Activation of the Emergencies Act in Canada (For the First Time) Agains the Blockades: My Thoughts

It took disrupting the flow of the ECONOMY for several weeks for the Trudeau Liberals to activate the Emergencies Act for the first time in this country's history. This may set a bad precedent for the future. We've been mired in this pandemic for about two years now, and tens of thousands of Canadians have died. Many more yet have had their lives, and livelihoods just as often, ruined throughout the entire ordeal so far (I hope that it's over sooner than later, but how often does hope turn out...). Think about it...

 

The economy was affected by these blockades (which appear to be ongoing, as of this writing), with the RCMP (an institution that answers to the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, namely the Governor in Council), municipal and provincial governments all refusing to take actual measures against these disruptions (especially in Conservative-run areas) and the RCMP practically coddling the individuals involved. While there are divisions of the RCMP at federal, provincial, and municipal levels (keep in mind that Ontario has two; one [national] for Ottawa and one for the province [O Division]), these all answer, ultimately, to the federal government as previously mentioned. The Governor in Council is the one who determines who is the Commissioner, and the latter is the one who handles all RCMP delegations and regulations & such. 

 

In other words: the PRIME MINISTER does not have say on RCMP matters, but...

The RCMP is a federal institution. So the federal government has ultimate say on anything to do with the RCMP.

 

So the federally-regulated RCMP, at its various levels (from the Governor in Council and downward) FAILED to properly address an ongoing, three-week disruption of the economy and the lives of those affected, whether directly or indirectly. This disruption has been co-opted from the very beginnings of the movement by all sorts of unsavory and opportunistic fiends with self-interested agendas of power and even oppression (in at least some cases). It has received funding from abroad, which will have further ramifications down the road. Let's not forget the overwhelming messaging of hatred and division, particularly of the WHITE SUPREMACIST variety (or should I say, varieties, because while similar, there are multiple camps of white supremacy). Even fascism has played a part in the overall messaging of this movement. 

 

And the RCMP have treated them with kid gloves. Look at this latest development to see an example of how nice this institution has been to the 'protestors':

 

https://twitter.com/RadioGenova/status/1493587546550542338

 

  

And the Trudeau Liberals have, as mentioned at the outset, activated the Emergencies Act for the first time ever, over this thing. There are a number of things wrong with this approach. While I don't hold any allegiance to, or love for, the Liberals (or any party for that matter, in spite of voting Liberal in the most recent election for strategic reasons since I absolutely ABHOR the Conservatives), this will likely destroy the chance of the country avoiding another CPC reign of terror come the next election.

 

Also consider that this act being activated may encourage anyone in office to utilize it again in, say, a different situation? Like, I dunno, Indigenous Rights/Environmentalist/Social Justice activists protesting against grievances caused by the government and all of its regulated institutions & partner corporations? Such examples that are ongoing include:

 

- The Fairy Creek protests

- Wet'suwet'en First Nation protesting against Coastal GasLink Pipeline activity on THEIR SOVEREIGN LAND

 

Let's also consider that FIPA (the Foreign Investment Protection Act, which overwhelmingly benefits Chinese-owned assets here, over Canadian-owned assets in China) remains in place for another 25 approximate years. FIPA gives China effective right to litigate (read: sue) against the Canadian government should it deem its investments within our country threatened or impacted in any way that is detrimental to economic standing. Since the Chinese government has a close-knit business relationship with multiple corporations, this is an issue that will continue to have ramifications for all of us for decades into the future. Do not underestimate this bill as it is very likely the reason why the Wet'suwet'en FN gets harassed and mistreated by the RCMP to this day.

 

Honestly I could go on much, much further but this is not the right platform for that. This is already very long and I doubt most will read this in its entirety, but this act being activated for the first time ever is far more reckless than you might realize. It indicates greater problems within the various institutions of power in this country and a tilted balance of perspectives into who gets controlled/quelled, and who doesn't.

 

...and it isn't far-right nutjobs with mostly white-supremacist agendas that appear to be considered liable for controlling/quelling.

You Can't Parody This...

Oh hey, I have an overnight sleep study tonight at one of the hospitals. I'll have cathodes and all that attached to my head and whatnot. And I'll sleep on a really crappy hospital bed while I'm at it!

On to the actual subject at hand: The following example, which played out yesterday at a press conference held by the current premiere and his closest confidantes (who play a role in managing the pandemic and the economy), is not the first one to blur the line between real life & parody. Far from it, even. Same goes for it being the last, unfortunately enough. But what can we expect from a government which was only voted in due to rampant cynicism and shitty politics in general. What can we expect from the Conservative party of Canada, which has been doing its level best in at least three provinces to out-stupid the other ones. Kenney, Moe, and Ford have all been vying for some kind of recognition and/or infamy, competing like its a bloodsport. Without the blood, of course, at least not yet.

What happened yesterday in that press conference (all twenty-seven and a half of it) was the stuff of comedy, only it was unintentional I think. Without further ado: Doug Ford, the PM who outlives his drug dealing brother Rob Ford (previous mayor of Toronto), at the end of the conference, plugged not only Tim Horton's (a Brazilian-owned company), but shilled for their "real egg" sandwiches as well. You can't make this shit up if you tried. He actually segued from talking about a Peterborough, ON woman who apparently would hand out $10 gift cards for the (shitty) restaurant brand, even placing them on public benches.

Sure, this isn't a travesty or anything. It's not even despicable or evil or anything like that. It's just complete idiocy is all. And a possible ethics violation if you were to ask me. But I'm not an expert of how laws apply to this instance of shameless corporate shilling, but I'm still sure that there's something that could be done about it. One of the primary subjects brought forward in that presser was that of the province's plan to re-open the economy. Another bit of comedy to come from the presser was that as he was contradicted the safety orders put in place by HIS cabinet, in order to stem the tide of the virus for a bit. Oh and he also took no responsibility for his part in the growing pandemic and just blamed (almost) everyone under the sun.

