Government hints at boosting Canada’s military spending

I have long said that you could fund the CAF to 4 percent of GDP, but we would still lag behind in NATO and be much the same where we are.

It's never the money, it's politics. It's procedures. It's the pork-barreling in our defence spending that makes us a paper tiger in NATO.

My only hope in all of this for the CAF and the GoC, whatever the political stripe that may be, is that it will rouse them out of the "Peace Dividend" slumber. The world has been unstable since 1945. We have used geography, proximity, and association as a Defence Policy ever since. ICBMs don't care how close to the U.S. or how far from Russia/China we are.

Don't give us a dime more, but let us spend money on defence like it matters. The fact we follow the same rules for purchasing a fighter aircraft as we do for buying office furniture for a Service Canada office is disgraceful. Don't treat defense procurement as a stimulus package for Canadian Industry. There I said it.

We spend so much money, time, and effort trying to get that money to stay in Canada; be it by awarding contracts to companies with no capability to produce items without first "retooling" and"developing the production lines", or by hamstringing perfectly competent and competitive bidders by forcing the project to be made in St. Margaret de Poutain de Champignon, QC because the ruling government either lost the seat in the election, or won it with promises.

We spend so much money and staff hours jumping through TBS regulations that are great for other departments, but are terrible for defence procurement. Some items you have to sole source, because there are technologies and capabilities no one else makes. By doing the bid process, you get companies clamoring for a project they can't deliver on, but because they tick the bright boxes on the score sheet....

I truly and honestly belief we need to split from PSPC and legislate that its not beholden to TBS, only to the PBO/PCO. The guiding principles of this new Defence Procurement department should be "Off the shelf, from somewhere else" if there isn't an industry in Canada.

BOOTFORGEN has demonstrated how well we do when we are able to actually get what we need, instead of lining the pockets of a Canadian company that got lucky.

That, but with tanks, fighters, ships, weapons systems....

 

[dimsum]

I think across elements is the same tune as when I try to get my kids to downsize their stuffed animals:
"Oh no... Mr. Fuzzykins is essential...."

Except

"Oh no... Unified Resolve the Change of Command Parade for XYZ unit is essential...."

At least an exercise, at least theoretically, is useful since that's how you train with others and assess the force.

In the RCN and RCAF, multinational exercises are usually the only times we work with our partner allies with any regularity.

 

[daftandbarmy]

At least an exercise, at least theoretically, is useful since that's how you train with others and assess the force.

In the RCN and RCAF, multinational exercises are usually the only times we work with our partner allies with any regularity.

As opposed to exercises between the CAF Reg F and A Res which happen... well.... never

 

[SeaKingTacco]

I don't think it's just the RCN that is dragging its heels on that.

Or so I hear.

To be fair, when the CDS direction came out, two ships were already deployed. Should they have just ceased operations and come home?

There is also the small matter that GAC is intimately involved. Forces were committed to certain operations, by the Government of Canada, not CRCN or the CDS.

 

[dimsum]

To be fair, when the CDS direction came out, two ships were already deployed. Should they have just ceased operations and come home?

There is also the small matter that GAC is intimately involved. Forces were committed to certain operations, by the Government of Canada, not CRCN or the CDS.

I'd put operations in the "essential" category.

 

[Navy_Pete]

To be fair, when the CDS direction came out, two ships were already deployed. Should they have just ceased operations and come home?

There is also the small matter that GAC is intimately involved. Forces were committed to certain operations, by the Government of Canada, not CRCN or the CDS.

Should the RCN still be operating the MCDVs, which were supposed to get paid off to free up people for the AOPs? Has the RCN been beating on the fleet like rentals for over a decade and never scheduling long enough work periods to get the required maintenance done?

The RCN has been ignoring this my entire career and it's just in a death spiral at this point. Martechs are at 50-60% PMLs on the coasts, that's insane, and it's continuing to get worse as the RCN keeps the pedal down on the OPSCHED.

Even before the CDS order they should have been begging to slow things down. Instead they are still planning on RAMPING UP TRAINING to a level higher than we've ever acheived, despite numerous instructor billets being empty, major maintenance needed to the schools and a general lack of throughput capacity..

