Rebel News Podcast - August 17, 2022


EZRA LEVANT ｜ China copies Trudeau’s language about peaceful political critics


Episode Stats


Length

32 minutes

Words per minute

170.62006

Word count

5,529

Sentence count

435

Harmful content

Misogyny

12

sentences flagged

Hate speech

10

sentences flagged


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

The Hong Kong police have a new public relations wing, and they re using the same tactics as the ones used by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to demonize and demonize his critics. It s no wonder that Hong Kongers don t trust their own police.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Misogyny classifications generated with MilaNLProc/bert-base-uncased-ear-misogyny .
Hate speech classifications generated with facebook/roberta-hate-speech-dynabench-r4-target .
00:00:00.000 Hello, my rebels. I saw a story out of Hong Kong. Their police are no longer calling
00:00:05.480 capitalists, you know, capitalist running dogs or enemy of the party. They're using Trudeau's
00:00:11.860 language. They're calling them disinformation spreaders. It's quite amazing to see the Chinese 1.00
00:00:17.680 police copy Trudeau's language. I'll take you through it. But first, let me invite you
00:00:21.220 to subscribe to Rebel News Plus. That's a video version of this podcast.
00:00:25.080 Just go to rebelnewsplus.com, click subscribe, $8 a month. You get my weeknight show, so
00:00:31.800 that's 20 times a month. Plus, we have four weekly shows. You add it all up, that's 36
00:00:37.600 episodes a month for just $8. More importantly, that's how we survive, you know. We don't take
00:00:44.580 any government money. Please go to rebelnewsplus.com and click subscribe. All right, here's today's
00:00:49.880 podcast.
00:00:55.080 Tonight, China copies Trudeau's language about peaceful political critics. It's August 16th,
00:01:13.820 and this is the Ezra Vance Show.
00:01:19.000 Shame on you, you censorious bug.
00:01:30.920 Hey, look at this story from the Hong Kong Free Press, one of the few voices left in that
00:01:35.520 city that's not controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. I recommend you follow them,
00:01:39.640 by the way. The headline is, Hong Kong Police Force vows to quickly clarify rumors and misinformation
00:01:47.620 with new public relations wing. Oh, well, that sounds familiar, doesn't it? Assistant Commissioner
00:01:55.820 Chan Tung, who will oversee the public relations wing, told the press last Friday that misinformation
00:02:02.440 and fake news were largely behind the deteriorating relationship between the police and the public.
00:02:09.180 Really? So a police commissioner will now determine what is misinformation and fake news. And you see,
00:02:16.100 that's the real reason why Hong Kongers fear and hate their police now. Not that they're enforcing
00:02:22.020 Communist Party rules in a once free city. No, no, no, no, no. It's political misinformation. That's the ticket.
00:02:29.340 It reminds me of the Ottawa police, who atrociously decided they weren't in the law enforcement business.
00:02:37.040 They were in the propaganda and threats business, in the political business,
00:02:41.180 in the demonizing Trudeau's enemies business when the convoy came to town.
00:02:45.440 If the protesters at this point, you know, retreat and go home, are they going to be getting sort of repercussions
00:02:53.500 down the road? Are you going to be sort of actively pursuing the people that you've been sort of documenting
00:02:59.040 and filming who are still out there protesting? What are your plans after this, after the protest is over?
00:03:05.520 Thank you. It's a great question. And the simple answer is yes. If you are involved in this protest,
00:03:10.240 we will actively look to identify you and follow up with financial sanctions and criminal charges.
00:03:16.520 Absolutely. This investigation will go on for months to come.
00:03:21.220 It has many, many different streams, both from a federal financial level,
00:03:27.220 from a provincial licensing level, from a criminal code level,
00:03:31.420 from a municipal breach of court order, breach of court injunction level.
00:03:36.320 It will be a complicated and time-consuming investigation that will go on for a period of time.
00:03:43.560 You have my commitment that that investigation will continue,
00:03:47.300 and we will hold people accountable for taking our streets over.
00:03:51.260 Yeah, that's not police work. That's political work.
00:03:54.540 It's not the misinformation that makes us hate you.
00:03:58.320 It's the accurate information like this.
00:04:01.920 For what? Hey! What are you doing?
00:04:05.540 Failing to ID!
00:04:06.940 Hey! Hey! That's assault! 0.76
00:04:10.040 I've got it all on video.
00:04:12.040 What's wrong with you?
00:04:13.900 He failed to ID.
00:04:15.480 Yeah, he failed to ID.
00:04:17.000 Get back! 0.96
00:04:17.380 Hey! Hey! 0.97
00:04:18.840 Get back! Get back! 0.87
00:04:20.540 We're back. We're filming.
