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Friday, February 19, 2016

Playing with the Dragon II – The architects behind Canada’s China policy.

Playing with the Dragon II – The architects behind Canada’s China policy.

ON  BY LAILAIN CRIME, FEDERAL POLITICS, LAILA YUILE, THE CHINA CONNECTION
In 1989, I sat alone in front of the TV, watching the fight for democracy and freedom come to a head in China. Who could forget this iconic image of a single man standing before the tanks, facing likely death? What strength lives in a soul to find yourself taking such action ? For a young woman like myself, raised in the sheltering woods and relative isolation of the world beyond my hometown in northern British Columbia, pre-internet, and the CBC my only source of global information and news,  the days and weeks of protests in and around Tiananmen Square were instrumental to my appreciation of true freedom and democracy.
Today, shocking news -or not, depending on how you look at it – comes to us from China. Li Wangyang, a Chinese dissident who had been jailed for more than 22 years for both his role in the 1989 protests, and later, for ‘inciting subversion’, was found dead. Released from prison a year ago, he was in hospital for treatment of heart disease and diabetes when he was found with a strip of cloth around his neck, tied to a window bar above. Since he was known for his strong spirit and mind,and was seen in fine form the evening before,it was clearly a surprise to his family and friends, who do not believe he could have killed himself.
From the BBC:
“The Hong Kong-based Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in China said Mr Li died “unusually”.
“We cannot rule out that security guards monitoring him tortured him to death and faked a suicide,” the centre said in a statement “
Li WangYang, 你終於可以去和平
China.
The country whose government deems it necessary to imprison a poet for “subversion of state power” after he writes a poem that the court deemed was a serious crime that deserved severe punishment – from the National Post :
“IT’S TIME
By Zhu Yufu, translated by A. E. Clark and reprinted with permission
It’s time, people of China! It’s time.
The Square belongs to everyone.
With your own two feet
It’s time to head to the Square and make your choice.
It’s time, people of China! It’s time.
A song belongs to everyone.
From your own throat
It’s time to voice the song in your heart.
It’s time, people of China! It’s time.
China belongs to everyone.
Of your own will
It’s time to choose what China shall be.”
Indeed, as Zhu Yufu urges his fellow Chinese sisters and brothers to find their song and sing it, I urge my fellow Canadians to find their songs and sing them too…for there is a growing concern among many in this country about the increasing foothold on Canada’s resources and corporations, leaving Canadians security and interests at risk.
While many urged Harper to condemn this harsh assault on human rights and free speech, he instead railed on environmentalists in his visit to China earlier this year, and ” his strongest words ever on human rights” really seemed to be nothing more than platitudes.
Certainly, the Chinese government would not consider having to address its horrific human rights record as a condition of doing business in, and with, Canada – and Stephen Harper seems just fine with that. He, who was once stand-offish when it came to cultivating Chinese business interest in Canada is now going as far as stating he will over-rule environmental  and regulatory process to ensure the Northern Gateway project gets built. Chinese state connected corporations have been busy in Canada’s north and Harper has gone to extreme lengths to facilitate this surge.
Which leads me to ask, why is that? Why is the Canadian government seemingly so eager to get into a financial bed with the Chinese government and Chinese corporations, when so many have rung alarm bells at the risk of doing so, without adequate safeguards to Canadian interests?
To understand why, one has to look beyond the Prime Minister, and into corporate Canada, to two organizations that have been deemed the architects of Canada’s China policy for far longer than Harper has been Prime Minister : the aptly named Power Corporation and the Canada Chinese Business Council.
The Power Corporation of Canada, under the direction of Andre and PaulDesmarais, has long been referred to ( and written about) as being ‘the’ power behind the upper echelon of Canadian politics, in particular the Privy Council and the Prime Ministers office.
In fact, the company has shared a long and lively history with several prime ministers of different political leanings, who have worked on staff, including Jean Chretien, Paul Martin and Brian Mulroney. Over many years, political and professional connections continued in addition to personal ones, with the marriage of Andre Desmarais to Jean Cretiens daughter, so entrenched are the families and business/politics.
