STOP NATO: �NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------- ListBot Sponsor -------------------------- Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com/links/joinlb ---------------------------------------------------------------------- In a message dated 19/06/01 17:31:41 Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: << OCAP symbolically evicted Jim Flaherty, Ontario=92s Minister of Finance and Deputy Premier, from his constituency office on Wednesday, June 13, 2001. That eviction raised a storm of comment in the media. The following 4 Letters to the Editor appeared in the Toronto Star, June 18, 2001 1. From: D'Arcy McLenaghen, Toronto What choice do we have? The recent vandalism to the Ontario finance minister's GTA office by anti-poverty activists is regrettable. Such actions do not belong in a civilized society, but they are inevitable when a government attacks its own people. If we want people to abide by the rules of our society, then we need them to see that the rules benefit them in some way, that our society provides them the opportunity to build a life for themselves. As a society, we have rolled back labour laws that protected our most vulnerable citizens from exploitation. We have cut funds to adult education, to public schools, to public health care and even to the protection of clean air and drinking water. The government we elected has wilfully broken lives =D1 robbed countless people of the means to provide for themselves food, clothing, homes and a future. We must regret the events that saw a government office damaged in revolt, but it was damaged in a war that was started by its masters =D1 against a people that has tried every other means to be heard and included in its own society. When a window and a few desks are broken by a few desperate people who have nothing, we call it outrageous vandalism. What, then, do we call the predatory destruction of those people's lives and their futures by the very government ministers that we entrusted as the caretakers of our society? "Vandalism" hardly seems strong enough. D'Arcy McLenaghen, Toronto 2. From: Rich Knuckle, Brantford Jun. 18, 2001 Peaceful demonstrations have never yielded results Re Violence tarnishes message, Editorial, June 14. Your editorial chastised the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty for its recent ransacking of Jim Flaherty's constituency office. The point of this editorial was that, "peaceful protest is the only legitimate way to register dissent." Further to this, the editorial suggested that the distribution of pamphlets on sidewalks in front of MPs' offices would be a more effective method of affecting change. I'm not a historian, so I must ask this question: When, in the history of this country, has a peaceful protest ever yielded the desired results? I'm not advocating violence, but with governments ramming through 20 and 42 per cent pay hikes, the time for pamphlets is long past. It's about time somebody had the guts to stand up to these leeches that make all sorts of attractive promises during their campaigns and then turn around and introduce completely self-serving legislation that was never previously mentioned in any party handbook or policy brochure. Peaceful protests against this type of pig-trough politics have failed miserably, time after time. It is time to find a successful method of challenging the whims of these politicians who have lately been demanding accountability from everyone but themselves. I suggest that every public sector union in the country vote against its next labour contract unless it contains a 20 per cent pay hike. And then, when it is turned down, be satisfied only with a complete abolishment of this Orwellian legislation. Finally, the editorial claims that aggressive demonstration has no place in a democracy. My response would be that the governments and politics that Canadians have been subjected to over the past decade or so have no place in a democracy either. Politicians have lost sight of the fact that this is our country, not theirs, and it is time we take it back from them. Rich Knuckle, Brantford 3. From: Ian Pettigrew, Toronto, Jun. 18, 2001 Canucks don't know protest Although OCAP has been reviled by some for its tactics in the past, I, for one, support its efforts. I think many are missing the point: that the "protest" phase has now evolved into a "revolutionary" phase. How else do you get an apathetic government to listen? Maybe that's what we need here, a full-on revolution, storming the gates and all. Without so-called civil disobedience, there would not have been the French or American Revolutions. More so in the case of the French. That was rebellion against an incompetent government and a society ruled by the rich to keep down the poor. Sound familiar? Canadians are far too complacent. If Mike Harris ruled in the U.S., or most European countries, he'd have been tossed out by now. They know how to have a damn good protest. I don't think a "government for the