Institutionally completely out of touch. So either CRCN and staff is getting their arses shined on or they are just ignoring reality, and not sure which is worse.

 

[rmc_wannabe]

Institutionally completely out of touch. So either CRCN and staff is getting their arses shined on or they are just ignoring reality, and not sure which is worse.

My uninformed guess is that the RCN is pushing the fleet to the breaking point to try and maintain relevance within the NDHQ/SJS/CJOC circles. Those circles will set funding priorities far fast than having an L1 screaming into the void and being drowned out by the larger and costlier elements (CA and RCAF, respectively).

Doesn't make sense on the personnel side, but I can see that as a perceived Ace in the Hole when it comes to the new Defence White Paper/budget allocation.

 

[KevinB]

I'd put operations in the "essential" category.

One would hope everyone does.

 

[OldSolduer]

That message will, I suspect, be delivered by this lady, and she may not even bother coming to Ottawa to deliver it.

Her "mandate" is: "to spur good-paying jobs, empower entrepreneurs to innovate and grow, and help American workers and businesses compete." Guess whose actions threaten the competitive status of American workers and businesses?
View attachment 74825

I have no idea who that is

 

[SeaKingTacco]

I have no idea who that is

She is the Secretary of Commerce for the United States.

With a stroke of a pen, she could destroy trade with Canada and put 2 million people out of work- mostly in Quebec and Southern Ontario.

Are you picking up what the White House is throwing down?

 

[OldSolduer]

She is the Secretary of Commerce for the United States.

With a stroke of a pen, she could destroy trade with Canada and put 2 million people out of work- mostly in Quebec and Southern Ontario.

Are you picking up what the White House is throwing down?

It should have happened 18 months ago

 

[SupersonicMax]

I'd put operations in the "essential" category.

Depends what Operation. Honestly, some are pretty useless.

 

[daftandbarmy]

One would hope everyone does.

Not if you want to get promoted faster, which requires you to cozy up to the GOFOs and Politicos in Ottawa

 

[PPCLI Guy]

Not if you want to get promoted faster, which requires you to cozy up to the GOFOs and Politicos in Ottawa

I am sure you saw lots of that in your time in Ottawa, or at the operational or strategic level

 

[daftandbarmy]

I am sure you saw lots of that in your time in Ottawa, or at the operational or strategic level

Oh hell no... I'm just parrotting second hand information which is, of course, worth pretty much what it cost

 

[Good2Golf]

Oh hell no... I'm just parrotting second hand information which is, of course, worth pretty much what it cost

Or overpriced?

 

[daftandbarmy]

Or overpriced?

It's a priceless, timeless old tune

'Modern Major General' lyrics | Classical Music

Do you know all the lyrics to 'Modern Major General' one of Gilbert and Sullivan's most famous songs?

www.classical-music.com

 

[PPCLI Guy]

And an old story

 

[daftandbarmy]

And an old story

I love that movie a little too much

 

[FJAG]

And an old story

Thanks for the reminder. I've been meaning to watch it again.

Here's the link to the full version on YouTube:

 

[Edward Campbell]

My opinion - worth exactly what you're paying for it - is that no matter what President Biden (and, indeed, other world leaders say or (in the cases of e.g. Kim Jong-un and Ali Khamenei) do) Canadian voters will find it very hard to support any substantial action to make Canada more powerful ... militarily. It is also my opinion that that overwhelming majority of Canadian does not understand that there is an important, unbreakable nexus between hard and soft power. It is great to have soft power - the more the better - but Joseph Nye himself pointed out that soft power works only when the country wielding it has demonstrated that it has and is wiling to use enough hard power to make its voice heard.

I know I'm repeating myself, but both the Conservative and Liberal parties know that Canadians oppose rebuilding our military - they poll assiduously and they ask hard question; they want to know what we think; and we, most Canadians (my guess is 60%+ of us) tell them, over and over again, that we don't like the idea of Canada using military power and, therefore, don't want Canada to have much military power; they certainly, by and even larger percentage, don't want to see their taxes go up our their entitlements go down not pay for it.

I don't know how Pierre Poilievre could sell rebuilding Canada's military to his own party, much less to the country at large. I'm about 99.9% certain that Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland would find the notion totally impossible.