An-TEE-fa or Anti-fa

Image: DISTURBING: Alberta Conservative MLAs celebrate immediately after repealing protections for LGBTQ students


Update June 20: Found the answer to "An-TEE-fa or Anti-FA":
From AntiFascistNetwork.org: "#6: Bonus Point"
Don’t pronounce it An-*tee*-fer. Just grinds this admins gears. But also you are autonomous and we can’t tell you what to do. (But pls don’t).
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An-TEE-fa or Anti-FA ...

Who are they really?

First of all, nice going, Alberta Conservative MLAs. (photo above) You look like dolts, childishly celebrating what amounts to permission to render the lives of certain segments of society even more precarious than before. Whatever did they do to you?

The Nazi regime persecuted both Gays and Black people. The law of averages would suggest that some of those Nazis were closet gays and transvestites. A lot of people think the same thing about Jason Kenney but he's always taken the Fifth when asked. He values his privacy, yet campaigned to deprive others of same.

Judging by the Nazis, should Kenney be considered a fascist? And if so, wouldn't an Antifa protest be in order?  You know, the folks whose motto is anti-fascism?

In the midst of "Black Lives Matter" there is a lot of talk about an entity called "Antifa" but that organization is a bit hard to nail down specifics-wise. It seems we're supposed to just accept that they're violent beasts, yet clearly they mean to say they are against Fascism - which would suggest that the rest of us are not, though I certainly am, but they have so many faces I couldn't be sure which group to join.

It's sort of like the Black Bloc, the ones who broke windows and set fire to a police car (which had been abandoned right where they had easy access to it) at the G20 protest in Toronto and at the Montebello protest against the SPP (see YouTube videos). One has no way of knowing whether or not some things may be blamed on Antifa who are actually undercover cops looking to make sincere protesters look like criminals. Especially in view of proven cases of same. 

I could see myself joining a group like this if I were any longer a joiner, and here's what would attract me: see the sign? "Social Distancing = Communism"? If they're truly on the side of freedom, I'm on their side because I'm pretty sick of the authoritarian bent our so-called democracy is taking. But I can assure everyone, I wouldn't carry a baseball bat. Got hit in the head with one, though, about 70 years ago. (My sister took a practise swing just as I approached her from behind. I can show you the dent in the left side of my forehead, if you like.) But I'm not a retributive type of person, and I don't smash windows wearing a black hoodie. 

But is that really what Antifa is all about? Violence?

USAToday: Antifa – short for "anti-fascist" – is the name for loosely affiliated, left-leaning, anti-racist groups that monitor and track the activities of local neo-Nazis.

Well, heck, that's good isn't it?  Somebody's gotta do it - right?

• The movement has no unified structure or national leadership but has emerged in the form of local bodies nationwide, particularly on the West Coast [of North America].
• Some of the groups, such as the 13-year-old Rose City Antifa in Portland, Oregon, the oldest in the U.S., are particularly well-organized and active online and on Facebook, while its members are individually anonymous.
• -- Trump posted a message on Twitter, saying: "The United States of America will be designating ANTIFA as a Terrorist Organization." That came one day after  he said "the violence and vandalism is being led by antifa and other radical left-wing groups."

Well, gee.  If Trump thinks they're bad, they must be, eh?  Bad for him, for sure, because he's a right-winger, but if he could get them to beat people up on his behalf he would sing a different tune.

As it is, he can make the most sincere anti-fascist look like the devil just by strategic placing of undercover police. And if they keep scaring people into wearing Covid masks ...

Is anybody at all looking forward to the next US election?

There are other (competing) Political Activist Movements in Canada. No doubt if they march they too will be infiltrated by police. Hope these groups don't come face-to-face at an election rally.

Alberta: "North 99":

• ... an independent political movement powered by over 100,000 supporters, united by a shared commitment to progressive principles. Our work is driven by values, not party politics, and we do not receive support from or align ourselves with any political party.
• True democracy is incompatible with a society where the richest 1% own more than 25% of the wealth.
• There is no place for racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, or discrimination of any form in our society. We oppose all movements and groups that promote these ideas, and support policies that curb discrimination.

Can't help wondering in what form they would "oppose all movements and groups" ...

They can't be all that fierce considering that Jason Kenny got his way and his MLA's celebrated.

Ontario Proud: 

•  ... a people powered organization that stands up for working Ontarians. We’re fighting for affordable government, holding our politicians accountable and working to defeat failed leaders like Justin Trudeau.
• More than 368,000 Ontarians have joined our cause, making us the largest digital advocacy group in Ontario politics.  (Or "more than 400,000 Ontarians", depending on which part of the page you're looking at.)

Funny that they're using the same language Trudeau uses. He stands up for working people too. Or so he says ad nauseum.

On their "Our Work" page, they take credit for Liberal Kathleen Wynne's downfall, so ... maybe they're Conservative "buck a beer" Doug Ford supporters.  Lovely.

British Columbia: Global Citizens: Vancouver Activists the World Should Know More About
--"making a difference on Canada’s West Coast."

David Suzuki has found a niche with this crowd.  He's mixing some climate stuff with some Covid stuff, while the rest  of the members seem more focused on human/indigenous rights, feminism, LGBTQ. The photo they post of him is very outdated. (See 2020 image below)

I've just purchased Sheila Gunn Reid's book: The Case Against David Suzuki -- unauthorized, of course, and from a conservative perspective, and so far there's been no backlash against it.

And then there's North 99's Facebook Petition:

• Tell Loblaws Not to Cut Pandemic Pay for Vulnerable Workers
• Loblaws just cut their pandemic pay for vulnerable workers. That means they’ll be making $2 less.
• They’re cutting wages even though Loblaws profits rose by 20% compared to last year. Loblaws owner Galen Weston is worth $10 billion and Loblaws’ CEO made $7 million in 2018.
• They can afford to pay hardworking Canadians more. But they’re choosing not to.
• We need thousands to speak out – will you sign the petition and demand Loblaws reverse their pay cut and make the wage increase permanent for workers?

How can they do this when Loblaws is itself a charity case? (How tongue-in-cheek was that, eh?)
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​Image: Suzuki in 2020

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