I read it, nowhere did it give an estimate of what those protests cost, and it indicated there were multiple other routes for the oil to travel so didn’t even disrupt oil transportation completely, much less ALL commerce.
And it was about pipelines crossing their (or protected) land it seems, a far cry from the truckers. Yes, the validity and severity of your cause matters, just like the damage you do and to whom.

Billions worth of goods stuck temporarily…but no actual estimated cost for their delay, this cost billions in lost production and salaries that won’t be recovered.

That protest was targeted against the offending entity, not the populace. I have no issue with natives blockading their own land and preserves that feed those reservations against permanent destruction for some private profits. That’s a far cry from the truckers blockading the main border crossing for industry and tourism because they’re afraid to get a poke.

The numbers I saw were special. Hundreds of millions-billions lost (your billions in goods delayed doesn’t have a price tag). That was before the bridge was reopened. These protesters weren’t satisfied with that damage and continued to close your capitol with ever shifting demands. Since regular measures had failed, I support emergency measures, seizure, even forfeiture after trial, of any funds or tools used.

Perhaps they became only as localized (but certainly not as targeted, and localized in a city not the unpopulated country), but they had already done exponentially more damage and showed no sign of end or even demands.

Let’s ignore someone personally supporting a grass roots movement outside their country and control, please. I find it a red herring totally unconnected to how he governs.

Yes, some Floyd protests were more violent than the truckers, some weren’t, remember how they were all violently smashed, tear gassed, rubber bullets galore, run through with police trucks, unmarked vans pulling up and grabbing people crossing the streets, unmarked vans driving through towns full of police shooting tear gas at any moving body, etc? Don’t pretend the response is similar.
Also, the Floyd protests lasted a weekend in most cases (occupy Portland really wasn’t about Floyd) and went elsewhere the next march. They weren’t closing down one area for weeks intent on staying. Most lasted hours and were peaceful until police became violent, despite right wing media’s fear-mongering.

I think you’re stretching, putting on blinders, and doing insane mental gymnastics to pretend you believe that. From the actual damage caused, the idiotic reasoning behind it (quickly abandoned), the extremely uncanadianness of the self centered far right rally masquerading as protest, the international damage, the foreign involvement from planning to funding, these are unique “protests” in numerous ways.

Their idiotic beliefs are only one of many distinctions I’ve pointed out, and as I mentioned only color public opinion and the amount of patience they’re given by the public, not how the government treats them. It’s not at all honest for you to pretend that’s the entirety of my position…it’s very Bob of you, and has lost some of my respect.

Pipelines crossing sovereign territory or preserves = bad so blockading those areas to force pipeline movement = good….oil companies didn’t truck the oil out, they increased shipments from other areas by rail. Read the article you linked.

Native cultures and governments are different. Pretending an elected board for a reservation works for the people is naive in the extreme. Read about politics on reservations, who funds the people that get elected in most cases, what happens to opposing candidates…saying the board signed off while so many showed up to fight against it seems a bit at odds, no? Like maybe the board members were bribed, had ties with the oil industry, or other conflicts….just maybe?

And again, those protests didn’t cost a fraction what the truckers did from my research. Delaying delivery of a billion in goods isn’t the same as costing a billion in losses. Neither is delaying or cancelling a billion dollar project. Be adult please….don’t make such specious arguments ….please. They don’t slip by, and they make me think you are being disingenuous.

Economic disruption of the blockades was similar to the Mohawk blockade of railways about 2 years ago:
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-ottawa-rejects-police-intervention-to-put-an-end-to-blockades/

Similarly, mass lay offs and multi-billions of dollars of goods stuck sitting around waiting to get to the industries needing them.

Since at least 2012 the attempted expansion of an existing pipeline(Trans Mountain) was targeted continuously by blockades. Opposition and resulting delays leading to cost overruns so large that company ultimately halted the multi-billion dollar project.

In terms of dollars being lost, the convoy protest wasn't special. More over, the blockade of the border in Ontario that was causing the real economic damage was dismantled and removed before the 'emergency measures' were enacted. Which is to state, the emergency measures were primarily intended to clear out downtown Ottawa. In downtown Ottawa though, the damages were at minimum as localized as any of the lumber or pipeline blockades mentioned.


