Mike, via email; “At 19:15 of today’s Question Period, Robert Fife asks the Minister of Defence to reveal the position of Canada forces personnel when they are assisting Iraqi forces target hostile ISIS forces.”
I’m taking the writer at his word, as I can’t open CTV videos. If someone can download this portion to Youtube, let me know.
Update: I’ve received a transcript, relevant portion follows.
FIFE: Okay. Were the Iraqi soldiers that were with the Canadians, did they
not shoot at these ISIS forces, or was it just the Canadians?
NICHOLSON: Again, I think this was an effort by a whole group of people. My
information is that the Canadians fired back when they were fired upon, and
I think that all Canadians, quite apart from the opposition parties, would
agree that they did the right thing.
FIFE: Can you tell us how close our special ops are when they paint these
targets. Are they really close to the frontline? Are they say a kilometre or
so back?
NICHOLSON: Well, again, I’m not in the business of pinpointing exactly
where our special forces are, but as has been indicated, they do quite a bit
of training well behind the lines, but they do advise and assist the Iraqis
to make them as effective as possible, because ultimately this is what we
have to have to be successful. The air strikes are absolutely vital, but the
Iraqis have to win this war on the ground, and so to the extent that we and
other coalition partners can advise them, this is all going in the right
direction.
FIFE: Well, Mr. Nicholson, on Thursday you met with coalition partners in
London where you are. We know that the French have committed to another, to
more coalition trainers in Iraq. Are we looking at sending more Special
Canadian forces?
NICHOLSON: We have a mandate here that will take us to about the first week
in April, and we’ll revisit the subject, but our mandate is here for up to
six months at this time, and that’s the mandate under which we’re operating.
FIFE: So you’re not ruling out, once we, I’m assuming we’re going to extend
this mission, sending more Canadian forces on top of the 69 we already have
there?
NICHOLSON: We’ll revisit the whole issue and, but for now we’re focusing on
assisting and advising them with the Special Forces on the ground, and with
the air strikes that are being operated out of Kuwait.
Bob Fife is functionally insane…for asking the question.
No Defence Minister is going to start micromanaging JTF2 special forces when that is the job of the CO (commanding officer). Certainly, any Defence Minister isn’t going to give GPS coordinates so the enemy can attempt to ‘take out’ your own special forces.
One of the reasons I refuse to watch the inanities of so called ‘news reports’.
Bob Fife is militarily bereft of any sense or knowledge.
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group ‘True North’
“Barney” Fife is a nincompoop.
Double face-palm for sure.
And an idiot to boot.
Who in their right mind would publish the position of their troops. Actually Fife is a stupid idiot.
Just be glad Fife is not in charge of keeping us safe.
I’m surprised he didn’t ask for GPS coordinates!
Mother****ing idiot!
Does the Canadian media have ANY clue about security?
You defined the problem with CTV’s reporting from Ottawa. Ever since the Christmas Prime Minister report when Lloyd Robertson and his Bureau Chief Bob Fife pressed P.M, Harper in an effort to embarrass PMSH.
Harper was polite and as I recall when Fife aggresively brought P.M. Harper’s personal preference for an elected Senate into the discussion, Harper smiled, replied; and I paraphrase “Robert you are more likely to be appointed to the Senate by the Conservative Party than the Liberal Party”.
My observation of Mr Fife’s increasing (mania-neuroses?) against the Conservative Party, especially P.M. Harper convinced me there was never going to ba any accuracy in the reporting by C.T.V. with a Bureau Chief having a personal agenda. I stopped watching CTV at that time.
I do wonder if the vehemence in the reporting of Senator Mike Duffy (appointed Senator by Harper) and the minimal reporting on former Liberal appointed Harb was affected by FiFe’s personal Agenda. After all the amount of money alleged to have been in the Harb investigation was at least twice the amount attributed to Duffy.
Bob Fife was never a reporter, no matter how much he may wish believe he is. He is a snitch. He admits as much in his feckless commercial… People tell him things and he tells us. Snitch.
Mr. Fife,
What is your home address? Your phone number? If you have children, what are their names and addresses?
Robert Fife is being unfairly labelled by SOME, at this site in my view.
CTV’S FIFE is TAKING SIDES!
That’s not news, THAT IS NEWS SHAPING BY Mr. FIFE at CTV…..CANADIAN MSM.
ural….why are you asking him? Google maps are your friends. And no….that is not a threat, Fife. Just reality.
I guess the question should have been to Mr. Nicholson … after all, Fife asked him where someone else’s children, fathers, husband/wife were … in a war zone.
Should be no problem answering the question for someone living in Canada … right?
