At Least Our Troops Don't Prorogue

It will be an odd winter. Normally we would be heading back to the House in January to resume Parliament's normal activities, chaotic as they are. That opportunity is now gone, sacrificed on the altar of political expediency.But there was another sacrifice yesterday - the ultimate kind - that broke in the news at the same time as Stephen Harper's prorogation announcement. Four Canadian soldiers were killed by an explosive device, their deaths a grim reminder that politicians and the very troops they support are meant to work hand-in-hand to oversee the world's greater interests. Well, that's not going to happen now. It's not just about the special hearings on the detainee issue; it's more about soldiers getting into their vehicles and touring the perimeter knowing they are fighting for a democracy back home that, like them, is meant to be ever-vigilant.I have watched Peter MacKay stand often in the House to speak of the courage and expertise of our troops in Afghanistan. Not one person in that place can argue with the Defence Minister because he's right. His recent troubles aside, he has continually reminded Parliament that its job is to watch over the troops and provide them their unqualified support, within reason. Afghanistan is a messy war, yet part of the reason Canada has kept at it is because that last thing we want to be seen doing is to pull away our support for our men and women in uniform prior to the official end of their tour of duty - 2011. Whether or not you agree with the war, our troops were merely doing as instructed by Parliament.Well, we just fumbled that ball. While our soldiers defend our belief in democracy overseas, the very institution meant to give life to that political ideal - Parliament - has been prorogued. The soldiers must show up - it's their duty. I thought it was ours, too, to resume our responsibilities in January. I don't know what it says when we can ask dedicated citizens to risk their lives in a military venture when we can just decide to take an extended vacation. And I'm not sure this qualifies as support for the troops.And what about Michelle Lang, the 34-year-old reporter with the Calgary Herald, who died along with the Canadian troops yesterday? Like most journalists, she took her job seriously and, on her first trip "outside the wire," paid for that dedication to truth with her life. She refused to back out when called, and in so doing raised the level of her profession another notch.I'm not sure what all this says about our state of mind at the moment, but it does appear to me that Parliament itself might be the ultimate detainee -  locked away, starved of citizen and media insight, no ability to deliberate or function as it ought. The Olympics were meant to show what Canada is all about. I hope our visitors don't look too closely.