Gavin McInnes and Others Respond to Halifax Proud Boy Incident

Based on Rear Admiral John Newton's tone in during his press conference, I didn't hold out much hope that there would be serious repercussions for the "Proud Boys" who disrupted a Mi'kmaw memorial remembering MMIWG in Halifax.

I might however end up being pleasantly surprised:

Armed Forces members who disrupted Indigenous rally could get the boot 

'Their future in the military is certainly in doubt,' says Gen. Jonathan Vance, chief of defence staff 

The members of the Canadian Armed Forces who disrupted a protest organized by Indigenous activists in Halifax on Canada Day will be removed from training and duties as the military investigates and reviews the circumstances, says the country's top general. 

"We are the nation's protectors, and any member of the Canadian Armed Forces who is not prepared to be the defender we need them to be will face severe consequences, including release from the forces," Gen. Jonathan Vance, chief of defence staff, said in a statement Tuesday night.

It has been heartening to see that the actions of these five men (as well as a sixth individual whom I suspect but won't confirm unless I know for certain) has met with, in general, universal disgust:

• White Supremacists Have No Place In The Canadian Armed Forces
• Pathetic, dumb and dangerous: The Proud Boys make their debut in Halifax
• 5 “Proud Boys” suspended from duties and face investigation says chief of defence
• Rear admiral apologizes for Proud Boys’ behaviour
• Canada's top general condemns actions of servicemen who disrupted Indigenous ceremony in Halifax
• Navy should focus on reconciliation in dealing with members who disrupted Indigenous ceremony: Mi'kmaq activist
• L’extrême-droite s’attaque aux revendications autochtones- la marine enquête?

Well, almost universal condemnation:

Gavin McInnes, founder of the Proud Boys, correspondent for Ezra Levant's alt-right Rebel Media, and man who was not too long ago condemned for his antisemitic remarks (though he claims that he's not an antisemite) has rushed in to defend his acolytes:

Sort of. He kind of does it rather half-assed.... or maybe no chinned?:

And my favorite:

First, how was it their job to disrupt a memorial?

And second, McInnes' decision to start the Proud Boys and ramp up violent rhetoric directed at those beta cuck leftard snowflake sjw's is in part the cause of the mess these five are in now. McInnes owns this as much as the five who disrupted the ceremony.

Now while McInnes is trying to cram the genie he let out back in the bottle, other "alt-right" and over racists are celebrating the actions of these men.

Such as the folks at Stormfront:

Members of the anti-government III% militia:

New groups like the Worldwide Coalition Against Islam, including the Saskatchewan "captain" who was convicted not to long ago of threatening to harm the prime minister....

.... as well as Canadian Action Party Alberta "leader" (and WCAI ally) Devon Mannix who isn't even subtle in his racism:

Even old relics like Canadian Nazi Party founder John Beattie is excited:

So, word of advice to Gavin McInnes.

Stop trying to help.

You've already screwed up enough lives quite enough.

Oh, and on that note, more of McInnes' Kids in San Diego.

Naval "Proud Boy" Members in Halifax: Slap On the Wrist?

It would seem that at least one "Proud Boy" isn't so proud anymore, or at least he isn't so willing to speak with the media. Tom of Community TV contacted Grant Gauchier (Did I get that name right Grant? You insisted that your name be correct last time) but was left with this as a response:

Today the military confirmed (and what ARC had already confirmed) that all five men who disrupted a Mi'kmaw memorial remembering MMIWG in Halifax are in fact members of the Canadian Armed Forces though has only confirmed that two are members of the Royal Canadian Navy:

Five servicemen involved in incident at Indigenous ceremony in Halifax: militaryAdina Bresge, The Canadian Press Published Tuesday, July 4, 2017 1:30PM EDT Last Updated Tuesday, July 4, 2017 2:35PM EDT 

HALIFAX -- The military says five men involved in a filmed confrontation at an Indigenous ceremony in Halifax are members of the Canadian Armed Forces, and any misconduct will be addressed.

National Defence spokesman Daniel LeBouthillier confirmed Tuesday that five Forces members were involved in the incident, at least two of whom belong to the Navy. 

