There is no such thing as a UN soldier

Doublethink is alive and well around the world.

Canadians and Europeans surveyed in a recent poll strongly support sending United Nations peacekeepers to Iraq to oversee its democratic transition. 58 per cent of Canadians supported the idea (likely a lot less if they'd bothered surveying only the west coast, but whatever)- not exactly wholehearted support, but startling, given that our strained army has its hands full just keeping southern Afghanistan somewhat free of heroin-smuggling, RPG-toting jihadis... and Canadian politicians have thus far had the good sense to keep us the heck away from Baghdad.

The European's much stronger support is even more eyebrow-raising, given that the UK is in the process of cutting its current troop levels in Iraq, the Italians got out long ago, and the French and Germans opposed armed intervention in Iraq from the get-go.

Just where do the people who took part in the survey think these UN peacekeepers are going to come from: China? Brazil? Cobra Island?

Pollsters, next time, try asking this question: do you support sending soldiers from your country to Iraq - knowing full well that by doing so, your soldiers will become the new priority target for every trigger-happy idiot with a Koran and an AK-74?

This poll is sooooo 2003.

No end in sight for Darfur

The Darfur genocide will not end.

That's because the government of Sudan will never allow United Nations forces to send an armed force strong enough to stop the carnage. Even if the regime did finally give in to international pressure, Al Queda and its allies have already promised to turn such a mission into another Iraq.

I spoke to Darfurian refugees at a rally in Vancouver on the weekend. They said they wanted aid - economic, military, whatever the international community could provide.

Many people at the rally were even calling for Canada to send troops to lead a mission - hopefully not the exact same people who are calling for a Canadian withdrawal from Afghanistan - perhaps believing that a Sudan mission would more resemble our past operation in Cyprus than our current efforts in Kandahar province.

We are tied down in Afghanistan, and will be until 2009. International troops in that country, including Canadians, are the only thing preventing a civil war killing potentially millions. Sudan can't wait until 2009.

Unfortunately, they may have to.