( In an aside, last night I was reading a book by publisher Douglas Gibson, ‘Stories About Storytellers’ in which he remarks on the memoirs of both Paul Martin and Brian Mulroney, both of whom talk about their time with Power Corporation and the Desmarais family – a fascinating read)
But I digress. Time to take a look at the Canada China Business Council in more depth. Deemed a private, not for profit association, it’s sole purpose appears to be facilitating founding and member businesses in making as much money from trade and business with China as they possibly can, in the easiest and most unfettered manner. Read that as, free of trade and regulatory interference, if you wish.
Of note, is that in addition to Power Corporation, Export Development Canada and the Bank of Montreal, one of the founding members is CITIC, a state owned investment company of the Peoples Republic of China.
The board of directors of the China Canada Business Council is a veritable who’s who in Canadian politics and business, and boasts that “Their cumulative corporate experience in China and their personal and business networks among China and Canada’s most senior government and business leaders is unparalleled. They speak with insight and authority on Canada-China trade and investment issues and their voices are heard.”
Indeed, the 2010/2011 board included the Desmarais, Stockwell Day and a former ambassador to China.
And Stephen Harper, it seems, has heard their voices loud and clear.
Although Desmarais had long connections with three prior Prime Ministers, through Power Corp, and other political/personal ties, there was no such long history between the Desmarais family and Harper before he came into power. In fact, some wondered how much influence, if any, could come to bear on the new PM because of that lack of history.
As I touched on in the first installment of Playing With the Dragon – courtesy of Terry Glavins excellent article – Harper has visibly taken an about-face with respect to trade with China, and Canada-China relations, seemingly at great odds with Canada’s national interests.
The question remained for many why this was, and what prompted that about-face with China, but perhaps to understand we need to look back to 2010… and the photo Harper didn’t want you to see.
In fact, the photos Norman Spector was referring to in that article, are no longer included with the Globe and Mail article. Instead, you will have to head over to the Canada Free Press to see what photo Mr. Spector was talking about… and why many think it explains so much about Harpers big flip-flop in attitude towards trade and business with China. From that article:
“Leave it to the Globe and Mail, “Canada’s national newspaper” to flag The Photo Harper doesn’t want you to seewithout giving details about the person that Harper purportedly doesn’t want you to see.
“At last night’s dinner in Ottawa in honour of President Hu, from left to right, Andre Desmarais, president and co-Chair of the Power Corporation Board of Directors…who has contributed greatly to the strengthening of China-Canada relations, Hu Jintao and the Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper.”  (The Globe and Mail, June 25, 2010).
The first colour photo released from last night’s dinner by the Prime Minister’s Office blocks out the person sitting to the right of Hu Jintao because of the angle the picture was taken from and the small Chinese flag on the table.
All it took to solve the mystery was a black and white photo from La Presse newspaper, revealing the person hidden by the flag to be none other than Andre Desmarais, Power Corp CEO and son-in-law of former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien. 
Will heads be rolling today at La Presse?  After all, it is owned by Power Corp.
You can’t hide Andre Desmarais even when you’re the prime minister.
Power Corp. is the power behind the Canadian government, through both Liberal and Conservative governments.”
Well, well. Andre Desmarais with Stephen Harper and Chinese government officials? It might appear that not having a long history of business and personal ties to the Desmarais family is not an inpediment to progress in the Prime Ministers office.
None of what I write here, is news. It is known to most political junkies, most newspaper men and women and reported on infrequently in bits and pieces. However, when you connect the dots and put it all together to show the bigger picture.. all at once…
An ” Aha…” moment, if you will.
When large corporations straddle the line between policy influence and creation, between business and government, at this level, we have a problem.
When a Chinese state owned investment company is involved in policy creation and influence,in any way, shape or form and a member of a Canadian business association, we have a problem.
When we have highly influential former government officials working in the middle of this, again straddling the line between business and policy making, how can Canadians even begin to have faith our government is putting our interests first ?
In my opinion, the answer is, we cannot. We cannot have faith our government is putting the interests of Canadians, our security and our defence, above foreign interest, or foreign influence.
