Nothing in this blog can be believed. If you think that anything in this blog is true or factual, you'll need to verify it from another source. Do you understand? No? Then read it again, and repeat this process, until you understand that you cannot sue me for anything you read here. Also, having been sucked into taking part in the mass-murder of more than 3 million Vietnamese people on behalf of U.S. Big Business "interests", I'm as mad as a cut snake (and broke) so it might be a bit silly to try to sue me anyway...

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

Make Poverty History - a G8 Circus

Who are the G8? The Cat's Blog has this to say:
United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada and Russia. These are the countries of the G8. All of them have been colonial powers. All of them are responsible for massive crimes against humanity, from torture to war crimes to genocide. Their history (our history) has been written with the blood of their victims (our victims), slaughtered on the altar of imperialism. All of them have used complaisant writers, historians and intellectuals to justify their unspeakable crimes and hide them behind the carpet of ‘civilization’.
Read more >>>

And that provides an excellent contextual backdrop to John Pilger's article in the New Statesman, explaining the full ramifications of the "Make Poverty History" scam:
Africa's imperial plunder and tragedy have been turned into a circus for the benefit of the so-called G8 leaders due in Scotland next month and those of us willing to be distracted by the barkers of the circus: the establishment media and their "celebrities". The illusion of an anti-establishment crusade led by pop stars - a cultivated, controlling image of rebellion - serves to dilute a great political movement of anger.
Read more >>>
.

7 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

The only blood Canadians have spilt on the imperial slaughterhouse floor is that of polar bears, methinks!

/dragging your post off-topic

July 01, 2005 4:36 AM  
Blogger The Editor said...

Canada didn't continue the mistreatment and disposession of its indigenous people after it became a "sovereign" nation?

Canada didn't take part in expanding and maintaining the British Empire?

Canadian corporations are somehow non-psychopathic? They are benign? They don't ruthlessly exploit everyone and everything in order to win profits for their shareholders?

Canada isn't part of G8 and other economic clusterfucks, pack raping the majority world in the name of "development" and "progress" when really it's all about exploitation of the poor for the benefit of the rich (in this case rich Canadians)?

Conrad Black not a Canadian? He is not a modern corporate buccaneer?

Are you sure you don't harbour a few aristocratic tendencies yourself, Kent? (Don't go getting all precious on me now, boy! :-)

July 01, 2005 9:09 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh but Gerry, I am sure, and I'm not at all ashamed.

I grant you the Canadian point - still, I was referring to the 'unspeakable crimes', ones which happened when Canada was very much a part of the British possessions - and perhaps a little under the French. Nonetheless, the modern nation has some responsibility for its history as part of an overlying empire.

July 01, 2005 7:25 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

That wasn't clear - I meant I am well sure I harbour 'aristocratic tendencies'. I admit to ignoring the plight of the starving masses in the African country of the moment, and spending $68.75 on CDs. I work for an evil international superconglomerate, and love it.

What can one do but join the world of hypocrisy? There's a challenge for you, good material for a post - answer that. There is an overwhelming amount of evidence that modern capitalist life ruins everything: the environment, the lives of others, etc, I admit. But it's more overwhelming to try and live any other way. How do you do it? How can you do it?

July 01, 2005 7:31 PM  
Blogger The Editor said...

You know what I like about you, Kent? It's that you take the time to challenge me rather than just dismissing what I say as being wrong/stupid, etc. And I thank you for that.

Now, I agree that Canada is probably the least evil G8 member country. But they are participating in the evil empire which is the G8. Maybe they are an influence for good in there and maybe not. I don't know about that.

You said "There is an overwhelming amount of evidence that modern capitalist life ruins everything: the environment, the lives of others, etc, I admit. But it's more overwhelming to try and live any other way. How do you do it? How can you do it?"

Excellent point and excellent question, Kent. I raised this very issue with a couple of people at the National Nonviolence Gathering and whilst we had no answers, we recognised that it is a huge problem because not only does it turn most of us into hypocrites but it also robs us of our integrity. I still haven't found any answers to this dilemma. (And yes, I will make this a blog post - thanks for the reminder.)

July 02, 2005 8:01 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello Gerry. Here is Gabriele Zamparini from The Cat's Dream. Thanks for linking to my blog. Just wanted to say something about Canada. (I'm sure you could find something like that about Australia's Government and its treatment of the FIRST AUSTRALIANS of course). A big hug to all my brothers and sisters in Australia. One world, one family for peace and justice. Ciao, Gabriele

Remarks before the Sub-Committee on Petitions, Information and Assistance of the World Council of Indigenous Peoples, president Jose Carlos Morales by Special Assistant Rudolph C. Ryser.
New York City, 24 June 1981
Source: Center for World Indigenous Studies
http://www.cwis.org/

THE INDIGENOUS NATIONS OF CANADA
The indigenous nations located in what is now Canada have been resident in their territory for thousands of years before the British and French governments established settlements. The successor colonial power, Britain, created and established colonial governments within indigenous territories and commenced to conclude a series of treaties with the indigenous nations. These treaties ceded in excess of one million square miles of territory from the indigenous nations to Britain. More than 2.4 million square miles of indigenous territory was never ceded, but remains to this day the homelands of the indigenous nations.
The country of Canada has since 1867 been attempting to gain its independence from Great Britain. During this time Britain has effectively served as the trustee for the protection and preservation of the indigenous nations and their territory. By virtue of an act of British parliament, Britain conveyed certain of her administrative duties owed to the indigenous nations to the newly created Canadian federal government. As a colonial government created by Britain the Canadian government has administered the British trusteeship for 114 years. During the period of its trust administration the Canadian government has directly and indirectly expropriated indigenous national lands and resources to benefit Canadian and British citizens.
As it takes its final step toward independence Canada now seeks to totally engulf indigenous national territories, claim ownership over indigenous national resources and eliminate the national identity of 1.2 million indigenous peoples. Both British colonialism of indigenous territories and Canadian neo-colonialism have escaped world attention.
Canada has consistently denied the indigenous nations of upper North America a political role in her government and, indeed, she has systematically sought the liquidation of indigenous nations and their identity.
In December of 1980, the indigenous nations formed their own provisional government through which the United Nations Secretary General was petitioned to come their aid. The Secretary General was urgently requested to facilitate tri-lateral negotiations between Britain, Canada and the Indigenous Provisional Government to resolve the political status of the indigenous nations and territories in upper North America. The indigenous nations in upper North America are presently seeking a peaceful method to remove the colonial embrace of Britain and Canada.

July 05, 2005 6:00 AM  
Blogger The Editor said...

Gabriele, welcome. Thanks for sharing this information with us. Your blog and your website both rock! Big time!

Your generation will have to try to fix what mine broke. On behalf of all Boomers, I apologise. We were (and still are) utterly selfish arseholes.

I have blood on my own hands, and no amount of washing will ever remove it. My blog is my attempt to do penance. Your site and your blog are an inspiration and a source of hope for the whole planet.

Now go and give your ego a cold shower! :-)

Urban Fox, thanks for the link. I now wish I'd included a link to Monbiot's brilliant piece as well.

July 05, 2005 9:07 AM  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

==========
<<<<< Home
==========