Army Guy

Your JOKING right, only 2 questions, Shit i lived in northern ontario for 10 years, only visted Toronto 5 or 6 times and i got most of the questions right....Maybe she never slept on the couch for forgetting your wifes birthday, or spent serveral nights on the same couch for forgeting a wedding date, much less your SON's birthday, which hospital he was born in, which city he was born in....while i don't everything about those days i would not consider them trival things....unless info....shit those are 3 or 4 questions right there.... So i'll take your test .....give me a list of WYLY question that could be used to indentify me ones that would expose me for an imposter....

Really, NATO, UN, Inter-National courts, Canadain courts ref to the Taliban as terrorist, not militia, soldiers, reseves, or what ever you want to call them....no they have chosen the term terrorist.....As there use of terror tactics is thier primary wpn.... While your at it, look up the defination of Militia, and compare it to Afghan local Taliban organization.... The main difference is the taliban plants IED's to terror not only NATO, but the people of Afghan as well....take a look at the areas in which they are planted the location alone should tell you alot about thier intent. And while true NATO does not have a stellar proformance in regards to civilians killed in the battle space....atleast they are trying...One could pull up the latest stats and you'll find the taliban kill 10 to 20 times more civilians than NATO.... You have no idea what, is like to live with terror, or the power it has over the people....people who every minute of thier lives is spent just surviving....and they are a small group when compared to the entire Afghan population .... Do you have proof that he was told not to negotiate....or is that something the media split for you to lap up..... President Karazi runs the nation, NATO are his guests, NATO does not wag the dog.... Who told you that....give us a source that will back that up, something like saying all black men have big dicks.....it's myth.....one that you've told so many times that you believe it.... Shit right outside the gates of Kanadar there is an intra net caffee, might have 50 to 60 laptops in it , and it's packed all day and all night....so they have access to the same intra net as you and me....or did you think there was one for bumpkins and one for the west.... once again your really showing your lack of knowledge on this subj....Yes thier history is full of war, infact the last 30 years has been steady war....the people themselfs want peace...i know hard to believe....and while that may be Taliban party line to resist the invader.....NATO is a guest, ask to stay on by the elected government.... Bullshit....one can not have a majority at home again'st the mission and sit there and tell me it does not effect the mission in any way....now i know you know nothing about this topic....as for the Taliban growing stronger....more bullshit brought on by the media or some gen trying to get more troops over there so we can finsih the job....the media split it you lap it up and pronouce it as gosple.....check out the body counts the TALIBAN can not sustain this kind of damage without feeling it....they might be alot busier planting IED's or attacking some police station....but they are not gaining ground....they are not controling the country side NATO is....last time i checked NATO owned the air, the roads, the night....in 3 tours i've yet to see a bunch of armed Taliban cruiseing the roads in a pick up of armoured veh....or flying any fast air.... Bullshit, your not very good at this history stuff are you.....What do you call NAZISM if not an idea , what about the japanese culture prior to WW II , historians have claimed it was a religious based group, with the empour being compared to god himself....both where defeated soundly....and yet there is still Germans and Japanese cultures here today doing quite well i might say....Shit the entire crusades where based on religion and yet how did the christians make out ..... It's not a job but a way of life...and your safety is our primary concern...along with protecting your rights and freedoms so you can go to work tommorow....i'm just guessing but your job did not require you to sign an unlimited liabilty contract did it....not unless your job is with the police dept, fire dept, or military is it... Yes they do in some cases need to step it up, but for the most part they are doing what needs to be done, and with our assistance they'll get it done....i guess you don't know what our freedoms and rights have cost us....and how important they are to our everyday life today....Some Canadians have fogotten that, freedom has a price....and what a huge gift it is to have it....or better yet have the ability to offer it to someone else...

