# The Canadian Soldier



## Adrian (29 Apr 2005)

http://www.armee.forces.gc.ca/lf/Downloads/CanadasSoldiers.pdf
---

Wow.  Dead-on for me.


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## Tpr.Orange (29 Apr 2005)

Quite a long but deffinatley interesting read.


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## paracowboy (29 Apr 2005)

end result? More in-depth SHARP training for LFWA junior NCMs, especially those in the combat arms.  A Clockwork Orange-style brainwashing if necessary.  : Complete with new, civilian-manned, study groups to monitor the progress, and drain the budget.


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## Infanteer (29 Apr 2005)

Somebody give me a bucket....

If you need 75 pages of sociological surveys to tell you what leadership is, then you got other issues.


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## Old Sweat (29 Apr 2005)

Infanteer, 

The person who needs 75 pages of bumf to explain leadership doesn't have issues, he/she needs another line of work.


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## Blakey (29 Apr 2005)

Old Sweat said:
			
		

> Infanteer,
> 
> The person who needs 75 pages of bumf to explain leadership doesn't have issues, he/she needs another line of work.


X2


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## kincanucks (29 Apr 2005)

How to employ:

Colonel Mike Capstick, Lieutenant-Colonel
Kelly Farley, Lieutenant-Colonel Bill Wild (Ret'd) and Lieutenant-
Commander Mike Parkes.

and how to occupy:

Alain Giguère, CROP Inc.
Annemarie Boulva, CROP Inc.
Lieutenant-Colonel (Ret'd) Peter Bradley, Military Leadership and Psychology
Department at the Royal Military College of Canada
Dr. Danielle Charbonneau, Military Leadership and Psychology Department
at the Royal Military College of Canada
Lieutenant-Colonel Réjean Duchesneau, Director Army Public Affairs
Lieutenant-Colonel Harry Bondy, Land Personnel Concepts and Policy
Major Rick Walker, Land Personnel Concepts and Policy

DND continuing to provide useless employment and activity to the chosen few.


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## Matt_Fisher (29 Apr 2005)

I found the bit regarding sexual permissiveness rather interesting.   ;D


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## GDawg (30 Apr 2005)

I've seen a bunch of copies of this thing at work.
I shudder to think what it cost to produce, kinda like the CFB Gagetown playing cards that showed up the other day as well.
Good thing the military _isn't_in a cash crunch or we'd be foolish to waste our money on stupid shit.

I mean, look at our year of the veteran pins, I like the idea, but shouldn't we have spent that money on, I don't know, providing medical care and other necessities to our aging veterans!?! 

Perhaps some day intelligent life will pay a visit to "Planet Ottawa"  :skull:


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## GO!!! (30 Apr 2005)

Sorry, what were you saying? I was too busy banging hookers in my redneck combat arms unit bar. Yesterday I went gay bashing before harassing a woman out of the army, but I blame all of my problems on the language requirements and Ottawa (spits chew onto floor) 

I suppose the writers of this survey overlooked the fact that we were lauging so hard tears were coming as we filled out this survey as a Platoon. 

I guess we can reminice during our soon to be reinstated SHARP trg classes


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## pbi (30 Apr 2005)

Too bad the results were so low: only 30% return IIRC. And, if  GO!!!'s platoon is indicative of others, some of that 30% has to be discounted as wasted responses since folks didn't take it seriously. Still, I don't see what's wrong with trying to get a handle on who we have serving in our Army, why they serve, and what they think about things. Better than just disregarding all of that and stumbling on in blindness as an Army.  When I read the study, I found about as much good as I did bad. And, as for the comments about the study of leadership being wasted: I couldn't disagree more. In fact, I would say that it has been our dismal failure to understand Army-style leadership needs that has been at the root of many of our problems over the last decade. 

Cheers.


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## x-grunt (30 Apr 2005)

> some of that 30% has to be discounted as wasted responses since folks didn't take it seriously



Hopefully the people who collect the info have some method of seperating out the immature clown type answers. The problem with screwing around with surveys like this is simple: cause and effect. Or, "you reap what you sow".

