Stick it up your Legion Hall

In my recent travels to Calgary and the Canadian Rockies, this page was stunned to learn that Calgary City Council has actually voted against placing "Support our Troops" decals on City vehicles. Actually, I'm not sure if stunned is the word to describe it. The Mayor of Calgary is one David Bronconnier, who likes to refer to himself as "Bronco" in the hopes that some of the Wild West milieu rubs off on him. When asked about how the city would handle protesters at the G-8 summit in nearby Kananaskis in 2004, his worship advised that "someone should tell these people the 60's are over". Calgary unflinchingly errs on the side of the right wing, making this decision something out of the mirror/evil twin universe.

That being said, Calgary City Council made the right choice. While not coming down for or against Canada's "mission" in Afghanistan, Calgary's Aldermen believe that "Support our Troops" is a politically-loaded term, which in fact, since 1991 pretty much equates to "Support the War, or else". When this page thinks of the word 'support', I think of kind, nurturing, listening behaviour, not the asinine Coach's Corner patriotic bullying that passes for 'support' these days. It doesn't surprise me that members of the Royal Canadian Legion are screaming for Calgary's Aldermen to be banned from Legion Halls and Remembrance Day ceremonies, this is, after all, the same Legion who engage in such exercises of diversity and tolerance for other points as trying to bar Observant Sikh veterans from Legion Halls.

Gentlemen, as much as this page appreciates your service to your country, yelping about banning elected officials from public gatherings over a sticker pretty much flies in the face of everything you and your comrades in arms sacrificed. Your local government has no business in beating Stephen Harper's war drum, and it's just too bad for you that they know it. Besides, it's not like they've taken the flag down from City Hall.

That's more like something Gilles Duceppe would do.