Sunday, July 28, 2019

Without Further Comment; Daniel Woolf

A few readers sent us this photo of the now former President of Queen's University, Dr. Daniel Woolf, wearing what appears to be the United Nations Korea War Medal. Given that Dr. Woolf's biography states he was born in 1958, we are not quite sure how he managed to serve in the Korean War with US or Commonwealth troops. 
UN Korea War Medal
Woolf all dressed up with Arthur McDonald, a Companion of the Order of Canada, who also received the Nobel Prize;  it is a bizarre image. This photo was taken in December 2015 with Professor McDonald was presented with his Nobel Prize. 

 One can only imagine what the King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf, who knows a thing or two about medals, thought of the Canadian university administrator parading around with a lone medal he could not have possibly earned. Not exactly an effective way of looking "important" in a auditorium filled with a few Heads of State and some of the most highly honoured/decorated people in the world. Perhaps a university scarf of jersey would have been a more effective way of announcing the crowd "look at me, I'm important too." 

 You really shouldn't wear medals you didn't earn, even if you're putting them on the right hand side of your jacket. 
at

4 comments:

  1. PSHJuly 29, 2019 at 11:25 PM

    Is it possible that he is wearing the Korean War Medal earned by his mother Margaret M Woolf who served as a nursing officer in Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps, stationed initially in Japan, where she cared for Commonwealth troops serving in the Korean War. After all he is wearing it on the right side. And I know wearing such a medal is not in keeping with Canadian law or custom.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Inspector GeneralAugust 2, 2019 at 9:20 PM

    Wow that’s some pretty specific info you have there. You may well have identified the reason why Woolf pinned the medal on. The wearing of war medals which you didn’t personally earn is a violation of the Criminal Code of Canada — see section 419. It might just be “symbolic” but a general rule of good citizenship is you don’t break the Criminal Code. Beyond being illegal it is not an appropriate way to honour a relatives military service. The only Canadians who were permitted to commemorate their loved ones in this way were the mothers of those killed in the CEF during World War One. Let’s also remember the event the medal was worn at was a Nobel Prize ceremony and not Remembrance Day.

    ReplyDelete
  3. W. P. JonesMay 4, 2020 at 4:59 AM

    In Britain, it is a longstanding custom to wear the ODMs of a parent on the right side in ceremonial mufti. One can simply look at images of the Remembrance Day Sunday ceremony at the Cenotaph for numerous examples of such wear, further the whole purpose of wearing them on the right side is to unmistakably signal that they were awarded to a parent and are not to be confused with personal ODMs worn on the left side.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Inspector GeneralJune 14, 2021 at 4:49 PM

    Yes in Canada such actions are against the Criminal code, so what goes on in the UK is all fine and lovely, but Canadians shouldn't be breaking Canadian laws

    ReplyDelete