If Paul Gross' choices in movies suggest anything, it's probably that the actor and director knows a thing or two about combat.
After directing and starring in the WWI historical drama, "Passchendaele", Gross is back in the director's chair seven years later with "Hyena Road", a look at modern warfare through the lens of Canadians combating the Taliban in Afghanistan.
And while Canadian troops have formally ended their combat role in the country, Gross says the war on terror is still alive, only it's closer to home and in a different form, most notably as what Canadians should make of its anti-terrorism laws, formally known as Bill C-51.
"The biggest issue I have with that bill — and it’s not the idea of preventing terrorism from arriving — it’s that I don’t want the state to be wandering around doing things they ought not to be doing with no restraint,” Gross told the Huffington Post Canada during a stop in Toronto.
Bill C-51 attained royal assent on June 18th. Among the new provisions is the power for police to arrest citizens without a warrant so long as they believe individuals may carry out acts of terror. Canada's security and intelligence services, also know as CSIS, also gained new powers to disrupt travel, banking and websites of Canadians suspected of terrorist activity. Prior to these laws, CSIS functioned more in gathering intelligence on suspected terrorist plots.
"The core idea of it is that we should shore up our capacity to stop international terrorism — which is not necessarily bad — I’m not sure how pressing the urge is," said Gross. "The chances are far more likely — way, way, way more likely — that you’ll drown in your bathtub tonight than you will be killed by a terrorist in Canada.”
For more on the star's issues with Canada's anti-terrorism laws, check out the video above.
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