As such, ARC will confirm that at least 4 of the 5 are members of the Royal Canadian Navy and one is likely a member of the Army Reserves. One of our readers has provided the following information:

LS John Eldridge from HMCS Ville De Quebec
OS David Eldridge HMCS VDQ
CPL Eric Maurice 36 Signal Regiment
OS Grant Gauchier HMCS Scotian
OS Braidyn Pollitt HMCS Montreal

The article continues:

Commanders of the Canadian Army and Navy released a joint statement Tuesday saying that the chain of command "takes action" when a member's conduct is not in keeping with military code. 

"The actions of a few do not reflect the Royal Canadian Navy and Canadian Army commitment to being inclusive and diverse organizations," Vice-Admiral Ron Lloyd and Lt.-Gen. Paul Wynnyk said in a Facebook post. 

"Unfortunately, some of our sailors and soldiers have not ... made the necessary mind shift that leads to deep institutional change."

Well that is all well and good, but while Rear Admiral John Newton confirmed the five were members of the Canadian Armed Forces, he did so with the tone that they were mischievous scamps who carried things too far and disappointed their dad.

At this point the five have not had any formal disciplinary hearing, but it looked as if they would not be discharged. I may be wrong about that, but we'll see. Also, LeBouthillier's response to a question about whether First Nations would be consulted during the process -- they will consider it -- doesn't leave one with a great deal of confidence.

Now all five of the men have shut down or locked down their Facebooks so ARC was not able to get any other information, however Alheli Picazo managed to get some screen shots that indicate that at least some of the members also have interesting views not only about First Nations, but also Muslims, transgender persons, and rape.

Oh, and they seem not only to be "Proud Boys" bat a few are adherents of the alt-right:

Oh, the trolling is adorable.... 

Discussion on Kek from the Southern Poverty Law Canter

Ladies and gentlemen, your Canadian Armed Forces.

But hey, at least these five men have the support of III% Alberta, an anti-government militia:

<iframe width="853" height="480" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tUWGZipuO1g" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Military "Proud Boys" Disrupt Mi'kmaw Memorial in Halifax

UPDATE 4: I'm actually reminded that this isn't the first story of far-right individuals who are or have been members of the Canadian military:

• GermBrit Comments on ARC
• More Trouble For Boneheads Planning on Attending Calgary Rally
• Paulie Plays Fast and Loose With the Truth

On Canada day, while members of the Mi'kmaw Nation held a memorial remembering MMIWG in Halifax, a local contingent of "Proud Boys" arrived to disrupt the event, because the "Proud Boys" are classy that way:

While two of the group were rather reticent about providing their names, the others were quite happy to do so:

UPDATE 1: There's a second video as well:



The gang later hit the pubs to celebrate their.... victory?

Left to Right: Braidyn Pollitt  John Eldridge, David Eldridge, Grant Gauchier, and Eric Maurice

As they kindly provided their names, it wasn't all that difficult to track down information about them. And the kicker is that all five of them are members of the Canadian Armed Forces:

These are John Eldridge, David Eldridge, Eric Maurice, Grant Gauchier, and one guy haven't confirmed the name yet [Braidyn Pollitt]: so-called "Proud Boys" - members of a far-right ultra-nationalist group - that turned up at the park where some Mi'kmaw folk were having a ceremony to mourn those kidnapped and murdered by the Canadian state. Most of them are also members of the armed forces [Note: all are in the Armed Forces]. 

We think it's important to spread their names and faces around so they can be held accountable, and also so folk can stay safe. One of the stages of membership in the organization requires committing an act of violence against an "antifascist". They might be some cowardly little shitweasles, but they *want* to be a white supremacist street organization, so keep your guard up.

So let's take a look at our new friends:

First we have a "Proud Boy" who doesn't seem to be so proud that he is willing to provide a name. That is something that can easily be rectified:

First, the hair. That neo-fascist style? No.... just no.

Also, and perhaps it's just me, but I can't seem to find his Facebook profile any longer. Again, why would a "Proud Boy" wish to disappear himself?

In any case, as evidenced by the caption provided by another participant in yesterday's desecration, Braidyn Pollitt is a member of the Royal Canadian Navy as are three of the remaining four who will be profiled:

More on Grant very soon.

Then we have the first to bravely provide his name, John Eldridge:

We follow John with his brother Dave Eldridge:

Also surprisingly shy for a "Proud Boy" is Eric Maurice who, since his identity has been discovered, has tightened up his Facebook profile, though not before someone was able to get the following screen shots:

It looks as though Eric might be in a different branch of the Canadian Armed Forces and not in the Canadian Royal Navy like the others (UPDATE: seems he too is likely in the navy).

