The White Poppy for Peace

Snowfall was closing highways in the giant puppets' neck of the woods. The bleak weather reflected the grimness of recollections of wars past, and the reality of present day wars. Remembrance Day was fast approaching.

With bread in the oven and lentil soup on the stove, the giant puppets were getting ready for lunch. Although it was cold outside, the smell of baking bread and hearty soup created a cozy atmosphere.

Gathered around the table the puppets were ready to dig in to their food.

image courtesy of Pixabay

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NOWCA (bringing the soup to the table): Comfort food sure suits this time of year.

PER (slicing the bread): I love having fresh bread to dunk in the soup. Say, NOWCA, is that a white poppy I saw you wearing? Aren't the poppies supposed to be red?

NOWCA: Yes, the poppy I'm wearing is white. It symbolizes remembrance for all who've died in war, including civilians, and the desire for peace.

MR. PIPELINE: That seems disrespectful to the soldiers Remembrance Day is dedicated to.

NOWCA: Not at all, Mr. Pipeline. You can wear both a red and a white one -- they don't cancel each other out.

GOOD TIME: Wearing two sounds pretty! I'd like to know more about this seldom seen white flower. By the way, NOWCA, this soup is wonderful!

image courtesy of Pixabay

NOWCA: Thanks, Good Time. I'm glad you like it.

Anways, White Poppies for Peace was started way back in 1933 in Britain, after the first World War, by people who wanted a peaceful future. Here's the website of their Vancouver branch.

MR. PIPELINE: NOWCA, you always have to be different, don't you? Why can't you just honour the one day we set aside to remember the soldiers?

NOWCA: Mr. Pipeline, when a symbol has a powerful and important message, I don't mind breaking with tradition.

What did those soldiers die for anyways? They died so that future generations could have a better world. We need peace now more than ever so we can stop fighting and start addressing humanity's problems, including wealth inequality and climate change. Besides, killing people doesn't solve problems. There are much better ways to resolve disputes.

PER: When you put it that way, NOWCA, it makes a lot of sense to be reminded of our obligations to those who came before us. If they gave up their lives, don't we owe it to them to do what we can to create a peaceful and safe world? It doesn't seem that much to ask.

NOWCA: I agree with you, Per. It's up to us to create the kind of peaceful and healthy world all those who died in wars would have yearned for.

GOOD TIME: It doesn't seem like that much effort if we all do a little bit. I want summers that aren't filled with smoke again. And war seems senseless.

NOWCA: It does, doesn't it? It seems like something that should have become obsolete long ago. But here we are, still steeped in the barbarism of war, and all its horrific humanitarian and environmental consequences.

MR. PIPELINE: Don't you read the papers, NOWCA? There are bad people in other countries who

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deserve to be bombed.

NOWCA: Most of the people who are killed in war are civilians. They don't deserve to be killed.

And war destabilizes everything -- societies, economies, politics, and it has appalling environmental consequences.

No one wants their country to be bombed, and people on the ground are worse off afterwards. Don't you read anything besides the papers, Mr. Pipeline?

MR. PIPELINE: Like what?

NOWCA: Well, you could go online and read news from around the world. It would broaden your perspective, even if you didn't agree with it.

MR. PIPELINE: I don't have time for fake news.

NOWCA: What makes you think some of the news you get in the papers isn't fake or, at the very least, biased?

MR. PIPELINE: The fact that we have a free press in this country.

NOWCA: I guess it depends on what you consider 'free'. Here's an excerpt from Wikipedia about Canadian media ownership:

"The Canadian media industry is not governed exclusively by free-market economics but rather through a combination of public and private enterprise. Apart from a limited number of community broadcasters, media in Canada are primarily owned by a small number of companies: Bell, Corus, Rogers, Newcap, Quebecor and the government-owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Each of these companies holds a diverse mix of television, cable television, radio, newspaper, magazine, and/or internet operations. A few smaller media companies exist within the Canadian media landscape as well. In 2007, CTVglobemedia, Astral Media, Quebecor, Canwest Global, and Rogers all expanded significantly, through the acquisitions of CHUM Limited, Standard Broadcasting, Osprey Media, Alliance Atlantis, and City, respectively. In 2010, Canwest was sold off and split between Shaw (now Corus) and Postmedia Network due to financial troubles."

MR. PIPELINE: So what? It's often more efficient to concentrate these things.

NOWCA: You don't think these large companies have their own vested interests? You don't think they wouldn't give space and air time to stories that promote their interests and maybe suppress stories that don't?

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MR. PIPELINE: And you call ME cynical.

NOWCA: I like to stay well informed, and that means getting my news from a variety of sources. I would have a very different point of view if the only news I took in was from mainstream media.

PER: Actually, that ties in with poppies for peace and our duty to dig deeper so that we understand what's really going on in the world.

GOOD TIME: I find all this confusing. Are there media sources you trust, NOWCA?

NOWCA: To hear what's happening locally, I listen to Kootenay Co-op Radio. And some other Canadian news sources I read sometimes are the Narwhal and the Tyee.

For perspectives from different parts of the world, I tune into Democracy Now for an American perspective and the Guardian for news from the United Kingdom.

PER: I find those news sources really informative, NOWCA. For environmental news, I also like the David Suzuki Foundation and Ecowatch.

MR. PIPELINE: They're just a bunch of fake news sites!

PER: The David Suzuki Foundation? You don't trust David Suzuki?

I read news from him and from lots of other sources. We have a duty to stay well informed so we can base our decisions on solid information.

MR. PIPELINE: Mr. Suzuki's biased! Maybe you should read news from the oil and gas industry and big business.

NOWCA: I'd argue that that's the perspective we mostly get through mainstream media.

Anyways, let's get the dishes cleaned up and go canvassing for proportional representation. I'll put some rice pudding in the oven so it'll be ready for dessert tonight.

And I've got a few extra white poppies for peace if any of you would like one.

Mr. Pipeline stomped out of the room, and Per and Good Time each helped themselves to a white poppy.

As NOWCA, Per and Good Time bundled up to go outside, their home slowly began to smell like cinnamon as the rice pudding warmed in the oven.

image courtesy of Pixabay