Time to Dig for the Truth

This week, a group called the Friends and Relatives of the Disappeared (FRD) held a press conference outside the Indian Affairs office in Downtown Vancouver to announce the formation of a non-government inquiry into the deaths and disappearances of children of the First Nations who were put into the residential school system between 1840 to 1990.

They have chosen a non-governmental inquiry because they do not the government or its officers to let the truth come out.

As part of the investigation, they have presented to the press and the public a list of 28 mass graves across Canada that hold the bodies of the children.

This is one of those moments that we as Canadians should find horrifying. Horrifying because of the atrocities that may have happened; horrifying because, if the atrocities did happen, they happened with the the implicit and possibly explicit knowledge of the authorites; and horrifying because they have been so long ignored.

And please note I use the words "may" and "if" not to express disbelief, but only because I don't know enough about this to say what is the truth.

But I do know the way to find out.

If there are graves, dig them up. If there are bodies, examine them. Learn who they are, learn how they died, and return them to their families and Nations for proper burial.

There are a wealth of archeologists, forensic pathologists, and many others across Canada whose skills could be utilized here. Exhume the bodies, collect the evidence, and let the truth come out.

Of course, I believe our current government will do its damnedest to sweep this under the rug, and I believe the media will mostly ignore it. But I hope I am wrong.

As South Africa showed us, there can be no healing without truth. So let the digging begin, and let the truth come to light.

H/T to The Vanity Press

Defining Liberalism

Chet over at The Vanity Press has a great post defining Liberalism, and given how the conservatives are constantly attacking the concept (more so in the USA than here, where they are too busy attacking the Liberal Party and just work on undermining liberalism without noising about why it's bad) it's good to remember what liberalism is and why it's worthwhile.

Have a read.

It's a good definition. Thanks, Chet.

This Magazine

A magazine I came across one day while looking for other things. It's progressive, interesting and deep. They've got a wide variety of articles, and it isn't just the usual media drivel.

Here's the link:

http://www.thismagazine.ca/

And because I didn't say it in the last post, buy my book.

Politics: SPP and What It Means for Democracy

There are many writers on the web who are far more intelligent than I. One of them is Zapagringo, whose very intelligent look at the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (commonly referred to as SPP) gives a lot of very good reasons why we as citizens should be taking note and fighting very hard against it.

Please read it.

My reason is this:

Any time the Prime Minister engages in making agreements on behalf of the country with another government nation or national leader without consulting Parliament and the people of Canada, that Prime Minister is deliberately flouting the democratic process which forms the basis of Canadian society.

Before a democratic nation chooses to enter into an agreement with another nation, that agreement must be made public to the people, and scrutinized by the people's elected representatives. Anything else is contradictory to the spirit of democracy.

If you haven't already, now is the time to start taking action. Call or email your local MP and demand the government create a clear, transparent process for SPP in Canada, including full Parliamentary and Senate scrutiny of all previously signed agreements, and votes in the House of Commons on all agreements to be signed in the future.

Another great link (Hat tip to Zapagringo):

Integrate This