Margaret Atwood on Substack

[Sparkly]

If you read anything on Substack, her writing is worthwhile. Most recently, she responded to a school board in Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) banning of Handmaid's Tale.

She quotes from a recent PEN speech at Krakow, when she warned about encroaching dictatorships, saying it's ironic that the book was banned for being pornographic.

That’s quite funny: the book has more often been criticized for not being pornographic – for having sex acts in it that are not sexy. Well, they aren’t supposed to be: it’s a Puritanical regime, after all. So in the Canadian media a minor tempest is raging, as this is the first-ever Canadian province-wide attempt at mass book banning. I’m in good company, however: Brave New World and 1984 are also on the list. I guess they don’t want young people thinking about dictatorships.

https://substack.com/@margaretatwood

[Timewas]

1. At this time

1984 should be required reading in all grades

[TNNurse]

2. My brother lives in British Columbia

He says Alberta is redder than any US state. I am beginning to think he is correct.

[applegrove]

3. A third or so of Albertans want to separate and become

their own province. Thing is the oil industry is boom bust. Generations of people from 'have not' provinces have gone to work the oil fields in Alberta and people from rich provinces too. When there is a bust, all those people from places like Nova Scotia, NFDL and Ontario move home. Alberta never has to pay for a recession economy. They are spoilt.

[Bev54]

4. I live in Alberta and it truly is a red neck province but not quite as bad as a red state.

It is mostly because it's whole identity is oil and gas and they have never really diversified. They are attempting (along with the blessing of the Premier) to leave Canada and I am not sure what they want, a new sovereign country or to join the US. It will never happen, I belong to a group that is fighting them, to get our question of remaining in Canada on the ballot as a referendum. Even conservatives are signing, the separatists do not have the numbers, they just have the (excuse my french) stupid bitch that is in office. She is the one that ordered the ban but now there has been so much blow back that she has halted the book ban, for now anyway.

Hopefully people are fed up with her and she will be out at the next election, she should never ever been put in the position in the first place. She is a female Trump, knows nothing, takes bribes, gives positions to friends who are also unqualified. Thinks she is queen of Alberta but we are fighting back, she is not well liked, just financed by oil and gas.

Edit to add:
I was born and raised and lived my life in BC, just moved here 12 years ago to be closer to the grandchildren. My son is in oil and gas but hates her as well.

[applegrove]

5. Bev. That is good to know.

[soldierant]

6. She is a force of nature.

I've subscribed to the Substack for some ime now and had missed hearing from her - was glad to see this until I saw what it was about.

She has also worked with Brian Dorries's "Theater of War (so called because he started it to aid Veterans with PTSD cope, and was so successful he expanded it.)