We all have our up and down days and weeks when it comes to blogging. One of the reasons I started doing the Blogging Tories Site of the Week was to help highlight bloggers on the roll who might otherwise escape attention. The BT is blessed with some fantastic bloggers, although some with higher profiles than others.
I must say, I was really happy when I saw a recent post by this week's site of the week, At Home in Hespeler. It's always nice to give someone a lift and it was also good to hear that other people are taking a little bit of time to visit the various Sites of the Week. There is such a diverse group of people on the roll that you are really denying yourself if you don't visit someone you normally wouldn't.
The following article awaited me as I opened up today's issue of the Windsor Star. I haven't written a Letter to the Editor in a while and this one certainly cries out for a response. My submission follows the article.
Roseann Danese, Windsor Star Published: Monday, February 27, 2006
Windsor MP Joe Comartin is raising concerns about today's historic public hearing that will see MPs question Supreme Court of Canada nominee Marshall Rothstein, a federal court judge.
Comartin, the NDP representative on the 12-member committee that will publicly scrutinize Rothstein this afternoon, is calling the hearing a "sham" and a "public relations exercise" by the new Conservative government.
"I'm highly critical of the Conservatives doing this," Comartin said Saturday. "I think they're trying to mimic a process in the United States that has no particular application in Canada."
Comartin, the NDP's justice critic, is backing away from earlier threats to boycott the hearing. But he plans to table a motion before the hearing, setting out the criteria for questions and spelling out what should and shouldn't be asked.
Comartin says the committee should ask questions about Rothstein's capacity to get along with other judges, about how he analyzes the law and about his specific qualifications. They're technical questions that will bore most people, but they're important to know and they won't subject the judge to partisan grilling about matters that may come before him during his tenure on the nation's highest court.
Comartin believes the government is responding to a segment of their supporters who want to see Supreme Court nominees vetted over their positions on contentious issues such as same sex marriage, abortion and age of consent. "There is this rabid right wing group that is very, very adamant about trying to bring in these types of hearings," he said.
But such tough questioning doesn't really mean anything in Canada. Unlike U.S. Senate hearings, the committee of MPs overseeing the hearing here has no real power to stop the nomination. In the U.S., the Senate can veto a Supreme Court nomination.
"That cannot happen here. Our constitution gives the Prime Minister sole authority to appoint Supreme Court justices," Comartin said.
Real danger
The real danger lies in compromising the justice's position on matters that could be placed before the Supreme Court in the future.
"You do not want the judges to be asked questions that would show that they've prejudged a factual or legal situation," Comartin said. "What you see happening in the United States is where judges are backed into a corner and forced to take a position."
He noted the Bloc Quebecois representatives on the committee have said they want to ask Rothstein how he would have voted on the case of Sue Rodriguez, a severely ill B.C. woman, who was not entitled to receive assistance to end her life, according to an earlier Supreme Court ruling. "So in effect they're asking him what's your position on assisted suicide," Comartin said.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said he wants the hearing to shed light on an appointment system that always has taken place in private.
Letter to the Editor
NDP MP the sham
The only thing that was a sham in Monday's article on the new Supreme Court selection process was NDP MP Joe Comartin's response. He managed to accuse the Conservatives of implementing an American style process, aligning themselves with a rabid right wing group and carrying out this process only to advance their own social agenda.
How about looking at things from a different perspective. The new hearings are a first step in breaking open a process that has been dominated by secrecy, politics and an elitist legal community. No longer will Canadians have to accept a 'father knows best' attitude when it comes to appointing judges to unassailable lifetime appointments.
For an MP representing a so called progressive party, Mr. Comartin is certainly portraying a regressive attitude. Under the current system, Prime Minister Harper could simply appoint his own version of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. No rabid right wing vetting process to worry about, an absolute fait accompli.
Academics and politicians alike have been spending millions of dollars trying to figure out how to engage Canadians in the political process. The answer is simple. Unlock the door, open the window and let the public in. The public can't be all that bad, we keep electing you and the 307 other MPs to represent us. Although on some days, who knows why we do.
Stephen Taylor also wades in on the issue of Joe Comartin and his 'progressive' attitude.
Lost in all the noise of the Winter Olympics, the University of Windsor had a stellar weekend in OUA sports. The Women's Volleyball team achieved a first in sweeping the championship series over 9th ranked Toronto. In the last 34 years only Toronto, York, Ottawa and Western have won a volleyball title. Windsor beat all the odds and three of those four teams on their way to victory. A fantastic achievement for the team.
The Women's and Men's team continued their dominance on the track, retaining both titles. Lancers head coach Dennis Fairall has built a world class program at the University that continues to excel. Eschewing the traditional track focus on individual performance, Fairall has fostered a team concept that everyone feeds off of. The results speak for themselves.
Rounding out the action, the Men's Basketball team ended an 18 year drought in playoff action winning an OUA quarter final match against the Waterloo Warriors with a buzzer beating 3 point shot. With 7 wins in their last eight games, the men now face top seed McMaster in the semi-finals. Best of luck to the team.
Congratulations to all the Lancer athletes on their outstanding performances.
For the first time ever, the University of Windsor Lancers are the OUA Women's Volleyball Champions. The visiting Lancers upset the #9 Toronto Varsity Blues 3-0 to win the conference crown and earn a place in next weekend's CIS Championship in Calgary. Lancers retain OUA track title Men, women sweep championships Jim Parker, Windsor Star Published: Monday, February 27, 2006
Once in the lead, the University of Windsor Lancers never let up on the accelerator.
Both the men's and women's team built on leads established in the first day of competition and eventually romped to victory Saturday at the OUA track and field championships at the St. Denis Centre.
It was the second straight title for the women's team and the eighth straight title for the men.
The Lancer Men's Basketball team qualified for the OUA Semi-Finals in dramatic fashion this afternoon, with a buzzer beater victory over the Waterloo Warriors 61-58. The team has now won 7 of their last 8 games.
Last time I checked, the Reform Party, Alliance, United Alternative, Democratic Alliance, Social Credit, Progressive Conservatives and whatever other names you can remember, no longer exist.
Ted Byfield makes his case that Stephen Harper is ignoring Alberta and his Reform roots. I guess he forgets that Stephen Harper is the first Prime Minister elected from west of Ontario since 1979. The fact that he's an MP from Calgary and now holds the top job in Canada is just chump change to him. He has accomplished what neither Preston Manning nor Stockwell Day were able to do. He has united the right under one banner, reduced the Liberal's to a minority then defeated them in favour of his own minority. Along the way he has increased membership, rebuilt the organization and brought a sound fiscal foundation back to the party.
To level a charge that he's forgotten Alberta when the government is less than a month old is good for circulation I suppose. Not satisfied with that, he raises the spectre of Stephen Harper finding a way to transfer Alberta's wealth to the east. Toronto fears and resents Alberta and will find a way to pressure Stephen Harper. This one is almost as good as the National Enquirer's yearly psychic predictions. IF Stephen Harper actually brought forward a proposal to initiate something like this, by all means slice and dice him. Hauling out this old bogeyman is nothing short of fear-mongering to sell papers. Brian Laghi's article features the old standard quote "It is a lot of the old Tories," said one caucus member who asked not to be identified.
So the unidentified caucus member wants to act just like disaffected Liberals. Agree or disagree with Garth Turner, at least the man speaks his mind and doesn't hide behind journalistic anonymity.
You'll have to excuse me. Now that I've finished reading these articles I have to go change the paper in my bird cage and refill the outhouse supply.
I am a mid 40's father of 2 and husband of 1 living in Camridge, Ontario. I commute about 75 Kms , to work with a major automotive manufacturer. That makes me a grudging CAW member. I have a BA in economics from the University of Waterloo. I play Guitar, mostly classical because that's easy to do in the basement after the kids go to bed: but also because it allows me to play some of the worlds most stunningly beautiful music. I also play with a friend on an occasional basis, and we play old time blues and straight up rock.
Congratulations to General Hillier for keeping this issue front and centre. To be honest, it's not just Tim Hortons, but the CFPSA and Canex organization that must get it's act together and make this happen.
Canadian Press Published: Friday, February 24, 2006
OTTAWA (CP) - The country's top soldier is prepared to personally escort the boss of Tim Hortons to visit Canadian troops in Afghanistan if it will help get a Tim's running over there.
Gen. Rick Hillier says his soldiers in Kandahar keep pestering him about when they might see one of the iconic coffee shops open.
Soldiers' fondness for the chain's coffee and pastries is legendary.
American troops in Afghanistan have access to fast food from Pizza Hut and Burger King, but the Canadians can't get fresh Timbits.
Hillier says it would be a big morale-booster to have a coffee shop in Kandahar.
"I invite the CEO of Tim Hortons to come with me to Afghanistan and see the powerful implications that would come from that."
The company said in a statement that it's working with the Forces on having its products available in Afghanistan.
"We are excited about the possibility, and have a great relationship with the Forces," the statement said.
"We understand how our service personnel feel about their Tim's and we, with the Canadian Forces, are seeing what we can do to bring a little taste of home to those serving overseas."
I thought this was about Universal Childcare? (en francais)
Just how many 'childcare spaces' were going to be created by Saskatchewan's Pre-kindergarten program? From the description below, it was to be two half days for all four year olds. What about the 3 year and unders? What are the parents supposed to do for the other four days of the week?
So just what is the issue here, is it about childcare or education?
Here's an idea. How about using the money for this year to create infrastructure for non-profits to take advantage of the funding offered in the Conservative plan. Think outside the box instead of stomping your feet.
Pre-kindergarten expansion cancelled Last Updated Feb 23 2006 12:31 PM CST CBC News A plan to set up pre-kindergarten programs throughout Saskatchewan will not go ahead this fall after all.
The provincial government announced a pre-kindergarten plan in the Nov. 7, 2005 speech from the Throne that was supposed to allow all four-year-olds in the province to spend two half-days a week in school.
But now the province says a loss of federal money means that will no longer happen.
Saskatchewan and the former Liberal government had a deal for a five-year, $146 million child-care plan last year, but when the deal was scrapped when the Conservatives won last month's federal election.
The Conservatives have their own child-care plan, which involves paying families $1,200 for each child under six years old.
The province estimates there are more than 11,000 four-year-olds in Saskatchewan.
Only about 1,600 of them go to pre-kindergarten.
Learning Minister Deb Higgins has expressed the government's disappointment with the loss of the child-care funding. She said the province-wide expansion of pre-kindergarten can't happen now.
"What we're going to have to do is step back and see what we can afford to do, just with provincial funding," she said.
Basically the Judge told them, go settle this or you're both going to be unhappy when you next come in the court room.
Rim decision prudent: lawyer Patent lawyer, analyst applaud judge's decision not to impose immediate injunction on BlackBerry service
ROMA LUCIW
Globe and Mail Update
A U.S. federal judge was prudent to reserve his decision on Research In Motion Ltd.'s long-running patent dispute with NTP Inc. because it turns up the pressure on both sides to try again to reach a settlement, one patent lawyer said.
"I think the judge is obviously sending a strong message to both parties to think long and hard about whether they want to see his decision, because it might not please either party," James Hurst, a patent lawyer at Winston & Strawn LLP in Chicago, told globeandmail.com. "He is just doing what a good judge does."
District Judge James Spencer's move not to order an immediate injunction against RIM's BlackBerry service in the U.S. gives the two sides time to work out an agreement. The judge reserved his decision Friday, and stressed that the patent case should already have been settled and that a damages order may follow shortly.
No great surprise here. It's common knowledge that this generally occurs at both the federal and provincial levels across Canada, some worse than others. Thankfully public knowledge of this is expanding which will help drive its reform.
I noticed a bunch of announcements when the $1 billion in funding was authorized by an Order in Council during the election. At the time, I cruised through the rest of the orders for October and November. I remember making a note to come back and look into them a little deeper, but then election events overtook me.
I agree with most of Greg Weston's article, with the exception of creating a new impartial staffing agency to handle these appointment. The last thing we need to be doing is creating new government agency.
Canadians already have a staffing system in place, Employment Insurance. Their job listing system is more than suitable for these appointment. List the appointment available and requirements. Intial vetting to ensure all requirements are met would be done at the point the application is submitted. Names would be removed from the applications, to be replaced by reference numbers. The only time names would be revealed would be interviews for a final selection process. Use the system we already have and add some personnel where required. There's no need to re-invent the wheel here.
Poking through some recent cabinet records, we discover that Paul Martin's government spent its final days in power doing what Liberals have always done best -- namely, sending Grit faithful to hog heaven by the truckload.
By our count, Martin and his gang doled out a breathtaking 212 patronage appointments -- and that's just in the two weeks before the election was called last November.
Some were relatively minor plums, but most were not.
In the category of nice work if you can get it, the list of lucky Liberal appointees includes: Civilian and military judges up to the highest echelons; a dozen ambassadors; directors of huge Crown corporations; trustees of national museums; executives of important federal agencies; immigration adjudicators; even promotions in the most senior ranks of the RCMP.
At that rate -- and if voters had not kicked Martin's butt out of office before he could do more damage -- Mr. Dithers might well have matched Pierre Trudeau's record patronage spree of almost 2,000 Liberal appointments in the year before his retirement in 1984.
I guess the Liberals are still dealing with the shock of no longer being the government. With the release of their Shadow Cabinet, it makes me think of George Bush's 'No child left behind' progam.
Not counting Opposition Leader Bill Graham the shadow cabinet consists of 85 Critics, Associate Critics, Whips and the like. A note at the bottom states that all the critic positions haven't been finalized as yet. I'm assuming the 8 Critics without associates will be filled. That gives us 94 out of 102 Liberal MPs with some sort of title. What about the other 8 Liberal MPs? It's just not fair that they're left out in the cold.
Suggestions for titles for these poor souls will be gratefully accepted in the comments section. Once we have a collection of titles, we'll have to wait for the final shadow list in order to assign the appropriate title to each forgotten MP.
