Keeping Canadians Passive With Bread and Circuses

I attended the Rally for Democracy yesterday in Kingston, and one of the organizers was Dianne Dowling, the driving force behind the Save the Prison Farms campaign. She mentioned a quote that she uses often when discussing Canada's eroding democracy. Paraphrased it speaks to a nation being pacified with "bread and circuses". Keep us fed and entertained and we will allow you to get away with anything.

Dowling was surprised to learn that the concept came from ancient Rome, and contributed to the fall of the Roman Empire.

This is also known as "escapism and distraction", social tools used "to keep the underprivileged poor people quiet". (1) In modern times, these tools can also be "employed by a governing body to hide inadequacies or divert attention from themes that can cause malcontent among the populace." 2)

This description fits us the best, because our nation is not being properly fed. But we are being entertained and Circus Maximus-ed into a stupor.

In October of 2009, Colin Horgan wrote a piece for the UK Guardian: Canada's frozen political waste. In it he discusses the unusual phenomenon that had taken hold in Canada, where "down is the new up". (3)

At a time when the Conservatives were playing fast and loose with our tax dollars for self-promotion, pork-barrelling, handing out big cardboard cheques, and pounding away at our democracy, the big news was that Stephen Harper had played piano at the National Arts Centre.

We were entertained and his poll numbers spiked. In Roman terms we were Circus Maximus-ed in the gluteus maximus.

Emperors expressed the wish that the "potentially unruly and dangerous city population" be "amused", also adding the idea that this would keep them "quiet". (2)

And when Harper should have been speaking at the UN, he was sipping coffee at Tim Hortons, and we smiled. He was one of us, or at least had successfully personified himself as one of us. Horgan concludes: "Harper's popularity might be on the rise, but it's not because of his piano playing or aw-shucks coffee shop patriotism. It's because he allows us to be apathetic. And the less we care, the better he'll look."

Renowned Canadian artist Mendelson Joe agrees: “I don’t blame Stephen Harper,” he says. “I loathe what he stands for – his only ambition is to rule – but I don’t blame him. I blame the people of Canada.” (4)

He spoke those words before the G-20 in Toronto, urging Canadians to protest against the Harper regime. We did and look where it got us. The message was clear. I will entertain you, but cross me and you're going down.

We would rather be entertained.

This is why he's gambling on the $100 million re-enactment of the War of 1812, keeping us amused with gladiators, in all their splendour. And if our veterans and seniors continue to suffer, our working poor struggle, and our children go to bed hungry, that's OK. The colourful uniforms and shining clash of rifles and bayonets will make it all go away.

The comradery of sitting amongst their peers, the historical stories that some of the spectacles told, and the opportunity to wrap oneself up in the glory of Rome, provided the ideal escape from issues of war, disease, political unrest that may have otherwise had a more detrimental affect on the psychology of the population. (2)

Rome fell in part because "the Empire became a dictatorship and the people were less involved in government."

Canadians couldn't be less involved in government as they are today; the apathy fuelled by the neoconservative goal of making Parliament so toxic, we tune out.

In one of the latest taxpayer funded self-promotion TV ads, Stephen Harper claims that Canada is walking tall, clearly a distraction. The fact is that Canada's reputation has tanked under this regime. We went from first to eighth place as the best country to live. From seventh to 25th in gender equality. From near the top to sixtieth place in peacekeeping. And even more alarming, from sixth to 24th place in infant mortality, out of 26 nations (5).

In a country with our wealth, our infants are dying at a faster rate than many poorer nations. We should be ashamed. And yet somehow we're not. We're being kept entertained.

The new border security perimeter and EU trade deals, if allowed to proceed, will mean that Canadians no longer own any of their country. Our water, healthcare and public services, will all be controlled by multi-national corporations. So why aren't we angry? Because we're being kept entertained.

I'm reminded of the Merovingian Dynasty, the once powerful rulers of the Frankish Empire. Toward the end, all decisions were made by others, but once a year, the long-haired king would be paraded before the people, and they rejoiced, unaware of the fact that the man had no power.

