Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Stephen Harper Contradicts O'Connor on Darfur, Says we Might be able to Send Troops

From Reuters, Harper's latest on the Darfur crisis:

"This government stands ready and is in consultation with our friends in the international community to do whatever is necessary to advance the peace process in Darfur," Harper told Parliament.

"If that involves sending troops, that will be an option that we consider."

You will not see me praising Stephen Harper very often, I don't think, but sending troops to Darfur as part of an international protection force is the kind of mission that the Canadian armed forces were built for. If he is serious, he deserves kudos (at least one, or maybe just half a kudos).

Furthermore, as reported here, an internal report to the Martin government last year stated that our military "had the capacity to supply a reinforced battle group of up of 1,500 soldiers, with its own transport capability and an ability to provide humanitarian support", thus contradicting defense Minister Gordon O'Connor's assertions that the military is too stretched to help in the war-torn Sudanese region.

I guess O'Connor joins Garth Turner and Peter MacKay in their shitty basement offices underneath the men's room in the Parliament Building. Honestly, it seems like Harper is running the Gov. like a one man band, hogging all the good lines and slapping down his subbies whenever he needs to change political direction. I guess that will work for awhile, but then when times go sour, what?

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