people, by the people" should be too much to ask. Yes, Harris' time will come at the polls, but in the meantime, how much more are we supposed to take? How many hospital beds have to close? How many of the poor have to die on the street? How many evictions can we tolerate? How many Walkertons will it take before the people finally rise up? I fully support OCAP's tactics. We've moved beyond our little marches up University Ave. Join the revolution. Ian Pettigrew, Toronto 4. From: Sarah Blackstock, Toronto, Jun. 18, 2001 Harris and Co. ain't seen nothing yet Re Labour gearing up for battle, June 17. As your article illustrated, the campaign of economic disruption and direct action that the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty has called for is not just about OCAP. It's not just about the labour movement, either. As a delegate to the OCAP Assembly this weekend for Toronto Mobilization for Global Justice, I was struck by just how few OCAP members were actually in attendance. While this has something to do with the fact that a number of OCAP members and organizers were recently arrested, it is also because a growing number of people in this province =97 from students, to union activists, to First Nations communities, to anti-globalization activists, to feminists, to queers, to housing activists =97 are organizing to challenge the Conservative provincial government in profound and hard-hitting ways. Toronto Mobilization for Global Justice recently signed on to the campaign of economic disruption that will begin this fall. We realize that Premier Mike Harris, with his agenda of privatization and deregulation, is the globalization poster-boy. We are mobilizing anti-globalization activists, who have become well known for our direct-action tactics and decentralized ways of organizing =97 most recently demonstrated during the FTAA summit in Quebec city =97 to take an active role in fighting the Conservative government. What the police, the government and the media don't seem to get is that this isn't just about OCAP anymore. Indeed, this weekend's meetings to plan the fall campaign were incredibly fruitful with OCAP's two main organizers in jail. Why? Because there are thousands of us who are building this campaign. And it's a campaign that will employ a tremendous diversity of tactics and will not rest on the shoulders of a few individuals or even a few organizations. Attempts to target and isolate OCAP will not be successful in diminishing the mobilization and militancy of people Ontario. Nope, this isn't about just OCAP. This is about people all over Ontario refusing to retreat any longer. Sarah Blackstock, Toronto >> ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
OCAP symbolically evicted Jim Flaherty, Ontario=92s Minister of Finance and Deputy Premier, from his constituency office on Wednesday, June 13, 2001. That eviction raised a storm of comment in the media. The following 4 Letters to the Editor appeared in the Toronto Star, June 18, 2001 1. From: D'Arcy McLenaghen, Toronto What choice do we have? The recent vandalism to the Ontario finance minister's GTA office by anti-poverty activists is regrettable. Such actions do not belong in a civilized society, but they are inevitable when a government attacks its own people. If we want people to abide by the rules of our society, then we need them to see that the rules benefit them in some way, that our society provides them the opportunity to build a life for themselves. As a society, we have rolled back labour laws that protected our most vulnerable citizens from exploitation. We have cut funds to adult education, to public schools, to public health care and even to the protection of clean air and drinking water. The government we elected has wilfully broken lives =D1 robbed countless people of the means to provide for themselves food, clothing, homes and a future. We must regret the events that saw a government office damaged in revolt, but it was damaged in a war that was started by its masters =D1 against a people that has tried every other means to be heard and included in its own society. When a window and a few desks are broken by a few desperate people who have nothing, we call it outrageous vandalism. What, then, do we call the predatory destruction of those people's lives and their futures by the very government ministers that we entrusted as the caretakers of our society? "Vandalism" hardly seems strong enough. D'Arcy McLenaghen, Toronto 2. From: Rich Knuckle, Brantford Jun. 18, 2001 Peaceful demonstrations have never yielded results Re Violence tarnishes message, Editorial, June 14. Your editorial chastised the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty for its recent ransacking of Jim Flaherty's constituency office. The point of this editorial was that, "peaceful protest is the only legitimate way to register dissent." Further to this, the editorial suggested that the distribution of pamphlets on sidewalks in front of MPs' offices would be a more effective method