A solid and steadily growing majority of British Columbians want nothing to do with Alberta's bitumen pipelines crossing our province to our coast. Fewer of us still want bitumen-laden supertankers plying our pristine northern coastal waters or Vancouver's inner harbour.
According to our federal government's reptilian industry minister, Joe Oliver, our firmly held opposition to this bitumen trafficking makes us, the great majority of British Columbians, "inimical to Canadian national interests."
Now "inimical" is a loaded word. It connotes hostility, and a willingness to harm, malevolence and, according to merriamwebster.com, "having the disposition of an enemy."
And any doubt that Joe sees British Columbians as enemies of his authoritarian state were put to rest when he told a gaggle of tarheads in Calgary, "We are in a battle for the future of Canada."
So, let's get this straight. In Joe's mind (and obviously his master's too), the people of British Columbia are Canada's enemy and Joe's army is "in a battle" against us to defend the future of Canada from our malevolence.
Wow, this seems a lot like the War of 1812 all over again only it's Joe's side telling British Columbians to surrender or be enslaved. It's the people of British Columbia who are on the defensive, trying to protect their homeland, and the federal government that is waging a war of conquest.
Remember what I said about the CF being called in to BC guard the pipeline?
ReplyDeleteit seems of no concern to Joe Oliver that his name will be irrevocably linked to tar sands and omnibus bills designed to weaken First Nations treaties and fracture The Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
ReplyDeleteCertainly, down the road, Canada and Canadians (excluding the inimical thugs of the Harper Government and the Harper Party) should prepare to enter the boreal, the mountains, the rain forest, the coastline and the littoral waters and archipelagos, in defense of our land against energy interests that have currently captured our governments, whether federal of provincial.
The First Nations are already there.. and have been for eons. Governments, armies, carpet baggers, political animals, religious zealots, liars, thieves and murderers are nothing new to them.
But now its not just the First Nations being 'groomed' for violation and assault and theft..
Canada, its environments, its landscapes and its peoples are the great rock that Harper and all he stands for and who stand with him, will be broken on.
I've said it before, but I find it hard to imagine Canada's oil industry could hire worse pitchmen than this bunch Conservatives.
ReplyDeleteIt's gotten to the point where some companies in the oil sands need to come out and condemn the federal government's strategy. They are needlessly poisoning the issue.
Yes, Dana, I do recall that quite clearly.
ReplyDeleteSal, I truly hope your vision proves accurate.
Yes, Chris, they do seem unnecessarily abrasive yet surely that's in keeping with the tenor set by the Imperial Wizard hisself since his ascendance. When someone depicts so many of us as enemies of the state it doesn't take long before that resonates. And, you're right, it's poisonous.
The ironic part is that, in the FinPost fluff piece, it's Oliver who whines about how he is villified.
Not just Merriman-Webster but Oxford as well.
ReplyDeleteORIGIN early 16th cent.: from late Latin inimicalis, from Latin inimicus (see enemy)
And from 'enemy'
ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French enemi, from Latin inimicus, from in- ‘not’ + amicus ‘friend’.
Poor Joe. It's so typical of conservatives to see enemies behind every shrub, tree, or mountain. Perhaps that's why they want to rid us of these nasty natural hiding places by decimating environmental legislation—fewer hiding places and better lines of sight.
Conservatives have the world all figured out and hate to be told they don't.
It's no longer conservative to conserve.
Thanks for that, CuJo. Yes, the Cons are a bellicose nest of vipers which is made more curious given the limited number of Canadians, including many who voted for them, who actually support them on their more controversial initiatives.
ReplyDeleteThey're a highly authoritarian bunch who have long since left that band of the political spectrum that could be recognized as Conservative as that was defined by the writings of Burke, Lincoln, T. Roosevelt, etc. Today's bunch is a good reach past conservatism.
Meh, I'm not going to complain too hard if the Cons see me as their enemy. I really am their enemy. They can see me crouching to spring from under as many trees as they want.
ReplyDeleteBe afraid, Conservatives! Radical's gonna getcha! Booga!
No, PLG, you're mistaken. Oliver isn't positing you as an enemy of the Cons but as an enemy of Canada.
ReplyDelete