An opportunity to solve many of our persistent social ills with significant funding has arrived on Canada’s doorstep. With our new PM’s pledge to dramatically increase our military spending to meet our NATO commitments - we can finally provide drug treatment and housing to all those in need.
How’s that?
Rather than viewing military spending as competing with social programs for tax dollars - we should look at military spending AS a social program. If viewed under that lens - a right leaning capitalist country like the United States looks much more socialist. Average citizens may have trouble getting free healthcare, but American enlistees not only get free health care, but food shelter and post secondary education as well.
Now I know not everyone wants to join the military and compromise their values by putting a rifle in their hand to achieve economic salvation. But what if the military broke into two separate branches of combat and non-combat. The Canadian military already serves many non- combat functions. During the height of the pandemic they even went inside Quebec nursing homes to assist the elderly. With climate change disasters on the rise, they will be called to serve in domestic operations even more. This force could also be deployed around the world much like the American Peace Corps to provide assistance to countries in need.
The dramatic part of this policy would come from a law requiring all citizens 18 and older to serve a minimum of two years of service unless enrolled at school or working full time. Those with treatable medical conditions, including drug dependency would receive drug treatment and healthcare (including clothing, food and housing) till they were deemed ready to serve their two - year requirement. The setting for these rehab centres should be the most compassionate and rooted in health and treatment. Citizens requiring mental health and support should also be treated but with greater leniency in terms of service requirement.
The controversial aspect to all this is that the service requirement would be mandatory. Anyone not in treatment, combat or non - combat service would be in violation of the law and would report to another less compassionate, penal system. The idea of peace time conscription is not that unique and is in place in various forms in many countries, including Switzerland and all the Scandinavian countries. The threat of foreign invasion apparently makes this approach more appealing. Canada should feel the same with the threats we face in the arctic north and now from the south.
In order to ensure that not everyone chooses the non-combat military branch - greater pay, education and training should be provided to those opting for traditional military service. In order to get as many people into this program and access needed social services, initially the age range requirement could be everyone 18 to 55 years of age.
Our new PM and former Central Bank chief will have to do some creative accounting for all this spending on social assistance to be classified as military expenditures to meet our NATO commitments. Surely, we can create rules and language around a program that is readying personnel to be called into service - where for some being called for military service is out of last resort. From what I have read there are rules for what counts and is excluded in the definition of military spending - but spending on Armed Forces personnel is included. This is one of the reasons Carney is considering a 20% pay raise to army personnel. It is a quick and simple way to ramp up spending. This doesn’t make it the best use of tax dollars, however, and it would squander an opportunity to spread the money around.
I am sure there will be people against this plan, but it should satisfy enough of a majority of people on both the left and right. It ramps up social program spending for our most vulnerable and increases our defensive capabilities. The mandatory nature of service will rub some the wrong way, but enabling people to live in squalor isn’t compassionate in my books when a well funded, helpful hand is extended.
Canada has a great opportunity to help thousands of people across this country by giving them the help they desperately need. Spending money on SAVING people should be the compromise when spending billions on weapons and other war toys that are designed to do the opposite.
By Gregory Cawsey
