US Ambassador Knows His Script

Richard Sanders puts it this way: "When Pres. George W. Bush visited Canada in Dec. 2004 he used 3 public forums to urge Canada to join America's expansive weapons development programme. This had the effect of driving home the illusion that Canada was not already on board. It also gave Martin the welcome opportunity to please voters by pretending to stand up to the Americans. "This is an age-old game. The American administration knows all too well, that their allies sometimes have to feign opposition to US policies in order to gain or retain domestic political support. Such oppositional play-acting does not, therefore, undermine US goals. On the contrary, because duplicitous trickery of this variety can strengthen the domestic standing of one's closest friends, such fakery is tolerated and even encouraged." In this light, we should see this week's little row about the northwest passage as a mark of American APPROVAL of the new government. Eleanor P.S. Richard Sanders is a seasoned scholar of Canadian defense policy and the arms trade, and heads the Ottawa group Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT). GET his magazine: Press for Conversion! It was Sanders who also brought us the news that the Canada Pension Plan is investing in war industies. [Proofreader's note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on January 29, 2006]