Welcome To The Club

Frankly, My Dear Freespeechers 34 Comments

Peter Menzies;

You may think putting the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and its nine government-appointed commissioners in charge of the entire online world is a good thing. Or you may think it’s a bad thing. But I’m guessing we can all agree that Bill C-11, the world’s most extensive internet regulation legislation so far, is a Thing.

And you’d think a thing that big would be deserving of respectful, honest debate and thoughtful review. If there’s something in the legislation that is bad in a way that isn’t intended, you’d want it caught and fixed, right? We are, after all, about to grant authority over 21st-century communications to people in charge of something called The Broadcasting Act. An act that was passed in 1993 to make sure nothing terrible — like people preferring NFL over CFL football or the Oscars over the Genies — results from watching too much American TV. Given that thousands of successful Canadian free enterprise Tik-Tokers and YouTubers fear new rules will disadvantage them in favour of the CRTC’s certified cultural broccoli, you’d think that’d be worth a think.

But you’d be wrong.

During hearings it appeared to be difficult for Liberal MPs like Chris Bittle and Anthony Housefather to tolerate anyone not dressed in matching political uniforms. I got off relatively easy when I testified before them. All I said was that by leaving the CRTC’s mitts off the online world, investment in Canada’s film and television industry had grown by 80 per cent in the past decade. In fact, it is enjoying the greatest period of prosperity in its history, so maybe take it easy on the panic button.

Others whose testimony could have been useful were cross-examined far more aggressively in an effort to delegitimize their expertise by diminishing them personally. Vancouver’s J.J. McCullough (self-described as Canada’s 398th most popular YouTuber) was asked about an opinion he had once expressed concerning bilingualism. Former CRTC commissioner Tim Denton, now chair of the Internet Society of Canada Chapter, suddenly had to account for some of his old commentary that once appeared in the Financial Post. Producer Scott Benzie of Quixote Media and the Buffer Festival got it even worse.

Suffice to say, the experience was made unpleasant and intimidating for anyone who might have had a point of disagreement. All showed up hoping they could help and be listened to respectfully; some left feeling labelled #enemiesofthepeople. (I am not aware of any who showed up to support the legislation that were made to feel the same way but, if they did, they have my sympathy.) MPs live in a friend-or-foe world. No quarter is given, not even to passersby.

With that ugly tone set early in the deliberations and despite particularly compelling presentations by Matt Hatfield of OpenMedia and Skyship Entertainment’s Morghan Fortier, it came as no surprise the bill wound up being pushed through, literally in the middle of the night.

We warned establishment journos like Peter Menzies what was coming, only to be shunned and defamed by these cowards as “dangerous freespeechers”.

It gives me no pleasure to say we told you so.

Well, maybe a little.

34 Replies to “Welcome To The Club”

  1. “Gee, when anyone critical of speech control is a criminal now, what will happen after it becomes law?”

    The corrupt Canadian media cheerleaded for this.
    Anyone who asks if the government is abusing this power will be guilty of counseling mischief.

    Send an email to your senators.

    1. Three of the four Alberta Senators are TurdHole lackeys. One is a former Edmonton Journal presstitute the other two are just XX chromosome carriers with daddy issues. I e-mailed them despite the fact that they will give Dear Leader his dictatorship. The lone Harper appointee won’t be able to do much.

      I reminded all four of them of the used toilet paper that TurdHole wiped his hind-end with.

      https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/pch/documents/services/download-order-charter-bill/canadian-charter-rights-freedoms-eng.pdf

    1. It’s Upsidedown World/IDIOCRACY.

      Whatever governments say, the opposite is the TRUTH

    2. The ruble doesn’t trade freely. Its real value is a fraction of its official value.

      1. Yes, a fraction where the numerator is larger than the denominator.
        Snort some more copium.

        1. No it’s not. If you really believe your own economically illiterate BS, you should go long some Russian bonds right now.

          Also, try exchanging your dollars for rubles at the official rate. Go for it.

          1. UnMe is retarded. India, China, Brazil, most of Africa, in fact, most of the planet can trade Rubles. Who cares what the people who don’t even know what a woman is are doing?
            Enjoy your copium, you’re gonna need a lot more of it.

          2. “India, China, Brazil, most of Africa, in fact, most of the planet can trade Rubles”

            Yeah, but not well. It’s not a good medium of exchange. Poor liquidity.

            “Enjoy your copium, you’re gonna need a lot more of it.”

            Holy projection Batman!

      2. But what use is the official value? Of course, there isn’t any free trading of the ruble as the west would try their hardest to tank it in preparation for looting the Russian economy when the war ends. I think the Russians requiring energy purchasers to use rubles does in fact give the ruble an actual value.

  3. Bittle:

    22,069 votes of 58,709 votes cast (37.85%) – 91,010 registered voters

    Housefather

    23,284 votes of 40,802 votes cast (57.7%) – 71,167 registered voters

    Yeah…democracy, right?

    1. Bittle is a coward who hides in his office whenever his constituents come out.

  5. Well thank god you are domiciled in Switzerland I believe Kate. Going to be a bad few years or more.

  7. It’s clear now that the citizenry is under attack by gov’t, by media, by the RCMP, by almost every single institution we once considered good and necessary.

    I’ll simply say:

    “I. Will. Not. Comply.”

  11. This is going to be their Waterloo. I don’t mean a typically political blunder either. This is deeply disturbing to a wide broad swathe of Canadian citizens. I will go out on a limb and say that is particularly true of young YouTubers in Vancouver who don’t want the CRTC’s foot up their ass. The right CPC candidate for PM could not only build a coalition to topple this government but build gains on younger constituencies where they are usually not strong. I hate to say it but Poilivre is probably best suited to this end.

    2. I suspect most Canadians are unaware of this law, and those that are aware believe it will only be applied to right wing misinformation.

      1. There are crucial people who set the tone lead the culture and alert their fans about what’s what and Menzies and YouTubers are some of those people.

        1. It’s cute how you think all those “cultural leaders” on pootube and ticktock are going to buck the government and rescue you, UnMe. They’re going to roll over faster than a trained seal.

          1. Why would any foreign media remain in Canada?

            It wouldn’t be worth it, even if given a green light.

            We are North Korea now.

          2. Just because you can’t imagine people different from you standing up to government power doesn’t mean they won’t do it.

    3. WhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaT..?? ………..did you just write.??
      Say it ain’t so…? Pumpin up Poilievre..?????

      Now I’ve officially see n read EVERYTHING.
      Put the Bong Away UnMe..you’re actually starting to sound…???
      Well shit, I don’t know what exactly but did you just find MOSES or something…?

      1. It’s a one-off. Poilivierre is otherwise all sizzle and not much steak. Exactly the kind of all talk no plan man conservaderps fall for. Achinew is better.

  12. Thank you Kate for having SDA run all these years, but I think with this Bill passing, it is time to bid farewell.

    Thank you again for all the years of hard work.

  13. Trudeau is so stupid hell sick the crtc on the cpc YouTube channel. You watch. He’ll do it. Even Coyne would be against that.

    1. Obviously. That’s the whole point of this. Silence dissent, then criminalize it. You won’t even be able to say “immigrant” on youtube.

  14. Why is Peter Menzies shocked that his lukewarm attempt at a defense of less government control and his disparaging comments about JJ McCullough are not at all helpful against this steam-roller censorship board?

    All this because Justin doesn’t like being called stupid.

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