In Support of Truckers

 Anyone, at any time, who has taken a stand against our governments in Canada lately has found themselves vilified by those very same institutions which purport to defend their individual rights and freedoms. In this way our truckers and their supporters are no different than those that have come before them. Unlike those that have come before them, the Freedom Convoy 2022 has inspired millions of Canadians, and people around the world, by their collective dogged stand. For that they win a special place in history.

Throughout the world governments have been casting aside individual freedoms in the name of collective security (health this time) as if they were acceptable losses for the greater good. The governments of the world have walked over their citizens with impunity, and purpose. Now they have met the resistance to those actions. For every action their is a reaction, and in Canada and other countries in the world that means populist rebellion against those that deem themselves able to create two classes of citizens - those that submit and those that do not. It has played out very deliberately and very obviously over the last two years - step by step by step.

Many of the media types are asking how Canada became so divided, now on a parallel with the US, when they quote a vaccination rate of 85% of Canadians. The answer is quite simple: most of those people did not want to vaccinated but felt they had no choice. That bread resentment, and resentment gave birth to anger, and when anger grew up it became rebellion - as is today. When mandates were put in place just barely half the population was vaccinated, despite being urged to by the Premiers and Trudeau. When the urging didn't produce enough results they created timelines for people to get vaccinated or they couldn't get a vax passport to participate in society, including travel, which is a constitutionally protected right in this country. Essentially they imprisoned the Canadian people with one alternative to get out of jail. When they were done with that, they set out to demonize, shame and degrade those that still refused to be vaccinated - as if they had the right to do so.

It shouldn't be a surprise that a slim majority of Canadians want the mandates removed, because that same group of people either didn't want it or didn't get it in the first place. Now they are fed up with the ultimatums, the demonizing, the dividing. There is also a significant percentage of the population that agrees that individual rights are nothing in the face of collective rights, and that those who did not submit should somehow be excluded from living a normal life in their own country.  Those same people forget that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms was created to protect individual rights and freedoms - not collective rights and freedoms. For example, it protects homosexual people from discrimination. Following the current logic, and given that AIDS was initially a disease affecting the gay population, gay men would be forced into isolation and be unable to interact with normal society. That did not happen, nor was it even suggested to happen, yet those that are willing to chance Covid rather than a vaccine are not so lucky. The examples could go on and on. 

One of my favorite examples is former Prime Minister Mulroney. When he was Prime Minister the War Measures Act was struck from Canadian law to stop another atrocity like the placing of Japanese-Canadians in prison camps during the Second World War. Most of us thought it was more aimed at his Quebec base given the use by then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau of the Act to send troops into Quebec. Whatever the case, Mulroney scrapped the act to protect a group of citizens from being targeted by the state with discrimination. Fast forward to today, and where does Mulroney stand? Well, this was part of a news report released on October 31, 2021 regarding then leader O'Toole's failure in the election:

      "They were doing very well...for the first couple of weeks, and then they lost momentum simply             because... Mr. Trudeau quite brilliantly poked holes in the Conservative positions on exactly what         you and I are talking about: Vaccines, and health care and the problems that were going on in                 Alberta at the time."  

This is the master of division whose policies of demonizing others created the Reform Party and almost saw the West succeed from Canada. That is why he used the term "brilliantly" for stoking the fires of division over vaccines. To them our rights and freedoms are merely some sort of talking point when seeking favour, but not to be taken seriously. This is the truth, and you can see it being played out every day in the media and by the political "elite" who think the ends justify the means. 

Congratulations elite. You have really done it this time. A very dedicated, very patriotic, very principled core of Canadians have stood up in defiance of your arbitrary and unconstitutional actions. The truckers of Canada, and now the world, have taken it upon themselves to lead the defence of freedom, but make no mistake, they are not alone. When you attack them you attack us. When you demonize them you demonize us. When you mock them you mock us. They are not alone. They were never alone. You tried to tae their fuel so they would freeze or leave. That did not work. Now the word is you want to tare children away from their parents who participate in the protest. Have you no shame? Have you no comprehension that what you do to them you do to us? 

To all of you that have dug in your heels at the borders and in Ottawa, thank-you for taking the fight for freedom to those that so willingly seek to deny it to us. Thank-you for your courage of conviction, which they can not meet because they have no courage. Thank-you for remaining calm in the face of provocation after provocation. As was the case with Ghandi, who peacefully brought down British rule over India, and more importantly the example of Christ who told us to turn the other cheek, your example of peaceful protest extinguishes their flames of hate. Finally, when you are sitting in your cab, or gathering on the frozen streets of Ottawa or on the borders, remember we are with you and we support you with our hearts and souls. 

