Steve's Afghanistan Adventure

Steve's capacity to endlessly blame the Liberals for his failures is apparently limitless. In an interview with CBC's Don Newman on Wednesday, he claimed that the tories made the decision to go ahead with extending the NATO mission despite the fact that they only had 4 or 5 months in office because the Liberals had committed Canadian troops to Kandahar and there just wasn't much time for his government to get a grip on the mission or where it might be headed.

Bollocks.

The fact is that his government presented its spring motion well ahead of the 2007 date pegged by NATO to continue the mission and the tory defence committee made absolutely no effort to examine the situation in advance of the vote. We had much more time than he admits to consider our options. Steve blinked and now he's saying Canada has the next 2 years to decide what to do about our role in the war.

In the meantime, as he likes to remind people, the credibility of NATO is on the line here. Well, screw NATO's credibility. Canada has the right, as does every other member country, to make decisions about our military involvement in NATO's missions. We are not in Afghanistan to boost NATO's credibility. Or, are we Steve? Is that why you stubbornly refuse to change course or call back our troops? Because it might taint NATO? Or is it really because you fear that your promotion of the culture of militarism will be harmed if Canadian troops are brought home? Are Canadian troops dying for NATO's credibility or are they dying to help the Afghan people? Which is it?

Asked on CTV about a possible non-confidence vote over Canada's committment in Afghanistan, Steve said:

"I tell people I couldn't care less if the Opposition ultimately brings me down and defeats me in an election over this," said Harper.

"I have to do what we believe is right for long-term security interests of this country, and right for the men and women who have put themselves on the line. Those are the interests I will defend regardless of what the polls are on this."

What does fighting in Afghanistan have to do with Canada's security? You could kill thousands of so-called terrorists there and there would still be a threat at home. In fact, bin Laden threatened Canada long ago over our mission there. Sorry Steve, that Bushism 'we'll fight them over there so we don't have to fight them here' is pretty damn old, tired and wrong and so is your use of Bush's favourite put down 'cut and run'. What's right for Canada and for our soldiers is to bring them home and to push diplomatically for a workable political solution in Afghanistan.

This says it all, doesn't it?

And in one revealing moment during the interview, Harper names British Prime Minister Tony Blair as a political leader he holds in high esteem.

One Bush sock-puppet admiring another one who has proven to be horribly wrong and corrupt. If that's Steve's idol, we're all in big trouble.

Since Steve doesn't care, I say let's bring him down. The sooner, the better.