In theory, the War Measures Act seems like the most suitable option during times of crisis or war; however, its use during the October Crisis seemed unnecessary. It unnecessarily acted upon a violent group that the government could have been prepared for if they noticed it had been planned a decade earlier. The government brought back the War Measures Act when a nationalist liberation group when they threatened the government officials; and rather than allowing all Quebec citizens to continue having their rights, they would search houses despite no previous evidence of there even being an FLQ member in the house; the government acted on paranoia. The War Measures Act is considered to be a helpful Act in Canadian history; however, its use
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Trudeau mentioned they were taken off-guard at the kidnapping of a British diplomat, James Cross; since nothing like it had ever happened in Canadian history, and at the time, there had been no law in the Canadian Criminal Code covering such an extreme crisis, along with no specialized team of police. (Trudeau, 134) Trudeau later mentions that Tommy Douglas, the NPD leader at the time, argued that they used a sledge-hammed to crack a peanut (Trudeau, 143); or, pointlessly fixing a problem that could have been easily fixed another way. Trudeau defended himself by saying that the government realized its decision to enact the War Measures Act was broader than was required, however, justified their decision by mentioning the small amount of powers available to help them in the terrible state they [Quebec] were in. (Trudeau, 143) As Tommy Douglas said, the enacting of the War Measures Act was not a necessary approach to fixing the FLQ problem; however, Trudeau’s response shows that the government acted more on paranoia, rather than looking out for its people, it looked out for themselves [the government]. Kierans, a government official during the October Crisis, talked about the justification of the War Measures Act and how he possibly stayed with the Trudeau government longer than he should have. Kierans mentions that the government called it was an all-out terrorist war, with police saying it had a possible connection to the Black Panther movement in the United States. (Kierans, 243) This mention shows that the government articulately planned how they would be able to prove that the War Measures Act was a justifiable response to the acts of violence from the FLQ. Kierans mentions his doubt in the Trudeau government when he was asked about the Act and its possible ruling; when saying he said he would support the imposition,
Trudeau mentioned they were taken off-guard at the kidnapping of a British diplomat, James Cross; since nothing like it had ever happened in Canadian history, and at the time, there had been no law in the Canadian Criminal Code covering such an extreme crisis, along with no specialized team of police. (Trudeau, 134) Trudeau later mentions that Tommy Douglas, the NPD leader at the time, argued that they used a sledge-hammed to crack a peanut (Trudeau, 143); or, pointlessly fixing a problem that could have been easily fixed another way. Trudeau defended himself by saying that the government realized its decision to enact the War Measures Act was broader than was required, however, justified their decision by mentioning the small amount of powers available to help them in the terrible state they [Quebec] were in. (Trudeau, 143) As Tommy Douglas said, the enacting of the War Measures Act was not a necessary approach to fixing the FLQ problem; however, Trudeau’s response shows that the government acted more on paranoia, rather than looking out for its people, it looked out for themselves [the government]. Kierans, a government official during the October Crisis, talked about the justification of the War Measures Act and how he possibly stayed with the Trudeau government longer than he should have. Kierans mentions that the government called it was an all-out terrorist war, with police saying it had a possible connection to the Black Panther movement in the United States. (Kierans, 243) This mention shows that the government articulately planned how they would be able to prove that the War Measures Act was a justifiable response to the acts of violence from the FLQ. Kierans mentions his doubt in the Trudeau government when he was asked about the Act and its possible ruling; when saying he said he would support the imposition,