Working link to Wade Davis lectures

Hi, here is the working link to the Wade Davis CBC Massey lectures. N.B., chewing on candied ginger will ameliorate the feelings brought on by listening!

http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/massey/2009/episode-1.html

Why We Resist the 2010 Winter Olympics

The Olympics are not about the human spirit & have little to do with athletic excellence; they are a multi-billion dollar industry backed by powerful elites, real estate, construction, hotel, tourism and television corporations, working hand in hand with their partners in crime: government officials & members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). 10 Reasons to Resist 2010 1. Colonialism & Fascism The modern Olympics have a long history of racism, from its early founding members (i.e., Pierre de Coubertin, a French Baron who advocated sports as a means of strengthening colonialism) to recent IOC presidents. The 1936 Berlin Olympics empowered Hitler’s Nazi regime. Both the 1988 Seoul and 2008 Beijing Summer Games helped legitimize authoritarian regimes in Asia. The 1968 Mexico City Olympics (where over 300 student protesters were massacred by soldiers, days before the Olympics began) also helped legitimize state terror. IOC President Avery Brundage, an infamous US racist and Nazi sympathizer, didn’t even acknowledge the massacre. But when two Black US athletes raised their fists in a Black power salute on the medal podium, he had them immediately stripped of their medals and ejected from the Games! Another well-known fascist IOC president was Juan Antonio Samaranch (IOC president from 1980-2001), a former government official in Franco’s fascist regime in Spain. 2. No Olympics on Stolen Land BC remains largely unceded and non-surrendered Indigenous territories. According to Canadian law, BC has neither the legal nor moral right to exist, let alone claim land and govern over Native peoples. Despite this, and a fraudulent treaty process now underway, the government continues to sell, lease and ‘develop’ Native land for the benefit of corporations, including mining, logging, oil & gas, and ski resorts. Meanwhile, Indigenous peoples suffer the highest rates of poverty, unemployment, imprisonment, police violence, disease, suicides, etc. 3. Ecological Destruction Despite claims to be the “greenest Olympics” ever, and PR statements about ‘sustainability’, the 2010 Olympics will be among the most environmentally destructive in history, with tens of thousands of trees cut down & mountainsides blasted for Olympic venues in the Callaghan Valley (near Whistler) & the Sea-to-Sky Highway expansion. In the summer of 2007, a record number of black bears were hit on the Sea-to-Sky Highway, with at least 11 dying (attributed to loss of habitat). Massive amounts of concrete used in construction have also caused millions of Salmon to die in the Fraser River, where tons of gravel are being mined to make concrete. 4. Homelessness Since winning the 2010 Winter Games in 2003, Vancouver has lost over 850 units of low-income housing; during the same period, homelessness has increased from 1,000 to over 2,500. It is estimated by 2010, the number of homeless may be as high as 6,000. Since the 1980s, Olympic Games have caused the displacement of over 2 million people (Fair Play for Housing Rights report, 2007). In Seoul 1988, some 750,000 poor were displaced, in Atlanta 1996, over 30,000, and for Beijing in 2008, an estimated 1.5 million have been displaced. Yet still today Olympic officials talk about ‘sustainability’ and ‘Olympic legacies’! 5. Criminalization of the Poor To ‘clean out’ the poor and undesirables, Olympic host cities routinely begin a campaign to criminalize the poor. In Vancouver, the city has launched Project Civil City and new by-laws to criminalize begging for money, sleeping outdoors, etc. It has also included hundreds of thousands of dollars for increased private security (i.e., the Downtown Ambassadors). New garbage canisters on streets make it more difficult for the poor to gather recyclables, and new benches make it impossible to lay down. These measures fit with government plans to remove poor downtown residents to mental institutions, “detox centers” on former military bases, and the ‘fly-back’ scheme by police to return persons wanted on warrants in other provinces. This is nothing less than a process of social cleansing! 6. Impact on Women Events such as the Olympics draw hundreds of thousands of spectators and cause large increases in prostitution and trafficking of women. In Vancouver, over 68 women are missing and/or murdered. Many were Native, and many were reportedly involved in the sex trade. In 2007, the trial of William Pickton occurred for six of these murders, and he is to be tried for an additional 20 more. In northern BC, over 30 young women, mostly Native, are missing and/or murdered along Highway 16. The 2010 Olympics and its invasion of tourists and corporations will only increase this violence against women. 7. 2010 Police State Some 12,500 police, military and security personnel are to be deployed for 2010, including Emergency Response Teams, riot cops, helicopters, armoured vehicles, etc. The RCMP plan on erecting 40 km of crowd-control fencing along with CCTV video surveillance cameras. Special security zones will be established to control entry near Olympic venues. For 3 weeks, Vancouver will be an occupied Police State! And once the Olympics are over, there is no guarantee many of these security measures will not remain (i.e., CCTV). Repression also involves attacks on anti-Olympic groups & individuals, including arrests of protesters, raids of offices, surveillance, media smear campaigns, cuts to funding programs, etc., all in an effort to undermine anti-2010 resistance. This repression has already been used against anti-poverty & housing groups, environmentalists and Natives, in Vancouver. 8. Public Debt VANOC and government officials claim the 2010 Games will cost some $2 billion. However, this amount doesn’t include the Sea-to-Sky Highway expansion, the Canada Line Skytrain to the airport, the Vancouver Convention Center, or the lower mainland Gateway Project. Including these costs, since they were necessary to win the bid and had to be completed by 2010, makes the true cost of the Games some $6 billion, which must be paid for through public debt, money that could’ve been spent on social services, housing, drug treatment, healthcare, etc. 9. Olympic Corruption The modern Olympics are well known for their corruption, including both top IOC officials involved in bribery scandals (i.e. Salt Lake City 2002) or athletes found to be using performance-enhancing drugs (such as steroids). Yet the IOC still claims the youth need an inspiration and a “model” of good sportsmanship! Despite published reports of bribery scandals involving IOC members and host cities (i.e., The New Lords of the Rings, by Andrew Jennings), the Olympics continue to be seen as an honorable & noble enterprise, thanks to the corporate media. 10. Corporate Invasion Government’s and business use the Olympics as a means to attract corporate investment. In BC, the Liberal government has ‘streamlined’ application processes, cut taxes, and offered other incentives to increase certain industries such as mining, oil & gas drilling, and ski resorts. This includes large increases in transport systems, including new ports, bridges, expanded highways & rail-lines. This is all part of their Investment to 2010 Strategy. The results have been dramatic, record-breaking increases in these industries, resulting in greater environmental destruction and more corporate power & influence over our daily lives. Many of the main corporate sponsors of the Olympics are themselves responsible for massive ecological destruction and human rights violations, including McDonalds, Coca-Cola, Petro-Canada, TransCanada, Dow, Teck Cominco, etc., while others are major arms manufacturers (General Electric & General Motors).

