Prime Minister Trudeau does not seem to recognize the new world that is now upon us given the tragedy of Ukraine, and MP Elizabeth May suggests we drive a little slower and not on Sunday and all will be well. Talk about being out of touch.
Germany made a historic error in divesting itself from nuclear power and like many other EU countries is now using massive amounts of coal for energy. Much like Japan and South Korea, renewables are simply not doing the job.
Is May suggesting that the EU, or other friendly countries around the globe, could not use our oil and gas in both the short and long term? The answer is simple.
Germany and the other EU countries are greatly increasing defence spending. The Russian invasion proved that NATO is not prepared for any wartime experience and Canada is far behind.
Being in a warlike deployment in Europe, our army does not have an air defence system, in spite of the advent of high-tech drone technology. We have no tanks nor a field artillery self-propelled gun. Only some 60 per cent of army equipment is serviceable. If not special forces, army personnel should be brought home until they have the appropriate supporting equipment.
Our outstanding pilots are flying second-hand Australian CF-18s when other western countries are flying the F-35. Our navy goes to sea in frigates which should have been replaced many years ago, and their replacements are decades away, much like the purchase of the F-35.
As a member of NATO, we should be spending two per cent of our GDP on defence. We spend only a shadow of that figure. Canada is leading the world on carbon capture to deal with our relatively minor emissions.
So let’s get on with the production of our massive oil and gas supplies to replace Russia’s dominance; and at the same time bring on the billions of dollars of revenue to fund programs such as national defence.
The world changed the day Russia attacked Ukraine. That is the new fact of life in the world today.
H.J. Rice
Saanich
