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Remembrance Day: National holiday?/"Veterans' Day"? (merged)

Remembrance Day should be a National Holiday?

  • Yes

    Votes: 72 62.1%
  • No

    Votes: 38 32.8%
  • Undecided

    Votes: 3 2.6%
  • Don't care

    Votes: 3 2.6%

  • Total voters
    116

meni0n

Sr. Member
Reaction score
45
Points
330
NATIONAL HONOUR FOR WAR DEAD

By BRETT CLARKSON - TORONTO SUN


A Toronto Liberal MP is calling on his fellow MPs to make Remembrance Day a national holiday. Dan McTeague, the MP for Pickering-Scarborough East, said entrenching Nov. 11 as a national holiday is a "no-brainer" because Canada needs a "firm and concrete testament" to the country's veterans and war dead.

"I think it's an excellent idea, an idea whose time has come," McTeague said. "And I would invite any backbench member of Parliament on the opposition or the government side to move a motion that November 11 be considered a national holiday."

McTeague's membership on the Privy Council prevents him from introducing bills in Parliament, so he's encouraging another MP to bring forward a Remembrance Day private member's bill.

"Here is an opportunity for an enterprising young member of Parliament of any political stripe," McTeague said. "I think there has to be some direction given to a formal, permanent and long-lasting tribute to our fallen comrades, who by land, air and sea, gave us the country we have today."

As it stands now, Remembrance Day is observed differently across the country because holidays have traditionally been a provincial matter. While some provinces have designated the day a statutory holiday, others, like Ontario, haven't.

Bloc Quebecois MP Andre Bellavance's refusal to provide Canadian flags to a Royal Canadian Legion in his riding is reason enough to emphasize Remembrance Day as a national holiday, McTeague said.

"The gesture of that one selfish member, that one twisted member of the Bloc, is probably a good reason we should look at a national holiday."

The Legion has said it doesn't advocate making the day a statutory holiday in the provinces where it isn't, as long as remembering the war dead remains the focus of the day.

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/RemembranceDay/2004/11/08/705839.html





 
I was under the impression that it was a national holiday. Where isn't it ?
 
It is not a National holiday.

Some provinces have enacted legislation making it a provincial holiday.

The part that sucks about it is that all federal employees get the day off, with pay, so they get a "free" holiday that the average Canadian worker does not. 

Our National Holidays are:
New Years day
Good Friday
Victoria Day
Canada Day
Labour Day
Thanksgiving
Christmas Day; and
Boxing Day
 
I wouldn't mind it being a holiday in ON at all...  I had to move a course exam (scheduled for 11:30) to the afternoon so that I could attend the cenotaph ceremony with my unit...  :(
 
An idea who's time has come. There are those who look at it as  another paid shopping day.
 
I actually think it's a bad idea to make it a national holiday. 

If you make it one people will just be happy that they have the day off of work and will forget what Remembrance Day is all about.

My $.02
 
scm77 said:
I actually think it's a bad idea to make it a national holiday.  

If you make it one people will just be happy that they have the day off of work and will forget what Remembrance Day is all about.

My $.02

I'm kind of curious as to how you figure giving people the time to attend a ceremony would make them less likely to do just that. How exactly does going about work like it's any other day set the day apart from every other day?

If Victoria day wasn't a holiday, I bet that even fewer kids would ask "what's Victoria day for?" and find out the answer. BC has Nov 11 as a holiday, and the cenotaph ceremony is one of the best attended events in my community, from the 90+ year-olds down to the infants (there's a lot of parents that bring their kids out   :salute:). I'm positive that at least half of those people would not be able to be there (nor be there with their kids to explain what's going on) if it wasn't a holiday. The boss just wouldn't let them take the time off, and the kids would be in school, which may or may not have a decent ceremony at 1100hrs.

I'd say it's worth a letter to my MP to support the idea.
 
As much as I would like to say it should be a holiday, I think people would treat it as a buck shee day off to sleep in.If you keep the kids in school and devote all school activities on Nov 11 to educating about remembrance, they will then have a much better understanding of november 11 th.Dont get me wrong, my kids will always be pulled out of school on nov 11 cause I can teach them better than some school marm ever could.
 
Better to leglislate that employers must give time to attend a Cenotaph service, much as they must give time to vote if required. Another day off will be treated just like that: another day off. I'm with the Legion on this one. Cheers.
 
I have no objection to making it a day off from work, but I really object to using the term "holiday" to describe this day. The word is defined as "a day of festivity or recreation when no work is done". I don't know what other word can be used, but I really don't like it being called a "holiday".
 
It should be a day off for everyone, my brother works at the bank and where i work i think i'm the only one who stoped for our minute of silence at my work place , last year . i cant belive that boxing day is a holiday it show how much our government dosent care about our troops,not to mention underfunded! :cdn:
 
Storm said:
I'm kind of curious as to how you figure giving people the time to attend a ceremony would make them less likely to do just that.

Because I think that the average person wouldn't use it to attend a memorial ceremony.  They would just use it as a free day off of work.

If everyone was going to go to a ceremony I would be all for the idea.
 
You can't force things upon people. The only thing you can do is give the ones who are interested the option. Right now since its not a national holiday, some people who are interested, don't have the option.
 
What about designating another day some sort of national veterans day like Australia and New Zealand's ANZAC day?
 
ah I'll be working it for at least the next 17 years, so it won't bother me either way.
but I ain't too sure if it should be a national holiday, I'm one of those fence sitters that all you people hate.
Greg
 
Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I believe that all provinces except Ontario and Quebec have Nov. 11 as a stat. day off work.  With the politics in Quebec I'm not susprized but whats up with Ontario. Before anyone tries to blame the current gov. lets not forget ALL 3 PARTIES have had a chance to change this and have done nothing. :rage:
 
pbi said:
Better to leglislate that employers must give time to attend a Cenotaph service, much as they must give time to vote if required. Another day off will be treated just like that: another day off. I'm with the Legion on this one. Cheers.

I totally agree.   I would bet the attendance at ceremonies would swell, as there would be no excuse whatsoever.


tess
 
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