Suckers bet on this issue. The Liberal cabinet will send it back for review, in the "interest of protecting Canadian programming".
We have CHUM, who wants to operate a land-based system, which will most likely start in the major cities only and maybe, eventually expand to other areas. The service will only be offered by them, with no competition. Yup -that's the Canadian way.
Meanwhile, consumers will vote with their feet and continue to buy grey market systems. The XM and Sirius satellite footprints currently cover the majority of Canada. These companies will already be fighting an uphill battle to get many Canadians to subscribe to the Canadian version and not the US one. Further delays by the Liberals only guarantee that we will end up with a sub-standard, overpriced 'made in Canada' solution.
The efforts to protect Canadian content will end up having the exact opposite effect, driving more and more people away. This is 2005 and government efforts to restrict what Canadians watch and listen to are becoming more and more irrelevant with each and every passing day.
"Don’t accuse me of wanting a healthcare system where people can’t get the health care they need because they can’t afford it. That is not what I want. But I would really like to have a healthcare system where providers are more concerned about the first challenge rather than the second. We do not have to give up a healthcare system that ensures all are cared for to get a healthcare system where my business is wanted. We just have to get the government out of trying to control all aspects of supply and demand."
Martin not as successful with 'democratic' deficit as he was with the real one (en francais)
"No longer will the key to Ottawa be who do you know. We are going to condemn to history the practice and the politics of cronyism," Paul Martin, Quebec City 2004
Edit: from today's Windsor Star editorial, on Paul Martin's promise to fix the 'Democratic Deficit'.
"At least Mr. Dithers didn't hem and haw about breaking that promise. He smashed it at the first opportunity and has been jumping up and down on the broken shards ever since."
Their closer is bang on:
"But until all senators are elected instead of unilaterally appointed, the upper chamber will remain impotent, illegitimate and emptier than one of Martin's campaign promises."
CREDIT: Dave Chan, National Post Conservative MP, Vic Toews.
VANCOUVER -- Cutting a woman off e-mail and ordering her to serve two years of house arrest for fatally stabbing her cheating lover in the groin suggests there is a need for mandatory minimum jail sentences for violent crimes, says the Conservative justice critic
Maybe the judge should have got really tough with her and cut off her TV privileges too.
So, I will carry on with what I can control. One door at a time. One street, mean or otherwise – until I have walked every step there is to take. Garth Turner
Great quote, and a great post.
Take a look at the comments for this one, first from a supporter in another riding:
I live in Willowdale. Where is my candidate? Why isn’t he working like you?
Your candidate is Jovan Boseovski, and you can contact him at willowdale@votejovan.ca. - Garth
By Paully on 08.28.05 9:13 pm
Then the response from Willowdale candidate Jovan Boseovski:
Hi Paully,
Glad to hear that you are concerned! I wanted to let you know that we are working in Willowdale. In fact, we are door knocking three times a week (Monday, Thursday, and Sunday afternoon…if you are available you are welcome to volunteer your time!), meeting with key leaders in the community and mainstreeting once a week. Also, you should be aware that we are planning a BBQ on the 25th of September. If you are a member of the party you will get an invitation in the mail.
I would encourage you to get involved, so feel free to contact me directly: Jovan@votejovan.ca
Regards and Blessings, Jovan Boseovski Candidate for Willowdale
Here's some new BT bloggers that I've noticed over the last month. If I've missed your name here or here , just add your blog in the comments section and I'll edit the post. If I've put you here and you're not new - oh well, enjoy the extra hits!
Silence No More - "If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable." - Justice Louis Brandeis
Blue Thunder! - Attack, Advance, and Give No Quarter!
DrewBlog - Surveying the Ontario landscape Matt's Thoughts - My innermost thoughts on various issues and times in my life...if you're willing to look into the abyss of my psyche, that is
Blog on everyone, and once again - Welcome to the Blogging Tories! Your next job is to recruit two more people to blog - we'll give you to next week!
Add Canconv to your blog - Andrew has come up with some more improvements for his Canconv blogging resource. Take a few minutes and join the conversation.
Where is Paul Martin? - great little flash presentation on what Stephen Harper has been up to all summer, and what Paul Martin hasn't been doing. Get your "Where's Paul Martin?" button from Stephen Taylor.
JustBlogit - great little Firefox ad-on. Gives you right-click blogging capability. Has 5 custom spots available. I have one programmed so that I can easily add posts from peoples blogs who don't have a Canconv button added. Right click, copy permalink, Right Click - add To Canconv. Very easy to use.
Google News RSS Feeds - use the power of Google to create custom RSS feeds. Helps you keep an eye on specific topics, keywords. For eg, I have created feeds for Harper, Martin and Layton, Conservative, Liberal and NDP. Helps catch some interesting articles, at times.
Conservative Wallpaper - three new wallpapers. Resolutions available: 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x960, 1400x1050
Add French Translation to Your Blog - code available for Blogger and MT. If anyone has come up with the code for any other blogging platform - drop me a line.
Liberal's Kyoto Plan - worth looking over. The so called 'plan' is nothing more than hot air. Lots of fuzzy goals and targets.
Combating Asshattery and Moonbattery since 9:00AM this morning.I had to finish my coffee and donut eh?!
Drop in and say hello.
(P.S. - he could REALLY use a camping buddy for future outings!)
In the need of some tech help? Support a fellow Conservative! GrandRiverTechnology Inc. The demands of business on technology is a constant evolution and with this in mind GrandRiverTechnology Inc. was founded. We are a strategic alliance of information technology consultants specializing in different fields and disciplines, allowing your company to move forward with your business while we manage your systems.
Offering realistic, real-time business solutions to solidify supply chains and minimize site administration allowing you to manage your business and stop struggling with your infrastructure.
Earlier this month, a doctored picture of Cotler in a Nazi uniform, with a caption calling him a "neocon-kapo," was removed by one of the site's administrators after it had been posted by one of the regular participants of the site's discussion groups. Several weblogs, including smalldeadanimals.com, later began to draw attention to that posting and to Emery's "capo" comment.
...The decade-long rule of Jean Chretien is a real-life Aesop's fable, a lesson for democracies of what can happen when a country has an inattentive public, a negligent media and an ineffective Opposition. There will always be corrupt and arrogant leaders, but their potential to inflict harm on the country is usually attenuated when others - citizens, journalists and opposition politicians - fulfill their responsibilities.
Government of Canada invests in your Maritime Security (en francais)
At the rate the Liberals are going, I feel like suing the government for breaking the pledge in our national anthem. "We stand on guard for thee" has been replaced by "We need the money to get re-elected".