There has not been a ban on what military members can say until just recently, and that ban only covers the future of Canada's involvement after 2011....Members have been cautioned to only speak on thier experiances, and areas of thier expertise , not to spectulate, or talk about anything they are unsure of....So any comments by military pers have not been the party line but thier own opinions....no spin... They're is some proof in that... The mission is voluntary....meaning a soldier has to ask to go....If they did not believe in the mission volunteers would be hard to find.... The soldiers vioces are repeating the same thing....over and over....we need the peoples support, ....that we are accomplishing something good....and progress is being made.....we are making a difference.... And i know that it is difficult to separate party line to real soldiers opinions but when soldiers are asked they will speak thier minds....all you have to do is ask.... As for the Canadian people needing as much info as possiable there is more than one source, and if you truely want info it is available...all you do is have to look....Soldiers are growing tired of not being heard....and for most they think you've already made up your minds and can not be conviced other wise....so they are growing silent ....It's one of the major reason i decided to post on this forum....trying to get our voices heard or correcting some of the misinformation that is out here.... But you are correct about our governmnet not doing a good job on passing info down ....

Bullshit.....The taliban are just a small group terrorists, who are fighting for thier rights to terror whom ever and when ever the want.....Your making a mountain out of a mole hill, The Taliban idea has already been defeated, the majority of Afghans have already publicly voiced thier opinion on that very topic....As for diplomacy working your right, nobody is going to give them what they want....why should we... And your wrong about the primitive mindset, don't count them out , they are well aware of thier history and ours....they know that the real battle ground is in the western world....that we will cave in eventually... To sum up they can be defeated, where we need to strengthen is on the home front....were this conflict is being lost.... Who says it can't be done the media....or the troops doing the fighting....pick one....shit you claim you support the troops....which one is it....Canadian military history is full of jobs that can not be done, in fact were pretty good at rewriting history....and this job is just one of them....The new US general has already stated that they where going to copy the Canadian way of doing things....and put this 3 block war theory into practice....with more troops, money, and support it just may work....but then again according to you we should be throwing in the towel and letting the Taliban run all over these people.... We've extended the people of Afghan our gift and offer of help....now are we to retract that and say we're sorry but this is a lost cause....

Guys....it's really not such a big deal...Colorado is home to NORAD HQ's you know the big bomb shelter....anyways the contract set in place so a few hundrd at most can still carry out thier french training while posted there....not all the few hundrd are taking french maybe a dozen or so at anyone given time....Still think it's worth the money to fly down instructors from quebec, and the end qustion would be will these people be able to talk french to any french speaking person in the world ...yes, including Quebec....i think so....Atleast DND is trying to comply with our language requirements....

Every conflict or war has an ideal behind it, and while you quote some good examples of failures history is full of sucessful wars and conflicts that if properly planned and executed could over come any type of conflict or situation... Hence why NATO and most western nations now practice what is called the 3 block war for insurgency warfare....in which on one block your engaged in combat, the other block humanitarian missions, and the last block carrying out rebuilding , assisting governmental agencies etc etc all can be happening at the same time same city next door to each other.... The the US wrote the book on the 3 block war because it's hard to win the hearts and minds with bombs and bullets alone.... The taliban knows that the people in the western countries within NATO will grow tired of the conflict they also know they are winning on our home fronts....thats you and every other Canadian out there that has made up thier minds and considers this mission a failure....And yes it will go down in the history books as a Taliban victory it was not due to the soldiers actions but the actions of those that claim they support them....

I disagree , first you said MANY Canadians , if they don't have a clear picture or stay well informed on the Afghan mission i doubt they are taken the time to do that with the larger picture.... I will agree with you that some Canadians are well informed and do have the larger picture, and can put the Afghan mission into context.... I also disagree that some one with a clear picture and understanding of Afghan can not comment on the mission....while thier may be topics that may be over thier heads for the most part i think they have plenty to offer on the topic of Afghan...

