I find February a paradoxical month, it’s the shortest in days yet it feels lengthy most times due to winter weather, the days remain short though if we’re fortunate the “mercury” rises and we can have a day with daresay warmth and that gives us hope. The groundhogs predicted a mix of outcomes; I go with Wiarton Willie who provided hope of an early spring.

There are any number of headlines to capture one’s attention, in eastern Europe the Ukraine and Russian buildup continues, though there’s reassurance that negotiations are ongoing. Here in Canada the “trucking” protests have revealed that Canada’s reputation as a polite, friendly, and unassuming nation is in tatters. Thousands of citizens were subject to noise; whether horns or idling transport trucks, to injunctions printed but not very effective. Now the Emergency Measures Act has been activated and the immediate difference is a main border crossing has re-opened. There is no indication how affected people i.e., those unable to go to work, trucking operators that had operations disrupted, businesses that were shuttered for over two weeks; will ever be reimbursed for missed wages, increased operational costs, notwithstanding the emotional toll of being under siege (depending on one’s perspective).

Citizens can protest, that is a democratic right, but when it disrupts and impedes other citizens’ rights it gives pause to those of us watching the mainstream news. Many of us were taken aback at how ineffective some measures were over the two weeks. As mentioned in a previous post the issues were multi-jurisdictional, there seemed to be no collaboration between various government bodies and services. Where was the incident management system to clarify who would do what, when would actions to end the all night “occupation” occur and by whom, what lessons have been learned? The volume )horns, fireworks, bands) of the protestors were significant, a review of the events this month may provide insights, as it was unclear if the “leaders” of the protests recognized that democratic process occurred last September–federal election and though just over half the eligible voters cast their ballot the nation chose the current minority party, whose leader continues as Prime Minister. The process to remove a governing party can take place in the House of Commons, one occurred in 1979 when some MPs did not show up and a non-confidence vote took place. Then Canada would lurch into an election period and that requires hundreds of millions of dollars to complete that process.

When billions of dollars are lost every day with concurrent jobs layoffs, more supply chain delays, and the majority of Canadians (60%) opining enough–the time for action was needed. These protests need to be over, it’s interesting that when the Indigenous people were demonstrating on their traditional lands, disrupted rail service, there was a different approach by the various levels of government. Our land is large, even in Ontario there were disparities in managing the protests amongst Windsor, Ottawa and Toronto. Different leadership, different resources, as we wait for this storm to pass, there could be more clouds on the horizon. Unsettled times indeed turbulent, makes a short month a real marathon. Namaste.

Categories: Uncategorized

Paula M

Registered Nurse Storyteller, Healer, Scribe, Transformational Leader