Rebel News Podcast - Jason Kenney throws Alberta into a brutal lockdown. But why are Walmart and the NHL exempt？

00:00:00.000 Hello, my rebels. Today, I look through Jason Kenney's new lockdown on Alberta.

00:00:04.740 The first thing to note is that he said he would bring in these harsh measures

00:00:08.340 if the infection rates, or the case rates per 100,000, as they're called, were 350 plus.

00:00:16.080 So he said, oh, if they're really bad, that's going to trigger the lockdown.

00:00:19.260 But in fact, yesterday he said he's putting the lockdown in at 50 per 100,000,

00:00:25.160 one-seventh the level, a level that's lower than every single province,

00:00:30.480 other than the small population Atlantic provinces.

00:00:33.420 So what is really going on?

00:00:35.620 I'll take you through it point by point, and I'll give you my thoughts on it.

00:00:39.120 It's very, very annoying.

00:00:41.820 Before I get there, let me invite you to become a subscriber to Rebel News Plus.

00:00:45.880 It's eight bucks a month.

00:00:46.920 You get the TV version of this podcast, plus extra shows like David Manzi,

00:00:51.220 Sheila Gunnerita, and Andrew Chapados each have shows.

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00:00:59.680 All right.

00:01:00.100 Thanks very much.

00:01:00.640 Here's today's show.

00:01:14.020 Tonight, Jason Kenney throws Alberta into a brutal lockdown. 1.00

00:01:20.280 But why are Walmart and the NHL exempt?

00:01:23.660 It's May 5th, and this is the Ezra LeVant Show.

00:01:28.020 Why should others go to jail when you're a biggest carbon consumer I know?

00:01:31.820 There's 8,500 customers here, and you won't give them an answer.

00:01:35.920 The only thing I have to say to the government, the why I'm publishing,

00:01:39.660 is because it's my bloody right to do so.

00:01:41.760 Last night, Jason Kenney announced the harshest lockdown yet for Alberta.

00:01:51.400 He's banning pretty much all social interaction, both inside and outside,

00:01:56.940 shutting down countless businesses, and he's doubling down on his enforcement.

00:02:01.800 We are doubling the basic fine for violating public health measures from $1,000 to $2,000.

00:02:10.600 The maximum fine for serious offences remains under the law $100,000.

00:02:15.480 And we are introducing a tougher enforcement protocol for repeat offenders,

00:02:21.700 because we will not tolerate those who endanger the health of their fellow Albertans,

00:02:27.160 while the vast majority of people are doing the right thing.

00:02:30.460 But why is he doing all this?

00:02:33.580 This is the chart from the Alberta government's own website of COVID stats,

00:02:38.460 showing that the daily deaths in the province,

00:02:42.180 well, it's about five a day on average, 81 years old,

00:02:47.180 with on average three or more very serious health conditions pre-existing,

00:02:52.880 like dementia, stroke, cancer, diabetes.

00:02:55.700 I'm not happy that five people a day are dying from COVID,

00:02:58.460 but it's nowhere near the leading cause of death in that province.

00:03:03.040 And as you can see in the government's own graph,

00:03:05.800 it's pretty much the rate of death since the beginning of the whole thing last year,

00:03:10.340 except for that big spike in December and January,

00:03:13.340 when it was 25 deaths per day.

00:03:15.500 So it's down by 80% from 90 days ago.

00:03:21.080 So why is the government locking everyone down now?

00:03:25.920 See the graph for yourself.

00:03:27.240 The death rate was flat.

00:03:29.940 It's off the spike from December, January.

00:03:33.620 So why panic?

00:03:35.080 I know why.

00:03:36.340 Because cases are up, they say.

00:03:38.560 But what's a case?

00:03:39.800 Someone who tests positive, but doesn't even get sick?

00:03:43.320 That counts as a case, you know.

00:03:45.220 Someone who gets sick, but it's so mild,

00:03:47.380 it's over in a couple of days like the regular flu,

00:03:49.940 and then they're naturally immune to it.

00:03:52.260 That's a case too, you know.

00:03:53.560 You can't actually stop a virus.

00:03:57.460 They've been coming at us since we lived in caves.

00:04:01.340 People who get sick from the virus and get better,

00:04:04.260 that's not actually a terrible outcome.

00:04:07.100 If you're worried about dying,

00:04:09.200 and that's a good thing to be worried about, I guess,

00:04:10.940 how about focus on, you know,

00:04:12.780 the 81-year-olds with heart conditions and strokes and cancer?

00:04:15.840 I'm all for that.

00:04:17.200 Let's take care of them.

00:04:18.320 But the thing is, last night,

00:04:20.160 that is not who Jason Kenney's new rules focus on.

00:04:23.040 I know, because I watched his speech,

00:04:25.460 and I read his new memo.

00:04:28.640 Things for 81-year-old, very sick people,

00:04:32.180 they're not actually going to change at all.

00:04:35.620 What will change are the rules for everyone else,

00:04:39.100 people who aren't dying and who aren't even getting sick.

00:04:42.120 I don't think this is about health.

00:04:45.360 I think this is about control and power.

00:04:48.540 And it's about political games.

00:04:49.720 Take a look at this.

00:04:50.600 Here is the official list of rules.

00:04:54.480 Expanded restrictions for high-case regions.

00:04:57.980 Starting May 5th, additional restrictions come into effect

00:05:00.620 for regions with at least 50 cases per 100,000 people

00:05:04.100 and at least 30 active cases.

