Prime Minister Stephen Harper delivers a speech on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Monday, Nov. 8, 2010.
(Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he is prepared to suffer any political backlash that comes his way for speaking out against anti-Israel rhetoric.
Harper told an audience Monday that while Israel is receptive to fair criticism, Canada is obligated to stand up for its ally when it comes under attack from others.
“Not just because it is the right thing to do, but because history shows us, and the ideology of the anti-Israel mob tell us all too well, that those who threaten the existence of the Jewish people are in the longer term a threat to all of us.”
The prime minister acknowledged that his position is not popular with all governments and organizations, including members of the United Nations and the Francophonie.
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“And I know, by the way, because I have the bruises to show for it, that whether it is at the United Nations or any other international forum, the easiest thing to do is simply to just get along and go along with this anti-Israel rhetoric, to pretend it is just about being even-handed, and to excuse oneself with the label of honest broker.
“There are, after all, a lot more votes — a lot more — in being anti-Israeli than in taking a stand. But as long as I am prime minister, whether it is at the United Nations, the Francophonie or anywhere else, Canada will take that stand, whatever the cost.”
Harper made his remarks at the start of a two-day conference on anti-Semitism that is being held on Parliament Hill during Holocaust Education Week.
It took a bloodbath for the Allies to rescue Jews from the Nazis.
There was no blood-bath in the liberation of Iraq, which was completed in a few weeks with little loss of life. The blood-bath began when sectarian radicals withing Iraq started attacking each other, aided and abetted by Al Qaeda, Syria and Iran. The US has been engaged in trying to STOP the bloodbath while Canada sat on the sidelines and watched since there was no call for defending against enemy rhetoric.
When it comes to foreign affairs, Canada acts in tandem with the U.S.. a very very rare exception was Iraq. Canada had the good sense to abstain from that bloodbath.
mickey Oberman
Are you sure you meant Obama?- not G.W. Bush – mistakes do happen.
Not sure how conservative that Catholic anti-Semite is, but as for denying free speech in Universities and colleges, it is obvious that Canada is just emulating Americas institutions of higher learning.
Really Rambo? What branch of the American Armed Forces did you serve in? You’re a big Ra Ra hero on an-others dime. I was checking and interestingly very few of the most visible and vocal conservative leadership have served in the American military. Most including Bush jr. managed to evade service in Nam. As a vet, I don’t think much of most of them, who are hypocrites if not cowards.
A.E. As per usual Mr. Goliath you are missing the point. There are consequences to so called Freedom of Speech.
We call ours Veteran’s Day when we honor those who have served and protected us as well as the entire world.
Perhaps one of the reasons why Canada doesn’t get more on board with the US is that it doesn’t have the national cojones to do so having weakened its will with politically correct policies and social programs.
Not too long ago a politically conservative commentator, Ann Coulter, was not even allowed to make a speech at some universities in Canada where she had been invited to speak. Imagine, universities not allowing speech that they find objectionable!
Canada will have to do a lot better for whatever their strategy is to mean anything to us.
A.E. Today is Nov 11. Remembrance Day in Canada. Perhaps one of the reasons why Canada doesnt get more on board with the U.S. is because of the way the U.S. goes about doing things. Just listening to you alone would make someone use a different strategy.
I have no idea what this sentence above means. The issue is a) it is good to have Harper’s support relative to his predecessors, and b) I wish this support went far beyond just hot air, not just in the middle-east but in the general war on terror. There is a lot more Canada can and should be doing in addition to their exemplary role in Afghanistan.
Remwmber? The statement pertained to those whose war it isn’t, not those who have invitations and reservations.
Size has always been Canada’s problem – except that Harper is now threatening to yell loudly at anyone who even looks cross-eyed at Israel.
I’m sure Harper standing in a corner and speaking calmly but firmly to the leaders of Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad is going to make them quake in their sandals.
Randy, are you really from Texas? I just heard an anecdote where a Muslim visiting Texas was bragging that their numbers were increasing whereas the numbers of American-Indians had decreased over the years. A cowboy who happened to overhear the conversation said that was probably because the conflict between Cowboys and Indians had been settled years ago whereas the conflict between Cowboys and Muslims had yet to take place. The Muslim was left with nothing to say.
No one has to yell at anybody, but people better let everyone know where they stand. A very calm voice is effective if the listener knows you damn well mean it, and you really do.
AE. So I guess that means in your opinion that size DOES matter.
We all know about Obama which is why we are working to boot him as soon as possible. I also like to pull the legs of our fierce Canadian warriors:-))
However, while Israelis suffering from terminal hubris may THINK it doesn’t need help in a hot war, should it become necessary to attack Iran Israel will need a lot of help to keep other Muslim dictatorships off its back, and Iran’s proxies as well. This is why we pay some of them to stay out of the way which some Israelis seem incapable of understanding, but Israeli leaders clearly do.
Yeah, right! Yelling at them is going to keep them out. Good one, Randy.
In other words, to keep everybody whose war it isn’t out.
AE. You are way off base. Israel doesn’t want anyone to fight its hot wars. Where it needs help is for leaders to defend Israel and Jews from calumnies. That’s what Harper does and Obama does not.
Yes, but just wait until someone says something anti-Israeli in Harper’s presence. Then all hell will break loose. It will be a verbal blood-bath, man, because Harper will unleash a barrage of nuclear verbiage that will just blow them to kingdom come:-)) The rest of the world will just have to get the heck out of the way.
