statism watch

CBC News
August 7, 2008

The Canadian military is bolstering its troops by purchasing and leasing new helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles, Defence Minister Peter MacKay announced Thursday.

“Our government is determined to give the Canadian Forces the tools that they need to do the important work that we ask of them,” MacKay said, speaking to reporters in the Montreal-area city of Longueuil.

MacKay said the new acquisitions will be made over time, with some equipment available to troops immediately, while other resources will arrive several years from now.

The equipment will be used in Afghanistan and other overseas missions, MacKay said. It will also be used at home, to protect the sovereignty of Canada’s High Arctic and patrol coastal areas.

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Ian Traynor, The Guardian
August 7, 2008

Europe should consider sharing vast amounts of intelligence and information on its citizens with the US to establish a “Euro-Atlantic area of cooperation” to combat terrorism, according to a high-level confidential report on future security.

The 27 members of the EU should also pool intelligence on terrorism, develop joint video-surveillance and unmanned drone aircraft, start networks of anti-terrorism centres, and boost the role and powers of an intelligence-coordinating body in Brussels, said senior officials.

The 53-page report drafted by the Future Group of interior and justice ministers from six EU member states – Germany, France, Sweden, Portugal, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic – argues Europe will need to integrate much of its policing, intelligence-gathering, and policy-making if it is to tackle terrorism, organised crime, and legal and illegal immigration.

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CBC News
August 7, 2008

Adding fluoride to drinking water is an important step to promoting public health, Canadian dentists said Thursday.

The Canadian Dental Association, Health Canada and dental groups in Ontario said they were standing up for water fluoridation, and urged people to get the facts.

Their call follows the release of a report in April from a panel of experts who recommended lowering fluoride levels in drinking water to limit exposure in children and infants.

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