It’s been clear for some time now that Canadian oil and gas advocates will do almost anything to get new pipelines built, from spinning stories about the “ethics” of our oil to weaponizing the economic insecurity of Indigenous communities. But they plumbed new depths of depravity with their willingness to treat the crisis in Ukraine as an opportunity to push, yet again, for projects like Keystone XL and Energy East.
Above Photo: Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United States Oksana Markarova speaks during a news conference at the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, Feb. 26, 2022. Jose Luis Magana / AP.
Surprise and horror have defined the reaction to the Russian military intervention in Ukraine. That’s likely because although the intervention has followed the contours of a modern land war, it has also marked a break with the past in a number of ways. The world has become used to military interventions by the United States. This is, however, not a U.S. intervention. That in itself is a surprise—one that has befuddled reporters and pundits alike.
Canadian banks, insurance companies and asset managers have pumped millions into Russian-owned oil and gas companies that have flowed into the petrostate’s war chest.
The U.S. determination to continue the progressive expansion of NATO towards the borders of the Russian Federation has led to a scenario, with implications of unpredictable scope, which could have been avoided.
The military moves made by the United States and NATO in recent months into regions adjacent to the Russian Federation, preceded by the delivery of modern weapons to Ukraine, which together amount to a progressive military encirclement, are well known.
“We want demilitarization and de-escalation of this current crisis."
A coalition of Canadian peace groups and civil society organizations is calling on the federal government to de-escalate any potential conflict between Russia and NATO over Ukraine.
Mike "Wompus" Nieznany is a 73-year-old Vietnam veteran who walks with a cane from the combat wounds he received during his service. That disability doesn't keep Nieznany from making a living selling custom motorcycle luggage racks from his home in Gainesville, Georgia. Neither will it slow him down when it's time to visit Washington, D.C.—heavily armed and ready to do his part in overthrowing the U.S. government.
The US military is famous for being the single largest consumer of petroleum products in the world and the largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Its carbon emissions exceed those released by “more than 100 countries combined.”
