Under the bill, those who encourage terrorist attacks (which are defined in many different ways) via signs, writing, audio or video recordings, or other visual representations could face up to five years in prison. The Conservatives haven’t really explained the rationale yet, though it seems to come down to the assertion that, as Justice Minister Peter MacKay put it following the shootings here in Ottawa in October, pro-jihadi media are “poisoning young minds.”
So let’s say the police determine that a young man with a poisoned mind posts a questionable YouTube video. Some antidotes might be community, parental or religious intervention in an effort to present a better path. A good way to further poison that mind, though, might be a short stint in a federal correctional system that has seen, under this government, a drastic reduction in rehabilitation programs and resources. Worse, jails in Canada and around the world have become breeding grounds for radical jihadis, with experts here pointing out that the Correctional Service of Canada doesn’t have appropriate resources to deal with these unique offenders. What prisons do provide, though, is easy access to people who’ve actually tried to carry out terrorists acts.
And even if some minds do get “poisoned” to the point that they fire up some video editing software and make their own unique ISIL love letters — or even just share someone else’s — is it worth it to send other potentially violent jihadis underground to snare a handful of disgruntled youngsters packing laptops? Don’t you want these dopes pontificating on the Internet for law enforcement to see and track anyway?
In the larger War Against Terrorism, these provisions are likely pointless anyway. Even if a team of police officers were to find the author of a video, Crown attorneys were to convict said author against a likely constitutional challenge, and correctional officials were to cage the author — all at a cost of millions of dollars to taxpayers – there are untold thousands carrying on with similar web activities. Google, which owns YouTube, recently admitted its staff can’t keep up with and filter all the pro-jihadi content from the 300 hours of video being uploaded every minute. So what’s the next step? Cancel the Internet?
At least the Tories can point to a tangible new example of just how leader-y they are on terrorism though, even if they’re just plugging a pinhole in a dam while a tsunami blasts over the top.
Original Article
Source: ottawacitizen.com/
Author: Ottawa Citizen Editorial Board
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