Here's my first few suggestions: 1. Official Greeter for Stornoway (preferably a more 'senior' MP) 2. Special Assistant to Ex-Prime Minister Paul Martin 3. Special Liason to the RCMP responsible for Criminal Investigations
I've been reading and watching a lot of what is being said in the MSM, blogs and message boards regarding this subject. The following is something I posted at FD in response to a long running thread regarding party policy. I thought it was worthwhile to blog about.
People should always listen very carefully to what Stephen Harper says. His first goal is to pass the top five priorities. That will take a great deal of focus to accomplish.
The Supreme Court appointement was not the place to fight a battle so early on in the government. He has set a precedent of an all party committee review, choosing from the Liberals short list simplifies the process and reduces complaints. The important factor is that a public review process has been established.
Look forward. I wonder just how many Superior and Appeal Court appointments are coming up over the next 2 years? One will be made to fill the spot left open by the Supreme Court pick.
With the precedent already set for public hearings, the government has time to plan and prepare for a more open and honest process from the very beginning to the actual selection.
Everyone seems to be focused on the "one" opportunity in the next 7 years. Look beyond that one appointment. Where do the majority of Supreme Court Justices get picked from?
The politicization of the process starts at the initial drafting of the list and the subsequent paring down to a short list. The Liberals put a semblance of a process in place to draft these lists, the problem was it was still conducted in secret. Look for Harper to come up with a process that is open, transparent and public. Once that is in place, I can see a final move to free votes in Parliament.
It's barely been three weeks since the swearing in of this government. We can't be expecting knock out punches every time the government makes a move. Change is a marathon race, not a sprint.
After much Googling, a few brown envelopes and a job offer for a down-on-their-luck Liberal staffer, I've discovered the just launched website for the frontrunner in the Liberal Leadership race.
Considering how well this strategy worked for them in the last campaign, I hope the current batch of Liberals continues to amaze us with their in-depth analysis.
By the way, speaking of a politicized judiciary, just how many was it of Cotler's friends and former associates made it to the bench?
The Supreme Court is an independent judicial body and judges should be selected based on the over-riding principle of merit and not on the political leanings of the government of the day. As Liberals, we are highly skeptical of a public hearing process that could become politicized and impinge on the dignity of the Supreme Court.
Canada’s Constitution calls for a clear separation of powers between Parliament, the Executive Branch and the Judiciary. By politicizing the appointments process, the Conservative government is blurring this Constitutional line in order to clear a path for their right-wing social agenda.
More than 100,000 Ontario Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) workers are set to strike Thursday in reaction to a final government reading Tuesday of a controversial pension bill.
Bill 206 was introduced to the Ontario legislature on Tuesday afternoon for a third and final reading.
"No one's pension is in any danger whatsoever as a result of this legislation," Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister John Gerretsen said in the legislature Tuesday.
He said pensioners should not be worried about losing money in their pensions.
"Pensioners will not see a reduction in the amount of pensions that they are receiving because of Bill 206," Gerretsen said.
In response, CUPE Ontario President Sid Ryan said he will initiate strike action at 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
Jack Layton must be hauling out the stress relief dart board again today.
Not content with campaigning for the Liberals or supporting the Bloc, Buzz Hargrove unveils his latest election strategy. The NDP should just stop running candidates in most ridings in the country and let the Liberals win. The Liberals, of course, would reciprocate in the other 10 ridings.
OTTAWA -- Taking his controversial strategic voting plan a big step further, Canadian Auto Workers president Buzz Hargrove said the Liberal Party should stop running candidates in NDP-friendly ridings while the NDP should pull out of Liberal strongholds.
Lest local readers forget, this is the man who supported Joe Comartin for the leadership of the NDP and who Joe Comartin and Brian Masse continue to loudly support.
No need to run candidates in Windsor - that belongs to the NDP. Despite the fact that Essex was represented by NDP MP Steven Langdon for eight years, it should be returned to the Whelan family.
It's always nice to see how motivated some councilors are during an election year. A tax reduction, no matter how small though, is welcome.
Now we just have to convince the City of Windsor to get out of business. Between the Golf Course, Convention Centre and the Marina the city is spending way too much time and money competing with local businesses.
The Cleary Convention Centre requires over $600,000 a year in subsidies. A public outcry forced the Cleary to relinquish a City catering contract that it had outbid a local business on. The Convention Centre is too small to attract large conventions and without them it doesn't seem to be able to turn a profit.
The Golf Course and Curling Club, while turning a small profit, takes up time of both staff and councilors to manage. As well, it is not being upgraded or improved due to the optics of spending 2 or 3 million dollars while people's basements are flooding. They also compete with other golf courses and banquet halls in the city.
The marina? Sell it with the a clause to maintain a public boat ramp. A quick look at the map on the linked site shows that there are no lack of marinas available in the Windsor Area. With 300 docks, fuel, and concessions the City is a direct competitor to numerous area businesses.
This doesn't even take into account the other White Elephant on Riverside Drive, the Chrysler Building. We're paying $70,000 a month for two bare floors of space that we can't rent and subsidizing the Chrysler parking garage to the point where it has drained our parking fund. Expropriation payments are 30% over estimations and the process is still not completed. Good example of why cities should not be developers.
Sell them and pay down the debt. A more aggressive debt reduction plan will allow the city to begin directing more money to the Capital Infrastructure budget. Deteriorating roads and sewers are core city responsibilities, not golf courses, marinas and convention centres.
A pat on the back is deserved for a reasonable budget, but I wouldn't be applauding too much. There is still a lot of work to be accomplished in a city that is only completing roughly 65% of recommended infrastructure projects.
Mayor Eddie Francis and city council applauded themselves Monday night for delivering something most Windsorites haven't seen in a long time -- a tax break.
For the average local homeowner -- with a property valued at $150,000 and hit by an average 2006 assessment hike of 3.44 per cent -- the total city tax bill this year dips slightly to $2,595 from last year's $2,601.
City council unanimously approved a 2006 operating budget of $298.8 million, as well as a capital budget of $72.7 million that is heavy on boosted spending for roads and sewers upgrades.
$92 REDUCTION
The same average ratepayer whose property assessment remained unchanged this year can expect an even better break, a total tax rate cut of 3.5 per cent, or a $92 reduction over last year's bill, according to Onorio Colucci, acting city treasurer.
Cell phones are fast becoming powerful activist tools. Text messaging is being used for organization, communication and coordinator.
Riot Tones is an interesting service. Image being able to take the audio from one of the Liberal campaign spoofs and convert it into a ringtone, then making the ringtone publicly available.
The service is currently in Alpha testing and is expected to launch in the spring of 2006.
Riot.tones is the first Web 2.0 free and open source hosted service dedicated to the generation and distribution of cell phone ringtones by grassroots activists. By simplifying the complicated process of editing, converting and transferring MP3 files into file formats supported by cell phones, Riottones is turning a closed, corporate communications medium into a global alternative broadcasting network for progressive political voices around the world.
CHICAGO — McDonald's Corp. is facing at least three lawsuits related to its disclosure last week that its french fries contain wheat and dairy products.
Debra Moffatt of Lombard, Ill., seeks unspecified damages in a suit filed Friday in Cook County Circuit Court that accuses the company of misleading the public. Her attorney, Thomas Pakenas, said his client has celiac disease that causes gastrointestinal symptoms when set off by eating gluten, a protein found in wheat.
"You cannot sell gluten-free french fries when they have gluten," Pakenas said. Moffatt's lawsuit seeks class-action status.
McDonald's said Feb. 13 that wheat and dairy ingredients are used to flavor its fries. Those substances can cause allergic or other medical reactions in food-sensitive consumers.
Earlier this month, McDonald's also acknowledged that its fries contain a third more trans fats than it previously knew, citing results of a new testing method it began using in December.
Process designed to increase openness and accountability
Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced the process that will be used to fill the current vacancy on the Supreme Court of Canada. At the centre of the process is a publicly televised appearance by the nominee before the Ad Hoc Committee to Review a Nominee for the Supreme Court of Canada.
“The Supreme Court is a vital institution that belongs to all Canadians,” said the Prime Minister. “I believe the public deserves to know more about the individuals appointed to serve there, and the method by which they are appointed. A public hearing is an unprecedented step in this direction,” he continued. “It will bring more openness and accountability to the process of appointing people to our nation’s highest court.”
The hearing by the Ad Hoc Committee to Review a Nominee for the Supreme Court of Canada is an interim process designed to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Justice John Major. Full details of a process to fill future vacancies will be announced at a future date.
Details of this interim process are contained in the following backgrounder.
* * * * * * * * * *
SUPREME COURT VACANCY PROCESS BACKGROUNDER
In the interest of greater openness and accountability, the Ad Hoc Committee to Review a Nominee for the Supreme Court of Canada will publicly interview the nominee to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The Committee will not be a parliamentary committee, although it will be comprised of parliamentarians. It will be subject to rules of procedure agreed to by all parties having recognized status in the House of Commons.
The Chair of the Committee will be responsible for ensuring that ordinary parliamentary rules of decorum are respected and will act in a manner that reflects the will of the committee.
The merits of a number of candidates had been previously thoroughly reviewed and assessed through a process of extensive consultation by an Advisory Committee set up by the previous Government, which included Parliamentarians. The Prime Minister has decided to select the nominee from the short list created by that Advisory Committee in the interest of ensuring that the Supreme Court is able to fulfill its important functions with a full complement of nine justices.
The hearing by the Ad Hoc Committee to Review a Nominee for the Supreme Court of Canada is an interim process designed to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Justice John Major. It does not preclude changes to the Supreme Court appointments process being made in the future.
It's a shame that Ezra Levant has to explain the FORK article, but he does so in today's issue of the Calgary Sun. Anonymous sources are the lifeblood of political reporting. Most times they infuriate people. They often are provocative and blunt, hence the desire for anonymity. Party insider, Conservative source, top Liberal; we've heard them all.
I wonder just how many campaign managers and fishing buddies Ralph has?
A man of the people runs a government for years, dispatching a series of opposition leaders. He coasts to re-election. The media like him because he's a colourful character -- a little guy who made good.
His would-be successor is fancy. He's corporate. He serves for a term as finance minister, taking credit for balancing the budget. He waits patiently for the chance to sit in the big chair as leader.
But years pass, and the boss gets comfortable in the job.
So the leader-in-waiting builds up his campaign organization, raising millions of dollars, especially from his corporate friends.
The old boss announces he's sticking around a little bit longer, and the successor feels betrayed. The boss in turn feels rushed, as if he's been shuffled out too soon.
The would-be boss's campaign lieutenants gripe. The harder the dauphin pushes, the more the boss digs in his heels. A civil war looms; the most successful party in the land starts to lose its discipline and unity. Leaks and accusations fly. So do personal insults.
Paul Martin vs. Jean Chretien in 2003? Or Jim Dinning vs. Ralph Klein in 2006?
Seems like Mayor Miller didn't like Toronto Board of Trade President Glen Grunwald's suggestions for balancing Toronto's bleeding red budget. Miller doesn't want to hear any suggestions that don't start and end with yet another bailout from the Province.
Grunwald cites things like a 20% increase in spending, a City Auditors report with over 800 suggestions for efficiency savings languishing on a shelf and a general sense of a lack of prudent management when dealing with the budget. I know - shocking isnt' it. The Mayor's response?
Mayor Miller fouls out Miller defended his attack. The Board of Trade had not done a proper analysis of the city budget, he said. "For such a sophisticated organization to do such a shoddy job was completely inadequate."
He then went on to note that the Board has "been Toronto's ally ... today's presentation didn't befit the role they have as city builders.
Why the focus on Toronto's budget? With Premier McGuinty set to hand over additional taxing powers to the City of Toronto with no strings attached, how much longer do you think it will be before other municipalities are clamouring for the same thing? Hamilton, London, Kitchener-Waterloo and all the others will want their piece.
Problem is, that piece is you and me and there's only so much of us to go around. Given the choice of making hard decisions to balance a budget or increasing an entertainment tax or hotel tax, what route do you think most councillors are going to choose?
Toronto needs to get it's own budgetary house in order before receiving any new taxing authority, and that authority better have some rather stringent conditions attached. Anything less will be a recipe for disaster.
I'm an Ontario redneck who hopes Alberta will invade and occupy Ontario sometime in the next week or so. I'm a proud Papa Bear to Boo and Mini-Boo. My wife Litlbit is sexy. I'm not very. I'm a small-c and a BIG-C conservative. You want to know more, start reading the blog. Oh, I almost forgot. I believe most problems can be solved with weaponry of a high enough calibre. Take me seriously at your own peril.
Hugh Winsor injects a little sanity into the supposed 'conflict of interest' problems faced by Gordon O'Connor as Minister of Defence. Some of his analogies in the article are bang on. What's next - a lawyer can't be Justice Minister or a farmer is disqualified as Agriculture Minister?
The critics attacking Prime Minister Stephen Harper's appointment of retired brigadier-general Gordon O'Connor as Minister of National Defence because he once lobbied for companies in the defence and aerospace industries are missing the point. There's a much bigger equipment problem hobbling the Canadian Forces than an unsubstantiated apprehension of a conflict-of-interest scandal.
The critics are apparently unaware that defence procurement has become such a complex and sclerotic business, involving at least half a dozen government departments and central agencies such as the Treasury Board and the Privy Council Office, that a defence minister has little or no influence over equipment choices.
Allan Williams, who recently retired after being assistant deputy minister at the Department of Public Works (which has the contracting authority for defence purchases) and assistant deputy minister of materiel at the Department of National Defence, told a conference at Queen's University that, in the 10 years he had been closely involved with defence procurement, not once did a minister influence the outcome. "Ministers are quite aware of the high political and legal risks in even trying to do so."
Referring to Mr. O'Connor's appointment, Mr. Williams said that "whether or not he was a lobbyist in the past, he will not have much of an impact on who wins any contract. . . . That may be disappointing to him and frustrating to him, but that's the way it is. ... more
Between the federal Liberals and their provincial cousins in Ontario, I'm surprised there's anyone left to report the news these days.
