soldier

Thursday October 6, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday October 6, 2022

The military can’t be the first line of defence in domestic disasters, MPs told

Whatever the crisis of the moment happens to be, the military is supposed to be the force of last resort.

March 23, 2022

Increasingly, though, that word “last” is being replaced by “first” — and sometimes “only.”

A former top national security adviser warned a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that successive federal governments have relied too much on the military to handle crises at home.

Richard Fadden’s remarks were met with some nods of agreement around the table — and a slight wince from a representative from one the provinces that has been in the uncomfortable position of having to call for military-backed relief.

Having served both Liberal and Conservative governments as the prime minister’s security adviser, deputy minister of defence and head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Fadden assured MPs on the House of Commons defence committee that his comments were not partisan.

January 12, 2022

He said domestic emergency operations — such as cleaning up after storms and fighting forest fires — distract the military from the training it needs in an increasingly unstable world — a point the Conservatives have been hammering away on since the committee launched its study.

That doesn’t mean the Armed Forces should stay away when Canadians are struck by tragedies like post-tropical storm Fiona, Fadden said.

The problem, he added, is that in recent years the federal government has acted as if the military is the only tool it can turn to in a disaster.

“It is becoming too easy for prime ministers — not in particular this one, but prime ministers generally — to simply say, ‘I’m going to send in the army,'” Fadden told the four-party committee, which is studying the military’s domestic emergency preparedness.

“And we do this without talking to the provinces, municipalities and civil society about what they could and should do.”

May 27, 2020

Fadden argued that the problem cannot be examined with a narrow focus on military response. He called on the federal government to undertake a thorough, independent review of all emergency response capacity across the country, both federal and provincial.

Last week, a senior military commander told the committee that the number of requests for assistance the Armed Forces receives from provinces has ramped up rapidly over the past decade.

Maj.-Gen. Paul Prevost testified that in 2021, there were seven such requests for a military response to provincial emergencies — floods, forest fires and other natural disasters. The period between 2017 and 2021 saw an average of four such requests per year. From 2010 to 2017, the average was two per year.

Those numbers do not include the 118 calls for assistance the military answered during the pandemic by, for example, backstopping exhausted health care staff in long-term care homes in Ontario and Quebec. 

February 9, 2016

“We probably in this country, right now, don’t have another tool.” Fadden said. 

“I think this is really problematic for a sophisticated, complex government like the Government of Canada today, when a disaster occurs … if a prime minister only has one tool.”

The idea of a dedicated force within the military tasked with responding to natural disasters has been floated frequently since Fiona hit the East Coast. Gen. Wayne Eyre, Canada’s top military commander, has said such a force would require more military capacity.

It’s also a bad idea, said Fadden.

“Asking the Canadian Forces, for example, to run a railway would be a mistake. Asking the Canadian Forces to become overly involved in disaster assistance, in my view, is also a mistake,” he said. (CBC) 

From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro …

 

Thursday July 15, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday July 15, 2021

‘They want to annihilate us’: Afghan interpreter who helped Canada says life in danger from Taliban

Local interpreters who worked with the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan are pleading for Canada’s help in immigrating after the U.S. military’s withdrawal has led to a resurgence of the Taliban.

February 2, 2019

Nearly all U.S. combat forces have left Afghanistan ahead of U.S. President Joe Biden’s confirmation that the American military operation in the country will officially end August 31, nearly 20 years since the Taliban was removed from power in Kabul.

News of the U.S troops’ departure, and their subsequent overnight abandonment of the Bagram Air Base, has spurred the Taliban to resurge and take back control of significant amounts of territory, capturing Spin Boldak – a strategic border with Pakistan – and one that Canadians fought and died to protect.

“We were there to do the fighting in the initial stages to help stabilize the situation [and] we did that,” Ret. Maj-Gen. David Fraser told CTV News. “We couldn’t stay there forever, as much as people wanted.”

Now as the Taliban nears Kabul, and has overtaken Kandahar’s Panjwai District, Ottawa has confirmed that it will continue sending humanitarian and developmental aid to Afghanistan – but for the interpreters left behind by Canadian, NATO and U.S. forces, time is running out to get them and their families to safety.

May 23, 2012

Many NATO allies like France and Germany have already begun or completed evacuations of the Afghans who have helped in various missions — Biden announced that the U.S. “Operation Allies Refuge” flights out of Afghanistan during the last week of July will be available for special immigrant visa applicants already in the process of applying to U.S. residency.

Canada, however, has not announced a similar endeavour.

At a press conference Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said of Canada’s duty to the interpreters overseas that Ottawa will “continue to work to ensure that we’re providing the right path.”

“I can assure you that our ministers are working on it,” he continued.