So that leaves me with this question, where do you find yourself in this conflict ? do you consider yourself well informed ?.....Personally i think most Canadians really do think they are informed , and they've made up thier minds that this is a shit mission.....and they don't want to hear anything else, i guess they are not as open minded as they think they are. A minister, or for that matter any CEO sucess or failure is dependent on the people below them....One person can not be expected to know everything about a Dept, or company....i agree they should have a good background knowledge but more importantly suround themselfs with people who's expert in one field within the dept...until you've covered the entire dept or companies forta so to speak....That minister must be able to lead and know how to dig out or use those experts to solve any problem that they may face....Does that make sense.... I know that is what we do in the military, thier is to many things to become a expert in, so what we do is build our sections/ Platoons with experts in certain fileds, IE drivers, gunners, Machine gunners, snipers, Anti Tank teams etc etc as a whole we are unbeatable ....individually we are sub par....

That was my point...BC link was in reference to MBTs (or recce assault vehicles)... I think it sounds good....but we can't lose sight that a tank comes with a lot of motivational tools. Specifically a smooth bore canon. One of those motivational tools is the wieght , it will shake the very ground your standing on, i don't now how many times we've seen the Taliban dug in, and ready for a long fire fight....but the minute those leo's showed up, they where off running....like scared rabits....nothing stikes fear into any soldier to hear , and feel tanks coming from as far away as 500 meters.... and when they finally do show up, the thing is just huge....well 70 tonnes of steel and extra armour will do that, get it traveling at over 70 km a hour and it's awesome....

Thanks Dancer, Every Soldier is a volunteer, so many volunteer in fact they have to screen them, medically, mental health, Padre, even your spouse has to sign off as approving along with many others....any problems in those areas member is rejected from tour until the problem is fixed. Anyone that is saying they where forced into going is a lair. That being said some trades are smaller than others there is Soldiers that have 5 or more tours...in Afghan....just to put that into some context thats 2 1/2 years of combat experience, 2 1/2 years away from wives, children, and family....

Are you saying that Canadians are not keeping up with the total picture of whats happening in Afghanistan ? Then how are they making well informed decisions about this mission ? How can they honestly make any comments at all about the mission.

I think they are the solution, until something better comes along....Tanks form the very piont of the spear, be it in defensive or offensive operations. if there was any wpns system we should be putting money into it's tanks....expensive compared to what...lives i guess this equipment plays a key role into saving lives....and giving soldiers the edge to defeat any of our countries enemies here or overseas....

With todays tech, the soldiers out in the FOB's are getting the latest media before we evern wake up here in Canada, not only from Canada but the world news from both sides, from CNN, BNN, El jerseria , to CTV news, including news from thru out Europe.NATO Soldiers are kept well informed of what is happening in and thru out Afghan to give them better situational awareness....whats working whats not....it's on the media, it's in O groups , in Intel briefs, it's from soldiers floating in and out of our AO....if anything a soldiers knows more about Afghan than he does about Canada... The southern area is a mess and we are right in the middle of it.....when was the last time you heard any bad news coming from the north or western half of Afghan..... Yes it is and our soldiers are right in the middle of it, they have to understand it , most of the times thier is no diplomats around, so our soldiers are the statesmen, padre, go to guys....understanding thier problems and giving them solutions that work for them is what we do....that being said, we are not experts but i can tell you this we know 100% more about the problems than the media is protraying or letting on....

Not everyone fighting for both sides believes in thier cause...in fact alot of fighters fight to put food on the table...remember there has been over 30 years of war in this region, and for most it is all they know....and since the Taliban pay more than NATO does they do get alot of fighters this way....but this is only one of many ways the Taliban recruit....but come harvest time you can see the taliban going home to pick thier crops...leaving behind only the hard core.... We don't have to like everything they do, governments are tempory and soon the people once they have security will make there chioces and votes freely and based on other issues instead of picking a government they hope will provide a somewhat normal sense of security....So while there has been Afghan governmental decisions that we thought where funky, it is still thier country to rule as they see fit....and we should not forget that we are not there to model them into our mould but rather one that fits them, thier customs and traditions....

