Baird returns to the negotiation argument, “We think the two parties got [sic] to stop the debate of what the negotiations will be like, come to the table and get a negotiated settlement. That’s the best way to get peace in the conflict.” Alright, we’ve already been there and discussed that, but as I indicated earlier, it is a Conservative trait to find a talking point and stick to it ad nauseum without actually answering anything, but in reality saying, no, we do not think the settlements are illegal and are simply Israel reclaiming their mythological narrative—along with the Christian evangelical narrative (more later on that).

I must add at this point that there is no balance here already, that Israel has all the power, the Palestinians none, other than their own steadfastness—sumud. The negotiations were a dismal failure with the Palestinian negotiators from the P.A. pretty much giving the territory away, with the Israelis still remaining obstinately unsatisfied, as revealed by the Palestinian papers obtained by al-Jazeera. Negotiations have been a façade behind which the Israelis continued to take over more and more Palestinian territory.

Another question, this time from the aspect of the 1967 borders. More reiteration of the good friends of Palestine, and the unhelpfulness of unilateral action, and the need to sit down at the table. When the interviewer noted that he refused to answer the question about settlements, the same points were reiterated again.

Iran, but also Israel

The questions on Iran highlighted two aspects of Baird’s views. Most prominent, in spite of additional arguments is that Iran is against Israel and thus Canada is against Iran. Secondly, his arguments again highlight the double standards when compared to other countries. These other arguments were called a threat “far greater than acquiring nuclear weapons.” How? No explanation for this. Good sound bite. The real focus was on the nuclear arms and—get this—President Obama; the president of Canada?

Seriously, the Harper government is fully in line with all neoconservative elements of the U.S. political situation, from foreign policy to domestic policy. Baird unwittingly recognizes that when asked about Canada’s willingness to go to war with Israel, or as re-questioned later, about supporting other countries going to war against Iran, said of threats against Iran, “Obama has said all options are on the table. When the President of the [U.S.] says that you should take him at face value.” Certainly do not take our Canadian conservative word for it, as we align directly with the U.S.

The question was repeated slightly modified, the answer was the same, unmodified, and once again Obama as supreme Canadian leader had the final word.

Baird did expand a bit on the Iranian nuclear program—remember, not the greatest threat—indicating it was “about the peace and security of the entire world, about the reality that proliferation will follow if Iran acquires nuclear weapons and that’s not in the interests of peace and security anywhere in the world today.” Certainly not, but what a heap of double standards.

Proliferation has already occurred, and quite significantly with the assistance of the United States. India’s nuclear program, outside the NPT, is aided by the U.S. Pakistan developed nuclear weapons outside the NPT, as did North Korea, and we do not hear that “all options are on the table” against them (although in reality they probably are). Brazil, Japan, South Africa, Germany, and other countries—indeed, any country with a nuclear reactor can proceed towards weapons if they wished; tthat is, after all, what the nuclear industry in the U.S. is primarily about, in spite of the ‘energy’ or ‘green energy’ rhetoric.

Above all, Israel is the largest nuclear weapons nation outside the NPT. It cooperated with South Africa in creating nuclear weapons, which, fortunately, South Africa gave up unilaterally. Israel has by best estimates, based on number of years of operation and the kind of reactor, plus or minus two hundred nuclear warheads, with delivery systems from missiles, planes, submarines, and drones. It is a belligerent nation, proudly so by its own claims, and has attacked other countries several times. No one should doubt that they will use their weapons as needed. Iran has not attacked another country for hundreds of years, and its current political situation is the result of U.S. and U.K. subversive actions in 1953 and on.

Baird uses the figure of “twenty per cent enrichment” for Iranian enrichment goals. This is a far cry from the ninety percent generally considered to be needed for a nuclear weapon, although fission will occur at even moderate amounts of enrichment.

Iran has no nuclear weapons, nor the capacity to deliver them. It is enriching uranium as allowed by the NPT. The real proliferators in the world are those that threaten other countries, in this case we find the dynamic duo of Israel and the U.S. in the forefront of threats against other countries. The history of the U.S. has been to destroy or subvert any government or political party that goes against its interests and Israel is using the same techniques and then some in the Middle East. Both countries trade military technology and materials between themselves and with other countries. Canada of course supports both of these countries without qualification.

In an attempt to redirect the discussion Baird says “military intervention should always be the last course of action,” a comment outside the context of Libya and Afghanistan, where Canada played a major role in military action. He goes on to say, “We’re working very well with Americans, the European Union, with folks in the Middle East….” Okay the U.S. and the EU, both nominal democracies, but “folks in the Middle East”, meaning perhaps the “liberal democracies” of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, Yemen, et al?

