unkl brws
Dagobah Resident
This is the second report of Ian Cumming from the Ontario Farmer paper on Sunday Jan. 30th (I had posted his first report earlier):
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"Ontario Farmer reporter Ian Cumming continued his coverage in Ottawa this weekend as thousands of protestors gathered on Parliament Hill to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other public health measures." www.ontariofarmer.com
--
Massive protest continues through weekend
By Ian Cumming
The Gaudet family, with three young children, including a babe, left their self employed farrier business in Norfolk County for a few days and drove down to Ottawa through the night on Thursday.
Which is what you do, they said, when you want the children to sleep.
They were here on Parliament Hill on Saturday morning shoulder to shoulder with the most massive throng of people ever seen in the nation’s capital, for one simple reason.
“We did it for our children” said Katie, the mom, quietly.
Because, unless they and these others from around the nation, took this stand, on this day and in subsequent days, “they will not know what freedom is.”
Earlier this morning Chelsea Hillier woke in her room in the Marriott hotel down the street, to the almost deafening sound of transports parked bumper to bumper, pulling on their horn cords.
Truckers like cattle hauler Conrad Bos had slept in their rigs after jamming Wellington Street in front of Parliament on Friday afternoon. Wakening stiff and shivering to minus 30 weather, plus a raw wind and feeling kind of devilish, they startled this town awake better than any roosters could.
There were also honking pickups adorned with Canadian flags and messages about Justin, circling the hotel. “I started to sob and I couldn’t stop,” said Hillier. “All those days when we spoke to 20 to 150 people in a park about our country’s loss of freedom.”
“My dad [MPP Randy Hillier] took me for a walk and calmed me down. He said these things always have a tipping point and this was that.”
Jeremy Gould, who owns a taxi company in Amherst, Nova Scotia, “decided at the last minute” to drive up with his friend Mark Allen to be part of this.
On Thursday night, just scouting things out, they parked up at Wellington street behind a truck with a Trudeau sign, which wasn’t part of the Liberal campaign. Then another transport snuggled up behind and with a hissing sound the driver set his air brakes.
They looked for a hotel room, but all are booked in Ottawa (for this massive long term rally) and “so we slept in the car. Man it’s cold, the seats don’t go back, and we need to have a shower. We can’t get out until the trucks move and if it’s a week, than it’s a week.”
Back home his Nova Scotia Health unit had fined him $2,000 for some unmasked drivers – he gave them the choice. “I threw it in the garbage and told them to take me to court on the legality of it. I haven’t heard back.”
The men were speaking to Ontario Farmer in a McDonalds, which was jammed with non masked customers early in the morning, lined up for coffee and food.
Within minutes the Ottawa bylaw enforcement officers swooped in and shut it down, as it had already with all Tim Hortons, A and W’s and all food outlets in walking distance of Parliament Hill, even for takeout.
A professional reporter had written on the day, obviously not on site, that protestors “appeared to be unmasked.”
In fact, there were hundreds of thousands of people in the largest demonstration in Canadian history with not one wearing a mask.
Out on the street, a BBQ was thrown off a tool truck, the music playing “Highway to Hell” was cranked up and a clutch of French speaking lads started to cook hot dogs.
Like the Biblical loaves and fishes, massive amounts of homemade food, large containers of Tim’s coffee and donuts, bought further afield, started to be served off tailgates and on impromptu card tables.
People walked the streets with boxed of donuts, holding them out, until empty. No one would take money.
Three beef farming lads from Port Perry, faces red from the bitter cold, were elated to meet an Ontario Farmer reporter.
When asked why there were there it was “to take back what was taken from us,” said Gus Schickedanz.
Being there since 7:00 a.m., in the minus 30 degree cold that creeps into your bones and stays there, Ontario Farmer and his farmer friend headed for home in the early afternoon.
Driving east on 417 they met a truck and vehicle convoy coming west into Ottawa stretching from the east Hunt Club exit to 57 km east of there. Many times transports and vehicles travelling jammed side by side, slowly moving along.
A call was placed to the convoy heading into Ottawa from the west on 401. They were still miles out; it was about 70 km long. “It doesn’t matter whether we are later today, we’re not going home until this is resolved.”
There was also the truck convoy, which began all this, from western Canada, and they still hadn’t hit Ottawa, having left Arnprior in the early morning, coming in on Highway 17. When they had entered northern Ontario several days ago, the tail end of the convoy still wasn’t in Manitoba.
No one knew where the several hundred truckers from South Carolina, having crossed the border on Thursday, were at.
On Friday, Nova Scotia farmer and trucker, Jeff Fulton had been on the phone to Ontario Farmer, emotional about, “the hundreds of people on the overpass cheering us on,” through the Maritimes and Quebec.
In the 57 km convoy east on 417 every overpass and the surrounding banks had hundreds of people, waving flags and cheering the drivers on.
Being famished, “let’s eat at Herbs Truck Stop” was the close to home destination. Having been there the night before, when a sizeable portion of that convoy had been parked here for the night.
The restaurant, non masked and busting with serving food against late January Health Unit regulations, had its best 24 hours in history.
Still packed with diners on Saturday afternoon, including a Mohawk family from Quebec heading to Ottawa to provide support, and a former cattle driver for Knill’s and his wife returning home from the demonstration.
There had, staff said, been 6,000 people pass through the premises on Friday, with meals served until midnight.
