Never Defeated


Yesterday I sat in on the last two sessions of the 3rd Windsor Military Studies Conference. Heard the acting commander of the Windsor Regiment, Major Ron Miller, a veteran of eight UN and NATO missions, give a presentation entitled, "From Total War to Global Jihad: The Evolution of Conflict to the 21st Century." Along the way he noted the rise and fall of "classic peacekeeping." Policing a truce line has been replaced by a far more complex challenge.

International intervention forces are now required not only to win the war but also to secure the peace, and close collaboration between defence, diplomacy, and development activities are critical to achieving success.

Next was a panel on "Current Canadian Operations" in Afghanistan. Several local soldiers and one sailor took questions from the audience. "How do you call in air support from the Dutch Air Force?" and "What was the most interesting thing you have ever eaten while on duty?" elicited the most entertaining responses.

During those discussions and later in the officers mess I noticed two notes of optimism. Regardless of triangulating politicians in Ottawa, there was a general expectation that Canadian troops would remain on the job in Kandahar until 2011 and beyond. And it seemed that those who had already served there were eager to return, while those who hadn't yet were impatient for their tours to begin.

The night before historian Desmond Morton spoke on the last days of World War I.

Why are the so-called Battles of the Hundred Days so ignored in Canadian commemoration compared to Vimy or Second Ypres? They earned the Canadians the nickname of the "Ever-Victorious Canadian Corps" because, from Amiens to Valenciennes, they succeeded in ending the Great War. Are we embarassed by success?

Then he returned to the present.

Forces' defeat would be first
Dalson Chen, Windsor Star
Published: Saturday, February 16, 2008

Canada would suffer the first military defeat in the country's history if its troops withdraw from Afghanistan, says historian Desmond Morton.

"We've never actually lost a war the way we would if we walk away from Afghanistan and the whole thing collapses," said Morton, 70, at the Tilston Armoury on Friday night. "I don't think most Canadians ever think of that.

"If I asked the average Canadian if we've ever been defeated, (someone would say) 'Oh yes, there's Dieppe and there's Hong Kong.' But, in the end, we captured Dieppe in 1944 and we took Hong Kong in 1945. And Germany and Japan lost their wars. We've had defeats, but we've never lost a war. Never in Canada's history have we been on the losing side. But we would be, if we abandoned Afghanistan."

Acclaimed as an author and expert on Canadian military history, Morton was in the city to deliver the keynote address at the third annual Windsor Military Studies Conference, which takes place this weekend.

More than 200 people -- including history buffs and members of Canada's armed Forces -- filled the armoury's auditorium to hear Morton's lecture.

Kathleen McCrone of the University of Windsor Humanities Research Group described Morton's output of 40 books as "mind-boggling," and praised him as "one of Canada's outstanding historians."


Posted: Sun - February 17, 2008 at 03:56 PM          

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