RB Ham's Blog

Main Page

Last Thursday I went to a town hall meeting here in Saskatoon, where we debated Canada's involvement in Afghanistan. The only political party represented were the NDP, Andrew Mason. The Green Party representative couldn't make it due to other obligations. Sadly, but typically, nobody from the Liberals or Conservative deigned to show up.

The first speaker was the Chairperson for the Saskatoon Peace Coalition. They stated that they believed this war is illegal and immoral. Then an Afghani-Canadian named Rahmath spoke and gave a brief history of Afghanistan, and the background to the events leading up to the invasion. His position was that Afghan citizens would welcome International troops if they were peacekeepers rather than war makers.

Then it was the politicians turn. Mason explained that although the NDP did not support the war morally, he could understand the legalities of it and brought up the oft-repeated excuse that Osama Bin Laden was being harbored by the Taliban. Basically the NDP position is that they don't know where to go from here because they want more open debate on the subject in Parliament.

They then opened up questions to the floor, and those wishing to express themselves filed behind a microphone in the audience. I was the third speaker and gave a stirring monologue about the 9-11 truth movement, and how 9-11 is the key to everything. I opened by noting that Andrew Mason was stating as fact that a "group in Afghanistan" was responsible for 9-11.I remarked that there has been no finding of fact, and that the Bush administration had done nothing but try and block any independent investigation. I mentioned a few more of the many omissions and outright lies perpetrated by the Keane Commission. I also expressed the fact that all Fascist regimes use psychological warfare on their own people to strip them of their rights and legal protections and to justify illegal wars of aggression.I ended by sounding a note of alarm, that fascism was now here in Canada. I brougt up the recent case of the 17 alleged terrorists rounded up in southern Ontario. Since 9-11 the Canadian government passed laws allowing secret evidence against suspects and security certificates are issued allowing detention without charge or rights to a lawyer.

I said that I was mad as hell and I wasn't going to take the lies anymore. I told the room that if we were to avoid becoming a police state, we had to stop it here and now. I got a standing ovation.Other people spoke, an older lady spoke of the bombing of her homeland. There was also an entire class of grade 10's, who asked very enlightening questions.

It was clear from the mood of the room, that the politician was being judged harshly. Most people stood up and expressed dissappointment that the NDP wasn't more clear and visible in their oppositon to the conservative/liberal aggressive war agenda.

Mason actually tried to belittle my position about 9-11. We got into a heated exchange in which I was backed up by members of the audience, and before it got too crazy, the moderator stepped in to move the conversation, because Mason was addressing all the views expressed by the audience.

Afterwards as Steffi (my significant other) and I were leaving, many people came up to shake my hand and offer agreement of my views. I was surprised by how many of them have the same thoughts. The tide has turned, the people have my back.I feel more hope tonight than I have for a long time.

RB Ham

"Individuals have international duties which transcend the national obligations of obedience…therefore have the duty to violate domestic laws to prevent crimes against peace and humanity from occurring." -Nuremberg Tribunal, 1950