Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Terry Neslon support letter to Mathias Columb Cree Nation

Chief Arlen Dumas
January 29th 2013

Chief, today is a great day for your people. You may not know it but you have made more impact than all the protests across Canada and any opposition comments made in the House of Commons yesterday. Now you are standing between the White Man and his money. HudBay Mining is a public company raising money based on international investor confidence in Canada's reputation as a safe place to invest. With your actions yesterday you have impacted the rate at which companies in Canada can raise money on the international market. You are going to be under a lot of pressure. The Winnipeg Free Press put your actions on the net and this will have big impact.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Band-protesting-over-HudBay-Minerals-Lalor-mine--188695981.html

Your statement is absolutely brilliant.
In a prepared statement, Dumas said, "We totally reject HudBay’s Environmental Act License Application submitted for the Lalor mine without our consent. As the rightful owner, only we have the authority to approve a license to extract our resources from our territories."
There are over 60 metals and minerals mined in Canada and all are within a First Nation's traditional territory. If all First Nations in Canada issued the same statement as you and if they carried out the action you did, the Americans would be calling Harper immediately. The United States business community provides 72% of all foreign investment in Canada. Canada is an economic suburb of New York City. Toronto is going to be calling AFN National Chief Shawn Atleo and Shawn will be calling you if this affects the rate the investors demand from investments in Canada.
HudBay does not only mine in Canada, it is a world wide mining company and is mining a lot in indigenous lands in South America. It has gotten in trouble in the past in several countries. What you did yesterday is important to all Canadian business that relies on investment confidence. Here is what the HudBay website has as it mission statement,
Hudbay is committed to producing strong investor returns and creating better futures for communities and employees by finding, building and operating successful mines.
When we blocked CN railway on January 16th near Portage La Prairie, they got an injunction and that court injunction gives us an opportunity to be heard in court as we fight the Title that CN claims to have in our Treaty territory. We don't expect to win in an immigrant court of law but we will leave on the court record our message to our children, our grandchildren and the future generations of our people. CN knows it, their title is the same category as the legal arguments made regarding Terra Nullius, the concept of "empty land", the same type of legal argument as Manifest Destiny and Papal Bull. The immigrants to our lands have been conditioned to believe that they provide all the money that First Nations live on. They are sadly mistaken and Manitobans especially have no clue that the northern First Nations territory sends billions of dollars a year south to subsidize the lifestyle of every one of those people who make hateful comments in the media about "lazy Indians living on the good graces of the Canadian taxpayer".
Terra nullius (pron.: /ˈtɛrə nʌˈlaɪ.əs/, plural terrae nullius) is a Latin expression deriving from Roman law meaning "land belonging to no one",[1] which is used in international law to describe territory which has never been subject to the sovereignty of any state, or over which any prior sovereign has expressly or implicitly relinquished sovereignty. Sovereignty over territory which is terra nullius may be acquired through occupation,[2] though in some cases doing so would violate an international law or treaty. Wikipedia
Canada is an exporting nation and Parliament better wake up to the fact that the indigenous people are getting international attention. Canada's image as a safe place to invest is taking a beating. If your actions are carried out by all other First Nations in Canada, Business Canada is in serious trouble. Eighty-five percent of the natural resource base in Manitoba is in the north. The First Nations in the north send billions of dollars a year south but live in abject poverty. What you did yesterday sends a strong message to the ones that need to hear it, the rich people who invest in Canada, the one percent of Americans who make up the largest percentage of the foreign investment in Canada.
What you did yesterday takes Idle No More beyond round dancing, protests in the streets and now that the Theresa Spence issue is out of the media, this is what this movement needed. As I said in the 2007 National Day of Action, Standing between the White Man and his money. We know we can stand there because the White Man gets his money from our lands and our natural resource wealth. The immigrants have forgotten who lives on whose good graces. You just gave them a small slap on the face that may awake them to that fact.
I am attaching a letter I sent to Harper on the impact of Bill C45 on the Treaty. I am going after CN's title in court. If you need any position papers or treaty arguments that can help you in court, I will share my documents with you. I am also attaching Doug Bland's Ottawa Citizen article. Bland is over 70 years old and for years was the one who advised the Military leaders and RCMP. It is guys like Bland that understand that they need to tread softly when confronting First Nations, something the Judges and politicians may need to learn.
I met with Doug Bland and read his Book. He writes in his article
In the Canadian/First Nations context, Canada’s absolute economic dependence on natural resources (by some estimates equal to 30 per cent of the Canadian economy) and the inescapable vulnerability of the transportation infrastructure that moves these resources to the markets in Canada and the United States, gives the First Nations enormous new-found powers.
Chief, the $1.7 trillion GDP in Canada is dependent upon us. Immigrants make no payment for our resource wealth, the government has sucked the poor white people into believing that the First Nations are feeding off the taxpayer. They want to believe that but the government, industry and the Canadian Taxpayer Federation have known all along that they were lying to the people. This is why I am telling you, your actions have far greater consequences than we know today. They will come to you asking you to be "reasonable" I just love the Winnipeg Sun racist articles and editorials, it is making our people mad but it is actions like yours that make the difference. WE need our young people to document the racist comments made in the Canadian media, it will be a permanent marker on record. This is like Mississippi in the sixties, Canadians coming out with their racist attitudes. These beliefs and feelings were always there, now our people are waking up to the reality of what a lot of white Canada believes.
Terrance Nelson

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Everyday Heroes. One Match and Powwow People.

"I can be your hero, baby".I'm no hero. Heck I am not even heroic. But I love a good hero story. 

