Update on Arthur Topham, in his own words

[Peter O'Donnell]

This has a keystone cops theme now, given the failure to detect any ironic intention of Arthur Topham in publishing the supposedly offending material. It pays not to be too subtle in Canada, I believe because of our long history of a managed and elitist Torontocentric media, many conflicting points of view are poorly (if at all) understood and people tend to think in very digestible terms, like the poor benighted souls who take those 15-second news digest sheets onto the public transit every day. Now this is not to say that on the whole I agree with Arthur Topham about very much, our views on the holocaust and on Israel's security today are evidently almost polar opposites. What is doubly ironic is that Topham's views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are almost word for word the same as most Canadian leftists. Now, had one of them thought of this device of shaming the Jews by finding something they wrote and changing it to the modern context as they saw it, I have to wonder if anyone would have rattled the chains of the censorship police to go out and put an end to their dangerous attack on the state of Israel.

Seems unlikely, given that leftists have a free hand to say whatever they want in Canada, even about this hot button topic where any deviation from the Likud party line can lead to charges of anti-Semitism. In my un-Canadian subtlety of thought process, I find that offensive although I am quite happy to reveal my own sympathy for the Likud party line and for the survival of Israel against all the odds. We have wandered into dangerous territory on this issue, where one kind of extremist viewpoint is demonized and another very similar kind is taught in schools. Not only is it dangerous, but it becomes increasingly absurd. When you think about it carefully (and who has, outside of this forum?) there is just about the same justification for raiding the local NDP office as the home of Arthur Topham, if the aim is to stop people from hating Israel. Calling the task by a slightly different name does not really erase this irony.

Now I am torn between the prospect of seeing the left in Canada subjected to a purge (their own creation coming home to bite them back) and a commitment to freedom of speech no matter how offensive or unpleasant or uncomfortable we may personally find it. I am also very concerned with the apparent power and ability of private citizens, holding no defined roles in either law enforcement or justice, having any sort of power to quarterback police activities and gain any sort of private advantage or knowledge as a result. This is the classic formula for what most people would call a "banana republic" and no, the ends do not justify the means. My freedom is more threatened by this desire to police what other people think, hear and contemplate, than by any potential organizational opportunities for extremists, which (the latter) is theoretically what these law enforcement moves are meant to control. In other words, I would rather have a few dozen storm troopers marching energetically if impotently around the city streets on odd occasions, than van loads of secret police monitoring all of our communications to see who is thinking correctly, and who needs correction.

Because at the end of the day, censors of the land, you are not smart enough to tell us what to think. In some cases, you are not even smart enough to realize that what you sent forth could very easily come back through your own front door one day, animated by a different set of persons seeking that ultimate power, to define the state in their own image.

I see there has been an attempt to discuss this, thwarted by the messy realities of the lawfare campaign. In a way, this is a sordid little victory for that campaign, where concerned citizens are not freely able to discuss what other people are saying about matters of importance, due to a "libel chill" set out deliberately to prevent full discussion. That is why we are in this lawfare mess, and it continues to irritate me considerably that Canadians are not getting this story from any of their esteemed media outlets, who have been asleep at the switch, just as they will remain asleep through whatever else unfolds on the distant Barkerville Highway. Sooner or later, some comatose servant of this dead-head censorship regime will stumble into the wrong establishment and take away a lefty's computer, then we'll hear screams of outrage and see the mobilization of opinion against "the regime" but to be fair to all sides, "the regime" is pretty much the whole country minus about five hundred independent-minded persons whose brains are still, against all the odds, working.

That movie about the zombie apocalypse? It's just the reality of everyday life in Canada.

[Connie Fournier]

Actually, I'm pretty sure Arthur Topham IS a leftie.

Anyway, I'm tired of prefacing every post I make about freedom of speech with "I don't agree with him, but....". I'm just not going to do it anymore. It's a waste of server bytes. It is patently obvious to anyone without an agenda that I defend the free speech of people I don't agree with. I went ballistic over the G20 police debacle, and there certainly weren't a lot of conservatives in that crowd!

[Narrow Back]

Actually, I'm pretty sure Arthur Topham IS a leftie.

Anyway, I'm tired of prefacing every post I make about freedom of speech with "I don't agree with him, but....". I'm just not going to do it anymore. It's a waste of server bytes. It is patently obvious to anyone without an agenda that I defend the free speech of people I don't agree with. I went ballistic over the G20 police debacle, and there certainly weren't a lot of conservatives in that crowd!

