Posted on 03/26/2003 6:08:01 PM PST by albertabound
'There are strange things done in the midnight sun By the men who moil for gold; The Arctic trails have their secret tales That would make your blood run cold; The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, But the queerest they ever did see Was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge I cremated Sam McGee.'
If you, our American brothers are as confused as us Canucks at what is going on in the (not so )Great white North, the following article will only add to that confusion. It must be some kind of secret plan to co-opt the rest of the weasels. I guess when we break off diplomatic relations that will really fool them.
Wednesday, Mar. 26, 2003
March 26, 2003 Defence Department confirms Canadian personnel active in war on Iraq OTTAWA (CP) -- Defence Department officials acknowledged Wednesday that Canadians are aboard American AWACS radar planes helping in the war on Iraq. It's the first time the government has conceded that Canadians on exchange assignments with the U.S. military are involved in the conflict, and the revelation prompted calls from the NDP and peace groups to withdraw them.
Prime Minister Jean Chretien declared last week that Canada would not join the war against Iraq without United Nations backing. The government later said personnel on exchange programs would not be involved in combat operations. About 31 Canadians are on exchange assignments with U.S. and British forces. "Yes indeed, we do have personnel that are performing roles with U.S. units that are involved in the war on Iraq right now," Lieut. Hollie Ryan said Wednesday. Ryan said she could not give details, citing security. Another Defence official confirmed that the Canadian participation includes AWACS work. AWACS planes are used for surveillance, command and control in air operations. Chretien also confirmed the presence of Canadians on the AWACS, but not that they are involved in the war on Iraq. "The people who are involved in flying in AWACS planes are covering many countries in their surveillance not only one country," he told the House of Commons. "They are doing a job today that they are doing since many, many months." NDP Leader Jack Layton said Canada is involved in the war on Iraq despite claims to the contrary, and called for the Canadians to be withdrawn. Layton also charged that Canada is supplying information to the U.S. from Aurora surveillance planes. "We think there's a very strong likelihood that that information is used to assist in the bombing, that Canadians are complicit as a result, and our government is complicit." Defence Minister John McCallum declined to comment on reports that Canadians are also involved in ground combat in Iraq. Steven Staples of the Ottawa-based Polaris Institute said there is a contradiction between Canada's foreign policy and the facts on the ground. "Today, Canadian ships and aircraft are clearly playing a war role despite Canada's policy," he told a news conference. "Our three frigates have been permitted to escort U.S. warships up the Persian Gulf to Kuwait, our two surveillance planes are relaying information to the U.S. Fifth fleet and a handful of exchange soldiers are serving with the U.S. and U.K. forces. "Policy incoherence would be an understatement." Peace activists called on Chretien to take an active stance against the war on Iraq. "We believe he has a mandate from the Canadian public and a responsibility under international law to make a strong statement condemning the war as illegal," said Vallie Stearns of Committee for Peace in Iraq.
There's a race of men that dont fit in, a race that can't stand still.
So they break the hearts of kith and kin and roam the world at will.
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