Boys urge McBoycott over softwood lumber dispute

[Spazito]

Two boys from Alberta and B.C. are organizing a one-day boycott of McDonalds restaurants to pressure Washington over the softwood lumber dispute.

The boys – Luke McAndless-Davis of New Westminster, B.C., and his friend Matthew Monteith-Forsyth of Calgary – called the McBoycott because they're furious the U.S. government won't repay $5 billion in excess trade tariffs collected from Canadian producers of softwood lumber.

snip

They condemned U.S. President George W. Bush and his administration for refusing to respect several NAFTA rulings supporting Canadian claims that the tariffs were illegal – including a recent one by an international panel whose rulings were supposed to be binding in disputes under the North American Free Trade Agreement.

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They've rounded up support from the National Union of Public and General Employees, the B.C. Carpenters Union and provincial and federal politicians, among others.

more

http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/11/12/mcdonalds-051112.html

(Good for them! Seeing young people involved and informed about issues like this is great, imo! I hope they do get their message out to other young people on this.)

[tuvor]

1. Shooting at the wrong target.

Glad to see the passion, but it won't affect one American, let alone an American with any clout.

[Spazito]

2. That isn't really the point, imo, it is to see young people involved

and taking action in a way that has meaning for them. It is also a message from the youth to the PM and government that has meaning as well. McDonald is just the symbol and one that resonates with young people.

[Lautremont]

5. And in any case, only good can come of boycotting Mc D's. (n/t)

[CHIMO]

3. We Want Our Money Back!

Yo Yo Yo, give us our dough
No Mc-D on December 3!

The United States owes Canada 5 billion dollars and we want it back!

When we try to sell our trees in the U.S. they steal money from us in extra taxes. We are supposed to be able to sell our lumber (trees) in the U.S. without extra taxes because we have a trade agreement called NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement). But the U.S. broke that agreement and put extra taxes on Canadian lumber. So they have collected an extra 5 Billion Dollars in taxes on lumber that Canada has sold in the U.S. Those extra taxes are illegal and we want our money back.

The U.S. is acting like a big bully. They took our money and are refusing to give it back. This is making it impossible for Canada to sell lumber in the U.S. and many people in Canada have lost their jobs because of this (about 15,000 in British Columbia).

We need to tell the U.S. to "Stop being a bully!" The U.S. government needs to know that Canadians think this is important and they need to stop. But how can we tell them? Our Prime Minister and other leaders have tried to tell them but President Bush is not listening. He doesn't think it's a big deal. His closest advisor, Condoleeza Rice, visited Canada recently and she suggested that we are over-reacting. "It is important not to speak in apocalyptic language about this issue. It is a trade dispute. Frankly, I think we'll get through it." CNN reports have poked fun at Canadians for being concerned about this dispute, using the headline "What's the big deal, eh?". It IS a big deal for all the people who have lost their jobs and all the other people this affects. It's a big deal for Canadians!

http://www.wewantourmoneyback.ca/



To steal the language, "Yo Yo Yo, Way to Go!"

[imouttahere]

4. Bravo, Chimo!

The hypocricy of BushCo would be laughable if they didn't surpass it every phucking day! We hear about BushCo touting that trade agreement in South America and this trade agreement in South America, but they won't even follow the rules for NAFTA. Of course, if they will trample international treaties with regard to torture and war crimes, why wouldn't they do the same with trade agreements. The boys have it right here, except it has to be a world-wide boycott - and not just McDonald's. The only power we have left is the boycott.