WAKE UP CANADA!

(A-and good news from Tim DeChristopher too - below.)                            Up, Down.                   Good News!   

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I got this yesterday (by email) from the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition: It's Time to Wake Up Canada! You can visit their website to Sign Up NOW! as the banner urges you to do; and there is a Facebook page. [you may note that there has never been a link to Facebook previously on this blog if that means anything.]

What can be done to support them in this excellent endeavour? 

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The email mentions Melina Laboucan-Massimo and Sam Harrison - you might want to get to know them a little better:

A video of Sam Harrison at the JRP earlier this year; and a transcript. He is quite a remarkable 16 year old.

A video of Melina Laboucan-Massimo speaking briefly about the tar sands & Keystone; and speaking at the rally in Victoria in October 2012.

There were more than 8,000 Ontario high school students at the WFCU Centre in Windsor on Wednesday to kick it off - that's what 8,000 people look like:

You can see a few minutes of the event here; and a report in the local newspaper: Suzuki rallies local students to fix the environment. 

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We know some of these courageous young people already. The brave souls who turned their backs on Peter Kent in Durban; the beautiful (and tiny) young woman who held up her STOP HARPER! sign in the House of Commons:

There are many more - and they are showing us the way. I am also thinking of the kids in Waglisla in April fasting to protest the JRP hearings there (see these short videos: Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3).

We must do all that we can do to help prepare them and ourselves to WAKE CANADA UP on May 30th. It's Lucky '13, yes!

God bless 'em! [And I don't say that very often anymore either.]

Be well. 

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This seems too important to save:

Tim DeChristopher's speech at Powershift 2011 is an inspiration to me - that the movement is broken and must be fixed and indeed can easily be fixed when the will arrives.

He was released from prison the day before Earth Day and gave this interview.

[I don't appreciate Democracy Now very much so it is a 3/4 excerpt of this - the rudeness in the closing is still evident.]

A movie, Bidder 70 is now available; the trailer looks good; for some reason the website is slow to answer (?) but perseverance eventually took me there to buy a copy; the movie was streamed on Earth Day apparently but I didn't know about it.

This 'not knowing' is worthy of comment since it seems to me to be one of the major deficits of the 'movement'. The Internet is mostly compost but it IS good for communication particularly through email - so why didn't I know? I'll leave it with you.

A possibly useful link to Peaceful Uprising.

I am some glad to see him out (some is a modifier used in certain maritime dialects to indicate really-really-REALLY). Yes sir! 

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Down.

Forward On Climate, march to the White House, Washington D.C., February 17.

(See Keystone XL protest at the White House on the 13th below.)                           Up, Down.                         Good News! 

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A small timeline, context:

2011: September, Keystone XL protest in Washington, 1,200 arrested (and me).
    : Obama invokes bureaucratic limbo. Bill McKibben says, "We won! We won!"
    : November, Keystone XL protest in Washington, (maybe) 10,000 circle the
      White House (but it does not levitate).
2012: March, Obama's 'All Of The Above' tour; speech in Cushing, Oklahoma - right
      in TransCanada's Stillwater Pipe Yard.
2013: State of the Union, Obama promises a 'climate ultimatum'. He also
      promises more fracking et cetera.
    : Next day, Keystone XL protest, 48 arrested at the White House.
    : Five days later, ~35,000 show up to 'Forward on Climate'. The whole hour
      and a half is on C-SPAN; Michael's ten minute speech is here.

Michael Brune is honing his message - and it's a damn good one! If you act courageously we'll have your back Mr. President, and if not ... we will fight you. Double jeopardy. Watch it here. He confronts despair directly & up-front and deals with it better than anyone I have seen; and then he lays the plan out plain, clear, matter of fact. Good. He ain't Martin Luther King but he'll do!

THE SPELL HAS BEEN BROKEN! 

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A couple of Stephen Harper's cronys show up in the news just before the rally gets underway with 'ethical oil' and the usual nonsense: Gary Doer, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S. (the video is here), and, current Saskatchewan Premier, Brad Wall. I will grab those videos after a while and post them without ads. CBC takes a strangely snide & sideways slap at it before the rally, here; but Paul Hunter provides some useful information (see below).

A more-or-less thoughtful piece from a committee at the New York Times (John Broder, Clifford Krauss & Ian Austen & Matthew Wald): Obama Faces Risks in Pipeline Decision. [I say 'more-or-less' because Canada (as Robert Crumb's Mr. Natural says sooo eloquently) 'Don't mean sheeit!' - It's the climate stupid!]

A-and, they fail to lay out the scenario for rejection which is, as I understand it, as follows (thanks to CBC): The governor of Nebraska, Dave Heineman, approved the thing in January and bounced the issue back to Washington, onto the desk of John Kerry at State Department. His minions are preparing another environmental review which Kerry could apparently issue as a draft at any time. There is then a mandatory public review period of two months, after which it falls to Obama.

