THE TORIES WAR ON CANADAS ENVIRONMENT

Rolf Auer
March 9, 2011
Difficult, yes. Rocking he bends, he siles !ith laughter in the roo.
"articularly in #anada it sees, !hat$ %a&e you read, do you kno!
'ro!n(s essay$ %e doesn(t !ait. A sound analysis, it sees. Rather hel)ful.
*es. +t(s difficult alright and he suggests, !ell. ,he )robles of a real
#anadian literature. -udden silence. Do you kno! the )iece$
.o +( afraid, +/.
.e&er ind, but you ight. +t(s !ell !orth. %and to his eyes, shaking
head, fingers assage. %is )oint is, one of his )oints, that. 'eer is it$ Alert
for 0ee1, the bugger has he/. 2oddan "uritan entality doesn(t si)ly
you kno!, inhibit the de&elo)ent of naturalis or anything, no3 .o, sir.
-!allo!ing, glaring he s!ells, he gro!s. +t fears, that(s the thing, it deeans
the &ery role of art itself3
4Five Legs 5!ith Communion6, 2raee 2ibson, 1979, %ouse of Anansi,
). 218
Loon
-lo!ly the soft grey light
of orning
died the fiery stars.
,he air !as fresh !ith de!
and gro!ing )lants.
,he lake !as cal,
the rolling hills !ere 9uiet.
A loon eerged
fro the silent !ater,
its sil&er necklace glistening.
,he lonely cry
of the a))roaching bird
suoned e into a drea
!here the one !ho called
and the one !ho heard
entered the stillness together.
4Sparks from the Fire, -andy #aeron, 2000, ). :;
The Heron Returns to False Creek
,here he !as, standing by the !ater.
<earing his frayed, #hinese=silk dressing go!n.
his beak the colour of co))er
or haered gold. <aiting all day
for the flash of a fish in the stunned !ater.
+agine being blessed by faith4
to see this as a sign, a &isit
fro the afterlife. *our s)irit reincarnated
into this )atient fisheran.
standing like a ourner on the shore,
head bo!ed, robed in silence.
Abo&e, the boiling !hite clouds
blo!n a)art in the blue sky.
,he &ault of sunlight burning do!n.
*ou are no longer any!here in this !orld.
4Living Under Plastic, >&elyn ?au, 2010, ). 98
,his essay is about the bad en&ironental )ractices the federal ,ories ha&e
ado)ted since gaining )o!er in @ebruary 200;. 'ut first, here are soe definitions
5relating to the !orks 9uoted abo&e6. @ro Websters Dictionary Delu!e "ncyclopedic
"dition, 19::A
1. Browns essa! #n Canadian Poetry, >. B. 'ro!n, ,he "roble of a #anadian
?iterature, 19C84+t is a brilliant analysis of the econoic and social difficulties
!riters ha&e to contend !ith in #anada, a co)lete and eDact )icture of the
colonial s)irit, the disguised frontier standards and the )uritanis !hich )re&ail in
our society and !hich ha&e crushed soe of our !riters and led others to court an
outside )ublic, <. >. #ollin
2. "ur#tan! a )erson !ho seeks to regulate his o!n !ay of life and that of the
counity by a narro! oral code, es). soeone !ho intolerantly denounces
any usual )leasures as sinful or corru)ting
3. natural#s$! a ode of thought 5religious, oral or )hiloso)hical6 glorifying
nature and eDcluding su)ernatural and s)iritual eleents EE close adherence to
nature in art or literature, es). 5in literature6
4. en%#ron$ental#st! one de&oted to )rotecting the ecological balance of the earth
5. e&olo'#&al (alan&e! the stability of an eco=syste resulting fro interacting
)rocesses of its co)onents
.o!, in 2011, the gra&e i)ortance of en&ironentalis has ade con&erts out
of a great any )eo)le. ,here are soe holdouts, ho!e&erF aong the, dyed=in=the=
!ool conser&ati&es !ho cling to traditional &alues belonging ore to the iddle of the
t!entieth century than to the beginning of the t!enty=first century. ,hen, attitudes to!ard
.ature !ere ore as eD)ressed in the first 9uotation of this essay. .ot erely inhibiting
naturalis, but fearing the role of art, es)ecially #anadian ?iterature. 5see ,he ,ories(
<ar on #anada(s Arts, Rolf Auer, for a )olitical inter)retation6
<hy$
,he key !ord is distrustedF #anadian !riters as a !hole do not trust
.ature, they are al!ays sus)ecting soe dirty trick. An often encountered
sentient is that .ature has betrayed eD)ectation, it !as su))osed to be
different/. Death by .ature G not to be confused !ith natural deaths such
as heart attacks G is an e&ent of startling fre9uency in #anadian literatureF in
fact it sees to )olish off far ore )eo)le in literature than in real life.
