IN THIS ISSUE Search on for flier's family 20080322.pdf · IN THIS ISSUE · Search on for flier's family · Nazi Landmines Block Egypt's Access to Oil and Gas · Veterans Independence

Volume - 2 Edition 11 Week Ending March 22, 2008

IN THIS ISSUE· Search on for flier's family· Nazi Landmines Block Egypt's Access to Oil and Gas· Veterans Independence Program Expansion· Strong Women, Strong World· German War Ship Found Off Australia· Hundreds march against military mission in Afghanistan· U.S. veterans, Japanese mark 1968 Vietnam massacre· New Link : Hire Candian Military· Afghan mission takes toll on mental health· Amputee soldier finishes race· U.K. Public Gives Widespread Support for an Armed Forces Day.· Did this German fighter pilot kill a children's literary hero?· Top o' the morning to ya. Happy St Patrick's Day.· New Medication Coverage may restore eyesight· Australian Warship Found After 66-Year Search· Red Baron recast as a German hero· 81st Canadian Soldier Killed in Afghanistan· Ottawa Navy Club Not Giving Up The Ship· France Buries Last WWI Vet· IN THE CLASSROOM: What's not taught in books· As the ‘Great War’ Slips From Living Memory· Military investigates death on Edmonton base· The Way Children See It · Preparing for the return· Branch 383's mural uncovered a day at a time; Artist says people so interested they'd check every day on its progress

· Kandahar plays host to the Cup · Troop Morale Fund is Down · Legion "We Support Our Troops" Pin · Efforts to Restore Shine to Medal Tarnished by Nazis · Our Veterans Suffer Side Effects Of Our Latest Conflicts.· Fredericton clinic will help veterans with stress injuries· PS Air Museum salutes Royal Canadian Air Force

Search on for flier's family

Memorial planned for ill-fated Lancaster crew, one of whom was born in Edmonton

The Air Force Association of Canada is searching for the family of an Edmonton-born flight engineer they hope to honour - more than 55 years after he died in a Lancaster crash on Vancouver Island.

Corp. George Stanley Fletcher, 26, was among eight of 10 crew members killed on Nov. 24, 1952, when the Royal Canadian Air Force aircraft, engaged in maritime reconnaissance, crashed in bad weather on approach to Comox, B.C.

It burned up on impact.

"I am a member of a committee formed to erect a memorial cairn in their memory, and have been given the responsibility for trying to locate relatives of the aircrew who perished," wrote Ted Gibbon, a past-president of the Comox-based 888 RCAF Wing, in an appeal letter.

Gibbon explained that Fletcher, now buried in Beechmount Cemetery, was living in Courtenay when he died. He left behind his wife Penelope, sons Daryl and David as well as six siblings.

"888 Wing, the Air Force Association of Canada on behalf of 407 Squadron and the Comox Air Force Museum is attempting to locate members of Corp. Fletcher's family to inform them of the

Page 1The Royal Canadian Legion, Fred Gies Branch 50 (Ontario)

details of the June 1 ceremony," Gibbon wrote.

Speaking from Comox yesterday, Don McNabb, another past-president of the wing, recalled how the 1952 tragedy also produced a couple of heroes, including a 13-year-old boy named Bobby Waters.

"There was a young fellow here, and he pulled the pilot out of the crashed aircraft," he said. "The pilot and co-pilot survived."

Describing the rescue years later on the occasion of Waters's death - when his widow donated his medal to the Air Force Museum - Gibbon wrote: "Bobby was bringing the family's cows home with his younger brother Eddie and his dog Skipper when he witnessed the crash.

"Bobby proceeded directly to the scene and on the way was joined by Mr. Albert DeCuyper (and) together they were instrumental in saving the lives of the pilot and co-pilot of KB 940."

McNabb said the Comox wing currently has more than 600 members, and has been working to help memorialize a number of other air disasters.

Sunday, March 16, 2008DANIEL MACISAAC, SUN MEDIA

Section: Veterans

Nazi Landmines Block Egypt's Access to Oil and Gas

German "Desert Fox" Erwin Rommel and the British Eighth Army left behind hundreds of thousands of mines and unexploded shells in their North African battles of World War II. The explosive relics are hampering Egypt's access to untapped oil and gas reserves in the desert.

Egypt is one of the most heavily mined

countries in the world. The unexploded ordnance left lying in its desert from World War II battles ranks the country right up there with Afghanistan on this dubious list. Every year, Bedouins and farmers come across unexploded mines and shells, and it's not uncommon for undiscovered bombs to explode amid retrieved scrap metal.

Some 22 million landmines and unexploded ordnance have lain hidden in the northwest of Egypt since World War II, Fathy El-Shazly, national project director for mine clearance and development at the Ministry of International Cooperation, told United Nations news service Irin.

Many of the mines are near the battlefield of El-Alamein, where the British Eighth Army forced the Africa Corps of "Desert Fox" Erwin Rommel to retreat all the way back to Tunisia. That war and today's peace lie close together in the no-man's-land of the desert. Anti-tank mines, anti-personnel mines and unexploded artillery shells block today's transportation routes.Mines Blocking Access Natural Resources

The former battleground is a treasure trove of raw materials such as oil, natural gas and ore. Egypt used to be seen as a minor oil player but experts now estimate that 4.8 billion barrels of oil lie under the sands of the north west -- enough for the country to draw level with OPEC member Angola in terms of oil production.

One oil field near El Alamein has already been developed, and oil is being produced in the notorious Qattara Depression, avoided by the British and German forces during World War II because of its hazardous salt lakes, high cliffs and fine-powdered sand, all of which made the area impassable for military vehicles.

Egypt also has 1.94 trillion cubic meters of natural gas, which amounts to around 1.1 percent of global reserves, and an additional 0.38 trillion is estimated to be located in the northwest and the desert inland from the coast. Gas pipelines already run from two gas fields there to Alexandria. But mines are obstructing the search for more oil and gas.

So far, the military has only removed 2.9 million mines and unexploded shells from the core battle area, and the removal has ground to a halt due to a shortage of funds. "The northwest coast has great development potential; the area is one of the greatest promises for Egypt. But the mines deny access to a landmass of approximately 22 percent of the national territory," El-Shazly told Irin.Mines Were a Key Tactic of Desert Warfare

Wherever the armies of the Axis powers and the Allies clashed in the deserts of North Africa, they tried to limit each other's mobility by laying minefields. Rommel ordered half a million mines to be laid at the coastal town of El Alamein, and the British reportedly laid even more. Most of them lie in the main site of the battle south of the coast and in the inland desert. Mines were also placed underneath debris and around coastal fortifications.

The region could have a flourishing future in tourism if it weren't for this explosive legacy. Egyptian billionaire Ibrahim Kamel, head of the Kato Group conglomerate, has already built an international airport at El Alamein as an entry point for European tourists. Kamel wants to build large hotels along a bay in the Mediterranean, and says the area could one day rival Egypt's Red Sea resorts. Charter aircraft from Britain already land at his airport, bringing tourists to the beaches and attractions west of El Alamein, for example in the provincial capital of Marsa Matruh.

The Egyptian government and the UN also have plans to boost tourism and farming in the region, especially for barley and vegetables . That would allow 1.5 million people to be moved to the northwest from the overcrowded Nile valley -- if only it weren't for the mines.

Munitions expert El-Shazly is now appealing to the powers that fought World War II to return to the desert with special mine detecting equipment and clean up their mess. A new mine clearing program is due to be launched this year, and the government plans to improve care for victims of mine explosions. More than

Page 2 The Royal Canadian Legion, Fred Gies Branch 50 (Ontario)

WEBNEWS Volume - 2 Edition 11 Week Ending March 22, 2008

8,000 people have been injured or killed by German, Italian and British ordnance since the end of World War II.

(Photo: Reuters)Sunday, March 16, 2008

Joachim Hoelzgen , Spiegel OnlineSection: Miscellaneous

Veterans Independence Program Expansion

The Government of Canada is expanding the Veterans Independence Program (VIP) to provide housekeeping and/or grounds maintenance benefits to eligible low-income or disabled survivors of certain traditional war service Veterans. VIP is a national home care program that helps eligible Veterans and their survivors remain healthy and independent in their own homes and communities.

Who can apply for VIP under this expansion?This expansion is for low-income or disabled survivors of Veterans and civilians who served during the First World War, Second World War or the Korean War and met the following criteria:

were entitled to a disability pension under the Pension Act or the Civilian War-related Benefits Act; or received an allowance under the War Veterans Allowance Act or the Civilian War-related Benefits Act; or would have received an allowance if they had not been receiving benefits under the Old Age Security Act; and were not receiving VIP housekeeping and/or grounds maintenance benefits when they died or were admitted to a health care facility. To qualify for VIP under this expansion, the survivor must:receive the Guaranteed Income Supplement under the Old Age Security Act; or be approved for the Disability Tax Credit; and have a health need and require VIP housekeeping and/or grounds maintenance services to remain independent in their home; and

not have access to the services under a provincial health care system or a private insurance policy; and be a resident of Canada. Who is a “survivor”?“Survivor” means the adult individual who:

was primarily responsible for providing care to the Veteran immediately before the Veteran died or was admitted to a health care facility; and was not paid or compensated for providing that care; and lived in the principal residence of the Veteran for a continuous period of at least one year immediately prior to the Veteran’s death or admission to a health care facility; and maintained the Veteran or was being maintained by the Veteran. In most cases, survivors are spouses or common-law partners.

What benefits are available under this VIP expansion?Eligible survivors may receive housekeeping and/or grounds maintenance benefits up to a maximum of $2,400 per year.

How is this expansion different from the current VIP? Under the program that has been in place, if a Veteran who receives VIP benefits dies or moves to a long-term care facility, his/her primary caregiver may be eligible to continue receiving the VIP housekeeping and/or grounds maintenance services that the Veteran received. That will continue.

This expansion addresses the situation where the traditional war Veteran received a disability pension or the War Veterans Allowance but was not receiving VIP housekeeping and/or grounds maintenance at the time of death or admission to a health care facility. As a result, their survivor never had the opportunity to access VIP housekeeping and grounds maintenance benefits. With this expansion, the survivors who need this help the most—and can least afford it—may have the help they need to remain in their homes.