00:05:07.340 These restrictions will be in place for at least three weeks

00:05:09.980 and will be extended if necessary.

00:05:12.660 Province-wide restrictions remain in effect for all other communities.

00:05:16.940 Well, hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on.

00:05:20.020 Just the other day, Jason Kenney was threatening tough measures,

00:05:23.500 but he said he would only apply them

00:05:26.580 if the case rate was 350 per 100,000 people.

00:05:32.140 But now he's bringing in his harsh rules

00:05:35.940 at one-seventh that level, at 50 per 100,000.

00:05:41.380 What?

00:05:43.000 Literally all of Canada would be locked down under that rule

00:05:46.420 except for the small population provinces in the Atlantic.

00:05:48.840 50 cases per 100,000?

00:05:50.620 That's his rule for a brutal crackdown?

00:05:52.820 Well, that's not a good idea.

00:05:55.620 No one else in the whole world does that.

00:05:58.640 His threshold for a crisis is not a crisis.

00:06:02.100 It's ridiculously low.

00:06:03.520 It's lower than he said it would be just a couple days ago.

00:06:07.620 And look at how draconian it is.

00:06:11.360 Indoor gatherings.

00:06:12.760 All indoor gatherings remain prohibited.

00:06:14.840 Oh, just that.

00:06:16.000 Just banning all gatherings.

00:06:17.960 Except for his government gatherings, I presume.

00:06:20.580 The meetings of his cabinet to ban everyone else they meet.

00:06:23.360 They're very important.

00:06:24.120 Outdoor gatherings.

00:06:27.360 All outdoor social gatherings must be limited to no more than five people

00:06:31.420 and a maximum of two household cohorts.

00:06:34.540 Mandatory physical distancing must be maintained at all times

00:06:37.300 between members of different households.

00:06:39.620 So I got it.

00:06:40.480 So two people can meet up outside in a giant field with three people,

00:06:44.740 but they can't actually meet.

00:06:46.660 They have to stay six feet apart.

00:06:48.880 And that's outside, by the way.

00:06:50.920 Yeah.

00:06:51.320 Look, I know the political class, the media class.

00:06:53.620 They love this lockdown.

00:06:55.440 But normal humans will not do that, cannot do that.

00:06:59.440 We're social creatures.

00:07:00.640 Do you really think that even conservative MLAs will follow that rule?

00:07:03.900 We know the answer.

00:07:05.480 Half of Kenny's MLAs and even his own chief of staff

00:07:07.760 scoffed at his no-travel rule for the public over Christmas.

00:07:12.560 No one listens to these absurd rules.

00:07:14.760 Certainly not the ruling class.

00:07:17.380 And stay home, but only to watch TV.

00:07:20.480 Let me read some more.

00:07:22.700 Indoor activities.

00:07:23.600 All indoor sport, performance, and recreation activities

00:07:26.380 for youth and adults are prohibited.

00:07:30.420 Indoor fitness and recreation facilities must close,

00:07:32.840 including for one-on-one training.

00:07:34.720 Not a single person under age 20 has died from the virus in Alberta, by the way.

00:07:40.340 I don't think that indoor sports for youth are the problem, do you?

00:07:44.400 There are no 81-year-old triple sick people in those groups that were just banned.

00:07:49.900 Neither are there 20-something coaches.

00:07:53.220 Why are you punishing kids by making them unhealthy?

00:07:56.520 You can't go to sports.

00:07:57.220 You can't work out.

00:07:57.800 Why do you think this will suddenly make people in seniors' homes safer?

00:08:04.680 Now look at this juxtaposition.

00:08:06.480 Look at this.

00:08:07.960 Outdoor activities.

00:08:09.080 All outdoor activities and recreation activities are prohibited,

00:08:12.120 except with members of your household or your two close contacts if you live alone.

00:08:16.300 This includes all group physical activities, such as team sports,

00:08:21.140 fitness classes, training sessions, and one-on-one sessions,

00:08:23.420 and training activities, all practices, training and games.

00:08:26.260 Again, I don't think there's a lot of 81-year-olds with strokes and diabetes and cancer

00:08:32.480 that are being covered here.

00:08:35.000 But no team sports at all.

00:08:36.860 No kids sports.

00:08:37.860 Nothing.

00:08:40.000 But look at this next bullet point and realize what's going here.

00:08:42.860 This is not about health.

00:08:44.980 This is about power and influence and who's on the inside and who's on the outside.

00:08:49.160 Look at this next point.

00:08:52.360 Professional sport organizations.

00:08:54.320 Professional sport organizations that have received an exemption can continue,

00:09:01.140 provided protocols are strictly followed.

00:09:03.060 Oh, oh.

00:09:05.420 I thought it was dangerous to do team sports.

00:09:09.460 I thought people were really, really bad if they did that and needed extra enforcement.

00:09:15.840 I thought they hated society if they did that.

00:09:19.860 Not only do NHL players get to play while your kids don't,

00:09:24.840 but their exemptions include the right for them to have their whole entourage go out to restaurants for dinner

00:09:31.300 and have those restaurants open up to serve them, but only them.

00:09:35.420 See, your problem as a citizen or as a kid who wants to play hockey is that you don't have the right lobbyists

00:09:42.940 and you're not millionaires playing hockey for billionaires.

00:09:46.940 You're just kids wanting to burn off some energy and hang out with friends and have fun.

00:09:50.860 See, the virus doesn't touch the millionaires, you see.

00:09:53.720 That's science, you see.

00:09:55.320 Now look at this about stores.

