Nannystate, Trying to Nanny the Children

Can the state not trust parents anymore to choose what they want for their kids? Seems like they creeping in to tell you what you can and cannot feed your children now.  Take the case in the county of Santa Clara in California for instance. They are aiming to ban toys in the Happy Meals. They claim the toys attract children to eat unhealthy food that causes obesity.

 Santa Clara County will soon ban Happy Meal toys and other promotional items that are used to promote sales of high calorie children's meals unless the restaurants meet nutritional guidelines approved by the County Board of Supervisors.
The Board passed the ordinance by a 3 to 2 vote. Ken Yeager, the sponsor of the measure, was cited as saying that the ordinance prevents restaurants from "preying on children's love of toys" to sell unhealthful food.
Opponents like Donald Gage said parents should be responsible for their children who actually don't have the purchasing power.
Dr. Dan Delgado, director of a county program aiming to fight childhood obesity, was cited as saying that toys encourage children to eat unhealthy food which helps cause obesity.
A spokesman for the McDonald's said foods served at the chain restaurant offer many nutrients that children need.
A health observer told foodconsumer.org that one unhealthy meal without an ideal nutrition profile would not do much of any harm.  What may be really detrimental is that you eat junk food
as a habit.

 Then you have in Britain, a two year old gets a cheese sandwich taken from him from nursery school staff because it broke their health eating rules. 

Healthy eating is a priority for any parent – and there are some things we know we’d never feed our children.
But is a cheese sandwich so bad?
Staff at a nursery thought so and they confiscated one from Jack Ormisher – saying it broke their healthy eating rules – and offered their own fruit and veg.
The two-year-old burst into tears and when his father picked him up from the Westfield Children’s Centre, in south Wigan, staff told him Jack’s sandwiches in future should include lettuce or tomato – so they could be classed as a ‘snack’ rather than ‘lunch’. Jack’s mother, Dorothy Gallear, said: ‘It is absolutely pathetic. I don’t understand how putting a piece of lettuce on that sandwich would have turned it into a snack.’
The 32-year-old mother of two has now moved Jack to a different nursery.
‘When I told people at his new nursery what had happened some laughed with shock – but others were horrified,’ she added.
‘A place is still available at Westfield should the parents re-consider,’ said nursery manager Aukje Clegg.

You have in Ontario the McGuinty government wanting to impose  explicit sex education in Ontario schools to students even in the elementary grades.  Thankfully they backed down because of pressure from
parents. It goes to show parents still have power if only exercised.

Then the Federal Ignatieff Liberals want to impose a National Daycare Program that would cost the taxpayer and enormous amount of  money we can't afford plus it doesn't give  parents choice in daycare. They assume parents don't know what is best for how their children are cared for.  When the Harper government brought in the $100 a month child care benefit for children under the age of six to give parents choice, Liberal strategist Scott Reid said that parents would spend that money on "beer and popcorn."     It's clear they don't trust parents to know what's best.

The state seems like it doesn't know where it's boundaries are.  The nanny state is going a little to far in my opinion. The state needs to stay far away from parents and their children. Only the parents know what's best for their children not the state. It 's the parents responsibility to raise their kids the way they see fit.

Parents don't let the state raise your children  Protect your children.  Take charge, stand up and don't allow the state to encroach into your territory.  Tell them no means no.

No need to be afraid. The state should fear the people  not the people  fearing the state.  If the people don't stand up, the state will eventually control every fascist of our lives. How does that sound?

Enough is enough! Time to get the state out of our children's lives and our lives.

Hockey Stick Climate Scientist Sues Satirical Video Creators

Climate scientist, Michael Mann needs to lighten up a bit. He's been one of those global warming alarmist so called scientists who is best known for his "Hockey Stick" graph. Apparently he's not taking a satirical video that was created with him in it very well. Mann is not happy that his image was used. He's sueing the makers of a satirical video that's been pretty popular on YouTube. "Hide the Decline" a parody of "Tommy James and the Shondells, Dragging the Line"

The Penn State climate professor who has silently endured investigations, hostile questioning, legislative probes and attacks by colleagues has finally spoken out. He says he'll sue the makers of a satirical video that's a hit on You Tube.

Their response: Bring it on.

Michael Mann, one of the central figures in the recent climate-data scandal, is best known for his "hockey stick graph," which was the key visual aid in explaining how the world is warming at an alarming rate and in connecting the rise to the increase in use of carbon fuels in this century. E-mails stolen from a university in England were released online, revealing exchanges between climatologists and a reference to a "trick" that Mann had used to get the graph to portray what global warming scientists wanted to see.