Prime Minister Trudeau couldn't be more unequivocal when he was expressing his support for the farmer protests in India and the Floyd protests in the US. Clip if you'd like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9EaSF6Y0eE

The protests in India absolutely did immensely more harm to India's economy than the convoy here did in Canada. The protests in support of Floyd were again unequivocally more violent than the convoy in Canada.

There really is no basis by which to point to the convoy's actions and find them in any way unique or distinct from multiple other protests within Canada, or ones abroad that have been either given more latitude, or outright embraced and supported.

The distinction as even you can't resist going after, is that their beliefs they are protesting for are stupid and wrong, so no right to protest for them. That isn't how the right to protest within a democracy should be allowed to work.

I also have to point out the 'ethical' argument isn't as cut and dry as you want to make it out either.
-Pipelines bad so blockading is good ignores the fact the same oil gets pumped regardless, it just gets loaded into trucks that burn even more oil to haul it and have a fair greater risk of accidents and spills.
-Defending the rights and lands of Aboriginal peoples(like at Coastal Gas Link site violently attacked with millions in damages while the convoy was being vilified for 'incitement') is anything but obvious. The Wet'suwet'en hereditary leaders made claim to parts of the pipeline route and demanded it be shut down. However, the same Wet'suwet'en people's multiple elected Band Councils signed on with their wishes to proceed with the project. In fact, ALL elected representatives of ALL the Bands with land along the route had ALL signed onto the project and wanting it to proceed. It is in no way obvious that ignoring the will of those other bands to favour the conflicting claims of the hereditary leaders is clearly the most respectful of the people's wishes.

The protests you mentioned didn’t halt commerce for huge swaths of your, and our country, did they? Severity and ubiquity of impacts matter.

Lemme ask you, did this protest ask for dialog, or outright refuse it?

None of the other protests intentionally caused as much collateral damage as possible. It’s not their cause, it’s their methodology and severity of the results.

It’s not about their cause du jure, it’s about their methods, causing economic damage as deep and widespread as possible. I’ll ask, did the other protests you mentioned try to shut the country down for their cause, or were they targeted against the industries/entities they were protesting?

I’m pretty certain that, had they not blocked freeways, border crossings, cities, and industries their protests wouldn’t be being broken up and protesters wouldn’t be arrested. Again, it’s not the why, it’s the how that’s an issue. Their methods aren’t the same as other tolerated protests in severity nor focus.

BUT…there is a significant difference, morally, ethically, and logically between protesting being murdered by police or protesting your last tiny bit of sovereign land or water sources being taken and permanently destroyed by oil companies, and protesting not getting a shot to have the privilege of traveling to another country. I’m far more prepared to be patient for life and death causes than ignorant inconvenience causes.

Edit: P.S. also, “fuck your feelings” goes both ways. These are the same people that took that stance for 4 years here (some still do). When you tell people “fuck your feelings” in response to any subject, any complaints, it’s pretty ridiculous to expect those same people to respect your feelings, especially while you honk a truck horn in their back yard all night for weeks. In my neighborhood, there would have been burning trucks night one, and peace night 2….but I’m a native Texan, kind of the opposite of a Canadian.

@newtboy,

I agree with more of what you say than you make out. You need to appreciate how different Canada is from the US, particularly in power balance within government and corresponding police action and media coverage.

Long delays in stopping illegal blockade and protest activity is the norm.
-Fairy Creek blockades persisted almost 12 months before police took action
-Blockade of Coastal Link pipepline went on for months before police intervened to allow work to continue.
-Mohawk solidarity blockade of railways in Ontario persisted multiple weeks

The difference to the protests today, the Liberal government was tripping over themselves to reach out to those protest groups, while immediately spitting in the faces of this one.

I've always been of the opinion illegally blocking a roadway, border or business should lead to arrests within the time it takes to notify and send police.

The problem here from a Canadian eye, is that the only time current government is interested in bringing a hammer down is based not upon the actions of protestors, but instead based upon their professed cause.

I refuse to accept tying the right to protest to what cause is being rallied to.

90%? You underestimate by 9.99% IMO.