And when some of the most powerful rainmakers have managed to hold court over at least two major federal political parties, as it would seem, the only option left had better work three times as hard to show Canadians how they intend to change the course of history in this country, before we lose it all.

50 thoughts on “Playing with the Dragon II – The architects behind Canada’s China policy.”

  2. Jim Van Rassel
    Well, well, well, all those reports of Chinese spy’s having infiltrated sensitive government positions in our federal government may be all true. Considering the ‘Relationship’ Harper has with the Chinese premier, and friends, I’m willing to bet our authorities have turned a blind eye, with the blessings of one Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
    Like
     JUNE 6, 2012 2:31 PM AT 2:31 PMREPLY
    1. Laila
      May be true? May? As much as can be said about CSIS,and the lack of oversight of them, I still defend Fadden’s comments – they openly support statements made publically by other CSIS officials here in Canada and abroad.It is my opinion,based on extensive research,that Fadden was found in a position where no other alternative existed other than to publically sound the alarm bell, perhaps to let those under examination know they were aware of what was going on. There are a great number of nationalists in this country. who believe Canada must remain sovereign and without foreign influence,in particular when it comes to matter of government policy.
      Like
       JUNE 6, 2012 5:04 PM AT 5:04 PMREPLY
  3. cherylb
    You have hit the nail right squarely on the head, imo…..RIP Li WangYang. I have great admiration and respect for you and believe you were murdered. If I could be half as brave as you were…..
    Like
     JUNE 6, 2012 2:56 PM AT 2:56 PMREPLY
  4. tf
    Last night I watch a video on YouTube of a talk Chris Hedges gave at the 2012 Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences at Wilfrid Laurier University. It is relevant to everything I’m reading today. Seriously! It’s called “Death of the Liberal Class”, is posted in one clip, is 1h 12min long and here’s a link to an article and the video – watch it!
    “…in the end, corporate lobbyists write all the legislation…”
    “…when you’re home typing on your computer alone, you are just where the corporate state wants you: there is no substitute for pulling large numbers of people into the street to discredit those in power…”
    “A realistic understanding of power would have to say that there is no way to stop the fossil fuel industry from killing us given the current political configuration.”
    “…it’s not beyond the imagination, that as things deteriorate the security and surveillance state would react on that level…”
    “…it is deeply disturbing how complicit [academia] is in the solidification of the corporate state. It’s careerism…”
    “…careerism, like nationalism, is a disease…”
    By the way – did you hear the news today? The Harper Government is creating an anti-terrorism unit to protect the tar sands and pipelines in Alberta. Environmentalists are the new terrorists in Harper’s Canada.
    Thanks for taking my looong comment!
    Like
     JUNE 6, 2012 6:13 PM AT 6:13 PMREPLY
    1. Laila
      “EDMONTON — The federal government has set up a counter-terrorism unit in Alberta and one of its main jobs will be to help protect the energy industry from attacks by extremists.
      The integrated national security enforcement team will be led by the RCMP and include officers from CSIS, the Edmonton and Calgary police forces and federal border patrol.
      Assistant Commissioner Gilles Michaud said the key to effectively guarding the labyrinth of oil and natural gas wells, pipelines and refineries in Alberta will be to gather intelligence to prevent attacks before they happen.
      “When we look at the booming economy of the province of Alberta over the years, one would be led to believe that there is an increased threat to the infrastructure,” Michaud said Wednesday.
      “We are basically looking at any individuals or groups that pose a threat to critical infrastructure, to our economy, to our safety that is based on either religious, political or ideological goals.”
      Yes indeed, watch out for those terrorists against the Northern Gateway pipeline…
      Like
       JUNE 6, 2012 10:37 PM AT 10:37 PMREPLY
      1. Laila
        On the other side of the world, Power Corporation worked at solidifying the special, ongoing relationship with the government of China that had begun in the late 1970s. Power Corporation’s joint venture to buy a pulp mill in British Columbia in 1986 with the Canadian subsidiary of China International Trust and Investment Corporation (CITIC), the international investment arm of the People’s Republic of China, marked CITIC’s largest investment outside China at the time. Though Power Corporation sold its interest in the mill in 1992, it continued to develop investment opportunities with CITIC and other entities in Asia.
