Rebel News Podcast - Vegan insanity, the Islamic Party of Ontario & more： Guest host David Menzies

00:00:00.000 Tonight, a handful of vegan protesters in Toronto make for front-page news,

00:00:05.100 while out in Alberta, thousands of trucker protesters are virtually ignored.

00:00:11.420 It's January 3rd, I'm David Menzies, and this is The Ezra Levent Show.

00:00:21.580 Why should others go to jail when you're a biggest carbon consumer I know?

00:00:25.520 There's 8,500 customers here, and you won't give them an answer.

00:00:29.120 You come here once a year with a sign, and you feel morally superior.

00:00:32.660 The only thing I have to say to the government about why I publish it is because it's my bloody right to do so.

00:00:43.300 Vegetarians will tell you that nothing makes them look worse than vegans,

00:00:47.660 and vegans will tell you that nothing makes them look worse than vegan extremists.

00:00:52.900 And with good reason, folks. 0.96

00:00:54.440 Is there anything that screams arrogance, ignorance, and a sense of entitlement,

00:00:59.600 more so than a bunch of vitamin B12-deficient loudmouths demanding that everybody must become part of the carrot crusader contingent?

00:01:09.220 Yes, these days, vegans aren't merely asking for tolerance.

00:01:13.120 They want affirmation.

00:01:15.140 Besides, they already have our tolerance.

00:01:17.040 Hey, you want to go eat copious quantities of kale and Brussels sprouts?

00:01:21.960 Who cares?

00:01:23.000 Eat as much as you want, little bunny rabbit.

00:01:25.740 But it would be kind of nice if the carnivores and the omnivores of this planet

00:01:30.600 didn't have to endure sanctimonious sermons when it comes to chowing down on a cheeseburger.

00:01:37.080 We're not despicable speciesists.

00:01:39.760 We're merely taking our rightful place atop the food chain.

00:01:42.800 65 million years ago, the apex predator was the T-Rex.

00:01:47.160 Today, it's us, homo sapiens.

00:01:49.440 Yet, these militant vegans won't shut the hell up.

00:01:53.380 I refer to a couple of recent stories emanating out of Hogtown,

00:01:56.680 and boy, I bet the vegans really, really hate that nickname for Toronto.

00:02:02.000 For starters, on New Year's Day, the so-called animal rights activists blocked traffic

00:02:06.480 at a major Toronto intersection as they staged a die-in to, get this,

00:02:13.080 protest the inauguration of Brazil's new president, Mr. Bolsonaro.

00:02:18.000 According to a CTV report, organizers of the protest say nearly 50 people participated.

00:02:25.280 Here's a photo that ran with the CTV piece.

00:02:28.220 I'm counting 19 people, including the ones who appear to be wearing oversized Muppet costumes.

00:02:34.100 Now, some activists held signs urging President Bolsonaro to, quote,

00:02:39.900 go vegan or we die, end quote.

00:02:42.820 Huh. Let's see now.

00:02:44.600 Go vegan or die, eh? 0.98

00:02:46.840 You know, I think I'm opting for the electric share, please. 0.95

00:02:49.980 I kind of like the idea of leaving behind one final little carbon footprint

00:02:54.040 as I depart to the suite hereafter.

00:02:56.480 Even so, Anita Kranjic is an organizer with Toronto Climate Save and the Extinction Rebellion.

00:03:05.320 Gee, that sounds like a whole lot of activism.

00:03:08.420 Anyway, she told CTV that vegans want Bolsonaro to live on a plant-based diet for a month.

00:03:15.020 That's right. 0.70

00:03:15.640 They want him to be as miserable as your average vegan. 0.97

00:03:20.360 And then again, think of the upside, Mr. President.

00:03:23.700 After day 30 of enduring such a diet, even a week-old Big Mac is going to taste like a Gordon Blue culinary masterpiece.

00:03:31.960 But, you know, if any reasonable person were to protest any country in South America,

00:03:37.420 wouldn't the obvious choice be the socialist utopia that is Venezuela?

00:03:42.400 Oops.

00:03:43.020 I said reasonable person.

00:03:45.400 I forgot we're talking vegan extremists here.

00:03:48.040 But, say, since Venezuela gets a pass while Brazil gets vilified,

00:03:52.980 do you think there's something more to the vegan protest than merely leafy-based food choices?

