Behind-the-scenes of The Missive #2
The code of silence plus what I'm reading, watching and listening to now
Hello subscribers,
Last week I launched new content options for paid subscribers. Subscriptions are available for those who want to support my writing monthly or for a discounted rate annually.
Don’t worry, my weekly irrational report on the UCP will continue to be free for everyone, for always!
Since I spend so many hours every week doing background reading and writing before actually releasing my newsletter, I thought I may as well share some of that work with those who are interested ahead of the newsletter’s release. This reading and thinking shapes my approach to the final newsletter.
I’ll also curate some other content that I find inspiring and may be informing my opinions each week. This week, for example, I watched a show about amateur internet detectives solving crimes, read about how some US states are cancelling any discussions about race and relived an old story I had sort of forgotten about what Nestle did to mothers and babies in the early part of the 20th century. Crime, race and private companies killing children – just some light subject matter as per usual.
This small subscription fee will also support my eventual transition to retirement in the next few years and potentially help me with several writing projects I am exploring, including my experiences behind-the-scenes in the oilsands industry as a PR person, in the political backrooms at all three levels of government here in Alberta and in my experiences with activism while living in Okotoks in the early 2000’s. I have a few stories to tell! I will also test excerpts out with my paid subscribers in order to get feedback.
And I’ll share some of my photos you may not have seen anywhere else.
The subscriber posts will not necessarily come out on a regular schedule but on an occasional basis. My goal is to write these several times monthly, probably depending on the season (and the weather, let’s be honest - I like being outdoors biking a lot!)
So, here’s a free sample. These will be available ONLY to subscribers in a couple of weeks. It you’d like to join as a paid subscriber, hit this button up. If you’re not already a subscriber, why not join for free to see if you like what you see.
Thoughts ahead of this week’s newsletter:
As we marked the 10th day of protests in Alberta over the lifting of just about all COVID-19 protocols (now rescinded, thank goodness) in Alberta, I noted some social media conversations about various people who were being harassed or outright silenced by their employers for their comments on Twitter and Facebook. In some cases, the silencing was precipitated by members of Jason Kenney’s staff getting involved to contact their employers in order to limit their freedom of speech.
This is a good time to remind people of the facts of public life for those who work in the civil service. They are limited in what they’re allowed to say by strict codes of conduct. This is what is known as the “duty of loyalty” by the federal government. The limit is not only placed on what public servants say during the day at work, it covers their speech 24/7.
Employees of the City of Calgary, for example, must agree to follow a code of conduct that does not allow them to post any information that could harm the City’s reputation. They must always act and communicate in a way that “reflects positively” on the City. The policy also encourages employees to report other employees for posting inappropriate comments.
This duty of public servants is a longstanding tradition, but it does raise questions about fairness, limits on freedom and even whether this is in the best interests of society. It has been challenged in court and upheld, with some exceptions.
In Haydon v. Canada in 2000, the Court stated: "As a general rule, public criticism will be justified where reasonable attempts to resolve the matter internally are unsuccessful." In that case, two employees brought drug safety concerns out of the shadows after they tried - unsuccessfully – to raise their concerns internally.
Similar codes exist for all levels of government. If you think about how many people are employed in the public service, that’s a lot of people who risk running afoul of their employment contract simply by saying anything about the government that is “not positive” or that could be argued as harming the government’s reputation.
When you add in the fact that employees (and even volunteers) of non-profits and charities are also unable to comment about the actions of government without their organization risking the loss of charitable status, there are a lot of citizens with important information and voices, forced into silence. Or at least forced into anonymity. Who does this serve?
Featured image:
Sunrise over the Beltline in Calgary
Also, it’s been a while since I’ve seen any hot air balloons but spotted these two hovering off to the south of my neighbourhood this past Monday morning.
Reading:
For a disturbing update on what is happening in the United States with the hysteria about Critical Race Theory, Ms. Magazine has a new piece written by Carrie N. Baker and Marcela Rodgriques-Sherley this month that will make you want to scream.
To no one’s surprise, what began as a ban on a particular academic theory has now expanded to become “a catchphrase for any discussion of how race, class and gender function in society.” Teachers are being fired for even talking about race and the ban is creeping beyond K-12 schools and onto university campuses.
So how does this relate to Canada?
Kimberlé Crenshaw, is one of the founders of critical race theory and also coined the term “intersectionality” for analyzing how race and gender intersect in the lives of Black women. Jason Kenney infamously called intersectionality a “kooky academic theory” as if anyone can argue that marginalized people can be hit with discrimination from multiple angles and the cumulative effect of this can be devastating.
With Kenney taking such a personal interest in the writing of Alberta’s draft curriculum and his desire to make people “feel good” about history (as opposed to teaching people to develop their own critical thinking skills about the past), I fear it won’t be long before we hear about similar controversies here in Alberta. This is a lesson in how real “white fragility” actually is. I’m sure it’s another phrase that triggers Kenney.
https://msmagazine.com/2021/08/11/critical-race-theory-feminist-teachers-women-gender-studies/
Watching:
Ultraviolet is a stylish and surprisingly good Polish series on Netflix that I’m now hooked on. With two seasons available on Netflix, the show has a few annoying aspects but on balance, offers more entertainment value than expected. There’s an ongoing subplot related to the main character’s dead brother that just doesn’t fully develop enough to keep your interest, but the show features an unlikely band of amateur Internet detectives who really grow on you. Hint: it will make more sense at the end of season two.
There are social media influencers (twins who shoot videos on fashion and beauty tips when not solving crimes), a security guard at home with his newborn baby stealing the show and a wonderkid computer hacker who breaks into any system while studying for his high school exams.
The star of the show is Ola Serafin, a bored and recently divorced Uber driver who can’t seem to stay out of trouble. She has moved back home with her mother and spends her days interfering with police investigations by leveraging her personal relationships with various police officers.
The show is jam-packed with complex characters and interesting plotlines with a new crime to solve every episode. The themes of – policing that is mired in bureaucracy, the dangers and benefits of technology, the unrelenting determination to get to the truth – are a welcome distraction from the looming hellscape of our fourth wave pandemic.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7514746/
Listening to:
As a formula-fed baby myself, I wanted to understand what happened in the sixties to convince so many women not to breastfeed. I’ve always known Nestle was wicked (shout out to Dr. Hinshaw for trying to bring back this expression), but I had forgotten just how evil they actually were. If you think private companies can get away with murder, you’re absolutely right.