Posted on 12/19/2005 10:04:23 AM PST by NorthOf45
When it comes to fixing the military, why trust Martin?
Toronto Sun
By Peter Worthington
December 19, 2005
Even before the first debate, when Stephen Harper promised to boost military spending if he's the next PM, Paul Martin responded that Harper was copying the Liberal plan.
What bullroar!
Martin had his chance to enhance the military, as have the Liberal governments for a dozen years.
Martin's support for the military is rhetoric, not action. Judging from his record in Parliament, dating back to when he was first elected, he's shown neither empathy for nor interest in the military.
His concern now is phony. A ploy for votes. Put simply, the military is just not his shtick.
So Harper's assurances have to be taken more seriously than either Martin's proposals or his criticisms.
It's pretty obvious what Canada needs to do about its military -- updated equipment, priority changes, what's needed and not needed for our own defence, for reinforcing sovereignty, for on-going and future roles in UN missions, NATO peacemaking, or in operations with the Americans. A lot of ground has to be made up.
Of significance is Harper's pledge to revive, restore, rehabilitate, reinvent -- call it what you will -- the Airborne Regiment in battalion strength.
When it was disbanded by then PM Jean Chretien in 1994, it robbed Canada of a unit that would have been ideal for Afghanistan, for Darfur, for any assignment where the going is rough.
It was foolish and unnecessary to disband the Airborne because, by the time it was disbanded, whatever problems existed in the gung-ho regiment had been solved by a competent commander (Col. Peter Kenward) and was up to par.
All Canada's infantry battalions today are well trained. We just don't have enough soldiers for roles that need to be filled. Assuring sufficient personnel is a "duty" the next PM shouldn't shirk.
Harper proposes a defence budget of around $20 billion by 2010, which is encouraging. But he should also pledge to look at how the existing budget is spent. The military is not noted for being cost-conscious.
State-of-the-art helicopters for a huge, rich country like Canada are not a luxury but essential. We need helicopters that can carry heavy loads or lots of soldiers for crises in our north, or for operations in remote lands.
A few attack helicopters might also round out the slate. This isn't a quest for the cheapest but the best.
Military trucks should be acquired from General Motors -- not from an Italian firm located in B.C.
To economize, a Harper government might consider mothballing submarines, which have been a costly mistake. Fighter aircraft are sexy -- but are they as important as transport planes to get troops and equipment to where they have to go, rather than rent Russian planes to carry them?
The same with transport ships. Maybe Harper could persuade Mr. Martin to bring his Canada Steamship Lines (CSL) back to Canadian registry and pay appropriate taxes rather than register them in Liberia to avoid taxes and to pay low wages.
In 1981 Martin's group paid $180 million to purchase CSL. It took Liberian (and other) registry in 1992, a year before Martin became finance minister in 1963.
Now Martin's sons own the company. No conflict of interest there, eh?
It's hard to tell how keen Harper is about the military. But he's headed in the right direction. We know Martin isn't keen and only expresses concern when there's an election in the air -- or when a soldier gets killed in a traffic accident in Afghanistan. A bit different from a firefight.
Most of our military suspects and resents the Liberal government. Understandable. Soldiers would likely give Harper's Conservatives a chance to do better. Me too.
Let's do it. It's the right thing.
Peter Worthington / Canadian Military Ping
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(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie.Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")
I don't wish ill on anyone.
If terrorists decided to attack Canada would the US military come to the rescue? Of course we would. It is a shame that Canadians despite their implicit anti-American feelings don't realize this and continue to bash what is going on here. Canadian politicians would rather underfund their own military hoping and expecting US support if needed to win an election. Shameful.
Canada Ping!
Please FReepmail me to get on or off this Canada ping list.
Not all of them are blinded by the lies and empty promises of the Left.
I frequent the forums at www.canadaka.net and while the slant is mostly left there's a few of them (in growing numbers, too) who are conservative and pro-American, too.
And liberal as they are, on 9/11 when a lot of Americans were stranded in Canada the Canadians treated them as family.
(1) Canada relies on the US military to protect it anyway, as the current Canadian military is a joke
(2) Supporting the token Canadian military force during time of war is too much of a burden for the USA
(3) The US welcomes Canadians to join the US military if they are so inclined to protect freedom.
Didn't CND forces take Juno Beach in Normandy? For a smaller country, the CND military used to have some thunder.
Fourteen thousand young Canadians stormed Juno Beach on D-Day. Their courage, determination and self-sacrifice were the immediate reasons for the success in those critical hours. The fighting they endured was fierce and frightening. The price they paid was high - the battles for the beachhead cost 340 Canadian lives and another 574 wounded.
No, the answer is to strengthen our military, not disband it. The first major step though is to get the Conservatives into office.
Good article. I have nothing but huge admiration for Canadian troops. They've gotten bad treatment from politicians (and voters) recently. I hope that is changing. The world would be a little safer place if the Canadian military was better funded and better managed.
The intention of the US making these assertions to Canada about its military (lack there of) would hopefully shame the majority of Canadians into admitting that the current Canadian military is a paper koala bear, of pitifully small total size and substandard capability in the particular. From that realization, they would have to chose between being the United State's protectorate or acting like a grownup sovereign nation.
An entire Airborne Bn.? Does the Canadian Airforce even have enough transport aircraft to deploy that many soldiers? They may want to rethink that and keep it down to company strength. [/sarcasm].
Canada has a military?
Peter Worthington is pretty much always on the money. I like his articles and I like his thinking. How the H does he stand writing for that Liberal Rag, the Toronto Sun?
Your beating my drum!! I have always thought it outrageous that Canadians would be anti-American all the while smugly sitting under her protection. Shameful indeed!! This is one Canadian that APPRECIATES this fact.!
Precisely!! Maybe Martin should be made to pay for it with all the money he's made from evading Canadian taxes with his low wage, no Canadian tax, Liberian registered steam ship lines. What a DISGUSTING CORRUPT FREAK!! He should be sitting in Jail.
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