National Defence committee  I would agree with all that, and as I said before, I think at this level, at the strategic level of Ottawa and so on, what would be most helpful is a concerted effort by the political community to rebuild and transform the Canadian forces rapidly. In 1950, when NATO was formed,

National Defence committee  I hope it will always be a difficult job for you.

National Defence committee  But it's not the comparing of battle casualties of one war with those of another war that's important. What I think is remarkable here is the sense of resolve people had during other conflicts that we could bear the costs, and we could do it. After Dieppe, a lot of Canadians pick

National Defence committee  That's hard to say. For Canadians...well, the Americans will protect us, so I guess we don't have to worry about it too much. Maybe we don't want to make a contribution to the alliances we signed on for. Maybe we don't want to be involved in the responsibility to protect. Maybe

National Defence committee  Yes, I agree with you entirely. Over the years in my program at Queen's we have surveyed members of Parliament to find out what they know about defence policy, how they think about defence policy, what the relationship is with each other. We've said on many occasions that parli

National Defence committee  I would say, first off, that I have difficulty with Mr. Layton's statements. The point is, I don't understand them, I can't make any sense of them, and I don't know how he would effect what he's talking about. On leaving the country immediately, or by February or some time, I don

National Defence committee  This is a very good point. When people ask me whether the Canadian Forces should be in Afghanistan, my response is “Do you think Canadian humanitarian workers should be in Afghanistan?” People usually say “Yes, of course,” and then I point out the relationship between security an

National Defence committee  I can leave around 5:30.

National Defence committee  The commitment is to VIA Rail and an early class of students tomorrow. There is a difference between professors and students: professors actually have to go to class.

National Defence committee  I'll just trade quotes with my academic friend. Wilfred Laurier, in 1910, set out the first principle of Canadian defence policy: there is no threat, and if there were one, the Americans would save us. All prime ministers have agreed. They believe that freeriding on the American

National Defence committee  No, I can't answer all your questions. However, the first question on the number of casualties in other forces operating in Afghanistan is readily available, and I think the research staff can find them. If they can't, would somebody send me a message and I'll put them onto a web

National Defence committee  Can I add a point to that? I agree, and I don't think talking about Canadian casualties as a measure of success or what we're doing is all that useful either. The research staff here might actually be able to go and find out how many members of the Canadian Forces have been ki

National Defence committee  All that information, I understand, is readily available from the Department of National Defence. They prepare reports for Parliament on the expenditures, vote by vote and item by item. I believe from one of my colleagues that the latest report, called “Peacekeeping Expenditure

National Defence committee  I'm not an expert on the region, but I would say evidently not, simply because of the criticism that is coming to Pakistan from the major leaders of other countries. The Pakistanis will explain that it's a very tough nut and they're working on it. But I really don't know the answ

National Defence committee  Yes, I have seen the testimony. I read it in detail, and Mr. Staples and I were engaged in a public debate two Fridays ago at Queen's University's homecoming. The debate was attended by 300 or 350 people: students; older folks; grey-haired men in suits. We talked for two hours wi