4Survival $ %hematic &uide to Canadian Literature, Margaret At!ood,
#ha)ter ,!oA .ature ,he Monster, 1972, )). C9, HC
.o! take a look at the other t!o 9uotations at the beginning, one fro 2000 and
one fro 2010. ,he relati&ely recent )o)ulist )aradig shift of the i)ortance of
en&ironentalis has started anifesting !idely in #anadian )oetryA .ature is no!
res)ected.
5+ndeed, it is e&ident u)on eDaining Margaret At!ood(s !ebsite,
!!!.argaretat!ood.ca, and her oeu&re as !ell, that she has long been an
en&ironentalist, in addition to being a !riter, artist, etc.6
<hat do other conte)orary authors ha&e to say about en&ironentalis$
,he last tree. ,he last aoth. ,he last dodo. And soon )erha)s the last
fish and the last gorilla. In the basis of !hat )olice call for, !e are serial
killers beyond reason. 'ut has this al!ays been, and ust it al!ays be, the
case$ Are all huan systes dooed to stagger along under the ounting
!eight of their internal logic until it crushes the$ As + ha&e )ro)osed, the
ans!ers 4 and, + think, the reedies 4 lie in the fates of )ast societies/.
<e ha&e the tools and the eans to share resources, clean u) )ollution,
dis)ense basic health care and birth control, set econoic liits in line !ith
natural ones. +f !e don(t do those things no!, !hile !e )ros)er, !e !ill
ne&er be able to do the !hen ties get hard. Iur fate !ill t!ist out of our
hands. And this ne! century !ill not gro! &ery old before !e enter an age of
chaos and colla)se that !ill d!arf all the dark ages in our )ast. .o! is our
last chance to get the future right.
4$ Short 'istory of Progress, Ronald <right, 200C, )). ;8, 182
"eo)le in the ,hird <orld as)ire to @irst <orld li&ing standards. ,hey
de&elo) that as)iration through !atching tele&ision, seeing ad&ertiseents for
@irst <orld consuer )roducts sold in their countries, and obser&ing @irst
<orld &isitors to their countries. >&en in the ost reote &illages and refugee
ca)s today, )eo)le kno! about the outside !orld. ,hird <orld citi1ens are
encouraged in that as)iration by @irst <orld and Jnited .ations de&elo)ent
agencies, !hich hold out to the the )ros)ect of achie&ing their drea if they
!ill only ado)t the right )olicies, like balancing their national budgets,
in&esting in education and infrastructure, and so on. 'ut no one in @irst <orld
go&ernents is !illing to ackno!ledge the drea(s i)ossibilityA the
unsustainability of a !orld in !hich the ,hird <orld(s large )o)ulation !ere
to reach and aintain current @irst <orld li&ing standards/. <hat !ill
ha))en !hen it finally da!ns on all those )eo)le in the ,hird <orld that
current @irst <orld standards are unreachable for the, and that the @irst
<orld refuses to abandon those standards for itself$ ?ife is full of agoni1ing
choices based on trade=offs, but that(s the cruelest trade=off that !e ha&e to
resol&eA encouraging and hel)ing all )eo)le to achie&e a higher standard of
li&ing, (ithout thereby undermining that standard through overstressing
global resources) 5y italics6 /. Iur !orld is )resently on a non=sustainable
course, and any of our 12 )robles of non=sustainability that !e ha&e 0ust
suari1ed !ould suffice to liit our lifestyle !ithin the neDt se&eral
decades. ,hey are like tie bobs !ith fuses of less than H0 years/. ,hus,
because !e are ra)idly ad&ancing along this non=sustainable course, the