The video is pretty funny and there's nothing in it that isn't true. Unlike those who were a part of so called IPCC consensus that created the global warming hoax. I think it's pretty cute actually. Thankfully it's been exposed and more and more people are turning their backs on the whole cabal. It was just a scheme for wealth distribution anyway. I just wished now governments would turn their backs on this farce and deal with real environmental issues like real pollutants in the air(nitric oxide,sulfur dioxide etc), clean water and soil.



Related: Citizen’s Group Plans Extensive Audit of U.N. Climate Report

No One Wins with Yesterday's Ruling

Speaker Milliken  took the mushy middle route yesterday in his ruling concerning the release of documents on the Afghan detainees.  He basically threw it back at the government and parliament to sort things out and gave them a deadline of two weeks. 

I think his ruling was wrong.  We are not living in normal times. We are at war. Our national security is at risk and the safety of our troops should trump any release of documents.

Can we really trust opposition MPs to keep secret whatever they may see in those documents?  I think not.  This is a highly partisan parliament right now and I think what you are seeing with all the antics that the opposition parties have been engaged in the last  4 years  with all the faux scandals is to try and make the government look bad and score some political points. I believe they would "leak"  any information to the media in a heart beat even sensitive information would put our brave men and women in uniform in greater harm than they already are.  

The Bloc?  Give them access to secret documents?  Wouldn't that set a dangerous precedent? 

The media in my opinion because of their bias against the Conservatives would do anything and everything to torque headlines (because that's what most pay attention to) and spin to make the government look bad  no matter what. 

Furthermore, do Canadians really care about  the treatment of Afghan detainees?  I think they care more about jobs, the mounting deficit and debt, health care, pensions, etc. You know the everyday bread and butter issues rather than detainees that burn down  schools, throw acid in the faces of schoolgirls, and plant road side bombs that kill our brave Canadian soldiers.

This has been  a political ploy that at the end of the day really benefits no one.  Rather sad if you ask me.

Give Frank Graves the Boot

That 's what the Montreal Gazette is telling CBC to do with their main pollster after last weeks outing of him for his bias and giving the Liberals advice by invoking a culture war to win back government. Conservative spokesman, Kory Teneckye successfully outed the pollster for his liberal leanings and bias.

Ekos Research president Frank Graves, the pollster used regularly by the CBC, is also a close advisor to the Liberal Party of Canada. This appears to violate a CBC policy but we're a little more concerned, frankly, with the advice Graves is giving the Liberals.

Last week Graves was quoted by Globe and Mail columnist Lawrence Martin as saying that he told the Liberals "that they should invoke a culture war. Cosmopolitanism versus parochialism, secularism versus moralism, Obama versus Palin, tolerance versus racism and homophobia, democracy versus autocracy. If the cranky old men in Alberta don't like it, too bad. Go south and vote for Palin."
To his credit Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff has not endorsed this approach, and now that Graves has spilled the beans we imagine the Liberals will want to distance themselves from him. But imagine the fuss if some Conservative pollster had been quoted the same way. We can envision the CBC's breathless reports about "secret Conservative plotting to divide Canadians," etc. etc.
The CBC should invite Graves to take his advice south, or anywhere far away

I agree with the Gazette that CBC should fire Mr. Graves but I disagree with them that Mr. Z hasn't endorsed Graves advice. He has already invoked "a culture war" pitting Canadian against Canadian, region against region with bring up the abortion issue, cracking down on his caucus on voting against scrapping the long gun registry, all Supreme Court Justices should be fully bilingual, etc.

Tabloid Jane now accuses the Conservatives with "waging a culture war" against the CBC.

The Conservatives are mounting their own version of a “culture war” as they take on the CBC over allegations of Liberal bias at the taxpayer-subsidized network. And it’s getting vicious.

Ooooh, those nasty Conservatives! Gee, go figure! The Conservatives just want the CBC and their pollster held accountable seeing that we pay for the darn Crown Corporation and rightly so, there should be questions asked. I WANT CBC GONE! But that's Tabloid Giggles Jane Taber for ya! I think the Globe should move her to the entertainment section and CTV should move her to ETalk. Better fit.

To All Levels of Government, Raising Taxes Is Not the Answer

This time of of the year we all think about taxes.  Every time you turn around, it seems like we are paying some sort of tax. Well, we are taxed almost to death, in one form or another by one level of government or another.  The Fraser Institute has just put out a report that says that taxes for average Canadian family have increased at faster rate than costs of food, clothing and housing.  It says also that our taxes since 1961 have increased, get this, a big %1,624.  That's tallied from all levels of government.

That is huge seeing that there is only one taxpayer and all levels of government are running deficits and/or having a tough time raising revenues to pay for the delivering of services etc.  So what to do. Some are advocating raising taxes to pick up the slack.  Mr. Z  wants to raise your taxes, so would the Dippers  and others etc.   Ontario and BC will be implementing and HST come the summer. That is going to put a bigger burden on an already maxed out taxpayer.

All those fees, levies, premiums etc., don't let that fool you. They're really taxes. Can you afford this? Heck no! Many folk are having a tough time right now trying to make ends meet. 

So what's the answer?  Kevin Gaudet from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation suggests that reigning in spending is the way to go. He's right. Spending has gotten out of control in ALL levels of government, mostly on services we really don't need and there's been a lot of waste and mismanagement. The size of all level of governments have been ballooning over the years.

Reining in spending is what needs to be done so that future generations of Canadians are not burdened with the debt and deficits that has been racked up.  If something isn't done now, we are in for big, big trouble ahead.

I will quote John McCain in speaking of the huge debt deficit that is crushing the United States right now. He refers to  it as "Generational Theft"  It applies here too. Do you want to leave your future generations to pay off the debt and deficits that have been piling up, I don't think so.

It's up to us to pressure our governments at all levels to stop the out of control spending and make hard choices to actually make cuts and reduce the size of government. In other words, let's stop the nanny state.

BTW.  A bit of a reminder, if you haven't filed your return, you got 'till the end of this week. 

Lorne Gunter Says CBC Should be Pulled Down

Lorne Gunter says the CBC should be pulled down. I happen to agree. The sooner the better. It's spews nothing but leftist propaganda. It's main pollster Frank Graves,from Ekos has been outed for his Liberal bias. It costs the taxpayer a whopping $1.1billion a year. I'm sure most taxpayers want to see value for their tax dollars.  Pouring these kind of funds into CBC, the taxpayer is not getting value for the money. They don't speak for all Canadians in which as a public broadcaster, they are supposed to.  That money could be better spent like on our military for instance or just give it back in form of tax cuts.

 The CBC will never be able to exorcize its left-wing missionary zeal -- for global warming, for Islam, for big government, Barack Obama, multiculturalism, public health care, human rights commissions and so on. And it could never survive on private donations or ad revenues. So the only thing to do with Mother Corp is to pull down its office buildings and stations and pour salt in their foundations.
And I mean radio as well as television

Anyway with a 500 channel universe now why do we need it?  The only shows that are worthwhile watching on Mothercorp is Hockey Night in Canada and Dragons Den. On radio Cross Country Checkup with Rex Murphy. Other networks could pick those shows up easily and do a fine job.  Let's shut it down. What ya waiting for Mr. Heritage Minister James Moore? Fire them all! Better yet, sell the whole works to Rupert Murdock and maybe we can have some fair and balance programing for a change. Let all the CBC so called journalists go look for real jobs.

Climategate, New Revelations, Connection to Marxism

Watch this video. Sean Hannity on his show last night had a guest on that has written a book that connects  the whole global warming scam  to Marxism and how politicians, elitists, and scientists created  a phony crisis.  He estimates Al Gore has made about $500 million so far and could end up making about $1billion when it's all over. The guest, Brian Sussman author of "Climategate" and meterologist calls Gore a "charlatan". He's right, Gore is a charlatan.
BTW, how much has David Suzuki made so far from this made up crisis?

Questioning the CBC and Polling Impartiality

Kory Teneckye did an excellent job exposing Ekos pollster, Frank Graves yesterday on CBC's Power and Politics. It was revealed that since 2001, Graves has given over $11,000 to the Liberals compared with not quite $500 to Conservatives.   Frank did finally admit his progressive liberal leanings, fine but identify yourself as such especially when you're giving a political party strategical advise.  Ekos is the main  polling firm  for CBC. It puts in question the validity of their polls.
 Lawrence Martin in his column yesterday had this in it. In Mr. Graves own words. He's been giving the Liberals strategy advice that's actually pretty divisive.   He was basically advising to the Liberals to start a culture war in other words, create division in the country as a way to win.