00:03:59.540 After all, Bolsonaro, who has been called Brazil's Donald Trump,

00:04:03.840 rode a populist wave of anti-establishment sentiment to presidential victory back in October.

00:04:10.560 No dear, we can't have that, can we?

00:04:13.540 First Trump, then Doug Ford, now this boy from Brazil. 0.99

00:04:16.560 Brazil, this populist thing, it's getting out of hand, isn't it?

00:04:20.920 So, let's demonize Bolsonaro as, um, enemy of the environment.

00:04:26.460 Yeah, that's the ticket.

00:04:27.640 After all, he already announced Brazil has withdrawn its offer to host this year's UN Summit on Climate Change.

00:04:35.340 How dare he?

00:04:36.740 I mean, the UN bigwigs were really, really looking forward to having some fun in the sun in Rio de Janeiro this year,

00:04:44.320 with the air conditioners running at full blast, mind you,

00:04:47.780 given all that hellacious, freezing cold weather they had to endure in Poland at last month's Climate Change Summit. 1.00

00:04:55.400 Oh, Bolsonaro, you bastard. 0.99

00:04:58.220 Meanwhile, yet more Toronto-based fruitcake vegans were doing their best to put a restaurant out of business 1.00

00:05:05.180 for having the temerity to serve horse meat by staging protests outside La Palette on Queen Street.

00:05:12.960 This group is called the Grassroots Antispeciesism Shift.

00:05:17.140 That's supposed to read as an acronym that spells out the word GRASS.

00:05:22.740 But, because grassroots is one word, the acronym actually spells out the word GAS.

00:05:30.440 And given the hot air coming out of their mouths and the broccoli-scented flatulence coming out of their tailpipes,

00:05:37.560 I think GAS is a most fitting moniker indeed.

00:05:40.700 By the way, if the GAS folks ring a bell, it's probably because of their protests directed at another Toronto restaurant last year, Antler.

00:05:50.920 We covered one of their anti-Antler wine fests back in March.

00:05:55.200 Check out this excerpt.

00:05:56.640 We were designed to eat plants.

00:05:59.380 Humans were designed to eat plants?

00:06:01.120 We're not omnivorous by nature?

00:06:03.340 Absolutely not.

00:06:04.420 Because we don't, first of all, I don't see you have sharp teeth, like all the animals who eat meat, right?

00:06:12.140 If you were a meat eater, you would chase the squirrel without any tools and just using your bare hands and your teeth, you would eat it.

00:06:23.040 There is no right way to kill someone who does not want to die.

00:06:26.120 What does that mean exactly?

00:06:27.900 It's exactly what it means.

00:06:29.340 There's no right way to kill someone that does not want to die.

00:06:32.260 So these animals that are being consumed in this restaurant and in every other restaurant, or for clothing, for entertainment, they don't want to die.

00:06:42.280 They want to live their lives.

00:06:43.560 They want to be free.

00:06:45.360 Now, you know, it's funny because I've seen these kind of signs at, like, anti-abortion rallies.

00:06:49.680 Would you be anti-abortion too?

00:06:52.600 This is irrelevant, I believe, for this protest.

00:06:55.800 So right now we're talking about animal rights.

00:06:58.460 So I would, you know, answer any questions you have regarding that.

00:07:02.260 Yeah, not exactly Mensa Club material, is it now?

00:07:07.300 The thing is, the vegans' master plan went south big time.

00:07:11.960 They wanted to put Antler out of business.

00:07:14.280 Instead, it's now hard to get a reservation at Antler.

00:07:18.360 I predict the same thing was going to happen regarding La Palette as sympathetic meat eaters descend en masse to make a statement with their wallets.

00:07:28.300 Speaking of publicity, the mainstream media really seems to have its priorities in order regarding protests these days, doesn't it?

00:07:36.560 A handful of Looney Tunes vegans assemble to try and force an eatery into bankruptcy or to lecture a foreign head of state.

00:07:44.560 And hey, the Live Eye team is immediately dispatched.

00:07:48.040 But when some 2,000 trucks descend upon Nisku, Alberta to protest the Trudeau government's grotesque mismanagement of the pipeline file,

00:07:59.260 well, something that should be treated as a front-page story all across Canada is instead relegated to the back pages or ignored completely.

