bbnotty

Sent: Friday, April 20, 2007 10:16 AM Subject: Tribute to Canada British news paper salutes Canada . . . This is a pretty nice tribute and thought you might like to have seen it. Funny how it took someone in England to put it into words. Sunday Telegraph Article From today's UK wires: Salute to a brave and modest nation - Kevin Myers, The Sunday Telegraph LONDON - ____________________________________ Until the deaths of Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan , probably almost no one outside their home country had been aware that Canadian troops are deployed in the region. And as always, Canada will bury its dead, just as the rest of the world, as always will forget its sacrifice, just as it always forgets nearly everything Canada ever does. It seems that Canada 's historic mission is to come to the selfless aid both of its friends and of complete strangers, and then, once the crisis is over, to be well and truly ignored. Canada is the perpetual wallflower that stands on the edge of the hall, waiting for someone to come and ask her for a dance. A fire breaks out, she risks life and limb to rescue her fellow dance-goers, and suffers serious injuries. But when the hall is repaired and the dancing resumes,there is Canada , the wallflower still, while those she once helped glamorously cavort across the floor, blithely neglecting her yet again. That is the price Canada pays for sharing the North American continent with the United States, and for being a selfless friend of Britain in two global conflicts. For much of the 20th century, Canada was torn in two different directions: It seemed to be a part of the old world, yet had an address in the new one, and that divided identity ensured that it never fully got the gratitude it deserved. Yet its purely voluntary contribution to the cause of freedom in two world wars was perhaps the greatest of any democracy. Almost 10% of Canada 's entire population of seven million people served in the armed forces during the First World War, and nearly 60,000 died. The great Allied victories of 1918 were spearheaded by Canadian troops, perhaps the most capable soldiers in the entire British order of battle. Canada was repaid for its enormous sacrifice by downright neglect, it's unique contribution to victory being absorbed into the popular Memory as somehow or other the work of the "British." The Second World War provided a re-run. The Canadian navy began the war with a half dozen vessels, and ended up policing nearly half of the Atlantic against U-boat attack. More than 120 Canadian warships participated in the Normandy landings, during which 15,000 Canadian soldiers went ashore on D-Day alone. Canada finished the war with the third-largest navy and the fourth-largest air force in the world. The world thanked Canada with the same sublime indifference as it had the previous time. Canadian participation in the war was acknowledged in film only if it was necessary to give an American actor a part in a campaign in which the United States had clearly not participated - a touching scrupulousness which, of course, Hollywood has since abandoned, as it has any notion of a separate Canadian identity. So it is a general rule that actors and filmmakers arriving in Hollywood keep their nationality - unless, that is, they are Canadian. Thus Mary Pickford, Walter Huston, Donald Sutherland, Michael J. Fox, William Shatner, Norman Jewison, David Cronenberg, Alex Trebek, Art Linkletter and Dan Aykroyd have in the popular perception become American, and Christopher Plummer,British. It is as if, in the very act of becoming famous, a Canadian ceases to be Canadian, unless she is Margaret Atwood, who is as unshakably Canadian as a moose, or Celine Dion, for whom Canada has proved quite unable to find any takers. Moreover, Canada is every bit as querulously alert to the achievements of it's sons and daughters as the rest of the world is completely unaware of them. The Canadians proudly say of themselves - and are unheard by anyone else - that 1% of the world's population has provided 10% of the world's peacekeeping forces. Canadian soldiers in the past half century have been the greatest peacekeepers on Earth - in 39 missions on UN mandates, and six on non-UN peacekeeping duties, from Vietnam to East Timor, from Sinai to Bosnia. Yet the only foreign engagement that has entered the popular on-Canadian imagination was the sorry affair in Somalia, in which out-of-control paratroopers murdered two Somali infiltrators. Their regiment was then disbanded in disgrace - a uniquely Canadian act of self-abasement for which, naturally, the Canadians received no international credit. So who today in the United States knows about the stoic and selfless friendship its northern neighbour has given it in Afghanistan? Rather like Cyrano de Bergerac, Canada repeatedly does honourable things for honourable motives, but instead of being thanked for it, it remains something of a figure of fun. It is the Canadian way, for which Canadians should be proud, yet such honour comes at a high cost. This past year more grieving Canadian families knew that cost all too tragically well. ********************* RDJ

wow, go leafs. or should i say go devils. bb

3 - 1 for iles

As always a great day. I'm heading out tomorow hope to post a report soon. BB

Looks like you had a good day. congrats. BB

Angling specialties - steeles and kennedy. very helpful, but i've known them for like 20 years. bb

I don't want to show any disrespect to any culture but the river back in India that is mentioned is extremely polluted and is also massive compared to lets say the credit. If a place is set aside on the credit and it is used for this ritual and ashes from all in Canada put into it then you might as well kiss the river goodbye. I understand rituals but the size of the rivers here may not allow for this. my 2cents. bb

I have two shimano rods i picked up from bps, one is 7 ft and one is 6 1/2. medium heavy and have used them for bass and pike. great rods and were between 60 and 75 dollars each. cant remember the model name of them, but i will check and pm you. bbnotty

I have a dog named lucky and a cat named Brody, both females. My daughter named the cat after the guy on the tv show the OC.

went fishing this morning. what a great morning to be outside. Went to same spot as last week when i went 3 for 6 but didn't have a camera. this time i had a new camera and wouldn't you have guessed, i went 0 for 5 . Although i did see all fish and 3 were browns and 2 bows. had to use the new camera so here are a few pics of the scenery. I love the pic of the swan in flight. Hope you enjoy. bbnotty

We import raw materials to make jewellery and sell to jewellery stores. so if anyone on the board wants to save around 50 % off store prices pm me. we don't sell to public but do sell to friends and relatives, so anyone on here is a friend of mine. bb

ya a little graphic, but still still fun. my son got a high of 4,244. the best i could do is 2300. bb

Good morning to everyone, hope all is well. I would like to wish everyone a very merry and safe xmas and new year. take care out on the roads, as they say arrive alive. oh and here is a little game to try, may not be for the cat lovers but oh well. www.burststudio.com/flash/kitten.php bb

Thanks, my computer crashed last week and I lost all my saved sites. this is greatly appreciated. bbnotty

Hi, awhile ago someone posted a link to a site that had realtime water depth charts for lakes and rivers. It would be greatly appreciated if someone could post it again or pm me the info. thanks bbnotty

passing by a river today stopped to have a look. high and fast but fishable. going out tomorow, whoevers drifting tomorow good luck. hope it's a little better by tomorow bbnotty

welcome back, i'd carry you over but i have a bad back

wow, looks great. great job to those that worked on the site. took a while to finaly get in because of hotmail but finaly got on. oh and went 9/12 for steelies a few days ago, now i just need a new camera. my son borrowed it and took to university with him. guess that it's not coming back. bbnotty