Guest Post by Francis Marion
Prologue:
Hi Jim and the rest of the crew at TBP,
In the spirit of HSF rehashing of old pieces I thought I’d send you this. It is an old piece I wrote shortly after I graduated from university – a lifetime ago…
Little known fact about yours truly. I used to do a fair bit of writing – paid and unpaid during this time period. I was blogging before it was called blogging and had a ‘webzine’ of my own along with a paid artist and – when I could – I even paid my contributors. It helped – as Montefrio (I think) stated – to pay the electrical bill but not much else. I quit doing it when we started having children as my focus changed to more productive economic activities. This piece got more milage than it should have. It garnered me the attention of our largest news radio station on the west coast accompanied by an interview which I struggled with. I am a better writer than speaker and later when our national state owned broad casting company invited me to come on a political program they were doing I declined.
I have lots of these – but this is one of the first I ever wrote and I thought it relevant to folks on both sides of the border so I am sending it.
As a side note I thought I’d lost interest in writing anymore until I stumbled across TBP (a few years ago now) but as someone stated elsewhere – this site and sites like it are why the internet was built. Like many here I come to the TBP because in a world of lies, distraction and superficialness the TBP is an oasis. Free speech tempered with shit flinging and thoughtfulness is the best way to describe this place. It’s an odd concept by today’s standards but critical to intellectual growth. I can imagine that the old philosophical schools of the ancients would have resembled this place somewhat. It is a combination of free speech, rational thought and merciless shit flinging (when mouth or fingers are engaged before brain). Thank God for it.
This place is what our modern educational institutions ought to resemble but don’t. So – thanks to Jim and the rest of you who make this place what it is. Don’t ever change…
What is a Canadian?
Canadians have been asking themselves this very question for as long as we have existed as a country; and as long as we have existed the question has never been answered.
The irony of this dilemma lies in the fact that on a daily basis we are bombarded with propaganda from the media/government on what a Canadian is. If we are to believe what we are told by this propaganda machine one might think that Canadians are simple beer swilling rednecks in flannel or perhaps people of a « cultural mosaic » working collectively (as though we all shared the same mind) towards another great physical or social invention. Unfortunately, none of these images provides us with a succinct ideological context in which we can define ourselves.
What is a Canadian?
The question has never been directly answered because quite simply there is NO moral framework with which to provide us an answer. We exist in an ideological void where the false gods of socialism are given equal footing with the ethical righteousness of capitalism. We live in a nation that claims that the rights of the individual reign supreme but at the same time fails to define what a « right » is. We preach tolerance for foreign cultures on the one hand but intolerance for the individual on the other. We are a nation of contradictions floating helplessly in a sea of confusion with no framework for living, with no proper definition of justice and without a single philosophical clue as to how a nation of civilized men interacts and sustains itself.
Indeed, there has been much ado about nothing as of late to discover an identity for Canadians that will distinguish us from the rest of the world… particularly from Americans. The governments response to this confusion has been a series of television commercials designed to tell us about how great a nation Canada is because of the technological and/or social contributions it has made to the world. Never mind that it is not the government’s role to decide for its people who they are. Never mind that such commercials still do not provide us with any moral framework from which to work; our government wants us to believe that we all share some collective pride for the scientific achievements of other individuals or that those social programs which we promote so vehemently are the answer to what ails the world. That many of these social programs have dubious moral roots is irrelevant; all of the above propaganda still does not answer the question: « What is a Canadian? »
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ub9tLW5Ino
Most frightening is the recent trend to define ourselves in negative terms. University professors, politicians, the media, and students proclaim « Canadians are not (pick your poison) ». Mostly though we are told that Canadians are not « American ». Let’s ignore the fact that Americans are no longer « American » either and concentrate on the implications of such a statement.
What do we mean by this?
In order to fully understand what this statement means we must first understand what it means to be « American ». What does America stand for… or at least, what did it stand for?
« We are a nation of contradictions floating helplessly in a sea of confusion with no framework for living, with no proper definition of justice and without a single philosophical clue as to how a nation of civilized men interacts and sustains itself. »
This is actually a very easy question to answer. One only need to look as far as the American Bill of Rights. Being American means that the individual is sovereign, that he has the right to « Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. »
In the U.S., a man owns his life. The direct corollary of this right is the right to use and dispose of ones private property, the right to arms, the right to freedom of speech, the right to freedom of association, the right to due process and so on.
