Peace Train Canada, Cassandras and military spending: A cautionary tale for the Canadian government

In this time of rapid change and the rising spiral of state violence, Canadians have a chance to speak up for peace—or be overwhelmed by the arguments for expanding militarism. 

One way to do that is through Peace Train Canada, which is once again going to Ottawa in October to promote the cause of peacemaking. 

Its message is simple, said Keith Wyton, who is organizing the Train together with his wife, Bernadette: “We must do everything we can as a nation to avoid war and to work for peace,” he said. 

Wyton noted that some might see this small effort like being a Cassandra, the priestess of Apollo in Greek myth who was condemned to tell the truth about the future but not be believed. 

Today, he noted, people who are called “Cassandras” are sometimes viewed as doomsayers. But Cassandra’s curse was not that she was wrong—but that she was not believed, he said. 

“Cassandra’s tale is a cautionary one for the Canadian government as it increases military spending,” Wyton said. “Will it make Canada and the world safer, or will it fuel an escalation of military spending here and in other countries that will impoverish us all?” 

What’s especially troubling for Wyton about this doubling of Canada’s military spending is the fact there has been so little discussion about it. 

This lack of discussion was also noted by Paul Heidebrecht, executive director of Project Ploughshares, one of Canada’s leading peace organizations. 

In an article in Canadian Affairs, Heidebrecht questioned the government’s commitment to spend five per cent of GDP on defence and security by 2035. 

“It feels arbitrary to me,” Heidebrecht said of the defence spending goal, noting the five per cent figure is not official NATO policy. “I was surprised there weren’t more furrowed brows questioning that figure.” 

Heidebrecht acknowledged the landscape of the world has shifted. “Many people believe that our security depends on a robust defence sector,” he said. 

Whether or not that’s true, he believes Canadians need more conversation about whether five per cent is the right target for spending and what it should be spent on. “We need a time out to talk about this,” he said.

In particular, Heidebrecht wondered if building weapons is the best strategy for creating employment for Canadians. 

“Will it create jobs for the long-term?” he asked, wondering if those jobs will disappear once Canada’s defence needs are met, or if all those new weapons factories will start looking for new export customers to keep going. 

“That could see us ending up selling things to countries in ways that compromise our values,” he said. 

For Wyton, this lack of consideration of alternative views could lead the country into a “pell-mell slide” of militarism. 

“There are choices to be made and Canadians have the lessons and legacy of peacekeeping to make those choices,” he said, adding that “every dollar stolen from creating a safe, inclusive society that promotes freedom from fear and want will be squandered in a futile quest for security through weaponization.”

Photo above: Keith and Bernadette Wyton speak with Senator Marilou McPhedran at the 2025 Peace Train visit to Ottawa.