During the Cold War, the U.S. citizenry was accustomed to think of the Soviet Union as having brutally invaded its neighbors to suppress dissent. While the U.S. Government was warning about Finlandization and Afghanistanization-or the process whereby a smaller, weaker neighbor of the Soviet Union was either invaded or felt constrained to avoid any policy that might antagonize its more powerful neighbor-few understood the implications of the United States doing the same to Canada. More explicitly, this was known as Canadization.(1)
In many ways, Canada has pursued its own conscientious path of sovereignty, resisting its more militant and dominant neighbor the United States. Once again, though, Canada finds itself at an significant crossroads.- This week in Canada's House of Commons a vote will occur that would allow U.S. soldiers seeking sanctuary from the unjust and brutal wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to stay in Canada. Bill C-440, which was introduced by MP Gerrard Kennedy, will assist over 200 U.S. troops whom have fled to Canada and are considered by the U.S. Government to be war deserters.
While some U.S. troops have sought refuge in Canada due to the U.S. Army's stop loss program, also known as a back-door draft, others have wanted asylum so as not to return to Iraq and Afghanistan to witness more war crimes, or to participate in what they believe are illegal and unjust wars.Still, some troops are suffering from Post-Traumatic-Stress or judge killing another human being as morally wrong on the grounds of religious faith. But then again, Canada has a long history of granting safe haven and protection to Americans escaping imperialism and an overly aggressive society and militant government.
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