Robert Roth makes many great points, the most important that the two people who spoke in favour of Pat Morton, meaning Pat herself and Prof. Frances Widdowson, were drowned out. The mob vanquished any opposition to its rank idiocy in denouncing a book by scholars which no one among the orange throng of noisemakers has read.
Brilliantly written! Thank you! Similar things are happening at school board meetings and other municipal council meetings. Democracy and freedom to voice an opinion is indeed being challenged.
This is an excellent letter. Thank you for writing it. I would add one more point: is it the business of city and town councils to judge books? Of any kind? Is literary review part of their mandates? No, it's not. Their job is to manage the nuts and bolts of running a town: roads, water, garbage, police, fire, budget and so on. Stay out of the business of reviewing books.
Great letter Robert, you captured every salient point. Certainly the Councilors behaved like petulant children, especially Sales Clerk Roodenburg who childishly resorted to character assassination against Prof Widdowson to undermine her presentation. But of course such behavior always speaks volumes about the haranguer and not the target, which is certainly the case in this situation. On the upside, rumor has it that "Suzanne's Clothing Store" was very grateful for the free advertising and has agreed to give you a 5% discount on your next purchase.
<< By allowing and contributing to this abhorrent behaviour, you did much more than take away the right of two people to speak. You took away everyone’s right to hear. That is the compound injustice that takes place when free speech is guillotined. It does not matter what side of an issue you are on — the values of good manners and democratic principles should be maintained. >>
Mr.Roth, sir my hat is off to you. The council meeting was a huge display of bullying which I am lead to believe is supposed to be illegal in this country. I am wondering if the mayor and council have out back a means of suspending these two above a body of water and submerging them until either they admit to witchcraft or they succumb. I am sure Judge Roy Bean ( the hanging judge) would be proud of the mayor and council. What happened to respect? It is unfortunate that the students from the local schools were not there to witness local democracy in action. This is a good example of what aspiring political science students should be watching.
“These outrages in word and deed by Quesnel Council are so massive and blatant that they can only be explained by understanding the myopic, self-induced sense of false virtue that is typical of all true-believer zealots who labour under the self-delusion that they, and they alone, are the repository of absolute truth. In sociological terms, we call this “fanaticism.”’
“It is profoundly ironic that those who claim to be champions of “inclusivity” are the very ones who denounce, demean, deny and “exclude” anyone who disagrees with them.”
Is this Canada 🇨🇦 or Nazi Germany. Where is the true north strong and free.
Congratulations and a great big "Thank you" to Mr. Roth for this fine examination of the kind of bigotry that underlies most of "wokeness". However, I must take strong exception to his comments about comparing the Council's behavior to "... the days when a man can browbeat his wife into submission" and describing it as a "brutal act of patriarchy". He clearly doesn't understand or see his own gender bigotry when he parrots another woke movement: feminism. He should read my post "The Patriarchy" is Feminism’s Jewish Conspiracy at https://stephenbond.substack.com/p/the-patriarchy-is-feminisms-jewish.
There is no doubt that their behavior was appalling, This group of people, by Canadian definition, is a Nation and will no doubt want to have a Nation to Nation discussion with the Canadian Government, really? Perhaps they deserve each others company! Trudeau taking the knee while holding a teddy bear at the Kamloops IRS and the lowering of flags to half mast for a number of months does not signal well to the World. This is not the country I emigrated to in 1967. I am an ex residential school teacher who had a positive experience in spite of extreme living conditions in the teacherages. Because I have spoken factually on IRS subjects I was removed from my Town crying position. I soldier on and still work independently where ever I can. We have no City Canada day celebrations and the last special AGM to recognise exceptional citizens was basically a shambles and appeared not to have been advertised on the City website. Consequently few people attended. However the local indigenous culture is well presented. I am proud of my origins and place it has played in the developing of a nation. I am aware of the contributions many distinct national groups have made to Canada and the positive manner they have integrated. Where is the politician and party who have the character and vision to lead us out of this quagmire? Ben. Re enactment recruiting Sergeant of the 57th Regiment of foot of King George the Third. ( Latterly The Middlesex Regiment.)
It occurred to me when viewing the council meeting and reading the letters and posts that followed, there are two group at play.
Not the believers vs the deniers but, those that want the graves to exist and those that don't want the graves to exist. I admit to being in the latter group.
Two of the counsellors showed such hate per Pat Martin, and they had no business to be so cruel. I’ve known Pat Morton for many years and do we not have a freedom of speech anymore
Robert Roth makes many great points, the most important that the two people who spoke in favour of Pat Morton, meaning Pat herself and Prof. Frances Widdowson, were drowned out. The mob vanquished any opposition to its rank idiocy in denouncing a book by scholars which no one among the orange throng of noisemakers has read.