Put a Department of Fisheries and Oceans officer on board, and;
Patrol - Air surveillance patrols will be conducted randomly any day including weekends with a mix of day and night patrols. Fishery officers will be onboard for all patrols, identifying vessels and their activities and providing expert assessment of marine activities relevant to legislation and regulations. Additionally, patrols will document and report oil spills, identify and monitor marine mammals and their activities and report activities which may threaten fish habitat. The aircraft may also assist with maritime search and rescue and conduct habitat work in the BC Interior and Yukon Territory.
In the past our Maritime Coastal security was monitored by CP 121 Trackers, and CP-140 Auroras. Today the Trackers have been retired without replacement and the Auroras are undergoing a $1 Billion dollar "modernization" program. (read - squeeze as many years as possible out of them - see Sea King,Canada - otherwise known as the Flying Coffin)
Canada's Maritime Security is managed by a hodge-podge mix of Coast Guard, DFO, RCMP, Border Services and the Canadian Forces, all services which have been continually neglected by the current Liberal government. The men and women of these services continue to perform above and beyond the call of duty, despite an appalling lack of support from their country.
A document obtained by The Star in which Estrin outlined his border "work plan and budget" shows how he originally planned to tackle the province and federal governments' "nine-point plan" -- which focused on making E.C. Row Expressway a border truck route -- and fight off proposals by the Ambassador Bridge and DRTP.
He told council his hiring of a transportation planner and govern-ment/media relations expert were vital to help council achieve its objectives.
The transportation expert would come up with a traffic bypass plan, he told them, while the media expert was needed to ensure council's position was well presented locally, provincially and federally, according to the document.
A few weeks later, council approved the plan and retained Estrin for $50,000.
Estrin soon after hired New York traffic expert Sam Schwartz to come up with a bypass plan, followed later by his adding government lobbying and public relations firm Navigator Ltd. -- led by Liberal insider Warren Kinsella.
Kinsella -- best known as a former adviser to Prime Minister Jean Chretien -- was officially listed as lobbyist for the city of Windsor between Dec. 20, 2004, and June 23, 2005 -- the same period when the Schwartz plan was laid out to Windsor residents and industry and government leaders.
Ok, even I can admit that Warren is one of the best in Canada at what he does. Windsor certainly got a lot of bang for it's buck in the drafting and presentation of the Schwartz report. I give Mr. Estrin two out of three on this strategy. But hiring Warren to lobby the current federal Liberal government?
Isn't that something like asking Guy Fawkes to arrange your yearly Parliamentary fireworks display?
REGINA -- Paul Martin's chief strategist told Liberal MPs yesterday they can win a majority government in February by adding seats in the West and Ontario, with or without gains in Quebec. Senior insiders said David Herle, the national Liberal campaign co-chair and the party's pollster, characterized it as a "daunting task" but said "if I pull it off they won't talk about David Smith any more, they'll talk about me."
Nice to know this coming election is all about Mr. Herle's ego and not about what might actually be important to us average Canadians.
Mr. Herle said, too, that the Martin Liberals have to keep the Conservatives "marginalized on the right," an insider said.
The Liberals also need to be solid on economic issues and keep the social conservatives in a "box," the source said. He said they also must play to the "10 per cent of the centre left" who swing between the Liberals and the NDP.
Insiders described the discussion as generally optimistic.
In a nutshell, Mr. Herle's strategy:
1. "keep the Conservatives marginalized on the right" - read continue demonizing the Conservatives as that scary party with a hidden agenda
2. "keep the social conservatives in a 'box' " - What? The Liberals have social conservatives in their party? Apparently, and their marching orders will be to shut up like a good back bencher and just soldier on. That's fixing the democratic deficit for you.
3. "play to the 10 per cent of centre left" - Ouch! Hold on to your wallets people. I guess the $32 billion in non-election goodies that the Liberals have been doling out lately isn't enough. Keep your eye out for various Liberal Cabinet Ministers and MPs showing up in ridings with those big presentation cheques. On the other hand, this could also be a reference to Belinda Stronach's Liberal Get Out The Vote consultation tour this fall, courtesy of our tax payer dollars.
I guess the only thing Mr. Herle is missing is the fact that this strategy really didn't work all that well for them last time out. With the new Conservative Party barely formed, and no policy in place all PM Martin and Mr. Herle could eke out was a minority government.
The Conservative Party of Canada is now one year older and much wiser. We have a policy in place, a team of dedicated MPs and a grassroots organization raring to go. I guess if the Liberals wish to stick to the same old, same old, who am I to discourage them.
Personally, I think Mr. Herle is right. After this election they'll never forget his name. It just won't be remembered in the way he might want it to be.
Another new additon to the CPC site today - a Videocast. They've posted all four of the new commercials for your pleasure! You can subscribe using the link below and your favourite podcasting application.
The individual commercials can be downloaded here:
Immigration - 5.3 mb mpg file. To download, right click link and choose "save as"
Lower Taxes - 5.3 mb mpg file. To download, right click link and choose "save as"
Healthcare - 5.3 mb mpg file. To download, right click link and choose "save as" Childcare - 5.3 mb mpg file. To download, right click link and choose "save as"
These are all small enough files that they can be emailed to your friends and family.
Let someone else know what the Conservative Party is up to today!
Nice to see that even when they are talking about the Liberals or NDP that the party is getting the Conservative message in each and every time. Hopefully this continues. This is what Canadians have been waiting to hear. Let's keep giving it to them.
John Reynolds, Conservative National Campaign Co-Chair said today that the ads are based on issues important to Canadians. According to Reynolds, they show clearly that Harper has thought through solutions for these issues. “Unlike Paul Martin, who talks a lot but produces little more than phony rhetoric, Stephen Harper has ideas and plans for Canadians to discuss,” said Reynolds. “I think this is the choice Canadians are going to have before them as we head into the next parliamentary session.”
Conservatives release party position but wonder why the government is delaying again
OTTAWA – Official Opposition Finance Critic Monte Solberg released a letter today to Finance Minister Ralph Goodale outlining the Conservative Party’s position on bank mergers. He also questioned why the Liberals have been hiding, denying and delaying the release of bank merger guidelines.
“In contrast to the NDP the Conservative Party has repeatedly proposed real relief on soaring gas prices by calling on the government to stop charging GST on top of gasoline excise taxes and to end the profiteering by the government during price spikes where for every 1-cent increase in gas prices per litre, federal revenues swell by $32-million per year,” said Duncan.
“In the next election there will be a clear choice between the environmental policies of the Conservative Party which believes economic growth can be positive for the environment and whose policies would harness human innovation and technology to address environmental challenges, and the policies of the NDP who see human activity and economic growth as the problem and whose policies would punish Canadian workers and consumers,” said Duncan.
London places second for thunderstorm activity among cities, behind Windsor. PETER GEIGEN-MILLER, Free Press Reporter
So it should be no surprise that Windsor ranks first for thunderstorm activity among Canadian cities and London is second.
