I told the 300 kids in attendance that big institutions speak in a language, and a manner, that normal people just don’t. I gave the kids an example: Lots and lots of people don’t actually know how many million are in a billion, I said.

“But governments and corporations and unions, and especially big media, keep talking about billions all the time,” I added.

“Which means they are literally talking to regular people in a language that they don’t really understand.”

It’s not just language, however. The entire culture has changed, too. But big institutions ­— and big media in particular — keep talking at citizens in a manner that is as old-fashioned as a rotary phone or a VCR.

For instance: Back at the dawn of time, when I had the privilege to work for then-opposition leader Jean Chretien, we selected subjects for the daily Question Period by (a) reading newspapers and (b) watching CBC and CTV news. We determined what was important by watching Peter Mansbridge, in effect. We based our approach in QP on what the journalists and columnists wrote in the morning papers.

So I asked the kids: ”When was the last time one of you watched Peter Mansbridge’s show? When was the last time you sat down on a leisurely Saturday, and read a newspaper?”

Admittedly, it’s a bit of a controversial name.
But in the global punk scene — which has produced countless bands with unseemly handles like the Sex Pistols, Dead Kennedys, Bad Religion and The Circle Jerks — having a shocking name is standard fare. So, too, offensive lyrics, offensive messages and offensive behaviour.

Punks are generally young, and usually angry. They’re angry about the government, about society, about war, about racism, about the state of the environment, about their parents or teachers or whatever.

Being young and angry is central to the punk rock ethos. (I should know, I’ve been involved in the punk scene in Canada since I was 15 years old.)

Punk, in the main, is all about stirring up s—. Punks believe that, when you wake people up from their torpor — with a shocking song, or performance — you have a better shot at motivating them. You have a chance to mobilize people and make the planet a better place.

Punks, while mostly on the Left, also distrust governments and other big institutions. They don’t seek government or corporate handouts, and the central tenet of the punk faith is DIY — Do It Yourself. Don’t wait for someone else to do it for you.

Vladimir Putin doesn’t get, or doesn’t care, about any of that. He oversees Russia like a czar, after all. He’s a big man, with lots of power. He’s also a smirking, pompous, corrupt, kickboxing thug who runs his country like Tony Soprano runs a racket. And he doesn’t mind beating up on girls.