05) THE "BIG PLAYER" ENTERS THE GAME

People's Voice Editorial

     Somehow it was never spoken of during the recent federal election, but the Harper Tories now admit they are setting up Canadian military bases around the world. Why? It's just "prudent planning", claims Defence Minister Peter MacKay.

     Waxing eloquent about the burdens and responsibilities of a 21st century imperialist power, MacKay says Canada must "look out into the future (to) anticipate where and when we will be needed... The focus of the planning is our capability for expeditionary participation in international missions... We are big players in NATO. We're a country that has become a go-to nation in response to situations like what we're seeing in Libya, what we saw in Haiti... We are constantly working within that paradigm of countries, to see where we can bring that niche capability to bear. It's part of planning and preparation, in conjunction with our equipment needs."

     Le Devoir reports that the Canadian Forces are already negotiating to set up bases in Germany, Jamaica, Kuwait, Senegal, Kenya, Tanzania, Singapore and South Korea.

     Why wasn't this historic expansion of Canadian military power raised during the campaign? Did the Harperites fear a voter backlash? After all, the Tories received the backing of just 39% of Canadians who voted. Another one or two percent less would have left them with another minority.

     Now, Canadians face a government determined to keep ramping up the military, at the expense of people's needs at home and abroad. One of Harper's first actions after May 2 was to buy another $130 million worth of bombs to kill Libyans.

     As for being "big players" and "go-to guys," a better phrase might be "hired guns." The burden of the world's biggest military machine weighs heavily on the U.S., and the PM is eager to volunteer the people of Canada to help shoulder the load.

     It's time to retool the anti-war movement to meet this militarist threat - and to demand that the Opposition parties take a stand against the unchecked expansion of Canadian imperialism.

(The above article is from the June 16-30, 2011, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)