Something like that ... Be well, Michael Brune says we are going to win and I believe him. 

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Keystone XL protest, Washington DC, White House, Wednesday February 13.

(See Forward On Climate, to the White House, February 17th above.)                 Up, Down.              Ash Wednesday 

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Today: Fifty people detained by police demanding Obama stop Keystone XL.    Keystone XL Protesters Seized at White House.    Protesters arrested at WH pipeline protest.    Activists arrested at White House protesting Keystone pipeline.    48 were arrested.   Video: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

That's the stuff! Good on you! 

Valentines Day may be bogus, Obama's State of the Union was almost certainly a charade, but this ... is the right stuff. Hell, I would'a taken another 17 hour bus ride just to be there and clap for them. Even if as a Canadian I might have choked at getting arrested (or can't walk this week, whatever).    Including Michael Brune of Sierra Club. So, he was serious a few weeks ago then, and he didn't waste much time getting on with it. Good on 'im!

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NEXT UP: FORWARD ON CLIMATE - SUNDAY FEBRUARY 17 at NOON
National Mall in Washington, D.C.    Watch these short videos. 

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Down.

Lucky '13 (Mark II.)

Heal our broken selves.        (Mark I is here.)                                                     Up, Down.                        Wolf Moon 

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Contents:   Naomi Klein 1, Naomi Klein 2, Naomi Klein 3, Recently: (Barack Obama, Margaret Wente, Boris Johnson, Greenpeace Report, UK vs. EU), End of the Hunger Strike, At the Demo, Negative Resilience.

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“The bottom line is this: not until we have a plan to heal the planet that also heals our broken selves and our broken communities do we have a hope of preventing this most dire of all crises, and our job is to begin to imagine - quickly - what that wholistic healing process might look like.”

              Naomi Klein at Powershift 2012 in Ottawa (video, 30 minutes).

Watch the video a couple'a times; listen carefully to her; read that quote until you have got it straight; and then skip the rest of this gentle reader. Take a break. Meditate on it. 

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Naomi Klein, 42 years old. Here's her website.

Scott Parkin (you can get to know him a bit better in this very short video) quotes Naomi: “The climate movement needs to have one hell of a comeback,” in Harnessing Rebel Energy – Making Green A Threat Again, 18 January 2013; from Counterpunch & Earth First News. Reading this prompted me to re-read the source: Capitalism vs. the Climate from The Nation, November 9, 2011.

Which led me (by a commodius vicus of recirculation) to the Power Shift video above - which then    blew my mind. (!)    My only criticism is that she doesn't mention population - hesitated to do it maybe, for obvious reasons.

An exercise in understanding is to read Scott Parkin's article, then Naomi Klein's essay, and then come back to Scott Parkin for a quick 'compare & contrast'. I file things in that Addenda thing because (for me who is easily distracted) the pop-ups and advertising shit get in the way of reading; and also so they won't disappear or have the URLs change quite so quickly; and one of the aspects of doing it is to have to read the text repeatedly, intimately.

In Capitalism vs. the Climate she references 'Cool dudes: The denial of climate change among conservative white males in the United States' by Aaron McCright & Riley Dunlap - several times in fact; so here (for the sake of completeness) it is at Science Direct for $31.50, or this free & open copy at University of Colorado Boulder. 

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I was not always a fan of Naomi Klein; in fact I was a grumbling-arsehole critic (a white male of a certain background & experience y'unnerstan). It started before No Logo, early-mid 90's sometime, some article of hers set me off, must have been when she was at 'This Magazine' ... and then later on I read 'No Logo' and was not impressed. Someone asked me why - and - I can't remember anymore. All my papers from those days have been lost and I don't have a copy of the book anymore either ... so. More recently I tried to read The Shock Doctrine and was put off by the ideology - she seemed to be so pretty and so certain, a bourgeois princess with perfect pitch in the key of politically correct.

Then I saw her in 2010 during the G20 here in Toronto; and followed her, along with about 1,000 others, from Massey Hall up to Allan Gardens. She hit the grace note so perfectly, and so humbly, I could not resist: all she said was, "I'm going to take a walk up to Allan Gardens when this is over to see how it's going there, and if you want to come along, feel free." I began to change my opinion; and when I read her long article Capitalism vs. the Climate the first time in 2011 I was about turned around.

No one likes to change their opinion, especially when it is curmudgeonly and imperfect, maybe even shameful; but there you go, that's how this all happened as well as I can remember. 

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She is in the index here half a dozen times, so when it was all done and dusted I followed up on 'maybe even shameful' and went to have a closer look at the past, the trajectory.

Uh oh!