00:09:59.240 Mandatory additional restrictions for high case regions effective May 5th.

00:10:03.400 Remember, they're calling high case regions 50 cases or more,

00:10:06.920 when just two days ago, Kenny said it was 350 cases or more.

00:10:10.380 He lowered what he calls high case rates.

00:10:12.520 Let me read.

00:10:14.000 Retail services must limit customer capacity to 10% of fire code occupancy, not including staff,

00:10:20.700 or a minimum of five customers.

00:10:23.460 So stores can have 10% of their fire code capacity.

00:10:27.120 So a Walmart that could legally hold, say, I don't know, 1,000 or 1,500 people can take 10% of that,

00:10:35.860 so 100 or 150 at a time, as if they even count, as if they even limit it.

00:10:41.420 But look at this.

00:10:43.840 Mandatory additional restrictions for high case regions.

00:10:47.640 Faith services are limited to 15 in-person attendees.

00:10:54.740 Physical distancing must, between households must be maintained at all times.

00:10:59.700 Hang on, hang on, hang on.

00:11:00.620 Did you catch that?

00:11:03.320 You just said that Walmart could have 10% of its fire code.

00:11:08.080 So it's a proportion of its size.

00:11:11.280 So that could be hundreds.

00:11:13.640 But a church, even a large church, even what they call megachurches, it could hold thousands,

00:11:21.600 they can only have 15 people no matter how large they are?

00:11:25.820 So Walmart gets 10% of their capacity, but a huge church doesn't?

00:11:31.700 That's obviously absurd.

00:11:33.540 It's like California.

00:11:34.620 You know, they banned singing in churches, but not in Hollywood studios.

00:11:42.700 That's why the Supreme Court of the United States struck down that ban, because it was bigoted against churches.

00:11:47.000 Just like these rules are.

00:11:48.180 There's a church, as you know, in Calgary.

00:11:50.040 The Center Street Church holds over 3,000 people.

00:11:53.540 They're only allowed 15.

00:11:54.720 You know, Kenny changed the terms of his deal.

00:11:57.800 He said he'd crack down on regions of the province that had 350 cases per 100,000.

00:12:03.000 I disagree with that on its own right, but he literally said that 48 hours ago.

00:12:08.620 Look at his tweet.

00:12:10.500 New measures apply to municipalities or regions with 350-plus cases per 100,000 people,

00:12:16.000 and 250-plus currently active cases.

00:12:19.320 Now he just made it 50 cases per 100,000 cases.

00:12:22.380 Not people sick, not people in the hospital, just cases.

00:12:25.080 But he's still exempting his NHL friends, and he's still exempting the lobbyists from Costco and Walmart.

00:12:31.380 Just not the churches.

00:12:33.180 And he's going to deploy the cops heavy duty.

00:12:36.480 We are doubling the basic fine for violating public health measures from $1,000 to $2,000.

00:12:44.480 The maximum fine for serious offenses remains under the law $100,000.

00:12:49.820 And we are introducing a tougher enforcement protocol for repeat offenders,

00:12:56.240 because we will not tolerate those who endanger the health of their fellow Albertans,

00:13:01.420 while the vast majority of people are doing the right thing.

00:13:04.900 Yeah, I'm not sure how that's going to go.

00:13:06.600 You know, many Albertans, like many other Canadians, love being told what to do.

00:13:11.320 They find it, you know, feeling a safety and security being bossed around.

00:13:15.800 Some prisoners in prison do the same.

00:13:18.820 It's a way of coping.

00:13:19.980 They like being told what to do.

00:13:22.180 Other people are holding the stick during the lockdown.

00:13:24.880 They're not being hit with the stick.

00:13:26.080 The staycation class, the lockdown class, the bureaucrats, the officials, the teachers, unions,

00:13:31.300 the politicians, for example, the media.

00:13:33.320 They love the lockdown.

00:13:34.600 But many Albertans, I don't think they're going to, rural Albertans in particular,

00:13:39.860 who have nothing to do with spreading diseases in big cities,

00:13:42.680 anyone, rural or urban, who looks at the science on the government's own website and asks,

00:13:46.680 why are you bullying children and young people and shutting down businesses for families

00:13:50.700 when they're simply not at risk statistically?

00:13:55.440 Or some people will say, you know, we live with risk every day.

00:13:58.580 Life is about making thoughtful decisions about risk, whether it's crossing the street or what

00:14:03.980 you choose to eat.

00:14:05.880 And 14 months into this, it's not the apocalypse we were told it would be.

00:14:10.880 The time for panicking, if we wanted to panic, might have been in the beginning of the pandemic,

00:14:15.900 when we knew nothing about it.

00:14:17.460 Or it might have been in December, when the death rate suddenly quintupled in Alberta.

00:14:22.340 Why is it happening only now, this panic, when the death rate is down to five a day,

00:14:27.720 one in a million people, to be precise?

00:14:30.580 Why now?

00:14:32.640 Well, precisely for that reason.

00:14:34.900 The hyperdrama is necessary to keep the state of fear going,

00:14:39.240 because the pandemic itself doesn't seem to be scaring people,

00:14:42.920 a fact that Kenny himself noted last night.

00:14:46.980 I know all of this is discouraging to hear.

00:14:49.400 Nobody wants to be here, especially after 14 months with multiple waves of this pandemic.

00:14:57.300 You know, my old magazine that's being reborn, called the Western Standard,

00:15:02.120 I haven't been with them for over a decade, but I think they're doing a great job now.

