Crossed the line? Are you joking? It was, and is, funny. Canada enjoys the protection that the USA provides. The USA accounts for HALF of the worldwide spending on its military. Canada ranks 14th. ( http://www.globalissues.org/article/75/world-military-spending#InContextUSMilitarySpendingVersusRestoftheWorld ) Behind India and Brazil.
Obviously Canada continues to be a strong ally, but let’s be serious. No one respects Canada’s military might. Even their own General quoted in the article. Can you imagine an American commander talking about taking a year off to recover? Of course he wouldn’t. Because Americans can’t afford to take a year off, because Americans don’t have a neighbor that will protect us while we sleep.
Get real!
Tell that to the 4 brave Canadian Soldiers that came home in a box yesterday. 8 others were wounded protecting freedom and liberty on the same day those 4 died. Oh and there's another 112 that came home in a box. Who gives a spit what their spending rank is. They are brave and well trained soldiers and not one of them (especially the ones that paid the ULTIMATE PRICE) deserved that from the Fox guys or your dumb ass. You can safely bet that if America comes under fire, our brethren to the north will come to our aid just as we would theirs.
Don't kid yourself. Canadian jets do more sorties than ours do on the entire North east coast over the USA. What protection do we provide? It's Canadian f18's out of cold lake that turn back Russian bombers every single time they challenge Canadian airspace. We just patrol around the seas off our own coasts, not theirs.
We are not taking a year off to recover!!!!!!!!
Gutfield took it out of context!!
Our mission in Afghanistan was to end in 2007, our MINORITY conservative government has managed to get it extended twice—first to 2009, then to 2010.
Lt. General Leslie was simply warning our government that when our mission winds down there, we may need time to regroup and make neccessary repairs to equipment. You need to read between the lines and realize that he was warning our government (current or otherwise) that our soldiers should not be immediately re-deployed to other war torn countries, oh, and don’t cut our budget!
Our entire army is not going on vacation to Hawaii for goodness sake-—which is what Gutfield indirectly suggests.
Our soldiers have been doing back to back tours. They are in one of the most dangerous places in Afghanistan, and are fully engaged in combat. We have suffered the highest (per capita) casualty rate of any ally in Afghanistan including the U.S.—In other words, 100 of ours = 1000 of yours, and we’ve lost 116.
When you are in the middle of a war, and there are only a few NATO countries actually pulling their weight in Afghanistan, you insult the military of the country who has been doing a lot of the fighting and dying?
Hearing the comments made by these moroons, after losing 8 soldiers in a week and a half (remember, that would be 80 of yours) is what would account for the outrage being expressed.
Not to worry, we will be there for you regardless of how we are treated, because we are your allies.
..and since Gutfield seems to know so much about military service, perhaps he can laugh his way to the nearest recruiting office.
...And my husband doesn’t own any “gorgeous capri pants”, but I think I’ll buy him some if he survives his next tour—but hey, thanks for “protecting us”.