If being American means that the rights of the individual are unassailable by government or any other entity then what does it mean to be Canadian if we are « not American » in the philosophical sense?
Think about it carefully. It means that in this country the individual has no right to the ownership of his own life. It means that individuals have NO rights in the eyes of their government or, for that matter, in the eyes of the majority of the Canadian population.
Of men and… cattle
So what does this make Canadians? The word « cattle » comes quickly to mind. Like Canadians, cattle have no rights. They are chattel property, controlled and lead to slaughter by whatever person, party or group of armed thugs happens to occupy the head of state at any given moment.
Whenever we condemn « Americanism » we condemn the rights of the individual. In short we condemn the good for simply being the good. Why? Perhaps this is a matter of history. We are, traditionally, a Common Wealth nation. From the early days of the American Revolution we have been taught that anything American is bad while systematically refusing to define what is « good ». Unfortunately we have forgotten that the American Constitution and its legal heritage is based on British Common Law. We have also forgotten that the Americans were once British too but that they revolted as a matter of profound moral principle… that individual rights shall not be infringed upon by any government.
We now continue to exist in this philosophical and ethical void as a matter of consequence. Indeed, our nanny state dictators prefer that the sheeps remain confused; it is easier to rule this way. Consider the implications to the current power structure if Canadians were to discover that they had rights imbued on them by their maker which no government may rightfully violate or abolish. By keeping us in a constant identity crisis, and by allowing various mechanisms to promote the doctrine of moral relativism, Canadians are kept docile and ineffective. We are denied our rightful place as sovereign and free men because, quite simply, we refuse to objectively define what it means to be « man ».
Perhaps the answer to our nagging question is much simpler than what our self-appointed rulers lead us to believe. Perhaps all it means to be Canadian is to be free? If we reject this concept then we reject what it means to be man. If we reject this concept then we deserve whatever evil befalls us today and for all time to come.
Keep writing.
Aaaaaand that’s why I’m here.
Excellent.
The quality of contributor here far outclasses any other Internet address I’ve ever stumbled across and that includes some of the best writing forums, comedy spots, etc. It’s all over the board, it never gets boring and there is always something brand new that I have never heard of before that I should know.
I have never heard of Sam Steele but in looking at some of the photos of him I can see why he was able to intimidate that guy without pulling a gun.
And though I have only met a few, I’ve never met a Canadian I didn’t like.
FM… when I see people joining in here, recognizing the same flickering hope in you that I sense in myself, I am reminded of this adage.
The pen is mightier than the sword.
Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/edwardgbu142668.html#lvIKUsBB39Yy8Q22.99
Now, because I’ve been immersed in the sarcastic riffing of MST3K for the morning while putting together a “best of” DVD for a friend, I’ll share this with you and NO OFFENSE INTENDED.
https://youtu.be/KJu5XrKzs5U
As an American, I would not be so presumptuous as to answer the question of “What is a Canadian?” But as an American, I can point to this strong bit of symbolism. The address of the Canadian embassy in Washington DC is 501 Pennsylvania Avenue. It is the only embassy located on the President’s inaugural route between the Capitol and the White House (and is a very beautiful building, btw). What does this say to Canada?
“We are so fortunate to have you as a friend and neighbor.”
That’s why I never had, or will have, any respect for the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in Canada, because it is too vague, and open to interpretation by those who created it. I would have preferred to have something along the lines of the United States Constitution with all the amendments to go with it, with a Canadian flavor. At least it would have given us sheeple more flexibility.
Francis Marion well said…… It is hard to define a Canadian when we have so many diverse cultures, all wanting to be recognized as “distinct” societies, from Quebec to the first nations etc and not as Canadians. Ask the leaders of these cultures what they think of themselves as. Every time, their culture is first, and being Canadian second. No wonder were so screwed up!!
Imagine the United States operating on the same level we do, with respect to “distinct” societies, and cultural backgrounds wanting to be recognized FIRST followed by their country second……. it would be a mess indeed!!
Anyways everyone have a great Sunday EH?
Joke: What’s the difference between an American and a Canadian?
Answer: A Canadian knows the difference; An American doesn’t care.
Chuck Fire, Indian Fighter
P.S.: Why do they call it “trial and error” instead of “trial and truth”? JFK said, “my father taught me that an error is not yet a mistake until it is repeated”.
A more insightful spin on the joke answer may be “A Canadian is told by his government to embrace the difference that it itself never defined; and an American just doesn’t care”
After many years of travelling around the world, whenever meeting a person from Canada, they ALWAYS described themselves as Canadian. Even some American’s travelling incognito, wearing a Canadian maple leaf pin!
However when travelling in Canada, the people usually always described their ethnic background first, as in; “I’m Scottish Canadian”. Or “I’m French Canadian”. But when outside their country, its USUALLY ALWAYS; “I’m Canadian”.
This duality of identity is uniquely Canadian, when taken in context to the meat of the article, Canadian’s are still struggling to identify themselves and to describe their their place amongst nations.
This confusion bears itself out in recent Canadian external military adventures. Well known in the past a “Peace Keeper” nation, always as an intermediary between warring factions, Canada has switched 180 degrees and has become a military belligerent overseas, against the wishes of the majority of it’s citizens! Another duality!
The identity struggle continues. The problem being the shape of the peg and that of the hole, keep changing just when they figure they have it!
HSF – the video embedded in the article was always one of my favourite pieces done by the Ministry of Propaganda here.
Aside from the likelihood that this encounter is fictional Canadians carried side arms well into the 20th century. There are plenty of primary sources including photographs to prove it and contrary to popular belief we still own them (though laws surrounding where they may go with us are strict and carry permits are difficult to impossible to obtain under most circumstances). Canada has a population of around 34 million people or so. I am guessing that if you include older stuff and the surplus iron laying around from before there was such a thing as an import permit that there is enough hardware in this country to arm each Canuck once or twice over. If you look outside of official ‘government stats’ and just use a little common sense you come to realize that your northern neighbour (us ‘peace loving quiet Canadians’) on a per capita basis are one of the most heavily armed civilian populations on the planet. I would guess in the top 5 – somewhere behind you guys, the Swiss and few others.
This of course is only one piece of propaganda (in a sea of lies) designed primarily to create an image both domestically and internationally of who we are. Ultimately, it is having the same effect here as it has had elsewhere – it has simply divided the population and caused resentment between the liberal elites and those who are not.
As for the RCMP and how they are portrayed that is a more complex issue. A friend of mine in the force says about 20% of them are moral men who are in policing for the right reasons. The other 80% are of questionable character and are prone to use the excuse that they are just taking orders. They have become muscle for the left. Of the 20% that I know (and I know a lot of them) – they are praying that they can make it to retirement before TSHTF. They want nothing to do with what is coming. That’s a strong statement coming from members of a nations national police force. Kinda contradicts the whole Sam Steele image eh?
Peace Order and Good Government my ass.
Obtain a copy of “The American” by Byron McGregor to see true appreciation for the USA. Canadian Byron McGregor narrated this in the 1970s…
Hi Francis
I am going to give you my take on things.
As you can tell I would be considered one of those people you speak of. I have always found it amusing to ask this question. The reason for this being that I really don’t think there is such a thing as a Canadian Identity.
As my moniker suggests I am from the Province of Nova Scotia. i have in the past tried to square my definition of being a Canadian but like a dog chasing it’s tail I end up where i started just a little more confused.
I have always been interested in history. It is something that binds us to our past. What struck me as I proceeded thru school was the lack of the Nova Scotia narrative in the pantheon of what has been the attempt by central government to bind us together . Nova Scotia you see is home to the original separatists in Canada. Even now when I describe myself I am first and foremost a Nova Scotian not a Canadian. Most of the history I learned and what has been propagated by the CBC and NFB has revolved around the dual identities of Ontario and Quebec. This should not surprise anyone as long before Confederation Canada consisted of those two parts. Nova Scotia was added to this along with New Brunswick under duress from the Crown in 1867. They couldn’t even come up with a new name for the country. It was for all intents and purposes a takeover. Even the Capital of country stayed in Ottawa.
I have made several trips to Ontario. If you look at the monuments and icons there from the perspective of a Nova Scotian it seems more like a takeover than a partnership. This country subsumed Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia did not join it. Even the Capital and Industry located here moved west in the Aftermath of Confederation. Yet we have to learn about David Thompson rather than Joseph Howe.
