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Canada’s Green party has been performing some fairly amazing political seppuku as of late. For a party that lost 4% of its popular vote from the 2019 election to the 2021 election to take a shit on Canadian women with a news release like this firmly cements the Green Party into a disassociated, irrelevant clown-shoe politic. The mighty two seats they have are now at risk as they plant their boot firmly on the neck of Canadian women, proudly proclaiming their misogyny in the cockamamie discourse of queer identity politics. The Greens have set up a master class on how easy it is cloak the discrimination against Canadian adult human females (women) in a glitzy faux-progressive garb.
Make no mistake. This is not in anyway a genuinely progressive stance to take, and by any reasonable metric is just a feeble attempt to whinge and wound-gather some grievances for the faithful to rally around.
Let’s take a look at the press release directly from the Canadian Green Party’s website.
“While general levels of acceptance and access to services have improved for 2SLGBTQIA+ people in Canada, homophobia, biphobia, intersexism and transphobia are still rampant and oppressive, the interim Green Party Leader Amita Kuttner said today.”
We are oppressed. It’s actually pretty good but dammit, you can’t focus on what is good in Canadian society. Instead, let’s play name all the manufactured identities (biphobia? intersexism?) and say that times are terrible – rampant and oppressive even. Ask the average Canadian about the rampant biphobia and intersexism crisis – I’m betting unless you win the find a woke person lottery, they won’t have the foggiest notion of what the heck you happen to be talking about.
“Anti-trans hate is on the rise around the world, driven by far-right ideology and organizations,” said Dr. Kuttner, the first transgender person to lead a national political party in Canada.”
Well that is some amaze-balls level bullshit right here. I invite you, Dear Readers, to survey the “FAR-RIGHT” organizations that are leading the anti-trans hate parade. Let’s take a look at a sample of those organizations said to be driven by ‘far-right’ ideology –
Fair Play for Women (UK) – “We are concerned that, in the rush to reform transgender laws and policies, women’s voices are not being heard or listened to. Led by a full time director, supported by a team of volunteers with skills in many different disciplines, without any corporate sponsorship or formal funding, we work hard to bring this issue to public attention. Women get called transphobic for simply asking questions. Women are afraid to speak out, and fear for their jobs and reputation if they do. We provide the safe platform necessary for women and men to voice their concerns, share their experiences and access expert knowledge and resources. Our aim is to facilitate the much-needed factual discussion about the importance of sex-based policies for women and to provide policy makers with the guidance they need for evidence-based policy making that is fair for all”.
CaWsbar Canada – “We believe that protecting women’s and girls’ sex-based rights is the most pressing social issue facing us today.
Although sex is a protected characteristic within our Charter of Rights and Freedoms, in 2017, the Canadian Human Rights Act was amended to include “gender identity or expression” as a category protected against discrimination (Bill C-16). This amendment was adopted without substantial due diligence or meaningful consultation with women’s advocacy groups. The reality of such an amendment — which does not precisely define what “gender identity or expression” means, instead relying on a vague concept of “internal sense” of oneself — is that a male may simply declare himself to be a woman (gender self-identification), and demand he be granted all of the hard-won rights and protections women have fought for over the decades. This includes the right to access female-only spaces, services and resources.Such an amendment also means that “woman” is reduced to a meaningless, equally undefinable concept. The harmful outcome of having “woman” or “girl” no longer accurately defined in public policy as “biological female” is that women’s and girls’ sex-based rights and protections will be lost forever.”
Canadian Gender Report – “We believe that more open discussion is needed on these issues. We are not influenced by religious or political affiliations and would rather focus on objective research and evidence on the topic of gender transition for children and young people.This site is for everyone who is concerned about why the numbers of gender non-conforming children being referred to gender clinics is skyrocketing in high-income countries around the world.The site is for everyone who questions why adolescents may suddenly identify as a different gender and how the identity politics movement is being promoted to children and youth in our schools and on social media. It is for anyone concerned about the new trend to teach ideology as fact and the emergence of policies and laws that people are fearful of challenging because they may be labelled “transphobic”.