        Power Pacific Corporation, created for that purpose, opened offices in Hong Kong in 1994 and Beijing in 1998. It soon joined with CITIC in the development of industrial real estate in the special economic zone of Pudong, outside of Shanghai, and participated with Canadian and Chinese partners in the manufacture of passenger rail cars in China. More significantly, Power Corporation acquired an equity interest in CITIC’s publicly traded conglomerate CITIC Pacific Limited, a diversified holding company based in Hong Kong, with interests in power generation, transportation, communications, and real estate.
        ———————————————————————-
        from an excellent news article by Peter Hadeka,from a while back:
        `No company has ever done a better job of managing the political relationship than Power Corp.’
        Ottawa lobbyist
        ——————————————————————————–
        Critics of the company’s close relationship with government point to two areas where Power’s interests are closely aligned with government policy: financial services and Canadian foreign policy on China.
        As a heavyweight in the insurance and investment businesses, Power has lobbied against allowing banks to buy insurance companies. Some bankers have seen its positions as self-serving and have attributed Martin’s decision to reject the banks to pressure from Power.
        A consultant’s report commissioned by Power two years ago slammed bank concentration in Canada and claimed that mergers would lead to higher prices and reduced services. (It’s not alone in that view.) Another report Power submitted to the government concluded that mergers between banks and insurance companies have been a failure in places such as Australia, the United States and Europe.
        There is speculation a Harper government might allow mergers to go ahead. Power spokesman Ted Johnson says the company has “no plans” to make a submission to the new government. “Our views are very well known.”
        On the China issue, Power is Canada’s best-known investor in that country. And Ottawa has conveniently taken a business-as-usual approach to concerns about Beijing’s human-rights abuses and repression of the pro-democracy movement.
        While Ottawa has raised the human-rights issue with Chinese authorities, it has done nothing that might impede the bilateral flow of trade and investment.
        That’s just the line preached by the Power-backed Canada China Business Council. In fact, the council’s president is Howard Balloch, a former Canadian ambassador to China who articulated Ottawa’s business-friendly policy during his term.
        “We know that (the council) are very influential and that they have access to both heads of state,” says Tibetan activist Tenzin Dargyal, a defeated Tory candidate in the January election who heads a Canadian group that opposes China’s occupation of Tibet.
        Power’s calling card in China is the connections it brings, he says, what the Chinese call Guan Xi. “They leverage those relationships to open doors in China.”
        Chrétien devoted extraordinary attention to China and led three Team Canada trade missions there that included Power Corp. But while business boomed, progress on the human-rights issue proved impossible, Dargyal says.
        “Whenever we raised the human-rights issue, the prime minister would head off to China to promote business with his son in-law. There was always a perception that business came first.”
        ——————————————————————————–
        How much influence Power has wielded can be debated, but the close relationships with past prime ministers clearly created at least an appearance of conflict.
        Like
         JUNE 7, 2012 5:41 AM AT 5:41 AMREPLY
  5. anonymous
    Without a doubt,the most relevant write-up to explain what is going on in Ottawa currently.It is remarkable to read both stories and how rock-solid this information is.China has been acknowledged as the biggest threat to security in the U.S and in Australia,yet Canada welcomes the Chinese government with little due course or regard to the intelligence threat they present. Our politicians take little care when travelling on trade missions to China,to counter-act cyber and electronic espionage, unlike Australia. See this recent news story, where Aussy defence minister left all electronic devices etc back home when travelling to China. http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/cyberespionage-steps-on-china-trip-no-surprise-minister-20120606-1zvy7.html
    Thank you for this excellent and important work.I will continue to refer my colleagues and fellow Canadians to you.
    Like
     JUNE 7, 2012 6:32 AM AT 6:32 AMREPLY
  6. Gary T
    Thanks Laila. We may elect governments, but it appears that our politicians are already corrupted before we choose which ones that we want to sell us out.