00:04:22.080 Get back! 0.96
00:04:22.480 We're doing our part.
00:04:23.880 Get back! 0.96
00:04:24.480 Don't touch me.
00:04:25.060 Who the fuck do you think you are?
00:04:26.760 Fucking pig, coot? 0.99
00:04:27.800 It's all on video. No, don't say anything.
00:04:29.820 Hey, coot? 1.00
00:04:30.500 Don't say anything.
00:04:31.340 You know what a goof is?
00:04:32.480 You know what a goof is?
00:04:33.340 You're a fucking goof.
00:04:34.480 Hey, Ritz!
00:04:35.320 Ritz, stand down!
00:04:36.600 You're gonna attack me?
00:04:37.400 Stand down!
00:04:38.420 Stand down!
00:04:39.520 What am I doing?
00:04:40.140 No, it's peaceful.
00:04:41.280 What am I doing?
00:04:41.880 Let them do.
00:04:42.400 You know what a goof is?
00:04:42.960 You're gonna attack me, you fucking goof.
00:04:44.800 Fucking not doing shit.
00:04:48.040 Touch me, punk ass. 1.00
00:04:49.600 This is going right to the media.
00:04:51.740 YouTube.
00:04:52.620 What's your name and badge number?
00:04:54.420 What's your name and badge number?
00:04:57.800 What's your name and badge number?
00:04:59.280 Oh, give me a big shit.
00:05:01.340 What's your name and badge number?
00:05:04.420 Yeah, you're assaulting.
00:05:05.160 Look, they're hurting an old man.
00:05:07.000 A Canadian citizen.
00:05:09.200 It's communism.
00:05:11.180 This is communism.
00:05:12.360 He's scared.
00:05:13.300 Fucking guns.
00:05:15.300 Communist.
00:05:16.120 You stand with the communist fucking government.
00:05:19.060 Call your police chief.
00:05:20.560 He'll back you up.
00:05:21.240 The government's going down.
00:05:22.440 Call the police.
00:05:23.300 Call your police chief.
00:05:24.240 Yeah, what a disgrace.
00:05:25.420 But evidently, the Ottawa police and Trudeau's approach to critics is a bit of a role model
00:05:31.720 for communist China and how they're ruling over Hong Kong.
00:05:35.440 Let me read some more.
00:05:36.060 The Hong Kong police force has rebranded its public relations branch and introduced a 24-hour mechanism
00:05:42.980 to monitor online smearing of police work.
00:05:47.460 The public relations wing, formerly known as the police public relations branch,
00:05:53.220 held an opening ceremony at the police headquarters in Wan Chai on Monday.
00:05:58.860 Local media reported Assistant Commissioner Chan Tung, who will oversee the public relations wing,
00:06:05.040 told the press last Friday that misinformation and fake news were largely behind the deteriorating relationship
00:06:11.060 between the police and the public.
00:06:12.540 Do you believe that?
00:06:15.740 Fake news?
00:06:16.860 Is that why Hong Kongers don't like their police?
00:06:19.860 So here's what they're going to do.
00:06:21.660 They're going to spy on you and censor you like Trudeau does.
00:06:27.080 Like his proposed censorship bills going through Parliament do.
00:06:30.260 I'll read more.
00:06:32.520 Consequently, one of the wing's major responsibilities is to detect rumors early
00:06:37.140 and proactively provide clarification as soon as possible.
00:06:40.600 Since the beginning of the year, the police have worked with a tech company
00:06:45.740 to introduce a 24-hour mechanism that monitors heated online debate
00:06:50.800 and words that smear the force.
00:06:55.000 That's exactly what they do in Canada. 0.64
00:06:57.940 The government here works with tech companies to monitor online debates.
00:07:02.500 Happens here.
00:07:03.500 Let me show you this.
00:07:04.680 This is YouTube's so-called community guidelines.
00:07:07.980 I showed you the paragraph about COVID-19.
00:07:12.080 As you can see, it censors, quote,
00:07:14.660 content that contradicts World Health Organization or local health authorities' guidance.
00:07:19.780 So your local health politician, your local health bureaucrat,
00:07:25.580 gets YouTube to suspend or delete your YouTube video if it contradicts the government.
00:07:32.160 So China is doing that in Hong Kong now, not just on COVID, of course,
00:07:36.720 but anything that criticizes the government.
00:07:40.640 I'll read more.
00:07:41.440 Chief Superintendent of Police, Karen Tsang, said incidents that occurred in 2019
00:07:46.800 when the city saw months-long protests and unrest showed that misinformation could cause profound and long-lasting devastation.
00:07:57.600 Devastation, eh?
00:07:59.060 That's how the entire Canadian establishment talks about the peaceful trucker protests and all its honking.
00:08:05.720 Devastation.
00:08:06.360 Just a reminder of some of those beautiful moments in Hong Kong's peaceful uprising.
00:08:12.140 It wasn't even an uprising.
00:08:13.040 It was a protest.
00:08:13.700 They didn't rise up.
00:08:14.480 They just raised their voices.
00:08:16.520 China is a evil party. 1.00
00:08:18.400 Hong Kong, no more to stand with China.
00:08:21.500 We need independence.
00:08:23.460 Yep.
00:08:24.220 And what's your message to...
00:08:26.720 Have you seen Donald Trump?
00:08:28.480 Do you think he should step in?
00:08:29.820 Donald Trump, don't trust China.
