Canada's new role in the war on terror
Since October 2001 Canada has been a part of the coalition forces in Afghanistan.
This was all fine in the beginning. Canadians still held on to the belief that we are a peaceful nation, normally involved in peace-keeping operations. So it was a pretty big surprise that Canadian Forces were the thrid largest (after the United States and the United Kingdom) with 15,000-strong committed.
I guess no one cared, because the war only lasted 24 hours. Since then, Canada's involvement went down to a 2,300 person battle group, standard complement as part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).
However, that was five years ago now. Since then, Steven Harper and the Conservatives took office (in January), which can be mainly blamed on the poor leadership and decisions made by the Liberals while in office.
After Harper took office our involvement in Afghanistan has been slowly becoming even greater. If you haven't noticed, Canada has taken on agreater role in Afghanistan. In February, Operation Archer was launched and aimed at bringing down the renewed efforts of the Taliban. By spring time Canada had asserted itself as a key player in Afghanistan, with a 2,300-strong task force based in Kandahar and also taking command of the Multi National Brigade, the largest army in the region.
In May, the Canadian government extended Canadian military commitments in Afghanistan by two years, replacing earlier plans to withdraw soldiers in 2006.
The most recent action made by the Canadian government is two, 90-second commercials that began airing September 13th. The campaign has cost the Canadian tax payers $3 million for both commercials, which depict images of Canadian military action in Afghanistan where soldiers can be seen in gun fights and breaking down doors. There is no script and no narrative, the only message is “fight fear, fight distress, fight chaos,” which replaced the original message of “fight terror”.
The ads are designed to trigger new interest in the military and to boost recruitment levels. But you must really have to ask yourself, when was the last time something like this has happened?
Personally I've always felt very comfortable knowing that Canada was a peaceful country, which is respected for its peace keeping missions. Now, I don't seem so sure. Neither should any other anti-war advocate for that matter.
As things look right now Steven Harper seems hell-bent on getting Canada more involved in the war on terror, which seems to be mimicking the Bush administration. It really seems as if all Canadians are turning a blind eye on these recent developments made by the government and military however.
In my opinion, people everywhere should be rising up to voice their views and concerns with Canada's new role and involvement on the world stage. If anyone would like to become actively involved concerning the Canadian governments newfound interests, please contact me at hiddenrebel_fracturedmind@hotmail.com.
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
This was all fine in the beginning. Canadians still held on to the belief that we are a peaceful nation, normally involved in peace-keeping operations. So it was a pretty big surprise that Canadian Forces were the thrid largest (after the United States and the United Kingdom) with 15,000-strong committed.
I guess no one cared, because the war only lasted 24 hours. Since then, Canada's involvement went down to a 2,300 person battle group, standard complement as part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).
However, that was five years ago now. Since then, Steven Harper and the Conservatives took office (in January), which can be mainly blamed on the poor leadership and decisions made by the Liberals while in office.
After Harper took office our involvement in Afghanistan has been slowly becoming even greater. If you haven't noticed, Canada has taken on agreater role in Afghanistan. In February, Operation Archer was launched and aimed at bringing down the renewed efforts of the Taliban. By spring time Canada had asserted itself as a key player in Afghanistan, with a 2,300-strong task force based in Kandahar and also taking command of the Multi National Brigade, the largest army in the region.
In May, the Canadian government extended Canadian military commitments in Afghanistan by two years, replacing earlier plans to withdraw soldiers in 2006.
The most recent action made by the Canadian government is two, 90-second commercials that began airing September 13th. The campaign has cost the Canadian tax payers $3 million for both commercials, which depict images of Canadian military action in Afghanistan where soldiers can be seen in gun fights and breaking down doors. There is no script and no narrative, the only message is “fight fear, fight distress, fight chaos,” which replaced the original message of “fight terror”.
The ads are designed to trigger new interest in the military and to boost recruitment levels. But you must really have to ask yourself, when was the last time something like this has happened?
Personally I've always felt very comfortable knowing that Canada was a peaceful country, which is respected for its peace keeping missions. Now, I don't seem so sure. Neither should any other anti-war advocate for that matter.
As things look right now Steven Harper seems hell-bent on getting Canada more involved in the war on terror, which seems to be mimicking the Bush administration. It really seems as if all Canadians are turning a blind eye on these recent developments made by the government and military however.
In my opinion, people everywhere should be rising up to voice their views and concerns with Canada's new role and involvement on the world stage. If anyone would like to become actively involved concerning the Canadian governments newfound interests, please contact me at hiddenrebel_fracturedmind@hotmail.com.
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
