Veterans Irritate Us

-

We don't even wear a poppy during Veterans' Week, 
which precedes Canada's Remembrance Day in November,  and it's free.

Veterans irritate us. We are not happy to see them because they reopen old wounds, that they became crippled or lost a limb in wars we voted for. Men and women running for Congress promised to keep the world strong, to defend democracy and Christianity.

Veterans irritate us because we don’t have anything to show for the war in Afghanistan, but NATO is in Ukraine now fighting for what, exactly? We cannot ask veterans because they don’t have a voice. Do they sign an oath of silence, that whether they lose a leg or an eye, they will not tell the world what happened overseas?

But I think, veterans don’t talk to us because they can read the irritation in our eyes. Now what? That is what we say. What are we going to do with them? They see the irritation at home, if families accepted them back. Maybe, so-called loved ones are just interested in the small veterans’ allowance. Families are cruel if you don’t contribute to daily expenses. But how can men who were crippled fighting NATO (American) wars, be expected to contribute at home? What better contribution tops laying down your life for your country?

Veterans irritate us because they make us feel guilty that we enjoyed life to the full, while their friends disappear before their very eyes from landmines and enemy soldiers that are silent like a cat and deadly like a tiger.

We wish the government can put veterans somewhere, where we cannot see them. In the meantime, we’ll send more troops and drones to Ukraine, to fight for what, exactly?

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Elections And Political Bullies

-
Image
Forget democracy.   It should be called political bullying. We are watching it in the prelude to the Canadian election on the 19 th of October, 2015.   Americans have also started their political bullying for the looming presidential election next year. So many trees wasted on books about democracy.   Some countries have big budgets for invading other countries ‘ to defend democracy’ but it is seldom practised in campaigning for elections.   Calling opponents names and printing flyers attacking each other is behaviour that will not be tolerated in kindergarten, but it is all legal, in campaigning.   It is irritating and such a let-down to the whole notion of democracy.   Grown-up men and women behaving like Grade One kids. It is also misleading because many voters believe it is real hatred.   Don’t let that fool you.   These politicians play golf together, attend the same dinner parties, eat and drink at the same social events, share jokes and cut deals in parliament.   They
Read more

Comfort Food As Regret Food

-
Image
Chicken curry. Comfort food is good for the soul, which usually bleeds in winter from icy roads, bad drivers that want to annihilate pedestrians, frozen fingers and toes that take a sabbatical.   What happened to my toes?   I thought I was wearing special socks for boots? We therefore have a right to comfort food which throws doctors’ orders out of the window and has no loyalty to calories.   No calculator on the table, thanks very much.   Piece of bread 5 calories, half a banana 10 calories, sugar-free cheesecake 2,000 calories.   Ah! Ah!  We only live once. Naw!   Comfort food is old school food with its compulsory second helping.   It involves licking fingers and giving a big sigh, about the good life, which is shelter, food, love and debt.   The problem is the zip.   The jeans remind you that comfort food can also be called you will regret food .   Home sweet home is even sweeter in winter after surviving blowing snow and bumper to bumper traffic. What is more welcoming th
Read more

Einstein Passengers

-
Image
Being a passenger is very stressful.   You must listen to the owner of the car, nod and grumble yes to everything he says because you don’t want to piss him off. Two things can happen if you disagree with the driver: he can lose concentration and you all end up in a mash-up accident or stop the car and ask you to get out.   That is the driver’s prerogative.   You must listen to me if you are a passenger in my car.   Let’s flip the script for a minute and sympathise with the driver if she has a passenger who is more intelligent than Albert Einstein. He talks non-stop.   It is all about himself, how right he is, how good he is, how stupid his boss is. Einstein is also a driving instructor.   “Careful.   Look at that guy.   Is he crazy or something? ” says Einstein. Einstein is the unofficial pilot.   He presses imaginary brakes in the passenger seat when the driver stops abruptly for a guy who is texting on his bicycle. A certain Einstein took it to another level.   S
Read more