On human rights

I am a Canadian,
free to speak without fear,
free to worship in my own way,
free to stand for what I think right,
free to oppose what I believe wrong,
or free to choose those
who shall govern my country.
This heritage of freedom
I pledge to uphold
for myself and all mankind.

The above words are from Canada's Bill of Rights. That document was the work of Conservative Prime Minister John George Diefenbaker back in 1960 (yes, this old dog remembers). How things have changed in 48 years! A prominent Liberal blogger spoke out Saturday in an open letter to his own party about his perception of a threat to human rights:

Yours is the political party that constitutionalized human rights 1982. Yours is the political party that passed the Human Rights Act in 1977. Now, in 2008, we discover that you are permitting one of your very own Members of Parliament to dismantle the latter. Or you are saying nothing, as he attempts to do so all on his own. Either way, your leadership is lacking. It is pathetic, in fact.

This modern day, self righteous twit is actually arguing against a recently introduced private member's motion by Liberal MP Keith Martin; a motion which is a much needed and welcome first step toward the restoration of our rights of free of speech, which were so eloquently described by PM John Diefenbaker back in 1960; rights that have been recently eroded and seriously threatened by our very own Orwellian Human Rights Commissions.

Folks like this have clearly become so absorbed in their own political correctness that they have made themselves unable to comprehend the fundamental issue of free speech. And that is exactly why they and their ideas are offensive. And pathetic. But then again, this is a free country and even fools like this have the right to say words that others may find offensive. And make no mistake, these words are very offensive.

But offensive ideas and speech must be met with debate and counter point. That's the way we do things in a free and open society. When we start to silence the voices of those with whom we disagree, that's when we are in real trouble. Worse, when the state decides what we can say, and what we can think, we will be doomed to the gulag. Hard to believe it, but it's happening in Canada right now. Slowly but surely.

And that's why we must support Liberal MP Keith Martin and his motion to limit the power of the HRC's and preserve that most basic of human rights: free speech.