VE Day and Les Americans
War is raw politics. Somedays its hard to let it go
I believe that a country should be there for its people, and its people should be there for the country. Today, VE Day, is a hugely important day. A day to remember what could have been, and what might yet be. I’m afraid my disappointment in the country I used to call home is on full display in this post. (Not sorry)
Today is May 8th, 2026. Eighty-One years ago today, Germany surrendered unconditionally to the Allies. One of the greatest conflicts in history was done but for the clean-up.
Today is a national holiday in France. While there are very few people alive today that remember that time, there are enough reminders to make the history real. The people believe what they have been taught in school because it is easy to look around and see the physical proof.
We have been in Lavaur, France for several weeks now. Across the road from where we are staying is this failed bistro, Les Americains. It is hard not to draw a comparison to the fate of this business and the state of those United States. Sad.
Our Airbnb does not have a true internet connection. We are dependent upon our phone service and while the voice capabilities are good enough, the data connection can be quite frustrating. The silver lining is that it is hard to keep up on the news. It is hard to get a daily dose of bull crap from the likes of Facebook and YouTube. It is forcing us to get out and enjoy the sights and sounds of our new home.
Several years ago, while the Obama administration was trying to get some kind of healthcare program accepted by the US people, my wife and I were in a position where we had been let go. If we had been living in another country this would not have been such a big deal. Unfortunately, we were living in the USA. Healthcare is linked to employment in the USA. Can you say indentured servitude?
While that debate was going on, I asked a friend at the photo club what he thought of the effort to reduce the cost of healthcare. His only thought was that he was afraid that it would break the country because of the expense. He was not in favor. Didn’t matter that countries with far fewer resources than the US have successful universal healthcare, oh no. The US can’t afford it.
When I moved to the US from Canada, I became fast friends with a fellow at work. He was an avid – no – rabid golfer. The game doesn’t interest me so much, but I would join him and his friends on outings from time to time. It wasn’t until we found ourselves in the unemployment line did I learn how much of a right-wing ass (kind description) he was. It was during the healthcare debate that we terminated our friendship. My concern for the continued care of my wife’s eyesight was not something he had the least amount of compassion for. Death to Pelosi was one of his mantras.
Last month, while visiting the photo club for the last time before emigrating, I was chatting with friends about the move when one of them turned the discussion to Britain and the number of Muslims who were being elected mayors there. Didn’t I think that was a problem?
The truth is, I don’t believe that Muslims being elected to office anywhere is a problem. Where the problem is, is when racist bigots get elected to office by people like my former friends. On reflection, I suspect they really don’t know, or think of themselves as racist bigots.
Today, I sit writing these words while looking out across the street at a building that is probably one-hundred-fifty years old. I watch the people in the street, white, black, muslim, catholic, jew, all of them respecting each other and recognizing each other as people. All of them being respectful to each other regardless of their beliefs. All of them mindful of how lucky they are to live in a time and a place where they can think about today, VE Day, and what it means.
I give thanks to the🍊🤡 and his band of buffoons for exposing the US for what it really is.
I wonder how much of the actions of that same🍊🤡contributed to the demise of the bistro in Lavaur formerly known as Les Americans. I certainly believe that his actions have contributed to the demise of the worlds’ opinion of a formerly great nation.