Listening to songs like the Canadian Railroad Trilogy
Even though it doesn’t reflect the rhythms of this coast that I live on. Ask a Maritimer where home is and even if they have lived for the last 50 years in Calgary, down home is and always will be here and not there.
The real fun begins when I tell Canadians how I feel and how I identify. During the 1988 Olympics in Calgary I was standing on the ski hill at Nakiska. Waiting for the skiiers to fly by. I had been chumming around events with a young lady from Texas. On this day I was standing there proudly holding my Nova Scotian Flag when someone from Alberta came up to me wondering why I was there with my flag. He told me that I shouldn’t have brought it and rather should be flying Canadian flag. It was something I will never forget.
The Texan turned to me puzzled when the Mob left and asked why this happened. I explained to her that we are the Puerto Ricans of Canada. I still like we are yet now it doesn’t matter. The place I live in is beautiful. The seasons and tides have a rhythm I cannot find anywhere else.
There is also self-deprecation I can’t in other parts of this country. People in Ontario and West think they are like that guy selling beer on TV, the most interesting Man/Woman in the world.
For me I relate more to Stompin’ Tom Connors
This fellow was from Prince Edward Island a short hop across the water from beach I was walking on earlier today.
Cheers
from the right coast
Rob,
I’ve long be a proponent of the idea that the idea/concept of Canada is not a bad one but in practice it simply doesn’t work. The country is too big and too different culturally from one end to the other to truly work as well as it should or could. Not that it’s a bad place – like many other nation states it has its ups and downs but if we were honest with ourselves, stopped thinking about our image and stopped worrying about who has control/power over what then we’d dissolve this federation and let each region go its own way.
I’m a child of the west – born in British Columbia, raised in Saskatchewan and once again residing in the province of my birth. My country – culturally speaking – begins somewhere just east of the Saskatchewan/Manitoba border flows south to the Dakotas, north to the Arctic circle and west to the Pacific. Additionally – places like Vancouver would be better served as city states while the heartland of the west would make more sense as an individual nation state. The people would be better served if the politics of one did not control or dominate those of the other.
This is my humble opinion only of course. I bear no ill will towards my fellow countrymen and simply desire a space and an environment where I am left alone by and large and where the problems that arise are at least mine to fix. As it stands, as citizens of this country, we are by and large disenfranchised. But it is the same everywhere now so why should it be any different here?
To dream eh?
To dream yes.
I don’t propose to speak for all Nova Scotians but I have never worried about trying to find some Pan-Canadian Identity. It’s pointless as far as I am concerned. Trouble is te myths to bind it together. Ours for the most part are either based on the opening of the West, Vimy Ridge or the good cop role we played for UN after WW2.
Those things don’t really resonate for me. Never have. Which is odd because my Mom is from Alberta. See my dad left my hometown when mine in Stellarton/Plymouth blew up for what should have been last time in 1958, I think. He joined the many who have left before and since, went West. Eventually my Dad was drawn home. I was born in Toronto on way back but spent all my life here. This place is and always will my home. Like you say in your wish I am left alone here and I like it.
There is a mountain in British Columbia named after my Great Grand father
http://travelingluck.com/North+America/Canada/British+Columbia/_5905728_Boone+Taylor+Peak.html
Someday I would like to see it but my vista here although much more humble is what I like to look at each day when I get up.
The hard part is getting steady work but after many fits and starts I am on my way home too!
Cheers
rob in Nova Scotia
Nice post FM! It seems that Americans are becoming Canadians. We are losing our unifying identity here and it’s going to be damned hard to get it back.
When I think Canadian, I think “Great White North” and of course, at this time of day, the Bob and Doug classic:
“Perhaps all it means to be Canadian is to be free? If we reject this concept then we deserve whatever evil befalls us today and for all time to come.”
An honest sentiment, and an honest answer must acknowledge that Canadians are not free and never have been. The Charter of Rights is an open sham, a vehicle for over-ruling individual human rights rather than preserving them.
Canadians have little interest in the fight for freedom simply because the state has ensured the personal price will be too high.
I disagree
The Charter was a vanity project undertàken by Pierre Trudeau. No rights were given to me that I didn’t already have under Common Law.
Saying we won’t fight doesn’t hold up if you look in history book. There is a reason why that abode on Pennsylvania Avenue is called the White House.
