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| Michael Bliss |
Leaside’s Michael Bliss has told CP24 host Stephen LeDrew that the ISIS situation is terrible and that “good people on both sides” will disagree on what to do about it. He spoke as the Commons re-convened to continue debate on the government’s decision to send fighter jets to attack ISIS in Iraq. Dr. Bliss said he wished Canada would postpone action until the matter became clearer. He said he did not think Ottawa understood conditions in the region nor did the Americans. The West’s track record of figuring out how to react to such problems was not good, he said. He conceded that ISIS terrorists were “bad guys and a menace” but he added that they seemed to be a threat to others in the region, rather than to Canada. He noted that countries such as Saudi Arabia and Turkey are well equipped to deal with ISIS. Between them they had excellent air and military forces. Bliss referenced the last time Canada used air power in the region. That was in Libya during the so-called Arab Spring (Bliss did not use that term). He called the effort a failure. There is chaos in Libya. (Some might say that the West embarked on its Arab Spring adventure with a giddiness quite unlike the sense of horror surrounding ISIS — Ed.) Dr. Bliss said we should give credit to CSIS for being on top of the comings and goings of terrorists associated with ISIS. He said the government should pay a lot of attention to this concern. A public opinion poll done by Ipsos Reid shows that perhaps 64 percent of Canadians support some form of action against ISIS, although with feelings of caution. American public opinion registers a similar support. This sentiment is largely attributed to the disgust and outage people feel over the public atrocities staged by ISIS. Dr. Bliss mentioned his concern, when asked about the beheadings by Le Drew, that these acts alone may not be the best basis to decide if we send forces to the area.
