Would law apply to all violent rioters?
News Item: “OTTAWA – It could soon be illegal for rioters to hide behind masks. “A proposed law would allow cops to arrest those participating in an unlawful gathering or…
Justice
"Old news" – news anxieties
Alex Tsakumis today offers Open Letter to John Doyle, Auditor-General of British Columbia: The Information You Need On the Buying of Dave Basi and Bob Virk by the BC Liberals…
Appeal Court found judge has right to be stupid
Court upholds Hells Angel's acquittal, despite rude judge, Ian Mulgrew, Vancouver Sun, Apr 30, 2008 The controversial acquittal of an elite Nomad member of the Hells Angels caught with 52…
J. Leask: Questions of perspicacity and impartiality
Two Hells Angels called 'pawns of police' get short sentences for drug trafficking, Neal Hall, Vancouver Sun, March 12, 2010 Vancouver -- Two Hells Angels members received short jail sentences…
Political action at the grass roots
Inside the Russell Pearce recall, Amy McMullen, Salon.com A good read about citizen-activists organizing to make Russell Pearce, President of the Arizona Senate, the first state legislator in Arizona history…
Remembering the Montgomery Bus Boycott During Occupy Times
It was fifty five years ago today the Supreme Court of the United States of America upheld the decision of the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Alabama…
So they arrested the reporter, not the bankers
Truthdig, November 3, 2011: "Goldman Sachs, which received more subsidies and bailout-related funds than any other investment bank because the Federal Reserve permitted it to become a bank holding company…
Court date rapidly approaching
All legal arguments have now been filed in the unprecedented case against the Sask. Party governments’ anti-worker, anti-democratic, unconstitutional labour laws. As reported earlier in this blog, the Saskatchewan Federation…
Terror in Sarajevo? Islam in Bosnia & the Rejection of Extremism
It is not customary to begin a discussion about terrorism with a joke but, given the context, I think it appropriate. How else, after all, is one to deal with…
Shocking RCMP performance
Documents on tortured Canadian Almalki say he posed no terrorist threat, Andrew Duffy, Postmedia News, October 25, 2011 OTTAWA — Ottawa engineer Abdullah Almalki says new documents show the RCMP's…
You know you are a lackey …
Or incredibly naive when… You go along with the Conservatives’ tough on crime bill’ , being a member of an oppressed people & a woman to boot – in this…
Demonstrators and police should be unmasked
The BC Civil Liberties Association, now in its sixth decade, has done important and principled work in our province while advocating for individual rights, freedom and law reform. Their good…
To every action, expect an opposite reaction
The most brazen disdain for democracy in modern times, Simon Jenkins, The Guardian, January 12, 2010 "There will be a tidal wave of rage. Over the next two weeks the…
Occupy the Church, Occupy Together
Christians. Church. God. Jesus. Occupy. What do these words mean to you? For many, the connotations are negative. Personal experiences with judgemental, rigid, frozen people who identify themselves as Christians…
Taking action when business is slow…
"The FBI has received substantial criticism over the past decade — much of it valid — but nobody can deny its record of excellence in thwarting its own Terrorist plots.…
Killing machines have no conscience
In there irony in America's rush to deploy drones and remote controlled weaponry around the world? From Joseph Nevins at the Boston Review, Robocop: In September 2010 the House Unmanned…
A shout may begin with whispers
"Wall Street's fear is understandable. If the public is ever given a voice to express its outrage, their party train will have to stop and some people will pay for…
Finding tax sources that fit today’s economy
Financial Transaction Tax: Making the financial sector pay its fair share Brussels, 28 September 2011 – Today the Commission has presented a proposal for a financial transaction tax in the…