Denis Coderre: Military Sensitivity
April 11, 2007 · By Aaron Unruh
How best to recruit aboriginals to the Canadian Forces? Create a military ghetto for them!:
Liberal defence critic Denis Coderre is calling on the federal government to build a Canadian Forces base for native soldiers.
“I think that we have to show sensitivity since Canada is also composed of first nations,” Mr. Coderre said yesterday.
That the Liberal defence critic should be advocating racial segregation for aboriginal soldiers in the year 2007 is astonishing, and extremely disappointing. And it shows just how unserious a player Denis Coderre is in Canada’s ongoing defence dialogue.
You think? This is in addition to Coderre’s judicial jousting with Shane Doan. What was the thought process that led Stephane Dion to give Coderre the defence critic position?
Oh oh, sounds like ol’Denis may have strategized this beaut in Claude Boulay’s chalet over waaaaay too much vino. Old habits are hard to break you know.
“What was the thought process that led Stephane Dion to give Coderre the defence critic position?”
You mean that Dion actually has the power of thought? This is just another indication of the Liberal implosion.
If one remembers that the Liberals have never had a grasp of the intricacies of international affairs since Pearson and defence since St-Laurent, it all comes together. Denis Coderre is a provincial, small-intellect politician in the Trudeau mode (another Liberal who was not intelligent enough to grasp that there was a wider world outside our borders). That Dion appointed him defence critic is yet another example of Liberal inability to see beyond their grasping for power - and is an insult to the men and women serving our country here and overseas, each one of whom is a better man or woman than most of those who sit in Parliament - especially in opposition.
You referred to the proposed Restigouche base as a “ghetto”. I didn’t see any suggestion in the article that Aboriginal recruits would be restricted to Restigouche - presumably applicants would be processed on a regional basis like any other recruit. Did I miss something? It seemed to me that the intent was to increase Aboriginal recruitment by putting a base in a predominantly Aboriginal region, which seems logical.
If this base is designed to be exclusively for natives, then this idea is spectacularly idiotic. Not only would it fly in the face of what Canadians believe in, it would stir up resentment in many areas of the country.
If this is a regular base built in a region of the country with a high proportion of aboriginals, and our forces need another base, then the idea may have merit. I’ll reserve judgement until I learn more.
Agreed. I can’t tell from the post or the source article what the intent actually is.
“Liberal defence critic Denis Coderre is calling on the federal government to build a Canadian Forces base for native soldiers.”
“Mr. Coderre also said he plans to meet aboriginal leaders to gauge their support for the native base.”
Ass/u/ming that the CP has summarized Coderre’s comments accurately, it seems pretty clear that he is calling for a base specifically for native soldiers, not merely building a base for anyone in a native-populated area.