    Like
     JUNE 7, 2012 7:37 AM AT 7:37 AMREPLY
  7. David
    There is only one struggle, one fight and one game. It really is as elemental and fundamental as Good versus Evil, and it has been going on as long as our species has been around, and probably much longer. War, disease, slavery, poverty, torture, corruption, exploitation and greed are arrayed against environmentalists, social activists, and the vast majority of the arts community, health care providers and for the most part, scientists. The Orcs are arrayed against the Elves and Hobbits. It comes down to parks versus open pit mines. Mother Nature pitted and rather un-gunned, against the so-called market economy and the military/industrial complex, as we used to call it. At the same time, mainstream culture creates a distortion effect where we end up not believing the evidence before our eyes because we still have faith in the institutions of a just and lawful society. Yet look around at the failings of the justice system, not just here in B.C. starting with B.C. Rail but all the way to Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. Look at the corruption and mean-spirited conniving at the political level. Look at the abject failure of all of the police departments involved in the Pickton Case. What else do we see? Environmental and regulatory functions curtailed. Research projects being terminated. Coast guard operations being shut down. Cuts to the funding for archives and libraries. If it isn’t broken yet, it’s falling apart. But we keep on believing that everything is still okay and that it’s all being looked after by the system, that all is right with our world. Sadly, it doesn’t appear that it is.
    Everyone plays a role, as either a passive or as an active participant. And every single moment we make choices that have implications for the forces of Good and for the forces of Evil. Of course, it isn’t always easy to keep the battle lines distinct, and most of us lead great chunks of lives totally oblivious to issues of social justice, community interest or public health, or any of the other theatres of battle swirling about. I can pretty much guarantee that if someone was to examine any of our lives up close, and pointedly our closets and cupboards, there would undoubtedly be some evidence found of complicity with the forces of the dark side. After all, who’s supporting those factories that produce all that cheap merchandise we pick up as consumers? Us. And what about those factories? Well in case you hadn’t heard, there are horror stories aplenty about the violent and terrifying lives led by those factory workers. People from working in factories in Latin America, South Asia, Asia, and last but not least Africa labour in abysmal conditions rivaling the dystopian novels of Huxley, Orwell, and recently departed Ray Bradbury. Of course a disproportionate number of the workers die young through neglect and abuse. If one could lead a forensic audit from the factory floor to the consumer, we’d probably learn some very interesting stories that I can only speculate about. These are the factories that churn out our TV’s and tee shirts, our toys, our clothes and even our food. In the Ivory Coast, the centre of world production for the cocoa bean, something like 200,000 children work at various stages of chocolate production. The International Labour Organization’s 2005 report estimates that of these, some 6% are victims of either child slavery or child trafficking. So unless you are buying an ethically produced, fair traded product, and have done so all your life and in all cases we can all unfortunately, assume at least some measure of guilt by association. I used to love chocolate bars, and hence my guilt is visible to the world in my over-large belly.
    I’ll always recall one of my profs who had been a minor functionary in Chile’s Allende government, who had to flee the country after the assassination of the elected socialist President and the installation, with the assistance of the CIA, of a military junta. He impressed upon us that in the “two thirds” world as he characterized it, artists and musicians did not have the choice to sit on the sidelines and avoid politics. It was a revelation to me that each image, each song, each inspired created object became, in a war zone, a political statement. Double, triple and hidden meanings abound in the art and culture produced in such crucibles. The very absence of a political statement in a piece of art labeled the creator as a reactionary or collaborator.
    Thus, the reaction of the Chinese government to Li Wangyang’s poem that added to the call for democracy more than 20 years ago in Tiananmen Square is perhaps not that surprising because the Chinese government is well aware of the über conflict and have a very clear idea about which side they are on. Accordingly, after crushing the nascent democracy movement with shocking violence they rounded up any surviving dissidents and locked them away, in most cases for years. The news that Li Wangyang has been found dead in rather mysterious circumstances is indeed sad, and for me as someone who finds great creative expression through poetry, it stands as a cautionary tale. Because don’t forget, there is only one war going on, albeit one with many battlefronts. It is obvious and oppressive in so much of the world, increasingly so here in Canada where state sponsored terror tactics, like kettling, are used to counter peaceful demonstrations.
