Mourners honour death of last Canadian First World War veteran

First World War veteran John 'Jack' Babcock, seen here in February 2008, has died, the Prime Minister's Office announced Thursday, Feb. 18. He was 109. Babcock, who enlisted at 15, was the last remaining First World War veteran for Canada.

Photograph by: Brian J Gavriloff, Edmonton Journal

SPOKANE, Wash — When Jack Babcock joined the Canadian Army at the age of 15, it’s likely he never imagined that he’d be the last soldier standing more than 94 years later.
But that’s exactly what Babcock was when he died Feb. 18, at the age of 109.
Babcock was remembered Saturday afternoon at a memorial service at Messiah Lutheran Church in his hometown of Spokane, Wash.
The service was attended by a list of Canada’s top dignitaries.
Babcock was the last Canadian veteran of the First World War, and the last link to what many Canadians consider the country’s coming-of-age.


more... Mourners honour death of last Canadian First World War veteran

Laptops for Wounded Warriors Project Expands | Marinka Peschmann

"Upon learning that this journalist is Canadian, the young, handsome warrior’s eyes brightly lit up and he told me how Canadians saved his life, then described how during the critical life and death hour, called the “golden hour,” after the deadly IED blast, he was aided by Canadian forces in Afghanistan, “I want to thank the Canadians who saved my life,” he said. Canada has been one of the few allies who have fought with Americans to defeat the terrorists and extremists in Afghanistan."


Laptops for Wounded Warriors Project Expands Marinka Peschmann:

The uneasy ride of Canada's tankers in Afghanistan

"The dust, the dirt, the attacks, the roadside bombs just part of a day's work for Edmontonbased Lord Strathcona's Horse as they go about their duties"
By Ryan Cormier, Edmonton JournalNovember 8, 2009

In the land of guns that is Afghanistan, members of the Edmonton-based Lord Strathcona's Horse have the biggest ones around.
For six sweltering months, the 82 Edmontonbased soldiers of C Squadron operated the only tanks in southern Afghanistan. On bomb-littered roads absent of any traffic rules, the Strathcona's drove their 70-tonne machines on nearly 250 missions.
Their tanks were damaged with hidden bombs numerous times, with three major incidents, severely injuring two soldiers, but they suffered no casualties during the entire tour."

more... The uneasy ride of Canada's tankers in Afghanistan:

Looking for an Alternative to Twitter? Canadian Military considers its own version of Facebook and Twitter

"Thursday, July 9, 2009, 11:07 PM - News Stories, Twitter
As you can see by recent news I’ve posted here on Milblogging.com, the U.S. Military has been getting on board with social media in recent months, but now the National Post is reporting the Canadian Military itself is considering building their own version of Facebook and Twitter to help its soldiers communicate.

(National Post) Facebook status: Reporting for duty, sir.

The Canadian military is considering developing its own version of social-networking applications such as Facebook and Twitter to help soldiers communicate and improve teamwork in the increasingly networked environment of modern warfare." More... Milblogging.com : The World's Largest Index of Military Blogs (Milblogs):

Soldier killed, 5 injured in roadside bomb blast

"A Canadian soldier travelling in a convoy carrying the senior commander in Kandahar province was killed Friday when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device.
Cpl. Nicholas Bulger, 30, was a member of 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, based in Edmonton."

..."Canadians expected an uptick in hostilities as the U.S. surge began, Frayer said. "For the most part the U.S. military has reported been meeting very little resistance... But this is keeping in line with the usual Taliban tactics of laying low during a push and then returning."Bulger is the third Canadian death in Afghanistan in less than a month. He leaves behind a wife named Rebeka and two daughters."

..."The Lakefield Herald also states that Bulger started basic military training in November of 2000 in Saint Jean, Quebec, underwent trades training for the infantry in Wainwright, Alberta, and then in 2001 became the rifleman and armoured vehicle driver for the First Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry in Edmonton. He took a break from the forces and returned in January 2008.The death of Bulger brings to 121 the total number of Canadian soldiers have died as part of the Afghan mission since it began in 2002. "

More...CTV.ca Soldier killed, 5 injured in roadside bomb blast:

Canada's military may need year-long break after Afghan mission: army chief

"OTTAWA — The military may need a one-year break from operations in July 2011, when the Afghanistan mission winds down, says the head of Canada's army.
Lt.-Gen. Andrew Leslie told the Senate defence committee Monday the military has been strained by the mission that began seven years ago and it needs time to regroup.
'In the mid-term, and beginning in July 2011, we will have to explore the possibility of taking a short operational break, that is well-organized and synchronized, of at least one year,' he said."

