Senate Free Speech Inquiry

As I stated in my previous post that Senator Doug Finley has started an inquiry into the current state of free speech in our country. It is long over due. I applaud our Conservative Senators for tackling this very important issue that is the the basic root foundation of all freedoms. Freedom of speech is something that should be cherished and protected.

Ezra Levant has a link on his site where you can find the transcript of yesterdays debate in the Senate. I encourage everyone to go over there and have a look.

All Canadians take an interest in this issue because it affects everyone, young and old. It should be the top issue above everything else. Forget the staff members writing good things to media about their employer, temper tantrums at airports etc. The erosion of free speech is what the media should be focused on right now nevermind this other insignificant stuff. Thanks to David Akin, and Canada Free Press, they are about the only ones in the media so far has reported on the Senate Inquiry that started yesterday. I haven't noticed it anywhere else in the news media.

I sincerely hope more of the media will get on board and pay attention and report accurately on this Inquiry and pressure Minister Nicholson and all the parliamentarians to take action on the fight for free speech.

Let's take our freedom back. Let's rid the country of the censorship that has prevented Canadians to truly exercise their free speech and freedom of expression. It's up to us. Get behind our Conservative Senators who are taking up that mantle. Tell the other Senators where you stand on free speech and encourage them to take a stand against the censorship that's plaguing our nation. Contact your MP and encourage him or her to take action. Contact every news media source and encourage them to get on board.

It's in everyone's best interest!

Senator Finley Leads the Charge

Last week Anne Coulter, American conservative commentator was visiting our great land, and was prevented to speak at the University of Ottawa. The state of free speech in this country was highlighted by her visit.
Senator Doug Finley lead the charge today in ``the place of second sober thought.``to tackle the erosion of free speech and to make changes in the Canadian Human Rights Act. He calls for the section of Human Right`s Act that stifles free speech to be scrapped. Other Tory Senators also took up that torch.

OTTAWA — Senator Doug Finley led a call Tuesday to scrap a section of Canada's Human Rights Act that he and other Conservative senators say is being used to stifle free speech in Canada.

Finley was one of a quartet of Tory senators to lead a Senate inquiry into free speech rights in Canada, rights they felt had come under attack when the speech by a controversial American pundit at an Ottawa university was cancelled and again when a woman in Vancouver sued a comedian because she didn't like jokes aimed at her.

Senator Finley and Senator Duffy gave very good speeches. ht. Blazing Cat Fur

Senator Finley`s speech here.
Senator Duffy`s speech here.

I truly hope something comes of this. It`s way overdue. The CHRC kangaroo courts have gotten way out of control and they need to be reigned in.
My preference would be just to shut them down and send Jennifer Lynch, HRC Commissioner,and others packing. It`s encouraging to see the Conservative Senators take up this cause. I don`t know what happened to the parliamentary committee looking into the CHRC and their attacks on free speech. They need to get back to it and get something done on that front.
Minister Nicholson, please pay attention to your senators and many of us out in the public who really want action on that file. The sooner the better.

OUR FREEDOM IS STAKE! THE STAR CHAMBERS ARE OUT OF CONTROL!

UPDATE: Sen. David Tkachuk's here.

Is Ed Stelmach About to Face a Palace Coup?

It is no surprise that in the last the few months the support for the Ed Stelmach PC government has been plummeting with rise of the Wildrose Alliance Party whose support have been surging. There have been floor crossings from the PC's namely two disgruntled MLAs, Heather Forsyth of Calgary-Fish Creek and Rob Anderson of Airdrie-Chestermere.

Graham Thomson from the Edmonton Journal is writing about musings of a possible palace coup if the circumstances don't change for the better. There have been rumblings about all parties (with the exception of Wildrose Alliance), about who is going to lead in the next election two years away.

Ed Stelmach is the leader who has the most to worry about. Seems like some in the PC party really don't want to go into the next election with Ed Stelmach at the helm.

"There are mutterings that more than a few Conservative MLAs in Calgary and southern Alberta figure they'll lose the next election under Stelmach. Tacticians for the Wildrose are crunching numbers that point to a minority Wildrose government if an election were held today. A CTV/ Access poll released Monday indicates almost 52 per cent of respondents who identified themselves as Conservative say they are likely or somewhat likely to vote Wildrose next election.
The Conservatives apparently haven't been in this much trouble since they faced the Liberals led by Laurence Decore in 1993."

This from Highwood Riding Association Board. They are are not happy campers.

CALGARY - In a blistering, unprecedented letter to Premier Ed Stelmach, a key Progressive Conservative riding association says the party is "nearing the precipice of moral insolvency to govern."
The Highwood riding board charged that the Tory party "is bereft of policy, planning, execution, follow-through and communication to the members of the party, and, most importantly, to the citizens of Alberta."
Without a rebirth of grassroots participation, the letter says, "this party can expect no mercy from the electorate on the election day, which is just two short years away."

Yikes! That is tough! Times don't look so good when you have all this discontent and Riding Associations are saying things like that.

RELATED: Doesn't all this kind of remind you of the Federal Liberal Party right now? The divisions and discontentment? Will Mr. Iffy lead the Liberal Party of Canada into the next election?

UPDATE: It just keeps getting worse for Ed Stelmach. His brother-inlaw has just jumped ship and joined the Wildrose Alliance. It no doubt will cause tension with in the family.

Allan Warshawski, Marie Stelmach's brother, walked into the Wildrose founding meeting in Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville last Thursday and bought a membership.

That's Stelmach's own riding. Embarrassing!

File Your Tax Return Now

Yes, I know, even though we don't like it, it's that time of the year again when a taxpayer's thoughts turn to filing those pesky tax returns. The Globe has a good article why you should file asap. Makes sense to me.

"Having to tackle that dreaded pile of paperwork known as taxes at a time of year when the weather is practically pulling you outside seems sinful, so why not put it off for just another week?