  As kids there were no absence of television heroes. The Lone Ranger, Batman, Tarzan, Bonanza, GunSmoke, Star Trek (no one, no one can forget James Tiberius Kirk), Mannix, and Mission Impossible (to name a few), and "book em Danno", Hawaii Five O.  I mean who doesn't think of saving the day, saving a life?  Being a masked hero like Adam West and his catchy lines. Or the Lone Ranger in his cool hat and sparkling horse?  Well I grew up and I realize that there are heroes. Just not like I imagined on television. Don't get me wrong, I still fantasize about wearing tights and walking up the side of a building, saying things like "old chum, its a long walk on a Sunday night". But I have come to appreciate the heroes who will not have the chance to wear the masked outfits. 

This year at the Manito Ahbee Powwow I witnessed lots of heroes. One Match Stem Cell and Marrow Network was at the Powwow. One Match was able to secure an exhibitors booth at the Powwow. The booth was a donation from Aboriginal producer  Lisa Meeches.  It was kind of Meeches to donate the booth area for the One Match team. One Match looks for people to sign up as possible Marrow matches for people that are in desperate need. The thing in the Aboriginal community is that no one really takes the time to think about blood donation or bone marrow donation. That is a problem. Especially with cancer rates being so high in the Aboriginal community. And the thing is, a match for Aboriginal people is hard to find. Aboriginal will match with Aboriginal.  If there is no Aboriginal people listed as donors, chances are that no donor will match.  Not enough Aboriginal people register to become donors. That is one of the things that One Match wants to change. Get more young Aboriginal people to take the time and sign up for donors.  It is a scary thing. People don't know what is involved. I saw the One Match people talking to young people at the powwow. Many of the people had no clue or were scared. But a number of young men stepped up and said, "sure I would like to sign up". Of course many many Women were eager to sign up to be donors. Seems its always Women who are first to step up with courage. Those damn beautiful women. Anyway I was happy to see a number of young men take the time to become possible donors. My friend Dave's son Jordon signed up. You see the ideal donor is a going to be a healthy young male.  So to all you young people that signed up to be donors at the Powwow, Kitchi Miigwich. You can be my hero baby.

With the bone marrow donors, only a quarter of relatives tested are a successful match. Donors have to be found outside of the immediate family. The reality of the situation is that not enough people are registering for bone marrow donation.

The Aboriginal community is not registering as donors. They currently make up less than one percent (.09%) of donor registrants. The chances of finding a match increase when you have donors of your ancestry.

It is devastating for a family when they are told that they have a child with leukemia. The learning curve of Cancer is steep. The family realizes that the OneMatch Stem Cell and Marrow Network becomes a life line. For many the matches never materialize.

 Dr. Donna Wall of Cancer Care Manitoba: A bone marrow transplant changes the body's immune system as well as other components made by blood. "In order to do this, we have to have a donor who is immune-matched," explains Wall. "And for our patients in Manitoba, we will search world-wide to find the very best donor for them," says Wall, who graduated from the University of Manitoba's Faculty of Medicine in 1981 and spent 27 years working in the United States before returning home in 2008.” 

There are many heroes out there. We see them everyday. It's just that they are not wearing tights or lycra spandex. You know them. I see them everywhere. I saw them at the Powwow, I see them standing outside being cross guards for school kids. You see them caring for your kid in the hospital. Or they are the ones lying in the chair at a blood donor clinic. I am sure happy to have seen some in action.

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Is it Indians and Cowboys, again?

The Idle No More Movement is causing quiet a stir out there in our society. People are getting upset at the Indians. Indians are getting upset at the politicians. Politicians are manipulating more hatred against the Indians. And Non-Aboriginal people are caught in a quandary. Some non-Aboriginal people are not in the majority. They actually like Aboriginal people. I know a few of these people. But how do they act when many of their own are so set against the Aboriginal people?

There are a lot of Indians in the prairie provinces; Saskatchewan and Manitoba. A recent poll suggested that 76 percent of people don't support Indians. That leaves 24 percent that do support Aboriginal people. What are they do to? Sit quiet and let the majority of people that don't like Indians to go unopposed? Or do they sit quietly when there is talk around the table about those "terrorists and free loading Indians"?

Me, I feel bad for those guys. The supporters of Indians, don't have to feel awful for all the ugliness being spewed at Indians by the general public. They are not the ones who are finally lifting the sheets and hoods off their heads. We know that the general public doesn't like Aboriginal people. You don't need a poll to make us aware of that. Ask any Aboriginal person and they will tell you what they have experienced. And these experiences are not isolated incidents. If you read any online article on Aboriginal issues, just go to the comment section and look for your self at the hatred pouring out against Aboriginal people.

You see the problem is that the general public has been sold a load of goods that are not damn good. Right from the history literature and the continued media and government message of Indians receiving "your" hard earned money.  That is not true. But you can't tell anyone that as there is an accepted message out there that Indians got it good and get everything for nothing. Anyway, please educate yourselves and you will see. But please stay away from racists disguised as academics. The only education you will learn from them is to cloak yourself in self-righteousness. But remember:   
"Judge not that ye be not judged.
For with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged,
and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye,
but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye;
and behold, a beam is in thine own eye.
Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye;
and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."

Matthew 7:1-5


(Sorry I had to throw that in, you know because of those sanctimonious, right wing thinking arseholes, who sit and  preach about equality but only if they means they get it all. In case you are not a bible-thumper, the verse refers to being a hypocrite. )
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
(And why beholdest thou the mote ... - A mote signifies any "light substance," as dry chaff, or fine spires of grass or grain. It probably most usually signified the small "spiculae" or "beards" on a head of barley or wheat. It is thus placed in opposition to the word "beam."
Beam - The word used here signifies a large piece of squared timber. The one is an exceedingly small object, the other a large one. The meaning is, that "we are much more quick and acute to judge of small offences in others, than of much larger offences in ourselves." Even a very "small" object in the eye of another we discern much more quickly than a much larger one in our own; a small fault in our neighbor we see much more readily than a large one in ourselves. This was also a proverb in frequent use among the Jews, and the same sentiment was common among the Greeks, and deserves to be expressed in every language.")