I just want to state a few facts first, this entire mission is strickly on a volunteer basis....troops are not ordered to deploy and there is plenty of stop gap measures to ensure only those that have stuck up thier hands go on this mission.... I know sometimes this very fact blows by me, but most soldiers have been to one or more of the worlds for the lack of words "shit holes"....countries that it is impossable to discribe the conditions unless you've seen it smelled it, and touched it........so each soldiers knows just how lucky we have in our freedoms and rights and our standard of living here in Canada....they also know how powerful a gift it is to give someone else those or something simlar "freedoms and rights" So it's not that we've been ordered to stand in front of exploding cars and IED's....we were sent to deliver your gift....from the Canadian people an offer of rights and freedoms they have never had before....and unlike UPS we deliver your gift fully armed....

Yes , but because we do not sieze and hold ground, patroling is the only way to some what ensure the enemy does not gain the upper hand or take control back....This can be blamed not by the tactics we use, but rather the number of troops on the ground and the size of our AO. Lossing troops or troops getting injured is a emotional experience, and i can see why he was pissed....but lets but some context into it....NATO has secured the town but has little to no troops in the town long term....Taliban come and go fading into the night leaving behind clear messages to the people "talk to NATO is a death sentence" most of these people are simple farmers, trying to scratch a living out a desert and dust growing anything that will grow...and for the most part they barely exist....The Gen is playing hardball, hopefull it works....but it is going to cost in security of the villagers....and trust me Afghans have long memories...they know we are not there forever... Ramp ceremonies are strictly a military thing that has been some what taken over by the media and blown out of proportion ....it's entire function is to let the military look after it's own, in it's tradtional ways....it's a time for soldiers and comrads to say good bye to the fallen, it's thier time to grieve, cry , let emotions flow....15 mins later most of those soldiers are back outside the wire, or in combat....thier heads need to be screwed on tight....or it will be someones elses turn....And your right in traditional wars dead would be buried near the place the fell, marked on a map, given to graves registration to be dug up and properly buried in a marked sight with thier comrads...back in the day when allieds where taking 1 or 2 thousand cas a day....

Yes NATO has suffer more Cas, but NATO or more to the piont the US has increased thier troop numbers by some large numbers, more soldiers being more active in thier AO (area of operations) is going to produce more cas...but this is not a one sided story, the Taliban are faced with a 10 or 20 to 1 loss ratios.... To Sum up someone could also use those same states and quote we are winning the war by killing more taliban....hence the media spin.... The entire piont here is not what Canadians think about the mission, but rather they are not getting the same info form the media, and our government , to make correct and well informed choices....That is what is frustrating soldiers....and yet thier voice is silent , Canadians don't want to here what they have to say, and when the soldier final gets heard, they are discounted as spouting the party line, or they have been ordered to say that....there is a clear majority of Canadians that say they support our troops .....But How can we say we are supporting them but not listening to them.... is that supporting our soldiers.....we should be atleast at the very minimum be listening, and taking that info into account before making a decision should we not....

Here is an interesting read, i know you've all heard my rants here about Afghan and how important our presence and assistance is ....to both the Afghan people and our troops... globe

Say's who, those that advocated the retirement of hvy armour forces in Canada, those same individuals who are now coming to the conclusion that tanks are playing a vital role in the Afghan mission. Those that are still advocating tanks are past thier usefulness on todays battlefield are full of BS, and have never been on a live battlefield when tank support could have saved lives....that whole idea of going to a MGS sys was a polictical statement made by politicians and bean counters, trying to save a buck....and those Military pers who where saying so where following thier political masters....not advice from the soldiers themselfs... And while the MGS sys might have been a great peace keeping machine " one that would not have to be put into use" or fire a round in anger it was designed for recce forces....not a nations main Hvy armoured force.. To sum it up, because we are a nation that takes years to purcure equipment we need we need to stay focused on the worse case situation IE high intensity warfare , which still demands that each Brigade have a complete tank regt , thats 3 to 4 tank sqns, or approx 40 to 50 tanks per regt....currently we have one regt that operates tanks,the old C4 Leo's ...thats right we are still awaiting the A4 to be modified.... the one out west 1 CMBG, the rest have been converted to lt recce forces ie they run Coyotes , and LUV jeeps....they've taken a powerful tool out of our brigades arsenal for conducting offensive and defensive ops.... We know there is limited dollars out there, and we know our government is trying it's best to fix things....but it is also important that the people know that our military forces are not even close to have the equipment or personal to cover it's commitments that the government has assigned us....that it should be no surprise to them if and when the shit hits the fan, we can not function, or do our jobs....as a result many soldiers will once again pay with there lives getting the job done...because thats is what we do...and that is what the Canadian people do, make excuses until the first soldiers come back in bags then the demand an inquiry and piont the finger at someone else.