00:08:08.200 Then again, with that $595 million media bailout package pending, the mainstream media doesn't want to embarrass their main beneficiary, Justin Big Buck's Trudeau.

00:08:20.540 So, as vegan zealots demand that we must adopt their dietary ways,

00:08:26.680 and demand that President Bolsonaro must embrace a corrupt UN globalist agenda, 0.65

00:08:32.700 Oh, there's plenty of time to cover these pathetic lost causes. 0.93

00:08:38.960 I mean, these vegans, they're so cosmopolitan, so intellectual, so hip. 0.86

00:08:44.240 But when there are protests by salt-of-the-earth truckers rightfully demanding that this federal government

00:08:51.040 get off its collective arse and greenlight much-needed multi-billion-dollar pipeline projects

00:08:57.920 so that they can go back to work and make the oil sands great again, 0.99

00:09:03.140 well, that's just a bunch of rednecks and deplorables out in the hinterland fussing over stuff they don't really understand, right? 1.00

00:09:12.060 So, three cheers for the veganites, who are clearly getting enough nutrients even though they avoid meat consumption.

00:09:19.440 As for the mainstream media, no need to rock the boat, guys.

00:09:22.940 It's not with those much-coveted taxpayer-funded welfare checks about to arrive in the mailbox any day now.

00:09:30.280 Well, voters of Ontario rejoice if you're tired of the same old, same old political parties,

00:09:52.960 you know, the PCs, the Liberals, and the NDP.

00:09:55.700 Well, now you have a brand-new alternative.

00:09:59.680 Yes, say hello to the province's newest political organization, the Islamic Party of Ontario.

00:10:07.200 And joining me now to analyze the merits of a party that prefers Sharia law to the Canadian Constitution

00:10:14.540 is Candice Malcolm, the founder of the True North Initiative.

00:10:19.160 Welcome to the Ezra Levent Show, Candice.

00:10:23.860 Thanks for having me, David.

00:10:25.180 Oh, always a pleasure.

00:10:26.760 Now, Candice, I've got to tell you, when I initially heard about this Islamic Party of Ontario,

00:10:32.660 it was literally on January the 1st, although I had to check my calendar to make sure it wasn't April the 1st.

00:10:39.560 Candice, who is behind this party, and what is his agenda to begin with?

00:10:46.060 Well, I have to say, I felt the same way, David.

00:10:49.120 When I first saw people kind of passing along this party platform on social media,

00:10:53.620 I read it and I thought it was a joke or a hoax or something like that,

00:10:57.300 like people pretending to be Islamists but who didn't actually believe this kind of stuff

00:11:03.620 because, you know, the content of the platform is crazy.

00:11:06.780 It's actual Sharia law.

00:11:08.240 It's calling for, you know, kind of like 11th century morality, banning alcohol and all kinds of stuff that is just really bizarre.

00:11:18.720 But lo and behold, this is a real political party.

00:11:21.900 This is something that's being proposed.

00:11:23.460 The name was reserved back in October.

00:11:26.820 And the individual behind it is a sort of a kind of unknown guy in Toronto.

00:11:33.960 He is a political activist.

00:11:36.860 And in the past, he's even taken shots and gone after Tarek Fatah, who is the sort of progressive Muslim.

00:11:44.000 And he's a writer at the Toronto Sun.

00:11:46.820 And so, you know, it's really interesting that this is coming up.

00:11:49.360 It's real, apparently.

00:11:51.060 And this is where we are in Canada, where we have political parties proposing, you know,

00:11:56.920 very different kinds of ideas and morality here in Canada.

00:12:01.460 So welcome to 2019, I guess.

00:12:03.580 It's amazing.

00:12:04.560 And for Tarek Fatah, this individual has called him an Islamophobe,

00:12:08.520 even though Tarek is a Muslim the last time I checked.

00:12:11.720 I guess he's not the right kind of Muslim. 1.00

00:12:13.900 But, you know, Candace, you do say it's a real political party, and so it is.

00:12:19.220 But, I mean, surely this is a no-hoper. 0.98

00:12:21.660 I mean, if we project ahead four years to the next Ontario provincial election,

00:12:26.280 what does the over-underline in terms of how many votes this joke of a party gets?

00:12:30.680 Is it even 100?