00:15:07.320 You know, the Western Standard reported that Jason Kenney told his caucus,

00:15:10.380 he doesn't much care for his party's base anymore.

00:15:12.880 He wants a new party base.

00:15:14.800 Good luck with that.

00:15:15.560 That's the Aaron O'Toole, Patrick Brown approach to conservative politics.

00:15:19.840 But really, at what point is it obvious that Albertans are done with living in fear,

00:15:28.220 even if the government itself isn't?

00:15:31.100 Stay with us for more on the Whistle Stop Cafe

00:15:34.100 and how the government's cracking down on them.

00:15:35.920 Well, early this morning, the RCMP raided the Whistle Stop Diner in the small town of Mirror, Alberta.

00:15:54.740 As you know, we have been crowdfunding a lawyer to defend that shop.

00:15:59.620 It's a diner. It's a general store. It's a gas station.

00:16:04.140 It's really the only thing in Mirror, population 502.

00:16:08.960 Well, this morning, police raided it and put a chain on the door.

00:16:13.180 A few hours after that, I went live via Skype with our friend Sheila Gunn-Reed, who was on the scene.

00:16:19.440 Here are some excerpts from that interview.

00:16:21.240 Joining us now live from Mirror, Alberta, at the site of the police raid,

00:16:27.600 is our friend and chief reporter, Sheila Gunn-Reed.

00:16:29.700 Sheila, how are you doing?

00:16:31.320 Hey, Ezra.

00:16:32.360 Well, you know what?

00:16:34.180 I'm just landing here at the Whistle Stop, just trying to sort everything out.

00:16:37.760 I guess, like everybody involved, at 6.30 this morning, RCMP,

00:16:44.040 along with Alberta Health Services and the RCMP Conflict Resolution Team,

00:16:49.740 whom I've seen down at Grace Life Church, rolled in here and padlocked the doors

00:16:55.580 and cut Chris Scott off from, according to him, about $70,000 worth of inventory,

00:17:05.140 perishable inventory that he had stocked up for an event that they are holding here on Saturday.

00:17:12.320 And it sounds like the event is still going to go ahead, whether or not they've locked the doors.

00:17:17.480 I don't think that matters to Chris.

00:17:18.800 Yeah, now, I looked at the Alberta regulations for restaurants,

00:17:23.940 these new draconian regulations that were brought in last night by Jason Kenney.

00:17:28.540 But if I'm not mistaken, they were, like,

00:17:31.240 Kenney announced a bunch of different rules last night.

00:17:34.400 Some of them took almost immediate effect, but others, I think, delayed a few days,

00:17:39.040 including, I think, the ban on restaurants.

00:17:41.360 And I would imagine that so that restaurants could use up their perishable inventory.

00:17:46.580 That's just my guess if I had to wonder why some things kicked in on May 5th and some things kicked in until May 9th.

00:17:56.040 Justin, if you can, can you go to Alberta.ca slash stop the spike?

00:18:02.060 And we'll check the rules there.

00:18:03.780 We'll put them up on the screen, Sheila, as we go, just to make sure.

00:18:06.380 So my first question is, if restaurants aren't being banned for another four days,

00:18:13.220 which I believe is the case, and I'm going to check that really with you on screen here in real time,

00:18:19.060 why would this restaurant, corner, store, gas station essentially be expropriated today?

00:18:28.020 And we'll put those, it looks like Justin's found them here.

00:18:31.020 Can you scroll down a little bit and go to gatherings, indoor and outdoor?

00:18:39.880 Yeah, click on that one there.

00:18:41.700 Scroll down, retail, personal wills, funerals.

00:18:45.300 Yeah, go to retail.

00:18:46.980 Just bear with us a second here.

00:18:53.220 Province-wide prescriptions, place of worship, scroll down, businesses, restaurants, there we go.

00:19:00.320 Okay, so I got it on the screen right here, Sheila.

00:19:02.180 It says, mandatory restrictions, province-wide, effective May 9th at 11.59 p.m.

00:19:10.160 So that's basically midnight.

00:19:13.280 May 9th is Sunday night.

00:19:16.940 All in-person dining, including on patios, is prohibited.

00:19:19.880 Restaurants, pubs, bars, lounges, cafes, and food courts can be open for takeout, curbs,

00:19:24.000 high-picketing, and delivery only.

00:19:24.920 So why is this rule that doesn't take effect until midnight on Sunday being enforced against

00:19:35.120 the Whistle Stop diner on Wednesday morning?

00:19:39.060 Thanks, Justin.

00:19:39.560 You can take that down.

00:19:41.520 Well, it seems as though they're doing exactly to the Whistle Stop what they did to Grace Life Church,

00:19:46.460 and that is acting on an earlier closure notice.

00:19:50.160 So Albert Health Services has been issuing Chris closure notices all along.

00:19:55.540 He's just been saying, stick it on the wall with the other one.

00:19:58.320 I'm going to keep going.

00:19:59.580 And so now they're using those prior closure notices to shut Chris down before his anticipated

00:20:08.540 super-spreader event, as they say, coming up on the weekend.

00:20:12.060 Do you have a copy of the order?

00:20:17.080 Like, for example, is the building, I see the building behind you.

00:20:19.680 It looks like people are still able to pump gas.

00:20:21.620 Is that true?

00:20:23.020 No.

00:20:23.940 No.

00:20:24.520 Those are people, just supporters, who saw the live stream that Chris posted this morning

00:20:30.320 at 6.30 and decided they had to do something and come down here.