!orld(s en&ironental )robles (ill get resol&ed, in one !ay or another,
!ithin the lifeties of the children and young adults ali&e today. ,he only
9uestion is !hether they !ill becoe resol&ed in )leasant !ays of our o!n
choice, or in un)leasant !ays not of our choice, such as !arfare, genocide,
star&ation, disease e)ideics, and colla)ses of societies. <hile all of those
gri )henoena ha&e been endeic to huanity throughout our history, their
fre9uency increases !ith en&ironental degradation, )o)ulation )ressure and
)olitical instability.4Collapse 'o( Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed,
Kared Diaond, 200;, )). C9H=;, C9:
#urtailing cliate change ust, in other !ords, becoe the )ro0ect !e )ut
abo&e all others. +f !e fail in this task, !e fail in e&erything else. 'ut is it
)ossible$ +s it, as Kaes ?o&elock soeties suggests, too late$ + don(t
belie&e it is. <e ha&e a short )eriod G a &ery short )eriod G in !hich to
)re&ent the )lanet fro starting to shake us off. Iur ai ust be to sto)
global a&erage te)eratures fro rising to ore than 2L abo&e )re=industrial
le&els, !hich eans ore than 1.CL abo&e the current )oint. ,!o degrees,
because it has been !idely recogni1ed by cliate scientists as the critical
threshold, has soeties been characteri1ed as a Msafe( le&el of !aring. As +
ho)e this account has sho!n, it is erely less dangerous than !hat lies
beyond. A conference of scientists con&ened by the JB(s Met Iffice !arned
that at less than 1L abo&e )re=industrial le&els, cro) yields begin to decline in
continental interiors, droughts s)read in the -ahal region of Africa, !ater
9uality falls and coral reefs start to die. At 1.HL or less, an eDtra C00 illion
)eo)le are eD)osed to !ater stress and another H illion to hunger, 1: )er
cent of the !orld(s s)ecies !ill be lost and the Monset of co)lete elting of
2reenland ice( is triggered. ,here are, + a afraid, soe effects of cliate
change !hich cannot be a&oided. ,!o degrees is i)ortant because it is the
)oint at !hich soe of the larger huan i)acts and critical )ositi&e
feedbacks are eD)ected to begin. +f !e do not greatly reduce our eissions,
te)eratures are likely to reach that )oint in about 2080/. 'y 2080,
according to a )a)er )ublished by scientists at the Met Iffice, the total
ca)acity of the bios)here to absorb carbon !ill ha&e been reduced fro the
current C billion tonnes a year to 2.7 billion. ,o aintain e9uilibriu at that
)oint, in other !ords, the !orld(s )o)ulation can eit no ore than 2.7
billion tonnes of carbon a year in 2080. As !e currently )roduce around 7
billion, this i)lies a global reduction of ;0 )er cent. +n 2080, the !orld(s
)eo)le are likely to nuber around :.2 billion. 'y di&iding the total carbon
sink 52.7 billion tonnes6 by the nuber of )eo)le, !e find that to achie&e
stabili1ation the !eight of carbon eissions )er )erson should be no greater
than 0.88 tonnes. +f this )roble is to be handled fairly, e&eryone should ha&e
the sae entitleent to release carbon, at a rate no greater than 0.88 tonnes
)er year. +n the rich countries, this eans an a&erage cut by 2080 of around
90 )er cent/. #anada Nre9uiresO 9C )er cent/. ,his assues that the other
greenhouse gases, such as ethane, nitrous oDide, hydrofluorocarbons and
sul)hur heDafluoride, are cut at the sae rate.
4'eat 'o( to Stop the Planet from *urning, 2eorge Monbiot, 200;,
)). 1H=;
,hese three book eDcer)ts are fairly re)resentati&e of the en&ironentalist books
no! circulating. As one can see, the ne! found res)ect for .ature no! translates into
ho! to best hel) en&ironentalists )rotect the earth.
'ut ha&e the ,ories been )rotecting the en&ironent$
.o atter the cost, the %ar)er go&ernent has been relentless in its )ush for
ra)id, unchecked de&elo)ent of Alberta(s tar sands. ,he de&astating
en&ironental, social, and econoic effects of tar sands de&elo)ent for the
cliate, !ater, boreal forest, and @irst .ations counities ha&e done
nothing to da)en the enthusias of the #onser&ati&e go&ernent. +n line
!ith the -ecurity and "ros)erity "artnershi) 5-""6 goal of energy security
for the Jnited -tates through a fi&e=fold increase in tar sands )roduction fro
one illion barrels )er day today to fi&e illion barrels a day by 2080, the
%ar)er go&ernent has been aggressi&e in reo&ing all obstacles to tar sands
eD)ansion.
4%he 'arper +ecord, #anadian #entre for "olicy Alternati&es 5##"A6, )df,
-tuck in the MuckA ,he %ar)er tar sands legacy, #aelie @ra)ton and 'lair
Redlin, -e)teber 22, 200:, ). 2H;
%he tar sands are the largest contributor and fastest gro(ing source of
Canadas greenhouse gas emissions) 5y italics6 ,his )uts the country in a
bind !hen it coes to eeting the andatory goals of the Byoto "rotocol to
)re&ent cliate change. -ince ratification of Byoto by the #anadian
"arliaent in 2002, the go&ernent has been legally coitted to reducing
greenhouse gas )ollution by ;P belo! 1990 le&els by 2012. *et, largely due
to tar sands eD)ansion, #anada is eD)ected to be CCP abo&e its )eritted
Byoto le&els by 2010. ,his isn(t sur)rising !hen the to) fi&e #anadian
)olluters are tar sands o)erators. While the former ,artin Liberal
government failed to implement meaningful greenhouse gas reductions- the
'arper government has reneged on .yoto altogether) 5y italics6 In A)ril
2H, 200;, forer #onser&ati&e >n&ironent Minister Rona Abrose
announced that #anada !ill not be eeting its Byoto targets. +nstead, #anada
!ill )artici)ate in the J.-.=backed Asia="acific "artnershi) on #lean
De&elo)ent and #liate. +n May 200;, en&ironental funding designed to
eet the Byoto standards !as cut.
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, -tuck in the MuckA ,he %ar)er tar sands
legacy, #aelie @ra)ton and 'lair Redlin, -e)teber 22, 200:, ). 2H9
In March 10, 200:, federal >n&ironent Minister Kohn 'aird announced
regulations for tar sands )lants and other industrial eitters. ,hese
regulations !ere tru)eted as a signal that ne! tar sands )lants ust
i)leent carbon ca)ture and underground storage. 'ut the details of the
announceent sho! that any ore ne! )lants 4 like the Bearl )ro0ect 4
!ill be u) and running before any carbon ca)ture rules take effect. ,here is
no re9uireent for the Bearl )ro0ect to ca)ture or store carbon, e&en though it
is a ne! )ro0ect slated to be running in 2012. Details of the actual regulations
!ill be finali1ed in 2009 and !ill start to take effect in 2010, but only a))ly
to tar sands facilities built after 2012. ,hose regulations !ill re9uire ...oil
sands u)graders, in=situ )lans and coal=fired electricity )lants that coe into