I’ve seen assaults. I’ve seen disturbing the peace in residential neighborhoods 24/7 for weeks on end. I’ve seen what amounts to kidnapping (trapping people in their cars on the street and blockading them in).
BTW, we aren’t India, more money was lost at this one crossing than if you blockaded all of India for the same timeframe. In America, we don’t just let other people block our borders….that’s our thing!

No, the bridge was not part of a recent past long term blockade, no farmer blockade shut down auto manufacturing on both sides of the borders or weeks. You are incorrect.

Protests are acceptable, even if they cause inconvenience. Protests without an issue that last for weeks-months with the only intent being causing economic damage aren’t protests, they’re tantrums. These protesters didn’t know why they were there besides getting the liberal out of power through any means.

These “protesters” deserved nothing but ridicule, their anti vax position is ridiculous, they know it, and it’s moot because the mandates change with the severity of the outbreak, and are from both sides of the border….Trudeau can’t force America to drop our mandates, and border crossers must be vaccinated….period. Notice when the mandates being lifted soon was announced they didn’t leave but just changed their demands. It’s not a protest, it’s an economic blackmail attempt.

The problem there is most of the violence was not part of the BLM protests (despite the lies right wing media produced all 2020), they were often nearby, taking advantage of the lowered police presence outside the protests, and often was violence directed at BLM, not coming from them. The people terrorizing and inciting violence, shooting crowds, planting bombs, lighting fires, shooting police, etc were Proud boys and Boogaloo boys…far right anti protesters. The idiots carried their manifestos explaining the false flag operation when they committed their crimes, and were caught repeatedly.

They should have simply used tow trucks, confiscating every truck involved to be sold at auction to pay for some of the exorbitant costs, far more than all summer of BLM and anti BLM protests, btw.

This was a threat to your sovereignty, and wasn’t being addressed by other laws or means (sounded like the police chief was a fan).

Seizure is perfection, but should include oversight (I bet it really does, you aren’t America where we’ve made it legal for police to commit armed robbery with no oversight). Note- seizure is different from forfeiture. They’re likely freezing accounts, not seizing the funds, right? Details matter.

It’s not just what they’re protesting, they don’t even know that themselves, it’s how and where. That said, the total lack of support among the population counts. I would expect any protest protesting against it being illegal to eat live babies to get shut down fast, no matter how civil they were on the streets.

Lemme guess, a pipeline crossing sovereign native lands under protest? Going over aquifers? Through preserves? Pumping tar sands no one really wants?
Millions in damages are an hour of the truck protests. They’re designed to cost tens of millions per day…costing everyone not just the target of their protest.

No known connection to protesters, but you want there to be one and are upset they didn’t just fabricate one? It sounds incredibly likely they’re involved, but without evidence one shouldn’t assign culpability.

They have the right to say anything, they don’t have the right to silence all other discussion and action while they ramble and party for weeks-months because they have nothing to say, but are loving the disruption they’re causing. A strong democracy doesn’t support one tiny group negating the entire continent’s voice for months. That’s what this is, they said their peace by day 2, now it’s not a protest, it’s an economic attack trying to blackmail a country (nearly a continent) into abandoning public health for a TINY minority of morons who want special privileges.

@newtboy,

Finally we're talking about my Canada .

I'm agreed with calling 90% of what the convoy and truckers are protesting as being misguided, ill informed or flat out wrong. That however shouldn't be what the right to protest is based upon.

The extent of the protestors illegal activity seems to have been blocking of roadways and borders. Which in Canada isn't exactly new:
-Blockading of roads to logging work sites to "protect old growth forest"
-Blockading of roads pipeline construction sites
-Blockading of transportation highways and railroads

In the past 2 years alone, those various sites have seen blockades ranging from weeks to months. In virtually every single one of those instances the Liberal government went out to meet and negotiate with the protestors while allowing them to continue for weeks to months. In one of the biggest protests Trudeau himself went to meet with the groups in person. Trudeau has a video of himself praising the farmer convoy and blockades in India, declaring his government will always defend the right of groups to protest.(those groups blocked multiple border crossings)

This time though, Trudeau started out with insulting, ridiculing and belittling the protestors. Within the first day of the protests, politicians and our national news corp in CBC were demanding an immediate end to the protests.

