Harper's War and the Last Desperate Gamble of the Con regime

Eleven years ago Stephen Harper tried to drag us into a war in Iraq, and today he finally succeeded. 

Canada is heading to war in Iraq after Stephen Harper’s announcement that he intends to deploy jet fighters to join coalition air strikes against Islamic State militants for as long as six months, but vowing not to be dragged into a “prolonged quagmire.”

And all I can say is that I'm glad the Liberals and the NDP are not supporting Harper's War. So he will have no political cover.

And will end up wearing it like a shroud, as I'm sure he will.

Because while in the short term it may give his sagging polls a boost, since most Canadians support military action. 

Almost two-thirds (or 64 per cent) of Canadians said they’re strongly or somewhat in support of Canada sending jets, likely CF-18s, to launch strikes on ISIS targets in Iraq, according to an exclusive Global News/Ipsos Reid poll.

The greatest support for Canada taking part in airstrikes came from Ontario, where 71 per cent of respondents said they strongly or somewhat supported it; the lowest support was in Quebec with 53 per cent.

As one might expect, when you're dealing with a bestial group of religious fanatics like this one. 

That will only last until Canadians see how Stephen Harper is trying to exploit the situation...





Or scare them to death for crass political purposes.

Or understand what George Monbiot wrote about here.

They dangled the heads of their victims in front of the cameras as bait for war planes. And our governments were stupid enough to take it. 

Harper is doing what the terrorists want, helping the ISIS crazies portray the war as just another War on Muslims.

Even though the U.S. and its other allies could have easily handled the bombing without us.

And we could have contributed to the Great War Against ISIS in a more useful and Canadian way, by riding to the rescue of the armies of desperate refugees...



Instead of getting militarily involved in an apocalyptic religious war between the Sunni and the Shia, and jumping into bed with Saudi princes like this one.

In July, the former head of MI6, Sir Richard Dearlove, revealed that Prince Bandar bin Sultan, until recently the head of Saudi intelligence, told him: “The time is not far off in the Middle East, Richard, when it will be literally ‘God help the Shia’. More than a billion Sunnis have simply had enough of them.”

And even though everyone admits that bombing alone won't defeat the ISIS crazies. Not as long as so many Sunnis support them.

And that you can't solve the problem the same way you created it...



Stephen Harper couldn't be restrained from jumping on the war bandwagon, and making it sound like ISIS is the greatest threat the world faces, not climate change.

And that the caliphate is COMING !!!!! 

ISIL has established a self-proclaimed caliphate, at present stretching over a vast territory, roughly from Aleppo to near Baghdad, from which it intends to launch a terrorist jihad not merely against the region, but on a global basis. Indeed, it has specifically targeted Canada and Canadians, urging supporters to attack “disbelieving Canadians in any manner”, vowing that we should not feel secure, even in our homes.

To behead us in our beds with electric knives, or as Bill Maher recently suggested, hedge trimmers.

Left unchecked, this terrorist threat can only grow, and grow quickly. As a government, we know our ultimate responsibility is to protect Canadians and to defend our citizens from those who would do harm to us or our families.

And that only a Great Strong Leader can protect us.

You know HIM....



Who would also have us believe that he can avoid getting dragged into a quagmire.

Second, let me assure Canadians that the government is seized with the necessity of avoiding a prolonged quagmire in this part of the world.

When even his hapless stooge John Baird admits the new Great War on Terror could go on for a long time. 

And far from making us safer, his military adventure will make it MORE not less likely that Canada could be attacked by terrorists. 

In the confusion of the multiparty civil wars racking Syria and Iraq, it is difficult to say that Canadian intervention by means of air-delivered weapons is likely to make our targets less rather than more interested in finding Canada on a map, or less rather than more likely to radicalize a few misguided young men here at home.

But then Harper doesn't care about that, he isn't really serious about defeating the ISIS hordes. How could he be when he's only sending SIX planes?

He's just interested in extracting maximum political capital out of this crisis. Using it as an excuse to ram through police state bills...



We will soon bring forward additional measures to strengthen the ability of our security services to monitor aspiring terrorists to, where possible, prevent their return to Canada or to, where that is not possible, give greater tools to be able to charge and prosecute.

Like this one.

And above all using the war to try to discredit Justin Trudeau and Tom Mulcair by portraying them as terrorist stooges, in a last desperate attempt to win the next election.

In his deranged mind he can probably already see himself riding triumphantly with the troops, in the lead tank, when they return home in March.

Just as a barrage of tax cuts rains down on the heads of some Canadians. 

Just before an election, timed to begin just before the Duffy trial.

And until that early election he will try to ensure, as the following clip demonstrates, that every answer to every question goes through Iraq.

Even when the question is about his government's savage cuts to healthcare for refugees in Canada...



And the good news?

This shabby campaign, this last desperate gamble of a corrupt and dying regime, won't work. It's too obvious. Canadians won't appreciate the Cons politicizing a war. 

Any public enthusiasm for the bombing campaign will soon fade as it always does. And the grim reality of the situation sinks in.

A war won't make Stephen Harper more popular, it's too late for that. It won't soften his image as he has been trying so hard to do. It will only make him look harder, and more dangerous. 

And make even MORE people want to get rid of him.

He will wear the war like a shroud.

And it WILL help destroy him...



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