How do survivors apply for this VIP expansion?For more information or to apply for this VIP expansion, call, toll free, 1-866-522-2122 or visit the link below.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Veterans Affairs CanadaSection: Veterans

Strong Women, Strong World

Every year on March 8, the world celebrates International Women’s Day. In Canada, since 1977, it has been an occasion to reflect not only on the significant advances made in terms of equality between men and women, but also on what still needs to be done. This year’s theme for International Women’s Day in Canada is “Strong Women, Strong World”. DND’s theme this year is “Opportunity and Choice – A Culture in Evolution”. Women have been proving this in the CF for over 100 years and continue to do so, both at home and abroad wherever Canadian troops are deployed.

From an historical point of view, women first contributed to CF operations in a significant way as nurses. The Canadian Nursing Service was created at the beginning of the 20th century, in 1901, to be precise. During that period, many nurses provided support to the CF as members of the Yukon Field Force in 1898, and as part of the three contingents that participated in the Boer War in South Africa. Shortly thereafter, in 1906, nurses were admitted to Canada’s Regular Forces.

During the First World War, over 2 800 women served with the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps. It was also during this war that the first women’s organizations that provided services other than nursing were created. Canadian women formed paramilitary groups, donned military-style uniforms and undertook training in small arms, drill, first aid and vehicle maintenance, in case their services might be required on the home front.

These pioneers paved the way for their female successors in the CF and their achievements. Women now command armed combat subunits,


WEBNEWS Volume - 2 Edition 11Week Ending March 22, 2008

serve as commanders on board Canadian warships, and pilot Tutor, Hercules and CF-18 aircraft. Whether in the Army, Navy or Air Force, many women are pursuing satisfying careers in the CF.

Colonel Karen Ritchie, who commands the 5 Area Support Group, based in Montréal, feels the same way, “My experience in the CF has shown me that women can now aspire to the same positions as men. Though some barriers may subsist in trades where physical strength is a factor, socially speaking, both sexes have to deal with the same challenges, such as finding a balance between work and family life. Not always an easy thing when you’re in the military.”

Sunday, March 16, 2008Steve Fortin, The Maple Leaf : March 2008

Section: Miscellaneous

German War Ship Found Off Australia

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) - A search for an Australian navy battle cruiser lost in 1941 has led to the wreck of the German raider that sank it, the prime minister said Sunday.

Both the HMAS Sydney and the German vessel, the DKM Kormoran, sank after a battle off Australia's western coast on Nov. 19, 1941 during World War II.

None of the 645 men aboard the Sydney survived. But 317 of the Kormoran's 397 crew rowed to the Australian coast in life boats and were taken prisoner. The 9,500 ton Kormoran had been disguised as a Dutch merchant ship when it opened fire on the Sydney.

"Finding the Kormoran is one big step forward (to finding the Sydney)," said Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

The wreck was found Saturday about 500 miles north of the Western Australia state capital Perth, he said. It was found in 8,400 feet of water.

The Finding Sydney Foundation, the

organization conducting the search, also found debris near the site of the battle that could be part of the Australian war ship, foundation chairman Ted Graham said. Those debris were found in 8,990 feet of water.

"We have ... located what we believe to be the battlefield site and there is an amount of wreckage there, but that has yet to be identified," Graham told reporters.

Graham said he was uncertain whether the finds would lead them to the Australian ship.

"There can never be a guarantee. We're working in water depths of several thousand meters," he said.

The team would use a remote-operated vehicle to search the Kormoran wreckage and the battlefield site this week for more clues, he said.

The government-funded $3.9 million search for the Sydney began two weeks ago and is headed by U.S. shipwreck hunter David Mearns.

Mearns was involved in finding the wrecks of the British battle cruiser the HMS Hood and the DKM Bismarck, the German battle ship that sank her in the North Atlantic in 1941.

The Sydney weighed in at 7,300 tons, making it the largest vessel from any country to be lost with no survivors during the war.

The fate of the ship and its crew has remained an enduring mystery, though a parliament inquiry into the tragedy in 1999 accepted accounts by Kormoran survivors that they last saw the ship in flames and heading toward Perth.

There are no current plans to raise the Sydney if it is found.

Sunday, March 16, 2008ROD McGUIRK , Associated Press Writer

Section: Veterans

Hundreds march against military mission in Afghanistan

Protesters in Ottawa held a peace march from the National Gallery, to the front of

the U.S. embassy, to Parliament Hill to call for an end to the wars in Afghanistan and

Iraq.Credit: Canwest News Service.

Hundreds of people took to the streets across Canada on Saturday to protest the country's military involvement in Afghanistan, two days after Parliament voted to extend the mission.

About 1,000 people convened at Queen's Park and marched through Toronto calling for Canadian troops to pull out, joining others around the globe for the World Against War day of action.

NDP Leader Jack Layton joined the Toronto march and said that Canada must withdraw from the combat mission in Afghanistan and instead lead peaceful efforts to bring security and stability to the troubled country.

In Ottawa, about 500 peace activists marched by Parliament Hill and held a "die-in" in front of the U.S. Embassy. Ottawa organizer Dylan Penner, a member of the Canadian Peace Alliance, said the day was marked in 22 cities across Canada and 600 throughout the world to highlight the fifth anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

Penner said the vote to extend the Afghanistan mission to 2011 has only made the peace movement stronger.

"I think if anything, people are more outraged," he said.

Parliament passed a motion on March 13 to keep Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan for three more years, making this the longest extension of the Canadian troop deployment since



the Afghanistan mission began in 2001.

The motion passed by a vote of 197 to 77 with the Liberals joining the Conservative government to outnumber the NDP and Bloc Quebecois who opposed the extension.

Penner said polls have shown a majority of Canadians wanted the troops out of Afghanistan by 2009, and the federal government just "isn't listening to the people."

About 2,500 Canadian soldiers are in southern Afghanistan, where Taliban insurgents have staged an increasing number of attacks on Afghan and NATO-led forces. Since the mission began in 2002, 80 Canadian soldiers and one diplomat have been killed.

According to an Ipsos Reid poll released in late January, 50 per cent of Canadians support a combat mission, and 37 per cent favour a February 2009 pullout. Penner said other polls have shown that 80 per cent of Canadians were opposed to extending the mission beyond 2009.

Chris Assad, president of the Coalition of Canadian Arab Professionals and Community Associations, said the peace movement is getting stronger as young people come of age during their country's involvement overseas.

"They're listening to all the news about people dying on both sides and wondering, 'What the hell is going on - what are we there for?'" he said.

Assad said about 50,000 Afghans have died since the beginning of the occupation. He said 75 per cent of the number were civilian casualties.

"The writing is on the wall," he said. "This is not a winnable war."

Ottawa Citizen with files from Agence France-Presse

Sunday, March 16, 2008Katie Daubs, Canwest News Service

Section: Afghanistan

U.S. veterans, Japanese mark 1968 Vietnam massacre

Japanese atomic bomb survivors plant a tree at a peace park after attending the

40th anniversary of the My Lai massacre in My Lai village, about 930 km (578 miles)

south of Hanoi, March 16, 2008. My Lai, a hamlet in Son My village in central Quang Ngai province, is the site of the killing of

504 civilians, mostly women and children, by U.S soldiers on March 16, 1968, the

worst recorded U.S. war crime committed in Vietnam. From L-R: Shoji Sawada, Tokie Mizuno, Toshio Miro and Fujio

Shinoharu.Credit: Reuters

MY LAI, Vietnam (Reuters) - Japanese survivors of atomic bombs and American war veterans calling for peace joined hundreds of villagers on Sunday in prayers to mark 40 years since the worst U.S. atrocity of the Vietnam War.

On March 16, 1968, the men of Charlie Company entered the hamlet of My Lai in central Quang Ngai province and killed 504 civilians, mostly women and children.

My Lai came to symbolize in the United States all that was wrong with the Vietnam conflict, which ended in 1975 when communist North Vietnam took over U.S.-backed South Vietnam, unifying the country.

Truong Thi Le, who survived the massacre near the village's observation tower, where 102 people were killed that morning, said she stills suffers horrific memories.

"I got some rice tree to cover myself and lay down on dead people," Le said. "There were five bodies on the ground who were seriously wounded and the blood poured all around."

The massacre is marked every year by residents and the government. This year, villagers organized a Buddhist ritual ceremony for the souls of the dead before local officials laid wreaths

to show their respect to the victims.

Wreaths were placed in front of the My Lai Memorial and included foreign guests such as former American helicopter door gunner, Lawrence Colburn, who together with pilot Hugh Thompson rescued some Vietnamese during the massacre.

"No one wins in war and civilians always suffer," Colburn said. "The only way to prevent tragedy in war is to prevent war," said Colburn, who also referred to the U.S. war in Iraq, calling for it to end as soon as possible.

A Japanese delegation of Hibakusha with five survivors of the World War Two atomic bombings in Japan united with survivors at My Lai in a plea for the end of weapons of mass destruction and peace in the world.

"The tragedy of the bombing (Hiroshima and Nagasaki) in Japan is very similar to Vietnam's problem with Agent Orange," said Dr Shoji Sawada, representative and director of the Japan Council Against Atomic Bombs. "I want to share this knowledge with the future generations so that it is not repeated again."

U.S. veteran Mike Boehm played a violin in front of the monument as he has done for the past 14 years on the anniversary.

"I play my violin because of the sadness that I feel and playing the violin speaks for me better than words can because the music comes deeper from my heart," said Boehm, who helps run humanitarian projects at My Lai founded by the Quakers of Madison, Wisconsin.

(Reporting by Nguyen Van Vinh, writing by Grant McCool; Editing by Charles Dick)

© Reuters 2008Sunday, March 16, 2008

ReutersSection: Veterans

New Link : Hire Candian Military

A new site has been added to the links page. The site is a job finder site specifically tailored to find employment



for veterans. What follows is the content of their about us page.

About Us How do we start?