See. SEE!!!!!! These organizations are completely run on HATE AND FASCISM and most likely are in league with the rotten reanimated corpse of HITLER himself to make the world and everyone in it ‘transphobic’. The links are there, go an judge for yourself how right wing and hate filled these sites are. I think that, given a use of a small portion of one’s critical faculties, it is quite clearly evident that the claims by Amita Kuttner are false, not to mention risibly hyperbolic.
“It is not as recognized as other forms of hate; education around trans people is so minimal that even major instances of transphobia aren’t noticed, and are often defended.”
Ah, here we go with the magic standpoint epistemology. Or, how to make ‘irrefutable’ claims that are outside the realm of critical knowledge based thinking. And, the ever present spectre of “transphobia” is duly mentioned which in fact, can mean anything – from not using the correct pronoun to correctly identifying the sex of an individual (the haaaaaaaate is evvveeeerrrrywheeeere). When you hear the word ‘transphobia’ know that it can mean everything and anything depending on the speaker and the context he or she uses. It is a weasel word that is usually deployed to scare people into silence and end meaningful discussion before it can start. In this case, you know all that malignant oppression and transphobia that you cannot see or find evidence for… yeah, don’t believe your eyes or your critical faculties, rather, believe in the special story that I am telling. It has extra truth value because I happen to part of this oppressed sub-set of society. *eye roll*
“Speaking on the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, Dr. Kuttner said: “From a personal lived perspective as an intersectionally marginalized person, the anti-trans hatred is open and unabashed, consistently more brazen than the micro-aggressions and implicit bias problems around my other identities, and general issues with cis and heteronormativity.”
Lived perspective huh?
Yeah.
Could you please define what you are calling anti-trans hatred? It seems that your accuracy with defining hate and hate groups could be an issue in this context. Might it be like the stickers recently found in Ottawa? Because if so, my narrative is going to be about how full of coercive bullshite you are…wait… I don’t need a ‘narrative’ I’ll use the publically available factual information to *demonstrate* my case.
Because all I see are facts being posted because here in reality facts matter. Women are adult human females and to somehow interpret that statement is “anti-trans” would mean by definition that trans rights are inherently “anti-woman”. Also in the verboten stickers are messages about Keeping Prisons Single Sex – You know that old anti-trans hate chestnut of not wanting male prisoners in female prisons…
When dealing with (faux) progressive claims like “anti-trans hatred” it is critically important to interrogate exactly what they mean. Because back in real, ostensibly Liberal society, *disagreement* is not hatred. The statement that natal males should not be female prison is a position grounded in material fact and the sad reality of male violence against women. The judgement that female safety should never be placed behind male gender feelings is yet again, a statement based on reasoned argument, not some sort of “seething hatred” and “anti-trans” bigotry (how it is often framed by trans activists and unfortunately the media here in Canada).
“We don’t talk enough about trans joy. Being trans is a beautiful experience. All of the negative experiences so often discussed – the suicides, the misery – are due to systemic problems and hatred.”
Says the person who has just spent the last three paragraphs focusing on the devastating oppression and dark hatred that apparently is the norm here in Canada.
Pro-Tip: Amara, being told your demands are unreasonable isn’t hate. Neither is acknowledging that in society rights can come into conflict with another and need to be honestly discussed in society to come to reasonable accommodation between the affected groups. Or, you could just continue with the hyperbole and continue with the trans efforts to erase women (adult human females) from society. Given the shitkicking you took last election, doubling down on erasing the female half of the electorate *might* not be the big-brain play you think it is.
“Dr. Kuttner called on the government to establish permanent funding for the LGBTQ Secretariat and invest in 2SLGBTQIA+ organizations to combat gender-based violence. “Canada needs a national strategy to address gender-based hate preemptively, before it escalates into a movement succeeding at removing our hard won rights,” they said. “We have strategies for combating other forms of hate – this should be no different.”
A Ministry for the Defense of the ONE TRUE GENDER IDEOLOGY? No thank you. No special ministries for you until you manage to define *exactly* what you mean by hate.
