This is sadly too true. Soldiers, whether you agree with the war or not, are sent by us to fight for us, and then we penny pinch when they get back. Seems to me we should be looking after them first, and others second. This is why I have no problem with the Gov cutting healthcare for refugees. If we can’t look after those who fight and die for us, we surely can’t look after those who showed up at the door uninvited.

Notice how Karzai welcomes the never ending good fortune with open arms and a grin! A grin because ordinary Afghan people will get only the penny crumbs that happen to fall off the table of the government fat cats!

“This is why I have no problem with the Gov cutting healthcare for refugees. If we can’t look after those who fight and die for us, we surely can’t look after those who showed up at the door uninvited”.

Jeesh, what a simple-minded statement! Maybe broaden your viewpoint to include those less fortunate than we are who want to escape the tyranny in their own countries so they can join us in our great society. Why not, for example, think about cutting the one billion dollars per year the feds give to the oil and gas industry, given that they sure don’t seem to be hurting? Why dichotomize the issues into the blinkered “us versus them” approach that politicians capitaize on to manipulate public opinion in the classic shell game where they can hide rediculous exspenditures (like corporate subsidies) from plain sight?

Krusty, I agree that the government makes lots of spending decisions that baffles ordinary mortals, but let’s be real about this. If someone showed up at your door uninvited, told you they had nowhere to go, would you invite them in. And after they got in, they told you they would be killed if you kick them out, would you kick them out?

And then, their cousin shows up, and his cousin, etc.

And how much would you take from your own family, to keep them. Would you tell your kids they aren’t going to college, can’t have a car, can’t go skiing. Because on a national scale, that’s what’s happening. So in my simple way, if the government must choose, I’d prefer they choose to provide for their own citizens, especially those who fought for this country.

Would you suggest we just throw our doors open and welcome everyone whose in a bad way? Fact is, the way women are treated in far off shores, I’m surprised our immigration policy doesn’t state – women can come in, but the a**holes from the same country that says they can’t drive a car, can stay out. After all, Canada believes in women’s rights, doesn’t it.

Now, you can argue the government has chosen poorly in other areas, but I guarantee you those people in those areas would argue you’re simple minded because you don’t understand the intricate world of high finance and why governments must subsidize.

Ski, you make some very reasonable points. My point, poorly framed perhaps, is that it doesn’t necessarily come down to an us-and-them proposition; our system can provide for the vets (who I have served in my work capacity) and refugees.
My parents were commies and I paid for my own car, my own education, and my recreation (which was of the “street” variety, but that’s another story), but they were inclined to take in strangers and family members alike who had fallen on hard times. As a kid, I shared my toys, my food, and often whatever meagre sleeping arrangements we could cobble together. Maybe as a result of those experiences, I tend to think of our country as rich in the spirit as well as the wallet and as such, has an obligation to those less fortunate.
Sorry for my earlier harshness, and liked the comment about the **sholes who make life miserabel for women in many other nations.

Actually ski, soldiers are sent by our govt, our govt is penny pinching and its our govt who is looking after those that show up uninvited.

“We” would insinuate I have something to do with the BS our govt does, when in fact I have no personal say in what they choose to do when they are elected. They are their own entity.

So please don’t include me in your “we” category.

But the point is, our veterans are getting the s!@t end of the stick while the government tries to impress their UN buddies with ostentatious largesse.
And I agree that the common Afghani people will see little if any of the money given by other countries’ taxpayers.
Something seems familiar here, reminiscent of the relationship between Indian Affairs and the leadership of the bands across Canada.
metalman.