Well, I suppose the first thing to say is it was started with an idea. Four guys who have served – and two still wear a uniform. Some are/were enlisted folk. And some are of the officer persuasion. All members of the “company” recognized there was a serious need for a job site that specialized in representing the military men and women of this country.

All members of this company have worked as civilians. All of them recognized there was very little actual civilian corporate knowledge of the capabilities of those who have served their country honourably and in many cases with some serious distinction. Looking for work was a challenge for many reasons. Military people do not always know how to translate those valuable skills into civilian language. We do and we can help you. We also do resumes that translate "military speak" into the language of civilian human resources.

It is our experience that military folk do not always have the formal educational background, but always have experience that far outweighs that lack of formal education. However, they are often reluctant to apply because they are afraid they will not be considered. In fact, one of the biggest jobs for this website is to encourage the military person to go out and look at those jobs, and at the same time educate the human resources folks to look beyond that MBA that everyone seems to want - and truly see what is available from the military.

It is our belief that any trade, any career or any profession – in any business - can be helped by hiring those who served. The average human resources person often does not know this. After all Canada has spent many years hiding her military from public view.

Fortunately that has changed. But, there are still many companies out there that have no clue about you – the disciplined people who have served their country. Fortunately that

is changing, but the fact remains mainstream corporations often do not realize the value that a military background adds to the bottom line.

Two success stories come to mind as I write this.

The first was an F-18 pilot, a flight commander, an operations officer and a search and rescue co-coordinator. He is a very capable person, who used his military training to become a senior member of a management team despite never having attended a university. His life experiences, military training and discipline made him a very valuable asset to his company.

The second is a man who retired with the rank of Sergeant. He has only grade 10 education. Yet he is a highly decorated individual who once led people in combat. Using his military background and experiences he now specializes in satellite communications. And, he is a senior manager in that company!

The above is not written to belittle education. Far from it. In fact the more you have the better off you will be. The military has a system in place to educate YOU – so - if you are still a serving member - use it! If you are retired, take a few applicable courses. Get an extra tick in the box.

This is written to show that you have many skills that others do not have. And I might add there are many who do not know that you do indeed have these skills. You simply need to bring them forward in a way the civilian world can understand them.

Most people who retire from the military do not have a plan, and do not know where they want to be 15 years AFTER they retire. They do not realize it is quite likely they will have skills so far above the ordinary that they can and will excel when they look outside the box.

In fact, it is time to do what the members that designed this site did – forget about thinking outside the box – instead, ask this question:

“What box?”

We will continue to advertise the abilities of the military men and women. We like to think the only people who will advertise on this site

are those who are prepared to look at YOU because they now KNOW about you and your comrades.

SO! Now you know who we are. You know our intentions and our goals. What is the direction?

At present we are simply planning to stay the course and become advocates for those who are leaving the military, or have already retired from the service. As time progresses we intent to expand our web site and educate those who are hiring about the value an ex-military man or woman can bring to the table.

If you want a job, a career or perhaps desire the opportunity to be your own boss by becoming a business owner – then stay close to this site. It is our ambition to become the number one placement site in Canada for ex-military personnel. I suppose we are already there, as no one else is doing this. But that does not mean we cannot get better.

Sign up, leave your resume here and let those who are pro-military look at it. Who knows what might happen?

We look forward to your thoughts and comments and ideas. Contact us at any time.

Our absolute best to you – from:

Those Guys in Uniform!

Monday, March 17, 2008Webmaster

Section: Veterans

Afghan mission takes toll on mental health

Each death on the dusty roads and battlefields of Afghanistan creates a new group of soldiers who must cope with the loss of a friend and comrade.

Those left behind often talk about the need to "soldier on,'' and they resolve



to use the death as a point of pride to complete Canada's mission to help secure Afghanistan for future generations.

Health-care officials worry that when soldiers return home from overseas, they can have difficulties including sleeplessness, nightmares and other symptoms that can affect their day-to-day lives.

The loss of a fellow soldier can be particularly frustrating, says Dr. Harvey Smith, who runs a clinic in Calgary dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder.

"It's more than just the trauma or violent loss of a comrade,'' explains Smith.

"You'll find people will question what they could have done or should have done differently and so it's more than just the loss, it's the feeling of responsibility for their co-worker or their buddy.''

Eighty Canadian soldiers have died in Afghanistan.

A feeling of numbness, along with anger and an inability to cope, is a common symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder.

"For a normal soldier, you see their pride in what they do and their focus on the mission,'' says Smith, who manages a clinic, that treats military veterans suffering from the disorder.

"We see the ones for whom things are not going well. Stress and trauma takes its toll on people and on good soldiers, too, who are really skilled, proud, capable people.''

Canada's combat mission means a growing number of soldiers will probably be forced to battle not only post-traumatic stress, but a range of mental disorders, says a Winnipeg psychiatrist.

Dr. Jitender Sareen was the lead author of a 2007 study that found 31 per cent of Canadian soldiers have symptoms of a mental disorder. "The higher the number of traumatic events, the higher the number of emotional problems,'' says Dr. Sareen.

Sareen's study was based on data collected by Statistics Canada in 2002. That means the information

came from soldiers who served in peacekeeping missions, such as Somalia and the former Yugoslavia -- a contrast to Canada's current deadly commitment in Afghanistan.

Monday, March 17, 2008Bill Graveland and Tamara King , The Canadian

PressSection: Afghanistan

Amputee soldier finishes race

Soldier who lost legs in Afghanistan finishes race

For most, yesterday's St. Pat's 5-km fun run and walk was just that.

But for Master Cpl. Jody Mitic, 31, of the Royal Canadian Regiment, it marked another triumph on his road to recovery after a landmine blew off both legs below the knees.

On that fateful day -- Jan. 11, 2007 -- Mitic was leading his elite sniper team on a reconnaissance mission in Afghanistan when his life changed forever.

He was on another mission yesterday with support from 70 people including family, friends and fellow unit members as he tested his new running legs and raised cash for the St. John's Rehabilitation hospital.

"I'm winded, that's for sure," said Mitic, as he sat on a bench to take off his new specialized prosthetic running legs and slip on his walking ones after crossing the finish line.

CARRYING FLAGS

"Five K doesn't sound long. But it feels long once you are out there," Mitic said, who finished in just over 46 minutes with fellow unit members

carrying Canadian and Regimental flags.

It was Mitic's first 5-km race and he wondered right from the start, laughing in the face of possible defeat, if he would finish.

"But it was all good. It was for a good cause," said Mitic. "I knew I'd be able to pull it off.

"I just wanted to raise money for the hospital and new equipment. They helped out me."

Younger brother Cory, 25, was beaming proudly at his brother's accomplishment.

"I think this means a lot of things. It means my brother is moving forward with his life and getting active again," said Cory. "I'm more than impressed. I'm inspired."

Mitic began walking last May, just months after the attack.

"And now, to see him running is incredible," said Cory, who recalled that as kids they both liked to tussle and his brother would "never give up."

"A lot of people give up when they are in that situation," said Cory. "It takes a strong man -- or woman -- to move on."

For their entire family and military family, Cory said "it has been tough" and the best part of yesterday's run was the fact his brother "is still around."

Other friends paying tribute to the Mitic and Canada's fallen soldiers was Trevor Hill of Elmira, who had 80 pounds of weight strapped to his chest in remembrance of the 80 who have been killed during the Afghan mission.

"I served with the RCR over in Afghanistan as well and lost some of my friends over there," said Hill. "So this is just my tribute to them."

"You can't say enough about the guy (Mitic). He has a real positive attitude and is an inspiration to all."

Monday, March 17, 2008JACK BOLAND, SUN MEDIA

Section: Veterans



U.K. Public Gives Widespread Support for an Armed Forces Day.

One of the Army's top generals has backed The Sunday Telegraph's call for the Government to recognise the contribution made by servicemen and women with the creation of an Armed Forces Day.

Lt Gen Nick Parker, the Commander of Regional Forces, said the designation of a day to mark the contribution would be a "fantastic initiative" which would "humble" the Forces.

An ICM Poll commissioned by this newspaper has indicated that almost 80 per cent of the public would like to see such an initiative.

The poll, based on the views of 1,002 people from across the country, also found that 90 per cent of the public would like to see members of the Armed Forces wearing their uniforms in public.

Those questioned were asked: "It has been suggested there should be an Armed Forces Day on which we celebrate the work of our servicemen and women. Do you think this would be a good idea or a bad idea?" In all, 77 per cent thought it a good idea, 19 per cent thought it a bad idea and 4 per cent said they did not know.

The public were also asked: "Do you

think servicemen and women should or should not wear their uniform in public whenever they wish?" Of those polled, 90 per cent said they should, 8 per cent said they should not and 2 per cent did not know.

The Sunday Telegraph believes that such a day would allow the public to pay tribute to the Armed Forces and their families after years of sacrifice in Iraq and Afghanistan, where 264 servicemen and women have been killed and more than 1,000 injured.

The day would be marked by all troops, both on and off duty, being encouraged to wear uniform in public, with open days at barracks and announcements in school assemblies.

The campaign has also received the backing of Quentin Davies, the Labour MP who is leading the National Recognition Study Team, which will consider ways of improving the public's relationship with the military and understanding of its work.

Mr Davies said: "I will be recommending something along the line of an Armed Forces Day when I report to the Prime Minister in the next few weeks."

More than 20 military charities have backed the campaign and 10 councils from Hamp-shire to Bury and Plymouth to Colchester have called on the Government to create an Armed Forces Day.

The Royal British Legion (RBL), the War Widows' Association, the Army Benevolent Fund and the Royal Naval and Royal Air Force Associations are among the charities that have expressed support.

A spokesman for the RBL said: "The Legion supports the idea of an Armed Forces Day as it would provide for public recognition of the contribution our servicemen make to our society."

In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, Lt Gen Parker said: "Anything that anybody can do that can connect us with the communities we come from has got to be a good thing. It would be a fantastic effort and initiative. The idea of doing this is humbling, and is hugely appreciated."

His views echoed those of Gen Lord Guthrie, the chief of the defence staff

under Tony Blair, who said: "An Armed Forces Day would be welcome and supported by the military. It is a marvellous idea."