    Which brings me to a dilemma most of us have come up against before, where do we marshal our forces, where do we pitch in on this fight? I say forces, but for most of us, when it comes right down to it, we are talking about an army of one. That one can only be the face staring back at you in the mirror every morning. And really what we have to do is make value judgments all the time about practically everything we do. If you have a strong ethical compass, follow it, and if you don’t have an ethical compass, develop one, please.
    Here is my gratuitous advice on how to be on the side of Good, offered for your consideration:
    It isn’t always necessary to continually join protest movements or to be involved in something that might smack of being a movement in order to fight the good fight. Simple everyday choices can provide an opportunity for being on the side of good. It might be as easy as avoiding fast food and franchise restaurants and seeking out the mom and pop joints that make a town unique. Support charities. Try to understand the sourcing practices of the brands and labels before you add something to your shopping cart. The inter-connectedness of the universe brings the fundamental conflict into plain sight when you understand where to look.
    How you join the fight depends on all sorts of factors like your age, your abilities and your interests. Understand that you don’t always have to be on the front lines, but when you are needed stand up and get involved. Go to the Parent Advisory Council meetings at your kid’s school, get involved with the strata council, or wherever else your interests and destiny takes you. Volunteer. Research issues to the best of your abilities before forming opinions. Strong evidence based on facts is better than a heated opinion. Think strategically and don’t spread yourself too thin. Your own health is just as precious as the giant issue you might be confronting so remember to keep your life in balance with exercise, meditation and social networks. Be happy, and practice smiling. Find delight and joy in the world as it unfolds around you. Try to understand any negative emotions you might be feeling and see if they are based on incorrect assumptions. Master unnecessary desires. Read for pleasure. Listen to music. Choose love.
    Like
     JUNE 7, 2012 9:09 AM AT 9:09 AMREPLY
  8. Laila
    Beautiful David. Thank you for that! Yes, a battle between good and evil, I like to think truth is on the good side.
    On another note:
    “Cyber attacks pose a greater risk to Canada’s economic prosperity than the government previously believed and the country lacks the tools to fight hackers, officials warn in internal documents obtained by Bloomberg News.
    “All new knowledge obtained indicates the problem is more widespread than previously thought,” said a “secret”-stamped memo to Public Safety Minister Vic Toews from his deputy minister, obtained under Canada’s freedom-of-information law.
    Poor security against cyber attacks “is increasingly recognized as impacting not just national security, but also public safety and economic prosperity through growing cyber crime and loss of intellectual property,” states the Aug. 2011 memo to Toews from deputy William Baker, who retired in April.
    The government’s ability to respond is hindered by the lack of a national emergency policy for cyber attacks, aging lab facilities and difficulty recruiting specialists eligible for “top secret” security status, according to another document written in January by Canada’s Public Safety department”
    ”
    The former head of U.S. counter-espionage says the Harper government is putting North American security at risk by allowing a giant Chinese technology company to participate in major Canadian telecommunications projects.
    In an exclusive interview in Washington, Michelle K. Van Cleave told CBC News the involvement of Huawei Technologies in Canadian telecom networks risks turning the information highway into a freeway for Chinese espionage against both the U.S. and Canada –
    the U.S. and Australia have already blocked Huawei from major telecom projects in those countries, and otherwise made it clear they regard China’s largest telecommunications company as a potential security threat.
    Even Canada’s own intelligence agencies have warned the Harper government of the risks of throwing open the door to Chinese telecom companies.
    Despite all the warnings, the federal and Ontario governments have rolled out the red carpet to Huawei, officially praising the Chinese company’s partnerships in Canadian telecom projects with Telus, Bell, SaskTel and WIND Mobile.
    During a recent visit to China, for instance, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he was “honoured” to have witnessed the signing of large contracts for Huawei to provide Telus and Bell with the latest LTE high-speed wireless networks across Canada.
    Among its many large customers, Telus has just signed a $250-million contract to provide the Canadian military with secure voice and data services worldwide”
    So, let me get this straight. Other countries have banned this Chinese telecom giant for fear of espionage and threat to national security, intelligence and industrial/tech secrets.