With the April 30 filing deadline roughly a month away, the danger of procrastinating for too long is that you will cobble together a sloppy return and make a costly mistake, one that could ultimately leave you with less money in your pocket.
"When time is not on your side, you are in a rush," says Cleo Hamel, a senior tax analyst with H&R Block Canada. "If you owe money and don't pay on time, the panic is that you will have to pay a penalty."
Facing that kind of time pressure, most people will not take the time to find those medical receipts or the ones for their child's hockey lessons. "Most people just file what they have handy. Which means they are settling," Ms. Hamel said.
There are a number of child, home and spouse-related credits and deductions that you can potentially claim to trim your family's tax bill, but rest assured that Canada Revenue Agency is not going to point them out to you. It is up to you to make sure you are taking advantage of everything that you are rightfully allowed to claim.
Sadly, finding that medical or hockey lesson receipt three years later is not going to cut it. By then, it will be too late.
Ms. Hamel points out these common mistakes Canadians make when they file their taxes:
1 Receiving a refund means your tax return is correct.
Even though you may receive a refund cheque or deposit with all of the credits you claimed, the Canada Revenue Agency can ask you to provide receipts or documents to review your return. The review process tends to start in July with thousands of taxpayers receiving letters asking for more information. If you don't provide the information within the right time frame, the CRA will re-assess your return without the credit included, which usually results in a tax bill. Moving expenses and the tuition transfer credit are two of the most reviewed credits.
2 Procrastinating.
Waiting until the last minute to prepare your return usually results in a rush and a much higher probability that you will miss something. Even if you don't start preparing your return early, do review your slips and make sure you have everything ready to file. If you are missing a slip, this gives you time to search for it. Then set aside some time before April 30 to prepare your return so you have an opportunity to ask questions.
3 The Canada Revenue Agency will correct mistakes.
If you make a mistake declaring your income, the Canada Revenue Agency will certainly notify you of the error and any taxes owing. But if you miss a credit or deduction, do not assume they will correct your return. It is not the CRA's job to make sure you take advantage of the credits you are allowed to claim.
4 Carrying forward old receipts.
Taxpayers who find medical expenses or slips after they have filed their returns cannot just add it to the following year's tax return. You have to file a T-1 Adjustment to include the slip on your previous returns. You can go back up to 10 years to correct errors but adjustments have to be filed on paper and can take six to eight weeks to process. The only exception is charitable donation receipts, which can be combined for up to five years.
5 Income splitting.
Only certain taxpayers are allowed to split income on their tax returns. Business owners can split income with their family members if the family member works for the company and normally a person would have been hired to complete the work. Eligible pension income can be split but you must complete a Form 1032 and submit it with your tax return in order to claim it. Or if you are collecting Canada Pension Plan payments, you can split this income as well, under certain conditions, but you must apply to Service Canada.
6 Overpayment of CPP and EI.
If you have overpaid CPP and Employment Insurance during the tax year, you have to include Forms 2204 (CPP) and Form PD24 (EI) in order to make a claim. If you are using tax software, it will do this automatically. If you are completing your return manually, you need to make sure your forms are included in order to receive the credit. And there is a time limit for claiming the overpayments."

Those of you out there who haven't even looked at your returns, better get busy. That deadline will come faster than you think. Besides, if you do it now, you'll have that monkey off your back for another year. Plus if you have a refund coming, you'll receive it sooner. Isn't that an incentive? If you owe, just get it over with, the sooner the better.

My husband and I completed our returns last night and will be in the mail later today. Good luck, happy tax return filing, and I hope each of you end up with a refund!
Don't forget, the deadline to file is April 30, 2010

Liberals Hoping for The Easter Bunny

 That's the way Don Martin  describes the Liberal's weekend Thinkers Conference. He is not exactly known to be a Harper Conservative fan.  He rips the Liberals apart more or less stating that the weekend  was a failure. The speakers  were full of doom and gloom and offered unrealistic if not impossible solutions.

"Discussions at the Liberal’s three-day Deep Thinkers Summit were thoroughly depressing - which means the conference was successful as an academic exercise and a probable failure as the party’s political fix.
Straight-shooting speakers filled the hall with gloomy future scenarios and impossible solutions under hostile headlines like those generated by an attack on the lost, soul-less, conniving Liberal party from diplomat Robert Fowler, who tongue-lashed delegates into shocked silence on Sunday with a profoundly insightful, must-hear speech on Canada’s misguided foreign policy."
  

Then he goes on to report what other Liberals were whispering:

"As former New Brunswick premier Frank McKenna whispered to former prime minister Paul Martin halfway through debate on one of the intractable problems: "We’re f****d". Responded Mr. Martin: "The whole world is f****d."

 

He describes Mr. Iffy's closing speech as flat and that Mr. Iffy would freeze the corporate tax rates.

"His final speech Sunday was strangely flat and the top priority of Canadians -- jobs -- did not appear anywhere in the wrap-up news release, dwarfed by announcing a curious freeze on corporate income tax rates once they come into office."

 

Here comes the Easter Bunny comment: 

 "He even shrugged off that fiscally ruinous health care file by insisting it could be magically cured with better prevention, new technology and more home-care for the elderly. If he believes that, he should order the Easter bunny to deliver sugarless eggs this weekend as a national kickstart to obesity prevention."

 Here an  ouch from Martin:

 "But if many of the proposed Think Big answers are actually hammered into the party’s platform, the Liberals should be advised to Think Small in terms of seats in the next election."

So from gleaning what went on at the Libs  thinkers weekend,  I don't think Conservatives have too much to worry about. They just to need keep their noses to the grind, working hard, and getting positive things done for Canadians.

 Liberals can live in their fantasy world hoping and waiting for the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, a Fairy Godmother or whatever else to rescue them from the opposition wilderness to where they think they should be,(which they think is government)   Conservatives will continue to live in the real world bringing realistic pragmatic approaches that will  help to solve the problems that we are facing.

