The last used car I owned was a 1984 Hyundai Pony. It was blue, it seemed reliable and the vendor appeared to be someone I could trust: I bought the car from my mother. She'd had it only a very short period of time and decided it was no longer the type of vehicle she wished to have in my parents' two car fleet. Thus, it was assigned a spot on the side of the driveway, beneath the overhang of the two old hemlock trees whose needles, combined with pollen from neighboring plants and sap from God only knows where combined to leave the paint dull and luster-less. But I got it for a great price.
Three months later while driving home from work it caught fire and burned to the ground. I narrowly escaped with my life and was left sitting alone on the side of the highway watching helplessly as my mode of transportation disintegrated before my eyes.
I feel nearly qualified, then, or at least empathetic enough, to comment on the Canadian navy's submarine program [http://www.navy.forces.gc.ca/mspa_fleet/... ] .
Like nearly anything having to do with the Canadian military, procurement of our "newest" vessels has been the usual strange mix of need vs. cheap vs. political interference. Like the replacement of the decrepit Sea King Helicopters [http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/cana... ] , the purchase of Canada's 'Victoria' class submarines has been plagued by technical, financial and political problems, culminating in the on-board fire that took the life of one Canadian sailor and seriously injured two others on October 5, while the vessel was on its maiden voyage from the used sub lot in Great Britain to its home on the east coast.
Like all military purchases in Canada, the story begins many years ago, principally because the decision to obtain equipment for our armed forces is such a disastrously slow process. During the early 1990's, the navy made it clear that its 'Oberon' class of submarine was nearing the end of its usefulness. Not counting the u-boats at West Edmonton Mall, Canada's submarine fleet consisted at that time of three vessels.
Unfortunately, the Prime Minister of the day was Jean Chretien, a man who while he may not have hated the military, was certainly never its biggest supporter. For Chretien, the problem with new subs was there was really no political hay to be made from the program: the navy was pretty low profile as far as the public was concerned and he couldn't even score points by canceling a purchase plan made by the previous administration.
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