I wrote this one to post on my Facebook page, Sunday, Nov 11, 2007.

I like to think that all of those soldiers, living and dead, did not sacrifice their lives for us. But that they made a choice, in full consciousness, to place their love of freedom ahead of their personal safety.

I like to think that these courageous soldiers made the decision that they would rather die than live in a world controlled by evil and then went out to do their best to stop their worst fear from happening.

I like to think that if people of today stopped thinking of the veteran’s courage as a sacrifice and saw it for what it truly is; Man responding to the highest values possible, love for his self, his family and friends and his freedom, they would be able to celebrate this day in a manner proper to that of remembering fallen heroes. Instead of feeling a vague guilt that these men and women died for us so many years ago, people would feel a sense of gratitude to those who had the courage to follow their convictions to their own end; to those who had the honour to put their lives in the path of a horrible spreading evil; to those who had the ability to see that the only way to have a world of happiness, justice and peace is to fight evil to the death, where ever it shows it’s ugly face.

I like to think, as I take my own personal time to remember those who put their lives into defence of this great country, where we are free to make our own choices of who and what and when to remember, that if it were necessary, I would be able to make the kind of choice my grandfather made and put my body in the path of evil for the defence of freedom.

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Remembrance Day

Tomorrow is Remembrance Day in Canada.

In Nova Scotia, my home province, most businesses will shut down, all schools and government offices will be closed and there will be services held at all cenotaphs and Royal Canadian Legion Branches.

I will be attending a service at the cenotaph near my home or I will be going with my father and grandfather to the service of their choice.

I will not be sleeping, in a warm bed, enjoying a free day off work.

I will be outside in the cold November wind. Poppy firmly attached to my coat, hat in pocket and hand over heart. Thinking, Reflecting, Remembering...

I will be expressing my gratitude for the choice that all those veterans, living and fallen, have made for themselves; To put their bodies and lives into the defence of family, country and freedom.

I will be doing what I can to ensure that their choices do not go unnoticed and unappreciated.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Let us not forget.

Free Speech is good.

This article is the first I have heard of SideWiki and I went and got it right away. For anyone with an ounce of critical thinking ability, this tool will be an amazing addition to their web experience.

Slander and libel are still illegal and I'm certain that lawsuits will follow, as comments can be easily traced by Google Accounts. But let's not forget that truth is a defence against defamation suits.

The simple fact is that anyone could start a free blog or find a forum in which to state their opinion. And I could have that blog open in a tab while browsing a specific site which has comments posted about it.

SideWiki is only streamlining the process, making it easier for people to find relevant information about the topics that they are interested in.

As far as trolls and spammers, who cares? I am certain that with a comment rating system, separating the useful information from the garbage will be quite easy. Besides some of their ignorance is amusing.

All in all I am excited to use this new tool and want to thank Hightalk for introducing me to it.

Cheers!

in reference to: Google’s Bid for Social Domination « HighTalk (view on Google Sidewiki)

Maybe it's too late for intellectual debate...

Where to begin?

Today, I present a new voice to the cacophony of the internet. Mine.

I could present a list of credentials and reasons why it would serve you well to read my blog, but instead I will just write some stuff and let you figure it out for yourself.

Why write a blog? That is everyone's first question, right? Why me? Why now?

I want to practise my writing skills, hone my critical thinking skills and promote my beliefs.

That's it. I'll keep my writings here for posterity and reference. Read them if you desire.