People are laughing at us right now. They're laugh at Ontarians. They're laughing at Ford. Canada's politics sinks further into a hole and it has left wanting some kind of return to sanity again.  

BlogTO has lots of details on this if you want to read on it: Doug Ford gives weird shoutout to Tim Horton's egg sandwich in press conference

You can see it for yourself, in action, at the following (starts at 26:49):
https://youtu.be/RhqZ1DFC0-I?t=1609

I'm Being Silenced! Force Freedom of Speech (on Private Enterprise)!

Read the subject of this post here: http://amazingatheist.tumblr.com/post/58763857547/youtube-is-100-within-its-rights-to-remove-your

I've written about TJ a few times so far and each time I thought I've seen the worst of him, it seems that he tops himself a little later on, so I then feel the need to comment on him again.

The gist of the situation behind the linked Tumblr post is that a number of TJ's YouTube videos were flagged for removal. Now, no one knows the full story yet, perhaps neither does he, but it's safe to say even at this point that he is indeed being censored. The party responsible is unknown, but that's not really important. What is important is how he is reacting to the issue.

It's fine that he's notifying his more active followers to keep themselves posted on his other social media outlets, but in saying the following...

Let’s consider that for a moment. Should your phone company control what you say on the phone? Should your ISP control what you say online? Then why should YouTube get to control what you post on YouTube? 

If YouTube was a small, exclusive site, I think your argument would have merit. But YouTube is large enough now, culturally important enough now, that we must extend First Amendment protections to YouTube videos.

 ...he does himself no favors. To compare companies which provide actual services to that of websites, albeit with very high traffic (YouTube is ranked #3 by the Alexa Ranking System globally & in the U.S.), is fucking ridiculous. Memorandum to TJ: their site is their god damn private property, and they can set the terms of service for using their site(s) any way they damn well please.

Here is what he responded to. Keep in mind that it contains a bit of vitriol directed at him, but compared to what he's received from many other sources, it's pretty tame:

Youtube is 100% within its rights to remove your videos. They are a company. You are allowed to hold whatever (fucking stupid) opinions you wish, but they are IN NO WAY obligated to give you a platform from which to spout said (fucking stupid) opinions. Yes, I am "for real". I know you wish women didn't exist, but sadly for your sorry fat ass, they do.

Too bad for the big guy that the poster of the above (verbatim) paragraph is 100% correct regarding Youtube's rights on controlling content that populates what is their property. When TJ said that "if YouTube was a small, exlusive site, I think your argument would have merit", he threw in a non-sequitur; the size & reach of an entity in a market, except for utilities, does not serve as a barometer on whether said entity should be regulated in any way by the government. Instead, the function of a company is a category upon which to consider regulations of a private organization. Owned by Google (whose service I am using now, obviously), a private corporation, they are explicitly excluded from freedom of speech rights as declared by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The government has no ability to set limits, or even lift them completely, in the private sector.

And it should stay that way.

I assume that you, reader, have gleaned the aforementioned amendment within a valid copy of the document from which it can be found. In that case, I don't need to quote it to support my argument that TJ is either somehow ignorant of said amendment (the old-world English as used in said document may have threw him for a loop), or is outright cherry-picking it in order to advocate for the abolition of the barrier set in place by that same document. Given his nature as a money-hungry, fraudulent, shady motherfucker since, as an actual example, he's still wrapped in a controversy regarding his $17,000+ video embedding site (which went down within two months of launching, and has yet to return to full operating order as of this writing), I feel that he falls into the latter case.

An argument that pushes government mandates on freedom of speech rights within the private realm, be it the home of the Average Joe (provided it isn't owned by government assets and thus, being publicly-owned property), a small business, a web business, or anything along those lines, is an unsound argument. First of all, it violates the Constitution itself. Second, because YouTube (and Google, henceforth) are accessed by users throughout the world and their assets are not exclusively rooted in the United States (in spite of being founded in Menlo Park, California), it would be a burden to legally impose Free Speech laws on YouTube alone because it would have to be applied distinctly according to the rights (or lack thereof) of each country which grants access to the site. Google's monetary assets are extremely high, and they could challenge such wasteful theoretical scenarios with the best legal teams their money could buy.

TheAmazingAtheist, an admitted Social Libertarian (mind you that within the same context, Social Liberal is virtually synonymous with that position), who held starkly Libertarian views on economics, essentially wishes for the government (his government, mind you) to re-write the Constitution so as to mandate freedom of speech laws on the private sector, particularly YouTube/Google. Keep in mind that this is not out of principle, but rather out of necessity, for him. He doesn't care about the experience of others, but that of his own, since the guy is laughably dependent on his earnings through Google AdSense via YouTube partnership. He's also a shameless beggar who comes up with sob stories or snake oil sales schemes to bilk money out of his more naive subscribers. His channel is, due to a large number of his uploaded videos being flagged down, likely going to be on the chopping block and he is understandably in panic mode.

But arguing for the intervention of the Government to protect his right to a platform and to speak freely on what is the property of a private corporation is not only desperately reaching, it's sadly hilarious. I hope he realizes just how idiotic his response was to the user who posted that comment on his Tumblr, because if that were enacted in the U.S., then it would set a bad precedent of yet conceived proportions. I feel bad for the guy because he's a weak-willed individual with seemingly few principles, if any at all, and will say or do anything to avoid having to get a fucking job like most people do. After all, people who work earn their money, but he has to beg for it. He's 28 fucking years old and he asks for handouts in ways no different than teenagers, but the difference between he and teenagers is that he manages to sell himself doing it.