The National Free Press - World Edition: Free Speech, Free Press and Human Rights

Something is rotten in the province of Alberta! And it's not just the tar sands. It's the way political and corporate elites do whatever it takes to extinguish potential threats to the bituminous megaproject. The attempt to protect the tar sands from criticism can be framed as a part of a broader effort to protect the ‘rights’ of private interests to profit from bitumen production.

There are a number of ways in which this protective maneuvering takes shape. These range from gushing expressions of Western Canadian nationalism which portray the resource as a splendorous treasure, to more sinister efforts aiming at silencing opposition. Acting on behalf of the world's oil giants, the Government of Alberta has bought full page advertisements in U.S. newspapers to convince Americans that synthetic crude is environmentally friendly.

Premier Ed Stelmach himself has ‘written’ opinion pieces defending Alberta's God-given right to extract the bitumen that lies beneath Canada's boreal forests. And let's not forget the assurances Stelmach made to Canada's petroleum producers at an oil and gas symposium in 2007: “The response of some has been to demand that we ‘touch the brake.’ That approach has been rejected by my government. It's my belief that when government attempts to manipulate the free market – bad things happen.”[1]
 

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation has collaborated with a remarkable teenage filmmaker to create a new video that debunks the Cold War theory that nuclear weapons make us secure.

Called “The Myth of Deterrence,” the five-minute video challenges the dangerous idea that has been at the heart of U.S. foreign policy and nuclear strategy for many decades.

It was scripted by the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation President David Krieger and Director of Programs Rick Wayman, together with filmmaker Erik Choquette.

“The major point of this short video is that deterrence is a theory, and its reliability is a myth,” said Dr. Krieger. “Deterrence cannot be relied upon for protection. It can fail at any moment, and the consequences of failure would be catastrophic. A true understanding of the limits of deterrence provides a powerful argument for eliminating nuclear weapons globally.”
 

U.S., Canada and NATO Threaten to Extend War - On March 13, 2008, Canada's Parliament voted to extend the country's military “mission” in Afghanistan to July 2011. The motion by the minority Conservative government was supported by the opposition Liberals. The war-makers correctly estimated that fixing an exit date would deflect mounting opposition to the war among the Canadian public and buy time for Canada's continued participation.

Since then, the political and military situation in Afghanistan has continued to deteriorate for the occupying forces, and leading politicians are now floating proposals to extend Canada's claimed exit date for a military mission that already constitutes a gross violation of the national sovereignty and human rights of the Afghan people.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the government will stick to its date. However, he also says that Canada will maintain a military presence in Afghanistan after 2011, to train Afghan police and military personnel. This is a de-facto extension of the military mission and not, as the government claims, in a non-combat role.
 

The floods which have devastated huge areas of Pakistan may be an act of nature, but the worsening humanitarian crisis that followed is a direct result of the failures of Pakistan's venal leaders – and the impact of the U.S. “war on terror.”

According to official estimates, more than 20 million people have been displaced and another 1,600 are dead as a result of one of the worst floods in Pakistani history. In some places, the rains have made the Indus River 15 miles wide, some 25 times broader than normal.

The flooding started when the monsoon rains tore through the mountains in the northwest part of the country (called Khyber-Pukhtunkhwa). As the waters raged through the Sindh and Punjab provinces, they destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes and over 1.7 million acres of farmland. Several large cities were also been submerged, like Naushera, Muzaffarabad and Abottabad. The people who have made it out of the flood-ravaged areas are crammed in makeshift shelters or in overcrowded government buildings.
 

This is a message to all would-be home-grown, radical religious extremist ‘anything’ terrorists. (Including those of you from out-of-town.) A thought. Perhaps you should rethink the idea first. And so, I offer this letter as, let’s say, a friendly suggestion of sorts.

This is Canada my friends, one of the safest countries on earth with the best Charter of Rights anywhere. Canada is the true land of freedom and choice and the world knows it. This is why people from around the world try to get immigrant status and build a new peaceful life here. Sometimes they float in on a boat. Anyway, this is the country where a person doesn’t actually have to sneak in. All you have to do is show up at the front door, knock and say the magic words – please, I come in, eh? Don’t forget the “eh”.

And as you can see, it worked for you.
 

I wish I had a shilling for every time someone told me spraying homes with DDT to prevent malaria is like using Africans in evil experiments. I would be a rich woman.

That claim is a blatant falsehood. Even worse, it hides the many ways poor Africans really are being used in environmental experiments that cause increased poverty, disease and death.

If any people were ever used in DDT experiments, it was Americans and Europeans. During World War II, this insecticide and mosquito repellant was sprayed on tents and around camps to keep American and British soldiers from getting malaria. After the war, millions of concentration camp survivors, and millions of German and Italian citizens were sprayed with DDT (right on their bodies) to prevent typhus.

Then in the 1950s and 1960s, America and Europe sprayed huge amounts of DDT all over, as a critical part of their campaign to eradicate malaria. Yes, they still had malaria in those countries! But not anymore.