The Great Reneger

James Travers Laments His Precious Liberals

It seems James Travers is  frustrated that his Liberals just can't seem to make any headway into kicking those evil Conservative bums out.  Looks like he's pining for for good ole days when Liberals were in power stealing our money and taking us for fools.

 MONTREAL-A messiah complex haunts the federal Liberal party. Lost in the shadows of its giants, Liberals can't move beyond past successes to fix current failures or find their future.

A year ago, Liberals thought they saw in Michael Ignatieff some of the greatness of Wilfrid Laurier, Lester Pearson and, most hopefully, Pierre Trudeau. Now they are here this weekend, as well as at satellite meetings around the country, hoping that "thinkers" can deliver the substance and vision the party carelessly assumed the new leader was dragging home from away.
The Liberal problem is not that it's now a shell of the clever party Laurier, Pearson and Trudeau left behind. It's not even that the political machine that carried Jean Chrétien to three consecutive majorities is now a clunker. No, the party's problem is that it can't decide what it means to be progressive in the 21st century or remember how to win elections.

Boo Hoo Hoo!
...................................................

"None of that softens the hard truth delivered unvarnished by a former Liberal cabinet minister: The Liberal brand is badly damaged and may not sustain another hit.
 ...................................................
  
Sensing the dangers, Liberals are now looking for something to carry them through the next election while they wait for the next messiah. Instead, they should be searching their souls for who they are and what, if anything, they believe.

  Better do something quick!  The Conservatives just might become the Natural Governing Party! Wouldn't that be terrible?


  He seems almost afraid that the Libs are almost done for and won't be back in office for a long, long, long,time.
 Yes, James the world is going to come to an end if your precious Liberals are not returned to power soon.
Cry me a river!

The Liberals How to Get Back Into Power Quick Conference

Former Liberal boss, admitted as much yesterday. That is the main objective of this so called "Thinkers Conference," how to get back into power as quickly as possible so we can get our sticky little fingers on taxpayer money again. Dream up all kinds of schemes like the Gun Registry, some kind of Adscam scheme, National Daycare program etc.


"Did they get the urgency of public investments in education? How will they react this morning if, as is likely, former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge tells them that higher taxes are needed? Will Liberals understand that they are kidding themselves (and the country) if they think even half of their lofty policy ambitions can be realized without more public revenues, which means higher taxes? " Jeffery Simpson


"Chrétien said, "there were a lot of them (good ideas) but to make sure we win the next election, I think."

He added, "We can't re-invent the wheel," and that the 1991 conference was just a component of his success...and that the main thing is to do everything right."



If they want to do something right, they should apologize for stealing our money through Adscam and pay back the $40 million plus they owe us.

Don Martin I think sums it up real nicely.

"Liberals bring out the dead in search of new life"

"A gathering dominated by white-skinned, grey-haired Liberals, an audience along the lines of old Canadian Alliance conventions, is charged with forging policy for a Canada where visible minorities are about to become the majority.

And how can the conference juggle the challenge of retiring baby boomers about to crush the shoulders of the next generation when the advancing age of these attendees is the demographic problem and not the solution?

Perhaps one shouldn't be cynical. There are Big Brains here who, potentially, have enough IQ to think big outside of their age group or income bracket.

Still, I'd bet 90 per cent of those in this audience think a double-double is four shots of single malt Scotch and not a Tim Hortons coffee order. And that disconnect makes dreaming up big ideas for the average voters a huge challenge"

Don't you see? All they care about is getting back into power and their fingers into the public purse. Don't think voters are going buy it this time. I think the public is seeing the Liberals for what they are, their arrogance, the attitude of entitlement. They are power hungry, nothing more. They don't care about the country, they only care about themselves.

So promise all these big ticketed lofty programs without any thought how to pay for them in a time of growing deficit and debt in order to buy votes to gain power.
Then continue like they did before skimming off taxpayer money to do whatever with our money for themselves. Try to sow division within the CPC (which they tried to with the abortion issue last week and it backfired on them) to get back to the public purse.

Not going to work. This time the Conservatives are united, well funded, are although not perfect by any stretch, are doing a good job governing. They have taken us through a bad recession fairly well and now we are recovering nicely.

To top is off, Stephen Harper is no, Joe Clark, Robert Stanfield, Preston Manning or Stockwell Day (although I think Manning and Day unjustly got a bad rap from the Liberal war room and the media.) the whole hidden agenda, Bible thumping theocratic, Neanderthal image etc. is just old now and doesn't work anymore. Look what happened last week. Liberals defeated their own motion requiring the government to include abortions for the enhancement of Mothers and children's health program in the developing world in the up and coming G8 and G20 summits. I wouldn't be surprised if they try and dredge the abortion issue up again in the next campaign.

I know, this is the time of year we think about a resurrection but it's not the resurrection of the Liberal party even though they think of themselves as our Lord and Saviour.

My Take on the Latest EKOS Poll

I usually don't take much stock in political opinion polls. They can easily be biased and manipulated. They don't really mean that much especially outside a writ period. None the less, they're still fun to look at.

The latest poll came out this morning from EKOS who does polling for the taxpayer funded CBC. EKOS tends to be liberal leaning so I usually don't pay much attention to them but I thought maybe this time I would take a closer look at this one.

CBC's headline says it all. This poll shows the Liberals numbers losing support, CPC edging upward, and the NDP more or less stagnant. The Liberals are probably not happy but then again they're never really happy unless they're in power.

Tories remain favourites in new poll

"The Conservative Party remains the political favourite and an increasing number of Canadians are happy with the country's direction, a new poll suggests." CBC


Anyway let's take a look the poll


HIGHLIGHTS
• National federal vote intention:
¤ 33.3% CPC
¤ 27.7% LPC
¤ 15.9% NDP
¤ 10.4% Green
¤ 9.8% BQ
¤ 2.3% other

• Direction of government:
¤ 47% right direction
¤
42% wrong direction ¤ 11% do not know/no response. Click image to enlarge



If you notice, we are competitive in the city of Toronto. EKOS politics Click image below to enlarge.
Also take note the last day of polling before the Liberal motion fiasco.-CBC ekos pdf.