If people play games with surveys that potentially influence CF's senior management, don't be surprised when the CF starts implementing stuff based on the skewed info provided.


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## GO!!! (30 Apr 2005)

There is no benefit to skewed info being provided or not. As you will notice in the section regarding LCol responses regarding the importance of second language trg, a vast majority said that the requirement for a second language was unnecessary. The interpretors of the survey then inserted a block which derided the LCols as "unhappy with the limited career progression associated with the policy" 

If LCols cannot be taken seriously by their peers, what makes you think Cpls can?

Besides, it was Winston Churchill who said "there are three types of lies; lies, damn lies and statistics" Thus, the results of this survey could have been twisted in a myriad of ways, even more than they were.

IMHO, this survey was intended to marginalise the Western army, and furhter justify the promotion of francophones over anglophones to the upper echelons. 

Flame away.


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## Jungle (30 Apr 2005)

GO!!! said:
			
		

> IMHO, this survey was intended to marginalise the Western army, and furhter justify the promotion of francophones over anglophones to the upper echelons.
> 
> Flame away.


From what I read, you're just another Soldier who is frustrated and blames others for his inefficiency at learning a second language.  :


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## paracowboy (30 Apr 2005)

GO!!! said:
			
		

> Sorry, what were you saying? I was too busy banging hookers in my redneck combat arms unit bar. Yesterday I went gay bashing before harassing a woman out of the army, but I blame all of my problems on the language requirements and Ottawa (spits chew onto floor)
> 
> I suppose the writers of this survey overlooked the fact that we were lauging so hard tears were coming as we filled out this survey as a Platoon.
> 
> I guess we can reminice during our soon to be reinstated SHARP trg classes


well done. You had an opportunity to make a change and instead you made a joke. You have now given up your right to bitch.


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## pbi (1 May 2005)

> If LCols cannot be taken seriously by their peers, what makes you think Cpls can?



Actually, the response of LCols wasn't really disregarded. The CLS has taken notice of a lot of what was in the study (one of the reasons it was published instead of being suppressed...) One of the upcoming efforts in transforming and revitalizing the Army is an effort to "re-engage" LCols, since they represent so much experience. Most of us served our junior officer years during a very disastrous and destructive time for the Army, and we often saw the genesis of things such as SHARP (and all its "friends"...). A goodly number (like me) joined before things such as degrees and second language graduated from being "should haves" to "must haves", and some have struggled with these "moving goal posts". Some have quit in frustration, which is a pretty costly loss for the Army in terms of years and breadth of experience.

As for comments about the responses, that's part of the jonb of writing a study as opposed to just listing data: there has to be some interpretation as to what it  means, and it helps if there is some suggestion of causes. Nobody is forced to accept either, as GO!! obviously does not.



> IMHO, this survey was intended to marginalise the Western army, and furhter justify the promotion of francophones over anglophones to the upper echelons.



Please. Come on...is this a serious statement? Why would we expend this energy and effort to tear the Army apart? Is this the CLS' agenda, do you think? Neither General Hillier, nor the CLS before him, were Francophones: I find the "franco-conspiracy" a bit hard to accept as a motivation for this study. 

Cheers


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## bossi (6 May 2005)

Hmmm ... let me think ... what possible use could proficiency at learning languages have in real theatres of operations ... I mean, after all, it was a piece of cake to talk in English to maliks (mayors) and mullahs (religious leaders) in A'stan ... NOT!!

I haven't read this study yet, but I take issue with the short-sighted, narrow-minded pedantic opinion that the ability to learn languages is a waste of time.

"Fight smarter, not harder" - when we're outnumbered and surrounded by potential hostiles, it only makes sense to make friends instead of enemies (hmmm ... how ironic - it describes our situation in Parliament, as well as when deployed overseas ... but, I digress ...)

Sure - I only speak English, French and German, but ... the proven ability to study linguistics at the university level helped me pick up some Dari, thus giving me an advantage in "winning hearts and minds".   But, I guess that concept is wasted upon those who'd rather just shoot everything that doesn't speak English ...

