Sunday, February 17, 2008

Resolve in Ottawa

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Derek Burney's idealism.....


“To the critics who say fundamentally that we should not be in Afghanistan, I ask the following question: If we are not willing to commit our military resources when asked to do so by the United Nations, for a mission co-ordinated by NATO, in a country whose democratically elected government wants us and whose citizens desperately need us, then precisely where and when would Canada be prepared to do so?”

OK Derek,

1. We were not asked to do anything by the United Nations; Canada invaded Afghanistan as part of NATO's "collective right of self-defence" two years before the UN Security Council got involved, after the fact;
2. The “mission” is undefined and not “co-ordinated” or anything else by NATO, NATO being unable to agree on anything to do with Afghanistan , or indeed, as the Australians would say, to "organize a chook raffle";
3. The legitimacy of the “democratically elected government” of Afghanistan is highly debatable.

By the way Derek, do you have any family members with their lives on the line in Afghanistan? Does anyone on the Manley Committee have any family members at risk in Afghanistan? Does anyone in the House of Commons have family members at risk in Afghanistan?