Canadians, I hope you're deeply ashamed of your government...

Bluesman · 01-12-2008, 19:31 PM

...and enormously proud of Mr. Ezra Lavant, a true hero.

Watch and learn what valor in the face of unjustly wielded power looks like.

Bluesman · 01-12-2008, 22:37 PM

No comments, then? Are we to assume the same admiration of Mr. Lavant that I have, as well as the contempt for Canada's version of 'human rights' by all WABbits?

Or are there some among us that approve of what's being done in the name of Canadian law: government coercion to stifle freeborn people's right to free speech and a free press?

I want to know: who's outraged, and who approves?

Bluesman · 01-12-2008, 22:38 PM

From Steyn (who, incidentally, is also to be hauled before the bar for offending Muslims):

Quote:

[Mark Steyn]

I've been in the wilds away from the Internet all day, but I wanted to draw attention to this - yesterday's interrogation of my old boss Ezra Levant by one of Canada's many "human rights commissions" for publishing the Danish cartoons. Much to the irritation of the Alberta thought police, Ezra has posted portions of the video at his site (start at the top and scroll down - or, if that's too busy, try radio station CHQR). There are three sections, starting with Ezra's opening statement, which points out that his freedom of speech is not the gift of Canadian bureaucrats but an inalienable right bolstered by 800 years of English Common Law as well as more modish documentation such as the UN's Universal Declaration on Human Rights.

Then come two sections - one in which "human rights agent" Shirlene McGovern quizzes him on his intent in publishing the cartoons, and another in which she raises the fear that his publishing them could lead to violence against Muslims “particularly in today’s world post-9/ 11 that has made a number of Muslims more vulnerable to hatred and contempt”.Ezra's answer speaks for itself, but Ms McGovern's question reminds me of a passage from Melanie Phillips' book Londonistan:

Quote:

Minority-rights doctrine has produced a moral inversion, in which those doing wrong are excused if they belong to a 'victim' group, while those at the receiving end of their behaviour are blamed simply because they belong to the 'oppressive' majority.

Ms McGovern, a blandly unexceptional bureaucrat, is a classic example of the syndrome. No "vulnerable" Canadian Muslim has been attacked over the cartoons, but the cartoonists had to go into hiding, and a gang of Muslim youths turned up at their children's grade schools, and Muslim rioters around the world threatened death to anyone who published them, and even managed to kill a few folks who had nothing to do with them. Nonetheless, upon receiving a complaint from a Saudi imam trained at an explicitly infidelophobic academy and who's publicly called for the introduction of sharia in Canada, Shirlene McGovern decides that the purely hypothetical backlash to Muslims takes precedence over any actual backlash against anybody else.

Thus the unending valse macabre of our times, as the supposedly progressive forces of tolerance are whirled around the floor by the avowedly intolerant. Ezra is rightly contemptuous of these "human rights commissions". Canadians should be ashamed of this show trial.

Capt Bluesman · 01-12-2008, 22:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bluesman

I want to know: who's outraged, and who approves?

He fights the good fight. He is a true son of freedom. I serve in his cause.

**Officer of Engineers** · 01-12-2008, 22:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bluesman

I want to know: who's outraged, and who approves?

MSgt,

The truth is "no one cares." As much as I am disgusted about this entire issue, I can walk the streets of Ottawa and I will guarantee you that 1 out of 100 people knows what's going on. That's even more disgusting. I don't care if they side with the HRC or Lavant but they don't know nor do they care to know.

bonehead · 01-12-2008, 23:03 PM

Well. That explains why the government is able to do such outrageous actions. Apathy of the masses gives the government absolute power, and we all know what that leads to.

**Parihaka** · 01-12-2008, 23:14 PM

It's the same as bureaucrats everywhere. Her change in posture as he outlined her crimes against free speech was amusing to watch: here she is, the defender of freedoms cracking down on the evil oppressor, only to be shown up as the exact opposite.
This battle is already over, and Mr Lavant has won: that bureaucrat is a corpse walking.

