In Caledonia, Ontario, Canada.
Where two-tiered justice reigns supreme.
(H/T The Raging Owl)
* * * *
Update:
H/T to Jad for directing me to Christie Blatchford’s columns at the Globe where I came upon a whole series of enlightening columns.
For example – Welcome to Caledonia, where flying the flag is asking for a fight:
...It may have been just a slip of the tongue the other day when David Feliciant, the government’s lawyer, referred to the site as “the DCE Reserve,” but the land, in all but name, has become just that…
( . . .)
...As Christmas of 2006 approached, with Mohawk Warrior flags all over the DCE and on Mr. Brown’s street, Caledonia residents had had enough, and decided they would carry or hang a Canadian flag. Mr. Brown decided to fly one in his front yard.
“Weren’t you at all concerned about instigating a confrontation with protesters?” Mr. Feliciant asked.
“By hanging a Canadian flag?” Mr. Brown asked, furious.
“The Canadian flag was not allowed to be flown,” he said. “I’m a very, very proud Canadian. I’m proud of my country. This was my opportunity and my right to believe we still live in this country.
“The OPP was not concerned with the Mohawk flags all around my property and on all the telephone poles. They were agitating me. You didn’t concern yourself with that,” he told Mr. Feliciant. “You didn’t care that they were agitating me at that time, [did] you?
“And you’re telling me that I’m provoking someone by hanging a Canadian flag?”
Mr. Brown’s flag was stolen a few days later, and, he told the lawyer, he stood with his uncle, three police cruisers in his driveway, as the “OPP let them [the natives] stand there with my Canadian flag.”
If you don’t live in Caledonia, you might ask yourself why you should should care about this story. Well, here’s a thought. Why are we so preoccupied with the rights of the Taliban who are killing our soldiers in Afghanistan when the rights of Canadian citizens are being ignored right here at home?
Where’s the outrage???
More here: In a corner, Crown counters by attacking the plaintiffs:
…Commissioners Boniface and Fantino, Superintendent John Cain and Inspector Brian Haggith all admitted to varying degrees in pretrial discovery that natives were routinely breaking the law, occasionally with shocking violence, and that the OPP wasn’t enforcing it normally.
Indeed, in a wide-ranging series of incidents the police witnesses admitted had been carried out against the family, the OPP never made a single arrest…
Ontario Premier wanted to sweep Caledonia issue ‘under the rug,’ court told:
“I offered to drop the lawsuit if he’d talk to [Mr.] McGuinty,” a furious Dave Brown yesterday told Ontario Superior Court Judge Thomas Bielby here, where the lawsuit is being heard.
Mr. Brown said Mr. Levac, the chief government whip, later reported back that he’d talked to the Premier and that Mr. McGuinty “told him he’d love to sweep this [presumably Mr. Brown's situation] under the rug.”
Oops!
Other related articles:
National Post editorial board: Abusing Canada’s flag in the name of political correctness – Full Comment
Lighting up the law – John Ivison
Too many years of spinelss Liberal governments, provincial and federal.
We need to take our country back.
Completely O/T (sorry,Jo), but everyone should read this piece by Christie Blatchford in today’s Globe. She has had access to the redacted copies of Colvin’s emails, about 30 of them altogether, and gives a good understanding of what is in them as well as the timeline involved.
Her conclusion:”In condemning with the same brush highly professional Canadian soldiers, and to complain that they were complicit in breaches of the law of armed conflict and knowingly buried his reports, it is Mr. Colvin who has some explaining left to do.”
Wilson, I agree. I wonder what would have happened if they had tried singing “O Canada”?
Thanks Jad. I’ll check it out.
BTW, when you leave a link you need to insert the URL. If you’re not sure how to go about it, I think we have an explanation somewhere in the archives. Thanks.
OT (again – sorry) – wrote an email to the PM last Tuesday and received a reply on Friday (I’m impressed)on the Climategate scandal – reply below:
On behalf of the Prime Minister, thank you for your correspondence regarding the Government’s climate change strategy. Your comments are greatly appreciated.
As we approach the Copenhagen climate change conference, the Government of Canada fully appreciates that Canadians are eager to share their suggestions and opinions on this issue.
You may be assured that your message has been carefully reviewed. As the Honourable Jim Prentice, Minister of the Environment, will also appreciate being made aware of your views, I have taken the liberty of forwarding a copy of your message to the Minister.
Once again, thank you for taking the time to write.
