Down With the Sickness: Canadian Politics 2022

So I guess they're no longer even trying to disavow any connection to this known overt white supremacist who wants to preserve "Anglo-Saxon bloodlines".

Our latest dispatch from Ottawa's nightlight

Convoy organizer and newly minted Wellington St. VIP Pat King came to enjoy Ottawa's Second Hottest Club.

King danced a jig on stage, while fireworks went off in the crowd in the background #cdnpoli #ottnews pic.twitter.com/uZwIl1aAP0

— Mackenzie Gray (@Gray_Mackenzie) February 12, 2022

And their voices rang/With that Aryan twang

for reference:

King dives head first into the Great Replacement/white genocide myth. It's all a conspiracy, see. Because whites have "the strongest bloodlines."

He calls it the "anglo-saxon replacement" so antifa can't get mad at him.

Who is behind it? Muslims and the UN. /2 pic.twitter.com/mLhpCpjQiV

— YVCE 🧛‍♂️🧛‍♀️🧛‍♂️🧛 - ARCHIVE (@VestsCanada) August 10, 2019

This thread is broken in Zing for iPhone.

lol I tried to post a link to that bottom video of Pat King on FB and it got blocked (for obvious reasons).

Just participated in this march:

Counter-protest on Bank Street #Ottawa pic.twitter.com/1GylFqYRDq

— 𝙱𝚛𝚞𝚌𝚎 𝚅 𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚠𝚊𝚢 (@BruceVConway) February 12, 2022

that looks like way more people on their feet than any of the protests I saw here

Over 2000 by the Citizen's count: https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/trucker-convoy-counter-protesters-demand-action-from-police

The Winnipeg police arrested a pair of people today. Counter protesters. Who are also native. For blocking the road. In front of the trump trucker tantrumers.

Link?

Ambassador Bridge cleared: https://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/police-begin-second-push-to-clear-protesters-at-ambassador-bridge

Ottawa residents starting to do the police's job: https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/counter-protesters-block-convoy-vehicles-on-ottawa-streets-1.5779659

"Members of the so-called "Freedom Convoy" occupying the nation's capital have attempted to hijack a symbol and slogan representing survivors of residential schools and Canada's efforts at reconciliation."

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/truck-convoy-members-try-to-hijack-symbol-and-slogan-of-residential-school-survivors-1.5779154

also, here is a live feed of the surrey border, which protestors are trying to get to

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBDD3j5so0g

i really hope they cross into the US

is there a third option other than a show of force or this, negotiating with these assholes?

I dunno, but this is not it

#BREAKING: Mayor @JimWatsonOttawa’s office has released correspondence w/ convoy organizers who have agreed to conditions for them to exit residential neighbourhoods in #Ottawa in the coming days.#Cdnpoli #Onpoli pic.twitter.com/8hY2jEN2lW

— Travis Dhanraj (@Travisdhanraj) February 13, 2022

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/two-members-of-military-counter-terrorism-unit-under-investigation-for-allegedly-taking-part-in-convoy-protests

Idk man if ur rollin w dudes flying swastikas pretty sure show of force is ok

Yeah, there could be a wrinkle I'm missing but it's incredibly frustrating to see Watson doing this at this point. Between this and LRT, it's a damn good thing he's not running for re-election. Is Lich their leader then? Why weren't they arranging with her for a permit and police escort for a demonstration over two weeks ago then? Why didn't he ask her to get these people to stop blaring horns and spewing diesel fumes at that time?

A massive victory for residents today as they slowly allow occupiers to leave one at a time to the chant of “don’t come back.” The departures are on residents’ terms. pic.twitter.com/HnWhGKzpzW

— Jeff Leiper (@JLeiper) February 13, 2022

^ I live a few blocks from there. Apparently the counter-protest was organized by a local dog-walking group. So awesome.

That’s amazing

I didn't even think of the impact the honking must have had on dogs!

Our cat was totally freaked out the first few days.

Lmao givesendgo’s been hacked and also the names of everyone who’s donated has been leaked go to their site nowwww before it’s gone loooool

shocking turn of events re: Watson negotiating with the doofuses

The media lies to their viewers. No "deal" has been made. End the mandates, end the passports. That is why we are here. #Freedom #Truckersforfreedomconvoy2022 #FreedomConvoy2022 https://t.co/5uTEnm0wZ7

— Tamara (@Tamara_MVC) February 14, 2022

Making them strike their flags and ganking their fuel supplies is a nice touch

All convoy trucks at the Bank & Riverside blockade have now been sent on their way away from downtown, only after they were made to remove racist decals and flags from their vehicles. The people of Ottawa have won the Battle of Billings Bridge. #OccupiedOttawa #ottawa #ottnews

— Dylan Penner (@DylanPenner) February 13, 2022

The other condition convoy drivers had to comply with before they were allowed to leave the blockade was to discard their jerry cans of fuel. The people have done far more to cut the fuel supply of the occupation than the police or any level of gov. #BattleOfBillingsBridge

— Dylan Penner (@DylanPenner) February 13, 2022

Meanwhile

PEAK KELOWNA #HonkHonk pic.twitter.com/Q4L1CXnT5C

— Chris Walker (@ChrisWalkerCBC) February 12, 2022

Fuck this guy:

Actual quote from @JimWatsonOttawa on @CBCNews: "I admire the gutsiness of the people who are standing up to those who want to break the law in our city but it takes scarce police resources away from those central communities that need that coverage and protection …” 1/2

— Sam Hersh (@SamHersh01) February 14, 2022

I mean, they could always do this:

Police asked to fill in at offices, retail work while Ottawa residents do their job for them https://t.co/5MOTlx8JTZ

— The Beaverton (@TheBeaverton) February 13, 2022

Maybe someone needs to tell Watson that a condo development project is being threatened?