Final day of polling (Mar 23rd) CPC: 35.4%, LPC: 25.9%, NDP: 16.7%, BQ: 10.4%, GPC: 9.1% (MoE of 4.56)


Click image to enlarge

To top it all, you have the Toronto Star, usually Liberal cheerleaders, have two negative pieces in today's paper. One from the biggest cheerleader from the Star, James Travers. That is not good news for the Libs when their most avid media supporters start to turn against them.

Seems like things aren't going too well for the Libs right now. With the fiasco the other day regarding the Libs defeating their own motion, they really need to get their act together. They are the gang who couldn't shoot straight. They can take their time doing it as far as I'm concerned.

Serial Killer, Clifford Olson Pension Update

There has been a development since this previous post about serial child killer, Clifford Olson receiving pension.

Minister Diane Finlay stated she was "disturbed" when she found out about this. The federal government has now decided to cut off his pension and others like him. Good news. I hope they can also collect retroactively the monies those inmates have previously received.

OTTAWA — The Conservative government is promising to cut off monthly old-age security payments to hundreds of federal prison inmates, including infamous serial killer Clifford Olson.
Greg Weston

I think inmates should also have their right to vote taken away too. IMHO you give up your rights when you are convicted of a crime and are incarcerated.

Child and Family Services Czar Takes the Fall

Alberta Child and Family Services CEO tendered his resignation yesterday amid controversy of a leak stating that there would be funding cuts to foster parents when Minister Yvonne Fritz said there would be none.

A high-ranking official with the Edmonton and Area Child and Family Services Authority has resigned.

It comes just two days after Children and Youth Services Minister Yvonne Fritz was forced to apologize to foster parents, who were told at a meeting with CFS staff that their funding would be cut.

Fritz has said department staff were told just two weeks earlier there would be no cuts.

Fritz on Wednesday said Rick Semel, CEO of the Edmonton and Area Child and Family Services Authority has resigned.

"The CEO for Region 6 did tender his resignation today — and that was accepted," she said.

Fritz downplayed any concern the position will be tough to fill, considering recent controversies in the department.

"The normal process will be followed by the human resources department in posting that there's a new position available in the region for a CEO and that will take place in due course."

On Monday, the New Democrats released copies of a slideshow presentation that was shown to some Edmonton-area foster parents during a meeting late last week.

The meeting was hosted by the Edmonton Child and Family Services Authority.

The slides outlined a formula that would have capped funding for special needs children at $100 per day.

Funding would gradually be scaled back until it met the cap, according to the presentation material.

The cap was to be implemented April 1 — before it was reversed by the minister.

Fritz has stressed there will be no cuts. She said the budget has, in fact, been increased this year by $910,000.

Premier Ed Stelmach has been critical of the NDP for going public with the information, saying instead the discrepancy should have immediately been brought to the attention of the department. Edmonton Sun

Typical of the Ed Stelmach government. I think they have mastered Bungling 101. They go around like they don't quite know what they're doing half the time. It seems like they're making it up as they go. No wonder Albertans are disenchanted with this government.

Oh and even though I think the NDs are loons most of the time, don't blame them this time!

Mr. Semel takes the fall for the Minister. Nice. No direct accountability from her. Well, sorry, Minister Fritz, it is you who should resign not Mr. Semel. Children and Family Services is your department therefore you are responsible for whatever goes on there. The buck stops with you!

Another thing, Minister, did Mr. Semel resign on his own or was he forced to resign? Let us know, will ya?

Something in Quebec I Finally Agree With

There's almost nothing I agree on with Quebec but on this one I do. Quebec has just tabled a bill that requires ladies to show their faces when seeking government services.

MONTREAL—Muslim women will need to uncover their faces from now on if they want to deal with the Quebec government, according to landmark legislation tabled Wednesday in the province.

Megyn Kelly,Foxnews vs Toronto Columnist Re: Anne Coulter

Megyn Kelly from Foxnews takes on Susan G. Cole from Toronto Now tabloid magazine. Cole says Coulter got what she deserves. Megyn did a very good job challenging her earlier today.

Watch here

What's with Mr. Iffy's Fixation with Abortion?

What's with Mr. Iffy's fixation with abortion? Kelly McParland questions his fixation too. He muses about how the Liberals tout themselves as the party of abortion. Didn't end up to wonderful for the anointed leader when some of his own MPs voted against their own motion. It was intended to be a trap for the Conservatives to bring out the so called divisions in the CPC but it ended doing the exact opposite. It brought out the divisions in the Liberal party.

And I really don't get the apparent determination of the Liberals to identify themselves as the party of Big Abortion. They've been on this kick for weeks now, culminating in Tuesday's revolt by Liberal MPs against the party leadership. When Michael Ignatieff first suggested the Tories were slagging off women by not energetically encouraging abortion in developing countries, I figured it was just another misstep by a surprisingly accident-prone leader. I thought he'd quickly be apprised of his mistake, and shut up about it. But no. He kept it up, apparently convinced there are votes to be had by raising the one issue guaranteed to make a large segment of the population decidedly uncomfortable.

The latest post in Jane Tabor's blog tells the story.

Michael Ignatieff surveys damage in Liberal 'clown city'

Free Speech in Canada, Oh Really?

If this is an example of free speech in Canada, it's truly pathetic. Seems like free speech is only for the left, gays, etc. and not for conservatives, Christians etc. Anne Coulter had to cancel her speech last night at the University of Ottawa because of threats to her personal safety.

OTTAWA — After protesters at the University of Ottawa prevented Ann Coulter from giving a speech on Tuesday night, the American conservative writer said it proved the point she came to make — free speech in Canada leaves much to be desired.

...................................................................