“Do you think” a French lad from Laval, scrunched in the throng, asked Ontario Farmer several hours earlier, “that things have shifted?”
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Ontario Farmer reporter Ian Cumming continued his coverage in Ottawa this weekend as thousands of protestors gathered on Parliament Hill to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other public health measures." www.ontariofarmer.com
--
Massive protest continues through weekend
By Ian Cumming
The Gaudet family, with three young children, including a babe, left their self employed farrier business in Norfolk County for a few days and drove down to Ottawa through the night on Thursday.
Which is what you do, they said, when you want the children to sleep.
They were here on Parliament Hill on Saturday morning shoulder to shoulder with the most massive throng of people ever seen in the nation’s capital, for one simple reason.
“We did it for our children” said Katie, the mom, quietly.
Because, unless they and these others from around the nation, took this stand, on this day and in subsequent days, “they will not know what freedom is.”
Earlier this morning Chelsea Hillier woke in her room in the Marriott hotel down the street, to the almost deafening sound of transports parked bumper to bumper, pulling on their horn cords.
Truckers like cattle hauler Conrad Bos had slept in their rigs after jamming Wellington Street in front of Parliament on Friday afternoon. Wakening stiff and shivering to minus 30 weather, plus a raw wind and feeling kind of devilish, they startled this town awake better than any roosters could.
There were also honking pickups adorned with Canadian flags and messages about Justin, circling the hotel. “I started to sob and I couldn’t stop,” said Hillier. “All those days when we spoke to 20 to 150 people in a park about our country’s loss of freedom.”
“My dad [MPP Randy Hillier] took me for a walk and calmed me down. He said these things always have a tipping point and this was that.”
Jeremy Gould, who owns a taxi company in Amherst, Nova Scotia, “decided at the last minute” to drive up with his friend Mark Allen to be part of this.
On Thursday night, just scouting things out, they parked up at Wellington street behind a truck with a Trudeau sign, which wasn’t part of the Liberal campaign. Then another transport snuggled up behind and with a hissing sound the driver set his air brakes.
They looked for a hotel room, but all are booked in Ottawa (for this massive long term rally) and “so we slept in the car. Man it’s cold, the seats don’t go back, and we need to have a shower. We can’t get out until the trucks move and if it’s a week, than it’s a week.”
Back home his Nova Scotia Health unit had fined him $2,000 for some unmasked drivers – he gave them the choice. “I threw it in the garbage and told them to take me to court on the legality of it. I haven’t heard back.”
The men were speaking to Ontario Farmer in a McDonalds, which was jammed with non masked customers early in the morning, lined up for coffee and food.
Within minutes the Ottawa bylaw enforcement officers swooped in and shut it down, as it had already with all Tim Hortons, A and W’s and all food outlets in walking distance of Parliament Hill, even for takeout.
A professional reporter had written on the day, obviously not on site, that protestors “appeared to be unmasked.”
In fact, there were hundreds of thousands of people in the largest demonstration in Canadian history with not one wearing a mask.
Out on the street, a BBQ was thrown off a tool truck, the music playing “Highway to Hell” was cranked up and a clutch of French speaking lads started to cook hot dogs.
Like the Biblical loaves and fishes, massive amounts of homemade food, large containers of Tim’s coffee and donuts, bought further afield, started to be served off tailgates and on impromptu card tables.
People walked the streets with boxed of donuts, holding them out, until empty. No one would take money.
Three beef farming lads from Port Perry, faces red from the bitter cold, were elated to meet an Ontario Farmer reporter.
When asked why there were there it was “to take back what was taken from us,” said Gus Schickedanz.
Being there since 7:00 a.m., in the minus 30 degree cold that creeps into your bones and stays there, Ontario Farmer and his farmer friend headed for home in the early afternoon.
Driving east on 417 they met a truck and vehicle convoy coming west into Ottawa stretching from the east Hunt Club exit to 57 km east of there. Many times transports and vehicles travelling jammed side by side, slowly moving along.
A call was placed to the convoy heading into Ottawa from the west on 401. They were still miles out; it was about 70 km long. “It doesn’t matter whether we are later today, we’re not going home until this is resolved.”
There was also the truck convoy, which began all this, from western Canada, and they still hadn’t hit Ottawa, having left Arnprior in the early morning, coming in on Highway 17. When they had entered northern Ontario several days ago, the tail end of the convoy still wasn’t in Manitoba.
No one knew where the several hundred truckers from South Carolina, having crossed the border on Thursday, were at.
On Friday, Nova Scotia farmer and trucker, Jeff Fulton had been on the phone to Ontario Farmer, emotional about, “the hundreds of people on the overpass cheering us on,” through the Maritimes and Quebec.
In the 57 km convoy east on 417 every overpass and the surrounding banks had hundreds of people, waving flags and cheering the drivers on.
Being famished, “let’s eat at Herbs Truck Stop” was the close to home destination. Having been there the night before, when a sizeable portion of that convoy had been parked here for the night.
The restaurant, non masked and busting with serving food against late January Health Unit regulations, had its best 24 hours in history.
Still packed with diners on Saturday afternoon, including a Mohawk family from Quebec heading to Ottawa to provide support, and a former cattle driver for Knill’s and his wife returning home from the demonstration.
There had, staff said, been 6,000 people pass through the premises on Friday, with meals served until midnight.
“Do you think” a French lad from Laval, scrunched in the throng, asked Ontario Farmer several hours earlier, “that things have shifted?”