00:12:33.240 Well, I hope it remains a very, very small fringe party.

00:12:37.480 But this is kind of the concern that we have in Canada.

00:12:40.780 You know, this is Justin Trudeau's post-national Canada, where we don't have a core identity

00:12:45.860 or core values.

00:12:47.260 And so because of that, we kind of welcome everyone and everything.

00:12:51.520 You know, that can be great when it comes to, you know, cuisine and different types of celebrations,

00:12:58.380 cultural celebrations.

00:12:59.780 But when it comes to people and politicians who want to set laws in our country,

00:13:04.400 you know, having a group of people that want to impose Sharia law, the party platform says

00:13:10.480 that they believe that Sharia is the natural governing force in Ontario, that Canada should 1.00

00:13:16.220 live under the supremacy of their God, Allah. 0.97

00:13:19.600 And, you know, it has everything that you would expect from Sharia law, including bans on adultery

00:13:26.020 and drug use and alcohol against, very against same-sex marriage and gender identity and all

00:13:32.080 these kind of progressive things.

00:13:33.660 So, you know, I think it's going to be an interesting thing to watch how progressives and how the

00:13:40.200 left and how liberals like Justin Trudeau act and react to a political party.

00:13:47.760 You know, on the one hand, you know, the people on the left, they love diversity and they love

00:13:51.520 welcoming people and saying that Canada has no identity, so we have to, you know, adhere 0.99

00:13:58.040 to other people's identity and to respect everyone's culture, while at the same time

00:14:01.820 going after their sort of prized, you know, social causes, pet causes, like identity politics.

00:14:08.580 So, you know, it should be interesting to watch.

00:14:10.260 Hopefully it does remain a small fringe party, though.

00:14:13.420 And, you know, I think you've nailed it here in terms of a very important point, Candice.

00:14:17.620 When you look at what the Justin Trudeau liberals, or the left for that matter, en masse stand

00:14:22.920 for, freedom of the press, freedom of expression, women's rights, gay rights, and on and on it

00:14:30.360 goes, these values are toxic to the people behind the Islamic Party of Ontario.

00:14:37.940 Sharia law has no tolerance for these kind of liberal freedoms. 0.63

00:14:42.320 So, like I said, it just seems so perversely ironic to me that liberals support the kind of

00:14:49.860 diversity, some of which is completely against liberalism to begin with.

00:14:55.940 Absolutely.

00:14:56.680 Like, you'll have liberals defending Sharia law and saying, oh, it's just a personal values,

00:15:01.720 it's just a personal belief system.

00:15:03.420 And then you have the people who actually believe in Sharia law saying, no, no, it's going to be the 0.93

00:15:07.520 law of the land.

00:15:08.200 It needs to govern not just all Muslims, but all people.

00:15:10.540 And a fundamental aspect of Sharia law is that women have lower value than men, that 0.52

00:15:17.780 non-Muslims have lower value than Muslims, and that sort of basic lifestyles in Canada,

00:15:24.580 like, you know, being gay or being divorced, is just totally not allowed.

00:15:31.480 And so, yeah, it's going to be an interesting, you know, to see these two forces collide.

00:15:37.320 But also it shows you how, David, how people from other parts of the world with truly barbaric 0.63

00:15:42.880 and evil ideas take advantage of our freedoms and our liberties, you know.

00:15:46.760 They take advantage of free speech in Canada and free political association to try to push

00:15:51.620 a political party that would end those things, that would end freedom of association and

00:15:57.180 free speech.

00:15:58.080 And, you know, this is sort of a fundamental problem that we find ourselves in here in

00:16:04.020 the West.

00:16:04.740 You know, and it's funny, Candice, when I've interviewed Islamists, and I always find the 1.00

00:16:09.700 key question is, how compatible is Sharia law to Canadian law and the Canadian Constitution?

00:16:16.980 And typically the answer is, it's about 98% compatible.

00:16:21.400 And maybe it is, but you know what, Candice, I'm really, really worried about that 2% that's 1.00

00:16:26.300 not compatible, like, oh, I don't know, stoning adulterers, perhaps, right?

00:16:31.440 Well, and that's another interesting point, David, is that usually Islamists are much more 0.92

00:16:35.800 coy than this.

00:16:36.640 They usually try to kind of hide their agenda and say like, oh, no, you know, we just want

00:16:41.700 to be peaceful here in Canada.

