Just a few moments ago during today’s question period, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, in his trademark condescending tone, danced around the question as to whether or not Canada’s military role in Afghanistan will be extended beyond 2014.
He pulled the old ‘best interest of the country’ line which, not unlike the catch-all ‘because we are at war’ rationale, really refers to the interests of his wealthiest supporters and is intended to silence any criticism. “What… don’t you care about protecting Canadians or Afghans?”
Don’t get me wrong, here. I do care about the Afghan people. Just like the entire world’s people, they too are part of my extended family. But any good we may be doing there, like training security forces, is grossly overshadowed by the failed and futile Afghan war – a tragedy we are only prolonging by staying.
If the Conservative party truly wanted to make Canada more secure while helping out the Afghan people, they’d bring the troops home immediately. Only then, once the slate is cleaned, could they regain the support of Canadians. Then, together, we could all look for non-army based methods to help out the world’s woefully war-torn and impoverished nations.
Sadly, the Conservatives true priorities are not with people or planet. Instead, they cater only to those with the most money, meaning we can expect them to extend and expand wars as far as our population allows them to go.