Category Society
The Other Side
Remembrance Day is tomorrow – in Canada anyway. When we moved to Germany I was surprised to discover that Germans don’t remember their war dead on November 11. Germans will take time to remember next Sunday. Growing up as a Canadian I never thought much about the casualties on the other side. Which made […]
Tonight At Menin Gate
It is Flashback Friday, with a post from five years ago. Today seemed like a good time to provide a reminder of the Great War. Tonight at 8, for the 29,758th time (31,583rd time in 2019), the Last Post, the traditional salute to fallen warriors, will be played at the Menin gate in Ypres. It’s […]
Postures In Protest
I saw this poster in Vienna and was struck by the words, 72 adverbs that describe how individuals stage public protests. It isn’t an exhaustive list. The first thing I noticed was that “violently” wasn’t there, yet that seems increasingly to be a factor in protests around the globe. In many cases there is no […]
The Whipping Post
They stopped whipping women in 1791 – but continued to flog the men until 1837. Today that might be considered sexist. Of course today we don’t see flogging as a civilized method for punishing criminals. Things were different in 1572 when this post was first used at St. Martin-in-the-fields in downtown London. The post was […]
Decision Chamber
Made a quick visit to downtown Ottawa last week, as I realized I had yet to see the new chamber for Canada’s House of Commons, which relocated to West Block earlier this year. Centre Block is undergoing a ten-year renovation/restoration, and a new place had to be found for the House to meet. So they […]
Signs of Winter
Do you know what you are seeing in the picture? Most likely not, unless you are Canadian. It is a national tradition, a fall rite of passage. A sure sign of changing seasons. In my neighbourhood and across the country, as October blends into November, the boards are dropped off in the parks and […]
An Anniversary Somewhat Forgotten
It ended seventy-nine years ago today, though they probably didn’t know it was the last day. They expected the bombers back to continue the Battle of Britain. As they had every day since July 10, 1940, Nazi Germany’s air force, the Luftwaffe, had bombed British targets. Unprepared for war, the few fighter pilots of the […]
Memories of Yesteryear
I remember steam engines, though only in a hazy way. They were on the way out when I was born, replaced by the more efficient (and I presume cheaper to operate) diesel locomotives. Newer trains though don’t have the majesty of a steam engine. There was something special about that technology, something that captured your […]
Public Transit
I meant to ask, then forgot to do so. You certainly wouldn’t see something like this on the public buses in Ottawa! My assumption would be that the transit system buses in Valletta, the Maltese capital, are owned and operated by their drivers, and as such they are allowed to personalize them to some extent. […]
Decision Day
Canadians will hold their collective nose today and vote in the federal election for the candidate of their choice. Or maybe they will vote against a candidate not of their choice. The 2019 election has failed to inspire. The leaders have not looked impressive. The party platforms have not seemed realistic. Yet there are clear […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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