As a former policeman who retired a dozen years ago after forty-one years of service (in three different countries, plus two UN peacekeeping missions) I have been deeply disappointed in the response by Canada’s police forces, collectively, to the various manifestations of civil unrest across the country over the past year or so.
If the police are seen to be ineffective, biased or reluctant to act the result can only be chaos. Your suggestions to the Toronto Police Service are right on the mark!
I strongly suspect that many serving officers are at least as frustrated as you are. But from what I've heard, it's a lot worse for them in the UK right now.
From what I'd seen as of a few months ago, all the difficult and dangerous work done to arrest dozens of car thieves had led to exactly zero convictions. That can't help morale either.
Given the state investment in the goals of various protester's, the rule of law tends to be somewhat mercurial. I worked in the forest industry on the west Coast of BC during the so-called "war of the woods" during the 80s and 90s. the RCMP were on site to prevent people who were legally entitled to go to work to do so as it would have required the extrication of protesters block the roads. The companies involved had to seek their own court injunctions and serve them before any protesters could be removed. On one protest, when the RCMP were late in arriving at the blockade, the logging contractor's employees took it upon themselves to clear the road and actually went to work. This was a source of embarrassment for the more politically correct company that held the license and the RCMP but it boosted the morale of thousands of working people on the coast. The protests eventually bore fruit and the provincial government preserved the contentious areas and unemployed the workers, a trend that continues to this day.
Protesters of any kind (including strikers) should never, ever, be able to impede another person's free passage. And that includes deliberately standing in people's way. To me, that constitutes a violation of personal freedom and threatening behaviour.
I - very, very respectfully - a) agree; and b) - here is the respectful part - you shouldn't confuse aspiration (i.e. hope) with expectation. Not with the society in which we live, in any event.
Hell no Ken, I never do! Today in Montreal we had the pleasure of dealing with the er, «Last Generation » environmental group. They’re related to the European group, known for defacing art and other charming actions. So all day we heard about traffic being shut down or at least severely curtailed for citizens trying to access the departures ramp. Turns out most of them took off when the Montreal police (SPVM) arrived, but three of them couldn’t because they’d glued themselves to the asphalt. Who the police obligingly unglued. So kind. You can bet David Clinton I was thinking of your recommendations!
Actually, the cops should have left them glued but then opened the street to traffic.
Oh, they should have warned motorists who, I am certain, would have tried to avoid the goofs but, you know, accidents happen. Certainly would have been an object lesson for the future.
As a former policeman who retired a dozen years ago after forty-one years of service (in three different countries, plus two UN peacekeeping missions) I have been deeply disappointed in the response by Canada’s police forces, collectively, to the various manifestations of civil unrest across the country over the past year or so.
While I understand and entirely accept that policing must evolve to meet the wants and needs of the community, the nine principles of policing ascribed to Sir Robert Peel circa 1829 ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peelian_principles#Sir_Robert_Peel's_principles ) are as important today as ever before.
If the police are seen to be ineffective, biased or reluctant to act the result can only be chaos. Your suggestions to the Toronto Police Service are right on the mark!
I strongly suspect that many serving officers are at least as frustrated as you are. But from what I've heard, it's a lot worse for them in the UK right now.
From what I'd seen as of a few months ago, all the difficult and dangerous work done to arrest dozens of car thieves had led to exactly zero convictions. That can't help morale either.
Given the state investment in the goals of various protester's, the rule of law tends to be somewhat mercurial. I worked in the forest industry on the west Coast of BC during the so-called "war of the woods" during the 80s and 90s. the RCMP were on site to prevent people who were legally entitled to go to work to do so as it would have required the extrication of protesters block the roads. The companies involved had to seek their own court injunctions and serve them before any protesters could be removed. On one protest, when the RCMP were late in arriving at the blockade, the logging contractor's employees took it upon themselves to clear the road and actually went to work. This was a source of embarrassment for the more politically correct company that held the license and the RCMP but it boosted the morale of thousands of working people on the coast. The protests eventually bore fruit and the provincial government preserved the contentious areas and unemployed the workers, a trend that continues to this day.
Protesters of any kind (including strikers) should never, ever, be able to impede another person's free passage. And that includes deliberately standing in people's way. To me, that constitutes a violation of personal freedom and threatening behaviour.
100%. Here’s hoping for some real change.
"Here’s hoping for some real change."
I - very, very respectfully - a) agree; and b) - here is the respectful part - you shouldn't confuse aspiration (i.e. hope) with expectation. Not with the society in which we live, in any event.
Hell no Ken, I never do! Today in Montreal we had the pleasure of dealing with the er, «Last Generation » environmental group. They’re related to the European group, known for defacing art and other charming actions. So all day we heard about traffic being shut down or at least severely curtailed for citizens trying to access the departures ramp. Turns out most of them took off when the Montreal police (SPVM) arrived, but three of them couldn’t because they’d glued themselves to the asphalt. Who the police obligingly unglued. So kind. You can bet David Clinton I was thinking of your recommendations!
Actually, the cops should have left them glued but then opened the street to traffic.
Oh, they should have warned motorists who, I am certain, would have tried to avoid the goofs but, you know, accidents happen. Certainly would have been an object lesson for the future.
Ha! Like the way you think, Ken.