Militarization of Police
Police State of Tomorrow is here Today
US - CANADA - Halifax Police
Link Here for related topics :
Police Brutality goes wrong! Police officers get beat down!
First: A look at the US - what's coming to Canada
Courageous Illinois Man [Michael Allison] Faces 75 Years In Prison For Recording Cops [AlexJones interviews M Allison below]
9-7-2011 Infowars Nightly News with Alex Jones, guest Sheriff Richard Mack, others [Amy Alkon and Michael Allison]
$65BILLION=30,000 DRONES+PREDATOR+SURVAILANCE=OK'D BY CONGRESS 4 AMERICANS!
Judge Napolitano : 30,000 Drones In U.S. Skies to spy on you violates Constitution (May 14, 2012)
Martial Law 9/11: Rise Of The Police State
Alex Jones Documentary - Full
Alex Jones Movie (1999) - Police State 1 - 2000 - Full version
Alex Jones Movie (2000)
Police State 2 - The Take Over - Full version
Alex Jones Police State 3: Total Enslavement - 2003 - Full
Alex Jones Police State 4: The Rise OF FEMA - 2010 - Full
We are Preparing for Massive Civil War, Says DHS Informant
Schwarzenegger Hates Harper's Crime Bill
Alex Jones: Canadian conspiracy
9:26 Amy Alkon: Alex interviews advice columnist and author Amy Alkon, who is being threatened by the TSA with a 1/2 million dollar lawsuit after she was sexually abused at LAX airport and dared to blog about it.
26:46, 31:40 Michael Allison: Alex interviews Michael Allison, who is faces 75 years behind bars for protecting himself and his rights by recording police in public. [View video directly above]
50:18, 54:40 Sheriff Richard Mack: talks about the latest with Fast and Furious. http://sheriffmack.com/
Alex also covers FEMA red tape with fires happening all over the Austin area. Alex Jones nightly news 9-7-11
US: Militarization of Police
30,000 Drones Over America - Weaponized Police State
Congress Allows 30000 Drones To Spy on Americans
Police drones that will see into your house coming soon
$65BILLION=30,000 DRONES+PREDATOR+SURVAILANCE=OK'D BY CONGRESS 4 AMERICANS!
Judge Napolitano : 30,000 Drones In U.S. Skies to spy on you violates Constitution (May 14, 2012)
"The Police State" Conspiracy -Jesse Ventura
Martial Law 9/11: Rise Of The Police State
Alex Jones Documentary - Full
Alex Jones Movie (1999) - Police State 1 - 2000 - Full version
Alex Jones Movie (2000)
Police State 2 - The Take Over - Full version
Alex Jones Police State 3: Total Enslavement - 2003 - Full
Alex Jones Police State 4: The Rise OF FEMA - 2010 - Full
We are Preparing for Massive Civil War, Says DHS Informant
The government has declared it can lock anyone up forever or kill them without any proof or due process. DHS has placed an order for 450 million rounds of Hollow Point ammo. Obama can now declare martial law during peace time. I think that just about says it all.
"We are Preparing for Massive Civil War," Says DHS Informant http://current.com/community/93765251_we-are-preparing-for-massive-civil-war-...
"If you don't fight for your rights, they don't exist. Our constitution doesn't mean a damn thing if we the people don't stand up for it." Or just go back to sleep. Maybe we'll get adjoining cells one day if we're still alive anyway.
"We are Preparing for Massive Civil War," Says DHS Informant http://current.com/community/93765251_we-are-preparing-for-massive-civil-war-...
"If you don't fight for your rights, they don't exist. Our constitution doesn't mean a damn thing if we the people don't stand up for it." Or just go back to sleep. Maybe we'll get adjoining cells one day if we're still alive anyway.
Canada
Schwarzenegger Hates Harper's Crime Bill
Alex Jones: Canadian conspiracy
The latest scandal to hit the Harper administration: The Canadian government has been caught paying a media group to monitor online political discussions and respond to "misinformation", in order to spread state-sanctioned propaganda.
Bill C-51 / C-30 ?
Originally introduced as Bill C-51 "Investigative Powers for the 21st Century Act" on February 13th then was changed to bill C-30 "protecting children from internet predators act" on February 14th within an hour after our online activism through social media: source below
Google CBC news:
"The bill includes no mention of children or predators except in the title, which appears to have been changed after it was sent to the printers."
