Boer War memorial a ‘sensitive’ affair, bureaucrats warned Tories

Good example of fearless advice, and a reminder of how governments “use and abuse” history, to use Margaret MacMillan’s phrase:

“I never want to see this again, this is the 10th time I have commented on this,” an assistant deputy minister acidly responded to a list of invited officials.

The same senior bureaucrat was asked to sign off on Blaney’s prepared speech for the event and responded with a fundamental observation: “Speech doesn’t tell what the war was about, we are missing a learning opportunity.”

Boer War memorial a ‘sensitive’ affair, bureaucrats warned Tories – The Globe and Mail.