National Post (National Edition)
Vimy is great the way it is
Re: Our War Dead Deserve Better, Tristin Hopper, July 17. Vimy is great the way it is. Tristin Hopper’s evaluation was harsh. I was there last October, as part of a First World War tour of battlefield sites and graveyards. Vimy was the highlight. It made me proud to be Canadian. I thought the idea of recruiting college kids as guides was a nice touch. I was disappointed to read about Tristin Hopper’s lacklustre experience on his tour of Vimy Ridge, not least of all because it unfairly characterizes the entire memorial site as poorly conceived and may discourage future visitors.
My family’s visit in 2013 was anything but boring. It provided an unexpected emotional wallop that left us in tears and grieving for those boys as though they had been our own sons. Our tour guide gave us chilling accounts of the drama and hardship our soldiers endured, and explained that the grassy knolls above the tunnels on which sheep peacefully grazed were actually craters created by shells and bombs. The sheep keep the grass trimmed since there are still unexploded mines studding the entire area and it would be too dangerous to use lawn mowers. Indeed, every year, he told us, at least one local farmer is grievously or fatally injured when his machinery hits an unexploded mine. Prominent red signs are posted all around the surrounding property warning visitors of the explosion potential.
Our war dead certainly do deserve better than Hopper’s onedimensional description, which does a terrible disservice to all the volunteers who do their best to bring this horrifying event to life for thousands of international visitors. determine when such action becomes necessary. Re: Gunman Kills Four Marines In U.S., July 17. The fact the armed forces centre where the Islamic terrorist murdered four U.S. Marines was labelled a gun-free zone is ridiculous. Here is the most powerful armed force in the world and one man can commit so much carnage because of this insane ordinance. One would think they would have learned from the Fort Hood, Texas killings. On a military base virtually all the guns are locked away all the time. In 1990, while I was a civilian employee at National Defence HQ in Ottawa, I noticed military police strolling about carrying Browning 9mm pistols. To my astonishment I was told the pistols were unloaded and the MPs were not allowed to carry ammunition. They lost that right after a deranged soldier shot up the chamber of the Quebec National Assembly in 1984.
No wonder gun accidents and incidents are so common among soldiers off on missions. Most have never touched a gun before they enlisted and only ever handle guns on the tightly controlled target ranges. As a result, they never learn to live safely with guns the way duck hunters do. Re: Iran’s War On My Family, Siavosh Khanjani, July 17. I sympathize with the plight of the Baha’i followers who are not allowed to practise their religion. They face daily persecution from the Iranian regime and have their rights violated by a police force that tramples on their livelihood and destroys their homes.
For the lucky few who have found their way to Canada, it is a welcome relief. In Canada, they have found an oasis of love and affection from community mem- bers and are free to practise their faith. They flourish in their new-found homes and prosper as their business grows extending to the far corners of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
The Canadian government should apply more economic sanctions to the Iranian regime so religious minorities can be freed from onerous censorship and the shackles that violate their rights. There is no religious freedom in Iran, much less so freedom of expression. Baha’i followers and other persecuted religious groups should be given asylum in Canada and their visa applications fast-tracked. They are deserving of our attention and utmost sympathy. Re: Set An Example, Mr. Harper, editorial, July 16.