00:08:31.420 China is an asshole. 1.00
00:08:32.240 He wants the British government to come back and rule us again.
00:08:35.360 We don't want the Chinese government to rule us anymore. 0.99
00:08:39.320 You want the British to come back? 1.00
00:08:40.960 Yes, of course.
00:08:42.580 The Chinese government is terrible.
00:08:44.600 What's your message to people who call the old British government a colonial power that used to abuse the entire world?
00:08:53.900 No.
00:08:54.720 Simply we just want the British government to come back and rule us again.
00:08:58.700 It's that simple?
00:08:59.980 Okay.
00:09:00.180 So you think the British did well? 0.93
00:09:02.600 The British government did very well.
00:09:04.260 Why have we got an American flag here today?
00:09:06.740 Because we appreciate the American spirit.
00:09:09.500 We fight for freedom and democracy till death.
00:09:13.620 Okay.
00:09:14.340 And so if you could send a message to Donald Trump, what would it be?
00:09:20.720 Mr. Trump, we are very humble and powerless people in Hong Kong.
00:09:27.840 And we know that when the Americans fight for their independence, they need to pay a lot, like for blood and life.
00:09:36.060 And we are prepared for that.
00:09:37.920 And in any moment, if you can help us, like the American people and President Trump, please help us.
00:09:45.040 And I would like to have this chance to thank President Trump that speaks things in Hong Kong for us.
00:09:52.740 Because, especially a few days ago, he spoke with a lot of powerful people in different countries about Hong Kong situation.
00:10:02.020 And we appreciate that.
00:10:03.260 And thank you for him to help us speak out the situation in Hong Kong.
00:10:09.660 Peaceful, beautiful, grassroots, organic, funny, heartfelt, millions of them.
00:10:15.080 No, there was no misinformation or disinformation, but that's what the government says.
00:10:20.880 What exactly is disinformation?
00:10:22.720 Well, these days, it's anything that contradicts the politicians in power, right?
00:10:29.040 I mean, that sounds crazy, right?
00:10:31.180 That's what China's doing. 1.00
00:10:32.260 Well, that's actually the exact same standard that Canada's government, the Trudeau's government, uses to condemn disinformation here.
00:10:41.580 You remember, Trudeau's Department of Defense paid the University of Calgary to demonize critics of the liberal government as being in league with Vladimir Putin.
00:10:51.240 Seriously.
00:10:52.720 They said that anyone who doesn't support Trudeau or tries to remove support for Trudeau is, by definition, part of foreign disinformation.
00:11:02.380 That's nuts.
00:11:04.560 But if the Canadian government can say that, why can't the Chinese government say that?
00:11:09.680 And, of course, the most important thing to say as you're violating press freedom is that you support press freedom.
00:11:16.360 Orwell taught us that.
00:11:18.800 Respect press freedom.
00:11:20.280 The new head of the police's public relations wing said he disagreed that police actions taken against defunct news outlets, Apple Daily and Stand News, had led to a decline in Hong Kong's press freedom.
00:11:34.120 They literally shut down the newspapers.
00:11:38.740 They seized their bank accounts.
00:11:41.620 But that's because those newspapers were getting in the way of freedom, you see.
00:11:45.120 It made us more free to have those newspapers gone, you see.
00:11:48.020 Quote, the police force is very respectful of both press freedom and the freedom of individuals.
00:11:55.340 Anyone can express their views online.
00:11:57.120 But there is one important point.
00:11:59.340 They cannot break the law, Chan said.
00:12:02.260 Right.
00:12:02.740 Same in Canada, right?
00:12:04.400 The only problem is that the law in both countries now covers peaceful political dissent.
00:12:09.580 In both Canada and Hong Kong it does now.
00:12:11.620 This is a terrible, terrible story.
00:12:15.380 One of the saddest things in the world is to see Hong Kong, a beacon of freedom for a century, be absolutely crushed by Communist China, even though the hand, the fingers on the hand that's doing the crushing were the Hong Kong police.
00:12:30.560 But they weren't acting as Hong Kong police.
00:12:33.200 They weren't acting for Hong Kong at all.
00:12:34.800 They were acting as an arm of the Communist Party in Beijing.
00:12:38.680 It's so sad.
00:12:39.600 I wonder how much longer until Trudeau's police copy China's police and raid Rebel News' office.
00:12:49.760 It's not just Canada.
00:12:52.000 In the United States, Joe Biden nominated someone to be their disinformation commissioner.
00:12:57.580 Seriously, remember her?
00:12:58.940 Laundering is really quite ferocious.
00:13:01.100 It's when a huckster takes some lies and makes them sound precocious.
00:13:04.200 By saying them in Congress or a mainstream output so.
00:13:07.160 Disinformation's origins are slightly less atrocious.
00:13:10.900 Yeah, that's a little kooky.
00:13:12.700 The New York Post called her Scary Poppins.
