Sad that he had almost 30 years of his life stolen from him. He was an amazing human, probably one of the few people from this era that will be remembered centuries from now in a positive light.
It's Rob Anders, the Conservative MP from Calgary West. In 2001, he was the only member of the House of Commons to vote against bestowing honourary Canadian citizenship to Nelson Mandela. He claimed he voted this way because (in his words) Mandela is a "communist and a terrorist".
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I was living in South Africa when he was elected, and lived there for two more years afterwards. He was truly an inspirational man and did wonders for the people of South Africa, Even the human race as a whole. R.I.P.
It's Rob Anders, the Conservative MP from Calgary West. In 2001, he was the only member of the House of Commons to vote against bestowing honourary Canadian citizenship to Nelson Mandela. He claimed he voted this way because (in his words) Mandela is a "communist and a terrorist".
haha, that dude is such an embarrassment. That riding should be ashamed.
Nelson Mandela was truly a great leader.
As for post Mandela SA, I'm guessing the farm attacks are fueling a lot of of the fear regarding a "genocide" as well. Who knows what is going to happen. It might be a pretty tense time to be white folk in SA. 15 years likely wasn't long enough to erase decades of hatred and resentment which was, lets be really honest here, justifiably developed as a result of Apartheid.
Mandela seems like the type of guy who would post "Just released from prison" in the What really makes me happy thread, instead of posting "Just spent 27 years in prison" in the Grind my gears thread. RIP.
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He just seemed like a very nice person. I loved Squiggy.
haha, that dude [Rob Anders of Calgary West] is such an embarrassment. That riding should be ashamed.
I sure never voted for him. I voted for the Green Party over him every time.
Mandela's life reminds me of Gandhi, but maybe not quite the same level of spiritual leadership among his people. There are very few people who made such an important mark on society the way he did. RIP Nelson Mandela. May you never be forgotten.
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Last edited by Cali Panthers Fan; 12-05-2013 at 04:32 PM.
As much as I think that Nelson Mandela was indeed a great man, there's also a good reason why Amnesty back in the day wouldn't consider him a "prisoner of conscience".
As the head of the ANC*s terrorist wing he had a lot of innocent blood on his hands, something he never denied or renounced. His foreign policy record as a president wasn't exactly stellar either, with all the chumming up to dictators and stuff. Really the combination of his personal history, his vision and his legacy (which is largely yet to be seen) is what makes him such an interesting character.
(Not really so much unlike some other historical figures actually; like Lenin for example. It's interesting how some people become vilified and some revered for essentially the same things.)
That said, I have long believed that people who know themselves to be capable of violence are the ones who best understand what it takes to steer away from that path. It's not his fighting but his vision of peace that sets him as one of the great freedom fighters of history.
I guess my point is mostly that remembering what Nelson Mandela was and what he became goes a long way in understanding why you can't just label someone a terrorist and call it a day. Life is so much more complicated. Being capable of terrible things and truly great things have often gone hand in hand.
Last edited by Itse; 12-05-2013 at 04:38 PM.
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As much as I think that Nelson Mandela was indeed a great man, there's also a good reason why Amnesty back in the day wouldn't consider him a "prisoner of conscience".
As the head of the ANC*s terrorist wing he had a lot of innocent blood on his hands, something he never denied or renounced. His foreign policy record as a president wasn't exactly stellar either, with all the chumming up to dictators and stuff. Really the combination of his personal history, his vision and his legacy (which is largely yet to be seen) is what makes him such an interesting character.
(Not really so much unlike some other historical figures actually; like Lenin for example. It's interesting how some people become vilified and some revered for essentially the same things.)
That said, I have long believed that people who know themselves to be capable of violence are the ones who best understand what it takes to steer away from that path.
Great post! I was gonna post something within the same lines but you've covered it all.
Look at a 90 year old Mugabe in neighbouring Zimbabwe, Mandela could have chosen to go that route. He didn't. And that's why Mandela is a great man and Mugabe is a thug.
ummm yeah. This will probably get mentioned on the news once or twice, meanwhile I hear about Paul Walker 20 times a day still. I'm not going to turn this thread into a derailed argument, just trying to make a statement about how upset that fact makes me.
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haha, that dude is such an embarrassment. That riding should be ashamed.
Yep. As someone whose parents suffered under Apartheid, it's personally embarrassing to be living in Rob Anders' riding.
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Look at a 90 year old Mugabe in neighbouring Zimbabwe, Mandela could have chosen to go that route. He didn't. And that's why Mandela is a great man and Mugabe is a thug.
That's a very good comparison actually, funny how I've never really thought of it.
That said, calling Mugabe a thug is selling him somewhat short. He has obviously tried to do the right things for his country too, many times. But failing to make the right changes the right way is easy, and giving up violence once you've started is hard. As is giving up power once you have lots of it.
