I was not going to write this every day but the gods do conspire and this is a pretty good election we have going in terms of ideas. I can’t believe I wrote that. I can’t believe I could actually write that with some basis in fact. Do you remember foreign policy? That means that your government considers what its role in the world is. All of a sudden, after almost years of some action but not much thinking about what we should be, the stumps are hearing some thoughts about what we might be to others and not just ourselves.
First, the Prime Ministers has gotten into a shouting match with the US over global warming policy. This was inevitable. Maybe the administration just realized that Rick Mercer was making fun of them on the government’s own broadcaster. Hey! There is nothing wrong with making a few pence off the CBC and having something to say as well I’ve always said. Anyway, it is a good bit of finger-pointery over issues that the Liberals do disagree with the Bush administration so why not have an argument. And I don’t mind if the US ambassador to Canada says something like this:
“It may be smart election-year politics to thump your chest and criticize your friend and your No. 1 trading partner constantly,” Wilkins said, “But it is a slippery slope, and all of us should hope that it doesn’t have a long-term impact on the relationship.”
as long as we get to say back that in under a year there is a very good chance that the relationship will be with a very lame duck president given the polls in the US.
Apart from the US relationship, the Conservative party has announced the first bit of its defence policy. The Babbling Man, Canada nicest and best informed amateur military commentator, has a good review of the four proposals all of which I agree with except for the resurrection of an airborne group. As far as I can tell, it is our superduper secret commando capacity of JFT2 that has been most effective in the war on terror. I’d say add another 650 of them rather than make a political move like paratroopers. What next? An aircraft carrier? Better also to consider simply another 3,000 to 5,000 infantry like the kind we are relying on in NATO’s work in Afganistan.
Then, the Haavaad man considers the sensible position of Michael Ignatieff, Liberal Star candidate and brain…such a brain, as to when it is right to use these sorts of troops. People thinking about foreign policy. Amazing.