At least nine times it turns out: Wednesday September 9 2009,   Saturday September 12 2009,   Sunday June 13 2010,   Sunday July 25 2010,   Sunday March 27 2011,   Wednesday July 13 2011,   Sunday October 2 2011,   Sunday October 9 2011,   Tuesday January 15 2012.

Whew! What a struggle! Google Search don't work worth shit (using double quotes in the blog Search box has no effect). I was sure I had mentioned her Pied Piper routine at Massey Hall but ... can't find it. And Blogger has changed the way the <P> tag is interpreted so the posts I touched (to insert a link) all got gibbled and the HTML had to be repaired (follow the </P> with an '&nbsp' non-breaking space, intuitively obvious) in many many places.

Another Odyssey: reviewing old opinions and statements (some of them quite scurrilous & loutish) can be humbling. Any lesson in humility is good I guess. See Negative Resilience below. Maybe someone else also remembers Brian Mulrooney saying, "we had to adjust our perceptions," during some election campaign.

I'm sorry gentle reader to have learned so little that I just ... carry on. 

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Across this table lately:

Barack Obama a lame ... liberal:

1) Barack Obama's Second Inaugural Address (complete, 20 minutes), the bit on climate (1.5 minute clip from about 11:45), & the transcript; "We, the people ..." a rhetorical mantra ... Ommmmm ...

 

2) How serious is Barack Obama about climate change?, Suzanne Goldenberg, Monday 21 January 2013;

 

3) Obama under pressure after Nebraska governor signs off on Keystone XL, Suzanne Goldenberg, Tuesday 22 January 2013 7pm;

 

4) Obama stalls for time after Nebraska approves Keystone XL oil pipeline, Suzanne Goldenberg, Tuesday 22 January 2013 11pm;

 

5) Governor of Nebraska Backs Route for Pipeline, John Broder, January 22, 2013, which includes this sentence: "The decision came a day after Mr. Obama made an assertive pledge in his Inaugural Address to tackle climate change in his second term." The only victory here being in the structure of the sentence - that Keystone is now expected to implicitly connect with climate change.

 

6) A rally is being planned for February 17, President's Day, in Washington DC by 350, The Sierra Club, and the Hip-Hop Caucus. Another 17 hour bus ride? Dunno.

 
 

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Margaret Wente, a lame self-serving woman of a certain age:

1) Global warming stopped 16 years ago, reveals Met Office report quietly released... and here is the chart to prove it, David Rose, 13 October 2012;

 

2) Whatever happened to global warming?, Margaret Wente, January 24 2013;

 

3) Debunking the Denial: “16 Years of No Global Warming”, Phil Plait, Monday, January 14, 2013;

 

4) Global warming over the last 16 years (2 minute video), John Cook, 7 January 2013;

 

5) Short term trends: Another proxy fight, Gavin Schmidt, 1 November 2012.

 
 
I really don't want to mention Ezra Levant - any publicity being good publicity in that realm - but this longish video is interesting on all sides. And if he is going to be mentioned, I guess it's fitting to couple him with Wente.

I would like to be able to encounter Margaret Wente or Ezra Levant, or that guy from the anti-wind group, Daryl Hemingway, and stand up to them - short answer is: I can't. Tom Flanagan is another one; he gets his oar in here: Native talks with the Crown challenge Canada’s very existence. By all means! 

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Boris Johnson, a lame hard-right wannabe:

1) It’s snowing, and it really feels like the start of a mini ice age, Boris Johnson, 20 January 2013;

 

2) Boris Johnson says snow casts doubt on climate change science, Leo Hickman, Monday 21 January 2013.

 
 

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2015 or 2020, not that much much to choose really:

1) China and Australia top list of 'carbon bomb' projects, Oliver Milman, Tuesday 22 January 2013;

 

2) Point of No Return - The massive climate threats we must avoid, Ria Voorhar & Lauri Myllyvirta, January 2013.

 
 

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UK vs. EU:    "Fog in Channel: Continent cut off." (an island nation)

1) David Cameron's speech, 23 January 2013 (40 minutes); transcript, the offending remark: "... we need to examine whether the balance is right in so many areas where the European Union has legislated including on the environment ..." (somewhere in Principle #3);

 

2) EU referendum: Climate efforts could be 'collateral damage', warn MEPs, Arthur Neslen, Thursday 24 January 2013;

 

3) David Cameron's EU speech is grave news for our environment, Tony Juniper, Friday 25 January 2013;

 

4) Britain’s Prime Minister Defends Decision to Seek Vote on European Union, David Jolly, January 24, 2013 (which does not mention the environment);

 

5) United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) petition; UKIP Environmental policy (2008) "UKIP accepts that the world’s climate changes, but we are the first party to take a sceptical stance on man-made global warming claims."; European Citizens' Initiative petition "We Demand Affordable Energy!";

 

6) EU carbon price crashes to record low, Damian Carrington, Thursday 24 January 2013 - It fell to €2.81 ($3.81CDN) from ~€17 in 2010. So what? It had to be $1,000 & Fee & Dividend to do any good!;

 
 

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OH MY, I knew right away, almost at the beginning that she wasn't gonna pull it off - as I watched that first interview (the first one I saw) and she played the money card; and Raymond Robinson cinched it.