So Emergencies Act.

the attack of the Ram Ranchers:

Anti-mandate protesters are holding a twitter space “emergency meeting” in response to the state of emergency.

One who was at the Windsor/Detroit border blockade tells a story of how their communications were infiltrated, leading to organizational collapse...

— Paul McLeod (@pdmcleod) February 14, 2022

Freeland's announcement - applying money laundering and anti-terrorism law to crowdfunding sites, giving banks the right to freeze assets being used towards illegal blockades, freezing insurance of trucks and accounts belonging to companies whose trucks are being used - sounds otm and a recognition of what this actually is.

In other news, at least one Ottawa towing company was threatened into not helping the police remove trucks: https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/ottawa-towing-company-threatened-into-not-helping-police-with-trucker-convoy-chief-1.5776591

Weapons, ammo, body armour seized in AB: https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.6351112

I just took a walk tonight and Kent St. is still definitely blockaded and diesel-drenched, also Bank north of Laurier. (Heard a lot of honking too.)

Sloly (Ottawa police chief) has resigned

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/sloly-ottawa-resigns-behaviour-leadership-1.6352295

I'm assuming that the timing is a reaction to the Emergencies Act and Trudeau's statement from yesterday.

It's a start, although this whole fiasco suggests that the problems go deeper than the Chief himself.

Can I just recall Clive Doucet's mayoral campaign in the last election where he presented a credible, experienced progressive alternative to Watson and got 20-25% of the vote (admittedly high for a non-Watson candidate)?

I've been disappointed with our MP Yasir Naqvi (whom I voted for last time). I haven't seen evidence of him doing much, while our NDP MPP Joel Harden has been out there organizing, informing people, putting himself out there leading groups at the Billing Bridge standoff. He called much earlier on for the province to cancel licences and insurance policies of vehicles that are involved. Honestly, what's the point of having an MP in the governing party if they can't get action taken swifter for a crisis in their community? If anything, it seems like it was the economic impacts of the border blockades that moved the federal government to act.

One of my Facebook-poisoned cousins has gone full convoyer. Apparently he was out honking in BC on the weekend. It's going to be super fun seeing him again.

yeah the passivity of the ruling federal party in the face of a protest making life in their city of residence intolerable is shocking, now that you mention it

but pretty pathetic for Ottawa MPs in particular of coursse

every last one of whom is a Liberal, aside from Poilievre; ditto every Gatineau MP iirc

one day I would love someone to explain to me why some ontario cities vote liberal federally and some vote (or used to vote!) NDP

Ottawa and Toronto are comparatively affluent and educated multicultural cities, with an especially high number of immigrants in Toronto's case and a high level of bilingualism in Ottawa's case, which are traditional Liberal bases. Obviously Ottawa is also home to a large number of federal public servants, who tend to have Liberal leanings for obvious reasons. The NDP tends to have a stronger base in poorer areas, cities with large unionized blue-collar workforces, and First Nations communities, so they traditionally have more of a stronghold in cities like Windsor, Hamilton, and Oshawa, and in Northern Ontario. (The more bilingual parts of Northern Ontario lean a little more Liberal.)

Ottawa Centre goes between Liberal and NDP. You typically see NDP signs more in the lower income parts of Centretown or in the neighbouthoods closer to the two universities and a sea of red in the bourgeois residential areas around Island Park ime.

It's my off the cuff explanation anyway.

thank you! that is exactly what I wanted to know, I'm ignorant about the demographics

I see Sloly is spelled Sloly--listening to the radio on the way home I was thinking, "Couldn't possibly be Slowly, could it?"

To those in Ottawa: is he being made the fall guy, or is this deserving?

It was/is a policing failure and he was Chief of Police so idk whose fall he would be taking tbh. This, from CTV News's chief news anchor, sounds consistent with what Sloly himself was saying in the regular livestreamed board meetings, and it was the wrong approach. It seems fairly evident that the trucks should have never been allowed to enter the city's core in the first place, something that could have been achieved with simple roadblocks, as regular residents figured out:

Peter Sloly firmly believed in waiting out the protesters. As they were digging in, he told people around him that a stronger enforcement move by @OttawaPolice could lead to a January 6th style confrontation and that lives would be lost #ottnews #OttawaOccupied #onpoli

— Graham Richardson (@grahamctv) February 15, 2022

Well, for some percentage of the country, I'm guessing, he'd be seen as taking the fall for Trudeau and/or Ford. I'm not at all saying that's fair--that's why I'm asking--but that would be the perception, I think.

No one except residents, Harden, and downtown-area city councillors has come off very well afaic. That's why I said Sloly's resignation is a start.