fellowtraveller

Yes, of course it can support other cropscan - but what crop could possibly replace the extraordinary price of opium? Answer: none. You're missing my point... If your plan is for the west to burn the crop anyway it doesn't make sense to grow it in the first place. The price that any useful crop would fetch is of little consequence if the west replaces their income in the form of subsidies. Any useful food or cash crop would fetch some money for the farmer, be of use to the Afghan people and make sure the land is not being used for drug production. Actually, I believe that it is you who misses the point - which is 'why does the poppy trade exist'?. The farmers cannot grow 'any useful food or cash crop', because there simply is no other crop that can create the large amount of absolutely essential cash in the Afghan 'economy'. Know this: the poppy is going to be grown regardless of what happens. That is an inescapable reality. The genie is NOT going back in the bottle. The issue is : who will take the profit, and what will happen with the money? At present, the Taliban are middlemen, and fund their operations with the money. It would be relatively simple to outbid them, to supplant them, and to essentially eliminate their role in Afghan society. Is that not an extremely desireable outcome? Why do you think that the Taliban are enjoying a resurgence? Follow the money for an easy and obvious - but no less true- answer. If you understand that Afghanistan will never repeat never be capable of standing on their own hind legs economically, and that the drug trade will never go away - then thinking outside the box for a compromise solution - like buying the poppy crop - makes some sense. And will save a lot of lives.

If the soil can support poppies and cannabis couldn't it also support some food and cash crops? In the end the farmers are wasting their time and we are simply handing them cash. A much better solution would be to subsidize the production of any useful crop. It would cost us less and be much more beneficial to the Afghan people. Yes, of course it can support other cropscan - but what crop could possibly replace the extraordinary price of opium? Answer: none. Remember too that Afghanistan has very very little arable land. "Your plan has farmers growing poppies and the west buying and burning them." Yes, correct. Currently, the Taliban has farmers growing poppies, and the West buys them. The Taliban uses the profits to subjugate their own people and kill our soldiers. They need to be taken out of the equation, and buying the opium will do just that. Without that money, they are pooched. There is absolutely no 'useful crop' that will supplant opium for sheer profit. That is why it is grown, obviously. There is also a chronic shortage of legimate supply of opiates to the medical industry of the West. The point of this proposal is twofold: mainly to cut the Taliban off at the knees. With no money they cannot hire more soldiers and cannot control the citizens. Secondly, it replaces the income lost by the farmers.

Good question OP. But why don't you ask the same question of the 2 million + Afghan refugees who have returne to their homes since we began the fight in their country. I think they would have some very direct and pertinent answers for you, though it is unlikely you'd hear them.

Nope. The only thing the Taliban have 'been against' regarding the drug trade is competition against their control. It funds their very existence. I agree the war should stop, but now perhaps you can explain how the billions from the drug trade - which ultimately provides daily bread for many Afghans - will be replaced in the economy? Please don't provide platitudes about small business and resource development. There are no resources of consequence, and likely never will be any. By the way, Afghanistan has been a supplier of drugs to the West for several decades. At one time it was high quality hashish, but the New Age has brought much better profit margins on opiates.

Hurling soldiers at the situation won't solve the long term economic problems of Afghanistan. There is nothing much to rebuild. Spraying crops won't do anything but make even more people dependent on aid. In a nation with no traditional jobs now or ever, the the Taliban pay $12 per day to fight for them, the national police pay $4, the national army pays $1 per day. The Taliban paydays come from the sale of drugs, so why don't we just outbid them for the dope? Problem solved, they won't have anybody willing to fight for free and a big link in narcotrade will be pinched off. Would you rather send our kids to be killed in an unwinnable war, or just send the money and actually achieve something?

Then burn it. Or most of it, keep some for the chronically scarce legitimate opiates markets.... The economy of Afghanistan is centered around the growing of poppies. The money garnered from this activity is essential to the fortunes of both the farmers and the Taliban. The farmers need the $ to feed their families, the Taliban need the $ to kill the farmers and enslave their women/children. If the West spent, say, a few billion per year buying the crop in a very controlled way- a pittance compared to the costs of warfare - wouldn't they provide an ongoing and absolutely essential pillar to the economy, and cut the Taliban off at the knees? Remember this fact when contemplating the future in Afghanistan: the country has virtually no resources and is unlikely to find any in our lifetimes. No oil, no minerals, no ports, little agriculture, an uneducated populace. Just poppies. How will they survive when the West retreats, as we will inevitably? It is a win-win solution......

The CTV.ca story linked in the OP is an interesting read, if only because of what is not there. What isn't there is the name or nationality of any 'critics' from the EU. That reduces the story to the level of gossip IMO, at best. At worst it is another in the long string of sleazy media slams. Clue: Look who is named : Green Party of Canada and the Suzuki Foundation. They'd argue with Harper about the time of day. Next.

You are all the unwitting dupes/victims of Zionist Mind Control and Mistress Kimmy is quietly manipulating the voltage in the background. I can't tell you more than that for obvious reasons.

How about the We Ran Out of Ideas With Tommy Douglas Party?.

as frisky as Harpers crew? GST change, accountbality act, clean air act, Afghan mission, income trust changes, law and order legislation, paying down the debt, child care subsidies..... and so on. Love 'em or hate 'em - you have got to admit that they have not been passive.

Jack Layton really, really misses the 15 minutes of fame and relevance he enjoyed as Paul Martins butler. It is tough to be meaningless.

