Richard Hughes-Political Blogger How Harper Turned Canada into a Rogue State It was not easy for those who went before us to build Canada into the remarkable and much respected country that it has been until now, until the reckless and unbalanced power hungry Prime Minister Steve Harper has grabbed
Continue readingTag: Syria
The Disaffected Lib: You’ll Need More Than a Six-Pack for That Job.
Well, that was the idea anyway. Brace yourselves. In a move that could send chills down the spine of every member of ISIS, it’s been revealed that Canada is ‘considering’ expanding its war effort to Syria and, gasp, Libya too. Libya? That’s that place that Gaddafi guy used to run.
Continue readingA coalition of the willing for Syrian refugees?
The United States has resumed its war in Iraq, once again building a “coalition of the willing.” Our government has, unfortunately, decide to join this one. Our participation is unwise and unjustified for a number of reasons. To begin with, this war—to “degrade and destroy” ISIS—is the result of a
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Six things we all need to think about when Canadians volunteer to fight for the Kurds
The Kurds: They should have had a country of their own, but since they don’t, and since Canada is allied by treaty to one of their principal enemies, letting Canadians join their fight isn’t a simple matter. We need clarity on just what Canada’s position is from the Canadian government.
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: It’s Called "Blowback"
Our confused, incoherent, even knee-jerk response to ISIS appears to be backfiring on us, at least in Syria. There, it’s reported, US air strikes are driving anti-Assad groups – outfits we’ve supported like the Free Syrian Army – into the arms of ISIS. US air strikes in Syria are encouraging anti-regime
Continue readingdrive-by planet: Video of Syrian boy ‘hero’ under sniper fire exposed as fake: other Syria-related propaganda
In its coverage of a video that purported to show a Syrian boy braving sniper fire in the course of rescuing a young girl, the Daily Mail lauded the spectacle as an act of heroism. The accompanying article claimed the video was believed to have been shot in Yabroud, a
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: When My Enemy’s Enemies Are Still My Enemies
One of the greatest mistakes we make in the conduct of modern warfare is to make our conflicts suit a politically palatable narrative. It can seem as though the spin doctors are as powerful as the generals which might explain why they seem to do an equally marginal job at
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: Russell Brand Re-Spins Stephen Harper, Expertly
Politics, Re-Spun hereby bestows honourary Canadian and Politics, Re-Spun citizenship upon Russell Brand for his precise and effective re-spinning of Steve Harper and his soft fascist, neo-conservative manipulation of most of last week. And we all need to think more carefully about “convenient murders.” His new passport is in the
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: The Madness of King Stephen
As excuses for war go, claiming a conflict to be “noble” is really scraping the bottom of the barrel. It’s something you resort to when there’s simply nothing left to pull out of your ass. “Squires, attend your Lords. Summon the Heralds. To the jousts! Ah, there’s a noble scent
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Sousse Tunisia – Fun in the Sun and ISIS Recruitment Hotbed
Who could ask for anything more. A great beach, a good discotheque and an opportunity for martyrdom for the win! Over a million tourists from around the world visit Sousse, Tunisia every year. And, while the coastal city boasts pristine beaches and world class hotels, recently, hordes of local
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: What Are We Getting Ourselves Into?
Before long the Middle East will look like a parking lot for Western jet fighters. The place will be awash in Hornets and Super Hornets, F-16s, F-22s, Eurofighters and Rafales and Tornados. They’ll be flying about over Syria and Iraq searching for something, anything to bomb into rubble and pulp.
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Ten Questions about the Harper Government’s embrace of war with ISIS-ISIL-IS
Ready, Aye, Ready! Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird whips up the War Party in the House of Commons. Below: Stephen Harper, the prime minister, and Edmonton Centre MP Laurie Hawn. Stephen Harper, John Baird, Laurie Hawn and the rest of the boys yesterday finally got the war in Iraq they’ve
Continue readingcmkl: I had been wanting to say something about our latest war
But this by Michael Harris on iPolitics pretty much sums up all of the practical objections to Canada’s sending F-18s to bomb ISIS in Syria and Iraq. For the principled objections, I give you the immortal words of Michael Franti: You can bomb the world to pieces but you can’t
Continue readingdrive-by planet: Reasons why "The Khorasan Group" was fabricated by the US government
When the US-led bombing campaign in Syria got underway media outlets announced the emergence of a new jihadist threat that posed an even greater threat to the US than ISIL. It wasn’t just a threat to the region, but a direct and imminent threat to the United States. “The Khorasan
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Justin, Tommy – Here’s Your Talking Points
Look, if you can’t nail Harper on this ISIS business, you’re not fit to govern anything much less our country. What you need to do is pry the lid off ISIS. Show Canadians what lies beneath, who stands behind. Start with the notion that this seemingly well-organized, well-trained, well-equipped and
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Iraq, Syria & the Islamic State: Obama’s new & revised Queensbury Rules
For many years, a code has governed the manly art of boxing: the Queensbury Rules, endorsed by John Douglas, the Marquess of Queensbury. These rules set out what you can and cannot do to your opponent in the boxing ring, and are equated with a sense of fair play and
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Why Canada is going to war in Iraq: From Harper’s Mouth
I recently wrote a post about the motivations for middle powers like Canada to join international coalitions for wars such as the recent war in Iraq. Now that we have seen Harper official justification for the war to Parliament, it is worth noting how …
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Why Canada is going to war in Iraq: From Harper’s Mouth
I recently wrote a post about the motivations for middle powers like Canada to join international coalitions for wars such as the recent war in Iraq. Now that we have seen Harper official justification for the war to Parliament, it is worth noting how closely what I said tacked with
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Why Canada is going to war in Iraq: From Harper’s Mouth
I recently wrote a post about the motivations for middle powers like Canada to join international coalitions for wars such as the recent war in Iraq. Now that we have seen Harper official justification for the war to Parliament, it is worth noting how closely what I said tacked with
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