Brian Mulroney and the Odd Things we Remember

Brian Mulroney passed away last week. He was an extremely consequential prime minister – the policies of his that caused the most rage are still in place and while Trudeau the Father is probably more well-known internationally, Mulroney did more to truly affect and change Canada. I was in complete agreement with free trade, being a firm believer that freer trade is always better for everyone, but people back then lost their minds over it. And by people, I mean leftists, mostly. And Canadian “celebrities.” Of course, this all changed when Donald Trump became U.S. president and challenged NAFTA, causing many who had previously opposed NAFTA to defend it with all their might. (I wrote about that in the Wall Street Journal.) Anyway, my strongest memory of Mulroney, oddly enough, is of the party convention where he was selected as Tory leader. One of my brothers claimed that Mila Mulroney was wearing pink in order to appear submissive and set herself apart from Joe Clark’s wife, Maureen McTeer, who famously kept her own last name, and I guess did not wear pink. I suggested that perhaps Mila just liked pink. Ah no, I was scolded! She is anti-feminist and the proof is in the pink! Blah blah blah…Now we would call that “mansplaining.” And my four brothers – and father – all did it to an excessive degree. My two remaining brothers still do it, though thankfully I do not have much to do with either. Isn’t it odd the things we remember? The things that news events bring up to us?

Here is a clip of that convention and indeed, Mila is in a lovely pink dress. I think she just liked pink.

Valentine’s Day

If you are feeling lonely this Valentine’s Day, remember that a) it is a silly celebration, and b) Teddy Roosevelt had a way worse Valentine’s Day than you are currently experiencing. The year was 1884 and, on that day, 25-year-old TR lost both his wife and his mother – the former of Bright’s disease (undiagnosed) and the latter of typhoid fever. His wife died in his arms. She was 22 and had given birth to their daughter, the formidable Alice Roosevelt Longworth, only two days earlier. Here is his diary entry for that day:

Poor TR.

(Now, if you are actually having as bad a Valentine’s Day as TR, or even worse, I am so sorry.)

Elkana Vizel’s Words

Elkana Vizel was an Israeli soldier who died in Gaza this week. He was 35 and a father of four. He wrote this letter to his family before going into battle.

If you are reading these words, something probably happened to me. First of all, if I am taken prisoner by Hamas I demand that you do not make any deal to free me from any terrorist. Our crushing victory is more important than anything else, so please, just keep on working with all your might so our victory will be as crushing as possible.

Maybe I will have fallen in battle. When a soldier falls in battle it’s sad. But I ask of you, be happy. Don’t be sad when you part from me. Sing a lot, hold each other’s hands, and support each other. We have so much to be happy about and proud of. We are the generation of redemption! We are writing the most significant moments in the history of our nation and the entire world. So please be optimistic. Continue choosing life constantly. Lives of love, hope, purity, and optimism. Look at those dear to you in the white of their eyes and remind them that everything they go through in life is worth it and they have a lot to live for.

Live! Don’t stop the power of life for a moment! During Operation Protective Edge I was injured. I had the option to stay behind, but I don’t regret for a moment that I returned to combat. On the contrary, that was the best decision I ever made.

Simply beautiful. My uncle had the same understanding of being a part of something bigger and more significant than oneself. Such young men.

Burns Night

Today is Robbie Burns Day and, it must follow, tonight is Burns Night. I don’t drink scotch or whiskey, but spouse does and will be having a nip in honour of the great poet. (I will have some wine – not Scottish wine.) My two favourite of Burns’ poems are Ode to a Mouse and The Wounded Hare. He must have been an early animal advocate – there is so much empathy in both of these beautiful works. Another Burns fan is, it would seem, our King! Not surprising – he is well-educated and cultured and we know the Windsors love Scotland. Here is a clip of him reciting Burns – it is from his princely days. Lovely.

Items Left by the Wayside: New Year’s Eve Edition

A handful of links I put aside this year – none related to New Year’s Eve, though…

That NYTimes article – two months late and yet, hats off to them for this thorough and depressing investigative report on Hamas’ use of sexual assault (or rather, depravity). A difficult read, but read it one must.

Matti Friedman on Hamas’ insight and understanding of how effed up the West is. He puts it more diplomatically than that, but I have to say, as early as October 8th, I found myself wondering if the terrorists indeed knew just how many useful idiots there were out there.

A couple of pieces from BHL – thank goodness for the old liberal lion – about Ukraine, including this, about how Ukraine and Israel are part of the same fight and about what Ukrainians need in order to win.

David Mamet on how the Democrats betrayed the Jews. Same could be said in Canada about parties that traditionally supported the Jewish community and Israel, but that now seem to be willing to seek excuses for the slaughter of Jews, and also to be hyper-critical of the justifiable Israeli response to that slaughter.

One of my favourite historians writes about a false narrative relating to Israel (one among oh so many).

Brendan O’Neill on the unholy alliance between woke-ism and barbarism.

And no list of mine can ever be complete without an animal story – a California otter was seen stealing surfboards! As I’ve said before, the animals are done with us, and understandably so.

Happy New Year, all.