And once the Mayors of the Palace with the help of the Church gained complete control, the "long-haired" ruler had his head shaved and was locked away in a monastery.

I see Canadians rejoicing every July 1, singing 'O Canada' and waving our flags, unaware that the entire celebration is meaningless. A re-enactment of a bygone time. An amusement.

Because at the end of the day it won't matter whether we are now 'Harper'. There will be nothing left to fight for. Our country will no longer be ours. We are just that shaven head locked away in a monastery.

But now and then we'll be entertained.

1. The Hidden History Of The Roman Empire, Discovery

2. Escapism & Distraction As a Social Control During the Roman Empire, By Peter Benjamin Bisset, Ezine

3. Canada's frozen political waste: With Barack Obama, anything seems like it might be possible. With Canada's Stephen Harper, barely anything does, By Colin Horgan, UK Guardian, October 24, 2009

4. A master of the art calls on Canadians to protest, By Roy MacGregor, Globe and Mail, June 16, 2010

5. Inequality -- thy name is revolution, By: Frances Russell, Winnipeg Free Press, March 2, 2011

Passing the Torch and Igniting the Flame

"Action is the Antidote to Despair" - Joan Baez

A young offender appeared in a Kingston courtroom on Monday to answer to charges of public mischief. Unfazed by the entire process, she showed no remorse. While waiting to appear she sat on the floor and sketched, then brazenly stood in line for legal aid. An all too common story of an underage criminal, taking comfort in the fact that they would be given a "slap on the wrist" and not have to pay for their actions. In fact throughout her incarceration, she sang. The nerve.

And as her story was told in our local paper, they were not allowed to publish her name because of her age, so referred to her simply as "Jane Doe". I don't like that name because it is more often used to describe an unidentified female corpse. I'm going to call her, "our young heroine".

Because her crime of public mischief was standing against the injustice of the prison farm closures. "I love nature and shutting down the prison farms is bad for the community," the 14 year old said. "It's bad for the planet." She said she knew she risked arrest when she decided to join the blockade.

She was the youngest person among 24 people hauled away by police because they blocked a road into Frontenac Institution on Aug. 8 and 9, in a failed bid to stop cattle trucks from removing the prison farm's dairy herd from the property. "I thought we were just sitting on prison property ... " (1)

As she was entering the courtroom, she was presented with a gift, sent from a woman who knows a lot about advocacy and civil disobedience, Margaret Atwood. It was a signed copy of her critically acclaimed book The Handmaid's Tale: "Dear unknown arrested girl, congratulations on your courage. It could have been worse, read on" in reference to the oppressive society imagined in her book, in which women are subjugated and controlled.

Margaret Atwood had passed the torch that our young heroine had already picked up.

Another Torch Bearer

Olga Hudson was born in Manitoba. As a young girl she often marched in protest with her mother. Marched against unfair labour practices, and the abuse of veterans. And marched for women's rights. In fact Manitoba was the first province in Canada to grant women the right to vote.

Olga's mother had passed the torch of social conscience onto her daughter, and as a result she said that she has always been active in social causes. But in early August of this year she was arrested for the first time. Olga is 87 years old.

She wasn't frightened at the blockade, though police treated her roughly. She was hauled to a paddy wagon, shackled at the legs and handcuffed with plastic zip-tie style restraints. "They hurt because they were narrow strips of plastic," she said. She was put into a paddy wagon and into a steel compartment. "Every time they turned a corner, I was terrified I would knock myself out on the metal," she said.

At the police station, she said a senior officer was clearly upset with officers who felt it was necessary to shackle her. She spent more than four hours alone in a holding cell before she was released. (2)

But she had followed news reports about the save-the-prison-farms movement and knew that this was where she needed to be. Her family must be so proud, as she is passing the torch of justice on to them.

And Still More Torch Bearers

Nik Gravonic had worked as a federal parole officer for almost thirty years, and had seen firsthand the value of the prison farm program. So he joined the protests that aimed to prevent the removal of the farm animals.