A camera-ready candidate Ben Chin may be media-savvy, but he faces a tough fight to become an MPP
PAUL CARLUCCI
Special to The Globe and Mail
The 42-year-old Mr. Chin found his calling in broadcast journalism in 1989 after submitting a demo tape to CITY-TV. The next 14 years included a stint with CBC Newsworld and ended with a short-lived position at what was then Toronto 1 (now SunTV). As the latter station was tanking, he accepted a new position at Global, but before he even made it to air, he attended a media lunch with party brass from the Premier's office and was offered a senior communications advisory position.
Within a few months of his taking the job, party officials approached him to run.
His move into politics makes him the latest in a long line of journalistic recruits to the Liberal party: Ex-CBC journalist-turned-communications adviser Matt Maychak helped Dalton McGuinty come to power in 2003, and others now working for the party come from Global TV, the National Post, CFRB, CFTO and the Toronto Sun.
A reasonable compromise. It looks like Justice Minister Toews is going to pick the next Supreme Court Justice from the previous government's short list, but then hold public hearings with an ad hoc committee of MPs.
This will probably displease many on all sides of the political spectrum, for various reasons.
Janice Tibbetts, CanWest News Service Published: Saturday, February 18, 2006 OTTAWA - The Harper government is poised to name a new Supreme Court of Canada judge next week and subject the contender -- for the first time -- to public questioning by federal politicians.
Justice Minister Vic Toews will announce on Monday that he will set up an ad hoc committee of parliamentarians and hold a public hearing by the end of the month, a source confirmed.
The prospective judge, to be named from one of the Prairie provinces, will be chosen from a short list of three contenders that was submitted to the former Liberal government just before the election was called in November.
While the new judge will be questioned by a committee, the members will not have veto power, as they do in judicial confirmation hearings in the United States.
The final decision will remain with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, as is dictated by the Constitution.
Rick Bell has a great article in today's Calgary Sun on the leadership rumblings in Alberta
Error apparent Ambition, ex-cessive pride, a lack of balance, not knowing when it is time to wait and time to yield. All qualities killing those craving the crown.
In this real life story, the king is Ralph and he has said he will leave in 20 months. He made his intentions quite clear last fall when he spoke about people lining up to replace him.
"These guys can kick tires. They can kick tires until their toes are blue but I ain't goin' until 2007 unless the party tells me they don't want me or I'm dead. Alright? Period."
Is it just me or does this sound strangely like the Chretien/Martin debacle? The forces pushing for Ralph's ouster might want to go back and study a little recent history. Do they want to risk a repeat of the Liberal's internal war in their own party?
Here's a thought. Spend your time building an organization. Work constructively within the caucus or within the party. Consult, discuss and learn what is important to everyday Albertans. Twenty months may seem like a lifetime, but look at it as a gift instead. Use the time to develop some real policy alternatives instead of the usual bullshit served up during leadership races. You have an opportunity to build something solid. Use it.
It's a shame that people and various media outlets continue to define the CPC and different issues by one of the legacy parties.
We have had a leadership race, policy convention and fought two different elections under one banner. While the history will always remain, those involved in the party must make a concerted effort to avoid perpetuating these divisive references.
Personally, I could care less which legacy party anyone was involved in. I suppose it is easier for me, in some ways, as I did not belong to either.
The key is what do you offer the party today and into the future.
Canada wins Gold, Silver in Skeleton Duff Gibson won the first significant skeleton race in Turin and on Friday he won his last significant skeleton race in Turin to win Olympic gold.
The 39-year-old expressed a desire to "go out on top" at the Torino Games, and he did just that, winning the competition with a combined time in two runs of one minute, 55.88 seconds.
Most observers figured if a Canadian was going to top the podium it was going to be Jeff Pain, the World Cup leader. Pain finished with a silver to give the country its first 1-2 podium placing at the Games.
PoliticsTV - new US internet initiative (en francais)
A new initiative from the left in the US. Slick new site. Taking streaming video and the internet to new levels. PTV has established themselves as a media company.
PoliticsTV.com is an Internet TV network for progressives, independents, Democrats – or any American opposed to the Republicans’ radical right agenda.
Over the next several months, it will roll out several video shows and channels in addition to those on the site today. Future channels and shows include:
* THE CANDIDATE CHANNEL, featuring videos of candidates for office for state, local, federal office.
* THE CITIZENS CHANNEL, featuring video editorials - often video "rants" by PTV personalities and submitted by PTV viewers.
* THE SATIRE CHANNEL, featuring flash cartoons, sketch comedy, and other humorous and creative content contributed by PTV viewers.
* THE BLOG CHANNEL, featuring the PTV Blog, and shows featuring and about bloggers and the blogosphere.
* THE PUNDIT CHANNEL, featuring Pundit Search, a nationwide contest among would-be political pundits – a sort of "American Idol" of politics!
* THE LEADERS CHANNEL, featuring profiles of leaders from the halls of Congress to your neighborhood – and everywhere in between.
* THE IDEAS & ISSUES CHANNEL, featuring programs on the issues, opportunities and challenges facing America, and ideas and proposals for how to address them.
PoliticsTV.com was started by a group of bloggers, activists, and political professionals who believe that InternetTV presents an unprecedented communications opportunity to progressives. It is a media company under the Federal Election Campaign Act.
This is something to keep an eye on. With mid-term elections coming up we are likely to see many different applications being tested online in the US. While election regulations and financing are distinctly different between Canada and the US, many of these initiatives can be duplicated in Canada, albeit on a smaller scale.
Blogette has her own unique style. Personally, I think she's hit a home run with her latest...
Beyond geeky political circles, does anyone know who Kinsella is? Not really. And since there has never been a high-profile blog-type lawsuit in Canada, this will get loads of media attention.
When I found this blog yesterday, I must admit, I was shocked and then outraged. The damage to my reputation was possibly enormous. Once I calmed down, it hit me. Visions of three figure judgments danced in my head as I leafed through the phonebook seeking a suitable attorney.
A simple comment from my friend brought me crashing back to reality - "What if it's true?" he said.
"What!" I replied.
" I heard your mother call you an idiot just the other day" he said with a smirk. "What is it they say, the truth is the best defence?"
Damn. Foiled by my own mother. What's a guy to do.
Another issue, it seems, with Western Standard (en francais)
Anyone have a copy of the current issue of the Western Standard? I like to see a little more context regarding this issue.
Edit: Found the following in the Calgary Sun. I'm still interested in seeing the whole article. On the basis of Levant's statement, the CIC press release is a little misleading. They cite Delphin as the one who "described the premier's wife" when in actual fact he quoted an unnamed source.
Mag accused of racist slur Western Standard publisher Ezra Levant explained the article includes comments from two unnamed members of the premier's inner circle.
Levant said the pair said rude things about Klein staying on as premier too long, suggesting his wife's enjoyment of being treated well was one reason. One of the men said when Klein was no longer in office, his wife would be "just another Indian."
Levant called the remark "outrageous," but defended its use, saying it shows a rift developing between the premier and his "team" over his decision to continue in office until 2007-08.
THE CANADIAN ISLAMIC CONGRESS MEDIA COMMUNIQUE
February 15, 2006
ISLAMIC CONGRESS JOINS ABORIGINAL NGOs TO CONDEMN RACIST "JUST ANOTHER INDIAN" REMARK IN WESTERN STANDARD ARTICLE -- SAME MAGAZINE RAN DANISH CARTOONS MOCKING PROPHET MUHAMMAD
The Canadian Islamic Congress announced today that it has joined with a number of aboriginal rights groups to condemn a Calgary-based conservative magazine for racist remarks made against the wife of Alberta premier Ralph Klein.
In the Monday (Feb. 13, 2006) issue Western Standard writer Ric Delphin described the premier's wife, who has native roots, as "just another Indian."
The comment has shocked and angered Native Media Watch, the Aboriginal Human Rights Commission of Alberta, the Metis Nation of Alberta, the Urban Aboriginal Affairs Committee and the Institute for Advancement of Aboriginal Women.
The CIC has joined them in denouncing the paper's conduct as insensitive and bigoted toward the entire Aboriginal community.
"Canada is a nation of many cultures, languages and religions. All must be equally respected," CIC said in its own summary statement today. "We call on the Western Standard to apologize and to cease publishing bigoted and racist material that serves only to demean minorities and divide us as a people."
The Western Standard also chose to reprint a set of notorious Danish cartoons mocking the Prophet Muhammad. The CIC is filing a hate-crime complaint against the magazine and its publisher.
Aboriginal NGOs have planned a press conference in Edmonton for later today to discuss the impact of the Western Standard article.
The press conference is held at City Hall Press Room, Edmonton, 10 am local time, today Feb 15, 2006, contact Kim Ziervogel, cell is 780-231-1873 Or 780-490-6762 or 780-231-1873, kziervogel@yahoo.ca.
Coincidently, the same day I received this email, around the same time the blog was created.
Sat, 14 Jan 2006 16:40:15 -0700 (MST) Date: Sat, 14 Jan 2006 16:40:11 -0700 From: W Patels xxx@xxx.net Subject: I don't mind being "nominated"... To: bluebloggingsoapbox@gmail.com
... but I disagree, which is my right, with Scott Tribe's or your characterization that an Albertan Liberal cannot support the CPC. Read the article written today, and you'll see that the Alberta Liberal Party is almost the spitting image of the CPC in terms of policies. The only problem is that the CPC "borrowed" these policies from the Alberta Liberal Party, because we were the first to introduce them (e.g., on accountability).
You are also an example of why the Blogging Tories should not be allowed to use the party name, because you give the CPC a bad name.
You are just as uneducated as Scott Tribe; otherwise, you'd know that the Alberta Liberal Party is a progressive conservative party and has the name "Liberal" only for historical reasons. Get your facts straight, think, and then, and only then, open your uneducated piehole.>
I'll have to bookmark this for the 2006 nominations!
Edit: The following email was received from Mr. Patels:
From: "W Patels" xxx@xxx.net To: bluebloggingsoapbox@gmail.com Subject: You need to correct your insinuation Date: Tue, 14 Feb 2006 23:50:34 -0700
If the most recent Kinsella example is anything to go by, you should be more careful about making careless assumptions. I have nothing to do with that childish blog in your name. Implying that I had anything to do with that is libellous, and if Kinsella can sue, so can I. You better post a retraction and remove my name from the context of that idiotic blog, or you'll be facing the same music as the Ottawa Watch blogger.
Yes, we did have our disagreements in the past, but setting up a blog like that is not my style at all. In fact, I did not even know your real name until tonight (at least, it never registered before - you were always just that "Soapbox" to me).
So, get off my back and retract those silly and libellous posts of yours. This is my first and last warning.
Mr. Patels, it what you say is true, then I do apologize if you have taken offence. Unlike the assorted hate mails and other threats you have sent me, I don't believe in holding a grudge. As far as the post goes - it stands.
Your other point, "but setting up a blog like that is not my style at all" ? You really should spend some time with Google or another neat little utility called the Way Back Machine. They're just two of many handy online tools. Any of these addresses ring a bell? http://www.albertablog.blogspot.com/ http://calgaryobserver.blogging.com/blog http://albertawildrose.blogspot.com/ How about a file called blogcast.wma - sound familiar? Interesting listening.
That took about 5 minutes.
"So, get off my back" - As stated above, after reviewing the various hate mails you have delivered and perusing your public history online, I have no desire whatsoever to continue publishing, conversing or in any way referring to you. I've learned my lesson. Done
TDH Strategies skillfully weaves policy research and development, a wide range of communication services & products, and a special aptitude for writing into one entity.
Since its establishment in 2000, TDH Strategies has been able to fill the void existent between communication professionals with little knowledge of the far reaching parameters and implications of public policy and policymakers with an inability to effectively convey a message.
Jonathan Ross is a communications professional with extensive experience within federal, provincial and municipal politics from across the country. An accomplished writer that has been published over 40 times in newspapers such as the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star and the Vancouver Sun, Jonathan has worked within several political environments, including the offices of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans and the Minister of Natural Resources.
Jonathan also has extensive experience in the private sector, serving as the VP of Communications and Marketing for an inaugural international trade show, as an Associate Producer of high level websites for a major domain development company, and as a Policy and Communications Consultant for one of British Columbia's most powerful industry associations.
TDH Strategies has established strong professional relationships over several years to expand the breadth of services available to clients, including full website design and architecture capabilities, in-house layout and printing (magazines, brochures, newsletters, etc.), graphic design, as well as professional photography.
Local blogger WindsorCityBlog has some interesting questions for the Mayor and City Council relating to Windsor's Superbowl participation and the eventual costs:
"I wonder if any of the Councillors will demand an audit of what the real costs to the City were, the amount paid by sponsors and any shortfalls. It looks like the policing costs alone will be around the $250,000 mark.
I wonder who received tickets to the events during the week. Politicians got some freebies I know (and which they deserve for taking all the crap we give them all the time) but did Administrators get something for nothing too? I gather that some but not all attended the super-secret VIP party at the Armouries as an example. And how many Super Bowl tickets did we get and who got them?"
Add to that the $250,000 USD it cost Windsor to join the Detroit Superbowl committee. I've also heard that local hospitals all had extra staff on for the festivities, twice what would normally be scheduled. My source wouldn't tell me who won the Euchre tournament.
If the City of Windsor received free Superbowl tickets, why were they not offered to the public to benefit a local charity? A raffle or some other event would have been appropriate. The taxpayers of Windsor paid for these tickets, not the Mayor or his guests?
By the way, who did the Mayor take to the game?
I would hope that the Councillors don't have to demand an audit. A full and detailed report should be provided by the City without prodding and without all the usual delays.
I have no problem with the Mayor representing the City at events such as this. That's his job. But when additional perks such as event tickets, Superbowl tickets and the like are available as a result of large expenditures of taxpayers money, I certainly don't expect these to be used as a reward for already well paid city staffers or thank-you's to political cronies.
Latest Canadian Islamic Conference Press Release (en francais)
Dr. Mohamed Elmasry is of the belief that Canadians require "remedial education".
WHY CANADIAN REPUBLICATION OF DANISH CARTOONS IS WRONG [By Dr. Mohamed Elmasry] --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Any publication which incites hate, or which spreads negative stereotypes about a Canadian minority is morally wrong because it compromises the well-being of all members of that minority. The issue here goes beyond the boundaries of free expression; it is about the power of so-called "free speech" to dehumanize fellow citizens and depict them as "not like us." Unfortunately, that consideration did not deter the Western Standard or the Jewish Free Press, so perhaps some remedial education is in order.
