"Canadians on Afghanistan: Turns out they may have been right all along" O'Malley, 21-09-09

I've mentioned O'Malley's Canadians on Afghanistan: Turns out they may have been right all along from September 2009 once or twice before, but I feel it's worth reproducing in full, and highlighting her final comment, from the article's comment thread, which might be missed otherwise: "As far as I'm concerned, no party is without blame. The Canadian public, on the other hand, can at least comfort themselves on their collective common sense, although it's not like anyone listened to them."

Canadians on Afghanistan: Turns out they may have been right all along.
by Kady O'Malley on Monday, September 21, 2009 11:28am - 54 Comments
When, in the course of her usual morning newsblitz, ITQ finds herself confronted with headlines like this, and this, and this — and especially this (that last one, the latest dispatch from Esprit de Corps’ Scott Taylor, provides a must-read counterpoint to the nearly universally fawning coverage of a certain Conservative star candidate in waiting that surfaced last week) — she can’t help but recall that April 2007 day that the NDP teamed up with the Conservatives to defeat a Liberal motion — introduced by Denis Coderre, and seconded by one Michael Ignatieff —  that would have seen Canada’s military role end, as originally scheduled, in February 2009.

At the time, the NDP argued that two more years was too years too long — a position that was, to be fair, consistent with the party’s longstanding position on Afghanistan. But how, one can’t help but wonder, might subsequent events have unfolded had they decided to vote with the other opposition parties, and the motion was passed by the House?

Would the prime minister still have set up an independent panel on the future of Canada’s mission in Afghanistan later that year? What would its terms of reference have been, and would the eventual findings have been different? Would the Conservatives and the Liberals have been able to agree on a compromise motion that would extend the mission for an additional two years?

She also can’t help but think of what that panel  heard from Canadians two years ago, when it invited them to share their thoughts on Canada’s current and future role in Afghanistan — not, that is, much of what they told him made it into the final report, of course, as ITQ pointed out at the time.

The full collection of submissions to the panel is no longer available online — the official panel website has long since been lost to domain squatters. But rereading even the excerpts that appeared in ITQ’s original summary brings on a haunting sense of — not quite deja vu, and pretty much the exact opposite of 20/20 hindsight.  Whether writing from the perspective of the retired military officer, the peace activist or even just as a concerned Canadian, nearly all those who took part in the process seemed to have a more realistic grasp of what was at stake in Afghanistan, what the cost might be — and, most significantly, the likelihood that the then (and, for the most part, still) current strategy would eventually lead to success.

Maybe, just maybe, there’s something to the idea of the metawisdom of crowds after all.

Tags: A Different Kind Of Elitism, Afghanistan, Francis Galt Would Be Proud, Jellybean Wisdom, Manley Report, Sometimes The Experts Get It Wrong

Comments (55)

Greg · 59 weeks ago
Kady, try to be a little fair. The NDP wanted to bring the troops back immediately, not in 2009.

Standing By replies · active 59 weeks ago
What Jack and the NDP geniuses wanted was to deprive the Liberals of anything resembling a Parliamentary victory, which resulted in them refusing to support a Liberal motion that -- with their support -- would have required the Government to end our combat mission in February 2009. The NDP gave partisan considerations more weight than their antiwar stance.

KadyITQ 86p · 59 weeks ago
I believe that's what I wrote, and I think I am being entirely fair.

Jim · 59 weeks ago
The NDP put up a motion the next week on withdrawl that the Liberals voted against. Then, the Spring after an amendment to the government motion on bringing the troops home, which the Libs voted against.

Then the Liberals voted with Harper one extending the mission.

Sure thing Kady, it was all the NDP's fault...

KadyITQ 86p · 59 weeks ago
As far as I'm concerned, no party is without blame. The Canadian public, on the other hand, can at least comfort themselves on their collective common sense, although it's not like anyone listened to them.