Nik Gravonic said he passed out during the paddy wagon ride to the police station from fumes that entered his compartment. "I was getting the fumes from the motor," said Gravonic, 63, ... He was taken to the hospital and then was returned to the police holding cells.

Gravonic said it was an unsettling experience to be arrested. "Probably the most eerie sensation I've had in my life was when the officer put the handcuffs on me because he was in control and I wasn't in control anymore," he said. Gravonic said he was treated harshly. "(The officer) said if I didn't keep my mouth shut, I would be charged with resisting arrest and I would also be charged with assault," he recalled. "So (he asked) did I want three charges or one charge, so I kept my mouth shut." (2)

Don Misener is a retired United Church minister, who had served as a prison chaplain for 16 years. He too saw the value of the prison farms: "They're incredibly important in terms of helping inmates decompress from years of incarceration and develop the kind of compassion and self-discipline that's crucial for their being able to function effectively in society."

Misener had never been arrested before. "I just can't conscience just seeing it wiped away," he said. "I think it's time to stand up and do what we can for the sake of our society and our grandchildren." (2)

These two men have passed a torch of compassion and insight.

The Prison Farm Closures are a Human Rights Issue

Philosopher Richard McKay Rorty once said that human progress was "an increase in our ability to see more and more differences among people as morally irrelevant." That notion is fundamental when speaking of human rights. Because human rights have little to do with being politically correct and everything to do with treating humans as humans.

In If This Is a Man, Primo Levi describes being interviewed by Dr. Pannwitz, chief of the chemical department at Auschwitz.' Securing a place in the department was a matter of life or death: if Levi could convince Pannwitz that he was a competent chemist, he might be spared the gas chamber. As Levi stood on one side of the doctor's desk, in his concentration camp uniform, Dr. Pannwitz stared up at him.

Levi later remembered: "That look was not one between two men; and if I had known how completely to explain the nature of that look, which came as if across the glass window of an aquarium between two beings who live in different worlds, I would also have explained the essence of the great insanity of the third German [reich]."

Here was a scientist, trained in the traditions of European rational inquiry, turning a meeting between two human beings into an encounter between different species. (3)

I'm not trying to compare the prison farm closings to the Holocaust, but am only drawing a parallel to one human being looking at another human being as from a different "species". This thought process allowed slave owners to look on their human holdings as property, not men, women and children. And in many ways a penal system allows the same distinctions.

I read a comment the other day, and I wish I could find the source again. But it was from someone who I believe had worked as a guard at the Frontenac Institute. He spoke of the relationship between the "staff" and the "inmates" and how it had been broken down.

The guards did not wear uniforms and had the same dirt under their fingernails as their charges. They worked as equals getting an important job done. And as the inmates toiled daily alongside guards, they found common ground and their differences became "morally irrelevant".

The Harper government has stated that these inmates don't learn marketable skills. What can be more marketable or beneficial than that? Tasks can be taught, but what the prison farms gave them, can only be learned through dealing on a day to day basis, with people who pass on their values.

Ottawa has refused to release any reports or documents to substantiate the claim [that they are losing 4 million dollars annually]. Correctional Service Canada refused to release any documents in response to an Access to Information request filed last year by the Whig-Standard seeking the latest internal audits of the prison farms. (2)

Ghandi said that "civil disobedience is the assertion of a right which law should give but which it denies..." All the people I mentioned above understood that. And they were not alone. A great many people stood in protest against this tyrannical decision.

People from all walks of life: farmers, teachers, ministers, nuns, lawyers, mothers, fathers, grandparents and children. Singers, authors, professors, you name it, they were there. And two people who led the charge, Dianne Dowling and Jeff Peters, are true heroes and true humanitarians. They are also both farmers, who took time out of their busy schedules to fight for Justice, and they have passed the torch of determination.

Stephen Harper often speaks of "ordinary people". "Ordinary people don't like the arts". "Ordinary people want more prisons" ....