Bill C-51 / C-30 ?
(L)awful Access - Bill C-30 - Why It Should Be Scrapped (Feb 20 - 2012)
Originally introduced as Bill C-51 "Investigative Powers for the 21st Century Act" on February 13th then was changed to bill C-30 "protecting children from internet predators act" on February 14th within an hour after our online activism through social media: source below
Google CBC news:
"The bill includes no mention of children or predators except in the title, which appears to have been changed after it was sent to the printers."
"unLawful Access" [C-51]- Battle For The Net
Note: At 51: You will see C- 50, C-51 and C-52 that would all infringe on your rights and privacy. C-51 was later renumbered to C-30 and renamed. Originally introduced as Bill C-51 "Investigative Powers for the 21st Century Act" on February 13th then was changed to bill C-30 "protecting children from internet predators act" on February 14th within an hour after our online activism through social media
Note: At 51: You will see C- 50, C-51 and C-52 that would all infringe on your rights and privacy. C-51 was later renumbered to C-30 and renamed. Originally introduced as Bill C-51 "Investigative Powers for the 21st Century Act" on February 13th then was changed to bill C-30 "protecting children from internet predators act" on February 14th within an hour after our online activism through social media
The internet is under attack here in Canada and if Stephen Harper gets his way with the "lawful access" bill, he will pave the way for big brother to have total control over everything we do online. Harper vowed to make this a reality within the first 100 days of his current reign and if he is successful this would be detrimental to the fundamental privacy rights that we currently have. Voice your concerns with your local representatives (especially if they are conservative MP's) and we can put a stop to this very unlawful "lawful access" bill.
Canadian Action Party http://actionparty.ca/videos/unlawful-access-battle-for-the-net.htmlPress For Truth is a team of videographers, investigative journalists and political activists. http://www.pressfortruth.ca/
(Un)Lawful Access [Bill C-51/ Bill 30] : Experts Line Up Against Online Spying
David Lyon:Surveillance Studies Centre Director, Queen's University
Ian Kerr:Canada Research Chair in Law, Ethics and Technology,University of Ottawa
David Murakami Wood: Canada Research Chair in Surveillance Studies, Queen's University
Andrew Clement: Policy Director,Identity, Policy and Security Institute, University of Toronto
Dwayne Winseck: School of Journalism and Communication, Carleton University
David Fewer: Director of CIPPIC (Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic), University of Ottawa
Natalie DesRosiers: Counsel General, Canadian Civil Liberties Union
Ron Debiert: Director, Canada Centre for Global Security Studies, University of Toronto
Michael Geist: Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law, University of Ottawa
Unlawful Access was produced in collaboration with The New Transparency: Surveillance and Social Sorting, and DigitallyMediatedSurveillance.ca. More Media, Downloads, bios and Remix @ http://www.unLawfulAccess.net
Sign the petition at: http://stopspying.ca
Send a message to your MP at: http://openmedia.ca/mp
Sign the petition at: http://stopspying.ca
Send a message to your MP at: http://openmedia.ca/mp
Kill The Bills C-30 and C-11
The Canadian Conservative government is ready to crush internet freedom in Canada. The citizens of the world spoke clearly on January 18, 2012, that internet, communications should not be criminalized. But the Conservatives in Canada, plan to ram through their own versions of SOPA , PIPA , and even more. Their legislation is in two proposals, called Bill C 30 and Bill C 11. The goal of Bill C 30 is to make it legal for the Conservatives and their police friends to get all the information they want, about what you do on the internet. Bill C 11 will make file sharing, as Canadians now know it, a criminal activity.
People who share files of anything copyrighted will be criminals. Web sites where people can share files will be illegal. Bill C 30 will then let the Conservatives police forces search for you on the net without a warrant.
When they find you they can enter your home and take your computer equipment and software. You will be open to prosecution, fines, and jail. The Conservatives have told everyone they want to build more prisons. Bills C 30 and C 11 make it very clear they plan to fill these new jails with file sharers, and anyone else they can find, when they make it legal for the police to cruise the internet at their leisure looking for anything a Canadian does, on the internet.
Don't forget Bill C-309 - FIVE YEAR PRISON SENTENCE for "unlawful assembly" aka, any protest the police state hasn't approved of. We wont allow them to take our freedom! Prepare for the fight of your life Canadians! People of the world will unite against the elite! Long live liberty!
