Remembrance Day

Today is Remembrance Day, or as I've mistakenly said several times 'Novemberance Day.' It's a day for us to look back and remember those who have fallen for us, to remember why we are a free nation, and to reflect on everything.

I'm just going to put a note in here that I'm sorry if I offend anyone by this post. If you have very strong feelings around Remembrance Day, or the other topics described such as war and death in the media, there is a chance that some of my opinions may be considered offencive. I doubt that this will happen, however it is better to be safe than sorry and put a disclaimer in anyways. Even if you do have strong feelings around these topics, you may enjoy reading my thoughts about them. I do not intend on offending anyone, it is your choice to read this.

I'm grateful for what the troops who have fallen in battle have done for us, and for those who lived through the strife. If it wasn't for them we may be in such a terrible situation. So why is it that I really don't care?

Now that statement shouldn't be taken at face value, but to be honest I am not very moved by all of this. I've been debating why this may be the case and a class discussion about this (that me and a couple other people continuously encouraged to go on as it was dieing down; Vortex-B seemed to want to get to what he wanted to show the class but it was a good class conversation) in my Psychology class figured it out on the most part. There are a few aspects to it.

First of all, it is an alien concept to me. War that is. I have never experienced war. I have never been greeted at the door to be told that a loved one of mine has passed away. I have never come close to the horror of war.

I have had family in the war, but the only affect this has had on me has been a few stories. I can recall a vivid scene painted in my mind as my Mother told me a story of her father who was in a tank. If you would like to know this story, please don't hesitate to ask. At the moment I will keep it off the interblag. I have no memories of my Mother's father (who I call this because in my mind he is not my Grandpa necessarily. My Grandpa is the grandpa who I know and interact with. I wrote about my Grandpa in the last post actually) for he died when I was three or four. The only memory I have related to him that does not involve me being told of him or viewing a picture is actually my earliest memory. I may describe it in another post. Some of my uncles were also in the war. I don't know when I found this out, I don't know if they fought in it or were just in the reserve. I'm not sure their involvement, I just know they were involved somehow. I don't hear much about it from them, and I have no reason to ask. To be honest it does not interest me all that much. If someone brings up the topic I will definitely continue the conversation but I cannot see myself bringing it up myself.

On top of this the war (I don't know why I am referring to 'the war' as the war, because I know Remembrance Day is related to all the wars Canadian troops have fought in... is it only Canadian troops? Is Remembrance Day a Canadian event? Wow, I may of just realized how little I know about this day to start off with. I'm sure this may add to my apathy towards it) ended before I was born (also I keep thinking of 'the war' to be WW2). There has been the peace keeping mission in Afghanistan, and a few others I'm sure but I am not very aware of them, but there has been no war in my lifetime that has affected me.

Still on the topic of war, I think I have been numbed to it a bit. The closest I've been to war has been (misfortunately) through video games. I don't own any first person shooters that are played on X-Box Live, or even my Ps2. I don't play the games that are associated with wars that have passed often. I play Warrock occasionally (I have written about this game before, check back a few posts), and it is a modern war setting but it is not based off any real war. I don't think this makes it any more or less valid to this point however. The closest I've been to war has been through video games, and to make it worse I enjoyed it. I see them to be just that, games. Just like kids who 'played war' in the backyard with sticks and rocks before electronics were popularized (and even past then, I loved doing that as a younger child; as long as I won), I'm just playing a game. I don't mean any disrespect to those who were in real wars through playing them. I don't want to mock them, upset them, make it look fun. I just want to have a good time playing a game with my friends.

This exposure to simulated death may of numbed me to the death of individuals who I don't know. When I hear on the news that someone has died in a shooting, a car crash, any cause that is not extremely uncommon really; it does not bother me. I know it is a bad thing. I know war is a bad event. I know that someone has died and the people involved in the incident and the family around the people involved may have amazingly traumatizing after affects because of this, but it is not me.

The media has also numbed me to the concept of war and death. With news that Canadian or American soldiers have died overseas, serving our military, fighting for us; it no longer phases me. I have grown up hearing that on the news always. Maybe I was not always told about war, but I may of heard of a gang shooting, a car crash, anything that may happen anywhere in Canada and it will be aired in British Columbia and I may hear about it. There has always been death in the media. There has always been war in the media. There has always been violence in video games.