Shaibu!

P.S. (here's an article to prove my point)

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0502/p02s01-usmi.htm

*Boot camp, camouflage, guns - and Farsi lessons?*
The Defense Language Institute is at the forefront of the Pentagon's growing emphasis on linguistic and cultural skills.
By Mark Sappenfield | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor 

MONTEREY, CALIF. - The Pentagon makes no secret of the fact that Staff Sgt. Aaron Jarvis will soon be one of its most valuable assets in the war on terror. Yet the most important part of his daily training does not involve a fighter jet, a rifle, or an obstacle course. It involves only a classroom and constant conversation, as Sergeant Jarvis unravels the peculiar pronunciations and subtle scrawlings of Dari, one of the two official Afghan tongues.

To Jarvis, a one-time pizza-store manager who has already learned Serbo- Croatian as an Air Force linguist, the switch to Dari is just another assignment here at the Defense Language Institute (DLI). But more broadly, *it is part of a fundamental shift at the Pentagon, as leaders increasingly see foreign-language skills not as a peripheral part of the military's mission, but as crucial to the success of American forces abroad.*

In the future, officers could be required to have some familiarity with a second language; enlistees might receive language instruction during basic training. No decisions have yet been made. Yet when the Pentagon released its Defense Language Transformation Roadmap last month, it made clear its view that security in a post-Sept. 11 world requires not only a military capable of deploying to the remotest corner of the world at a moment's notice, but also soldiers capable of coping with the cultural and linguistic challenges they meet when they arrive there.

"We think this is, in the end, an essential war-fighting skill for the military of the future," says David Chu, undersecretary of personnel.

A linguistic roadmap 

The Pentagon's roadmap offers only a general outline of what language skills it feels are needed in today's military. Yet its goals are ambitious. In essence, it seeks to take language from the perimeter of military life - the province of intelligence specialists translating documents and listening to radio chatter - and make it a more seamless part of modern soldiering.

Its aim is threefold: to promote at least basic language skills among the broader base of soldiers and officers, to improve the proficiency of linguists like Jarvis, and to replicate efforts like the Translator Aide Program, which recruits native speakers of key languages from immigrant communities across the country, helping the Army ramp up its translator corps quickly.

"A broader base of competence and a selection of individuals with high-end capacity is essential to our future success, and we need to have some way to react in an agile fashion to unexpected events," says Dr. Chu. "No one five years ago would have foreseen that we needed a significant Pashtun and Dari competence."

*In Afghanistan and Iraq, the need is obvious and increasing. "We are trying to win the peace, and it is very important for us to be able to communicate even at a basic level," says Lt. Col. William Astore, dean of students at the DLI. "I would much rather have soldiers communicate using words rather than using a rifle butt."*

Here on the DLI's piney campus overlooking the blue canvas of Monterey Bay, the war on terror can seem an unthinkable notion, separated by thousands of miles and the cool breeze of a California state of mind. But it is around every corner. As the military's primary language school, the DLI is essentially the flagship for the changes of the language roadmap, and as it grows to meet the increasing demand, it has undergone as much of a transformation as the military itself.

'A good time to catch up' 

Some of that change is obvious in Jarvis. His original instruction in Serbo-Croatian is like a waypost of the past, when the armed forces and DLI were nearly singular in their focus on Russia and the Eastern Bloc. Back then, Jarvis didn't much care which language he learned, saying of his desire to enlist as a linguist: "It was a bit of service, and a bit of interest.... And I didn't want to be a mechanic."

But when Jarvis returned for his second stint last year, both he and the DLI knew where the action was.

After Sept. 11, the DLI scrambled to create a program that covered Dari, Pashtun, Uzbek, and other languages spoken in the Afghan region - scouring local communities for native-speaking teachers, and sometimes laying out the curriculum only a week before instructors taught it. It was the DLI's own model of agility to meet an unexpected demand.

Jarvis wanted to study Farsi, the language of Iran. The DLI gave him Dari, its Afghan dialect. And during the 47-week course, he's gained something beyond an understanding of a script that reads right to left - he's gained an appreciation of Afghan culture.