A break may be needed, Leslie said, because the military is suffering from shortages of personnel - particularly experienced senior officers - as well as equipment. But some equipment apparently isn't even being used.
There are 40 Leopard 2 battle tanks sitting unused in a Montreal warehouse, and another 40 stored somewhere in Europe, awaiting the federal government to hire a firm to refurbish them, Leslie said.

The Canadian Press: Canada's military may need year-long break after Afghan mission: army chief:

Canada's Unmanned Aerial Vehicle arrives in Afghanistan

"KABUL, Afghanistan - December 16, one of Canada's newly acquired CU170 Heron Unmanned Aerial Vehicles was hoisted off a transport aircraft and brought to its newly erected hangar located at the Kandahar Air Field in Afghanistan.

The Heron will be used to help reduce the number of insurgent attacks in Afghanistan by providing intelligence, surveillance, and a precision target acquisition capability. The Heron can be equipped with a variety of sensors and information systems, and will provide persistent surveillance over a large area in support of ISAF operations in Kandahar province. "

More... Canada's Unmanned Aerial Vehicle arrives in Afghanistan:

Iraq war deserter faces deportation from Canada

"TORONTO (Reuters) - A U.S. soldier who fought in Iraq before deserting and coming to Canada now faces deportation next month, but says he shouldn't be returned to the United States to face 'unjust punishment.'

Canada is set to deport in June the first of possibly hundreds of American
soldiers who sought asylum to avoid military duty in Iraq, a group backing the
US deserters said Wednesday.(IRBC)

Corey Glass, 25, came to Canada in August 2006 after serving in Iraq as a military intelligence sergeant.
Authorities told him on Wednesday that his application to stay in Canada was rejected and he would be deported in early June, a spokeswoman for the War Resisters Support Campaign told AFP.

According to the group, several hundred Iraq War resisters are currently in Canada, many of them living underground. Glass would be the first of them to be deported, it said."


More...Iraq war deserter faces deportation from Canada - Yahoo! News:

Major General MacKenzie Interview on the Canadian Military and War on Terror | Mapleleafweb.com

Major General MacKenzie Interview on the Canadian Military and War on Terror Mapleleafweb.com

On the size of the Canadian Armed Forces:
Well, when you’re talking about a military – an Army in particular, which I’m more familiar with – that you can march into the Maple Leaf Gardens and tell it to sit down and there are still 3,000 empty seats. You’re talking about an infantry that is 2,000 smaller than the Toronto Police Services. You’re talking about a minuscule military that requires vision as to how it’s going to be deployed.

This is just a small sampling of what General Mackenzie shared. Make sure to head over and read the full interview.

Local Soldier Returns Home After Serving During Surge

"Since January of 2007, Private First Class Dallas Hanson's world has revolved around Iraq. Now, after spending fifteen months in Baghdad, he finally gets to come home and see his family.
"He was just mom, I gotta get down there," said Wendy Hoffman, Hanson's mother. "He would say I gotta get in the army. I know this is what I want to be doing."
Hoffman says since her son was in kindergarten, all he wanted to do was join the U.S. military.
"It's been his whole life, his dream," said Hoffman.
And it's a dream he had to fight for. Hanson is an American-Canadian dual citizen. As such, it took three years before the U.S. Army would accept him. When they finally did, he says he couldn't have been any happier.
"I've gotta say it's been everything I expected," said Hanson.
Just months after enlisting, Hanson learned that his unit would be one of the first to go to Iraq as part of the troop surge ordered by President Bush. When he got there, he says it was unlike anything he'd ever experienced.
"It's difficult," said Hanson. "It's completely different from anything you see around here."
It wasn't much easier on his family. In Baghdad, Hanson's time was spent working as a tower guard and patrolling the streets with Iraqi police.
"That sense of fear, the dread is there all the time," said Hoffman.
But a few weeks ago, Hoffman got the call that put her fears to rest. She found out her son was coming home.
"It was a real sense of relief and it's like okay, he's back," said Hoffman.
For Hanson, the big welcome home was just what he needed.
"Being back here with my family is just incredible," said Hanson.
Although he has to report back to his post in North Carolina early next week, Hanson says he's looking forward to a quiet weekend at home.
"I'm going to relax and enjoy Grand Junction," said Hanson."


