It’s surprising to hear the number of voices that have declared with certainty that sending Canadian troops to their potential deaths in Iran is the “right thing” to do.Nonsense.Before suggesting Canadian soldiers should put their lives on the line in Iran, every civilian who says such a thing should be able to convincingly answer serious concerns about Canada’s participation. But instead of examining this matter critically, we often fall prey to propaganda and fearmongering.For instance, some argue that a war with Iran is inevitable. So why not just get it over with now? Or, knowing that Canada is still largely a Christian country, others argue that once Muslims are done coming for the “Saturday” people (Jews), they will next come for the “Sunday” people (Christians). But in the Lebanese Civil War, the “Sunday” people were actually targeted first, in the 1975 Beirut bus massacre. Others will remind us that the Quran offers three choices to non-Muslims: forced conversion, second-class citizenship while paying a poll tax, or death. Finally, the Islamic Republic of Iran has labelled Israel, the US, and every country that aids them as a target for annihilation. They believe it’s their mandate to carry this destruction out.But the question is not whether the theocracy in Iran is evil. By all Western and Judeo-Christian standards, it is. The question is whether it is our duty as Canadians to see to it that this theocracy is violently eradicated, including through the participation of our own military..There are a myriad of serious problems we should consider before Canadian troops are sent in to participate in the Iran war. Here are just three problems.You Can’t Kill a ReligionTrying to destroy an idea, especially a religion, is nearly impossible. It’s certainly not going to happen with bombs. Shia Muslims are everywhere, not just in Iran.In March, there was an eruption of massive protests in Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, India, Lebanon, Yemen, and Nigeria, all against the war and the death of Ali Khamenei. Israel is going to have to deal with this backlash from its Muslim neighbours, and things could easily escalate if more countries enter the war. Canada already has problems at home to worry about.Since October 7, 2023, there has been a substantial increase in reported hate crimes against Jews in Canada. Fortunately, since that time, the RCMP has revealed data for only one (thwarted) incidence of religiously motivated terrorism, when three young men were arrested. One of them, Waleed Khan, 26, was charged with terrorism for working with the Islamic State. Terrorist incidents are likely to increase in the wake of the war in Iran, and this needs to be combated within Canada’s borders with sufficient resources and manpower.Canada Hasn’t Resolved Its Own Culture WarAfter the Israel-Hamas war, antisemitism in Canada escalated significantly, perpetrated by radical leftists and Islamists to destabilize society. These incidents included harassment, threats, and violence, often committed at university campuses against Jews wearing religious symbols like the kippah. At some universities, the administration took over 2 months to dismantle the protesters’ camps. In addition to the intimidation of Jews, there was widespread property damage. We can almost certainly expect more of this in the months to come, and not just at university campuses.If you’re wondering how this culture war could affect Canadian soldiers deployed to Iran, you should know there’s evidence suggesting the conflict extends into the Canadian military itself. I recently interviewed Rebel News journalist Alexandra Lavoie, who has exposed a possible link between Antifa and the Department of National Defence (DND), which must be further investigated. How can a military operation be successfully conducted abroad when servicemembers are ideologically captured by a violent extremist group — one that sees Muslims exclusively as victims?.Our Military is UnpreparedIssues with the Canadian military’s preparedness are common knowledge. There is the long-standing recruitment crisis, but also a recently revealed retention crisis. The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) has a decades-old problem with funding and procurement, extending even to the seemingly most inconsequential equipment, like blankets. They bought thousands of sleeping blankets, costing $34.8 million, only to find them inadequate for Canadian winters.Most concerning of all is the lax mental preparedness that is a product of ideological subversion. This was witnessed at the highest level by the confessor behaviour of General Jennie Carignan and Chief Warrant Officer Bob McCann. They normalized self-loathing of the uniform and promoted the subversion of the CAF and DND by apologizing for unproven accusations of systemic racism.The result of confessor behaviour is demoralization of service members. Moreover, soldiers subject to the excessive emotional reasoning promoted by such subversion risk impaired decision-making. They risk responding based on feelings (a near-instantaneous response) rather than on training. Such cognitive distortions, which all humans experience to some degree, could mean the difference between life and death in combat. We have a problem when we train our soldiers to respond like nursemaids instead of warriors.These are three key arguments that a civilian — one who believes in civilian oversight of the military — suggests anyone should be able to answer definitively before they suggest we send someone overseas to risk their lives. There are many other, equally important concerns.The men and women of the CAF and DND deserve the absolute best and most well-thought-out decisions that Canada has to offer them. I don’t see any of that occurring in a war that sprang from nowhere, without our being included in the discussion. Our troops are worth much more than that, wouldn’t you agree?
