Protest

Missing the Point(s)

January 22, 2017 by Michael Boyle

My friend Ed wrote a great rebuttal to a lot of the nay-sayers about the Women’s Marches yesterday. A short excerpt:

[…]the objective of the Women’s March was not to complain about losing.

The objective was to state loudly and clearly that although the election is a fait accompli, there is much about Trump, the Trump cabinet nominees, and other aspects of the Trump Machine that is already worthy of protest. The lies are as thick as ever, the inauguration speech was downright frightening, the ethical problems with Trump, his family, and his nominees are eye-popping, and his presidency is only a day old.

People against Trump could see this coming. It is absolutely known among clear- and objective-thinking people (both democrats and republicans, as well as people from around the world) that the Trump presidency is a disaster in the making on multiple levels. The Women’s March was protesting the on-coming train wreck, not the vote count.

Source: Missing the Point(s) – The Blork Blog

If you are a big tree, we are a small axe

January 21, 2017 by Michael Boyle

From my old friend Joe Macdonald, who has been burning it up on Facebook recently with some amazing, insightful and deeply moving writing. He says,

I first heard this deep cut by Bob Marley when I bought a cassette of rarities in a grocery store in northern British Columbia in 1986. If you are a big tree, we are a small axe. Ready to cut you down. Watching the extraordinary turn-outs of these Women’s Marches is the most hopeful thing I have seen in years and years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E28RoPgmsU

The lyrics are apropos:

Why boasteth thyself/Oh, evil men
Playing smart/And not being clever?
I said, you’re working iniquity/To achieve vanity (if a-so a-so)
But the goodness of Jah, Jah/I-dureth forever

So if you are the big tree
We are the small axe

Pictures From Women’s Marches Around the World

January 21, 2017 by Michael Boyle

Crowds in hundreds of cities around the world gathered Saturday in conjunction with the Women’s March on Washington.

Source: Pictures From Women’s Marches Around the World – The New York Times

Including photos from Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver among many other cities both in North America and abroad.

From Montreal:

A woman holds up a sign during a demonstration to protest the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump in Montreal, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017. Protests are being held across Canada today in support of the Women’s March on Washington. Organizers say 30 events in all have been organized across Canada, including Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press via AP)
NYTCREDIT: Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press, via Associated Press

Here’s an article with some great photos from a large march in Ottawa today as well.

From Torontoist:

August 22, 2007 by Michael Boyle

From Torontoist:

Bon Cop, Bad Cop. A great video showing some, ahem, experienced protest leaders strongly suggesting that some supposed fellow protesters drop their rocks and cease being violent… until they figure out that the “protesters” in question are most likely police provocateurs trying to rile things up and create a riot. There isn’t any firm evidence at this point that the three “bad guys” were really cops, but check out the video – it’s pretty clear that they were when you see the pathetic “takedown” performed by the uniformed police once the ruse was up.

Personally I’m not surprised – I’ve been a witness to a couple of “riots” in my day and every single time the police were the aggressors.

Dan Gillmor

March 25, 2002 by Michael Boyle

Dan Gillmor

: “I’m not a thief. I’m a customer. When you treat me like a thief, I won’t be your customer.”

Anyone still think the CDA was the worst part of the Telecommunications Reform Act? Hint: it was a smokescreen to deflect criticism and protest over everything else in the law, which of course was signed in 1996.