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Remembrance

shadowspar: Cap badge of the Royal Canadian Artillery: A cannon with motto: Ubique / Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducunt (RCA cap badge)
Sunday, November 11th, 2012 00:32

War is a catastrophic event and there are no more ardent peacemakers than those of us who have experienced it.
:Ian Townsend, Secretary-General, British Legion

Going to be on the road for Remembrance Day today. What'll be going through my mind? That, ironically enough, the pacifist folks who are often derided as being unpatriotic and anti-military oft seem to be the only ones doing one of the most benevolent things you can do for the troops -- namely, asking the questions, "Do we need to go to war?" "Is battle the appropriate solution for this problem?" "What do we hope to achieve by 'sending in the troops'?"

We honour our soldiers and our fallen heroes by refusing to allow their service and sacrifice to have been made in vain.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

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Remembrance

shadowspar: Cap badge of the Royal Canadian Artillery: A cannon with motto: Ubique / Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducunt (RCA cap badge)
Friday, November 11th, 2011 10:25

I opted not to go to the Remembrance Day service today. Instead, as is my custom, I'll have a small private memorial wherever I am at 1100.

I remember that "supporting the troops" includes valuing and honouring them enough not to order them into battle save for the gravest of circumstances. War is a last resort to address an extraordinary problem when all other means are exhausted, and we do ourselves, our soldiers, and the rest of the world the gravest wrong should we think it otherwise.

I remember that "supporting the troops" includes doing everything in our power to help them and their families when they're injured or killed while serving. Just as sure as we put them into harm's way, we're responsible for what happens to them when we do.

I remember that "supporting the troops" includes making our military a supportive place for them to serve. Threats from without are enough to worry about without having to worry about threats from within.

I remember that the soldiers of old embarked on what they considered a noble enterprise, and were thrust into unimaginable hardship and suffering as a result. I honour their memory and their sacrifice by upholding the freedoms they fought for.

I remember that war is a consequence of us failing at the central tenet of basic humanity; at treating other people as fellow human beings; of recognizing our commonalities and reaching out to one another as equals and friends.

And finally I remember that Never Again is not just a catchphrase, but a call to action.

...and all that means so much more to me than a bunch of longwinded speeches by blowhard politicians who've never been there and likely never will.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

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Military blah

shadowspar: An angry anime swordswoman, looking as though about to smash something (Default)
Thursday, September 30th, 2010 00:28

I tried for hours to form my experiences around camaraderie and the good ol' boys club in the military into a comment that would fit with this Geekfeminism post, but I couldn't manage to pull it together.

The phrase "This Man's Army" is very much appropriate to the military of today (or, at least, the Canadian Army of 1997, when I got out). By and large, it's still very much a white, male, heterosexist institution, but there are a lot more subtleties than an overarching summary would have you think, including a lot of pockets of very inclusive, principled, and thoughtful people.

Indeed, after a fashion, the military is a cornucopia of extremes. I saw humanity at its best and at its worst many a time during my short, part-time stint there. Young soldiers -- kids, really -- punished by being humiliated in front of their peers. Rumours that our WO had been passed over for promotion because he was black. But too, the noble parts -- soldiers standing up for an excellent officer when others tried to slag him because he was gay. Grizzled old sergeants admonishing junior NCOs not to address their charges as 'guys' -- "Call them troops! 'Guys' is sexist." Soldiers on a course rallying around a colleague who'd been harassed by one of her instructors.

I learned a lot there -- about myself, about others; about what it means to be honourable. That's one thing that can certainly be said about it.

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