People who share files of anything copyrighted will be criminals. Web sites where people can share files will be illegal. Bill C 30 will then let the Conservatives police forces search for you on the net without a warrant.
When they find you they can enter your home and take your computer equipment and software. You will be open to prosecution, fines, and jail. The Conservatives have told everyone they want to build more prisons. Bills C 30 and C 11 make it very clear they plan to fill these new jails with file sharers, and anyone else they can find, when they make it legal for the police to cruise the internet at their leisure looking for anything a Canadian does, on the internet.
Don't forget Bill C-309 - FIVE YEAR PRISON SENTENCE for "unlawful assembly" aka, any protest the police state hasn't approved of. We wont allow them to take our freedom! Prepare for the fight of your life Canadians! People of the world will unite against the elite! Long live liberty!
List of Canadians at Secret Bilderberg 2010 Meeting
Gordon Campbell , Premier of British Columbia
W. Edmund Clark President and CEO, TD Bank Financial Group
Peter Mansbridge Chief Correspondent, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Frank McKenna Deputy Chair, TD Bank Financial Group
J. Robert S Prichard President and CEO, Metrolinx
Canada - The Bilderberg Group
At Waterloo, Ontario Former Canadian PM Paul Martin was questioned about the Bilderberg Group.
More Comments on the Bilderbergs from:
John Turner - Former Prime Minister
Jerry Ouellette - Federal MP Conservative
Elizabeth May - Green Party Leader
Dan Mcteague - Federal MP Liberal
Jack Layton - Federal MP, Party Leader - NDP
This footage was from Oh Canada Movie! View directly below
Our Bought and Sold Out Land http://www.ohcanadamovie.com
For more on "The Bilderberg Group" Watch Endgame - Blueprint For Global Enslavement - Alex Jones http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jM6US0Qk5_8
More Comments on the Bilderbergs from:
John Turner - Former Prime Minister
Jerry Ouellette - Federal MP Conservative
Elizabeth May - Green Party Leader
Dan Mcteague - Federal MP Liberal
Jack Layton - Federal MP, Party Leader - NDP
This footage was from Oh Canada Movie! View directly below
Our Bought and Sold Out Land http://www.ohcanadamovie.com
For more on "The Bilderberg Group" Watch Endgame - Blueprint For Global Enslavement - Alex Jones http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jM6US0Qk5_8
Oh Canada! Our Bought and Sold Out Land [Full Length]
The "Oh Canada Movie" "This entertaining film explores the history of banking, the selling out of the prosperity of Canada, the clearance sale of Canadian businesses and the political liquidation of public infrastructures to the multi-national corporate oligarchy.
"How has this led to the biggest economic crash / recession / depression in Canadian history? Could it have something to do with our politicians listening to international bankers and corporations instead of the people Canada? How does the Canadian banking system really work? How does the central Bank of Canada compare with the American Federal Reserve?
"This movie presents these issues that affect every Canadian from the perspective of and delivered by concerned youth in a astute and colourful manner. This is a serious journalism piece that asks the tough questions directly to such politicians as Former Prime Minister of Canada Paul Martin, Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, Ontario Gas Man Dan McTeague, NDP Leader Jack Layton, Mayor of Oshawa John Gray, Former Prime Minister of Canada John Turner and many more!
Olivia Chow "25 Years in the corporate world (now retired) already was cognizant of most material, I must say this movies is Simply Stunning. This is the best (real) reporting I have seen emanating from Canada in the last 20 years.."
Oh Canada -- Our Bought and Sold Out Land
Author : Dan Matthews
Stephen Harper is Dismantling Canadian Sovereignty for Globalism!
Admitting Canada is already apart of the New World Order, and no longer a sovereign nation
This guy calls in and questions the panelists (post 2011 election) on Stephen Harper's G20 Speech where he admits Canada is no longer sovereign and that there is NOT a Canadian economy, but a WORLD economy.
You can tell his question must have hit a nerve of sorts, keep an ear open to what the gentleman in the red tie has to say. - At 1:14 he makes the Devil/Illuminati/New World Order hand sign
You can tell his question must have hit a nerve of sorts, keep an ear open to what the gentleman in the red tie has to say. - At 1:14 he makes the Devil/Illuminati/New World Order hand sign
Canada: TORONTO
Into The Fire: The Canadian Police State at the G20 in 2010
World leaders and activists from around the world gathered for the G20 Summit. With over 19,000 police officers and security personnel on hand, the results lead to over 1100 arrests, martial law in downtown Toronto, and the most massive violation of civil liberties in Canadian history.
