SUZUKI A FRAUD? BLOG NUMBER 100; Oct 11, 2013

CASE #1 "THE PRICE OF GREATNESS IS RESPONSIBILITY."-VIVIAN KRAUSE

As we walked in to Cafe Crepe, I happened to notice Dr. David Suzuki sitting alone, having a bite to eat. For three years, I have been writing letters to him and trying unsuccessfully to communicate with Dr. Suzuki so I thought that perhaps I could just briefly introduce myself and give him a friendly handshake to go along with my name. As politely and as respectfully as I know how, I approached Dr. Suzuki to take the liberty of introducing myself. Actually, we have met before but that was years ago at the opening ceremonies of the Kitasoo/Xais-Xais cultural center in Klemtu. 

"Dr. Suzuki, I wonder if I might introduce myself," I said, or something like that. "I'm Vivian, Vivian Krause," I said. He kindly stood up to shake my hand, I believe, but my name didn't seem to ring a bell so I added, "I've been trying to write you letters." Still, he didn't seem to place my name so I added, "I have a web-site, 'Fair Questions,' " I mentioned, adding that I would really appreciate it if I could speak with him or meet with him. 

Then, he placed me, or so it seemed. "You're the fish farmer," he said. I had barely begun to explain that yes, I used to work in fish farming - seven years ago - but before I could say much Dr. Suzuki looked me straight in the eye and started telling me to f**k off. Not just once. Then, suddenly, he seemed to catch himself, and quickly sat down.

I was so stunned, I was speechless (which doesn't happen very often). Dr. Suzuki went back to eating his crepe, or whatever he was eating. 

I was rather offended. For three years, I have been writing open letters to Dr. Suzuki, fully referenced, in an academic and respectful manner. I don't feel that I deserved to be told to f**k off. What's more, Dr. Suzuki was quite happy to get up and speak with me - until he realized who I was .

My camera happened to be hanging around my neck as just minutes earlier, I had been taking photos of my daughter and her girlfriends. As it turned out, I picked up my camera and took a few photos. When I got the film developed, I found out that, in fact, I'd taken two photos.

At that point, Dr. Suzuki stood up again and came towards me. He seemed very angry, maybe even furious. "Look," he said, "What do you want? " he asked me, twice, I believe. He was yelling at me by this time - or so it felt. He seemed so angry that I was afraid that he was going to hit me so I started to back up - which is not very easy to do at Cafe Crepe on Granville. I told him that what I want to know is how much American money his foundation has received, how many millions, or perhaps tens of millions.

"Why?" he asked me, adding, "What do you care?"

I answered Dr. Suzuki's question by saying that the reason that I care is because hundreds of people have lost their jobs because of his crusade against salmon farming. That isn't the only reason that I care but it is the reason that I happened to mention. (Another reason that I care is that with his false claims about PCBs in farmed salmon, and sea lice, it seems to me that Dr. Suzuki has sold our country up the river on the safety and sustainability of salmon farming, but I didn't get into that.) 

The reason that I care so much about jobs is because not all of us have a house on the water in Point Grey, another property in Toronto, another one in Australia, and another one on Quadra Island, like David Suzuki. Some of us have to struggle just to pay for one home that we don't even own- let alone a university education for our kids. When I worked in salmon farming in 2002 and 2003, a woman at the Englewood fish processing plant in Beaver Cove told me, "If I don't earn it, my son doesn't play hockey." That plant has since been closed. I just can't forget about her and her son.

Dr. Suzuki then told me, "Look, I'm just here for my granddaughter's graduation." That didn't surprise me. His granddaughter has been at our home on more than one occasion. Dr. Suzuki's granddaughter and my daughter are classmates. I had no intention of upsetting his evening or ours so I asked him if perhaps I could call him next week, or if he would prefer to call me. "No," he said, sitting down, looking into his plate again as his wife arrived at the table.

We work with government, business and individuals to conserve our environment by providing science-based education, advocacy and policy work---now F**k off.

The issue here isn't David Suzuki's short fuse or that he repeatedly told me to "f**k off." The real issue here is accountability. The David Suzuki Foundation has obviously received at least US $10M from US foundations but this hasn't exactly been out in the open. For years, David Suzuki and his foundation have refused to answer any questions about their foreign funding - and they've gotten away with it because no one has been willing to call them on the carpet. Confronted with clear evidence that he has falsely reported some of his foundation's research findings about both PCBs in farmed salmon, and sea lice, so far David Suzuki has refused to admit it. 

Instead of publicly clarifying the whole truth about its research findings with regards to PCBs in farmed salmon, and sea lice, the David Suzuki Foundation seems to have simply and quietly removed at least 23 press releases and web-pages against farmed salmon. 

As it appears to me David Suzuki, Canada's leading environmentalist, is refusing to tell the whole truth about his foundation's own research findings and funding sources with regards to a major environmental controversy that as far as I can tell, has been manufactured in order to serve the purposes of foreign funders. This tells us something about David Suzuki and his foundation but more importantly, this tells us something about us, the public. The deeper question that we need to be asking is what can we change about ourselves and our society so that we don't get fooled again.

