When attending National Defence conferences and military events I seem to raise eyebrows as I meander through the crowd of gray-haired veterans, stern looking military men and glad handing politicians. While speaking (articulately, I hope) about the issues, these people tend to stare at me a lot. Perhaps my “straight to the point” speaking style has caught them off guard or maybe I’m wearing my skirts too short.

I am the President of Canadians for Military Preparedness (CMP). Surprising for a woman in her thirties? Maybe not. One only needs to look at nature to see how aggressive and dangerous a female can be when it comes to protecting her young. And believe me, our young are threatened. September 11^th was the beginning of a war that threatens not only democracy but also our very way of life and that of our children’s. We are at war. The threats are real.

Visit the Canadians for Military Preparedness
website at www.c4mp.org

And while our politicians bicker, and our Senators look grim and nod their heads, and the Liberal government keeps busy stonewalling, a war is being fought. A real war, where sons and daughters risk their lives - not just from the perils of war, but also from the ramifications of too little training, poor equipment and over tasking. Yet, our current government continues to ignore the expert reports (some their own), which explain our military is headed for “mass extinction.”

They ignore because there is no political gain to act, and Canadians share the blame, because we are complacent. Now chances are, if you are reading this, you are neither of those. However, the vast majority of Canadians are. History has shown our countrymen prefer to be protected by others. Our Colonial attitude exists still as we are satisfied to ride for free on the backs of our NATO allies.

While we grumble, the government continues to play their clever political game B winning votes by pleasing vocal special interest groups by redirecting needed funds away from defence.

The activists of the feminist, gay, and aboriginal agendas are effective because they are just that B active! They move forward, whilst the plight of the military continues. They make noise, they stage protests, and they write letters and use the tools of the courts and lobbies. But we grumble some more and remain ineffective.

Canadians for Military Preparedness (CMP) is all about convincing Canadians that it’s time they insist the government pay for our military now, before we pay with our sons and daughters’ lives! Our goal is to make aware to all Canadians the risk to our sovereignty and security. It is time we let the truth be known about the state of our armed forces. It’s beyond bar talk and backyard bitching. It’s time to be activists. To that end CMP has launched a petition, calling on Canadians to sign their names, asking Parliament to increase funding for our military. The goal is 100,000 signatures—never before done in Canadian history.

Average Canadians, since the events of September 11^th, have had their eyes opened to the very real possibility that we are at risk. For the first time ever, as I go to events at my children’s school, or at the neighborhood pub, I hear people, men and women alike, talking about military matters.

CMP hopes to inspire the Canadian civilian to realize Canada needs a strong military in order to both ensure sovereignty and to prosper as a country in today’s complicated world. CMP wants to facilitate that sentiment into action, placing a strong Canadian military and national security on the common Canadian agenda. Only then, when the people of this country, en masse, rise up and get noisy, will we effect positive change to our current military and defence policies. The petition is a start. Each day I greet the mailman at the door, for there are far too many envelopes to fit in the box. And if 100,000 signatures on our petition are not enough—we’ll shoot for a million!

We must do what it takes to provide our government with the political gain they so badly desire. We are up against a political system that operates with little to no accountability, with centralized decision making, and an ineffective opposition. Nothing will change until we stop grumbling and start doing!

The defence community has always promoted a strong military, however, few groups if any, have targeted the average civilian voter who ultimately is the most likely to affect real change. It’s time we stop preaching to the choir and commit to informing and motivating the civilians. Political gain. Votes. That’s what the game is all about. It’s time we started playing it with the same zeal as other special interest groups. We need to do what it takes to move forward our agenda. (Ed. Note: At our 13 Nov 02 luncheon, 67 names were added to the petition.)

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