Local Soldier Returns Home After Serving During Surge:

Northern Disclosure:

Northern Disclosure:: A personal account of an Infantry Squad leader in training and combat. Takes place with the train up at Fort Lewis and follows them around the U.S., the desert sands of Kuwait and ends in Mosul, Iraq. SFC Toby J. Nunn is a Canadian Citizen earning his citizenship for the United States of America.

"Sometimes, we get a break in the routine to experience something new or different from what we have been doing and it is so refreshing. The last week I have been living in a small combat outpost along the main route that our guys travel and work on to see things from another perspective and to share information and experiences. I was pleased with the group I got married up with first, SSG Strachan and his squad were a professional group of Paratroopers that brought credit upon their unit and country. They performed their duties with high levels of proficency and were respectful to the local nationals."

More...

Soldiers fighting for U.S. become citizens

"Posted: November 13, 2007 1:00 a.m. Eastern

Matt Sanchez

Editor's note: Reporter Matt Sanchez, currently embedding with military units throughout both Iraq and Afghanistan, has been providing WND readers with a glimpse into the Iraq war most Americans have never seen.

By Matt Sanchez © 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Photo : Matt Sanchez

At Airbase Anaconda in Iraq, Brig. Gen. Gregory Couch pondered the irony, 'We're swearing in new American citizens in one of Saddam Hussein's theaters, a place that was accustomed to a different type of spectacle.' For Veteran's Day 2007, 178 U.S. military men and women serving in Iraq became citizens of the country for which they are fighting, the United States. Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff made the trip to Iraq's largest airbase to preside over the legalization ceremony of servicemen and women who traced their birthplaces to more than 53 nations scattered around the globe. ...

... One applicant, Army Staff Sgt. Daniel Brownie with 82nd Airborne, 2nd Brigade out of Fort Bragg, N. C., was born in Alberta, Canada. After middle school, high school and now the Army, Daniel has lived in the United States for most of his life.
But how did this Canadian national feel about being in Iraq and serving a country where he did not have the right to vote?
"I support our mission, I signed up for this," said Brownie. "I wanted to be a part of something greater than myself."
It's a little publicized fact many Canadians crossed the border to enlist in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War.
Of course, joining the American military meant the possibility of serving in a combat zone. Why not stay in Canada and join that service?
"I couldn't stand up tall and tell people 'I'm in the Canadian Army,'" he said. "I didn't even know they had an army."
Canadian military action is poorly viewed by a French and English-speaking public that gets nosebleeds just reading about the American military. So, how did Brownie come to have a different opinion about the American military machine?
"I love to be able to say I'm a part of the strongest military in the world."
The staff sergeant actually re-enlisted on the 4th of July this year.
When asked his opinion on the current illegal immigration debate, he was straight-forward. "I work in the Army and I have to go through the system, everyone else should go through the system too."
The general opinion of the men and women who finally arrived at their destination after a long journey is that citizenship is something to be earned.
During the initial press conference before the naturalization ceremony, a reporter from Newsweek asked, "Has there been any evidence of people joining the military just to get citizenship?"
Chertoff and most of the members of the military in the room openly laughed.
"There are far easier ways of doing it," Brig. Gen. Couch said.
He's right. Those who serve and risk their lives for a country not entirely their own have taken a harder test to naturalization than anyone else. Many servicemen killed in action have been posthumously granted citizenship.
"It's a privilege to become an American," said Brownie."


More... WorldNetDaily: Soldiers fighting for U.S. become citizens:

A Pittance of Time - Video

A Pittance of Time - Video

Blackwater training some Canadian troops

Blackwater training some Canadian troops: "Blackwater training some Canadian troops David Pugliese , CanWest News Service Published: Saturday, September 29, 2007 OTTAWA -- The Canadian Forces are using a controversial private security firm to train some of its troops sent to Afghanistan. Select Canadian soldiers have been sent to Blackwater U.S.A. in North Carolina for specialized training in bodyguard and shooting skills. Other soldiers have taken counterterrorism evasive-driving courses with the private military company now at the centre of an investigation into the killings of Iraqi civilians and mounting concerns about the aggressive tactics of its workers in the field. Critics of Blackwater label the firm as a mercenary organization and question why a professional military such as the Canadian Forces can't do its own training in specialized areas."