Now we don’t have a Bill of Rights like the folks in USA but as I type Obummer is getting ready to shred 2nd amendment
4th no longer exists
The 1st if AG gets her way is a goner as well.
Rob,
That’s interesting – Monkman Park (where your family mountain is located) is a wonderful/beautiful place and a well kept secret. I lived in that region of the province for 12 years – it was my back yard for some time and we killed a lot of game just outside its boundaries. Those are fond memories.
How cool is that. Someday I am going to go there and see that mountain.
FM – great essay. I believe I was the one that stated the quote in your preface (from Hsf’s wasp post/comments). Although, I said: “TBP was why the internet was made.” Not “built”. Regardless, I don’t need the credit, but it would make one hell of a cool t-shirt, ya know? Keep writing. Never, ever, ever, give up. Get it? Got it? Good! This essay was great. In any case, when I think of Canadians, I think: “nice folks. Good neighbors. Gnite
For myself, someone who enjoys striking up a conversation with strangers, I would define what almost all Canadians have in common is a dislike for any and all levels of government and the people who populate those positions. Aside from that commonality, we tend to tolerate the differences of other people, as long as they bring their cuisine with them for us to enjoy.
Canada is a country that has never ‘taken a chance’. Always played it safe.
Therefore it is nothing, stands for nothing, no character.
It may have been written long ago, but it resonates quite clearly today, perhaps even more so, particularly when one considers contemporary “identity politics” in the US and elsewhere.
P.S. Yeah, it was I who brought up the “electric bill” thing that was written by Stephen King. I too had to spend the parenting years working at something else as well, but the writing earnings, while small, have been steady and for that I’m grateful. Hate to say it, but I have Wall St to thank for putting my kids through schools and funding my early and desperately desired retirement from the world of finance. We do what we have to do, I guess, and I got lucky.
Keep writing!
Dutchman says stands for nothing, no character.
What a fucking crock. Go to Holland your homeland and ask a real Dutchman what they think of Canadians. While the U.S. and the Brits were on there excellent adventure across the hedgerows and farm-fields of Northern France and Belgium the Canadians were slogging thru the dykes and flooded fields of Holland to save that Country from starving to death in fall/winter of 44/45.
Played it safe.Yeah right!
You call yourself Dutchman. The irony of it all.
This is an explaination that I read from a post on ZeroHedge wich best explain Canada.
As a member of a nation targetted by this invasion and having to fight most of all of my adult life to protect my, and fellows, francophone rights I can personaly vouch for the above définition. I hope this explanation can help others understand Canada and realise that nothing will change in the country until the process is completed.
Dutchman,
Never confuse humility with passivity. This is perhaps the biggest difference culturally between us and our neighbours. My grandfather and his brothers were used as the tip of the spear in Europe.
As colonials – at the time – we were given little credit for what our forefathers did during this conflict. Today – still – we (our forefathers) receive little recognition for our part in the media internationally. That’s fine with me – I don’t think our grandfathers went to Europe for the fanfare or recognition but rather out of a sense of dutyand because it seemed to be the right thing to do. Loyalty and conscience – fading concepts these days.
A lack of ‘national identity’ does not necessarily translate into a lack of character. Learn the difference.
The citation was missing in previous post.
Got to remember where Canada comes from. Our colonists won the war against the Brits. Canada’s French settlers lost the war agaisnt the British Empire. Our laws that came out of the period were built to make sure we don’t get invaded by a foreign foe ever agan… and it sort-of worked for a while. In Canada the laws were made to keep the invasion going while keeping domestic dissent at a bare minimum. Those laws are still pretty much in effect.
I agree Michel. My view on this country is, I now realize, more attune to what arose out of the Quiet revolution than I thought. I think only way this country is going to stay together going forward is if the regions mind their own business and become as they say.
Maitres chez nous.
There is no point trying to stitch together this country with a common thread. There is too many threads to choose from.
“There is no point trying to stitch together this country with a common thread. There is too many threads to choose from.”
Amen.
Perhaps it’s partially due to the geographical size of Canada?
Comparing to film actors / roles: The US could be likened to Rambo.
