Yesterday, Jack Layton took to the streets of Toronto, to demand that Canada be "on a path towards peace in Afghanistan", at a protest organized by the far-left, radical Toronto Coalition to Stop the War. I'm sure he had plenty of fun, but a few notes about this group:
I've had some face-to-face conversations with the organizers of the TCSW, last year, when I went to a conference called Marxism 2007: A Festival of Resistance on the University of Toronto campus.
I spoke to quite a few individuals there, and most of my conversations are still recorded on minidisc, as the purpose of my trip was material for my show. So I can tell people, first hand, that the main people behind nowar.ca are principally communists. No, I'm not being Mr. Conspiracy.
In fact, these people are so far to the left, in their support with the Communist Party of Canada, and the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist), that they see the NDP as only a lesser-evil at best.
These people are also highly connected to local student "unions", particularly the Ryerson Student's Union, a constituent of the Canadian Federation of Students.
They even have their own radio station.
Go to the Ryerson University Student Campus Centre, and go up the stairs to the University Radio Station CKLN, and you'll often find communist paraphernalia on sale there. And if you look deeper, you'll find that the radio station itself is more connected with the communist movement, than with the social democratic movement.
No, I've never gone to Ryerson University as a student. But for a while, I took great time and effort in investigating and affiliating myself with the far-left here in Toronto. It's a tight-knit group, where you find the same old usual suspects wherever you go.
In fact, some local communist activists were at the Maclean's-Islam town hall at—there's that name again—Ryerson University. I know this, because some of them recognized me and approached me, having recognized me from my appearance at the Marxism conference.
The thing I find talking to these people, is that a lot of them are so blazingly honest about their motives, which is why they're probably relegated to the fringes of society. For example: I've been told in conversation, on more than one occasion, that these people are not necessarily against militarism. No, they are against militarism in the form of liberal hegemony. And by liberal, they mean capitalist. They have no problem with organizations like the FARC, or other communist paramilitaries.
Remember, communists are anti-liberal. Not anti-war. Liberalism means completely open democracy, absolute individual rights, etc. All of which are incompatible with far-left dogma.
If you read the manifesto of the Communist Party of Canada, you'll find that they prefer a new constitution, where only socialist parties may run for government; their idea of democracy is making liberalism illegal.
They justify it in weird and curious ways, which I'm sure they themselves believe.
It is their opinion, that in a liberal democratic society, nobody can ever be completely "free" since the "proletariat" are slaves to the "bourgeois". So it is with this, that they think of "mandatory socialist principles" for all political parties as being "more free". But I'm only pointing this out to show how delusional they are. There's a million ways to pick apart their logic, and I don't have the time.
I'm also pointing this out to show the kind of company that Jack Layton, Linda McQuaig, Judy Rebick, and others keep.
They stand side-by-side at rallies. Rallies organized by far-left radicals, who seek to remove the basic underpinnings of our free and open society, through the imposition of their morality, their political ideology and their "leaders".
With the tendency to sympathize with those kinds of people, it's no wonder that such people support the fascist Human Rights Commissions. It allows them to back-end load their ideology into our society, without the interference of real law, or reality for that matter.
Who are you Jack Layton?
Mike, Outstanding post. I've long thought the anti-war crowd were strongly linked to commie elements. Local Victoria 'activist' websites invariably lead to communist supporters and organizers. Your post confirms and clarifies this in spades. Thanks.
Good post MIke. Terry Glavin - a principled man of the left, has consistently exposed the Canadian Peace Alliance, Stopthewar.ca and Layton as the frauds they are.
Imagine the outcry if Stephen Harper had marched with a bunch of Neo-Nazis.
Thanks for the community service announcement.
Go on Youtube and find video of the local Toronto Marxists travelling on a bus to a rally, draping themselves with the communist flag and calling each other comrade..makes me want to vomit..
I especially find it galling to have to witness the annual communist day parade in Toronto, where obvious immigrant newcomers march with these fellows and against the nation and the system that has given them succour..
In my younger days i can proudly say that i flipped over the table selling their filthy rags and manifestos, and scattered their leaflets to the wind...aahhh the good 'ole days..
That the local jr. Leninists wanted the liberal democratic institutions of the police and the courts to deal with the matter is ironic to the point of absudity, and really points to the retarded intellect of the people we are dealing with.
We have groups like that out in Halifax too. The Halifax Coalition Against Poverty (HCAP) is downright scary. At a recent non-partisan event for the Premier (Tory Rodney MacDonald) I was spit on, shoved, and punched by these "progressives". Not to mention called fascist, racist, sexist... and whatever else. The Premier was told to "F**k off and die". Even the NDP are scared of these guys, but they still act all cuddly with them.
Ferbs, the Coalition Against Poverty group is in most major Canadian cities. They are also a communist group. They was brought to Canada (first to Toronto) and established by a well-known Trotskyist from the UK, John Clarke.
They believe in the principle of "constant revolution" and generally have no problem with engaging in violence.
They were also linked to a Molotov cocktail being thrown towards a police officer during an anti-Harris protest in Ontario back in the 90's. They're a pretty radical group, too.
In fact, they are so friggin' crazy, that they were banned from the International Women's Day activities on university campuses. Even other socialists don't want anything to do with them.
Hi Mike, You mean OCAP is part of this group of communists? I guess it explains them trashing the office of an an MP or a city counselor (can't remember the details) a few years back? So many ridiculous illiberal groups in this country, it's scary to think about the influence they could possibly have with our "friends" on the left. Yeah, I guess Comrade Layton certainly does keep interesting company.
Good article for the most part, and it highlights one of the major problems that anti-government, or anti-government policy, actions have to overcome is the radicals in their midst.
Indeed all types of actions suffer from the same problem although some are able to deal with it better than others.
I'm no fan of the NDP but somehow I can't imagine Layton being any more interested in an authoritarian Communist society than you are. If you like I can take you to a couple of places out in the country west of here where the skin-heads (of the neo-nazi variety) wear red on Fridays and sport "Support the Troops" decals on their pick-up trucks - should we lump you in with folks like that because of the common symbolism?
Hardly.
stageleft, the question is, would Stephen Harper go to a rally to support the troops, organized by a group of skinheads?
"If you like I can take you to a couple of places out in the country west of here where the skin-heads (of the neo-nazi variety) wear red on Fridays and sport "Support the Troops" decals on their pick-up trucks - should we lump you in with folks like that because of the common symbolism?
Hardly."
Stageleft - I appreciate the fact that you wouldn't lump us in with them, but their are many liberal groups who do it all of the time. Take a look at Big City Lib's blog or benedict kinsella's site. There are many other's I have came across that do it as well but reading Liberal blogs get's my blood boiling so I only do so in small doses.
I doubt it Mike, Harper is far too controlled for that - but it is the way it worked out for Layton isn't it? You don't always get to to the protest with the people you want (gods know it's happened to me), you go to the protest with the people that are there.
From the pictures I've seen you're painting a whole range of people who have what they believe to have a legitimate beef with government policy with a pretty wide brush Mike - by the loosest form of association possible.
Do you seriously believe they are all pro-authoritarian Communist supporters?
"Stageleft - I appreciate the fact that you wouldn't lump us in with them, but their are many liberal groups who do it all of the time."
As there are a conservative, Conservative, and authoritarian, groups and pundits engaging in exactly the same tactics. Save the appreciation and see if you can work up as much frustration at them and their practices as you do with those nasty lefties the next time you see it.