Not really those 20 on lease will be returned out of the 100 A4's we purchased, they'll be brought up to A6 standard leaving us with 80 of the A-4's ....those orginal 20 that were leased some of those have recieved battle dammage and are unrepairable, and most of them have already been rebuilt once some twice already...i think they'll be ready for the bone yard in 2011, on top of that we have to subtract those tanks already in the bone yard due to battle damage, and any future losses....so whats left is less than 80....and maybe some A6's after you take war stocks and mission stacks out and armoured school stocks of that there might be 40 or 45 tanks left....enough to outfit or so they are talking 1 tank sqn per tank regt which there is 3 of them, not bad a tank regt with only 1 sqn of tanks the rest of the Sqns are made up of Coyotes .....

What are you saying, did we punish all Germans for war crimes commited by german forces, did we punish all the Japanese people for thier crimes commited during the war....NO we did not WHY, because it is again'st our laws to collective punish any race, group, or organization....and while those that commited a crime, or looked the other way were punished and face our courts...investagations where completed not only by a military investagation team, but serveral civilian ones as well....and as our laws state one is inocent until proven guilty....those that charges could be liaded where liaded, those that stood around and done nothing the military took matters into thier own hands and asked for dozens of early retirements....those that refused well lets just say thier carears stoped, and where taken out of command roles and rode a desk...until they released.... But your right there is no law stating that our government can not creat or disband any military unit it chooses....that being said is disbanding a unit with disgrace is a huge , huge dishonor, one to it's members , the military, and Canadians ....one that will be worn by it's members thruogh out history....Most soldiers in the Regt where outstanding soldiers and did not deserve this... I've told you before it's not a job but a way of life....and within the Army the CAR was what every soldier wanted to be part of the best the nation had to offer...The somolia affair happend in 92, after it's return the army went to great length to clean up the regt, so in 1995 there was not one shit disturber left from the somolia times....all that was left was troops that just wanted to be apart of Canada's elite unit...Canada's CAR.... " Once again they condemn the entire Regt, but can not find any evidence to charge anyone else with any crimes, but i guess they are not responsable by law for what they print on some report, and in this case it's all one mans opinion.... And there are other reports that give kudo's to the CAR for the job they did in Somolia, reports from US spec ops units , reports from NGO organizations reports from other nations....all giving thanks for the regt service in guess where Somolia...i guess though not many have read those, including the judge that made this report.... As the inquiry's report makes clear, the frame of mind among certain Airborne members was well-known to military leaders - and worrisome. One group, calling themselves the "Rebels," acted as though they were a law unto themselves. Against orders, they repeatedly raised the American Confederate flag in their barracks at Camp Petawawa, 130 km northwest of Ottawa. They torched the car of a sergeant who raised their ire. And even by combat unit standards, some Airborne troopers showed excessive aggressiveness in the view of senior officers. Are you kidding me Rebels....shit how many orgs in the states fly the rebel flag...many still honour the sothern army and it's values....raising the American rebel flag thats got to be really bad....and it was not some troopers that where aggresive it was all of them....thats what happens when you recieve elite training from around the globe, US ranger tabs where very common, as was recieving training from US green berets, US Naval seals, British SAS,in fact it was not uncommon for most Airbourne soldiers to have wings from 3 or more countries....i mean lets not forget they where Canada's shock troops....not boy scouts or RCMP officers....and where constantly trained to a razors edge....Aggressiveness was thier job.... This was a Leg rumour that flew around camp....nothing was proven and it is here say....and like our justice system says your inocent until PROVEN guilty...as i believe you've quoted before....every night we were faced with some intrusion into the camp, some where looters and some were somolia militia trying to give back some pay back....for us not letting them Hyjack a food convoy....check the ROE's and tell me at night with 1 st gen night vision gear you can tell the difference between some stealing something or trying to blow something up.... Yes intruders were shot, keeping in mind our entire compound was surrounded in razor wire stacked 3 wide and 3 high one did not have to be a rocket scienctist to figure out we did not want anyone to enter....huge signs where posted on the wire intruders will be shot....I also agree that if one was hungry enough one would try anything to get something to eat....but one would be sucidal if one tried it at the Airbourne camp.... And what ever happen to that inquiry was there any charges laided....NO....but thats not what is inplied here is it....no here you've impied guilt....thats some justice system you got or practice.... read the ROE's and show me were once all conditions have been meet you can't use deadly force at piont blank range....and did anything come of that inquiry....was someone charged NO....once more your assuming things are bad....So either your justice system is broken or the same justice system you've been flaunting is alive and well.... Below is a web site that has been out for years, it's a diary by a 3 commando soldier of his tour in somolia read it and tell me you still think the entire Regt's to blame for those few Bad apples.... I also want to repeat this... our current JTF2 was created around alot of those CAR soldiers, some still serving but a good potion did do just that and quit, if they could not be part of the best they wanted nothing to do with our military or government at the time which had little or no idea what they had done for this nation and Canadians. now your talking out of your ass.... CAR