00:16:43.320 And meanwhile, you know, they're doing all sorts of nefarious things in their mosques or in 0.99

00:16:48.860 other languages away from the sort of mainstream behind closed doors.

00:16:52.600 Well, this is kind of the opposite, which is why I thought it was a joke at first.

00:16:56.060 This is a political party putting it all out there.

00:16:58.580 This is what we believe in.

00:16:59.680 This is what we want in Canada.

00:17:01.300 And maybe it's a good thing to sort of shine some light so that Canadians can see some of

00:17:07.120 the sort of, you know, unfortunate and nefarious aspects of political Islam. 1.00

00:17:13.580 And, you know, Candice, you're reading my mind.

00:17:15.680 You made an excellent point, and it was the question I was just about to ask you.

00:17:19.200 The way I look at things, and you tell me if I've got this right, I would say that the

00:17:24.000 majority of Canadian Muslims that want nothing to do with Sharia law and perhaps even fled 0.98

00:17:29.140 countries to get away from that garbage are embarrassed by this. 0.99

00:17:33.880 Conversely, those hardcore Islamists aren't happy with this guy, too, because like you 0.98

00:17:39.020 said, they like to work within the system to change the system very quietly, almost as

00:17:45.140 fifth columnist.

00:17:46.420 So I don't think they relish this guy getting all this kind of attention for putting it all

00:17:51.460 out there in terms of what he wants in terms of an ideal Canadian Islamist society.

00:17:57.480 I think you're absolutely right.

00:17:59.280 I think that there's a lot of truth to that, that most of the Muslims that I know and interact

00:18:04.080 with, you know, specifically fled Sharia law.

00:18:06.920 And one of the things they love about Canada is the freedom not just to practice a religion,

00:18:11.160 but a freedom not to be religious, not to practice a religion.

00:18:14.460 And the last thing they want is the tenants of the authoritarian governments that they fled

00:18:18.720 to show up here in Canada.

00:18:20.180 And then, yeah, the other side is that they want to, you know, the true Islamists and the 0.90

00:18:25.460 people who are a force for pushing Islam, political Islam in Canada, don't like to do it out in

00:18:32.900 the open.

00:18:33.380 So it's pretty surprising that this individual has popped up.

00:18:37.340 I think, I don't know if he's sort of a mainstream figure in Muslim communities in and around

00:18:42.520 Scarborough and Toronto, but, you know, he's putting himself out there.

00:18:46.760 So we'll have to wait and see how many, how many members he'll get, you know, maybe there

00:18:51.480 is a constituency for this kind of political party.

00:18:55.140 I kind of worry about it, you know, the idea of a political party based on sort of religious

00:19:00.520 fundamentalism isn't necessarily new in Canada, but we haven't really seen a party like this

00:19:05.480 pushing Sharia law.

00:19:06.920 And I worry that it'll have an impact that, you know, it'll create a bunch of other little

00:19:11.540 copycat political parties and groups coming up and pushing, you know, this.

00:19:16.760 Sort of divisive tribalism here in Canada.

00:19:20.800 And, you know, Candace, it's one thing for any nut bar out there to propose some kind 0.54

00:19:27.740 of ideology in terms of running a country, running a government.

00:19:31.400 But, you know, the nitty gritty of government, I think, is doing all the little things that

00:19:37.120 affect us directly.

00:19:38.940 Building infrastructure, picking up the garbage, you know, plowing the streets of snow.

00:19:43.040 And when I look at the platform, for example, liquor and gambling, i.e. lottery tickets,

00:19:51.620 that would be all banned under the Islamic Party of Ontario.

00:19:55.480 So I'm thinking the LCBO last year took in more than $2.1 billion in profits.

00:20:00.480 The OLG, I think they were around the $2 billion mark.

00:20:03.280 So we're writing off almost $5 billion right off the bat.

00:20:07.140 But how would this guy replace that kind of revenue, especially in a province that has

00:20:14.100 an enormous debt and deficit as Ontario?

00:20:18.140 Well, I think you've probably given it more thought than they have.

00:20:21.340 But, you know, it's one of those things that if you're a French party, you can just propose

00:20:36.660 the craziest ideas without actually having to make any of it make sense.

00:20:40.840 And, you know, if these guys had their own way, who knows?

