When Alex Neve, longtime Secretary General of the Canadian branch of Amnesty International, speaks, people should listen. He and his organization have now weighed in on Bill C-51, the ‘anti-terror’ bill being promoted with such relish by Stephen Harper and his acolytes. It is a bill, Neve and many others
Continue readingTag: anti-terror bill c-51
Politics and its Discontents: If You Had Any Doubts About The RCMP…
Look no further for confirmation of the federal force’s politicization than a piece written by that ‘environmental extremist’ David Suzuki in the Chronicle Herald. In the article, Suzuki makes reference to the secret RCMP report, obtained by Greenpeace, that both minimizes the threat of global warming and conjures a spectre
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: It Could Happen To You
Although the narration is at times melodramatic, the message of this video is clear: trusting government to respect your privacy is a naive notion. H/t Occupy Canada and Operation Maple Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Rick Mercer On That Fear Thing
Our National Treasure nails it yet again: And for additional biting commentary, be sure to check out Alison’s latest at Creekside. Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: UPDATED: A Comforting Illusion Shattered
When it comes to massive intrusions by the state, the kind reflected in legislation like Bill C-51, people frequently rationalize their acceptance and passivity by this comforting fiction: “I don’t have anything to hide; I’m not a terrorist, so why should I worry?” A story of one family’s unpleasant experience
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: A Little Perspective, Please
Are we losing all perspective on the threats posed by terrorism? While there is no doubt that all perils to public safety need to be taken seriously (yes, even those posed by pipeline ruptures that Enbridge seems to treat as state secrets), one cannot escape the conclusion that the Harper
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Details. Mere Details
H/t We Don’t Want This The most egregious, anti-democratic elements of Harper’s terror Bill C-51 are the following: -jail for 5 years if someone posts anything counter to the government and that could be interpreted as a terrorist posting in general; -secret trials; -indefinite detention without charge; -sharing of information
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: On The Politics Of Fear
Regular readers of this blog will have noticed the relative frequency with which I provide links to and samples of Star readers’ letters. One of the obvious reasons is that they tend to have the same political sensibilities as all progressive bloggers, i.e., they are acutely aware of the ongoing
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Who’s Watching The Spies?
This from the folks at leadnow.ca: Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Where There’s Smoke….
H/t Mary Ellen Davis Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Harper’s Contempt For Thinking Canadians Is Egregious
That is the only conclusion I can draw, based on the unseemly hurry the regime is in to pass its ‘anti-terror’ bill: The Conservatives are pushing to devote just three meetings to hearing expert testimony on the government’s proposed anti-terrorism bill when it goes to the public safety committee for
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: More Warnings About Bill C-51
H/t The Globe and Mail Increasingly disenchanted Globe readers weigh in with their thoughts: Re Kenney Spurns Calls To Increase Security Oversight (Feb. 23): The Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) only reviews security-agency operations after the fact. Defence Minister Jason Kenney and the Prime Minister maintain that we don’t need
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Thomas Mulcair And Joe Clark On Bill C-51
H/t The Toronto Star Yesterday, Tom Clark on The West Block asked both Mulcair and Clark for their thoughts on Harper’s ‘anti-terror’ legislation. You will note that by the end of the interview, it would seem that Mulcair’s ‘principled’ stand against the bill is perhaps less than what it seems
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: I’ve Made My Decision. What More Is There To Discuss?
H/t Occupy Canada It would seem that our supremely arrogant confident demagogue, Dear Leader, feels little need to waste his time in the House of Commons talking about a bill (C-51) that represents a substantial threat to the rights of all Canadians. That, apparently, is a task for lesser mortals,
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Ralph Nader On Harper’s Politics Of Fear
The following is a letter that the iconic American activist Ralph Nader has written to Stephen Harper regarding his ‘war on terror.’ Following the letter is a video of an interview Evan Solomon had with him. As you will see, there is little doubt that Nader views Harper’s exploitation of
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Stephen Harper To Canadians: Just Trust Me
Of course we will, Stephen. Of course we will. H/t Graeme MacKay Recommend this Post
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Mulcair is Showing His Mettle In Opposing Bill C 51- Four Former Prime Ministers Join In the Fight
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger It has taken some time for Canadians and the Opposition Leader Thomas Mulcair to really get a grip on the severity of the so called anti terror bill C 51. There is no doubting the skilful demagoguery of PM Steve Harper and he played his threaten and rescue
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Rex Murphy Praises Thomas Mulcair’s Stand on Bill C-51
Regular readers of this blog will know that I have no particular use for Rex Murphy. Yet last night I found myself in total agreement with him as he offered an eloquent rebuke of Harper’s Bill C-51 by praising NDP leader Thomas Mulcair’s opposition to it. You can watch his
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: At Issue – Harper’s Terror Bill
I happened to catch last night’s At Issue Panel discussing Harper’s (anti) terror legislation, Bill C-51. One of the interesting points that emerged was that although polls show the vast majority of Canadians seem to support this legislation (based, I suspect, on little or no knowledge of what it contains),
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Ah, The Sleep Of The Just
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