Canadian Defence Minister O’Connor says its about "retribution" for 9/11!

Globe and Mail link here

Its all about retribution for 9/11, says Canadian Defence Minister O’Connor?!

“What it means is, if our country is attacked, we are not going to stand blandly by and not do anything about it”, O’Conner said.

This uber-hawkish utterance could’ve come straight from the American White House. It clearly portrays a Canadian government out of sync with what it means to be Canadian. Pursuing justice without resorting to “might makes right policies” is not “standing blandly by.” The empire to the south may believe in wreaking vengeance, but it is not the Canadian way. Sounds like Harper’s Defence Minister has been choking down too much American policy in his North American integration sessions.

Yes, sadly, Canadians were killed on that awful 11^th day of September, 2001 when the US was attacked by terrorists. Yes, justice does need to be served, but not by indiscriminant bombs and flying bullets. Sure, Afghanistan is in dire need of international aid. We should be there. But it is a colossal strategic blunder to be in Afghanistan for the purpose of seeking “retribution! That changes the mission entirely.

This extreme Harper government is steadily trashing the hard-earned reputation, and security, that Canada has enjoyed to-date. Sending Canadian troops out to seek vengeance for an attack that was directed at the US is only going to hasten the loss of Canada’s truly amazing and unique stature, and the inherent security it has brought us.

Look, the Taliban was as powerless to control the fractious groups in Afghanistan as NATO forces are trying to rein in violence in that most unfortunate country, never mind find expel bin Laden. It is the most grossly distorted rendition of facts for Harper’s Defence Minister to say, “When the Taliban or al-Qaeda came out of Afghanistan, they attached the twin towers and in those twin towers, 25 Canadians were killed.” Most of the purported hijackers were Saudis, according to the official story, coordinated by the amazing disappearing Saudi, Osama bin Laden, and even funded and supported by the Saudi ruling elites. The fact is, that there is plenty of evidence pointing to the fact that the Americans themselves allowed 9/11 to happen through their infernal domestic and foreign machinations.

But look at this issue even closer. If the Afghan mission is about retribution for 9/11, then someone ought to tell the Americans, because they somehow believe retribution is to be found in Iraq, and perhaps Iran. They had barely arrived in Afghanistan, before they were targeting Iraq. They even gave up the supposed mastermind of 9/11. Bush shrugged and said, “I hardly think of bin Laden anymore.”

Defence Minister O’Connor’s unfortunate claim that Canada is in Afghanistan for “retribution” is the most absurd, dangerous thing yet to come out of this Harper government. This is not just about politics. Stephen Harper and his government are actively eroding the security of all Canadians by their increasingly militant lockstep with the lawless policies of the Bush administration.

But you know what? Given Harper’s government’s insistence that 9/11 is the reason for invading Afghanistan, Iraq and possibly Iran, and for the gradual erosion of our freedoms, perhaps we should ensure that all doubt about what happened on 9/11 is eliminated. Maybe we need to understand better how the Canadian military’s NORAD participation contributed to the sluggish response on 9/11, which allowed more people to die. Maybe we need to understand more about the military exercises which transferred most of North Americas air support into northern Canada and Alaska, and how these exercises interfered with “real-world” responses to the hijackings of 9/11.

Minister O’Connor, you have opened up a whole can of worms by invoking 9/11 as the reason that Canada is marching off to war.