‘Terrorism plain and simple’
Re: Terrorism Suspected After Soldiers Run Down, Oct. 21. Now we have acts of terrorism taking place at home, which has resulted in the death of a Canadian soldier. This man was known to federal authorities beforehand, yet nothing was done about it.
Should we not be able to deal with people like this before they murder our citizens? Of course the political left, and likely Justin Trudeau, will decry such a loss of personal freedoms as “undemocratic.” But the answer is to allow the police and security forces to pick up people like this for questioning and investigation. The rest of us who have nothing to hide also have nothing to fear.
W. Mark Erwin, Toronto. It is both with deep sadness and genuine concern that I read about the death of one Canadian soldier, and the injury of another, after they were run down by Martin Rouleau in Quebec. What I find so incredible is that this tragedy would never have happened if CSIS had taken a more pro-active approach to known radicalized Muslims. CSIS was well aware of Mr. Rouleau’s online terrorist ramblings, and yet, did nothing.
How much longer before another copycat killing takes place? Will it take the murder of another soldier, or perhaps the beheading of an innocent Canadian civilian, before our government adopts a more hands-on approach?
Harry Selick, Montreal. One of our country’s finest is murdered, and the other is severely injured as a result of being deliberately mowed down by an automobile.
This is terrorism plain and simple. Let us hope that this terrible incident does not get politically cleansed, as was the Fort Hood massacre in the U.S., where government officials referred to it as “workplace violence.” It would not surprise me to have many apologists in this country call this incident an example of “strip mall violence,” as not to annoy certain faction of this nation.
Steve Flanagan, Ottawa. This horrific murder of a member of the Canadian military and serious injury to another should be a wake up call to all Canadians — particularly the two opposition parties — that Canada is not immune from such events.
This also highlights why the current move by the government to change some laws, giving our security forces the ability to take action against suspected terrorists, should be passed quickly with all party support. Although the person who committed this act was known to authorities as having been radicalized, the police’s hands were tied under current laws. Most security experts have been predicting it was just a matter of time before we saw a successful terror attack on Canadian soil.
Larry Comeau, Ottawa.