Well said and I agree.

I still regret I missed your PM about the G20. It would have been fun for us to have experienced that together.

I loved being able to share the photos I took on the streets with people here on FD. If anyone remembers, I was also harshly and unapologetically critical of the G20 policing. Like you Connie, I was there on the front line. But you're right, there wasn't too many conservatives out there.

[fourhorses]

This has a keystone cops theme now, .....

just imagine the damage these cops could do if they could actually read what's on any given website

[Peter O'Donnell]

I get that they are only following orders, but whose orders? That needs to be clarified. We have enough levels of government in this country without private citizens adding new ones.

[Maikeru]

I...said...Hollywood...was run by the Jews...

Those 8 words are a 'smoking gun', buried amongst 4851 words in a rambling 'statement' by BC resident Arthur Topham, when describing his arrest on a barren northern highway by a task force of law-enforcement personnel, coordinated by the 'BC Hate-Crimes Team'.

Mr. Topham is not the first BC resident to make the claim quoted above.
On March 9, 1994, Journalist Doug Collins penned a column in a neighbourhood advertising newspaper titled: 'Swindler's List: Hollywood Propaganda', which included the statement:

In time of war, propaganda is justified. Fifty years on, it's a bit much.
But it comes about because the Jewish influence is the most powerful in Hollywood.

That column, indeed that sentence, became the basis for the first ever BCHRTribunal 'hate-speech' Hearing in 1997, based upon a Complaint by the CJC.

The Decision in that Hearing included a preamble by Tribunal Member Nitya Iyer, dealing with the B.C. Press Council’s challenge of the constitutionality of the free speech restrictions of BCHRAct Section 7(1).
The full Decision by Ms. Iyers can be found here

The Iyers Decision, flowing from the CJC v Collins Hearing, was quickly eclipsed by the vastly more publicized second BCHRT hearing: Harry Abrams v Doug Collins (&NSN), heard in 1998.

So here we are, in the closing months of 2012, witnessing that 'history repeats itself', as Harry Abrams attempts to revive the old magic by making Arthur Topham's words disappear from the internet, as he once made Doug Collins words disappear from hard copy 'for injury to [Abram's] dignity, feelings and self-respect'.

Mr. Topham was investigated, surveilled, arrested, jailed, interviewed and conditionally released by Detective Constable Terry Wilson of the 'BC Hate Crimes Unit', in a show of force most akin to totalitarian regimes.

Those 'police state' actions cannot be allowed to pass unnoticed, and it is a measure of the courage and tenacity of the Fourniers of FreeDominion, that they have once again put their reputations on the line, by shining a light upon activities which degrade Canadas' Justice System, and bring shame upon media sources cowed into submission by fear of legal litigation.

'Maximum©Disruption' is not something to be feared, it is something to be extinguished.

[Peter O'Donnell]

It's like Jerry Seinfeld said to his Uncle Leo, "no wonder people are anti-Semitic, look at you."

[Maikeru]

Connie receives the most interesting emails in all of Canada, circa 2009

That link includes a link to an Oct. 22, 2008 discussion at 'The Shotgun' titled : 'Richard Warman wins lawsuit, a speech warrior yawns', and a July 21, 2008 discussion at 'Law is Cool' titled Hateful Publications in B.C..

Both links contains comments by Harry Abrams, whose dignity, feelings and self-respect were restored by 'human rights' to such a degree that he now surpasses John McClane for sheer bluff and bravado.

[Connie Fournier]

Speaking of interesting emails, I have no idea who made this, but it is well done!

[Edward Kennedy]

...looks like a fu_____ng idiot.

[Maikeru]

Breaking:
(note: Arthur Topham was arrested on May 16, 2012, and a search warrant executed by the BC HateCrimes Team.
After 5 1/2 months he received the following documents in an email from his Counsel, Mr. Doug Christie):
RadicalPress News Alert: Formal charges laid against RadicalPress Publisher Nov. 5, 2012

[EdS]

OK - I'm going to say something here that will raise the ire of freedom-of-speech purists here.

Both Topham and Tremaine can both go to hell.

I'm a Jew. I abhor what these two ignoramuses write and think. By now, in 2012, there is no reason for any kind of antisemitism, other than blind ignorance. This kind of blind bigotry has no place in society. These two vicious bigots DESERVE ALL THEY GET AND MORE!!!!