P. Monteith
Executive Correspondence Officer
for the Prime Minister’s Office
Agent de correspondance
de la haute direction
pour le Cabinet du Premier ministre
I admit it is a “form like” reply but at least it was forwarded to Minister Prentice for consideration.
“Climategate … the NEW Inconvenient Truth”
That’s great Teddy. Thanks. I think it is a form letter because I’ve had other readers post it, but it is heartening to know that they are acknowledging the concern and I’m sure they are keeping track of the number of letters received on this issue.
Blach’s series of articles on this are fantastic, some of her finest work, which says a lot…
My sister used to live minutes away from this occupation site, once a promising development, and it is now just a wasteland-testament to the result of lawlessness…..
Thanks Joanne – I should have posted my email as well (don’t want to taint the evidence!!)
“Dear Prime Minister
Given the release of the e-mails and data files from the Hadley CRU in England and the now “suspect” manipulation of climate change information, I urge you and your Government not to sign any treaties coming out of the Copenhagen talks in December 2009 that might bind Canada in any way, financially or otherwise, until a thorough independent investigation can be completed of the allegations that have put global warming into disrepute. These revelations have now become the “Inconvenient Truth”!
Cc: Hon. Gary Lunn – Saanich and the Islands”
Good letter Teddy!
Darcy, I bet your sister has some stories to tell.
“And you’re telling me that I’m provoking someone by hanging a Canadian flag?”
Yet the Hezbolla flag, tamil-ltte-tiger flag fly without a problem but problems arises when we flag our very own canadian flag which the canadians troops of all stypes take with them into battle; draped proudly on their coffin and received by their loved ones.
This is Canada – There are parts in Canada where you can’t fly the Canadian flag and there are large areas in Canada where you can’t speak English an official language of the country and it is illegal to use the official language of the country. What a country.
This is not a McGuinty problem unless he or his Ministers gave orders to Fantino. Otherwise it is simply a question whether or not Fantino has acted improperly or perhaps illegally. The RCMP should be put in charge of this case until the facts are known.
Truly a disgrace, this treatment of a citizen of this country.
McGuinty fears what happened to Mike Harris, and all the criticism he took for attempting to enforce the law equally for all. The government is criticized for it, and becomes completely spineless. The electorate continues to elect the weak, and the conservative party fights against the HST, which is a conservative concept.
This is not a McGuinty problem unless he or his Ministers gave orders to Fantino.
Are you kidding? Why is the RCMP not enforcing the law, unless so directed by the Premier?
Peter B at 12:13 pm:
“This is Canada – There are parts in Canada where you can’t fly the Canadian flag and there are large areas in Canada where you can’t speak English an official language of the country and it is illegal to use the official language of the country. What a country.”
Boy, do you have that right!! And everyone stands by and does nothing because it is the politically correct thing to do. We mustn’t ruffle feathers. What a shameful heritage, what a shameful legacy!! Actually, two valid reasons why an individual can make the case that Canada is not a country!! Seriously!!
Caledonia should just secede, set up competing smoke shops, liquor stills and chicken ranches and go head to head with the clowns down the road. Build a casino, too. Hire off-duty OPP as “p’tekshun” and get on with the kind of life that Mr McGuinty seems to fully endorse through his blind eyed Justice Dept.
He can negotiate “treaties” with both groups for shared “foreign services” and extract a fee, road taxes, export duties, police & fire services or any other “gang” related effort to capitalize on the situation. He actually might go for it as it will take the matter right out of his hands and turn a fair dollar at the same time for the province, while washing his hands on any severe frowning on his government’s handling of the situation.
Money talks, BS walks. Who’s to say his government isn’t getting a kick-back already for “foreign services” as p’tekshun for the OPP now, for cigarette sales? Right now it all looks like one gang protecting the turf of another gang, using taxpayer’s money. What’s a few millions on cigarette sales?
Don Corleone: Ehhhh. We gotta,’rangement, wazzamattuhfuhyou? Smokahs a getta tha smokes an’ it keepsa da dudes a occupied. Nobody gettsa hurt. Ehhh! Why you rocka da boat a wavin’ da flags aroun’? Fuhgeddaboudit!
Moebius OPP are the police force in charge now. Premier not allowed to give orders to OPP. This was the central issue in the Ipperwash enquiry
Jad, I finally found the link. Maybe the online articles don’t appear til a day after the print copy? NNW has it posted today.
Thanks very much. Important section here among other: