Complete Dissertation

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Complete Dissertation VU Research Portal Gambling with lives for political survival Kuijpers, D. 2018 document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication in VU Research Portal citation for published version (APA) Kuijpers, D. (2018). Gambling with lives for political survival: How democratic governments respond to casualties during military interventions. General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. E-mail address: [email protected] Download date: 08. Oct. 2021 VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT Gambling with lives for political survival How democratic governments respond to casualties during military interventions ACADEMISCH PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad Doctor of Philosophy aan de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, op gezag van de rector magnificus prof.dr. V. Subramaniam, in het openbaar te verdedigen ten overstaan van de promotiecommissie van de Faculteit der Sociale Wetenschappen op 5 oktober om 11:45 uur in de aula van de universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105 door Dieuwertje Kuijpers geboren te Beverwijk promotor: prof.dr. Barbara Vis copromotoren: dr.Gijs Schumacher prof.dr.Wolfgang Wagner 2 To my irreplaceable friend Anja Krsmanović (1983 – 2008) 3 Content Acknowledgements (in Dutch)………………………………………………………………………7 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 9 Moving away from a US-centric approach ....................................................................... 14 Escalate to avoid losing: Diversionary use of force and Prospect Theory ........................ 20 Implications for future research........................................................................................ 23 CHAPTER ONE Diverting from Domains: Re-reading the Diversionary Use of Force Literature from a Prospect-Theoretical Perspective............................................................................. 26 Abstract............................................................................................................................... 26 I. Assessing Prospect Theory Outside the Laboratory ......................................................... 26 II. Diversionary Use of Force Literature as an Unintended Test of Prospect Theory ............ 28 III. Politically Insecure, Yet Not in a Domain of Losses: Imminent Elections and the Use of Force ............................................................................................................................... 31 IV. Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 33 CHAPTER TWO: Politics pursued by military means: Presenting the Government Responses to Military Interventions Dataset, 1990-2014 ...................................................................... 34 I. Which puzzles can be solved? ................................................................................. 36 II. The Government Responses to Military Interventions Dataset ..................................... 41 Unit of analysis: the government response ................................................................... 41 Case selection: the extension of the IMI-dataset. ......................................................... 45 Description of the government response variable ......................................................... 48 (1) The number of troops ........................................................................................ 50 (2) Type of troops ................................................................................................... 54 (3) Duration ............................................................................................................ 55 (4) Military casualties .............................................................................................. 57 III. Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 59 CHAPTER THREE: Rally around all the flags: The effect of military casualties on incumbent popularity in 10 countries 1990-2014 ................................................................................. 62 I. Testing casualty aversion ...................................................................................... 65 II. Rally ‘round all the flags? ........................................................................................ 67 III. Design and methods ............................................................................................. 70 Description of the dependent variable .......................................................................... 70 4 IV. Estimation method ................................................................................................ 77 V. Findings ..................................................................................................................... 78 V. Conclusion & discussion ........................................................................................... 86 CHAPTER FOUR: ............................................................................................................... 90 Don’t mention the war vs escalating commitment: political party responses to military casualties (co-authored with Gijs Schumacher) ................................................................... 90 I. Strategic options of government parties.................................................................... 93 II. Strategic options of opposition parties ...................................................................... 96 III. Ideology, 9/11, and commitment ........................................................................... 98 IV. Design and methods ........................................................................................... 100 Description of the dependent variable ........................................................................ 100 Description of the independent variables ................................................................... 102 Estimation method ..................................................................................................... 105 V. Do parties become more positive or more negative about the military? .................. 108 VI. Robustness checks ............................................................................................. 110 VII. Conclusion & discussion ..................................................................................... 111 CHAPTER FIVE “Well, that escalated quickly” .................................................................. 115 Testing changes in troop commitment during military interventions (1990-2014) .............. 115 I. When success matters ........................................................................................... 119 II. Strategic options for governments .......................................................................... 120 III. Domestic political indicators ................................................................................ 126 IV. Design and methods ........................................................................................... 127 Unit of analysis and Dependent variable .................................................................... 128 Independent variables ................................................................................................ 130 Estimation Technique ................................................................................................ 134 V. Do governments increase their commitment? ......................................................... 136 VI. Does a secure position in office matter? ............................................................. 142 VII. Robustness checks ............................................................................................. 144 VIII. Conclusion and discussion .................................................................................. 145 References ....................................................................................................................... 149 APPENDIX ONE: Codebook: Government Responses to Military Interventions Dataset 1990 – 2014 ............................................................................................................................... 173 I. Background and Definitions .................................................................................... 173 II. Variable list ............................................................................................................. 175 5 III. Additional variable information ............................................................................ 177 Troops ......................................................................................................................
Recommended publications
  • Afghanistan: a Glimpse of War—Contemporary History at the Canadian War Museum
    Canadian Military History Volume 16 Issue 3 Article 5 2007 Afghanistan: A Glimpse of War—Contemporary History at the Canadian War Museum Andrew Burtch Canadian War Museum, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/cmh Part of the Military History Commons Recommended Citation Burtch, Andrew "Afghanistan: A Glimpse of War—Contemporary History at the Canadian War Museum." Canadian Military History 16, 3 (2007) This Canadian War Museum is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Canadian Military History by an authorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Burtch: Afghanistan Afghanistan: A Glimpse of War Contemporary History at the Canadian War Museum Andrew Burtch ow do you exhibit the history on historical themes and issues in its Hof an ongoing conflict, with an permanent galleries, to present new, unknown outcome and with most compelling stories from Canadian documents restricted on the basis of military history, and to develop or operational security? What story can import exhibitions dealing with global you tell? Afghanistan: A Glimpse of themes and special topics of interest War, a special exhibition developed by to a wide audience. and currently on view at the Canadian War Museum (CWM), addresses these It is important for the CWM, as questions by using first-hand accounts the national museum for Canadian from eyewitness records, media reports, military history, to tell Canadians interviews, open source material, and the about the most recent and significant visitors themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • AT-Jul-19-2018.Pdf
    Eye on the News [email protected] Truthful, Factual and Unbiased Vol:XI Issue No:346 Price: Afs.20 www.afghanistantimes.af www.facebook.com/ afghanistantimes www.twitter.com/ afghanistantimes THURSDAY . JULY 19. 2018 -Saratan 28, 1397 HS AT News Report the incumbent government has nei- ther authority nor capacity to steer KABUL: A number of members peace process. And the people no A bundle of ID cards, which are blank except of the Parliament argue that the longer can bear the brunt of vio- government had failed in the peace lence and want peace with the Tal- for ID photographs, have clearly been stamped process, saying that the people can iban termination of war,” she despite the forms being incomplete. no longer bear these deceitful hom- opined. Three days back, the New ilies. Parliamentarians believe that York Times reported that Presi- the government has no control dent Donald Trump had ordered Amid a spate of accusations by Sayed Ahmad, said: “The central over the peace dialogue, because his diplomats to seek direct talks politicians and political figures of government must take serious ac- of which people’s trust on gov- with the Taliban. Although the gov- voter registration fraud, TOLOne- tion and not let people interfere in ernment’s ability is fading steadi- ernment is sanguine about this ws has received footage that ap- the election commission and ID ly. MP Shekiba Hashemi during the breakthrough, lawmakers are cast- pears to question the issue of ID card distribution. Specific candi- parliament’s Wednesday session ing doubts about it. cards in Paktia province and dates and local officials are in- extoled Washington’s inclination Expectations and hopes over whether many are “fake”.
