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Trooper
 
Group: Registered User
Last Login: 10/2/2008 11:38 PM
Posts: 544,
Visits: 17
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http://www.herald.ns.ca/stories/2003/12/08/fEditorial101.raw.html
IT IS HARDLY even news anymore when a new report condemns the current state of the Canadian Armed Forces, or reveals the tremendous burden our military personnel face in attempting to meet their commitments with inadequate equipment and dwindling manpower.
Last week, depressingly, the story became even worse with the release of a report, Canada Without Armed Forces, written by Dr. Douglas Bland of Queen's University.
Produced with input from the Conference of Defence Associations, the report concludes that the Department of National Defence has been so starved of resources, especially over the past decade, that even an immediate infusion of cash would not be enough to stop the trend of deterioration.
"Canada in a few years will be effectively disarmed," the report concludes.
"Even if the next government were to provide nearly unlimited funds in an attempt to overcome this deficit, little can be done before the apprehended crisis becomes fact.
"The downward slope of the capabilities is too steep, and the slide is too fast. Many core capabilities, or essential elements of them, will collapse before operationally effective units can replace them."
This is grim news for those assuming that a quick cash investment, potentially coming hand in hand with a change in government, would be enough to put the Armed Forces back on track. But Dr. Bland contends it is not nearly that simple.
The report says the operational capabilities will continue to decline for the next five to 10 years, and the best a new government could hope to do is "set the Canadian Forces on the road to recovery."
Still, significant gaps will remain between current foreign and defence policies and the Canadian military's ability to maintain these policy commitments.
There are those in our society who will argue for increased funding for such prominent public services as health care and education, and these are indeed vital to the interests of our country. But when choices are being made, our governments and our society seem to sometimes miss how critical a well-equipped and well-trained military is to our national sovereignty and our ability to defend and maintain Canadian territory.
Decreasing capabilities have also made it difficult for Canada to maintain its role in international affairs, even in the important peacekeeping missions that have brought our nation recognition around the world.
With increasing fleets of equipment nearing obsolescence, the report pegs the capital needs of the military over the next five years at $23 billion, well above the $8 billion of projected capital funding available.
Among the recommendations in the report is a call for "a vigilant Parliament" that makes defence-related decisions from a position of not only being well-informed, but with senators and MPs acting as "full and inquisitive partners in decisions aimed at ensuring that Canada is adequately and properly defended."
This would be a refreshing change from the photo-op style of support our military has been offered in recent years, where there is always time to show up when a task force is off on a dangerous mission, but never a willingness to sign a cheque.
Proud Canadian Redneck
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Trooper
Group: Registered User
Last Login: 10/2/2008 11:38 PM
Posts: 544,
Visits: 17
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Not next year. This friday. He will be different. But its just the same **** in a different bag basically.
Proud Canadian Redneck
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Seasoned Vet
Group: Past PNET Supporter
Last Login: 6/10/2006 7:52 AM
Posts: 4,296,
Visits: 382
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There'll be no changes made at the higher levels. The government will continue to despise the military. The generals will continue to screw over the troops for their own benfit. The only changes at the troop's level will be that every experienced NCO will continue to get out, and the standards will continue to drop, giving us weaker recruits.
Make The Voices Stop!
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Trooper
Group: Registered User
Last Login: 10/2/2008 11:38 PM
Posts: 544,
Visits: 17
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Im still signing up. Not much is gonna stop me
Proud Canadian Redneck
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Hard Charger
Group: Past PNET Supporter
Last Login: 8/30/2007 6:23 AM
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quote:
Im still signing up. Not much is gonna stop me
When do you leave for Basic Training? Or Canada's equivilant. Is it called Basic in the Canadian Armed Forces? Now that I think about it there is allot I do not know about the Canadian Military.
Do they have a Navy or an Air Force?
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Trooper
Group: Registered User
Last Login: 10/2/2008 11:38 PM
Posts: 544,
Visits: 17
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All the forces are integrated i believe.
I was in ottawa in september and i didnt have my birth certificate or a Social Insurance number so i go back to ottawa this february and am going to talk to the recruiters again. Hopefully i can get in for spring.
Proud Canadian Redneck
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Seasoned Vet
Group: Past PNET Supporter
Last Login: 6/10/2006 7:52 AM
Posts: 4,296,
Visits: 382
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http://armyapp.dnd.ca/lfdts/choose.asp
http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/home_e.asp
http://www.paratrooper.net/aotw/commo/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=14876
http://army.ca/main.php
http://www.sfu.ca/casr/index.htm
Make The Voices Stop!
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