I stand corrected hard to keep all the Eng equipment straight ... Yes But the A6 are only available in Afghan....we still have not fielded any Leo II A4 yet, still using the C4 versions....the orginal 20 we leased are almost toast, hence why they are building up some of those A4 we purchased to A6 standards for replacements....thats on top of the 20 we still owe Germany for the lease....

Smallc: The husky is not brand new it was orginally purchased in 1976, and those 27 we bought have just come out of life extension projects some 3 or 4 years ago, and are being slowly replaced with a new reworked Bisson MMV repair vehs....but even they are out dated when compared to whats available today.... Alot of equipment has been purchased, in limited qty's, for Afghan mission, one that is under Combat conditions, conditions that burn equipment out at 10 times the rate....so even if the mission ended today that equipemtn we would have not enough of and what we did have would be close to burn out.... I'll use the example of LAV III currently there is only enough Lav to outfit one maybe 2 companies with each BN, there is min of 3 companies per bn, plus a combat support company, leaving a shortfall of 2 companies per bn with 9 Inf bn's in the forces thats a short fall of 18 companies worth of vehs....not mentioning the LAV's used in Tank units which have no tanks so are using LAV's plus Cbt eng units, Arty units ....i think you get the piont . this is just LAV's....the CV-90 are being purchased for the 1 Brigade , which have still the old leopards...which leaves the rest of the army short on hvy assault veh's ...now if they deploy these vehs to say an Afghan type mission this brig will also be short .... I know there is only enough money....which is why it is imperative that during cuts that that cash flow continues as it does add up as we are seeing now we are well behind the bubble...

I think it's a good question one that needs to be answered as well , we after all live in a coutry where the peoples vioce is some what heard and acted upon....it will also go along way into seeing just how much the people of Canada understand what our military does and what it needs to do the tasks assigned. It's not about matching anyones military size, it's about meeting our defense requirements here in Canada, and meeting all those defense agreements our nation has signed.... As for projecting force i think you don't understand the true meaning of force prjection, our militayr does not have the means to project force for any length of time, and it has very limited means of putting boots on the ground.... The equipment we have now or the bulk of it is worn out, outdated, or is very limited in numbers.... The miltary has already outlined in detail all of the tasks we are assigned, they also outlined in detailed what our shortfalls are , our current state the list of critical shortfalls have fallen on deaf ears for more than 20 years now and now this list far exceeds the matter of a few bil dollar fix but rather well into the 100's of bils to just maintain our current levels which is little more than 62 k troops in all 3 elements.....