In modern Germany, there are museum exhibits covering the period leading up to the Holocaust. Among those displays one can see "cartoons" depicting Jews as thieves, cheats, fools, etc. All of these were caricatures that grossly exaggerated the physical features and perceived mannerisms of a targeted group or ethnic community. The message was abundantly clear: "Jews are not like us -- they are therefore not worthy to live with the rights and respect that we have."
I believe it was this sort of "free speech" that led to increasingly violent acts against Jews, which culminated in events like Kristallnacht and ultimately the horrors of the Holocaust. It was a gradual intensification of hate, with deceptively "harmless" things like cartoons helping pave the way for the evil that happened under the Nazis.
Today, a Danish newspaper's offensive cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad as a bomb-wearing terrorist, or a ridiculous fanatic, fall into the same divisive and dangerous stereotypical category as slogans like, "Jews are Christ-killers," "Christians are savage anti-semitic Crusaders," "Blacks are drug-dealers," "Aboriginals are lazy drunks," etc.
Ever since the news media broke the story from Europe, numerous Muslim and non-Muslim Canadians have objected to the publication of these cartoons, especially in papers and magazines originating from within our own country. One does not have to be a Muslim to feel the pain and betrayal these drawings convey. It is the same kind of pain felt by descendants of Holocaust survivors when confronted with the illogical ranting of those who deny it ever happened; or the pain of Black citizens faced with the spectacle of white supremacists marching down the main street of their town.
The editors of Canada's largest-circulation newspapers including this one made the right ethical and professional decision not to republish the Danish cartoons and the government of Canada expressed regrets that the cartoons were published in Denmark.
They realized that those cartoons are not about a so-called "clash of civilizations," or the collision of the Islamic and Western worlds. The real issue is about a Western Muslim minority, struggling in a hostile post 9/11 environment to live as normally as any other group in our multicultural society. It is about a minority at a crossroads in their relationship with the Muslim world of their former home countries; as such a community, Western Muslims have much to learn from Jewish history in both Europe and North America. Canadian Muslims know they must not stand apart from their fellow citizens, but must actively move into the concept of smart integration as the ideal model for social unity and cultural coherence.
One of the Danish cartoons, which depicts Prophet Muhammad as a terrorist, suggests by inference that all Muslims are terrorists. This is not merely offensive or insulting -- it is a enticing hate, pure and simple. And those rogue Canadian publications that insisted on reprinting are therefore knowingly promoting hatred against Muslims. To condone such an explicit depiction of the Prophet of Islam as a terrorist, one has to be at the very least willful in not acknowledging that such a depiction vilifies and discredits all Muslims, creating a dangerous climate for Muslims in Canada and everywhere else.
Canadian Muslims are a minority, often a highly visible one, and the vast majority of non-Muslim Canadians have grown up with stereotypical views of Muslims, no matter how well-intentioned they may be. The republication of the anti-Islam cartoons has served only to further stereotype Muslims as dangerous and threatening.
Canadian Muslims do accept and acknowledge that extremists exist and must be dealt with. But when the ideologies and actions of a very few are used as the basis to judge an entire people, distortion and unfairness are the inevitable result. Extremism is not in any way, shape or form, the essence of Muslim life. Extremism, in fact, is no more a monopoly of Islam than it is of any other faith group, whether it be Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, or Sikhism.
The vast majority of Muslims, though conservative, are moderate in their political views. Islam has long been regarded among its adherents as "the religion of the middle way." The Prophet himself, so misconstrued in the infamous Danish cartoons, repeatedly denounced extremism.
We Canadian Muslims share the same common values: a deep respect for knowledge; a passion for justice; compassion toward the sick, elderly, needy and underprivileged; devotion to the values of family life, including respect for parents and elders; and acceptance of the "other," the strangers and travellers in our midst.
We live today in one world, a global village continually connected via instant communication. Our world economy is an interdependent entity, where a ripple on one continent can cause a tidal wave on another. Consequently, the selfish and irresponsible publication of hate literature, even if some consider it "funny," damages the world we live in. We need to stop, think, and care -- after all, it's the only world we've got.
[Dr. Mohamed Elmasry is national president of the Canadian Islamic Congress. He can be reached at np@canadianislamiccongress.com]
Miller never saw a dollar he didn't like (to spend) (en francais)
And McGuinty wants to give more taxing powers to Miller and the gang? Talk about fox in the hen house scenarios.
Windsor's Mayor and council may be lacking on several fronts but at least they instituted a Modified Zero Based Budget system two years ago. The plan is in it's second of a three year phase in and the results speak for themselves. The budget is balanced, the debt is being reduced and our bond rating is improving again. Now if we could only convince them to sell the golf courses, marina, convention centre and stop trying to develop buildings, we'd be laughing.
A little more 2 1/2 years ago -- when it seemed likely David Miller would be voted in as mayor -- I warned Toronto taxpayers to hang on tight to their pocketbooks.
Weeks before election night, I noted the tax-and-spend Bob Rae clone had no fiscal "plan B" other than relying on unrealistic pots of gold from the province and the feds. I predicted property taxes (and other fees) would go up under Miller.
We all remember how NDP premier Rae's fiscal policies drove the province deeply into debt. Now, as I watch Miller and his minions waiting for a money miracle to bail them out of a $532-million operating deficit mess of their own making, I pray that taxpayers catch on this time around.
I truly fear that if the mayor and his socialists are allowed to continue on the same track, this city will sink into record levels of debt, or near bankruptcy.
Coun. Case Ootes says there's no "setting of priorities" whatsoever. "This administration has never seen a program it didn't like ... it just implements everything that comes along regardless of the cost," he said.
It's not just an absence of fiscal vision, leadership or even interest in the budget proceedings from His Blondness -- the same mayor who expects the province to give him more powers, fiscal and otherwise, under the pending City of Toronto Act.
Long rumoured and finally here. Peter Dobrich, Warren Rychel and Bob Boughner take over the team 7 days after the end of this season. While current owner Steve Riolo's purchase of the team kept it in Windsor, his ownership over the last 18 years has been a OHL version of Harold Ballard, without the profitability.
Now all we need is a new arena. Most locals are hoping the trio can do for Windsor hockey what Mark and Dale Hunter have done for London.
Jim Parker, Windsor Star Published: Tuesday, February 14, 2006
The Windsor Spitfires' new owners say the team can be a successful business as well as a winning hockey club.
Pete Dobrich, one of the Spitfires' ownership group that includes current NHLer Bob Boughner and former NHLer Warren Rychel, said Monday that despite the $5-million to $6-million price tag, the new owners won't be short of working capital.
"They're hockey guys, but they're also dollars and cents guys," Dobrich said in an interview after a news conference to announce the team's purchase from longtime owner Steve Riolo.
Dobrich, 37, acknowledged the team did not come cheap. At more than $5 million, it's one of the highest prices paid for an Ontario Hockey League franchise.
In recent OHL transactions, Oshawa was sold for $3.8 million in 2004, Belleville for $3.5 million in 2004 and North Bay, which moved to Saginaw, Mich., in 2002, for $3 million.
Despite a pole break during one of Sara Renner's laps, Scott and Renner skied a fantastic race. It's hard to say if the broken pole cost them the gold, but it's a possibility. Scott was leading entering the stadium, but just didn't have the kick to hold of the Swedes.
Finally got around to installing trackbacks. I've installed Haloscan, although just for the trackbacks, not the comments. Sometime over the next couple of months I want to transition to Wordpress on my own host, but post-election that project has moved a little lower on the to-do list.
Up to now I've been using Adam Kalsey's great manual trackback tool. It's simple to use, but the drawback is that no one can trackback my posts, as well you have to manually post code to signify the trackback on your own site. Blogger's linkback just doesn't cut it.
Haloscan should do the trick until I get around to shifting to Wordpress.
I'm currently attempting to put together a list of CPC EDAs with active websites. If you know of one, please post the link in the comments or email me. bluebloggingsoapbox@gmail.com
Local NDP MPs choose volunteers, money over principle (en francais)
Edit: Welcome to Small Dead Animals readers. Thanks Kate, for the link. While you're here, check out the preceding post - NDP has a 'principle' problem.
Looks like local NDP MPs Joe Comartin and Brian Masse know who butters their bread.
Don Lajoie, Windsor Star, with files from Star news services Published: Monday, February 13, 2006
"I hope there will be little effect on the federal party," said Parent, whose local representing DaimlerChrysler and Casino Windsor workers is one of the most influential in the union. "But it would be up for debate in our union and that's not a good situation."
A dispute with the CAW will hurt fundraising and volunteer support for NDP candidates, Comartin said.
"The money is a secondary consideration when compared to the number of volunteers we could lose," he said. "If the union urges them not to volunteer there's no question we'll be hurt."
The latest NDP constitution(pdf) was adopted in 2004. In light of recent events, maybe it's due for some emergency amendments or quite possibly just a "wider interpretation".
Sometimes the shoe's a little tight when it's on the other foot. It might get even tighter once they get around to dealing with the fact that the CAW not only supported the Liberals but campaigned for the Bloc as well. I guess that one will have to be Jack Layton's call as an issue of national scope.
A closer look at the CTV article highlights another dilema for the Provincial NDP.
"No, I have nothing to apologize for," Hargrove said Sunday on CTV's Newsnet. "Nine-hundred (CAW) delegates debated this and voted overwhelmingly, over 85 per cent, for this to be the position of our union going into the federal election. I defended that and promoted that throughout the campaign. I have no regrets."
A look at the NDP constitution(pdf) has this to say about affiliated organizations such as the CAW:
ARTICLE 4: AFFILIATED ORGANIZATIONS
4.01 (1) Affiliated membership shall be open to trade unions, farm organizations, co-operatives, ethnic associations, women's/men's organizations and other appropriate organizations.
(2) An organization wishing to affiliate shall do so through methods determined by the organization itself.
(3) A local, regional or provincial organization may apply for affiliation for its membership in the province or for members of a local, lodge, branch or district.
4.02 Each affiliated organization shall undertake to accept and abide by the principles and Constitution of the Party, and shall not be associated or identified with any other political party.
4.03 Each application for affiliation shall be made to the Provincial Council. Any such decision for affiliation may be appealed to the following Provincial Convention, which shall have the final determination on any such appeal.
4.04 The per capita fee for affiliated organizations shall be determined by the Provincial Council.
4.05 Any member of an affiliated organization may, at any time, officially notify his/her organization that he/ she does not wish his/her per capita payment to be made to the Ontario New Democratic Party on his/her behalf, and the organization shall forthwith cease to do so.
4.06 Subject to Article 3, a member of an affiliated organization may become an individual member of the Party upon the payment of the difference between the annual per capita fee paid on his/her behalf and the individual membership fee.
With over 85% of CAW delegates voting for the position of strategically supporting Liberals, they have violated their terms of affiliation with the NDP.
So what's it going to be? Kiss and make up or abide by the terms of the constitution?
Money and supporters or principle?
Stay tuned.
Bonus: I wonder how many Conservative and Liberal union members know about clause 4.05 of the Provincial NDP constitution:
4.05 Any member of an affiliated organization may, at any time, officially notify his/her organization that he/ she does not wish his/her per capita payment to be made to the Ontario New Democratic Party on his/her behalf, and the organization shall forthwith cease to do so.
Dust my Broom Dust my broom as far as I can tell means simply leaving. The term came to me from delta blues artists like Robert Johnson and Son House. My research shows that it may have originated during the slave days in the US. Blacks were not allowed to marry and so would have secret ceremonies where the bride and groom would “jump the broom”. To divorce, simply enough, they would jump back over, or dust the broom. I have read that the term originated in Africa but have found nothing concise.
Anyone visiting here can jump the broom and share but also dust the broom and leave.
Darcey, Raskolnikov and Shere Khan
Stop in and say hello.
P.S. - if anyone has a spare first aid kit, leave behind when you drop in, I'm betting that Darcey will find a way to use it. :)
It started off sounding good, then... (en francais)
When I first saw this article and began reading I thought, it's about time. Ten years sounds appropriate for an illegal gun dealer in today's environment.
Gunrunner curses judge `Remorseful,' then enraged after learning of his 10-year term 'Rot in hell,' he shouts at judge, for `this ridiculous sentence' Feb. 11, 2006. 01:00 AM DALE BRAZAO AND JOHN DUNCANSON STAFF REPORTERS
As long as there was hope, Jeffrey Tuck was willing to mouth the words of contrition and remorse.
He was sorry, he told Justice Ramez Khawly, for all the pain he had caused his family, friends and especially the mother of his 2 1/2-year-old daughter.
The clean-cut, slightly built 24-year-old, who had pleaded guilty to 29 charges of gun running, drug trafficking and breaking his bail conditions, added: "I'd like to apologize for the crimes I've committed."
After listening to the apology yesterday, Khawly whacked him with a 10-year prison term. That was when Tuck lost his cool. The polite and demure Dr. Jekyll suddenly turned into a raging, foul-mouthed Mr. Hyde.
"I don't give a f---. Go to hell, you piece of s---," Tuck shouted at the judge from the prisoner's box. "This is crazy. What's your problem?"
But then I reached this point in the article:
Led away in handcuffs, an angry Tuck was returned to court just a few minutes later so Khawly could clarify that the actual sentence was only six years in prison after taking into account the time Tuck had spent in pre-trial custody.
Although they don't specify here, I think this is as a result of the 2 for 1 or sometimes 3 for 1 credit assigned for days spent in pre-trial custody. This is but one of many other facets of the gun violence problem that must be addressed. We can pass all the mandatory minimum legislation we wish, but unless they actually serve the time, what's the use?
I'm not sure if the statutory release is based on the full sentence or the actual time served. If based on time served, this prisoner could be released in four years, and that's not counting day and weekend passes.
Mandatory minimums make a great election promise but we must address other problems such as court backups and jail conditions. Justice infrastructure has suffered as much as any other over the last decade and time is well past to face up to that.