Canada's Popular Revolt

 

It is not everyday that a writer gets to contemplate a momentous event in his own country. In Canada, the land of the laid back, that is even more true. BUT, times have changed.

The Freedom Convoy 2022, which started as one man's vision to fight back against vaccine mandates for truckers to cross into the US has blossomed into an all out revolution of ideals. Two years of suffocating "lockdowns" (normally used in the sense of locking rowdy prisoners in their cells, but used against the entire population), "mandated" (read "forced") vaccinations, and demonization have led to a popular uprising in Canada. It is not an understatement to say that: a popular uprising. 

The tens of thousands of people who line the overpasses and roads of the country as the convoy made its way to Ottawa were the real sign of this movement. They braved, in many cases, -30 Celsius or worse temperatures for hours to show their support, and encouragement for what the truckers and their supporters were doing. As did the people who stood shoulder to shoulder last weekend - again to support the convoy's message that mandates are unconstitutional, violate Canadian's civil rights, and are destroying their quality of life. Mothers, fathers, children, in fact vastly more younger families than any other demographic, waved their flags in defiance of the actions of provincial and especially federal governments, and of course its chief cheerleader Mr. Trudeau.

Like Mary Antoinette of French infamy who arrogantly stated "Let them eat cake", Trudeau referred to these patriots, and all those young families lining the nation's highways, as a "fringe minority espousing unacceptable views". The convoy, and the majority of Canadian supporters, who were already angry at their freedoms being discarded like unnecessary trash,  now were seeing red - Antoinette-style. Trudeau quickly left the capital just before the convoy arrived, and was moved to a "safe place" (likely somewhere out of truck horn distance from Ottawa). 

His government, and to their extreme discredit the national media, attempted to demonize the protesters as everything from nazi or KKK supporters, to a violent mob spitting at old people and stealing food from the homeless shelters. The federal Liberal government has done everything in its power to label these Canadians, who represent average Canadians completely, as something akin to a "mob of the vile".  Or as one establishment lady once said to me: "the great unwashed". It is enough to turn your stomach thinking that people look at others in this way, and believe it to their core. With Trudeau hiding, Freelend, the grand daughter of a nazi sympathizer and publisher in Ukraine during World War 2, has been doing a lot of spinning herself in the Parliament of Canada. Again, portraying these Canadians as viler and unworthy. 

As a Canadian, a veteran, the son of a WW 2 veteran, and a person that has defended freedom in Canada at all times, I do not recognize my country right now. I see the memory of my country in this movement to retake our constitutional rights back from those who so duplicitously absconded with them. A veteran who lost his way, who lost sight of what he defended as an officer in the air force, the Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition, has fallen - removed by the western Canadian caucus of his own party for failing to defend the Charter of Rights and Freedoms strongly enough in support of the convoy. It seems that western Canada is the true bastion of freedom in Canada. The convoy started here. The voices against mandates were the strongest here. The remembrance of Canada as a free nation are most sacred here. The rest of Canada has been inspired by the West that it is only that freedom that makes us who we are, and without it we are nothing. I think that is fair to say.

While nobody aspires to violence in this uprising, one deliberate act of suppression of the protesters by the use of force could send it off the charts. This is not an exaggeration, but a warning of sorts. Trudeau and his like have been tossing the idea of a military action to end the demonstration - yet the demonstrations are happening all over the second largest country in the world. A country that is solely dependent on three or four primary crossing points into the US for its economy - one of which was shut down by trucks for several days - and may be again. The ugly truth is that our very own Prime Minister considers his own country the "first post-national country" - in other words Canada has outlived its usefulness. It is only in a country as laid back as Canada that he could get away with a statement like that. In other countries that would be legitimately considered a treacherous statement - high treason. 

This weekend there will be massive demonstrations across major cities throughout Canada. In Alberta today I witnessed kilometers long convoys of large farm machinery, adorned with new Canadian flags, and hand made signs calling for a return to freedom - an end to mandates. That was Thursday. The real event doesn't start until Saturday. Word is that massive convoys are converging on Quebec City, Toronto, and other major Canadian cities. 

