News

Cripes! I wonder how many Canadians appreciate the extent of what’s happening on the war front, that our tax dollars are paying for; that we are being dragged down into?

THE PROBLEM: if media coverage of the following development is any indication, Canadians are not getting the information that would allow us to make informed decisions.   

We have:

-      Harper’s signature on untendered contracts for F-35 stealth bombers. 

-      June 3:  Canada is setting up armed forces bases in six countries  (click on  2011-06-03  Canada to set up military bases abroad).  (If not for Le Devoir (French-language newspaper in Quebec) I am not certain that Canadians would know about this.)

-      June 15:  A legal challenge has been launched in the U.S. to the war on/in Libya.  It looks as though Canadians have received little news about the legal challenge?  . .    Parliament just voted to extend the mission, you’d think a legal challenge would be reported to us?

The video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0hu2H5VhxI )  has footage about the legal action launched by the group of Democratic and Republican Congressmen in U.S. Federal Court:  the war on Libya is challenged as unconstitutional.  

Because of Canadian involvement in Libya  I was curious about reporting in mainstream Canadian media, compared with other places.

I googled “Libya Kucinich” (Congressman Kucinich is the Democrat under whose name the legal challenge is launched):    

 June 15^th –  The Los Angeles Times reports “Kucinich files suit over U.S. involvement in Libya”.

June 17^th –  The Sydney (Australia) Morning Herald reports “Congressmen challenge Obama on Libya”.

 The on-line Globe & Mail contains: 

June 21 -  “Senators seek retroactive approval of Libya mission”.  

 I am not saying that the legal challenge was not reported in the G&M;  I am saying that when I went to the G&M website and searched on ““Libya Kucinich”  the legal challenge did not come up.   Nor did it come up under “court challenge U.S. Libya”, nor under “Libya lawsuit Kucinich” which on google news brings up reports in the Washington Times, an International Business report, etc. etc.    

 I don’t often watch television news.  Has anyone heard about the legal challenge to the war that our Parliamentarians (save one) just signed-up to continue?   (I recommend you watch:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0hu2H5VhxI )

 I continue to be bothered by this related item: 

One night a couple of months ago I DID watch the late CBC TV News.  Continuing on the heels of the News was a documentary-style show:  it was entirely about Minister of Defence, Peter McKay, going through the training exercises for combat alongside armed forces recruits.  The commanding officer was putting him through the ropes with the same treatment as regular soldiers.  The show filled the full programme time-slot (an hour, I believe). 

 I was disturbed:  this is outside of what is acceptable in democratic governance.   Did CBC make the documentary?  …  I don’t think so.  From the credits at the end I had the impression that some private filmmaker had been hired to made the documentary. 

CBC aired the film.  It was announced as one in a series of “Meet the Minister”,  or  “Put the Minister to Work” (some such title).  It was a terrible piece of propaganda and free advertising, hour-long, for a Member-of-Parliament.  I have not looked to see which other ministers have been similarly promoted. 

 Here are the reports of the legal challenge to the war in Libya, as handled in:

1.  Australia, Sydney Herald

2.  U.S., L.A. Times

3.  Canada, Globe & Mail