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8 + WATERLOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, November 7, 2007 Peter WINKLER PUBLISHER editonial @waterloochromicle.ca sports@waterloochrunicle.ca Jenmifer ORMSTON REPORTER ext. 203 jormston @waterloochromcle.ca EDITORIAL Bob VRBANAC EDITOR ext. 229 Gerry MATTICE ext. 230 RETAIL SALES MANAGER sales@ waterloochronicle.ca SALES REPRESENTATIVES Norma CYCA ext. 223 neyca@ waterloochronicle.ca Bill PIHURA ext. 228 bpihura @ waterloochronicle.ca Carly GIBBS exi. 222 egibbs @waterloochronicle.ca Alicia DE BOER ext. 202 adeboer@ waterloochronicle.ca ADVERTISING CLASSIFIED 519â€"895â€"5230 CIRCULATION 519â€"886â€"2830 ext. 213 Canadian Publications Mail Sales Publication Agreement Number 40050478 International Standard Serial Num ber ASSN 0832â€"3410 Audited Circulation: 31,292 The Waterloo Chronicle is published each Wednesday by Metroland Media Group Ltd. ONTARIO PRESS COUNCIL The Waterloo Chronicle is a member of The Ontano Press Council, which considers complainis against memâ€" ber newspapers. Any complaint about news, opinions advertising or conduct should first be taken to the newspaper. Unresolved complaints can be brought to: Ontario Press Council, 2 Carlton Street, Suite 1706, Toronto, ON., MSB 113. COPYRIGHT The contents of this newspaper are protected by copyright and may be used only for personal nonâ€"commerâ€" cial purposes. All other rights are reserved and commercial use is proâ€" hibited. To make any use of this matenal you must first obtain the permission of the owner of the copyâ€" right For further information conâ€" tact Bob Vrbanac, Editor, Waterloo Chronicle, 279 Weber $t. N., Suite 2(), Waterloo, Ontario NZJ 3H8 LETTERS POLICY Letters to the editor must contain the writer‘s full name, signature, address and telephone number. Addresses and telephone numbers are used only for verification purposes and will ns be published. Names will not be withâ€" held We reserve the right to edit, conâ€" dense or reject any contribution for brevity or legal purposes. Letters may be submitted by fax to 519â€"886â€"9383 or by email to editorial@waterâ€" loochromicle.ca or by mail or delivâ€" ered to Waterloo Chronicle, 279 Weber St. N.. Suite 20, Waterloo, Ontanio N2J 3H8 WATERLOO CHRONICLE C 279 Weber St. N.. Suite 20 Waterloo. Ontano NZJ 3H8 519â€"886â€"2830 Fax: 519â€"886â€"9383 www waterloochromicle ca FAX 519â€"886â€"9381 EMAIL editorial @waterloochronicle ca e annual Remembrance Day ceremonies are T::cheduled for this Sunday at the Waterloo cenotaph and it serves as an important reminder of things we all take for granted. From the freedom to speak to the freedom to assemâ€" ble, these are all important rights ensured by the sacrifice these Canadian men and women made when they went to war. Canadians continue to make those sacrifices in farâ€" flung Afghanistan, where they are fighting to provide some of the same freedoms we all hold dear to the peoâ€" ple of that region. For those who don‘t think we‘re at war for these freedoms, remember the 71 soldiers and one Canadian diplomat who have already given their lives for that cause. And remember the Afghani women and men who are enjoying the right to an education or freedom from reliâ€" gious persecution that they didn‘t enjoy under the former Taliban regime. But if you disagree, that is your right too as was recently demonstrated by a peace group at Wilfrid Lauriâ€" er University who were protesting the war in Afghanistan. The only controversy locally was where the antiâ€"war protesters wanted to hold their rally â€" at the new Veterâ€" an‘s Green memorial. But there were no truncheons or threats of jail to settle that disagreement. Contrast that to what‘s going on in Pakistan right now where freedom of the press and other democratic ideals have been put aside. Instead we got a rational realization that the memorial was no place for that rally. And members of the Royal Canadian Legion even spoke out at the rally about the futility of using war to settle international conflicts. Members of the legion are only too eager to tell you how they support peace. Too many of its members still can‘t bring themselves to talk about the horrors they‘ve seen. But when called to duty, they answered. Shouldn‘t we do the same? Answering the call VIEWPOINT brance Day. Some of us will stop and stand in silence for two minâ€" utes â€" wherever we are; some of us will go to the cenotaph near the City Hall and give an hour to honour our community‘s veterans. Those veterans represent thousands of men and women who dedicated themselves to Canada in the First and Second World Wars, to the Korean War. And, now, we honour our soldiers in Afghanistan. Most of us will go about our busy lives without any thought to the men and women in Canada‘s military. To honour what others have done does not mean we celâ€" ebrate war. it is common courtesy to acknowledge the sacrifice that others have made on our behalf. And most of us will not think about the women who serve/d in the armed forces. Although some of us know that the first Canadian female soldier, Nicola Godâ€" dard, was killed in combat on the front lines in Afghanistan in May 2006. There were thousands of women who volunteered for active service in the Second World War. Of the 45,000 women who enlisted, more than 20,000 of them trained in Kitchener and Cambridge The CWACs â€" the Canaâ€" dian Women‘s Army Corps â€" took over what had been a men‘s training camp (near n Sunday, Nov. 11 at 11 a.m., some of us will observe Remem HRONMCI the Kitchener Auditorium). They came from across Canada and lived in severe conditions, in uncomfortâ€" able uniforms, and drilled for hours daily. Most of those women served in support positions because Canada had a poliâ€" cy that women could not serve in arms at the front. But their lives were just as jeopardized as other solâ€" diers‘ lives behind the front lines. Many of the surviving women veterans tell of comâ€" manding officers who were none too pleased to have women in their units. But those women came home and spread back throughout Canada, with a new appreciâ€" ation of their abilities to fulâ€" fill nonâ€"traditional jobs: to be drivers of trucks and cars, mechanics, codeâ€"decipherâ€" ers and to head up large kitchens. At the Canadian Federaâ€" tion of University Women‘s launch of Proudly She Marched: Training World LYNNE ; WOOLSTENCROFT War II Women in Waterloo County, Ruth Russell â€"the project‘s general editor, author of Volume I and the project‘s driving force welâ€" comed the CWAC veterans. One spunky veteran was overheard to remark, "There was no way I was going back quietly to household drudgâ€" The WRENs â€"the Women‘s Royal Canadian Naval Services â€" were honâ€" oured by honorary captain Sonja Bata (of the famed Bata Shoe organization) at the launch of Proudly She Marched, Volume II, who said, "their numbers are shrinking but their contribu tion should never be forgotâ€" ten. They should be celeâ€" brated for their service to society and to the Canadian nation." Anne Kallin, PSM Volâ€" ume IJ author, pointed out that the WRENs have a memorial â€" Jenny Wren, a small statue â€" outside the main branch of the Camâ€" bridge public library in Cambridge (Galt). And those WRENs fulâ€" filled many of the nonâ€"tradiâ€" tional roles their army sisters did. Let us remember those who serve, those who served, those who died, whether we agree with the cause or not. It takes individual courage to serve in dangerâ€" ous times. We owe our veterâ€" ans and our Armed Forces the few moments we give on Nov. 11.