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"Rex Murphy: Canada has been blessed. Take time to be grateful\n\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\tRex Murphy - 4h ago\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\t \n\n\n\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t© Provided by National PostDespite everything we see as messy or wrong, the vast majority of Canadians believe in their country, writes Rex Murphy.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCanada Day and Remembrance Day.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThese are, or they certainly should be, the central holidays of our civic calendar. They are intimately entwined. (No more emphatically than in Newfoundland where July 1st is also a deep “remembrance” day for the Newfoundland Regiment’s terrible losses in the Battle of the Somme.)\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRemembrance Day is most solemn.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCanada Day is — certainly is supposed to be — a day of gratitude and celebration.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe first and graver, Remembrance Day, serves to honour those who served in the wars of the past century.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe second and jubilant, Canada Day, serves to take stock, to call to mind how fortunate we have it.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJuly 1st and November 11th are conjoined — if I may put it this way, respectfully — each signals or completes the other. We offer gratitude on the former for the life we have in Canada, which the sacrifices recalled on the latter bequeathed us.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAnd we have high reason for that gratitude.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFor so very many countries over the past century and longer, history has been a huge, cruel fist, Orwell’s terrible book. It has been a record of subjection or tyranny, civil wars, vicious internecine slaughters — Rwanda and Cambodia offer very recent horrific instances. In other countries, citizens have been caught for decades under continuous menace and worse from their own governments. On the really terrible end of the scale there is North Korea, even today, a prison house of a country; to read the memoirs of the handful who have escaped that barracks will leave you weeping.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRelated video: Can Canada Day be ‘source of unity’ with reconciliation focus?\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCan Canada Day be ‘source of unity’ with reconciliation focus?\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAny people which has endured, or is enduring rule under Communism, who have therefore never known freedom, in too may cases for whole generations, have looked and are looking with exhausted yearning to those countries, ours among them, whose democracies, however imperfectly, put freedom and the individual as the lodestars of government.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAnd we can see, too, that states that have emerged from Communism do not easily or quickly shed their genetic strands of cruelty and wantonness. Vladimir Putin’s vile invasion of Ukraine will stand as the current reminder of that truth.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOpinion: There's more that unites Canadians than divides — the Tories should use this to their advantage\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNP View: Canada not so divided after all\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTo continue this grim catalogue is unnecessary, for the rest of it is too well-known.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSo we Canadians should, at some moments of pause, centre in our consciousness what we have not experienced, not endured, what we have been spared. And offer thanks, express gratitude, for that exception.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWe have other motives for the same emotion. Canada is prosperous, at depth it is stable, fortunate in its neighbour state, and has been largely exempt from the great miseries of the world, from real poverty and real violence. We may not wish to say it aloud, but we have been blessed. We should stay a moment to mark this as well.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCanada Day and Remembrance Day are those moments of pause. They are, or certainly were meant to be — there has been more than a sense of drift away from their original purpose — special times to take stock of ourselves and our country, to note the sacrifices and achievements of our common enterprise, and to note how both are so deeply entwined, how sacrifice — sometimes terrible as in war, sometimes patient endurance and personal industry as in the early days of making this country — enabled the achievement; and how achievement built the spirit to undertake and enable those sacrifices.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOn a more placid level we also look at ourselves as we are today. At the Everyday of Canada.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFor despite everything we see as messy or wrong, every incompetence, every annoyance, the vast majority of Canadians like their country, believe in their country, and are sad only when those “leading” it leave them ashamed at their mediocrity.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWe are in most cases — there are always exceptions — at ease with each other. Hop over to some province not your own and see how fine the welcome is. Most people are quite welcoming — tactful, too. They don’t swarm with the hospitality, but kind of gently glide into it.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe touch of reticence in the Canadian temperament is a great thing. (Our neighbour favours a mode of exuberance, but to each his own.) It’s a signal of consideration for the sensibility of the other fellow. Part of “being nice.” Being pleasant.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDon’t think nice or pleasant are small words. A country has to have grown a great deal, to have with much effort evolved to some rare condition, for these qualities to even approach being seen (or being lightly joked about) as national characteristics. There are, come to think of it, worse things than being nice.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIt would be a nice thing to see — I am writing on the eve of Canada Day — a full and wholesome celebration of our kindly providence on July 1st, a refreshment of appreciation for the country we hold in common. As it would be to see on November 11th a deeper renewal of appreciation for the ultimate contribution of those soldier-generations past.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNational Post\n\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\n"
<https://theairlinewebsite.com/topic/570537-justin-trudeau/page/82/?tab=comments#comment-1949609>