I’m sure barney Fife figures if he can help the Islamofascists to blow up some Canadian soldiers before the election, there would be a multitude of new stories to hammer the Conservatives with. Slime like him, dead eye and the TO star on QP make it easy, not to watch.
FIFE: So you’re not ruling out, once we, I’m assuming we’re going to extend
this mission, sending more Canadian forces on top of the 69 we already have
there?
Why would they EVER rule anything out in a time of war? And why would he EVER expect a Minister to give out operational details?
Ye gods what a stupid *&%$ing twit.
Robert Fife retweeted
Cynthia Grenier @Tintie4 12h 12 hours ago
@RobertFife @HonRobNicholson it seemed as if the Minister didn’t know details of their mission at all? That seems odd.
=========================
Odd? ODD?!?!?! Well, if he DID know, which as D.M. he surely does, WHY in the **** would he tell you?!
Just shut-up……….STFU. Man, I can’t take any more of this sanctimonious asshole.
Well for the kiddies who grew up on Barney The Dinosaur, I guess now they get Barney the Presstitute.
It is all good, CTV needs more reporters on the front lines, preferably interviewing IS as to root cause.
Perhaps the next time JTF2 have a range day they can put up Bob Fife posters…
These young lads put up with a tolerable amount of rubbish; so I think that would be right sporting!
And Harkov: If Fife really tweeted that as a follow up he’s dumber than we all previously imagined; wanker extraordinaire.
Good on Defence Minister Nicholson for correctly pointing out that …”I’m not in the business of pinpointing exactly where our special forces are”
Fife is probably as choked as Michael Moore with Eastwood’s latest flick…and would have a full blown case of the vapours, if Clint announced his next film as “CANADIAN Sniper”. That would be a beer and popcorn moment 🙂
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group ‘True North’
Re:Canadian Sniper. Actually, there is a worthy story there, in Robert Furlong, who for a time held the record for the longest recorded kill by a sniper. (In 2002, I think) The previous record was held by one of his fighting mates, and the new record is held by a Brit. All were against the Taliban. The Canadian brass seemed a little embarrassed by the fact that our soldiers were doing something besides handing out cookies, and his achievement was kept rather hushed. He did receive the Bronze Star – from the Americans.
Bob’s gotta come out of the closet soon.
I mean that HAIR… surely it’s not for picking up chicks…..
Fife has been around long enough to know you don’t win wars by telling the enemy where you are and what you are doing. We have already disclosed too much and the lame brains leading the opposition want to inform the enemy of further actions.
We as citizens of this country do not need to know, this is not only for our own safety but for the safety and success of our troops to carry out their mission. It appears the likes of Fife and company can’t connect the terrorist attacks here with the current mission. All the Media Party are concerned with is putting down the best PM we’ve had in memory and they’re willing to put us all at risk to do it.
I can say without reservation that Fife is one of the dumbest people in Canada.
Pity the Minister didnt say, “well, if I told you all that Bob, I’d have to kill you”.
Re-reading the exchange between Blondie Fife and Nicholson I’m more angry, more dumbfounded. This is as close to aiding and abetting the enemy as it gets. We look like idiots to have such fools in our mainstream media, seasoned reporters in senior positions at that. Time to refuse any further interviews with bone heads playing politics with our safety, we are in a war different than any we have ever experienced,the rules need to be tighter given the large network for spreading information.
Trudeau and Mulcair should scare anyone who values what this country stands for. Safety and security in a free society are becoming more complicated by this scourge of our our time, Islamic terrorism.
Minister Nicholson should refuse to talk to any reporter like Robert Fife. These reporters put a story before our soldier’s lives!
Rather than refusing to speak to the media, the Conservatives, including the PM & his ministers, should redouble their efforts to inform the Canadian public, even if they have to penetrate the media filter and be more direct and even aggressive in their replies.
Often, in interviews with self-appointed know-it-alls like Fife and Solomon, Conservatives allow themselves to be talked over or silenced rather than telling the interviewer to “hold on, let me finish my point”. If the same question is asked over & over (a Solomon habit) the Conservative should reply with something like: “Don’t expect me to change my answer just because you don’t like it”.
In an exchange like this one:
“FIFE: Can you tell us how close our special ops are when they paint these
targets. Are they really close to the frontline? Are they say a kilometre or
so back?
NICHOLSON: Well, again, I’m not in the business of pinpointing exactly
where our special forces are …”
I think the minister should have replied something akin to: “Bob, you’re asking me to pinpoint the location of our troops, thus exposing them to mortal danger. Is that what you think Canadians expect me to do?”
I may have expressed the notion of CTV shaping “issues” once before on this SDA blog but I will repeat it here again.