The protests that have seen comparable zero violence to the protests in the US in support of Floyd(which I support), where condemned repeatedly by the CBC and Trudeau as terrorizing the populace and inciting violence. For reference, Trudeau remained steadfast in support of the Floyd protestors right to protest.

The federal government essentially tried insults and ridicule to try and end this protest though, and when that didn't work they invoked a national emergency measures act that requires both:
-A threat to Canada's sovereignty
-A threat that can not be addressed by any other laws or means

The government then proceeded to empower themselves to not merely arrest protestors, but to freeze/seize the bank accounts of anyone considered to be supporting the protest, with no court oversight required.

The difference in how protestors are treated based upon what it is they are protesting is alarming and should be a red flag for anyone and everyone.

For reference, while these protests were going on, a pipeline worksite in BC that has been continually shut down by protests for the last several years was attacked in the night by a mob wielding machetes and axes. The workers and security were chased off and millions in damages were done to the site afterwards. Trudeau didn't feel the need to even address the incident though because he was to busy villianizing the convoy. The CBC media buried the incident under local BC news, and downplayed it as an 'alleged' incident, despite RCMP having responded and even having had an officer injured in the incident. CBC also emphasized there wasn't any verified connection to the ongoing protests against the pipeline...

When you look at the narrative, despite my disagreeing with the vast majority of what the convoy is wanting to say, I am disgusted by the attempt to remove their right to say it and everyone wanting to support a strong democracy with the right protest should feel the same.

Wait….so you are saying you see no difference between this protest and BLM (besides the skin color of the protesters)….but you are in favor of this and vehemently against BLM?…and you don’t see the blatant racism? LMFAHS!!

Sorry, no.
Only racist tools like you refuse to see both the similarities and differences.

Threatening, fighting, closing businesses, loudly occupying residential neighborhoods (truckers for weeks, also blocking the border crossing with the most commerce for weeks to disrupt both economies,) and definitely some killing by Covid carrying truckers. Sounds similar with truckers causing more damage and disruption to the innocent.

No false flag attacks by the left, (killing, burning, bombing, shooting cops, ) all done dressed as and pretending to be truckers. Many false flag attacks by the right (killing, burning, bombing, killing cops,) all done dressed as and pretending to be BLM activists, caught and admitted to, dumb shit. Sounds pretty different without a misinformation campaign by right wing media and false flag operation by right wingers.

Sounds to me and the rest of the world like the tiny minority of unpopular truckers have done exponentially more economic damage and likely killed more through Covid….and done so because they’re cowardly self centered snowflakes afraid to get a tiny shot in order to gain a privilege, not because people who look like them are being murdered in the streets daily by a government sponsored gang with immunity and have been for the lifespan of our nation.

Only cultists like you refuse to see or admit it, it’s blatant and obvious. You act like a child covered in chocolate trying to lie that you didn’t eat the cake, Bob. You convince no one with your denials, because we see what you say before and after them. You only make yourself a liar, but that’s nothing new.

Self centered babies are gone now, lost their trucks, many lost their Canadian driver’s license maybe for life, some going to prison. Now what are they going to protest now that they can’t drive their trucks across the border ever again? Losers.

Derp. Such a racist tool…consistently and constantly.

so yep newtboy is right you admit you support trucker protest but not BLM protests lol you such a tool. disrupting supply chains and hurting small businesses in 2 countries is OK for bewbs. yer hypocrisy is delicious and i feast on it.

Keep your “I can see absolutely no racism besides reverse racism” dishonest idiocy to yourself.

Almost every killing was Boogaloo boys committing racially motivated false flag operations, but the morons are so stupid they carried their manifesto with them when committing terrorist acts, outing the false flag operation the first time one got caught. Morons.

Well over half the burning and looting was found to be non BLM related,(and many if not most that were attributed to BLM were abandoned buildings). The true terrorists of 2020 were Trump’s Proud and boogaloo boys caught repeatedly causing mayhem to blame on BLM, shooting into crowds, starting fires, planting bombs, breaking into stores, shooting cops, etc. You know this well, you bold faced liar. You pretend you don’t know it because then you think you can get away with being a racist tool and blaming black people for everything, IMO, but we all know you know it.