The campaign has also attracted support from the three main political parties. An early day motion tabled by David Hamilton, the Labour MP for Midlothian, calling for greater public recognition for the Armed Forces, has received the support of more than 40 MPs in three days.

Nick Harvey, the Liberal Democrat defence spokesman, said: "Our Armed Forces' bravery has never been in doubt. I would welcome an official day to recognise that commitment."

ICM interviewed 1,002 adults by telephone between March 12 and 13.

Monday, March 17, 2008Sean Rayment, Ben Leach and Jasper Copping,

Telegraph UKSection: Miscellaneous

Did this German fighter pilot kill a children's literary hero?

If only he had known. Now, in the winter of his life, an elderly German war veteran has stepped forward to say he believes he shot down his literary idol - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, author of the beloved children's tale, The Little Prince.

"If I had known, I wouldn't have fired - not on him," said the 88-year-old former Luftwaffe fighter pilot Horst Rippert.

The death of the French pilot, who disappeared while on a solo flight for the Allied forces in 1944, had been one of the great mysteries of aviation and 20th-century literature.



In addition to penning The Little Prince - one of the top 50 selling books of all time and translated into more than 100 languages - Saint-Exupéry also wrote eloquently about the pioneering days of aviation, bringing a lyrical touch to tales of risk-taking pilots in exotic locales.

During the weekend, French papers published excerpts from an upcoming book revealing that Saint-Exupéry may have been shot by one of his own readers.

"In our youth, we had all read him; we loved his books," Mr. Rippert said in the excerpts.

"He could deftly describe the sky, the thoughts and feelings of pilots. His work inspired our vocation for many of us. I liked the man."

Mr. Rippert said he suspected within days that he had shot down the famous writer. But he kept quiet, keeping the secret for more than six decades.

"You can imagine what would have happened to my career if people had known what I had done during the war," he said.

The disclosure came when Mr. Rippert was tracked down following the recovery of Saint-Exupéry's plane off the coast of southern France by a Marseilles diver, Luc Vanrell.

The sunken debris of the P-38 Lightning were discovered in 2000 but it was only four years later that it was positively identified as the plane in which Saint-Exupéry took off from Corsica on July 31, 1944.

The plane had cameras but no guns because it was on a reconnaissance flight. It didn't come back and the body of the 44-year-old Saint-Exupéry was never recovered.

On that day, Mr. Rippert said, he was returning to his base when he spotted a P-38 over Marseilles, 3,000 metres below his fighter plane. He trailed it, went into a dive and fired at the wings.

The P-38 went straight into the sea, without anyone bailing out, he said.

Over the years, theories about Saint-Exupéry's death ranged from piloting accident to suicide.

Those speculations were fuelled by

the fact that, by 1944, older and absent-minded, Saint-Exupéry had been struggling as a wartime pilot. At the same time, he had also clashed with General Charles de Gaulle and was said to be in a despondent mood.

In the 1970s, researchers found letters from another German pilot, the late Robert Heichele, who described winning a dogfight in southern France against a P-38 that had attacked him on July 31, 1944. But any link to Saint-Exupéry was ultimately rejected because the French author's plane wasn't armed.

Saint-Exupéry had risked his life before. He began flying during the 1920s and 1930s for companies that tried to establish airmail delivery in North Africa and South America. His books describe in horrifying details the hardships of pilots who had been captured by hostile nomads or trekked back from crashes in remote, icy Andean peaks.

He crash-landed in the Sahara in 1935, an accident that inspired the opening scene of The Little Prince.

When the Second World War broke out, Saint-Exupéry joined the French air force but left for exile after his country's surrender.

He lived in New York, where he wrote The Little Prince, then stayed briefly in Quebec City. By 1943, he returned to duty with the Free French Forces.

Monday, March 17, 2008TU THANH HA , The Globe and Mail


Top o' the morning to ya. Happy St Patrick's Day.

Today Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated worldwide by Irish people and increasingly by non-Irish people (usually in Australia, North America, Ireland). Celebrations are generally themed around all things Irish and, by association, the colour green. Both Christians and non-Christians celebrate the secular version of the holiday by wearing green or orange, eating Irish food and/or green foods, imbibing Irish drink (such as Guinness) and attending parades.

The St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland is part of a five-day festival; over 500,000 people attended the 2006 parade. The largest St. Patrick's Day parade is held in New York City and it is watched by over 2 million spectators. The St. Patrick's Day parade was first held in Boston in 1761, organized by the Charitable Irish Society. New York's celebration began on 18 March 1762 when Irish soldiers in the British army marched through the city.

The predominantly French-speaking Canadian city of Montréal, in the province of Québec has the longest continually running Saint Patrick's day parade in North America, since 1824; The city's flag has the Irish emblem, the shamrock, in one of its corners.

Ireland's cities all hold their own parades and festivals, including Dublin, Cork, Belfast, Derry, Galway, Kilkenny, Limerick, and Waterford. Parades also take place in other Irish towns and villages.

The person who was to become St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was born in Wales about AD 385. His given name was Maewyn, and he almost didn't get the job of bishop of Ireland because he lacked the required scholarship.

Far from being a saint, until he was 16, he considered himself a pagan. At that age, he was sold into slavery by a group of Irish marauders that raided his village. During his captivity, he became closer to God.

He escaped from slavery after six years and went to Gaul where he studied in the monastery under St. Germain, bishop of Auxerre for a period of twelve years. During his training he became aware that his calling was to convert the pagans to



Christianity.

His wishes were to return to Ireland, to convert the native pagans to Christianity. But his superiors instead appointed St. Palladius. But two years later, Palladius transferred to Scotland. Patrick, having adopted that Christian name earlier, was then appointed as second bishop to Ireland.

Patrick was quite successful at winning converts. And this fact upset the Celtic Druids. Patrick was arrested several times, but escaped each time. He traveled throughout Ireland, establishing monasteries across the country. He also set up schools and churches which would aid him in his conversion of the Irish country to Christianity.

His mission in Ireland lasted for thirty years. After that time, Patrick retired to County Down. He died on March 17 in AD 461. That day has been commemorated as St. Patrick's Day ever since.

Much Irish folklore surrounds St. Patrick's Day. Not much of it is actually substantiated.

Some of this lore includes the belief that Patrick raised people from the dead. He also is said to have given a sermon from a hilltop that drove all the snakes from Ireland. Of course, no snakes were ever native to Ireland, and some people think this is a metaphor for the conversion of the pagans. Though originally a Catholic holy day, St. Patrick's Day has evolved into more of a secular holiday.

One traditional icon of the day is the shamrock. And this stems from a more bona fide Irish tale that tells how Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Trinity. He used it in his sermons to represent how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit could all exist as separate elements of the same entity. His followers adopted the custom of wearing a shamrock on his feast day.

The St. Patrick's Day custom came to America in 1737. That was the first year St. Patrick's Day was publicly celebrated in this country, in Boston.

Today, people celebrate the day with parades, wearing of the green, and

drinking beer. One reason St. Patrick's Day might have become so popular is that it takes place just a few days before the first day of spring. One might say it has become the first green of spring.

Monday, March 17, 2008Anon


New Medication Coverage may restore eyesight

Ontario has seen its way clear to pay for treatments of a new drug that can stop and, in some cases, reverse the leading cause of blindness in Canada.

Lucentis, a drug that is injected into the eye to prevent, stop or repair leaking blood vessels behind the retina, costs about $1,500 per treatment - often 12 are needed - and was too expensive for many people who were suffering from wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

The disease is the largest single cause of blindness, so the impact locally is hard to overstate, since there are 2,294 people living with significant vision loss in the Quinte area, according to the CNIB. A significant number have wet AMD.

The announcement of the coverage, which begins immediately, was made in Toronto by Health Minister George Smitherman Thursday.

"He made the announcement, which was great," said Lisa Pretty of the CNIB from the group's headquarters in Toronto. "For Ontarians, it's a great thing."

There are some restrictions, but basically if a person has been

diagnosed with wet AMD, the treatment is a go, she said.

"They will be covered," Pretty said.

Andrea Bedor, a local optition who backed the move to cover Lucentis, was elated when told of the news.

"Fantastic," she said.

Society is aging and since wet AMD usually strikes those over 50, the coverage comes at an opportune time, Bedor said.

"This is going to help a lot of people," she said.

The CNIB was awaiting word from the Common Drug Review, a federal body that recommends whether provinces should cover the cost of drugs, but Ontario had fast-tracked its own review and Thursday, Smitherman made the decision to fund Lucentis.

Ontario is only the second province to cover the treatments. Quebec is the other province.

The drug is not cheap - $100 million has been targeted for the treatments over the next three years.

But the cost in human misery, lost productivity and payouts in disability payments cost much more.

To find out more about the treatments and who qualifies, go to www.righttosight.ca

Monday, March 17, 2008Barry Ellsworth, The Intelligencer

Section: Seniors

Australian Warship Found After 66-Year Search

The 1941 sinking of the HMAS Sydney was Australia's worst naval disaster ever. For six decades, Australians have been wondering how the pride of its navy could have been sunk by a lightly-armed German cruiser. Now, that mystery might finally



be solved.

One of Australia's greatest military mysteries might be solved with the discovery of a World War II ship that sunk with all its 645 crew in a battle with a German vessel. The HMAS Sydney was located off the West Australian coast Sunday, a day after a search team discovered the wreck of the German merchant raider, the DKM Kormoran, which sunk the Australian ship.

The two ships engaged in a 30-minute battle on Nov. 19, 1941, during which both ships were sunk. While most of the German vessel's crew survived, every one of the 645-strong crew of the Sydney went down with their ship -- making it Australia's worst naval disaster ever and the biggest ship to sink during WW II with no survivors.

The find, which was made possible by advances in sonar technology that allow waters more than 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) deep to be scoured, should offer clues to how the pride of Australia's navy could have been taken out by a lightly-armed German cruiser.

"For 66 years, this nation has wondered where the Sydney was and what occurred to her. We've uncovered the first part of that mystery ... the next part of the mystery, of course, is what happened," the chief of the Royal Australian Navy, Vice Admiral Russ Shalders, said at a press conference Monday.