o)eration in 2012 or later to eet carbon ca)ture and storage standards by
201:.+n other !ords, all ne! facilities that start o)erating after 2012 !ill
only ha&e to eet an uns)ecified carbon ca)ture standard by 201: 4 ten
years fro today. %his is a very long lead time- far in the future) /ts as if (e
have all the time in the (orld to deal (ith global (arming and are not facing
a climate emergency today) 5y italics6 ,he ne! standards continue to rely on
the discredited conce)t of intensity targets !hich reduce the aount of
eissions )er unit of )roduction !hile still )eritting o&erall increases in
greenhouse gas eissions as )roduction le&els increase. %he overall result of
the 'arper government plan is that annual emissions from the tar sands (ill
triple over the ne!t decade- from 01 million tonnes today to 21 million tonnes
in 0345) 5y italics6
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, -tuck in the MuckA ,he %ar)er tar sands
legacy, #aelie @ra)ton and 'lair Redlin, -e)teber 22, 200:, )). 2;0=1
'ased erely on the tar sands )olicy, the short ans!er is that !e(&e been betrayed
on the tar=sands greenhouse=gas=eissions front by the %ar)er go&ernent. <hat else
ha&e they been u) to$
If all the issues confronting the %ar)er go&ernent, cliate change has
caused it the ost trouble. +n fact, for the counications tsars in the %ar)er
go&ernent, the issue of cliate change ust re)resent a continuing stor
that they are struggling to sail through, !ith a leaky )latfor, little )ublic
credibility in their direction, and a cre! that often loses its footing. %he
climate change storm hasnt sunk 'arpers ship of state yet- but it may
remain one of his greatest impediments to ma6ority rule) 5y italics6 At the
sae tie, his reaction to this issue )ro&ides a good illustration of %ar)er(s
o&erall a))roach to the role of the federal go&ernent.
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, ,he %ar)er 2o&ernent and #liate
#hangeA ?ost at -ea$ ,oby -anger and 2raha -aul, -e)teber 22, 200:, ).
2:1
+n -e)teber 200;, the #oissioner of the >n&ironent and -ustainable
De&elo)ent, a )osition under the Auditor 2eneral, issued a daning re)ort
on the federal go&ernent(s )rogress in reducing #anada(s eissions. -he
outlined a nuber of the failures and e)hasi1ed that a assi&e scale=u) of
efforts is needed. ,he e&idence accuulated aong scientists, )olicy=
akers, and the )ublic that cliate change !as a gro!ing and de&astating
threat to the )lanet and that strong action urgently needed to be taken. "olling
sho!ed the en&ironent ra)idly rising to an alost un)recedented to)
concern for the )ublic.
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, ,he %ar)er 2o&ernent and #liate
#hangeA ?ost at -ea$ ,oby -anger and 2raha -aul, -e)teber 22, 200:, ).
2:H
+n early Kanuary 2007, a )oll !as released sho!ing that three=9uarters of
#anadians felt that the federal go&ernent(s effort on the en&ironent !as
lackingA its !orst sho!ing. ?ater that onth, another )oll sho!ed the
en&ironent had ascended to the to) of #anadians( list of )riorities.
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, ,he %ar)er 2o&ernent and #liate
#hangeA ?ost at -ea$ ,oby -anger and 2raha -aul, -e)teber 22, 200:, ).