What will be the result of all this? It is hard to say. I suppose it depends on how it ends. What is clear is that either the constitutional rights of Canadians will be returned or their will likely not be a Canada as we know it now. The liberals (small L and big L) have gone too far this time. They have arrogantly told the people of Canada to "eat cake". The only question is whether Canadians are cake eaters or the descendants of those that stormed Vimy Ridge with the resolute bravery that fills the heart of a free man and woman. 

The Battle in Labrador Heats Up

Todd Russell,President of Nunatukavut, being arrested

at Muskrat Falls protest 5 April 2013

 

You won't see the picture above on any of the main media outlets in Newfoundland and Labrador. Yet this was the scene yesterday when the duly elected President of the Nunatukavut was arrested 10km from Muskrat Falls for interrupting traffic with 20 or so followers. The purpose of their action was to draw attention to the fact that they have not been consulted or accommodated about the Muskrat Falls project despite it being within the territory they claim.

 

It's a tale of three nations really: the Innu of Labrador; the Nunatsiavut; and the Nunatukavut. They are the Aboriginal peoples of Labrador.

 

THE INNU OF LABRADOR

 

 

                                                   Peter Penashue, Innu of Labrador

 

The Innu of Labrador, and specifically an organization called the "Innu Nation" are the subject of a three part series coming up on this blog. In the meantime, you can think of the Innu of Labrador as "haves" and "have nots". The "haves" are a very few families that control all the business done in Innu territory and the workings of the Innu governments - that will also be detailed in the series. The have nots are almost all the rest of the Innu. Stricken by third world poverty, and every social ill you can imagine, the "have nots" have been left to fend for themselves. Of course, there are also many Elders in the Innu community that are very hesitant about the new development mentality sweeping the "haves" along. They stand in their place to defend ancient responsibilities to the Land and the animals. Perhaps the best known being Elizabeth Penashue, the mother of the man above - Peter. Polar opposites in values, ideals, and how to get there. Ancient responsibilities versus one ancient problem - greed.

 

                                          

                                                                   Elizabeth Penashue

 

Bottom line - we never saw Peter Penashue dragged across the streets by police like a common criminal. No. He went the other way. Deals with corporations, deals with politicians, etc. They needed him on board for Muskrat Falls, and yet he is now the one facing a possible criminal action as well. His obvious breach of Elections Canada laws, as noted in the previous posting on this blog, should land him in a pair of handcuffs - although nobody deserves to be dragged. His handcuffs will not be chains restricting his freedom to protest. No, they will be chains restricting him from further breaking the laws of democracy.

 

THE NUNASIAVUT

 

 

                                                                 Sarah Leo, President

 

The Nunatsiavut, or Inuit, are the only native peoples in Labrador to actually have a government - established by the only finalized land claim agreement in Labrador. Their primary emphasis is on individual and community health. By way of example, the Nunatsiavut government is conducting, and funding a study of the impact of mercury poisoning in Lake Melville and estuaries within their boarders. They are doing this without any assistance from the provincial government, and in many ways against the provincial government. Their waters have been poisoned by the Upper Churchill dam, and they are rightly concerned about it becoming even worse with two more dams proposed for the Lower Churchill. Not surprisingly they are not partnered with large corporations or governments in many if any cash producing schemes. They remain focused on their people, and not the almighty dollar.

 

It's a tale of three peoples, three leaders, and three different approaches. The three part series on the Innu Nation will show this in dramatic and shocking form.

 

The question in my mind remains: How can it be that the elected leader of his people, a former Member of Parliament in his own right, be handcuffed and dragged through the streets like a common criminal? Did that happen to any other Aboriginal leaders during the "Idle no more" protests? The answer is no. So why did it happen to President Todd Russell? Are the Nunatukavut somehow less Aboriginal in the minds of the Newfoundland and Labrador government? Are Aboriginals less respected in Newfoundland and Labrador than other provinces? Is Nalcor's determination to build Muskrat Falls more important than basic human rights? The answer to all three of these questions is yes.

 

One last, but not least, mention. Jim Learning, Nunatukavut Elder and Veteran was arrested along with Todd Russell yesterday. He was also arrested a short while ago for walking down the Muskrat Falls access road without permission from Nalcor. He has been left in jail for the weekend and word has it he will be there until next Friday. His crime? Disrupting traffic to Muskrat Falls. On his own Aboriginal land. Jim Learning refused to sign a statement he would not return to do the same again. So they left him in prison. Jim Learning is a Veteran, an Elder, in his seventies, and a man of conviction - a hero. Thank-you Jim.

 

 

                                                         Jim Learning, Hero, Inspiration