It truly appears that Mike Ignatieff and the Liberal Party he leads have strapped themselves to an ACME rocket by attempting to exploit this Afghan Detainee scandal for partisan gain. The more time I spend watching Iggy be a "leader", the more parallels I see with Wylie Coyote. Today news broke that the Martin government was well aware of allegations of torture in Afghan prisons BEFORE they drafted the prisoner transfer agreement. Their star witness Richard Colvin is on record saying, and I quote directly from his testimony before Parliamentary Committee:
In other words, in the critical days after a detainee was first transferred to the Afghan intelligence service, nobody was able to monitor them. Canada had decided that Canadians would not monitor. The AIHRC could not do so, because they had very weak capacity and were not allowed into NDS jails. The Red Cross in practice could not do so either, because we did not inform them until days, weeks, or months after we had handed over the detainee.This was the end result of the Liberal prisoner transfer agreement. They were aware of allegations of torture and decided for reasons of political optics to sign the agreement that led to our military officials transferring prisoners captured on the field of battle into Afghan custody without proper Red Cross oversight. Again I ask the question who is more liable, Peter MacKay who cleaned up the mess, or the Liberal Ministers who created it? I took a lot of flak in November for even asking the question, but some months later, the question I asked then is the question that needs to be asked now. Had the Liberal party addressed allegations when it really mattered, that flawed transfer agreement would have allowed the Red Cross to monitor prisoners of war. It saddens me that Paul Martin, John McCallum, and Bill Graham did not do this.
I was the kid in school who aced math and failed art. But it's worth a shot. There exists an audience for Photoshop, or at least the Liberals tell me so...
ReplyDeleteSadly, with the tragedy in Haiti, I suspect the MSM will allow the Libs another free pass.
ReplyDeleteNo one seems willing to report on McCallum's goofs on CBC or Adler's show.
The only reference I have seen so far is on Bourque's Newswatch and that is an article by the CBC itself.
It is funny how McCallum digs his own grave deeper and deeper when he tries to explain himself on the Charles Adler Show. He tries to pass the buck to Paul Martin and Bill Graham.
Will the three stooges Martin, Graham and McCallum be subpoenaed to appear before committee when Parliament resumes?
Don't bet the farm!
Great post, are some liberals throwing themselves under the bus?
ReplyDeleteTime for some sober second thoughts on handing over the Liberals responsible for alleged "War Crimes" to the Hague.
Who do we send first Paul Martin?
Don't rely on the national media for any real true reporting-it ain't going to happen.
ReplyDeleteDelacourt, Taber, Oliver Traverse, Tom Clark CBC CTV and so on and their beloved LPOC are in bed together in a world of their world which they want to keep it that way.
No interuption from foreign media is welcomed by them into canada.
You see, real professional reporter can smell a rotten reporter from a mile. Professional reporters do not waste their time asked 'gate' questions. They first do their research have the question written down and must know what the answer should be.
Professional report when hearing a mumble jumble answer to an important question of theirs leads them to wonder that something is very suspicios.
No matter how many times you ask the LPOC an important question the answer is always the same "it is not our fault, it is mulroney, stephen harper fault."
Iceman, we need professional reporters not dim wits or liberals lapdogs.
That's Wile E. Coyote,dammit,Iceman! Mr.Coyote was one of cartoonland's most diligent innovators,persevering through adversity that would have sapped the faith of a Saint, but eventually political correctness killed him off.
ReplyDeleteNone of the Liberals pictured above have anywhere near W.E.C's strength of character, but I can see the point you're making.
Frankly, the cartoon character would probably be a better choice to lead the Country than any of those Liberals.
DMorris
Fortunately for Iggy, the media are running interference for him on this issue, and just about all other issues. It is now obvious more than ever, that the Libs and much of the media, are a tag-team, offering up nearly identical spin and talking points.
ReplyDeleteThe overall narrative now seems to be: "Harper is a dictatorial, democracy hating, PM, who has something to hide". So be it. So long as the Left are weak, divided and afraid of an election, this concerted attack on Harper won't produce anything substantial.
One downside for Iggy is that, should Harper play some serious hardball in the budget, the Libs are going to look absurd when some of them vote FOR the budget. Especially after all this hype about how bad Harper is. I'd like to see Harper slay one of the Left's sacred cows--for example sell off the CBC. More divide and conquer is the way to go, I think. Risky, but hugely entertaining.
I have a little bird sitting on my shoulder whispering in my ear that Mr. Harper is about to unleash another bombshell on the Liberals. After the Liberals vote to support the budget (this, of course, is another example of how the Conservatives are using their minority position to bully the opposition.) I believe the government will be more than willing to reopen the committee investigations into the alleged tortures perpetrated on the 'wholly innocent' Taliban detainees.
ReplyDeleteThe only difference is that this time the Liberals will be faced with the latest devastating revelations about their complicity in prisoner mistreatment. The Conservatives will use this information (which I believe they had all along, but were withholding until after the Olympics when the s**t can really hit the fan with Canada out of the international spotlight.)as a counterpoint to their steps to remedy the situation which they inherited.
I am sure the Liberals realize it as well...note how the pack has turned on itself. Had parliament not been prorogued, the Liberals could have wrapped up the hearings after getting testimony from some more of their sympathetic cronies, issued a damning report, and raked the Conservatives over the coals. Now, they will be confronted with their own mishandling of the situation, which will appear as much more egregious in light of their supercilious attempts to blacken the government and the military.
I'm thinkin' the reason the Libs did not follow the example of other countries,
ReplyDeleteand include visits to the Afghan prisons after handover,
is that then there would be 'direct responsibility' on the Govt of Canada in the event of torture and abuse.
So maybe the Libs and Hillier figured it better to wash thine hands at turnover, than be responsible after the fact....
Also, as was the case of the incompetant Liberals,
there was not enough equiptment and personnel in the field to do the job the Liberal cabinet asked of our soldiers.
The Martin Liberals lept into Kandahar totally unprepared.
Also, when Byers and his human rights advocates lost the court battle to have Afghan detainees included in the Charter,
ReplyDeletethe Judge ruling included something about the responsibility for the well being and safety of the detainees was that of the Afghanistan government...right?
Iceman,
ReplyDeletePlease read carefully, because I am going to tell you something that both bloggers and the MSM have missed. The Afghan detainees are not prisoners of war, as you state. They are criminals subject to the laws of Afghanistan. This is not my opinion or observation, this is information actually from the field.
When our troops detain Afghans, there must be sufficient evidence collected so as to likely obtain a conviction. If there is not sufficient evidence these detainees are released by the Afghans.
This fact means two things. Firstly, what the Afghans do with their own criminals under their jurisdiction is largely their business, as none of the rules governing POWs apply. Secondly, our troops are playing catch and release with the Taliban. Simple residue tests (ammonium nitrate or GSW) are the most common reason for detention, but are not sufficient to warrant criminal charges. Our troops simply release probable Taliban fighters who then continue to murder us.
John McCallum even has the raw stones to come out and accuse the current government or being complicit in war crimes.
ReplyDeleteHello, Mr McCallum. You were a cabinet minister in the government that negotiated the prison transfer agreement that made it possible for all of this to happen.
If any government is responsible for war crimes -- let alone complicit -- it's the one that you were a part of.
Actually I am reminded of Elmer Fudd hunting Bugs Bunny. Bugs runs into his home and Elmer jams his rifle into the hole. He then becomes aware of a rifle barrel pointing back at him. When he eventually pulls the trigger he shoots himself.
ReplyDelete