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Interesting to listen to the battle for the minds of Canadians being waged by, in one corner, the Harperites, Queen’s Parks and the T.O. cops… and in the other corner, the activist groups, community groups and individual Canucks.

At issue – did the cops step over the line during the Gee-Score protests?

As with most of these issues, the truth likely lies somewhere in betwixt and between. While I am sure that, cops being cops, some did get too rough, covered their badges and name tags, and acted as agents provacateurs. No doubt. And there is video evidence of this.

I posted a vid of a little lady blowing bubbles in the direction of the line of cops where one guy about 56 times bigger than her was being a real asshole and harrumphing that she would be charged with assault if one of the bubbles landed on the big guy. Then the vid cuts to the bubble blower being loaded into a van.  Yeah, I know the what-happened-in-between was edited out, but my point was that some members of the security forces were getting way overboard and letting their power go to their already inflated heads.

As for the demonstrators? For sure some of them went waaaaay over the line too. There is no excuse for vandalism and violence. As a pacifist, I believe that protests need not be violent and more sympathy can be garnered for the “cause” if one demonstrates civility. I personally despise those who destroy for whatever the cause may be.

But - and again, there is video evidence – the vast, VAST majority of the protesters were indeed civil. They didn’t throw things aside from epithets. They stayed within the rules. They acted civil. BUT, this god behaviour was not respected in several instances where the police broke up – often violently – groups that were clearly not doing anything wrong. They were exercising their right to freedom of expression and assembly.

As The Clash said:

Know your rights
These are your rights
Wang
Know these rights
Number 3
You have the right to free
Speech as long as you’re not
Dumb enough to actually try it.

Trashy,
Ottawa, Ontario

Check it out:

Motown legend Berry Gordy said: “He was awesome, the King of Pop was not big enough. I think he is simply the greatest entertainer that ever lived.

I heard this along with the other hero-worship claptrap and thought “huh”?

Greatest entertainer?

No fuckin’ way.

I remember a party back in ’82 or so (some of my readers may recall) when a certain chick brought Thriller to the scene. We were on an island somewhere outside of Peterborough, ON and we were all die hard rockers…

The MJ tape ended up in the bonfire while Zep II roared its mighty roar.

So in the interest of the public service, here are 50 entertainers I consider “greater” than the child molester.

1. George Carlin
2. The Clash
3. Led Zeppelin
4. Robin Williams
5. Jon Stewart
6. The Beatles
7. Bruce Springsteen
8. Madonna
9. My son Owen
10. Bart Simpson
11. The Police
12. The Canadian police forces who like using Tasers
13. RCMP (see above)
14. Frank Sinatra
15. Alex Ovechkin
16. Supertramp
17. Pink Floyd
18. Thierry Henry
19. David Bowie
20. My daughter Addy
21. My teenmonster T
22. The Eagles
23. Stephen Harper – in robot mode
24. Janis Joplin
25. Jim Morrison
26. Jimi Hendrix
27. Bob Marley
28. Queen
29. Kim il Jong
30. Kermit the Frog
31. Kaka
32. Vlad Putin
33. My 4th year Pol Sci Theory prof
34. Pierre Trudeau
35. Sir Richard Branson
36. Sir Paul McCartney
37. John Lennon
38. Lenin
39. The cast of Coronation Street
40. Che
41. Ronaldo
42. Johnny Ramone
43. Sid Vicious
44. Leonardo da Vinci
45. Anna Kournikova
46. Meagan Fox
47. Mike Tyson
48. The guy who asks for change at the corner of Holland and Scott
49. Peter Gzowski
50. Isaac Asimov

I could do another 100 or so, but am getting tired.

You get the point though, right?

Trashy,
Ottawa, Ontario