I feel kind of bad, but not really. I mean I feel bad for my friends and family that are not Aboriginal but have to listen to me go on about the "white Canadian" and all their hate. My racist self comes out. But I don't mean them, I mean those other white bastards. And there in lies the problem of walking on eggshells. Do I condemn a whole race because 76 percent of them are racists?  Or 76 of them may not be racist but dislike the situation of Indians and the Treaty Obligations?  In any case it comes down to an us versus them scenario. Oh and by the way, when I said white bastards, I was being facetious. So don't think I was really saying White Bastards, when I was really saying small w, white and small b, bastards. Get it?  Just like when I say those damn no good for nothing Neechies. I really mean, boy those Indians, (shake head). It's like that. No hate, just fun, black fun.  I also feel bad for those that are not racist but are painted with the same brush because of others in their group (race, ethnic, class, age, economic status, etc). I wonder how the mixed couples and their kids feel?  Which side to you pick for?  :d

This "up-rising" of Natives sure is causing a divide. Indians and Cowboys. Only thing is the future is a stake here. Our Children's children are going to be affected by what happens today. If we don't say something and if you don't say something, we are complacent to the actions of today. The Rights of Aboriginal People as negotiated and agreed upon, which are "entrenched" in the Canadian Constitution are going to disappear. The Land and the Waters are going to suffer more than they already are facing. The Canadian government, specifically Prime Minister Stephen Harper has declared war on the environment and on the Aboriginal peoples of this land. It is a duty to say something by everyone.  

Canadians are the real beneficiaries of the Treaties. They are rich because of the finite resources this Land has.  The government knows it has no real right to the resources. But it tells everyone it does and goes ahead and acts like it does. Indians are saying, Hold on a second there buddy, you really don't have the right to do that. 

So that is where we are: Indians and Cowboys. With the Indians saying "hey buddy you can't keep doing that with our stuff" and the Cowboys saying, "hold on there Indian, you have had enough of our stuff". 


I hope you are one of those Cowboys that are not in the majority and can understand the issues facing Indian people. I hope you have understanding. I hope you understand that there is a divide. I hope you understand that we are not your enemy. 




Thursday, January 17, 2013

Terry Nelson Letter To Chief Fox

Chief Fox

Yesterday, our small group of fifty delivered a notice to Business Canada. CN had obtained an injunction on Monday, the day previous to the railway blockade. CN only delivered that notice to us later on yesterday. I got a copy only after a CN Cop picked up a copy from the ground and handed it to me. We had already started to leave the area. Although the injunction is not legal, we left the blockade after we made our point. The point is clear, we can shut down the economy.

In 2007, I won a decision against an injunction that was sought by CN. This time their lawyers did not provide notice to us and went to court obtaining the injunction without giving us notice of the injunction or a chance to appear. CN's title comes from the government but the government gets their title from the treaty. When Harper passed the Bill C45 legislation, he nullified the title of CN. Only the treaty guarantees immigrants rights in our lands. In 2007, I went to court and asked Judge Kennedy, how can you give CN an injunctiion against us being on our own land, Kennedy said, CN has title, I asked where did they get title, Kennedy said from Government, so I asked, where did the Government get their title. He went silent and asked, do you have documentation. Of course we did. We gave him a huge amount of documentation.

The doctrine of discovery cannot be upheld in court. We are batting nearly 100% of the land court cases. We win because all the immigrant rights come from Treaty. If the treaties are nullified by Harper legislation, CN, CPR, Enbridge, TransCanada and all immigrant right to access in our lands are endangered.

We can stop all trains in Canada if we had to. If we are forced to do this, our slogan will be Not one toothpick. Jody Wilson Raybould is quoted in the Globe and Mail against blockades. The British Columbia First Nations want Treaty Negotiations and lumber is 50% of the economy of British Columbia but if bloodshed occurs in Canada, Not One Toothpick will be sold to the Americans. There is 2 billion dollars worth of trade a day between Canada and United States. We do not want to be on blockades, we are forced to be there by the Harper legislation.

We need to contact the Americans. They are not our enemy, they can dictate to Harper. The economy of Canada is tied to the United States.

On Tuesday January 22nd and Wednesday 23rd, you will be in Winnipeg with the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs summit. We want a resolution authorizing action on the Treaties. If the immigrants who get all their rights from Treaty are jeopardized by the legislation by Harper, we will be in legal position to take action to stop all railway lines.

The three prairie provinces are the most powerful areas for protest by First Nations. The Biggest Railway Lines and Pipelines are all in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. We have the ability to bring down the Canadian economy and Americans need to wake up to Harper and his dangerous policies.

We delivered the notice yesterday by blocking CN. IF CN tries to sue us or continue to confront us, they will lose all rights to cross our lands. We can stop them if we had to. We don't want to but we maybe forced into this. A resolution at the Summit by AMC next week is needed to legalize a response by the Treaty Nations.

We are there if the Chiefs want action. According to the attached documentation. CN probably lost ten million dollars yesterday. They will need a few days to catch up to the delays from yesterday. IF they sue us, they should also sue Harper because it is the Harper legislation that caused this. I will abide by the injunction for now but I will appeal the injuction. The Judge never allowed us to appear and we will take him to task for his decision. He has no clue about his legal obligations to the treaty rights of immigrants in our lands. We will revoke those immigrants access rights if we have to and as the judge did, we will do so without notice to the immigrants. We do need to be reasonable but Harper is stupid if he thinks that this is over.

