Census Test

Some of you likely remember the opposition to Lockheed Martin doing the next Canadian Census. There's a test coming up and it's a perfect chance to tell both Paul Martin and Lockheed Martin to take a flying fuck.

Find out more at Vive le Canada. Make ome posters, put 'em up. Get involved with your country before they take it away.

What is a cenus test...i know what the census is but what is this test thing.

Also it said on that site lockheed matrin makes bombs...i thought they only make the rocket part. But i guess that doesnt really mater, but why would a weapons make be doing a Canadian census. I though there was a special federal commite that did the census.

The test is StatsCan making sure their systems work and the questions are understandable, Adam.

Lockheed Martin is a major military contractor. If it can blw things up, they have their greasy little fingers in it. Why are they doing our census? Nobody knows for sure.

So here's the latest from Susan at Vive. Spread it around.

>Dear Concerned Canadian,
>>
>> Last year, former Industry Minister Allan Rock awarded U.S. military

contractor Lockheed-Martin and its consortium of companies the contract to
prepare a 2004 test run of the next Canadian census. Despite intense
opposition from Canadians, Lockheed-Martin is still a prime candidate to
receive a contract to do the entire Canadian census in 2006, and the census
testing is going ahead as planned. The test questionnaires will be delivered
starting on April 27. The official census test day is May 11, 2004.

>>
>> Lockheed-Martin is the largest weapons contractor in the world. The

company manufactures ballistic missiles and other weapons of mass
destruction.

>>
>> Lockheed-Martin is also a key contractor for U.S. President George W.

Bush's "missile defence" program, aka Star Wars, a program that experts say
will lead to a new arms race and the weaponization of space--and a program
which Canada is still considering joining.

>>
>> Vive le Canada.ca has already sent around 3000 of your emails to former

Industry Minister Rock and our current Industry Minister Lucienne Robillard
asking that our census information NOT be given to this giant U.S. military
contractor because of concerns about sovereignty, privacy and
confidentiality. Although Rock did not reply, the Chief Statistician of
Canada assured us our information would be safe.

>>
>> For more information, visit: http://census.vivelecanada.ca .
>>
>> Recently (April 19), Statistics Canada contacted Vive le Canada to say it

has changed the contract with Lockheed Martin so that the company will not
have access to our information ANYMORE, and will only handle developing
software and hardware for the census.

>>
>> While we are happy to see Stat Can starting to respond to Canadians, we

are still concerned.

>>
>> First of all, does this mean our concerns were justified in the first

place and Stat Can wasn't being honest when they said our information was
safe under the original contract?

>>
>> And second, how does Stat Can respond to the fact that in the U.S., the

U.S. census bureau assured American citizens that their information was
safe--until the Washington Times revealed that 5 million records from the
1990 U.S. census were used by NASA as part of a study to test terrorist
screening, without the knowledge of U.S. citizens?

>>
>> Or the fact that in early April, Wired reported that Lockheed-Martin was

one of four government contractors that received confidential passenger
records from American Airlines--while doing "computer algorithm" testing? In
that case American Airlines also initially claimed that no information was
turned over to Lockheed and the other companies.

>> See:

http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,184 ... page_next1

>>
>> Or the fact that should any of the census information end up in the hands

of the defence contractor, it's also possible that under the PATRIOT Act
U.S. intelligence agencies could request confidential information from
Lockheed-Martin without ever disclosing that fact to the public?

>>
>> And even if Lockheed-Martin no longer has any access to our information,

that still doesn't change the fact that the census was contracted out in the
first place...and that we are still giving such a large, important contract
to a U.S. military company that also has so much to do with the proposed
"missile defence" system.

>>
>> It's time to take action. We need your help.
>>
>> Join Vive le Canada.ca in telling Stat Can to "Count Me Out" of the

Lockheed-Martin census, by

>> BOYCOTTING the census testing! Just visit: http://census.vivelecanada.ca
>>
>> It's completely legal and unlike the real census, there are NO fines for

boycotting the testing.

