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What is your view on Canada's military role?Throughout the election campaignThe OakvillePat Heroux - NDP Lisa Raitt Beaver will be asking candidates in the OakvilleMy father and Halton ridings to respond to a weekly ques-Conservativesserved with the tion. For this week's question we asked "What isQueen's Own Rifles your view on Canada's military role?"Canadas mili-during World War tary is not large by Two. I have two world standards, nephews currently but it is excellent. serving in the The Canadian Judi Remigioarmed forces. They Forces are capable Connie Laurin-Bowiehave both served in of moving quickly Green PartyAfghanistan, so I to enforce United Pat HerouxLiberalsknow that when While I believe Nations mandates we send our sol-and acknowledge In the interna-to protect vulnera-ders to fight, they deserve the equipmentthat it is important Lisa Raitttional work that Ible civilians, as we to have a viable andthey require to do the job our government have done andare now doing in well-equipped mili-sent them to do.through my expe-Libya. They are equally capable of rushing to tary in Canada, we Other Country's sent troops. They stayed rience at theaid disaster victims, such as those affected would be best toin relatively safer areas, not Kandahar.United Nations Iby the earthquake in Haiti last year. Our serve as the peace- Canada's history was as peacekeepers. have had thehighly-trained personnel are admired keeping nation thatThe Canadian Maple Leaf was respected all opportunity toaround the world for their operational effec-we originally repre-over the world because of our peacekeeping witness firsthandtiveness, their professionalism and their sented. Traditionally,reputation. Now, when I travel, I do not dis-Judi Remigiothe respect andcompassion.Canadians woreplay it, as I am no longer feel that respect. Connie Laurin-Bowieappreciation that At home, our Forces protect our sover-blue-helmets and supported peace-keeping.How many of our young men and women people from othereignty, and stand ready to provide relief in Pressed, we are unclear about our missions inwill die in a war that cannot be won?countries have for our military contribu-case of natural disaster on our own soil. Our countries in which we maintain an active mili-Our troops have a role to play in the tions. I am proud of the important role thatmen and women in uniform are among the tary presence.world as peace keepers. Give us back we play in defense, development and diplo-worlds best at all these missions, and they At the risk of sounding simple, we shouldour reputation as peace keepers.macy.are a source of pride for Canadians. They concern ourselves militarily with environmen-Our troops should be utilized in times of We need to support the brave men andperform all these essential functions at a cost tal disasters, of which we will likely have manydisaster. Ice storms, tornadoes, snow women who defend our sovereignty andof only 1.5 per cent of GDP, lower than the to choose from given our present state of nearSee Pat page 14See Connie page 14climate catastrophe.See Lisa page 14TMSpring is the time to clean! Recycle your unwanted electronics*April 16th, 11am to 4pm onlySponsored by:Dorval Crossing, WEST Parking lot near Boston Pizza. Look for theElectronics Drop-off area. The first 100 customers to drop off their unwantedelectronics will receive a $10 Boston Pizza Voucher(one voucher per family).Plus, receive a FREE Eco-friendly Tote Bag, while quantities last.* Electronics accepted: computer monitors, keyboards & mice, laptops, printers, digital cameras, cell phones,fax machines, televisions & audio equipment.Over 60 Shops & ServicesVisit dorvalcrossing.comPROUDLYMANAGED BYfor more informationlocated at the QEW & Dorval Drive52651_Bentall_DC_ROP_rough.indd 111/04/11 1:18 PM13 Thursday, April 14, 2011 OAKVILLE BEAVER www.insideHALTON.com