Just two days away from returning safely home, Pvt. Kevin McKay was on patrol in Afghanistan on Thursday.  In an instant his life ended.  Instead of returning home to a party, he will be returned to his family for a funeral.  He is the 144th Canadian to die on this mission.

The father of this brave young Canadian has looked past his own grief to call on our government to stay the course in Afghanistan.  He’s calling on the government not to set an end date but to set obtainable objectives and stay until they’re finished.  He’s calling for the objective to be the training of the Afghan army and police.

Pvt McKay’s father is a deputy fire chief in Toronto.  Firefighters in Toronto and along the Highway Of Heroes all understand the cost of this war, they have been a strong presence on every overpass between Trenton and Toronto every time Canadian soldiers are repatriated.  I understand the cost of this war.  I weep privately for our fallen and then join the firefighters on the bridges.

Parliament by way of a confidence motion in 2008 determined that Canada’s mission in Afghanistan would end in 2011 and our troops would be brought home.  At the time Canada was battling alone in Kandahar Province.  One of the conditions for Canadian troops to remain until 2011 was another NATO Force willing to send 1000 troops to join us.

Public support for the mission wavered as young Canadians were dying with little indication that any progress was being made.  Almost 3000 troops was not enough to try to tame the Taliban insurgency, more were greatly needed.  More were not readily forthcoming and Canada was sustaining the highest rate of deaths per capita of any nation serving in Afghanistan, it was no wonder Canadians questioned the mission.

Harper has made it clear all Canadian troops will be leaving Afghanistan in 2011.  Around the same time that Harper made this clear, Obama initiated a troop surge of 30,000 American troops, about one third are expected to be sent to Kandahar.  With this change in circumstances one would expect that Harper would be willing to bring the mission and its conclusion back to parliament for debate.

Harper appears to have gone from steadfastly supporting our troops and their mission to being unwilling to even discuss any possible change in their mission.  Yes, this mission is costing Canada in blood and treasure. The plea from those who have lost family members to this mission need to be listened to and given careful consideration.

Our pool of experienced combat troops are a valuable resource for the training of the Afghans.  A reduced force of experience troops remaining in Afghanistan after 2011 devoted to the training and mentoring of the Afghans while leaving other nations like the U.S.  to take on securing the country for the Afghan forces to take over and hold would contribute to completing the mission.

Training of security forces in the middle of an insurgency is not something that can be done without danger.  As long as one Canadian remains in Afghanistan, Canadian lives will be at risk.  Yet if Canada and other countries pull out of Afghanistan there is a clear danger that chaos will create an opening for terrorism to once again establish a base of operations there.

I think often of my discussions with my late father, a veteran of WWII, about our mission in Afghanistan.  Dad was adamant, the troops were sent in to do a job, and they needed to be allowed to complete the job.  He said trying to cut losses by leaving only served politicians and didn’t honour the sacrifices of those who have served.

I have wondered if now, four years later, dad would have wavered in that resolve.  Then I remember that edge of steel that I heard in his voice, that steel that was forged fighting up through Italy and across Europe.  He’s fought beside those who’ve died, he understood the sacrifice, the need to honour it, to not waste it.  He understood the courage needed to push on and get the job done.

Politicians, in their statements after the death of our soldiers all pledge that their service will not be forgotten.  Part of honouring that pledge is ensuring that their sacrifice was not made in vain.  Part of honouring that pledge is having the courage to do what’s right, even if it’s not popular.  Our war dead deserve at minimum the future of  the mission to be properly debated and for their family’s wishes to be heard.

We will remember them.  We must remember and honour.

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Sixteen professors at the University of Regina have written a letter protesting their institutions involvement in Project Hero. This scholarship program provides children of fallen Canadian soldiers with free tuition for their post-secondary education. Several post-secondary institutions across the country are taking part in the program.

The 16 profs in question believe the University of Regina should withdraw from the program. They denounce the program as “a glorification of Canadian imperialism in Afghanistan and elsewhere.” and “support for Project Hero represents a dangerous cultural turn. It associates heroism with the act of military intervention. It erases the space for critical discussion of military policy and practices“.

Are these people so far up on their ivory towers they don’t know how to find their way to a simple dictionary? I managed to find one and discovered that one of the meanings of ‘imperialism’ is: the policy of extending the rule or authority of an empire or nation over foreign countries, or of acquiring and holding colonies and dependencies.

