The National Post — always, of course, 100% unbiased and fair in their coverage/opinion of CBC/Radio-Canada — is reporting that the pigs RCMP were onto us.
Yes, Comrades-in-the-struggle, it seems the RCMP spied on CBC and Radio-Canada employees for years. In fact, they were convinced at one point that communists had infiltrated CBC Montreal, according to secret documents that have just been released.
(As most of you know, of course, they were exactly right. CBC Montreal houses most of our pinko-red-commie-bastard activities. We have a factory where we plan how we can control the means of production on the bottom floor of the CBC Montreal tower.)
But, a little bit alarming, The National Post reports:
It appears that senior CBC managers knew that the Mounties routinely investigated the political views of staff members such as Rene Levesque and kept such “adverse records” in personnel reports on file long after the employees had left the broadcaster.
In one heavily censored 1958 report marked “secret” and titled “CBC Montreal — Collaboration of Officials with Known Communists” the force says conclusively that there were communists working for the public broadcaster.
Damnit! I thought we totally had that under wraps.
The report, most likely either produced by scabs or pig-headed managers on the RCMP payroll, continues:
“If the present report serves no other purpose, it does establish beyond reasonable doubt the presence of Communists in the CBC and their active conspiracy to use its facilities for Communist purposes,” wrote the author, whose name was blacked out. “It would, therefore, give some measure of reassurance to the Minister that there is at least a proven intended threat to security on the part of such persons as (blacked out) and perhaps others as yet unknown to us.”
Turns out, the fascist, capitalistic coppers were primarily interested in Rene Levesque, the Godfather of Radio-Canada.
But in 1949, the pigs very nice police officers said in a then-secret report:
Discreet enquiries have been conducted into the character, background and loyalty,” and there was no sign of Levesque being a “subversive.”
Really? Rene was not subversive?! From what I hear, if you were ahead of him in the coffee lineup at CBC Montreal, you’d get quite the talking to.
What was their proof that Rene was the leader of our commie-leftwing leanings? Again, the National Post:
The constable who wrote the report said that Levesque had studied law in 1941-42 but quit school and went to work for the CBC in Quebec City after failing two of his exams.
They’re totally onto us. Run. Quick.
P.S. Jian — You owe me my union bullhorn back, dude.
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*dies laughing*
There’s not a damn thing funny about this story. What is amusing is the lack of journalistic memory that doesn’t seem to recall the Mounties continued spying on Canadians for at least 30 years after this happened. In the Sixties the Mounties had informers and spied on university students across Canada. This has been acknowledged and been the subject of several well documented books. In 1972 CBC Television reported that the RCMP was routinely watching the comings and goings of Roy Atkinson then the President of the National Farmers Union by going into the travel agency that booked his flights and getting copies of his travel reservations. The saga of the Mounties, barn burnings and the FLQ are well known and the object of a Royal Commission. Any time the federal government uses the police for political purposes it should be condemned outright not mocked.
Reminds me of the SCTV skit when CCCP over runs the network. Anyone else remember Jorgi’s Tractor?
LOL
The Pig is up, Comrade!
No need for expensive surveillance of the CBC to find at least one person who thinks the RCMP are “pigs”.
No wonder the CBC management and staffers endorse this blog.
So the CBC is infested with communist subversives. What a shocker.
I guess Rene Levesque did turn out to be pretty subversive, though, didn’t he?
Well, if he fact that the RCMP was investigating a socialist oganization during the hot and heavy days of the Cold War surprises you, maybe journalism isn’t your calling. They had good reason to be looking at the CBC, just as they did with activist unions at the time- these places were where the Communists were. Communists have a long track record of abusing the freedoms of western society in order to push their agenda. I’d lose more sleep if I found out that the RCMP hadn’t looked into the CBC, to tell you the truth.
I’m not one for big brother spying on citizens without exceptional reasons.
However if the stacks of dead bodies in the old Soviet Union, North Korea, and China have not yet convinced the folks at the CBC that communism is a threat to humanity and personal freedom then they my wish to put some of their mediocre journalism abilities to good use.
DAHHH, so once upon a time the RCMP was watching employees of the CBC because they thought they might be subversice? Get over it folks.
I have to say I’m charmed by the ability of my employees to call the RCMP damned pigs. You should have a little respect for your fellow civil servents, after all since you are funded by MY taxes the same as they are are they not just your comrades?
The people that really need to look into the CBC are some auditors who can try to figure out where a billion dollars disappears every year, while other broadcasters somehow manage to eke out a living without spouting propaganda while sucking at the public teat.
Btw, when is that Falung Gong documentery coming out? Oh ya, you guys canned it to appease the Chinese government. My question is, why did the RCMP stop investigating?
You refer to police officers as “pigs”? Even allowing for journalistic license, the use of this term:
a) went out in the 60’s, and
b) should not be utilized by someone claiming to be a professional writer even on a personal blog.
You probably were about in grade 1 in 1965, so I can somewhat forgive you your lack of knowledge of the heady days of the cold war. However, when writing about something like this, should a person not study the social aspects of the time period? In other words, it would be like you professing shock that Canadians once were in a real war, or that Canadians once accepted corporal punishment in schools. This was an acceptable practice for the times. Perhaps now it seems archaic or quaint.
Nowadays, this would be the equivalent of doing a drug test.
Of course, the CBC should be above such reproach - after all, they are the cornerstone of modern democracy. I mean, its not like they are taxpayer funded or anything…
Just curious Langman, but have the stacks of dead bodies in Iraq, a gigantic prison population, falling wages, 40 million without healthcare, wanton disregard for the environment, out of control unregulated corporate greed, the death of habeas corpus, and creeping theocratic control not indicate to you that maybe the USA isn’t all that hot for humanity either?
Ahh, news from the 40s,50s & 60s, CBC bringing you all the oldie hits from when you were younger and more radical! Don’t worry CBC, you don’t have to have up to date Commie credentials for the RoC to despise you, just keep up your same slipshod editorializing/newsgathering/Harperbashing operation.
Oh for god’s sake people RELAX on the pigs thing.
Don’t you understand HUMOUR?! Or are you just looking for an excuse to unnecessarily bash the CBC?
I believe in smaller government. Period. Apparently that makes me an extremist. CBC insults me everytime I see it. Non-stop left wing garbage. And I have to pay for the privilege. Enough. The CBC needs to completely revamped. Or sold.
I’m with Jimm (12:23pm). I’m really disappointed to see that this blog’s readers apparently don’t understand satire.
no doubt. these same people probably laugh hysterically when this hour has 22 or air farce does something liek this, but here they get uptight.