[mobglob-discuss] Candada's Military Spending VS. Our Social Programs

[Tom_Childs at Douglas.BC.CA]

http://www.polarisinstitute.org/polaris_project/corp_security_state/News/
cbc_commentary_sept_2002.html

CBC Radio Commentary - 16 September 2002

By Steven Staples

CANADA'S MILITARY SPENDING VS. OUR SOCIAL PROGRAMS

The defence lobby is mounting a full court press to convince the federal
government to pump billions of new dollars into military spending.

But hold-on people - it's time for a reality check. We already spend more
than $12-billion a year on defence. The Defence Department's own figures
show that in actual dollars Canada is the sixth largest military spender in
NATO, and we're the 16th largest in the world.

More military spending would be throwing good money after bad, it would
militarize our economy, and undermine the real source of Canadians'
security - our social programs.

In fact there is mounting evidence that the Defence Department mismanages
the money it already receives. The Auditor General revealed the military
wasted $174 million on a satellite communications system that has never been
taken of the box. The used submarines the Navy bought from the UK for $800
million have turned out to be lemons, and now the repair costs are climbing.

Corporations such as Bombardier and CAE want more defence contracts. But
this could divert the aerospace industry from civilian production, and leave
it dependent on more and more government military spending. Or even worse,
on arms exports.

The US is turning up the heat on Canada to spend more for the war on
terrorism and to help defend fortress North America. This is another
bottomless pit. One estimate is that Canada would need to spend five times
what we spend today for fifteen years to even begin to make a difference to
US military power.

And besides, I don't think Canadians are willing to listen to a government
that will spend $400 billion a year on defence while 45 million Americans
are without basic healthcare coverage.

No, Canadians view security through social programs -- not the military.

In a Compass poll this year seventy two per cent of Canadians said health
care or education should be the government's top priority. Only seven per
cent said priority should be put on defence.

This fall there is going to be a budget showdown in Parliament. The Commons
defence committee wants $6 billion more for the military. And if the Romanow
Commission, as is likely, says we require another $6 billion for
healthcare...there won't be enough money for both.

The government needs to keep the defence lobby's hands out of the cookie
jar.  Canadians know that our security comes through good social programs, a
clean environment, and a positive role in the world -- not through the
barrel of a gun.

For Commentary - I'm Steve Staples in Ottawa.




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