But he would never understand the people involved in this movement, because they are not "ordinary".

They are EXTRAORDINARY!

And this song is for them.

Sources:

1. Young protester not backing down, By Rob Tripp, Kingston Whig Standard, September 13,

2. Diversion possible, By Rob Tripp, Kington Whig Standard, September 15, 2010

3. Human Rights as Politics and Idolatry, By Michael Ignatieff, Princeton University Press, 2001, ISNB: 0-691-08893-4, Pg. 3

Pssssst .... Wanna Buy a Cow? Stormy Says Please

I told the story of Stormy and Hope yesterday, but I also want to let you know of the wonderful human involvement in the 'Save the Prison Farms' campaign.

A woman by the name of Dianne Dowling has been working herself to exhaustion and because of her efforts, and those of hundreds of volunteers and concerned citizens, there is still a chance to save this important piece of our heritage.

Sadly, the cattle at Frontenac Institute were taken away and sold, but there are still several who are with calf that can be saved.

And no one is giving up the fight. A Co-op has been formed and you can now own a share of history. If every Canadian put themselves behind this, we just might be able to reverse one of the worst government decisions ever made.

There will be a pot luck in Kingston, Ontario tomorrow (August 19) but if you are unable to attend, you can still help.

Visit the website here. There is a link for donations.

Or call Jeff Peters at 613-353-2403 to buy a share.

1. proposal for creating the Pen Farm Herd Co-op -- a chance to own a share of the herd

We are actively exploring the creation of a non-profit co-operative, to own a part of the Pen Farm herd. The proposal is described below and in the attachment.

If you would like to buy one or more shares, please bring a cheque for $300/share to the picnic on Thursday. If you are not attending the picnic and are interested
in buying a share, contact Jeff or Dianne at the phone numbers listed in the proposal.

The remainder of the herd is being auctioned Monday, Aug. 23, so we need to know how many committed shares we have. Pen Farm Herd Co-op
'
"Wanna Be a Farmer?” - Help Save the Herd !

Goal: To preserve a core of the Frontenac Institution Pen Farm dairy herd, with the intention of returning the cows to the prison farm when the Frontenac prison farm is restored. We believe that at some point we’ll sell the cows back to the new government for a return on your investment.

Background: At the sale on August 10, Kingston area residents purchased four milking cows and two young cattle. As well, there are 15-20 milking cows and several calves still at the prison farm because the cows were too close to their calving dates to be trucked. Correctional Service of Canada plans to sell these cattle at noon on August 23 at Selby Livestock facility, near Napanee.

1) Working with OPIRG (Ontario Public Interest Research Group, based at Queen’s University), we are investigating establishing a non-profit co-operative to oversee the ownership and care of 15-20 cows and 5-10 calves purchased from the Pen Farm dispersal.

OPIRG Kingston is part of a network of OPIRG groups and has the capacity to oversee the finances of this project. We will recruit an interim group of directors to set up the co-op and draft its bylaws, in consultation with community members. The shareholders will elect a board of directors and vote on the bylaws.

A share in the co-op will cost $300.00. We estimate that we will need to sell 60-70 shares ($18,000 to $21,000) for the Co-op to purchase the number of cows and calves indicated in step 1. About four shares will cover the purchase cost of one cow, but shareholders will not be seen as owning a particular cow, but rather having a share in the herd. We will develop an agreement to present to local dairy farmers. These people would care for the cattle until the prison farm is restored.

The Co-op will purchase cows and calves at the sale and loan them to local farmers who commit to properly caring for our cows. The farmers will be able to ship the milk from the Co-op cows through their quota, thus receiving payment for caring for the cattle. Any calves born to the cows will belong to the Co-op.

Listen to all the horns honking. Listen to the voices. For those poor cattle, Frontenac Institute was their only home. I live just a few blocks from that farm and it has always been a part of our community. I have always felt safe. The planned super prison for the land will endanger this community. This is not only an assault on farmers, but it is an assault on all of us. Please help.