Achieving Canadian Military Objectives

One of the chief objectives of our federal government is the protection of our country and our citizens. Section 91 of the Constitution Act places national defence squarely under the control of the federal government.

We've heard a lot in the news lately about Canada failing to live up to our NATO obligations, which require us to put 2% of our GDP toward our military. We've heard a lot of 'rubber lip' from our Prime Minister and Minister of Defence rationalizing why we don't live up to our Treaty obligations. But the bottom line is, in 1949, Canada made a Treaty with other nations. That placed us under an obligation.

Canada had been part of the armed forces that fought in WW1 and WW2. We had seen what happens when a dictator chooses to take over. We had seen what happened when Neville Chamberlain and others tried appeasement with Hitler. It didn't work! Any more than appeasing the schoolyard bully works. I'll give you the treat from my lunch, becomes I'll give you my treat and drink, becomes I'll give you my lunch. If there is no might to back up us up against a bully then appeasement won't work. The bully always wants more.

We are a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) . . . part of the original drafters of the Treaty. We, proactively, made a treaty to ensure the protection of our country.

As the Great Wars slipped into the past, our Canadian government chose to make other spending a priority. We didn't need new defence equipment (they assumed); the rest of NATO had our back. So our military was slowly decimated.

In 1983, helicopters were needed but . . . we delayed the purchase for a few years.

In 1998, Submarines were needed, but . . . we chose to buy Britain's outdated, cast-off subs that had been decommissioned 5 years earlier. Before the ink was dry on the purchase agreement for those bargain basement submarines, one of them had cost the life of a Canadian soldier and sickness of others. Can we forget the torpedo door of a submarine that had been welded shut because it leaked. But that was deemed an acceptable risk . . . we shouldn't lose too many Canadian lives (they hoped). Collateral damage of careless and wasteful spending on non-essentials for a woke agenda!

Mike Hancock, a British MP, wondered, "Why were the Canadians daft enough to buy them?" Isn't that the question we should ask about our military preparedness as it continues to be substandard?

Where are those submarines now? Seven Prime Ministers since then have been in charge of our military preparedness, and we've spent a fortune keeping them more or less seaworthy. Only two of them have been to sea in the last few years for a total of 214 days. That's about 7 months between the two of them . . . about 3.5 months between them. Wow! Don't you feel well protected!

But that was a long time ago. How do things look today? This is a report from March 2024, and it's really scary!

"Only 58 per cent of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) would be able to respond if called upon in a crisis by NATO allies right now-and almost half of the military's equipment is considered "unavailable and unserviceable"-says a recent internal Department of National Defence (DND) presentation obtained by CBC News." How's that for a core federal obligation? It looks and IS lame!

What does our lack of military spending look like to our allies? ". . . using the 2% metric, America's northern neighbour is ahead of only Slovenia, Turkey, Spain, Belgium and Luxembourg in the 32-member alliance." I guess our consolation is that there are a few other counties that are worse than us in fulfilling our agreement . . . a very few!

"O Canada, do we really we stand on guard for thee?"

Knowing the state of our military, do you feel safe from enemies "foreign and domestic"? Can you see why our NATO allies want us to pull up our socks? Do you see how serious this is in a world torn by so many conflicts? Are we really content to ride on American coattails like a vassal state? Come to think of it, their ability to defend their own interests has been terribly downgraded in recent years.

What are we waiting for? We have no plan. Our Prime Minister speaks without thinking. He set the target date . . . finally . . . for 2032. But the plan! Where's the plan to achieve this? He also claimed in 2015 that he would balance the budget in 2019. How's that working?

For decades, we have had the "big three" parties dominating the Parliament while our military has been decimated. It's time to stop supporting those who haven't worked in the past and still are full of hot air.

CHP Canada places high importance on our military preparedness. This from our Policy Book:

INDEPENDENT PREPAREDNESS

We affirm that governments have a responsibility to build up and maintain a strong military preparedness to protect their citizens from foreign threats and subversive influences which may deprive them of their liberties. Canada's national defence, therefore, must be a "high priority" item even in times of minimal international tension. Canada's national defence forces must consist of a standing navy, army, and air force equipped with the best cost-effective weaponry and resources available, and maintained in such numbers as to ensure an effective commitment to the defence of Canada's interests." (A Blueprint for Restoration - CHP Canada)

Why do Canadians support leadership that has not and will not work? It seems that no moral accountability has been demonstrated in the last 75 years by the mainstream parties in regard to protecting our borders and our citizens from potential threats. It's time to look to a political party that recognizes the moral responsibility for national defence that rests on our country's leaders.

Support and join CHP Canada. O Canada, we will stand on guard for thee!

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