It is critical to remember during these last 13 days of the federal election campaign that Stephen Harper is not our champion of democracy. Say what you will about his policies, but his process is abhorrent and contemptuous. I really don’t have a lot of time to go into all of the examples of this, … Continue reading Stephen Harper Put the CON in #CONtempt
I wish that this was a satirical piece. In sort of a break from the ever-so-boring federal election coverage that we’ve been bringing you lately, the City of Vancouver and its maybe-progressive governing party Vision Vancouver and former NDP MLA and now VanCity mayor (and Gordon Campbell endorser) Gregor Robertson have (almost) decided that any … Continue reading Charging $1,200 to democratically assemble, Vision Vancouver looks to China for advice on (anti) free speech laws.
The most exciting statistic I have ever seen in BC politics, particularly in regard to the health of our democracy, is that 25% of us self-identify as activists. Anyone who cares about social change at all absolutely must read Evi Mustel’s piece in The Province from Wednesday. This statistic means the entire structure of political, … Continue reading One Million BC Activists Can’t Be Wrong, Aren’t Wrong
People who are willing to die to protect others deserve respect. Prime Minister Stephen Harper feels being at a G20 meeting in Korea is more important than personally showing respect in Ottawa to the living, suffering and dead members of the Canadian Forces. Politicians, not troops, pick missions to join. Neglecting and aggravating the needs … Continue reading What I’m Remembering Today
From the building rhetoric of Canadian troops staying in Afghanistan [but leaving Kandahar, according to the specific words of our commitment to “leave”], to news that Harper will not bother to attend Canadian Remembrance Day ceremonies because he’s away at a G20 meeting, it is clear that while Harper loves war, he has little respect … Continue reading Harper: War Yes! Veterans No!
Toronto, ok greater Toronto, elected Rob Ford as mayor. Canada is a pariah of climate change activism and at the UN. We can’t stop Stephen Harper from being prime minister. Canada is no longer my Canada. But why? In my seemingly endless quest to figure out why progressive activists are fighting resignation and cynicism instead … Continue reading Monbiot, Progressive Activism and What’s Wrong With Toronto
The G20 protests, bail, and rights restrictions: a ‘free’ and ‘democratic’ society? According to internet reports, after having been threatened with solitary confinement in the Toronto East Detention Centre’s “hole” (likely not a euphemism) without being permitted any communication and after having been refused contact with legal counsel, G20 arrestee Alex Hundert has been ‘released’ … Continue reading As can be “justified” in a “free” and “democratic” society?
This is no day for thanks. It is neither glorious, nor free. Canadian governments have criminalized dissent to the point where we have become a shell of a sensible democracy. And we, like the frogs [or beavers] in a slowly boiling pot, are too complacent to do anything about it. I have already written about … Continue reading The Anti-Thanksgiving: Criminalizing Dissent in Canada
Not to sound too alarmist or impolite, but what do you call a country with governments that do the following: arrest peaceful protesters and innocent bystanders in/near a designated free speech zone under non-existent laws, then beat, intimidate and abuse them, declare a panel discussion at a public university to be a demonstration to arrest … Continue reading The Police State Infects An Apathetic Canada
More than just political burnout, there is a malaise of cynicism present in many progressives across Canada right now. Instead of just being tired from fighting many battles with social and economic conservatism, more and more progressives I’m encountering have become disillusioned with those who ought to be our champions. There are number of head-scratching … Continue reading Building Community as a Tonic for Political Cynicism