Remembrance Day

In Canada, November 11th is called Remembrance Day. On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th Month, we shall gather to remember the brave young men [and women] who have laid down their lives so that we may live in peace and freedom... I'm pretty sure that's how it goes. I generally recall all the towns folk quietly gathering around the cenitaf down at Memorial Gardens. The old WWI fellows at the front, the WWII men in behind, men and women from the local Armed Forces base in behind them...

I remember the days leading up to remembrance day at grade school. There'd usually be an assembly, which meant there was a play to practice for. The plays would usually include a bunch of us boys with toy guns storming some card board cut out bridge, ending with someone playing the dead guy in the crying guys arms. Cue the poorly played bugler...

War never touched my family. My grandfather was too old for WWI and too old for WWII. My dad was too young for WWII and the Korean War, and well, they never sent Canadian troops to Vietnam. He did serve, and is rightfully proud of his service as an UN peace keeper in Cyprus, in the Golan heights and in Lebanon in the 60's. I don't think he ever fired his weapon in battle.

Me, I was never lead to follow my old man into the army and grew up a spoiled little peacenik wannabee. Luckily, I shook a lot of that off and have come to the realization, or perhaps, my own conclusion, that yes we do have to fight these wars. Unfortunately we do have to send young men and women into danger. AND thank frikin' goodness there are usually enough of them to stand up and say, OK.

I don't like remembrance Day. I don't like the fact that these people have had to die so early in their lives. Contrary to what may be popular belief amoungst my friends and family, I don't like war. I was lucky, I was never forced to go to war, AND even if I had joined the army, my stint would have been pretty much peaceful.

For those who haven't been so lucky, and for those who have stepped up to the plate. Hey, thanks, honestly... Thanks!

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

- John McCrae

"a powerful human symbol and forceful advocate"

Indeed... Ah the words of former president Jimmy Carter. Jimmy Carter, it's about time you drank a great big frosty mug of "shut the fuck up" [I always loved that lame joke]. Suddenly visions of John Belushi in a bee suit are flashing through my mind. Powerful men in brown checked leisure suits and nuclear physicists wearing lab coats and big black horn rimmed glassed are slogging through the puddle waters at the Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant...

Gabe Kaplan is the ABC team captain on Battle of the Network stars, and Yasser Arafat is blowing up Israeli children. A powerful human symbol indeed, as powerful a human symbol as Pol Pot or Jim Jones.

I'll always remember Yasser Arafat as a whacko murderer. The guy wearing gun belt and ammo as he spoke to his cronies at the UN. As a guy who managed to make himself more important than his cause, and who leaves behind a national movement in complete tatters. Just where is the 2 billion dollars the bleeding hearts in the US and Europe gave his people... Wifey needs new shoes.

I got in early today thinking I might burn some extra minutes on actually getting work done. Good intension... Good intension wasted by fucking adspammers. After spending 15 minutes trying to find my old Ad-Aware account info, then running two scans, we managed to find well over 600 suspicious files, programs and folders.

I am an internet advertiser. I try to do my best not to be invasive, but honestly, why should I continue in this fashion when my channels have all been blocked by the ISP and my competitors continue to get their ads in front of my customers by staying one or two steps ahead.

Personally, spam, pops and flickering banner do not bother me, as I know publishers have to make a living, and honestly, I have simple morning routines that get rid of most of this junk quickly and pretty transparently. BUT, when you start imbedding your fucking ads directly into my system software... well come on mang, you're just making me mad.

Well it would appear that most of my pals have decided to start their blogs this weekend, so hey what the heck, I'll join in on that. I will still need some time to figure out this software so bare with me for a while. In the meantime, I guess I'll ask a question.

Why are we blogging anyhow?

More soon.