Legal advice on when you need to show ID to police in Canada
Lawyer, Davin Charney, gives an overview of the law in Canada. Produced for the Centre for Police Accountability (C4PA). www.c4pa.ca
www.facebook.com/centreforpoliceaccountability
Twitter: @thec4pa
www.facebook.com/centreforpoliceaccountability
Twitter: @thec4pa
G20 RE-EXPOSED: Toronto Inquiry Now
Why Police State? Where did this come from?
The Truth About Canada 1
http://melhurtig.ca/
Mel Hurtig: Based on bio at http://archive1.macs.ualberta.ca/FindingAids/MelHurtig/hurtig.html
Hurtig attended the founding of the Committee for an Independent Canada (CIC), and acted as its chair in 1973-74. The CIC founders were concerned about the high degree of foreign ownership in Canada and its persuasive influence on the lives of Canadians in the domains of politics, economics and culture. The CIC went on to raise a petition of over 170,000 names against foreign economic and cultural domination of Canada, and remained active until 1980. In 1985, Mel Hurtig founded a new national organization: The Council of Canadians (COC). Its focus was to raise public awareness and lobby against the “free trade” initiative in order to preserve and reinforce Canadian sovereignty. The COC, still in existence, develops policies, lobbies government, and strives to create public awareness around issues of Canadian nationalism and sovereignty.
Mel Hurtig announced his resignation from the Council of Canadians at its 1992 Annual General Meeting and his intention to launch a new political party: “The National Party of Canada”. He was elected leader of the party in November 1992, and the party’s policy book: A New and Better Canada was published in December 1992. The party grew quickly and managed to field 171 candidates in ridings across the country in the 1993 federal election. Less than a year later, the party was dissolved by its council amid allegations of financial mismanagement and other internal problems.
After leaving publishing, Hurtig became an author with the publishing of
Betrayal of Canada (1991), a passionate appeal for Canada’s survival, and then a memoir,
At Twilight in the Country: Memoirs of a Canadian Nationalist (1996). His three latest books include
Pay the Rent or Feed the Kids (2000),
The Vanishing Country: Is It Too Late to Save Canada? (2002),
Rushing to Armageddon (2004) and the recent
The Truth About Canada: Some important, some astonishing and some truly appalling things all Canadians should know about our country. (2008)
The high profile Mel Hurtig enjoys with his many involvements, professional career, and writing ensures his demand for public speaking engagements across the country. He has actively volunteered on numerous boards and committees, and his commitments and passions have been recognized with the bestowing of many awards and honorary degrees. Mel Hurtig is an Officer of the Order of Canada and received the Lester B. Pearson Man of the Year Peace Award (1988). Recently, he was named an ‘Edmontonian of the Century’, honoring individuals who contributed significantly to Edmonton’s growth in the past 100 years.
Hurtig attended the founding of the Committee for an Independent Canada (CIC), and acted as its chair in 1973-74. The CIC founders were concerned about the high degree of foreign ownership in Canada and its persuasive influence on the lives of Canadians in the domains of politics, economics and culture. The CIC went on to raise a petition of over 170,000 names against foreign economic and cultural domination of Canada, and remained active until 1980. In 1985, Mel Hurtig founded a new national organization: The Council of Canadians (COC). Its focus was to raise public awareness and lobby against the “free trade” initiative in order to preserve and reinforce Canadian sovereignty. The COC, still in existence, develops policies, lobbies government, and strives to create public awareness around issues of Canadian nationalism and sovereignty.
Mel Hurtig announced his resignation from the Council of Canadians at its 1992 Annual General Meeting and his intention to launch a new political party: “The National Party of Canada”. He was elected leader of the party in November 1992, and the party’s policy book: A New and Better Canada was published in December 1992. The party grew quickly and managed to field 171 candidates in ridings across the country in the 1993 federal election. Less than a year later, the party was dissolved by its council amid allegations of financial mismanagement and other internal problems.
