Fresh Old Ideas
There is no such thing as a good war.
The extraordinary talent that is used to design materials that will kill other people means war can rarely be considered good. When a so-called “good war” does occur it does so out of necessity. That necessity is always about the future.
In my lifetime, Canada may have been a participant in at least two “good” wars: the Second World War and Ukraine’s defence of her homeland. If one believes that governance belongs to us individuals then the collective choices we make, when faced with threats from those who choose to lord over all others, requires a defence.
That defence is about tomorrow; about our future, about how an upcoming generation will live freely and enjoy the privilege of a free press, the freedom to speak, the freedom to assemble, along with the freedom of mobility
It is only right that we reflect on the price we have paid to be free and to know that freedom is not a concept that is won on a battlefield and then assured forever more. Rather, our freedom must be defended every generation; one generation after another. Hopefully, by thoughtful participation in society, peace can be secured without guns and bombs.
In September 2019 Susan and I visited a number of Canadian war cemeteries in the Netherlands, France and Germany. In all, there are 62 Canadian war cemeteries across Europe. Each is a resting place for those who gave everything for our peaceful tomorrows. In total, Canada lost 42,000 men and women during the Second World War.
War has had such a high cost in human misery. To this date the worst hours for Canada in any war was during the raid on Dieppe, France. There, in one single bloody morning, Canada lost 913 soldiers, and another 1,946 were taken prisoner.
On Red Beach at Dieppe is a remarkable monument that signals Canada’s contribution for peace. It is an extraordinary monument. On that beach in August of 1942, of the 6,000 soldiers that came ashore 5,000 were Canadian. The loss of life was high. It also was a preparation in learning how best to attack when the planning of D-Day.
When I think of how an up coming generation remembers I was struck by the extraordinary imagination and skill of a young Canadian who chose to pay a tribute to our defenders of peace.
The monument was designed by Rory O’Connor, a Canadian student at the University of Windsor, Ontario. Then, he was just 18 years of age. Rory represents the future we try to preserve. The monument is a tower with four sides. There is a cutout of a maple leaf on the face side of the tower. In front of the tower on the ground is a perfectly placed stainless steel maple leaf embedded into the hard landscape.
On the back side of the four-sided tower is another cutout of a maple leaf placed somewhat higher than the one on the front and moved a bit to one side. This design is calculated such that at exactly 1 p.m. on August 19 — the same hour as the Dieppe raid was signalled to withdraw —the tower works her magic. The sun now can shine through the back of the tower and then through the front cut-away leaf at a precise angle so that it illuminates the whole stainless steel maple leaf on the ground, turning it bright gold.
That gold maple leaf is our symbol of hope that peace will endure whenever there is a quarrel among mankind. May peace, like gold, be held in respect and in high value.