Waldo: Those are good questions ? sorry for the delay but i needed some time to do some research, that and i was in the field doing some training... The references used are the taskings that has been assigned the military by our very government and the people of Canada, those taskings are listed below in the offical statements of our role....and what is expected of our military... To get an idea of our current SHAPE read the same link which also lists the number of personal used to complete those tasks and there location within our country....you'll quickly come to the conclusion that there simply not enough pers, or equipment to complete all or most of them... * Note At the top of the link it provides the total number of pers within Mobile command or the Army componet of the forces, these numbers are somewhat confusing , for one if you where to add up all thenumbers in each Area, IE west central, Quebec, and atlantic areas you'll find there are approx half that number available in Combat units.... Where they get the total number is from what we call purple trades ie support trades wearing the army uniform which are scattered across the forces, ie Navy, Airforce, Artic Rangers. the true number is less than half those numbers, with the exception of the reserve numbers which are pretty close.... What does this mean it means that the Army componet of the military really only has between 18 to 20 k reg force pers with 18 to 20 k res pers to carry out the bulk of those tasks assigned our military....and our combat componet, or fighting troops is only a third of that which includes Inf, Armour, Atry, Cbt Engs....the Inf componet or the guys that take ground and holds it is a third of that number and that is being very generous.... to give that some context lets take a look at hurricane katrina, where some 40 to 60 k US army pers where deployed and we all know how that turned out, experts have quoted that they needed double that to effectively handle that turn of events. the Small Ice storm a few years back in Que,Ont and NB not only used all available army units within Canada but also dipped heavily into the Airforce and Navy numbers as well...and this was a small turn of events when compared to katrina....and this is only one tasking we are assigned with.... Role and Deployment TOP The Canadian Army is tasked to generate and maintain modern, combat capable, multi-purpose land forces to meet Canada's defence policy objectives. According to the 2005 Defence Policy Statement the following objectives fall under the army's overall responsibilities: Protecting Canada and Canadians: This objective aims to deter potential threats to and defending Canadian territory, the upholding of Canadian sovereignty and provision of military support to civil authorities. The emphasis is on readiness for natural disasters, civil emergencies and terrorist incidents. Defending North America: This objective calls for defence of the North American continent in co-operation with the military forces of the US in accordance with standing continental Canada-US Basic Security Plan. Contributing to International Peace and Security: This objective calls for participation in multilateral land or joint operations anywhere in the world under the auspices of the UN or NATO, or as part of a bilateral or multilateral coalition. There are also provisions for the army to participate in humanitarian aid and relief efforts, restoration of stability, or participation in arms control and other confidence building measures. Specific land forces planning objectives include providing trained and equipped units, personnel and assets to Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM), Canadian Expeditionary Force Command (CEFCOM), Canada Command (Canada COM) and Canadian Operational Support Command (CANOSCOM). In terms of capacity, this translates into deploying and sustaining indefinitely two land task forces in two different theatres of operation, while providing a smaller, third task force to reinforce an ongoing mission or to provide a short-term contingency deployment. Other objectives include enhancing capacity to respond to domestic emergencies such as a Chemical, Biological, Radiological, or Nuclear (CBRN) attack and supporting sovereignty and security operations in the Arctic. Role ? I get the impresion that you think 2500 soldiers is a large number, to put that into contect even the Taliban are able to muster 3 to 4 times that number, and they are not a G-8 country, in fact they are not even a country....So the ability to deploy 10,000 soldiers for a long period of time is not so unrealistic....But currently while we are able to handle 2 to 3 k troops it leaves our other tasks very short, of everything.... So what does shape look like currently shape looks like 70 k reg force pers and 30 k res force pers still well below our numbers to do all the tasks assigned....other military experts has suggested that our numbers grow to 100k reg force pers and 40 to 50 k res force pers...i think once you compare those numbers with other western world contries and the size of our nation you'll find they are not so large after all...For a country of 33 million, there is more cops in toronto, than ground forces in our military...I'd say that is a problem....when ones nations military could fit into the home of the toronto maple leafs and still have thousands of seats left over theres a problem....