Ontario's claim to thunderstorm fame is part of a catalogue of provincial and territorial weather extremes in a study by Environment Canada senior climatologist David Phillips.
No suprise here. With the launch of my friends Blue Thunder blog yesterday and Rick Fuschi's campaing rocking to the Thunder theme song it all seems pretty appropriate now.
"I have seen private-sector estimates of what the government surplus is going to be, but the minister of finance, yesterday, in fact, said that those numbers were substantially exaggerated and that the surplus would be nowhere near those numbers," Mr. Martin said yesterday in Edmonton during a swing through the Prairie provinces.
There are no economic indicators suggesting that revenue will fall dramatically in the remaining months of the fiscal year. By continually underestimating the surplus, the Liberals are denying Canadians the right to debate what happens with all this money they are taking from our pockets.
This from the man who promised to fix the "democratic deficit" in Canada. The budgetary books may be balanced Mr. Martin, but you continue to pile up the "democratic debt" that Canadians will be paying for for years to come. But then, that's the Liberal way. These guys could teach Three Card Monte dealers a trick or two. They've been doing it with billions of Canadians' taxypayer dollars for years, and we still haven't picked the right card.
Some people just get hit by the stupid stick more often than others. I think International Trade Minister Jim Peterson has had a few extra turns.
Border comments defended Trade minister says he was trying to create positive spin to help city's image
It appears the minister derived much of his information from an employee of the Ambassador Bridge -- a private company seeking to maintain its $50-million per year near-monopoly at the Windsor-Detroit crossing.
"I heard (bridge spokesman) Skip McMahon say the bridge is greatly improved," Peterson said. "I listened to him, but also other people."
On the other hand, I guess we still haven't learned all the necessary lessons from ADSCAM.
Our local MP's certainly stepped up to the plate:
MPs Brian Masse (NDP -- Windsor West) and Joe Comartin (NDP -- Windsor-Tecumseh) have demanded in a letter to Peterson that he retract his comments and apologize to local residents.
They charged the minister with "seriously damaging" momentum to get new border infrastructure in Windsor.
I guess they're hopin that when he reads the letter he gets a paper cut. That's about as effective as the Jack Pack gets here in Windsor and about all the influence they'll ever have.
Brian Masse and Joe Comartin squandered any opportunity to bring a resolution to this issue when they blindly followed Jack Pack leader Layton in propping up the tired old Liberal government. Only one of these NDP MPs would have been required to hold out their vote in the last session to force the government's hand on this issue.
Windsor got what it voted for in the last election - protesters instead of leaders.
The government of Canada is committed to taking all necessary steps to ensure the safeguard of Canadians' hard-earned money, said Scott Brison, minister of Public Works and Government Services.
This includes ensuring funds improperly obtained from the government of Canada are recovered.
Given that Canadians may be a little skeptical of the government's actions to recover adscam money from the Liberal party, I'd like to see an honest commitment from Brison for a change.
Will Brison commit to handing over the Liberal portion of the file to an independent agency to ensure the safeguard of Canadians' hard-earned money? Considering the Liberals' obvious conflict of interest in this situation, the honourable thing to do would be to step aside.
Considering her familiarity with the file, I think Auditor General Sheila Fraser would be an eminently qualified person to shepherd this task.
What say you, Minister Brison? Are you really committed to taking all necessary steps to ensure the safeguard of Canadians' hard-earned money?
The Conservatives have a long way to go before they'll form the next government, but Harper must keep up selling Canadians on how his party is different than the Grits. And if he doesn't, we'll join the CTF in continuing to hold his feet to the fire
What's really interesting is the capability of creating your own custom feeds using Google News. Simply type in a search term in the window. Once the search is completed, you can then subscribe to that search term's feed. For example, the following is a feed I created for Stephen Harper:
NDP Leader Jack Layton says his party is no longer in bed with the federal Liberal government.
Layton says the Liberal-NDP alliance that kept Prime Minister Paul Martin in power in the spring ended when the federal budget received Royal assent.
The Liberals struck a 4.6 billion dollar deal with the NDP in the spring to help pass the federal budget.
Layton isn't ruling out a possible coalition with the Bloc Quebecois and the Conservatives to bring down the government this fall.
I can't wait to hear Jack's assessment of how well this alliance worked for the average Canadian. What did we get for it, other than empty Liberal promises and more dithering?
Storm Liberal Warning - Minister Travelling West (en francais)
Considering the havoc International Trade Minister Jim Peterson caused, in his few short hours in Essex County this week, I thought it was very kind of the Minister's office to issue the appropriate warning of his impending travels.
A certain 'Anonymous' blogger certainly likes to be seen on the BT blogroll. Why else would Blue Maple Leaf end up on the top of the roll all weekend long, with the most recent post being Friday?
I don't suppose it has anything to do with 'Anonymous' trying to highlight one of the 7 comments left this weekend on a post that may be contentious to some?
Just a general observation on a quiet Sunday night.
Good - Bad Like Harper- Hate Harper-Indifferent Policy Wonk-Organization freak Liberal-NDP-Conservative
As much as I may rant on at times, I've noticed a general upswing in the discussion of things Conservative. Regardless of the subject, at least we're talking, debating, slagging and spamming on Conservative issues, ideas, events and policies. More MPs are blogging, more candidates are blogging and grassroots Conservatives are jumping on board. The growth at Blogging Tories has been great. (H/T to BT for leading the way).
Poll and pundits are only right if we allow them to be. I'm certainly not advocating ignoring the Liberals and the NDP, it's just good to hear people talking about Conservative ideas. To move forward we all need to reach out. The way to do that is keep talking, writing and blogging. Engage others outside your normal comfort zone. Stand up and talk Conservative - it works.
CPC Communications - we've still got a lot to learn (en francais)
RANT ON
It's not always media bias that causes the CPC problems, it's called Rapid Response, availability and professional competence.
Following up from yesterday's post about International Trade Minister Jim Peterson's major gaffe yesterday here in Windsor. (Note: other than a potential new $300 million dollar paint shop by Chrysler, there is no single bigger issue in Windsor than the border. Decisions being made today, or not made, will affect Windsor, the province and the country for decades to come)
KINGSVILLE - Canada's trade minister is returning to Ottawa with a good news message about the border that is already being disputed by Windsor's mayor.
My issue isn't really with the Windsor Star article, as their deadline is 9pm, although it was certainly feasible for us to respond under that deadline.
AM800 CKLW, a CHUM station began their coverage this morning at 5am.
* Leading off with the Mayor and two local NDP MPs, repeated every half hour, the roasting of Minister Peterson began.
* Later in the day local CAW 444 President Ken Lewenza was added to the mix.
