvey’s son Chris says there has been some movement on behalf of the federal government to assist those veterans who are ailing after being exposed to asbestos while serving on board Canadian naval vessels.

Page 36 The Royal Canadian Legion, Fred Gies Branch 50 (Ontario)


Since his father Harvey—a well known and respected advocate with the Save Delta Hospital Society and Delta Healthcare Association—passed away on April 11, 2007, Chris Friesen has continued to encourage the government to provide greater publicity about compensation for sick veterans, but is dismayed to discover some vessels still contain asbestos.

“They (federal government) say the asbestos is in areas deemed safe and there is no threat of exposure,” he said.

In the past year he has had contact from many veterans who want information about government assistance. The Royal Canadian Legion has also provided help to publicise what assistance is available.

Harvey Friesen served as a medical assistant aboard the HMCS New Glasgow during the 1960s and was exposed to asbestos dust, which contributed to his illness. Before he passed away at 73 he received compensation of $100,000 plus a letter admitting responsibilty for his condition from the Ministry of Veterans Affairs and vowed to help increase publicity about federal aid programs offered to sick vets.

Friday, April 04, 2008Philip Raphael - South Delta Leader

Section: Veterans

UPDATE: Herald article unites woman with father's long-lost war ID

A Canadian Army ID card from the Second World War is on its way to Calgary to be reunited with the family of its owner, 64 years later.

Terri Stroeder, daughter of soldier John Osudar, recognized her father's picture on the ID card in a recent

article in the Herald.

A British man, William Brown, was trying to return Osudar's ID card to his family.

Brown's father had been given the card as a memento after spending time in hospital with Osudar during the Second World War.

"It's really touched our family," said Stroeder of Brown's efforts.

She said her family was shocked to hear the story because Osudar, who died in 1995, never talked much about his time in the war.

"We didn't know he had given his ID card away," said Stroeder.

Stroeder said her mother -- Osudar's wife, Emilia -- has most of his war mementos and will hang on to the ID card once it arrives in the mail.

"She's very happy that it's being returned," said Stroeder.

Bob Butt, director of communications for the Royal Canadian Legion in Ottawa, said this isn't the first return of a war memento he's heard of.

"People are left keepsakes and then want to find their rightful owner," said Butt.

He said while it can be hard to track down people because of the privacy act in Canada, when such reunions do work out, they're wonderful.

"It shows the camaraderie that developed so many years ago," said Butt.

Stroeder spoke with Brown on the phone on Thursday for about 15 minutes.

"It was so nice to hear his stories and hear more about my father," said Stroeder.

She said the returned ID card means a lot to Osudar's five grandchildren, who never got to meet their grandpa.

"They're all really excited about this," said Stroeder.

Back in England, Brown is happy to know his father's final wishes are being fulfilled.

"It would be nice if my father was alive and could see this happen, but I know he would be very pleased," said

Brown.

Brown said it was great to speak with Osudar's daughter on the phone and watch a happy ending occur.

"And If I'm ever in the area," said Brown, "they've offered to take me for dinner."

Friday, April 04, 2008Cailynn Klingbeil, Calgary Herald

Section: Veterans

Federal neglect of atomic vets 'disgraceful'

Tories 'stalling' on compensation for radiation exposure, say veterans.

The Conservative government is stalling in providing compensation to sick veterans who were exposed to radiation during Cold War atomic tests, says one of the men who was promised financial help more than a year ago.

Robert Henderson, who was part of a radiation monitoring team during five nuclear blasts, said the veterans are dying off as they wait in vain for compensation promised to them by the Harper government.

"I think they're stalling because out of the 1,000 or so people involved there's only about 100 or so living," said the 76-year-old from High River, Alta. "We thought this government was going to do something, but it's getting worse than better."

Jim Huntley, another of the atomic veterans, said lawyers for the Justice and Defence departments will likely spend more money fighting the old soldiers in court than the government would have to pay out in compensation.

The veterans have been battling for compensation and recognition for the



last five decades through both Conservative and Liberal governments. Their case was bolstered in 2007 when a Defence Department report determined that an estimated 900 Canadian military personnel were exposed to radiation during atomic tests and during a reactor mishap at Chalk River during the 1950s.

In early 2007, then-defence minister Gordon O'Connor and Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Rick Hillier met with some veterans and promised their cases would be swiftly dealt with. In August of that year, shortly before he was removed from the defence portfolio, Mr. O'Connor said a compensation package was almost complete but nothing ever came of that.

A few months later, Defence Minister Peter MacKay assured Parliament he was working on the issue and something would be soon done for the veterans.

After waiting several more months, some veterans, including Mr. Huntley and Mr. Henderson, decided to sue the government. That legal battle could take up to two years.

Government officials say they are still examining the issues brought forward by the atomic vets. There have been suggestions that a proposal could go to Treasury Board for approval sometime next month.

As the waiting continues, the veterans say their numbers are dwindling. In the last year, two veterans have died. One of those was Donald Bernicky, 74, of Smiths Falls who went through six atomic bomb detonations and a battle with the federal government over whether he should be given a disability pension for the ailments he suffered as a result.