The immigrant court already put their injunction in place without our input. Next week, the Chiefs have a chance to put in place a resolution authorizing blockades if Harper continues to unilaterally change the conditions of treaty without our input. The hell with providing them notice, if they feel they have the right to impose their laws upon us without our input. IF CN didn't get that message yesterday, they will if they continue to ignore the conditions of treaty.

Terrance Nelson


How Dangerous is the situation in Canada?
Written by Terrance Nelson, March 2012


“One thing that police and the army know is that indigenous people don’t have any real supply of guns. The supply of guns is controlled but what the authorities don’t understand is that every one of the 633 reservations in Canada has old cars. In Winnipeg thousands of cars were being stolen every month, our indigenous youth who make up to 95% of the inmates in jail, were in criminal “training schools” on how to steal cars. If ever there was a military showdown between Indigenous people and the Canadian army, the first target would be the railway lines and burning cars would be on every railway line in Canada”

In 1990 during the Oka Crisis, four thousand Canadian troops faced about 30 Mohawks in a tense situation where one police officer had already died. The difference between twenty years ago and today is we understand economics a lot better than we did twenty years ago. Two Ojibway communities in northern Ontario blocked railway lines in support of the Mohawks. Economics not military is what makes the situation in Canada dangerous. The American economy could be blindsided by events north of their border rather than by events in other parts of the world.

The National Day of Action on June 29th 2007, exposed the fact that a month long national stoppage of railway traffic in Canada would cripple not only the economy of Canada it would also destroy the economy of the United States. The 2008 economic meltdown shows how vulnerable the U.S. economy is today. The difference between a political action organized by the Chiefs in Canada on the 2007 National Day of Action and a covert operation by First Nation individuals is like night and day. A covert operation involving burning cars on every railway line would almost be impossible to stop despite all the Canadian military and police being alerted to the potential.

The Canadian Security and Intelligence Services and the CIA are well aware of the potential for violence in Canada and are monitoring indigenous people in Canada more and more. A recent novel entitled “Uprising” by former Lieutenant Colonel Bland explores the potential for indigenous violence. Bland is a trained military person who does not understand indigenous people and how warrior societies function as individuals without an army type hierarchy. Bland’s book neglects to exam economic consequences. Indigenous people in Canada aren’t in caves in Afghanistan, they are here in the heart of the North American economy.

In the last decade, the 34 million people in Canada have purchased over 2 trillion dollars worth of American exports. In those ten years, Canada made over $500 billion in trade surpluses with United States. In that decade, Canada sold Americans $2.5 trillion dollars worth of exports. Canada pumps 2.5 million barrels of oil per day to the States and under the North American Free Trade Agreement, the U.S. has “security of energy exports”. Less known than oil coming from Canada is the entire eastern U.S. seaboard is powered up by electricity generated in northern Quebec and Ontario.

Cables released under the Wiki leaks show the United States Embassy in Ottawa raised concerns with Washington regarding indigenous people in Canada, “as long as Canada lacks a clear definition of aboriginal rights or a uniform model for negotiations, effective mechanisms to resolve aboriginal grievances in a timely manner will remain elusive”.

Eighty-seven percent of all Canadian exports flow to the United States and seventy-two percent of all foreign investment in Canada comes from the United States. Canadian and American economies are intertwined, what affects one, affects the other.

On August 18th 1999, Steven Leslie Pound, an employee of Canadian National Railways, provided an Affidavit to the Court of Queen’s Bench testifying to the negative effect that a railway blockade would have on Canadian National Railway. At paragraph 17 of that Affidavit he stated

“I am advised by Dennis Cousineau from CN’s Office of Economics and Financial Planning, and do verily believe, that the average negative daily impact on CN’s revenue from a cessation of train operations in and across Manitoba would be approximately $5.6 million”

That was thirteen years ago, but even then, negative daily impact would have been $5.6 million, 5.6 million dollars a day on CN's revenue but much more impact on all the business that depend on CN. That doesn't include Canadian Pacific Railways, or the impact on other transportation services, this was the impact in Manitoba alone, not a national railway stoppage.

At paragraph 18, he expands on who would be affected.

“A cessation of train operation in Manitoba would also have a significant impact on CN’s customers and others. The main customers in Manitoba affected by interrupted rail service include Dominion Malt, PetroCanada, Shell Canada, Cargill Grain, Agpro Grain, Crown Packaging, Allied, United Grain Growers, Pouwel and Gardenwine. Customers who would be affected by an interference with time sensitive intermodal shipments include TransWestern, Western Canada Express and Clark. A disruption in rail service would affect grain shipments to various ocean ports, including Churchill and Thunder Bay, impacting on the business operations of Saskatchewan Pool, UGG, Cargill, Paterson, Agpro, amongst others, and could result in a shutdown of elevators in Thunder Bay and Churchill”

In 1990 during the Oka crisis, Ojibway First Nations in Ontario, Pic Mobert and Pays Plat First Nations supporting Mohawks blockaded railway lines. The potential for a North American economic meltdown if Mohawks were killed was very real. Americans are aware of the potential. On January 1st 1994 the Mayan uprising in Chiapas Mexico caused international investors to begin pulling $8 billion dollars from stocks of American companies doing business in Mexico. President Clinton was forced to lend Mexico $30 billion as the American dollar tumbled in value.

The United States economy is much weaker today than it was in 1994. The American ability to respond to financial crisis is far different today than it was in 1994 and a conflict in Canada would have much more impact to the American economy than the 1994 Chiapas uprising. The difference between trade with Canada in 2012 compared to the 1994 trade between Mexico and the United States is not even comparable. The economic ties with Canada makes it a much bigger risk for the United States.