    Harper however, rolls out the red carpet and they end up partnering with Telus who provides our military and defence with communications worldwide…..How screwed up is that ? What is going on in this country?
    Like
     JUNE 7, 2012 10:29 AM AT 10:29 AMREPLY
    1. Laila
      There is certainly enough material out there to indicate political influence and or interference of foreign interests in Canadian policy making and decisions. I strongly feel Canadian interests are not being protected adequately considering the lobbying influence of the Canada China Business council and Power corporation among others. Considering fake components were recently found to have come from China that were installed into US military planes, some coming from Canadian companies that had sourced them from China, one must ask the questions I am asking. Why indeed would Telus source equipment from them, and are they testing it before use to verify that instances such as what happened in the US military, does not happen to our military via inadequate communications equipement ?http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18155293
      Like
       JUNE 7, 2012 11:36 AM AT 11:36 AMREPLY
  10. Julie
    So much for Harper’s criticism of, China’s lack of human rights and democracy. Our Canadian Democracy and Freedom, our Civil Rights and Liberties, Harper is trashing. Another Common Wealth country’s media, even wrote about it….how badly Harper is destroying democracy in Canada.
    Harper has given China our resources, we own none of them. Harper has also given them our Canadian jobs. China pretty much owns, everything of value in BC. Boessenkool and Christy are selling off what Real Estate is left, owned by the province. Three Mayor’s are pleading for help, to save the catalyst paper mill. I doubt Christy will help them out. I won’t be surprised if China gets that mill too.
    We live in very terrible, black times. Harper hates everything Canadian, including the people. It is more than obvious, Harper especially hates the BC people. We forced his good buddy Campbell to resign, even though his good buddy twice lied to win elections. We also oppose the Enbridge pipeline.
    BC has been thieved to the bare bones. Our BCR, rivers, mill industry, mines, all thieved and gone. Harper took the oil clean-up crew, out of BC. He shut down a BC Coast Guard center. They don’t call Harper, spiteful Stevie for nothing.
    Like
     JUNE 7, 2012 11:57 AM AT 11:57 AMREPLY
  11. Gloria
    We were warned, if Harper ever wins a majority, we could kiss Canada good-bye. I firmly believe, Harper is behind the robo-call election fraud. He’s even trying to quash the investigation.
    China has hacked into, more than one country’s secret files. Harper said, we wouldn’t recognize Canada, when he was done. That’s the only true statement Harper has ever made. Harper has given Canada to Communist China. That’s a huge, horrendous, hideous, and awful change for Canada.
    Like
     JUNE 7, 2012 12:36 PM AT 12:36 PMREPLY
  12. workforfun
    And we have Harper telling the Europeans how to do their business – as if he was the best in the world.
    Seems to me that Harper has had some sort of crisis and is not no longer dealing with a “full deck of cards”. In short, I would question Harpers mental condition and would suggest that if he continues to act in this present fashion, will be a liability to not only Canada, but the western nations alliance as well.
    Whatever the reason, Harper is not working for Canada and Canadians – but rather “petro dollar” and they take money from anywhere, anyone, anytime and no questions asked.
    A very scary future for Canada with Harper at the helm.
    Thanks
    Like
     JUNE 7, 2012 1:53 PM AT 1:53 PMREPLY
    1. Laila
      Thank you workforfun!! Harper is working with a very full deck, I can assure you, which is what makes this all the more dangerous.In my opinion, he is without a doubt, a liability to Canada. I would add the federal Liberals are a liability in current form as well, based on connections and affiliations.
      That leaves the NDP and the bear Mulcair.
      Like
       JUNE 7, 2012 9:15 PM AT 9:15 PMREPLY
    2. islandcynic
      I also am dumbstruck at the arrogance of this man telling the world that everyone should practice economics like Canada, with fiscal policy and discipline. Does he now think he is the leader of the free world? Selling out our resources as fast as possible and running roughshod over the 99% and Mother Earth is not an economic policy.
      Like
       JUNE 12, 2012 5:58 AM AT 5:58 AM
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