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January 22, 2008
Afghanistan Update - Canada
I've been ignoring Afghanistan for too long. Over the next few days I'm going to try and pst some of the articles on that war that I've been saving.
Today's Washington Times has a story about Canadian troops in Afghanistan. There is much in the story that is interesting, but this stuck out at me
...like many of the NATO allies fighting in Afghanistan, they find themselves in a two-front public-relations war — struggling for the cooperation of the Afghans as well as the support of a skeptical public at home. And in such a war, perceptions are as important as territory and body counts.The soldiers charged with defeating insurgents and restoring calm in Zhari District, just 21 miles west of Kandahar, say privately that their jobs have been made much more difficult by aggressive American military tactics.
The "hot-trigger" U.S. troops, they say, created unnecessary tension with the local populations whose support is essential to progress in the war on terror.
Equally damaging, they say, the Americans' indiscriminate use of air power and aggressive interrogation techniques that have eroded support for the mission among Canadian voters and taxpayers.
Poll after poll shows support for Afghan combat is dwindling in Canada, as it is in other countries that have taken significant casualties. Canadians account for more than one-third of the 220 NATO troops who have been killed since 2002 in the United Nations-endorsed action.
Ok ok, so the Canadians think they can do it better. Whatever. My hat is off to the Canadian troops who are there and who have served. If our commanders and their commanders want to argue about the best way to go about doing things that's fine with me. That's not the interesting part.
It's the part that I highlighted that gets me. I though that Afghanistan was the war that "our allies" were all supposed to support,.
Here are some recent polls of Canadians that I found doing a quick google search:
We're not at the critical point yet, but you can see the trend. bty, Canada has 2,000 troops in Afghanistan. Even though their population is much smaller than ours, at just over 33 million, 2,000 is not a huge number.
Forty-seven per cent of Canadians want our troops brought back from Afghanistan as soon as possible.... In Quebec, 57 per cent want the mission to end right away.The poll showed that only 17 per cent of Canadians want troops to continue in their combat role and 31 per cent said Canadians should remain in Kandahar but turn over the combat role to another NATO country.
We're talking about Afghanistan, not Iraq, if you need reminding.
In your view, is the Canadian mission in Afghanistan:___________________Apr. 2007_____Feb. 2007
A) A peace mission_____31%__________29%
B) A war mission_______57%__________53%
C) Not sure____________12%__________18%
Apparently it's a subject of great debate whether what we (or they) are doing in Afghanistan constitutes war fighting or peacekeeping. The Canadian public, you see, will support "peacekeeping", but is opposed to war missions.
67% of those asked believe the number of casualties suffered by Canadian troops is unacceptably high, even with whatever progress has been made in rebuilding the war-torn country.That is a five-point rise from a poll taken a little over a month ago.
Only 25% of respondents said the number of killed and wounded was acceptable.
Bruce Anderson, the CEO of Decima Research, says Canadians are clearly becoming more doubtful about whether progress is being made, in light of the deaths of 66 soldiers and one diplomat.
What in the world is going on here?
Poor Leadership: Another finding of the Angus-Reid poll cited above is that "61 per cent of respondents believe the Conservative government has not effectively explained the mission in Afghanistan." The Canadian public has obviously not bought into the notion that they need to fight in Afghanistan, not just stand around like "peacekeepers". This somewhat mirrors that situation in the U.S. with regard to Iraq. Conservative critics, including me, have said time and again that the Bush Administration has done a miserable job at explaining the stakes in Iraq. It looks like we have a similar situation in Afghanistan.
Ignorance as to the Threat: Most people in Canada and Europe, I think think that the only threat is from outright terrorist groups such as al Qaeda. Even here, though, they tend to think that if they only lay low they can avoid attack themselves. "It's an American problem because of their arrogant foreign policy" seems to be the attitude. As I have demonstrated, however, the entire West is in grave danger.
Unrealistic Expectations: As counter-insurgency expert Lt Col David Kilcullen said a few months ago "There has never been a successful counterinsurgency that took less than 10 years." People are still thinking in terms of conventional wars.
Pacifism Peacekeeping missions are fine when appropriate. But there is also a time for fighting. Too many Canadians seem to have degenerated into a moral smugness whereby they believe that peacekeeping missions are so morally superior that's all they will do.
What It's Not: I'm just going to preempt a criticism that often comes from the left: "It's George Bush's fault! If he hadn't invaded Iraq, hadn't been so arrogant..." This argument treats Canadians, and others, as if they were little children. It says that they are unable to reason, and that we must pat them on the head, smile, and say "now be a good Canadian and help us out".
