Western Desk

The Windmills Of Their Minds

So Paul Martin, Stephen Harper, Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe walk into a bar in

Amsterdam.

Did you hear this one yet?

Neither did I, but its likely out there somewhere. Perhaps the punch lines in this one are best left to the SNAFU FOUR themselves. " Situation Normal All Fouled Up" as the

dithering duo of Martin and Harper try to get their act together, leaving a foul taste

in the mouths of Canadians, Veterans and the people of the Netherlands, by scrambling to attend V-E Day ceremonies after Paul Martin cancelled his official visit overseas on the 60^th anniversary of the Liberation of the Netherlands.

Gee Paul, did you ever think that if you just stuck to your guns, the Three Amigos would really stay behind and topple your government? And let you get all those free photo-ops?

So as the story goes while the Prime Minister was crying in his low-fat soup in anguish, his Chief of Staff Tim Murphy got on the phone and asked , " can Stephen, Jack and Gilles could come out to play? " Now the SNAFU FOUR are all on their way to the Netherlands on Monday.

So Paul Martin, Stephen Harper, Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe are all on the same plane together, when the engines conk out, but theres only one parachute&&did you hear this one yet?

Lets hope the Canadian Forces aircraft the SNAFU FOUR are flying over in actually makes it in one piece. Maybe it would be fitting if it did have engine trouble and had to make an emergency landing in Ireland. ( You know&where Bonos from.) In any event Air Farce One should be painted on the nose.

This entire espisode does nothing but magnify the lack of respect for Veterans in this country. The list of government injustice is too long to get into, but the question here is a simple one. Why wasnt this so called V-E truce worked out with some dignity, not on behalf of the SNAFU FOUR because they have missed that opportunity, in fact tainted the entire spirit of the V-E Ceremonies with their petty politics. Or did Paul Martins camp play the cancellation card hoping to garner some support of the undecided but disgusted voters? If Stephen Harper thinks he has the jam to lead this country, then why didnt he stand up and say&this is too important..Im going to be with our Veterans in the Netherlands, instead of offering the lame excuse, that he really didnt know if the Prime Minister was actually going? Gilles Duceppe wouldnt be so bold, because he probably couldnt figure out if it was good for Quebec. By the way Gilles, dont forget to drop by some of the graves in Holten where Im sure youll find a young man from Quebec buried there. And Jack Layton&..well maybe you can find a homeless veteran to take to lunch. But perhaps anything is better than leaving it all up to Queen Adrienne and Prince John Rambling Saul.

Maybe the SNAFU FOUR might learn something when they get to the Netherlands. We can only hope. Its ironic that when the Canadians went into the Battle of the Scheldt, there was a lack of trained men. Cooks were replacing some of the fallen young men in the units, those still alive were fatigued from months of fighting . In the fall of 1944& it was the height of the conscription crisis back home&.Canadian politicians were busy playing games ( sound familiar? ) while young Canadians sacrificed their lives. As the bickering wore on the government of the day finally decided to send some fifteen thousand more trained infantry troops into the fray&..but it was too late for the Water Rats. Thats what the Canadians became known as&because of the wet weather&.and fighting in water up to their waist.

The SNAFU FOUR will see more Canadian flags in the Netherlands then they did during the 1995 Referendum&.they will meet a people who take a week to pay tribute to

young Canadians in a way that those same Canadians are not paid tribute to in their own country&they will meet school kids, who are assigned to take care of a Canadians grave for several years&.and they will meet the Veterans who were there sixty years ago. Maybe as Paul Martin, Stephen Harper, Jack Layton, and Gilles Duceppe stand staring down at the graves of those young Canadians who never came home, the windmills of their minds will start turning. They might learn what Canada is really all about. They might even feel ashamed&a twinge of guilt&.maybe some real emotion and understanding might cross their faces&.instead of thinking about posing for the photo-op.

Come to think of it&..so much money is down the drain now&we should send the entire House of Commons&..every MP&to the V-E Celebrations. Especially those MPs who sink so low to hurl racially laced comments across the floor of the commons..to have

one MP actually compare another to the Nazis! Sad isnt it.

So did you hear the one about Paul Martin, Stephen Harper, Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe&..?

(New, regular canadafreepress.com columnist Greg Bohnert is a news director and popular talk show host on 620 CKRM Radio in Regina, Saskatchewan.)

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