00:20:33.800 But the doors are chained.

00:20:36.000 And so nobody can use the gas pumps.

00:20:39.600 I mean, these are old-timey sort of small-town Alberta gas pumps.

00:20:43.780 So they're not automated.

00:20:44.880 You can't just put your debit card in and pump away.

00:20:48.780 You have to go inside the store, prepay for your fuel, then come back out.

00:20:52.320 So what Alberta Health Services and the RCMP did this morning when they locked the doors

00:20:58.240 on this little gas station, convenience store and restaurant, is they cut off this small

00:21:03.920 town and all the rural people around here from their only convenience store and gas station.

00:21:10.120 The next closest convenience store and gas station is 20 kilometres up the road in Bashaw.

00:21:16.000 It's an Esso up there.

00:21:18.600 So this just doubles everybody's commute.

00:21:22.300 You can't go to the corner store now if you live in Muir if you need milk.

00:21:26.320 You've got to fire up the vehicle and go to Bashaw now.

00:21:29.340 And you can't get fuel here.

00:21:31.620 Yeah.

00:21:31.880 So that's a collective punishment, really.

00:21:34.280 I mean, Jason Kenney last night made it pretty clear that there's certain people he blames

00:21:38.940 for the virus.

00:21:40.220 The virus is the virus.

00:21:41.880 There have been viruses for millions of years.

00:21:46.900 But apparently this virus is the fault of the whistle stop and the fault of people who

00:21:54.300 went to the rodeo.

00:21:55.720 Certainly not the fault of Wuhan, China.

00:21:58.020 Anyone who says so is obviously a racist.

00:22:00.600 But it is, according to various governments, the fault.

00:22:04.360 They're blaming people for it.

00:22:05.960 And so I suppose it's fitting that they're meting out a collective punishment by shutting

00:22:11.060 down the essential services for that whole town.

00:22:15.700 I mean, I haven't been in the whistle stop, but I've seen your footage from inside.

00:22:22.060 And there is the restaurant, but it's also a counter.

00:22:25.920 There's hardware in there.

00:22:28.680 It's a general store.

00:22:30.400 That's what it would be called.

00:22:31.520 A hundred years ago, they would call that the general store.

00:22:34.280 Now it's called the convenience store.

00:22:36.540 It's the same thing.

00:22:37.640 But actually, a general store has more stuff.

00:22:40.040 And it's a gas station.

00:22:41.320 Now, where is the owner himself, who we see on the screen right now?

00:22:45.640 Where is Chris?

00:22:47.140 Chris was here all morning.

00:22:49.240 He's gone home for a shower and a cup of coffee.

00:22:52.380 And then I texted him before I came on air with you.

00:22:55.000 He said he's on his way back.

00:22:56.780 Got it.

00:22:57.100 And are there any law enforcement or Alberta government people on the property?

00:23:05.420 No.

00:23:06.020 And that's an interesting thing that was in Chris's live stream this morning, is when he

00:23:12.260 was demanding and even pleading with the government officials to be allowed to go inside of his

00:23:19.200 own property and turn the gas off, turn the equipment on, secure his restaurant for a long-term shutdown,

00:23:27.840 they wouldn't let him.

00:23:29.220 They only let his staff go in.

00:23:32.040 And they also said that they need to get out of here, the law enforcement, before other people

00:23:39.140 woke up and saw what they were doing to Chris.

00:23:42.620 That's in the live stream.

00:23:44.300 The law enforcement say it.

00:23:45.600 They said, no, no, no, this is going to be quick.

00:23:48.500 We're going to get out of here because we don't want to be around when everybody else

00:23:51.740 wakes up and sees what we've done.

00:23:53.300 Because they know that what they've done is shameful and disgraceful.

00:23:57.020 Was anyone on the scene when it happened?

00:24:00.560 Chris did have, I believe, one of his cooks and one of his staff who wait tables and operate

00:24:09.940 the cash register on the convenience store side.

00:24:13.300 It's my understanding that they were both here because they were preparing for the morning

00:24:18.600 rush, like the breakfast rush.

00:24:22.220 And so, you know, the RCMP, it's clear in their conversations with Chris in that live

00:24:27.580 stream, wise of Chris to record that and broadcast it, that they knew that they had to get out

00:24:34.100 of here before Chris's customers started showing up because they knew that the customers would

00:24:38.920 strongly object to this.

00:24:40.040 Chris has the support, not only of his community, but of so many Albertans.

00:24:45.460 And again, AHS and the government cannot point to a single case that's attributed to this

00:24:53.720 restaurant that's been operating at full capacity, operating outside, holding events outside since

00:24:59.560 it opened in objection to these restrictions in January.

00:25:02.780 There's not a single case here.

00:25:04.160 Right.

00:25:04.280 All the problems are in the city and the rural people are being collectively punished.

00:25:08.360 Yeah, exactly.

00:25:09.060 And that's what I said at the beginning of the show.

00:25:10.880 When you have a town of 1100, you know everybody and you can much more effectively gauge the

00:25:17.820 risk to you and to others and make your own decisions because you know what's going on.

00:25:23.660 It's a small town.

00:25:24.780 Do you know if those cooks or whoever were there in the morning, do you know if anyone

00:25:30.960 caught the cops on video by any chance?

00:25:35.920 I mean, that would take some calm presence of mind to take out a cell phone and film things.

00:25:41.640 Not everyone would be thinking that way.

00:25:43.420 Do you know if that happened?