In 1994, the American economy was strong, the U.S. federal debt was under five trillion dollars, today U.S. federal debt is over fourteen trillion dollars. The 2008 economic meltdown left America in a situation where they may not be able to respond as effectively to another severe economic jolt. Americans can no longer just print more money or borrow their way out of the next financial meltdown.

Something as significant as conflict in Canada would blindside the Americans. There are numerous studies, including the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry Report, and Senate of Canada papers that warn of the potential for violence in Canada. Much of these documents gather dust while the Government in Canada ignores solutions.



Peaceful Co-existence, a Treaty right of both whites and natives

“ it is the desire of Her Majesty… to obtain the consent thereto of her Indian subjects inhabiting the said tract, and to make a treaty and arrangement with them so that there may be peace and good will between them and Her Majesty“And the undersigned Chiefs do hereby bind and pledge themselves and their people strictly to observe this treaty and to maintain perpetual peace between themselves and Her Majesty’s white subjects, and not to interfere with the property or in any way molest the persons of Her Majesty’s white or other subjects”

Not to interfere with the property… of Her Majesty’s white subjects is a treaty right granted by indigenous people to the people who immigrated to Canada. It is a treaty right that is contingent upon Her Majesty fulfilling the conditions of treaty.

CN's and CPR’s title to the land railway tracks run on comes from the Canadian government, whose right to grant deeds and titles within indigenous territories comes from treaties. When Canada fundamentally breaches the treaty conditions, titles and deeds granted by Canada is jeopardized. Even the Supreme Court of Canada decided that indigenous people have inherent rights. “Aboriginal title is a legal right derived from the historic occupation of Tribal lands by Native people. It is not something that was given to native people by some government, by Royal Proclamation, or by the signing of a treaty” Justice Dickinson, Supreme Court of Canada.

The government of Canada has no intention of returning to the bargaining table as long as Indigenous people continue to allow Canada to do whatever it pleases with treaties. As long as Canada can continue to export natural resource wealth to the Americans without any payment to the indigenous people, Canada will not negotiate.

The Tarsands of Alberta contain 1.4 trillion barrels of oil and forty percent of that oil is recoverable under present day technology. At one hundred dollars per barrel, that forty percent is approximately $60 trillion worth of recoverable oil. There are over 60 metals and minerals mined in Canada, all done with little or no payment to indigenous people.

The lifestyle of every Canadian is subsidized by the sale of natural resource wealth and as indigenous people are kept impoverished at the 72nd of the United Nations Living Index. There will be no solutions implemented until a crisis is reached.

Not only are the railway lines vulnerable to closure by covert operation but the oil pipelines now sending 2.5 million barrels of oil per day to the United States would be a target if indigenous people and the government of Canada were in military conflict. Pumping stations like the Gretna Depot in southern Manitoba would be vulnerable as it pumps over one million barrels of oil per day to Midwestern United States. Under its own safety procedures Enbridge and TransCanada pipelines shut down after three days of limited access.

 

Canadian Crude Oil Imports: Increasing Importance To The United States

09/29/2010 01:15PM

U.S. consumers are sometimes surprised to learn that our single largest foreign source of crude oil is Canada, which surpassed Saudi Arabia as the leading supplier to the United States in 2004 and has continued to hold that position. Since 1990, total U.S. crude oil imports from Canada have increased by 1.3 million barrels per day, accounting for 40 percent of the 3.1 million barrel per day growth in total crude oil imports since that date. Over the last decade alone, the share of U.S. crude oil imports coming from Canada has increased from 13 percent to 22 percent.



From January through June 2010, 2.0 million barrels per day of Canadian crude oil were imported into the United States, of which 1.2 million barrels per day went into the Midwest. According to the Canadian National Energy Board, almost half of the crude oil exported to the United States was either synthetic crude or blended bitumen from the Alberta oil sands. Bitumen, a heavy, viscous type of hydrocarbon extracted from the oil sands, is blended with lighter hydrocarbons to allow it to flow through pipelines. It then may be upgraded into a relatively light, sweet synthetic crude oil that can be used by most refineries.

The recent shutdown of two pipelines bringing Canadian crude oil to the U.S. demonstrated the growing importance of these imports. On September 9, the Enbridge Lakehead System had to shut down its Line 6A pipeline due to a crude oil leak in Romeoville, Illinois. This incident followed the discovery of another leak and a shutdown of Enbridge’s Line 6B late in July. Line 6A is a major source of light synthetic, heavy, and medium Canadian crude oils for seven refineries in the Midwest and Pennsylvania, and many of the affected refineries have limited alternate supply sources. Fortunately for Midwest consumers, Enbridge was able to restart Line 6A on September 17 and Line 6B on September 27.



While numerous factors may have been in play, markets apparently reacted to the September 9 outage of Line 6A, as prices for benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil and Midwest gasoline rose discernibly until it became apparent that the line would be returned to service quickly. WTI prices rose by $3 per barrel in conjunction with the outage despite very high inventory levels at the Cushing, OK hub. Wholesale spot conventional gasoline prices in Chicago rose by 25 cents from September 9 to 13, and EIA’s weekly retail gasoline survey reported on September 13 that Midwest regular gasoline had risen by over 10 centsper gallon during the week, while the national average was up just 4 cents per gallon during the same period.

Prices returned to prior levels after the restart of Line 6A and the price impact of this incident was mitigated by the fact that the outage occurred as gasoline demand began showing seasonal declines and refineries were going into their planned autumn maintenance schedules with the available buffer of high crude oil and refined product stocks.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration










One of the biggest problems that United States has is that they take Canada for granted. They let Canada tell them that there is no problem in Canada.

-------------------------------------------------------------


Terry Nelson in communication with the CN lawyer.

