Parasites on the Body Politic

The story Troops acting 'like terrorists?' by John Ivison of the National Post, of one of the draft resolutions to be debated at the NDP convention in Quebec City this weekend, belies fundamental characteristics seen throughout the draft resolutions - naivete, irrational hostility, self-serving smugness, in direct contrast to the purported "values" of the NDP.

Mr Ivison writes:

Canada's troops in Afghanistan have been "acting like terrorists, destroying communities, killing and maiming innocent people", according to a resolution that will be voted on by New Democrats at the party's convention in Quebec City this weekend.

The resolution is one of 104 proposals on international affairs from local riding associations that will be presented at the convention. Others suggest Canada withdraw from the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the World Trade Organization and the North American Free Trade Agreement, while one riding association proposes a freeze on trade with Israel until the "occupation of Palestinian lands" is ended.

The Afghan mission was the subject of a number of proposed resolutions, all calling for the withdrawal of Canadian troops. "The Canadian occupation is propping up a regime composed of barbarous warlords who are little better than the Taliban," says one riding association.

Many of the rest of the resolutions deal with the transfer of wealth from governments (taxpayers) and industries producing the wealth to, as the U.N. likes to call them, "non-actors", individuals or groups who have no direct, or indirect contribution to the creation of that wealth. To be fair, a social conscience for those unable to participate is an appropriate social policy, but simply to disingenously redistribute wealth without an appreciate of its origin, is, as the title says, parasitic.

But the resolution by the Nanaimo-Cowichan riding association comparing Canada's soldiers to terrorists goes over the top. Rabid hatred for George Bush by unsophisticated party hacks does not form the foundation for governance by a national party. The pain of conflict in Afghanistan is the pain of birth of democracy, fought again and again against those who would deny it. To sit smugly thousands of miles away in the LaLa land of the west coast, and dare to compare those who would endure the pain of that birth with the evil that would snuff it out, while basking in the luxury such pain has provided, is to denigrate the entire premise the NDP think they stand for. A callous, cheap slap in face of every soldier, every veteran, every family, every Canadian who has shared the pain. The ability to even consider the "social conscience" that the NDP prattles on about page after page, has only ever come by grim force and determination. The New Democratic Party needs to grow up. Its smug sanctimony is borne not of the sacrifices of its members, but by whining spoiled children feeding off the travails of others.

Update:
In the face of Blog/MSM outrage across the country, the NDP riding association of Nanaimo-Cowichan has agreed to tone down the rhetoric of the resolution, but its not clear that there's much sincerity in the conciliation.