Thoughts on BC Politics and More

There are a few legal exceptions to what is generally referred to as “free speech” or more correctly “Freedom of Expression” in Canada. But as a general rule, as long as you aren’t being a racist, or overtly obscene or hateful, you’re pretty much good to go. Let’r rip. Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms under Canada’s legislation “freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication.” The traditional “fine print” on your “free speech,” as enforced by the courts, were “obscenity and child pornography laws, hate propaganda laws, and the law of defamation..”   The Supreme Court of Canada set these limitations on free speech to protect people from being abused by others. Not seriously hurting people seems like a reasonable compromise to our ability to express ourselves. The rise of the internet, and in particular social media platforms, has blown the doors off the ability to enforce most of these restrictio...

Why won’t Canadian police enforce the law? That simple question, which became so pressing during the Freedom Convoy crisis of early 2022, has been raised anew in recent weeks amidst growing public disruption over Hamas’s attacks on Israel on October 7, and Israel’s subsequent military invasion of Gaza. In response to that conflict, many Canadians have taken to the streets and other public spaces to exercise their legitimate rights to freedom of assembly and freedom of expression, and to give support to one side or another.  But a lot of this assembly and expression also appears to cross the line into criminality, in the form of harassment, threats, hate speech and incitements to violence ... CLICK HERE for the full story