00:13:16.380 And I think that her quirkiness and the fact that she just wouldn't stop singing songs, that's actually, I think, the reason she was driven out of the job.
00:13:24.300 Pure public ridicule.
00:13:27.940 But Canada is setting up a similar disinformation bureau.
00:13:31.960 Same idea.
00:13:32.940 Actually identical in many ways.
00:13:35.260 Surely designed in cooperation with Biden's Democrats.
00:13:38.200 The coincidences are too uncanny.
00:13:40.220 And there is no derision or opposition to the idea in Canada.
00:13:44.960 Certainly not from the 99% of the media Trudeau is renting through his media bailout.
00:13:51.120 And the United Kingdom is introducing the same idea, too.
00:13:54.020 They call it the online safety bill.
00:13:57.080 Sure.
00:13:57.860 Your safety is what they really are caring about.
00:14:00.740 We saw a sniff of what could be more to come.
00:14:05.000 A bunch of cops showing up at someone's house in the UK and arresting them for liking a Facebook post.
00:14:10.720 Remember when we showed you this the other day when we talked to Lawrence Fox?
00:14:14.280 No.
00:14:15.080 The Scripture Police would realize how ridiculous this is. 0.98
00:14:19.480 It is ridiculous.
00:14:20.420 It is.
00:14:20.900 I'm happy to come to this.
00:14:22.540 What did it need to come to?
00:14:25.200 Tell us why you escalated it to this level.
00:14:27.140 Because I don't understand.
00:14:28.040 I posted something that he posted.
00:14:30.500 You come to arrest me.
00:14:31.400 You don't arrest him.
00:14:32.340 Why has it come to this?
00:14:33.400 Why am I in cuffs?
00:14:34.300 Because it's something he shared, then I shared.
00:14:37.140 Because someone has been caused, obviously, anxiety based upon your social media page.
00:14:43.820 But not his.
00:14:44.280 That's why you've been arrested.
00:14:45.400 So you had terrible censors.
00:14:48.720 Strangling democracy.
00:14:51.660 Ending a century of freedom.
00:14:53.800 Ruining a once great place to live.
00:14:59.180 The end of an era.
00:15:01.680 What a shame.
00:15:04.180 It might not ever come back to freedom, I regret.
00:15:09.120 Sorry, that last sentence.
00:15:10.660 I could be talking about Hong Kong.
00:15:12.840 But I could be talking about the UK or Canada, too.
00:15:15.520 Couldn't I?
00:15:17.460 Stay with us for more.
00:15:18.520 Hey, remember this shocking front page story in the Toronto Star a few months ago?
00:15:37.220 People wishing for the deaths of the unvaccinated.
00:15:40.800 Complete heartlessness.
00:15:41.920 Now, allegedly, these were tweets that the Toronto Star found online.
00:15:48.360 But an investigative journalist showed that's just not the case.
00:15:51.660 Some of them were very, very obscure tweets.
00:15:54.360 Some were written ironically.
00:15:55.720 And others were simply confected by the star.
00:15:59.540 But no matter what their explanation was, the purpose, or the effect, rather, was clear.
00:16:06.140 That is exactly how the Toronto Star felt.
00:16:08.960 They hated the unvaccinated and wanted to whip up rage. 1.00
00:16:13.560 The number one newspaper in Canada, measured by readership, the number one recipient of Justin Trudeau's bailout money, measured in absolute dollars, whipped up a hatred against the unvaccinated.
00:16:28.540 Well, here's the Toronto Star just absolutely against anger.
00:16:34.300 There's an anger in the land, people.
00:16:37.320 And the Toronto Star wants to get to the bottom of it.
00:16:40.580 Just like OJ, he's going to find who the real killers are.
00:16:43.880 Well, the media will never blame itself.
00:16:46.020 Joining us now via Skype from Winnipeg to talk about this is our friend Spencer Fernando from SpencerFernando.com.
00:16:52.460 Great to see you again.
00:16:53.940 The layers of irony, the layers of, I don't know, projection here are too many to count.
00:17:00.080 What do you make of the Toronto Star calling for an end to anger after they whipped up so much of it, Spencer?
00:17:07.540 Yeah, well, I mean, it's obviously very hypocritical.
00:17:09.900 You know, if they at some point admitted, you know, if they said something like, look, you know, we've participated in a lot of this anger.
00:17:15.800 You know, we put out a front page that was, you know, trying to whip up anger and, you know, really seems like hatred in many ways towards people.
00:17:22.780 They may not describe it that way, but that's, I think, how many people took it.
00:17:25.720 But, you know, if they said, okay, we admit our role and in part of being part of, you know, the country getting angrier, then I think people would be more sympathetic to them.
00:17:33.560 They'd say, okay, you know, people are angry all over the place.
00:17:35.660 You played a role in it.
00:17:36.580 You're admitting it.
00:17:37.400 And now you're trying to tone things down.
00:17:39.220 But for them to just act as if they're just, you know, completely innocent victims, like, oh, what happened?
00:17:44.260 I mean, we had nothing to do with this.
