Hey smokers - is the world your ashtray?

There's something I have to know. The original title to this piece, one that I have been contemplating for months now, was to be "Pigs on Wheels". Why the change? I figure I'd have infuriated people before they read what I had to say on the subject, not during or afterwards. I want to make people think.

Aside from wanting to get this off my chest and into the limited part of the cyberworld that reads my blog, I want to see someone comment on writings for once. Surely this will make people want to lash out!! So many other blogs I read on a regular basis commonly receive a few or even a few dozen comments after each of their posts. I see that I have a good number of people who check in daily, and I will try to write more than once every seven to ten days to make sure more come back on a regular basis. OK... enough buttering you guys up. You're out there, if I infuriate you or write something particularly touching, please do me a favour and leave a comment or two behind.

Back to the issue at hand. I drive around 35,000 kilometres a year, most of them by myself. Being a naturally curious person and a wannabe journalist, I am always keenly aware of my surroundings. If you didn't renew your license plate sticker last February, chances are I notice that if you're ahead of me in bumper to bumper traffic on the Queensway. Are you from away and are driving a car with Montana license plates? I'll look at your car and wonder what brings you to Canada's nation's capital. All this typically will make me smile and will draw away from the fact I'm going nowhere fast due to some accident down the road. So what do I mean about the world being smoker's ashtray or what exactly are "pigs on wheels"?

In recent years, ashtrays in cars have been shrinking. In some cases, a "smoker's package" is an option when a new car is ordered from a dealership. I guess it is for this reason that one no longer sees disgusting piles of butts and ashes in parking lots. Remember getting out of your car and seeing unsightly "care packages" left behind by smokers whose ashtrays obviously got filled right up to the top in their cars? I can't remember the last time I encountered one of those. Thanks, "ladies" and "gentlemen".

While these people no longer leave wonderful piles in parking lots anymore, they have taken to leaving trails of destruction wherever their cars happen to go. Where can one most commonly come across evidence that many smokers have been around? Take a look at the ground next to you the next time you exit the 417 and are sitting at a light waiting to turn left. It doesn't matter if you want to head north on St. Laurent Blvd. or south on Maitland Ave., if you sit through an average 45 second light cycle and you look over and to the left, you'll find dozens if not hundreds of cigarette butts beside the curb or on the ground where grass once grew. Pigs.

Just this morning I was on Merivale Road in front of Merivale Mall. I was waiting for a light when the forty-something male in a black Honda Accord opened his window and flung his spent cigarette outside. Pig. Years ago I wrote about people like this guy in the West End Chronicle and I sarcastically tried to satirize the situation by claiming that I would love nothing more than to run people like this guy into highway guardrails when I see them doing the same thing. These days I'd love to get out of my truck, pick the butt up and put it neatly under the pig's windshield wiper. I won't do that, of course, because one never knows what someone who could care less about littering laws, his city's ecology or other people's perception of the cleanliness of Canada's capital might do.

People who have read The World as I See It over the years know that I have an undying respect for members of our military. I have two "support our troops" ribbons on the back of my vehicle. One day two weeks ago I was getting off the Queesnway at the Vanier Parkway exit, following a truck occupied by at least two of our finest. Imagine my shock when I saw the driver's window open and a cigarette being flung outside. All I could do is shake my head in amazement. Why soldier, why would you do something like that? Where's your civic pride?

So tell me, smokers, why do you think it is OK for you to use the world as your ashtray? Is it OK for me to come to your house and discard my kitchen waste on your front porch? Probably not. The ironic thing is that the kitchen waste will disappear and turn itself into soil enriching compost while your cigarette butt sits around for years until a street sweeper finally takes it away, leaving the street to receptively sit there, awaiting the next pig on wheels to come by.

Sorry - but if I have offended you, so be it. Chances are very good that if you smoke while in a car, you have thrown at least one cigarette out the window. Don't expect me to applaud you or view your actions as being anything other than socially irresponsible. Think twice before doing it again. If you don't want butts accumulating in your car, there are countless other options for you to consider. Don't be a pig on wheels.

A nation within a "united Canada"

So this morning I wake up to Steve Madeley on CFRA ranting about the fact that major national news reports have virtually all misinterpreted what Prime Minister Stephen Harper said yesterday. Did writers and editors from coast to coast suddenly turn stupid last night?

While I have read the transcript and can understand - to a point - what the Ottawa morning show host was driving at this morning, I am still shocked that Stephen Harper would still feel the need to placate and essentially pat the heads of separatists. The official record now shows that Mr. Harper was quite clear and tried to distinguish the difference between the province of Quebec being a "nation" and the Quebecois being a "nation".

Whatever.

OK, so that was a little juvenile of me, but most of this separatist propaganda that has been hoisted upon us for decades now has never been based on any sound facts. Those in favour of sovereignty for Quebec continually ignore the economic realities that tenth graders are taught in basic economics classes. Anyone who bothers to watch global stock markets for a few days prior to and after major events (catastrophic or otherwise) can clearly see how even faint perceptions of impending disaster or impropriety can impact the wallets of citizens from coast to coast.

