Lest we forget... but what are we to remember?

"But if the enemy incline toward peace, you (also) incline toward peace, and trust in Allah: for He is the one that hears and knows all things." (Qur'an 8:61)

Phallocentrism notwithstanding, I feel this a very important exerpt, seeing as how we are to commemorate the ninetieth anniversary of the famed Armistice tomorrow with a moment of silence at eleven o'clock in the morning, as is customary each and every 11 November where I live. In advance of this Day of Rememberance, we don our felt poppies soon after removing our Hallowe'en costumes as if scaling a list of tasks in perfect time. I, too, have adopted a custom in advance of this day on our calendar: I sit before my computer and scribe a lamentation on this space for all to see, wondering whether or not we, as a people, understand why we commemorate this particular day.

It was to be the war that ended all wars, so horrid it was. I cannot personally attest, having not been there myself, though perhaps, in a past life, I was an active participant. All I know is, there were several damned good reasons why this was deemed, at the time, "the war to end all wars": entire continents laid to waste, millions upon millions dead and maimed, artillery the likes of which no one could possibly imagine, to name but a few. Young men were sent by the thousands to kill and to die fighting a war they did not start, young men who wanted only to live, wheedled into doing their duty to their Country, their Crown, their Flag... their "freedom".

This day in 1918 was to mark the termination of the war that ended all wars; sadly, it served to lay the groundwork for one even more brutal. Our collective call to end all wars seemed to take a back seat to our reaping the spoils of the victorious party. Thus it was that a certain nefarious leader who shall remain nameless rose like a phoenix, seeking to reclaim a nation's glory not long ago lost, and we found ourselves back where we were, only this time in a much more brutal manner. Again, entire continents were laid to waste; again, millions upon millions dead and maimed; again, artillery the likes of which we could not possibly fathom ever being borne into existence; again, young men drawn from their homes, sent to kill and to die fighting a war they did not start.

Sadly, yet again, the end of this war served as the catalyst for another, as we witnessed the clash of ideologies of the two triumphant parties. Over the next forty-five years, millions more died needlessly, artillery ascended to new and frightening heights, and more land was laid to waste. Today, it's more of the same, only the "enemy" has a new face for us to hate. And so, as before, more of us are sent to die.

One would figure this day be used to reflect on our past sins so as to avoid repeating them, but all I hear is talk of the sacrifices our forefathers made and our armed forces make today for our "freedom". I, for one, would like for them to tell me just what "freedom" means, for everywhere I look, I see chains: people chained to their jobs, people chained to their possessions, people chained to their bills, people chained to their worries, people chained to their labels. I hear talk from our leaders - the only combat ever seen by most of them being what they saw on television - trumpeting the need for us to "support our troops" as they fight the "enemy" over there before they come here and crap all over our "freedom".

From what I hear emanating from the mouths of our politicians, perhaps we picked the wrong day to commemorate; perhaps we should be marking the start of this "Great War", not the end of it. Nowadays, war drives the economy: tribes are kept in a state of perpetual discord so that we may continue to sell ammunition to each side, and tribes are toppled so as to gain unfettered access to the resources lying beneath the land on which they once lived.

They tell us to honour our dead for the sacrifices they made for us, to thank them for their mettle, for their pluck. To this, I say we should sooner owe them an apology for subjecting them to such horror. Today, we have the effrontery to exploit this tragedy for further personal gain. Here, a killer is branded "murderer", "felon", "thug", or some other like term; send him overseas to kill and he returns a "hero".

There is a reason we commemorate the end of such an atrocious epoch, that reason being we ought never to forget the sins of our past in the hope that they not be repeated. I chose to begin with this exerpt because it makes salient what we ought to be doing, yet are not. More importantly, it is extracted from the religious text of the people who constitute today's "enemy", a people we brazenly portray as bloodthirsty, warlike, bent on our destruction, yet behold, an advocation of peace and understanding, of faith in the common good in everyone. How simple it is for this madness to cease: an offering of peace.

Tomorrow, when I bow my head in a moment of silence, I will tune out the shameless propaganda put forth by our politicians and power-brokers; I will mourn those who suffered needlessly, and I will trust in the benevolent force in everyone that will one day bring forth a lasting peace.