The deserters are adamant that they wanted to avoid taking part in a conflict where they honestly believed they faced a high likelihood of committing war crimes in Iraq. Here’s their chance to prove they are men of conscience – and not merely cowards.

I agree that there are absolutely enough Canadians willing to enlist in our military, but only because of the unrealistic ceiling that the feds have put on the total size of our forces.

The NATO mission in Afghanistan is clearly starved of enough boots on the ground to hold territory. Here is a potential regiment-sized group of people with military skills who may require only four to six months training to get them up to speed to send over – plus they would have the motivation of Canadian (or some other NATO country’s) citizenship – as opposed to years in US military prison.

If the deserters don’t go for it, by all means, send them back to the US. But perhaps this is one way everyone can win.

McCall and the other American deserters made a rash judgment in joining and then going AWOL, and they should face the consequences. Absent any credible evidence that they were press-ganged into serving against their will or that they’d face torture, it’s time to send ‘em back.