00:25:44.260 It's my understanding that it didn't, but that's just on the cursory information that

00:25:52.480 I have right now.

00:25:53.580 Maybe that did happen, but I do know that, you know, as soon as the RCMP showed up, they

00:25:57.280 were on the phone to Chris.

00:25:58.600 Chris was on his way down here and that was it.

00:26:01.780 They started locking the doors.

00:26:03.080 There's a chain across the door.

00:26:04.260 That's the fence that Chris erected.

00:26:06.980 Got it.

00:26:07.560 But...

00:26:07.960 Okay, so we got a minivan and...

00:26:10.560 Oh, there's pickup.

00:26:11.220 All right, so cars.

00:26:11.600 Okay, I thought we'd just see a bunch of Ford F-250s and whatnot.

00:26:15.800 There were, but those people have jobs. 0.87

00:26:19.040 Yeah.

00:26:19.340 So there were...

00:26:19.920 Yeah, so I can see the pro-parenting.

00:26:22.440 Take us a little closer if you don't mind.

00:26:24.980 You just take a...

00:26:26.040 Can you do that?

00:26:27.600 Sure.

00:26:28.460 I'm on a...

00:26:29.240 Oh, these guys are cheering for us.

00:26:30.760 Sorry, I'm just...

00:26:31.400 Things are falling off my tripod.

00:26:32.720 God, you're carrying the tripod.

00:26:34.660 All right, so there's a lot of things...

00:26:35.900 No, it's okay.

00:26:36.860 So first of all, I see a big antenna.

00:26:38.960 Like, what's that all about?

00:26:41.100 Oh.

00:26:41.600 That's the town cell phone tower.

00:26:45.380 That's the town...

00:26:46.380 So this is the everything store.

00:26:48.780 Yeah.

00:26:49.660 It's got the town cell phone tower.

00:26:52.960 I see a couple porta-potties there.

00:26:55.400 What's that little structure there by the pickup?

00:26:58.620 Okay, so that white screen right there...

00:27:01.580 Oh, he wanted to have an outdoor movie theater to...

00:27:03.780 So people could still get together during the pandemic, right?

00:27:06.960 Right, so when the pandemic first hit...

00:27:09.740 Sorry, I just have to step back and...

00:27:11.740 I left my cell phone and my other tripod right in the middle of the street.

00:27:17.280 Just give me a second.

00:27:19.460 So when the pandemic first hit and Chris was looking for ways to keep his community together

00:27:27.400 and keep them from being isolated, he bought this movie screen so that people could come from all around and have outdoor movies.

00:27:39.060 And they cooked popcorn and whatever and delivered it to the car so that everybody could social distance.

00:27:44.780 This is what he did.

00:27:46.580 That's the kind of guy he is.

00:27:47.320 And I remember the same health inspector said, no, you can't gather even if in your individual cars.

00:27:52.820 So that's what I mean by disgraceful public food.

00:27:55.580 So I see there's some picnic tables in the movie theater.

00:27:58.480 I didn't...

00:27:58.940 That's great.

00:27:59.900 Okay, so we see some more tables.

00:28:01.780 So let's point the camera to the left a little bit.

00:28:04.400 Let's see what's...

00:28:06.460 Take us by the store.

00:28:07.580 I want to do a little bit of a...

00:28:10.160 Okay, freedom is essential.

00:28:13.320 All right.

00:28:13.860 Yeah, so this is the Stop Freedom Park, they call it.

00:28:18.200 Right.

00:28:19.360 And so this is where they host events so that when Adam and I were here a couple weeks ago

00:28:26.400 for their big barbecue with Adam Skelly, it was all sort of right here.

00:28:29.820 And this is where the beer gardens were.

00:28:32.080 And so this is their patio and they're cooking burgers because even though they're locked out,

00:28:38.540 they are cooking burgers.

00:28:41.940 Hey, guys.

00:28:42.960 Burger.

00:28:44.680 Well, you know what?

00:28:46.080 I wish I were there, Sheila.

00:28:47.640 Fantastic.

00:28:48.480 I wish I were there.

00:28:52.240 And they put up fences.

00:28:54.580 Chris, I don't know.

00:28:55.260 I'll show you here.

00:28:56.720 He's put up a fence to keep the government out.

00:28:59.120 Yeah, that's a good idea.

00:28:59.960 It's a good reason to have a fence.

00:29:01.920 Yeah, that's why I have a fence at home.

00:29:03.700 But he's still got the Canadian flag.

00:29:05.260 So he's still hanging on with his toenails.

00:29:09.260 Those are fun things for the kids.

00:29:12.120 Yeah.

00:29:12.440 And this cool Kubota tractor.

00:29:14.200 I'm a fan of Kubota.

00:29:15.380 This one is old enough to vote, obviously.

00:29:19.220 And then let's just go up to the store here.

00:29:21.880 Oh, I don't know, guys.

00:29:32.300 Well, there's a fan of Sheila Gunn-Reed, I'll tell you what. 0.97

00:29:37.520 So they've got some T-shirts here.

00:29:41.180 I'll have to buy some Whistle Stop gear, some merch.

00:29:45.240 Yeah, there's Whistle Stop merch.

00:29:47.640 I think you can find that on their Facebook page.

00:29:51.120 And then...

00:29:52.980 Whistle Stop.

00:29:53.760 This is the door.

00:29:54.720 Oh, yeah, and there's where the chain is.

00:29:56.600 Show me the chain.

00:29:57.680 Yeah, there's a chain.

00:29:59.600 Chain and a log.

00:30:00.420 You know what?

00:30:01.400 I don't need to give any...

00:30:02.920 I'm a city boy.

00:30:03.640 I don't need to give instructions to the country boys about things.

00:30:06.800 Look how...

00:30:07.360 Like, I don't have big hands, but look, like how...

00:30:10.220 Yeah.

00:30:10.840 This is a very small chain.

00:30:12.620 Yeah.

00:30:13.840 I'm just saying.

00:30:14.920 I wouldn't...

00:30:15.380 Like I said, I wouldn't lock my bike up with that.

00:30:17.500 Yeah.

00:30:17.780 It's not...

00:30:18.200 It's not strong enough.

00:30:20.740 That's the closed.

00:30:22.460 So not only have they closed the store itself, but...

00:30:26.020 Oh, yeah, can you zoom in on that?

00:30:27.300 Because that's the order.

00:30:28.340 So what does that say?

00:30:30.980 Okay, so it's difficult because it's sort of behind...

00:30:33.640 the bars here, but it says that it's closed to the public, and not only have they closed

00:30:40.640 the store itself, but they've closed the campground next door, which also is run by Chris here

00:30:49.500 at the Whistle Stop.

00:30:50.600 And what's the...

00:30:52.640 What's the...

00:30:54.300 Who signed this letter?

00:30:57.400 It says it's ordered closed to public access until such time that this order is rescinded

00:31:02.780 by an executive officer of Alberta Health Services.

00:31:05.840 So in my time with...

00:31:09.780 In trial with Pastor Coates, I learned that an executive officer can be any health inspector.

00:31:17.860 Right.

00:31:18.260 So...

00:31:18.940 It's just a fancy name that's trying to intimidate you.

00:31:21.140 And then it looks like there's propane, lots of propane uses in the country.

00:31:25.420 Dairy, there's a dairy products truck there.

00:31:32.100 So this is not just your regular 7-Eleven in the city.

00:31:36.740 This is...

00:31:37.120 Right.

00:31:37.420 And here's the campground.

00:31:38.440 And also the campground, that's where they'd want the propane for.

00:31:41.320 Yeah.

00:31:41.760 So if they're closed, but I see there's campers there.

00:31:46.560 Yeah.

00:31:48.120 And some of these are long-term campers, people who work in and around the area.

00:31:54.740 Like, you can see.

00:31:55.480 And these are not, like...

00:31:57.160 These are...

00:31:57.740 Like, that's a big diesel pusher.

00:31:59.160 That's an expensive camper.

00:32:00.660 Mm-hmm.

00:32:00.920 Um, and, you know, these are...

00:32:05.360 Some of them are long-term campers.

00:32:06.880 Some of them are just camping here because they need a place to camp.

00:32:10.140 And some of them are here to support Chris.

00:32:11.880 Mm-hmm.

00:32:16.440 You know?

00:32:17.880 Yeah.

00:32:18.380 These folks know how to do things.

00:32:22.480 That's how we...

00:32:24.060 Yeah.

00:32:26.200 All right.

00:32:26.880 Well, listen, very interesting.

00:32:28.360 Yeah.

00:32:28.540 I haven't read any comments.

00:32:30.680 Let me just see if...

00:32:32.680 I see Chris has just pulled up here.

00:32:38.560 Oh, well, let's go...

00:32:40.100 Okay, I was going to read some, but let's go and see if we can say a quick hello to Chris.

00:32:44.500 Okay.

00:32:44.780 If that's him there.

00:32:46.740 Yeah, I just saw him run by.

00:32:52.680 Well, sometimes your reception is crystal clear.

00:32:55.220 Other times it's a bit blurry.

00:32:56.280 I know.

00:32:56.820 It's crystal clear right now.

00:32:57.460 Listen, it's out in the country, but...

00:32:58.860 I'm underneath the cell tower.

00:33:00.380 Yeah.

00:33:00.880 I'd say.

00:33:04.200 I tell you, I saw his, what does he call it, his zombie burger.

00:33:08.940 Oh, yeah.

00:33:09.640 And, you know, I'm going low carb these days, so I would probably just order that without the bun.

00:33:14.920 And I know that's a really city thing to do, but I would eat it like a meatloaf.

00:33:19.600 Yeah, it's fair.

00:33:21.780 I'd call it a meatloaf.

00:33:23.100 That's what I would do, Sheila.

00:33:24.780 See, Chris.

00:33:25.260 I don't know if it matters, Rebel News Girl, but you might want to put this on the web.

00:33:34.220 I'm live right now, actually.

00:33:37.020 Hi, Chris.

00:33:37.880 I am financially secure and single.

00:33:41.260 Hi, Chris.

00:33:43.720 I'm live with Ezra right now.

00:33:45.320 Hi, Ezra.

00:33:46.440 Hey, say hello to Chris.

00:33:47.980 Give him a few questions.

00:33:49.280 Ask him what's what.

00:33:51.040 Okay, Chris, so 6.30 this morning, your staff were in the store when it happened?

00:33:58.760 Mm-hmm.

00:33:59.100 That's right.

00:33:59.640 One worker was in the store.

00:34:01.200 Okay, just one.

00:34:03.540 And so this comes after last week.

00:34:07.360 Ezra, you and I were talking about this a couple days ago.

00:34:12.020 AGLC, and so that's the gaming and liquor and cannabis people, plus the RCMP, came and confiscated your liquor.

00:34:18.400 They did, yeah.

00:34:18.900 Yeah, and so were you expecting this?