After leaving publishing, Hurtig became an author with the publishing of
Betrayal of Canada (1991), a passionate appeal for Canada’s survival, and then a memoir,
At Twilight in the Country: Memoirs of a Canadian Nationalist (1996). His three latest books include
Pay the Rent or Feed the Kids (2000),
The Vanishing Country: Is It Too Late to Save Canada? (2002),
Rushing to Armageddon (2004) and the recent
The Truth About Canada: Some important, some astonishing and some truly appalling things all Canadians should know about our country. (2008)
The high profile Mel Hurtig enjoys with his many involvements, professional career, and writing ensures his demand for public speaking engagements across the country. He has actively volunteered on numerous boards and committees, and his commitments and passions have been recognized with the bestowing of many awards and honorary degrees. Mel Hurtig is an Officer of the Order of Canada and received the Lester B. Pearson Man of the Year Peace Award (1988). Recently, he was named an ‘Edmontonian of the Century’, honoring individuals who contributed significantly to Edmonton’s growth in the past 100 years.
The Truth About Canada 2
The Truth About Canada 3
The Nation's Deathbed - Press For Truth
Canadian Action Party http://actionparty.ca/
A Press for Truth video
Will we let the elite pull the plug on Canada's sovereignty? A documentary exploring the Security and Prosperity Partnership and how it is a stepping stone for an eventual North American Union. The film also explores the resistance movement to the SPP and the protests of August 2007 in Montebello, Canada.
United We Fall: Three Nations, Two Sides, One Union
"United We Fall", a documentary about the North American Union that is being developed right now between Canada, the United States, and Mexico. For years this topic has been debated in the news and in political circles as being a possible future for North America. In recent years, the mood has shifted and a rift is developing between those who want a Deeply Integrated North American Community, and those who wish to retain their national sovereignty. This film takes a look at both sides by interviewing both insiders and activists who have been at the heart of this heated debate. The film also looks to the broader agenda of building a world government and its implications.
Featured Interviews:
Robert Pastor (Council on Foreign Relations),
Allan Gotlieb (Trilateral Commission, Bilderberg)
Herbert Grubel (Creator of the "Amero")
David Laidler (C.D. Howe Institute)
Luke Rudkowski (We Are Change)
Dr. Andrew Moulden (Canadian Action Party)
Dan Dicks (Press For Truth)
Vijay Sarma (Political Activist, Independent Journalist)
Richard Syrett (Talk Radio Host)
Featured Interviews:
Robert Pastor (Council on Foreign Relations),
Allan Gotlieb (Trilateral Commission, Bilderberg)
Herbert Grubel (Creator of the "Amero")
David Laidler (C.D. Howe Institute)
Luke Rudkowski (We Are Change)
Dr. Andrew Moulden (Canadian Action Party)
Dan Dicks (Press For Truth)
Vijay Sarma (Political Activist, Independent Journalist)
Richard Syrett (Talk Radio Host)
Canada - Halifax
Police taking children away from Good Parents in Halifax
Atlantica's Rising Tide
A proposed free-trade area would radically change Canada's East Coast - but would it lift all boats?
By Drew Nelles
Halifax may be the largest city in the Maritimes, but it's hardly a metropolis; home to Dalhousie University, and with a population of just 119,000 people, it feels more like a sleepy college town than a provincial capital. In the early afternoon on June 15, though, about 350 people gathered in a downtown park to wake the city up. The elderly activist group the Maritime Raging Grannies were performing a song composed just for the occasion, sung to the tune of "Go Tell it on the Mountain":
"Come sing it with the sisters / Over the borders everywhere / Atlantica would hurt us / We have to make trade fair / Behind closed doors they'll sign a deal / And we won't know a thing / They'll trample on our human rights / So let our protests ring."
"Atlantica" is a proposed free-trade deal that would further integrate the Maritimes and south-eastern Quebec with the New England states. The agreement was being discussed in Halifax at a conference hosted by one of the deal's main proponents, the right-wing think tank Atlantic Institute for Market Studies (AIMS). While business-people and politicians mingled inside, regular citizens were left on the doorsteps and without a voice in the meetings. "This is an invisible agenda that nobody has really known about up to this point," explained J.D. Price, a spokesperson for the Anti-Atlantica Alliance, the umbrella group that rallied critical voices to come and demonstrate. "The overarching problem is that there’s no transparency, there no participation with civil society. They're talking about scaling back policies and regulations that working class people have fought and struggled for, things like minimum wage and environmental regulations."