* The afternoon call in show featured Liberal Senator Colin Kenney,
* Following Senator Kenney, an interview with a furiously back-tracking Minister Peterson.
* Coverage continued the rest of the evening until 10pm local news signoff, with Ken Lewenza leading and a half-hearted response from Peterson
Icing on the cake - American Ambassador David Wilkins was in Windsor yesterday:
Brian Cross Windsor Star Friday, August 19, 2005 The new U.S. Ambassador to Canada "listened and learned" on Thursday about Windsor's need for a smooth-flowing border
Just to add insult to injury, the main editorial today was on the border. It's subscriber only, but here's a taste:
We sense no real will to fix the border. Too often, the discussion focuses on the agendas of those who stand to profit from a new border crossing. There are also various special interests on both sides of the border attempting to undermine the process of doing what's best.
However, the real issue is quickly building a new border crossing that will ensure the vibrancy of the economic relationship our countries share. Today, as the Ontario Chamber of Commerce has pointed out, border delays cost our economies a staggering $13.6 billion a year. That's unacceptable.
More than any other community, Windsor's residents are bearing the brunt of an outdated border in terms of pollution and traffic congestion. The bottom line for us is that no solution can further exacerbate these problems; it must solve them.
The current process to select a new crossing isn't working. The binational committee - initiated by senior governments on both sides of the border prior to 9-11 -- has evolved into a bureaucratic, make-work project. Under the current regime, it seems unlikely a new crossing is even in the cards for another 15 years, maybe longer.
Anybody else notice what's missing from all this coverage? The Conservative Party of Canada.
Give the local radio station credit, when queried about the lack of Conservative response they informed me that they attempted to contact the local CPC MPs office and cell phone all afternoon. Unfortunately, being Friday, nobody works in the afternoon.
If we expect to defeat the Liberals in the next election, we not only need to meet their level of performance, we need to exceed them in every capacity.
Can't blame media bias for this - we never showed up to get in the game.
This is his blog following the publishing of the above article: When CBC Fans Attack
Gerry Nicholls The Vice President of the National Citizens Coalition since 1998, Gerry Nicholls helps to plan the NCC’s national and regional communication strategies. He also manages the group’s public relations activities including media relations, public speaking and news releases. In addition, Gerry is editor of the NCC’s newsletters and writes op-ed articles which have appeared in newspapers across Canada including the National Post, the Calgary Herald and the Montreal Gazette. Gerry was born and raised in Windsor, Ontario and holds University degrees in history and journalism.
On August 19, 2005 the Conservative Party of Canada released the final figures for its 2004 leadership selection process. The figures included all contributions over $200 to each candidate, and the total expenses incurred by each candidate under party spending limits.
Total expenses for the Tony Clement Campaign were $826,807, for the Stephen Harper campaign $2,073,084, for the Belinda Stronach campaign $2,496,482. 2004 Leadership Spending (PDF)
More information on Conservative.ca podcasting. (don't try to subscribe to the Radio Free CPC from this page - it will give you a javascript popup link instead of the actual feed link)
Make sure you also check out the Blogging Tories own podcasting resource. Stephen Taylor has put together an excellent page with everything you require and has started podcasting in earnest.
With reports like the following coming out, I'm certainly hoping to see more concrete policy initiatives from the CPC in the very near future. The Transit Policy was a good start, but only just. We need to keep rolling now and continue with our vision for Canada.
The price you pay for not voting Liberal (en francais)
BORDER CROSSING NOT IN CRISIS Posted on: Thursday, August 18 @ 15:26:40 EDT Canada's Minister for International Trade says the Windsor-Detroit border is not in a crisis situation anymore. Minister Jim Peterson met with 40 local business leaders in a roundtable discussion this morning. Peterson says he heard from the business leaders that the border crossing is not a huge problem anymore but there is still a sense of urgency to find a new border crossing.
The Minister visits Kingsville, holds a closed door meeting with 40 'select' business people and is able to declare that there is no problem with the Windsor-Detroit border anymore. When asked on live radio why he didn't meet with the Mayor of Windsor, he responded that the Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister were here in April. I guess that was supposed to be our chance for consultation with the government.
Strangely enough, the new American Ambassador to Canada, David Wilkins was also in Windsor today. He seems to think the border is important enough to warrant his attention. While here he visited all three crossings, the bridge, tunnel and truck ferry. Somehow he also managed to find time to meet with the Mayor and City Council.
AMBASSADOR IN TOWN Posted on: Thursday, August 18 @ 15:33:00 EDT The U.S Ambassador to Canada is in Windsor today checking on the border situation. David Wilkins has only held the job for 6 weeks, but he's travelled to 6 provinces and one territory already, trying to get a handle on issues around Canada.
Here's some suggested reading for Minister Peterson:
BORDERLINE INSECURE Canada’s Land Border Crossings are Key to Canada’s Security and Prosperity. Why the Lack of Urgency to Fix Them? What Will Happen If We Don’t? An Interim Report by the Senate Committee on National Security and Defence June 2005 Ontario Chamber of Commerce - Cost of Border Delays to the United States Economy April, 2005
Ontario Chamber of Commerce - Letter sent to The Right Honourable Paul Martin, P.C., M.P and The Honourable Dalton McGuinty, M.P.P. re: Windsor-Detroit border and the Schwartz Report January 28, 2005
OTTAWA – James Rajotte, Member of Parliament for Edmonton-Leduc and Senior Opposition Critic for Industry, Science and Technology today admonished Industry Minister David Emerson for backing out of the promise to make Technology Partnerships Canada (TPC) program a cost recovery program. According to Emerson, a good deal of the $2.8 billion in taxpayer dollars that was supposed to be repaid is now forgone and will never be collected.
“The Minister’s comments prove the Conservative Party has been right all along,” said Rajotte. “TPC is nothing but a corporate welfare program designed to support a few companies at the expense of taxpayers and with little or no long term positive effect on the economy.”
Most of the $2.8 billion dollars already 'invested' is gone - never to be repaid. Industry Minister David Emerson has backed out of a promise to make the TPC a cost recovery program, so that taxpayers, not corporate shareholders, could get a return on their investment. We are opening ourselves up to WTO claims of unfair business subsidies with the continuation of this program as it stands. In spite of all that:
Minister Emerson has already admitted what a sham the 'investment' part of this fund is. I guess he forgot to let the press release people know. I'm really looking forward to Industry Canada's next 'report' on the Technology Partnerships Canada program.
Partnerships? Well, I guess if you can believe Belinda wasn't promised anything for crossing the floor, you can believe anything.
