Stephen Harper & Friends Embarass Canada... Again!

Yesterday I watched the interview with the infamous British MP George Galloway on The Hour on CBC. Mr. Galloway has been banned from speaking in Canada due to his alleged support of the Palestinian government represented by Hamas, a democratically elected political party that is seen as a terrorist organization by most Western countries. Some of you may be unfamiliar with Mr. Galloway's background and the reason for all the controversy, so I'll do my best to explain.

George Galloway is a British MP who has served in that capacity for 18 years. After being kicked out of the Labor Party (Tony Blair's party) for opposing the war in Afghanistan and the war in Iraq, Mr. Galloway formed his own party, Respect. Mr. Galloway has been an outspoken opponent of the Israeli occupation of Gaza and he has given more than $45,000 in humanitarian aid to the war-torn region. The problem? Hamas is recognized as a terrorist organization by the Canadian government. This is of course is the reason why the Canadian government has decided to ban Mr. Galloway from speaking in person publicly in Canada.

I guess it goes without saying that I am truly disgusted and angry with our government and most especially with our Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Canada has long been seen as a tolerant and peace loving nation, but Mr. Harper has managed to destroy this image in 3 short years. You know things are really bad when the United States appears to be more liberal than Canada. The PM's blind and inconprehensible support of Israel and its illegal occupation of Palestine is mind boggling to say the least. He refuses to entertain dissenting views and has proven time and time again that he has complete disregard for the right to free speech and the opinions of the people he was elected to represent. Sound familiar? Yeah, Harper is Bush. Even worse... Harper is Bush with intelligence.

But Harper's diplomatic tone-deafness is symptomatic of a much broader problem: the international community's apathy for the plight of the Palestinian people and the criminal behaviour of the Israeli government. The Israeli's continuous attacks on, and economic stifling of Palestinians is nothing short of 21st century apartheid. But this time, no one with any power is doing anything.


Alas, my words are sorely lacking. Listen to George Galloway's speech in the British House of Commons earlier this year explaining the West's double standards with regard to Israel vs. Palestine:




Do you think this guy is a terrorist?