2:7
,he ost significant en&ironental easure in the March 2007 budget !as a
easure that !as et !ith general su))ort fro the )ublic and all )olitical
)arties at the tie, but is likely to be highly damaging for the environment
and very costly for the poor 5y italics6A regulations re9uiring a iniu
)ercentage of ethanol, bio=diesel, or other rene!able fuels content in
gasoline, and direct federal subsidies to )roducers of these fuels. Regulations
and subsidies that )roote turning food, and es)ecially corn, into fuel ha&e
sho!n to be es)ecially ineffecti&e in reducing greenhouse gasesA both are
&ery costly and )otentially ore en&ironentally daaging than the
alternati&es. Jse of food for fuel has also forced u) the )rice of food around
the !orld, hurting the )oorest around the !orld the ost. While promoted as
an environmental measure- until alternatives to food7based ethanol and bio7
diesel are economically feasible- these measures really involve the transfer of
billions to the agricultural industry- paid for through ta!payer subsidies and
higher prices on food by the public) 5y italics6
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, ,he %ar)er 2o&ernent and #liate
#hangeA ?ost at -ea$ ,oby -anger and 2raha -aul, -e)teber 22, 200:,
)). 2::=9
+n A)ril 2007, 'aird announced a ne! regulatory regie, %urning the Corner,
su))osedly designed to reduce greenhouse gas eissions and air )ollution. ,his !as the
ost abitious cliate change )ro)osal announced by the %ar)er go&ernent since they
assued )o!er. 'ut in reality, the )lan did little, because it lacked regulatory
enforceent. +nde)endent assessents by four different organi1ations, including
international banks, business grou)s and en&ironental grou)s, re)orted that this )lan
!ouldn(t )ro&ide the reductions re9uired. 5%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, ,he %ar)er
2o&ernent and #liate #hangeA ?ost at -ea$ ,oby -anger and 2raha -aul,
-e)teber 22, 200:, )). 2:9=906
And %ar)er$
%ar)er ade a larger sybolic ste) !hen he ackno!ledged to a business
audience in 2erany that cliate change !as )erha)s the biggest threat to
confront the future of huanity today. 5Kune C, 20076
'ut at hoe, the ,ories reneged on the Byoto Accord and cae u) !ith a 'ill
designed to eDcuse the fro it, and i)leent inferior )olicy. 'ut %ar)er )rorogued
"arliaent late in 2007 to head off a non=confidence &ote and killed that 'ill in the
)rocess. .eDt, %ar)er 0oined an international coalition 5as )re&iously described6 !hose
intent !as to i)ose &oluntary greenhouse gas eissions controls on )artici)ating
countries. -o, the ,ories betrayed #anadians on cliate change, too. 5%he 'arper +ecord,
##"A, )df, ,he %ar)er 2o&ernent and #liate #hangeA ?ost at -ea$ ,oby -anger
and 2raha -aul, -e)teber 22, 200:, )). 291=926
<hat about other %ar)er initiati&es on #anada(s en&ironent$
As Martin ?uther Bing once said, legislation !ill not change the heart, but it
!ill restrain the heartless./. As Jni&ersity of 'ritish #olubia "rofessor
Baren 'akker eD)lains, #anada is one of the fe! industriali1ed countries in
the !orld that does not ha&e legally enforced !ater 9uality standards/.
,oday, under the neoconser&ati&e agenda of the %ar)er go&ernent !hich
has gi&en increasing )o!er to cor)orations, there is a ore urgent need to
restrain the heartless than e&er before. 5see ,he ,ories( <ar on #anada(s
"oor, Rolf Auer6
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, "olicy DroughtA ,he %ar)er
go&ernent(s isanageent of #anada(s !ater, Maude 'arlo! and Meera
Barunananthan, -e)teber 22, 200:, ). 299
,he #anadian +)erial 'ank of #oerce 5#+'#6, one of #anada(s largest
banks, released a re)ort in .o&eber 200; )eddling the benefits of in&esting
in !ater. <hile those of us !ho see !ater as a fundaental right are outraged
that our go&ernents ha&e neglected !ater infrastructure in counities
across the country, the #+'# sees crubling infrastructure as a great
o))ortunity for )ri&ate cor)orations to ake )rofits, and the #onser&ati&e
go&ernent is coitted to facilitating the )rocess. +t announced this year
that it !ould be )lacing )ublic oney destined for !ater infrastructure into
the hands of !ater )rofiteers.
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, "olicy DroughtA ,he %ar)er
go&ernent(s isanageent of #anada(s !ater, Maude 'arlo! and Meera
Barunananthan, -e)teber 22, 200:, ). 800
,!o years under the %ar)er regie ha&e ade it clear that !e need a national
!ater )olicy that affirs the right to !ater. %ar)er(s )atch!ork of funding
)ro)osals are not a substitute for robust legislation that )rotects #anadian
!ater fro coodification, di&ersion, bulk eD)orts, and )ri&ati1ation.