The HMAS Sydney was found by a $3.9 million (€2.5 million) government-funded sonar research team, which a day earlier had discovered the DKM Kormoran 23 kilometers (14 miles) away. The searchers discovered the ship upright in 2,470 meters (8,100 feet) of water, about 800 kilometers (500 miles) north of Perth.

The mysterious disappearance of the HMAS Sydney has remained a national obsession in Australia. Calls to find the ship had grown in intensity in recent years, as widows of crew members and siblings pleaded for information before they died, news agency AP reported.

Until now, the only source of information about the ship's and its crews fate were the 317 survivors of

the DKM Kormoran. The German ship was disguised as a Dutch freighter when it encountered the Australian vessel. According to German survivors, the DKM Kormoran lured the Australian ship, which was more heavily armed, in close and then opened fire with torpedoes and six-inch guns.

For years theories have made the rounds that a Japanese submarine sunk the HMAS Sydney or that the German ship's crew machine-gunned the Australian survivors. Relatives of the dead seamen hope the discovery of the watery grave will finally resolve the mystery.

maw/ap/reuters

Monday, March 17, 2008Spiegal Online


Red Baron recast as a German hero

As the RAF marks its 90th anniversary, one of its earliest adversaries is to be celebrated as a sensitive hero in a controversial German film.

As Britain prepares to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Royal Air Force, Germany is reclaiming the First World War flying ace known as the Red Baron as a national hero.

On Tuesday, Henry Allingham, 111, the oldest British survivor of the war, will join guests at a commemorative dinner at the RAF Museum in Hendon, north London. On 1 April, the RAF will mark the service's birthday with a spectacular aerial display over London. Then a week later, the controversial film The Red Baron will have its premiere in Germany, with a UK release to follow.

In Germany, where painful milestones

of war often pass without ceremony, £14m has been spent on the new film about the country's most famous fighter pilot, Manfred von Richthofen, making it one of the most expensive in the country's history. The Red Baron, who shot down 80 British, Canadian and Australian pilots, is portrayed as a brilliant and sensitive hero in the English-language production.

The film has been described as breaking a taboo which for decades has seen German soldiers generally portrayed as callous zealots or conscripts tormented by conscience. But there has been renewed appetite for exploring the country's wartime past since the release of Downfall in 2004, and later this year Tom Cruise plays Claus von Stauffenberg, the German colonel who tried to assassinate Hitler, in Valkyrie

Nikolai Mllerschön, writer and director of The Red Baron, said: 'Historically there has been a reluctance, and there are strong voices in Germany still saying we're not allowed to do this: a film about a German war hero. But the film makes a very clear statement against war. In it Richthofen says that he understands everyone has turned this world into a slaughterhouse and the war cannot be won. He says he's not going to be the immortal god that Berlin wants him to be; he knew millions were lured into the trenches with such propaganda. He had been turned into one of the first pop stars in history by one of the biggest propaganda machines ever seen.'

The Red Baron casts rising star Matthias Schweighöfer as Richthofen and two British actors in key roles. Joseph Fiennes, star of Shakespeare in Love and Enemy at the Gates, plays Captain Roy Brown, a Canadian initially hailed as the Red Baron's conqueror, a claim he never made and later discredited. Lena Headey, best known for 300 and television's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, is the love interest Käte Otersdorf, a nurse who may or may not have had a romance with Richthofen in real life.

Richthofen was 25 when he was killed in combat near the Somme at noon on 21 April 1918, but the exact cause has been debated ever since. Peter



Kilduff, who has written six books about the Red Baron, recently made a potentially dramatic discovery when he bought a 1932 German veterans magazine on the auction website eBay. Buried inside was an article entitled 'The Truth About Richthofen's Death - Eyewitness Account by Hermann Bink'. Kilduff translated it into English and found the allegation that Richthofen survived a crash landing only to be stabbed by watching soldiers.

Bink was quoted: 'It is possible that the engine of Richthofen's airplane was hit and perhaps he was as well. But in any event, we saw him climb out of the airplane alive! Several brown forms fell on him with drawn daggers and presumably stabbed him. They were British colonial troops, which were opposite us.'

The magazine quoted other supposed eyewitnesses in support of Bink. But Kilduff, whose book Red Baron: Life and Death of an Ace, rejects the claims. Instead he backs the view of historian and retired cardiologist Geoffrey Miller, who believes the Red Baron was probably brought down by Sergeant Cedric Popkin, an Australian machine gunner. The angle of the entrance and exit wounds on Richthofen's body indicates that he was hit as he was trying to turn away from Popkin's fire. Miller said: 'There is little doubt that the bullet penetrated his heart and was fatal.'

The RAF - an amalgamation of the Royal Naval Air Service, to which Henry Allingham belonged, and the army's Royal Flying Corps - will hold a series of events including a commemorative service at St Clement Danes Church in London and a concert in Birmingham. It will issue service badges to 25 veterans and, most spectacularly on 1 April, stage an aerial display by the Red Arrows above central London culminating at the London Eye

Monday, March 17, 2008David Smith , The Observer, UK

Section: Veterans

81st Canadian Soldier Killed in Afghanistan

DND OTTAWA - A Canadian soldier was killed today by an explosive device while participating in a joint Afghan-Canadian foot patrol in the Zangabad region, in the District of Panjwayi, approximately 35 km South-West of Kandahar City. The soldier was immediately evacuated by helicopter to the Canadian-led multinational hospital at Kandahar Airfield, where he later succumbed to his wounds. The incident occurred at approximately 8:20 p.m. Kandahar time.

The identity of the Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan is as follows:

Sergeant Jason Boyes, age 32, 2nd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry (2 PPCLI), based out of Shilo, Manitoba.

At the time of the incident, the Jason’s unit was conducting a dismounted presence patrol in the area with Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). These patrols are part of the many ways ANSF and ISAF show their presence, monitor the security situation and interact with the local population.

This incident will not deter us from continuing our work with the Government and the people of Afghanistan. Incidents like this one prove that, along with our Afghan National Security Force partners, Canadians need to continue working to bring about peace and security in

the region.

We have lost a fine Canadian today, and our hearts go out to the family and friends of this brave soldier.

-------THE CANADIAN PRESS

A Canadian soldier died yesterday evening after he stepped on an "explosive device'' while on foot patrol in Afghanistan's perilous Panjwaii district.

The soldier, whose name was not immediately released at the request of his family, was part of a dismounted "presence patrol'' with Canadian and Afghan forces near Zangabad, 35 kilometres southwest of Kandahar city, when the blast occurred.

He was immediately evacuated by helicopter to a medical facility at Kandahar Airfield, where he later died, said Brig.-Gen. Guy Laroche, the commander of Canadian forces in the country.

"We have lost a brother and a fine soldier, who answered the call of duty one last time in Afghanistan,'' Laroche said.

"We will honour his memory, his dedication and his desire to make a difference in a country that had lost hope that one day, its children would grow up to know the real sense of the words peace and freedom.''

Presence patrols are a routine procedure for NATO's International Security Assistance Force, allowing coalition troops to maintain security, Laroche said.

"These patrols are part of the many ways ISAF and Afghan troops show their presence, monitor the security situation and interact with the local population,'' he said. "Our thoughts are with the family and friends of our fallen comrade at this very difficult time.''

It's been nearly a year since a Canadian soldier was killed by an explosion while on foot. Cpl. Matthew McCully, 25, was a member of Canada's Operational Mentor and Liaison Team, which helps to shape soldiers from the Afghan National Army into cohesive, organized fighting units.



McCully was participating in Operation Hoover, an effort to flush Taliban insurgents out of neighbouring Zhari district, in May 2007 when he detonated an improvised explosive device, or IED -- the military acronym for a roadside bomb.

Meanwhile, in Ottawa, in an interview yesterday with The Canadian Press, Defence Minister Peter MacKay confirmed weeks of speculation, saying the Americans have "signalled that they will backstop'' Canada with reinforcements in Kandahar after February 2009 if necessary.

But the focus of high-level diplomacy and military contingency planning is now squarely on French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who had been widely expected to keep mum about his intentions until a summit of NATO leaders in Bucharest, Romania next month. It's believed that, if the French do not want to serve alongside Canadians in Kandahar, their battle group of paratroopers could deploy in the eastern part of the country, thereby freeing up U.S. forces for the south.

The current arm-twisting comes days after Parliament gave conditional approval to extending the Canadian commitment to Kandahar until 2011. The Conservative government now faces an impatient Liberal opposition that wants to know how soon 1,000 reinforcements will be on the way.

Monday, March 17, 2008CEFCOM / COMFEC NR-08.014 - March 16,

2008 / THE CANADIAN PRESSSection: Afghanistan

Ottawa Navy Club Not Giving Up The Ship

Their assets seized and the rent unpaid, members are determined to

find a way to reopen the veterans gathering spot, Ben Costen reports.

Canadian veterans will lose another place holding "memories of their sacrifice" if the Navy Club cannot find the $7,000 it needs to reopen, its president says.

The club closed to members and the public on March 4. Veterans' clubs and Legion halls across Canada have been closing in recent years due to a lack of interest from modern-day veterans.

Many Ottawans may never have heard of the club, which is tucked away on Victoria Island, east of the new Canadian War Museum.

Once a meeting place for 130 navy-veteran members, the club's assets were seized in February by a "bureaucrat in Revenue Canada," said Peter Hannaford, the club's president.

The decision came as a shock to the club, which had been slowly paying off a debt of $53,000 to the Canada Revenue Agency for unpaid GST and payroll taxes. The club always paid back as much as it could each month, said Mr. Hannaford.

Its assets lost, the club was not able to make its monthly payment of $1,500 to the National Capital Commission, its landlord, which included $1,000 in rent and $500 in arrears.

"It's a problem actually caused by Revenue Canada," said Mario Tremblay, an NCC spokesman. "It was never our intention to evict them."

The Canada Revenue Agency would not release any information on its decision to seize the club's assets, citing confidentiality.

"The club means a great deal to me," the 74-year-old Mr. Hannaford said, fighting back tears during an interview inside the now-quiet clubhouse.

Many factors led to the club facing a deficit this winter season, he said.

The building has no insulation and in winter, the cost of oil heating reached $1,600 a month, according to Keith Scott, a former club vice-president.

"We just inherited a monster," Mr. Scott said of the building.

"Nobody helped us down there.

You've got to sell a hell of a lot of beer in order to make that work."

When the anti-smoking bylaw came into effect, about half the club's patrons stopped attending, said members, and younger veterans from the peacekeeping era have not shown an interest in the club.

"It's time. It's age. People are dying off," said Thora Nugent, an early vice-president of the club. She believes it will remain closed, though the Ottawa-Hull Naval Association will continue.

The club's massive collection of wartime photographs, paintings and plaques, which completely cover the walls, is in no danger of being lost, Mr. Hannaford said. Two area benefactors have offered storage space.

But one very important item does seem to be gone. When the club was founded in 1968, former prime minister John Diefenbaker, who was in opposition at the time, sent a letter to the NCC saying that the club should exist in perpetuity and should only have to pay a rent of $1 per year. (The club actually paid $200 a month in rent then.)

The letter hung on the club wall until 1989 and members say they remember it, but now it's gone.

"It's in somebody's basement, I'm sure," said Ms. Nugent.

Members were allowed to take memorabilia home, and sometimes forgot to return what they borrowed. Mr. Diefenbaker's archives have been searched, but no corroborating evidence of the letter has been found.

"I don't think it would go unnoticed" if the letter could be found now, said Mr. Hannaford.

Mr. Hannaford has been trying to launch a fundraising campaign.

A retired admiral is willing to start the drive with $500, and will add another $500 if others give money, Mr. Hannaford said.

Howard McBride, a member of the club and a manager at Public Works, wants to get public servants involved in donating money.

"I'm not giving up the ship," Mr. Hannaford said.



© Ottawa Citizen 2008Monday, March 17, 2008

Ottawa CitizenSection: Veterans

France Buries Last WWI Vet

PARIS -- France unfurled its military majesty Monday in honor of its last World War I veteran, who died last week at 110, and all the other Frenchmen who fought in the conflict.

Flags fell to half-staff and the president unveiled a plaque at the gold-domed edifice where Napoleon is buried to honor Lazare Ponticelli and the 8.4 million other Frenchmen who served in a war that tore Europe apart.

The day of national commemoration was ordered by President Nicolas Sarkozy, who wants younger generations to remember the sacrifices of "les poilus" _ an affectionate nickname meaning hairy or tough that France uses for its WWI veterans.

"Never again will anyone tell their grandchildren or great-grandchildren about the terrible life of the trenches," Sarkozy said. "No more, will anyone hear the old 'poilu' tell his grandchildren or great-grandchildren: 'Never make war again.'"

"We will never forget them."

The solemn day began with a Roman Catholic funeral Mass attended by Sarkozy, government ministers, soldiers and teary-eyed members of Ponticelli's family at the Saint-Louis Cathedral, part of the Invalides complex that honors France's military and houses Napoleon's tomb.

"You didn't talk much but when you did, we felt your wisdom, that you doubted nothing and were determined," Ponticelli's grandson, Patrick Large, said during the Mass.

Flags representing all military divisions

that fought in World War I were later ceremoniously unfurled.

Ponticelli was a French citizen for most of the past century and an unusual soldier who fought first for France, then for Italy, where he was born.

Representatives of the Italian Alpine brigade for which he fought, along with its French counterpart, attended the Mass.

The 1914-1918 conflict, known at the time as the Great War or the "war to end all wars," killed millions. Only a handful of veterans from the war are still living, scattered from Australia to the United States and Europe. Germany's last WWI veteran died on New Year's Day.

Monuments to battles and war dead cover swathes of France where trenches divided the landscape during the war, which left 1.4 million French fighters dead.

Ponticelli was born Dec. 7, 1897, in Bettola, northern Italy.

To escape a tough childhood, he trooped off at age 9 to join his brothers in France, eventually becoming a French citizen.

He worked first as a chimney sweep in Paris, then as a newspaper boy. When the war broke out, he was only 16 and lied about his age to enlist.

"It was my way of saying 'Thank you'" to France he said in a 2005 interview with the newspaper Le Monde.

Ponticelli joined the Foreign Legion during the war and served in the Argonne region of forest, rivers and lakes in northeast France.

When Italy entered the war in 1915, he was called up to fight with an Italian Alpine regiment. He tried to hide, but was found and sent to fight the Austrian army.

Ponticelli returned to France in 1921, and he and his brothers started a company that made factory smokestacks. The company, Ponticelli Freres, grew into a manufacturer of specialized industrial equipment and is still in business.

After the ceremony, he was being interred in a family burial plot in Paris.

© 2008 The Associated Press

Monday, March 17, 2008ELAINE GANLEY, The Associated Press

Section: Veterans

IN THE CLASSROOM: What's not taught in books

More than 300 students interviewed more than 90 veterans for a school project that culminated with a luncheon at Corona del

Mar High School last week.Credit: Daniel Tedford / Daily Pilot

Cpl. Harold G. Scharfe has a motto: “Every day is a bonus.”

Scharfe has a particular insight, considering he spent three years worth of days as a POW during World War II.

“Hell” is how Scharfe described his experiences to students at Corona del Mar High School at a luncheon Thursday to honor 92 veterans who took part in the school’s Living History Project.

About 360 sophomores conducted interviews, did research, wrote reports and created a DVD of veterans they talked to, copies of which were presented to each veteran.

Sam Parks, 15, interviewed Scharfe, and was amazed by the sacrifices he and other veterans have made.

“I got to learn about things they don’t teach in history books and put a personal perspective on the stuff they do,” Parks said.

Scharfe, who was in the Canadian army in 1939, thought the experience was not only an eye opener for students, but a great experience for the veterans to come together in one place.

“It’s fantastic,” said Scharfe, a member of the Freedom Committee that helps put on the event. “There is a different



feeling among veterans — a certain camaraderie you can’t put into words.”

Ron Guyer, a representative for assemblyman Van Tran, and Newport Beach Mayor Ed Selich, spoke at the ceremony to honor the veterans, and also honored the teachers who were involved, for their efforts.

“I am stunned and pleased to be here,” Guyer said. “These are love stories you are honoring here today.”

The small gym at the high school was lined with students, veterans, teachers, parents and community members empathizing with the service veterans.

“It was amazing,” said Blake Burkhart, 16, whose dad is a veteran of Desert Storm.

“You don’t really know what goes on as a teenager — your whole perspective turns around.”

Scharfe reiterated the importance for students to be involved and learn about what veterans go through.

“[Students’] biggest worry today is getting a signal on their cell phone,” Scharfe said.

“I had one pair of pants when I was their age.”

Monday, March 17, 2008Daniel Tedford, Daily Pilot, California

Section: Veterans

As the ‘Great War’ Slips From Living Memory

Lazare Ponticelli, last of the poilus, 1897-2008.

Credit: François Mori/Associated Press, 2007

Four generations ago, they were in the trenches. Two generations ago, they were still a proud contingent in

memorial parades. As recently as the turn of the millennium, you could spot a hardy few waving to the thinning curbside crowds from the backs of bunting-bedecked convertibles, or summoning up the specters of Ypres and Gallipoli and Belleau Wood in History Channel interviews.

But a time always comes when the very last veterans of a war pass away, and relegate the cataclysm they saw with their own eyes to the bloodless abstraction of recorded history. And for World War I, this may be shaping up as the year.

The last living man known to have served in the French army during the “war to end all wars” — he was an Italian teenager who joined the Foreign Legion at the outset, and became a French citizen in the 1930’s — died this week at the age of 110. And the man believed to be Germany’s last surviving veteran — no official records are kept there — died in January at 107 (five years after his wife of 75 years, who lived to be 102).

That leaves just about 20 remaining veterans of the war scattered around the world, one-third of whom saw no fighting in it — down from about 27 at the beginning of the year. Not surprisingly, given their triple-digit ages, even fewer are still able to show the flag in public.

Frank Buckles, the last known American veteran, visited the White House and attended a ceremony at the Pentagon earlier this month; the second-last American died in February. Harry Patch, Britain’s last known Tommy, visited the long-ago battlefield at Passchendaele, Belgium, last summer at the age of 109. (There’s also a British sailor who saw action at Jutland, and a couple of soldiers who were still in training when the war ended.)

How much attention these veterans and their passings receive varies a great deal from country to country. The German’s death on New Year’s Day escaped public notice for three weeks and elicited no comment from the government. By contrast, Canada has already set aside money for an elaborate state funeral and memorial ceremony when its last known veteran

— John Babcock, 107, who never made it to the front and who emigrated to the United States in the 1920’s — dies.

The “lasts” of America’s earlier wars attracted quite a spotlight in their time, and not a little controversy. Such large crowds descended on City Hall in New York to see Hiram Cronk, the longest-lived veteran of the War of 1812, lying in state in May 1905 that 150 police officers had to be called to the scene to keep order, The New York Times reported. The last documented Civil War veteran on the Union side died in 1956 at the age of 106; on the Confederate side, at least a dozen names were put forward as candidates, but many questions were raised about their claims. All were gone by March 1959 except for Walter Williams, whose claimed age (117) and military service were debunked by newspapers later that year; he died in December. The men believed to be the last American veterans of the Spanish-American War died in the late 1980’s.

All but a tiny handful of World War II veterans are now 80 or older, and they too are starting to dwindle from view. If the halest of them live as long as the “lasts” from earlier wars (and while modern medicine and hygiene have greatly extended the average American lifespan, the upper limit has hardly budged), The Lede and its heirs, successors and assigns can expect to have occasion to write a post like this for them around 2035; for Korean War vets, in 2043 or so; for Vietnam, around 2063; and for the first Gulf war, approximately 2081. Can’t tell yet about the second one.

Monday, March 17, 2008Patrick J. Lyons, The Lede

Section: Veterans

Military investigates death on Edmonton base

The Edmonton Garrison is seen on Thursday, Jan 3 2008.