00:17:45.500 We're so shocked that people are angry, but nothing to do with us.
00:17:47.940 But for them to do that, I think, you know, a lot of people are just not going to be sympathetic to their – what they're saying now is because they don't have the credibility to say that, you know, they're not part of it.
00:17:57.340 I mean, they were part of it.
00:17:58.260 They pushed, you know, an attitude towards millions of Canadians.
00:18:01.900 That was an attitude of, you know, hatred or dislike, very strong dislike.
00:18:06.900 And when you put out a front page saying, you know, things like, oh, just let them die, you can't really get more dehumanizing towards people or more harsh towards people.
00:18:15.860 So how do you think people are going to take that?
00:18:17.300 People are just going to say, oh, that doesn't bother me at all.
00:18:19.600 That's totally fine.
00:18:20.920 And they were doing that at the same time, of course, that Justin Trudeau was trying to run an election campaign on a very similar theme.
00:18:26.420 You know, he originally – before the election said, oh, we're not a country that mandates vaccination.
00:18:30.600 You know, he seemed to understand how divisive and dangerous it would be.
00:18:33.140 But once he started to get a little concerned about his poll numbers and an election came around, then all of a sudden he totally flipped.
00:18:38.760 And so the media should have been holding him accountable for that.
00:18:41.560 But instead, they largely went along with it.
00:18:43.060 And that's a big reason that so many people have lost a lot of trust in the establishment press.
00:18:46.740 You know, I think there's another reason why people are skeptical of the Toronto Star suddenly calling for harmony and love.
00:18:54.840 And it's because when they talk about hatred, they don't say, well, the hatred is in every human heart, perhaps even our own.
00:19:01.060 And let's all try and bring back love in this country and unity rather than division.
00:19:05.640 And, yes, we were part of the – they see not only are they failing to recognize their own role, but if you ask the Star, if you ask the CBC, if you ask Global News where the hatred and anger comes from, they will give a partisan answer.
00:19:21.300 They will say from right-wingers.
00:19:24.120 They will never say from partisans on both ends of the divide.
00:19:28.000 They will never say both sides.
00:19:29.960 They will always use it against their political enemies.
00:19:32.820 And I notice a campaign, the Canadian Association of Journalists.
00:19:37.720 I see Rachel Gilmore of Global News, the Toronto Star, literally asking the police to get involved in tackling people who criticize them.
00:19:47.940 Now, I – Spencer, I'm sure you're the same way.
00:19:51.520 If there is someone who's actually making a violent threat, absolutely the police should get involved.
00:19:57.360 That's in the criminal code.
00:19:58.440 That's not new.
00:19:59.520 If the threat comes in person over the telephone or over e-mail, it doesn't matter.
00:20:04.880 A threat's a threat.
00:20:06.040 But I think what these folks are doing so often is conflating conservatives clapping back at the media,
00:20:14.240 conservatives shouting back at the media that they felt shouted at them, conflating anger with threats and violence.
00:20:22.020 That's what scares me.
00:20:23.540 When the Toronto Star and the Canadian Association of Journalists say, hey, police, get involved,
00:20:28.160 I don't believe they mean just for the death threats.
00:20:30.560 I think they mean anyone who's mad at us have the cops knock on their door like they do in the U.K.
00:20:36.200 Yeah, that's what's concerning.
00:20:39.060 I think anyone who's making threats against a journalist against their life or hinting that they're going to hurt them,
00:20:44.720 that's obviously unacceptable, and everybody should denounce that.
00:20:47.500 Whether it's a journalist you like or dislike, that's obviously unacceptable, and the police should investigate that.
00:20:51.920 I mean that's already against the law.
00:20:53.200 It should be investigated, and people should not be fearing for their jobs.
00:20:56.900 You put out bad reporting, you shouldn't fear for your life, not job.
00:20:59.960 Your life, though.
00:21:01.320 And so that's not acceptable.
00:21:03.180 But the problem is, you can see what they're doing, is they're going to start saying, oh, well, okay,
00:21:08.180 it's not just threats that are the problem, it's the criticism.
00:21:11.940 And people who, they sow distrust in the media and sow distrust in the government,
00:21:15.640 and that's what's leading to all these threats.
00:21:17.700 And then they're going to say, well, to protect journalists,
00:21:19.780 we need to obviously crack down on people who are too critical of the media or too critical of the government.
00:21:24.560 And then they're going to push for legislation.
00:21:26.080 And, of course, the liberals will be glad to oblige them, right?