Mr. Bernicky had skin cancer and other medical problems his family attribute to his exposure to radiation during the Cold War nuclear tests. He died without receiving any compensation.

Mr. Henderson, who monitored fallout from five atomic blasts, blames all parliamentarians for neglecting the veterans.

"There are a hell of a lot of widows out

there who lost their husbands and had to fend for themselves and their children," said Mr. Henderson, whose protective gear during his radiation monitoring job consisted of a gas mask.

"How disgraceful can a government be? I'm not talking about just the Conservatives. I'm talking about every government and every member of Parliament."

Mr. Henderson's unit was originally the Lord Strathcona's Horse but he was temporarily assigned to the 1 Radiation Detection Unit. Besides taking part in actual atomic blasts, his group monitored radiation levels from previous explosions. Of the four individuals from his regiment who took part in the explosions, Mr. Henderson, who has had two bouts of cancer, is the last survivor.

Mr. Huntley of Balzac, Alta., noted that out of 40 members sent from his unit to the atomic tests in Nevada, half are dead. Many of those died from cancer, he added.

He said the government's response to the veterans' lawsuit is that the soldiers waited too long to begin legal proceedings against the government so the case should not be heard in court.

Saturday, April 05, 2008David Pugliese, The Ottawa Citizen

Section: Veterans

Anti-war graffiti 'sacrilegious'

The national peacekeeping monument.Credit: www.cfsuo.forces.gc.ca

Damage to vets' monument sparks outrage.

Paul Greensides has an idea how to punish the vandals who defaced a national peacekeeping monument with graffiti Thursday night.

"I would like to see a group of

veterans watch as those responsible for this clean it up," said Greensides, national secretary treasurer for the Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping.

"And while they're cleaning it, I'd like the veterans to talk to them and give them an idea of what it means to be a veteran and realize how sacrilegious something like this is."

The National Peacekeeping Monument, which stands across from the National Gallery and Major's Hill Park, was vandalized with anti-war graffiti sometime overnight Thursday or early yesterday morning. The markings consist of the anarchy symbol and statements such as "Afghan civilians dead."

The Department of National Defence is responsible for cleaning the monument. A spokeswoman for DND said yesterday afternoon officials are not likely to issue a statement regarding the incident until Monday.

Ottawa Police officials said yesterday they had not received a report about the vandalism and are not involved in any investigation at this time.

"Monuments don't have street addresses, so we may not know exactly where the alleged incident happened," said Carol Ryan, a spokeswoman for the Ottawa Police. "As of right now, we have no confirmation the incident actually occurred."

Greensides said he was sad to learn of the damage to the monument, the only one of its kind in the world, and called it "disgusting."

The monument was designed by sculptor Jack Harman, urban designer Richard Henriquez and landscape architect Cornelia Oberlander and was dedicated in October 1992.

It depicts three peacekeepers standing on walls above the debris of war. In front of them, a grove of trees symbolizes peace.

Saturday, April 05, 2008TERRI SAUNDERS, SUN MEDIA

Section: Veterans



Wounded Veterans, Wounded Families

"As Canada engages in overseas military action and severely wounded soldiers are sent home, more need to be done to help their struggling families" according to a report released by the University of Alberta.

This report is being made available through the Dominion Command Website or can be reached directly via the link below.

Saturday, April 05, 2008RCL

Section: RCL

First and Second World War Treasures Lost In Quebec Armoury Fire

Firefighters battle a blaze at one of Quebec City's most historic buildings on

Friday April 4, 2008.Credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Clement

Allard

Fire destroys major Quebec City landmark.

A Quebec City landmark has been heavily damaged by fire.

The armoury, built in 1884, broke out in flames at about 9:30 p.m. on Friday evening.

Two hours later, much of the building had collapsed. At least eight fire trucks and dozens of firefighters had been dispatched to fight the blaze.

The armoury had provided a home to Les Voltigeurs, a Canadian Forces reserve unit and Canada's oldest French infantry unit. In addition, it has housed a museum containing First and Second World War memorabilia, along with artifacts of the Riel Rebellion.

The building also contained Canada's largest suspended wood ceiling.

Some articles were reportedly rescued, and military officials hope some of the building can be saved.

The armoury had been scheduled to host events to mark Quebec City's 400th anniversary and had been undergoing renovations. No cause has been determined yet.

Saturday, April 05, 2008CTV News Staff

Section: Veterans

Assorted data on Canadian casualties in Afghanistan

A Canadian soldier from the NATO-led coalition rests on the muzzle of his rifle.

