<strong>Written By:</strong> RPW
<strong>Date:</strong> 2006-11-16 11:14:28
<a href="/article/81428451-ol-chuckie-must-be-running-scared">Article Link</a>

"If they've got that kind of money to throw around ... then they should use it on farm programming or use it on science research, innovation and development or something, rather than hold another plebiscite on an issue that's not in their jurisdiction."

<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/canada/edmonton/story/2006/11/15/barley-vote.html">http://www.cbc.ca/canada/edmonton/story/2006/11/15/barley-vote.html</a>

   

The Farmers are the major stakeholders in this business, and if the current Conservative administration wants to lose the prairies, then they're well on the way to achieving their goal by essentially telling the farmers that they have no say.

But then again, unbridaled arrogance and shortsightedness have been Conservative hallmarks ever since Diefenbaker sold out Avro.






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"and the knowledge they fear is a weapon to be used against them"

"The Weapon" - Rush

   

Anybody who is against the will of the people is not democratic, whatever political stripe he may confess to be.

There are no wheat and barley farmers in Chilliwack BC, which is Chuck Strahl's riding in the Fraser Valley (the name has changed many times through the past 20 years). So the old issue of "representation" comes to mind. In this case, does he as MP represent Chilliwack in Ottawa or does he represent Ottawa in Chilliwack?

As federal Minister of Agriculture, he is not speaking to represent the prairies in Ottawa, but he is a dictator representing Ottawa's views on the prairies.

   

According to Inky Mark, it is not that Strahl agrees with government policy on the Wheat Board but that he is following orders from the Prime Minister. It is too bad that all of the cabinet ministers are nothing more than lackeys of the PM.<br />
<br />
I wonder how Mark has been able to get away with this? One has to wonder whether Harper has different standards depending on where an MP comes from.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20061111.WHEAT11/TPStory/TPNational/Prairies/">http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20061111.WHEAT11/TPStory/TPNational/Prairies/</a><br />

   

As federal Minister of Agriculture, he is not speaking to represent the prairies <<

You would have thought the Harper Government would have found someone more appropriate. Maybe someone from downtown TO or Vancouver. He's telling the farmers that they are "wasteing" their money by spending it on their future. He probably drives over to Matsqui and asks the turkey farmers for advise.

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Expect little from life and get more from it.

   

Harper desperately needs the city vote to form another government. City folks think that meat and potatos come in nice little plastic packages on grocery store shelves. He can afford to offend the Prairies, if he thinks the reaction from the cities will be favorable. Additionally, the Wheat Board doesn't much affect Ontario and Quebec farmers the way it does the Prairies.

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"Son, if you wanna get ahead in this world, never work for another man as long as you live."

   

The name of Strahl's riding is Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon, and it is a category 3 riding which means it encompasses a huge area.
As for listening to his constituents, I have been having a frustrating time communicating with him the last few months. At a September 5th Town Hall Meeting I was shouted down by angry Conservative supporters for demanding to know his stance on Terminator seeds, GM foods and depleted uranium weaponry.
Because genetic engineering is such a crucical and misunderstood issue I have since organized a Terminator Town Hall Meeting in conjunction with the Coalition for a GE Free BC, Canadian Biotechnology Action Network, Greenpeace Canada and the Council of Canadians that is scheduled for Nov. 26th here in Chilliwack with Colleen Ross, Women's President of the National Farmers Union of Canada flying in from Ontario specifically for this event. We have also been contacting local organic farmers and citizens to participate in a round table discussion about Terminator technology and are getting signatures on a petition to ban Terminator as well.

In response to my invitation to our Minister of Agriculture to attend this event as an honoured guest, or, failing that, to make an appointment for a meeting with Strahl to discuss terminator technology even if the appointment is not possible until next year, this is what I received:

"While Minister Strahl appreciates receiving your kind invitation and your request [that he attend on Nov. 26, or failing that give us an appointment to see him sometime next year], he regrets that his busy schedule in the coming weeks prevents him from accepting.

The Minister has asked me to convey his best wishes to you for a successful meeting. Again, thank you for writing."

There's your answer - no attendance at our Nov. 26 meeting and no appointment for a future meeting - even if it is not until sometime in 2007.

Next we'll see how the Ban Terminator Town Hall Meeting goes. We will be recording it and sending a copy to Chuck, of course, just so he won't have to miss it due to the "busy schedule" that prevents him from discussing an issue that affects farmers worldwide and has the potential to cost just Canada's wheat farmers over 95 million dollars a year in extra seed costs, not to mention the havoc Terminator will wreak when 1.4 billion indigenous farmers in lesser developed countries that produce 20% of the world's food crops are sacrificed on the agri-business altar of monopoly and profit.

I'll keep Vivers posted on this as we turn up the heat.





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Michael

   

One would think that with his lung cancer, Chuck Strahl should realize that all these pesticides and genetically modified stuff in the environment has caused many problems.

Abandoning the Wheat Board could be seen as giving large US companies (like Monsanto and Cargill) a subsidized chance to exacerbate what they do with these things in Canada. This will have a very negative effect on the rest of the world's view on Canada.

For that specific reason alone, keeping the Wheat Board in place is important.