Fascism rears its ugly head among forces against Québec student strike

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Students, unions and other progressive voices in Quebec are condemning the statements of a high-level Québec civil servant from last week, but the provincial Charest Liberal government doesn`t seem particularly bothered that one of their staff proposed pro-fascist movements inspire the resolution of the student strike.

Bernard Guay, head of the tax office in the Municipal Affairs Department, recently wrote a vehement online letter against the on-going student protests, which have rocked the province.

The letter was published on the website of the Quebec City-based Le Soleil -- but generated such an outcry, including a street protest outside the paper`s offices, that the newspaper withdrew it and apologized to readers. You can read the original article, in French, here in PDF.

The text was titled, in rough translation, "For an end to the student strikes." Among other things, Guay urged opponents of the student strike to:

• draw on the "fascist movements" of the 1920s 30s to deal with "leftists" what the author terms "their own medicine";
• find the  "means" to remedy this "wasteful and anti-social" situation by  cabal, by organizing a secret political clique or faction (his word was `cabal`)
• the cabal would mobilize masses of students to cross their picket lines, and also assault the wearers of the symbolic red square
• when you see someone in the street wearing a red square, confront them, respond to the `bullying` of the students with a challenge
• "people who oppose the views in the left-wing controlled media (sic) must develop their own media... (such as the) popular radio stations in the regions of Quebec (which) worry our leftists, so they are constantly trying to discredit them by calling them trash-radio."

We must do everything, he says, to "overcome the tyranny of Leftist agitators" he writes.

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From the frying pan...

The [Ontario] Tories' push to force an election is not to protect the people of Ontario, but to advance their goal of building Tory majorities at the provincial and federal level, and of using their majority to introduce even more restrictions on civil, labour and democratic rights, undermining social and equality rights, driving down living standards, stripping the province of its public assets and natural wealth, militarizing the economy, and removing all impediments to unbridled corporate power and profiteering in Ontario.  Defeating the Liberals to enable the Tories would be akin to jumping out of the frying pan into the fire. Working people must mobilize, organize and unite in mass, independent political action to defeat this budget, and force this minority government to bring in a new budget crafted to address people's needs, not corporate greed.


LIZ ROWLEY, ONTARIO CPC LEADER, IN PEOPLES VOICE NEWSPAPER ON THE ONTARIO PROVINCIAL BUDGET

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Common Statement of the World Federation of Democratic Youth and the World Peace Council about the situation in Syria and the broader region of Middle East

No NATO war on Syria or Iran

The World Peace Council (WPC) and the World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) express their serious concern about the growing imperialist aggressiveness in the region of Middle East and the new threats for peace with the plans of USA, NATO, EU and their regional allies to attack Syria, triggering and agitating at the same time civil war like situation inside the country.

Our two International Organisations salute the millions of peace loving people and youth of Syria and express our sincere solidarity to the genuine, peaceful, social protests and just demands for economic, social and political and democratic changes in the country, so that the Syrian people will be the masters of its fortunes, wealth and future.

Under no pretext do we accept any foreign political or military intervention in Syria, which is being currently planned by the USA, Israel and NATO hand in hand with Turkey and some Gulf monarchies, supposedly for the protection of civilian population and human rights. We denounce this hypocrisy and call upon humanity to oppose any repetition of the “Libya model”.

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Did someone say 'eat the rich'?

Money manager Jim Doak of Megantic Asset Management, a former chairman of the Toronto Society of Financial Analysts, has likened [Ontario New Democratic Party leader] Ms. Horwath’s proposal [for raising taxes for the rich] to “ethnic cleansing.”  “It’s nasty,” Mr. Doak complained to CTV News last week. “She’s defined a group, not by culture or by language, but by how much money it makes, and she wants to get rid of them.”

Source: The Globe and Mail

Hardly - the Ontario NDP will likely support McGuinty's austerity budget! We thinks the capitalists doth complain too much... - RY eds.

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