Politics at Geek Skillz http://www.geekskillz.com/tags/48 Articles tagged with Politics at Geek Skillz. Wed, 10 Oct 2007 23:10:00 EST Wed, 10 Oct 2007 23:10:00 EST en-us CBC Insults Green Voters http://www.geekskillz.com/articles/cbc-insults-green-voters Politics, Rants

Geeks hate nothing more than being ignorantly labeled by stuffy conservatives.

It’s election night in Ontario, and Canadian media, especially the publicly-funded CBC, has done a fine job of insulting many of us voters.

During some elections, I turn into a political geek, watching the debates and forums on TVO, and reading about party policies. I have been impressed by the Green Party of Canada’s economic and social policies, both federally and provincially. They appeal to nerds like me by using lots of numbers, referring to studies, and talking about new and emerging technologies. I guess that’s part of their problem. They use too many facts and figures, which bore and confuse most apathetic voters. It’s much better to follow the Liberal and Conservative tactics of talking out the side of your mouth, blowing smoke out your ass, calling other people bad names, and waving your hands like a Jedi.

The Ontario Greens, who got only 2.8% of the vote in the previous election, got over 8% of the popular vote this time. That amounts to a big fat zero wins, but it’s a huge gain. Nevertheless, the CBC is still dismissing all Green votes as “protest votes”. Specifically, those were the words of the host Diana Swain and TV personality Allen Gregg, who didn’t give reasons for their analysis. Why must votes for the Green Party be protest votes?

It’s insulting, ignorant, patronizing, deceptive, and disparaging.

Those are the nicest words I can think of for the CBC tonight. They are trying to vilify those of us who vote Green, as if we are trying to throw away our votes and abuse our democratic system, the same democratic system that gave the Liberals a huge majority government while more than 60% of voters voted against them.

I voted Green because I did a lot of research and took interest in the economic policies and technologies that the party platform puts forward, and because I support their progressive social policies as well. My decision was not ignorant, emotional, or flippant. I want our economy and society to be built on cleaner industries, our air cleaner, our public transit systems more useful, and our media less manipulative. Ok, the Greens can’t do anything about that last issue...]]> Wed, 10 Oct 2007 23:10:00 EST http://www.geekskillz.com/articles/cbc-insults-green-voters YouTube vs. Canadian Cops http://www.geekskillz.com/articles/youtube-vs-canadian-cops Evidence, Politics, Rants, Web

The Internet proved its worth this week. I have to write about this even if it doesn't fit with the theme of this blog, because it's such a shocking display of a corrupt government at work. Rarely do I find photographs and video that completely convinces me of something like this evidence has convinced me.

In Montebello, Quebec last weekend, the leaders of Canada, USA, and Mexico were meeting to discuss whatever it is they discuss. We're not allowed to know what they talked about because... well, I don't know. Anyway, protesters flocked to this event, threatening to raise important issues and cause debate.

Undercover police were caught by a union leader trying to incite violence among peaceful protesters. A camera filmed it all, and cameras flashed. The police should really have a look at the digital cameras available these days. Did you know that they can take extremely high resolution pictures that capture every detail? You can take hundreds of pictures and look through them for evidence later. Or just post them on the internet and let others find the evidence for you.

Here's the YouTube video that is now being viewed around the globe:


"Plan B! Arrest Us!"


Read the news report by the CBC that discusses the evidence.
View the photos at the CUPE website.


This was clearly a botched police operation. Soon after the dirty cops were identified and called out by the protesters, they approached the line of riot cops seeking help. They were taken to the other side of the riot cops' shields, and gently arrested. They remained masked the entire time. As if it wasn't clear enough that they were cops, the riot cops made the mistake of putting them on the ground, which allowed all the digital cameras to get high resolution images of the pigs' boots and the riot cops boots. All the boots had identical Vibram soles. The failed instigators clumsily put duct tape on their boots to try to disguise them, but didn't cover the bottoms where the boots can be identified.

Thanks to social news sites like digg, the story is not just causing a stir in Canada. (Can Canadians be stirred by anything?) The story, pictures, and video are being viewed worldwide. This certainly isn't the first time that police have been accused of inciting violence to defame protesters, but the evidence here is incontrovertible, in my opinion: The way the dirty cops fled from the protesters, practically begging the riot cops to rescue them. There were no arrests made or charges laid. The identities of the three men has not been released. Their masks were never removed. The standard issue Vibram police boots. The dissemination of information across the internet was swift. It's too late for a government cover-up this time.

It's disgusting and outrageous. Where did the orders come from for this repulsive mission? To know for certain that our police are using violent tactics against peaceful civilians is hard to accept. It's the worst kind of abuse of power.

Sadly, I think this event will be forgotten by next week.

Update Aug. 24, 2007

Looks like the issue got enough attention that it got a response from the federal government. Time to see some legislation to keep the police in check.


Time to "police the police"

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