Exarecr · 01-13-2008, 12:43 PM

In Canada everyone must walk in a straight line. When out walking they must never look at or talk to anyone lest somebody be offended. Any ideas or thoughts are encouraged to be inclusive of everything. If little Johnny has no legs and wants to play on his school hockey team, it's much fairer to cancel the hockey season than not allow johnny to be on the team. If little Jane wants to be a Boy Scout, it's better to to drop the "Boy" and call them Scouts and include girls. Never mind if boys need mentors or time to be with other boys or persons of his gender to communicate and discuss "male" problems with.(Girl Scouts Canada continues on ) I guess it's okay to have same sex mentors for girls. In Canada's Universities quota's have so skewed the enrollment numbers most Universities are considering a white male only enrolment policy to get this group of men back into the Medical,Legal,and Educational systems where their presence is almost non-existent. In Canada female fire fighters, cops and members of the Forces have entrance physical requirements that are so low compared to their male compatriots peoples lives can and are put to risk in the name of equality Canada style. In Canada our much praised Health system ensures all Hospital procedures or treatments for females are free. Men must pay for blood tests and other "male procedures". Hell, they even give single females on welfare more money than a male gets. Yes I am deeply ashamed of Canada and the way politicians here loudly bray shamelessly how superior and equality driven Canada is. Now after saying all this damned if I wouldn't fight to the last bullet for this country not to keep it the way it is but to see change and common sense return. The sad state of affairs the Human Rights Commission champions is only minutely more destructive to Canada's future than the current immigration crises we are facing is. It,s really quite simple. Come on over if you want to live in Canada,just leave your dirty laundry and politics back where you came from.

glyn · 01-13-2008, 13:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exarecr

In Canada everyone must walk in a straight line. When out walking they must never look at or talk to anyone lest somebody be offended. Any ideas or thoughts are encouraged to be inclusive of everything. If little Johnny has no legs and wants to play on his school hockey team, it's much fairer to cancel the hockey season than not allow johnny to be on the team. If little Jane wants to be a Boy Scout, it's better to to drop the "Boy" and call them Scouts and include girls. Never mind if boys need mentors or time to be with other boys or persons of his gender to communicate and discuss "male" problems with.(Girl Scouts Canada continues on ) I guess it's okay to have same sex mentors for girls. In Canada's Universities quota's have so skewed the enrollment numbers most Universities are considering a white male only enrolment policy to get this group of men back into the Medical,Legal,and Educational systems where their presence is almost non-existent. In Canada female fire fighters, cops and members of the Forces have entrance physical requirements that are so low compared to their male compatriots peoples lives can and are put to risk in the name of equality Canada style. In Canada our much praised Health system ensures all Hospital procedures or treatments for females are free. Men must pay for blood tests and other "male procedures". Hell, they even give single females on welfare more money than a male gets. Yes I am deeply ashamed of Canada and the way politicians here loudly bray shamelessly how superior and equality driven Canada is. Now after saying all this damned if I wouldn't fight to the last bullet for this country not to keep it the way it is but to see change and common sense return. The sad state of affairs the Human Rights Commission champions is only minutely more destructive to Canada's future than the current immigration crises we are facing is. It,s really quite simple. Come on over if you want to live in Canada,just leave your dirty laundry and politics back where you came from.

If you had written 'UK' instead of Canada, I would not be able to dispute a single word.

Canmoore · 01-13-2008, 13:54 PM

The Canadian people have lost faith in the government, as a result as OOE already pointed out an extremely small percentage of people know what is going on. The rest just go about there daily lives in total ignorance of what is really going on...

And they are happy with not knowing.. as long as they get there paychecks and buy there toys they are happy.

The problem with this is that newly landed immigrants who are used to knowing what is going on are on the ball. And as we can see, they are using the system to there advantage.

Eventually something is going to give, and Canadians must be violently shaken out of there slumber and realize that we need to take back our country.

Dr Fu Manchu · 01-13-2008, 16:03 PM

Right there! So what's new? As always, everything gets deconstructed to immigration(especially of the colored types). Why, lets blame immigrants for the recent Air Canada jet's emergency landing.

Guess who are the beneficiaries of most govt jobs? Gee, I wonder what color is their skin? Who are the lead players of the multi-billion scams like adscam?

Who benefits most socialised medicine? Could they be old white folks who are disposed of by their off-springs to some old age homes? Here a friggin plan. Privatise the friggin healthcare, then see the blue-blooded fourth generation WASPS whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and you get the picture.

While at it, get rid of the school boards and introduce vouchers. Screw affirmative action, Asian males benefit the least from such policies. Oh, lets get rid of govt departments, then watch the froth coming outta of the great white masses mouths.

Lest we forget about the French Canadians and the culture of entitlement.

