Military recruiters should not be in our

[Oscar]

Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2007 11:48 AM
Subject: [coc-chaps-l] LETTERS: Military recruiters should not be in our
schools

Please see below our (Council of Canadians) letter to the editor published in today's The Daily News (Halifax) countering a column by David Rodenhiser that criticized the Council of Canadians position against military recruiting in schools.

Various comments have been posted on the newspaper's website at
http://www.hfxnews.ca/index.cfm?sid=81799&sc=160 in response to our letter to the editor.

Thank you to Leo Broderick for pointing out to me the following post:

"I couldn't agree more with your comments. Our children need better than the military option. When living in the USA (4 years ago) I saw bright, young people join the military in the heated passion over 9/11. Of my daughter's high school graduating class of 185, 40 joined the military. 10 are dead, 20 are doing rotating missions in Iraq, 5 went AWOL and 5 are in military hospitals getting sub-standard care. None are getting the psychological help they need and they need it because they've thrown away brilliant futures, future education opportunities and a normal life for the military. Do not let the military recruit in our high schools.
Our youth are far too vulnerable to be preyed upon by the military recruiting machine. For parents with youth in high school, sign an opt out form disallowing the military to recruit your child(ren). Protect the kids from these empty promises. The kids coming back in coffins should have been in college instead."

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Here's our letter to the editor:

Atlantic casualties
The Daily News
November 20, 2007

Re: David Rodenhiser's column, How Naive Does This Left-Wing Group Think We Are, in the Nov. 15 Daily News.

Rodenhiser attacks the Council of Canadians for opposing military recruiting in high schools, but he should be asking why so many Atlantic Canadians are dying in Afghanistan.

The war has not been kind to Atlantic Canadians. Between 2002 and April 2007, 53 Canadian soldiers were killed in Afghanistan, 21 of them - roughly 40 per cent - were born or grew up in the Atlantic provinces.

Moreover, Esprit de Corps magazine recently reported that 620 Canadians have been wounded or killed in Afghanistan since 2001. Another report found that about 28 per cent of the 2,700 Canadian soldiers screened after serving in Afghanistan were found to have symptoms of one or more mental-health problems, including depression, panic disorders and suicidal tendencies.

Are these facts featured in recruiting efforts in schools? Is this the career path most parents would want for their children?

Rodenhiser argues that the military is a good career option. But he should ask why 23 per cent of military recruits come from Atlantic Canada, while 7.2 per cent of Canada's population lives in this region.

Clearly, Atlantic Canadians have rejected Prime Minister Stephen Harper's view of them as having a "culture of defeat," and are seeking the best jobs available. Still, economic development for any region of Canada should be something more than simply a bigger army.

The full picture of life (and death) in the military is not given to our youths in the stylish recruiting efforts of the Canadian Armed Forces. They should not be let into our schools. Our children deserve a better future.

Brent Patterson
The Council of Canadians
Ottawa

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Brent Patterson
Director of Campaigns / Organizing / The Blue Planet Project
The Council of Canadians
700-170 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5V5
1-800-387-7177 ext. 291
bpatterson@canadians.org
www.canadians.org