00:34:22.380 I wasn't expecting this.

00:34:23.420 I wasn't expecting this.

00:34:24.300 I was expecting different enforcement, but after Premier Kenney's address last evening, I don't, I'm not surprised.

00:34:31.420 And so are you, I guess I'll flat out ask you, are you going to cut the locks and go back in?

00:34:36.560 No, I'm not going to cut the locks, but we are still open for business.

00:34:39.460 We're going to be serving coffee and burgers all day.

00:34:41.560 We've got fries coming, and we'll be doing everything outside in the park.

00:34:45.200 Ezra, did you hear that?

00:34:46.060 Ezra, did you hear that?

00:34:50.080 Yes, I did.

00:34:50.640 Oh, yeah.

00:34:51.900 Okay, good.

00:34:52.580 Sorry, Sheila, I did hear that.

00:34:54.240 Well, listen, I'll let you talk to Chris offline because we're at the top of the hour.

00:34:58.660 Give Chris my best personal regards.

00:35:00.400 Let's confirm for him that we are happy to crowdfund his lawyer, Chad Williamson, who I know is on the case, and that we'll continue to do so as he continues to battle.

00:35:11.280 And if anyone wants to chip in, that's at FightTheFindStar.com.

00:35:14.320 So give Chris my best, and I'll sign off with you now, Sheila, and I'll let you talk to Chris on your own schedule.

00:35:21.100 Okay, will do.

00:35:22.760 Thanks, boss.

00:35:23.300 Okay, thanks.

00:35:23.980 Well, there you have it.

00:35:24.660 Sheila Gunn-Reed coming to us live from Mirror, Alberta, a town of 502 citizens.

00:35:30.200 Now that Sheila's there, it's 503.

00:35:32.400 What do you think of that?

00:35:33.640 I wonder if that chain that locked the gates will stay on there.

00:35:39.200 I mean, any of those folks could cut it off in a second.

00:35:41.820 The only reason they wouldn't is if they respected the government authority behind that chain.

00:35:47.240 I mean, look, that's the only gas station in town.

00:35:49.080 It's the only general store in town.

00:35:50.480 You have to drive an hour if you're going somewhere in back if you can't get to that general store.

00:35:56.220 I wonder if people will respect the government, which is, you know, manifested in that chain,

00:36:01.780 or if they'll just lop it off and go in.

00:36:03.480 I wonder.

00:36:04.000 We'll probably know as soon as tomorrow.

00:36:05.900 I don't think the government or even the police have the same respect that they did.

00:36:10.780 Stay with us.

00:36:11.800 Your comments to me next.

00:36:19.080 Hey, welcome back.

00:36:25.600 On my show last night, Hugh writes,

00:36:27.980 Gates is a real-life supervillain.

00:36:30.820 Yeah, you know, Bill Gates looks like a bit of a schlep, to use a Yiddish word.

00:36:35.000 He's a bit of a schlemeel. 1.00

00:36:37.120 Do you know what those words mean?

00:36:38.620 The thing about Yiddish words is you don't even have to really know what they mean.

00:36:41.800 They sound like a klutz. 0.97

00:36:42.940 He's a klutz. 0.87

00:36:43.860 You know, a schlep, you say, oh, he's a little schleppy and a schlemeel. 0.94

00:36:47.560 He's a little bit rough around the edges.

00:36:49.660 I'm a schlemeel sometimes.

00:36:51.440 I think that's a cultivated look.

00:36:54.140 I think when you're worth how much money he is, I mean, I don't think he cares about his appearance.

00:36:59.140 I think he's always been a nerd his whole life.

00:37:00.720 But I think he uses that nerdiness to avoid looking like Darth Vader.

00:37:06.340 I mean, George Soros really does indulge the Darth Vader meme.

00:37:11.460 Jeff Bezos does, too.

00:37:13.060 Mark Zuckerberg looks like an alien.

00:37:15.920 But I think that Bill Gates sneaks through life by having a bit of a Columbo look.

00:37:21.740 Oh, it's just me.

00:37:23.840 When, in fact, he's a deeply strange guy who has supervillain ideas.

00:37:29.200 Lawrence writes, I'm curious on why Gates is buying up huge areas of land.

00:37:33.520 He's one of the largest landowners in the U.S.

00:37:35.700 Yeah, I saw that.

00:37:38.460 It's strange to me.

00:37:39.680 And I wonder, I mean, we read yesterday that his girlfriend tried to get him off meat.

00:37:45.760 He was back on meat.

00:37:46.900 But now that he's telling people not to eat meat and he wants them to drink poop water.

00:37:50.940 But he's buying up land.

00:37:52.500 Who knows?

00:37:53.500 It could just be an investment.

00:37:54.620 But it could be some weird plans.

00:37:56.680 It's into these weird plans and schemes.

00:37:58.600 Anyone who actually wants to blot out the sun and means it, as opposed to just some script writer for a James Bond movie,

00:38:07.260 that's a creepy guy to keep your eye on.

00:38:09.300 So I don't know what he's doing with that land.

00:38:10.720 I do not know.

00:38:12.120 Very strange.

00:38:13.580 That's our show for today.

00:38:14.760 Until tomorrow, on behalf of all of us here at Rebel World Headquarters, see you at home.

00:38:18.080 Good night.

00:38:18.360 Keep fighting for freedom.

Rebel News Podcast - May 06, 2021

Jason Kenney throws Alberta into a brutal lockdown. But why are Walmart and the NHL exempt？

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