Home on R&R

Since this blog was intended to be about my son I suppose I could update on him. He's HOME. Not for very long, just 18 days, but he is here and its been good having him home.
I picked him up at the airport in Albuquerque on Monday and, had he been on the earlier flight as scheduled he would have been welcomed in high style by the Albuquerque Rio Grand Valley moms.
If he had been on his earlier flight as scheduled we would have made it back to Farmington earlier and been welcomed in a big way by the Farmington, Four Corners Blue Star Moms. We made it back at Midnight and were surprised at the wonderful decorations on our deck.
The following evening the crowd all came back and we had a proper welcome home ceremony and a huge cake with the Blue Star Mothers and several other friends.

A Soldier's Poem to Jack Layton

A Step in the Right Direction: A Soldier's Poem to Jack Layton: "A Soldier's Poem to Jack Layton

Ole Jack Layton ~ Thoughts From A Soldier
written by Josh Forbes, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Dear Jack Layton,

You sit there in your quiet home
No fear is in your heart,
You sleep soundly certain that
It won't be blown apart.

Your children they can go to school
And play out in the park,
They've never seen a bomb explode
Heard air raids in the dark.

They've never seen dead bodies
Piled up on the street,
Your wife, she won't be beaten
Treated like a piece of meat

You are free to form opinions
Read any news print you can see,
You enjoy your rights and privileges
In this country wide and free.

The reason you can live like that
Is because I fight your wars
I fight and push the enemy back
I keep them off our shores."

Read the entire poem:

House for Sale St Marys Ontario

stmaryshouseforsale.com

Six Canadians killed in Afghan attack

" Canadian forces confirm six Canadian soldiers killed in roadside bombing

NATO troops have been battling with Taliban militants in south of country

(CNN) -- The six soldiers killed in a roadside bombing Wednesday in southern Afghanistan are Canadians, Canadian forces have confirmed.

Brig. Gen. Tim Grant, head of Canadian forces in Afghanistan, announces the six deaths Wednesday.
An Afghan interpreter also was killed in the attack, which occurred in Kandahar province, where Canadian troops are based."

More... Six Canadians killed in Afghan attack - CNN.com:

The National Anthem Project

"WASHINGTON, June 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Anthem Project, a multi-year effort to re-teach Americans to sing the 'The Star-Spangled Banner' and spotlight school music programs, kicks off its Grand Finale today in Washington, D.C. Thousands of school children, teachers and music supporters traveled to the nation's capital to participate in the culmination celebrations on June 14-16, all of which are open to the general public. "
More... :: The National Anthem Project Hosts Grand Finale Events in Nation's Capital June 14-16

National Anthem Project Video

I have my own thoughts on this because I very clearly remember the day Dallas first realized we had US citizenship as well as our Canadian citizenship. We were at a Tattoo in Lethbridge Alberta with dispalys by both US and Canadian forces. At the start of the show we sang both national anthems -- and I sang along. Dallas turned to me in amazement and asked how I knew the words to the American national anthem (although I confess I did not knowe them all). I explained I had learned them in school as a child and the discussion went on from there to me explaining our dual citizenship status. It was at that moment that Dallas realized he not only had a choice of branches ion the Canadian military but also had a choice of all the branches of the US military.

With the memories of that day still in my mind I must admit it was with more than a little disbelief that we were at group events in the US after we moved here and that when the anthem was played -- no voices were heard. At first I though it was maybe just a new trend -- we don't sing along anymore but when I attended a rodeo in Stratford, Ontario last year and both national anthems were played -- very few sang along to the US anthem but the Canadians heartily belted out the words to O'Canada.

~Wendy

O Canada Edmonton Oilers Style

The lyrics for all of the National Anthem, The Star Spangled Banner, 1814, Words by Francis Scott Key, Music by John Stafford Smith can be found here.

And of course -- the lyrics for O Canada are here or download the MP3

Peace River Born Soldier

"Serving in Iraq a lifelong mission for Peace River born soldier

By Kristy Lesh
R-G Editor
Tuesday June 12, 2007

View PDF version of complete article

Dallas Hanson in his yearbook photo.

More photos in PDF

For a Peace River-born man, getting deployed to a war-torn county is a realization of a lifelong dream.
Dallas Hanson, a Private First Class in the United States Army, has been deployed in Iraq since December 2006."

More... Peace River Record Gazette, Peace River, AB: