Newman: Should Canada’s military support the intervention in Mali?

Yes. The role of providing transport support to French and perhaps troops from other nations that the Canadian government has now accepted appears to be appropriate.
The stakes in Mali are high, as former Canadian diplomat and Al Queda hostage Robert Fowler among others have chillingly explained. Canada has both an interest and a moral obligation to help counter extremist threats. Beyond that, if part of the latest version of a new world order is coalitions of like minded countries taking military action when it is deemed necessary, Canada has to play a frequent role if we want to have a voice at the table when important decisions are made.
And finally, in the previous decade Canadian Governments made significant investments to rebuild the country’s armed forces. Why bother spending that money if the forces are not used on worthwhile missions.