Bitter and disillusioned after decades of watching my country slip from respectable middle power to mediocrity, things have finally started to turn aroud.
As soon as the Conservatives won the election in January, the weasles in the Liberal Party started crying that we need to debate whether or not Canadian soldiers (whom they committed to Afghanistan three years ago without debate) should have been sent to Afghanistan at all :loco:
Harper didn’t cave in to polls showing the Canadian public wanted the troops to come home. Harper didn’t cave in to the weasles’ demand he debate a moot point. Instead he did something no Canadian Prime Minister has done in almost 20 years — He showed some leadership. The Canadian Prime Minister went where the action is. He visited the troops in Kandahar.
Imagine that, the guy elected to lead Canada actually…well…leading Canada! The Canadian Prime Minister giving a speech to troops in a war zone, so different from Bill Graham in a parliamentary hallway huffing and puffing like a rabid hamster.
Long ignored by the press, domestic and foreign, the Afghanistan mission immediately became a news item. The polls reversed themselves, now Canadians support the mission and want to see it through.
Not only did the PM finally give recognition to the 24 Canadians killed on 9/11 (the Liberals liked to pretend no Canadians were killed), the PM made Canada respectable again in the eyes of its allies. We won’t cut and run (his words), leaving our friends to do the work while we, smug in our sense of self-importance, snipe from the sidelines.
But there is more to it than that, much more. In Stephen Harper, Canada once again has a Prime Minister who stands for more than re-election.
I feel like I’ve just received a big shot of optimism.
I voted Liberal this election, and I still think they ain’t half bad.
But, I must say that I am glad Harper decided to support the Canadian troops in Afghanistan. I think he’s headed in the right direction so far, and I hope he does a good job (even though I didn’t vote for him!). It would be good, too, if Harper could patch up Canadian-American relations… and it’s my intuition that cross-border relations will be at an all-time high point during Harper’s term.
I suppose we shouldn’t really base our politics on parties, though… because there isn’t any Fascist party, and the Communist party in Canada sucks!
An “all-time high” in Canadian-American relations isn’t aiming all that high. Save for Mulroney-Reagan, and maybe King-Roosevelt, our leaders have never been all that close.
Things should get better, but I wouldn’t hold your breath. A lot was expected with W. and Fox in office, but US-Mexico relations haven’t florished.
Nice to see a PM being his own man again after Mr. Dithers, and Harper’s made some excellent statements and gestures, particularly on the international front. Be nice to see him do as well on the domestic front.
[quote=“Dr_Zoidberg”]:
I feel like I’ve just received a big shot of optimism.[/quote]
I appreciate your new-found enthusiasm, but let’s hold off on the “HuZZaH!s” until both Parliament and DND get their shite together. politicans to vote for a HUGE increase in our defence budget, and the slimy military bureaucrats in Ottawa to get their head outta each other’s crusty bungholes…
Proper gear for our ground forces would be a start… I hope the PM’s aides were cornered by some irate NCOs, who of course spoke with utmost discretion and good form, what! :fume:
Slowly but surely this will be the direction they’ll take. Especially with this guy in charge who seems to actually give a shit. However, I’m still sayin my prayers.