As free-trade deals tend to do, Atlantica has generated enough concern to unite a broad cross-section of left-wing activists and concerned citizens; union organizers, environmentalists, parents and children, Canadian nationalists, and militant anarchists all stood in the verdant green park and listened to the Raging Grannies. Some of the anarchists - the self-described "Black Bloc - seemed a bit unsure whether to clap along to the song, or to remain ominous and still. As the demonstration began moving and neared the World Trade and Convention Centre, where the Atlantica conference was being held, this indecisiveness surfaced again.
The 75-strong Black Bloc broke off from the larger march and began running for the Convention Centre, but were blocked by a few police. The events that followed have already been widely reported: someone hurled a smoke bomb at the police, and inexplicably the Bloc ran in the opposite direction, [there are concerns that these protesters dressed in black who cover their faces are people employed by the government to make the genuine protesters look bad] heading toward a busy main road as some desperately yelled, "Where are we going?" Once on the road, protestors pelted businesses and police with paint-filled balloons and light bulbs; the police responded with pepper spray, tazers, billy clubs, and multiple arrests.
A number of protestors dispersed, but some headed north, toward Halifax's iconic Citadel Hill. In the shadow of that landmark, more paint bombs were thrown, and riot police pepper-sprayed and tazered more people, including at least one who was already handcuffed and detained. As a woman was hustled into a police van, she shouted repeatedly, "This is what the police state looks like!"
A man lay on the ground, barely conscious, as police huddled around him, chuckling and cracking jokes. When the paramedics arrived, one turned to a cop and asked, apparently incredulous, "What were you thinking?" Regaining consciousness, the man on the ground croaked to a paramedic, "Tell them to go away," referring to the officers.
Later, at the Convention Centre, about 60 people were gathered on the front steps, shouting chants like, "One-two-three-four, Atlantica is class war! Five-six-seven-eight, organize and smash the state!" Standing with a line of police, a security guard informed the protestors that the Convention Centre is private property; an aboriginal protestor responded, "This is stolen land." One demonstrator, dressed ludicrously in purple goggles, a Hawaiian lei, and a garish skirt, was shoved down the concrete steps by a police officer; he was apparently singled out for violating bail conditions, which dictated that he stay away from the Atlantica conference. The demonstrator began running but was tackled by an undercover cop, dragged behind police lines, and arrested. "You didn't even give me a chance to remove myself from the premises!" he yelled. As other protestors approached, an officer swung his billy club and growled, "Who wants to cross the line?"
By the end of the day, 21 people had been arrested, including at least two who were not involved in the demonstration. Paint splattered the streets, a bank window was broken, and the mainstream media decried the protest as violent. But the Atlantica conference went off without a hitch - in fact, although Atlantica has largely flown beneath the radar prior to the demonstration, the Canadian government announced that week $588,000 in support of the Atlantica Council, which will promote the nascent trade area.
"Atlantica" seems a rather fabulous name for something as unsexy as a trade agreement, but the tale of how it came to the attention of the activist community is nearly as mythic. The rumour goes that, in late 2005, a single East Coast activist discovered AIMS's proposal online and began alerting friends and allies. The pressure of organizing later caused him to suffer a nervous breakdown, but from these humble beginnings blossomed a full-on anti-Atlantica movement.
Atlantica is more officially known as "Atlantica: the International Northeast Economic Region" (AINER) . The brainchild of AIMS, the proposed free-trade area would encompass what is generally described as the "Atlantic Northeast"; in Canada, this would include New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec south of the St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, and Prince Edward Island; in the U.S., upstate New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine. Much of the proposal revolves around traditional free-trade proposals like eliminated tariffs, but in many ways Atlantica goes beyond; it is explicitly interested in the "harmonization of regulations" between all involved areas, and in the construction of massive infrastructure projects to facilitate trade.
It is these two areas that have attracted the ire of activists. Atlantica’s detractors point out that, although AIMS cloaks its advocacy of the free-trade zone in the language of job creation and economic revitalization, the think-tank's goals are explicitly anti-poor; it brazenly describes minimum-wage legislation, unionization, and public services as "public policy distress factors." As the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives wrote in a comprehensive 2006 report, "This thinly-disguised attack on working people, public services, social programs, and democratic decision-making is very revealing about what underlies the Atlantica agenda."
It is the real-world impacts of these proposed policy changes that drives people like Price to speak up. Although the port of Halifax is central to the trade proposal, Haligonians themselves would not be spared from the effects of dropping salaries and a reduced social security net. "Just in Halifax there are 30,000 people that are a paycheque away from being out on the streets," he explains. "You just have to do the math to understand what's going to happen when minimum wage is brought down, when people are working two jobs, when working poor are struggling to make ends meet as it is."