In a short speech, Levant said Tuesday was “an embarrassing day for the University of Ottawa and their student body, who could not debate Ann Coulter . . . who chose to silence her through threats and intimidation, just like their vice-president did.”

Mr. Levant laid the blame squarely on Mr. Houle.

“A fish rots from the head down,” he said. “Francois Houle got his wish. He telegraphed to the community that the University of Ottawa is not a place for free debate.”

Houle could not be reached for comment on Tuesday night.

Levant said the spectacle showed “just how eroded our Canadian values of free speech have become” — especially on university campuses.

“I think this has turned into a teaching moment for the entire country, a reminder that freedom of speech is a Canadian value,” he said.

Truly shameful. It scares me to death to think that these students are our future leaders and journalists.

Anne Coulter has hired Ezra Levant to prepare a complaint that will be presented the Human Rights Commission. Good for Anne. She has an excellent advocate in Ezra. I wish her the best.

Right-wing firebrand Ann Coulter, who was forced to cancel her speech to the University of Ottawa Tuesday night over fears for her safety, says she’s the victim of a hate crime under Canadian laws.

She said she’s hired Canadian conservative activist Ezra Levant to prepare a human-rights complaint that will test how equitably these hate-crime laws are applied.

Update:

Lorne Gunter on hate speech.

Why Does This Serial Killer Get Pension?

It has been pointed out by Peter Worthington that serial killer Clifford Olson is getting OAS, (Old Age Security), GIS (supplement) and other income while incarcerated for murdering 11 children in the '80s. Why?

What has he done to earn it? What does he need it for? It just doesn't make sense to me.
Inmates are already taken care of by the taxpayer. Why should these clowns receive pension when a lot of law abiding seniors are struggling to make ends meet? He does not deserve it! He is a murderer!

Law abiding pensioners should be outraged. This system desperately needs to be changed. Take his pension and other inmates like him, their pensions away too and give it to those pensioners who have worked hard all their lives, obeyed the law and stayed out of trouble.

Makes you wonder who the idiots were who mandated that these clowns are entitled to this in the first place. Insanity if you ask me!

Here is Olson's body trail,

On Jan. 14, 1982, Clifford Olson was sentenced to 11 consecutive 25-year sentences for the murders of 11 young people in British Columbia:

1. November 1980 — Christine Anne Weller, 12: Weller’s stabbed body was found along the Fraser River in Richmond, B.C. on Christmas Day.

2. April 1981 — Colleen Marian Daignault, 13: Daignault was picked up by Olson while waiting for a bus in North Delta. Her skeletal remains were found in a forest Sept. 17.

3. April 1981 — Daryn Todd Johnsrude, 16: Johnsrude was visiting the West Coast from Saskatchewan when he vanished. His bludgeoned body was found May 2, 1981.

4. May 1981 — Sandra Lynn Wolfsteiner, 16: Olson had been married just four days when he picked up Wolfsteiner while hitchhiking.

5. June 1981 — Ada Anita Court, 13: After babysitting, Court caught a bus to meet her boyfriend and vanished.

6. July 1981 — Simon Patrick Partington, 9: The disappearance of Partington while riding his bike marked a turning point in the investigation of missing children in the area.

7. July 1981 — Judy Elizabeth Kozma, 14: Olson fed Kozma alcohol and pills before killing her. H

8. July 1981 — Raymond Lawrence King, 15: Olson lured King with the promise of work before bludgeoning the boy’s head with rocks.

9. July 1981 — Sigrun Charlotte Arndt, 18: She was a student visiting from Germany.

10. July 1981 — Terri Lynn Carson, 15: Olson gave Carson a ride and a drug-laced drink before strangling her.

11. July 1981 — Louise Marie Chartrand, 17: Olson killed his last known victim, Chartrand, who had moved from Quebec

Isn't this just infuriating? Well, I guess this is Canada for ya!

Oh, Oh, Libs Not Gonna Be Happy About This

This latest news on the economy is not going to go over very well with the Libs. What are they going to do? They were counting on the economy worsening as a catalyst to get back into power.

Maybe that's why they're resorting to faux scandals, and smears in hopes something will stick to those evil Conservatives and then Canadians will fall in love with the Libs again. I think they're going to have a harder time endearing themselves to the voters than they think.

Expect more and more of the made up scandals and smear to come as they and their cheerleader MSM get more and more desperate.

"A string of stronger-than-expected reports are prompting some economists to revisit their forecasts for the strength of the recovery Some are now pencilling in higher forecasts after recent reports showed strength in manufacturing and wholesale trade, while retail sales continue to climb.

Bank of Montreal for example, boosted its forecast for Canada's first-quarter gross domestic product by a full percentage point, to 4.7 per cent from its earlier expectation of 3.7 per cent. It now believes the economy will grow 3.2 per cent this year, rather than the 3 per cent it had previously predicted." Globe and Mail

Further proof Canada is in good hands with PM Harper and his government.

Paralypmics a Huge Success!

Not only was the regular Olympics a big success, the Paralypmics turned out to a huge success as well. They're touted "The Best Games Ever" The patriotism felt at the Olympics carried over to the Paralympics too.


WHISTLER — The 2010 Paralympics, breaking new records in attendance and visibility around the world, closed out in a flash of colour and patriotism Sunday night as athletes from around the world gathered under a basketball court-sized Canadian flag and wished the Games goodbye.

________________________


John Furlong, the president of the Vancouver Organizing Committee, left the ceremony halfway through to catch a flight to Georgia, where he is attending a memorial for Nodar Kumaritashvili, the luge athlete killed Feb. 12 in a training accident.

But before he left, he told the cheering crowds that the Paralympic and Olympic Games had ignited a country.

"We now know that sport success is in our nation’s highest interest; that through sport we are a stronger nation, a better nation," he said. "We found something special here in British Columbia. And while the world noticed our patriotic celebration and excitement, we at Vancouver 2010 felt it." Vancouver Sun

Congratulations to all for putting on great games, both Paralympics and Olympics!

Lib MP's Not Welcome

At least from their Great Anointed Leader Mr. Iffy, Michael Ignatieff. They have not been invited to attend the great Thinkers Conference this weekend. They have been told to stay home.
Mr. Iffy must think his caucus are not smart enough, not good enough to attend in this great event in the presence of great deep thinkers to think deep thoughts. What about the grassroot Liberals, where do they fit in? Do they get to have any input?

I know I wouldn't want to be part of a party that ignores the grassroots, keeps party MP's from an important event like this that is supposed to be developing policy to take the party into the next election and beyond.

Federal Liberals will set aside shallow politics later this week to engage in Deep Thinking as they ponder the prospect of Canada turning 150 in 2017 under what they hope will be Liberal rule.

But guess who's not invited to the high-profile think-tank in Montreal to envision the country's future? Incredibly, that would be Liberal MPs.

The entire caucus, except for leader Michael Ignatieff and chinwag co-chairman Mauril Belanger, have been told to stay in their ridings for this seminal party event, limiting their participation to Internet video linkages with the conference floor Don Martin

Me thinks there is not going to a whole lot of any substance come out this event anyway.

D-Day For America-Re:Obamacare

This is the day American lawmakers vote on a Healthcare bill that will destroy their country.
The people don't want it, nearly half of the nation's doctors will quit if passed. Even President Obama's own cousin, a doctor is against it. See here at BLY. ClimbingoutoftheDark explains the whole thing nicely.

Phone lines have been jammed with constituents trying to contact their representives, urging them not to pass this bill. There have been rallies on Capital Hill and all over the country to oppose it. It will hurt business owners and employers.

Seems like the White House, the majority Democrat Senate and House leaders, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid still want to ram it through anyway with no regards of who it would hurt or how much it would cost.

This sums it up quite accurately and nicely.



So I implore all those US lawmakers voting on this today,please vote no. Your republic is at stake. Don't go the way we have, you'll regret it. It eats up about 40% of our budgets, provincial and federal each year and will only get worse as time goes by. Government run socialized healthcare DOES NOT WORK!

I appeal to all of our Canadian lawmakers, it's time to reform our system as it's unsustainable and broken. Give us more freedom and choice. Allow us to make our own decisions when it comes to the most important aspect of our lives, the health of our families and ourselves.
Someone please with the guts speak out and at least start the conversation.

British Hypocrisy

Remember the Brits were on our case about "Own the Podium?" Well now they're gonna copy the "Own the Podium" plan. They hope emulate it for the Summer Olympics in London 2012.

Britain is officially eating crow just a month after its sportswriters' unrestrained trashing of the Vancouver Games and Canada's controversial Own the Podium program for Olympic athletes.

The head of UK Sport - the funding body for elite British athletes and a key player in preparing for the 2012 Summer Games in London - says his country will emulate Own the Podium in a bid to match Canada's record-setting, host-nation performance at Vancouver.

"At first a lot of people were critical of Canada's Own the Podium program, saying that it wasn't very sporting, and it had some bad press," UK Sport chief executive John Steele told a media briefing last week as Britain unveiled its medal projections for the 2012 Games. National Post

So now after trashing us, they see it was a success. and want to do it too. Go figure!

With all that said, I really do wish them well.

Distortions of the Liberals and Their Media

We all know the majority of Lame stream media torques and skewers the stories and accusations that the Liberals make about the Conservatives. It has of late become over the top and some, I feel has crossed the line. They too quickly jump on the bandwagon about any thing that would embarrass the government and blow it way out of proportion.

The faux scandals and personal smears have become unacceptable. Sure the government and goverment members do some bonehead things sometimes but put it in proportion to the big scheme of things, please.

Canada Free Press tells it like it is.

Disgraceful Liberals lie and distort

It doesn’t matter whether it is the CBC stable of talking heads, the Toronto Star or its subsidiaries and their editorialists or the many journalists so familiar to us all that it makes one sick when they appear on virtually every panel or newscast.. These talking know-it-all types dominate the mass Lib-left “news” across Canada. Their ratio of anti-Harper and anti-Conservative rhetoric is 20 to 1 against. It is a disgusting fact of Canada’s unbalanced and distorted mass media. Since when have this incestuous cabal of the left acquired their self-centered egoistic assumption that they alone and their associates have the sole right to interpret the “news” and manipulate the public regardless of the damage they do to Canada’s societal, legal and political health.

The Canadian media set-up is such that we are so dominated with obfuscations and distortions that our country is horribly sick as a result. How can a society of predominately young people, fixated on music, clothes, personal appearance, twitters and Facebook, I-pods and fixed to the ear cell-phones ever hope to be other than manipulated.

Our Lame stream media and the Liberals should hang their heads in shame! What a disgrace!
Bring on Foxnews Canada! Fair and balanced reporting.

Is Polling a Dark Art?

Almost every other day we have a new poll trotted out for this or that. Most polls are political opinion polls. They are to gauge where the public is in thinking as far as voting intentions are and how they feel about their leaders.

I thinks polls namely political polls out of a writ period should be taken as a grain of salt. For the most part polls can be and are manipulated to obtain a certain result.

Alec Bruce points this out in this article.

The Dark Art of Polling

"So, it comes down to this: A poll, which is internally inconsistent, tells us exactly how we feel about the leaders we have elected and about whom we are profoundly ambivalent. We might as well hire plumbers to fix our leaky basements when the spring freshet corrodes our foundations and irrigates our nightmares with visions of greed, avarice and dissolution.

But, of course, this is what most polling is about. No company which masters this dark art practices it for free. There is always a "client" looking for an angle. And there's always a pollster willing to oblige."

Polls can be fun but don't take them seriously and make a big deal of them like the MSM likes to do. Particularly out of a writ period. The public simply doesn't pay attention until a writ is dropped and sometimes an individual can lie to a pollster therefore skewing the poll.


"Polls are for dogs." - former, Canadian Prime Minister, John Diefenbaker.

Stelmach Government to Fight Back

It's about time. The Stelmach government is about to launch a campaign to fight back at the propaganda that has demonized the oilsands. Energy Minister Ron Liepert pointed that out at a luncheon.

Alberta Energy Minister Ron Leipert has told a Calgary Chamber of Commerce luncheon, the province will roll out a number of information campaigns to fight what he calls propaganda about Alberta's oilsands.

Money will be spent to fight "well funded" international environmental groups who are against the oilsands.

Leipert says people living in Ontario and Quebec need to be informed of the amount of business those provinces' manufacturing sectors receive from our energy industry.

"There is not a lot of product that goes into the construction of the oilsands that comes from Alberta. A lot of it is manufactured in Ontario and Quebec" said Liepert.

He adds the campaigns will also teach students in Alberta about the role the oilsands play in our province.

What I say to the Premier and the Energy Minister is what took ya so long?

PremierEd, you need to call Premier Charest out. He personally attacked our oilsands last December at Copenhagen saying Alberta is the problem, the "dirty tarsands" are the problem. We're evil. Charest touts their hydro-electricity in Quebec as being clean. Well maybe not.

Hydropower Doesn't Count as Clean Energy

Hydro-Québec, the world's biggest producer of hydropower, claims that "compared with other generating options, hydropower emits very little greenhouse gas," thus "contributing significantly to the fight against climate change."

Maybe not. Recent reports on methane emissions suggest that dams are anything but carbon-neutral. According to recently published estimates from Ivan Lima and some of his colleagues at Brazil's National Institute for Space Research, the world's 52,000 largest dams release 104 million metric tons of methane annually. If Lima's calculations are correct, then dams would account for about four percent of the total warming impact of human activities -- and would constitute the largest single source of human-related methane emissions

So there you go. It seems Charest is a hypocrite for demonizing the oil sands when turns out his own hydro-power might not be so clean after all.

Why have we not heard a lot about this in the media? (I had to do some digging.) Oh,yea, it's not Alberta!

Also Premier Ed, tell Greenpeace, Sierra Club, and every other enviro-nazi club etc. to go fly a kite! Educate students on how they have been lied to by the likes of Al Gore and David Suzuki.

While your at it, grab the Euroweeines by the collar and set em straight. That OUR OILSANDS ARE CLEAN!

We Albertans will no longer stand back and allow ourselves to be beat up uninformed Gaia worshiping wingnuts!

Happy St. Patricks Day!

I am not Irish but I would like to wish everyone, especially of Irish descent, Happy St. Patrick's Day! Here is brief history of St. Patrick.

St Patrick is known as the patron saint of Ireland True, he was not a born Irish. But he has become an integral part of the Irish heritage, mostly through his service across Ireland of the 5th century.

Patrick was born in the later half of the 4th century AD. There are differing views about the exact year and place of his birth. According to one school of opinion, he was born about 390 A.D., while the other school says it is about 373 AD. Again, his birth place is said to be in either Scotland or Roman England. His real name was probably Maewyn Succat. Though Patricius was his Romanicized name, he was later came to be familiar as Patrick.

Patrick was the son of Calpurnius, a Roman-British army officer. He was growing up as naturally as other kids in Britain. However, one day a band of pirates landed in south Wales and kidnapped this boy along with many others. Then they sold him into slavery in Ireland. The was there for 6 years, mostly imprisoned. This was when changes came to him. He dreamed of having seen God. Legend says, he was then dictated by God to escape with a getaway ship.

Finally, he did escape and went to Britain. And then to France. There he joined a monastery and studied under St. Germain, the bishop of Auxerre. He spent around 12 years in training. And when he became a bishop he dreamed that the Irish were calling him back to Ireland to tell them about God. The Confessio, Patrick's spiritual autobiography, is the most important document regarding this. It tells of a dream after his return to Britain, in which one Victoricus delivered him a letter headed "The Voice of the Irish."

So he set out for Ireland with the Pope's blessings. There he converted the Gaelic Irish, who were then mostly Pagans, to Christianity. He was confident in the Lord, he journeyed far and wide, baptizing and confirming with untiring zeal. And, in a diplomatic fashion he brought gifts to a kinglet here and a lawgiver there,but accepted none from any.

Indeed, Patrick was quite successful at winning converts. Through active preaching, he made important converts even among the royal families. And this fact upset the Celtic Druids. Patrick was arrested several times,but escaped each time. For 20 years he had traveled throughout Ireland, establishing monasteries across the country. He also set up schools and churches which would aid him in his conversion. He developed a native clergy, fostered the growth of monasticism, established dioceses, and held church councils.

Patrick's doctrine is considered orthodox and has been interpreted as anti-Pelagian. Although he is not particularly noted as a man of learning, a few of his writings remain extant: his Confession, a reply to his detractors, and several letters. The Lorica ("Breastplate"), a famous hymn attributed to Patrick, may date to a later period. By the end of the 7th century Patrick had become a legendary figure, and the legends have continued to grow since then. There are many legends associated with St Patrick. It is said that he used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the concept of the Trinity; which refers to the combination of Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. Hence its strong association with his day and name Legend also has that, Saint Patrick had put the curse of God on venomous snakes in Ireland. And he drove all the snakes into the sea where they drowned.

True, these are mostly legends. But, after some 1500 years, these legends have been inseparably combined with the facts. And together they have helped us know much about the Saint and the spirit behind celebration of the day. Patrick's mission in Ireland lasted for over 20 years. He died on March 17, AD 461. That day has been commemorated as St. Patrick's Day ever since. The day's spirit is to celebrate the universal baptization of Ireland. Though originally a Catholic holy day, St. Patrick's Day has evolved into more of a secular holiday. Or, rather, 'be an Irish Day '. And the Irish has borne it as part of their national tradition in everywhere they populated and prospered. The Catholic feast day for this most loved of Irish saints has become a holiday in celebration of the Irish and Irish culture. The leprechaun, a Celtic fairy, has become entrenched as a chief symbol for this holiday, as is the shamrock, an ancient symbol for the triple goddess Brigit. It is fitting that this holiday should fall at the time of the year when the return of spring begins to seem at hand. But why the icons like the green color, the tri-leafed shamrock, the leprechaun, or the pot of gold and Blarney's stone- all came to be associated with the celebration of this Day? And what do they all mean?

As we wear something green, drink our green beer and celebrating, let's take a moment to reflect who St. Patrick really was.

"May you be in Heaven a full half hour before the Devil knows you're dead"
HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

This is Harper's Fault

It's gotta be Harper's fault, the recovery is taking hold.

January wholesale trade leap confirms recovery

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian wholesale trade jumped by a much greater-than-expected 3.0 percent in January from December, providing more proof that the recovery is well underway, Statistics Canada data indicated on Wednesday.

The increase, the strongest since the 5.0 percent leap recorded in December 2006, was far larger than the 0.5 percent rise forecast by market operators. Statscan revised December's month-on-month growth to 0.9 percent from an initial 0.7 percent.

In terms of volume of sales, January wholesale trade was up 2.9 percent from December. All seven sectors posted advances.

The building materials sector advanced by 4.2 percent on the back of a 5.8 percent increase in housing starts in January from December. The government says it is closely watching the housing sector but has not seen any signs of a bubble so far.

The automotive products sector grew by 4.8 percent in January on a 6.1 percent rise in the sales of motor vehicles, while the machinery and electronic equipment sector was up by 2.6 percent. Wholesale inventories fell by 1.1 percent from December, the 11th consecutive monthly decline.

The TSX closed yesterday at an 18 month high.

Canada's benchmark stock index yesterday posted its highest close since late September 2008, or nearly 18 months, and the third day in a row that it has ended above 12,000.

The S&P/TSX composite finished up 0.7%, or 80.60 points, at 12,089.40, the highest level since before the start of the financial crisis. The Venture composite index rose 17.02 points, or 1.1%, to 1578.53.

The latest jobs report that was released last Friday stated a gain of 21,000 jobs. Unemployment rate went down slightly from 8.3 to 8.2 percent.

All good news for Canadians but not for Liberals. No wonder Mr. Iffy's Liberals were to scared to show up to vote on the budget. Instead just enough got the "flu" to avoid an election. Where is their alternative budget? Is not an official opposition and government in waiting supposed propose one? At least offer suggestions and amendments in which I gather they offered none.

They have nothing What would they going to run on, the economic recovery is starting to take hold? Jobs are being created and the unemployment rate is starting to go down?
Remember Mr. Iffy didn't want anything to do with the recession. He wanted PM Harper to "wear the recession." Well it seems Mr. Harper has worn it fairly well!

That's why the drive by smears and faux scandals from the opposition and their MSM.
The government is doing a pretty good job and that's all they have.

Guess it is all Harper's fault that Mr. Iffy and the Libs have to resort to these smear jobs to get any traction. Sad.

Al Gore, Give It Up!

Seems like Al Gore has crawled out from underneath his rock. He's at again, blaming all the blizzards, snowstorms rainy and windy weather in the North East US on guess what? That's right, global warming.

If there’s a drought – it’s global warming. When there’s a hurricane – it’s global warming. If there are heavy snows or even blizzards – it’s somehow global warming. And amazingly, the latest round of rainy and windy weather in the Northeast, well that’s consistent with this phenomenon as well, so says former Vice President Al Gore.

Gore, the self-anointed climate change alarmist-in-chief, told supporters on a March 15 conference call that severe weather in certain regions of the country could be attributed to carbon in the atmosphere – including the recent rash of rainy weather. h/t businessandmedia.org

He's still trumpeting his message even though everyday more and more evidence keeps mounting proving that global warming is a scam. He mustn't have gotten the memo.

Give it up Gore! There are fewer and fewer people paying attention to you anymore! Go back under your rock!

Should Canada Post Be Privatized?

The OECD has recommended that Canada Post be privatized to boost productivity. I concur. We would most likely get better service as a result. It would operate a lot more efficiently because you wouldn't have a bunch of government bureaucrats running the show.

The Canadian government should privatize Canada Post as part of a broader plan to improve the nation's economic productivity, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said in a report yesterday. Montreal Gazette

I think CBC should be privatized too. It sucks up more than $1bill. of taxpayers money every year. Those funds could be put to more worthwhile causes, like helping to rebuild Haiti for instance. Besides who watches it anymore, other than Hockey Night in Canada and Dragons Den?

If the leftys want it, let them pay for it! I don't want to keep paying for a network that 's just an arm of the Liberal and the Dippers war rooms.

BTW. Via Rail has been a losing proposition as well. Do something about that too.

Freedom and Liberty

I believe in a very limited government and the freedom to allow the people the freedom to create, innovate,and to conduct business with little taxes and regulation. I believe individuals should be allowed to protect themselves and their families. I believe parents should have the freedom to raise their children they way they see fit. I believe in free speech, the right to offend,and the right to be offended.
As I was just surfing around the internet I came across this video on Liberty and Freedom.It sums it very well. I only wish more people would get it.




Some of our freedoms have eroded away over the years. We cannot allow further erosion.

What comes to immediately comes to mind is free speech and the HRCs.
We need to fight for elimination of at least Section 13 of Human Rights Act if not the Human Rights Commissions and Tribunals in their entirety. We need to apply the pressure on all MPs to take action and not take no for an answer. Maybe we should try tea parties to apply pressure.

"A society that puts equality ... ahead of freedom will end up with neither ... " -- Milton Friedman

"Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people. Those who have known freedom and lost it, have never known it again." -- Ronald Reagan

"Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it."-- George Bernard Shaw, Maxims for Revolutions, 1903

“Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it.” --Justice Learned Hand, 1944

"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."----
John 8:32 (King James Version)

"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance."
Thomas Jefferson