Back to video games, though I can tell this is getting dragged off topic. What do you think about violence in video games? I think it is there for the entertainment aspect. It is not there to disrupt the minds of our youth (however I do think that ratings should be followed more closely. If a game is rated M for mature it should not be played by anyone under the age of sixteen. This is too off topic though), it is not to encourage violent, illegal acts and lead to riot based anarchy. It is there because people find it entertaining. In a natural environment there will be a natural stimulation around violence in some way or another. Without this natural environment, humans look for other risks or thrills. We will seek out something synthetic to fill this void, and a good first person shooter will fit quite nicely.

I know that the war games I play in my favorite Call Of Duty or Medal Of Honour game are not realistic. I know that when I get shot more than just red jelly appears on my screen for a few moments. I understand the pain that someone's family would experience after finding out some sniper (I love sniping in games) landed a headshot on them does not exist after I get an icon on my screen awarding me for my great aim. With all this said though, I do still think that violent video games along with the media have desensitized me to war. I also cannot relate to what war is and what affects it has on people, because as I said before the games I've described are the closest I've ever gotten. They may be the closest I ever get.

I hope video games are the closest I'll ever get, because maybe the fact I cannot identify with soldier is a good thing. Perhaps (as The Unromantic said during Psychology) the fact that the youth of today (and even the generation above the youth) cannot relate is a sign we are entering a more peaceful age. Maybe we should celebrate the fact we do not know what war is. I know if I end up hanging out with some friends on the weakened I'll mention at some time that I'm declaring it a celebration of Remembrance Day. Not a remembering of it.

Back to Remembrance Day itself. There is the event at the Cenotaph in my town, as there is all across the nation. That is optional, the people who go to it want to go to it (on the most part). Many people who went to it are involved in the ceremonies I know through school (they are in cadets, something I dislike). What about assemblies at school?

There is the required assembly at school, the minimal amount of Remembrance Day one can experience if still in the public school system. I'm not sure what private schools do around this day. Everyone is taken out of class, cutting into our learning time, to listen to people talk and a few songs from the choir and band. There is a minute of silence that allows my mind to continue to wander as it will through the entire event. I cannot pay attention to much of it, because it does not captivate my attention enough to hold onto it for very long. Soon I'm notacing the lights hanging from the ceiling of my gym are moving; but only the lights that are near air vents. Soon I am observing the fact that the only colour that stands out in larger amounts in the crowd in front of me is red. Everyone is wearing a dull colour or red, on the most part. I was wearing red also, along with the individual beside me. We were told to stick with our classes. My teacher told me we were not aloud to wear our hoodies. I was slightly colder than I would like, along with the rest of my class. Everyone else was wearing what they may usually wear except their hats. I took my toque off as well.

I'm glancing back at all I have written about the required assembly, and I'm notacing very little about the assembly itself. I think this is because it is required to attend. The people are there not because they have to be, but because they have no choice. If it was not required, the audiance would be much more meaningful. There would be far less people I'm sure, but the people there would be there because they want to be. Wouldn't that be so much better?

Another honesty moment, I almost wish I skipped it. I'm sure I could of found a way to get out of it and join a few of my friends (no names mentioned, you know who you are) who walked down the street a couple of blocks and watched the History Chanel instead of attending. They got their serving of patriotism through watching a show titled 'Tank Battles' or something like that. It reviews larger battles that happened in WW2 involving tanks. I bet they had a much better time doing that, but I suppose by me attending the assembly I was able to think through all of this a bit more.

Do we even need this day of remembering? I cannot see it being removed from our callender's any time soon. I cannot see it being removed ever, because it would be considered too nontraditional and would be frowned upon. The point I would like to get to is, is anyone going to forget? Is anyone who attends Remembrance Day events because they have lost family or been involved in war themselves, really going to forget about it? Those who have no close interactions with war or people in them (such as me) have nothing to remember. We have stories to recall, and assemblies to sit through.

I do not think anyone is going to forget, just because they did not have their annual reminder. I am not saying Remembrance Day is not a good event, but it should mean more than the fact I get the day off school to play Dance Dance Revolution with some friends and a loved one. For those who it does not mean anything, the day off school or work is all it will ever mean. That could change, but at the moment I'm assuming there will not be something that will cause everyone to suddenly be affected by this day.

And with that all said, I am looking for Remembrance Day next year. 2011/11/11 11:11:11 (hour, minute, second) is going to an amusing moment to live through. I might take pictures.

-Bugworlds