Neil Young Calgary Concert Fantastic

I went to Calgary on the weekend to see the Neil Young concert and to learn more about the ACFN campaign on Honouring the Treaty.

The Concernt was great.  Krall was enchanting and Young was enthralling.  There was little to noproselytizing from the stage but everyone in the full house knew what the event was in aid of.

The audience ws not your usual corporate crowd you often attribute to Calgary.  It looks like the four city tour will generate about $500k in proceeds and I hear some ENGO's may be matching this.  If so the war chest for fighting for treaty rights is will stocked.

The Teach In that afternoon was a disappointingly small crowd of mostly the converted and already knowledgeable.

As a front-end Baby Boomer I remember the Teach In movement well.  It is a great device to bring consciousness and raise awareness.  Lots of great comments on treaty issues from young and well informed panelists.  It was a bit of a refresher course for me on trety rights.

So now the stage is bare and the audience has gone home.  Will the conversations caused by Neil Young close with the curtain or will it continue?

I hope it continues but with more accuracy on facts, a more authenthic represnetation of the context of the oil sand and a better mutual respect of participants.

Yound closed the concert saying it was alright for good people tro disagree.  That does not mean differences of opinion cannot create and foster a mutual respect, and even friendships.

That is my personal experience, many times over, espeically in politics.  However, the facts and forums have to accurate and respectful too.   The oil sands industry reached out to Mr. Young in that spirit to meet with him in a public discussion while he was in Calgary.  I understand Mr. Young and company insisted that Dr. Suzuki moderate the event and the oil sands participants wanted a neutral moderator.  So the event never happened.

If that is the reason for failure to connect and communicate, it is disappointing and deters from the kind of informative dialogue  Mr. Young says he is trying to initiate.  Perhaps the idea can be revivied.  I will think about that idea and see if it is worth pursuing further.