I didn't say, because I    hoped - superstitious simpleton that I am - not for their deaths but for a ... miracle, understanding, on all sides. Some of my feelings are echoed in Naomi Klein's Globe article.

Theresa Spence & Raymond Robinson folded, gave it up for some bullshit bureaucrat's blancmange; here, read it and weep: Declaration of Commitment - January 23, 2013. "First Nations: Working Towards Fundamental Change," thirteen points (A daemonic parody of Lucky '13? Is that it?) ... Bah! And Bob Rae gets his ol' clamdigger in there (reported in the Globe & Postmedia/Canada.com/Regina Leader-Post).    Bollocks!

BUT this does not diminish that they opened a door. Curious; I used that phrase 'opened a door' with someone I know and she thought I meant opening a door into native culture or 'ways' or something - which is not it at all.

What I mean is that they demonstrated the power of courage combined with an effective tactic (including someone trustworthy at your back).

And they did their best, in the face of the full force of bourgeois inertia, external & internal, bore the brunt. Too bad it's not about one version or another of 'economic development' aka growth. Close but no cigar, oh well. 

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CALL TO ACTION!   NO LINE 9!
A hardy handful showed up at City Hall, some familliar faces. When it wound up, three of us decided to walk over to Moss Park en route to Allan Gardens.

Several hundred, maybe 500 by the time the march got underway, were gathered at Moss Park. A percussion corps played while people ate the delicious hot lunch provided free, coffee too. We were joined by another smaller rally of teachers before we got to Allan Gardens.

Another handful, more familliar faces, were waiting at Allan Gardens with a banner and some large bird puppets wearing 'NO LINE 9' accessories.

Someone told me there were 30,000 in the rally by the time we were on our way to Maple Leaf Gardens and this has been repeated by the social media - so maybe it was 10-15,000. 

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For a few moments in front of Maple Leaf Gardens the crowd roared, as one. I had never heard such a thing before - it felt louder than a football crowd in the Maracanã. Awesome! Hit me right in the 0'th chakra.

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The short answer is that (in Toronto) 10-20, maybe 50, will come out for the environment, 500 or so will muster for the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP), and an order of magnitude or two more for Sid Ryan (Doh!?) and the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL). There were about as many anti-wind placards in the OFL march as there were to stop Enbridge's Line 9 reversal! Disheartening.

So.     ...     There are a number of lessons to be learned here. Many of them are impertinent so I'll spare you. Anyway you should be able to figgure them out for yourself. F'rinstance, ask (quietly and to yourself of course): Exactly what do the civil service unions want?

There was something going on up at Yonge & Finch too but no idea how it turned out; more later maybe ... Ah! Some pictures of it here (thanks to Amelia for letting me know): Stop Line 9.

Loose Ends:

I want to find out who paid for that OCAP lunch and give them some support.

Greg Renouf and his photographer sidekick Frank showed up at the OCAP rally - and for some reason I do not understand they were asked to leave (on the ridiculous charge of 'security'), they didn't. I am wondering about this ... 

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"If a law is unjust, a man is not only right to disobey it, he is obligated to do so," (Thomas Jefferson, slave owner).

Syllogism:   An argument expressed or claimed to be expressible in the form of two propositions called the premisses, containing a common or middle term, with a third proposition called the conclusion, resulting necessarily from the other two (OED). Or check out Wikipedia. Sort'a like means & extremes. Out-of-date in some circles, old fashioned.

Justice or Just Us?     Couple'a tunes for y'all: Neil Young Bound For Glory & Leonard Cohen (watch out for the ad) Always.

Negative resilience:   This could be two posts in one: A vanishing point, to beyond the zero vs. a possibility for change & even a kinda-sorta feasible prescription for it. The internal landscape is so reduced and bleak that anything short of orgasm doesn't register and any hiccup locks the gates. A Heisenberg uncertainty principle of the soul. The merest hint of a hiccup, even a hypothetical hint, and the wheels fall off. Or I go out and Give 'er! and barely manage to crawl back here on broken feet to an empty inbox. Can't hardly walk today and gotta take the garbage out. (Boo Hoo. :-)

“We'll be goin' down so deep the river's gonna weep and the mountain's gonna shout, "Amen!"”

It's all good gentle reader. Be well.

[Caco Galhardo, Pedro de Luna, Res Picta, Toad] 

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