Someone at DND is Thinking!

Apparently the Department of National Defence wants a cut of the pie when Mr. Harper's stimulus package for the economy is included in next week's budget. Now my initial reaction when I read the headline of this article was that DND was getting greedy, calling for more money at a time when the focus should be on ensuring the economic security of Canada's citizens. The money to be used to upgrade Canada's current fleet of LAV-3's.

I have to admit as I read the article and then again, the idea began to grow on me and for two main reasons. First of all, Canada needs these vehicles. Let's face it, every couple days we hear about IED's going of and injuring Canadian soldiers. Now while we focus on the people, and rightly so, it must also be noted that we also lose equipment to damage; equipment that is sorely needed to protect our soldiers. One of the major problems facing our forces is that they lack some of the equipment that they sorely need and these vehicles are included in that. Therefore it is good thing that Defence Minister McKay is pushing for this.

The second reason this makes sense is that the contract for these vehicles would be served in Canada. These trucks would be built in London, Ontario and serviced in Edmonton, Alberta. This would provide a boost to the slumping auto industry and help to counter some of the losses that Canadian workers have faced as a result of plant closures by the "Big 3."

I think it would be safe to say that this avenue would not just be to the benefit of Canada's military but also to the people who work in Canada's automotive sector. This would be a rare case where Canadians could "have their guns AND their butter." Mr. Harper should include this relatively inexpensive ($1.3 billion) plan into next week's budget and economic stimulus plan. It would show that he and his government are thinking strategically for Canadians, both home and abroad, and would likely help to rebuild some of the confidence that they lost at the end of 2008.

Pony up Mr. Harper!

- blenCOWe