An A)ril 200: sur&ey conducted by >n&ironics for the #ouncil of #anadians
disclosed that :9P of #anadians !ant a national !ater )olicy that !ould ban
bulk !ater eD)orts and recogni1e !ater as a huan right. ,he gro!ing )ush
for )ri&ate sector in&ol&eent in !ater ser&ices, the destruction of #anadian
lakes, and the alaring rates of boil=!ater ad&isories underscore the urgent
need for such a )olicy.
4%he 'arper +ecord, ##"A, )df, "olicy DroughtA ,he %ar)er
go&ernent(s isanageent of #anada(s !ater, Maude 'arlo! and Meera
Barunananthan, -e)teber 22, 200:, ). 80H
'usiness interests ha&e been trying to )ush trade treaties onto #anada in order to
5!hat else$6 increase )rofits. ,he @ree ,rade Agreeent 519::6, and follo!ing that, the
.orth Aerican @ree ,rade Agreeent 5199C6, !ere )ushed onto an un!illing #anadian
)ublic by coordinated business efforts. 'oth !ere notable for their alost co)lete lack
of en&ironental )rotections.
@ollo!ing these !as the atte)t to ado)t the Multilateral Agreeent on
+n&estent 5MA+6A
#anada !as a strong )ro)onent of the NMA+O, a )ro)osed international treaty
that !ould ha&e gi&en transnational co)anies huge ne! rights to challenge
go&ernent authority. 5,he MA+ !as defeated in 1997 by a coordinated
international ci&il=society ca)aign.6
4too close for comfort Canadas Future (ithin Fortress 8orth $merica,
Maude 'arlo!, 200H, ). 2;9
.eDt u) !as the -ecurity and "ros)erity "artnershi) 5-""6 bet!een #anada, the
J.-., and MeDico 5200H6. @ro the KulyQAugust 2009 issue of the ##"A ,onitor, in the
article, .e! fil eD)oses the M-ecurity and "ros)erity "artnershi)(A
<hat the -"" really re)resents is a )arallel go&ernent, so that the
i)ortant decisions are either being ade outside of "arliaent and
outside of legislatures/ Deocracy is slo!ly being gutted.
4Murray Dobbin, #anadian author and 0ournalist
,he ultiate goal, 9uite ob&iously, is to create such tight integration
that effecti&ely !e only ha&e one .orth Aerican )olitical, security,
ilitary and econoic )lace 4 that there are really no differentials
bet!een this country and the country neDt door. 4Michael 'yers,
#anada Research #hair, 2lobal "olitics and +nternational ?a!, J'#
As of August 2009, the -"" !ebsite !as u)dated to sayA R,he -ecurity and
"ros)erity "artnershi) of .orth Aerica 5-""6 is no longer an acti&e initiati&e. ,here
!ill not be any u)dates to this site. 5!!!.!iki)edia.org6 Access to #anada(s !ater !as
one of the things threatened by the -"".
As is i)lied by Kared Diaond(s 9uotation, !hen arket ideology takes
)recedence o&er the en&ironent, dire conse9uences occur ore fre9uently. <e sa!
earlier ho! shifting to biofuel )roduction and )ri&ati1ation of !ater4en&ironental
degradation4hurt #anadian consuers, often the )oor the ost.
+n August 200;, the %ar)er go&ernent attacked the #anadian <heat 'oardA
-ince any non=farers kno! little about the issues in&ol&ed, soe
background facts !ill hel). ,he #anadian <heat 'oard 5#<'6 re)resents
soe 7H,000 grain gro!ers, and handles all <estern !heat and barley
destined for eD)ort and huan use. ,he #<' is 100P self=su))orting, and,
!ith SH billion in annual sales, is a real )o!er in the international arket=
)lace. 'acked by the #anadian 2rain #oission(s eDcellent 9uality
assurance, the 'oard uses its eDclusi&e single=desk selling )o!er 4 its
uch=aligned ono)oly 4 to get the best )ossible )rices, trans)ortation
rates, and 9uality )reius for its )roducers. ,he #<' is !orth S700GS:00
illion annually to farers, a&eraging alost S10,000 )er far. And it(s not
0ust farers !ho benefit. A 200H "rice=<aterhouse= #oo)ers study credited
the 'oard !ith a huge econoic i)act totalling S1.; billion annually,
including soe 1C,000 non=far 0obs. ,he #<' o&es 20 to 80 illion
tonnes of grain a year o&er #anadian rail lines and through #anadian )orts in
'ritish #olubia, Manitoba, Intario and TuUbec, aking it one of #anada(s
biggest rail shi))ers and one of our strongest >ast=<est links. ,he 'oard has
also been a crucial )layer in )rotecting grain custoers 4 including
#anadian consuers 4 fro the risks of 2M 5genetically odified6 !heat.
