麻豆传媒AV

Dear Editor

Watching the images and hearing the stories of the people of Ukraine as they flee their homes and attempt to fend off the aggressive advancement of the Russian dictator’s troops has been astonishing and heartbreaking. The resolve and commitment of the Ukrainian people to keep their freedoms intact is a timely lesson for all of us. It is a time to look around and examine the multitude of personal and collective freedoms that we enjoy by living in Canada.

The power of the Ukrainians and thousands of others protesting the war in cities around the world is in stark contrast to the events we recently witnessed in Ottawa and other places in Canada. The men bemoaning their lack of freedom as they sat in their hot tubs looking like the party couldn’t get any better was absurd. The Honker Convoyers used their trucks to gas people with diesel fumes for days on end while destroying the hearing and health of many with their constant honking. In Ukraine, parents had to teach their children how to hit the ground, cover their ears and keep their mouths open so they wouldn’t have their eardrums blown out from nearby explosions.

The Honkers blamed all of their ills on one person and used vulgar language along with hate symbols to promote this falsity. This behaviour is now showing itself in other parts of the country like some kind of un-teaching moment. The Honkers flaunted their wealth and stomped on the freedoms of thousands. They left a mess behind, both physical and financial, that only the most arrogant would do. As people fled Ukraine a real news person showed an image of an overflowing garbage can by the side of the road demonstrating that people were still attempting to respect their homeland and have some level of normalcy.

I noted a film clip of a small child in Poland who had just crossed the border from Ukraine. Some wonderful people had thought to have buckets of pocket-size toys available for the children. The little guy reached in his hand and carefully stirred and examined all the contents before picking one. I hoped that it would offer him some moments of consolation throughout the days ahead. In Ottawa, children were used to hinder law enforcement from doing their job.

The Honker Convoy disrupters wanted us to perceive them as the poor victims and freedom as some abstract term that meant anything but what it does. Perhaps the contrast of current events in Ukraine and the actions of the Honkers will help us to have a better perspective on the fragility of freedom and life itself. The millions of dollars that the Honkers in Ottawa caused to be wasted by their actions is deplorable. Just think what good could have been accomplished if all that energy could have been used in a positive manner to help people in real turmoil in Canada and around the world.

Nancy Lyle

Spiritwood