But, all seriousness aside, those eastern Canadians are lovers not fighters – politically correct to a fault. It comes from their French side. But, don’t mess with the cowboys out west, boy, they are worse than those bloody Americans.
The Conservatve party of Canada vowed many years ago to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s Capital. The Harper Gov’t reneged on that promise.
The Harper Goverment provides the P.A. and Gaza with many millions in aid, something that never happened under the previous liberal administration.
The Harper Government refuses to sever diplomatic relations with the genocidal Sudan administration despite pressure to do so.
The conservative goverment fully backs the two state solution and supports wholeheartedly Obama’s pressure on Israel to comply.
Canada has been selling the terrorist libyan regime with heavy equipment and is providing the latter with power stations and building dams.
Supporting Israel is a total misnomer for a highly unprincipled government where ideals are supplanted by greed for the almighty dollar.
It is perfectly clear that he will fight TO THE DEATH against anti-Israeli RHETORIC with his own RHETORIC.
You mean the Grand Caliph Barack Hussein Obama, beloved of Canadians and Europeans and Muslim dictators world-wide? The one who wants to bring the US down to everyone else’s level? Are you talking about him with, or without, his teleprompter? You can have him, Mickey. I’ll even pay to move him.
You may be interested to know that my Tea Party just helped to clip his wings last week and are now working overtime to send him packing back to the Chicago hood, or, he may be more comfortable in the Toronto hood, where he can wallow in all that FREE health care you folks have for your coughs and colds, and then must come to the US for serious tests and surgery when they put you on one of those interminable waiting lists.
American Eagle – eye
If you read Harper’s speech you will see that what he said is perfectly clear and unambiguous. There is no need for you to interpret the Queen’s English for us.
Now, how about interpreting some of the vagueness and ambiguities of your American president.
You know.
The one who bowed low and grovelled before the king of Saudi Arabia.
The one who keeps poking his nose into the internal affairs of other countries.
The one who tells us that Islam is a peaceful religion.
The one who prefers to talk, talk, talk rather than act.
The one who uses bullying and blackmail as his diplomatic tools.
You know – Barry (Barak) Hussein Obama, the elected saviour of the USA and the world.
Linda, I am wondering why you all are getting so excited? Are you relieved that there is finally a Canadian PM with some lead in his pencil? But, where did you get the idea he is going to smack down anything? All he is talking about is “speaking out against anti-Israel RHETORIC”. Israel is going to be faced with a lot more than RHETORIC if Iran starts to break out as they are threatening to do. THAT’s when we will need Canada and my native India, Britain, Australia, France etc. to stop all empty talk and join the US in physically standing with Israel and each other and defending all of us from any counter-attack from Iran and its proxies who are embedded in all the western countries waiting for their orders to strike.
Look, folks. As a conservative I like Stephen Harper far better than any recent Canadian P.M. However, am I the only one who reads more than the headlines? We recently saw Yamit turn something Sarah Palin said completely upside down because of a Youtube headline, whereas what she said was the exact opposite of what the headline and Yamit say she said.
The headline above says, “Canadian PM Harper will defend Israel ‘whatever the cost’ OK. Yaaay! Sounds great!
Then we read the article and see what it actually says as represented by the following quote:
Whaaaat???!!! Harper is talking about “speaking out against anti-Israel RHETORIC”. Not exactly going to Israel’s defense when push comes to shove, is it?
The cost is “political backlash”. POLITICAL BACKLASH, for crying out loud.
He says Israel is receptive to “fair criticism” without saying what exactly Israel has done to deserve such fair criticism or what exactly that criticism may be.
Anyway, this is far better than anything we have heard from Canadian PM’s on Israel in a long time, and it is because Harper is a conservative and his heart is in the right place.
Stephen Harper has more courage, more decency and is more honest than any of today’s world leaders.
History will prove him to be Canada’s greatest Prime Minister by far.
Indeed, he is the only true leader in the world today.
All the rest of those so called “leaders” are subject to either one or more of paralyzing fear and cowardice, insatiable greed or unrelenting anti-Semitism.
Hallelujah to and for Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Bless Israel and be Blessed; curse Israel and be cursed. Thank you Stephen Harper for taking the right stand and standing therefore. Nothing that is raised against you will prosper and and anything that rises up in your face, you will smack down. And that applies to Canada too!!!!
According to a statement by Frank Dimant of B’Nai Brith Canada within the last year, indicated that a majority of Jews now support Harper and his conservative party.
See Ha’Aretz article from last year: http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/news/where-have-all-of-canada-s-jewish-liberals-gone-1.1474
I have looked but could not find anything more recent that deals specifically on the subject of traditional Jewish support turning from the Liberal party to the Conservatives.
I expect Harper’s principled position on Israel, of which the current Harper statement is consistent with his past statements will continue to draw Canadian Jews away from the Liberal party and to the Conservatives.
Most Jews in Canada have been voting Liberal and are very active in politics.
I sincerely hope that at election time, IsraPundit readers who are eligible to vote in Canada will remember Mr Harper’s speech.
The difference between a true leader with character, courage and moral clarity and a shallow individual occupying the White House who’s major concerns are his own international popularity and to avoid at all costs, offending the world’s Jew-hating, America-hating riffraff.
Hey Canada, can we work out a trade?
Good stuff. Even our former Prime Minister Paul Martin when faced with obvious antisemitism in Canada said and I quote This IS NOT MY CANADA. Jewish people have been very influential in Canadian politics good bad or indifferent but at least they show they care and are actively involved in preserving and enhancing Canadian life. Action speaks louder than words.