Submarines. Drones. Quantum technology. Canadian factories. European defence markets. Something much bigger than a defence spending increase is taking shape.
Very interesting stuff Fred. Back about 1981/82 when i joined the federal government, from a provincial background in a very different field, they had an urgent need for someone with my policy skills at Supply and Services Canada. Its primary role was to provision the military, and make or buy was one of the leading questions on materials and materiel. It was believed that we needed to maintain core capacity for certain delicate equipment, don t ask me what today, but I recall how very important it was that we be able to at least minimally arm our own forces. And that meant winter clothing and boots and zippers as well as preserved foods, devices, transport, tires and so on. Businesses depended on government contracts not to get rich but to keep them afloat. Slow clearing cheques were still worth bidding for despite some swearing.
And suddenly within a year or so, they removed that policy capacity along with other divisions and the department got absorbed into something else, and the transition to international agreements and dependancies began. NAFTA,streamlined service, downgrading rail in favour of trucks. Lots more things that have come back to haunt us. I m astonished to find myself living through the full circle and now seeing the historical folly though I can t exactly see us being a military producer all those years either, but after PET, there was a pro American reaction from the Mulroney set. And off we trundled. So many decisions my instincts fought, many were right in hindsight although there are always equivocations no matter what.
I sure hope we re doing better now. I m keeping an eye on Norway as a benchmark, they seem to have made a lot of good calls over the same time.
You keep bring back memories. Guess I had a more interesting career than I remembered.
Keeping more of our defence dollars at home, but more importantly, creating intellectual capital. I remember a contract where we were looking for industrial offsets in Canada for the money leaving the country. One of the proposals was that the vendor proposed buying jam from Canada! Great if you make jam, but not the intent. Hopefully defence needs and intelltual property development get priority.
“Strategy is one thing Execution is another” struck me Fred. We seem to finally have leadership who are doing both almost at the same-time . Have been reading many opinion’s of slow down and consider the impact on ,well several things, understandable but growing pains are inevitable affecting some more than others. There is rightfully an urgency to move forward and I am confident PM Carney is doing his best to respectfully consider those but Canada needs to stay united and trust the man we elected.
Me too. There s no doubt that when we have the leisure there are many vital perspectives some of which will get trampled in the first race. But when we re being chased by dinosaurs Ill follow the guy who s getting us away to a safer place, not the one dithering about the grasses and potential fires and small animals crushed and where s lunch tp come from and all sorts of evils.
I think people are rightly fearful for the planet but not really getting how much danger we re in first. He incidently has to build us a safer place on the fly and using his very impressive skill set. Which some people don t like, for msybe good reasons, but they re working. Why on earth are we undemining him and taking potshots because it s not perfect right now?
He s giving us a later to fix things then. The bad guys will wipe the mat with us and the planet at the same time soon as they can get hold of us.
Very interesting stuff Fred. Back about 1981/82 when i joined the federal government, from a provincial background in a very different field, they had an urgent need for someone with my policy skills at Supply and Services Canada. Its primary role was to provision the military, and make or buy was one of the leading questions on materials and materiel. It was believed that we needed to maintain core capacity for certain delicate equipment, don t ask me what today, but I recall how very important it was that we be able to at least minimally arm our own forces. And that meant winter clothing and boots and zippers as well as preserved foods, devices, transport, tires and so on. Businesses depended on government contracts not to get rich but to keep them afloat. Slow clearing cheques were still worth bidding for despite some swearing.
And suddenly within a year or so, they removed that policy capacity along with other divisions and the department got absorbed into something else, and the transition to international agreements and dependancies began. NAFTA,streamlined service, downgrading rail in favour of trucks. Lots more things that have come back to haunt us. I m astonished to find myself living through the full circle and now seeing the historical folly though I can t exactly see us being a military producer all those years either, but after PET, there was a pro American reaction from the Mulroney set. And off we trundled. So many decisions my instincts fought, many were right in hindsight although there are always equivocations no matter what.
I sure hope we re doing better now. I m keeping an eye on Norway as a benchmark, they seem to have made a lot of good calls over the same time.
You keep bring back memories. Guess I had a more interesting career than I remembered.
Keeping more of our defence dollars at home, but more importantly, creating intellectual capital. I remember a contract where we were looking for industrial offsets in Canada for the money leaving the country. One of the proposals was that the vendor proposed buying jam from Canada! Great if you make jam, but not the intent. Hopefully defence needs and intelltual property development get priority.
“Strategy is one thing Execution is another” struck me Fred. We seem to finally have leadership who are doing both almost at the same-time . Have been reading many opinion’s of slow down and consider the impact on ,well several things, understandable but growing pains are inevitable affecting some more than others. There is rightfully an urgency to move forward and I am confident PM Carney is doing his best to respectfully consider those but Canada needs to stay united and trust the man we elected.
Me too. There s no doubt that when we have the leisure there are many vital perspectives some of which will get trampled in the first race. But when we re being chased by dinosaurs Ill follow the guy who s getting us away to a safer place, not the one dithering about the grasses and potential fires and small animals crushed and where s lunch tp come from and all sorts of evils.
I think people are rightly fearful for the planet but not really getting how much danger we re in first. He incidently has to build us a safer place on the fly and using his very impressive skill set. Which some people don t like, for msybe good reasons, but they re working. Why on earth are we undemining him and taking potshots because it s not perfect right now?
He s giving us a later to fix things then. The bad guys will wipe the mat with us and the planet at the same time soon as they can get hold of us.
This is an important difference, build Canada strong