Whereas Canada is Jeremiah Johnson & Grizzly Adams combined with Michael J Fox, Ellen Page & Christopher Plummer. (unfortunately, this ends my repertoire of Canadian actors)
I know…, it’s a lame analogy not deserving of FM’s eloquence. But like with any crisis – identity or otherwise – perhaps it’s a matter of ideological proximity. (i.e. – looking too closely as opposed to from a distance)
Canada – a county so confused that software must be both in English and French, changed by a hot key. I know, I gotta supply it.
Every hear of a Canadian cookbook? comedian? car?
Now us Dutch – we have ho’s right in the window to chose from, plus needle park. Oh BTW, it’s a finger in the dike not dyke. Well maybe dyke.
Hey Woody
If you are going to be a troll you should make sure you type country instead of county. Otherwise you just sound retarded.
Jim Carey & Mike Myers. Just sayin, Dutch. BTW – Ellen Page is a dyke. Whether a “top” or a “bottom”, is a “dyke” a dyke”? WTF is goin’ on here?!!!
It’s like watching a war break out between Holland and a Canadian province all over SM’s humble and eloquent perspectives. Pass the popcorn….
I met the Netherlands and a Canadian province. Not Holland. Same thing, I guess. Doesn’t matter, really Oh well..
“Meant”. Not ” met”. To all the “punctuation police” out there, I am NOT a retard! Oh wait. Let me think about it. I will get back to you on that…
Is it the Netherlands or Holland? Does’t matter – can’t find the place on a map anywhere anyways.
From Holland.com:
“The Netherlands consists of twelve provinces. Two of them, North and South Holland, are the two provinces that together make Holland. Due to the maritime and economic power of these provinces in the 17th century, the Netherlands became known worldwide as Holland. To make matters even more confusing the inhabitants of the Netherlands are called Dutch.”
Fuck. And I thought we Canadians had an identity crisis…..
FM – C? That’s all I was sayin’ You got me. Wasn’t sure if anyone would. Not that Dutchman is really from either country – I really don’t know. It doesn’t matter. But people in glass houses should not throw stones. That said – I did enjoy Dutch’s “caustic comments” and he may not be totally wrong. In any case, this is why I so enjoy TBP = “free will, pedal to the metal & balls to the wall”. Feelings be damned. I also enjoyed the debate between Rob & Dutch in regard to your essay / insights.
Keep writing. U have skills. In fact, I remembered reading your essay online years ago. Is amazing how things come full circle. I always remembered your “identity” essay because I like to fish in Canada and have made friends there. I have also done business in your country as well. Not so much anymore tho. National Identity crisis or not, they were (are) all “salt of the earth” folks. Take care…
Also – to FM – maybe Dutch’s comments describe some of the ‘symptoms” whereas your essay addresses the underlying “cause”? Just a thought. Regardless, in the US – we also have our own “fish to fry” Looking forward to future posts from you. G’nite
Jfish – he’s not totally wrong.
It’s funny to hear you read this all those years ago. Life is funny that way – makes me wonder if its by design sometimes.
Anyways – I actually had to dig this up from another web site – I never kept electronic or paper copies of anything I wrote. I just switched it all off and walked away. I think I got burnt out and ran out of things to say. After a while I started to feel like a broken record. I hate broken records so I stopped.
FM – “ripples in the pond”. And – “quality stands the test of time”. I guess the key is to keep tryin’ and let the chips fall where they may. You never know what can happen. Keep the faith & rock on.
The most powerful force in the world is an “idea”. And – like Matt Damon said in the film “We Bought a Zoo”: “Sometimes it only takes 20 seconds of insane courage”. Or, something similar?
Anyway, I have been a reader of TBP for sometime. But only a recent “commenter/poster”. In fact, my 1st posts took place on Saturday in the HSF “Wasp” thread. I almost didn’t do it. But I am so glad I did.
Then – you ended up quoting “TBP on why the internet was built” yesterday/Sunday. I suppose, ideas – like courage – are contagious. This is why I so value TBP and other similar alternative sites.
Please forgive the “cliché’s”. And – if I am plagiarizing anyone, please accept my apologies. It’s only a conversation. No need for disclaimers.. Balls to the wall. There is no time for temerity any longer. My opinion… Nite.
Timidity. Not Temerity. Freudian slip. My bad…
Jfish welcome to the zoo.
As for Ole Woody he’s just being a STM. All in good fun and like FM said there is always a bit of truth otherwise it wouldn’t piss people off.
Thanks Rob. I have appreciated your posts for some time. Take care…
Nah This is better