Last the fella who insisted that anyone watching the video get his name right, Grant Gauchier:

Dear god, you can smell the douchiness even before looking at the screen shots. These are from the day they disrupted the memorial:

And these are him in uniform:

Now, if anyone thinks that the Canadian Royal Navy should be made aware of what Braidyn Pollitt John Eldridge, David Eldridge, Grant Gauchier, and Eric Maurice are up to (because goodness knows nothing bad has ever happened with overt far-right nationalists in the Canadian military before), who am I to stand in your way?

The Honourable Harjit Singh Sajjan: Minister of National Defence

• Website 
• Twitter 

Royal Canadian Navy

• Website 
• Twitter 

Vice-Admiral Maurice Frank Ronald "Ron" Lloyd

• Twitter 

UPDATE: Well, it seems that this has become quite a popular article as it has, in less than a day, passed "The History of Violence" as ARC's most read article.... and the numbers are still climbing.

It also seems that the collective efforts of those who are disgusted with the display by these five men are yielding some results:

UPDATE 3: I have the feeling that these young men have very much come to regret engaging in what they termed as a "patriotic bub crawl"

• Two Navy members linked to Canada Day incident at Indigenous ceremony
• Disruptions of First Nations gathering causes outrage
• 'This is a British colony': Group disrupts Mi'kmaq ceremony in Halifax
• 2 navy members linked to Canada Day incident at Indigenous ceremony

Soldiers of Odin: A Spent Force But Members and Former Members Still Potential Danger

This article is scheduled to be published automatically on July 1. The writer for ARC will not be available that day because there are bbq hamburgers, beaver tails, and beers that need to be consumed.

A little over two weeks ago, the Soldiers of Odin in BC were present at a protest outside a mosque in Surrey. Whether or not they were the primary organizers of the protest or if they were simply participants -- members have been attending other anti-Muslim events organized by other individuals wearing their SoO "gear" -- isn't clear from the news article. Still it was one of the more visible actions taken by the British Columbia SoO for some time.

As mentioned elsewhere on the blog, the SoO seems to be in decline and is hemorrhaging both members and entire chapters. This is also the conclusion of others who have been studying the rise and fall of the anti-Muslim gang as stated by Yannick Veilleux-Lepage, researcher at the Handa Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence at the University of St Andrews, in an article about the gang by Stewart Bell:

Soldiers of Odin "not afraid to use violence," says intel report that raises concerns about targeting of immigrants. https://t.co/DzK587Fpsz

— Stewart Bell (@StewartBellNP) June 28, 2017

“They’re starting to look like a spent force,” he said. Together with Emil Archambault of Durham University, Veilleux-Lepage identified 265 Canadians associated with the Soldiers of Odin. But many have jumped to join other organizations in the past two to three months, he said.

That latter part mentioning members joining other organizations is one that will be addressed briefly in this article and in more detail in a future article.

However, despite the decline, the gang does remain a threat and was certainly seen as a threat by the Canada Border Services Agency in 2016 when the gang was was increasing in size and the number of chapters across the country:

“Members of the SOO are generally Caucasian males between the ages of 20 and 40 who adhere to right-wing politics and ideology — some members adhere to extreme right-wing ideology and are not afraid to use violence to achieve objectives,” the CBSA report said.....The one-page report was dated April 2016 but was only recently released under the Access to Information Act. Since it was written, the Canadian SOO franchises have succumbed to infighting and some have shut down.

Now given the collapse of the SoO, this may all seem a bit dated. But the danger this group still presents is perhaps most evident by studying the collapse.

Prior to Bill Daniels taking over the national SoO in an apparent coup and rejecting links with the Finnish parent chapter (more on this later), there had been a number of high profile defections from the SoO, both individuals and entire provincial chapters, that ARC has detailed on these pages. In Alberta, one incident ARC didn't cover was especially ugly and included numerous examples where both sides threatened violent retribution.

Bryan "SOO" was at one time a prominent member of the Alberta chapter of the SoO, but in March he was kicked out of the group based on claims that he had engaged in behavior that wasn't appropriate and demanded the return of his SoO "gear" and patches.. Whether the claims made by the SoO leadership were true or not, Bryan decided to respond in a manner that was considered very provocative:

The reaction to this from then active SoO members, including SoO Finnish founder and neo-Nazi Mika Ranta, was swift as Bryan burnt his gear live: