April 14, 2003
The headline hungry Canadian New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Jack Layton is, like his close personal friend NDP MP Svend Robinson, lying in wait for George W. Bush. Robinson had promised to heckle Bush--like he once heckled Ronald Reagan--in the Canadian House of Commons. Layton resurfaced lately to announce that he would be joining protests on the lawn of Parliament Hill should the American President make his first official state visit to Canada on May 5th. (Although it now appears that Bush is cancelling his visit.)
"I think that a great many world leaders have protested what the President has done in Iraq, and I think that Canadians expect us to speak out as political leaders on these matters," said Layton.
Layton’s strong anti-American sentiments did not gel with his recent NDP leadership victory.
The rookie NDP leader was leading the anti-American battle cry as far back as 1987, when he was protesting the visit of a U.S. warship and attempting to keep it from docking at Toronto’s Harbourfront.
Layton, then a Toronto councillor, and a handful of blue-jeaned radicals failed in the blockade attempt against the U.S.S. Oliver Hazard Perry, which not only dropped anchor here, but also remained for a three-day visit on August 22, 1987.
The peaceniks were able to launch a "peace flotilla" and burn an American flag. Letters to the editor from the widows of war veterans filled daily newspapers in the aftermath.
At the time, the writer of this article was a columnist for the Toronto Sun. "Does anyone out there have any props like pirate swords? We elected Jack Layton to take out the garbage, but all he wants is to go out and fight those damn Yankees," she wrote in a 1987 column.
Layton had lobbied council for weeks to block the docking of the Oliver Hazard Perry on the basis, according to then Mayor Art Eggleton, that it was carrying nuclear warheads.
In the kerfuffle, some councillors and local citizens were more than a little angry when they learned that the frigate was not carrying nuclear warheads, but was only equipped to carry them.
The calendar moves up 16 years to the War in Iraq.
During media coverage of the war, references have been made to the U.S.S. Oliver Hazard Perry. That’s because something called the Perry-class FFG is now a star undersea warfare (USW) platform with LAMPS-111 helicopters onboard.
According to a description of U.S. Navy ships by the Military Analysis Network (MAN), "The Mk 13 Mod 4 missile-launcher provides secondary anti-air capability. Ships of this class are often referred to as "FFG-7" (pronounced FIG-7) after the lead ship, U.S.S. Oliver Hazard Perry (FFG-7).
In other words, the original ship Layton tried to block from visiting Toronto now has an entire fleet named after it!
What have you done for your country lately, Jack?
"A total of 55 FFG-7 Oliver Hazard Perry-class ships were built, including 51 for the US Navy and 4 for the Royal Australian Navy. Of these, 33 are in active commissioned service, and 10 are in the Naval Reserve Force (NRF)," says MAN.
The frigates are not just valuable in times of war; they play a very impressive role in global counter-narcotic operations.
MAN states, "Perry-class frigates have been responsible for 16.3% of Navy steaming days in support of counter-narcotics operations and will continue to relieve the operational and personnel tempo of active combatants by assuming more forward presence deployments.
"By the year 2000, 7 of the 10 FFG-7s in the NRF were modernized to Flight 111 baselines. These ships fulfill an important role in reducing the active force’s operational and personnel tempo by responding to contingencies such as the Haitian embargo counter-narcotics operations, and overseas deployments.
"The Navy’s fleet of Perry-class FFG-7 frigates will remain in the fleet well into the second decade of the 21st century.
"The most capable FFG-7s will be retained the longest."
How about you, Jack?
States MAN, "The goal of current plans is to transform the FFG-7 force into an all SH-60 helicopter capable force by FY’03. The primary mission of the ships will remain anti-submarine warfare and escort."
Frigates, it would seem, have a longer lifespan and more stamina than latter-day politicians do.
When Coun. Layton wasn’t spending his time protesting the arrival of American ships; he worked feverishly at having Toronto declared an official nuclear weapons-free zone.
Given the worry that would-be terrorists do not respect politician declared nuclear weapons-free status, mission never accomplished.
Meanwhile, in terms of Jack Layton’s attempt to blockade American frigates: The U.S.S Oliver Hazard Perry is alive and well.
Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com
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