Michael Harris on the Death of Evidence rally:
So why did so many scientists who usually leave the sordid chaos of what public affairs has become to the ink-dogs and the snake oil salesman, to the lobbyists and low-lifes, gather in large numbers to speak out against the guys who control the grant money? The answer is simple: the scientists are the first professional group in Canada to realize with the full force of incontrovertible evidence that a tyrant is at the helm, or more precisely, a wannabe tyrant. And they are also the first, non-partisan group who have drawn a line in the sand beyond which they will not assume the position.
Stephen Harper has provided the data needed to justify their conclusion on the basis of an experiment he himself has been running. How much can he deliver to the 1 percent before the 99 percent will wake up, let alone rise up? How many lies and liars can be protected by the PMO? It is one thing to have different policies, even stealthy ones never announced in election campaigns, but it is quite another to unilaterally dismantle our system of governance and pander exclusively to regime favorites. After all, Harper is a leader who believes in neither free speech nor Parliament. As former Speaker Peter Milliken recently told me “He can’t go much further in undermining Parliament. If he does, it will become completely dysfunctional. For that reason, I think it will become necessary for someone else to undo the things he has done.”
Journalists who have decided their job is to protect the flanks of this klepto-corporate cult known as the Harper government find such talk over-the-top. I find their quibbles craven and irresponsible. How about when over-the-top is right on the money? Dr. Vance Trudeau started his remarks at the Death of Evidence rally by saying that the scientists were very peaceful but not very happy. He explained why he was there. “My friends can’t speak out.” The government was using propaganda not facts to devise policy. It was silencing people who opposed them. It was, Dr. Trudeau, observed, a little like the ghost of Duplessis was abroad in the land. That should even get John Ibbitson’s blood boiling. Doesn’t he make his living practising free speech? If free speech is at bay, isn’t the house on fire John, your house and mine?
http://www.ipolitics.ca/2012/07/12/mich ... in-ottawa/