But critics say there is not enough federal action on the crisis.

Former Canadian major-generals submitted an open letter to Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino last week, warning that 115 former interpreters, cultural advisors and other locals and their families will face reprisals from the Taliban for helping Canadian troops and diplomats.

They called for the government to expedite the immigration process to bring them and their families to Canada, a sentiment echoed by a letter-writing campaign from Canadian veterans who also want to see the government “do right” by those who helped the troops overseas. (CTV) 

 

Tuesday July 28, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday July 28, 2020

Right-Wing Media Stars Amplify Trump’s ‘Law and Order’ Campaign Message

July 21, 2020

To his legions of listeners, Rush Limbaugh calls the demonstrators in Portland, Ore., “anarchists” who “hate Americans and America.” He recently made an ominous prediction: “I can see secession coming.”

On Fox News, Sean Hannity describes the scene in Portland as “a literal disaster area — and, yeah, it looks like a war zone.”

On Wednesday, Breitbart News — which features a “Riot Crackdown” page on its website — published an article declaring, “Now would be a real good time to do whatever is necessary to obtain a permit to legally carry a handgun.”

Right-wing outlets and conservative media stars have seized on the weekslong protests in Portland as a rallying cry for law and order, instructing their followers to fear for their safety and blaming Democratic leaders for failing to restore peace.

COVID-19 Cartoons

Their commentary — beamed out daily to millions — has increasingly mirrored the fear-laced messaging of President Trump and his re-election campaign, which has warned that a Joseph R. Biden Jr. presidency would usher in chaos and routine violence in the streets. With the November election looming, Mr. Trump has pledged to send forces to Chicago, Detroit, New York, Philadelphia and other major cities.

Conservative pundits, typically no fans of an overreaching government, have thrown their full support behind federal agents who have used militarized tactics like firing tear gas at protesters and have pulled some demonstrators into unmarked vans since being deployed to Portland in recent days.

In fact, the scenes broadcast by channels like Fox News and One America News send a misleading portrait of the city, where daily life has been relatively calm outside of a small area downtown. (New York Times)

Wednesday May 29, 2002

May 29, 2002

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday, May 29, 2002

Russia Partners with Nato

NATO and Russia lifted their once-hostile relations to a new level of partnership today at a landmark summit near Rome.

June 7, 2000

They immediately used their combined weight to urge India and Pakistan to back off from the threshold of war. 

Leaders of the erstwhile Cold War adversaries, including US President George W Bush and Russian head of state Vladimir Putin, put their names to a joint declaration setting up a NATO-Russia Council where Moscow and the 19 transatlantic allies can tackle key security issues as equals – notably terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and military cooperation.

“Our agreement today is a tribute to victims of terrorism throughout the world,” NATO Secretary General George Robertson told a joint press conference alongside Putin and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, the summit organiser.

“It’s also a stark message fron NATO and from Russia to all terrorists and their supporters that their criminal violence has brought East and West together and has made us stronger,” he said. 

But the dominant area of concern during the 20 leaders’ working lunch was the real danger of India and Pakistan – both armed with nuclear weapons – reigniting a war over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

“The presidents and primes ministers strongly urge both sides to de-escalate and to resume talking together so that their problems can be resolved peacefully,” Robertson said.

March 28, 2000

“The 20 leaders will continue to work for this outcome,” he said, recalling that Putin would have the “goodwill” of the NATO allies when he saw the leaders of India and Pakistan in the Kazakh capital Almaty next week.

Today’s summit, organised in just three weeks and staged under intense security at Italy’s biggest air force base, an hour’s drive from Rome, was billed as the ultimate end to the Cold War that ended with the collapse of Communism in eastern Europe after 1989.

It was a major foreign policy success for Putin, who since taking power last year has been building bridges with the United States and western Europe to rebuild Russia as a global power.

It also reflected US appreciation for Russia’s support in the fight against global terrorism in the wake of the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington.

“This partnership takes us closer to an even larger goal – a Europe that is whole, free and at peace,” said Bush, who left the summit immediately after lunch for an audience with Pope John Paul II. (The Age) 

*  *  *  *  *

2024 Reflection on the 75th anniversary of NATO

Canada's diminishing military stature amidst rising global tensions, exemplified by Russia's aggression in Ukraine and the lasting effects of former U.S. President Donald Trump's rhetoric, underscores the urgent need for renewed prioritization and investment in Canadian defence, especially as NATO celebrates its 75th anniversary.

April 10, 2024

Reflecting on the milestone of NATO’s 75th anniversary and the historical context of international diplomacy, one cannot overlook the pivotal establishment of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) in 2002. This significant event occurred at a summit meeting near Rome, Italy, where leaders from NATO member states and Russia came together to forge a new chapter in post-Cold War relations.

