Image The Canadian Press / Chad Hipolito
First up is this Letter To The Editor which ran in the Salmon Arm Observer on Friday Dec 17th: Local BC NDP Stands with Land Defenders and Science ~~ submitted by Kristine Wickner
Second, is an op/ed piece writer by Vaughn Palmer which was in the Vancouver Sun, also on Friday (BC forest companies expanding at a rapid pace, but not at home).
In reading both of these pieces, I can’t help but consider the legend of Emperor Nero fiddling while the vast majority of Rome burned. According to the History Channel ... the expression has a double meaning: Not only did Nero play music while his people suffered, but he was an ineffectual leader in a time of crisis.
Clearly, this seems to be the case in British Columbia where we have the Provincial and Federal NDP, and members of local executives all appearing to be hell bent of destroying two of the four pillar industries our province was built on ... resources, and forestry.
In the second of a recent one / two punch, our provincial government, and Forests Minister Katrine Conroy, recently passed legislation that gives government the right to take away tenures for harvestable trees now held by forest companies ... that legislation also has the authority for the government to walk away from any obligation to compensate for the loss of those cutting rights.
And as you will recall, the first of that one / two punch happened when the provincial government also approved the closure of old-growth logging in vast swathes of the province – a move which at the lowest end of estimates says we could see the loss of 4,500 jobs – or 12,000 on the high end; I’ve even heard estimates of up to 18,000 lost jobs.
No wonder BC forest companies are investing more and more money in other Canadian jurisdictions, along with the U.S. and Europe. Seriously, why in the hell would they stay here when everything they have invested is in jeopardy of the government taking away everything of value.
While forest companies MAY be able to sustain some losses, it is the men and women working in the forest industry that are most at peril of losing everything – including their homes. What I find incredulous, is that this government is supposed to be the friend of labour, and yet they are systematically kicking the foundations out from under the industries workers depend on.
But it’s not just government undermining industry. As you will recall from the Letter To The Editor I referenced at the start of this commentary, NDP Constituency Associations aren’t happy because they feel not enough is being done.
Some like Kristine Wickner, and her fellow executive members of the Shuswap constituency, are screaming foul because the RCMP enforced an injunction and, rightly so, arrested a rag tag group of rabble rousers intent on disrupting workers building the Coastal GasLink Pipeline. Now it should be noted that despite anything to the contrary, First Nations communities and their government have all approved the building of the pipeline.
Additionally, many of the workers are Indigenous, and several contracted companies building the pipeline are First Nations owned.
Regardless Wickner and her cohorts are condemning both the provincial government and Justin Trudeau’s federal government for the actions taken. And Wickner and other Shuswap riding executive members are all part of an officially recognized constituency association for the NDP.
What’s worse, is the fact that these individuals are not on chastizing their own federal party and provincial government, they are ASKING people to donate monies to anarchists, law breakers, and vandals:
... besides signing the statement (which you can find at ndp-grassroots.ca), the local executive has issued a moratorium on fundraising and outreach until we are assured the government is accountable to the values of the NDP grassroots. If you are an NDP member or donor, we suggest diverting your donations to local Indigenous land defenders. Visit tinyhousewarriors.com to donate and learn about their efforts in Secwepemc territory ...
Donate to the Tiny House Warriors? Need I remind anyone of news stories about this group of anarchists:
In Blue River, the Tiny House Warriors continue their protest encampment against the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, with several arrests and convictions for intimidation and other charges.
Two members of a group fighting the Trans Mountain Pipeline in northern B.C. are guilty of theft and intimidation after a confrontation in 2019
Nicole Manuel, also known as Mayuk, was one of three protesters arrested on TRU’s campus on Dec. 10, 2018, after members of the Tiny House Warriors allegedly smeared red paint on the walls and windows of the university’s Campus Activity Centre during a pipeline consultation meeting
Federal NDP MP’s with seats in British Columbia are calling for a halt to the energy sector ... the provincial NDP government is taking a chainsaw to the forest industry and the jobs it provides British Columbians ... and at least one provincial NDP riding executive is calling on members to support and fund anarchists such as the Tiny House Warriors.
These NDP buffoons don't have a clue!! (Am I allowed to say that?).
Meantime – NOT ONE WORD from John Horgan’s NDP government saying, Hey we’ve made a mistake and we are rethinking what we’ve put in place.
The NDP is NO FRIEND to labour, and the sooner the unions that support the NDP understand that the better. The very jobs and livelihoods of their members depend on it.
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