Don Martin on CTV’S ….”POWER PLAY” program at 5:00 pm our eastern time… will colour issues with two very prominent guests…
GREENIE,Elizabeth May & COMMUNIST Thomas Mulcair.
AS I have said once before…
Those two guests are SO FAR UP CTV DON MARTIN’S ASS…. ONLY THEIR SHOES ARE SHOWING OUT !
Robert Fife, on air, referred to the Conservative party as “a bunch of knuckle draggers”.
Don’t ever expect a fair interview from either him or Craig Oliver, who idolized Trudeau Sr and so it seems Jr. as well.
“FIFE: Can you tell us how close our special ops are when they paint these
targets. Are they really close to the frontline? Are they say a kilometre or
so back?”
A question like that reveals a world of ignorance regarding the military and how things are done. He could have looked that up on google. If he had, he’d know the exact range those lasers reach. Guarantee you the ISIS w@nkers know how far they reach, and do everything they can to intercept those laser teams.
Lucky that “everything they can” amounts to digging a hole and hiding in it.
Also reveals that Mr. Fife really doesn’t care at all what happens to Canadian soldiers. He hasn’t even bothered himself to find out what kind of information would endanger them if it was announced on TV. Or worse, he knows and asks anyway.
What he’s doing is trying to make it look like the Harper Fiend is “keeping Canadians in the dark” by asking dangerous questions and then braying about it when he gets stonewalled. If somebody dies from this, he really doesn’t appear to care in the slightest.
Which is why I never, ever, EVER watch CTV or link to their website if I can avoid it. My boycott of CTV is as complete as I can make it. They deserve bankruptcy. CTV shareholders, take note.
I stopped watching CTV when Barney called Conservatives ‘knuckle draggers.’
As far as Nicholson is concerned, he’s an OK guy. Before he was elected he offered me assistance (unsolicited) when he came on the scene of a problem I was having. I didn’t require it, but I’ve never forgotten his compassion.
Now you guys just leave little Bobby Fife alone.
All he’s trying to do is confirm some facts for his employer: al Jazeera.
There are some who insist on a detailed play-by-play of the activities of Canadian troops for the sole purpose of embarrassing Stephen Harper and attempting to portray his government as somehow being secretive or dishonest. When it comes right down to it, they really couldn’t care less about the well-being of the troops.
I think it would be a worthwhile use of tax dollars to airlift Fife, Mulcair, Trudeau and anyone else who, for the sheer purpose of scoring cheap political points by asking stupid questions, behind ISIS lines for a first-hand view of just what Canadian soldiers are up to. I’m sure this would satisfy their curiosity about all things military and then they could report their observations to any who are interested. Votemongering scum such as the aforementioned trio would have probably expressed outrage at the thought of Canadian troops returning fire on the Germans at Juno Beach.
Back in the early 40s, probably both Oliver and Fife would have had a career change to cutting pulpwood under close supervision……
Are you kidding? Cutting pulp wood is hard, dangerous work – and requires skill and analytical thought levels awaaaayyyy out of Fife ‘ s little league.
I watched the program. It was an interesting contrast between the way in which he interviewed the two federal ministers (Oliver and Nicholson) and the way he softballed Wynne. He’s clearly playing things up for the upcoming federal election and laying the groundwork for the narratives that he’s going to want to play. I find it funny that those narratives are clearly becoming the planks of the Liberal Party.
A better try on the issue by Dan Leger, but still a fail.
OK guys, we’re headed to the front now, here’s your rules of engagement:
http://thechronicleherald.ca/opinion/1265097-leger-is-our-iraq-mission-about-politics
Wynne is going to be playing a big part in the Federal election doing everything she can to blame the Feds for the financial mess her party has made in the province of Ontario.
In his youth, bitten once too often – or maybe not enough – by skeeters, way up there in the backwaters of NE Ontario.
On a lighter note, one of my favourite Saturday Night Live skits in the early 90s, on the subject of media ignorance and undermining of the military:
http://vimeo.com/45593328
Poor quality video so here is transcript for your comedic edification
Desert Storm Press Conference
(Defense Secretary Richard Cheney) Phil Hartman: And so, to sum up, while this war is by no means over, it is certainly fair to say that we have inflicted heavy damage on the Iraqi war machine, and every day brings victory for the coalition that much closer. Now I’m going to hand the floor over to the Lieutenant Colonel Pierson, who will field your questions.
(LCol William Pierson) Kevin Nealon: Thank you Senator Cheney. I’m happy to take any questions you might have with the understanding that there are certain sensitive areas that I’m just not going to get into. Particularly, information that might be useful to the enemy. Yes?
Mike Myers: What date are we going to start the ground attack?