Many were caught, prosecuted, and convicted (those they didn’t shoot to death in the process of being bomb planting cop shooting fake BLM terrorists that is) and the damage done was 1/10 what the idiot truckers cost.
The people with those truckers are many of the same people….with the same mindset.

Blacks protesting being shot=Thugs.
Whites protesting getting a shot=Freedom fighters.

Not everything is racist, but right wing terrorists waiving confederate and Nazi flags are. White supremacists who commit false flag terrorism to try to blame on black people and their anti-racist-murder-at-police-hands protests are racists.
The people standing with and behind them are racists….tell me the company you keep and I will tell you what you are.-S.P.
People who intentionally hide those facts and knowingly lie to blame the known racist false flag operations on BLM are racists….looking directly at you.

You support the side of racist white supremacists, racist nazis, and racist policy EVERY SINGLE TIME….but suddenly get the vapors and declare your innocence whenever it’s pointed out.

Edit: And let’s not lose sight of the issues, BLM protested blacks being murdered by police regularly with no recourse at all, absolutely none. Truckers are protesting not getting the privilege of getting to choose to travel internationally without the minor inconvenience of being vaccinated against a raging pandemic. I know, you think the latter far more important than the former, thereby excusing that the truckers have cost more, done more damage to local businesses and home owners, and, by being super spreaders, have killed more people.

THE PEOPLE?!? THE PEOPLE are firmly against THESE very few people who think their imagined rights trump everyone else’s actual rights.

Isn’t it funny how much of a problem you had with black people protesting being murdered and imprisoned for their skin color, you were outraged they disrupted traffic and business….but when white truckers do exponentially worse, much more economic damage to protest their having to get a tiny pin prick to secure a privilege (sniveling little crybabies that they are) you are 100% in favor of disrupting traffic and business to the extreme.

Clearly having to get a small shot to have the privilege of free travel between countries is far more draconian and a much bigger, more serious issue than having zero recourse against being gunned down in the streets and in their own homes by organized thugs with immunity from prosecution and military equipment, and of course that makes the disruptions to economies and livelihoods not just excusable but laudable.
Holy fucking shit, dude.

Maybe it’s true you aren’t actively racist, I’m not there to see, but it is definitely true you always stand with active racists and against equality under the law on every single issue.

Dumb shit snowflakes have been whining for the last 2 years, ignoring orders to make minor changes for both public health and to be able to reopen quickly, but like spoiled two year olds on time out, you guys kept defying orders, making the pandemic and the shutdowns exponentially worse, and restarting the “time out” clock.
You also complained non stop about shutting down the economy, hurting small businesses and commerce, but when a tiny (100+-) group of mostly white, swastika/confederate flag waiving truckers decide to shut down international commerce, costing hundreds of millions of dollars weekly (more than all rioting damage done in 2020, because they are targeting businesses and commerce) just to throw a tantrum, not achieve a thing, you are not just accepting of it, you support it.
Clearly your complaints about shutting down and hurting the economy to fight Covid and save hundreds of thousands of lives were not genuine since you are happy to do the same and worse to save the feelings of 100 truckers.…fuck your feelings, remember?…...big surprise, bob is a hypocrite willing to say anything to support his position today, including the exact opposite of his position yesterday.

All Trudeau needs to do is confiscate the trucks at gunpoint. Any trucker joining loses his truck. If it’s not their truck, they’ll have a huge bill from the owner.
Also, maybe remove their licenses for 2 years (or until restitution is paid in full). (Edit: nice, seems they actually thought of all that and have made it the law, and added up to a year in prison for those blocking commerce.)

Dumb shit, the restrictions
1)were also USA restrictions, like everyone else, Canadian truckers can’t cross the border without vaccinations. How does Trudeau stop that?…serious question I know you will ignore.
2) were being lifted in short order once the current variant slows its roll or border crossers get vaccinated
3) you really think a few hundred truckers (and a few hundred more rabble rousing morons with them) should have veto power over an entire federal government, and a federal government in another country, don’t you? But only when they look like you and waive confederate and nazi flags.
No, that’s not right? It has nothing to do with race? Why didn’t you support Trump defunding the police and/or removing immunity then?

So incredibly short sighted, myopic, hypocritical, self centered, likely racist, and just plain dumb Bob. You never disappoint.

