Monday, April 29, 2013

FERENGI HOMELAND

Stephen Harper by Remy Steinegger.jpg

I've been feeling gloomy and angry and frustrated by the ideology and actions of the current government of my country.   I can't even call it my government.  Nothing I stand for bears much resemblance to the things they seem to find important.

I was ripping the ever-loving grass out of my flower bed this morning, and considering  governments.  I started with "What is a country".  A country is a land and its people.  Why government?  To protect the interests of the people and the integrity of its borders.  This government seems to be about creating a global environment which maximizes the ability of corporations to pursue profit without fetters.  Corporations are not people, and they are most certainly not "the people".

Where do governments like this one get the idea that we elected them to serve the interests of global commerce?  Why would you give your allegiance to money rather than to your tribe?  Take for example, the current plan by Enbridge to reverse the pipeline direction of the lines currently running through Ontario to bring bitumen, diluted with lighter materials to make it flow east. This dilbit, corrosive and laced with carcinogens, especially the very scary benzene, would be travelling through forty year old lines, never intended to carry it.  Why?  Is it to provide fuel for the people of eastern Canada?   Certainly not.(Last time I heard, the west was hoping that we eastern bastards were freezing in the dark).

 It would be placed in tankers to cross the ocean to be refined somewhere else; probably somewhere with lower emission standards.   Enbridge would say, a rising tide floats all boats.  New Brunswick says, hey why don't we refine it, bringing jobs to our have-not province?  The government says, if you'd like to make a comment on this matter in our ten day window of opportunity you'll need to fill out this ten page form giving us your opinion, your resume, and did we mention, you need to be directly involved?  Oh, and furthermore, even if you apply for intervenor status in this manner, we're not compelled to call you.  Tell that to the geese and fish and anyone who doesn't happen to be literate.    I say, despite my oil furnace which I'll happily get rid of as soon as possible, let us rather invest in other forms of energy production.  These tar sands require more energy to produce fuel than the end-product fuel will produce.  What is wrong with these people's minds?  Is someone holding a gun to their heads?  I'm tempted to take the Canadian flag off my backpack and hang my head in shame.

I feel like we've been taken over by the Ferengi.

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