Canada At War....

The Bloc Québécois and Liberals were fully on side with the Conservatives; the New Democrats were dodgy but accepting. But in that exercise, MPs did not have to vote publicly, one by one, on the substantive question of whether the troops should stay on.

This time they did, in the certain knowledge that their constituents would eventually discover how they voted.

Domestic opposition to the war has been rising steadily, ever since 2,300 Canadian troops went into Kandahar earlier this year as part of the Americans' Operation Enduring Freedom. With combat deaths now almost routine and no apparent victory in sight, that opposition seems fated to grow.

For Canada, this is unprecedented. The norm for this country is that most people stand behind a decision to wage war once it is made.

It's not always remembered that in the years leading up to World War II, a good many Canadians — inside and outside of Quebec — were hesitant about involving themselves in another European conflict. But once war was declared in 1939, most of the public quickly came on side.

So, too, in 1950 when Canadian troops were dispatched to take sides in what was effectively a Korean civil war. Initial hesitation was followed by public acceptance.

Toronto Stat Article

Note: Toronto Stat Article