Oct 07

Quebec #Line9 Occupiers “We’re Not Greenpeace!” (Well, not anymore, perhaps…)

  • October 7, 2014

Former Greenpeace intern Alyssa Symons Belanger locked to a gate

Former Greenpeace intern Alyssa Symons Belanger locked to a gate

In a replay of the Gandhi of Vancouver’s quixotic battle against the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline, four protesters locked themselves up to the gate of a Quebec Enbridge facility this morning. They came to protest the reversal of the Line 9 pipeline, a project that’s expected to be complete in the next few weeks. Protest spokesperson Corinne Trubiano explained how it’s their goal to “create a wave of citizen mobilization”, and explained that they’re “a citizen group and not an organized group like Greenpeace”.

It was an interesting choice, Greenpeace; her fellow protester Alyssa Symonds-Belanger is one of their a former Climate and Energy intern, and Trubiano is listed on Greenpeace’s website as a member of their Montreal group. Belanger has been part of a Quebec action camp against Line 9, she was accompanied at the camp by Wolfgang Chapkro, who was arrested at the last Line 9 occupation in Ontario. She’s also part of a travelling show against pipelines.

This isn’t Trubiano’s first anti-pipeline rodeo, earlier this year she was an organizer of a 700km march against the TransCanada pipeline (a April panel for the march included Patrick Bonin of Greenpeace, and Vanessa Gray). In February 2012 she was quoted in the Montreal Gazette while participating in a protest blockading Montreal’s Tour de la Bourse- the protest eventually got violent. She too participated in the Quebec Line 9 action camp.

Small world, isn’t it? But, at least one thing is different in Quebec, the police arrested the occupiers there…

Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2014/10/07/quebec-line9-protesters-were-no-greenpeace-not-any-more-at-least/

Oct 04

Has Olivia Chow Sold-Out To The Chinese Dictatorship? (Feat. #OccupyCentral)

  • October 4, 2014

Olivia Chow: "We have to go out and sell ourselves..."

Olivia Chow: “We have to go out and sell out ourselves…”

If you’ve been following the news you’re probably aware of the large-scale demonstrations happening in Hong Kong. Occupy Central With Love And Peace is a civil disobedience campaign formed in March, 2013; their goal is to fight for the right of Hong Kongese to have a free and unbridled democracy. On August 31st the Chinese government announced they’ll allow direct elections by 2017- but there was one exception, voters would only be allowed to chose from a list of pre-approved candidates. Since then, the situation has gradually escalated to where thousands of people are on the streets today.

Despite the many differences between Toronto and Vancouver’s upcoming municipal elections, there’s one thing they have in-common. Both cities have women with Chinese backgrounds running for Mayor. Toronto’s Olivia Chow was born in Hong Kong, and her Vancouver counterpart Meena Wong was born in Mainland China. Also in common is that both were active with the federal NDP. They’ve also been quite close, Wong was Chow’s personal assistant from 1999-2002.

But despite the mayoral hopeful’s similarities, there’s one significant difference. As explained in a story in today’s Globe And Mail Wong has now gone public- speaking out in support of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. So, what happened with Olivia Chow?

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2014/10/04/has-olivia-chow-sold-out-to-the-chinese-dictatorship-feat-occupycentral/

Oct 04

Unifor Demonstrates Disingenuous Support For People With Disabilities At #GoodJobs Summit

  • October 4, 2014

Michael Rosenberg (with NDP MP Libby Davies in the background)

Michael Rosenberg (with NDP MP Libby Davies in the background)

Late on Friday night a friend gave me a heads-up that I should have a look into the Good Jobs Summit being held at Ryerson University. The event is led by Canada’s newest union indigenous voice appropriators Unifor, the infamous Canadian Federation of Students, the Canadian Centre For Policy Alternatives (who gave an award to violence-promoting bully Harsha Walia), and Ryerson’s CAW-Sam Gindin Chair in Social Justice and Democracy (whose leader Winnie Ng enthusiastically promoted a con-artist who’s been abusing indigenous communities for many years).

Having a good understanding of the organizer’s dangerous hypocrisy I figured I’d check it out and see what sort of entertainment Unifor had in store for me. Unfortunately, the video wasn’t as entertaining as it was disturbing. Right in the middle of a many conversations about respecting and working with people who have disabilities, the facilitator steamrolled over a friend of mine who has one.

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2014/10/04/unifor-demonstrates-disingenuous-support-for-people-with-disabilities-at-goodjobs-summit/

Oct 02

Stanford Law School Awards $100K To Anti-Oil Hypocrite (Feat. Art Sterritt & Calvin Sandborn)

  • October 2, 2014

Art Sterritt parking his shiny BMW at a Vancouver anti-oil protest

Art Sterritt parking his shiny BMW at a Vancouver anti-oil protest

Art Sterritt is the leader of the Coastal First Nations, an indigenous fronted NGO that’s received millions of dollars of grants from the TIDES Foundation, David & Lucile Packard Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the Betty Moore Foundation. Business must be good these days, and as they say, money corrupts. Earlier this year Sterritt was caught parking his shiny late model BMW to an oil protest.

Sterritt was at (fellow foundation grant recipient) Stanford University Law School today where he was given the Bright Award, an annual event giving a $100,000 cheque to an “individual who has made significant contributions in the environmental preservation and sustainability area.” Sounds like a good time to upgrade to an Aston Martin!

Speaking to a reporter in the New York Times about an hour ago (their story has yet to be published), Sterritt explained how he was recommended for the award by University of Victoria law professor Calvin Sandborn- the director of UVIC’s Environmental Law Centre. Sandborn has an interesting history.

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2014/10/02/stanford-law-school-awards-anti-oil-hypocrite-feat-art-sterritt-calvin-sandborn/

Sep 29

Pan-Am Games: Did Peter Munk Just Flip A Bird At The Anarchists? (Feat. Sakura Saunders)

  • September 29, 2014

Bye-bye Sakura, See You're Friends Behind Bars!

Bye-bye Sakura, See Your Friends Behind Bars!

If you’ve not already heard the news, Peter Munk retired from Barrick Gold this year. Depending which side of the fence you sit on, Monk is either a great Canadian businessman and philanthropist- or Toronto’s version of Mr Burns. Monk is so hated by Toronto’s militants they’ve created campaigns that not only attacked his business, but his philanthropy too.

If there’s a list of people who hate Peter Munk, one person stands out from the crowd. Sakura Saunders attacked Monk wherever she could-  outside of Barrick Gold AGMs, on-campus at the University of Toronto, and on exotic far-away trips funded by undisclosed sources. And wherever she goes, Sakura yells and screams at the top of her lungs often parading a line of trophy activists from far-away lands or nearby reserves.

A story was released today that was so perfectly coincidental it leaves one wondering. Barrick Gold has become the official supplier of metal for medals at the 2015 Pan-Am Games. Barrick Gold has, in effect, handed Saunders what could be her most powerful rallying cry.

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2014/09/29/pan-am-games-did-peter-munk-just-flip-a-bird-at-the-anarchists-feat-sakura-saunders/

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