My brother sent me this message:

"among the bills 'killed' by prorogation...‏

C-353 - Mr. Atamanenko (British Columbia Southern Interior) - An Act to prohibit the release, sale, importation and use of seeds incorporating or altered by variety-genetic use restriction technologies (V-GURTs), also called 'terminator technologies', and to make a consequential amendment to another Act."

To: Minister@cic.gc.ca

Honourable Jason Kenney,

Although I was made aware of his trouble some time ago, I am just beginning to learn about Alvaro Orozco. He is a young gay man who fled Nicaragua. He is seeking refugee status in Canada, primarily on the basis of sexual orientation.

Although my understanding of the situation may be out of date, I find it all extremely worthy of (your) compassion. Mr. Orozco's only option is to receive a Minister's Permit from you. Please do so.

Sincerely and Respectfully,

withdraw support from mining companies that do not respect human rights and environmental standards

To: Kent.P@parl.gc.ca
cc: embajada@elsalvador.ca.org; scarpaleggia.f@parl.gc.ca; scarpf1@parl.gc.ca

Honourable Minister,

I am contacting you today to add my voice to those calling on the Canadian Government to withdraw support from mining companies that do not respect human rights and environmental standards. All over rural Canada and abroad, mining companies take advantage of Canada’s outdated and downright colonial laws (regarding mining). Wouldn’t it be nice if governments everywhere stopped enabling the destruction of landscapes, ecosystems, and communities?

I want the Government of El Salvador to ensure that the Attorney General’s Office carry out prompt investigations into the assassinations of Dora “Alicia” Recinos Sorto and Ramiro Rivera Gomez. They were involved with the Environmental Committee of Cabañas, an organization formed to educate the community about health and environmental risks of cyanide contamination from gold extraction. They were opponents of the non-operational El Dorado mine. Pacific Rim, a Vancouver-based company, wishes to reopen El Dorado, despite widespread community opposition.

Although the prorogation of parliament has pushed back committee debate on the Bill C-300 until March, please take steps to regulate the behaviour of Canadian mining companies.

Sincerely and Respectfully,

[P. S. Check out this Democracy Now video regarding these assassinations, and this video regarding the murder of Marcelo Rivera by Pacific Rim.]

to: info_leader@leader.ir; avaei@Dadgostary-tehran.ir

cc: bia.judi@yahoo.com

Your Excellency,

I am contacting you to add my voice to those calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Emadeddin Baghi. Emadeddin Baghi is is a human rights defender and the founder of the Association for the Defence of Prisoners' Rights.

Please disclose his whereabouts immediately, and ensure that he is protected from torture and any further ill-treatment. Please ensure that he has access to a lawyer of his own choosing and his family. He will likely require medical treatment, as he suffers from kidney and bladder problems arising from his previous imprisonment in Evin.

Although the right to freedom of expression is infringed upon in every corner of the world, I must proclaim vigorously that, as a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Iran is obliged to uphold the right to freedom of expression!

Sincerely and Respectfully,

[etc.]

Journalists and members of these groups have been arrested recently: Association of Iranian Journalists; Committee of Human Rights Reporters; Etemad; Iranian Labour News Agency;
Khabar Online; and members of the Iranian Freedom Movement, etc.

Things I can read when my partner is far away

Land and Conflict

and

Consensus for Cities

and

Consensus and Feminist Process