iF * _ than a decade. Rangers from Terrace took part. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO _ Locals help train troops for duty i in Afghanistan . GORDON BENTHAM spent two weeks in October as one . : of the “village people,” a group out to test the capability of — Canadian Armed Forces personnel set to go to Afghanistan early next year. a He and nearly 140 other members of the Canadian Rang- - ers occupied three mock villages and a number of farms on -the massive Wainwright, Alberta military training grounds while 5,000 regular and reserve armed forces members took _ part in the largest army training exercise in more than a de- cade. ‘Exercise Phoenix Ram used every facet of military hard- ware the Canadian army has. to take part in what Strategists now call a “three block war.” It’s the concept that a fighting force may be involved in- three scenarios over three city blocks at the same time — de- livering humanitarian aid, conducting stabilization or Peace . support missions and involved in'‘a full-blown conflict.:. *.. “There was a lot of role playing. We were allowed to.de- 7 velop our own roles, We weren’t even allowed to talk to the soldiers unless there were interpreters,” said Bentham. He was a resident of “Bisonville,” a hard core village which first required the Canadians to liberate it followed up ' by efforts to win over the population. “We were right in the middle of that battle,” said Bentham in describing a night attack of Canadian’ forces using tanks and armoured personnel carriers. Another village, “Six Hills,’ contained Rangers who acted as civilians welcoming the Canadians while “Vernon- burg” featured Rangers. who were somewhat sympathetic to the forces moving in. . Those Rangers: living on- farms throughtout the training grounds travelled around in pick up trucks, presenting un- known intentions for the soldiers. The excercise was framed around Canadians intervening _ ina failed state where a country’ s armed forces became frac- tured in factions based on ethnic lines. -Troops entering the villages and farms were confronted — with a broad array of scenarios that ranged from ethnic quar- rels and language barriers to civilian atrocities and seem-- ingly everything in between. Although the scenario played out was similiar to. that which Canadian forces in the Balkans face, Bentham said it’. will help the Canadians being sent to Afghanistan next year. “There’s more to war nowadays ‘than ‘we shoot you be- cause you're in a different uniform.’ Soldiers have to switch from their training to becoming humanitarian workers right after,” he said. One scenario featured a group of Rangers spread out on the ground after being shot by insurgents. A person dréssed as a priest then arrived to insist that burial services took place as soon as possible. The villages were actually large shipping containers arrayed to simulate buildings. Bentham and the other Rangers spent their nights i ina separate building. They ate field rations supplemented every . three days by hot meals. “The rations were good, commercial grade prepared. food,” he said. “They were. boil in a bag. One was salmon fillets prepared in Sooke.” While tthe villagers enjoyed hot food, those tagged to act as intepreters spent their entire time with the Canadian troops in field conditions. “One group we met hadn’t had a shower in eight days. They slept on the ground,” he said. __ The exercise was realistic down to the point that journal- ism students produced newspapers touting the opinions of various factions. Posters warning the Canadian troops of what could hap- pen to ihem were displayed throughout the region. © There were even unmanned aerial vehicles flying over- head, sending back images of the village activity to be stud- ied by intelligence personnel. ““We’d make gestures to them,” said Bentham of the cam- eras in the aerial vehicles. Rangers were suggested ‘as suitable candidates to play the roles of civilians by their commander. Bentham was one of five local Rangers taking part in the exercise. The others . were Richard Kean, James Kester, Mike Lee and Kim Bork.. _ Bentham became interested in the Rangers while living in the Northwest Territories. They’re described as the eyes and ears that would be needed by the regular forces ever be sent here for whatever reason. Each Ranger i is issued with a Lee. Enfield .303 which was the standard weapon issued to Canadian forces during the Second World War and the First World War. Rangers from Stewart, Kitimat and Smithers also took part in the exercise. | CANADIAN RANGERS took on many roles. at a recent. exercise to train soldiers being sent to