The Canadian ISIS Threat - courtesy of Sun News.

So I have a troll friend that is first off a pretty decent guy despite being on the right wing of the world political spectrum. He's from Prince Edward Island (formerly GreenGablesland until 1982). I will call him Mr. Pink. He's a good guy, respected husband and pilot (don't hold that against him) and like I said, he's a Maritimer and it's hard to find a more patriotic bunch. When people I meet out west say they are patriotic I nod but think 'yeah, but you aren't Maritime patriotic - that's a completely different level.'

Because you are a bad tipper. 

While Mr. Pink doesn't know Anne personally he knows and supports his fear-mongering media. He subscribes to Canada's version of the Fox Network- called 'Sun News' and it's goal from quick skimming of its main headlines is to continually push the mandate of the reigning the Conservative party while making Justin Trudeau, the Liberal leader look to be a pot-smoking school boy with no understanding of how to play with the big boys. It also like to boast an irrational fear against Canadian Muslims yet has no hockey-dedicated department in its sports section.It doesn't even have a hockey pool. And yet it calls itself Canadian. 

Mr, Pink likes to occasionally link posts like this on Facebook, which has made me block all sun news articles. So he now links me to these posts, giving me little choice but to read it and ask him if he has any clue how he is letting media manipulate or re-enforce what he thinks. I think he enjoys pissing me off like this. 

I talked a few blog posts ago that everyone should have opinions but that we should also be free to admit (and embrace) that our opinions evolve. Sometimes we are wrong; Columbus wasn't a hero, AIDS can't be caught from toilet seats, an isolated Ebola victim shouldn't be called an 'outbreak of Ebola' and for media to do that is negligent and sensationalist which of course, is what sells advertising on news programs and websites. 

We can change our opinions through education, spirited debate, getting high. Whatever you prefer, as long as it isn't done at gunpoint - which is why all this shit in the Middle East will never be solved through our Western views of problem-solving - throw weapons and bullets at it (by the way, who is selling these weapons to these terrorists anyways? Why don't we stop the killing at it's source - shutting down the weapons manufacturers). 

Mr. Pink's current link is not an evolution of an opinion he holds but rather a support of an already held opinion. In this Sun News 'article' there is no argument or basic facts that should make me or you (loyal Canadian in any town, Canada) fear Islamists. I don't think that they are going to be suddenly marching on our provincial capitals, taking over our natural resources, forcing us into trade agreements that are more advantageous to them than to Canada.

But that's another debate; here's the reason for this one;   

the offending facebook post...

This is Mr. Pink's latest attempt to try and get me to change my opinion that ISIS is bad and therefore we must, as patriotic Canadians willingly accept that we should send Canadian warplanes and soldiers (we have some new ones now, having bought some severely over-priced ones from the US years ago) 9500 kms away from Canadian soil to drop bombs and shoot rockets at a bunch of religious fanatics that have no standing air force, navy, or portable latrine system other than a shovel. Plus, apparently they rape goats...god, i love/hate the Internet some days. 

I'm going to dissect the article above- keep in mind that this was sent to me as 'proof that ISIS is a threat to Canada and therefore we need to attack them'. 

A MEMBER LOYAL TO THE ISLAMIC STATE IN IRAQ AND THE LEVANT (ISIL) WAVES AN ISIL FLAG IN RAQQA JUNE 29, 2014.

Credits: REUTERS/Stringer (

- first, this picture - this isn't in Canada. It's in Raqqa - nobody knows where that is. We might guess Iraq because that's what the heading says. It's in Syria. Remember, that place that has had an ongoing civil war for the last 3+ years? The one where we didn't want their current president in power? Well, this is who Syria is fighting now. They aren't 'rebels' but 'terrorists' - there's a big difference there ideologically and reminds me of that scene in 1984 regarding the ever-changing enemy the state is at war with.  

- Plus, it's ONE guy walking down the middle of a street. Sure, give me a marching platoon of goose-stepping soldiers and I might feel there's a bit of a threat there but come on, this guy is even wearing sandals. He's one angry Russian taxi driver away from being dead already. 

Plus, there's this 10 minute documentary about staged war-time photos.

But on to the actual article. 