The last time I looked, Canada’s mission (and indeed NATO’s mission) in Afghanistan was to secure the country in order to allow the elected government of Afghanistan to establish themselves as the properly constituted government. In order to accomplish that end, Canada and other countries are needing to work with the civil authorities to assist them in establishing the various elements of good government.

The bottom line is, when Canada (and eventually the other NATO forces) withdraws from Afghanistan, the Afghani government is free to use or not use the assistance they have received. In fact they are free to exercise their sovereignty now, which is why Karzai’s demands in regards to safeguarding civilians are being taken seriously. That is not imperialism.

If those 16 professors believe differently, maybe they need to climb out of their ivory towers long enough to visit the real world. It scares me sometimes when I hear the bunk that so called learned people are free to try to indoctrinate our young people with.

As for their claims of associating heroism with the act of military intervention. How quickly they forget the soldiers who serve our country are committed to defending this country and carrying out the mission(s) given to them by our government.

If these ivory tower dwellers wanted to go after the government over their efforts to equate any questioning of the mission given our soldiers to a lack of support of the troops, have at it.

By trying to go after a program designed to give back to those children who have lost their parent as the result of missions given to our soldiers, the ivory tower dwellers are trying to take out their displeasure at the mission on the children. Go after the government, not the innocent survivors.

As for their dislike of the program’s name. I’m reminding of something I read when researching the origins of the Victoria Cross. When Queen Victoria was commissioning the creation of the Victoria Cross she was reported to have said she didn’t want the medal engraved with the word ‘bravery’ because she believed any man who went into battle was brave. Instead the medal carries the words ‘For Valour’.

When I return to my trusty dictionary and look up the word ‘hero’ I find: a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities. Notwithstanding the slightly sexist language, it seems once more we cross paths with the word brave in relation to being a hero.

I don’t believe it is a very big leap to see all our men and women serving our country and in particular those serving in combat as being heroes. Some of those heroes have ended up dead, 141 to be exact. Some of those dead heroes left young children behind. Young children to whom a grateful country should be proud to make sure they receive a future education.

So, those 16 ivory tower dwellers need to exercise their democratic right to disagree with the government who sent those men and women into harm’s way by directing their complaints to the government. Leave the innocents alone.

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I’ve been reading and listening to the reporting about the detainee issue over the last several weeks. The Opposition parties in Parliament have been after trying to get to the bottom of finding out just who knew and when about detainees being turned over to the Afghans from Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan. As much as the government has tried to characterize those who continue to push these questions as either Taliban supporters or not supporting our troops, nothing could be further from the truth.

Over the weekend, I was listening to a podcast of TVOs “The Agenda”. The podcast was talking about the failure of the Conservatives to show up at the parliamentary committee hearings trying to investigate this mess. The Cons failure to show up effectively killed the committee meeting over the Christmas break as the lack of Cons in attendance ensures there is no quorum to allow the meetings to take place.

Laurie Hawn, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defense claims that ordinary Canadians are not interested in this ‘so called issue’, that only the Opposition parties are interested in playing political games. Lowell Green, supposedly a highly respected Canadian radio personality, was also heard on the podcast claiming that the only Canadians who care about this issue are the ‘lefties, who read the Toronto Star, are opposed to the mission in Afghanistan and want the troops brought home immediately’. That no other Canadian cares about this matter.

This Canadian Cares!

I suppose, by Hawn & Green’s definition I would be considered to be a ‘lefty’ especially since I definitely DO NOT support the current Conservative party and especially Harper and his band of bullies. I do read the Toronto Star along with the National Post, the Toronto Sun and the Globe & Mail on a regular basis. I support the mission of our troops. I have struggled with that support, especially when I watch the motorcades carrying our war dead travel the Highway of Heroes, but I believe the coalition and eventually the Afghan military and police have to succeed in that country.

The more I see on this issue the more concerned I have become.

Richard Colvin, a diplomat serving in Afghanistan, claims to have repeatedly warned the government about this issue. For having the courage to speak up, he’s been subjected to character assassination by government ministers and others. Green likely has really good intel and knows he’s one of those damn Toronto Star reading lefties, which makes the character assassination okay.

I have no doubt our troops have done what they had to do. They have followed the rules of engagement and may have been placed in the position of turning Afghan nationals over to abuse at the hands of other Afghans. That doesn’t make our troops bad, that makes those who placed them in that position dead wrong.