One other thing has always puzzled me. Without ammunition, a gun is basically an inefficient club (although still threatening). What efforts have been expended to choke off the supply of ammo? The only thing easier than getting an illegal gun is obtaining the ammo for it. If anyone has any links to studies related to this I would appreciate a link or two.
Well it looks like I've finally solved most of my page load problems. (fingers crossed)
With my 3 column layout, it looks like most of the problem was rooted in the left column.
I first moved the TTLB and Site Meter scripts to my footer. This seemed to have a dramatic effect. Tonight I moved all my Blogrolls and most pictures to the right side bottom. That really did the trick.
Since the left side loads first, whenever there was a problem with a pic, blogroll or script, the whole site hung until the issue was resolved. Between the blogrolls and TTLB, this seemed to be happening quite a bit. Hopefully that resolves all the issue and maybe can help someone else.
OTTAWA, Friday, February 10, 2006 — The Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, Jean‑Pierre Kingsley, announced that the judicial recount in the electoral district of Desnethé–Missinippi–Churchill River (Saskatchewan) was completed today. The recount was conducted by Justice A. R. Rothery of the Court of Queen's Bench of Saskatchewan.
At the 39th general election held on January 23, 2006, the difference between the Liberal Party of Canada candidate, Gary Merasty, and the Conservative Party of Canada candidate, Jeremy Harrison, was 73 votes in favour of Gary Merasty. Following the judicial recount, the difference between the two candidates is 67 votes.
The following are the results of the recount for all candidates in the riding of Desnethé–Missinippi–Churchill River:
Jeremy Harrison Conservative Party of Canada - 10,124
Anita Jackson New Democratic Party - 3,787
John A. McDonald Green Party of Canada - 534
Gary Merasty Liberal Party of Canada -10,191
The returning officer for Desnethé–Missinippi–Churchill River, Anne Hryniuk, will complete the writ of election and forward it to the Chief Electoral Officer, who will sign the writ and publish the name of the elected candidate in the Canada Gazette.
Elections Canada is an independent body set up by Parliament.
Information: Elections Canada Media Relations 1 877 877-9515 or at www.elections.ca
I posted this during the election and it kind of got lost in the storm. I thought it was worthwhile to post again. One thing I have found since I posted this was an increase in traffic. While some of that was due to the election, I do believe that others were as a result of knowing their IP and other details were not going to be broadcast over the web.
Here are several logos that I have come up with to reflect my views on Blog Visitor Privacy. Feel free to use them.
By displaying the logo, you commit to respecting the privacy of your blog's visitors and not display thier IP address, location, time visited or any other identifying data. (exception being for Criminal/Civil proceedings or as required by lawful authorities)
For this blog, all emails sent to bluebloggingsoapbox@gmail.com will be deemed public, unless otherwise requested in the email.
Social Services Minister Sandra Pupatello abused the system when she let her husband hitch a ride on a government plane from Windsor to Toronto yesterday, Progressive Conservatives charge.
"It's not a taxi for spouses of ministers," said Progressive Conservative MPP Tim Hudak (Erie Lincoln), a former cabinet minister. Hudak said the previous government barred ministers' spouses from trips on the plane.
The flight, which would have cost about $300 per person on Air Canada, came as Pupatello returned to Toronto from her hometown for an afternoon cabinet meeting that had been called on short notice.
Her husband is Jim Bennett, a lawyer who was acclaimed the Liberal leader in Newfoundland and Labrador on Monday.
Pupatello defended Bennett's trip on the twin-engine turboprop Beechcraft King Air, which also brought Health Minister George Smitherman and Finance Minister Dwight Duncan back from Windsor.
"Even with him there were still seats empty ... the cost (of operating the plane) is the same whether it's full or empty," Pupatello said, noting every MPP's spouse is entitled to several trips to Toronto a year so they can spend time together.
Hudak said Pupatello's husband should reimburse taxpayers for the cost of the flight because the Legislature's rules specify how many trips spouses are allowed.
That means a free ride on the King Air could give Pupatello an unfair advantage and "that's inappropriate," he added.
Pupatello said she sees no impropriety in the trip but will reimburse the government if Premier Dalton McGuinty asks.
"Of course I would, but I couldn't imagine it," she said.
Of course, the only reason Bennett would be in Toronto is to spend time with his wife. Or is it?
Bennett acclaimed as Liberal leader Last updated Feb 7 2006 09:29 AM NST Bennett is keen to work on fundraising, and intends to tap into some mainland connections.
His wife, Sandra Pupatello, is the minister of community and social services in Dalton McGuinty's Ontario government.
Bennett says that will open some doors, and some wallets.
"The fact that she is a high-profile person and the fact that I've lived in Ontario for a number of years before moving home and met a large number of people [help]," he said.
"The opportunity to raise money probably would be better for me than for somebody who doesn't have similar Ontario contacts."
Besides all that, whatever happened to taking the train? I use VIA all the time and highly recommend it. The VIA1 first class service is excellent. With today's cellphones, Blackberries and VIA's new Wi-fi service, it's just like being in the office. Very cost effective.
I hope Michael Taube keeps a bag packed and a plane ticket handy. Writing like this in Toronto will have people warming up the tar and collecting feathers. It's ok Mike, you'd be welcome in Windsor any day. Our own version of the Pravda Red Windsor Star and local radio and TV could use a hurricane breath of fresh air.
'Hidden' agenda fears hurt Toronto Until Toronto gets over its hang-ups about the Conservatives, this city will continue to play a small-to-non-existent role in future Conservative governments.
That's right, hang-ups. Such as the Conservatives having a "hidden agenda" when it comes to social issues. Such as Harper being "scary" and an "extremist." Such as Harper and the Conservatives supposedly not representing all races, religions and gender groups.
Many Torontonians still incorrectly look at the Conservatives as a western-based party, even though 50 of their 125 MPs are from Ontario and Quebec. Some perceive Harper is in the U.S.'s back pocket, even though he has repeatedly shown this isn't the case. Some believe the Conservatives only have rural-based support and don't understand urban areas, even though they won in cities like Edmonton and Calgary.
Enough, already. The Conservatives are a moderate, fiscally conservative party. Their MPs represent most of the country and the concerns of the vast majority of Canadians. And the reason that private health care, an abortion ban, capital punishment, or eradicating women's rights hasn't been discussed by Conservatives is simple: The party either doesn't support, or doesn't have an official position on any of these issues.
No one is forcing Torontonians to vote Conservative.
But we'll obviously pay the political consequences if we continue to vote against and publicly bad-mouth Conservatives. To me, that is just and fair.
Conservatives will need support of the Bloc to ensure families get cheques by July Feb. 10, 2006. 01:00 AM
...If the Conservatives are to survive their first budget and get to deliver cheques to parents of young children instead of funding to the provinces, they will need the support of the Bloc Québécois. Still reeling from the outcome of the election, Gilles Duceppe is not spoiling for an early showdown.
If there is one area of the country where Harper's controversial cabinet moves have not put much of a damper on his honeymoon, it is Quebec where the advantage of securing a Montreal presence at the cabinet table has widely outweighed the unseemliness of appointing a non-elected minister to do so.
At the best of times, most Quebecers are either lukewarm or indifferent to the notion of an elected Senate. For many, Lucien Bouchard gave floor-crossing a good name when he abandoned Brian Mulroney in 1990.
This week, Duceppe said he did not oppose the notion of direct help to families. But he also hinted that to secure Bloc support, Harper would have to earn the blessing of Premier Jean Charest.
With his own election not all that far away, Charest is not about to stand in the way of the dispensing of federal money to Quebec families.
Only half of them currently take advantage of the province's generous child-care program. There have been suggestions this week that Charest could recoup the federal money from those who access the system by raising the daily fee of the program from $7 to $10.
The leader of Hizbullah, heading a march by hundreds of thousands of Shi'ite Muslims on Thursday, said US President George W. Bush and his secretary of state should "shut up" after they accused Syria and Iran of fueling protests over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said that if the controversy touched on Jews or Israel the West would have reacted differently and quickly.
"Is the Islamic world less important than a bunch of Zionists? We cannot acquiesce to this."
Nasrallah urged Muslims worldwide to continue demonstrations until there is an apology over the drawings and Europe passes laws forbidding insults to the prophet.
The head of the guerrilla group, which is backed by Iran and Syria, spoke before a mass procession of Shi'ites marking Ashura, an annual remembrance of the 680 A.D. battle in which Hussein, their saint and grandson of Muhammad, was killed by rivals, cementing the split in Islam between Shi'ites and Sunnis.
Whipping up the crowds on the most solemn day for Shi'ites worldwide, Nasrallah declared: "Defending the prophet should continue all over the world. Let Condoleezza Rice and Bush and all the tyrants shut up. We are an Islamic nation that cannot tolerate, be silent or be lax when they insult our prophet and sanctities."
"We will uphold the messenger of God not only by our voices but also by our blood," he told the crowds, estimated by organizers at about 700,000. Police officers had no final estimates but put the figure at even higher.
Speaking about the controversy for the first time Wednesday, Bush condemned the deadly rioting sparked by the cartoons and urged foreign leaders to halt the spreading violence and to protect diplomats in besieged embassies. Rice, the US secretary of state, said Iran and Syria "have gone out of their way to inflame sentiments and to use this to their own purposes. And the world ought to call them on it."
"There can be no settlement before an apology and there can be no settlement before laws are legislated by the European Parliament and the parliaments of European countries," Nasrallah said.
Islamic nations should demand "a law committing the press and the media in the West that proscribes insulting our prophet. If this matter cannot be achieved that means [the West] insists on continuing this," he added.
I just noticed this yesterday when I logged into my Gmail account. Gmail now includes an embedded IM client.
The contacts are on the left while the chat window is located at the bottom right, with the ability to seperate it from the Gmail window.
The service apparently started on Tuesday and will be rolled out ove the next several weeks. If you don't see it yet, it should eventually turn up in your account.
As Gmail continues to build, you have to wonder what features are next. With 2.7 gig of storage space there's a lot they can do. You can already use your Gmail account as a virtual drive, although this isn't supported by Google. File storage/File sharing is one capability that shouldn't take too much to add. Another possibility could see Gmail morphing into a basic collaboration tool. The uses are wide and varied. It should be fun watching this tool continue to develop.
Looks like the Liberals still like to leak like a sieve.
James Travers blows the lid on a story that should keep everyone talking for a while. The question I have after reading this article is what would have happened to the deal if Emerson didn't defect?
With Frank McKenna resigning from Washington and the Liberals busy shredding files it looks like they were ready to let the deal die in the name of partisan politics. They were willing to do it for the election, so why not altogether. Better than the Conservatives benefiting from their work, or so the thinking must have went.
Certainly explains the degree of rage coming from the Liberals. Considering this story is being fed by Liberal sources, it should be interesting to hear the whole story, once it emerges. Having screwed up by not finalizing the deal and with the whole story about to blow, the Liberals have been left with only one option - smear the messenger. Hence the leaks.
OTTAWAÂHere's the plot of a real-life political thriller: David Emerson defected to the Conservatives this week carrying a multi-billion dollar softwood lumber deal that Liberals, for political reasons, didn't finalize before the federal election.
Former colleagues as well as officials and diplomats privy to the secret, backchannel talks insist Emerson was instrumental in delaying a breakthrough in the decades-old dispute that cost thousands of Canadian jobs. They say the former Liberal industry minister worried that a pre-election announcement would damage Liberal prospects in key British Columbia ridings.
In a telephone interview last night, Emerson confirmed he raised concerns about the proposal after discussions with the B.C. government and softwood industry. But he said it's a "false story" to suggest his resistance was politically motivated and insisted the deal on the table before the election wasn't good enough for Canada then and isn't now.
Liberals and non-partisan sources tell a different story. They say the B.C. government and its powerful forestry industry only lost interest in the plan after meetings with Emerson. His objections, along with concerns in Paul Martin's office that a pre-election deal would stop the then-prime minister from using George W. Bush as a campaign punching bag, convinced Liberals to delay formal negotiations at least until after the January election.
Informally discussed on parallel tracks here and in the U.S., the plan calls for Washington to reimburse about 75 per of the disputed $5 billion in tariffs imposed on Canadian lumber in return for Ontario and Quebec export quotas. In B.C., there would be higher stumpage fees to keep mills in the province's interior from flooding the U.S. market with cheap wood culled from forests hard-hit by mountain pine beetle infestations.
Those behind-the-scenes talks, led in Washington by Ambassador Frank McKenna and nursed in Ottawa by then-international trade minister Jim Peterson, were rapidly moving the two countries toward brief formal negotiations and a quick deal until they tripped over political realties. At the time, Martin's government was publicly resisting Bush administration pressure to return to the negotiating table, arguing that Canada had won serial tribunal decisions and would settle for nothing less than complete victory and full compensation.
Emerson was among the most outspoken Liberal ministers. In August, he called on Canadians to unite around fair trade. "Are we going to be stronger than the sum of our parts, or are we going to be endlessly bickering amongst ourselves and allow the bully to basically mop the floor with us."
But while making noisy demands that the U.S. abide by the letter and spirit of cross-border treaties and by threatening a trade war if it did not, Martin's government was quietly building a Canadian consensus. First, the three biggest softwood provinces tentatively agreed to the hybrid formula, and then key parts of the industry were brought into the talks on condition of strict confidentiality.
In Washington, McKenna discreetly tested how the U.S. would respond to the hybrid Canadian proposal and Washington's willingness to reimburse tariffs. Conscious of the powerful lumber lobby, U.S. officials were encouraging as well as equally discreet.
By early November, the critical components were in place. "A deal was there to be had," a well-informed source says. "It was easily within reach."
Other sources, including diplomats, confirm the template was complete before Martin's minority government fell. But for reasons Liberals now blame on Emerson, it stepped back from a deal that now falls into Stephen Harper's lap.
That would be a dramatic early success for a new government and for a new trade minister. And that has some of Emerson's former colleagues steaming.
They and others who spoke on condition of anonymity say they accept that Tories will claim a softwood victory as the spoils of war. But they can't stomach that Emerson is now positioned to take credit for an agreement Liberals say he blocked.