"It's probably the most interesting thing - learning about the culture," he says. "Learning about Islam, you see how it affects their life, and how so much of the culture is based on it."

To Philip Carter, that is an invaluable lesson for any soldier. During his time as a military-police platoon leader in Korea years ago, he became convinced of the importance of not only language skills but also cultural understanding. His platoon included Korean draftees who served with the US military, and without them, he might have caused riots without even knowing why.

*"You need someone with a knowledge of the social hierarchy, who knows whether a handshake is a good or bad thing, and whether it's an insult to refuse coffee," * says Mr. Carter, who is now a military analyst. The military "was slow off the dime, but now is a good time to catch up."

Proficiency - but at what cost? 

Others, however, worry that the Pentagon might go too far. Language and cultural training makes sense at the DLI, because students are here for that purpose. But spreading even a watered-down version to the wider officer corps - much less to enlisted soldiers - risks undermining their primary goal: preparing for battle.

Army Capt. Adam Sellers can see both sides. As a member of the Foreign Area Officer program here at the DLI, he understands the need for good language skills - he's committed to spending a year in China to become conversant with its language and culture.

But he also thinks back to his time as a commanding officer, and wonders when he would have had a spare moment for language instruction amid all the drilling and training.

"If you had asked me a year ago, I would have said, 'I don't have time for that,' " he says. *"It's a huge culture shift for the Army."*


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## mover1 (6 May 2005)

Holy Hooplah. Well that study was a waste. I don't know what was worse the time I wasted reading it, Or the money and effort wasted writing it.  Kind of reminds me of my Group Dynamics course.


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## childs56 (7 May 2005)

what would be great is for the CF to have a group of deployable soldiers whom are trained to fight, but their primary goal would be their Language ability. This group would be dispersed through out the Brigades and when units are deployed they could draw upon those resources as interprters over seas. The mandatory training of soldiers to be proficient in a second languge may inhibit some very fine soldiers from ever passing into the ranks. Why if we swing the pendulum to far and require a soldier to pass a written and oral languge test it maybe to much for some. If they fail the tests what do we do, kick them out. It is a great idea to do on paper but how do we ensure that we dont dismiss a good soldier because of this.  We have fought wars through out the years with out all of this training, soldiers have tended to pick up on the local languge, learning a few phrases here and their. Should we adopt some form of localized before deploying, maybe things like the warnings, for stop or i will shoot, or we are here to help you.  One thing we must remember also. Is we need to use peopel from the country we are in whom we can trust as interpreters.They generally know the lay of the land and also the attitudes of the locals. One thing that soldiers are usually oblivious to if they have cam paint on and ready to fight.The local talent should never be disreguarded.   Really though i guess we will see where this languge situation gets us. Hopefully it doesnt sacrifice good people because of an ability to not retain a second language, or cost us valuable training.


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## PPCLI Guy (7 May 2005)

So I assume from the majority of the comments here that apochryphal stories aand SALLY is the way to run the Army?

Grow up boys.


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## KevinB (8 May 2005)

I missed this when it got split.

 The problem is the interpretations drawn from the survey. 

The whole way the questions where ask was IMHO designed to give a skewed responce - or at least and intended responce.

Why - cause just becasue I beleive we should be one army, one uniform, one standard - I seem to be shoehorned into this stereotypical view point that is uneducated small town redneck - where I grew up in Ottawa, and went to university.

 IF any of those twits who made the survey up came aroudn to explain their questions and in turn discuss our answers then I might have had a glimmering of respect for it and the designers.

I can make a survey too, and I can twist the question format to give whatever responce I desire.

I fail to see how One Army One Standard is anything but equal and fair to all - but I guess I left out the special interest groups - that are a little more equal than the rest of us.


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## childs56 (8 May 2005)

i got a friendly reminder the other day on what i have posted on here may be used against me in the future. so be carefull in how you word things. hopefully this is not the case but i can see it happening. I totally agree one Army one Standard. make a choice and stick with it.


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## Reccesoldier (8 May 2005)

Not to derail this topic but I recently went for french testing, because I wanted to go on a year long french crse. 

I applied on line and was given a date for the 2 written tests and one oral test.

So I showed up at the appointed time and place and wrote the 2 exams, one to test my understanding of written french and one to check my ability to write french (although this was done with multiple choice questions)

I was told that I would get the results of these tests in a couple of days. Sure enough I did, I got a "B" on the comprehension and an "X" on the writing. Apparently the "X" is a failure, so I was informed not to bother showing up for my oral exam because... you guessed it....

I DIDN'T ALREADY KNOW ENOUGH FRENCH TO BE TAUGHT HOW TO SPEAK FRENCH

WTF???????????????????????????????????????

BTW, When I was on my 6A I was the only Anglo in a "Bilingual" troop. By the time the course ended (6weeks) my french Troop WO was convinced that I knew how to speak french and had been playing him for a fool the entire time.

The CF's SLT has been badly managed and badly implemented. Could it be successful? Hell yeah! But someone up the chain has to come to the realization that the majority of Canadians do not speak french, do not live in areas where they hear french regularly, and do not get adequate french instruction in school. Therefore if the CF is going to make french mandatory for CF personnel they have to instruct the _*majority*_ of soldiers not one out of a hundred and hope for the best.


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## childs56 (8 May 2005)

Yes what a catch 22 on learning French. Seems as you wanted to further your abilites makes it all the worse to be slapped in the face. Sorry to hear that.


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## bossi (8 May 2005)

Reccesoldier said:
			
		

> ... The CF's SLT has been badly managed and badly implemented. ...



I agree - back in the 80's I tried to write a test, but the volume/quality on the speakers was so poor I couldn't hear what they were saying - I asked for the volume to be turned up, but the OCdt running the test said it was at the maximum ... so, rather than fail the test because the volume was too low, I withdrew after two minutes ... and they failed me anyway ... hmmm ...


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## FastEddy (13 May 2005)

paracowboy said:
			
		

> well done. You had an opportunity to make a change and instead you made a joke. You have now given up your right to *****.




Its quite obvious of your disapproval of "Go", but I'm not clear on what change you would have liked to see him express.

Do you really think that a overwhelming expression of opinion can change a predetermined course of action.


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## pbi (14 May 2005)

> Do you really think that a overwhelming expression of opinion can change a predetermined course of action.


  

If people pay attention, yes. Clothe the Soldier (whether you like its current products or not...) was based on the premise of getting soldiers' opinions on kit, and on looking at what they would buy themselves and why. Course design at our schools always takes into account the opinion of the students, as well as the opinions of the people who employ them. Ratings boards are all about expressions of opinion (albeit backed up by facts). I could go on, but the expression of opinion is important in our Army. The Army should NOT be run on the basis of opinion polls, but input is important especially with an Army as intelligent, well-educated and experienced as ours is. 

Cheers.


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## FastEddy (14 May 2005)

pbi said:
			
		

> If people pay attention, yes. Clothe the Soldier (whether you like its current products or not...) was based on the premise of getting soldiers' opinions on kit, and on looking at what they would buy themselves and why. Course design at our schools always takes into account the opinion of the students, as well as the opinions of the people who employ them. Ratings boards are all about expressions of opinion (albeit backed up by facts). I could go on, but the expression of opinion is important in our Army. The Army should NOT be run on the basis of opinion polls, but input is important especially with an Army as intelligent, well-educated and experienced as ours is.
> 
> Cheers.





Yes I agree with you whole heartedly, that Views, Opinions and Preferences may direct a course of
action or decision, this procedure can be very useful and important.

But as I suggested, if a decision or course of action has been pre-decided regardless of public opinion or
data gathered. And that all the information and data gathered could also be subject to favourable manipulation.

Yes sometimes you can beat City Hall, but if Ottawa or AHQ has pre-decided its going to be a certain way,
all the kicking and screaming isn't going to change the outcome.

What you are asked or presented with to-day, may be whats going to happen in the future period !.

[Moderator note: Edited to better differentiate reply from original quote - no content changed]


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## pbi (14 May 2005)

> What you are asked or presented with to-day, may be whats going to happen in the future period !.



Roger that, 100%. So, when given a chance to give your input, I say you should give it as clearly and honestly as you can. It may change things, or it may not, But if you say nothing, or you spoil your response, please don't complain that "nobody listens". To me it's like people who refuse to vote by saying "my vote doesn't make any difference anyway". My response is: "well...in your case, you're probably right." (and that isn't directed at you, by the way-it is a general comment)

Cheers.


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## GO!!! (21 May 2005)

Wow, lots to respond to...

On the issue of second language trg - I am all for it, as I am a successful graduate of both military and civilian courses. What I take to issue is the particular language and dialect the CF has decreed is the optimal choice. Why is SLT not offered in useful languages? (1 Billion residents of this planet speak an Arabic variant, and a further billion speak Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese) Yet we study the colloquilism -laden and internationally confounding quebec dialect. Brilliant. 

On the issue of a Francophone conspiracy - Quebec has 17% of the total population of Canada, but produces 44% of the successful RMC entrants, and francophones comprise 47% of the officer corps. In addition to this - a BBB profile or higher is required for all executive level positions within the DND or any other federal department - a BBB profile in english and french. Given that bilingual westerners are more likely to speak an oriental language - this is a naturally discriminatory system. 

On the issue of Clothe the soldier - yes, it did gather the opinions of soldiers, and totally disregarded them. The tac vest is a perfect example, as is the lack of pockets on the arms of the cbt shirt. Try to carry 10 mags and 2 canteens in that POS. Or use it if you are a support weapons gunner. The gathering of opinions is only of use if they are heeded.

Gambei!


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## George Wallace (21 May 2005)

GO!!! said:
			
		

> Wow, lots to respond to...
> 
> On the issue of second language trg - I am all for it, as I am a successful graduate of both military and civilian courses. What I take to issue is the particular language and dialect the CF has decreed is the optimal choice. Why is SLT not offered in useful languages? (1 Billion residents of this planet speak an Arabic variant, and a further billion speak Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese) Yet we study the colloquilism -laden and internationally confounding quebec dialect. Brilliant.
> 
> On the issue of a Francophone conspiracy - Quebec has 17% of the total population of Canada, but produces 44% of the successful RMC entrants, and francophones comprise 47% of the officer corps. In addition to this - a BBB profile or higher is required for all executive level positions within the DND or any other federal department - a BBB profile in english and french. Given that bilingual westerners are more likely to speak an oriental language - this is a naturally discriminatory system.




Don't worry Gambei.  With the Liberal conspiracies that are taking place right now, after the next election they will blame the Conservatives for a new Quebec Referendum and the eventual break up of the country.  Then we won't have this conspiracy that you are alluding to.  
 ;D


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## Jungle (21 May 2005)

George Wallace said:
			
		

> Don't worry Gambei.   With the Liberal conspiracies that are taking place right now, after the next election they will blame the Conservatives for a new Quebec Referendum and the eventual break up of the country.   Then we won't have this conspiracy that you are alluding to.


I'm starting to think Alberta will separate before Québec...


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## GO!!! (22 May 2005)

If Albertans are smart - they will make the same separtist sounds that quebec has, get themselves labelled a "have not province" and enjoy lucrative federal subsidies on everything from fuel to daycare! This will run the country into the ground - eventually necessitating the equal treatment of all provinces - "distinct" or not.


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## Medic36Canada (14 Jun 2005)

Ok I could not help myself I had to post, this is another joke and waste of money. We as serving soldiers or ex soldiers know the military rewards people who are tow the party line. When sharp training came in it was taught to me by a militant lesbian who hated men. We watch generals come to visit us during peacekeeping operations to pat each other on the back and get there medal. This should not surprise anyone of us. Look at some the the people in key positions in the military fat selfserving wastes of rations. The government must love these knobs. I don't mean to sound down on the officer corp. but I am down on the officer corp. They no longer lead by example, just destroy good soldiers careers and do meaning crap like this. Anyone belong to the Semi-armored corp. My heart goes out to the regular soldier who keeps himself fit and can do his job properly. He may kill the enemy only to be destroyed by his government and his leadership. I am glad I have finished my 12 years of service and walked. Take care all you young men who are serving our country....yes I did only mention the men.


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## Bruce Monkhouse (14 Jun 2005)

Quotes,
 taught to me by a militant lesbian who hated men
Take care all you young men who are serving our country....yes I did only mention the men.

...so one could assume by that comment then that your a "militant" gay?


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## Cloud Cover (14 Jun 2005)

Jungle said:
			
		

> I'm starting to think Alberta will separate before Québec...



I'm trying to find a way to merge South Western Ontario with Alberta!!


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## Roy Harding (14 Jun 2005)

> ... I was told that I would get the results of these tests in a couple of days. Sure enough I did, I got a "B" on the comprehension and an "X" on the writing. Apparently the "X" is a failure, so I was informed not to bother showing up for my oral exam because... you guessed it....
> 
> I DIDN'T ALREADY KNOW ENOUGH FRENCH TO BE TAUGHT HOW TO SPEAK FRENCH
> ...[unquote]
> ...


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## pbi (14 Jun 2005)

> Ok I could not help myself I had to post, this is another joke and waste of money. We as serving soldiers or ex soldiers know the military rewards people who are tow the party line. When sharp training came in it was taught to me by a militant lesbian who hated men. We watch generals come to visit us during peacekeeping operations to pat each other on the back and get there medal. This should not surprise anyone of us. Look at some the the people in key positions in the military fat selfserving wastes of rations. The government must love these knobs. I don't mean to sound down on the officer corp. but I am down on the officer corp. They no longer lead by example, just destroy good soldiers careers and do meaning crap like this. Anyone belong to the Semi-armored corp. My heart goes out to the regular soldier who keeps himself fit and can do his job properly. He may kill the enemy only to be destroyed by his government and his leadership. I am glad I have finished my 12 years of service and walked. Take care all you young men who are serving our country....yes I did only mention the men.



I don't understand this post. What is it actually about?

Cheers.


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## Infanteer (15 Jun 2005)

Medic36Canada said:
			
		

> Ok I could not help myself I had to post, this is another joke and waste of money. We as serving soldiers or ex soldiers know the military rewards people who are tow the party line. When sharp training came in it was taught to me by a militant lesbian who hated men. We watch generals come to visit us during peacekeeping operations to pat each other on the back and get there medal. This should not surprise anyone of us. Look at some the the people in key positions in the military fat selfserving wastes of rations. The government must love these knobs. I don't mean to sound down on the officer corp. but I am down on the officer corp. They no longer lead by example, just destroy good soldiers careers and do meaning crap like this. Anyone belong to the Semi-armored corp. My heart goes out to the regular soldier who keeps himself fit and can do his job properly. He may kill the enemy only to be destroyed by his government and his leadership. I am glad I have finished my 12 years of service and walked. Take care all you young men who are serving our country....yes I did only mention the men.



Wow, welcome to Army.ca.  Nice first post, but do you want to try again, because most of us don't take bitchy ranting too seriously when it blows through the saloon doors like tumbleweed....


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## Cloud Cover (15 Jun 2005)

Infanteer said:
			
		

> Wow, welcome to Army.ca.  Nice first post, but do you want to try again, because most of us don't take bitchy ranting too seriously when it blows through the saloon doors like tumbleweed....



I always thought your writing style reflected the character style of a typical sherriff in any of Louis L'Amour novels. You ought to change your Avatar to the 5 point tin.


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## pbi (15 Jun 2005)

OK-try this:

The desert wind swung the saloon doors open, just ahead of a shambling, dust covered figure who lurched in from the blinding heat of the afternoon sun. He peered suspiciously around him at the figures lounging in the cool darkness of the bar, faces dimly lit by the glow of their monitors. The man straightened up and put one hand on the butt of his pistol. He spat, and then hissed menacingly:

"So-this is Army. ca, huh?"