I'm sorry, but when it come to antisemites as vicious as these two, my tolerance for freedom-of-speech goes out the window. In my opinion, they both deserve to go to jail.

Now you Christians can be all liberal and tolerant about freedom-of-speech, (you can afford it) and generally, I agree and support such sentiments. But when it comes to the public execration and vilification of Jews, I draw the line.

Self-interest? Yeah! So sue me.


Flame away...



I will open a thread about this.

[Edward Kennedy]

OK - I'm going to say something here that will raise the ire of freedom-of-speech purists here.

Both Topham and Tremaine can both go to hell.

I'm a Jew. I abhor what these two ignoramuses write and think. By now, in 2012, there is no reason for any kind of antisemitism, other than blind ignorance. This kind of blind bigotry has no place in society. These two vicious bigots DESERVE ALL THEY GET AND MORE!!!!

I'm sorry, but when it come to antisemites as vicious as these two, my tolerance for freedom-of-speech goes out the window. In my opinion, they both deserve to go to jail.

Now you Christians can be all liberal and tolerant about freedom-of-speech, (you can afford it) and generally, I agree and support such sentiments. But when it comes to the public execration and vilification of Jews, I draw the line.

Self-interest? Yeah! So sue me.


Flame away...



I will open a thread about this.

I am also angry, but at worse than you are. What would you do if Jews were discriminated against in government jobs and also because they could not speak french? The way things are, a so called visible minority can get off the boat with his herd of wives and children, and all of them are given preferential treatment over a several generation person because of skin color.

Further, there are NO VISIBLE MINORITIES WORLDWIDE except Caucasians who are about an 8% minority and the other races are the MAJORITY!!!

[feduptaxpayer]

OK - I'm going to say something here that will raise the ire of freedom-of-speech purists here.

Both Topham and Tremaine can both go to hell.

I'm a Jew. I abhor what these two ignoramuses write and think. By now, in 2012, there is no reason for any kind of antisemitism, other than blind ignorance. This kind of blind bigotry has no place in society. These two vicious bigots DESERVE ALL THEY GET AND MORE!!!!

I'm sorry, but when it come to antisemites as vicious as these two, my tolerance for freedom-of-speech goes out the window. In my opinion, they both deserve to go to jail.

Now you Christians can be all liberal and tolerant about freedom-of-speech, (you can afford it) and generally, I agree and support such sentiments. But when it comes to the public execration and vilification of Jews, I draw the line.

Self-interest? Yeah! So sue me.


Flame away...



I will open a thread about this.

I am also angry, but at worse than you are. What would you do if Jews were discriminated against in government jobs and also because they could not speak french? The way things are, a so called visible minority can get off the boat with his herd of wives and children, and all of them are given preferential treatment over a several generation person because of skin color.

Further, there are NO VISIBLE MINORITIES WORLDWIDE except Caucasians who are about an 8% minority and the other races are the MAJORITY!!!

(X)And then we have to start and wonder why Caucasians are starting too become frustrated. The next step will be that Caucasians will have to start to fight back in order to survive as we are fast becoming an endangered species. Do we as Caucasian gentiles not see that discrimination against us is becoming wide spread around the world. Approx. 80% of new immigrants are coming in from the so-called third world and that does not improve our situation, but is adding to it.

Like you said, Ed K. we are about 8% of world population, and the time will have to come when we will have to protect and act on this before we become an extinct race of people. We are seeing racism against our people more and more each day. Over forty years ago this what not a topic, but it is today, and must be dealt with or else it will be over for our people. I am now much more pro-white today then what I ever was and do you blame me or many others for being so?

[Julian]

B.C. man charged with promoting hatred against Jews on website

The publisher of a British Columbia website that has drawn repeated complaints over its portrayals of Jews has been charged with promoting hatred following a six-month police investigation, officials said Tuesday.

Arthur Topham, 65, was charged with a single count of willfully promoting hatred against “people of the Jewish religion or ethnic group” as well as improper storage of firearms found in his house near Quesnel, B.C.

“The branch has approved charges against him,” said Neil MacKenzie of the B.C. Criminal Justice Branch. He said the province’s assistant deputy attorney general had sign off on the hate crimes charge.

Mr. Topham was to make a court appearance Thursday.

“We’re glad that the government and the police have taken our concerns seriously and proceeded,” said Anita Bromberg of B’nai Brith Canada, which had asked police to investigate the website last May.

More: http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/11/06 ... n-website/