As the Canadian military aims to overcome its recruitment crisis, past scandals, and rising extremism, ideological influence presents a significant threat to their efforts. If it remains unchecked, ideological influence can adversely affect the presence of extremism among ranks, as well as the ability to detect it.Because of a stunning discovery by a Canadian journalist, discussed herein, I now believe the ability to detect and address extremism in Canada’s military is more limited than previously thought. Let me explain why..RUBENSTEIN: Special federal government Islamophobia representative exposed as lobbying for Palestine.On November 26 last year, the Department of National Defence (DND) posted an online invitation for current and former Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members to participate in a study to, “help contribute to independent research on hateful conduct and right-wing extremism.” The study is led by Dr. Barbara Perry and Dr. David Hoffman. On the surface, it appears to be critical research.But what about left-wing extremism? .Researchers today understand that any ideological extremism can translate into acts of violence. In the current milieu, extremists combine individual ideological tenets (such as accelerationism or anarchism) and personal grievances together in what is sometimes called salad bar extremism.Formed piecemeal, salad bar extremism doesn’t necessarily fit into classical “right” or “left” ideologies. Instead, to better address what is now commonly called Ideologically Motivated Violent Extremism (IMVE), in 2021, the Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS) posted a compelling argument to replace both “left-wing” and “right-wing” extremism with “IMVE.” .CURNISKI: No, AI will not teach my children.Instead of following CSIS’ lead, Perry and Hoffman, conducting research through Ontario Tech University’s Right Wing Extremism-CAF Research Network, resuscitate what CSIS calls, “words that might unfairly stigmatize any given community or words like ‘right-wing’ or ‘left-wing’ extremism.”Instead of omitting left-wing ideology, shouldn’t they be concerned with any kind of IMVE, as CSIS is? It appears their study has the potential to overlook certain ideologically motivated threats. But if you look at all the data that’s been popping up in Canada’s legacy media since 2015, that omission is hardly surprising. .Recurring as of late on websites for CBC and CTV, for instance, is an unsettling story of what is labelled by many journalists — notably CBC’s Jonathan Montpetit — as “right-wing” extremism in the military. Four men, two of whom are active CAF members, are alleged to have founded an anti-government militia, plotting to forcibly seize land in the Quebec City area. Three of the men face terrorism charges. According to Montpetit, the rise of right-wing extremism in the CAF began in 2015 with the inception of La Meute (the Pack) in Quebec. La Meute was founded by CAF veterans of the Afghanistan war as a reaction to mass immigration from Syria. .OLDCORN: Time to end the Alberta teachers’ strike now.Estimated to have a membership in the thousands, at one time, La Meute had as many as 75 active CAF members within its ranks. The decade of focus on right-wing extremism begs the question: are researchers and reporters assuming the DND and CAF are entirely free of left-wing extremism? Another concern is that the DND is currently responsible for statistical reporting itself for so-called “hate incidents” in the Canadian military. They report these through what’s called the Hateful Conduct Incident Tracking System (HCITS). If the DND is subject to unchecked ideological influence — right or left — could they conduct any such reporting accurately?.But left-wing extremism doesn’t exist in Canada’s military, right?Here’s one big reason why we can’t be certain of that. A story uncovered by Rebel News journalist Alexandra Lavoie reveals a potential concern about left-wing extremism within the DND, stemming from an incident on July 25 at the Ministerios Restauración church in Montreal. On that day, two smoke bombs were allegedly thrown toward American gospel singer Sean Feucht as he conducted a worship service inside the church. Outside, among a group of protesters, antifascist flags were being waved about..SLOBODIAN: BC’s barbaric secret — Teen girls mutilated in ‘gender affirming clinics’ while NDP politicians cheer.Toronto Sun columnist Joe Warmington has written about the subsequent investigative efforts of Ms. Lavoie, creating a rough chronology of how she found and confronted the alleged smoke bomber. I discussed those events directly with Ms. Lavoie.From an anonymous tip, Alexandra was able to identify a potential suspect for the smoke bombing incident named Gabriel Lepage. According to his LinkedIn page, Gabriel Lepage works for the DND at Canadian Forces Base Longue-Pointe, about a 20-minute drive from the Ministerios Restauración church in Montreal. Lavoie’s confrontation with Lepage was captured on a YouTube video by Alexandra’s stalwart videographer, Guillaume Roy. .“During my interaction with him,” Alexandra recalled, “I said, ‘So, I think maybe you like anarchism because on your Facebook picture, you’re actually reading an anarchist writer — a Russian anarchist writer.’ I think it’s because of that he said [to himself], ‘Oh no! She saw it!’ And he removed it.”“The day after that,” she told me, “His whole Facebook had all pictures removed and replaced with a cat face.”During her confrontation with Lepage, Ms. Lavoie called Montreal Police (SPVM) and told them she had found a potential suspect for the church smoke bombing. Lepage, who was texting feverishly, also called police, claiming Lavoie was harassing him. Ms. Lavoie had to part ways with Lepage, but then something strange happened..PARKE: Public education and the myth of separation of church and state.Alexandra was suddenly attacked by several individuals riding bikes, clad head-to-toe in black bloc, with masks covering their faces. She was allegedly assaulted by one of them.The SPVM reported to the Toronto Sun that the incident is currently under investigation. .Should allegations against Lepage be proven in court, they would confirm the DND has a problem with unchecked ideological influence, possibly extending into the realm of IMVE. If someone is willing to throw an incendiary device inside a church, what else are they willing to do? There is no way an exclusive focus on right-wing extremism would have detected or prevented this individual’s alleged actions, which appear influenced toward the extreme left-wing end of the ideological spectrum. .BARBER: The digital ID is here.Another concern, should the allegations be proven, is that if there is a single DND member active in an anarchist extremist group, there could easily be more. La Meute had 75 active CAF members at one point. I will save any further analysis until the SPVM finishes its investigation. Stay tuned.
