China in Canada: Circling the Water Hole

“Seven of the world’s 10 most populated regions face such severe water shortages over the next three decades that they threaten to derail the growth which hundreds of millions of people in the developing world are banking on to lift them out of poverty.”

One of those countries is China.  China’s communist regime has a lot of challenges on their plate these days – significant internal pressures that are building to the boiling point.  Their water’s running out, they have a couple bubbles waiting to burst, the middle class is feeling both duped and squeezed and there are still too many people having to get by on the equivalent of $1 a day.   

One thing in their favour, most of the time, has been a stable political process that, while stifling democracy and causing a lot of the problems they now face, at least allows for long-term planning.

Knowing the internal challenges they face, China has been playing the long game.  While Western countries get caught up in four-year political cycles and scandals ranging from election fraud to bunga bunga parties, China has been building its presence in Africa and the South Pacific, making the right friends and casting its shadow over those they can control.

China has more troops positioned in Africa than Canada has, period.  They are positioning themselves for resource access but also land access, as they’re going to need somewhere to grow food for their massive populace.  In addition to food, though, China is going to need water.  Where is the world’s largest freshwater system? 

Prime Minister Harper, determined to build a natural resource-based economy that capitalizes on Alberta oil walked off in a huff from the US and into the welcoming arms of China.  To maintain and build a stronger relationship with China, Harper has opened the doors to Canada’s telecoms sector.  He has done this against advice from his own advisors and foreign partners.  Unfortunately, Harper and his inner team are believers of the “reality based” model of politics – they think they can create reality if they are tough and shrewd enough.  Sadly for us, they’re wrong.

China sees oil as a panda foot in the door – but they aren’t going to stop there.  As they start circling Ottawa, you can bet they’ve got one eye turned towards the Great Lakes.

Far from firewalling Canada against troubles lapping at our shores, Harper has now made us vulnerable on several fronts to a player that has drawn the consternation of many allies, including our southern neighbours.  If the US sees China’s presence in Canada’s telecoms as a threat, if they start to see the potential for external competition over our shared fresh water, you can guarantee something will budge.

There’s a way to make a win of this, but not through the strategy Harper is playing.  It’s time Canadians start paying more attention to global water woes – because those are challenges that are going to come home to roost sooner rather than later.

Puzzling Out Society's Problems

Police commanders issuing orders contrary to the democratic fabric of the community they are charged with protecting.

Junior officers blindly following orders they should have known were wrong.

Chris Mazza – on suicide watch but still wanted for questioning  over the real ORNGE crush.

Strict message discipline starting to crack, letting out the steam that’s been building.

Ideology being pursued at the expense of national well being.

To me, all these are all pieces in an emerging puzzle picture; by putting selfish or partisan interests ahead of the Public Good, the so-called Machiavellian strategists are blindly leading us – and themselves – into one rake after another.

This is because they aren’t thinking broadly enough, nor far enough ahead.  Traditionally, there hasn’t been enough real-time accountability for them to put that much effort into long-term, public interest strategy.  Thought, of course, emerges from the mind -  but mental health isn't something we've wanted to talk about, either.

That’s starting to change.

Demographic reality, political and economic reality, social challenges and social media are all forcing us to be more conscious about our actions. 

Go fast, go alone.  Go far, move together. 

Welcome to the 21^st Century.

Could China be Harper's Achilles' Heel?

"Unfortunately, the PMO is very nonchalant when it comes to security," said the intelligence expert. "They have an agenda, a political agenda … and they disregard some of the warnings coming from the official agencies."

Socialist and Separatists? They'll destroy our country.  Environmental advocates?  They're fundamentally un-Canadian, backed by foreign capital.

But Huawei and China?  They're just good partners.

Canadians are an open people, but they value their security.  Harper should know - he's spent his entire time as Prime Minister fanning the flames of fear.  He needed more control, the argument went, to defend Canada from radicals like Stéphane Dion and Michael Ignatieff.

Now, his own security apparatus - the people he has listened to unquestioningly (F35s, cough cough) as they supported the Harper Agenda are telling him that same political agenda is going to hurt Canada.  Not only that - the US is now wondering whether they need to worry about Canada becoming a security threat, a pawn in China's broader game.

So, having consolidated power, Harper is becoming the embodiment of every threat he has warned Canadians about, time and again.

What do you think - is Huawei a Trojan Dragon?  Will China prove to be Harper's Achilles' heel?