Freedom

I can't remember exactly when I lost faith in the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, friend and guide of my childhood, but I think it was probably after moving to the United Kingdom and voicing shock and annoyance at the clear bias at the BBC. Benedict Ambrose was surprised by my reaction, and it occurred to me that since he had watched and listened to Auntie Beeb all his life, he just was used to nodding along.  And this made me think, "Holy cow! What about the CBC?" 

One of the benefits of living abroad is that you have time and distance to reflect on what it means to be a native of your birth country and what your birth country is like in relation to other countries. However, one downside--which I had considered, but only from the standpoint of the availability of fossil fuels--is that you might not be able to get home again. 

Take, for example, Canadians who have decided not to take the emergency use preparations that have, as we have seen, a limited and time-sensitive effect against COVID-19. For a time, it was believed that these shots would "stop the spread," and so, although lamentable, it was at least logical that the Canadian government took punitive measures against people who decided not to take them. However, now that we know people who take the shots can still get sick and, crucially, pass on the virus, it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever to violate citizens' rights to make them submit to medical treatments they do not want. 

One of the many rights Canadians have lost is the right to travel throughout our country and to use travel services. To get on a plane, ship, train, or bus in Canada now, you must have evidence that you have had at least two COVID-19 shots. This is unprecedented; during my lifetime, the only reason to show a vaccination card was to be enrolled in elementary and then high school. 

This leaves Canadians who don't live in Canada and, after pondering the issue for over a year now, have decided not to take the COVID-19 shots in a kind of exile. As far as I can make out, a Canadian who does not have a COVID-19 passport can indeed go home (where he can read or hear all about how evil/stupid he is across a gamut of Canadian media). However, it is unclear that a Canadian who does not have a COVID-19 passport can get out again, as that would necessitate getting on a plane. 

Once again, we know now that COVID-19 jabbing is inadequate and time-sensitive. It does not "stop the spread." The most its advocates can say for it now is that it may lessen the severity of the disease in people who catch it. Therefore, it makes no sense to fire people from their jobs and forbid them from using public transport or play ice hockey or whatever else because they have chosen not to take the emergency-use inoculations on offer. And not only does it make no sense, it is illegal and unconstitutional. It is a violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. 

Therefore, when I see footage of Canadian truckers on their way to Ottawa--and the crowds of people cheering them on--I don't see what the CBC and, God forbid, the Toronto Star want me to see. (Truckers have temporarily replaced so-called "anti-vaxxers" as the hate object du jour.)

I see a lot of fathers and sons doing what they can to make Canadians unconditionally free again: unconditionally free to work,  free to travel, free to take a flight into Canada,  and free to take a flight out of Canada. Some of the truckers have taken the COVID jabs, some of them haven't: that's not what this is about. This is about freedom--and it is also a protest against the hate-mongering every Canadian child is (or was) taught is wrong.

Any Canadian living in the United Kingdom can travel from Land's End to John O'Groats, no questions asked. I never imagined Canadians would have more freedom in the U.K. than in our own country, but we do. I also never imagined Canadians would find themselves effectively in exile from their own country, like the Cold War era Eastern/Central European who knows if he goes home, he's not getting out again. And I never imagined that, when our rights as Canadians were taken away (not by any occupier, but by the Canadian Government, forsooth!), it would fall to truckers to try to get them back.  

Update: This is also a very good look into how mainstream media works to support the powerful, starring... Russell Brand?

Update 2: Look very carefully at how the media edits news reports today. This morning I saw great footage of a Central/Eastern European lady in the Greater Toronto Area explaining very cogently what freedoms she believes are being violated, how much she loves Canada, and how much she and her elderly mother suffered during lockdown. But I have now just seen footage of the same lady shouting "You're liars" at the mainstream media reporter. Any bets on what footage is going to be on the news tonight? 

I can guarantee that the MSM reporters are looking for the bystanders who will most shock Canadians comfortably sitting at home. They will not be publishing footage of people who suffered vaccine injuries; they will be looking for the kind of person who thinks the COVID jab makes them magnetic.