This one has always been my favourite. I think Paul recorded this BEFORE he wanted dear Alfonso to just disappear. (on permanent vacation - preferably somewhere out of the country)
"The Government of Canada is committed to taking all necessary steps to ensure the safeguard of Canadians 'hard-earned money', said Scott Brison, Minister of Public Works and Government Services. "This includes ensuring funds improperly obtained from the Government of Canada are recovered."
Given that Canadians may be a little skeptical on the governments actions to recover ADSCAM money from the Liberal party, I'd like to see an honest commitment from Minister Brison, for a change.
Will Minister Brison commit to handing over the Liberal portion of the file to an independent agency "to ensure the safeguard of Canadians 'hard-earned money'. Considering the Liberals obvious conflict of interest in this situation, the honourable thing to do would be to step aside.
Considering her familiarity with the file, I think Auditor-General Sheila Fraser would be an eminently qualified person to shepherd this task.
What say you Minister Brison? Are you REALLY "committed to taking all necessary steps to ensure the safeguard of Canadians hard-earned money"?
Edit: in the spirit of 'practice what you preach' - I have sent the above blog as a Letter to the Editor to the following papers - Windsor Star, Toronto Star, National Post, Globe and Mail, Toronto Sun, Ottawa Sun, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Vancouver Province, Victoria Times Colonist. I'll add more later when I have time!)
Supposed to be a sneak at the upcoming new issue of Frank, released by a disgruntled programmer. Frank Home Page (page subject to Geocities bandwidth restrictions, picture posted below)
Colchester North? Interesting name for a page. Hmmm.
"CBC employees earn far more money than their colleagues in the private media and in some cases have two or three people doing what one person at CTV, Global or CKX-TV does. Keep in mind also that’s your money, not the money of advertisers, that is funding their fat salaries." ...
The broadcast world is changing. Unfortunately, the change-resistant CMG, like many of the defenders of fat and irrelevant public broadcasting, refuse to accept that most Canadians aren’t interested in the schlock that fills the CBC’s airwaves most days.
While some Canadians may be upset about missing out on some CBC programming, they should congratulate Mother Corp’s management for trying to force at least a small change in the way CBC does business.
I say there's a simple way to resolve this situation.
Open up the books!
Let the Auditor-General take a look at the finances and operations of the great Mother corporation. I'm sure the results would be very interesting to all concerned.
"Previously, the Progressive Conservatives were always there to implement Liberal policies under the hands of a different crew. This has changed. The only other big party is now authoritively socially conservative. Bay Street may want two-tier medicine for themselves and their compadres, but they don't want their kids learning The Beast 666 in school, or having to suffer back alley abortions."
Sarcasm or not, the demonization continues. Long ago I resolved to not get angry, whenever I came across material such as this, but get motivated instead. As time has gone by, I've found that this works suprisingly well.
Try it.
Every time you read or hear something like this, go out and do something positive for the party. Sell a membership, write a letter to the editor, phone a call in show, donate, post on a blog - whatever floats your boat. Trust me, it will bring a smile to your face every time.
Contrary to popular belief, activism is not the sole preserve of the left. A motivated group of people is a powerful force. Initiatives such as the Blogging Tories speak volumes about today's Conservatives. Keep up the good work.
Here's a few new BT bloggers that I've noticed over the last few days. If I've missed any, add yourself to the comments:
Ironic Paradox And so it continues...ramblings, musings, thoughts, quotes, facts, theories, conjectures...etc.
Christian Conservative I'm a sinner, redeemed by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for me. Born in England, lived mostly in Ontario, spent time in New Hampshire and New Brunswick.
Jack's Newswatch Information that catches my eye. Rav Mlait Blog This is a site for those interested in reinvigorating the Canadian National Identity. Here you will find some of the best articles on the web shedding light on how Liberalism has systematically deteriorated Canadian sovereignty, security, foreign policy, values and national identity.
Uncommon Truths As a kid, I always believed that things were the way the Canadian media said they were. I never doubted what I was being told for a second. This Blog is my rejection of the world view of those who are doing irreparable damage to this country. These are the Uncommon Truths they aren't telling you. Upper Canada Catholic Canadian politics, conservatism, religion & other things that mix poorly.
Arabian dissent Random rants from a 23 year old Arab-Canadian on, American, Canadian and Middle Eastern Politics. Here come the shockers: I'm a big supporter of George W. Bush and his anti-terrorism efforts. A strong believer in small-government and Reaganomics (while residing in the most left-wing location in North America, Quebec), and a supporter of the Conservative Party of Canada. Started this blog hoping to refute lefty myths on Economics, Conservatism, Terrorism, the Middle East and the US.
Danielle Smith's Blog Winds of Conservative Change "Insert Pithy Quotation about Conservatives being better than Liberals here" westerncanadianredneck Yet another blog in which an ignorant Canadian conservative can give his scary views. Though I do relish in how the intellegenisia in the mainstream are tragically losing their media monopoly to ignoramuses like myself.
"Money, Members, Canvassing, Voter ID, Events, Youth recruitment, Training, letter writing camapigns, phone in campaigns......
We are not even doing the basics in most ridings in Ontario. How many ridings are raisng money? How many candidates are knocking on doors for 3hrs a day? How many ridings are reaching for 1000 members? How many member events this year? How many supporter events this year? How many open events(town halls) this year?
Where is the closest University or College? Has the local EDA done anything to help them raise money? To reach out to these youth?
We hear all the time that its the 'message'. What message? We bounce around like amateurs. Then we come up with something clever and think that we should move up 10 points in the polls.
If Healthcare is the #1 issue than get the little old lady who's husband died in the waiting room on TV and hammer it home. Let her tell her story. She can also tell average Joe Canadian that she has a bad knee and while she's been waiting 8 months to get it looked at the other knee has now gone bad because of all the extra strain on it.
Lets talk taxes. Here is how much money you make.....Here is how much goes to taxes........Here is the long line up at the hospital awaiting you........Here is the brown out in your city coming soon............and here is your factory closing and going overseas.
We can show guns in our commercials too. And the faces of all the young people dying in Toronto because of them. Liberals want a gun registry, we want guns off the streets.
Ask the question at the end of the commercial.........
You want jobs? You want prosperity? You want safe communities? It's your choice....
JustBlogIt is a Mozilla / Firefox extension to allow easy right-click posting to a weblog. From any website your new blog post is only a right-click away.
How is JustBlogIt different from a other blogging bookmarklets or context-menu tools?
JustBlogIt supports posting to a variety of weblog system types and is not specific to just one. You can also use the Custom... setting to add any weblog type you want.
More importantly, JustBlogIt supports seamless posting from within many web-based News Readers. JustBlogIt checks to see if you are trying to post from a News Reader and adapts the blogging data accordingly.
What weblog types are supported by JustBlogIt?
Blogger, Drupal, LiveJournal, Movable Type, Radio Userland, TextPattern, TypePad, WordPress, journalspace, b2evolution and BLOG:CMS. Plus you can add any weblog type you want through the Custom... setting.
Which News Readers does JustBlogIt recognize?
Bloglines, Rojo, Radio Userland and Amphetadesk.
What are the requirements?
You must be using Mozilla or Firefox and have an existing blog to post to.
Garth is responding to an email from a voter in his riding:
Like you, I have made political choices. I chose to run for a nomination for the Conservative party in Halton, because this party best represents what I believe in – less government, fairer taxes, more free enterprise, more opportunity, and yet a progressive agenda that cares about people, families, the environment and the future. I want to be in a party where morals, ethics and principles matter. We need to respect people in politics, and politicians need to earn that respect. I hope to earn yours.
I look forward to seeing you at the Town Hall meeting. Please come forward, so I can see the person behind the heartfelt words.
Garth
While it's rather simplistic to say I wish we had 307 ridings working as hard as Garth, there's a degree of truth to it. National polls are one thing, but the battles are fought and won in the individual ridings. All the policy in the world won't win elections without organization and planning. The internet offers unlimited collaboration tools for ridings to work together. An election is only 36 days and that is not enough time to get the necessary work done.
Write a letter to the editor, phone a local call in show, find your local candidate and see what is happening. If we wait for a fall or spring elections - it will be too late. Now is the time to stand up and be counted.
Toronto — The CBC locked out 5,500 of its workers Monday after failing to reach a deal with its union, meaning viewers and listeners across the country will be tuning in to unfamiliar faces and voices on the airwaves Monday morning.
Negotiators for the broadcaster and the Canadian Media Guild could not agree on a contract by the CBC-imposed lockout deadline of 12:01 a.m. ET Monday.
CTV and Canwest-Global must be heartbroken to hear this news.
I wonder how Peter and company are going to survive on strike pay?
definition of a liberal: someone so open minded their brains have fallen out (BBS - lol - loved that one!)
Postings, ramblings, and references to Conservative thought, ideas, articles and commentaries. A right-wing weblog by Canadian woman who is fed up with liberal policies and politics.
""Nil illegitimi carborundum"
A woman who refuses to be worn down by others liberal ideas. Keep up the good work Kariba! Make sure you stop in and say hello to her. Blogging Tories have feelings too, you know! :)
“It also is inconsistent with Mr. Martin’s support of the NDP’s better, balanced budget, whose measures to make education more accessible explicitly called for provincial consultation,” he said. “Mr. Martin can’t keep making things up as he goes. Something as vital as education needs a better approach than more federalism-on-the-fly from Mr. Martin.”
So, as of the 12th of August, Jack is still claiming that Paul Martin supports the NDP's 'better, balanced budget'.
But, how do you explain this?
“It's a double-cross and a breach of the agreement.” NDP finance critic Judy Wasylycia-Leis (National Post, July 16, 2005)
“The more distance they can put between the NDP budget and the actual expenditure, the more it is to their political advantage and the more work we have to do to remind Canadians just how this happened.” Judy Wasylycia-Leis (National Post, July 16, 2005)
“There is no doubt that the money is flowing, they're just trying to play some games in the way they communicate this issue… If the Liberals try to change their tune, they'll have to be accountable for that in the session in the fall.” Jack Layton (National Post, July 16, 2005)
If "there is no doubt that the money is flowing" - where is it? What are the program details and timelines? When can Canadians expect to see the results of your propping up a tired old Liberal party?
Here's the Liberal party's answer:
"Liberal MP John McKay, parliamentary secretary to Finance Minister Ralph Goodale, Tuesday told the Senate committee on finance, currently studying the bill, that the government will not know its 2005-06 surplus until August or September 2006. Not a penny from the NDP-negotiated budget can be spent until then, and only if the government has a $2-billion surplus." (Canwest News Service, July 16th)
In spite of that "double-cross and a breach of the agreement" the Jack Pack is going to enter the Liberal party's Funhouse of Smoke and Mirrors once again.
HALIFAX -- A substantial increase in the federal child tax benefit and a bigger international assistance budget are emerging as key conditions of further NDP support for Prime Minister Paul Martin's Liberal minority government.
Some people just never learn. Of course, this is just the Jack Pack 'making parliament' work.
It’s time for the Friday Open Trackback Party. If you have a post that you are particularly proud of from the last week that you think deserves a second look then post a trackback to it here. The added bonus is that it helps improve your TTLB Ecosystem ranking.
If you're relatively new to blogging, this is a great way to encourage others to stop in and visit your blog. The Blogging Tories are growing all the time and it can be easy to get missed. Brent keeps the Trackback Party thread open all weekend. Drop in and have your say!
Once you've joined the party, stop in and have a conversation @ Andrew's Canadian linker - Canconv. Let other Canadians know what you think.
With Friday's late afternoon announcement, the Grewal affair is supposedly dead. My question is, what about the tapes? The original tapes were given to the RCMP for analysis as part of the investigation. Everything in this affair revolved around those tapes.
What were the results of their analysis?
Who is afraid of the answer to that question?
Why weren't the results released?
Why isn't the MSM asking about the RCMP's analysis?
Did the RCMP do an analysis?
Still too many unanswered questions as far as I'm concerned. Unfortunately, given the state of the media in Canada, we'll probably never find out.
For seven straight years, the federal government and the finance minister have been misleading Canadians on the country’s finances. Budget surpluses have been underestimated by $86 billion and reports indicate that the federal government will once again have a multi-billion dollar budget surplus this year, mirroring last year’s budget which was forecast at $1.9 billion but came in at $9.1 billion.
The Conservative Party of Canada believes in honest budgeting and will push for an accurate forecasting process by implementing an independent parliamentary budget office which will oversee government accounts and spending. More...
19. Tax Relief i) A Conservative Government will provide immediate and long-term broad based tax relief, starting with reducing personal income tax rates and substantially raising both the Basic Personal Exemption and the Spousal Exemption under the Income Tax Act. Reducing personal income taxes will hike the take home pay and raise the living standard of all Canadians.
20. Family Tax Fairness i) A Conservative Government will create tax fairness for families by eliminating inequities between single and dual income families and introducing a deduction for dependent children.
ii) A Conservative Government will amend the Income Tax Act to eliminate all tax disadvantages to families including those who care for children at home and to recognize the economic value of stay at home parents by introducing tax fairness measures such as income splitting.
(iii) The Conservative Party also recognizes that many of our seniors lived on single family incomes as one parent stayed home and cared for their children. Our seniors deserve tax fairness to eliminate the discrepancy between single and dual family income in retirement. A Conservative Government will review income splitting as a means of creating this tax fairness.