Credit: REUTERS/Finbarr O'Reilly

Canadian casualties by province

• Alberta 10• British Columbia 3• Manitoba 2• New Brunswick 7• Newfoundland and Labrador 7• Nova Scotia 8• Nunavut 1• N.W.T. 0• Ontario 24• P.E.I. 0• Quebec 14• Saskatchewan 5• Yukon 0• Other - 1 (the diplomat was born in the U.K.)Canadian deaths by type of casualty

• Non-hostile (vehicle accidents, weapon discharges etc.) 11• Friendly fire 6• Suicide bomber 12 (plus one diplomat)• IED (improved explosive device) 38• Other hostile fire 15Canadian Fatalities by year

• 2002 - 4• 2003 - 2• 2004 - 1• 2005 - 1• 2006 - 36 plus one diplomat• 2007 - 30• 2008 - 8Canadian Fatalities by rank.

Non-commissioned

• Private/trooper/gunner/Sapper - 24• Corporal/bombardier - 31• Master corporal - 8• Sergeant - 9• Warrant officer - 3• Master warrant officer - 1• Chief warrant officer - 1

Officers

• Lieutenant - 1• Captain - 3• Major - 1Canadian Fatalities by age range.

• 20-29 - 47• 30-39 - 27• 40-49 - 8• 50+ - 1 (the diplomat)

Saturday, April 05, 2008Kirsten Smith, Canwest News Service Library


82nd Canadian Soldier Killed in Afghanistan

Pte. Terry John Street, 24, Credit: DND

OTTAWA– Private Terry John Street, from 2nd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry was killed today when his armoured vehicle



struck a suspected Improvised Explosive Device (IED). The incident occurred in the Panjwayi district. The soldier was immediately evacuated by helicopter to the Canadian-led multinational hospital at Kandahar Airfield, where he was pronounced dead. The incident occurred at about 6:15 p.m. Kandahar time while the soldier’s unit was conducting operations.

This incident will not deter us from continuing our work with the Government and the people of Afghanistan. Incidents like this one prove that, along with our Afghan National Security Force partners, Canadians need to continue working to bring about peace and security in the region.

We have lost a fine Canadian today, and our hearts go out to the family and friends of this brave soldier. Statement by the Minister of National Defence on the death of private Terry John StreetNR–08.021 - April 4, 2008

OTTAWA - The Honourable Peter Gordon MacKay, Minister of National Defence and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, issued the following statement today on the death of a Canadian soldier in Afghanistan:

"I would like to offer my sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Private Terry John Street who succumbed to his injuries today in Afghanistan. My thoughts and prayers are with them during this most difficult time.

Real, measurable progress has been made in Afghanistan, but much remains to be done. It is only through the hard work, dedication and sacrifice of remarkable Canadians like Private Terry John Street that Afghanistan will once again flourish and stand on its own as reminder of the success we as a country and as members of a coalition can have when we stand steadfast and work towards a common goal."

Saturday, April 05, 2008DND


Freedom of choice denied

Re: Time for smokers to butt out, Burnaby NOW, April 2. I, for one, would rather see a head line reading: 'Time for government to butt out.'

But that will never happen as long as the press and media in general is concentrated in a few people's hands - especially when those people use their power to support the discrimination of a part of society they think is not worth standing up for.

Two of the cornerstones of democracy are freedom of choice and freedom of association, both of which are being stomped on by this new provincial regulation. I was pleased to see that one elected official in your article, Coun. Nick Volkow, had the guts to voice an opinion against this regulation. To allow private establishments the right of choice to determine their own smoking policy, with signage that clearly indicates a government-certified smoking room is in the establishment, is no problem. Making the smoke room self-serve to protect staff, no problem.

Then the public could make up their own minds to patronize that establishment or not. It's called 'freedom of choice.'

In 2002, Royal Canadian Legion branch 148 spent $50,000 to be in compliance with Workers' Compensation Board rules, money that came from our reserves that had been put away for emergency

maintenance and repairs for our facility. Now we are told this was all for naught.

Our club was established 72 years ago by men and women who went to war to liberate other parts of the world from dictatorial governments - who are now themselves being dictated to, by a government that thinks it's all right to discriminate against a minority as long as they think it's politically correct.

Our smoke room is state-of-the-art and has been praised by the health inspector as one of the best ever built. Non-smoking members have told me time and again that they have no problem with this room as their side of the club is in no way affected by the smokers.

But now, 70-, 80- and 90-year-old veterans are being told their opinions don't count.

Democracy is a two-way street: Lose any part of it, and we all lose.

As for levelling the playing field, as some bars have said this regulation will do, it's far from the truth as these newer bars were built with patios where smoking will not be banned. These bars will have a big advantage over those that don't. Those with buildings such as ours that were built many years ago when laws did not permit windows in bars, let alone patios outside, are at a great disadvantage.

The cost to redo our building to put in a patio would be prohibitive. Besides, if we did have the money to build one, sooner or later someone would come along and dictate that it be smoke-free too. So, in closing I say, let smoking decline as it has been for years and eventually fade away through education of our children, not by punitive measures against aging users of a legally obtainable substance in this province and country.

Dave Taylor, president, Royal Canadian Legion branch 148

Saturday, April 05, 2008Dave Taylor, president, Royal Canadian Legion

branch 148, Burnaby NowSection: Veterans



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