You could look at the currently government funded “anti-hate” group and throw your definitely not faux-progressive energy that way. A match made in revolutionary heaven…
“Green Party parliamentary leader Elizabeth May (MP, Saanich-Gulf Islands) said: “On this International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, I am deeply aware that too many people still are exposed to hate and discrimination because of who they are. Those of us who are not part of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community need to stand in solidarity with those who are marginalized and abused.”
Oh Elizabeth, just look at what they’ve done with all your hard work and commitment to actual green issues. Do you feel the tire treads from the gender ideology bus on your back? It’s gotta be such a slap in the face to see your party fling itself away from the tenuous toehold it had on being a credible mainstream political party. Do you go home at night and try to imagine in which “green future” do you see a government responsibly putting male sex offenders in female prison?
Good luck with that.
The first ten minutes encapsulate so much of what is wrong with this legislation.
Going to war over spheres of influence. The 21st century is going to be just as rough as the 20th century.
“Russia says, for instance, that it is threatened by Nato expanding eastwards and potentially including Ukraine as a member. The response of the Nato powers is to say that its door should remain open to all and, more privately, that Ukraine is unlikely to join the organisation in the foreseeable future, so why is Moscow objecting so strongly?
But there is a perfectly rational Russian response to this, which is to point to the furious American response to Soviet missiles being based in Cuba that almost led to a nuclear war in 1962. The Russians can also reasonably ask why, if Ukraine’s Nato membership is such a distant prospect, Nato powers are so insistent on keeping open the option, even though, by doing so, they increase the chances of a shooting war.”
The Russian national interest must be preserved I suppose, and that is reason enough to initiate an armed conflict. We watch the US do it all the time as well, just that somehow we’re the good guys.
With resources scarce, this model of armed intervention will occur more often. We’ll have to get used to it or be prepared to radically reorganize our societies around the idea that we as co-inhabitants on this earth all have the right to live in peace.
It certainly seems like the religious, libertarian hard right fringe has made its way from the US to Canada. The illegal occupation of Ottawa and border crossings are prime examples of the profoundly undemocratic/reactionary roots of this ‘movement’.
The police are reacting with a glacial slowness that is exacerbating the situation. Much more needs to be done to protect our civil society, public health, and democratic institutions.
Jason Kenny the Premier of Alberta is making the definitive case for the Federal Government to take over handling public health decisions during a pandemic event. Captain Clownshow is making noises about ending public health measures early (*again* – Open for SUMMER!!!?!).
“As COVID changes, our response to it must change as well. That is why early next week, Alberta will announce a firm date to end the Restrictions Exemptions Program and to do so in the very near future,” Kenney said.
“We will also lay out a simple, phased, plan to remove almost all public health restrictions later this month, as long as we see a trend of declining pressure on our hospitals.”
If our Premier had a record of exercising the precautionary principle I just might believe his last sentence. He doesn’t, so I won’t. Open For Spriiiiiiiiing! is the next UCP foray into overtaxing our healthcare system and letting more people become COVID-19 statistics.
“Kenney faced political pressure from many directions Thursday to both ditch restrictions immediately and keep them in place.
A week ago, he said a plan to remove restrictions would likely come “by the end of March.” Five days later, he changed the timeline when he said he hoped to relax measures this month.
On Thursday, a UCP statement said the premier will begin lifting restrictions “within days.”
Since Saturday, a convoy has been protesting vaccine rules, and occasionally blocking roads and a border crossing in southern Alberta.
“It certainly gives the impression that Mr. Kenney is caving to the far right, rural fringes of his political base,” said Keith Brownsey, a political scientist at Mount Royal University.”
Yep, because this is what good government looks like – allowing the vaccine skeptical science deniers make public health policy. Pandering to the false populist fringe in Alberta on important public health matters goes quite beyond the pale. It’s like asking Flat-Earther Society for their ‘facts’ for a science textbook.
Ludicrous.
“A political scientist said it certainly looks like the truck convoys and MLA demands are forcing Kenney to dump restrictions quicker than he originally planned.
