GO CANADA

Canadian forces are in the thick of it in Afghanistan:

Military officials have been vague about the number of Canadian soldiers in the operation, but they say it's their largest mustering of force since the Second World War. And despite the four Canadians killed and as many as seven wounded — it was one of the bloodiest days since Canada sent troops to Afghanistan in 2002 — the soldiers seemed energetic as their armoured vehicles edged deeper into Taliban territory.

They might, however, want to stop giving the opposition a sporting chance:

The Canadians had warned their adversaries about the coming attack with leaflets and radio bulletins. Just before the foreign soldiers arrived, insurgent leaders representing as many as 1,000 Taliban organized a shura (meeting) where by some accounts they urgently debated whether to retreat east into the district of Dand. But they decided that the inevitable showdown with the Canadians would be best fought in the natural defensive terrain of Panjwai's trenches, dry canals and thick mud walls.

“The foreigners will die here,” a Taliban fighter said Saturday, reached by telephone.

Good luck, boys.