Afghanistan, Here, a priest presides over a_ group of men who were pretending to be executed by insurgents. Exercise Phoenix Ram. was s the largest Canadiarr military exercise in more . WARNE VARNED-WATO! YOU CAN. om OR STAY AND Dir 2a ey nave NOW.IN PEacr, Fxercice Militaire Milita NYY m THE HANDS OF THE i, Exercise A. CHILLING POSTER | held ry local Ranger Gordon Bentham, added to the realism ‘of a recent military training exercise in Alberta. It’s a multinational effort _ EXERCISE PHOENIX Ram and a follow up smaller one, Excercise Enduring Ram, - did more than prepare Canadian troops for overseas duties, says a Canadian Forces in- formation officer. : They also gave the chance for Canadians and soldiers from other countries to practice, working together, said Brian Hillier who is based in Edmonton, the headquarters for the Land Force Western Area. That’s because battle groups from vari- ous countries are being grouped together as a multi- national brigade in Afghanistan, he said. “We’re going to part of the, multi na- tional brigade headquarters so these exercis- es proved invaluable,” Hillier added. “Enduring Ram was three and a half days * and provided the chance to set up the teams, to figure out how to do what’s needed, Ob-. viously having the chance to do this now helped before being sent over,” he said. The Canadian fighting component of the multi-national force is a 1,000 strong battle “ group built around the first battalion of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. “It ll be in Afghanistan for six months while. Canadians attached to the brigade headquarters will be there for nine months. Canadian troops have been i in Kabul, the capital of Afgthanistan, for sometime but will now be in the Khandahar area which is considered a more dangerous place. Rangers have long history — ' THE CANADIAN Rang- ers trace their history back to. the Second World War. when the Pacific Coast Mi- litia Rangers were formed after a Japanese submarine shelled a lighthouse on the B.C. coast. . _ Small groups were formed up and down the coast to act as watchers and to provide local defence pending the arrival of regular forces. The new name, Canadian Rangers, was taken in 1947 followed by an emphasis in having Ranger patrols in the far north. But the Ranger program was expanded in the late 1990s: and included the Ju- nior Canadian Rangers. The Terrace Ranger Pa- trol is part of the Fourth Canadian Ranger Patrol Group which covers western Canada. Rangers are part time re- servists in the,armed forces and their official role is to “provide. a military presence in those sparsely settled northern, coastal and iso- lated areas of Canada which : can not conveniently or eco-: “nomically be covered by other elements of the mili- tary.” A Ranger must be at least 17 years of age, be physical- ly fit, be a Canadian citizen and not have been convicted of a serious criminal code of- fence. Each Ranger is issued a Lee Enfield .303 rifle. There is.a 10-day basic training course and Rangers receive up to 12 days of pay ‘in addition to any compen- sation that might come from other duties. 6 address is 3210 Clinton ‘St, i h The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, December 7, 2005 - AS a CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE TERRACE STANDARD | The Mail Bag The poisoning continues Dear Sir: Can you believe it? Terrace did it again, voted to con- , tinue to add rat poison to our drinking water. Never mind what the rest of the world thinks of fluo- ride. Terrace obviously knows better. Have people here been brainwashed by the dentists to” _the extent that they can’t think for themselves but blindly” ~ believe what they have been told? . Or is there another explanation? Some people could have been confused by the way it was. presented at the. polls. If you were in a hurry it could easily have been mis- interpreted the way it was worded. So are we to believe that dentists can disregard all sci- entific evidence? Which, by the way, the rest of the world takes quite seriously. It’s why some countries have made -- it against the law to add fluoride to drinking water. I believe that these dentists have a lot to answer for.. They can't keep denying the facts. These are the “experts”: who also claim that mercury is safe as a tooth filling. Well listen to the news. Hear what has beer: ‘discovered. Mercury is a cumulative poison. There is no barrier that prohibits mercury from reaching the brain cells, and it is retained in the pain centre of the brain and in the central nervous system. we .Mercury can cause permanent kidney, cardiac, and, respiratory problems, arthritis and depression. It causes’ dermatitis, dizziness, fatigue, gum disease, hair loss, joint. pain and memory loss, just to mention a few more.’ The list of medical conditions caused by this- poison ‘is long: and frightening. Mercury. studies are. not new.. ' Scientists have known for years how dangerous it is. In“ their mission to convince dentists — as with fluoride — they kept denying it. Why? Because it is the easiest material to ‘make fillings from. ‘When people’s health is sacrificed for. convenience, something has to be done.. : There is no excuse for not knowing these facts today. It. | appears our city councillors are promoting their personal *. L ignorance while ‘disregarding scientific ‘fact. It also ap- pears that a doctor or dentist is “the” authority to some” people, regardless of how much or how little he knows. . ; Greta Brorup, Terrace, B. c. a _Thanks for sharing _ . Dear Sir: . IT always read Claudette Saridécki’s column but the re- ; be cent one on calcimine I really liked. , “ I haven’t used calcimine. although I ‘did help my sis- _ ter renovate her 1920s house on the’ prairies, including knocking down a wall of plastered lath. : : ‘T haven’t experienced, a cream cheque, or ordering: one. . hundred baby chicks, but I did tack on a laundry-room ad- dition onto a loan mostly meant for. business purposes.” I have enjoyed the Western Producer, and imagine how ” sweet it was to find words to popular songs there, and ad- ° mire the ingenuity of using flour and water to save them in five-cent'scribblers. ..- = ‘Thanks, Claudette, that was a fun trip! I appreciate you sharing that faded clipping: : Charlynn Toews, Terrace, B. c. “Nati vé ‘artists ignored" - Dear Sir: Who is Joe Mandur? Spirit Bear for Terrace, huh. I know for a fact that Joe Mandur isn’t aboriginal therefore I have to ask why is he stealing our heritage and why is there no one else out there as disgusted as I am. Leave it to Terrace. city council to hire a white man to capture the Spirit of the North. To me it seems that they don’t care about aboriginals and this is inst another slap i in the face to that fact. There are plenty of native artists who are doing excel- ~ Jent work if not better than Joe Mandur. In past months Terrace people have been talking about authenticity and I would like to know how itis acceptable~ _ for a white man to be doing native art: Keep the native in art and stop paying him money and start supporting local - Native art. Keep the native in the art. What is the matter with Herbert Reece ‘ or ‘Stanley Be- van or for that matter who all entered the contest? I knew the minute he got wind of this contest his art, would be selected. Have you seen his work for the transition house? He had the audacity to give the woman in his work boobs! Have - you ever seen any native art work done with boobs? As a Kitselas First Nation I would like to know why "Terrace city council accepts artwork from white men and © "don’t acknowledge the local native men who.do just-as ~ good if not better native authentic art. I for one am dis- gusted with its choice. . _And Joe Mandur you should geta life and stop stealing from us. Look up authentic.in the dictionary. I am not im- ° pressed and hope all those who are just as disgusted as me write a letter to the editor and maybe Terrace will support aboriginals, but Iv won't hold my breath. Dawn Wale-Derrick, Terrace, B. c. What's up, Mr. Premier Dear Sir: . It behooves:me to see the generated interest that Pre mier Gordon Campbell has in getting closure on treaty - talks. I had the privilege of being at the treaty signing for. our Nisga’a government. All the while instead of letting the process happen Gor- don Campbell and his entourage fought it tooth and nail. __ The.told the province as a whole how bad it iwill be if. the treaty were signed. ; ' Isn’t it-amazing that when it benefits the provincial Lib- erals how gung-ho they are on completing other treaties.? Not once.has the premier apologized for his actions, especially when he asked for a referendum. Would he do the same for upcoming treaty talks? So I ask why now? What’s in it for our people? Every time I look at Liberal power the word genocide keeps popping in. I believe that the NDP were heading in the right direction before this provincial Liberal govern- | ment. Now they take all the accolades in the progress of ‘treaty talks. I wonder when his government gets. ousted, would Premier Campbell have the same feelings for ab- original treaty talks. _ Owen McKay, Gitlakdamix (New Aiyansh), B. Cc. About the Mail Bag The Terrace Standard welcomes letters. Our: Terrace, B.C. 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