00:20:43.340 It'd probably be a whole new taxation system where non-Muslims would be taxed at different

00:20:48.580 rates than Muslims, as is difficult and, you know, common practice throughout the Middle

00:20:54.060 East and Islamic societies.

00:20:55.560 So who knows, David?

00:20:57.080 But hopefully we won't ever have to explore those ideas in Canada.

00:21:00.680 Yeah, what a dilemma for me.

00:21:02.140 Do you want to convert to Islam, Menzoid, so you avoid paying the higher tax rate? 1.00

00:21:07.080 Maybe we're talking.

00:21:08.420 Candace, one last question, because we're almost running out of time here.

00:21:12.520 What do you make of the lack of mainstream media coverage of this party?

00:21:17.820 Tarek Fattah wrote a column in The Sun.

00:21:20.000 I don't see anything from the CBC.

00:21:21.600 I don't see anything from the Toronto Star.

00:21:23.760 And I bet their producers and their editors would say, oh, this is fringe.

00:21:27.820 You know, this is nothing.

00:21:29.740 Yet I can't help but think if somebody else out there started a, you know, white supremacy

00:21:35.320 party of Ontario or what have you, they would be all over it and condemning its values and

00:21:42.020 its platform.

00:21:42.640 What do you make of the near total absence of mainstream media coverage of the Islamic

00:21:48.240 Party of Ontario?

00:21:50.100 Well, that's sort of typical mainstream media practice when it comes to anything regarding

00:21:53.800 radical Islam.

00:21:54.620 They don't know what to say.

00:21:55.740 They don't want to talk about it.

00:21:57.060 They'd rather keep it from Canadians, which frankly is the reason why, part of the reason 1.00

00:22:01.120 why the mainstream media is dying.

00:22:02.420 And people are looking to alternative sources like the Rebel or the True North Initiative to

00:22:06.700 get their news because they know that the mainstream media is afraid to touch these issues.

00:22:10.740 And you're absolutely right.

00:22:12.240 If this was a white supremacist party or a Nazi party or probably even, you know, a Mormon 0.84

00:22:17.660 party of Ontario that was proposing the similar kinds of morality, you know that there would

00:22:22.280 be the sort of hit pieces and hate pieces in the CBC, Toronto Star, et cetera.

00:22:27.620 But because it's Muslims and it's Islam, the media treats it with kid gloves and they don't

00:22:34.000 want to be critical and they, you know, just have a very difficult time reporting it, probably

00:22:40.620 because of some of the issues that we discussed here, how, you know, it contradicts core liberal

00:22:45.420 values.

00:22:46.680 But at the same time, they have to promote multiculturalism and they can't criticize another

00:22:50.760 culture.

00:22:51.340 So it puts them in a dilemma and they just prefer to ignore it, which does a disservice to Canadians.

00:22:57.220 Again, that's why I think more and more people are tuning into alternative and independent

00:23:01.380 media.

00:23:01.800 Oh, 100%.

00:23:03.000 How sad, Candice.

00:23:03.900 We're only into day three of 2019 and the liberal, you know, lust for hypocrisy and the

00:23:11.600 double standard.

00:23:12.420 It looks as alive and well as it was in 2018.

00:23:16.200 Candice, thank you so much for joining us on this issue.

00:23:20.520 We'll have to monitor this party, especially on election day in about four years and see

00:23:25.220 what kind of support there is out there for a Sharia, a pro-Sharia party called the Islamic

00:23:31.220 Party of Ontario.

00:23:32.740 Thanks again and happy new year to you, Candice.

00:23:35.400 Thanks for having me.

00:23:36.400 Happy new year to you too.

00:23:37.540 You got it.

00:23:38.380 And folks, keep it here.

00:23:39.260 More of the Ezra Levin show to come right after this.

00:23:41.540 You know, I'm still chuckling over a CBC story about a United Church in Calgary that's displaying

00:23:57.900 what's being described as a different take on the nativity scene, which is to say that if

00:24:04.580 you drop by the Red Deer Lake United Church, you will come across a, quote, inclusive cross-cultural

00:24:11.320 display that includes an indigenous wise man, end quote.

00:24:15.320 According to the CBC, Reverend Nick Coates says he was expecting congregants and others to

00:24:21.580 push back, but everyone has loved the updated and reimagined version of Christ's birth.

