26 September 2006

The sorry truth...

is that this little piece of creative historical writing (damianpenny.com) is not far off the position taken by a great many Canadians in the 1940s.

Heck, even today there are a bunch of Canadians who are by no means Nazis who would argue we should have done exactly as the fictitious Jack Layton does in this piece.

Some people believe there is no justification for fighting at all and adopt a consistent moral position. Gandhians are philosophically and morally whole.

Then there are the ones who would condemn any use of force...by the United States. They will rationalise any situation as long as they don't have to be on the same side as the Americans. They are neither morally nor philosophically whole.

Anyway, here's just the lede of an imaginary news story from 1944, if Jack Layton had been alive at the time and running the NDP's forerunner, the CCF.

If nothing else, give a chuckle. it's pretty creative.

Ottawa (CBP): The federal CCF leader, Mr Jack Layton, called today, in a House of Commons debate on the war situation, for Canadian troops in Western Europe to be withdrawn from combat on the front lines. "The United Nations' offensive, which has been moving forward rapidly after the breakout from Normandy, shows clear signs of stalling as Allied forces approach Germany and Holland," said Mr Layton.