{"id":82533,"date":"2016-08-30T09:15:00","date_gmt":"2016-08-30T09:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resourcework2.devstudio.work\/?p=82533"},"modified":"2025-09-04T03:28:50","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T03:28:50","slug":"manufacturing-dissent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resourcework2.devstudio.work\/?p=82533","title":{"rendered":"ENERGY EAST: Manufacturers of dissent know how to do photo-ops but they do not represent the majority"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Monday’s Energy East pipeline hearings in Montreal were so effectively disrupted by protesters that an indefinite postponement was issued by the National Energy Board. This is a sad comment on the status of a democratic institution with a remit from Parliament to ensure the public is protected from harm caused by energy projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

A Canadian Press image<\/a> shows a female protester being led away by a police officer who is dressed in soft tactical gear. She seems positively aglow with martyrdom, and in another image seconds later<\/a> we can see her with a beaming smile giving the thumbs up as if to say: “Photo op secured!” <\/p>\n<\/div>

<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Depending on your perspective, this image will provoke a range of responses. Some will see it as yet another tired attempt by the Canadian protest industry to manufacture dissent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I must admit that I was tempted to wonder whether Cirque du Soleil has not already recruited this outstanding performer by today, though no doubt she will be in demand for other whistle stops on the Energy East tour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Others will be saying: more power to her, finally someone is standing up for my views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the policy makers these antics are aimed at, they must be wary of appearing callous to genuine citizen concerns. They must tread carefully on this issue lest they feed the protestor’s agenda to secure public sympathy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For those asking today whether this appeal to emotion bears any connection to broad public opinion on the Energy East issue, a recent presentation by pollster Bruce Anderson of Abacus Data provides some solace. His point is that although oil pipelines do tend to have the toughest time winning public support, anything<\/em> new encounters this issue to a degree. The following slide is from a presentation he gave in Winnipeg last week:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In all cases, majority support exists when conditional support is included. Oil pipelines are not an exception: rapid transit, cellphone towers and wind farms get the same treatment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is the learning I derive from this information: The most important audience for communications about energy safety and defensibility is always going to be those who would support a project as long as they think they could develop confidence in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For protest leaders, aligning themselves to a mayor like Denis Coderre of Montreal (whether he asks for it or not) is the only path available to assert relevancy and make the case that conditional supporters should swing to opposition. It follows that to these actors, Mayor Coderre is but another stunt prop who could be used to pry conditional supporters over to opposition. They have, after all, the example of Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson whose administration has directed taxpayer funds to run an audacious anti-Canadian-energy program<\/a>. Coderre, whose political allegiances are different than Robertson’s, finds himself in an awkward position because dismissing the illegitimate tactics of the protesters trying to align themselves to him would only seem to undermine his own concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Montreal newspaper columnist has written that, because of the disruption, mayor Coderre did not get to deliver his remarks to the NEB<\/a>. The columnist, Gilbert Lavoie, waded through the mayor’s 15 pages of speaking notes and extracted three key points. They are below, in Google translation with some minor improvements by me, with the original French in square brackets:<\/p>\n\n\n

“Mayor Denis Coderre had 15 pages of notes for the speech he was to deliver before the NEB.\u00a0He kindly send me a copy.\u00a0Here are three excerpts outline the arguments he will argue it has the opportunity to be heard before the agency.\u00a0[ Le maire Denis Coderre avait 15 pages de notes en vue de l’allocution qu’il devait prononcer devant l’ONE. Il a bien voulu m’en envoyer une copie. En voici trois extraits qui donnent un aper\u00e7u des arguments qu’il fera valoir s’il a l’occasion de se faire entendre devant l’organisme.]<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n