QMI AGENCY

-direct from Sun's parent company, who happens to have former PC Prime Minister Brian Mulroney on it's board of directors as Vice President, comes the following approved message based on no actual facts but rather pure speculation because war is good for the economy.  

Authorities recently uncovered an ISIS-inspired plot to carry out a "knife and gun" attack at a "public place" in Canada, NBC News reports. 

- First, it's NBC reporting, official network of such truthyness shows as Chicago Hope, Late Night With Jimmy Fallon and America's Got Talent (seriously America? Got? Got?). To paraphrase; someone will be killed by either a knife or gun somewhere in Canada which will be ISIS-inspired but not necessarily someone in ISIS that does it. That's some fuckin' stellar crystal ball reporting right there...

Anonymous intelligence officials told the American news network "that some of the discussions raise the possibility of attacks on American citizens and other United States and Western targets in Canada." The sources stressed that the possible attacks were at the "aspirational" stage, NBC reported.

Let's start with anonymous. Anonymous is a great catch-all for stating 'nobody that will officially go on record so is therefore unavailable to collaborate this. Then lets go to 'some of the discussions' - meaning when? Over coffee? The CIA war room? Backstage on The Voice? '

...possibility.... so there's no basis in fact, just a theoretical discussion that we think could happen. There's also a possibility that there's a Friends reunion movie in the works, which happens to also be NBC property.

Then there's this bit ...and other United States and Western targets in Canada...  - what does that even mean? What other United States are there? and 'aspirational'? That's not even a word according to Google. It's hard to take seriously a news report when the sentences they use don't make grammatical sense. 

• MORE: CSIS keeping watch on 80 Canadian terror suspects nationwide

- This Link.^

Canada has over 35.5 million people. CSIS has stated that they have 63 open files on 80 Canadian suspects (according to the much more respected CBC. Of those 63 open files, their nationalities are not known. Being that there are currently over 50 organizations officially designated as 'terrorist' and they range from Sikh to West African to even the Jewish-based (Kahane Chai). Then there's the People's Front of Judea, which is not to be confused the the Judean People's Front or the Popular Front of Judea.

80 Canadians represents.0.00022535211267606% of the population that is being Big Brothered exceptionally close but as of yet doesn't have 'sufficient hard evidence to detain them as terrorists'. 

but back to the article

It's not clear which "public place" was targeted.

That's good, because Canada is a pretty big country so therefore to avoid 'localizing the potential terror threat, keep it as broad as possible. It could be Toronto, it could be Dog River, Saskatchewan.Just so white people are wary of every person of dark skin entering the Tim Horton's. ps - we can also justify these air force jets are needed in places other than airshows.  

Authorities in Canada and the US fear an ISIS-like attack, where either someone is publicly beheaded or citizens are slashed at until cops arrive to shoot and "martyr" the terrorists, NBC reported.

-I think Authorities should fear an American-style attack where some kid goes nuts and enters a school or public place and shoots a bunch of people after easily buying an American automatic weapon at the local Wal-Mart. That's what I fear. The odds of that happening are greater than any 'ISIS-like attack' in which one person that represents American Foreign Involvement gets executed relatively way more quicker than by American standards, which at last count for someone sentenced to death is currently 15.8 years.

"While I cannot comment on operational matters of national security, I can say that security agencies are constantly evaluating the terrorist threat and taking action to protect Canadians," said Jason Tamming, spokesman for Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Steven Blaney.

so to summarize, the person responsible for Canadian Public Safety Steven Blaney couldn't be bothered to provide a source comment for this story, and instead the Sun ends with a comment from his secretary about how well they are taking action to protect Canadians although they can't tell what they are doing due to national security. Yet CSIS can give you some relevant information that is actually pertinent to this story but that involves, clicking on that link...

So here you go, Mr. Pink; The actual threat of terrorist activities in Canada according to CSIS;

The head of Canada's spy agency said there are no signs of an imminent terrorist attack against the country, but authorities are monitoring 80 suspected Canadian terrorists who have returned home from violent hot spots around the world.

In a rare public speaking appearance, Michel Coulombe, head of Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), said 80 is a "firm number" of terror suspects in Canada "and we know where they are.".