Now lets get back to the original question raised. Who(Majority) votes for the politicians who enable hiring of these bureaucratic control freaks? Just look under a fish's belly.

glyn · 01-13-2008, 16:35 PM

Well, that has vented a lot of bile from your system. Feeling better now? If so, look at what was written by exarecr, and then ask yourself what on earth your reply had to do with it. You used it as an opportunity to bring 'race' into the equation when it was clearly un-necessary to do so.

Are the chips on your shoulders feeling weighty?

smilingassassin · 01-17-2008, 14:11 PM

As a white person in Canada I can tell you race has abso-freaking-lutely jackshit to do with the problems in Canada. Political correctness IS however a VERY big factor in the half assed laws we have here. If any race is discriminated against in Canada, its the whites, and we are so damn sensitive to the other races we simply won't stand up to the abuse....

Trooth · 01-17-2008, 15:22 PM

My tuppence worth :-

Clearly Levant is within his rights to publish what he published. Whether or not he should have done is up to his own conscience. However other people have the right to be offended and if there is an avenue for them to complain to they have the right to make use of that system.

It looks more to me as though the Human Rights Commision needs an overhaul in Canada (or perhaps Alberta not sure of the structure) because the first step in the process should be to see if there is a case to answer under Canadian law. If there is then it should be followed through the law courts, not through a quasi-official body. The cart is before the horse by the looks of it.

But as for the burning outrage? Well there are always test cases that provoke changes in bureacracy. This, hopefully for Canada, will be one of them.

Bluesman · 01-21-2008, 16:04 PM

A brilliant column from my new hero, Lavant:

Quote:

What a strange place Canada is
EZRA LEVANT

Special to Globe and Mail Update

January 21, 2008 at 12:32 AM EST

A few days ago, I was interrogated for 90 minutes by Shirlene McGovern, an officer of the government of Alberta. I have been accused of hurting people's feelings because, two years ago, I published the Danish cartoons of Mohammed in the Western Standard magazine.

Ms. McGovern's business card said she was a "Human Rights Officer." What a perfectly Orwellian title.

Early in her interrogation, she said "I always ask people … what was your intent and purpose of your article?"

It wasn't even a question about what we had published in the magazine. It was a question about my private thoughts. I asked her why my private feelings were of interest to the government. She said, very calmly, that they would be a factor taken into account by the government in determining whether or not I was guilty.

Officer McGovern said it as calmly as if I had asked her what time it was.

When she's doing government interrogations, she always asks people about their thoughts.

It was so banal, so routine. When she walked in, she seemed happy. With a smile, she reached out her hand to shake mine. I refused — to me, nothing could have been more incongruous. Would I warmly greet a police officer who arrested me as a suspect in a crime? Then why should I do so for a thought crime? This was not normal; I would not normalize it with the pleasantries of polite society.

This was not a high-school debating tournament where Human Rights Officer McGovern and I were equals, enjoying a shared interest in politics and publishing. I was there because I was compelled to be there by the government, and if I answered Officer McGovern's political questions unsatisfactorily, the government could fine me thousands of dollars and order me to publicly apologize for holding the wrong views.

I told her that the complaint process itself was a punishment. Even if I was eventually acquitted, I would still lose — hundreds of hours, and tens of thousands of dollars in legal bills. That's not an accident, that's one of the tools of these commissions. Every journalist in the country has been taught a lesson: Censor yourself now, or be put through a costly wringer. I said all this and then Officer McGovern replied, "You're entitled to your opinions, that's for sure."

But that's not for sure, is it? We're only entitled to our opinions now if they don't offend some very easily offended people.

One of the complainants against me is someone I would describe as a radical Muslim imam, Syed Soharwardy. He grew up in the madrassas of Pakistan and he lectures on the Saudi circuit. He advocates sharia law for all countries, including Canada. His website is rife with Islamic supremacism — offensive to many Canadian Jews, gentiles, women and gays. But his sensitivities — his Saudi-Pakistani values — have been offended by me.

And so now the secular government of Alberta is enforcing his fatwa against the cartoons.

It's the same for Mohamed Elmasry, the complainant against Maclean's magazine for publishing an excerpt from Mark Steyn's book, America Alone. Egyptian-born Elmasry has publicly said that any adult Jew in Israel is a legitimate target for a terrorist attack, a grossly offensive statement.

Both the Canadian and B.C. Human Rights Commissions are now hearing his complaints against Maclean's.