Beyond such blatantly regressive policy solutions, however, Atlantica would involve massive infrastructure changes to eastern Canada; specifically, the establishment of the Halifax harbour as a major trade conduit between Asia and the eastern U.S. It seems counterintuitive, considering the North American west coast's close proximity to Asian markets and the longstanding use of the Panama Canal, but for AIMS, it makes perfect sense. Trade between Asia and the U.S . keeps rising, straining the capacity of Western ports, and the use of so-called "Post-Panamax" vessels - ships too huge to fit through the Panama Canal - has been on the rise since 1995. Add to this that the Halifax port is deep enough to accommodate Panamax and Post-Panamax ships, and that it is the closest major port for Asian ships travelling via the Suez Canal.
Tied to the revitalization of the Halifax port would be the construction of new highways to accommodate transport trucks ferrying goods from the Maritimes to the eastern U.S., and the loosening of transport regulations to allow increased use of massive "truck trains" - vehicles with more than one trailer per tractor. Atlantica means huge ships and huge trucks – that’s more long-distance trade and more fossil-fuel consumption in the face of climate change's looming threats.
"[The U.S. and Asian] economies are engaged in a trading relationship that's socially, environmentally, and economically unsustainable," Brendan Haley of Halifax's Ecology Action Centre told the crowd on June 15. "The vision of a few business leaders is to take the goods produced halfway around the world and ship them to another country. Nova Scotia becomes a super-highway for the Wal-Marts of the world. Our highest endeavour is to become a middleman."
Free-trade rhetoric at least used to champion market fundamentalism as a cure-all; think of that old cliché, "The rising tide lifts all boats." But Atlantica is not about lifting boats - it is about lifting post-Panamax ships, and allowing everything smaller to drown.
The evening following the main demonstration, a "victory celebration" kegger was held to raise money for legal costs. Beer and vegan burritos sold for $2 apiece, and a local punk band tore through songs with names like "Thrash Atlantica to Fucking Death." A few people joked about how the prisoners, some of whom were straight-edge, would feel about alcohol sales covering their defence fees. A more pressing question, as some present pointed out, was why the party was billed as a victory celebration when so many people were in jail.
But a deeper frustration, one expressed more quietly and privately, was directed towards those who were arrested. More than one person pointed out to me that the arrests were a headache for the anti-Atlantica movement. Some mused about what the most active organizers could be working on after the demonstration, if their time wasn’t being devoted to legal issues. One Black Bloc participant told me that he was dismayed to see a paint bomb explode inches away from an elderly woman. And, of course, the usual questions arose about confrontational, direct action: what about the movement's image? The demonstrations certainly received more press coverage thanks to the minor property damage and clashes with police, but to what end?
The proponents of Atlantica are powerful, and their ideas are uniform; influential think tanks like AIMS, the Nova Scotia and federal governments, and massive corporations like Irving (which, incidentally, owns most of the press in the Maritimes that so readily dismissed the anti-Atlantica actions), all calling for a radically different east coast in the same voice.
The movement against the free-trade area is a more heterogeneous blend of groups united against a single threat. A diversity of views, a diversity of tactics - something to welcome, certainly. But there are also deep strains that plague the movement against Atlantica; the threat of police infiltration, the tension between - as one participant described them - the "punks" and the "activists," the ever-present difficulty of building a coalition that includes both Radical Cheerleader and Raging Granny, anti-capitalist and national sovereigntist. One of the movement’s strengths is surely the wide-ranging groups that it can unify. But if diversity means division, as the aftermath of the demonstration seems to point out, then Atlantica's implementation may be inevitable.
We are Preparing for Massive Civil War, Says DHS Informant
The government has declared it can lock anyone up forever or kill them without any proof or due process. DHS has placed an order for 450 million rounds of Hollow Point ammo. Obama can now declare martial law during peace time. I think that just about says it all.
"We are Preparing for Massive Civil War," Says DHS Informant http://current.com/community/93765251_we-are-preparing-for-massive-civil-war-...
"If you don't fight for your rights, they don't exist. Our constitution doesn't mean a damn thing if we the people don't stand up for it." Or just go back to sleep. Maybe we'll get adjoining cells one day if we're still alive anyway.