EDMONTON -- Military police were investigating Sunday after the body of soldier was found on a Canadian Forces' base in Edmonton.

The body was discovered on Saturday in the soldier's room at a barracks at the Edmonton Garrison, said Capt. Mark Peebles of Land Force Western Area.

"The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is investigating the death," Peebles said.

"At this point we have notified his next of kin. Right now the family is our No. 1 priority. We are going to do everything we can to support them. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to them."

Peebles would not identify the soldier, his unit, the cause of death or whether the investigation is criminal or not.

He said the military was leaving it up to the family whether they wanted the soldier's name released, adding that decision would not likely be made until Monday.

The body was found on the same day troops and families from the base gathered for the funeral of Trooper Michael Hayakaze, who was killed earlier this month in southern Afghanistan just days before his deployment was to end.

The 25-year-old Edmonton soldier was laid to rest at a private ceremony attended by friends and relatives and members of his regiment, Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians).

Hayakaze was killed on March 2 when the vehicle he was travelling in hit a roadside bomb about 45 kilometres west of Kandahar City.

Hayakaze was the 79th Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan since 2002.

Also, nearly 60 Edmonton-based soldiers from Lord Strathcona's Horse returned home early Sunday morning from a seven-month tour of duty in Afghanistan.

As buses carrying the soldiers travelled from the Edmonton International Airport to Edmonton Garrison, the troops were met along the route by fire trucks and

ambulances, their lights flashing in greeting

Monday, March 17, 2008The Canadian PressSection: Afghanistan

The Way Children See It

NUDITY I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved. She was stark naked! As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my 5-year-old shout from the back seat, "Mom! That lady isn't wearing a seat belt!" OPINIONS On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from his mother. The note read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents." KETCHUPA woman was toiling to get ketchup out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang, so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer it. "Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle." MORE NUDITY A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, ladies grabbing towels and running for cover. The boy watched in amazement and then asked "What's the matter, haven't you ever seen a little boy before?" POLICE # 1 While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was interrupted by a little girl about 6 years old. Looking up and down at my

uniform, she asked, "Are you a cop?" "Yes," I answered and continued writing the report. "My mother said if I ever needed help I should ask the police. Is that right?" "Yes, that's right," I told her. "Well, then," she said as she extended her foot toward me, "would you please tie my shoe?" POLICE # 2It was the end of the day when I parked my police van in front of the station. As I gathered my equipment, my K-9 partner, Jake, was barking, and I saw a little boy staring in at me "Is that a dog you got back there?" he asked. "It sure is," I replied. Puzzled, the boy looked at me and then towards the back of the van. Finally he said, "What'd he do?" ELDERLYWhile working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut-ins, I used to take my 4-year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds. She was unfailingly intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly the canes, walkers and wheelchairs. One day I found her staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass. As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions, she merely turned and whispered, "The tooth fairy will never believe this!" DRESS-UPA little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. When she saw her dad donning his tuxedo, she warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that suit." "And why not, darling?" "You know that it always gives you a headache the next morning. " DEATH Walking along the sidewalk in front of his church, our minister heard the intoning of a prayer that nearly wilted his collar. It seems, his 5-year old son and his playmates had found a dead robin. Feeling that proper burial should be performed, they had secured a small box and cotton batting, dug a hole, and made ready for the disposal of the deceased. The minister's son was chosen to say the appropriate prayers and with sonorous dignity intoned his version of what his father always said: "Glory be unto the Faaather, and unto the Son, and into the hole he goes." SCHOOL



A little girl had just finished her first week of school. "I'm just wasting my time," she said to her mother. "I can't read, I can't write and they won't let me talk!" BIBLEA little boy opened the big family bible. He was fascinated as he fingered through the old pages. Suddenly some-thing fell out of the Bible. He picked up the object and looked at it. What he saw was an old leaf that had been pressed between the pages. "Mama, look what I found," the boy called out. "What have you got there, dear?" With astonishment inthe young boy's voice, he answered, "I think it's Adam's underwear."

Tuesday, March 18, 2008ANON


Preparing for the return

There is a pamphlet on my desk titled Preparing for Reunion Stress. It was given to me a year ago when my husband and I went through the military pre-deployment process for Afghanistan.

Page one: The return as well as the departure of the service member disrupts the balance/stability of the family. The majority of families require approximately three months to feel comfortable together again; however unique family characteristics and/or

circumstances may shorten or lengthen the period of reunion stress.

Even though after 20 years of military life I've lived through reunion stress before, I'm tempted to say, "no, not this time." This was different. The kids and I have missed him too much, he'll be home, safe. The stress will be over. We'll fall into each others arms and never disagree on anything again.

Then I remember that I'll have to stop sleeping in the middle of my (our) bed. And that he may want to drive my (our) van. And I wonder if he's learned how to hang a towel properly.

Absence they say, makes the heart grow fonder. That's because memory is a fuzzy medium, like a pastel sketch; blurry edges, soft romantic colours. No flaws.

He probably doesn't remember that I load the dishwasher "wrong." When my daughter talks to him on the phone and tells him about making the basketball team, he doesn't remember that she gets as much water on the bathroom floor as she does in the bath. He hasn't seen a teenage eye roll or been around my perimenopausal PMS for seven months.

We're all looking pretty good to him right now.

When he deployed he left a space. We couldn't ignore it, we had to stitch it up, but not so tight that we couldn't find the spot to let him back in.

But each occasion or moment when we missed him, he grew bigger in memory, bigger even than the space he left behind. That's a lot to live up to.

Real life isn't a pastel sketch, it's a 52" high definition plasma screen with digital surround sound; it's hard to miss the imperfections.

I'm sure after all the hugs and tears, we'll have to bump into each other's reality a few times, as we shrink back to normal size.

Kim Reynolds is an Ottawa writer and publisher of wednesdaywoman.com. Her soldier husband returned safely from Afghanistan this month.

© The Ottawa Citizen 2008Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Kim Reynolds, Citizen SpecialSection: Afghanistan

Branch 383's mural uncovered a day at a time; Artist says people so interested they'd check every day on its progress

There is no need to have an official unveiling ceremony for a new mural inside the Royal Canadian Legion in Tara.

Every day last fall, when artist Tim Noble of Tara was working on the project, which covers more than 400 square feet of auditorium wall at branch 383, he had an audience.

"People wondered what was coming next and took great interest in it," Noble said as he looked over the mural. "They kept coming back every day to have a look, so it was really being unveiled for them as it was being done."

Suggestions about the mural's content came from legion members. Work began in late October and was completed for Remembrance Day, Noble said.

Legion members "wanted to make sure each branch of the service, both past and present, was somehow represented.

"The biggest challenge was getting the faces of the service people to look right," he said. "The faces are solemn, because it was not a happy time for them."

The focal point of the mural is the caramel-coloured Vimy Ridge Memorial and the grey Tara cenotaph, complete with a Remembrance Day wreath of red poppies.

The mural puts a finishing touch on a five-year $200,000 renovation project at the Tara legion. Thousands of hours of volunteer labour went into renovating and adding to the former one-storey building, which was licensed to serve liquor to only 37 people.

A new auditorium, with an outdoor patio, has the now two-storey building licensed for 257 people.



Work is now underway on completing the basement for a games room.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008MARY GOLEM, The Sun Times

Section: Veterans

Kandahar plays host to the Cup

KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN -- Star-struck Canadian soldiers were girding for a battle of a different sort yesterday as a team of National Hockey League veterans, the Stanley Cup in tow, touched down on a mission to boost military morale.

Gen. Rick Hillier, Canada's chief of defence staff, and Defence Minister Peter MacKay were also on hand as the towering silver trophy went on display on the tarmac at Kandahar Airfield for the second time in less than a year.

MacKay, who was on his way home after a top-secret three-day visit, likened the mood among the troops to that of a kid on Christmas Eve.

"The soldiers on the base -- there's probably a few of them who didn't sleep last night in anticipation of getting to play against some of their heroes, getting to see the Stanley Cup," he said.

"It's just a huge morale boost."

Mark Napier, a two-time Cup winner who played with the Montreal Canadiens and Edmonton Oilers, was among the players who visited last April for several games against what turned out to be a scrappy team of

soldiers.

"We've got plenty of beef," Napier grinned. "They pushed us around a little last year, so we brought a little more muscle."

That includes enforcers like former Canadiens winger Chris Nilan and Bob Probert, who racked up more than 3,000 penalty minutes over a 15-year career with the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks.

Conspicuous by his absence, however, was legendary tough guy Tiger Williams, who was expected to make the trip but ended up being delayed in Yellowknife, Napier said.

"When we were thinking about people to come, y'know, the troops love the tough guys, so this year we loaded up with tough guys," he said.

"I'm sure the troops will love having a chat with them, get their autographs and just generally take their minds off the war for a while."

Also on the ground at Kandahar Airfield were country-rock crooners Blue Rodeo, Montreal rocker Jonas Tomalty, Newfoundland singer Lori Anna Reid and singer- songwriter Gregg Lawless.

But there was little doubt that the true star attraction was hockey's gleaming Holy Grail.

"For Canadians, I mean, this symbolizes something that every young boy or girl grows up dreaming about -- playing for the Stanley Cup," MacKay said.

Thursday, March 20, 2008JAMES MCCARTEN, CP, The London Free

TimesSection: Afghanistan

Troop Morale Fund is Down

Subject: ALL BRANCH - A TOUTES LES FILIALES (08-005) - Troop Morale Fund is Down - Le Fonds de Moral des Troupes a diminué

The Troop Morale Fund is down to $17000. We will have to fold the fund by June unless more support is

received.

Duane DalyDominion Secretary

Thursday, March 20, 2008Dominion Bulletin Board

Section: RCL

Legion "We Support Our Troops" Pin

Subject: ALL BRANCH - A TOUTES LES FILIALES (08-006) - Legion "We Support Our Troops" Pin - L’épingle de la Légion ‘’Nous appuyons nos troupes’’

DEC has authorized the Legion "We Support Our Troops" pin to be worn on Legion dress until the end of FEB 2009.