To be sure, President Bush could make the case for Afghanistan better. No doubt Candians and others really do need the eduction about radical Islam Walid Phares is always talking about.
Some will say that without Iraq we'd be concentrating on Afghanistan, but I don't think so. Frankly I think the anti-Iraq crowd would just as soon ignore Afghanistan too, so as to get on with their objective of putting us all under the rule of the EPA. I think that most Democrats just want the whole "War on Terror" to go away.
Am I being too hard on the Canadians? Maybe, but I don't think so. Mind you I am eternally thankful for what Canada has done. I just fear that sooner or later we're going to shoulder more of the burden of Afghanistan too.
Posted by Tom at January 22, 2008 8:29 PM
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Comments
Excellent analysis of the poll data and the liberal mind. You are right, they do want the war on terror to just go away, that explains why they deride it as a "bumper sticker." It's only usefulness to them is if they can use it as a political weapon in their campaings. You don't hear them saying much about what they would do to reduce the threat of Islamofascism. They honestly don't believe there's a danger.
Posted by: Chris at January 21, 2008 11:10 PM
Snake Hunters sez,
Canadian warriors were gallant in WWII.
Also, in Afganistan. It's the politican
at home, not unlike our own Slugs here in the
U.S. (like Reid & Pelosi) that are troubling.
reb
Posted by: Ralph E. at January 22, 2008 1:53 AM
The Canadian troops in Afghanistan understand their mission, Canadians at home who care to look beyond their mainstream media understand what Canada is doing in Afghanistan. Politicians do a bad job of explaining their so called stands on the mission regardless of the perspective.
For most Canadians they hear the media reporting that we're taking casualties at a rate higher than the US in Iraq and they wonder why. Most Canadians have only known a Canada where our soldiers serve on peacekeeping missions and they conveniently forget that Canadians have been as respected as warriors as we have as peacekeepers.
In the wars of my late father and my late husband (WW2 & Korea respectively) the fallen stayed 'over there'. Now they are brought home, images of solemn ramp ceremonies and repatriations, of fellow Canadians standing on bridges saluting their fallen countryman along the Highway of Heroes are flashed across the country.
I support the troops and their mission in Afghanistan but I have to admit as I stand on a bridge with cold winter winds snapping around me as I salute yet another fallen Canadian, I sometimes find I wonder if the price is too high.
Posted by: Patti at January 22, 2008 10:34 AM
Snake Hunter To "Patti"
The Price Of Victory Is High
The Price Of Defeat, Unbearable.
reb
_____________________________
www.lazyonebenn.blogspot.com
Posted by: Ralph E. at January 23, 2008 1:23 AM
I support the Afghanistan mission. I'm a Canadian from Western Canada where support is very high.
With regard to the polling data you need to ask where it comes from. Quebec, Lower mainland British Columbia, and Southern Ontario are dogmatically anti mission.
The hallmark of their arguments is that they just don't believe Islamofacism is a problem. Good old denial.
So don't believe everything you read coming out of Canada. There is support and there is an understanding of the threat. Having said that I agree with several posters here that governments have done a terrible job of educating the public.
As far as strategy, I agree that bombing the shit out of anything that moves will not win hearts and minds.
No local buy in = no success. The Brits ran a huge conventional presence in Ireland for years and it failed. It drove the locals the other way.
So they diminished the conventional profile drastically and focused on counter insurgecy and intel. It worked. IRA members have admitted the shift in strategy was the key element in their defeat.
Food for thought.
Posted by: BC at February 9, 2008 9:50 AM
Thank you for stopping by and for your informed comment, BC. My sincere Thank You for supporting operations in Afghanistan.
Posted by: Tom the Redhunter at February 9, 2008 12:48 PM
I'm not sure what to say
I'm a Canadian citizen age 13
And I've been poorly informed about the war in Afganistan, I've been trying to stay informed by researching (like reading some of the information on this site), I realize the basics but...They dont really tell you about anything besides there on a peackeeping mission to restore Afganistan.
Based on the information I've aquired I think that it's vital for Canadian troops to be in Afganistan, and i don't think our troops should be pulled out of Afganistan right away
or at the first possible Chance,I think that the Canadians should finish there task in restoring and keeping the peace in Afganistan and until they and the NATO troops arent needed anymore that they should maintain there position in Afganistan
Posted by: Kid at February 12, 2008 9:12 PM
