‘I don’t have any hope tonight’ says U of M Native studies prof after Gerald Stanley acquittal. That’s because “reconciliation” is feel-good liberal rhetoric. It means nothing if it isn’t actively dismantling the settler-colonial system that continues to oppress the marginalized without end to the wholesale theft of land for the purpose of resource extraction.

Just face it: we live in a racist, prison/industrial complex founded upon white supremacy and our justice system has always reflected this, even when people take the time to understand the justice system…

No, rural Prairie dwellers, you can’t shoot to protect your property.

“I’m sorry but I have recently had my garage broken into and I feel violated as I grew up and was taught you don’t touch people’s property,” said Gary. “I have lived in Peace country of AB to South western SK and I’m sorry, properties are being violated and I don’t care if the violation is done by white, Asian, African, indigenous or a lawyer, it is wrong and people need to protect their property.”

Well, Gary, you’re in luck, because you can protect your property. You can lock it up, you can build a fence, you can get big dogs, you can even get insurance. What you can’t do is shoot another human being to defend it.

Well, Gary et al, if you say shit like, “Don’t want to get shot? Don’t steal” (actual comment), then what do you have to say about this: Iain Stables given conditional sentence for stealing $1.2M in farm equipment. Boushie didn’t steal a thing and now he’s dead and the jury believed it was an accident. If you had just shot someone by accident, would you go and lock the gun away and make a fresh pot of coffee? Or would you have done everything in your power to stop the man from bleeding, sobbing as you cradled his lifeless body? Yeah, me too. Welcome to KKKanada.

And if you think I’m being hyperbolic when I use that term, remember that the judge in this case tried to protect the identity of the leader of the Saskatchewan KKK while he was a lawyer:

Also, remember it was Martel Popescul, judge for the Gerald Stanley trial, who tried to stop the inquiry into the murder of Cree trapper Leo LeChance in 1992. At the time he was an RCMP lawyer. https://t.co/XdSRCtzs15

— paul seesequasis (@PaulSeesequasis) February 10, 2018

The same fear of the other that grips the United States also grips us. From the hijab to the headdress, we are as racist as they come. Need a reminder? Remember the Indian Act; Residential Schools; Oka; Gustafsen Lake; Highway of Tears; the Pickton Murders; “Tina Fontaine had alcohol in her system”; John Graham; Barbara Kentner; Frank Paul; Site C; Trans Mountain; Muskrat Falls; spending $700,000 in legal fees fighting a decision that protected Indigenous children; Ezra Levant suggesting Theresa Spence was given an easy ride by media because “lucky for Spence, she’s Indian”; Joseph Boyden and the cultural appropriation awards; substance abuse and suicide on reserves … and it goes on and on and on: Gerald Stanley And The Fear Of The “Indian”.

In the jury box, a dark-haired woman in a short dress, and long hooded sweater jumps up as Stanley passes, and runs off camera herself — getting away from the family and the assembled Indians in the courtroom.

I would like to think that she ran because she was ashamed of what she had just done. But the likelier answer is that she ran for the same reason that she and her fellow members of the all-white jury found Gerald Stanley not guilty for killing 22-year-old Colten Boushie. They were afraid of Indians, especially angry Indians.

And let’s dispense, for a moment, with those words “First Nations” and “Indigenous,” because those imply respect, and progress. Today it is clear that we’re still “Indians.”

And the police state Just. Keeps. Marching. On: Former T-Bird tasered, arrested ‘because I’m black crossing the street’. “I’m a big black man crossing the street and they act out of fear instead of doing your job. What are you scared of?” Indeed.

‘Peoplekind’ Is a Painful and Goofy Example of Trudeau’s Hollowness.

“A central motif in Trudeau’s politics is his constant use of progressive language that contradicts his government’s actions. Over and over, Trudeau appropriates and mimics the language of progressives while implementing the policies of conservatives. “Peoplekind” is another painful and goofy example of his hollowness.”

Does it contradict government’s actions? We have always positioned ourselves as a morally superior alternative to the United States while our institutional racism is often worse. This is pretty in line with Canadian values- faux-progressivism in the face of colonialism.

Philippines inks $233M deal with Canada for combat utility helicopters. “Hey CBC News, let me fix that headline for you: “Canada sells military helicopters to violent regime whose president has ordered thousands of extra-judicial killings.” – Jorge Amigo.

B.C. to raise minimum wage to $15.20 an hour by June 2021. Stuart Parker unpacks this:

So, let me get this straight: the Liberal government in Ontario increased the minimum wage to $14.00 last month, rising to $15/hour next year. Seattle’s current minimum for un-tipped professions is $14/hour, rising to $15 at the same as Ontario’s. Meanwhile, Alberta’s minimum wage is currently $13.60/our, rising to $15/hour this fall. So let’s be crystal clear on what John Horgan has announced. He has announced that BC’s minimum wage will be lower than Seattle’s, Ontario’s or Alberta’s not just for now but for the next three years.

After a decade and a half out of power and a legislative majority contingent on a volatile third party leader, now is really not the time for foot-dragging on crucial areas of public policy.

Breaking News: Gambling is risky! $10K lost in a day: This 24-year-old Vancouver man put a big stock market bet on his credit card.

Attn Vancouver: Everything you love will be eaten alive.

The aesthetic experience of gentrified places is horrifying to Moss. They are “glittering pleasure domes for the uber-wealthy,” places scrubbed of their authenticity. The “corporate monoculture” takes hold: new buildings are all glass boxes, full of grinning, shiny, happy people who don’t really know what it’s like to live.

Satire of the day: Vancouver landlord seeks tenants for room that doubles as arts space/film set/weed dispensary.

RIP Craig Doyle, aka Mac Pontiac.