David Eby: Politician, or Civil Libertarian? (And why he needs to resign..)

I was talking with a couple of people this morning who mentioned that someone had sent an email around Occupy Toronto that was trying to do some ‘damage control’ on my last blog entry. I’ve not seen the letter but I’ve been told that, as usual, Eby’s protectorate were trying to frame him as being @MotherTheresaBC. One person who I know would disagree on that point is BC’s Premier- @ChristyClarkBC, who he ran against for her seat in the last provincial election.

So, on this point alone, it is clear that David is a politician- or, at least was a politician. The question of whether he is a politician now or not still needs to be answered. Luckily, David was kind enough to help us with the answer by involving himself in the Vancouver Police Department’s “Porngate” story that broke yesterday. It all began when he tweeted his first opinion:

Let’s first begin looking at those who re-tweeted his message, as it will give you all an idea of the type of people who are David’s followers and supporters…

• Occupy Vancouver: Not very smart of whoever did this at OV, as it only creates needless division between us and the police. Or is that what they were aiming for?

• Vancouver Copwatch: This is an organization who state clearly in their mission statement that “We are against the police“. And when you look at their list of other blogs they support it includes:

• Anti-Poverty Committee:  group who were involved in the attack on the Hudson Bay Company that destroyed the anti-Olympic protest movement on the day David curiously neglected to send legal observers. I have compiled a lot of information on this group on a previous blog entry. Most people in Vancouver shiver in disgust at hearing their name, They are a lot like OCAP are in Toronto- curiously, they are deeply connected to each other.

• 12th And Clark: This is an organization of anarchists with quite an ugly reputation for promoting things like breaking windows.

• Vancouver Media Co-Op: This is probably the most toxic anti-police media organization in the country. If you have any doubt’s try reading the response they published when the original founders of Occupy Vancouver decided to contact the VPD prior to our opening day.

• Joe Bowser: This guy is a radical anarchist who openly supports the Black Bloc. There’s a great article on his blog discussing how David Eby didn’t send his legal observers on the day of the attack on The Bay that killed the anti-Olympic movement.

But, I digress, the fact that the anti-police and violent anarchist community get pleasure out of David Eby’s anti-police tweets is only circumstantial. That said, for those who don’t understand David’s deep connections with these communities, you’ll probably have a better understanding now…

A story came out today where David was interviewed about his thoughts on Porngate. My first impression was how it was rather hypocritical how he criticised Alex Tsakumis for publicising the story and then, on the same day, David uses the story for his own political gain. But, this is typical behavior in politics…

But, what David neglected to discuss in the article simply blew my mind. I totally agree with him on the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace, and believe most of us would. But, why did he not make one single statement about the civil liberties implications of this issue? Electronic surveilliance in the workplace has been one of the most deeply debated issues in Civil Liberties ever! Here’s a great article on the issue by Symantec, a leading publisher of security software.

So, why would the head of the BC Civil Liberties Association neglect to say a single word about the civil liberties angle? How could this be?

Put simply, because David Eby is much more focussed on wearing his ‘politician hat’ than he is being a civil libertarian- this is only a sideshow for him until he can get himself into power. And that, my friends, is a day I hope all of us will ensure we will never see…

So, I leave you all with one big question: Is it not time for David to vacate his seat and give it to someone who deserves it?