Lemme guess, you support My Crackhead’s plan to illegally fly a helicopter over the protest and dump thousands of his pillows with bible verses covering them on Canada in a massive foreign littering/proselytizing scheme against a country that’s already banned him from entry. Right?

I assume you support the anti vax trucker protests and want to see them here?

Can you explain why?

Can you explain why it’s good for white truckers to protest against health and safety policy … to demand freedom from mandates requiring them to be adults and get vaccinated to save lives, costing hundreds of millions already and intentionally shutting down multiple industries with the goal of hurting the economy as much as possible….but bad for BLM to protest against racist police policies, demanding freedom from being put in prison or murdered with impunity by police for nothing beyond fear of their skin color, protests doing WAY less damage to economies, industry, and commerce? (Portland, which the right claimed was on fire all of 2020, estimated total costs at $23 million, <1/2 what Ford alone lost from the truckers so far).
BLM protests that, in fact, were more successful at changing policy….policy that needed changing unlike the mandates that need strengthening.

So…on board with truckers, or can you avoid blatant (most likely racist) hypocrisy?

So, Trump has now publicly promised to pardon the murderous cop killing seditionists if he’s re-elected.

It makes me wonder, do they even know that they admit guilt by accepting a pardon, and that unlikely to be president Trump can’t pardon them from most of the consequences of admitting to being a seditionist traitor…only the prison time? Anyone pardoned will have a nice red “T” tattooed on their foreheads for life. (The scarlet letter for traitors)

Accepting a pardon is an admission of guilt, offering a pardon is an admission of recognition of their guilt. Their lives are going to be seriously impacted by admitting to being treasonous seditionists, relegated to pure Trumpist events, businesses, and employment because most companies don’t serve or employ known traitors….only the Trump loving ones do.

BTW….Trump just also admitted publicly to pushing Pence to CHANGE the election results, claims he had the power to overturn verified and certified election results, and complaining that unfortunately, Pence didn’t “overturn the election” and call it for the loser. This is Trump admitting he lost (you don’t change the results when you won), and whining that they should have been allowed to steal the office anyway.

I guess according to Trumpsters, Biden already won 2024 because Harris can hand all votes to him no matter what the states say, then to whatever democrat comes after him in 28, even herself.

Forget 2024, in fact forget all elections…you KNOW the process is rigged and now Biden is president, might as well not vote, since he rigged the last one so masterfully from the outside that no evidence of tampering exists….how well do you think he’ll do now that he controls the election? Zero votes for Republicans? Better stay home in protest, your vote won’t count anyway. Even if he loses, Harris will hand him the win, totally above board and legally. That’s what Trump wants you to believe….so believe it.
This is you guy? This is you pick?
🤦‍♂️

Oh yeah, and Biden’s first year in office was the fastest growth of the economy in 40 years! D’oh!

I know, right.
Just like those poor Republicans peacefully protesting when scary black ANTIFA and BLM attacked them, then attacked congress….and now the poor little Republicans are getting blamed….just like that poor put upon little Jussie. You all should form a support group.
(To be clear, that is not a defense of Smollett in any way)

Side note….Who’s idea was it to violate southpark’s copyright? This is going to be taken off YouTube soon because that’s called theft and Comedy Central doesn’t usually let that slide.

Clearly fails to meet the criteria for a citizens arrest….they had no personal knowledge he had committed a crime (and indeed he had not). They did not stop him immediately during the commission of a crime or immediately afterwards. The crime they suspected him of committing was not a felony, so they could not follow him or arrest him after the fact, the law requires immediate apprehension. The force used in a citizens arrest must be proportional to the crime, it wasn’t.

Because it wasn’t a legitimate citizens arrest, by stopping him and aiming guns at him they became the initial aggressors, and the instigator of violence cannot claim self defense when his victim defends themselves….by law.

But they’re white, at least one was in law enforcement, the victim is black, and it’s Georgia. Don’t get your hopes up even such a blatantly obvious cut and dry murder case will end with a fair outcome.

Ironically, the defense just asked again for a mistrial because black men are driving around the protests carrying rifles, and they say that’s an intimidation tactic meant to terrify the jury (while admitting the jury is unaware of them)…but when their clients did that and went on to use those guns, that was a civic duty, a community service they were performing. Um….