Monday, March 9, 2015

If You Had Any Doubts About The RCMP...



Look no further for confirmation of the federal force's politicization than a piece written by that 'environmental extremist' David Suzuki in the Chronicle Herald.

In the article, Suzuki makes reference to the secret RCMP report, obtained by Greenpeace, that
both minimizes the threat of global warming and conjures a spectre of threats posed by people who rightly call for sanity in dealing with problems caused by burning fossil fuels.
The report echoes the kind of fraught language of Bill C-51, which many allege will intrude upon legitimate dissent, given its own worrisome authorization of CSIS
to prevent any person or group from “undermining the security of Canada,” including “interference with critical infrastructure” and the “economic or financial stability of Canada.”
Note the language of the RCMP report (I have italicized key words):
The RCMP report specifically names Greenpeace, Tides Canada and the Sierra Club as part of “a growing, highly organized and well-financed anti-Canada petroleum movement that consists of peaceful activists, militants and violent extremists who are opposed to society’s reliance on fossil fuels.” The report downplays climate change, calling it a “perceived environmental threat” and saying members of the “international anti-Canadian petroleum movement claim that climate change is now the most serious global environmental threat and that climate change is a direct consequence of elevated anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions which, reportedly, are directly linked to the continued use of fossil fuels.” It also makes numerous references to anti-petroleum and indigenous “extremists”.
One can legitimately ask whether the obvious editorializing in the report is appropriate. As well, one can wonder whether it is mere coincidence that its language of doubt echoes the obdurate climate-change skepticism of the Harper government.
Language in the RCMP report and Bill C-51 leaves open the possibility that the act and increased police and CSIS powers could be used against First Nations and environmentalists engaging in non-violent protests against pipelines or other environmentally destructive projects.
As University of Ottawa law professor Craig Forcese points out, with its reference to “foreign-influenced activities within or relating to Canada that are detrimental to the interests of Canada,” the anti-terrorism law could be used in the case of a “foreign environmental foundation funding a Canadian environmental group’s secret efforts to plan a protest (done without proper permits) in opposition to the Keystone Pipeline Project.” Considering that government ministers have already characterized anti-pipeline protesters as “foreign-funded radicals”, that’s not a stretch. The RCMP could consider my strong support for greenhouse gas emissions reductions and renewable energy as “anti-petroleum”.
None of this is really either shocking or new to those of us who have followed the machinations of the Harper regime over the years. Harper's intolerance of dissenting views, his contempt for democratic principles, and his 'narrowcasting' of policy are all of a piece with the provisions of Bill C-51 and are amply reflected in the doctrinal orientation of our national police force.

We only have one more chance to put Canada on a more balanced keel, and that chance comes in October.

6 comments:

  1. This is shaping up to be a make it or break it election, Lorne.

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    1. I truly believe that if we don't get it right this time, Owen, all is lost for the foreseeable future.

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    2. I agree with you Lorne. This is our last chance!!

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    3. Let us hope that sufficient numbers of Canadians realize our collective peril, astone.

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  2. I wish I could believe that the core grievances here would be redressed by a change of government, Lorne. I don't.

    Pondering what's gone on within the RCMP back to the Zaccardelli era, I've concluded that there's an inherent vulnerability within any state police force to transform into a partisan political agency harnessed into service of narrow interests at the expense of the nation generally. This lends itself to the evolution of a secret police function. Surely the primary obligation of every commissioner is to resist this corrupting tendency in order that a healthy separation may be maintained between law enforcement and the political apparatus. That has been completely lacking since Harper ascended to power.

    We should be hearing the opposition parties demanding a top down reform of the RCMP but, if they are, I missed it.

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    1. I hear you, Mound, and the only thing I can say is that we have to start somewhere. While it is true that the politicization of the RCMP predates Harper, the latter has made a real art of his infiltration into our national police force. Getting rid of him has to occur before theere is any chance of reform.

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