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Dude, I can't even, you're making my ribs hurt from the LOLz.
Freedom Convoy protests [Split from All things 2019-nCoV]
- Thread starter Quirky
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All 10 of them! Half of which were Reservists that went NES after showing up for one night of BMQ
FSTO
Army.ca Fixture
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Paul Wells latest on the role of the Feds. Hopefully you can read it all (paywall)
paulwells.substack.com
Some of the highlights:
The AG is a little excitable (my comments)
“I need to calm him done,” she wrote to colleagues during one supper-hour cabinet committee meeting on Feb. 5. She meant “calm him down.” Lucki could be an approximate typist.
This does not appear to have gone well. “ok so calm is not in the cards” she wrote 14 minutes later.
Who was refusing to calm down? Mark Flynn, the RCMP’s assistant commissioner for national security and protective policing, typed a strong hint a minute later: “When the AG talks like this, we better get our own plan going…”
Taken together, the two senior police officers’ notes suggest the attorney general, David Lametti, was flashing a level of mood most of us never see as the convoy entered its second weekend.
Cabinet doesn't want to listen to LE (My comments)
By Feb. 13, calm was no closer to being in the cards. The Zoom chat that accompanied an important cabinet committee meeting began in mid-afternoon, long before the committee meeting began if I’m not mistaken, and ended well past 10 p.m. The cabinet was debating whether to invoke the Emergencies Act. Lucki was on deck to give her assessment. While she waited, Lucki kibitzed with Flynn about the effect such a call might have.
The meeting ended 10 minutes after that.
Then there is the DM to the Public Safety Minister trying to on one hand learn his job and on the other find a way out for everyone (my notes)
As a public servant, Rob Stewart was not supposed to have strong opinions about the government. But he kept thinking for himself. And learning in his new role. So on Feb. 10, he briefed an ad-hoc group of federal ministers, a so-called Incident Response Group (IRG), about a chat he’d had that very morning with the lead OPP negotiator. About 80% of the protesters had a “weak connection to the cause,” the OPP guy had guessed. Maybe only 5% were die-hards. “The negotiator suggested that the leaders of the protest could potentially be encouraged to leave and denounce the blockade in exchange for a commitment to register their message with the government.”
Given the government’s “strong desire to not engage,” these were cheeky thoughts to entertain. But smart people, including Brenda Lucki, had told Stewart to talk to the OPP guy, Marcel Beaudin. So Stewart heard him out. De-escalation was a key part of doctrine, Stewart learned. “It was very educational for me.” Beaudin said if some of the convoy leaders — well, leaders “of a sort” — could find someone important to talk to, “this would have the effect of allowing people to achieve something,” Stewart said. And they might go home. Not all of them, of course. But the intensive police action that would follow would at least face a smaller crowd of holdouts.
“So the intention would have been —” Chaudhury began.
Stewart finished her thought. “— Shrink it.”
Thank you for reading Paul Wells. This post is public so feel free to share it.
Share
So now here was Stewart, caught between what his government sure didn’t want and what his police contacts said might work. Inevitably, he got squeezed. It didn’t take long. On Feb. 11, a day after Stewart briefed the IRG, Mendicino learned that his industrious deputy minister had drafted a plan to have Ontario and federal officials talk to the protesters, as Ottawa officials and any number of cops had already been doing.
Mendicino hit the roof. Or more precisely, he hit his phone to text Katie Telford, the prime minister’s chief of staff, and let her know he had brought his DM back into line.
“Inconsistent with good info flow.” Chef’s kiss. In English, this translates as “Too much info was flowing.” The strong desire to not engage won, as it often does in Trudeau’s Ottawa.
It appears that this government (maybe all governments) like to keep their heads down and wish it all to go away. Handing out cheques and making feel good announcements are easy. Doing the bloody job of leading the country is hard and thankless and if you are not up to it then GTFO.
Strong desire to not engage
If you don't listen, you won't hear anyone disagreeing
paulwells.substack.com
Some of the highlights:
The AG is a little excitable (my comments)
“I need to calm him done,” she wrote to colleagues during one supper-hour cabinet committee meeting on Feb. 5. She meant “calm him down.” Lucki could be an approximate typist.
This does not appear to have gone well. “ok so calm is not in the cards” she wrote 14 minutes later.
Who was refusing to calm down? Mark Flynn, the RCMP’s assistant commissioner for national security and protective policing, typed a strong hint a minute later: “When the AG talks like this, we better get our own plan going…”
Taken together, the two senior police officers’ notes suggest the attorney general, David Lametti, was flashing a level of mood most of us never see as the convoy entered its second weekend.
Cabinet doesn't want to listen to LE (My comments)
By Feb. 13, calm was no closer to being in the cards. The Zoom chat that accompanied an important cabinet committee meeting began in mid-afternoon, long before the committee meeting began if I’m not mistaken, and ended well past 10 p.m. The cabinet was debating whether to invoke the Emergencies Act. Lucki was on deck to give her assessment. While she waited, Lucki kibitzed with Flynn about the effect such a call might have.
An hour later, Lucki had given up hope of making her report. “so doesn’t look like I will be reporting on anything”
The meeting ended 10 minutes after that.
Then there is the DM to the Public Safety Minister trying to on one hand learn his job and on the other find a way out for everyone (my notes)
As a public servant, Rob Stewart was not supposed to have strong opinions about the government. But he kept thinking for himself. And learning in his new role. So on Feb. 10, he briefed an ad-hoc group of federal ministers, a so-called Incident Response Group (IRG), about a chat he’d had that very morning with the lead OPP negotiator. About 80% of the protesters had a “weak connection to the cause,” the OPP guy had guessed. Maybe only 5% were die-hards. “The negotiator suggested that the leaders of the protest could potentially be encouraged to leave and denounce the blockade in exchange for a commitment to register their message with the government.”
Given the government’s “strong desire to not engage,” these were cheeky thoughts to entertain. But smart people, including Brenda Lucki, had told Stewart to talk to the OPP guy, Marcel Beaudin. So Stewart heard him out. De-escalation was a key part of doctrine, Stewart learned. “It was very educational for me.” Beaudin said if some of the convoy leaders — well, leaders “of a sort” — could find someone important to talk to, “this would have the effect of allowing people to achieve something,” Stewart said. And they might go home. Not all of them, of course. But the intensive police action that would follow would at least face a smaller crowd of holdouts.
“So the intention would have been —” Chaudhury began.
Stewart finished her thought. “— Shrink it.”
Thank you for reading Paul Wells. This post is public so feel free to share it.
Share
So now here was Stewart, caught between what his government sure didn’t want and what his police contacts said might work. Inevitably, he got squeezed. It didn’t take long. On Feb. 11, a day after Stewart briefed the IRG, Mendicino learned that his industrious deputy minister had drafted a plan to have Ontario and federal officials talk to the protesters, as Ottawa officials and any number of cops had already been doing.
Mendicino hit the roof. Or more precisely, he hit his phone to text Katie Telford, the prime minister’s chief of staff, and let her know he had brought his DM back into line.
“Inconsistent with good info flow.” Chef’s kiss. In English, this translates as “Too much info was flowing.” The strong desire to not engage won, as it often does in Trudeau’s Ottawa.
It appears that this government (maybe all governments) like to keep their heads down and wish it all to go away. Handing out cheques and making feel good announcements are easy. Doing the bloody job of leading the country is hard and thankless and if you are not up to it then GTFO.
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^ This, for sure.
Not passively head down, but actively shaping an escalation framework that would suit the agenda to (in their own minds) enact the EA.
Edit to add:
The IRG isn’t ad hoc, it’s a extant sub-group of senior cabinet ministers (led by the PM) to address critical issues related to national security. The IRG has existed over many standing governments, not just something pulled up on a whim as the term ad hoc would imply.
Weinie
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Both of us.
Brad Sallows
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Well, the authorities may have lost the old automatic allegiances of some people on the right, but they've picked up a bunch on the left.
FSTO
Army.ca Fixture
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Paul Wells comments not mine.
FSTO
Army.ca Fixture
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It's actually kinda funny how all those protestors of "the Man" back in the 80' and 90's are now advocating for more control of their (and others) lives by "the Man" and the complete reverse of that attitude by the 80's/90's advocates of "Peace, Order, and Good Government".
Brad Sallows
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It's disturbing. My oversimplification of police agencies is that "the right" likes them to preserve public order by limiting crime and criminals, and the "the left" likes them to preserve public order by muting dissent and dissenters.
Halifax Tar
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Its the eventual evolution of it all.
lenaitch
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I noticed that as well. The PMO's National Security Advisor seems to have a high view of her place in life. Then again, it's not unknown that senior leadership pushes down actual decision making authority. I even noticed that earlier with the police liaison personnel and have experienced that personally. You are a conduit between the parties. You need to build trust and all that good stuff, but you are not the incident commander. And don't forget which side you are on.
I like how all this has been unfolding. Kinda interesting to say the least.
Now if Western Canada actually shut down the money flowing east along with products in a form of protest.
again we had a actual attack against critical infrastructure out west, RCMP had to remove Improvised roadblocks, booby traps to get into the site attacked. All this during the EA, yet the Federal Gov did not respond as such. This EA was only to quash the protest against the PM and his values. He has been called out around the world for doing do so. Even laughed at for doing so, he was afraid because he is ignorant and selfish not educated.
Now if Western Canada actually shut down the money flowing east along with products in a form of protest.
again we had a actual attack against critical infrastructure out west, RCMP had to remove Improvised roadblocks, booby traps to get into the site attacked. All this during the EA, yet the Federal Gov did not respond as such. This EA was only to quash the protest against the PM and his values. He has been called out around the world for doing do so. Even laughed at for doing so, he was afraid because he is ignorant and selfish not educated.
Brad Sallows
Army.ca Legend
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Somewhere between their war against critical industrial/economic capabilities and their occasional antagonizing provocations towards people they don't like, the federal government is going get us all pinched.
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Well, Jody Thomas was the Deputy Minister of National Defence until Minister Anand was appointed.
Make of that, what you will.
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I’d be interested to see if her involvement trying to communicate with VAdm Edmundson’s alleged rape victim (MS(Ret’d) Stephanie Viau) will be part of VAdm Edminson’s court proceedings next August?
…and then DM Thomas inappropriately contacting Viau noted in the article below, some questioning if it was a clumsy attempt to witness influence…
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As I said, make of it what you will. I have no particular insight into the matter.I’d be interested to see if her involvement trying to communicate with VAdm Edmundson’s alleged rape victim (MS(Ret’d) Stephanie Viau) will be part of VAdm Edminson’s court proceedings next August?
…and then DM Thomas inappropriately contacting Viau noted in the article below, some questioning if it was a clumsy attempt to witness influence…