>>
>> Together, we can tell Statistics Canada that this country is not for sale!
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> Susan Thompson
>> (on behalf of Vive le Canada.ca's board and advisory board)
>> http://www.vivelecanada.ca
>>
>> PS Please forward this email on to your email contacts. We need your help

to make this action work, and the best way to help is to pass this on to as
many people as possible!

By bother who lives in Ottawa works for stats Canada. I'll ask him what the hell going on.

You do that, Adam. In the meantime, if you get a census form just write Vive le Canada across it in red and send it on back.

I hear our gov't is also contracting out MSP to an American company. Wonderful thing this privitization / sarcasm. Wouldn't want to supply our population with jobs....no...must save money..must have people on EI/welfare.....yeah Canada

i don't understand why lockheed martin would be involed with taking surveys? aren't there other companies that do that as their main business like angus ried polling? how hard would it be fore them to write their questions down on a piece of paper rather than call you at dinner time. i'm sure lockheed would use whatever info they collect to discover new ways to blow up people

IÂ’m almost positive there is a federal committee what does the census through stats Canada. I donÂ’t know why they would contract out. I know they hire 1000Â’s of volunteers but why contract out to a rocket manufacturer in the USA.

Why indeed? Yet they are. Here's another pertinent question. Why aren't the Conservatives bringing it up in the House of Commons? They are the official opposition after all.

Stay tuned to Vive le Canada for updates. You can also download posters to enlighten other Canadians there. Don't forget to send an e-mail of opposition to Lockheed Martin being involved in the Canadian census while you're there.

Just got this email today... talk about timing l;ol...

Subject: Bill Blaikie's Question Period Highlights

Lockheed Martin and the Canadian Census
Tuesday April 20, 2004
Hon. Bill Blaikie (WinnipegÂ—Transcona, NDP): Mr. Speaker, I want to say that it comes as no surprise to us that the Prime Minister is not an incarnation of innocence when it comes to contracts.

I have another question for the Prime Minister, welcoming him back from the campaign trail, where he is out there re-announcing ChrÃ©tien policies at the same time as he is trying to put distance between himself and the former prime minister. I want to give the Prime Minister an opportunity not to campaign but to govern and not to re-announce but to actually renounce a policy of the ChrÃ©tien government.

Will he stand up in the House today and tell us that the contract with Lockheed Martin to conduct the Canadian census is going to be dropped?

Hon. Stephen Owen (Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, the contract referred to was won through a fair, open and transparent competition. The Government of Canada has no intention of cancelling that contract.

Hon. Bill Blaikie (WinnipegÂ—Transcona, NDP): It was probably about as fair and open as the way that Earnscliffe won its contracts, Mr. Speaker.

We understand that there is concern now about the public reaction to Lockheed Martin conducting our census. There is concern about the effect of the patriot act and the fact that this information may well have to be shared with the United States, given the relationship between Lockheed Martin, the Pentagon and the United States.

Is the government not concerned about the effect on the Canadian census and public opinion? Is it not in fact reconsidering this contract? Will the Prime Minister kindly address this issue?

Hon. Stephen Owen (Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, the terms of the contract with Lockheed Martin Canada provide for complete confidentiality and security of Canadian census information. If there is any suggestion that this strict condition of the contract cannot be fulfilled, then of course the government will look at reviewing it.

www.billblaikie.ca

They are reconsidering...how to lie to us about it so we shut up.

How come the Conservatives have been silent on this issue? Do they support the private data of Canadians being accessible to the Pentagon?

Yes indeed, something to definitely hang your job upon.

This is crucial and must be answered by tomorrow depending upon which time zone you think you reside in compared with the time zone you actually reside in. . . . oh, and by the way - what did/does handsome jack and his knee dippers have to say about this all consuming non-question - shirly shirely he must support the ever 'let's sqwak about nothing' crow (d).

I wonder how many canadians are NOT gonna fill out the census if the Us company gets the contract?? I think ill be one of them..

A lot of people are refusing to have anything to do with this census, RH. It's funny, but people aren't really comfortable with the idea of George Bush having access to their personal data. It also demonstrates very clearly how badly NAFTA has eroded our sovereignty, since NAFTA is the excuse the Liberals are giving for Lockheed Martin's being able to even bid on a job like this.