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The latest is insane.
Using powers granted under the Emergencies Act, the federal government has directed banks and other financial institutions to stop doing business with people associated with the anti-vaccine mandate convoy occupying the nation's capital.
According to the regulations published late Tuesday, financial institutions are required to monitor and halt all transactions that funnel money to demonstrators — a measure designed to cut off funding to a well-financed protest that has taken over large swaths of Ottawa's downtown core.
"Financial institutions" aren't just banks.
The government is also ordering insurance companies to suspend policies on vehicles that are part of an unlawful "public assembly."
These financial institutions can't handle cash, issue a loan, extend a mortgage or more generally facilitate "any transaction" of a "designated person" while the Emergencies Act is in place.
The regulations define a "designated person" who can be cut off from financial services as someone who is "directly or indirectly" participating in a "public assembly that may reasonably be expected to lead to a breach of the peace," or a person engaging in "serious interference with trade" or "critical infrastructure."
So basically, the Canadian government chickened out and mandated instead that the banks and insurance companies to do everything. Then rat out their customers to the government once they're done.
Banks also are required to "disclose without delay" the "existence of property in their possession or control" or "any information about a transaction or proposed transaction" related to a "designated person" to both the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS).
"Those authorities are now in force and they're being used," said Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino. "It's incredibly important that we follow the money."
It's not "incredibly important" for anyone interested in rule of law, due process, or proportionality of punishment. And the final part:
The Emergencies Act and its associated regulations are in effect for only 30 days; that period could be shorter if Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet revoke it or if Parliament scuttles it after a vote. But a senior government official said there could be long-term implications.
"For the most part, financial institutions can decide who they do business with and they may decide to cease offering financial services," the official said.
Mark Blumberg is a lawyer at Blumberg Segal LLP who specializes in non-profit and charity law. In an interview, he said that while the Emergencies Act gives banks time-limited powers, these institutions "may just decide to shut the person's account down" because there could be "huge risks" for banks servicing these customers in the future.
So rather than deal with the protest in a sensible manner (they're breaking the law, right?), the Canadian government has put forward this ridiculous "emergency" and deputized a bunch of businesses to go crazy with legal immunity (but only if they toe the government line). In the meantime, the protesters can lose their insurance and freeze finances. So what's going to happen to protesters of any sort in the future, if banks and insurance companies see them as liabilities due to this emergency?
Now imagine if Trump and US financial institutions had this kind of power over BLM protesters. Wouldn't be a problem, right?
Hopefully, this will get reversed in the Canadian courts, because otherwise it's a huge move towards tyranny, particularly of the fascist sort.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Friday February 18 2022, @03:03AM (13 children)
The financial industry can cut them off too, no problem. Just transact intentionally or not with a designated person and you can become a designated person yourself.
I find it interesting how so many people just don't get how abusive this is. The blockade is just an illegal protest, right? Canada has law enforcement for that. It's their job to fix this sort of thing. Why are they creating this whole new way of punishing people (using faceless, unaccountable bureaucrats at banks and such) rather than the stuff that works?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 18 2022, @03:35AM (7 children)
Their big mistake was NOT storming the Capitol Building, like the Canadians did in 1812, or on the Plains of Abraham, or the sinking of the Caroline and the Sons of Liberty in 1837.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 18 2022, @03:51AM (6 children)
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 18 2022, @06:59PM (5 children)
In other words, you do not know that all these other "disturbances" were the result of American, or American-based interference with Canadian sovereignty? Left out the Fenian Invasion [irishstudies.ca] in 1866. In case you are slow, the Ontario Trucker's protest is an American operation.
(Interesting, saw a protester carrying a Canadian flag, except there were stripes of white and red, and the Maple Leaf was filled with stars? Do they want to be assimilated into the Wacko States of America? What happened to the wall [theinertia.com]?)
(Score: 1) by khallow on Saturday February 19 2022, @01:01PM (4 children)
And then you follow up with an example which didn't interfere with Canadian sovereignty (the Fenian invasion) because Canada wasn't sovereign - it was a territory of the UK empire.
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 21 2022, @06:56AM (3 children)
And guess what, you really stupid and uneducated American, was the result of the Fenian invasion? MY Gawd, or any other god, khallow you dip below the norm for an educated Soylentil. Perhaps some history, and science , and maybe just some community college general education? Beats the hell out of the libertariantard suck-hole you seem to have gotten yourself into. We are pulling for you, khallow!
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday February 21 2022, @10:31AM (2 children)
Sounds like you can answer that question yourself. Awful lot of pretentious whining for something that's completely irrelevant.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 21 2022, @09:56PM (1 child)
American False Flag operations to overthrow a government that is not in El Salvador or Vietnam? Pretty relevant, I would think. Who is paying you, khallow?
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday February 21 2022, @10:26PM
If you had read the story, it was either Ireland or Canada, depending on which invaders you asked.
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 18 2022, @07:32AM (1 child)
"Never let a crisis go to waste." Police actions are subject to oversight, public scrutiny, and challenge in court. This bypasses all of that completely, giving the government carte blanche to go after malcontents and undesirables (read: political opponents) with impunity. The respect I was gaining for Justin Trudeau over how he was handling this situation is now completely gone. This needs to be stopped now before it can take root. The blockade was a problem, but this is an actual threat.
(Score: 2) by hendrikboom on Sunday February 20 2022, @02:56AM
Actually, those actions are still open to scrutiny.
The relevant law requires a post-emergency review of what ended up happening as a result of dealing with the state of emergency.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 18 2022, @02:17PM (2 children)
Just follow the example of the US, go in and beat the shit out of them.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 18 2022, @02:30PM
(Score: 2) by https on Friday February 18 2022, @03:57PM
Uh, they're mostly middle-aged white guys, who want something the police want too, so there's a bit of a problem.
Police in Canada have no problem arresting a thousand people [nanaimobulletin.com] if they're supporting brown people.
Offended and laughing about it.