00:21:28.260 I mean, the liberals have been pushing in that direction already with online hate legislation.
00:21:31.960 They're obviously expanding the definition of hate, keeping it very vague as well,
00:21:36.040 which makes it easy for the government to interpret it in a very political and partisan way.
00:21:40.000 So I think that's the concern.
00:21:42.060 They're taking a very legitimate issue, which is threats against the life of journalists,
00:21:45.740 which is unacceptable and everyone condemns,
00:21:48.220 and then they're trying to take that and expand that and say, well, that's just a part of the problem.
00:21:52.560 But that really, those people are just motivated by people who criticize the media.
00:21:56.280 And so that's where I think they're going to go too far and they're going to push for,
00:21:59.680 ironically, an environment that's far less free and really makes freedom of the press non-existent.
00:22:04.760 You know, I couldn't help but notice that the Canadian Association of Journalists
00:22:08.380 who weighed in on this matter, I think it was the exact same day where Salman Rushdie,
00:22:15.600 the author who wrote the Satanic Verses that got himself a fatwa calling for his death,
00:22:21.800 and he was nearly killed in New York City.
00:22:25.420 So this shocking event that should send real chills through anyone in the creative industry.
00:22:31.240 The Canadian Association of Journalists didn't have a word to say about it for days.
00:22:35.180 I stopped checking three days into it.
00:22:37.740 So they were worried about mean tweets.
00:22:40.400 But they actually had nothing to say about Salman Rushdie being stabbed and almost murdered.
00:22:45.700 It's like I say about the Toronto Star.
00:22:47.120 It makes it a little bit hard to take them seriously when they're silent about the most egregious act of real censorship in our time.
00:22:55.200 Let me throw one more thing at you.
00:22:56.380 There's a senator from Alberta, appointed by Trudeau,
00:22:59.820 and she wrote a whole series of tweets about how tough it is to be a journalist,
00:23:08.560 and especially a female journalist. 1.00
00:23:10.740 I'm sure that's true.
00:23:12.540 I'm sure there's meanness in its gendered threats. 1.00
00:23:15.380 I get it.
00:23:16.460 But the one example she posted, I read it.
00:23:18.640 I'll put it on the screen right here.
00:23:20.700 There are lots of mean words and lots of insults, and it's very rude, and I acknowledge all that,
00:23:25.520 and I don't think people should send emails like this.
00:23:28.600 But there's not a single threat in it.
00:23:32.580 It's just someone who's really, really mad, clapping back at the government.
00:23:37.200 In this case, a Trudeau-appointed senator who will be there for 22 years,
00:23:41.420 and this lowly guy can't do anything about it, can't vote her out, can't hold her to account in any way.
00:23:49.040 So all he has is the ability to holler at her in an email.
00:23:52.460 And yeah, I don't like it either, but if you're such a political person as this senator,
00:23:57.860 and there's no way to hold you accountable, and you're outraged that someone would be, you know, use mean language,
00:24:05.540 I think we've lost the plot.
00:24:07.000 I think if you're in the public sphere, you should be prepared to take heckling,
00:24:11.040 and yeah, even swearing, even though we don't like it.
00:24:13.360 Yeah, there's a little bit of, you know, people wanting to have all the benefits of something,
00:24:18.840 but none of the drawbacks or downsides, right?
00:24:22.180 So you see it, politicians are a good example, you know.
00:24:24.780 Oh, yeah, you want a lot of power, so you get to legislate and control a large segment of the population.
00:24:29.760 You can destroy thousands of jobs on a whim,
00:24:32.400 but how dare anyone criticize you or say anything bad about you or send you a media email, right?
00:24:36.780 And so it's they want all the power, but they don't want the accountability or the downside.
00:24:40.540 Look, you're a politician, you're kind of a minor celebrity in the country.
00:24:43.820 We know celebrities have a lot of crazy people who say things to them,
00:24:46.820 and so that's just part of the job.
00:24:48.180 Now, I do want to clarify, obviously, I'm not talking about a death threat.
00:24:51.700 Death threats should not be part of any job and are not acceptable,
00:24:54.500 but you can see that they're trying to conflate two very different things.
00:24:57.220 You know, angry people who are saying they're just venting their anger,
00:24:59.780 and then there's people who are making specific threats, which is unacceptable.
00:25:02.640 So we need to always make sure that there's a clear line between those two things.
00:25:05.760 I agree with you 100%, and it's so frustrating for me
00:25:08.240 because some of our reporters have actually been physically assaulted.
00:25:12.300 Our reporter Alexa shot in the leg.
00:25:14.120 Our reporter David Menzies beat up.