They say Emerson didn't want a less-than-perfect agreement to become a Conservative and NDP target. According to the sources, Emerson, a former top lumber executive, also warned that some companies could object to the higher stumpage fees.
Rather than take an unnecessary political risk, Liberals parked the deal, assuming it could be restarted when they were, as they wrongly expected, returned to office.
It's not clear if or when Conservatives learned about the advanced softwood talks. What is known is that the small circle of those aware of the backroom discussions expanded during the final campaign weeks.
In any case, Conservatives had many reasons to encourage Emerson's defection. Highly respected at home as well as by mandarins here, Emerson, who jokingly calls himself a small-c Liberal, gives the party downtown Vancouver representation and an experienced minister to handle the financially troubled Olympics and Pacific rim issues.
So less than 24 hours after the election, Emerson and Conservative campaign co-chairman John Reynolds were discussing the defection that on Monday caught the national capital by surprise. In retrospect, it wasn't so surprising.
Independently wealthy and more interested in policy than politics, Emerson would find little in opposition to justify the grinding travel between the capital and West Coast. Equally important, Harper was willing to give Emerson the international trade job former Liberal cabinet colleagues say he coveted.
Now that he has it, Emerson gets a second chance to complete the deal that diplomats say requires little more than signatures.
That would be an unpleasant surprise ending Liberals didn't anticipate when they put the softwood talks on hold.
Ontario continues to be one of the worst fiscal performers in the country, dropping from third last year to sixth this year. How much longer is Dalton McGuinty going to keep pointing at previous governments for his poor performance? It's Ottawa's fault, it's the previous Progressive Conservative's fault, the stars aren't aligned right yet and the dog ate my homework. Anything but doing a little inward inspection.
Vancouver, BC - Alberta tops all the provinces and the federal government for its overall fiscal performance, according to the Fraser Institute’s annual Fiscal Performance Index, released today. The Index is published in the February 2006 Fraser Forum.
The Fiscal Performance Index measures the performance of the federal and provincial governments on twenty indicators of taxation, spending, and deficits and debt over the past five years (2000/01 to 2004/05). The Index also includes an overall fiscal performance score.
“Canadian governments must pursue sound fiscal policies such as controlled spending, balanced budgets, and sensible tax policy to ensure long term economic success.” said Niels Veldhuis, the Institute’s associate director of fiscal studies. “In preparing their annual budgets, governments should examine their fiscal performance relative to other jurisdictions and implement policies that enhance economic prosperity.”
Overall Performance
For the ninth consecutive year, Alberta received the top score: 69.9 (out of a possible 100), followed by British Columbia (61.9) and the federal government (61.8). Prince Edward Island placed last with a score of 24.4 (see Table 1).
Also of note: • British Columbia moved up two positions from fourth position last year to second this year. Over the past five years, BC has improved significantly, moving from ninth in 2002 to second in 2006.
• Ontario deteriorated the most, dropping three spots in the rankings from third last year to sixth this year. Only two years ago, Ontario ranked second in overall fiscal performance.
• New Brunswick and Newfoundland improved the most, each moving up three positions.
“While Alberta continues to set the standard for fiscal performance in Canada, BC has significantly improved and is quickly catching up” observed Veldhuis. “At the same time, Ontario’s fiscal performance has worsened in terms of government spending, taxation, and debts and deficits.”
I had heard that the Danish cartoons circulated throughout the Middle East included another picture not published in the original series, but this Globe Article reveals that things were carried even farther.
'It is not what I want to happen' Young Danish Islamic scholar distributed booklets of photocopied cartoons to Muslim leaders in the Mideast, sparking a firestorm of anger around the world DOUG SAUNDERS
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
...For his booklet contained not only the 12 depictions of the Prophet Mohammed that had appeared in the newspaper Jyllands-Posten in September. He also filled it with hideous, amateur images of the Prophet as a pig, a dog, a woman and a child-sodomizing madman.
Flipping through the book yesterday, he explained that these images had been items of hate mail sent to his colleagues by right-wing extremists who disapproved of their activism. These images, he insistently demonstrated, were separated from the newspaper cartoons by several pages of letters. "How could anyone mistake these for the newspaper images?" he asked. "It cannot be that anyone would make this mistake."
But protesters in Lebanon and elsewhere have cited these images in their actions. So have the organizers of a worldwide boycott campaign against Danish products, which is costing the country's economy. ...more
Just so all the Blackberry users don't feel left out, here are a couple different applications or services to try out Bloggo - Bloggo is an RSS feed reader for WAP 2.0-capable phones. If that sentence makes you choke, try this one: Bloggo lets you read blogs on your phone. This is a free , web based service still in Beta
RIM Blackberry Mobile Feed Reader - beta 2 - by the same people who bring you the Feedburner service. You can visit the site and download the app direct to your Blackberry. Some systems may require the App loader to install. Must have Blackberry OS 3.8
Piconews 2.0.2 - freeware. A user-friendly and simple software giving you the opportunity to receive news items from all over the world on your Blackberry at any time in any place. The content which you are interested in is now available to roaming users like you!
PMs website and Government RSS Feeds (en francais)
Stephen Taylor has an excellent review posted of the Prime Ministers website. I agree with his assessment, especially regarding the lack of RSS feeds on the site. RSS, podcasting/videocasting and interactive features should all be explored to enhance the site.
In the meantime, those wishing to subscribe to a feed can use those listed below. The National feed includes releases from the PMO, I'm just not sure of the time difference between release on the PMs site and the Government feeds. I'm going to try and monitor it over the next several weeks.
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.
Islamic Congress looking for friends in government? (en francais)
Interesting approach for a group that supposedly want to open a "healthy dialogue" with the government. Here's a hint, you might want to tone down the rhetoric a tad and drop the "feared five" tag.
THE CANADIAN ISLAMIC CONGRESS MEDIA COMMUNIQUE
February 7, 2006
ISLAMIC CONGRESS WARNS OF EMERGING POLICE STATE AS P.M. HARPER APPOINTS "MOST FEARED FIVE" TO NEW CABINET -- NEW MINISTERS DAY, MACKAY, CANNON, TOEWS, AND SOLBERG COULD BE BAD NEWS FOR CANADIAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS
With yesterday's new federal Conservative cabinet appointments, the Canadian Islamic Congress fears that police-state politics which began under the former Liberal regime will soon emerge in an accelerated and enlarged form.
"The features of an emergent police state in Canada are many," said today's CIC statement.
"They include renewal of the anti-terrorism act; the proposed Canadian no- fly list; the existing no-passport list (both giving unprecedented power to civil servants -- not the courts -- to list and de-list Canadians); security certificate detentions; racial profiling; wiretapping and spying on citizens; and a broad range of additional powers given to both the RCMP and CSIS."
All the current and proposed measures listed above have been implemented without court supervision or due process of law, the statement continued, with the result that "civil liberties of Canadians are eroding and a police state is emerging. Our government is using the fears of its citizens to rob them of their charter rights and freedoms. This is absolutely wrong."
The CIC nevertheless still hopes to soon open up a healthy dialogue with PM Stephen Harper's new cabinet -- especially with the group it calls the "most feared five" -- Stockwell Day (Public Safety), Peter MacKay (Foreign Affairs), Lawrence Cannon (Transport), Vic Toews (Justice) and Monte Solberg (Citizenship and Immigration).
CIC's Exit Poll for the 2006 federal election showed more Muslims voted Conservative than in 2004.
Parliamentary Secretaries - rumours and guesses (en francais)
Parliamentary Secretaries - various rumours and my guesses.
Jay Hill - Government Whip Stephen Harper - Jason Kenney Lawerence Cannon - Transport - Rahim Jaffer Gary Lunn - Natural Resources - Andrew Scheer Jim Flaherty - Finance - Diane Ablonczy Vic Toews- Justice - ? Jean-Pierre Blackburn - Labour and Economic Development Quebec Tony Clement - Health - James Lunney Greg Thompson - Veteran's Affairs ? Chuck Strahl - Agriculture - Joe Preston Rob Nicholson - House Leader, Democratic Reform - Peter McKay - Foreign Affairs - ? Jose Verner - International Cooperation - Pierre Poilievre Gordon O Connor - Defence - ? David Emerson - International Trade - James Moore Diane Finley - Human Resources and Development Rona Ambrose - Environment - ? Bev Oda - Heritage and Status of Women - Helena Guergis John Baird - Treasury Board - ? Monte Solberg - Citizenship and Immigration - ? Carol Skelton - National Revenue - ? Stockwell Day - Public Safety - ? Senator LeBreton - Senate Government Leader Loyala Hearn - Fisheries and Oceans - Rob Moore Maxime Bernier - Industry - Garth Turner Michael Fortier - Public Works - James Rajotte Michael Chong - President of the Queen's Privy Council and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister for Sport - Scott Reid Jim Prentice - Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Metis and Non-Status Indians - Inky Mark
"To understand how far Stephen Harper has come, you have to recall how far back he started. When he became the leader of the Canadian Alliance in 2002, it was fair to ask whether the job was worth holding. Under its previous leader, Stockwell Day, the party had been driven punishingly low in the polls, suffered MPs' defections, become something close to a national laughingstock. Harper resuscitated his caucus, rebuilt his party with the help of the Progressive Conservative Peter MacKay, won a leadership contest, and reduced the Liberal majority to a minority and then to opposition. All in four years. He is turning into the kind of man whom one underestimates at one's peril"
Paul Wells MacLeans Magazine
Preston Manning is a retired elder statesman with his own institute, Stockwell Day is a Cabinet Minister in his cabinet, Belinda Stronach is preparing for a stint on the oppostion benches along with Paul Martin, who will most likely retire at the end of this Parliament. Stephen Harper is not exactly a man who operates in the short term.
I'll state at the outset that I like Harper's cabinet, every last one of them. The optics may not be pretty, but if Stephen Harper worried only about the short term he never would have donned that lovely western outfit this summer.
My guess on Emerson is that we are far closer to a deal on resolving the softwood lumber situtation than anyone realizes. That, coupled with the importance of the Pacific Gateway to our economy's future, makes him a vital member of cabinet. Look for Emerson to have a resolution on softwood within six months to a year. In the meantime he trains a Parliamentary Secretary in the portfolio. Shortly after he announces his retirement from politics. Optics bad, results good.
Floor crossings are a reality in minority parliaments. With each crossing we go through a period of hand-wringing, insults, indignation and various protests. If this practice is such a danger to the fundamental foundations of our democracy, then pass a law restricting or forbidding it's use. The ironic thing is, the combination of Stephen Harper's decisions yesterday with his policy of allowing free votes on all things expect confidence motions, will probably see some form of law passed on this. That's our democracy.
On Michael Fortier, Harper is again doing what he said he would do. During the election he stated that if necessary he would appoint Senators to represent the interests of Quebec or any other region without representation. He certainly added a wrinkle by choosing Fortier, but as with Emerson I believe he has his compelling reasons for this decision. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on those. The appointment is temporary and in no way affects his long term goal of appointing elected Senators.
Lost in all the howling yesterday was beginning of the Federal Accountability Act. Implemented yesterday was every piece of the act not requiring legislation. Accountable Government: A Guide for Ministers (pdf)
Although time will tell, I think we saw the first signs yesterday that our parliament will return to government by Cabinet and not rule by the PMO. Nothing concrete to offer regarding this as yet, other than my interpetation of how and when certain things were said and done yesterday.
Stephen Harper may not be a leader in the mold of George Patton or Mike Harris, but make no mistake, he is a leader. My respect for him continues to grow. He left no doubt that he made the decisions and will ultimately accept responsibility for them. Trackback to Small Dead Animals
Editor's Note: The same rules will apply to this live discussion as normally apply to the "reader comment" feature. Globeandmail.com editors will read and approve each comment/question. Not all comments/questions can be answered in the time available. Spelling and grammar errors will not be corrected. Comments/questions will be checked for content only. Comments/questions that include false or unsubstantiated allegations, personal attacks, vulgar language or libelous content will be rejected. Preference will be given to readers who ask questions under their full names, rather than pseudonyms.
In a blockbuster trade announcement, Stephen Harper announced today that the defections of Belinda Stronach and Scott Brison to the Liberals were in fact part of a blockbuster trade involving former Industry Minister David Emerson, a functioning Quebec based campaign team and future considerations. Further, it now appears that the trade may be a three or even four way trade involving Bob Rae, a contender for the Liberals and Mario Dumont, who is currently considered the top draft pick for the Tories.
Harper Cabinet - by arrival at Rideau Hall (en francais)
Final Edit: That's it for me this morning. Much as I thought, Stephen Harper certainly had a few surprises up his sleeve. For everyone who is going to go crazy over Emerson crossing the floor -
Lawerence Cannon - Transport Gary Lunn - Natural Resources Jim Flaherty - Finance Vic Toews- Justice Jean-Pierre Blackburn - Labour and Economic Development Quebec Tony Clement - Health Greg Thompson - Veteran's Affairs Chuck Strahl - Agriculture Rob Nicholson - House Leader, Democratic Reform Peter McKay - Foreign Affairs Jose Verner - International Cooperation Gordon O Connor - Defence David Emerson - defected to CPC for a Cabinet Post, may be just delivering the sealMinister of International Trade, Minister Pacific Gateway and Vancouver Olympics Stephen Harper - arriving in a mini-van, with wife and children! 11:17 am - it's official! Diane Finley - Human Resources and Development Rona Ambrose - Environment Bev Oda - Heritage and Status of Women John Baird - Treasury Board Monte Solberg - Citizenship and Immigration Carol Skelton - National Revenue, Minister of Western Economic Diversification Stockwell Day - Public Safety Senator LeBreton - Senate Government Leader Loyala Hearn - Fisheries and Oceans Maxime Bernier - Industry CBC is reporting that a surprise Senator will be in Cabinet - Kenney as Security/Emergency Preparedness? Michael Fortier - Public Works Michael Chong - President of the Queen's Privy Council and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister for Sport Jim Prentice - Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Metis and Non-Status Indians
I decided to wait until Monday to blog on this issue for two reasons. First, I've learned the hard way that angry blogging usually doesn't turn out very well. Second, I was hoping that Pallister would display a degree of sense and apologize for his actions. A quick review of the morning papers revealed how misplaced that hope was.