"Yes, friend, that's us, sure enough. What's your thread gonna be?" asked the barkeep, nervously fingering the edge of his shiny black helmet. He edged closer to the "BANNED" button concealed under the bar.

"Huh" snorted the stranger "Ah kin see what y'all are. Miltant lezbeens, fat selfserving wastes of rations, n'every kinda knob there is. Scum."

Over in the corner Whiskey sat up straight in his chair and slowly slipped the strap on his holster, keeping his eyes on the man in the doorway. The stranger rambled on bitterly:

"Why, ah bet the guvamint jest loves all you knobs, don;t it. Is any of yuz from the Semi-Armoured Corps? Well? Is ya?"

The stranger took a menacing step forward and drew his pistol.The bartender raised a cautioning hand.

"Hey now, friend-we don't want no trouble here. We got enough folks pushing up daisies out on BANNED HILL. Put that..."

But he never got the words out of his mouth. At that second the door at the far end of the room crashed off its hinges, and The Government burst in, armed to the teeth. The huge, multi-headed figure stared down the now cowering stranger and growled:

"Drop that unregistered weapon, Medic36. Your ranting days are done. We're going to destroy you."

The stranger went to draw down, but The Government was faster. After several minutes of sustained firing of weapons of various calibres, Medic36 slid slowly to the floor in a pool of his own posts. Summoning his last breath, he gasped:

"Take care all you young men who are serving our country....yes I did only mention the men"

Then he rolled over and he died.

For a moment the saloon was silent, with only the desert wind keening outside in the empty street. Then the barkeep, slowly rising up from behind the bar (and adjusting his big black shiny visor) spoke slowly:

"Wow. Nice first post"

Cheers.


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## Infanteer (15 Jun 2005)

Priceless!


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## pbi (15 Jun 2005)

Heh heh. Yeah-slow afternoon here. Couldn't resist when I saw the Louis L'Amour reference.

Cheers


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## paracowboy (15 Jun 2005)

pbi,
you owe the Crown a new keyboard. I spit Skoal all over this one!


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## Acorn (15 Jun 2005)

You owe ME a new keyboard. As well as a bottle of 21 year-old malt. Pardner.

Acorn


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## Haggis (15 Jun 2005)

pbi said:
			
		

> The desert wind swung the saloon doors open, ....."Wow. Nice first post"



PBI:  That's the second funniest thing I've read today... and that's pretty funny.

Good thing I wear CADPAT to work so no one can see me pee myself laughing.... ;D


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## TCBF (16 Jun 2005)

While we are on topic  ;D, anybody check their bios lately?  I checked mine today for the first time in months, and it appeared to have modified itself.  So I changed it back.  Poltergeists?  Leprecheans?  The RCMP? 

Tom


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## pbi (21 Jun 2005)

Having lived in Alberta for eight years (and in the West for 14), but being originally from (_spooky organ music..._.) Ontario, I find it quite ironic that Ralphy is making noises about asking for Federal disaster relief after the recent floods. Guess maybe that nasty country of Canada we serve is good for something, eh? 

Cheers


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## GO!!! (21 Jun 2005)

Why not? 

The rest of the nation suckles at the collective teat the rest of the time!

Next, AB should demand to be given "distinct society" status, so that we too can have 5$ a day day care... 

Then we'll vote on seperating every 15 yrs......


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## Blackhorse7 (21 Jun 2005)

Funny guy, TCBF.... if I had changed something, you would never know it.  _Ghost..._   ;D


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## pbi (21 Jun 2005)

GO!!! said:
			
		

> Why not?
> 
> The rest of the nation suckles at the collective teat the rest of the time!
> 
> ...



 Which makes it all the funnier to see Ralph doing it when he is fond of slamming the ROC (esp the Maritimes) for dependency on the same teat. Not to say, of course, that people losing their homes to flood is funny, nor that the Fed Govt should not help all Canadians, but rather to say that it is good to see Ralph (in particular) reminded that there may be some benefits to being part of a country. Anyway, I don't really think Ralph is a separatist: I think he is a gamesman who knows what chains to rattle.

Cheers.


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