The Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-11-25, Page 6Page 6 - Goderich Signal -Star, Wednesday, November 25, 2009
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EDITORIAL
Our soldiers have
performed with honour
The Richard Colvin fuss will not go away.
There will be a public inquiry eventu.ttiy, in which senior figures in
the government and the military are called to account under oath.
Colvin's allegations are simply too explosive to ignore.
But right at the outset, let no one make any mistake about who
should be on the hot seat — and who should not.
If Colvin's testimony is true — if prisoners held by Canada and later
turned over to Afghan forces were systematically tortured and if our
senior military and political leadership had knowledge of these events
— then those senior leaders must bear primary responsibility. Not the
privates, corporals or sergeants who did their bidding.
There will be backside —covering galore as this sorry chapter unfolds.
Liberals will blame Conservatives. Conservatives will blame Liberals.
New Democrats and Bloc will blame everyone.
If the pattern of the Mahar Arar inquiry hold:, true, cabinet ministers
will develop severe memory loss and ordinary soldiers will be left
holding the bag.
If the pattern of the Somalia affair holds true, frontline troops will
take the fall for mistakes made much higher up the chain of com-
mand.
This must no be allowed to happen again.
Canadian men and women in uniform were sent to Afghanistan — on
behalf of all Canadians.
They didn't ask to go. They were asked. They went happily, believ-
ing in the legitimate goal of helping Afghan people rebuild their corner
of the world.
That is what they have done — day in, day out, at great personal risk
and with great personal sacrifice, both theirs and their families'.
Has the Karzai regime in Afghanistan turned out to be inept and cor-
rupt? Yes.
Should Canada and its NATO allies have built their own prisoner -of -
war facility at Kandahar Airfield early on, in 2005-2006, rather than
release captives to Afghan authorities and their prisons?
With the benefit of hindsight, certainly. But the failures of the Hamid
Karzai government are not our soldiers' failures. And the alleged fail-
ures and machinations of senior Canadian diplomats and politicians are
not our soldiers' failures either.
At every stage of this mission in Afghanistan, our soldiers have done
their jobs with honour and professionalism. They continue to do so.
Canadians will eventually find out of the men in suits, far from the
heat and dust and risk of battle, can say the same. (Sun Media)
Goderich an inviting place to shop
To the Editor;
It was 8 p.m. on a Friday night
and I hadn't had the chance to buy
a wedding gift for the following
day. I jumped in the car, hoping to
find an open store on The Square
in which to make a traditional; yet
classy purchase. After one ring-
er, I knew that Fincher's was the
place to go. With their late hours,
and extensive inventory, I prayed
they'd have what I needed. Not
only did I find the perfect pres-
ent, but they gift wrapped it on
the spot!
This establishment has long
been a favourite of our family. The
staff always greets us by name,
and they make my three-year-old
son, Landon, feel completely wel-
come! Bernice is a sweetheart, and
the owner Tom, would bend over
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oueiorrw
Editorial Deadlines...
•
Letters
opinion
backwards in order to accommo-
date almost any request. Fincher's
was the first store Landon could
call by name on The Square, be-
cause they have "a Thomas set
that you can play with!" We go
at least once a week, and there is
never any pressure to buy...but I
have to admit, it is hard to leave
such a fun store without even the
smallest of purchases.
The downtown area offers a
number of fabulous places in
which to do business, and Landon
especially loves going to Scotia
Bank to get a sucker, play with the
toys, and visit his favourite con-
sultant Brenda! Also, Wuerth's
Shoes tends to be on the list of
places in which to stop, for as
my son says, 'let's just go in and
look to see if there are any new
Diego' shoes!". He enjoys hav-
ing his feet measured, and there is
always someone on hand willing
to help out, despite the fact that
they know it's not yet time for us
to purchase him new shoes.
The reason I write this letter, is
that as the Christmas season ap-
proaches, I would urge you shop
local by paying a visit to our
beautiful downtown. You'll never
now what unique treasure will be
found, and you can't beat the hos-
pitality. Thank you to all the busi-
nesses that make Goderich such
an inviting place to shop!
Sincerely,
Crystal Brennan -Yeo
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