21. Spending Controls A Conservative Government will strengthen enforcement and criminal code penalties for fraud involving the misuse of tax dollars.
CBC management has filed a 72-hour lockout notice, meaning job action could take place Monday morning if an agreement is not reached with the union representing 5,500 workers.
"CBC doesn't want a work stoppage and we are extremely disappointed to have to take this action," the corporation said in a communiqué Thursday night. "However, after almost 15 months of negotiations, our key issues remain unresolved."
What would really get me excited was if the Government would open up the books of the CBC to the Auditor General, prior to any more contracts being signed by the Corporation.
As if to make the point I was asked by one of these new Canadians if I could get the Citizenship Judge to sign her Bible. The judge told me no, we're not allowed to do that anymore. She didn't no why. I almost felt sick to my stomach.
For the dedicated political junkie. Looks like the "By Audience" feeds might mesh well with Andrew's great tool, Canconv
The Government of Canada Newsroom offers you numerous RSS news feeds. Each news item includes the headline or title, a summary of the news article and a link to the full text document found on the Newsroom Web site.
Regional news feed (this feed contains news item that appears in each of the province/territory RSS news feeds.
National news feed (this feed contains news items pertinent to all Canadians. News items appearing in the feed will not appear in the regional news feed nor any of the province/territory news feeds.)
Instructions on adding a news feed to your News Reader or aggregator
Using your mouse right click on the XML orange graphic. In the Microsoft I.E. browser "copy shortcut" and in Netscape and Firefox browsers "Copy Link Location" from the pop-up menu that appears. Launch your news aggregator or news reader application and paste the news feed URL into an "add new feed" window. Detailed instructions on how to add news feeds are included in the news reader application that you choose. When news items are published by government departments and agencies through the Newsroom publishing and distribution system your news reader/aggregator will let you know through a small pop-up window or other alert device. If you close your news reader/aggregator, you will not be advised of updates until the next time you open it. Unlike e-mail subscriptions, you are not required to provide personal information or an e-mail address to benefit from receiving news from the Government of Canada Newsroom.
What is RSS?
Rich Site Summary (RSS) or as some refer to it, Real Simple Syndication, is an XML-based format for content distribution in real time. Government of Canada Newsroom feeds will include the date, title, summary and a link to the full news article. If after reading a summary you want to view the full text, simply link to the full text document found on the Newsroom Web site.
News aggregators / News readers
There are numerous RSS news aggregators / news readers available for free download or for purchase on the Internet.
For more details on RSS, try this useful FAQ or the RSS specification. The specification focuses on the RSS 2.0 format that the Government of Canada is currently using for the Newsroom.
12 1/2 years and the Liberals still don't have a plan yet - but they've committed billions of your tax dollars. At the rate we're going, this will make the Gun Registry fiasco look like chump change.
Project Green - the Liberals Kyoto "plan". Lots of goals, targets and proposals - but no plan.
Jobs for the future - CPC looks forward (en francais)
Good article in the Toronto Star (?) by Ted Menzies, Official Opposition critic for International and Internal Trade and Conservative party MP for the Alberta riding of Macleod. Keep this stuff coming guys - I love it!
India, for example, is a vast marketplace with a middle-income population of more than 250 million rich with potential for those who can bridge cultural and linguistic differences. With the largest South Asian community in Ontario and more than 100 languages and cultures represented, Toronto has the tools to expand trade with Asia-Pacific markets such as India.
There is no question that our trade with Japan and India is functioning far below its potential. There is scope to significantly increase exports to these Asian economies in a number of sectors.
Despite the fact that Canada and Japan are already committed to free trade by 2010 under APEC, it is already 2005 and the federal government has not begun negotiations. In fact, StatsCan reported in May that Canadian trade to Japan has tumbled 11.4 per cent since the same month last year, a trend that has seen exports to Japan decline steadily since the 1990s, resulting in trade deficits of more than $6.6 billion a year.
The Conservative party believes that a bold vision is needed for our future economic relationships in Japan and India, one that elevates our traditional relations onto a strategic plane by securing free market ties with Canada's democratic and economic partners in the Asia-Pacific.
39. International Trade In an increasing competitive global economy, trade remains the key to future prosperity in Canada.
Many Canadian jobs depend heavily upon foreign markets. Those jobs are placed in jeopardy when other nations make it difficult for our exporters to sell their products.
i) A Conservative Government will bring more security to existing trade related jobs. To create new employment opportunities, our trade agenda will focus on diversifying both the products we sell abroad and the markets into which we sell those products. A Conservative Government will secure access to international markets through a rules based trading system. A Conservative Government will strive to maximize the benefits we have as a free trading nation, emphasizing the need to establish trading relationships beyond North America.
ii) In future rounds of trade negotiations, a Conservative Government will vigorously pursue reduction of international trade barriers and tariffs. A Conservative Government will pursue the elimination of trade-distorting government export subsidies within clearly established time limits. A Conservative Government will seek a clear definition of what constitutes an export subsidy.
iii) A Conservative Government would move to find new markets for Canadian goods and services by emphasizing development of trade ties with emerging markets.
iv) In recognition of freshwater as a critical resource to the future of Canadians, the Conservative Party believes that there should be an investigation into the security of our long term freshwater resources as they pertain to exportation as a commodity.
Just an honest, open letter with his feelings. He's a young man with a child on the way and concerned with the state of his country. This is not a criticism as much as a plea. There are Conservatives out there all over this country and what they are looking for is a vision and someone to lead us to that vision.
I have to say, I read the letter three times and would be willing to sign my name to the same letter. As a Conservative supporter I want to talk about Conservative policies and vision.
In a country where 8 out of 10 parents say they don't want their kids to be politicians, something needs to change.
I'm hoping that Stephen Harper and the Conservative party have the wherewithal to be the engine of that change.
What is Canconv? CanConv is a linker... with a twist - everyone participates in filing useful posts in relevant categories, and in this way a history is built up.
The current version, v1.06b, has included several improvements to make it easier to add posts. You can add posts from your own blog or from another blog that you found interesting. The only restriction is that the blogs/posts be Canadian related.
You can also subscribe to RSS links for various categories to track the conversation on a wide range of Canadian subjects.
To make it easier for you, or others to add your posts, you can add the following code to your Blogger template:
Blogger Code
I have also taken a stab at MT code, although this hasn't been tested. If someone would like to try it and let me know or send me corrections, it would be much appreciated.
MT Code
Wordpress(this works on a Wordpress blog using Neuron theme - not sure about others)
Try these out and let me know how you make out.
Come join the Conversation - you can't be heard unless you speak up!
Yet another good editorial from the Brandon Sun. I really liked their close:
Although it was mostly ignored by reporters who chose to focus on Harper’s ongoing efforts to remake himself, the transit proposal gives Canadians a far better incentive to help the environment than any expensive television ad campaign asking us to walk to work more often.
