Jason Kenney is on a roll
Along with banning pro-Arab British MP George Galloway from entering Canada today, the Gauleiter of Calgary Southeast has committed another outrage against Arab Canadians:
CAF president Khaled Mouammar believes Canada should regard Hamas and Hezbollah as "legitimate organizations," Kenney said.
Both Hamas and Hezbollah are on the Canadian government's list of groups "associated with terrorism," according to the public safety department's [AKA The Committee of Public Safety] website.
In response to the CAF's press releases during the Israeli massacre in Gaza, which had the Incorruptible Kenney's full support, his Ministerialdirektor, Alykhan Velshi, speaking on Kenney's behalf, said:
“There is no need for you to send me your press releases. I am not interested in
reading them. Thank you for your cooperation.” “Actually, on second thoughts, keep writing me. Your emails are hilarious
I am so choked.
I just left the "pithiest" of comments on the G&M and though it says there are 315 comments posted, not one has appeared.
Is the Globe afraid of this one ?
Perhaps they ought to be. I have to say I was stunned at this.
I haven't read the Star yet but apparently Kenney was quoted by his spokesman as describing Mr Galloway as a popinjay. I had to laugh.
Popinjay.."A vain or conceited person, one given to pretentious displays."
Does anyone think that any of the morons in the Harper crowd would use this word ?
I need a break.. time to google Kenney.
What a jackass.
This guy is a real piece of work. Why is he in my country?
Actually, that was a word that Galloway himself once famously used to describe Christopher Hitchens.
Ahhhh.
Thank you M. Spector !
Interesting background on that. However did you manage to dredge that out of your memory ? :-)
It clears up what was a bit of a mystery for me. I was baffled at the use of the word by a Canadian in what I presume was somewhat of a press release..
I entered this discussion from reading the Globe article and did not mention that as the basis for my post.
http://tiny.cc/lQrjL
I since have started looking into the Kenney phenomenom. What a piece of work this guy and his mouthpiece are !I hope his views are soon given more prominence. I think Canadians need more exposure to this minister.
edited to apologize for re-using Jingle's phrase. Although immitation is ,.. etc ..:-)
I ran across the same Velshi piece Jingles quotes above, but I think this one he co-authored may actually be more relevant to the current decision by Kenney.
In it, Velshi and his co-author take issue with a judge's decision that the Bush administration was unconstitutionally proscribing charitable donations to "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" groups, or SDGTs.
Note these two paragraphs, in which the now-famous Cromwell allusion had an early run:
There is, however, a compelling basis for a government ban on any assistance — even self-described humanitarian aid — to terrorists. Because terrorist organizations are not known as models of corporate transparency, there is no way of knowing whether a terrorist entity’s humanitarian arm is funneling money to its militant one. What is more, the fungible nature of money means that donations to the peaceful arm free up money to be spent by the militant arm.
It is similarly absurd to believe that a terrorist organization’s political and humanitarian services can excuse its terrorist activities. Hezbollah is the exemplar of this strategy. Although it holds itself out as a legitimate political party, because its political demands are backed by the threat of force, its political wing has a symbiotic relationship with its military one. Without their heavies in the hills, Hezbollah politicians would be street-corner Cromwells, guilty of their country’s blood but powerless to spread their poison inside the Lebanese government.
In an interview with British media, Velshi seemed to imply that Galloway's recent delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza counted as support for terrorism, not surprisingly given this earlier essay.
Another theme stressed by Velshi in this piece is the need for broad discretion by the executive authority to fight terrorists (hence his unhappiness with the judge's ruling that the discretion to define SDGTs was unconstitutionally broad).
Canada doesn't have the same three-branch structure as the US of course, but the recent action of the CBSA under the Conservatives could be seen as a similar broadening of the government's power.
Perhaps Velshi and Keney are importing US-style attitudes and views of government into Canada:
Palpably, the government must not let a flawed judicial decision that relaxes restrictions on terrorists stand unchallenged. Nor can it afford to be passive in defense of our foreign policy while the cold, lacertian [lizard-like] eyes of our enemies watch for any flicker of hesitance.
The firestorm is growing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAm7rfHKSyY
where we can watch Galloway in a televised debate with Meir Weinstein, director of the JDL Canada.
Weinstein is nasty. Its funny, out of the blue he brings Iran into the mix. He also rants on about children being influenced by terrorism.