00:25:16.280 And there was silence from the Canadian Association of Journalists,
00:25:19.220 silence from Paula Simons, this liberal senator.
00:25:22.180 Nothing to say about that because we're the wrong kind of reporter.
00:25:25.180 But you say a mean word about Paula Simons or Global News,
00:25:29.860 and they want to call the police.
00:25:31.380 I don't know.
00:25:32.320 I think that the media is just as...
00:25:36.500 I mean, people say Rebel News is advocacy, and we have too many strong opinions.
00:25:41.420 I don't think we hide our point of view.
00:25:43.880 I think for the Toronto Star and these others to pretend that they're neutral,
00:25:47.180 we see through that.
00:25:48.240 That's the reason people are angry at the media.
00:25:51.040 That front page in the Toronto Star, that was not neutral.
00:25:54.060 People can be mad at the media,
00:25:55.560 and the media think that they are like water.
00:25:58.680 They're invisible.
00:25:59.320 They're just so pure.
00:26:01.680 They are just as partisan as any politician,
00:26:04.100 and they just don't like the political accountability.
00:26:06.420 Last word to you, Spencer.
00:26:07.760 Do you think things are going to get worse in terms of censorship?
00:26:10.920 I think the liberals definitely want it to go that way.
00:26:13.120 I think a lot is going to depend on the next federal election.
00:26:15.640 You know, Pierre Polyev has been very strong on talking about
00:26:18.240 how he's going to get rid of the censorship legislation
00:26:20.460 and not let legislation like that pass.
00:26:22.220 So if the conservatives can win and they keep their promises,
00:26:24.660 you know, you can never really fully trust anybody in politics.
00:26:27.300 But if they get in and keep their promises,
00:26:29.340 then things could improve.
00:26:30.480 But if the liberals, you know, stay in power,
00:26:32.180 and obviously the NDP is trying to help them stay in power,
00:26:34.920 then they're going to keep pushing in this direction,
00:26:36.520 and the media just gets more and more like an arm of the government,
00:26:39.100 and you have the media and the government
00:26:40.460 both pushing for censorship at the same time.
00:26:42.880 So a lot's going to depend on the election,
00:26:44.660 and a lot's going to depend on independent media like ourselves.
00:26:47.240 Yeah, isn't that the truth?
00:26:48.080 Well, it's so great to spend some time with you.
00:26:49.600 Thanks very much.
00:26:50.400 Folks, if you're not subscribed to Spencer's email,
00:26:53.640 you're doing it wrong.
00:26:54.340 Go to spencerfernando.com.
00:26:56.360 I love his emails.
00:26:57.500 I follow him on Twitter, obviously.
00:26:59.420 And give us one more word.
00:27:00.820 You're starting a new long-form letter, right?
00:27:04.040 Just tell us a little bit about that,
00:27:05.600 because I saw that pop up the other day.
00:27:07.800 Yeah, I had a lot of people say they were looking for,
00:27:09.880 you know, a way to support my writing,
00:27:11.240 you know, not just, you know, one-time donations,
00:27:13.860 but on a monthly basis,
00:27:15.400 and looking for more long-form writing as well.
00:27:17.580 So I'm doing that.
00:27:18.600 Once every week, I do a long-form political newsletter.
00:27:21.020 There's quite a lot of detail in it,
00:27:23.060 so if you like to read a lot about politics
00:27:24.500 and you like my perspectives,
00:27:25.620 then it's $40 a month,
00:27:26.800 and you can sign up through Patreon,
00:27:28.640 and I'll send out more information on that
00:27:30.860 from people as well.
00:27:31.900 But I'm not going to stop doing my website as well.
00:27:33.820 I'm going to be doing both.
00:27:34.740 So a lot of work, but it's worth it,
00:27:36.100 and we have a big fight ahead,
00:27:37.200 so I hope people will support it.
00:27:38.960 That's great.
00:27:39.540 And they can get all those details
00:27:41.280 at spencerfernando.com?
00:27:43.080 That's right.
00:27:43.700 Okay, well, congratulations.
00:27:44.880 Good luck with that.
00:27:45.440 That sounds like a big undertaking.
00:27:46.940 Looking forward to it.
00:27:48.200 All right, take care.
00:27:48.740 All right, there you have it, Spencer Fernando.
00:27:50.180 Stay with us.
00:27:50.720 More ahead.
00:28:02.820 Hey, welcome back.
00:28:03.680 Your viewer feedback.
00:28:05.160 Randy, 1743, says they call it astroturfing
00:28:08.460 in the United States.
00:28:09.640 They are paid bodies to hold signs and make noise.
00:28:12.820 A lot of the people don't even know
00:28:14.060 what they are protesting about if you talk to them.
00:28:16.120 You're talking about these paid professional protesters,
00:28:19.060 astroturf.
00:28:19.800 I've heard that phrase because, of course,
00:28:21.100 there's real grassroots,
00:28:22.620 and then there's fake grass, astroturf.
00:28:26.420 I believe that at least one of the guys in Vancouver
00:28:29.460 is a true believer that Eichler died.
00:28:33.160 But from my own observation,
00:28:34.760 most of the people at these left-wing protests