“People can take issue with it all they want, but it’s not the truth. The truth is (running for the leadership) is an issue that impacts my ability to work as a member of parliament.”
The Portage-Lisgar Conservative MP hasn’t had the easy time he’s accustomed to this past week. Hit by accusations his dithering on the leadership of the provincial party has sowed confusion and will cost taxpayers thousands of dollars, Pallister has been made to squirm a little about his ambitions. And that’s not a bad thing.
To review, Pallister has been touted as one of the front-runners to replace Stuart Murray ever since the provincial Tory head asked the party to hold a leadership convention.
That afternoon, as dozens of shell-shocked provincial Tories milled about after Murray dropped the bombshell that it was time for a leadership race, Pallister played coy about seeking the still-warm leader’s seat.
He ran federally again, won his seat overwhelmingly on Jan. 23, told the Brandon Sun the provincial leadership was an option “he can’t even begin to consider right now.”
Yet three days later, he announced he wasn’t going to take a seat in the federal cabinet and was kicking off a three-week tour to consult Manitobans about running for the provincial leadership — all while on the federal dime.
The Conservative Party spent the life of the last parliament hammering the Liberals on themes of corruption and entitlement. Mr. Pallister was not exactly a shrinking wallflower in these endeavours. With their slim minority win, the Conservatives now have an opportunity to demonstrate to Canadians how they will do things differently. They must not only be ethical in their approach, they must also be seen and perceived as such.
Mistakes will happen, that is inevitable. It is how those mistakes are handled that will determine the fate of the party. We have watched thirteen years worth of examples of how not to do it. Now is the time to lead by example, not follow previous ones.
The new government has not even been sworn in yet and Brian Pallister has given Stephen Harper his first "entitlement" moment. Federal taxpayers are paying Pallister's salary to respresent the constituents of Portage-Lisgar, not tour the Province of Manitoba seeking a new constituency.
Send the assistant packing, take an un-paid leave of absence (if possible) and pay for your own aspirations.
After reading this article, it's not hard to figure out why Toronto Mayor David Miller was helping so many Liberals campaign. Combined with the new taxing powers the province is poised to bestow on Toronto, it sounds like they were beginning to approach Territorial status.
Ottawa has more than enough issues on it's plate of a truly national scope than to be wasting time negotiating with cities. That is a clear Provincial responsibility. The dreaded "de-centralization" supposedly championed by Stephen Harper is nothing of the sort. The federal government has been increasingly encroaching on territory where they have no business, while woefully neglecting their own responsibilities.
The Gas Tax/New Deal for the cities? Simple. The federal government reduces the gas tax by 5 cents and allows the provinces to increase their own by the same amount. No need for melodramatic First Ministers meetings, hoards of bureaucrats and reams of paperwork. Give the money back to the provinces where it belongs and get on with putting the federal house in order.
He said it was thanks to the department that the City of Toronto was just days away from signing an "urban development agreement" with Ottawa that would have co-ordinated how the two governments, as well as Queen's Park, work together.
The document, delayed by the election, would have given Toronto a central role on issues facing the city, such as community safety, immigration, waterfront revitalization, public transit, child care and housing.
Walking the line In a test run last summer, the FBI's 10 most wanted failed to appear on Canadian border agents' data bases, he said.
And the incident late last month at a crossing in Blaine, Wash., where Canadian officers stood down in the face of automatic weapons-toting border runners from the U.S. side, is far from the only case of emergency refusal.
Days later, reports that a young kidnapping suspect armed with an M-16 could be headed towards an Ontario crossing from Michigan had a similar effect, said Lupien.
Even if they'd stood their ground, their instructions are to allow the offenders through and call for police backup.
But in some sections along the vast, serpentine frontier strip, police can be hours away, says Lupien.
Nine police stations that could support their border brethren in Quebec were closed 11/2 years ago, he adds.
Unguarded roads crossing the international boundary number more than 200.
When the union complained about the lack of proper computer hookups in 45% of the 119 U.S.-Canada gateways, a dial-up system was supplied, said Lupien.
"The connections are so slow, they're useless," he says.
That, and the lack of intelligence, has prompted a number of embarrassing moments that at least ensure Canadian guards are on friendly terms with their U.S. counterparts.
"The guys call the U.S. customs across the border asking 'can you guys run this information through?' " says Lupien.
This is just ridiculous, and if true, some staffers should be getting a 'quiet' bill for the cost of a replacement Blackberry. It should be interesting to watch the Parliamentary reports to see how many Blackberries were lost or damaged this year. This, along with all the shredding going on both in Ottawa and at the local level, highlights the need for tighter rules regarding transition.
Top picks for Canada's posts By the end of last week, Liberal staffers had vacated their offices and handed back their BlackBerries — some quietly smashed theirs so the confidential messages and phone numbers wouldn't be given to the incoming government.
As for this:
There are whispers the Tories won't object if a parliamentary committee waters down some of the tough new rules, which only adds confusion to the party's official stance that the rules will stay as they were drafted.
Whispers? What, they couldn't even find an 'anonymous Conservative source' for this crap? I suggest the Star go back and watch the press conference when Stephen Harper announced the Federal Accountability act. It's very enlightening.
Sen. Feinstein's concerns and question in the following article related to the US/Mexico border, but National Intelligence Director Negroponte's answer is very telling.
What has Canada done to increase border security since 9/11? Very little, despite all the hype.
Hopefully the new Conservative government will give some serious consideration to Senator Colin Kenney's report, BORDERLINE INSECURE (pdf)
One important recommendation in the report is to reverse the priorities of border guards from being tax collectors first and guards second. Kenney advocates harmonizing the personal exemption with US levels by 2007 and from there, incremental increases up to $2000.00 by 2010.
In 2003/2004, duties collected totalled $98.5 million dollars. Are we willing to risk both the physical and economic security of Canada for the sake of worrying about what someone is buying in the US?
Sen. Dianne Feinstein yesterday asked the top U.S. intelligence official whether the U.S. border had become a "major gateway" for terrorists, citing a threefold increase in the number of non-Mexicans apprehended while seeking to illegally enter the United States.
The California Democrat posed the question during a hearing with National Intelligence Director John D. Negroponte and other heads of U.S. intelligence agencies, called to present their annual threat assessments to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
"Last year, Admiral [James] Loy and I discussed border security, particularly the increasing problem of penetration of other-than-Mexicans across our borders ... and I said at that time I felt it was a major gateway for terrorists to access the United States," she said. The retired admiral was the acting head of the Department of Homeland Security at the time.
"Do you have ongoing intelligence efforts to prevent this from happening? And is there any evidence up to this point that it is, in fact, happening?" she asked, noting that the number of apprehended non-Mexican aliens rose from 49,545 in 2003 to 155,000 last year.
Mr. Negroponte said the increase was "an issue that we're sensitive to," noting that although the U.S. border with Canada "has to some degree been of a bit greater concern than that with Mexico," the intelligence community was intent on watching the border "very, very carefully."
That one little comment from Negroponte speaks volumes. There is much work to be done. Time to get on with it.
Congratulations to Licia Corbella for saying what most Canadians journalists and columists are afraid to say. As for your new belief, that's a sucker bet that I wouldn't even take with David Dingwall's new found riches.
Gomery didn't finish job Millions remain mysteriously unaccounted for in Liberal AdScam By Licia Corbella
A couple of days ago, I was reminded of a bet I made and had conveniently forgotten about.
Bruce Hutton, leader of the Separation Party of Alberta, bet me way back in May that the Gomery report into the Liberal party's sponsorship scandal would be a whitewash.
I vehemently disagreed.
I said then Justice John Gomery was a diligent fellow who would leave politics out of his decision and would dig until he found the truth.
Needless to say, since I am a believer and supporter of Canada, Hutton and I disagreed on many other topics too.
Nevertheless, we agreed that the loser of this bet would have to buy the other person lunch.
Now I know questioning the impartiality of Gomery is bordering on sacrilege in Canada owing to his almost rock-star popularity.
Nevertheless, it's safe to say I owe Hutton lunch.
We should start a pool on the next "aberration" that will be discovered once the books are opened in Ottawa. Early money would be on the Auditor General's next report, but my cash goes here. Personally, I think it's going to make Adscam look like chump change.
I almost missed this announcement. I've never even heard of Hino before. Looks like we'll be hearing a lot more in the coming years. A little research on the company site reveals that they're even field testing medium size diesel electric hybrid trucks.
As Big 3 cities like Windsor and Oshawa bleed automotive manufacturing jobs, others are growing.
When was the last time the Big 3 built a greenfield plant in Canada?
The truck subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corp. will start assembling vehicles at a small plant in Woodstock before summer, industry sources say.
Hino Motor Sales has quietly acquired a site including an existing building in the southwestern Ontario city and is making preparations for production of light- and medium-duty trucks, sources confirmed yesterday.
Hino officials would not comment on any investment.
"There will be no official announcement made at this time," said Axel Breuer, vice-president of Mississauga-based Hino Motor Sales.
But sources familiar with Hino's plans say the company will likely announce the plant and production within the next few weeks.
The plant will initially employ between 40 and 60 workers.
Hino indicated last fall it would expand its operation in Long Beach, Calif., or build elsewhere in the U.S. or Canada to meet North American demand.
Instead, the company is transforming an existing industrial building in the south end of Woodstock near Highway 401 into an assembly plant at a cost of less than $15 million.
Hino will build only a few vehicles a day when it starts production but output will increase significantly within six months, according to sources.
One source would not estimate output but acknowledged it would be less than 40 a day at peak production in the first year. Production in the first year will primarily supply the Canadian market with little or no exporting to the U.S.
Major parts suppliers in southern Ontario and Japan will feed the plant.
Although the investment is not large, Gerald Fedchun, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association, said Japanese-based vehicle producers traditionally open small operations and gradually expand them over several years.
"They start off small but they always have a long-term view of life," said Fedchun.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada opened a small car assembly plant in nearby Cambridge in 1989 but has expanded significantly during the last 15 years.
It now produces the Corolla compact, Matrix cross-over model and the Lexus RX330 luxury sport utility vehicle.
Output at the Cambridge complex reached 305,966 vehicles last year.
Toyota is also building a second assembly operation in Oxford County near Woodstock at a cost of more than $1 billion.
of a Liberal regime fading into history. Should be interesting to see Brison, Stronach, McCallum and company explain this one. They were at the cabinet table for this one. Why was it not announced that the issue was going to binding arbitration? No privacy issues involved in announcing that fact.
OTTAWA, Feb. 4 /CNW Telbec/ - The Government of Canada today announced that, following binding arbitration, it has paid a compensation package to Mr. David Dingwall, former Master of the Royal Canadian Mint. The Government stated in October that it would pay Mr. Dingwall only that which is legally owed him. Since that amount could not be agreed to during negotiations, the Government agreed to submit the question of its legal obligations to an independent third party, in the interests of saving the time and money that legal proceedings could have entailed. The issue was placed before a highly respected independent arbitrator for determination. The Honourable George Adams was asked by both parties to rule on the following questions:
1) Was Mr. Dingwall's resignation voluntary or involuntary, having regard to all of the circumstances?
2) If the resignation was involuntary, what is the compensation, damages or terms of departure owing to Mr. Dingwall by Canada, having regard to all of the circumstances?
Mr. Adams has concluded that Mr. Dingwall's departure was involuntary and the Government has a legal obligation to pay him $417,780, as well as associated pension benefits. The binding award of the arbitrator has the force of a court order, and the Government has respected the decision. This amount is subject to the provisions of the Income Tax Act.
For further information: Privy Council Office, (613) 957-5168
OTTAWA – Prime Minister designate Stephen Harper issued the following statement today regarding the compensation package being paid to former Royal Canadian Mint president David Dingwall:
“After months of evasive answers in the House of Commons, we have now learned that David Dingwall’s departure from the Royal Canadian Mint was involuntary. This is contrary to the information given by the Liberal government. I am very disappointed that Parliament was misled on this matter. The public now has all the facts, and it will be the judge of the Liberals’ actions in this affair.”
-30-
For more information contact: Press office at (613) 947-2400
I've been trying to spend some time over the last while educating myself on the various opinions regarding the 'fiscal imbalance'. Navigating through the maze of equalization and trying to grasp the impact of a wide range of Federal-Provincial progams is enough to make someone reach for the extra-strength aspirin. One thing I noticed cropping up around the edges of my research was the effect of inter-provincial trade barriers on the ecomony and particularly on productivity.
The 1995 Agreement on Internal Trade was supposed to launch Canada on the path to removing internal barriers and help fashion the new 21st century economy. From what I can tell, subsequent reports have found that while many small issues have been resolved, there has been no real movement on the largest and most persistent barriers.
We rant and rave at the United States for Softwood lumber tariffs, all the while shoring up our own internal walls. One small example. In this post 9/11 world we still haven't managed to work out an agreement that would allow hundreds of doctors, nurses, engineers and other professionals to travel from one province or territory to another and provide assistance for an emergency.
I'll give the Premiers the benefit of the doubt and say that an imbalance does exist. Stephen Harper has acknowledged that there are issues to be discussed and has expressed his willingness to engage with the Provinces. My suggestion would be, in return for addressing issues of 'imbalance' between the Federal government and the Provinces, Harper should secure concrete commitments from the Premiers to finally resolve their own imbalances.
I'm sorry, but I wholeheartedly disagree with the Chief Justice. Starting with Justices of the Peace at the provincial level, the whole process is already highly politicized. Anyone who argues differently has their head so far buried in the sand they're bound to suffocate.
I think the process needs more scrutiny and openness in order to de-politicize it. I don't even begin to pretend to have the answer on how to do it, but surely our democracy can withstand a debate on the issue. Isn't that why we all trudge to the polls ever so often?
...McLachlin said that any changes that might give members of Parliament greater sway over senior court appointments could reduce Canadians' confidence that judicial decisions won't be influenced by politics.
