The Montreal Gazette suggests the proposed US border-security deal may be a time-bomb for the Conservatives. Certainly the public relations for the proposal have been poorly handled since the story was leaked.
But that doesn't mean the idea is a bad one.
America is, inevitably, Canada's biggest trading partner and border delays hurt Canada and Canadians. A sensible agreement to speed up crossing the border is a good idea but the devil is in the details. The European Union is a good model but there the (relative) equality of the states forming the union is quite different from Canada/US relations; there are difficulties sleeping next to an elephant even if the elephant is reasonably friendly. Nevertheless, we should not reject a perimeter deal out of hand just because there are potential risks -- whenever there are possible rewards there are real risks!
"One of the biggest questions is whether Canadians will be whipped into a frenzy against a border-security deal that Harper's government is quietly negotiating with the United States.
This is a development that has only arisen in the past week, and only because news of the secret talks was leaked to the media. The government's public response has been amateurish — initially assigning a second-string parliamentary secretary to answer questions in the Commons, and then having more senior ministers provide evasive answers.
The bottom line: The government is giving every indication it has something to hide on this file.
According to leaked documents, the title of the tentative deal is "Beyond the Border: A Shared Vision for Perimeter Security and Competitiveness." It is supposedly to be signed by Harper and U.S. President Barack Obama in January.
The agreement would apparently give the U.S. government more influence over Canada's border security and immigration controls. Furthermore, Canada would share more information with U.S. law-enforcement agencies.
The idea is to build a security perimeter that protects both countries from threats such as terrorism. In return, the Americans would ease up on controls at the Canada-U.S. border, thereby reducing congestion and increasing the flow of two-way trade. The business community is welcoming the initiative, but opposition parties and groups such as the Council of Canadians say they aren't so sure. They say the deal is being negotiated in secret and, if bungled, could compromise Canadian sovereignty and infringe the privacy rights of this country's citizens.
Read more: http://www.canada.com/news/Political+time+bombs+litter+Harper+path/3966709/story.html#ixzz17zwYjym0"
4 comments:
a future threat is uavs gone wild. Likely from the border. Our aero-infrastructure is optimized for a soviet 1st strike. This is on the time horizon of even realistic CPC jet service lifespan into 2040s and beyond. Counter response might be EMPs dropped from a satellite or subs launching missiles....
If we buy only a dozen or two CPC Jets and 500 Chinese cheapo knockoffs, we might have money for UAV counter when boomer HEALTHCARE SUCKS EVERYTHING.
I always figured that you were an apologist for big business... anyway...
But that doesn't mean the idea is a bad one.
This deal means that Canadians give up sovereignty. Already too much private information about Canadians is being given away and you seem to be encouraging this.
Cherniak -- as if they'd have me!
Seriously, the border delays don't just hurt "big business" -- they hurt everyone. If if if we can balance sovereignty with speedy borders it's a good idea!
I recall about 20 years ago the Liberal/ NDP nonsense about how the Free Trade Agreement would destroy Canadian sovereignty. They were wrong.It was an essential treaty for the prosperity of this country.
A border-security deal makes sense. I suspect though that yet again the left will claim that our nation's sovereignty will be in jeopardy.
Post a Comment