Roundup: Another grifter convoy on the way

Posted on by

Sucking up much of the oxygen in the news cycle is this so-called “Freedom Convoy” on its way to Ottawa, which looks to be just a lame repeat of the Yellow Vesters convoy from 2019, which turned out to be a big damp squib once it arrived. It’s been organised by the usual network of right-wing organisers using a bunch of trumped-up bullshit (truckers are vaccinated at a higher rate than the general population), and is quickly becoming a catch-all for a bunch of other anti-vax/anti-mask nonsense, and some of their demands, like around vaccine mandates in restaurants, are squarely within provincial jurisdiction, so “blockading” Parliament Hill won’t do anything about it. And an organizer for the Maverick Party in Alberta set up a GoFundMe, which has amassed some $3.7 million in donations, but those funds are being held until the service can determine how the funds will be disbursed—not that it’s stopping said organiser, which is a pretty good signal that this is just more grift.

Of course, Conservative MPs are signing right up to this (and I have a column on this out later today), tweeting nonsense things like that the prime minister is pushing a “vaccine vendetta,” which makes no sense unless you’ve been infected with these kinds of hyper-partisan brain worms. And Erin O’Toole won’t give a straight answer as to whether he supports this convoy (as many of his MPs are tweeting), so one suspects he’s waiting to see which way the wind is blowing before he makes any kind of definitive statement, but it’s all looking very familiar with what his predecessor did in 2019 (who is also tweeting support for this convoy).

https://twitter.com/Garossino/status/1485748899495112707

Good reads:

  • There is a possibility that Canada could send a cache of small arms and anti-tank weapons to Ukraine that were originally intended for the Kurds but never shipped.
  • The federal government signed a $10/day child care deal with Nunavut, leaving Ontario the only holdout, though a deal is supposedly “very close.”
  • Global Affairs suffered a cyber-attack last week, while Mélanie Joly was out of the country to discuss the situation in Ukraine.
  • CBSA is hoping to expand its use of technology at the border, by both expanding its ArriveCan app, as well as adding facial recognition to NEXUS cards.
  • Women veterans say they need more programming that is geared specifically towards them, and not just “a veteran is a veteran.”
  • Liberal MP George Chahal is concerned for his safety because anti-vax protesters have been outside of his house.
  • Liberal Nathaniel Erskine-Smith is calling on the government to redouble its efforts in getting vaccines to poorer countries to prevent future variants.
  • Althia Raj points out that Erin O’Toole keeps repeating Andrew Scheer’s mistakes, and that he seems to have a hard time acting like a leader by taking clear stances.

Odds and ends:

Want more Routine Proceedings? Become a patron and get exclusive new content.

One thought on “Roundup: Another grifter convoy on the way”

  1. We are witnessing in real time the full-scale and irreversible Trumpification of Her Majesty’s Official Opposition. CPC MPs who have lent tacit support to what amounts to an attempted attack upon Parliament should be ejected and barred from holding office. The party apparatus should be subject to a top-down public inquiry. They want to go at Trudeau and his family for meaningless nontroversies like WeGhazi and STD-Blahvalin? Put *them* in the hot seat for supporting domestic terrorists. They have the damn nerve to accuse the Liberals of disrespecting democracy and the sanctity of Parliament when they lend backing to this.

    I say this because participants in the Flu Trux Klan “rally” have stated on record that they want this event to be “Canada’s version of January 6.” Several have made death threats against the Prime Minister, a frequent occurrence that continues to go ignored as though it’s just “friendly sausage makers” venting frustration about public health protocols or carbon pricing or some such legitimate policy disagreement. Enough already, enough playing around and pretending like the GQP’s branch plant in Ottawa even deserves to continue defiling the Chamber. Stephen Gordon’s catchphrase is an imperative for Canada’s public safety: Disband the Conservative Party of Canada. It is beyond saving.

Comments are closed.