Alberta unveils "Support Our Troops" license plates

[jacee]

Nobody wins a war except for the people who sell arms.

Exactly.

[Michael Hardner]

Support Our Troops - Bring them Home instead of having them push corporate agendas.

I don't think that that slogan is very helpful. Certainly Canadians don't support wars that 'push corporate agendas'.

[eyeball]

Some Canadians clearly support doing that. Canadians participate in wars that make the world safe for capitalism in addition to providing material and moral support to allies with the same goal all the time.

[bush_cheney2004]

Nobody wins a war except for the people who sell arms.

A sentimental but very false idea. Lots of "people" win (benefit) besides those who sell arms.

[Michael Hardner]

Some Canadians clearly support doing that. Canadians participate in wars that make the world safe for capitalism ...

That's an interpretation of the stated goals - and a fringe interpretation at that.

Was going to Bosnia the same thing ? I'm sure some would say so but almost no Canadians would.

[bush_cheney2004]

Was going to Bosnia the same thing ? I'm sure some would say so but almost no Canadians would.

Yes, it was. I'm sure almost no Canadians want to say there is more to this than "peacekeeping" well wishes.

[Guest Derek L]

That's an interpretation of the stated goals - and a fringe interpretation at that.

Was going to Bosnia the same thing ? I'm sure some would say so but almost no Canadians would.

Well I agree with your sentiments, if one was so inclined, it could be surmised that the morass of the FRY could have led to economic instability and the conflict spilling over into the European nations within the region, now devoid of Soviet polarity………Hence a greedy campaign fought for capitalism/Western interests…….And of course, post conflict, oil was found in Samac and Tuzla…..

[ReeferMadness]

A sentimental but very false idea. Lots of "people" win (benefit) besides those who sell arms.

You're absolutely right - what was I thinking? There are lots of people who benefit.

- The corrupt politicians and military who are in bed with the arms dealers

- The generals who go on to have political careers (am I double-counting?)

- Profiteers who know how to make a "killing" off people's misery but don't sell weapons

- Big corporations who come in after the war is over and rebuild (maybe double counting again)

And, my personal, favourite, the #1 group of people who benefit from war - the 5% of soldiers who are aggressive psychopaths and kill for the sheer joy of it. Who are we to deprive psychopaths of their life's joy?

[Army Guy]

Support Our Troops - Bring them Home instead of having them push corporate agendas.

That is the best you got, Corporate agendas, is this why we as a nation do not support spending money on our military, or our troops because of corporate agendas.... If you are going to throw this slogan out there and stand behind it as some counter to "Support your troops" It's bullshit....It rings just as hollow as the "Support our troops " slogan does....Your talking as if our Military industrial complex is running this nation, only we don't have one, or are you suggesting that the US complex is actually running our country....Shit they can barely run themselfs let only 2 nations....So please explain how Canadian corporate agendas have been running the show in places like Bosina, Afghan cyprus, Haiti, the list goes on.....

[Army Guy]

If I could be assured that the arms would be used purely for defensive purposes, I would be fine spending whatever we needed. That's not what is happening.

Nobody wins a war except for the people who sell arms.

I'm not sure what you are impling here, are you suggesting that Canada has used it's military for other uses, such as expansion, to opress other nations into using seal pelts, or eating beaver tails. Or are you saying we are a militarized nation with an agenda. could you please explain.

Your right there is not a whole lot of good that comes out of war, and yet man has yet to learn that leason and until he does and we turn wpns into plows we have to be prepared. nobody is saying we should compete on the scale of the US,or that we have aspirations of ruling the world one day.... But we are a nation of more than 40 mil, a nation that has one of the best standards of living in the world, rich with resources, space, We should be able to handle with ease a military of 100,000. We should be able to atleast defend ourselfs and make postive foreign policy.

[eyeball]

Lots of people have learned the lesson you're talking about.

In the meantime we are very close allies with a variety of oppressive expansive militarized nations. Our foreign policy should be to apply economic sanctions against our so-called allies for their geopolitical vandalism not support it. The day I see you guys in a politician's photo-op endorsing that, is the day I'll buy a bumper sticker.

[Army Guy]

Lots of people have learned the lesson you're talking about.

In the meantime we are very close allies with a variety of oppressive expansive militarized nations. Our foreign policy should be to apply economic sanctions against our so-called allies for their geopolitical vandalism not support it. The day I see you guys in a politician's photo-op endorsing that, is the day I'll buy a bumper sticker.

Sure they have, they are just not serving as a leader of any nation. Nor is there enough of them to make a difference.

Military members do not have a say in which photo op they will take part in.....We do as we are told, don't hate the player, hate the game.

[guyser]

When the gov't supports them, I may join in. Until then.....

That's isn't to say I don't admire their calling but apart from that. Nada.

[Big Guy]

Personally I support our troops, our police, our firefighters, our health professionals, most teachers, community clubs, ... etc. In the last few years some of us have felt the need that this kind of support must be exhibited in some way - as if lack of wearing some sign of your current passion shows apathy. Keep your white, red, green, purple, pink ... ribbons, white poppies (I do wear a red one at the appropriate time to remember family members) , bracelets, T-shirts and yes - licence plates. There are now so many "issues de jour" that the practice has lost any credence.

Support your right to not show support for those who support the supporting of supportable causes with shows of support supporting support!

[dre]

The best way to support the troops is to not support interventionalist foreign policy. When we send them to a place like afghanistan where we have no compelling national interest and ask them to fight against ununiformed assymetric forces that look the same as civilians there, we are betraying them and betraying their trust, and getting them killed for nothing.

