Reflections, Observations, and Analyses Pertaining to the Canadian Political Scene
Friday, April 19, 2019
Can You Imagine Canadians Doing This?
I can't. I suspect our country would see more turning out to protest the carbon tax than to save the planet from extinction.
“It’s growing at an amazing rate. I think the Attenborough documentary [Climate Change-The Facts] [and Our Planet] lit a fire in people’s bellies,” said one of the activists, who gave only the name Archer. “They are not just the usual dirty hippies either. There are doctors, architects, and the ethnic diversity is getting wider.”
[Emma]Thompson said her generation had failed young people: “We have seriously failed them and our planet is in serious trouble. We have much, much less time than we thought. I have seen the evidence for myself and I really care about my children and grandchildren enough to want to be here today to stand with the next generation.”
Linguist and activist Noam Chomsky is among those who have sent a statement of support. “It is impossible to exaggerate the awesome nature of the challenge we face: to determine, within the next few years, whether organised human society can survive in anything like its present form,” he said. “The activists of Extinction Rebellion are leading the way in confronting this immense challenge, with courage and integrity, an achievement of historic significance that must be amplified with urgency.”
.. .. oh I don't know that Canadians won't engage re Climate Change protests. Things are progressing drastically. Canadians do watch TV & websurf - so we know that drastic climate events are increasingly visible. But its also true that only a tiny share of our adult population is well read or well informed on the issues and realities.. the 'natural consequences' - ipwe are not steering spaceship earth, far from it. We are not in any effective way even trying to maintain it.. quite the opposite in fact. We are seemingly on track with pillaging & ruining it.
Overpopulation is a staggering reality.. out of control really. And just look at politics, media & religion at essentially all levels - from civic (urban & rural) to provincial to federal in Canada. Don't expect many exemplars to arise from partisan & evangelical hotbeds.. and expect little from the 'upper class' .. or better said.. the wealthy. Yes there are wealthy exemplars, but again, they are rare.
In my view.. from within the society of the 'average Canadian' we must seize control of the immediate future from our flawed and failing political parties. To do that we need to seize control from mainstream soldout media. Corporations must be denied financial & partisan involvement in mainstream media and political processes. Religion needs to curb its reckless dogmatic intermingling with politics.
Governance is now seen as the 'field of opportunity' .. thus we the voters end up with the Rob Anders Doug Fords Jason Kenneys Ray Novaks Ken Boessenkools oozing their way and their stark flawed & shallow ideologies.. making decisons for us & future generations. We should be hysterical with anger & rage at what these sort of losers do upon gaining any power over us. Just look at the disaster of the USA currently for a terrifying example of what can go wrong with political parties (all two of them) and so called 'leadership' .. Let these pitiful partisans near Environmental Legislation and look out ! In the USA we have to add military into the mix or matrix of politics, mainstream media and religion.
You likely saw a comment of mine in an indy blog recently, where I again referenced Boat Harbour, Nova Scotia. I see that particular ecological disaster and the town's looming economic disaster as a potential test bed for maritimers and all Canadians to provide active leadership. We have 'hot spots' ie disasters such as this scattered across Canada. Grassy Narrows, The Athabaska River downstream of Ft McMurray and the tar sands. Has anyone spotted a spare 260 billion to remediate Alberta's quaintly named 'oil patch' ? The tailings ponds, the orphan & abandoned oil wells, the frack sites? I hope nobody expects Stephen Harper to arise and emerge with 'an economic plan' to salvage Alberta, or Canada's flickering hopes.. or realities for OUR environment
Your assessment of our current sad spectacle of the politics of opportunism accurately reflects our pathetic situation, Sal, in my view. But until Canadians are willing en masse to reject, not embrace, such crass tactics and manipulation (witness Alberta and Ontario), I see little hope for a turnaround.
That being said, I came across a piece in this morning's Star that suggests rejecting the status quo may be happening in P.E.!. Give it a read and see what you think:
"So what is it about the Greens that has moved the Island’s traditionally small-c conservative voters to consider a more progressive party?
Bevan-Baker says the shifting political sentiments on P.E.I. are a reflection of a broader movement away from traditional, mainstream politics. He’s called it the local expression of a global phenomenon.
“People are looking for something that doesn’t sound or smell or taste like a conventional politician,” he said in an interview late last year.
.. I am seeing this potential and reality via indy media primarily, not MainStream. The analysis of Bevan-Baker is very interesting.. it has the ring of McLuhanism .. I believe any hope must emerge from the ridings.. ie local common sense & veracity - not fantasy dogma from so called 'leaders' annointed by captured political parties. The howls of outrage from 'Albertans' for example should be in regard to their Sovereign Petro Remediation Deficit.. now seen as expanding to 260 Billion $ with but a 'Wealth Fund' of only 17 Billion on the credit side. To date 1.7 billion held from Corporate security funds. Since the taxpayer is the primary backstop.. each and every Alberta riding needs to be confronted with this.. and now! They just returned the Harper Rump fringe dregs to power for 4 years after a 4 year experiment with the NDP. And what political Party 'managed' the boom/bust decades? What kind of insane thinking is that ? .. Across Canada we can find examples of stunning failure, delays and shifty ethical ground by politicians, parties etc. Muskrat Falls, Site C, Lavalin, Grassy Narrows.. clean drinking water for gawds sake.. Even SARA Species At Risk.. government failure, Our fisheries, our forests, our waters.. Thus our elections (controlled by political parties) are becoming farcical .. as is governance
It seems as people lose faith in traditional political leadership, they resort to believing the kind of magical thinking spouted by demagogues like Kenney and Ford, Sal. Those two are more than happy to dupe the 'true believers' with their empty, inflammatory rhetoric.
