For my non Canadian friends who may have followed the Trucker protest saga in the great white north and the subsequent despotic government response. Recently a court ruled that Trudeau's invocation of the Emergencies act (essentially a war measures act) to squash the protest was unconstitutional.
Here is an article from the National Post if you are interested in reading more.
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1319 sats \ 1 reply \ @beorange 25 Jan
This is/was a clear and obvious example for the developed world of why Bitcoin is important. You don't need to agree or disagree with the initial decision or with the verdict, the truth is Bitcoin avoids this and protects the individual freedoms.
The developing world is full of examples, the western world of liberal democracies has this one as a prime example to showcase that it can happen, and when it does, you will be glad you have Bitcoin.
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Well said.
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It's crazy that there isn't a better check on this stuff than a court ruling years later. We need protections from these despots that work in real time.
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Exactly. Here let me ruin your life, throw you in jail, slander you in the press and then get a slap on the wrist two years later.
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a slap on the wrist two years later
It's not even that, though. There's no actual punishment, right? It's just a "Don't do that again." Over time that's valuable, but I'd favor inserting a constitutional review step prior to measures becoming law.
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The article does state that there could be potential legal consequences and a pathway for those affected by invocation of the act to pursue civil claims but most likely the consequences are political.
Trudeau was likely going to lose the next election anyways so not sure this will cost him anything besides maybe a few people who were on the fence about him looking at him differently now.
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The 2nd amendment in the US was supposed to be just that... Of course in Canada they've already taken most of the citizenry's guns.
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Yes gun laws are brutal in Canada.
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I've actually wondered if that's why red America was subjected to so much less Covid tyranny.
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I think it more relates to the fact that Canada leans more liberal, is more conditioned to big government and trusts the media more. At least they did. One would hope lessons were learned amongst the Canadian citizenry after covid.
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792 sats \ 1 reply \ @gnilma 25 Jan
I have always felt that politicians should be held personally liable to decisions they made during their term in office, both in civil and criminal court. Put some skin in the game for them so they would think twice before doing shit that fucks up people's lives. That's probably a pipe dream though, because politicians make the laws and putting skin in the game for themselves is probably the last thing they will do.
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Wouldn’t that be nice but politicians make the laws so I don’t think any of them are voting for that.
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549 sats \ 0 replies \ @KLT 25 Jan
I told my wife what was going on in Canada and she couldn’t believe it. Bitcoin is hope.
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It was a really horrible event, and a miserable attitude from Canadian Government. BUT...it was nice to see how different peoples tried to help protestants (truckers) with food, money, or....Bitcoin...because their bank accounts was freezed during the protest, the only way for payment remained BTC.
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The U.S. outlawed private gold ownership because of an unconstitutional war measures act for over 40 years, and the war on which the president based his authority had been over for 15 years.
Don't be a dick. Be anti-war.
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290 sats \ 1 reply \ @ladyluck 26 Jan
Bitcoin usage in this protest was instrumental in advertising its utility in an authoritative government
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Agreed
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Court: "That was mean, Justin. Don't do it again." Justin Trudeau: "Kay" 🤞
Anything going to happen other than this?
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Theoretically those affected by the use of the act could pursue civil claims and it could cost Trudeau the next election but he wasn't likely to win anyways so you summed it up pretty well.
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20 sats \ 0 replies \ @xz 25 Jan
About a week to file those civil claims. Court takes its sweet time to rule a verdict.
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Boy are you going to love the Craig Wright lawsuits.
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People still think the constitution protects them? Naive.
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It's a nice sentiment, but to be honest, the only rights we truly have are natural, i.e. the ability to defend property. There are plenty of examples in history along with the trucker protest that prove that's the case. It's not rocket science, despite all the education and lofty idealism that was an attempt to pull the wool over our eyes.
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How do you defend your property?
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That's not a big mystery. You don't have to defend it alone, and you don't have to defend all your property. The most important property to protect is your own life and loved ones, and then it's just managing that buffer, if you have the means.
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How can you protect your property against a tyrannical government? Merely relying on a piece of toilet paper (constitution) will not ensure your safety. Even if you own a gun, you are still out numbered. You cannot defend anything in the physical world.
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If that's the case, then why are you here? You are only outnumbered if you cannot persuade more people to come to your defense. Even then, the government is just the biggest group of thugs; not very bright. Each can be turned or tricked in your favor.
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Your bitcoins(digital world), and your thoughts/brain(physical world), is the only "property" you can defend. That's what i was trying to say. Sorry if i sounded rude.
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Maybe there's still hope for Canada.
But seriously, the one positive outcome of situations like this is that it's a pain point for a lot of people who need it in order to become more aware of how the state is ripping them off and trying to surveil and control everything they do. Lots of people learned about the benefits of bitcoin thanks to the government's actions. The bolder they (government) get, the more people start to push back and opt out.
Ideally, the government wouldn't put its own citizens in this situation, but now a lot of Canadians know that they will. Every time someone comments about how bitcoin is useless, or some Davos talking head talks about how Americans don't need bitcoin, there are examples like this to point to, to illustrate that yes, they do need it. Everyone needs it.
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20 sats \ 2 replies \ @398ja 26 Jan
Will he suffer consequences for the lives he's wrecked though?
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He was likely going to lose the next election anyways so probably not but maybe this seals his political fate.
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50 sats \ 0 replies \ @398ja 26 Jan
But will surely leave the scene with a golden parachute, though. 😔
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noone cares :)
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I care and it appears that a number of people cared enough to read and respond.
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There is hope when politics have to be accountable for their acts…
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