Bank investors have become frustrated by the mixed messages Ottawa appears to be sending, and one angry portfolio manager said publicly last week that the markets would be better off if the Finance Minister simply kept quiet.
Most industry watchers believe the merger guidelines have actually been ready for more than a year. Any fine-tuning, they add, would have been completed already, and the feeling is that Ottawa is merely waiting for a politically opportune time to release them.
Banks have been clamouring off and on for more certainty on the merger file since 1998, when Mr. Martin, then the finance minister, rejected two proposed mergers: one between Royal Bank of Canada and BMO, and another between CIBC and Toronto-Dominion Bank.
Looks like Paul Martin is giving lessons in dithering to Ralph Goodale. Heavan forbid that the government give banks a definitive message sometime this decade (or the next). In order for Canadian banks to be competitive, they need to be able to plan and forecast. If the Liberals are not going to do anything with this file, they should heed the angry portfolio manager's advice and just keep quiet. I think the banks have been 'trial balloned' to death since 1998.
My two cents on the 'Missing Post' episode (en francais)
As received by Canconv RSS feed @ 06 Aug, 2:01 am:
When you are in a hole, stop digging Source: Jay Currie Location: Canada-US Relations::Security Submitted: 05-08-05, 9:12 pm Summary: Brent Colbert apparently lost a CPC nomination in Ontario. Harper seems to have at least dodged this one bullet. After making an idiot of himself with a straight “the law’s the law” position on Emery and having had his head handed to him, he gets out the shovel and moves a little closer to the center of the earth….I post my comment, I think the quotations are self explanatory but do go see this guy in action before the Extinction Police haul him back to dino land.
As received by Canconv RSS feed @ 06 Aug, 2:01 am:
No, Marc Emery’s arrest isn’t poltical at all Source: Jay Currie Location: Canada-US Relations::Security Submitted: 05-08-05, 9:14 pm Summary: “Today’s arrest of Mark (sic) Scott Emery, publisher of Cannabis Culture magazine and the founder of a marijuana legalization group, is a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also to the marijuana legalization movement.” Source: | RSS |
As received by Brent Colbert feed @ 05 Aug, 3:10 pm
So many comments… I have been away from my desk but have been following all of the comments over the last day or so with interest. Let me begin by saying that I did not equate the illegal activities of Mr. Emery with slavery or those Canadians that aided slaves seeking freedom in Canada. It was presented to me [...]
"About My Blog Are all Conservatives evildoers? Nope. But if you were to take a gander through the media lately, you'd think we're all meanspirited corporate whores. This blog is one voice to show Conservatives in Canada as they really are--we go to movies, we face the same daily challenges and we even love things besides money! I'm a Conservative. And I'm a really nice guy."
"Name:B-Double Location:Toronto, Ontario, Canada Who is B Double? A regular guy that just turned 30, just got married and has something to say. What does one do when they have no bully pulpit? They start a blog! At least this thing will provide a much needed outlet so my wife can finally stop pulling her hair out."
Just another Canadian Conservative who wants his say. Stop in and have a read. (his wife will probably thank-you for it!)
While reviewing the logs for a site I manage - Voterick.com, I was suprised to see this IP keep popping up:
Search results for: 192.197.178.2 OrgName: Industry Canada OrgID: INDUST-2 Address: 398C-235 Queen St. City: Ottawa StateProv: ON PostalCode: K1A 0H5 Country: CA
Why would people from Industry Canada be interested in Rick's political website?
With a little further digging a lightbulb turned on. Seems that they were all referrals from this blog. Now what on my blog could anyone from Industry Canada be interested in? Possibly -
Toronto — A former national TV anchorman who plans to run as a Conservative in the next federal election says the media is biased against the Tories.
“In a couple of weeks I'm going to throw down a challenge to journalism schools to monitor the balance in the coverage — particularly in this city,” Peter Kent said Thursday outside a Conservative caucus meeting.
This should be an interesting story to follow, if Peter can convince a couple of journalism schools to carry out this project. No longer will it be just an 'angry Harper' calling the media to task. Peter has obviously given this some thought and is proposing a unique challenge.
In a tersely worded statement released late Wednesday, the festival said it had decided to cancel the showing of Karla scheduled for the opening of the festival on Aug. 26, citing opposition to the film.
"Following the debate raised by the announcement of a showing of Karla during the festival, as well as the discomfort expressed by a number of the sponsors concerning their clients, the management of the World Film Festival has decided to not present this film at the festival,'' the statement said.
Hmm...., I wonder what helped them decide more, the debate or the sponsors yanking the money required to run the festival.
Unfortunately, in today's day and age when you restrict or ban something of this nature, you only fuel the appettite for it.
Cost details of the tax deduction proposal will be unveiled tomorrow as the Conservative national caucus meets in Toronto.
Carla Ventin, spokeswoman for Infrastructure Minister John Godfrey, said she's perplexed by the Conservative's newfound interest in boosting riders of mass transit.
A 45-page policy document from the Conservative convention in March didn't mention public transit once, she said.
Nice to see that people are taking such a keen interest in the CPC policy document. Hmm...., going to be a little harder to bang on that "Hidden Agenda" drum next election. The Liberals must be getting very nervous these days. With fear starting to lose it's edge as a viable election strategy for them, they might actually have to come up with some policy.
I've been neglecting the Hidden Agenda Highlights of late and don't want anyone to think Conservatives are brewing up something new in the backroom. With that being said, I don't think the CPC had Mark Emery in mind when they were formulating their policy on International trade.
The arrests raise the question of how far another country should be allowed to go in trying to influence the way in which Canadian police deal with a substance that many Canadians consider to be an acceptable recreational tool.
"If Mr. Emery was a person who had been suspected of homicide in the U.S., we wouldn't have any problem with what was done at all," said Neil Boyd, a criminology professor at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby.
He said Mr. Emery has been able to operate his marijuana seed business for more than a decade in Canada, where pot possession has traditionally not been vigorously policed as a criminal act.
"For us to send Mr. Emery to the U.S. to face what might be life imprisonment would seem to me to be ceding a certain amount of our sovereignty in terms of how we want to see Canadian citizens treated for certain kinds of behaviour."
When Mr. Emery made the conscious choice to begin exporting to the US, he accepted the risks that went with that choice. The fact that his business has operated for "more than a decade in Canada" is no defence of his actions. Had he only been selling his products in Canada he would not be in the situation he is today.
Personally, I think we should legalize all drugs and tax the hell out of them. Let people make the choice and live with the consequences.
Mr. Emery made a choice to continue his advocacy through exports to the United States. Now it's time to face the consequences of that choice.
| en francais | Go to Top|