.. .. oh I don't know that Canadians won't engage re Climate Change protests. Things are progressing drastically. Canadians do watch TV & websurf - so we know that drastic climate events are increasingly visible. But its also true that only a tiny share of our adult population is well read or well informed on the issues and realities.. the 'natural consequences' - ipwe are not steering spaceship earth, far from it. We are not in any effective way even trying to maintain it.. quite the opposite in fact. We are seemingly on track with pillaging & ruining it.
ReplyDeleteOverpopulation is a staggering reality.. out of control really. And just look at politics, media & religion at essentially all levels - from civic (urban & rural) to provincial to federal in Canada. Don't expect many exemplars to arise from partisan & evangelical hotbeds.. and expect little from the 'upper class' .. or better said.. the wealthy. Yes there are wealthy exemplars, but again, they are rare.
In my view.. from within the society of the 'average Canadian' we must seize control of the immediate future from our flawed and failing political parties. To do that we need to seize control from mainstream soldout media. Corporations must be denied financial & partisan involvement in mainstream media and political processes. Religion needs to curb its reckless dogmatic intermingling with politics.
Governance is now seen as the 'field of opportunity' .. thus we the voters end up with the Rob Anders Doug Fords Jason Kenneys Ray Novaks Ken Boessenkools oozing their way and their stark flawed & shallow ideologies.. making decisons for us & future generations. We should be hysterical with anger & rage at what these sort of losers do upon gaining any power over us. Just look at the disaster of the USA currently for a terrifying example of what can go wrong with political parties (all two of them) and so called 'leadership' .. Let these pitiful partisans near Environmental Legislation and look out ! In the USA we have to add military into the mix or matrix of politics, mainstream media and religion.
You likely saw a comment of mine in an indy blog recently, where I again referenced Boat Harbour, Nova Scotia. I see that particular ecological disaster and the town's looming economic disaster as a potential test bed for maritimers and all Canadians to provide active leadership. We have 'hot spots' ie disasters such as this scattered across Canada. Grassy Narrows, The Athabaska River downstream of Ft McMurray and the tar sands. Has anyone spotted a spare 260 billion to remediate Alberta's quaintly named 'oil patch' ? The tailings ponds, the orphan & abandoned oil wells, the frack sites? I hope nobody expects Stephen Harper to arise and emerge with 'an economic plan' to salvage Alberta, or Canada's flickering hopes.. or realities for OUR environment
Your assessment of our current sad spectacle of the politics of opportunism accurately reflects our pathetic situation, Sal, in my view. But until Canadians are willing en masse to reject, not embrace, such crass tactics and manipulation (witness Alberta and Ontario), I see little hope for a turnaround.
DeleteThat being said, I came across a piece in this morning's Star that suggests rejecting the status quo may be happening in P.E.!. Give it a read and see what you think:
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2019/04/19/all-eyes-on-the-surging-greens-as-prince-edward-island-goes-to-the-polls.html
"So what is it about the Greens that has moved the Island’s traditionally small-c conservative voters to consider a more progressive party?
Bevan-Baker says the shifting political sentiments on P.E.I. are a reflection of a broader movement away from traditional, mainstream politics. He’s called it the local expression of a global phenomenon.
“People are looking for something that doesn’t sound or smell or taste like a conventional politician,” he said in an interview late last year.
.. I am seeing this potential and reality via indy media primarily, not MainStream. The analysis of Bevan-Baker is very interesting.. it has the ring of McLuhanism .. I believe any hope must emerge from the ridings.. ie local common sense & veracity - not fantasy dogma from so called 'leaders' annointed by captured political parties. The howls of outrage from 'Albertans' for example should be in regard to their Sovereign Petro Remediation Deficit.. now seen as expanding to 260 Billion $ with but a 'Wealth Fund' of only 17 Billion on the credit side. To date 1.7 billion held from Corporate security funds. Since the taxpayer is the primary backstop.. each and every Alberta riding needs to be confronted with this.. and now! They just returned the Harper Rump fringe dregs to power for 4 years after a 4 year experiment with the NDP. And what political Party 'managed' the boom/bust decades? What kind of insane thinking is that ? .. Across Canada we can find examples of stunning failure, delays and shifty ethical ground by politicians, parties etc. Muskrat Falls, Site C, Lavalin, Grassy Narrows.. clean drinking water for gawds sake.. Even SARA Species At Risk.. government failure, Our fisheries, our forests, our waters.. Thus our elections (controlled by political parties) are becoming farcical .. as is governance
ReplyDeleteIt seems as people lose faith in traditional political leadership, they resort to believing the kind of magical thinking spouted by demagogues like Kenney and Ford, Sal. Those two are more than happy to dupe the 'true believers' with their empty, inflammatory rhetoric.
DeleteMy sense is that anger is building, Lorne. But it hasn't -- of yet -- hit a critical mass.
ReplyDeleteLet's hope it does before it is too late, Owen.
Delete