Duane DalyDominion Secretary

Thursday, March 20, 2008Dominion Bulletin Board

Section: RCL

Efforts to Restore Shine to Medal Tarnished by Nazis

Georg Martin with an Iron Cross he received as a private in World War II. “I

don’t think it will come back in that form,” said Mr. Martin, 83, of Ingenried, Germany.

BERLIN — The German Army today has no awards for courage, only for attendance. The painful debate here over reviving the famed Iron Cross to fill that gap underscores how distant Germany remains from normality when it comes to the military.

As allies, including the United States, are pressing Germany to send more troops into the most dangerous parts of Afghanistan, the country is only beginning to reconnect with the trappings of armed deployments. Not only does the German Bundeswehr



lack medals of valor, it does not even have anything comparable to the Purple Heart for wounded soldiers.

Georg Martin, 83, a private during World War II, received the now-defunct Wound Badge in silver for the three times he was severely injured, and an Iron Cross for fighting in a heavy-machine-gun crew during the Battle of Kharkiv in what is now Ukraine. In fact, he has two of each. Once a year, on Volkstrauertag, the national memorial day, he dons replicas he purchased for a few Deutsche marks in 1959. Meanwhile, in a file with copies of his military hospital records are the original crosses, both bearing the swastika of the Third Reich.

The history of the Iron Cross, designed by the noted German architect and painter Karl Friedrich Schinkel, dates from 1813 and the Prussian War of Liberation against Napoleon. But as is so often the case here, it is the Nazi history that takes precedence.

Because Hitler’s government placed the swastika in the center of the simple black and silver design and handed out millions of the medals in World War II, the award remains off limits for today’s army.

“The symbol was abused by the Nazis and, as a result, has also become a symbol for the crimes of the Wehrmacht during National Socialism,” said Stephan J. Kramer, secretary general of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. Mr. Kramer said he believed that German soldiers deserved a medal for bravery, but one with a new design rather than the tainted one.

“I don’t think it will come back in that form,” agreed Mr. Martin, who is active in the local German War Graves Commission, in an interview at his home in the Bavarian village of Ingenried this week. “Of course they should have something,” he said of soldiers fighting in Afghanistan. But he added with a smile and a glint in his eye, “They could have something prettier.”

Germany’s defense minister, Franz Josef Jung, plans to request a new grade of the Cross of Honor for bravery, according to a spokesman, a

citation that is awarded in bronze, silver and gold for 5, 10 and 20 years of service, respectively. While, in exceptional cases, they can be awarded earlier for individual acts, Crosses of Honor are not considered medals of valor.

A revival of the Iron Cross is not under consideration, the spokesman said. That disappoints many, particularly in the military, who would like to see the Iron Cross revived as a symbol of pre-Nazi military tradition.

“The crimes of National Socialism took place under the swastika and not under the Iron Cross,” said Siegfried F. Storbeck, a retired lieutenant general living in Hamburg. In a telephone interview, Mr. Storbeck said Germany would always have to carry the burden of Nazi-era crimes, but asked for “understanding for what came before National Socialism.”

What frustrates Mr. Storbeck and other supporters of the Iron Cross is that they see it as having emerged from an era about which they believe Germans could be proud and should learn more.

“This was part and parcel of the famous Prussian enlightened reform era, which included, a year earlier in 1812, Jewish emancipation, legal rights for Jewish citizens,” said Michael Wolffsohn, a professor of modern history at the University of the Bundeswehr in Munich.

Oddly, while it is considered a political impossibility as a medal, the Iron Cross remains the symbol of the German Army, emblazoned on everything from military vehicles to the defense ministry Web site. But that is different from an award for heroism, a concept that many still find troubling in a country where the last recognized military heroes fought for a Nazi regime responsible for the deaths of six million Jews.

“In the German culture it is simply not possible to express esteem for young soldiers,” said Christoph Zrcher, a professor of international politics at the Free University in Berlin. Antimilitarism is a firmly centrist view in the political spectrum in Germany, he said.

It was not until 1955, 10 years after World War II, that the German Army

was reconstituted. It would be 40 more years before the Bundeswehr would undertake its first foreign combat operations, by Tornado fighter jets in the former Yugoslavia in 1995.

The effort to revive the Iron Cross has surfaced many times in recent years. It gained steam last year when a young airman gathered more than 5,000 signatures on an Internet petition to restore it. On March 4, the leader of the Bundeswehr reservists’ association and a member of Parliament, Ernst-Reinhard Beck, called for a medal for bravery, adding that he would have “nothing against the Iron Cross.”

Stefan Schröter, a major in the army reserves, recalled a case during his deployment in Bosnia in 2003 in which the brakes failed on an armored reconnaissance vehicle on a high mountain road. The driver of the vehicle behind it passed the out-of-control vehicle and stopped in front of it, risking his life and those of his crew members to save their comrades from hurtling off the side of the mountain.

Mr. Schröter said that in a staff meeting, the soldier’s commander said, “It’s a shame that there isn’t a decoration for bravery, or I would put him up for it.”

The soldier received two extra vacation days instead.

Thursday, March 20, 2008NICHOLAS KULISH, The New York Times

Section: Veterans



Our Veterans Suffer Side Effects Of Our Latest Conflicts.

Second World War veteran Aubrey McLean stands ready to lay a wreath at the Grand Parade Cenotaph for the War Amps

of Canada. He lost a leg during the war.Credit: Stock Photo, Daily News/Paul

Darrow

Trauma Resurfacing in Vets.

More elderly Canadian veterans are being afflicted by post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental illnesses that have been long suppressed, the Standing Committee on National Defence heard last week.

"From the very beginning of the Afghanistan campaign...a lot of the peers from the 1990s who had access or services and had ceased to use them were coming back, because they were getting re-triggered," Maj. Mariane Le Beau, manager of Operational Stress Injury Social Support at the Department of National Defence, said on March 11.

"Also from past conflicts, people feeling them re-triggered because it is on the news, because it is out there, and because it is right now."

On March 13, Doug Clorey, director of the mental health policy directorate at Veterans Affairs Canada, echoed those concerns, citing an Australian study that found the same thing.

"These were individuals who had returned from Korea, had married, had successful business careers and successful family life with apparently no issues, but they reached a point in

their life, perhaps when they started to reflect back on their lives, and suddenly PTSD started to appear in fairly significant numbers," he said.

"The second point is what we're seeing in our clinics as well, which we thought would be primarily the Canadian Forces veterans. We are seeing a fairly significant number of war service veterans and Korean veterans as well coming forward with very complex mental health conditions very late in life. That's a reality that we're living at this point."

Thursday, March 20, 2008Lee Berthiaume, The Embassy

Section: Veterans

Fredericton clinic will help veterans with stress injuries

FREDERICTON — Veterans will have more choices and more help when an operational stress injuries clinic opens in Fredericton next month, says a senior administrator for Veterans Affairs Canada.

Raymond Lalonde, the director of the department’s national clinic for stress injuries — which include post-traumatic stress disorder — at Ste. Anne’s Hospital in Montreal, says the new facility will provide assessment, treatment, outreach and support.

Lalonde said Veterans Affairs has seen a steep increase of the number of clients with such injuries, "jumping by as many as 1,600 per year since 2002."

"It has increased dramatically over the last five years," Lalonde said.

"We have indication that the (rate) of the increase is declining a little bit, but it is still increasing at quite a high rate."

Veterans Affairs is not revealing when in April the Fredericton clinic will open, nor its exact location.

Operational stress injuries are defined as being "any persistent psychological difficulty resulting from operational duties performed by a Canadian Forces member."

As of March 31, the number of Veterans Affairs Canada clients with a psychiatric condition was 10,252, including 6,504 with post-traumatic stress disorders.

That figure includes Second World War and Korean War veterans, and more than 4,000 Canadian Forces or ex-Forces members.

The number of clients with a psychiatric condition has tripled from 3,501 in the last five years.

The federal government confirmed last June that it would be investing $1.5 million to establish an operational stress injury clinic in Fredericton to serve veterans, members of the Canadian Forces and former RCMP officers who have suffered operational stress injuries as a result of their service.

The Fredericton clinic, which will be run in co-operation with the province, will be a first in the Maritimes.

There are five clinics operated by Veterans Affairs in Montreal, Quebec City, London, Winnipeg and Calgary.

The Department of National Defence has five operational trauma and stress support centres as part of the network, including one in Halifax.

Lalonde said his department has yet to see the full impact from the Afghanistan mission, which could mean even larger numbers in the coming years

Saturday, March 22, 2008The Frederictom Gleaner

Section: Veterans

PS Air Museum salutes Royal Canadian Air Force

More than 300 people – mostly Canadians, eh? – turned out for a salute to the Royal Canadian Air Force today.

The Palm Springs Air Museum has been putting on the event for seven years, organizers said.



"Without the Canadians, we couldn't have lasted," said Michael Gregory, a Royal Air Force Benevolent Fun liaison who spoke during the hour-long event.

The Royal Canadian Air Force got involved in World War II in 1938 with 3,100 personnel and expanded to about 250,000 by war's end, making it the fourth largest in the world. More than 17,000 Canadians died during the war.

"The contribution of Canadians to the war effort was absolutely incredible," said RCAF Pilot Officer Robert Patterson, who shared his experience with the crowd.

Following a short history of the Canadian Air Force and its contributions, dads hoisted children on their shoulders to peer into the sun and watch a brief fly-by demonstration. Cameras followed the flight path. Others snapped digital images of the single-engine Spitfire and P40 parked in the hanger.

"If I'd have been in the war, I'd have been a fighter pilot, without a doubt,” said Merv Aiken, who winters in Palm Springs from British Columbia.

"I've been out here every year. I love talking to the old guys."

Dedicated on Veterans Day, Sept. 11, 1996, the museum draws more than 100,000 visitors each year to see its interactive exhibits and 25-plus flyable planes.

Upcoming events include a conversation a WWII veteran Blaine Mack about the Doolittle Raid on April 12 and a presentation by the First Air Commandos of the Vietnam on April 19.

Saturday, March 22, 2008Nicole C. Brambila • The Desert Sun

Section: Veterans



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