23 Feb '08 - 8:48 a.m.
Good morning, just made myself a HUGE breakfast and am feeling pleasantly bloated. I had pancakes and eggs benedict, (Which consisted of two sunnyside eggs, ham covered in peameal, toast and that sauce, oh, that sauce).
Damn Turkey has sent ground troops into Iraq after Kurdish rebels. I don't see anything good comming from THAT! We in the west have to pull out of the Middle East soonest.
My fifteen year old daughter is puting serious thought into joining the military to further her education cheaply. I'm against it as the world is getting more hostile. Hell, even Canada has lost over 70 troops in Afghanistan.
What is the term when humans study other cultures? Oh yea anthropology. Anthropologists should study two phenonima (sp?) that started many thousands of miles apart, or maybe its one phenonima (sp?) that started in two places at one time. Anyways, its interesting.
1st phenonima: The Ramp Ceremony. This is in Afghanistan were the bodies of our fallen are loaded on transport craft to be flown home. Very sad, the Soldiers,Sailors or Airmen acting as Pall Bearers are all emotional. Crying? You bet! Although death is not uncommon and the military mind can very easily numb itself against it the beginning or first deaths had a huge influence on todays special routine.
The first four Canadian deaths were caused by the American Air Force. Seems an American Major decided to ignore repeated warnings that Friendlies were doing a live nightfire at a designated practice range when he dropped a 500 pound bomb right inthe middle of this squad on manouvers. The only good news was hewas spot on accurate.
The fallen soldiers commanding Officer was panned on the news for asplit second during the first ceremony. What I saw was a look of pure, unaldulterated hatred at the American General adresssing the troops. That hatred was so deep I know that young officers life was set on a different course from then on.
The second interesting phenonima is this: The bodies arrive at an airbase hundreds of kilometers from Toronto. But each ody has to have an autopsy by Torontos coroner. But on the way to Toronto every overpass over the highway on the way to Toronto gets choked up with vehicles and pedestrians paying last respects to the fallen, every overpass. This includes firetrucks and cop cars even though strict orders have been given our public services are not to participate. They do so without reprisal.
Its funny how these two things evolved, one, the first, very structured and formal and emotional. The second, spontanous and no less emotional. I hope someone does a study soon.
