BBQ Cat and Chinese Restaurants

And I thought it was dog meat

Image from (appropriately) Blazing Cat Fur

Canada's most irritating lefty has gotten himself into trouble, which has all the conservatives [1, 2, 3, 4, and yes, even the aptly named Blazing Cat Fur] rubbing their hands with glee.

Warren Kinsella, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff's senior strategist, wrote on his blog:

Back in the big Owe [Kinsella speak for Ottawa] for a couple of weeks, so what better way to kick things off than with BBQ cat and rice at the Yang Sheng, hangout of our youth. Yay!

I was excited, I was happy, I even filmed a little W@AL [Warren at Arm's Length - his video blog].

Then I walk in.

Sitting there, two Conservative guys I Did Not Want To See. Just seeing them gave me indigestion, and I hadn't even tucked into a bowl of barbecued cat, yet.

That's all he said: "kick things off with BBQ cat and rice at the Yang Sheng" and "I hadn't even tucked into a bowl of barbecued cat, yet" referring to his indigestion. And his post was immediately taken down (save that many made screen savers of his outspoken frankness).

Chinese communities and newspapers voiced their outrage, and demanded an apology immediately. Chinese-Canadian Conservative MP from Vancouver, Alice Wong, asked why Ignatieff hadn't fired his campaign aide yet, and the conservative blogosphere watched with amusement.

Alex Yuan, chair of the Chinese Canadian Conservative Association even said:

[Kinsella] has hurt the feelings of the Chinese people and disrespected the Chinese culture.

Hmm. Smells of a potential Human Rights Commission complaint.

The problem is that Kinsella has been fully supportive of Human Rights Commissions cases, and of one more recently filed against the National Post reporter Jonathan Kay, and several conservative bloggers: Kathy Shaidle, Ezra Levant, Kate McMillan, and Mark and Connie Fournier.

Warren Kinsella is as anti racism as they come. Hence the glee for his blogging mishap by conservative bloggers.

But, they all miss the point.

In a normal, Canadian world, Kinsella's comment would have garnered a chuckle here and nod there. I remember going into a slightly run down Chinese restaurant and one of the people with us said, "I hope there's no dog meat here." We just all laughed a little, and ordered our won tons and chow meins.

The conservative bloggers should have especially understood that. More than the Chinese, whom they are all now defending, including the ever-earnest Ezral Levant who was served his day in the kangaroo court for publishing the Mohammed cartoons, Warren Kinsella is their ally.

Yes, he is a die-hard liberal. But his jokes will be Canadian jokes, his culture (even his "punk" band - imagine a middle-aged man in a punk band, and it is not ironic) is still Canadian. His name, his attitude, his memories, his gastronomical palette are all Canadian.

What is infinitely more disturbing than Kinsella's mishap (or joke, as I see it) is the reaction of the "Chinese Community", which started dictating to various Liberal politicians what they should do with Kinsella. Since when has the Chinese community gotten so important that it can politically strong-arm Canada's leaders?

Well, since Harper made that formal apology for the Chinese Head Tax imposed on Chinese laborers from the mid-nineteenth century.

Let's also not forget those awful SARS months, a health scare from China no less, and when Toronto officials went around Chinese restaurants apologizing for their decline in clientele. As though SARS were a side-issue and the hurt feelings of Chinese restaurant owners who cried "racism" were what we should concern ourselves with.

This is how big these things get. If conservative writers, politicians and bloggers don't get that anytime the Chinese community demands retributions for what Canadians do or say they are in effect hijacking the country and its people, then they really don't understand the minority battles that are surging beneath the radar. Actually, minorities like the Chinese have become so powerful now that they no longer have to fight their battles undercover.

Warren Kinsella, for all his immaturity and stupidity, is still more of our ally than not. Maybe compatriot is a better word. At least he's not a whole minority immigrant group full of grievances, which demands - arrogantly - apologies and recompenses any time it feels offended. Let these groups loose, and they will be worse than Kinsella's "punk" band.