Green tried to justify this abuse by dismissing those detainees as dastardly Taliban who did mean and nasty things. He didn’t directly say so, but his argument appeared to stop just sort of stating these detainees deserved everything done to them and then some. Not all detainees are proven to be Taliban, and especially not radicalized Taliban.

Coalition leadership has stated repeatedly they want to reach the more moderate Taliban and try to turn them. I believe that attempt to reach them is an attempt to have them forsake the insurgency for peace. If any of those detainees were moderate Taliban turned over to abuse, I rather doubt they would be forsaking any insurgency. They would be more likely to become radicalized.

The Cons, the same Cons who came to power promising transparency in government, have responded to attempts to get this issue out in the open by dragging their feet on releasing documents and then redacting them so heavily they render them virtually useless. They try to claim issues of national security.

While full public disclosure might not be possible IF they actually have legitimate claims of national security, there is no excuse for not making full disclosure to MPs and most especially the Military Complaints Commission.

The Opposition parties have passed a motion in Parliament ordering the disclosure of the documents to the MPs and the commission. The government has vowed to ignore the motion and the supremacy of Parliament. Rumours are rife right now that Harper may try to have the Governor General prorogue parliament again until at least after the Olympics which would allow time for the heat to possibly dissipate on the subject.

Harper and his band of bullies seem to forget they are there to serve the people, to answer to the people, not their own self-serving brand of politics. Their seemingly desperate measures to forestall disclosure of their conduct on this file, and others, leaves Canadians seriously wondering what else hasn’t come to light.

Myself, I could have been pretty forgiving had the Cons given full disclosure when this issue came up the first time — admitted any errors in judgment made, reported what was being done to correct the errors and disclosed any further tweaking they had done. I would have considered it a learning process and that the matter was being taken care of.

Instead, I’m left wondering just what is being held back and why. Why are our soldiers possibly being placed in the position of turning Afghan nationals over to abuse? Why is a career diplomat and anyone else who speaks up being vilified? What is the government hiding that they are willing to be in contempt of Parliament (and in the people it serves)?

The longer they drag this out, the more inclined I am to want to see a public inquiry and full disclosure.

What do you think?

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Okay Harper, you opened the door on the weekend by taking a partisan shot at the Opposition and accusing them of maligning Canadian soldiers over the handling of detainees. You just can’t resist taking your grossly inaccurate potshots at the Opposition no matter where you are in the world can you?

I’ve been watching this furor over the handling of detainees. This isn’t the first time this issue has come up since we sent our troops into action in Southern Afghanistan. Neither time has anyone tried to even imply our troops did not treat detainees properly. They did what they had to do and turned them over to Afghan officials as the government, first the Liberal government and now the Harper Conservatives government, had negotiated with the government of Afghanistan. The Conservatives have now been in power for four years, they own this issue and should have been taking steps to solve it.

It is those agreements and how they, or if, they were enforced that is at question — not the behaviour of our troops. Quit hiding behind them when you need to be showing some leadership Harper. First your ministers try to portray the whistle blower, Richard Colvin, as a Taliban sympathizer for insisting on his unheeded warnings coming to light. When that fails to gain any traction, Pamelin Wallin tries to appeal to Canadians to stop blaming the troops when no one was. Then you give that some treads by using a photo op on a Canadian ship to try the same claim and then you had it repeated in the House of Commons.

Just how long do you think Canadians are going to put up with your lies and obsfucation?

The reality is, you and the other NATO members involved in Afghanistan have apparently dropped the ball. When this first came up three years ago, it is clear that the Canadians and every other country involved in the war in Afghanistan needed to have brought pressure to bear on the Afghan government to clean up their justice system parrallel to the work of the international troops.

We’re there at the request of their government and yes, guests in their home. However, Canadians and the other international forces are being asked to give of their blood and treasure in that same country to try to establish peace and security for the Afghan people. It is not too much to ask, no demand, of our hosts to clean up their system and stop the abuse and torture that our troops are duty bound to turn over to them.

So Harper, man up, get behind the troops and take action so they are not placed in the position of being required to turn detainees over to potential abuse. Quit playing political games while you hid behind our troops.

