Actress/activist Daryl Hannah being arrested at a recent protest in Washington, DC, to stop the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline from the Tar Sands to Texas

When Civil Disobedience is Justified

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Last week I advised that we must be prepared to lie down in front of machinery aimed at creating the pipelines from the Tar Sands to Kitimat and, as I fully expected, got some heat.

We have to face this question before we get into morality and legality issues – why do you suppose that there is no public process dealing with the merits of this idea?

The answer is simple: the Campbell/Clark and Harper Governments know that we won’t try to physically stop the undertaking, so why bother holding meaningful hearings? To do so would raise the expectation that we care and would listen.

I realize that the above is cynical but cynicism has been Campbell/Clark’s hallmark since they took office in 2001, announced that the NDP had left us in penury and promptly gave over a billion in tax cuts to the well off.

(And let me set out once more the issue – building and using pipelines or tankers does not pose risks but absolute mathematical certainties of catastrophic consequences. If you take a “risk” without any limit on how often or how long you will run this “risk”, that risk becomes a certainty; the only question remaining being the extent of damage done).

When the public has no influence on the making of a law it has no option but to oppose it on the ground.

Let me make something clear that I omitted in my last article: the defiance must be peaceful. The example of Mahatma Gandhi must be the by-word. Such violence as may occur must be by the authorities, not the protesters. Please take what I just said as being in deadly earnest.

Moreover, any who disobey the law must be prepared to accept the consequences.

To the morality. Civil disobedience must be in consequence of a wrong being done, not a political whim. There is a large difference between protesting and active flouting of a law and one crosses the Rubicon with very great care. CD must be in response to a serious change in policy not warranted by any public approval. It is not enough to say that a free government approved the project because in our system, parliaments (legislatures) are not free agents voting the wishes of their constituents. Moreover our governments don’t even trouble themselves with legislatures – it’s just time wasted on getting a rubber stamp. As Finance Minister Kevin Falcon has remarked, it would all be so much easier if we were like China and didn’t trouble ourselves with tiresome procedures in such matters and just let the government get on with it.

Let’s get down to principles and morality. If a government, with its friendly construction companies, decides to irrevocably destroy large tracts of wilderness, exposing it to the absolute certainty of ongoing catastrophes, can they do this at their pleasure? Must the public be content with their right, several years down the road, to throw out the government after their policy is a fait accompli?

All of what I argue prevails with equal if not even greater impact against oil tankers down our coast.

Have we not got the right nay, duty to do all within our power, save violence, to stop this from happening? Are these not, in Tom Paine’s words, ”times that try men’s souls”?

Where is the illegality, the immorality here? Is it immoral, should it be illegal for citizens to stand against a tyrannical government which, hand in hand with its bankers, destroys our wilderness, ruins our rivers and the ecologies they sustain and poses the never-ending threat of horrific oil spills on land and in the oceans?

How can the people be wrong to reject the outright lies of government and industry flacks? What is the only option left a citizenry when a dictatorial government demolishes our land for all time?

How can citizens be wrong to stop, with their bodies and freedoms, the ravishing of nature’s bountiful and precious endowment so that world’s filthiest energy source can be spread like black ooze across one of the last wildernesses on earth?

I suppose it gets down to this: is it a sufficient answer for generations to come that we tried to stop the carnage they see by sending letters to editors and carrying placards?

I think not.

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About Rafe Mair

Rafe Mair, LL.B, LL.D (Hon) a B.C. MLA 1975 to 1981, was Minister of Environment from late 1978 through 1979. In 1981 he left politics for Talk Radio becoming recognized as one of B.C.'s pre-eminent journalists. An avid fly fisherman, he took a special interest in Atlantic salmon farms and private power projects as environmental calamities and became a powerful voice in opposition to them. Rafe is the co-founder of The Common Sense Canadian and writes a regular blog at rafeonline.com.

17 thoughts on “When Civil Disobedience is Justified

  1. @write my papers
    Well then it’s a good thing this isn’t a democracy (by the letter of the definition, this system does not function in a truly democratic way). What we have here is a dictatorship of the rich

  2. Could this be handled in a similar manner as the HST petition and resulting referendum, Rafe? And who will lead the charge?

    I’m sure that with the right leader and organization, we could stop this carnage. Bill VanderZalm’s little army of anti-HST volunteers grew to over 700,000 in a few short weeks.

    That was simply a tax revolt. This is far more important. It’s a protest of the people to save our environment for future generations.

    Where is Green Peace when we need them?

  3. Realist,

    There is not much to be accomplished in addressing your comments any further as we have not been informed as to what, or how, you have busied yourself in the betterment of our world.

    Demosthenes, really has nothing to do with this topic; interesting that while history notes this person as a great orator, it is someone who, in the end, escaped responsibility for what he spoke about by committing suicide.

    Quite ironic that you would bring this name up and then follow the final history of this person by doing the same verbally here.

    Still with the insults; do you have anything of substance to add to the conversation?

    Interesting to note that while you are of the opinion that this site is nothing more than self- righteous twaddle you then spend your time here posting your own self-righteous twaddle.

    Hello pot, meet kettle……Now run along back to the liberal camp. I’m finished with you.

  4. I was told to read: Harper in New York, at the Council of Foreign Relations meeting, Sept 25/2007. He made his evil agenda abundantly clear, in his speech.

