Osama Bin Vlasak

Well, well, well. In the latest move to work with the people of Newfoundland and Labrador to increase tourism and protect our shores the feds have come up with a scheme to really put our province on the map. The Canadian government is now allowing extremists and potential terrorists to visit our beautiful province. How open minded of them to allow us to play host to these exciting guests.

During the recent seal hunt off our coast, we had the privilege of the annual onslaught of animal rights activists, seal protestors and the like. This is nothing unusual for spring in the province, it’s been going on for years, we have grown somewhat accustomed to it, but this time it was different. This time we were exposed to threats of violence and to intimidation techniques not very different than those practiced in some of the more troubled areas of the world, such as the Middle East.

This time we were confronted with one Dr. Jerry Vlasak, thanks to the support of Paul Watson’s Sea Shephard Society, of which Dr. Vlasak is a board member. Thanks also to the fine folks in The Department of Immigration, a government agency that is designed to prevent this sort of character from entering the country in the first place. Not only did this man come into our waters to protest the hunt, he even confronted one of our sealers, a confrontation which has resulted in violence, and is now before the courts.

Of course the good Dr. claims he was only trying to have a rational conversation with this sealer. I wonder though, based on his history, if Dr. Vlasak even knows what a rational conversation is. At an animal rights conference in 2003, when talking about scientists who dissect animals for research, he said, “I don't think you'd have to kill, assassinate, too many vivisectors before you would see a marked decrease in the amount of vivisection going on”. According to news reports, when asked about this comment and whether or not he feels the same about sealers this man basically said there is no difference.

This man who the Immigration Department allowed into our country has been barred from entering the UK. In the US he is under investigation by the FBI as a possible extremist threat. Great security we have here folks. Add to this the fact that the great Paul Watson is backing this man to the hilt, even up to the point that another member of the Sea Shephard board is resigning over the issue. In my opinion this speaks to the organization itself being a threat to society. When a group harbors a potential terrorist threat, promotes him as a board member and backs him up in these kinds of statements, what else can they be considered?

I wonder how fast the department of Immigration would have acted if this man was wandering around Bay Street protesting banking institutions? What if he was protesting the oil industry or cattle ranching in Alberta? I’d be willing to bet that if he had made it into the country at all, he wouldn’t have been around long enough to nail a protest sign together or buy a pint of paint to write his venomous comments on it.

Once again, thanks for the support Ottawa. If mistakes were made in letting this character slip across our border that is one thing, but I wonder if you will let him or even his group back next year. If you decide that these yahoos can come back to our shores again who will you send over next? Perhaps you might like to invite Osama Bin Laden to stop by for a cup of tea since he’s not up to much at the moment. I wouldn’t wonder that the US is planning to have us show passports and bio Identification to get across the border into their country. You don’t know who could be roaming around in Canada these days.