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So, despite widespread fraud, Karzai has won as the President of Afghanistan. I realize this is a country for which democracy is barely starting to take root, clearly those roots are extremely fragile. Old ways are hard to break from but they can be broken from. Just seems to be me, his declarations to the contrary notwithstanding, Karzai has neither the will nor the fortitude to actually start dismantling the culture of corruption which permeates his governance.

He’s not alone on the world stage for leading a country rife with corruption. What draws my attention to his behaviour is that Canadians are fighting and dying in that country in an effort meant to stabilize the country and bring peace to its people.

Anyone who has read this blog knows that I not only support our troops, I support their mission. That being said, I have to admit to some doubts about the effectiveness of Canadian troops continuing to die at a rate higher than most other forces when the man who should be most inclined towards doing everything in his power to make sure it succeeds gives tacit if not direct support to the corruption which impedes the effective governance needed to attain and maintain peace.

The Canadian Parliament has mandated an end to the combat mission in Kandahar to take place in 2011. Initially, I was not terribly supportive of that end date. To me, you define the mission and stay until the end of that mission, not some line in the sand end date. However, in the next year I’m going to be watching closely for some indication that Karzai is making some effort to clean up his act. I don’t hold out much hope to be honest but, hope springs eternal eh.

If Karzai doesn’t have the fortitude to take the stands that are needed and to act decisively to establish good governance in his country, his leadership will never be accepted by the people and should most decidedly not be accepted by the international community.

There are neither clear nor easy answers in Afghanistan but I think this much is clear. Canadian troops should not be surrendering their lives after 2011 if the very people they are fighting for wont fight for themselves.

What do you think?

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President Obama appeared at Dover Air Force base last night as the Americans killed in Afghanistan this week were returned home. He took part in what the Americans call a “dignified transfer” which took place around 4am. He also met with the familes of the fallen heroes. So how is that a lession from Canada?

President Obama is the American forces Commander-in-Chief, almost all of our fallen have been met by the forces Commander-in-Chief, our Governor General. Most often also in attendance is the Chief of Defense Staff, the Minister of Defense and at times, the Prime Minister. Bush never appeared for the return of those fallen heroes of the wars he started.

Those young men and women were okay to go and serve their country and fight wars that were not of their making but for some reason, Bush didn’t feel any need to make sure they were returned as the heroes they were. Maybe now, Obama will consider making the honouring of those soldiers a bit more public and stop fearing any political overtones from giving them the honours they deserve.

Canada does things a bit differently when our fallen soldiers are returned home. Stephen Harper’s government tried at one point to block the repatriation of our fallen from public view and was met with resistance. Only the family of the fallen can block that view now. Our fallen are returned during the day, usually the third day after their death.(The flag at our local Legion branch remains at half mast for ten days, the appropriate time for public mourning of a hero.)

It is a ceremony which takes place on the tarmac, not a celebration. The soldiers and honour guards are in dress uniform. The coffins are borne solemnly to the waiting hearse and then driven along what is known as the Highway of Heroes to Toronto. Canadians of all walks of life turn out on the streets and the bridges over Canada’s busiest highway to honour their fallen heroes. They are there in the hundreds, regardless of the weather.

The article about President Obama commented that he was very quiet on the return trip to the White House, I can understand that. I would like to think that any national leader, whether it be the American President or Canadian Prime Minister would think long and hard before sending troops into harms way. In Obama’s case, he has to weigh the cost of not only sending in more troops as his commanders have requested but the cost of not sending them in. A difficult position to be in.

While the absolute numbers of soldiers lost in Afghanistan between the Americans and the Canadians vary widely (900 Americans, 132 Canadians) the rate of deaths in relation to the number of troops in theatre shows Canada has sustained a much higher rate than the Americans (.013 for the Americans, .044 Canadians). I have to admit, my resolve to absolutely support the troops and their mission has been shaken on more than one occasion at the sight of multiple hearses followed by limos full of grieving family. Shaken but not stirred, as long as the troops remain committed to the cause they are fighting, I can commit to supporting them.

There are none braver than the fighting men and women of both countries. They deserve public honour and support.

As I write this, another Canadian is on his way home. On Saturday I expect to be among those on the bridges for his arrival home.

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July, so far, has been a difficult month for the coalition of forces trying to establish security in Afghanistan. With the death today of Pte Courcy, Canada has lost five soldiers and Great Britain has lost 15. It is interesting to note the reaction of the media and the public in face of these loses.

