The Scandal over Canadian Foreign Policy/Defence Scandals

Two things have been embroiling Defence Minister Peter Mackay and Foreign Minister John Baird this week.

The man is too pretty to fly economy.

First, Mackay has been in hot water over his supposed use of private airplanes for travel – up to a total of $3 million dollars worth.

Second, John Baird has been in trouble for demanding special gold business cards which are different from the regular ones used be pretty much everyone else. (I ran into Jim Flarhety a few weeks back and I have his business card. He uses the normal one.) The extra-special cards were $400. (You can read the story in this hilarious Globe and Mail piece.)

There has been a lot of ink spilled over these two stories this week. In total, we’re talking about $3,000,400. Would I like $3,000,400? Yes. I really would. But is this a substantial amount of money in the great scheme of the Canadian budget? No.

In fact, the real scandal here is the fact that these issues are the scandal.

Canadian foreign policy is directionless. There is no grand vision, no idea of our place in the world... other than as a British colonial possession from sometime during the late 19th Century. It is comprised of a series of unfinished trade agreements and reacting to events in the world, only when we really have to. Baird’s sole experiment with boldness at the UN Conference on Disarmament was a total embarrassment and a disaster.

The Department of National Defence is now in a period of transition and contraction. One can only assume that this will mean even less resources for peacekeeping training and activity. But don’t worry – we have stealth skidoos.

There have been other scandals this week – A Canadians detained or prevented from returning home in Sudan and Libya. What did the government know? Who cares! John Baird WANTS GOLD ON HIS BUSINESS CARDS. Stephen Harper is worrying about "Islamicism" - as opposed to the Islamist threat to Canada. Genius - but don't worry, I'm sure no one noticed. (I'm glad he's so familiar with that which comprises the number one threat to Canada. Sleep well kids.)

Earlier this year I posted a list of 12 foreign policy questions that I would have liked the major parties to answer during the election. I do not think I am any closer to answering most of them. Our media is so often attracted by the quick scandal rather than the big picture, and I do wonder if any of these are even being asked? But maybe the public just better understands and is more interested in the scandals over shiny objects.

Six Years of Gay Marriage in Canada and the World Did Not End

Fact: 6 years after gay marriage

Happy Cat is still happy.

Cross-posted at Duck of Minerva

It’s the 6th anniversary of gay marriage in Canada and – financial meltdowns in Europe and America aside – the world hasn’t ended. Society has remained intact. Babies are being born, flowers are blooming, a Canadian hockey team still can’t win the Stanley Cup and otters are still cute.

Actually, Canada is more than fine. In an article in the Calgary Herald, Naomi Lakritz argues:

While divorce rates have increased greatly since the introduction of Divorce Laws in 1968, actual divorce rates have been decreasing in Canada since the 1990s. The 50 per cent (failure rate) fallacy is false . . . In Nova Scotia, Ontario, British Columbia, the Yukon and Nunavut, the total number of new divorce cases has declined six per cent over the four-year period ending in 2008/2009," says an IMF news release.

Indeed, while divorces per 100,000 population reached 362.3 in 1987, they were down to 220.7 per 100,000 in 2005, the year same-sex marriage became law. So much for the myth that same-sex marriage would aid the dissolution of straight marriages. They dissolve quite nicely on their own, thanks to their internal dynamics, such as domestic violence, alcoholism, gambling and infidelity. These figures, by the way, come from such eminent sources as the Vanier Institute of the Family and Statistics Canada.

And, according to Statistics Canada, "the number of marriages in the country was 149,236 in 2006, down nearly 2,000 from the previous year, but up from 148,585 in 2004." Looks like some sort of minor demographic blip occurred there in 2006, but that figure is still up from 2004, when much of the silly fearmongering was taking place prior to Bill C-38 being passed.

Indeed, a November 2009 report entitled Divorce: Facts, Causes and Consequences, by Anne-Marie Ambert of York University in Toronto, found that "divorce rates have gone down substantially during the 1990s and have remained at a lower level since 1997, with minor yearly fluctuations."

So clearly ALL of the predictions of the religious right have come true…. in that they haven’t. At all.

Considering that less than 30 years ago that many people were arrested, committed or persecuted for homosexuality in many Western countries, the progress has been impressive, (no matter what might be coming out of the mouths of Tea-Partiers. A list of countries/regions/areas/cities with same-sex marriage or civil unions is impressive and growing. Even if it is a little patchy in America, there is clear momentum in support for equal marriage rights. Obama supporting the Respect for Marriage Act is a positive (if slightly delayed) step forward.

Obviously, it’s not a totally rosy picture. It’s still a crime punishable by death in 7 countries and homosexual acts are outlawed by 113. The Uganda situation is particularly odious. But even the UN Human Rights Council has taken the step of passing its first resolution on LGBT persons in June. Even if there is still a lot of work to do, there seems to be a decent amount of momentum (and opposition).

And best wishes to New Yorkers getting ready to take the plunge!