00:28:36.520 are literally paid to be there,
00:28:38.520 and some of them are paid with a few bucks and lunch.
00:28:41.080 They are actually homeless people
00:28:42.380 or other people with great disadvantage.
00:28:46.480 King Tulabi says,
00:28:48.620 that's why the trucker protest had to be crushed,
00:28:51.380 because it was a genuine protest.
00:28:55.040 There is such a difference in my experience
00:28:57.860 between how a liberal protest goes
00:29:00.180 and a conservative protest goes.
00:29:01.880 I should get out more and do more street journalism
00:29:04.200 instead of just being here in the office.
00:29:06.060 My favorite thing to do at a protest
00:29:07.820 is just to say, why are you here?
00:29:09.860 Or, what does your sign mean?
00:29:12.680 And if you do that in a liberal protest,
00:29:14.380 they often don't know.
00:29:16.440 They often didn't make the sign.
00:29:18.180 They're just carrying him.
00:29:19.720 And they always say, well, talk to that organizer.
00:29:21.940 I don't want to get it wrong.
00:29:23.520 Talk to him about why we're here.
00:29:25.080 Well, didn't you come here?
00:29:27.060 You don't know why you're here?
00:29:28.760 You go to a conservative anti-lockdown
00:29:30.980 or a freedom-oriented anti-lockdown protest.
00:29:33.600 You ask them, why are you here?
00:29:34.900 Well, get ready to spend half an hour
00:29:37.500 getting the whole Megillah.
00:29:39.140 Well, Oceana23 says, from Seattle here,
00:29:43.920 one of our city council members, Toddler,
00:29:45.600 says, auntie, love pajamas. 0.99
00:29:47.500 Not kidding.
00:29:48.300 Good job, Katie.
00:29:49.440 I am excited that Katie is joining the team
00:29:51.640 and it was nice to have her here
00:29:52.720 at our world headquarters.
00:29:54.460 Seattle is an amazing city.
00:29:55.800 It's so beautiful.
00:29:56.780 There's so many wonderful things about it.
00:29:58.460 But it shows what happens
00:29:59.940 when radical Democrats take over
00:30:02.040 even a wonderful city.
00:30:03.180 They can wreck it.
00:30:04.900 I mean, it's hard to believe now,
00:30:05.860 but Detroit was once the most enticing city
00:30:09.560 in North America,
00:30:10.280 the city with the highest industrial wage,
00:30:12.480 the city everyone wanted to go to.
00:30:14.900 It's the city after Motown.
00:30:17.100 They were called Motown
00:30:18.240 because it was the cultural capital
00:30:20.320 for so many things.
00:30:21.920 And then Democrats destroyed it.
00:30:24.080 And I think they're doing that
00:30:25.860 to some Canadian cities, too.
00:30:27.200 Seattle is one they're doing it to.
00:30:29.840 That's our stories for today.
00:30:31.620 Until tomorrow,
00:30:32.740 on behalf of all of us here
00:30:34.020 at Rebel World Headquarters,
00:30:35.040 to you at home,
00:30:35.600 good night
00:30:35.900 and keep fighting for freedom.
00:30:37.880 Juan Mendoza reporting for Rebel News.
00:30:42.560 So Key West Police
00:30:43.680 and members of the Coconut Mallory Marina
00:30:46.480 had a huge surprise this weekend
00:30:48.560 as they encountered a large amount
00:30:51.020 of suspected drugs near their location.
00:30:55.360 Police authorities in Key West, Florida,
00:30:57.540 located three hours away from Miami
00:30:59.940 and located at the southernmost tip
00:31:01.980 of the United States,
00:31:03.820 found a large amount of suspected cocaine
00:31:06.160 floating off at Key West
00:31:08.420 on Saturday, August 13th.
00:31:11.940 Key West Police notified
00:31:13.420 that around 3.30 p.m.,
00:31:15.580 officers were sent
00:31:16.500 to the Coconut Mallory Marina.
00:31:18.680 The reasoning is that
00:31:19.600 a person informed investigators
00:31:21.160 that he found the bail
00:31:22.380 about 50 miles offshore of the marina.
00:31:26.220 The Monroe County Sheriff's Office
00:31:28.420 stated that there were
00:31:30.020 25 rectangle-shaped bricks
00:31:32.660 wrapped in green plastic
00:31:34.400 with black XXX decals on each.
00:31:38.620 According to the investigators,
00:31:40.040 the total estimated weight
00:31:41.420 of the narcotics package
00:31:42.860 is around 55 pounds.
00:31:46.820 These suspected cocaine bricks
00:31:48.300 were later turned over
00:31:49.320 to federal authorities.
00:31:51.300 Narcotics trafficking
00:31:52.260 has become a big issue
00:31:53.580 happening in the United States.
00:31:55.560 It's seen with the recent
00:31:56.460 fentanyl crisis,
00:31:57.560 where China supplies the materials
00:31:59.580 to Mexican cartels
00:32:00.900 to develop the narcotic
00:32:02.160 and then smuggle into the United States.
00:32:05.160 The effects of narcotics trafficking
00:32:06.740 is seen in this country
00:32:08.360 since the leading cause of death
00:32:10.440 for people ages 18 to 45
00:32:12.500 is opioid overdose,
00:32:15.040 mainly from drugs such as fentanyl.
00:32:17.560 Now, this crisis is also seen
00:32:19.120 with the record amounts
00:32:20.100 of narcotics that get smuggled
00:32:22.400 through the United States Southern border.