Shining A Bright Light For Canada

I recently wrote to our Canadian Government and suggested that our military ought to be supplied by Canadian companies. I was told that whenever possible Canadian companies are given the opportunity to bid on contracts. The procurement process, I am told, supports open and fair access to government contracting. Also, our government works closely with our allies in the development and manufacture of state-of-the-art equipment and material for the Canadian Forces and for the governments of the United States and other NATO countries. This all sounds very fair and admirable. They go on to tell me that along with giving Canadian companies a large range of opportunities to supply goods and services to the Canadian Forces, the NCR works with the DND to ensure that Canadian Forces have the best possible equipment available to meet their needs. Obviously the person who answered my questions is not aware that I also read other correspondence, watch news broadcasts from around the world and with the rest of Canada, I am mourning a very young soldier who was killed while riding in an Illtis Jeep. I am told that in 1965 our military was using a Ferret Scout Car, it was a light reconnaissance vehicle with armor plate, even that would be superior to today’s equipment. We are sending our soldiers to the desert in green camouflage, can we not make brown camouflage uniforms in Canada? Are these examples of the best possible equipment? Surely, we can do better than that! The number of Canadian companies capable of manufacturing military supplies, listed on the internet alone is astronomical, which leads me to question, why are we not using them for our Canadian military? While I think is admirable on the part of our government to work closely with our allies, I am reminded that today’s ally may be tomorrow’s enemy. What happens when your ally has a different agenda than you? Canadian companies in my opinion, ought to be the primary contractors for our military, only and only when, we are unable to produce, should we be looking outside Canada. Another point made in this correspondence was that the procurement process ensures the Government of Canada obtains best value for Canadian taxpayers. What is ‘best value’? I mean are we talking financial value alone? I for one consider the value of a person’s life to be priceless. Tax dollars come from taxpayers, and taxpayers are the employed. There are endless possibilities to manufacturing in Canada, which would employ skilled and unskilled people. There are several plants which have closed in Canada, could they not be refurbished to make an armored vehicle for our soldiers, could Ford Canada not make an engine for the vehicle, could a plant in Saskatchewan, (or any other province that needs manufacturing), make the frame? We have steel in Canada, we have technology, skilled trades people, unskilled laborers, empty warehouses and factories, we have Canadian ideas, all of this and we are sending out for equipment! We need ships to police our coastal waters, we have skilled people in this area who are out of work. These are only military situations, but there are many more situations where the cost in dollars should not be the only factor. The military should be assessing their needs and asking a Canadian company to fill that need, employing Canadians from start to finish . There are people, Canadians, who actually have the gall to say that our military is a joke. This saddens me greatly because I am certain that the youth of our nation who voluntarily agree to stand on guard for us, do not think it a joke! They put in the time and effort, they train hard and often under horrific conditions, which prepares them well for the horrors we expect them to witness and cure. A country that expects it’s youth to give 100% and more, ought to give no less, to protect those who stand and serve in peace time or war! If our military equipment is made elsewhere, what happens when we need parts and that other country no longer makes parts or is no longer our ally, our equipment becomes obsolete. Again I say, why should Canadians rely so heavily on foreign companies to supply us with our needs? When Canadians are able to work, they are able to purchase, their pride increases, domestic violence decreases, alcohol and drug abuse decreases, hunger and poverty is reduced which leads to a reduction in welfare; the burden to the taxpayer for social programs is lessened. When Canadians produce, Canadians win! Why can’t we build a Canadian tractor, we certainly have farms and farmers to buy them? Why can’t we manufacture our own souvenirs, we have many talented artists and crafters in Canada? When we shop at non-Canadian stores that sell imported products which are produced at slave labor rates, we are not only killing Canadian jobs, we are assisting in the impoverishment of people all over the world! But alas, there are so few Canadian stores and the price is so much higher; for many people that justifies their decision. How many times will you replace that inexpensive item, because it doesn’t last? Now how inexpensive is it? Every time a large warehouse store sets up shop in your area, how many jobs does it really create, consider that most of the new jobs are not full time, do not have benefits; the established shops will close and jobs are lost, as customers rush to the new store with cheaper prices and more selection. I do believe we are all contributing to the sell out of our country, not on a large scale but bit by bit, we each give up something. My decisions to shop at the new store, will probably cost someone else their job, if they end up on welfare, I’ll be supporting them. Another soon to be unemployed worker is the farmer, many are witnessing the worst years in their family’s history, with droughts, low prices for wheat, grain etc., mad cow, and banks threatening to call their loans, these are just a few threats to the family farm. I am reminded of the dirty thirties when the dust bowl occurred and many family farms were taken over by the banks. The banks seem to be in it for the good times, but where is the Bank of Canada when the hard times hit a country such as ours? Is the government going to stand by and watch as the family farms are repossessed by the banks and then bought back by the large corporations? What will this cost the taxpayer in retraining and welfare? Is this the future for Canadians? What will the price of beef, pork, chicken, eggs, milk, bread etc. be when the corporations own all our farms, and will they be responsible farmers, or will the NAFTA give them license to use toxic chemicals and genetically modified seeds? What protection do the Canadian people have for their food supply? Presently our government is throwing money at the BSE problem, the border is closed and the price of beef is down, everywhere but the supermarket. Would it not be prudent for the government to buy the beef, and create jobs in the canning industry for Canadians? It would create jobs for meat cutters, canners, truck drivers etc.; rather than reacting to problems as if they had no answers, Canadians need to believe we can find solutions within this country to better our economy. We also need to stop being harnessed by Trade agreements, especially by Chapter 11 of the Free Trade agreement, which prevent us from adjusting to our environment and threatens the sovereignty of the nation. We have unique situations in this country that require Canadians to think of solutions, for and by Canadians, not solutions which are imported and which benefit only corporations or the global climate! We have a responsibility to defend, protect, and enrich the lives of every Canadian and we need to not only demand this of our government but also of ourselves. Canada is a great country, capable of creating jobs for everyone who wants to work at a fair wage, capable of feeding it’s people, sheltering it’s homeless, educating it’s future, caring for it’s aging and providing health care to all. That is a fact, we are capable but do we want to, or would we prefer to hand it all over to corporations foreign and domestic, to rule our lives in every way? When will the Canadian people wake up and see the fog is not lifting? We must find a lighthouse in every community and shine it’s light as brightly as possible on the future. It is our birthright, let us not stand down, let us rise up and be the people we were meant to be, true north, strong and free!!