12 March 3, 2012 - ObserverXtra

THE OBSERVER | SATURDAY, MARCH 3, 2012
after taking a
break from cartooning
– and moving
to Japan – long-time
Observer contributor
Jack Lefcourt is once
again providing his
unique perspective
on editorial matters.
It was only natural,
then, that his first
appearance be back
on these pages, in
conjunction with the
redesign we launched
this week.
YOuR vIEw / lETTERs TO ThE EDITOR
Robo-call scandal
undermines
democracy
To the Editor,
in the last federal
election, residents of
Guelph and Kitchener-
Conestoga among others
received ‘robo calls’ purportedly
from Elections
Canada informing them
falsely that their polling
To the Editor,
despite being very outspoken
on the question
of crime, Prime Minister
Stephen Harper seems far
from eager to discuss the
“lawful access” legislation,
Bill C-30, that will allow
invasive online spying
without a warrant.
The proposed legislation
will force every phone and
Internet provider to allow
“authorities” to collect the
private information of any
Canadian, at any time,
without a warrant. This will
location had changed. This
is a clear case of election
tampering, an activity that
strikes at the very heart of
the concept of democracy
and is usually associated
with third world dictatorships
and emerging nations.
In my mind, I picture every
one of Canada’s Members
of Parliament rising
in rage at such activity,
demanding that those
COMMENT | 11
Lefcourt returns to cartooning, renewing longtime link with The Observer
THe OBSerVer Q & A | INTerVIeW WITH JACK LeFCOUrT, POLITICAL CArTOONIST | KyOTO, JAPAN
Q. how long have you
been in Japan?
A. I’ve been in Japan for
almost six years.
Q. what do you do
there?
A. For most of this time,
teaching English for a large
Osaka-based language
institute, as well as running
my own (much smaller)
school in Kyoto. More
recently, have begun working
as a writer and editor of
curricular materials.
Q. what was the big-
Government intent
on stripping away
your privacy
Jack Lefcourt tries his hand at a (self-) portrait of the artist as a man with a grainy webcam
in Kyoto from 14 hours in the future. [jack lefcourt]
gest adjustment between
life in Canada and life in
Japan?
A. Not having (or needing
for that matter) a car.
Q. how long have you
been on a break from cartooning?
A. It’s been a six-year
break from editorial
cartooning in Canada, although
for about a year and
a half, I did do some cartooning
for an Osaka-based
monthly called “Kansai
Scene.”
create legislation that is:
Warrantless: a range of
“authorities” will have the
ability to invade the private
lives of law-abiding
Canadians and our families
using wired Internet and
mobile devices, without
justification;
Invasive: the laws leave
our personal and financial
information less secure
and more susceptible to
cybercrime;
Costly: Internet services
providers may be forced to
install millions of dollars
worth of spying technology
and the cost will be passed
down to you.
Canada’s Privacy Commissioner,
Jennifer Stoddart, has
Q. what made you get
back into it?
A. I had been thinking
about getting back into it
for a while. More specifically,
I was inspired, and
rather surprised, by the
unexpected appearance of
an old Bill Clinton cartoon
of mine in a recent PBS
“American Experience”
documentary. Kind of
prompted me to put pen to
paper again.
Q. where do you draw
your inspiration for your
responsible be rooted out
and punished to the full
extent of the law.
In reality, my MP Harold
Albrecht (Kitchener-Conestoga)
had a staff member
announce that Mr. Albrecht
would not comment
on the issue.
What a terrible indictment
of what politics has
become in Canada.
Paul MarrOw | WInTERBouRnE
voiced her concerns about
online spying repeatedly,
and has called for strengthened
oversight and privacy
safeguards in the bills.
Any proposals to expand
telecommunications surveillance
must be based
on a clear need for new
powers, which must be
demonstrated by verifiable
evidence. And these
new powers must include
comprehensive internal
controls, clear oversight,
meaningful deterrents, and
a system of enforcement.
Visit www.stopspying.ca
to learn more and sign the
petition.
Oliver CardOza | WaTERLoo
cartoons?
A. That’s a tough one.
I guess if you just spend
enough time with news stories,
juggling them around
in your head, allowing
them to produce imagery,
funny stuff inevitably
comes out.
Q. You draw on canadian
subjects. How do
you stay plugged into that
while living in Japan?
A. Of course I manage to
stay informed of things for
the most part online. But
also, I do know, and work
with, a number of Canadians
living here in Japan,
and we talk. Canadian and
U.S. politics, along with
2.4 million
thank-yous
This month we are sharing a record $2.4 million
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Wendy is a real member, and the
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Q. do you see yourself
returning to Canada at
some point?
A. Definitely. Likely
within the next couple of
years.
Q. is there a facet of
Japanese life that really
stands out as an improvement
over life in Canada?
A. In Japan, if you lost
your wallet on the subway,
it would be surprising if
you didn’t get it back. The
police would likely be
knocking on your door the
next day to return it.
Q. what do you miss
most about life in Canada?
A. What I miss most of
all is the wide open space.
Japan is about 130 million
people living on a plot of
land the size of California.
Space is at a premium.
And it bears on the nature
and appearance of infrastructure.
Everything
is condensed and small.
Many residential neighbourhoods
seem almost to
have been built at 4/5 scale,
like Disneyland’s magic
kingdom. Coming back to
Canada, everything seems
enormous, and spread out.
Wendy Koch
MSCU member
MSCU just gave
me $267! Sweet!
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