Times have become increasingly turbulent on several fronts since Maisonneuve raised alarms two years ago when he received the Vimy award, a top defence award from the Conference of Defence Associations Institute (CDAI) for a lifetime of service.

He warned the principles he was recognized for protecting — civil liberties, fiscal prudence, and a commitment to global stability — were under unprecedented assault.

He got a standing ovation from hundreds of serving senior officials and folk hero status from grateful Canadians hungry for someone to condemn issues like wasteful climate change policies and cancel culture.

Maisonneuve spoke as a nonpartisan about the nation’s state.

His words were distorted and he was cancelled by those unmoved by his defence of Canada — the very people destroying our nation enabled by cowards remaining silent as it happens.

Those who schemed to shut up Maisonneuve were too dense to understand the resilient and determined heart of a warrior who loves the country he served in uniform 45 years. How determined?

His book In Defence of Canada: Reflections of a Patriot was released Tuesday by Sutherland House Books.

“It expands on my remarks at the Vimy dinner in 2022,” said Maisonneuve. That speech was the “genesis” of the book.

In Defence of Canada is Maisonneuve’s “cry” for Canadians to face our decline and “recommit to principles of peace, order and good government” for the sake of future generations.

“If not us, who? If not now, when?” he asks.

“What’s at stake is freedom, the future of our country, our place in the world. These are all things that were obviously important before but they’re even more important.”

“Given the state of our country, the state of our military, the state of our leadership, the state of our citizenship, out of control immigration, the economy — we are in deep trouble.”

Patriotism and the honour of serving country must be embraced and promoted to increase CAF enrolment, he said.

The harm to Canada’s reputation — a once-trusted nation — must be rectified.

Dealings with NATO, the US, NORAD, coupled with interference from China and India have relegated Canada to “a laughingstock” on the world stage. Invitations to join consultations on world affairs dried up, said Maisonneuve.

Another problem?

“Our internal institutions are busy. The RCMP’s not in great shape. CSIS is not. There are internal threats.”

“At the same time, there’s a proliferation of technology, of drones, of AI, of quantum computing. All those things right now are unregulated. Regulations are behind the actual development. Until we can regulate this stuff properly, this stuff is out there, and everybody’s got access to it, especially nefarious people, or groups or even nations.”

“Obviously, speaking security-wise, the threats are greater today than they’ve ever been. There’s an internal threat of divisive strife. Our immigration’s way too high. We’re unable to integrate these people, immigrants, into our country.”

On October 7 a “day of mourning and a day of reflection” the Israeli flag flew at half-mast on the Maisonneuve porch. It was the anniversary of the massacre of 1,200 Israelis by Palestinian Hamas terrorist savages.

Anti-Israel protests raged.

“Thinking how our own compatriots, our own citizens are marching in the streets with faces covered but wearing keffiyeh’s. I find it horrible … Come to Canada to join our society, not bring your problems here.”

He laments “Canadians have no idea what a Canadian is.”

“In the book I talk about developing a vision for our country.”

“The reason I wrote the book is the same reason I spoke in November 2022. For the last 15 years, even before Trudeau came to power, I began to be unhappy with our country especially with, after he came to power, what I call the extremist progressivism.”

“I wanted to express that. For 45 years I protected free speech. Freedom of speech was restricted. I did speak out internally when I was unhappy with decisions or things that were happening. But I didn’t go public, whereas now, this is my chance to go public and to say what I think.”

He came “out of the closet” when he accepted an invite from Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre to speak.

Maisonneuve and his wife retired Maj. Barbara Maisonneuve who served 21 years delivered the keynote address at the September 2023 Conservative Party of Canada’s national policy convention.

Then an agent reached out pitching the book idea.

“I started writing in January this year. I got a lot of help from Barbara who is a great editor.”

“It’s a small book. It’s 175 pages, not a Conrad Black ‘the world as I see it today’ kind of thing.”

“I tried to illustrate where I thought Canada was in the days I was serving. I use some of my experiences to show where Canada was in those days.”

“I have chapters on different things, the issues I think are ailing Canada in terms of the economy, immigration, the military, mistreated veterans. It picks up all these themes.”

Chapters begin with Becoming Me and conclude with How to Move Forward.

“I do offer hope. Canada is a great country. We have unlimited potential. But we’ve got to stop kind of killing our resources and trying to be more Catholic than the pope to help other countries.”

“We produce 1.6% of the greenhouse gases of the world and we’re kind of killing our economy and our resource economy. Instead of helping other countries become more green and get off coal, help Europe so they don’t have to get gas from frickin’ Russia.”

He writes “big ideas are dead now.”

“Our leaders don’t have any big ideas. It’s the old salami slice, very evolutionary kind of progress as opposed to saying ‘OK, here’s a big idea folks.’”

“I propose a few of them. For example, let’s make Canada self-sufficient in energy by 2030. There’s a big idea.”

Solutions?

“We need to be more patriotic. We’re not patriotic. We don’t stand up for our country.”

Stop “erasing our glorious past” to fit Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s vision of a post-national state.

After Maisonneuve’s speech the CDAI “distanced itself” from his remarks. Some academic called him a “dinosaur.” Yeah, out of touch — not like warriors stocking tampons in male military washrooms. Maisonneuve was forced to resign from the Chronic Pain Centre of Excellence for Canadian Veterans (CPCoE).

He expects backlash 2.0 over In Defence of Canada. What can they do? Cancel him as book sales soar?

God bless patriotic warriors.

Michelle Stirling