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I think it's in the best interest of Canadians to have a debate about this. This mission has been going on long enough, and so a backroom deal between the Tories and the Liberals would be disrespectful of the troops and Canadians who have stock in what we're doing in Afghanistan.
That said, this could also be the perfect opportunity to see a shift in stance of the Canadian military back to our traditional role: peacekeepers, rebuilders, and security.
At the very least, combat operations must end, but I think parliament should have a say in the shape the new role will take. I don't think combat training in a war zone is what most Canadians have in mind when we think of the function of our military abroad.
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Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön
Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot
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