[Craic] Should Canada leave NATO?

[Greg Gillis]

Bravo Allan, an amazing letter!  Thank you for sharing it!

Greg


On Mon, May 3, 2021 at 4:40 PM Allan Baker via craic <
craic at lists.integralshift.ca> wrote:

> Letters to the Editor
> The Toronto Star
>
> Friends at The Star;
>
> Thank you for posing this very important question at this time when the
> pandemic is causing us to re-evaluate the public-policy path we have been
> following.
>
> In the 20th century humankind attempted to solve international problems
> through the use of force. Sadly, millions upon millions of people died
> during two great wars, and subsequent military conflicts. The use of
> violence, which we teach our children not to use, failed to bring peace and
> security to the international community. That is not the path to stability
> and peace. Canadians need only to look south of our border to see how much
> so called “security" comes from the barrel of a gun.
>
> The path to peace and security involves changing our attitude to our
> world-wide problems, and how we deal with them.
>
> In the 21st century peace and security will not come about through the use
> of violence. We remember the Berlin Wall crumbled because of a popular
> movement of peaceful resistance, and an authoritarian regime disappeared.
> Building healthy, educated, stable societies will be the way to peace in
> the 21st century.
>
> On Saturday, Luprecht and Sokolsky attempted to argue that Canada’s
> membership in NATO will assist in “imposing costs on other countries’ bad
> behaviour” and "neuter whatever limited latitude Canada has to promote a
> more stable and peaceful world by engaging in operations.” The “operations”
> in Lybia and Iraq, not to mention Afghanistan, ought to expose this as
> faulty reasoning. Those countries are not better off after foreign
> “operations”.
>
> Right now the Canadian government plans to  purchase 88 new fighter jets,
> at a cost of at least $19 billion. It also plans to spend an additional $77
> billion on new warships. Just imagine how we could strengthen our health
> care system; build up our public educational system, and provide affordable
> housing for Canadians through the use of close to $100 billion. The
> diversion of funding from NATO demanded purchases of military hardware can
> provide greater security for Canadians. We could become an example of
> positive policy priorities by demonstrating to other nations that human
> life matters in Canada.
>
> Peace and security do not come from the use of the gun. It is time for
> Canada to part ways with the gun club called NATO.
>
> Allan Baker
> 30 Bournville Drive
> Scarborough, M1E 1C5
>
> 416 267 4190
>
>
>
>
>
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