(The British government is resuming talks with Hezbollah shortly and Tony Blair spoke with Hezbollah yesterday)
More shameful words from the "spokesman" Alykhan Velshi, ..."We're going to uphold the law, not give special treatment to this infamous street-corner Cromwell who actually brags about giving 'financial support' to Hamas, a terrorist organisation banned in Canada," he said. "I'm sure Galloway has a large Rolodex of friends in regimes elsewhere in the world willing to roll out the red carpet for him. Canada, however, won't be one of them."
It might have been posted already but this comment piece in the Toronto Star (I don't what page it ended up on) is the best, so far, I've seen in the mainstream media...though I don't believe Kenny is some abberation in the micromanaged Harper government :
====
Mar 21, 2009 04:30 AM
Banning British MP a clumsy, dangerous move
Jason Kenney has gone over the edge. The increasingly erratic immigration minister made headlines last week when, in a fit of pique, he cut off funding to an Arab organization that helps newcomers learn English. Now, Kenney has banned British MP George Galloway from entering Canada, on the spurious grounds that he supports Middle East terrorism.
It's a clumsy move, designed presumably to bolster the Conservative government's support among voters who ardently back Israel.
But in a roundabout way it does illustrate how absurdly broad Canada's new anti-terror laws are and how dangerous they can be in the wrong hands...."
http://www.thestar.com/article/606073
=====
See, as a corrective, to the "it's mainly Kenny" slant, this piece in the Pacific Free Press
"Little Jason Kenney Roars for Likud Lobby in Galloway Ban
Written by Chris Cook
Saturday, 21 March 2009 10:07
".....
Though I agree with the tone of Walkom's piece, which correctly depicts Kenney and the Conservatives as the idiotic provincials they are, there is nothing "erratic" about the direction Canada has moved under Stephen Harper's leadership. Canada's border police consistently bar anti-war voices from being heard in this country, and their antipathy to any that would criticise the Harper world view, a world view now entirely in disrepute, is unswerving.
Over the last few years, Harper's new government has barred rap singers, folk singers, activists, writers, educators, and now a prominent politician entry into Canada. The one common denominator in these barrings, all made to protect the sensitive Canadian populace from odious and possibly infectious bad ideas emanating from said miscreants, is the anti-militarist, anti-war views these people hold and promulgate publicly.... "
http://www.pacificfreepress.com/news/1/3894-little-jason-kenney-roars-fo...
Good.
Yes, it is good that Layton spoke up about l'affaire Galloway and Reformatory immigration policies. Did he say anything about the government's cutting of funds to the Canadian Arab Federation's language training for immigrants program?
Does anyone else find it disturbing that this régime, which is backed by the corporate class and other monied interests, is attacking a small, defenseless ethnic and religious minority, claiming it is a threat to national security?
Where have we seen this before?
I applaud Jack Layton for taking a principled stand.
Yes, bravo Jack! Well done.
I went on a tirade about all this on my radio programme tonight. Then I played a song that I dedicated to the guy I called " a tinpot little brownshirt." The song was Die Fahne Hoch.
Then I sat back and waited for the hostile phone calls. None came, but one guy phoned in and said he was in the Hitler Youth for six years and had to sing that song every day. I didn't see that one coming. He agreed with what I said about Kenney, too.
Jane Tabor was controlling the flow of questions, and she didn't ask this particular one.
Updated Sun. Mar. 22 2009 9:47 PM ET
The Canadian Press
TORONTO -- Organizers of the four-city speaking tour of British anti-war MP George Galloway are going to challenge the decision to bar him from Canada in court.
The organizers also say if that fails, they've already prepared plan B.
Organizers are to announce Monday they will file an emergency injunction in Ontario federal court on Tuesday seeking to overturn Citizenship and Immigration Canada's entry ban on the outspoken politician.
Should that fail, a delegation of Canadian MPs, lawyers and activists is assembling to escort Galloway from the U.S., where he is on tour, across the Canadian border.
"Our hope is the decision will be overturned by the courts when it actually looks at the merits of the decision of the government," said organizer Laith Marouf, national branches co-ordinator of Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights.
"But also ... we're not going to stop at that. We will mount our physical confrontation.
"On Monday the 30th in the morning, Mr. Galloway will attempt to cross the border. It has not been decided yet which land crossing -- most probably in Quebec," he said.
"He will be met by throngs of supporters on the other side."
more ...
YES!!!
Kaiser or onion and can we get him TO GO?
Fabulous news! Thanks for posting!
And, welcome to babble, "thanks". :)