Here is an alternate opinion on the trucker convoy that may more accurately reflect one third of Canadians’ views on the subject.
As of Feb. 6, police said they had arrested several people on “mischief charges” related to bringing material goods like gas and propane cans to those demonstrating in Ottawa.
Earlier in the week, one man was charged with carrying a weapon to a public meeting, and another was charged with uttering threats online.
Otherwise, infractions were mainly for traffic violations.
A list of recent tickets issued in Ottawa, according to CTV News: Excessive noise; use of fireworks; failure to drive in marked lane red light violations; driving through a no-truck route; seatbelt violation; driving a motor vehicle on a sidewalk; cellphone; disobey sign; improper muffler; tint (too dark); obstructed license plate; failure to produce documents; stunt driving (vehicle seized); suspended license; no insurance. Note the absence of violence.
Compare that to the Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests, as Justin Trudeau did last week, making a point about how he supports BLM protests.
According to the non-profit Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) project, at least 11 Americans were killed while participating in political demonstrations in 2020: nine were taking part in BLM protests, and two were involved in pro-Trump “patriot rallies.” In Seattle, pro-BLM protesters threw rocks at the police, and molotov cocktails at the police station. In Minneapolis, the BLM protesters burned down the police station, and one protester was arrested and convicted for attempting to set fire to a school.
(Editor’s note: In its study, the ACLED concluded that the overwhelming majority of the more than 9,000 Black Lives Matter demonstrations that took place across the U.S. after the killing of George Floyd were peaceful.)
The trucker protest is about government orders being instituted without going through the proper process. This is about an identifiable, solvable problem with a known source (i.e. various levels of governments instituting restrictions without due process).
On the other hand, BLM is addressing a serious, systemic, societal problem, which unfortunately does not have a simple cause or solution. Easy for Trudeau to support a cause he is powerless to solve.
Current Provincial Health Officer orders have been instituted by fiat, under the guise of a public health emergency, rather than due parliamentary process. Bypassing parliamentary process is acceptable in times of grave danger to our nation state, for example war.
COVID has killed about 34,000 Canadians in a period of two years. That is about 0.09 per cent of the population. The average age of a deceased COVID patient in B.C. is still 82. COVID does not represent a grave threat to the nation state of Canada.
There is absolutely no justification for orders being instituted without due process, given the current situation. Doing so is contrary to the democratic principles on which this country was founded.
Recent opinion polls say that support for the trucker convoy is between 28 per cent and 36 per cent. That is roughly the same level of support that the Liberal party had in the last election.
By no means is this a “fringe” movement.
