A_Major, good one re: Lib MPs in Citys - got a real chuckle out of that! 8)
FYI, just thought everyone should know what PM PM's view is of the whole CF attack ad:
(Compendium of blurps from: Tor Star, CBC, CTV, Can AM, etc)
[My comments Thusly]
Martin said
an ad that outraged present and former military personnel was not meant to target soldiers.
[Yep, Suure, :
and I suppose he didn't eliminate the deficit by 'permanently borrowing', into federal coffers, the approx $46B Surplus which had built up in the once separate EI account - a surplus which now exists only on paper as a 'hidden debt'.]
The ad claims Harper would put soldiers in Canadian cities and suggested Canada could become a police state under his leadership.
The ad, which Liberals say was pulled before it ever ran on television, opens with the ominous sound of a military drumbeat and the Conservative leader's blurred face in the background.
As the face comes slowly into focus, a concerned, measured female voice speaks behind the words on the screen [in an ominous tone]:
"Stephen Harper actually announced he wants to increase military presence in our cities."
"Canadian cities."
"
Soldiers with guns. "
"
In our cities. In Canada. "
"We did not make this up."
"Choose your Canada." >
"Vote FIBeral/LIEberaL" [or insert your favourite word]
[
Yet, most Media outlets rec'd the ad on the same CD as part of a 'Super Slam' pkg of 12 Attk ADs,
All approved by the PM himself (as acknowledged by the PM on Canada AM this AM and Ujal Dosanjh the other day)
-
with the AD in question not pulled until 4 Hours later
- once they realized how it was starting to blow up in their faces.]
Paul Martin has defended the ads, and In an interview Thursday morning on CTV's Canada AM,
Martin said he approved every one of the harshly critical ads -- including one that suggested the Tory Leader would use the military to occupy Canadian cities.
Liberal spokesman Ken Polk told The Globe and Mail: The ad "was inadvertently posted," he said in an e-mail to the newspaper. Then he sent another e-mail, saying: "The ad has not been aired. It may still."
A few minutes later in another e-mail, he said: "The ad will not air in its present form and was never intended to."
The ad was pulled from the Liberal party's English website but still appeared Wednesday afternoon on the party's French website.
Thursday saw the Liberals chasing their own tails in the attempt to control the fallout from an attack ad that mistakenly made it to the party's web site and has raised rancour among Canadians.
[Yet PM asserted] "it has never been shown in Quebec"
McLellan, the Deputy Prime Minister and Liberal candidate in Edmonton Centre, said the ad was never approved by the prime minister and should have never seen the light of day.
[Meanwhile,] Liberal MP Keith Martin said "Some idiot inadvertently sent out an ad that was not approved and not supported by the party with the 11 (ads) that were supported."
Liberal Leader Paul Martin said the controversial "ad was pulled because the ad was pulled, and because there were better ads -- that's essentially it.'' ???
[Hold on, here come the dizzying Spin]
Martin said. "Take a look at what we're attacking. There's support for the soldiers."
[This AM on Canada AM - PM said "the AD was not an AD, it was never an AD." ]
[Tonight on CBC, PM said "the AD never actually aired . . . the AD does Not exist."]
ushup:
Still, McLellan said the ad's purpose was simply to point out the expense of Harper's plan to station troops for emergency response in four Western cities.
[Martin asserted] (The ads have) "nothing to do with soldiers."
Martin said Harper's plan to establish a permanent military presence in major Canadian cities as a ready aid in emergencies would dilute the Forces and create an administrative and logistical nightmare.
"It's not me," Martin said.
The chief of defence staff, Gen. Rick "Hillier's the one who said `I want to have a Canada Command; I want to be able to really have top-flight soldiers in top-flight positions with top-flight equipment.
You can't do that if it's spread out all across the country."
[During a live News event Thur AM, PM asserted (from memory)] "what we need most is Strategic Deployability, we need forces concentrated as we can't wait a few days for them to be concentrated."
[Umm, did he forget only 2-3 Hercs available for such duties?? :blotto:
Plus, to move any substantial amount of equip, especially if rail lines or Mtn Passes are unusable due to a Maj Quake in BC, we require Rented Russian/Ukranian Antonovs at OUTRAGEOUS Rental Rates ~US$880M per flight (per Dart in Jan 2005).
Not to mention that these rented aircraft, even under the NATO SALIS agmt, would not be available at Cdn Military airfield before minimum 72 hrs - plus requiring Undamaged airstrip sufficiently long to land on.
72hr Antonov availability would be Insufficient to meet the FSA SOR 48hr availability window in respect to national deployments in response to a natural disaster (such as a major BC earthquake or another Winnipeg Flood or Ice Storm) or a northern Canada MAJAID (MAjor AIr Disater). :brickwall:
US C-17/C-5 begging/borrowing might be even more Problematic
considering how PM keeps Slagging the US who have stepped up in past to help with Winnipeg Flood & Ice Storm Outsize airlift.] :-[
[Plus, don't forget their Inane News Release]
http://www.liberal.ca/news_e.aspx?id=11250
Stephen Harper's Mixed-Up Military Priorities
December 13, 2005
Stephen Harper's announcement of the Conservative defence plan today demonstrates his party's mixed-up military priorities.
Mr. Harper also announced his new plan would also include increasing heavy air lift capacity by buying larger aircraft. Heavy airlift capacity has one purpose: the deployment of a quick response for military or humanitarian reasons. Mr. Harper's should come clean and explain why he believes Canada needs this kind of airlift capacity: is it for military or humanitarian purposes?
[Pls see my earlier post for further elaboration on that Brain Fart]
http://Forums.Army.ca/forums/threads/36924/post-308912.html#msg308912
BTW, not bad overall summary of platforms.
http://www.ctv.ca/mini/election2006/static/issues/defence.html
[Although they seem to have completely missed the CPC promise for Minimum 3x Strategic Airlift aircraft,
which coincidentally, the Libranoes need for their Rapid Deployment assertions. Ironic Eh?] :nana:
Hows This Eh? ;D
[Military music circa French Revolution beating (louder and louder) in background on a
Blood-Red screen.]
[Tank roaring straight at screen, gun firing]
The Liberals forced the CF to scrap tanks in favour of Mobile Gun Systems.
Tanks bad, might actually scare someone.
[MGS wheeling happily by, turret swiveling back and forth merily.]
Mobile Gun Systems . . . In our Cities.
Canadian Cities.
[Pictures of riots from FLQ days]
Canadian Peasants on the streets.
[MGS wheeling happily by, turret swiveling back and forth merily.]
Soldiers with Mobile Gun Systems . . . on the streets . . . In Canadian Cities.
[Dead & injured civilians lying on ground after a riot]
We're not making this up, Really!
[MGS wheeling happily by, turret swiveling back and forth merily.]
Mobile Gun Systems are actually very useful to quell Domestic disturbances . . . In Canadian Cities.
Choose your Canada, or else.