How did it come to be that rough and, I would say, bigoted men such as Mr. Soharwardy and Mr. Elmasry could, by simply claiming that their tender feelings were hurt, sic a government bureaucracy on a magazine, or anyone for that matter?

On this point, I agree with Mr. Soharwardy and Mr. Elmasry: I blame the Jews.

A generation ago, illiberal elements in the "official" Jewish community pressed Canadian governments to introduce laws limiting free speech. The targets of those laws were invariably poor, unorganized, harmless neo-Nazi cranks and conspiracy theorists such as Ernst Zundel and Jim Keegstra — nobodies who were turned into international celebrities when they were prosecuted for their thought crimes.

But now come Mr. Elmasry and Mr. Soharwardy and their ilk, using the very precedents set by the Canadian Jewish Congress.

Before Mr. Soharwardy went to the Alberta Human Rights Commission, he went to the Calgary Police Service and demanded that they arrest me. He's done that three times now, and they've rejected him every time. But he only had to ask the willing enforcers of the human rights commission once.

What a strange place Canada is in 2008, where the police care more about human rights than the human rights commissions do, where fundamentalist Muslims use hate-speech laws drafted by secular Jews, and where a government bureaucrat can interrogate a publisher for 90 minutes, and be shocked when he won't shake her hand in greeting.

Ezra Levant, an Alberta lawyer and author, was publisher of the now-defunct Western Standard magazine from 2004 to 2007.

And Trooth, do I misunderstand you, or are you saying that it's not really the HRCs existence that's troubling to you, but merely their outlook and their process? That they got this case wrong, but, because it's LEGAL, it's perfectly legit to be in the business they're in?

01-12-2008, 19:31 PM	#1 (permalink)
Bluesman WAB Bartender *Defense Professional* *Military Professional* Join Date: 11-24-04 Location: Vacaville, CA. Posts: 7,386 Country:	Canadians, I hope you're deeply ashamed of your government... ...and enormously proud of Mr. Ezra Lavant, a true hero. Watch and learn what valor in the face of unjustly wielded power looks like. __________________ "The quickest way of ending a war is to lose it, and if one finds the prospect of a long war intolerable, it is natural to disbelieve in the possibility of victory." - George Orwell

01-13-2008, 16:03 PM	#11 (permalink)
Dr Fu Manchu Regular Join Date: 04-06-07 Location: Mobile Agent Posts: 45 Country:	Right there! So what's new? As always, everything gets deconstructed to immigration(especially of the colored types). Why, lets blame immigrants for the recent Air Canada jet's emergency landing. Guess who are the beneficiaries of most govt jobs? Gee, I wonder what color is their skin? Who are the lead players of the multi-billion scams like adscam? Who benefits most socialised medicine? Could they be old white folks who are disposed of by their off-springs to some old age homes? Here a friggin plan. Privatise the friggin healthcare, then see the blue-blooded fourth generation WASPS whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and whine and you get the picture. While at it, get rid of the school boards and introduce vouchers. Screw affirmative action, Asian males benefit the least from such policies. Oh, lets get rid of govt departments, then watch the froth coming outta of the great white masses mouths. Lest we forget about the French Canadians and the culture of entitlement. Now lets get back to the original question raised. Who(Majority) votes for the politicians who enable hiring of these bureaucratic control freaks? Just look under a fish's belly. Last edited by Dr Fu Manchu : 01-13-2008 at 16:34 PM.

01-17-2008, 14:11 PM	#13 (permalink)
smilingassassin *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 12-12-03 Location: Vancouver Canada Posts: 2,718 Country:	As a white person in Canada I can tell you race has abso-freaking-lutely jackshit to do with the problems in Canada. Political correctness IS however a VERY big factor in the half assed laws we have here. If any race is discriminated against in Canada, its the whites, and we are so damn sensitive to the other races we simply won't stand up to the abuse.... __________________ Facts to a liberal is like Kryptonite to Superman. -- Larry Elder

01-17-2008, 15:22 PM	#14 (permalink)
Trooth *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 11-23-03 Posts: 2,110 Country:	My tuppence worth :- Clearly Levant is within his rights to publish what he published. Whether or not he should have done is up to his own conscience. However other people have the right to be offended and if there is an avenue for them to complain to they have the right to make use of that system. It looks more to me as though the Human Rights Commision needs an overhaul in Canada (or perhaps Alberta not sure of the structure) because the first step in the process should be to see if there is a case to answer under Canadian law. If there is then it should be followed through the law courts, not through a quasi-official body. The cart is before the horse by the looks of it. But as for the burning outrage? Well there are always test cases that provoke changes in bureacracy. This, hopefully for Canada, will be one of them. __________________ The world as it should be at surrealscoop.blogspot.com

