By now it should be obvious that Stephen Harper is not going to allow any changes to his infamous anti-terrorism bill C-51.
That he is now so crazy and so desperate that he will not let anyone or anything stop him from getting his hands on another weapon to go after his enemies.
And has finally arrived at the state the first Harper to arrive in Canada was in, when he had to be removed from his magistrate's position for "violent and oppressive measures" vindictive beyond the point of reason.
He made that very clear yesterday, when Tom Mulcair asked him why he was lumping legitimate dissent in with terrorist activity?
And today he made that even clearer by moving to shutdown debate on the bill.
So it was really good to see a distinguished group of Canadians standing up to him, and reading him the riot act.
As the Harper government moved to speed up the parliamentary debate on its latest anti-terrorism legislation, four former prime ministers — three Liberal and one Progressive Conservative — are among almost two dozen prominent Canadians calling for stronger security oversight.
"Protecting human rights and protecting public safety are complementary objectives, but experience has shown that serious human rights abuses can occur in the name of maintaining national security," the statement says.
"This results not only in devastating personal consequences for the individuals, but a profoundly negative impact on Canada's reputation as a rights-respecting nation."
And what was also encouraging was to read the many comments in the MSM denouncing Harper's bill. Including the ones in this scary story I ran last night.
Count me out of the 82%. I lived through this same nonsense in the US after 9-11. Harper is using fear to take away our rights.
Its all about fear! Are you scared enough? If you are that scared, then support this government taking away our freedom a piece at a time, all in the name of security. If not then rise above the fear mongering and support a just, open society. Confident in who we are, and not fearful of lunatics hellbent on causing chaos and destruction.
Because what all of the above tells me is things are not as bad as they seem. And that there is a growing revolt out there.
Which isn't surprising. For buried in that poll is also this:
There is one note of caution for the Conservative government as it presses ahead: a large majority, 69 per cent, believe there should be additional oversight so police agencies “do not go overboard with these new powers.”
Canadians may want their government to take strong action against any wannabe Jihadis, but they they don't trust the Con regime or the Harper Police with our civil rights or our internet freedom.
This revolt can only grow as more Canadians understand more about the bill and how it could turn us into a police state.
At the mercy of a maniac...
And if Harper rams the bill though parliament unchanged, as he almost certainly will, having reached the fevered state Christopher Harper was in when he had to be removed from office. The issue could become a mighty weapon to use against him in the next election campaign.
Which is of course exactly what we want. Because the ONLY way we can change or scrap Bill C-51 and make Canada safer, is to drive him and his foul Cons from power, and take back our country.
So help make it that mighty issue, join the growing revolt, stand up for internet freedom.
Explain what Stephen Harper is trying to do.
And help spread this message...
The bill is bad and dangerous, and would steal our freedoms.
Great Leader is a maniac and vindictive beyond all reason.
It's in his genes, he can't help it.
And he must be removed from office as soon as is humanly possible, if this country is to survive him...
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I believe you're being overly optimistic as to what this represents. Here is my response: http://www.canadiantrendsblog.ca/2015/02/oversight-initiative-implanted.html
ReplyDeletehi Richard...I admit I am an optimist, somebody in this country has to be one. And what you say about the situation is indeed alarming. But remember Harper is hampered by people's perceptions of him, so his heavy-handed attempts to ram that bill through Parliament stands to hurt him as well. And when it comes time to vote I believe most Canadians will look at the state of the economy and the country, and act on their desire for change...
DeleteSimply demanding more oversight of this pernicious bill is a tacit endorsement of the bill. Jean and Paul fertilized the neoliberal field in which crazy crazy Steve now wollows. Why should we give any weight to what they say now?
ReplyDeletehi anon...you're right the bill needs more than just oversight, but since we can't kill it, we must simply use it as a blunt weapon to stir up Canadians and defeat him in the next election. Because we need more oversight over this whole country....
DeleteEducate yourselves.......no excuses!
ReplyDeletehi Kathleen...we must educate ourselves, so we can educate those who don't follow politics as closely as we do. For the more people understand what he is trying to do, the more they will turn against him...
DeleteEven with the best oversight, a bad bill remains a bad bill. And when you already know that Closet Leader will never agree to any oversight (he and his minions had repeatedly said oversight is not needed), then it makes even less sense to vote for it. Especially also since this is not a minority government scenario where the additional Libs votes could trigger an unwanted election.
ReplyDeleteBy voting for it, the Libs may in the short run think they have managed to escape the trap that was set for them. The trouble is that in the long run, it makes Trudeau look weak ..... like Iggy, Dion .... who had voted for the Harper bills even though they had found them objectionable. Who could forget Iggy vowing to watch Harper like a hawk after voting for a budget he had enumerated in so many ways was bad. BTW, the NDP was also guilty of this game, though less frequently, in the minority government days.
Mulcair in the short run may look like he had fallen into the trap that the Cons had set. In the long run, however, he looks like a principled man, putting his vote where his mouth is, while Trudeau looks confused, at best.
As for the rest of us who just want to heave Steve, it is bad because it means it entrenches the splitting of the non Cons votes between the Lib and NDP as the soft NDP voters refuse to park their votes with Trudeau who they feel cannot be trusted not to roll over and fold like a cheap suit.
And then there were the mutual attacks between the Libs and NDP on their respective stand on this issue .... what can one say except that, at best, they seem to be totally confused who is the actual enemy here. At worst, they are both too stupid or selfish and would rather put their own party's interest ahead of getting rid of the real problem.
hi anon...you make a lot of good points. But we are fighting a war for our very survival so my thinking these days is relentlessly practical. I'm actually glad that Mulcair and Trudeau are covering all bases on this one. So if the war remains popular Trudeau will not be damaged by his position, and if it doesn't Mulcair will reap the benefit. I am a principled person, but right now I'll do anything to see us win...
DeleteThe more I see of Harper and his grandfather the more I truly believe that mental illness runs in his family. At one point in the past there must have been allot of babies born through incest n'est-ce pas?
ReplyDelete