Jim Edmond

As legal counsel for CN, you were involved in the undertakings that took place in 2007. There was absolutely no need for a train blockade in 2013 in Treaty One territory if the federal Conservative Government of Canada had honored the agreements reached in 2007. You indicated yesterday that you would convey what you termed my "request" to the powers that be at CN, that there needs to be a more formal agreement with CN, CPR, Enbridge and Transcanada to pressure Canada. You told me "Terry, you are no longer Chief". My response is clear, if CN wants to believe that the court has the power to enforce CN title and can order police to arrest blockaders, you place all your eggs in one basket. Seven rail blockades across Canada occurred on January 16th, if CN thinks the courts alone will resolve this, they can't be getting very good advice.

I attach for your information the letters and documents that will form a small part of the Defence that I will file with the court outlining the efforts we made to bring Canada to the table in 2007. As you can see by the tone of my letters from 2007 the frustration of trying to get Canada to do the right thing. The fact that your client CN considers itself an "innocent" third party does little to pacify the owners of the lands, the First Nations who signed treaty with a thief. The treaties were a complete fraud, with the Crown negotiators at the Treaty One having a Treaty already written previously in Ottawa for signature at the Treaty "negotiations". The immigrants wanted only one thing, to get the rightful owners to sign a treaty ceding and surrendering all their lands and resource wealth to the white people. They did this with complete fraud, promising many things that they never intended to honour. CN has a title from the thieves and will attempt to get that fraudulent title upheld in court. The court is a creation of the government of Canada, using only the laws legislated by the very government that seeks to uphold the fraud.

CN, CPR, Enbridge and Transcanada are all in jeopardy, not because the First Nations are unreasonable or impatient but because Canada has refused to do anything about their legal obligations. Since our undertaking in 2007, my meetings with then Minister of Indian Affairs Jim Prentice, there was conversion of 75 acres of land in Rosser Municipality for Roseau River in June 2007. After that conversion in June 2007, I promised Jim Prentice that I would not block railway lines for five years from June 2007 to June 2012. We gave him and Canada time to convert the lands promised under the 1996 Roseau River TLE Agreement. Not even one acre of land was converted since June 2007 for Roseau River.

In the RR 1996 TLE, the government recognized a "shortfall" of 5,861 acres and up to 16,218 acres in ATR. Canada had fifteen years to complete the conversion process. The deadline for completion was April 2011. Almost two years ago the Roseau River TLE agreement went into breach. If the Treaty terms and conditions are not honoured, how can Canada expect to have any chance to legally uphold the fraudulent title it gave to CN. Treaty One Territory is 16,700 square miles and includes all the lands CN claims is theirs in our territory. I am the Chairman of the Treaty Land Entitlement Trustees of Roseau River as of fall 2012.

If CN sees itself as an innocent third party, how can it be transporting billions and billions of dollars of stolen resource wealth each year while the original owners of that property continues to live in extreme poverty, an artificial poverty that is a direct result of legislation put in place by the Canadian government. CN pays nothing to Treaty One for access to our lands. The court cannot hope to pacify the First Nations with threats of jail for blockaders when the court refuses to allow injunctions for the First Nations against Canadian business. These are the same business who continue to steal our resources. While injunctions can be put in place against the indigenous people, the whites can still steal our natural resource wealth and sell it to the Americans. The United States continues to deny international standards, refusing to sign on to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Canadians have purchased over two trillion dollars worth of United States exports in the last few years. Canada is a $1.7 trillion GDP country that is dependent upon the continued theft of the indigenous people natural resource wealth.

As I have stated I have no illusions about the court. The courts are not about justice, the courts have become enforcers of the law regardless of whether or not the laws are seen as justice or not. I will file my information and remind the court of the obligations they have under the Royal Proclamation. I will take the time to file a Notice of Constitutional Question which I expect you will contest. This will be a long court battle.

If CN expects to do business peacefully, they need to go beyond just trying to get the court to uphold their fraudulent title to our lands. The undertakings in 2007 prove that we tried to give Canada time, time they used only to do nothing. I kept my word, despite provocations, I refused to take part in any railway blockades for the five years I promised Prentice. I shook hands with Prentice when I made my promise. They have wasted their time and now they blame us for taking action. Chief Fox of Onion Lake and other Chiefs would be prepared to meet with CN if CN can bring Enbridge, Transcanada, and CPR to a more formal agreement. Business Canada must be seen as more than just writing letters urging Canada to do the right thing. We have given Canada all the time they needed. No undertaking will be taken that only gives the immigrants what they want, continued theft of our wealth. We are not in a position to hold back our people who want justice and are prepared to go to jail to get justice. We are not traitors to our people but we would accept an opportunity to meet with Business Canada to see if we can work toward justice for indigenous people.

I will present my documents and information in court. I have no illusions about the courts. If CN thinks that the court will settle this issue, Good Luck. There has always been Chiefs who tried to hold back the young warriors, in the past, they were termed the "hang around the fort" Indians, now the youth are calling them the "sellouts". I hope that CN has Chiefs with influence over the youth if things go as badly as the Judge believes will happen if "violence:" occurs. I want to remind the white people, violence is already here, we as First Nations have been burying our youth, the murdered women, and the white jails are filled with our people. If the Judge believes that the court has the power to order peace with the people who are in 60 to 95% unemployment in their communities, while all I say is we tried to avoid this. When the white people talk of coming violence all they are saying is violence against whites, because violence is already there for our people and has been for decades.

Two sides are in court, CN with a title given to them by thieves and the original owners of the land. Canada is no where in sight, they hope the court they set up will not call the government to answer any questions about the undertaking in 2007.