    [Show full text]
  • War in Afghanistan (2001‒Present)
    War in Afghanistan (2001–present) 1 War in Afghanistan (2001–present) The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001,[1] as the armed forces of the United States and the United Kingdom, and the Afghan United Front (Northern Alliance), launched Operation Enduring Freedom in response to the September 11 attacks on the United States, with the stated goal of dismantling the Al-Qaeda terrorist organization and ending its use of Afghanistan as a base. The United States also said that it would remove the Taliban regime from power and create a viable democratic state. The preludes to the war were the assassination of anti-Taliban leader Ahmad Shah Massoud on September 9, 2001, and the September 11 attacks on the United States, in which nearly 3000 civilians lost their lives in New York City, Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania, The United States identified members of al-Qaeda, an organization based in, operating out of and allied with the Taliban's Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, as the perpetrators of the attacks. In the first phase of Operation Enduring Freedom, ground forces of the Afghan United Front working with U.S. and British Special Forces and with massive U.S. air support, ousted the Taliban regime from power in Kabul and most of Afghanistan in a matter of weeks. Most of the senior Taliban leadership fled to neighboring Pakistan. The democratic Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was established and an interim government under Hamid Karzai was created which was also democratically elected by the Afghan people in the 2004 general elections. The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was established by the UN Security Council at the end of December 2001 to secure Kabul and the surrounding areas.
    [Show full text]
  • By James Laxer
    MISSION OF FOLLY: WHY CANADA SHOULD BRING ITS TROOPS HOME FROM AFGHANISTAN BY JAMES LAXER 2 Canadian troops have been fighting in Afghanistan for over five years. This military mission has endured for longer than the First World War and the Korean conflict. If the mission continues for another year, it will exceed the Second World War in duration, to become the lengthiest war in which Canadians have ever fought. To date, 44 Canadians have died in Afghanistan. On a per capita basis, more Canadians have been killed during the mission, than has been the case for any of the other allied countries who have sent forces to Afghanistan. The Harper government has presented the mission to Canadians as combining a military element with the provision of aid to the people of Afghanistan. In fact, in dollars spent, the mission has been ninety per cent military, and only ten per cent reconstruction aid. 3 The Chretien government propelled Canada into the Afghan War with little thought in the autumn of 2001. The mission has since been sustained and extended by the Martin and Harper governments. Despite the brief debate and vote on the issue in the House of Commons in May 2006, this country has had no authentic national debate on the Afghanistan mission. In this 30,000 word long report, I have entered the debate not as an expert on Afghanistan, but as someone with considerable experience analyzing Canadian and American global policies. It is my belief that the Afghanistan mission is a tragic mistake for Canada. If prolonged, the mission will cost many more Canadian lives, 4 without the achievement of the goals Canada and its allies have set for themselves in Afghanistan.
    [Show full text]
  • Falling Short: Suboptimal Outcomes in Canadian Defence Procurement
    University of Calgary PRISM: University of Calgary's Digital Repository Graduate Studies The Vault: Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2018-09-26 Falling short: suboptimal outcomes in Canadian defence procurement MacMillan, Ian MacMillan, I. (2018). Falling short: suboptimal outcomes in Canadian defence procurement (Unpublished doctoral thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/33132 http://hdl.handle.net/1880/108780 doctoral thesis University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. Downloaded from PRISM: https://prism.ucalgary.ca UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY Falling short: suboptimal outcomes in Canadian defence procurement by Ian MacMillan A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY GRADUATE PROGRAM IN MILITARY AND STRATEGIC STUDIES CALGARY, ALBERTA SEPTEMBER, 2018 © Ian MacMillan 2018 Abstract Why do Canada’s military procurement projects often fall short of their primary goals? Otherwise known as a suboptimal result, defence acquisitions regularly fall short of established delivery schedules, accruing cost-overruns, sometimes resulting in cancellation of key materiel. One-hundred percent of the twenty-five Major Crown Projects at the Department of National Defence have experienced delays in achieving key milestones. Aside from cost, suboptimal results are injurious to Canada’s tri-force military. Fortunately, the matter has not gone unchecked. A fairly recent surge in procurement research has generated a critical mass of Canadian-focused literature.