Sure, the PMO can point to a carefully crafted speech that Mr. Harper delivered in the House of Commons yesterday. Sure, his PR people can try to spin the story as much as they want.

Whether they are making the distinction that the province should be a country in its own right or that the residents of the province are a "nation" under any definition, the bottom line is that the separatist Quebec governments insisted on referring to Quebec City as the "nation's capital". The gutless and allegedly federalist Liberal governments have done nothing to take those signs down and refer to their capital the same way every other province calls its own capital city.

A rose of any other name is still the same. Why Mr. Harper felt compelled to pat the heads of those who would see our country as we know it today destroyed, I'll never know. Sure, it's most likely a cheap stunt that is meant to head off his potential competition in a soon to be announced federal election at the pass, but I don't think that any responsible leader should start playing with national unity in order to garner a few extra votes at the polls.

Now Prime Minister Harper wants Quebec to be recognized as a nation... what's next?

Almost a month ago I criticized Michael Ignatieff for supporting concept of recognizing the province of Quebec as a nation. I acknowledged Liberal apologists' efforts to rationalize the act by pointing to the definition of the word: "a large body of people, associated with a particular territory, that is sufficiently conscious of its unity[...]"

I did not, however, go further and point out that the second part of that first segment of its definition states: "[...]to seek or to possess a government peculiarly its own." Given that provinces already possess their own government, we know that it's a second interpretation of that clause that separatists seek. It is the wish to be a sovereign nation outside of the country of Canada. That is precisely what a second clause to the definition of the word 'nation' defines: "the territory or country itself." Once again to those who should be found guilty of treason as a result of their on-going plotting to destroy my country, the province of Quebec is not a country.

To the so-called federalists - and I guess that not only does this group include Liberal wannabe leader Michael Ignatieff, as we saw earlier today when Prime Minister Harper stood up in the House of Commons to state that his party will “do what it must” to make sure the country remains united and free.

I thought that Stephen Harper was a man of honour. I thought that Stephen Harper was a man who was the proud Prime Minister of Canada. I thought that he brought more courage to the table than any other Prime Minister we've seen since Trudeau. I suppose on one hand it could be viewed as courageous to make the statement he made today, but it could also be considered one of the stupidest moves made by our country's leader in decades.

What is there in it for us to try to placate the feelings of those who want to break up our country? Is there any reason why we no longer view those who are "against us" as the enemy? I guess it's been eons since treason laws were enforced in Canada (treason being defined as "a violation of allegiance to one's sovereign or to one's state") and it has been politically correct to tolerate a minority of Quebeckers who have misguided dreams of one day forming their own country.

While we have been repeatedly shown by the people of Quebec that they do not wish to separate from Canada, a small handful of politicians keep the rest of the country at gunpoint. The possible economic ruin that would come with a vote to separate being their weapon of choice (though being the cowards they are, they continue to live under the delusion that all will be well for all parties involved "the day after").

I don't get it. As a former Liberal, I was offended by Mr. Ignatieff's statement a few weeks ago. As a Canadian, I am offended by what my Prime Minister has said today. O Canada - we stand on guard for thee. Um, Prime Minister? Did you forget about that today?

Where do I go now? What can we do? Hey Garth Turner - any bright ideas?

Oh boy, here we go...

The honeymoon is over. As I have often heard, the best possible day in a politician's life is the day he is elected. For Larry O'Brien, that day was three days ago.

Sorry, Larry... time to put the kevlar suit on. It seems that the francophone minority in Ottawa has just discovered that you don't speak French. I don't recall this fact being brought up as a major issue in the weeks leading up to election day. I thought that light rail, taxes and change were the main topics of discussion when examining the facts as they pertained to the race for mayor.

Before I am accused of being intolerant towards francophones, I am one myself. My mother grew up in Hull and my father's mother was half French herself. I attended French schools from kindergarten through to grade nine. When I moved to the Ottawa Board of Education for grades ten through thirteen, I had the opportunity to examine how well the so-called French immersion program worked for those children who wished to learn the language while growing up in an anglophone household. Much of my university education has come from classrooms where French was language of choice.

Back to Larry O'Brien. Everyone knew (or should have known) that he was an anglophone when he was running. Everyone knew (or should have known) that the only candidate running for mayor who had a decent working knowledge of the French language was Alex Munter. As the Ottawa Sun points out today, Bob Chiarelli more or less gets along well enough in French, but be clearly is most comfortable when speaking English. Now that the vote is behind us, why must the topic of discussion on open line programs be the reprehensible fact that we now have a unilingual mayor?

The thing that really drives me nuts about this never ending language debate is that despite the fact that less than 20% of Ottawans are francophones, their "needs" seem to be elevated so they become known as being much more important than the needs of the majority. After all, a good portion of the francophone Ottawans do also speak, read and write English. Despite this, a certain segment of the francophone population seems to like throwing its political weight around whenever it feels the urge to do so. After all, we should not be neglecting the needs of francophones and discriminate against them, right?