I noticed during the presidential election in the US.... that during the republican primary Ron Paul got more support from the active duty military than all the other candidates combined. Theres a reason for that.

But in fact, Representative Ron Paul, the congressman who favors the most minimalist American combat role of any major presidential candidate and who said all of the above quotes, has more financial support from active duty members of the service than any other politician.

As of the last reporting date, at the end of September, Paul leads all candidates by far in donations from service members. This trend has been in place since 2008, when Paul ran for president with a similar stance: calling nonsense at hawk squawk from both parties.

So Im conflicted. I DO want the military to have the gear they need to defend this nation. But I also want to starve our government of the ability to wage elective war, and have an interventionalist foreign policy.

[dizzy]

Ontario has had these for years. The proceeds from Support Our Troops plates goes to support military families and injured and ill soldiers, sailors, airmen/airwomen (including those with operational stress injuries). Treasury Board puts restrictions on how public dollars can be used to support CF Members and their families. Funds like Support Our Troops and Soldier On are just a way to provide more flexibility in how (and how quickly) military members and their families can be helped out. If nothing else, it's a relatively benign way of expressing your alliegance to the troops, no more dangerous to the public discourse than a licence plate with a Toronto Maple Leafs graphic on it.

[overthere]

As if we needed more evidence of the Americanization of Canadian attitudes and politics, these license plates are emblematic of the type of war glorification that permeates politics down south.

It's regrettable but just another sign of the impact Harper is having on this country.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/alberta-unveils-support-troops-licence-plates-180742969.html

Alberta has had veterans plates for several years and ham radio operator plates for a few decades. You can also get vanity plates that say nearly anything you want.

All of them are issued by the Alberta government, current premier is named Redford.

The PM is named Harper. He lives in Ottawa.

It's a different government.

Hope that helps.

[cybercoma]

I'm surprised New Brunswick doesn't have those 'Support Our Troop' plates yet.

[gunrutz]

I bet the people who want these plates don't put nearly the ideological thinking toward wanting them as the people who seem to think it is just so not Canadian. They proabably think hey, yea, those guys deserve some recognition for they hard and dangerous work they do, or i know someone in the military, i would like it to honor them. I highly doubt there are many with the plate that are consiously support global domination by western capitolist powers or some or such thing. But thankfully we have many, many more people on the other side of the equation with unused humanities degrees just desperate to tell everyone how horrible it is with all of the frustration and pent up fury of someone who's entire belief system is in conflict with reality.

Thankgoodness for them, your sacficies to societal outcasts does not go unoticed, perhaps we need a support our broken leftist ideologues plate. or maybe you could get over yourselves for five minutes.

[bleeding heart]

"Support the troops" license plates, stickers, pop-up books and sex toys are not some benign Western tradition. They appeared quite suddenly, in quite recent times, and they very much mean "support your government's foreign policy."

And no, of course many people who pay people for this ingenious little bit of entrepreneurship, and then display them on their cars like "honk if you're horny" or "I visited Magnetic Hill, NB" do not clearly think of them in the way they are designed for. Most people do indeed display them as a benign form of honouring those who serve in the military.

but--as you know full well, whether you pretend otherwise or not--the term is often a loaded one, and intentionally so...as in "why don't you support the troops?"

Which means, explicitly, "why don't you support the foreign policy as it involves the military?"

So, maybe you can cut a little slack for those "leftists" who fail to distinguish between the benign supporters of "support the troops" bumper sticker businesses....and the sniveling moral cowards who use it as a political weapon.

[overthere]

Which means, explicitly, "why don't you support the foreign policy as it involves the military?"

That is what it means to you.

It is not what it means to me. My support for foreign policy depends on the policy. My appreciation and support for our military is not related to a political position.

What it means to me is that I appreciate their wilingness to put themselves in harms way on my behalf. Military service is unlike other public service. I don't feel the same level of potential personal sacrifice is there at, for example, the Passport Office.

Please do not presume to speak for me.

[bleeding heart]

I have already spoken to the fact that people generally don't use the bumper stickers as a political slogan. What I wrote was "most people do indeed display them as a benign form of honouring those who serve in the military."

Exactly as you say--we're practically paraphrasing each other, in fact.

So now...who is presuming to speak for whom, here?

[guyser]

What it means to me is that I appreciate their wilingness to put themselves in harms way on my behalf. Military service is unlike other public service.

Who wants to bet there isnt another bumper sticker on the his car that says "Hey Govt, take better care of military personnel and stop throwing them under the bus !"

The govt fights changes to the better for our military personnel tooth and nail.

Im sure no such sticker makes it on your bumper. Youd rather just have the passing motorists and public go aww gee, aint that nice, he supports the shitty treatment (that they themselves signed up for) our govt gives the military, especially the ones who return broken.

But then again, most of them retire so who gives a rats ass? Certainly no one taking all of 10 seconds to put a sticker on their bumper.

Edited January 17, 2014 by Guyser2

[bleeding heart]

How about the ones I've seen that say "I f you don't stand behind our troops, feel free to stand in front of them"?

Is that one a "benign honouring of those who serve"?

[guyser]

That sticker is the dumbest one I have ever seen. And sadly, I have told people exactly that when they climb out of their vehicle.

I ask them to go get the politicians first, Ive paid my share to have them well equipped, well looked after, but none of us can get them to spend it on the truly needy of the armed forces personnel