Letter To My M.P. .....

Here's the text of an email I sent my local Member of Parliament on Sunday. How much you want to bet whether I get a reply or not?

Dear Mr. Colin Mayes,

I am shocked and dismayed to discover that the current Canadian government
is spending its citizens tax dollars on the training of some of our troops at
Blackwater, U.S.A., based in North Carolina. Since when did our government
find it acceptable to have our troops trained by a mercenary organization,
whose finest skills seem to be shoot first, ask questions later. I've known
of Blackwater for several years, and am aware of who they are and what they
do.

"The Canadian Forces are using a controversial private security firm to
train some of its troops sent to Afghanistan.

Select Canadian soldiers have been sent to Blackwater U.S.A. in North
Carolina for specialized training in bodyguard and shooting skills. Other
soldiers have taken counterterrorism evasive-driving courses with the
private military company now at the centre of an investigation into the
killings of Iraqi civilians and mounting concerns about the aggressive
tactics of its workers in the field." - The National Post.

If you can provide me with a satisfactory and plausible excuse for this, I'd
appreciate it. In the meantime, I'm becoming more and more sceptical of the
leadership in Ottawa, and exactly who or what motivates it.

Sincerely,
Fiona Bateson