of affecting change. I'm not a historian, so I must ask this question: When, in the history of this country, has a peaceful protest ever yielded the desired results? I'm not advocating violence, but with governments ramming through 20 and 42 per cent pay hikes, the time for pamphlets is long past. It's about time somebody had the guts to stand up to these leeches that make all sorts of attractive promises during their campaigns and then turn around and introduce completely self-serving legislation that was never previously mentioned in any party handbook or policy brochure. Peaceful protests against this type of pig-trough politics have failed miserably, time after time. It is time to find a successful method of challenging the whims of these politicians who have lately been demanding accountability from everyone but themselves. I suggest that every public sector union in the country vote against its next labour contract unless it contains a 20 per cent pay hike. And then, when it is turned down, be satisfied only with a complete abolishment of this Orwellian legislation. Finally, the editorial claims that aggressive demonstration has no place in a democracy. My response would be that the governments and politics that Canadians have been subjected to over the past decade or so have no place in a democracy either. Politicians have lost sight of the fact that this is our country, not theirs, and it is time we take it back from them. Rich Knuckle, Brantford 3. From: Ian Pettigrew, Toronto, Jun. 18, 2001 Canucks don't know protest Although OCAP has been reviled by some for its tactics in the past, I, for one, support its efforts. I think many are missing the point: that the "protest" phase has now evolved into a "revolutionary" phase. How else do you get an apathetic government to listen? Maybe that's what we need here, a full-on revolution, storming the gates and all. Without so-called civil disobedience, there would not have been the French or American Revolutions. More so in the case of the French. That was rebellion against an incompetent government and a society ruled by the rich to keep down the poor. Sound familiar? Canadians are far too complacent. If Mike Harris ruled in the U.S., or most European countries, he'd have been tossed out by now. They know how to have a damn good protest. I don't think a "government for the people, by the people" should be too much to ask. Yes, Harris' time will come at the polls, but in the meantime, how much more are we supposed to take? How many hospital beds have to close? How many of the poor have to die on the street? How many evictions can we tolerate? How many Walkertons will it take before the people finally rise up? I fully support OCAP's tactics. We've moved beyond our little marches up University Ave. Join the revolution. Ian Pettigrew, Toronto 4. From: Sarah Blackstock, Toronto, Jun. 18, 2001 Harris and Co. ain't seen nothing yet Re Labour gearing up for battle, June 17. As your article illustrated, the campaign of economic disruption and direct action that the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty has called for is not just about OCAP. It's not just about the labour movement, either. As a delegate to the OCAP Assembly this weekend for Toronto Mobilization for Global Justice, I was struck by just how few OCAP members were actually in attendance. While this has something to do with the fact that a number of OCAP members and organizers were recently arrested, it is also because a growing number of people in this province =97 from students, to union activists, to First Nations communities, to anti-globalization activists, to feminists, to queers, to housing activists =97 are organizing to challenge the Conservative provincial government in profound and hard-hitting ways. Toronto Mobilization for Global Justice recently signed on to the campaign of economic disruption that will begin this fall. We realize that Premier Mike Harris, with his agenda of privatization and deregulation, is the globalization poster-boy. We are mobilizing anti-globalization activists, who have become well known for our direct-action tactics and decentralized ways of organizing =97 most recently demonstrated during the FTAA summit in Quebec city =97 to take an active role in fighting the Conservative government. What the police, the government and the media don't seem to get is that this isn't just about OCAP anymore. Indeed, this weekend's meetings to plan the fall campaign were incredibly fruitful with OCAP's two main organizers in jail. Why? Because there are thousands of us who are building this campaign. And it's a campaign that will employ a tremendous diversity of tactics and will not rest on the shoulders of a few individuals or even a few organizations. Attempts to target and isolate OCAP will not be successful in diminishing the mobilization and militancy of people Ontario. Nope, this isn't about just OCAP. This is about people all over Ontario refusing to retreat any longer. Sarah Blackstock, Toronto
