*flashes “hang loose” gesture*

Wikipedia definition of fascism:
“Fascists seek to organize a nation on corporatist perspectives, values, and systems such as the political system and the economy.”

The only transparency from the Mr. Harper’s caucus that I see is how they are trying to marginalize and gag everyone, from artists to intellectuals to journalists, or indeed anyone who may have a difference of opinion from them.

Here’s hoping fellow Canadian “extremists” will wake up to this fact very soon.

But seriously: I listened to Jesse Brown’s Jim Prentice interview on Search Engine ( http://podcasts.tvo.org/searchengine/audio/800838_48k.mp3 ) and felt Minister Prentice was at least impersonating a reasonable, open minded, informed person. He defended locks too but was not a jerk about it like Moore.

Perhaps they are playing a game of Moderate Minister / Wing-nut Minister on us.

I think it’s their motto.

But piracy is theft. Clean and simple. It’s smash and grab. It ain’t no different than smashing a window at Tiffany’s and grabbing. — Joe Biden

Apparently the US and Canada are engaged in a coordinated semantic assault.

Radical atheists. Radical Muslims. Radical lesbians. Just typing those out made me a-scared!

Radical podiatrists!

But then adding extremist is really crossing a line. Like saying “evil villain” or “thieving scoundrel.” Overkill.

So what IS a radical extremist? Well, it’s either someone who is EXTREME in their radicalism or RADICAL in their extremism.

Humans are silly.

Turning an entire ocean into a toilet as BP has done qualifies as both radical and extreme (if indeed either of those words begins to describe the full extent of that atrocity), but I’m willing to bet that if BP was willing to toss cash at Moore, he’d have no trouble generating sufficient obsequiousness to participate in a genteel sit-down over finger foods and cocktails to discuss logistics with a well-manicured rep from the company.

Usually for people like Moore “radical extremism” is mostly a matter of personal hygiene and cold, hard cash. They dial it up or down in their head in direct proportion.

Re Antinous / Moderator • #5: Biden’s “piracy” is not piracy, and his “theft” is not theft. Btw, “intellectual property” is not property. And an “Internet driver’s license” is not a driver’s license.
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Although in principle intellectual property can be a legitimate constructive social contract, in practice a corrupt political class is seizing more and more of the public domain on behalf of rent-seeking cartels.

Roll back copyright periods to five–ten at the outside–years. Then and only then talk to me about enforcement. And structure policy so that smaller entrepreneurial content creators, who presently are caught in the middle, can get more than crumbs.

.~.

worse; i’ve voted for “radical extremists”, attended “radical extremist” institutions, shopped at “radically extreme” booksellers, patronized “radical extremist” shops, researched at “radical extremist” libraries, and befriended “radically extreme” professors.

i think i’ll go back to bed. i must be dreaming.

So, if having certain views on copyright makes one a radical extremist, what does that make the anti-war and anti-oil crowd? Enemies of the State?

Who’s State is it anyway?

On the other hand, we’ve historically had organized terrorists operating inside the company trying to promote the independence of our favorite rebellious province which led to a nationwide state of emergency and martial law (see also wikipedia.org/wiki/FLQ_Crisis ), we have a couple of very determined bombers working on exploding the oil and gas lines in the northwest, and never mind the wikipedia.org/wiki/Oka_Crisis …

So apparently we’re sort of low key in our extremism.

Unlike Americans, we actually sort of have historical reasons why we might find claims of “radical extremism” plausible. We’ve had actual “radicals” or “extremists”, Canadians all, in our country, Doing Stuff, within living memory.

On the gripping hand, we have examples of REAL ACTUAL “extremism” and “radicals” in action in living memory, and they don’t look much like people writing angry letters to their parliamentary representatives.

So I dunno.

And refusing to take a good long look at yourself and your own actions before you sling such mud makes you an idiot.