Flit

Re security clearances

I have no further deep thoughts on the Nom de Plame affair. I will say one thing, though. Everyone who has and values a government security clearance in the Canadian military has one thing drilled into their heads from day one: negligence is no excuse. In fact, there is no excuse whatsover. Let classified information under your control enter the unclassified realm, and you will face consequences.

Regardless of his reasons, if yon Mr. Rove (or anyone else) inadvertently or intentionally passed on classified information, you either have to revoke the clearance in question, or send a horrible message to all the other people who have dutifully and to sometimes great lengths tried to fulfill their responsibilities to guard this kind of information on the goverment's behalf. Presumably without that clearance, he cannot perform whatever current White House advisory function that entitled him to it, so he must leave that portion of his responsibilities behind now, as well. It really seems a no-brainer to me.

'We are the Canadian Forces, and our job is to be able to kill people'

Army public affairs, done right. Step one, put the kind of quotes that simply can't NOT be printed in the mouth of an unimpeachably important person, and then step two, use the opportunity to explain in exhaustive detail what you're doing overseas, for a mission that so far has been mostly flying under Canadians' radar. Nicely done.