The Council of Canadians mourns the passing of Windsor-Essex chapter founding member and long-time supporter Larry Carney.
His obituary notes, “Larry was a former Basilian priest. He entered the order in 1951 and was ordained in 1962. From 1963-1965 Larry was at Aquinas Institute in Rochester New York. In 1967 Larry went to St. Annes in Detroit. After working as a parish priest Larry went to Assumption parish in Windsor as Pastor and then back as Pastor to St. Annes. After leaving the priesthood in 1988, Larry cared for the mentally challenged.”
Larry was a prolific commentator on a wide range of issues.
A few examples include:
In June 2002, he spoke at a legislative hearing against the privatization of Hydro One. He stated, “I have disagreed all along with the direction the government is taking by trying to sell Hydro One. I think the plan was based more on an erroneous business philosophy rather than on sound economic policies. The basic argument that private corporations can do things more responsibly, better and more cheaply than public corporations has been exploded recently in the media by a number of events. I believe that selling even 49 per cent ownership of Hydro One is still a form of privatization.”
In June 2007, he highlighted in his submission to the Government of Alberta’s ‘Oil Sands Consultations’ our shared concerns about the overuse and abuse of water in developing the tar sands.
In August 2007, Carney spoke in favour of public health care. In a letter to the editor published in The Toronto Star, he wrote, “I find it hard to believe that the majority of doctors in Canada agree with their elected leaders in the Canadian Medical Association and want a two-tier system of medicare. The attitudes of both outgoing and incoming CMA presidents seem more interested in how much money doctors can make, rather than the health of most Canadians. I hope doctors and citizens will listen to Roy Romanow and research done by Maude Barlow and the Council of Canadians, showing how the two-tier system has always led to a double standard – one for the rich and one for everyone else.”
In October 2007, he effectively responded with wit to an Ottawa Citizen editorial that described Maude Barlow as “anti-American” and a “notorious anti-trader”. He stated in a letter to the editor, “As a US citizen, I guess I qualify as anti-American too, because I agree with all of Ms. Barlow’s positions. Like George W. Bush, the Citizen editorial writer seems to think that disagreeing with his politics and world views is anti-American. Then you should attack Ms. Barlow as “anti-Canadian” because her views pretty well go counter to those of all Canadian political parties. She feels that we need real democracy as shown by the people power of The Council of Canadians.”
In other posts, Carney noted, “I see corporate money, power and control at the heart of most problems”, “Stop and think: Have wars made things better in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and now in Syria?” and “Stopping the wars plays a big part in dealing with economic woes and environmental ones.”
There are undoubtedly countless other examples of his interventions for economic and social justice over the years.
We extend our condolences to Larry’s wife Marnie, his in heart children John and Brynn, and grandson Landon, as well as to his extended family and friends.