Brilliantly written! Thank you! Similar things are happening at school board meetings and other municipal council meetings. Democracy and freedom to voice an opinion is indeed being challenged.
These people are acting like nazis, they all should be extremely ashamed of themselves.
This is an excellent letter. Thank you for writing it. I would add one more point: is it the business of city and town councils to judge books? Of any kind? Is literary review part of their mandates? No, it's not. Their job is to manage the nuts and bolts of running a town: roads, water, garbage, police, fire, budget and so on. Stay out of the business of reviewing books.
Free speech has long ago vanished from Canada starting with the greatest culprit, our prime minister, Trudeau.
Great letter Robert, you captured every salient point. Certainly the Councilors behaved like petulant children, especially Sales Clerk Roodenburg who childishly resorted to character assassination against Prof Widdowson to undermine her presentation. But of course such behavior always speaks volumes about the haranguer and not the target, which is certainly the case in this situation. On the upside, rumor has it that "Suzanne's Clothing Store" was very grateful for the free advertising and has agreed to give you a 5% discount on your next purchase.
Excellent letter by Roth - cheers!
The essential point is that those councillors are cowards.
<< By allowing and contributing to this abhorrent behaviour, you did much more than take away the right of two people to speak. You took away everyone’s right to hear. That is the compound injustice that takes place when free speech is guillotined. It does not matter what side of an issue you are on — the values of good manners and democratic principles should be maintained. >>
Seconded!
Thank you Mr. Roth for saying exactly what needed to be said!
Mr.Roth, sir my hat is off to you. The council meeting was a huge display of bullying which I am lead to believe is supposed to be illegal in this country. I am wondering if the mayor and council have out back a means of suspending these two above a body of water and submerging them until either they admit to witchcraft or they succumb. I am sure Judge Roy Bean ( the hanging judge) would be proud of the mayor and council. What happened to respect? It is unfortunate that the students from the local schools were not there to witness local democracy in action. This is a good example of what aspiring political science students should be watching.
“These outrages in word and deed by Quesnel Council are so massive and blatant that they can only be explained by understanding the myopic, self-induced sense of false virtue that is typical of all true-believer zealots who labour under the self-delusion that they, and they alone, are the repository of absolute truth. In sociological terms, we call this “fanaticism.”’
“It is profoundly ironic that those who claim to be champions of “inclusivity” are the very ones who denounce, demean, deny and “exclude” anyone who disagrees with them.”
Is this Canada 🇨🇦 or Nazi Germany. Where is the true north strong and free.
Congratulations and a great big "Thank you" to Mr. Roth for this fine examination of the kind of bigotry that underlies most of "wokeness". However, I must take strong exception to his comments about comparing the Council's behavior to "... the days when a man can browbeat his wife into submission" and describing it as a "brutal act of patriarchy". He clearly doesn't understand or see his own gender bigotry when he parrots another woke movement: feminism. He should read my post "The Patriarchy" is Feminism’s Jewish Conspiracy at https://stephenbond.substack.com/p/the-patriarchy-is-feminisms-jewish.
excellent letter.
There is no doubt that their behavior was appalling, This group of people, by Canadian definition, is a Nation and will no doubt want to have a Nation to Nation discussion with the Canadian Government, really? Perhaps they deserve each others company! Trudeau taking the knee while holding a teddy bear at the Kamloops IRS and the lowering of flags to half mast for a number of months does not signal well to the World. This is not the country I emigrated to in 1967. I am an ex residential school teacher who had a positive experience in spite of extreme living conditions in the teacherages. Because I have spoken factually on IRS subjects I was removed from my Town crying position. I soldier on and still work independently where ever I can. We have no City Canada day celebrations and the last special AGM to recognise exceptional citizens was basically a shambles and appeared not to have been advertised on the City website. Consequently few people attended. However the local indigenous culture is well presented. I am proud of my origins and place it has played in the developing of a nation. I am aware of the contributions many distinct national groups have made to Canada and the positive manner they have integrated. Where is the politician and party who have the character and vision to lead us out of this quagmire? Ben. Re enactment recruiting Sergeant of the 57th Regiment of foot of King George the Third. ( Latterly The Middlesex Regiment.)
It occurred to me when viewing the council meeting and reading the letters and posts that followed, there are two group at play.
Not the believers vs the deniers but, those that want the graves to exist and those that don't want the graves to exist. I admit to being in the latter group.
Two of the counsellors showed such hate per Pat Martin, and they had no business to be so cruel. I’ve known Pat Morton for many years and do we not have a freedom of speech anymore