Why has Jim Watson, the mayor of Ottawa, behaved so irrationally regarding the Truckers for Freedom Convoy?.On February 6, he declared the city to be in a state of emergency. What’s the emergency? Ottawa, like all cities, always has an ongoing low level of background crime. No spike in crime has resulted from the convoy. Nobody has been murdered. Nobody’s property has been stolen. On the contrary, the convoy has actually been feeding needy people..Nobody has even been making threats—except for Ottawa’s police chief, who has made vague threats that anyone bringing fuel, food, or other assistance to the truckers will be charged. Charged with what? Since when has giving someone assistance been a crime?.The police began carrying out these threats that same evening, seizing fuel that anonymous donors had delivered to the truckers. By what right? The fuel doesn’t belong to the police, or to the city of Ottawa. Has it been taken as evidence? Evidence of what? Canadians’ generosity?.The only emergency that seems to have befallen Ottawa is an outbreak of lawlessness among the very people whose task is to keep law and order..The mayor and the police chief both seem to be completely oblivious to the Canadian Bill of Rights. The Bill recognizes the rights to life, liberty, security of the person, the enjoyment of private property, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and more. It specifically states that all other statutes, including the Criminal Code under which the police chief is presumably planning to lay his vague charges, must be “construed and applied” so as not to infringe on these rights..How can the seizure of the truckers’ fuel possibly be construed as not infringing on at least five of the rights listed here?.Mayor Watson and the police chief also seem oblivious to the constitution, which incorporates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Similar rights are laid out there, with the unfortunate exception of the right to property..The mayor and the police are acting with reckless disregard as to these important cornerstones of Canadian law. In my view, they are setting themselves up for charges of public mischief, and possibly civil lawsuits..Mr. Mayor, it really IS elementary. The truckers are there in your city ONLY because the prime minister has imposed upon them an utterly unnecessary requirement of getting a series of injections, that many don’t feel safe receiving. The truckers, farmers, and spectators will leave as soon as the prime minister recognizes the error of his ways and reverses the mandates..The border restrictions between Canada and the US are utterly irrational. An unvaccinated Canadian trucker can drive from Newfoundland to British Columbia without hindrance, and without needing a “vaccine passport”. An unvaccinated US trucker can likewise drive from coast to coast within his own country, without a “vaccine passport”. What earthly difference can it make if either of them crosses the border to drive from coast to coast on the other side?.There’s no evidence that truckers have ever been responsible for spreading COVID-19 from one country to another. They spend most of their time alone in their trucks. These restrictions make no sense, as far as health and science are concerned. They make sense only if you consider them part of a larger scheme to impose tyranny on the citizens of this formerly free country..There’s no evidence that truckers have ever been responsible for spreading COVID-19 from one country to another. They spend most of their time alone in their trucks. These restrictions make no sense, as far as health and science are concerned. They make sense only if you consider them part of a larger scheme to impose tyranny on the citizens of this formerly free country..The truckers aren’t to blame for the city of Ottawa’s problems. The federal government is to blame. Please place the blame squarely where it belongs. Persuade the federal government to reverse its mandates, and all will be quiet in Ottawa once again..Karen Selick is a columnist for the Western Standard
Why has Jim Watson, the mayor of Ottawa, behaved so irrationally regarding the Truckers for Freedom Convoy?.On February 6, he declared the city to be in a state of emergency. What’s the emergency? Ottawa, like all cities, always has an ongoing low level of background crime. No spike in crime has resulted from the convoy. Nobody has been murdered. Nobody’s property has been stolen. On the contrary, the convoy has actually been feeding needy people..Nobody has even been making threats—except for Ottawa’s police chief, who has made vague threats that anyone bringing fuel, food, or other assistance to the truckers will be charged. Charged with what? Since when has giving someone assistance been a crime?.The police began carrying out these threats that same evening, seizing fuel that anonymous donors had delivered to the truckers. By what right? The fuel doesn’t belong to the police, or to the city of Ottawa. Has it been taken as evidence? Evidence of what? Canadians’ generosity?.The only emergency that seems to have befallen Ottawa is an outbreak of lawlessness among the very people whose task is to keep law and order..The mayor and the police chief both seem to be completely oblivious to the Canadian Bill of Rights. The Bill recognizes the rights to life, liberty, security of the person, the enjoyment of private property, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and more. It specifically states that all other statutes, including the Criminal Code under which the police chief is presumably planning to lay his vague charges, must be “construed and applied” so as not to infringe on these rights..How can the seizure of the truckers’ fuel possibly be construed as not infringing on at least five of the rights listed here?.Mayor Watson and the police chief also seem oblivious to the constitution, which incorporates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Similar rights are laid out there, with the unfortunate exception of the right to property..The mayor and the police are acting with reckless disregard as to these important cornerstones of Canadian law. In my view, they are setting themselves up for charges of public mischief, and possibly civil lawsuits..Mr. Mayor, it really IS elementary. The truckers are there in your city ONLY because the prime minister has imposed upon them an utterly unnecessary requirement of getting a series of injections, that many don’t feel safe receiving. The truckers, farmers, and spectators will leave as soon as the prime minister recognizes the error of his ways and reverses the mandates..The border restrictions between Canada and the US are utterly irrational. An unvaccinated Canadian trucker can drive from Newfoundland to British Columbia without hindrance, and without needing a “vaccine passport”. An unvaccinated US trucker can likewise drive from coast to coast within his own country, without a “vaccine passport”. What earthly difference can it make if either of them crosses the border to drive from coast to coast on the other side?.There’s no evidence that truckers have ever been responsible for spreading COVID-19 from one country to another. They spend most of their time alone in their trucks. These restrictions make no sense, as far as health and science are concerned. They make sense only if you consider them part of a larger scheme to impose tyranny on the citizens of this formerly free country..There’s no evidence that truckers have ever been responsible for spreading COVID-19 from one country to another. They spend most of their time alone in their trucks. These restrictions make no sense, as far as health and science are concerned. They make sense only if you consider them part of a larger scheme to impose tyranny on the citizens of this formerly free country..The truckers aren’t to blame for the city of Ottawa’s problems. The federal government is to blame. Please place the blame squarely where it belongs. Persuade the federal government to reverse its mandates, and all will be quiet in Ottawa once again..Karen Selick is a columnist for the Western Standard