CASE # 2: MOMENTS IN HYPOCRISY

David Suzuki does not walk the talk. We are tired of paying taxes that subsidize donations to the David Suzuki Foundation and provide his CBC salary. 

The Suzuki Watch was established with the purpose of raising awareness of the fact that we must reduce human population for our environment to improve in the long-term. 

David Suzuki had 5 children and ignores the impact of population growth on the environment.

David Suzuki tells us on his Nature Challenge to adopt a 100 mile diet but his family buys tropical fruit at the Quadra Island grocery store.

David Suzuki was caught at a Quadra Island boat waste disposal facility dumping garbage bags full of recyclable cans and household compost into a collection bin designed for hazardous boat waste.

David Suzuki pipes his household sewage directly into the ocean at his Quadra Island oceanfront home.

David Suzuki owns more than one house, a yacht and uses a private jet .

After a bender with college friends and, while scanning through photos on a digital camera, Suzuki was heard to admit, “I think I poured oil into a lake,” “Oh god, there I am dumping batteries in a salmon hatchery to increase their mercury content.”

The David Suzuki Foundation refuses to publicly disclose how big their largest salaries are and who receives them. 

CASE # 3: DAVID SUZUKI LIES - by Jason Hayes reporting  on the John Oakley Show

"After Suzuki insinuates that scientists who disagree with him are 'shilling' for big corporations, Oakley asks him where he gets his funding. Suzuki replies that his foundation takes no money from governments and complains that corporations have not been interested in funding us,"

Corporations uninterested? Is it possible that the Great Suzuki has failed to attract a single corporate donation to his feel-good campaign to save the earth? Not one?

Actually, the David Suzuki Foundation's annual report for 2005/2006 lists at least 52 corporate donors including: Bell Canada, Toyota, IBM, McGraw-Hill Ryerson, Microsoft, Scotia Capital, Warner Brothers, RBC, Canon and Bank of Montreal.

The David Suzuki Foundation also received donations from EnCana Corporation, a world leader in natural gas production and oil sands development, ATCO Gas, Alberta's principle distributor of natural gas, and a number of pension funds including the OPG (Ontario Power Generation) Employees' and Pensioners' Charity Trust. OPG is one of the largest suppliers of electricity in the world operating 5 fossil fuel-burning generation plants and 3 nuclear plants… which begs the question is Suzuki now pro-nuclear power?

CASE #4: RACIST and ALARMIST?

Environmentalist and eco-guru David Suzuki gave an interview to the French newspaper l’Express, commenting mostly on climate change, but also on the Canadian immigration system. 

Suzuki opined that Canada is “full” and claimed that,“although it is the second largest country in the world, our usable surface area is limited. Our immigration policy is disgusting; we plunder the South by depriving them of their future leaders and we want to increase our population to support the growth of our economy. This is crazy!” 

Cue the outrage. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney wasted no time in slamming Suzuki, decrying his views as “toxic and irresponsible.” Right of center pundits like Ezra Levant roasted Suzuki for his statements.

CASE #5 SUZUKI IS CLUELESS

Ezra Levant, of Sun TV denounces Suzuki as a charlatan who is ignorant of scientific data. He refers to the recent appearance on Australian TV where most observers felt that Suzuki was totally screwed up. His answers to some tough questions were lame, indirect and discombobulated.

David Suzuki has never met, debated or even spoken with scientist Willie Soon. But as more people dismiss Mr. Suzuki’s scare stories about global-warming cataclysms, the more he has resorted to personal attacks against Mr. Soon and others who disagree with him.

"I watched the entire show on Youtube just to see it for myself. I couldn't believe how duplicitous this man is. He wants people who don't see climate change the way he does to be arrested and then claims Stephen Harper is building jails to look up environmentalists."  He insulted everyone who disagreed with him. Even when he answered supporters, he was all over the place. He first decries their prime minister over removing the carbon tax, but then, when one of his supporters asks him what to do to stop fracking, he says that he doesn't know because he's not an Australian. He reminds me of the Puritans who left England over religious intolerance only to start a theocracy at Plymouth Rock."

-M Scallon.

CASE #6 GIMMEE MY BALL I'M GOING HOME

A reporter for Sun News says Suzuki refused to appear at a public policy debate Tuesday night, until she and her cameraman were escorted from the premises at the Ottawa stop of the “The Eco Tour.”

“David Suzuki didn’t just refuse to speak to us. He refused to appear altogether, sending a handful of hostile event organizers to remove us from the premises.

“After much debate and my reiterating I would be staying to ask a question, one of the event-organizers-turned-Suzuki-mandated-attack-dogs turned to the sizeable crowd, incensed that I wouldn’t leave quietly, and yelled for someone to call 911.”

QUESTION: Who is the bigger hypocrite, David Suzuki or Al Gore?

QUOTE:  "What is objectionable, what is dangerous about extremists, is not that they are extreme, but that they are intolerant. The evil is not what they say about their cause, but what they say about their opponents."- Robert  Kennedy

LAURELS TO:   EZRA LEVANT for telling it like it is!

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