    [Show full text]
  • Taxonomy of Minority Governments
    Indiana Journal of Constitutional Design Volume 3 Article 1 10-17-2018 Taxonomy of Minority Governments Lisa La Fornara [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ijcd Part of the Administrative Law Commons, American Politics Commons, Comparative and Foreign Law Commons, Comparative Politics Commons, Constitutional Law Commons, International Law Commons, Law and Politics Commons, Legislation Commons, Public Law and Legal Theory Commons, Rule of Law Commons, and the State and Local Government Law Commons Recommended Citation La Fornara, Lisa (2018) "Taxonomy of Minority Governments," Indiana Journal of Constitutional Design: Vol. 3 , Article 1. Available at: https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ijcd/vol3/iss1/1 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Repository @ Maurer Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Indiana Journal of Constitutional Design by an authorized editor of Digital Repository @ Maurer Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Taxonomy of Minority Governments LISA LA FORNARA INTRODUCTION A minority government in its most basic form is a government in which the party holding the most parliamentary seats still has fewer than half the seats in parliament and therefore cannot pass legislation or advance policy without support from unaffiliated parties.1 Because seats in minority parliaments are more evenly distributed amongst multiple parties, opposition parties have greater opportunity to block legislation. A minority government must therefore negotiate with external parties and adjust its policies to garner the majority of votes required to advance its initiatives.2 This paper serves as a taxonomy of minority governments in recent history and proceeds in three parts.
    [Show full text]
  • Canada in Kandahar: No Peace to Keep
    CANADA IN KANDAHAR: NO PEACE TO KEEP A CASE STUDY OF THE MILITARY COALITIONS IN SOUTHERN AFGHANISTAN London June 2006 Photos on front cover and page 21 from the Canadian Department of National Defence. Index Field Report Conclusions i Report Recommendations vi Executive Summary ix 1. Profile: The Troubled Province of Kandahar 1 1.1 Geography: a harsh environment 1.2 The history of a volatile province 1.3 Ethnic composition contributes to instability 1.4 A collapsed and poppy-dependent economy 1.5 Limited government authority in Kandahar 1.5.1 A US-friendly governor: Asadullah Khalid 1.5.2 Weak Afghan National Army and National Police 1.5.3 Strong traditional governance structures 2. Canada in Kandahar: Confusion over Objectives 8 2.1 Canada in Afghanistan: a response to an American call to arms 2.2 Conflicting objectives of military operations 2.2.1 Legal bases 2.2.2 Objectives 2.2.3 Confusion over Rules of Engagement 2.2.4 Areas of operation 2.2.5 Counter-narcotics mandates 2.3 Canada’s failing mission in Kandahar 2.4 Canadians at war: paying the price for following the US 2.5 The treatment of prisoners: a breakdown of Canadian ideals? 2.6 Collateral Damage: the death of Nasrat Ali Hassan 3. The Disastrous Legacy of Poppy Eradication in Kandahar 24 3.1 The failure to connect security and development policies 3.2 Counter-productive drug policies and public disillusionment 3.3 Poppy eradication fuelling support for insurgents 4. Major Challenges for Canadian Forces in Kandahar 29 4.1 Canada bearing the brunt of America’s mission failures 4.2 In the face of looming Canadian mission failure, a new approach is needed 4.3 Growing insurgency threats 4.3.1 Insurgency evolution and trends 4.3.2 Insurgent groups operating in Kandahar 4.3.3 Civilian deaths 4.4 Phantom borders: the Durand line 4.5 Pakistan’s influence on security in Kandahar Appendices 40 I.
    [Show full text]
  • Facts & Figures Swedish Government Offices Yearbook
    FACTS & FIGURES, SWEDISH GOVERNMENT OFFICES, YEARBOOK YEARBOOK OFFICES, GOVERNMENT SWEDISH FIGURES, & FACTS Facts & Figures Swedish Government Offices Yearbook 2008 2008 Facts & Figures Swedish Government Offices Yearbook 2008 Editor: Josef Salih, Information Rosenbad Production: Government Offices of Sweden, May 2009 Translation: Jeffrey Ganellen Printed by: Edita Västra Aros, Västerås 2009 ISBN: 978-91-978207-1-4 The Swedish Government Offices Yearbook 2008 was produced by the Office for Administrative Affairs. The English edition of the Yearbook 2008 is an abridged version of the Swedish edition. Foreword from the Prime Minister THE PURPOSE of the yearbook is to present facts and which commences on 1 July 2009. During the past year, figures about the organisation, duties and activities of preparations have intensified and I am convinced that the Government Offices of Sweden. we can face the challenges ahead of us with confidence. It contains a presentation of the Swedish Govern- You can read more about how EU activities are organ- ment – its ministers and ministries – as well as statisti- ised in the Government Offices here in this booklet. cal material, contact information for the current year I sincerely hope that the yearbook will provide read- and a short section about Sweden. ers from abroad with a deeper knowledge of how the The year 2008 was a turbulent one in many parts of Government Offices operate. If you have any questions the world. Two events in particular had an impact on you are welcome to contact the Government Offices. operations at the Government Offices. All the relevant contact information can be found at One was the financial crisis which has led to a down- the end of this booklet.
    [Show full text]
  • Afghanistan Factor in the Trilateral Relations of the United States, Pakistan and China (2008-2016)
    AFGHANISTAN FACTOR IN THE TRILATERAL RELATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES, PAKISTAN AND CHINA (2008-2016) By SAIMA PARVEEN Reg. No.12-AU-M.PHIL-P/SCI-F-4 Ph. D (Political Science) SUPERVISOR Prof. Dr. JEHANZEB KHALIL Pro-Vice Chancellor Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan Co-Supervisor Prof. Dr. Taj Muharram Khan DEPARTMENT OF POLITCAL SCIENCE FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, ABDUL WALI KHAN UNIVERSITY MARDAN Year 2018 i AFGHANISTAN FACTOR IN THE TRILATERAL RELATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES, PAKISTAN AND CHINA (2008-2016) By SAIMA PARVEEN Reg. No.12-AU-M.PHIL-P/SCI-F-4 Ph. D (Political Science) Thesis submitted to the Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan in the partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Ph. D in Political Science DEPARTMENT OF POLITCAL SCIENCE FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, ABDUL WALI KHAN UNIVERSITY MARDAN Year 2018 ii Author’s Declaration I, Saima Parveen_hereby state that my Ph D thesis titled, “ Afghanistan Factor in the Trilateral Relations of the United States, Pakistan and China (2008-2016) is my own work and has not been submitted previously by me for taking any degree from this University i.e. ABDUL WALI KHAN UNIVERSITY MARDAN or anywhere else in the country/world. At any time if my statement is found to be incorrect even after my Graduate, the University has the right to withdraw my Ph D degree. Name of Student: Saima Parveen Date: 10 January, 2018 iii Plagiarism Undertaking I solemnly declare that research work presented in the thesis titled “AFGHANISTAN FACTOR IN THE TRILATERAL RELATONS OF THE UNITED STATES, PAKISTAN AND CHINA (2008-2016)” is solely my research work with no significant contribution from any other person.
    [Show full text]
  • Suicide Attacks in Afghanistan: Why Now?
    University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Political Science Department -- Theses, Dissertations, and Student Scholarship Political Science, Department of Spring 5-2013 SUICIDE ATTACKS IN AFGHANISTAN: WHY NOW? Ghulam Farooq Mujaddidi University of Nebraska-Lincoln Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/poliscitheses Part of the Comparative Politics Commons, and the International Relations Commons Mujaddidi, Ghulam Farooq, "SUICIDE ATTACKS IN AFGHANISTAN: WHY NOW?" (2013). Political Science Department -- Theses, Dissertations, and Student Scholarship. 25. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/poliscitheses/25 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Political Science, Department of at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Political Science Department -- Theses, Dissertations, and Student Scholarship by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. SUICIDE ATTACKS IN AFGHANISTAN: WHY NOW? by Ghulam Farooq Mujaddidi A THESIS Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College at the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements For the Degree of Master of Arts Major: Political Science Under the Supervision of Professor Patrice C. McMahon Lincoln, Nebraska May, 2013 SUICIDE ATTACKS IN AFGHANISTAN: WHY NOW? Ghulam Farooq Mujaddidi, M.A. University of Nebraska, 2013 Adviser: Patrice C. McMahon Why, contrary to their predecessors, did the Taliban resort to use of suicide attacks in the 2000s in Afghanistan? By drawing from terrorist innovation literature and Michael Horowitz’s adoption capacity theory—a theory of diffusion of military innovation—the author argues that suicide attacks in Afghanistan is better understood as an innovation or emulation of a new technique to retaliate in asymmetric warfare when insurgents face arms embargo, military pressure, and have direct links to external terrorist groups.
    [Show full text]
  • Constitutional Rules and Party Goals in Coalition Formation an Analysis of Winning Minority Governments in Sweden
    Constitutional Rules and Party Goals in Coalition Formation An Analysis of Winning Minority Governments in Sweden Torbjörn Bergman ^\ v £ <0 * O . V Constitutional Rules and Party Goals in Coalition Formation An Analysis of Winning Minority Governments in Sweden AKADEMISK AVHANDLING Som med vederbörligt tillstånd av rektorsämbetet vid Umeå universitet för vinnande av filosofie doktorsexamen framlägges till offentlig granskning vid statsvetenskapliga institutionen Hörsal B, Samhällsvetarhuset Fredagen den 31 mars 1995, kl 13.15 av Torbjörn Bergman Fil kand Constitutional Rules and Party Goals in Coalition Formation. An Analysis of Winning Minority Governments in Sweden. Torbjörn Bergman, Department of Political Science, Umeå University, S-901 87 Umeå, Sweden. ISSN 0349-0831, Research Report 1995:1 Distribution: Department of Political Science, Umeå University, S-901 87 Umeå, Sweden Abstract This study starts with two theoretical puzzles within the rational choice oriented literature on government formation in parliamentary democracies: the relative importance of constitutional rules and the existence of multiple party goals. From these puzzles stem the research questions that guide the study: First, what is the theoretical and empirical link between constitutional arrangements (including rules) and party goals? Second, what are the goals of political parties and how can these be studied? Third, relative to the goals of political parties and other constitutional arrangements, what is the importance of government formation rules for the empirical record of minority and majority governments? Coalition theory provides the theoretical starting point from which the research questions stem. The historical-institutional strand of new institutionalism is used to guide the general understanding of the importance of institutional context.
    [Show full text]
  • Pro Patria 2010
    Pro Patria 2010 Regimental Journal of The Royal Canadian Regiment The PRO PATRIA Sept. 2011, Issue 92 Editor Capt R. A. Appleton Technical Assistant: Cpl P.A. Vincent Layout & Design: Lisa Twomey, Creative Spark Design [email protected] For information about receiving PRO PATRIA, joining The RCR Association, or to request a change of address, please direct correspondence to: Regimental Adjutant, RHQ, The RCR Victoria Barracks PO Box 9999, Stn Main Petawawa, ON, K8H 2X3 Phone: (613) 687-5511, ext 5086 Facsimile: (613) 588-5932 PRO PATRIA 2010 Issue 92 Front cover: Pte Clipper Miano of 8 Pl, O Coy, 1 RCR BG, on patrol in Afghanistan, 2010. THE EDITOR’S DESK Editing Pro Patria 2010 has given me the opportunity to vicariously experience a year in the life of a great institution, The Royal Canadian Regiment. It was a wonderful adventure and, I would have to say, a daunting challenge. Any success I have enjoyed in this endeavour is in large measure attributable to a handful of very gifted and dedicated people. First and foremost among these is my predecessor as Regimental Adjutant, Captain Tim Robinson. Every facet of this Regimental appointment has been stamped with the imprint of his huge energy, incredible work ethic and dynamic character. This is cer- tainly the case with the Pro Patria magazine. This publication is very much the ongoing product of his innovative vision and dedication to our Regiment. A previous Regimental Adjutant and editor of Pro Patria, Captain Mike O’Leary, has also been a tremendous source of advice, help and inspiration.
    [Show full text]