Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Earth Day rally draws massive crowd in Montreal

A sea of people gathered in downtown Montreal for the annual Earth Day rally, under heavy police presence.

The march was so massive that, more than two hours after it began, a large crowd was still waiting to begin at the starting point.

Many of the demonstrators said they were upset by the Harper government's environmental policies, including its decision to withdraw Canada from the Kyoto Protocol. Others took aim at Quebec Premier Jean Charest's plan to develop the province's north.

"It feels like we're not on the same page," said Melanie Demers, 38, who brought her family to the march.

"It feels as if they're running a business, but I think that it's more than running a business to run a country or a province."

Police were out on horseback, bicycles and foot to oversee security, in light of recent protests in the city that ended in violence.

Earth Day organizers say they contacted Quebec student federations to remind them that Sunday's rally was peaceful and family-oriented.

The reminder came in the wake of a raucous week in the province's ongoing student movement against tuition hikes, in which hundreds of people were arrested during protests held in different cities.

But the focus Sunday was on environmental issues, highlighted every year during Earth Day events around the world.

Opposition Leader Tom Mulcair joined the march, remarking on the environmental "debt" the modern world has accumulated in the last generation.

"We are creating the most important ecological, economic and social debt in history that future generations will have to bear," Mulcair said in French, as he signed a symbolic petition supporting the Kyoto Protocol.

"We're asking future generations to clean the air, soil and water around tar sands, while we profit."

Parti Québécois Leader Pauline Marois stressed the growing importance of public transit in urban settings.

"We believe that we can further reduce our impact on greenhouse gas emissions by favoring electric transit, and transportation that uses renewable resources," she said.

The march started at 2 p.m. at the Place des Festival, with church bells ringing across the city to mark the occasion. Throngs of people inched northward to Mount Royal Park, waving placards and flags.

Montrealers heeded the city's request for people to use public transit, jamming the underground metro system and buses.

Original Article
Source: CBC
Author: cbc news

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