Steve, I fully agree with your skeptical analysis of our government's position on defense spending. Certainly our defense commitments should be based on actual needs rather than arbitrary targets. Moreover, the huge projected increases in our defense expenditures will be coming at the expense of much-needed social and economic programs, both at home and abroad. This includes our severely underfunded international development program, which has never come close to meeting globally-recognized international assistance targets. Considering the sudden virtual disappearance of USAID from the world of donors, Canada should not be adding to the suffering of those impacted in developing countries by imposing our own cuts. With respect to Canada's defense requirements, let the government first compile a realistic list of what these needs are, and let this be done with full public consultation. And let us not be swept into any new "star-wars" initiatives from the USA in the absence of evidence of their potential effectiveness.
I trust Canadians to ask why there needs to be such a huge tax payer sacrifice to pay for so-called military spending, most of which goes to U.S. war corporations and to satisfy NATO and President Trump? I trust Canadians to ask what happened to "Elbows Up". I trust Canadians to ask why up to 60,000 Canadians are living on our streets or in tent encampments and to ask why the Carney government would rather satisfy NATO and Trump rather than our own citizens. I trust Canadians to to ask why the Carney government wants to spend up to 5% of GDP on weapons designed to participate in Trump and NATO wars, not defend Canada from the one nation that has threatened us - the U.S.
Thanks for your clear and precise comments/challenges to the so-called defence spending issue. At a time when President Trump eschews the euphemistic use of the term "defence" and calls his military department the war department, a sovereign Canada must take its distance. This wrong-headed spending priority is occurring at a time when Canadians in large numbers face threats of homelessness, rising costs of living, racism, and a worsening climate crisis (fed by the government's support of the destructive petroleum industry, whose profits go to the U.S.). Money spent on F-35s entails Canadians' public money going to enrich the coffers of the merchants of war in the U.S. In short, this whole defence spending by the federal government is an elbows down capitulation to U.S. imperialism.
the apparent chaos is predictable. An indicator of old school vs new vision. In the budget (template), legacy commitments will litter the budget. Until the new vision can find the legal and cultural method to cancel the nonsense (F35).
Steve, I fully agree with your skeptical analysis of our government's position on defense spending. Certainly our defense commitments should be based on actual needs rather than arbitrary targets. Moreover, the huge projected increases in our defense expenditures will be coming at the expense of much-needed social and economic programs, both at home and abroad. This includes our severely underfunded international development program, which has never come close to meeting globally-recognized international assistance targets. Considering the sudden virtual disappearance of USAID from the world of donors, Canada should not be adding to the suffering of those impacted in developing countries by imposing our own cuts. With respect to Canada's defense requirements, let the government first compile a realistic list of what these needs are, and let this be done with full public consultation. And let us not be swept into any new "star-wars" initiatives from the USA in the absence of evidence of their potential effectiveness.
I trust Canadians to ask why there needs to be such a huge tax payer sacrifice to pay for so-called military spending, most of which goes to U.S. war corporations and to satisfy NATO and President Trump? I trust Canadians to ask what happened to "Elbows Up". I trust Canadians to ask why up to 60,000 Canadians are living on our streets or in tent encampments and to ask why the Carney government would rather satisfy NATO and Trump rather than our own citizens. I trust Canadians to to ask why the Carney government wants to spend up to 5% of GDP on weapons designed to participate in Trump and NATO wars, not defend Canada from the one nation that has threatened us - the U.S.
Thanks for your clear and precise comments/challenges to the so-called defence spending issue. At a time when President Trump eschews the euphemistic use of the term "defence" and calls his military department the war department, a sovereign Canada must take its distance. This wrong-headed spending priority is occurring at a time when Canadians in large numbers face threats of homelessness, rising costs of living, racism, and a worsening climate crisis (fed by the government's support of the destructive petroleum industry, whose profits go to the U.S.). Money spent on F-35s entails Canadians' public money going to enrich the coffers of the merchants of war in the U.S. In short, this whole defence spending by the federal government is an elbows down capitulation to U.S. imperialism.
the apparent chaos is predictable. An indicator of old school vs new vision. In the budget (template), legacy commitments will litter the budget. Until the new vision can find the legal and cultural method to cancel the nonsense (F35).