I know a couple of guys at Peace Hills Trust, and they aren't First Nations people. The seed money at PHT was from a couple of bands, but I don't think the day to day management is specifically aboriginal.

I listen to excellent AND viable Canadian radio every day, on CKUA. Non-commercial for the most part, wonderful programming, supported mainly by listener subscription, dollars going directly from my pocket to their bank account. This is a perfect formula for the future CBC. If you love it - you pay for it. Directly, no need to involve your fellow taxpayers, and no need to ever have this discussion again. What is CKUA? It is much more than a community radio station, and much more popular. Unlike commercial stations - but like CBC - it has coverage throughout the province.. It is a former Alberta government owned and operated station, which had govt funding yanked a decade ago. It broadcasts throughtout Alberta and into BC, with production facilities in Edmontn and Calgary. Now - in my opinion - it is example of how semi-public radio should be - both the flavour/sound AND the governance/funding of the station are excellent- great programming, heavily supported by listeners including myself. Every year I send them money because they are worthy. It is exactly what should be done with the CBC, if only so supposed supporters can put their money where their mouth is.... What should happen to the CBC, and soon.

Kind of puts the pressure on the Grits too, I doubt they want an election before Xmas. Regarding the environment, who was it that said " It has taken the Tories nearly as long to do something as it took the Liberals to do nothing"

I think Belinda is in well over her head, with no real way out other than a slow fadeaway to obscurity and a footnote in Candian political history. She made a serious error when she crossed the floor, and there is no way to take it back.

Interesting article, and let us all hope it isn't just more self -serving bullshit, and that aboriginal leadership will finally emerge to serve their people.

We live in a workers paradise, and all this frivolous chat about cutting taxes is unpatriotic.

There were only about 100 marchers in Edmonton, which is not a good turnout in a city with a reputation for being something of a leftist stronghold in a sea of conservatism. They are most welcome to express their views as loudly as they wish, and the same courtesy should be extended to everybody posting here.

I listen to excellent AND viable Canadian radio every day, on CKUA. Non-commercial for the most part, wonderful programming, supported mainly by listener subscription, dollars going directly from my pocket to their bank account. This is a perfect formula for the future CBC. If you love it - you pay for it. Directly, no need to involve your fellow taxpayers, and no need to ever have this discussion again.

How do you know it was perjury? I think the police deserve our respect and trust. I've never had anything negative to say about the police, so far they seem to be very professional, and I think they do the best job they can, even without support from the public. "Everybody hates a cop until they need one" But then again, alot of people will pull out the race card in order to get out of trouble and not take responsibility for their actions. I read that TPS is one of the most diverse police agencies in the country. If you wanna throw out the race card again back it up with facts. How do I know it was perjury? Simple. In both cases, I witnessed the incident/arrest, then was in court when the officer testified They lied about what happened in one case, in the other they lied about what was said to them by the accused and he went to jail. In both cases, it was the sworn testimony of a police officer vs. an ordinary citizen- me. And I don't hate cops at all, far from it. But I do not trust them as individuals or as a group. And here is a reason/case why others feel the same way. Last spring, during the police overreaction to Stanley Cup partying on the streets of Edmonton, a police officer apparently assaulted a young woman. The entire incident was captured by the media, who pubisihed a series of photos documenting the incident. A handcuffed woman was grabbed and thrown facefirst into the pavement by a police officer. Handcuffed. She presented no threat whatsoever. Six months later, no charges have been laid and the EPS remains mute.

Trust? No, that would be simply foolish. Like any group they have their own self serving dynamic and agenda. I have personally witnessed a police officer commit perjury twice in court, on one occasion it resulted in a jail sentence for the accused as a direct result. But I'd still call them for assistance, I'm paying for it and expect no less.

Garth has endless ambition, sees himself as a national leader and was crushed when he was not selected for a Cabinet post. I suspect he has also figured out he won't ever be an Important Guy in the CPC. So, he can be an Important Guy for a little while in the Greens. Makes sense from his worldview.

After reading the above article, does anybody here still have ANY doubts as to who our next Liberal leader will be? I bet you don't. I've been saying for a year now that Iggy's got it in the bag ,,,,, don't you think that congratulations are in order? You'll have to do it sooner or later ,,,,, so why not now? After reading the article, it strikes that Ignattieff is increasingly desperate because he knows that the top dogs in the Party do not support his candidacy.

The investigation into businesses associated with Adscam is all well and good but....what I'd like to see is some criminal investigation of Liberal riding associations, and some of the politicians. Did Lafleur and others ad agencies get all this public money just for giggles, were they selected randomly out of the Yellow Pages? Or were they conduits to the people who actually needed and received at least some of the money?

You guys are - typically- overestimating the bad image of Rae. It really is an Ontario thing. You also forget the nature of the vote in Ontario, and especially in the GTA. Do you really think any of the large immigrant groups give a shit about Raes past, or that many of this young population know or care? Not likely. Many of them think the actual spelling of 'Liberal' is 'LIBERAL X', because that is what any ballot looks like to them. They'd vote for Rae in droves. Do you really think significant numbers of the Liberal heartland are going to actually vote anything but Liberal? Not likely. And nobody else cares about his past , outside Ontario. It's a provincial thing. Of all the candidates, Rae would be the toughest for Harper to face, mainly because Rae is the best politician.