As the numbers grow in Canada, calls for our troops to be brought home grow along with. Much of the media has a tendency to focus on the negative side of the story and give very little attention to any positive gains. This gives Canadians the sense the war can’t be won, leaving them wondering why our troops are staying there until even 2011. The support for the mission drops in the face of the negativity.

In Great Britain, I can’t speak to how the media responds generally as I don’t spend a lot of time reading their media. I do note polls in the face of their losses shows an increase in support for their troops mission. The media stories seem to focus more on questions about whether the troops have the equipment they need. In the face of eight soldiers dying in a 24 hour period, the headlines asked if the British troops had enough helicopters.

The British public apparently is aware of what Canadians miss. If the coalition forces pull out of Afghanistan the country will descend into anarchy allowing the Taliban to return to power and eventually for Al Queda to once again have safe haven.

That isn’t hard to know, it was the US pulling their support out of Afghanistan after the withdrawal of the Russians who brought the Taliban to power. That mistake can not be repeated.

Currently Canada has an endpoint in view for our troops involvement in combat operations, July 2011. Great Britain hasn’t set an endpoint for their combat operations. The British have a long history of responding with resolve in the face of adversity. Canada has done so in the past but that doesn’t seem to be the case in modern Canada.

The most recent poll seems to indicate the majority of Canadians wants all of our troops removed from Afghanistan in 2011. A part of me wants to see our troops standing down from combat roles at that time. I don’t believe we should be pulling out of the training of Afghan army and police nor working with their infrastructure needs. The other part of me believes we need to stand alongside our coalition partners until the job is completed, combat, security and infrastructure.

What gives me pause about my latter stance is reality. The last time Canada sustained an operational tempo like Afghanistan for as long was during WW2. The differences are huge, not only was the war larger and wider spread, but thousands of young Canadians poured out of the countryside to swell our military to well over a million men and woman in uniform. The whole country was geared up for war needs production. Canada punched above its weight then and has been doing so now.

Today, we are maintaining a force of 2,800 soldiers. Well recruiting is up, it is not even close to a similar increase as was seen in WW2. That means soldiers are going on multiple deployments to Afghanistan. Those repeated exposures to the brutality of this very unconventional war tears at the fortitude of even the strongest of our men and women in uniform. They need a pause for their own well being.

To date, we have lost 125 Canadians. A rate greater than any other coalition force. Those young men and woman are at rest, their mission at an end. What I worry about is those who struggle with wounds, physical and psychological. We need to focus on making sure they get the best treatment and support possible.

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Less than a month after the signing of the regulation giving the Pakistan Taliban control over the Swat Valley and the ability to impose their form of Islam on the people, the deal has collapsed. What a non-surprise. Shortly after the Taliban moved their forces into Bruner and tried to take control there which would have placed their forces some scant 35km from the Pakistani capital Islamabad.

How many times are the Taliban, Pakistani or Afghani, going to have to demonstrate they can’t be trusted before the two governments are going to stand firm against them? It has taken 25 years for that conclusion to be reached in Sri Lanka in their fight against the Tamil Tigers. The Taliban, like the Tigers, will never be fully wiped out, that’s a given. With enough resolve and resources their ability to openly and freely regroup, train and finance their operations can be seriously restrained. That will not happen while the Pakistan government continues to waffle.

Pakistan is so busy being determined India is going to invade and occupy them that they are seemingly unaware and unwilling to look inward to the threat that grows in their very country. While the Taliban gain strength in Pakistan, they send that strength across the porous Afghanistan border and become a threat to the NATO troops struggling to bring that country to a point of some stability. Among those troops are the 2800 Canadian troops, so what happens in Pakistan impacts Canada.

Canada has battled in the Kandahar province of southern Afghanistan since 2006 to try to bring security to the province. We’ve lost 118 soldiers in that effort which is way too few boots on the ground for the job. The Americans under Obama are finally refocusing on the ball they dropped in Afghanistan in order to invade Iraq. About 21,000 American troops have started arriving in the south.

This will free up the overstretch Canadians to regroup into Kanadahar city to work with Afghan army and police to secure that vital city. It will also allow greater efforts to be undertaken to train Afghan security forces and to do more reconstruction.

As one who goes to the bridges on the Highway of Heroes, I’m hoping that the increased boots on the ground will slow the frequency of the trips to the bridges. Currently Canada has sustained over 10% of the deaths amongst coalition troops, that’s one statistic I’d like to see not grow.

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