I have to admit that I have a hard time with Remembrance Day and wearing a poppy. Before you jump to any conclusions, hear me out on this one.
I am not a believer in violence to solve our problems. I don't think it has ever served us well or really solved anything. It has caused a lot of destruction and death while making some people richer (the arms industry, among others) and a lot of people poorer. Most reasons for going to war have little to do with making life better for the common person and more to do with gaining power for the few. The few that gain are not usually the ones that go to war and "sacrifice" themselves for the greater good,
I know that it is easy to philosophize about this when I have never faced a real "threat" to my freedom or safety. What would I do and what would I think if it was real? I don't know. What I do know is that war is more than just the battle and those who died. War infects an entire generation and those who come after. There is nothing "glorious" about war. Heroic efforts are made and the real "cost" of those efforts lasts a lifetime. It doesn't just affect the soldier, it affects their family, friends, communities and that is what I truly want to remember and discuss.
Because if we are not prepared to pay the full "cost", why do we participate? The cost of war/missions are not only in the equipment needed, the administration to deploy or the wages to the military. That is just the beginning. The aftermath of deployment is where the true "cost" appears in soldiers coming home injured physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. While we may do a good job in helping the injured recover, those whose wounds go deeper or who are permanently disabled, we are ill prepared to deal with. Add in family, friends and communities that are left to cope and you can see how widespread it becomes in trying to "treat" someone. And then add in that some injuries won't appear until many years later - side-effects from chemicals used, brain damage not discovered, mental/emotional illness that slowly takes a hold, addictions that develop as a way to self-medicate -- it becomes even more challenging to deal with the true "cost" of war.
AND do we really want to pay? I don't think so (by we I mean our society as a whole, not the wonderful individuals that do help & support). We could blame Veterans Affairs Canada, the current and past governments for not doing more. But we really have to look at ourselves. Once a year we "remember", wear a poppy, go to the local ceremony, listen to the songs, choose "Like" on our Facebook page and think that is enough. What we don't do is support increased taxes to pay for benefits and programs that will really help returning veterans. What we don't do is write letters in support of these programs and benefits. What we don't do is recognize that returning veterans who have wounds that are deep and difficult to heal are NOT liabilities. What we don't do is reach out to those individuals/families who are barely holding on. We see the "drunk", the "homeless", the "drug addict" and we say they are to blame for their condition, not knowing what led them to this state. We stumble through conversations with their families providing sympathy and want to move on as quickly as possible. We don't want to acknowledge the "elephant" in the room.
AND we don't consider the cost to the country where the conflict took place, the many casualties that we left behind who are mostly civilian - children, women and the elderly. What would it really take to help them? Where would we even start?
So really, what are we remembering on November 11th? What does that poppy really mean? How do we make it meaningful and not a once a year salute to our veterans? How do we have meaningful discussion without labeling someone as "not supporting the troops" when they question, and keep the conversation open? How do we listen to each other's points of views? And most importantly how do we do all of this in a way that takes action now, that doesn't leave those suffering behind while we comfortably discuss the issues?
I don't know about you but I know this Remembrance Day has got me thinking and questioning. I know that I am part of the problem, that I am not doing enough to support. I know that I need to speak up and whether I agree with our "mission" in Afghanistan or not, I belong to this country and I need to let our government know that if we send people to "war/conflicts", we need to pay the "true cost" of that deployment, even if it takes a 100 years to pay off the debt. Bringing them home isn't enough. Leaving the country and the chaos behind is immoral. Forgetting that people are human beings in relationships that will be impacted is unethical. Trying to "balance budgets" without taking care of our responsibilities to individuals, families, communities and countries is unconscionable.
It is time to stand up and remember what war really is and how much devastation it causes and to act now to prevent further conflicts and to "pay" for the aftermath of the ones we have participated in. Two minutes of silence and a wreath laid is not enough.