“All you have to do is look at the timeline,” said Duanne Bratt from Mount Royal University. “It is not about COVID, it is not about health, it is about politics.”
Alberta had a pandemic high of 1,648 patients with COVID-19 in hospital on Thursday, and although new cases appeared to be dropping, the province’s doctor warned it was still too soon to move to an endemic response.”
This is what happens when stupid gets enough people together peddling the same bullshite at same time – they start to dictate the public agenda despite expert medical opinion and medical facts. It is fucking scary.
Unfortunately it’s my home province that is ground zero for this second public health clownshow fiasco sponsored by Jason Kenny and the Alberta UCP.
What a time to be alive!
I agree with Tim’s analysis of what is going on in Ottawa and in Alberta. People are circumventing the ways that make a functioning democracy work, and it should be a serious concern to everyone.
“It has been said, often, during this crisis that you can’t live in downtown Ottawa without becoming very, very familiar with protests and demonstrations. They are a regular thing here. It’s the seat of government, after all. For me, they are a feature of the place, not a bug.
Demonstrations and protests (they are different but related, but we’ll save the details this time) are a critical part of a functioning, pluralistic democracy. They allow particularly contentious issues to bubble to the surface, to gain exposure and, potentially, drive change.
Successful demonstrations grab attention but more importantly, they focus that attention on solving a particular policy problem in a particular way. They succeed by highlighting actions that *can* be taken and usually suggest *how* they might be taken.
It should be crystal clear by now that what is happening in Ottawa is not that. The *demands* that are being made are like a ransom note from a B-grade thriller. They are unintelligible in the extreme. Even if a government wanted to comply, where would they begin?
In our system, each geographical district elects a representative who goes to Ottawa and participates in policy development and law-making on our behalf. Once we choose them, they are free to do as they please, governed by the rules and foundational laws of our country.
If we don’t like the job they are doing, we pick someone better the next time. And so on, and so on. But what about mid-term? What if we hate what the government is doing? What can we do? We can get together with like-minded people and demonstrate.It lets the government know we’re displeased and want a change. If the ask is doable, and popular enough, demonstrations can move minds… because representatives want to get re-elected, yes, but also because the willingness of people to protest, en masse, is compelling.
But there are rules. The constitution lays out the form and function of government… including rules on how to change the rules. A protest that demands changes to *that* has a huge hill to climb. It’s complicated stuff. (For reference go read up on Meech and Charlottetown).
Which brings us to where we are. The manifesto of this occupation makes myriad, confusing, incompatible demands. They make no sense at all, really. There is no effective way to act on them, even if we wanted to.
Even the simplest, “end the mandates” (which ones? For whom? Which level of government?) is far from simple. It would require careful policy work and balancing of interests. But there, exactly, is the problem. These occupiers are not interested in balance.
This occupation wants its way. And only its way. Not compromise. They are a large, violent toddler thrashing about on the kitchen floor of our democracy. “Give it to me, or I will break shit,” they are telling us. They don’t care about me or anyone else in downtown Ottawa.
They don’t care about you, or anyone who disagrees with them. They want *it*. And they will smash stuff, people, and institutions until they get it. And that is what they are doing. With each thrash of their chubby, spoiled, toddler limbs, they are chipping away at us all.
Which brings us to the cries for toleration and appeasement. Those cries are cowardly nonsense. It’s basic to democratic principles that you need to be tolerant of widely divergent views. It’s essential. But…
It’s vital to understand that the one thing that cannot be tolerated is intolerance, itself. Democratic governance breaks apart when intolerance takes over. It needs to be stamped out, marginalized, disregarded. It should not be given centre stage and the keys to the city.
Which is what we have done. Almost literally. Our officials have cleared out the kitchen to make as much room as possible for the rampaging toddler. They are fanning the flames of intolerance by giving it deep, rich oxygen. They are failing us.
Our officials are failing us because they do not understand the limits of the system they safeguard. We have reached those limits. They must begin to push back—hard—or we risk losing it all.”
bleatmop
Mystro
Dead Wild Roses 
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