The establishment of the NATO-Russia Council marked a transformative moment, symbolizing efforts to transcend old hostilities and build bridges of cooperation between former adversaries. Key objectives of the NRC included promoting transparency, enhancing mutual understanding, and fostering practical cooperation on a range of security challenges facing the Euro-Atlantic community.

At the time of its inception, leaders like US President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin saw the NRC as an opportunity to address common security threats, including terrorism, weapons proliferation, and regional conflicts. The joint declaration signed at the summit underscored the commitment of NATO and Russia to work together as equals, acknowledging the evolving dynamics of global security in the post-Cold War era.

However, the trajectory of NATO-Russia relations has been characterized by fluctuations, influenced by geopolitical events and shifting priorities on both sides. Tensions emerged over issues such as NATO enlargement, missile defense, and Russia’s actions in neighboring regions like Georgia and Ukraine. These challenges underscored the complexities of managing a partnership between NATO and Russia amidst divergent interests and strategic objectives.

Against the backdrop of NATO’s 75th anniversary and the contemporary global landscape, the evolution of the NATO-Russia Council serves as a microcosm of broader trends in international diplomacy. The NRC reflects the aspirations and challenges of building cooperative security frameworks in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.

As Canada grapples with its military legacy and role within the NATO alliance, the lessons from the NATO-Russia Council highlight the importance of dialogue, cooperation, and pragmatic engagement in addressing common security concerns. The NRC’s legacy underscores the enduring need for sustained efforts to build trust, manage differences, and pursue shared interests, even in times of uncertainty and geopolitical tensions.

Ultimately, as we reflect on the past and look towards the future, the NATO-Russia Council offers valuable insights into the possibilities and limitations of international partnerships. It reminds us of the imperative to embrace diplomacy and collaboration as essential tools for promoting peace, security, and stability in an ever-changing world. (Graeme MacKay, April 2024)

 

Saturday May 5, 2000

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 5, 2000

Known only to God, a soldier comes home

Who was he? Was he a child of 16, big for his age who had “borrowed” someone else’s birth certificate? Was he a battle-hardened veteran of 25, scarred in mind if not in body? Was he a farm boy? A bank clerk? Was he white or native? Was he an only child or a beloved brother? Was he married? Did he leave children to mourn him? Did he die in an obliterating shellburst? Did he lie bleeding and alone in a muddy crater in No Man’s Land as his life ebbed away?

The Unknown Soldier: Anyone and everyone

We know but this: Once upon a time, someone loved this Canadian. And he died while serving his country.

He is our Unknown Soldier and while it is true he could be any of these things, it is more important to realize that he is all of them. Canada’s soldat inconnu will be laid to his final rest tomorrow beneath the triumphal arch of the National War Memorial in Ottawa. As he has come home, so have all his comrades; as he is recognized, so are they all. He is honoured not for the mystery of who he is, but for the infinite possibility of who he was.

The concept of the Unknown Soldier is rapidly becoming obsolete, at least in this part of the world. Advances in DNA matching means that even the most brutally damaged remains can be identified today. In fact, Canada had to promise the Commonwealth War Graves Commission it would not try to identify these Canadian remains; an American Unknown Soldier was recently identified through testing.

Our Unknown Soldier died somewhere near Vimy Ridge, the crest of land where Canadian soldiers first fought as a national force on Easter Monday 1917. He is one of more than 116,000 Canadians who died in battle in the past century’s wars; one of almost 28,000 of them whose remains were never found or identified. He is one of them; he is all of them.

In the past few years, there has been a resurgence of interest in, and honouring of, the sacrifices of the Canadian men and women who served in the our armed forces. Remembrance Day was marked in this country last November in a more solemn and meaningful way than this country has seen in decades.

There is a remarkable synchronicity in the coming home this week of our Unknown Soldier and the full-honours burial in France a day earlier of David John Carlson, a soldier from Mannville, Alta., who died in the Battle of the Somme. Listed for 80 years as missing in action, his remains recently surfaced in a French farmer’s field. There is no one left alive who knew Private Carlson. Two grand-nieces attended his funeral but could only say they thought he was one of two men in a faded photo. They don’t know which one.

But just as a family tried to remember David Carlson, so Canada can try to remember all those who sacrificed everything — their hopes, their dreams, their futures — for their country.

And tomorrow, as the bones of a young man are interred in a granite sarcophagus in Ottawa, his maple coffin atop soil from each of the provinces and territories and from France where he gave his life, we can honour all those who are known only to God. (Hamilton Spectator Editorial, D6, 5/27/2000)