Of course not.

We are told that we must not discriminate against minorities. That's fine! But what about those who don't use either one of the "official" languages? I work with seniors and I happen to have the 2004 Council on Aging fact book that contains many tables that provide 2001 Census data. In 2001, population 65 and over, 59.4% spoken English only. 18.2% spoke French only. 20.9% spoke "other languages". I'm sure there's an even bigger percentage of "others" today in 2006.

If we are therefore going to shake our fists at anglophones who occupy public posts for their dastardly inability to speak French, why don't we elevate our expectations even higher and require that they speak the dozens or hundreds of other languages that are spoken in Ottawa households? I've never seen the francophone minority rights activists line up shoulder to shoulder with others who are allegedly discriminated against to demand language equality for all.

I wonder why.

Teaching our children about Remembrance Day... or something like it

Earlier this evening I answered the phone. A good friend of mine was on the other end of the line. He and I share a keen interest in many issues, and in one in particular: Canadian war veterans and anything associated with our military history.

He told me that his granddaughter brought something rather interesting home earlier today, and I was quite pleased to hear that her teacher decided to educate his or her class about the special nature of November 11, a date that comes each year and should cause everyone to take a moment to reflect on those who sacrificed themselves for the country we have come to know and love.

The handout was read to me and it took mere seconds for my demeanour to change. Why? It was a document that taught little boys and girls about Veterans Day - a day to "honor and remember the military men and women who have served America, in any war and during peacetime." It goes on to describe Arlington National Cemetary and its Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I'm told that this handout was downloaded from the internet (I can only hope it's not from our province's curriculum!!), printed and copied for distribution to a classroom full of Canadian children.

I found it unfortunate and somewhat disturbing given the close proximity to our own National War Memorial in downtown Ottawa, mere kilometres from this child's school. Also found on this site is the Canadian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Just down the road is Beechwood Cemetary, home of the National Military Cemetary of the Canadian Forces. It should have been easier for this young girl's teacher to Google information on these sites and would have better served the purpose of the lesson.

We have a hard enough time convincing the powers that be that Canadians have their own distinct culture. Lowell Green has a hard enough time finding high school or university students who know who Canada's first Prime Minister was. To have a teacher who is moulding young impressionable minds by using information that clearly is inappropriate given that she is in a Canadian classroom is frightening to me... and to a proud grandfather as well.

Not one to let something like this go, and certainly not being someone who passively sits there allowing injustices to go unnoticed, my buddy took it upon himself to write to the Director of Education. With his permission, I post his letter here because I really couldn't say it better myself. Contact information, of course, has been removed.


Dear sir,

Recently my granddaughter was given an information sheet on Veterans' Day. She was required to read this sheet and answer two questions on the American holiday called Veterans' Day. I have attached a copy of this document for your convenience.

Sir, I have the utmost respect for the United States Armed Forces and for the immeasurable sacrifices made by their fighting men and women. I harbour even stronger sentiments for Canada's military, both past and present. These men and women have, in some cases, made the ultimate sacrifice, in that they gave up their lives to preserve the freedom and way of life that we, today, take so much for granted.

From the Crimean War to Afghanistan, our forces have stood in harm's way to guarantee that we, in Canada, can live in comfort and safety.

Why then, sir, is the (school board) not teaching our children about *our* veterans?

Why is the (school board) not keeping the memory of our veterans alive in its classrooms?

Why do our children not know about Vimy Ridge, Paschendaele, Dieppe, Juno Beach, The Scheldt, Kap'yong, Cyprus, The Balkans or Afghanistan?

Why are you not telling our children about Canada's 'Tomb Of The Unknown Soldier'?

Do they know that Lt. Col. John McRea wrote "In Flanders Fields" and that he was a Canadian?

Do they know how Captain John Weir Foote won his Victoria Cross at Dieppe?

Do they know that when he died last year, Ernest Alvia "Smokey" Smith was the *last* surviving Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross?

The stories of our birth as a nation are rapidly disappearing into the graves of our veterans.

Teach our children about who we are! On this, the eve of another Remembrance Day, we must NEVER FORGET!

It's time to preserve *our* history! It's time to tell *our* story! We are Canadian!

Respectfully,


That just about says it. The knowledge I gained over the years on these subjects did not come from the classroom. My interest in learning about war veterans and everything they did stemmed from other injustices I observed and subsequently chronicled in my archived newspaper columns.

To see that a teacher is taking the initiative is great. I just wish that he or she had enough knowledge him or herself to know that in Canada, we celebrate Remembrance Day. That he or she did not is somewhat disconcerting! Here's hoping these impressionable children all have parents or family members who are informed enough to teach them the distinct differences between the ways Canada and the United States celebrate each year on the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

Those Canadians who did so much for us and who continue to do so today deserve at least that much.