No one has addressed the question I asked in my earlier post.
I thought about letting it lie. But, after a night of thought - decided to ask it again. It was an unanswered question - for my students too.
A handful of policemen have died in service in Canada in the last couple of years - thankfully a very low total. In some years, my own province of B.C., looses more loggers to death on the job. I'm thankful the total of police lost most years in Canada - is so low.
Canada didn't loose a few more soldiers than policemen last year. Not scores more, not twice as many. In the last few years Canada has lost well over ONE HUNDRED more soldiers than policemen.
No huge heavily publicized funerals for them. No people flying in from around the country and foreign lands to honour them. No huge publicity of every detail of their deaths. No huge publicity about their every action in life and every detail of their death. 4000+ military men are not flown in for their funerals to honour each of their deaths.
Why is the policeman's ceremony so over-the-top, so huge, such an event, so much in the news, why such a huge public event - compared to the relative anonymity of what happens - for Canada's 134 dead soldiers coming home from Afghanistan?
I understand honouring those who have fallen in duty. I think it's also fair to question things relating to that honouring.
But why does the typical soldiers funeral differ so much the typical policeman's funeral?
That seems to be a question that no one wants to touch.
