Government strangling flow of information

Dear Editor:

Branding the deer protection people (Invermere Deer Protection Organization) “loud’ troublemakers was like declaring open-season on these well-intentioned citizens. Now everyone wants to take a shot at them.

What if they’re not to blame? What if this mess was created by the failure of the mayor and council to fully communicate their plans to all the people — early enough and clearly enough?

So how do governments “communicate” to the people today in the age of instant communication?

Usually they dump this crucial task onto private mainstream media: TV, radio and newspaper. These media have recently become mostly special-interest monopolies. Maybe somewhere amongst the ads, between the opinions and the spin, hides information that’s essential to our democracy. You just have to find it.

Jet fighters, the Omnibus Crime Bill, the dismantling of Environment Canada, gutting the Fisheries Act, exporting raw materials (and jobs) to foreign profiteers, tripling our military weapons production, secret free-trade negotiations with Asia and the European Union, and many more — how aware has the media made the public on these crucial issues?

Strangling the flow of public information is Harper’s weapon of mass deception. This tactic has virtually eliminated “the people” from the decision making process.

No one knows what’s going on any more. The massive cuts to the CBC and the cuts of Internet access for libraries are a vicious assault on our right to know what governments are up to.

Harper campaigned he would not cut the CBC. Democracy cannot exist without an informed citizenry. We need the CBC. Now, more than ever.

Bryan Stawychny, Edgewater