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01-12-2008, 22:37 PM	#2 (permalink)
Bluesman WAB Bartender *Defense Professional* *Military Professional* Join Date: 11-24-04 Location: Vacaville, CA. Posts: 7,386 Country:	No comments, then? Are we to assume the same admiration of Mr. Lavant that I have, as well as the contempt for Canada's version of 'human rights' by all WABbits? Or are there some among us that approve of what's being done in the name of Canadian law: government coercion to stifle freeborn people's right to free speech and a free press? I want to know: who's outraged, and who approves?

01-12-2008, 23:03 PM	#6 (permalink)
bonehead *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 01-12-05 Posts: 1,913	Well. That explains why the government is able to do such outrageous actions. Apathy of the masses gives the government absolute power, and we all know what that leads to.

01-12-2008, 23:14 PM	#7 (permalink)
Parihaka Moderator Join Date: 11-10-04 Location: Te Ika a Maui Posts: 9,462 Country:	It's the same as bureaucrats everywhere. Her change in posture as he outlined her crimes against free speech was amusing to watch: here she is, the defender of freedoms cracking down on the evil oppressor, only to be shown up as the exact opposite. This battle is already over, and Mr Lavant has won: that bureaucrat is a corpse walking.

01-13-2008, 12:43 PM	#8 (permalink)
Exarecr *Military Professional* Join Date: 10-18-07 Location: Kingston Ontario Canada Posts: 425 Country:	In Canada everyone must walk in a straight line. When out walking they must never look at or talk to anyone lest somebody be offended. Any ideas or thoughts are encouraged to be inclusive of everything. If little Johnny has no legs and wants to play on his school hockey team, it's much fairer to cancel the hockey season than not allow johnny to be on the team. If little Jane wants to be a Boy Scout, it's better to to drop the "Boy" and call them Scouts and include girls. Never mind if boys need mentors or time to be with other boys or persons of his gender to communicate and discuss "male" problems with.(Girl Scouts Canada continues on ) I guess it's okay to have same sex mentors for girls. In Canada's Universities quota's have so skewed the enrollment numbers most Universities are considering a white male only enrolment policy to get this group of men back into the Medical,Legal,and Educational systems where their presence is almost non-existent. In Canada female fire fighters, cops and members of the Forces have entrance physical requirements that are so low compared to their male compatriots peoples lives can and are put to risk in the name of equality Canada style. In Canada our much praised Health system ensures all Hospital procedures or treatments for females are free. Men must pay for blood tests and other "male procedures". Hell, they even give single females on welfare more money than a male gets. Yes I am deeply ashamed of Canada and the way politicians here loudly bray shamelessly how superior and equality driven Canada is. Now after saying all this damned if I wouldn't fight to the last bullet for this country not to keep it the way it is but to see change and common sense return. The sad state of affairs the Human Rights Commission champions is only minutely more destructive to Canada's future than the current immigration crises we are facing is. It,s really quite simple. Come on over if you want to live in Canada,just leave your dirty laundry and politics back where you came from.

01-13-2008, 13:54 PM	#10 (permalink)
Canmoore *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 05-18-06 Location: Canada Posts: 1,330 Country:	The Canadian people have lost faith in the government, as a result as OOE already pointed out an extremely small percentage of people know what is going on. The rest just go about there daily lives in total ignorance of what is really going on... And they are happy with not knowing.. as long as they get there paychecks and buy there toys they are happy. The problem with this is that newly landed immigrants who are used to knowing what is going on are on the ball. And as we can see, they are using the system to there advantage. Eventually something is going to give, and Canadians must be violently shaken out of there slumber and realize that we need to take back our country.

01-13-2008, 16:35 PM	#12 (permalink)
glyn *Military Professional* Join Date: 09-15-06 Location: Penzance, Cornwall UK Posts: 6,512	Well, that has vented a lot of bile from your system. Feeling better now? If so, look at what was written by exarecr, and then ask yourself what on earth your reply had to do with it. You used it as an opportunity to bring 'race' into the equation when it was clearly un-necessary to do so. Are the chips on your shoulders feeling weighty?

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