Of Funerals, State or Other

There have been a lot of funerals in the news lately.

First was the funeral for James Brown, the "Godfather of Soul". The funeral was attended by some of the most famous personalities in modern Afro-American culture. Even Michael Jackson, who tends more towards the infamous than the famous, showed up to pay his respects. And before the actual funeral ceremony, Brown's body "lay in state" at the Apollo Theater to allow thousands of fans to pay their last respects.

The second funeral in the news was that of ex-President of the United States Gerald Ford. Ford, the longest-lived president in history at 93, died a day after Brown. An understated leader and a decent man, Ford's body lay in state for three days in the Capitol before a state funeral in Washington and a private funeral in Michigan.

The third funeral in the news was one that has not occurred yet. Last year, the Canadian House of Parliament voted to hold a state funeral for the last veteran of World War I. The problem, it seems, is that none of the remaining three veterans wish to have a state funeral. The government has stated that it will only have a state funeral if the family of the deceased agree to it, but I can't see how the families would approve if the actual veterans don't. I think a better plan would be for the government to declare a national day of remembrance and celebration to honour all of Canada's war dead.

And the last funeral is the one that might have been a state funeral 20 years ago but which was a private matter when it happened. Of course, I am talking about the funeral of the late Iraqi strongman, Saddam Hussein. Had Hussein died at any time before his invasion of Kuwait, he would probably have had an even more ostentatious funeral than Brown and Ford combined. Had Hussein died before the US invasion of Iraq, he still would have had a funeral that would have been well-attended by foreign dignitaries. As it is, Hussein was executed like a common criminal and turned over to relatives for a low-key private funeral.

And so it goes. There will be more funerals over the coming days and weeks and months: funerals for victims of ferry sinkings and plane crashes; funerals for victims of car bombs and insurgent bullets; and funerals for murder victims. Some will be widely publicized, while others will be private expressions of love and grief. All will be a way of saying goodbye to those we have lost.