Once again, Obama’s “options are on the table,” but ultimately “actions speak louder than words”—as they certainly do with U.S. militarism, and Israeli settler colonialism in the West Bank, its imprisonment and attacks on the people of Gaza, and its unilateral attacks against surrounding countries. And as they do with Canada’s increased militarism in its occupation of Afghanistan alongside the U.S. and its leadership in bombing Libya back into obedience.

Canadian values, or not…

When asked about the Christian evangelical influence on Canadian politics, Baird argues that foreign policy is “not influenced by domestic politics, not in our political interests if you look at the demographics of Canada.” Baird is attempting to tie in the idea that Canada has more Arabs and Muslims in its population than Jews, which is true, but Canadian Jews are divided in their support of Israeli occupation of Palestine, and tend to vote Liberal anyway. The Arabs and Muslims frequently—as with other Canadians—buy into the media hyped political views mentioned earlier in this discussion about being tough on crime, the vagueness of “family values”—which obviously all families have—and the neocon corporate business economic agenda. The real demographic threat in Canada is that most Canadians do not hold Harper’s and the Conservative values.

The interviewer continued the questions on the Christian evangelical influence. Baird denied it very thinly, saying (more than once) “Those motivations have never been discussed at the cabinet table. I can’t be clearer than that.” I believe him, as it is unnecessary to discuss them there, it is understood that they are there and exist as one of the foundations of the Harper government.

To turn away from this interview for a moment, much of the alternate media discusses Harper’s evangelical views loudly and distinctly. A recent article in the local Tyee (Andrew Nikiforuk, “Understanding Harper’s Evangelical Mission,” The Tyee, March 26, 2012.) starts off, “Almost daily, more evidence surfaces that Canada’s government is guided by tribalists averse to scientific reason in favour of Biblical fundamentalism—or what some call ‘evangelical religious skepticism.’”

It ends with a quote from G.K. Chesterton, a radical Catholic, who regularly questioned the wealth and power of big government and business decades ago, “The old hypocrite was a man whose aims were really worldly and practical, while he pretended that they were religious,” the radical Catholic once observed. “The new hypocrite is one whose aims are really religious, while he pretends that they are worldly and practical.”

Canada needs to have an open conversation about the virtues of democracy over theocracy.

There are some arguments being made about Harper being no more religious that other Canadian prime ministers, but the evangelical trend in his policy decisions on climate, on science, on the libertarian trend of every man for himself (in this case before god rather than Ayn Rand’s almighty dollar, though the two overlap), his contributions through the government to religious institutions all speak of much more evangelical influence in his decisions, which would include the support of Israel for the apocryphal beliefs of his church.

Final Question

One final question on Afghanistan was directed at Baird before my computer froze, as it does frequently from al-Jazeera, but I, too, was tired of listening to Baird’s repetitive reiterations. Baird’s response to the question on whether our mission in Afghanistan was a success or not revealed again his own personal interpretation of history, when he said “The Taliban are not able to plan attacks outside Afghanistan….” They never did plan attacks outside Afghanistan, and their insurgency is very much limited to getting rid of the NATO occupying forces of which Canada is a part.

Summary (and more reading)

Baird performed well from the Conservative perspective, avoiding issues, hiding issues, denying issues, and, most important politically, repeating himself over and over again. Canada has taken a hard right turn, under the control of a Conservative majority government that more resembles the Republican conservatism of George Bush (and perhaps Rick Santorum) than it does the social consciousness of other Canadian Christians and non-Christians who do support public health care, education, the environment, fair wages, and other benefits within a positive social contract.

Stephen Harper is essentially a control freak, and has successfully managed his party in order to control the message (see Lawrence Martin’s Harperland:  The Politics of Control), through lack of access, through constant reiteration of the same lines over and over again, and through populist political actions—that go against statistical evidence such as the fear factor of the ‘tough on crime’ policies.

In addition, much to most Canadians misunderstanding, Canada has always stood beside Israel, perhaps even more so than the U.S. (see Yves Engler, Building Apartheid). It is also apparent that Canada has supported the U.S. for many decades in its military and corporate adventurism overseas, from Vietnam and Latin America, on into the Middle East, and the control of Europe through NATO (see Yves Engler, The Black Book of Canadian Foreign Policy; and Linda McQuaig’s Holding the Bullies Coat, the latter not quite as critical, but still showing Canada’s role with the U.S.).

Baird’s interview highlights much of what Canada is really about, if the reader/viewer is able to put it into context. Following Facebook feeds on the internet shows a clear and distinct divide within Canada, between those that adore Harper and those that can see the bigger picture of a country under the rule of a control freak, with an evangelical background influencing many government decisions, even if they are not “discussed at the cabinet table”.