New Media

Step aside, Batman and Robin. Ezra Levant and Mark Steyn are the real dynamic duo.

Their defense of freedom of speech at Parliament’s Justice and Human Rights Committee, in support of their investigations into the Canadian Human Rights Commission, ought to be in the curriculum of every first year political science course, philosophy seminar series and law program in the country.

As our heroes pointed out, Canada already had a law on the books that protects citizens from speech likely to expose an individual or group to violence — it’s called “uttering threats”. In example after example, Levant and Steyn showed how the HRC has been corrupted into becoming a vehicle for a few individuals (well, mostly one individual) to abuse the system, going after people who pose no real threat, at great taxpayer expense, while undermining our civil rights.

Catch the whole show here or skip to the bottom of this post for the full playlist.

It’s the beginning of the end for the embattled Canadian HRC. Good riddance. As a member of an ethnic minority group, let me state clearly that I do not want or need it’s protection from anonymous neo-Nazis hiding in their parents’ basements while posting racist slurs on blogs and Youtube. As a free Canadian, I want the HRC gone, yesterday.

Let’s not wait for this to slowly wind it’s way through the highest courts. Politicians, do your duty.

A belated kudos to BC author, journalist and all-around intellectual tough guy Terry Glavin on his column about the human rights witch hunt by the Canadian Islamic Congress against one of Canada’s most controversial (well, according to the CIC, anyway) conservative commentators, Mark Steyn.

An excerpt: This entire escapade is not just a threat to Maclean’s and Steyn specifically but to journalists generally, and also to pamphleteers, bloggers and just about anyone who might occasionally express a public opinion on a subject of public interest. It also threatens to invite the wrath of the Supreme Court of Canada, which should be expected if Maclean’s and Steyn find themselves forced to fight this all the way up. The result could cause great harm to the credibility and the legal clout of human rights tribunals across the country.

First, they came for Steyn…