4%he 'arper +eport, ##"A, )df, %ar)er(s Attack In the #anadian <heat
'oard, %elen @orsey, -e)teber 22, 200:, ). 81:
#olleen Ross of +ro9uois, Intario, the .ational @arer(s Jnion <oen(s
"resident, calls !hat the go&ernent is trying to do to the <heat 'oard both
illegal and ioral. +t 0ust flies in the face of the )rinci)les of food
so&ereigntyA )eo)le(s control o&er food, including ho! it is arketed. ,his
go&ernent is once again )utting cor)orate )rofits before the interests of
)eo)le, and they(re doing it through fraud and lies.
4%he 'arper +eport, ##"A, )df, %ar)er(s Attack In the #anadian <heat
'oard, %elen @orsey, -e)teber 22, 200:, ). 819
,hese are a fe! of the eDa)les of ho! the %ar)er go&ernent sacrifices
en&ironentalis to its neoliberal )rinci)les. Al!ays, #anadians4usually the )oorest4
end u) getting hurt.
+n the 9ancouver Sun, on March 10, 2011, !as this article by -te)hen %ue,
#anada(s M)ro&ince of hunger( has doubled in the last t!o decades. @ro itA
?ast year, in March alone, :;7,9C: #anadians &isited food banks. +f these
folks !ere classified as a )ro&ince G the )ro&ince of hunger G it !ould rank
se&enth in )o)ulation 0ust behind .o&a -cotia and -askatche!an. +n a
country so self=congratulatory about its co)assion, this sees
un)ardonable/. @ood banks !ere launched as an eergency sto)ga). *et for
all the good !ork done by food banks, the &olunteers !ho run the and the
citi1ens !ho su))ort the, this a))roach is failing. @ood banks are no! an
institutionali1ed eDcuse for the state to off=load its fundaental duty to all its
citi1ens G that they be ade9uately fed/. <e need to de&ise a !orkable
strategy for ensuring that e&erybody in this eDtraordinarily !ealthy country
has enough to eat and if !e ust force dithering leaders to the discussion, so
be it. +f our econoic odel can(t achie&e that odest goal, eD)ect increasing
nubers of hungry )eo)le to start asking G as they are in >gy)t G !hat(s the
)oint of ha&ing that odel if it doesn(t !ork$
.eoliberalis as an econoic odel doesn(t !ork. +t(s harful to the
en&ironent and therefore to the )eo)le !ho li&e !ithin it. +t(s tie for a ne! odel.
<hy not try social deocracy$
)S*o&#al +e$o&ra& cae to be associated !ith Beynesian econoic
anageent 5/a free arket, ca)italist econoy, left to its o!n de&ices,
!ould fail to achie&e long=ter full e)loyent, and that any kind of
)ri&ate=enter)rise syste could only be aintained through go&ernent
inter&ention in a iDed econoy 5for definition, see ,he ,ories( <ar on
#anada(s Arts, Rolf Auer6.4$ Dictionary of Canadian "conomics, Da&id
#rane, 19:0, ). 1986, high taDes, social security, )ublic enter)rise, and
eD)anded state bureaucracy. ,his a))roach to social refor !as )reised on
the ca)acity of deocratic institutions to ensure sensiti&e and res)onsible
go&ernent.
,Canadian Politics, edited by Kaes 'ickerton and Alain=2. 2agnon, -tate
-o&ereignty, ?ocalis, and 2lobalis, <arren Magnusson, ). ;7