Pay Attention. Canada Just Proved Bigger Government Equals Less Freedom.
As I write this, Russia has begun the first of what appears to be multiple phases of a large-scale invasion of Ukraine.
As consequential as a war between Russian and Ukraine will be, and as much as I would encourage us all to keep informed about what’s going on there, and how it will affect us here, I would also encourage us not to so quickly move past and forget about what just happened in Canada.
Fighting For Freedom
Near the end of January, truckers in Canada began a protest dubbed “The Freedom Convoy,” in response to the Canadian government enforcing vaccine passports on truckers at its border with the U.S.
Though many of the truckers and convoy participants had been vaccinated, the protest signaled peoples’ disdain for mandates, lockdowns, mask requirements, and a host of other COVID-era restrictions.
Coming mostly from the west coast, truckers convoyed to the national capital of Ottawa to speak up on behalf of freedom.
The protests were peaceful but effective, as they were costly and disruptive – a result of blocked bridges and border crossings.
Most people know that if you want to get your government’s attention, simply challenge their authority, and disrupt their economy. The truckers did both.
Unfortunately, their desire to see basic freedom restored in the form of lifting restrictions, mandates, and vaccine passports was not realized. Instead, more government force was brought to bear.
Trudeau, Typical Tyrant
Canada’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, had little patience with the protesters, calling them a “small, fringe minority” with “unacceptable views.” Juxtaposed with his affinity toward the Black Lives Matter movement and its associated chaos, his hypocrisy is palpable.
Further evidence of his duplicity was clear last year in his response to church burnings in his country. As Eric Kaufman recently noted in The Telegraph:
“Contrast his combative posture towards the truckers with his gentle approach to protesters who would seem to share his philosophy. When Left-wing arsonists burned some 30 Catholic churches over a false claim that mass graves had been discovered near a former residential school for indigenous Canadians, Trudeau called the violence ‘understandable.’ When indigenous protesters and their allies blocked rail lines and pipelines over a longer period than the trucker convoy, Trudeau patiently called for ‘dialogue and mutual respect.’”
There was no opportunity for dialogue extended to the truckers, however. No respect either. All they received was vitriol from a petty tyrant determined to quash what he deemed to be “unacceptable views.”
On February 14, Trudeau took the drastic step of enacting the Emergencies Act, a never before used power that gave Canada’s federal government and law enforcement nearly unlimited authority to put the squeeze on the freedom protests.
According to bbc.com, the Emergencies Act would give Trudeau 30 days of power “to prohibit public assembly, travel and the use of specific property.”
As a result, last weekend Trudeau and his sycophants began the process of crushing any dissent.
Fortune.com reported that “During a three-day operation, Ottawa police deployed pepper spray and stun grenades to disperse crowds, towed away over 70 vehicles, and arrested 191 people, bringing a total of 389 charges against 103 of them,” and additionally “the federal Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) ordered a freeze on 206 bank and corporate accounts managing millions in funds related to the protests.”
Many officers responsible for clearing the crowds from Ottawa acted like so many do when they are drunk on power. You’ve likely seen the images of people being knocked over and trampled by horses, the beatings, and other extreme measures.
Trudeau got his way, and the protesters were cleared out in a matter of days. Cries for freedom were silenced.
The message was clear. One’s ideology determines whether or not one can protest and make their voice heard.
Frighteningly Familiar
After it was all over though, Trudeau didn’t want to relinquish his newfound power. Though the protesters had been removed, Trudeau said “This state of emergency is not over,” and urged Canadian lawmakers to extend the use of the emergency authority, which they did.
Suddenly, just two days later in a strange twist, Trudeau revoked the measures. The cause for his drastic reversal is uncertain. But I suspect it was nothing more than a show of power, simply Trudeau’s way of showing he had the support of his government to do what he wants when he wants. Who knows; time will tell.
Nevertheless, when I first read about Trudeau’s use of the Emergencies Act last week, I was reminded of another leader who used a very similar measure to gain absolute control in the midst of a chaotic situation.
After Germany’s Reichstag fire in February 1933, Nazi leadership convinced national leaders that Communists were planning a violent uprising, and it would take emergency legislation to stop it. As a result, just a day after the fire, the Reichstag Fire Decree was passed – an act essentially suspending all rights and freedoms.
Adolf Hitler seized the opportunity, and less than a month later he convinced the German Parliament (the Reichstag) to pass the Enabling Act, a law that would establish his legal dictatorship.
Upon implementing the Emergencies Act, Trudeau’s promise to use his power sparingly was eerily reminiscent of Hitler’s promise. Trudeau said, “the scope of these measures will be time-limited, geographically-targeted, as well as reasonable and proportionate.”
Here’s what Hitler told the Reichstag:
“The government will make use of these powers only insofar as they are essential for carrying out vitally necessary measures...The number of cases in which an internal necessity exists for having recourse to such a law is in itself a limited one.”
It's almost like they studied the same playbook.
Coming To A Convoy Near Us
One could argue that Trudeau revoked his power, and beyond that, Canada has no bearing on us in the United States.
That may be so. But I would submit that the same desire for authoritarianism exists amongst the ranks of our own leaders, and what just happened in Canada may very well signal what we can expect here as people begin to resist wannabe tyrants.
You’re probably aware that American truckers kicked off their own convoy. “The People’s Convoy,” left southern California on February 23, and plan to arrive in the DC Beltway area by the evening of March 5.
According to their website, the convoy demands “the declaration of national emergency concerning the COVID-19 pandemic be lifted.”
It seems to me that Americans are just as fed up with COVID-era restrictions and mandates as Canadians are, and are ready to move on.
The flip side is that our government doesn’t seem to want to relinquish the power it has gained over the past two years.
Anticipating what may come of the trucker protest, government officials are already preparing. DC Mayor Muriel Bowser has put 500 DC law enforcement officials on standby for violence, while Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin approved a request to deploy 700 members of the National Guard to the capital city.
Fencing around the Capital complex has been increased, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has signaled she is closely monitoring the situation.
That seems like an awful lot of government resources are being used and directed toward Americans who are simply exercising their First Amendment right to peaceably assemble and petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
What will come of it? Who knows? But I certainly can’t imagine the powers that be will take too kindly to the calls for less government and more freedom.
I say, “Go truckers.”