"The courts are not just a mirror of Parliament and I think in order to preserve the public confidence in the impartiality of the courts, we should avoid politicizing" the appointment process, said McLachlin.
When I first blogged about Spanky, it was just a rumour on a local Windsor blog. I wasn't really putting much behind it.
Seems like Mr. Arditti's info might be pretty valid. Word around town is that Duncan is burning up the phone lines, seeing if it's possible to build an organization and raise the money.
I guess the thought of playing second fiddle to McGuinty doesn't appeal much to Duncan. When Sobara returns, Duncan will most likely get shuffled out of finance.
Supposed to be a big announcement for Windsor soon regarding a full fledged Medical school, and Duncan will be the one making it. Should help raise his profile, at least provincially.
Tim Horton's for the troops - Tims responds (en francais)
Seems like Tims received a few complaints on this issue and has decided to respond. If this article can be taken at face value, the ball in now in the Canadian Forces court. I guess we can start here:
Bill Mah, The Edmonton Journal; with files from National Post Published: Thursday, February 02, 2006
EDMONTON - Facing a public relations backlash that has hit it like a splash of scalding double-double, Tim Hortons says it would be willing to consider opening an outlet for Canadian troops in Afghanistan -- but there have been no discussions about doing so.
"If it were feasible and it could work -- this is a war zone -- we would try and look at doing something but it's never been requested," said Greg Skinner, a spokesman for the iconic doughnut shop chain.
Skinner was responding to a CanWest News Service story last week in which a Canadian Forces official said his agency was in negotiations with the chain to set up a franchise in Kandahar. But Skinner said there are no negotiations.
"It was just the comments from some guy on the ground in Kandahar and I'm sure troops do want Tim Hortons there, but he doesn't represent the Forces," Skinner said, referring to the comments made by Frank Cleyson, director of the Canadian Forces Personnel Support Agency for Task Force Afghanistan.
In last week's story, Skinner was quoted as saying he wasn't aware of discussions with the Canadian Forces, but said the company has turned down such offers in the past and was "focusing on opening in Canada and the U.S. only."
Enraged customers, who thought the company should be in Afghanistan, swore off their Timmies in letters to the editor, e-mails and telephoned complaints to company headquarters in Oakville, Ont.
Tim Hortons is responding to them all, saying the published report got it wrong.
"Tim Hortons unequivocally supports the Canadian Forces and our troops around the world," the company responds. " Up until today there has been no discussion between the forces and Tim Hortons head office about putting a store in Afghanistan."
Skinner said CANEX, the retail arm of the Canadian Forces, hasn't asked Tim Hortons to put a store in Afghanistan.
While the military and Tim Hortons have contacted each other to discuss the ensuing controversy, there are still no talks about opening a store in Kandahar, Skinner said.
More than 2,000 Canadian soldiers are being deployed in Afghanistan this month as part of an international security force fighting the Taliban.
Canadians have sent the company about 100 complaints on the issue -- a large number for such an issue, Skinner said.
"We understand the emotion behind it. We got instant feedback and we responded to every single call, e-mail or letter that's come in."
Tim Hortons stresses that CANEX operates six Tim Hortons stores on military bases across Canada and donates hundreds of kilograms of tinned coffee for troops at Christmas, and also sent additional shipments to Pakistan, areas hit by the 2004 tsunami and Afghanistan.
A CANEX spokesperson could not be reached for comment.
Lieut. Paul Pendergast, of the media liaison office at National Defence headquarters in Ottawa, said he was unaware of any plan to set up a Tim Hortons in Kandahar.
"We don't endorse one company over another or commercial product," he said.
What happened to 'working together'? (en francais)
This should be interesting to watch develop. If Senators Hays and Banks follow through with their tough talk, it may actually give the Conservatives the spark needed to begin the process of Senate reform. It may only be some small incremental reforms, but at least it's a start. The last vestiges of Liberal arrogance may yet again be the author of their downfall. Very fitting indeed.
Though not elected, the Liberal-dominated Senate can veto any legislation, including even a budget, sent up from the House of Commons.
This could fatally harm the new minority government, which has at most two years to prove Conservatives govern better.
The power of delay is now deadly, and Dan Hays and Tommy Banks intend to use it.
Hays, the new Opposition leader in the Senate, said on Wednesday he will represent the 15% of Albertans who voted Liberal.
That was seconded by Senator Banks.
"To be rude," he said, "you can't get rid of me. The prime minister can't get rid of me. That's the whole point of the Senate -- it's not subject to the whims of the day."
Superbowl fever continues in Windsor (en francais)
John Travolta was supposedly spotted at Erie St eatery last night.
Bon Jovi rumoured to be staying at Casino Windsor. The Stones, also at Casino Windsor, are said to have taken over the top two floors of the Casino Hotel.
Jim Kelly was spotted touring downtown Windsor, stopping to give autographs when asked.
Today's Windsor Star contains a few details about the 'super-secret' party in the old Armouries downtown. The inside has been turned into a chalet theme complete with murals and an actual mountain. Security is tight for the party said to be for 400 invited guests.
Allan Rock, Canada's ambassador to the United Nations, declared on Thursday he will not run for the leadership of the Liberal party.
The 58-year-old former cabinet minister under prime minister Jean Chretien said he and his family had concluded there were "many ways" in which he could serve Canada, suggesting he hoped to remain in his current position as Canada's chief representative at the world body.
Many political observers say that may be difficult, however, since the incoming Tory government is likely to consider his former political stripe a reason to remove him and put a Conservative or career diplomat in his place.
A Conservative gift for the Liberals (en francais)
Who says Conservatives don't have a sense of humour? From David Akin's blog, David Akin's On the Hill
Some political humour When they move out of the Parliament Hill offices reserved for Opposition politicians and their staffers, the Conservatives will leave the rooms completely empty except for the furniture and a small box of files. The small box of files will be left behind for the Liberals who will now occupy the Opposition benches.
Thankfully, all the crew are safe. Personally, I think these aircraft should be withdrawn from service. Although it would mean a degradation of capability for the Canadian Navy, what real capability do they offer right now?
Time to get creative. Lease aircraft for temporary use, borrow aircraft and aircrews from another Nato nation, complete with aircrews - anything but sending up our people in these flying coffins.
Five crew members have been rescued safely after a Canadian Forces Sea King helicopter went down in the North Sea Thursday afternoon.
The helicopter was ditched about 50 kilometres off the east coast of Denmark at about 1:34 p.m. EST, Jae Malana, a spokesperson with the Department of National Defence told CTV Newsnet.
The crew members were recovered safely and taken to HMCS Athabaskan, which serves as the base to the helicopter and its crew.
They have been examined and released by the ship's medical officer, and their families have been notified.
For those that haven't noticed as yet, BT has added a new feed - for the whole blogroll. Utilizing Andrew's new Squish application, all you have to do is copy the feed and drop it into your favourite RSS Reader. Basically, this will give you a feed of all the posts to the BT. This one feed has allowed me to do some serious house cleaning with my own reader.
I don't have Blogette's ...ah, how do you say it, unique flair. But on the other hand, she must be pulling her hair out not to be in Windsor this weekend.
It's only Thursday and we have Ben Affleck signing autographs at a local beer store while loading up.
The Stones are reportedly holed up at Casino Windsor.
Paris Hilton is rumoured to be crashing at her namesake Windsor Hitlon.
To round things off, Jimmy Kimmel has been spotted scoping out the local social and culture scene at various Windsor Ballet locations.
Numerous private parties are scheduled for Windsor hot-spots Thursday evening so there should be some good gossip for tomorrow.
I haven't really been following all the speculation and gossip on the Liberal leadership race in any great detail, but this piqued my curiosity. A friend of mine mentioned this blog entry to me and I just got around to checking it out today. One more for the mill.
The new Federal Liberal Leader-WindsorCityBlog I could list some others but in the end, there is only one person. From a "pathetic political meltdown," he re-established his career and was promoted to two of the toughest Cabinet jobs in Ontario: Minister of Energy and Finance. He would continue the Windsor political tradition of Paul Martin Sr. and Jr., Mark McGuigan and Herb Gray. As a friend of his told me, why the heck do you think he learned how to speak French---to be Premier of Ontario!
The man for the leadership of the Liberal Party and the next Prime Minister of Canada---is Windsor's own Spanky, Dwight Duncan!
I didn't start out to post on a theme with my last, but then I came across this letter to the editor in today's Windsor Star. I like the idea. I think it's a great example of how knowledge can still drive the economy, if it's not stifled.
With the announced closure of the Ford Casting Plant in Windsor, it is time to take serious action to replace those good jobs by stimulating other firms to grow their businesses and produce more good jobs. Minnesota is trying to do that by enacting a very simple measure intended to pry loose "unwanted" employee inventions, which can be extremely valuable in the right hands.
For example, just one unwanted employee invention (rejected by over 20 major firms), once pried loose, has spawned a huge $50-billion entirely new xerographic industry creating 500,000 good jobs. (Wall Street Journal May 23, 1989)
Most manufacturers exert awesome control over new inventions by claiming strict ownership of employee inventions, actually using only a tiny few and then scuttling the remaining unwanted inventions by "sitting on them" indefinitely.
This practice severely cripples our economic growth and urgently cries out reform. Remember, Henry Ford once vowed never to allow an expensive "self-starter" on any of his cars. Only good competition convinced him otherwise.
Minnesota has introduced a Creative Freedom Act which simply requires employers to make a serious investment in every employee invention (within, say, two years) or, to "return clear title" to the unwanted invention back to the creative employee for possible development elsewhere.
Other states and provinces are encouraged to do likewise in this global struggle for good jobs.
Blackberry users in the US breathing easier (en francais)
It probably doesn't hurt that about 2.2 million of the 3.2 million subscribers in the US are government related. Nobody's willing to go without, in the short term. RIM has slowly but surely winning this, but the legal costs must be staggering. Although it's as boring as watching paint dry, there are a lot of issues related to Intellectual Property tied up in this. I don't admit to even beginning to understand much of it yet, but I think it's something we should all be paying closer attention to, both nationally and internationally.
San Francisco (dpa) - Users of Blackberry mobile e-mail devices got some relief Wednesday when the company that makes the popular gadget scored two important victories in its legal battle against claims that it violated patents.
The company, Research In Motion, has been threatened with an injunction in the case filed in 2001 by NTP Inc, which claimed that the Blackberry violated its patent for a mobile e-mail device.
But a provisional ruling by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Wednesday said that the patent in question does not cover the Blackberry service and should be cancelled.
The U.S. Justice Department also urged the judge in the case to delay any shutdown of the service until it could ascertain how such a move would affect government communications.
Both decisions were seen as a powerful boost for Research in Motion. Its shares jumped 9 per cent in after-hours trading.
The decisions are expected to form the basis for a court ruling set for February 24 on whether the Blackberry service, which has 3.2 million subscribers in the U.S., should be shut down.
While Research in Motion welcomed the decisions, a spokesman for NTP said that the company would appeal.
"We're not rolling over on this and playing dead," NTP co-founder Don Stout told Bloomberg News, adding that that the company will appeal if the ruling becomes final. "This is going to be reversed."
An interesting piece in today's Globe and Mail (H/T to Jack's Newswatch). Given the current state of the Liberal's leadership woes, this might not be a bad option for them to persue. Most likely though, the Liberals would need to lose another election and the NDP lose some seats before either would even contemplate this option. Is Canada ready for a two party system?
Liberals and NDP should be courting The Liberals and NDP should start courting. What worked for the right could work for the left, historian says.
By KEN DEWAR
Wednesday, February 1, 2006 Posted at 2:15 AM EST
Special to Globe and Mail Update
It's time for a realignment on the Canadian political left.
After the breakup of the old Progressive Conservative Party in the aftermath of the Meech Lake accord, neo-conservatives based primarily in Alberta, and first led by Preston Manning, have succeeded in reconstituting the party in its present Conservative form. Try as many might like to downplay the significance of this, by calling attention to the party's failures in big-city Canada, or by finding hope in the inevitable moderating force of power, as distinct from opposition, the victory of an ideologically right-wing Conservative party is the great fact of national politics today. Meanwhile, there is fragmentation elsewhere on the political spectrum.
Microsoft releases IE 7 pre-Beta 2 Microsoft has publicly released what it is calling a Pre-Beta 2 version of Internet Explorer 7. Although dubbed a 'pre-Beta' it seems very stable and usable for the great majority of casual users.
The first thing that strikes you about IE 7 is that the interface is considerably slicker than IE 6 and sports the kind of interface we can expect from Windows Vista later this year.
Not only is the program interface changed, the graphics - and particularly the font rendering - appear vastly improved.
One feature that Firefox users will want to know is, what about the tabbed browsing? The tabs are there. New tabs can be accessed via a small blank tab or, as with Firefox, via Ctrl/T.
One dramatic new feature is 'quick tabs', which displays all the open windows as thumbnails in a separate window. Similarly there is a zoom tool that enables a user to see a page at between 10 per cent and 1,000 per cent, which is nice for those with big monitors able to view a whole page without a scroll. Similarly you can now shrink a web page so that if fits properly on a printer without cutting off the edges.
The new IE has its own search box built in, which is probably designed to make the popular toolbars redundant. To its credit, though, IE 7 did honour the fact that my default search engine is Google although it popped MSN search underneath just in case I felt like an alternative.
Another trumpeted feature is 'instant RSS feeds'. If a site offers an RSS feed, you simply click on the RSS button (design courtesy of Firefox) to display the feed from the site you are on.
Given the headaches that have accompanied IE 6, Microsoft has gone to some pains to improve the security of IE 7.
I don't think I'll be dumping Firefox anytime soon, but it's still worth a look. Warning: The Beta replaces IE 6 and you must have a valid copy of Windows to install. (the install package includes a Windows Validation check).
Probably one of the best places for info is on the IEBlog
We all have our up and down days and weeks when it comes to blogging. One of the reasons I started doing the Blogging Tories Site of the Week was to help highlight bloggers on the roll who might otherwise escape attention. The BT is blessed with some fantastic bloggers, although some with higher profiles than others.
| en francais | Go to Top|