Lt. Col. William Pierson: Well, as I mentioned a moment ago, there are certain sensitive areas which we are just not going to go into, and that is certainly one of them. Yes?
Dana Carvey: Sir, knowing what you know, where would you say our forces are most vulnerable to attack, and how could the Iraqis best exploit those weaknesses?
LCol Pierson: Well, again, this falls into the area of information that might be useful to the enemy, and I just can’t divulge it right now.
Julia Sweeney: Sir! Which method of hiding SCUD missiles is working best for the Iraqis?
LCol Pierson: Now, this again is a good example of information that could help the enemy, and I just can’t answer that.
Tom Davis: I have a two-part question. Are we planning an amphibious invasion of Kuwait, and if so, where exactly will that be?
Cheney: Excuse me. If I could interrupt here, I just want to underscore what Colonel Pierson said at the start of Q&A. There are two general categories of questions that we are simply not going to be able to address. On, those that would give our enemy advance warning of our actions, and two, those that would identify any points of weakness or vulnerabilities to the Iraqi forces. So let’s reopen the floor to questions.
Jan Hooks: I understand that there are passwords that our troops use on the front lines. Could you give us some examples of those?
LCol Pierson: No, that is something I really cannot comment on. Yeah?
Conan O’Brien: Are we planning an amphibious invasion of Kuwait? And if so, where?
LCol Pierson: I believe that question was asked and if you recall, I already answered it, or said I could not answer.
Tim Meadows: Sir, what would be the one piece of information that would be most dangerous for the Iraqis to know?
LCol Pierson: No can answer! I have time for two more questions. Yeah?
Adam Sandler: Yes, Farud Hashami, Baghdad Times. Where are your troops, and can I go there and count them?
LCol Pierson: Nope! Last question.
Chris Farley: Is there anything that you can tell us that would lower the morale of our fighting men?
LCol Pierson: No. Really, the only thing we’re at liberty to say at this time is, “Live, from New York, it’s Saturday Night!
In case my transcript of this bit doesn’t make it out of blog filter, hilarious SNL skit on the matter:
http://vimeo.com/45593328
Hans Rupprecht—-Good one! Fife-Wanker-Beer & Popcorn bringing the Librano out of FiFe in one comment; Three huzzahs. Cheers;
Good point first timer.
Was shocked this morning to hear part of a news conference in which some military spokesman explained that the Canadian Special Forces — OMG, GASP — returned fire against ISIS.
And no fewer than 3 times he explained that this was strictly defensive. Jeziz.
Nah, we don’t wanna be offensive against those sensitive chaps.
And what’s the deal with training Iraqi troops?
Have we not learned that this is a foredoomed project?
Don’t they shoot fheir teachers when they graduate?
We’re kinder gentler instructors?
I’ve read 3 WW1 books recently. The contrast could not be more stark.
“Actually, there is a worthy story there, in Robert Furlong, who for a time held the record for the longest recorded kill by a sniper. (In 2002, I think) The previous record was held by one of his fighting mates, and the new record is held by a Brit.”
Furlong’s shot killed the driver of a moving truck. The Brit hit a stationary target. In my opinion, Furlong at least holds the record for a moving, more difficult, target.
Rob Furlong, a Canadian Army sniper who held the record for the kill from the greatest distance.[12] – probably a more difficult shot, given that the subject was a moving target. 2,430 m (2,657 yd)
Henry Norwest, a sniper in the 50th Canadian Infantry Battalion during the First World War. He had 115 confirmed kills and was killed by a German sniper in August 1918.[13]
Francis Pegahmagabow, a Native Canadian sniper in World War I who is credited with 378 kills, and an unknown number of unconfirmed kills.[14]
Arron Perry, a Canadian Army sniper who briefly held the record for the longest-ever recorded and confirmed sniper kill in 2002.[12] 2,310 m (2,526 yd)
Graham Ragsdale, a Canadian Army sniper who fought in Afghanistan in 2003.[12]
Craig Harrison (born 1975), British Army sniper who achieved the longest confirmed kill shot in history (2,475m) using the Accuracy International L115A3 Long Range Rifle.[11] – took out 2 stationary Taliban machine gunners 2,475m (2,707 yd)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNlIpXTtnvE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MO41LAZLb0Y
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group ‘True North’
No kidding…..nor were the Canadian authorities during the last great misunderstanding…..
“….hard, dangerous work….” a feature not a bug. Less quislings after the end of hostilities….arbiet macht frie….
The MSM lives up the a55 of pierre jr. and Fife is part of the MSM, need we say anything more?
The primary concern of the Opposition is to make things uncomfortable for the Prime Minister.
Their blatant use of any means and particularly in this area, stamps them as charlatans.