00:24:28.940 Well, but of course they do.

00:24:30.280 I mean, we are talking about the United Church here, whose unity seems to be driven by the

00:24:35.460 pursuit of wackiness.

00:24:37.060 In any event, one of the Meiji is Canadian astronaut Roberta Bondar, who holds out the

00:24:42.900 Milky Way constellation to symbolize the gift of knowledge.

00:24:47.120 The Meiji with the dreadlocks is American musician Michael Franti, who brings the gift of music.

00:24:54.220 The shepherds are depicted as poor teenagers.

00:24:58.040 I think they would make me cross the street, actually.

00:25:01.020 Oh, let's not forget to mention the wise man who is meant to look like Assembly of First

00:25:06.200 Nations National Chief, Perry Bellegarde.

00:25:09.360 And forget about such old school gifts as gold, frankincense, and mirth, because Bellegarde's 0.66

00:25:14.600 gift is a blanket.

00:25:17.280 Hey, if I'm the baby Jesus, I'm kind of feeling a little gypped right now.

00:25:22.300 By the way, shockingly, the baby Jesus is still depicted as a baby.

00:25:27.840 You know, to be honest, I was expecting Bumblebee from the Transformers movie franchise to be playing

00:25:32.860 the role of the Son of God.

00:25:34.580 Oh, and there seems to be no outrage about cultural appropriation here.

00:25:39.460 No, sir.

00:25:40.600 Reverend Coates notes that, quote,

00:25:42.420 By contemporizing some of the traditional imagery and by decolonizing some of the characters,

00:25:50.080 the hope is to create a scene that sparks curiosity, engagement, and wonder.

00:25:55.840 I hope this nativity can cause people to stop, engage, and wonder,

00:26:00.740 what does Christmas really mean, end quote.

00:26:05.140 Call me a crank here, but I thought Christmas was about the birth of Christ.

00:26:10.660 I mean, have you ever noticed how the word Christ is actually part of the word Christmas?

00:26:15.700 Hey, lots of feedback from my commentary two weeks ago about that wacky reimagined nativity

00:26:21.680 scene at a United Church in Calgary.

00:26:26.000 Never Again Canada writes,

00:26:28.080 Can we be surprised?

00:26:30.000 It's the United Church, the most unchristian, progressive, leftist denomination out there.

00:26:36.080 Well, I'm afraid you're right, Never Again.

00:26:37.680 I'm not even sure one can call the United Church a Christian church anymore. 0.77

00:26:42.560 It's kind of devolved into a goofy cult, really.

00:26:47.600 Kiefer Rawcliffe writes,

00:26:49.200 Now let's see their Birth of Muhammad version. 0.98

00:26:52.540 Um, no, Kiefer, you will not see that kind of display.

00:26:56.500 That sort of imagery tends to bring out the Grinch in certain folks.

00:27:01.560 Scott Carr writes,

00:27:02.820 This is a disgrace.

00:27:05.100 How would they like it if we modified Canadian Indian totem poles with Mickey Mouse, Foghorn 0.99

00:27:10.720 Leghorn, Speedy Gonzalez, Yosemite Sam, and the like?

00:27:14.840 That would be similar degradation.

00:27:17.540 Oh, man, Scott, could you imagine the outcry over that sort of reimagining?

00:27:23.700 Not to mention the copyright infringement lawsuit filed by Warner Brothers.

00:27:28.700 Kal-El writes,

00:27:29.540 Brother, I know you may not want to leave, but I have a room for you at my place in Texas

00:27:35.940 if you want to get out of there.

00:27:38.220 Well, I'll tell you what, Kal-El, can I get back to you in late October after the federal election?

00:27:44.480 Which is to say, if there isn't regime change in the Great White North, well, giddy up, partner. 0.65

00:27:50.580 Maybe I'll be Texas-bound after all.

00:27:53.620 Well, that's it for this edition of the Ezra Levin Show.

00:27:56.240 Thanks for putting out with me.

00:27:57.760 We'll be right back here tomorrow.

00:28:00.140 Good night.

00:28:00.720 Good night.

00:28:00.780 Good night.

Rebel News Podcast - January 04, 2019

Vegan insanity, the Islamic Party of Ontario & more： Guest host David Menzies

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