    I also read: Harper’s speech on, Global Governance for Canada.

    Campbell is a butt kissing Harper’s boy. He did a lot of dirty work for Harper. Harper has grandiose plans, of becoming an energy giant. He desperately wants that power and glory.

    Harper burned his bridges with Europe. Giving those country’s false statements, trying to pass the dirty tar sands oil, as clean energy. Because, Campbell has no morals or ethics, Harper put Campbell in England as High Commissioner. His priority is to, con Europe into accepting the dirty oil.

    However, Campbell has not one saving grace. Now, they are buying Campbell, the OBC award, so he will have at least one credential, with him in England.

    This said old man, has more integrity than, Campbell and Harper have ever had. Rafe” IS” trying to make our youth aware of the dangers inflicted on the environment.

    Man is the most destructive animal on earth. And, also the most stupid animal at that. Wild animals don’t crap, in their own nest. Humans do

  5. I was told to read: Harper in New York, at the Council of Foreign Relations meeting, Sept 25/2007. He made his evil agenda abundantly clear, in his speech.

    I also read: Harper’s speech on, Global Governance for Canada.

    Campbell is a butt kissing Harper’s boy. He did a lot of dirty work for Harper. Harper has grandiose plans, of becoming an energy giant. He desperately wants that power and glory.

    Harper burned his bridges with Europe. Giving those country’s false statements, trying to pass the dirty tar sands oil, as clean energy. Because, Campbell has no morals or ethics, Harper put Campbell in England as High Commissioner. His priority is to, con Europe into accepting the dirty oil.

    However, Campbell has not one saving grace. Now, they are buying Campbell, the OBC award, so he will have at least one credential, with him in England.

    This said old man, has more integrity than, Campbell and Harper have ever had. Rafe” IS” trying to make our youth aware of the dangers inflicted on the environment.

    Man is the most destructive animal on earth. And, also the most stupid animal at that. Wild animals don’t crap, in their own nest. Humans do

  6. When have Harper and Campbell, ever used morals or ethics? They have used very dirty tactics, against the citizens of this province. We do not own those pair of evil skunks, the time of day.

    We have extremely angry people in BC. The School of Justice, has had civil disobedience towards them. Their vehicles have been set on fire. Their homes have been set ablaze. There were even shots fired. We have now, had a school set on fire. Their was the Stanley cup riot. There is fury, because Harper gave Campbell, with the dirtiest political record, in Canadian history, the High Commissioner to England appointment. There is rage because, the most evil and corrupt, Gordon Campbell is to be awarded the OBC. This province is a powder keg, and could explode at any given time. The BC people especially, feel the government has practiced, civil disobedience and treachery, towards them.

    Canada is no longer a democratic country. Wake up!!! Other country’s have taken notice, and said it in their media. Canada is a cesspool of corruption, in the eyes of the world.

    When people have lost everything they have, and no longer have anything left to lose, they lose it.

  7. Hey dan, what have you done other than complain about the government? Conspiracy theories are a dime a dozen, and your opinions are not fact. The same goes for most of the self-righteous twaddle posted on this website.

    Don’t like the government? Vote them out. Better yet, instead of voting against something, field your own candidates and vote FOR something.

    As for juvenile, I bet you don’t even know who Demosthenes is.

    Toodle-ooo!

  8. We have had many huge protests in BC against the Enbridge Proposal. Apparently the protests do not count in the eyes of the Joint Review Panel. Only registered presentations will hold water in the eyes of the JRP. Another fact to note is, the JRP is made up of three individuals, two call Alberta home and the third is from Ontario. If this is real democracy, why is BC not represented, and are our interests being looked after? Civil disobedience may be the only avenue left for those of us that don’t want our rivers and coastline ruined by Alberta bitumen bound for Asia.

  9. Hear, Hear, Rafe, and thank you, very well thought out and written, I concur, it is time for the people of BC and of Canada to stand up for what they want and believe in, our lands, our rivers, our wildlife needs us now!

  10. As far as civil disobedience is concerned we have a provincial government that clearly is working to usurp the public it is supposed to serve.

    We have a government that is unable to even comprehend the word benevolence.

    We have a government that has repeatedly been caught lying over and over about serious issues in parliament.
    We have to only government in power right now where the legislature was raided by the state police.

    We have a government that just lost a vote on a money bill.

    How much is enough?? Had enough yet?

    Then we have no government at all and the people in charge are just corporate sharks that should be removed peacefully or by force.

    Hey realist,
    While you’re here, instead of entertaining yourself with juvenile insults and casting dispersions on others why not tell us what you have done to enhance this world we all live in?

    What EXACTLY have you done to better our environment? What community development have you involved yourself in?

    Do tell us all because we are interested in your accomplishments.

  11. An old man stirring up the young to fight for his lost cause while he hides behind his keyboard. Pathetic. Remember what happened to Demosthenes.

  12. As we do not currently live in a responsible democracy, that is one where the decision makers are transparent and truly accountable to the people, non-violent civil disobedience is a valid option. Recommend people check out the Albert Einstein Institute’s work on the importance of non-violence and how to do civil disobedience effectively.

  13. Civil disobedience cannot be justified in a democracy. Unjust laws made by a democratic legislature can be changed by a democratic legislature. The existence of lawful channels of change makes civil disobedience unnecessary.

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