Seems that, no matter where one lives, the so-called freedom of speech is either, too strict, too lenient, too distorted or, sometimes, non-existent. And what if I told you, any single country can have a combination of many of the above flavors of "free speech". To make the long story, uhm, shorter...
Meet Dr. Andrew Jones - a smart, level-headed vet from Nelson, BC, who is pro-holistic and against bad veterinary practices. By bad veterinary practices he means: advocating bad pet food, bad animal medicine, and unnecessary and/or excessive animal vaccinations and over-medication.
Dr. Jones grew up around many animals, and has a deep love of and dedication to his work.
He is also up to date with the latest research in that department, and he is very vocal about what's wrong with conventional veterinary medicine. Apparently, advocating for good veterinary practice is what gets a vet in a lot of kaka in Canada. Maybe not in the whole Canada but, certainly, in British Columbia...
You see, Dr Jones was told to shut up or put up and, should he refuse to shut up, he'd lose his vet license. Well, he did not shut up (my hero!) - he continued to expose the lies about necessity of annual vaccinations, the lies about necessity of surgery and medication that often does more bad that good, the lies that keep the vets rich and pets sick or dying! For that, he was persecuted and fined $30,000. How is that for a freedom of speech?!? If a competent, educated and dedicated doctor tells it like it is, with the best interest of the pets and their owners at heart, he should get a medal, not be forced to resign. "Effectively muzzled", as the newscaster puts it, is what the College of Veterinarians of British Columbia did to Dr Andrew Jones.
This might be on a much smaller scale but, essentially, it's similar to Wikileaks's coming out of the secrecy closet, isn't it? Mr. Julian Assange revealed lies and conspiracies and, for that, bodies of government(s) hate him. Well, seems to me that should the lies and conspiracies not exist in the first place (and be hidden from the people in second), Mr. Assange would have nothing to report.
Dr. Andrew Jones did the same in his neck of the woods - revealed the truth, and for that, he is being punished.
Some years ago, I have purchased and studied Dr Jones's vet e-course, and it is good and full of lifesaving information. Dr. Jones makes more sense to me than any other vet (and I've seen and talked with many) ever did. As a three-dog-one-cat mama, I fully support Dr Jones and his right to tell the truth. After all, and any way you slice it, the truth is what leads to health! And, let me tell you, the more "they" try to shut you (or me) up, the more you want to shout it from the rooftops!
Below: links to the news story, and Dr, Jones's website and Facebook page (sign the petition while you're at it):
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Online-Vet/164391186931521