I have tried over and over to warn Canada that this day would come when the original owners would tire of the artificial poverty. I have written the following as the first paragraph of the article I wrote entitled How Dangerous is the Situation in Canada.

“One thing that police and the army know is that indigenous people don’t have any real supply of guns. The supply of guns is controlled but what the authorities don’t understand is that every one of the 633 reservations in Canada has old cars. In Winnipeg thousands of cars were being stolen every month, our indigenous youth who make up to 95% of the inmates in jail, were in criminal “training schools” on how to steal cars. If ever there was a military showdown between Indigenous people and the Canadian army, the first target would be the railway lines and burning cars would be on every railway line in Canada”

If you are advising CN that the Courts can protect them and the police can enforce the artificial poverty on reserves, CN needs to rethink who they hire. Throwing our people in jail and bankrupting the blockaders maybe good publicity to the racists in Canada but in reality you invite confrontation that this country does not want and you are part of the problem, not the solution. Yesterday, the Winnipeg Free Press had an article of a CN train hitting a grader and a serious derailment. We are not terrorists. We have been peaceful far longer than any other people. No other people would have put up with this situation as we have. The difference between 2007 and 2013 is night and day. In 2013, you see the anger of the people while in 2007 all you saw was the Chiefs speaking angrily. You would do well to recognize that the Chiefs cannot order the people to be peaceful if there is no real progress. Another undertaking like we did in 2007 will not be enough to quell what is already here, if the Judge is correct, things will get far worse and it will not be business as usual for CN or anyone else.



Terrance Nelson




"Don't sweat the small stuff".

You now what age gets you? Old.

No really it gives you perspective. Age let's you know that there is wisdom in some of those old sayings and cliches.

Don't Sweat the small stuff. Do you know how powerful that is? My deceased Mom always, always said "Mano". Leave it, let it go. Mano things will work out. No big deal.
I remember my Arsehole self being so wound up about the smallest of things. For nothing, Christ sakes. Now I know better. It's still difficult to ease up on things. But I do try. I think age does that. It give you the ability to think. Because you should know better.
So what if your Granddaughter drops eggs on the floor. Big deal. It's not like it is a Faberge egg, is it? It's an egg. Just like a glass of water. Start screaming because she knocked over a glass a the table. It is almost automatic to start yelling and giving heck. Mano!  Water can be wiped up.
It is the big things that we can't help but get emotional over. The small stuff, well, its just small stuff.
Easy to say hard to live by. But age does that. Age. If we only knew then what we know now? eh?

I am of the age where I can wear a nice hat. Not one of those baseball style hats. But a real hat. A Humburg, a fedora, a porkpie hat, and the trilby hat. I do think it is fine for an older guy. He is not a kid so why wear a kids hat?  You want to make sure you are of that age where you are not in the dirty old man stage, and not old enough to be in the "so old that he is cute stage". You want to be in that greying, grey or still have black/brown but have the age in the face look stage. Rugged, experienced...old(er) not old. At this stage you are not trying to be cool, but age makes you cool. That's what age does. But don't be one of those old fools that thinks that he can get some young women. That is the fool age.

Like I said age gives you perspective. Age is another word for experience. Some of us age faster than others. Or we have different experiences. I do know this: adopt that Mano credo and it will help you in life. Not everything has to be Mano and we know that. But the little things.

So the car ahead of you is slow. Big fucking whoop. Are you going to risk passing him and maybe hitting someone in the blind spot? Or are you going to seethe in a ball of fury and take your anger out down the road? Or are you going to say "Mano, who give's a rats ass?"  I am not going to get that far ahead in this traffic anyway. Maybe I don't know it, but I may have saved a life, you may never know.  

So take a second, think, use some perspective and really don't sweat the small stuff.

I know that my granddaughter getting syrup on her clean shirt is not going to make me cry. Its a fucking shirt. Change it or use a wet towel to get the syrup off.

Love that kid. Take care peoples.  Have a great great day.

Its so cool you have to say it twice. 




Friday, January 11, 2013

Hey, who do I get more followers on the blog?

I have been at the 85 member mark for a while now.  Went down to 84 and got back up to 85.  And that took a long time to achieve. I have had a bit of views on the blog about 100,000 views. Which is not that much when you think about how much people use the internet.

Maybe its how I don't use labels? Maybe how I title? Or the content?

Please tell me its not the content?

Yeah, its the content.

But what am I to do?

I can't sing. I am a little tubby around the middle. So a torso shot may not be such a good idea.

What to do? Think, think, think,  mmmm?

Hey! I went out to the Legislative Building in Winnipeg, Manitoba today. What a wind. The storm - blizzard is hitting us today. So not as many people out for the Idle No More rally on the steps of the Leg. Lot of police though. Good to see the police are interested in who's out there. Never know a Round Dance might break out.  Holy Heck it was cold. How cold was it?  It was so cold, non of the Manitoba politicians came out for photographs.

Maybe I could blog about something else?

Let's see.  I can't paint. But I do love art. All sorts of art. Even art that is no damn good. Or as the intellectuals call it, Folk Art. But what do I know about Art?  It's all in the way you look at it. I guess.

Maybe I can talk about being a Granpa?  I like being one. Doesn't mean I am good at it. Heck I get into arguments with my 3 year old Grandson and he calls me an Ass. I call him an Arsehole. He calls himself Spiderman right now and yells at me not to call him, Boy, JackJack, Jack or Jackson. So I call myself Granpa man. He calls me Lizard man? And my five year old Granddaughter is sensitive. "You're mad at Me" and cries. I buy her stuff. So maybe that is not my area of expertise.

What to do, what to do?

I can always take a break and watch movies. I like movies. Thing is many of the movies I like, never get nominated for Oscars? I must be watching the wrong movies.

In any case. I will see you later.






Thursday, January 10, 2013

Terry Nelson Writes to Stephen Harper

January 10th 2013

Dear Prime Minister Harper

Years ago when you were first elected as Prime Minister you made a statement that the Government of Canada spends $16,500 for each First Nations man, woman and child. The same message was delivered by the then Minister of Indian Affairs Jim Prentice. This was great PR for your government and it helped get the Conservatives elected as a majority government but we know that this is not really a lie, just a bending of the truth. See attached 2008 letter to Minister Strahl where I destroy that statement.

The reality is that you can go down in history as the most reviled Prime Minister in history or tomorrow you can make the inroads needed to solve the issue of indigenous peoples in Canada.  Remember that Brian Mulroney stated during the Oka Crisis that Canada spent $13,500 per First Nations man, woman and child. The Conservatives were reduced to two seats because they didn't manage the press. You have a bigger problem of the internet and some massive expectations. You do however have options that make sense.

You have over 10 billion dollars per year available to spend if you change the way it is delivered to First Nations. You need to change the message to Canadians. The Taxpayer Federation message needs to be changed. You need to make a bold action to dismantle Indian Affairs oversight and send the money directly to First Nations. Years ago, it was not called funding, it was called "Indian monies". The 10 billion per year has to be pledged to banks  multi-year so that First Nations can plan bigger projects. Revenue sharing will happen but not immediately, if you do not have an immediate action plan that is realistic, you will not succeed tomorrow.

Shawn Atleo and the B.C. Chiefs cannot deliver the Treaty 1-11 First Nations. The pipelines are in the three Prairie Provinces and Ovide Mercredi cannot deliver Chief Fox and the other Chiefs in the area. Unless you meet with Chief Fox, Chief Day and a few others, you will not be able to settle this issue down. The public show is tomorrow, the quiet work will follow.

Blockades will occur on January 16th if you do not succeed tomorrow. Bloodshed will occur, make no mistake. The level of hatred that one third of white Canada has against indigenous people is real and if you cannot manage this situation, you will go down in history as the Prime Minister that turned Canada from the most peaceful country in the world to another Yugoslavia. The Americans are not going to let this continue without some security for trade.

The time to dismantle Indian Affairs is now, not just another Liberal press strategy but a real action plan.  I still thank you for converting the 75 acres near Winnipeg for Roseau River and I thank you for the 1903 Surrender. You have a good man in Wernick in the discussions. I don't know Clement but Duncan needs to be strong in wanting to dismantle Indian Affairs.  Either Mulroney didn't listen to his advisors or he had poor advisors. Whether you are another Mulroney will be seen tomorrow. The message to white Canada is not needed right now, There is more than enough accountability, you have three years before the next election, don't waste your chance to be the Prime Minister that kept Canada the most peaceful country in the world. None of the Chiefs in the Prairies want violence or to damage the economy.

Terrance Nelson 

 Copy of Assembly of First Nations Draft Policy
Text Box: - DRAFT - 
COMPREHENSIVE CLAIMS POLICY REFORM OUTCOMES

January 8, 2013 (b)


afnAug17_600






The pre-existing Aboriginal title and rights of First Nations must be reconciled with the asserted sovereignty of the Crown. Efforts to do so following the Crown-First Nations Gathering on January 24, 2012, have not yet been fulfilled. The following interests / outcomes have been identified as a priority going into the January 11, 2013, meeting with Canada:

1.    Any process aimed at reforming the Comprehensive Claims Policy (CCP) must be guided by an ongoing political dialogue at the highest level (i.e., the Prime Minister’s office). Oversight cannot be relegated to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development or any other bureaucracy.
2.    Discussions with respect to the reform of the CCP would include (but not limited to):
a.    Fiscal arrangements;
b.    Shared territory;
c.    Recognition / reconciliation;
d.    The status of lands;
e.    Self-government; and
f.     Certainty.
3.    Any process to reform the CCP must:
a.    Be based on the principles of recognition and reconciliation, rather than extinguishment. As a result, Canada must unequivocally reject the doctrines of terra nullius and discovery as a basis for engaging First Nations in any forum;
b.    Respect the differences between First Nations, their interests and aspirations – the policy cannot be one size fits all, therefore it cannot be based on pre-determined outcomes, formulas, or unilateral impositions by Canada;
c.    Be jointly developed and implemented subject to the approval of First Nations themselves – as a result, Canada’s purported “results-based” approach to treaty and self-government negotiations must be rescinded;
d.    Provide the ability for all First Nations to pursue the negotiation of modern treaty and self-government arrangements, including the ability to negotiate interim measures / arrangements;
e.    Accept that the Crown’s policies / processes must remain consistent with the Common / Civil / Indigenous Law (including case law arising from Haida, Delgamuukw, etc. ), international human rights law, and the Constitution;
f.     Lead to the unequivocal recognition of First Nations title on the ground in a manner that does not lead to “postage stamp” parcels of land.
4.    The Constitutional nature of Aboriginal title and rights requires Canada to consult with First Nations on any policy, regulation or legislation that has the potential to affect their rights whether or not a First Nation is engaged in a process of negotiation with the Crown.
5.    First Nations are entitled to free, prior and informed consent as referenced in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) adopted by Canada in 2010.
6.    Many First Nations in Canada have incurred significant debts in their efforts to negotiate meaningful CCP settlements. These debts must be forgiven and a new process must be implemented that incorporates adequate non-repayable resourcing for the negotiation and implementation of agreements.
7.    Immediate priorities in First Nation communities cannot be displaced by these higher level processes aimed at reconciling First Nation rights and title through a reformed policy (e.g., health, housing, etc.).


Knowledge Keeper and Knowledge Giver

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