In his advice, Mr. Graves could hardly have been more blunt. “I told them that they should invoke a culture war. Cosmopolitanism versus parochialism, secularism versus moralism, Obama versus Palin, tolerance versus racism and homophobia, democracy versus autocracy. If the cranky old men in Alberta don’t like it, too bad. Go south and vote for Palin.”

Now the Conservative party is questioning the impartiality of the CBC and has sent a letter to CBC's ombudsman.

The president of the Conservative Party has accused a CBC pollster of advising federal Liberals to incite a “culture war” that pits Canadians against Canadians.
Conservative Party of Canada president John Walsh sent a letter Thursday to the CBC’s Ombudsman charging that EKOS pollster Frank Graves’ comments reported in the Globe and Mail that day raise “serious questions about the impartiality of Canada’s publicly funded national broadcaster.”

This indeed does put into question the impartiality the CBC and it's main pollster. I think this alone is a good reason to cut funding to the useless and biased taxpayer funded public broadcaster. 
 We pay for the CBC to the tune of over a Billion dollars a year and it's supposed to speak for all Canadians not just a few on the left. I don't think we're getting our money's worth,especially in a time of fiscal restraint. I want it gone.
 I agree with Ezra Levant, Frank Graves must be fired.  If they don't CBC will have lost the little credibility they had left.

Good Reason Not to Trust Ekos Polls

Norman Spector this morning points out good reason why, when you see an EKOS poll, don't trust it. EKOS polls for our taxpayer funded CBC, plus pollster Frank Graves is a Liberal shill.

Still, even a poll skeptic such as myself was surprised to read in The Globe and Mail this morning that Ekos’s Frank Graves is simultaneously polling for the taxpayer-supported CBC and providing partisan political advice to the Liberals: “Frank Graves of Ekos Research … has told the Grits that the wedge politics of the Conservatives provide them with an opportunity to stake out a stark alternative. Stop worrying about the West, he’s told them. No need to fear polarizing the debate. It’s what worked for Mr. Chrétien against Preston Manning and Stockwell Day.
In his advice, Mr. Graves could hardly have been more blunt. ‘I told them that they should invoke a culture war. Cosmopolitanism versus parochialism, secularism versus moralism, Obama versus Palin, tolerance versus racism and homophobia, democracy versus autocracy. If the cranky old men in Alberta don’t like it, too bad. Go south and vote for Palin.’ The Grits haven’t told him whether they favour this approach or not. But they are keen on projecting a more activist agenda for the party.”

Kudos to Norm Spector and you know it's just as I suspected. Above all we're probably paying this pollster. Still some will argue Graves is non-partisan like Kady O'Malley who religiously reports these polls like they came from on high but then she's a CBC hack.
Don't forget polls can be easily manipulated.

In regards to polling on the Canadian political scene, the EKOS Polling Company, which is the number one supplier of the polling data for the federal government, recently concluded a poll commissioned by the CBC showing that the Alliance has fallen to fourth place among the political parties. Competitors, Ipsos-Reid and Environics, found that the Alliance support was in second place between 19% and 20%. Which is right? Which is pushing an agenda?
Canadians should be forewarned - don't always believe the polls and treat their results with extreme caution.

BTW. Are the Liberals paying Graves for his advice?

Update:Must listen, Dave Rutherford has a good rant on this here. April 22 approx. 10:45 am mark.

Watch out Pro-lifers!

Pro-Choicers aim to censor Pro-lifers. First we had the case at the University of Calgary trying to shut down the Pro-life Campus Club for what was deemed "graphic images"
Eight members of the Pro-life Campus club of the University of Calgary may face expulsion for displaying "graphic images" on campus.

Eight members of Campus Pro-Life have been ordered by the university to attend separate hearings next week for what the school has labelled a “major violation” of the non-academic misconduct policy for defying orders from campus security at an April 8 rally.

More here on the Campus Pro-life Club at LifesiteNews

“We shall not abandon the unborn child to be murdered,” they stated. “We shall not desert the single mom in crisis. We shall not allow the evil of abortion to remain unexposed. We shall not be intimidated by the threat of force. We shall not be scared by the threat of expulsion. We shall not back down from the stand we have made.”
“If they are to punish us, then we are content to let history revile them for their suppression of liberty,” they added. “If they are to punish us, then let the blood of the unborn child be upon their heads. If they are to punish us then let the pain of the suffering mom be upon their conscience.”
“So let the university do whatever action their twisted worldview sees fit, for we fear not the judgment of tyranny,” they concluded.

Now the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada (ARCC) wants to criminalize Pro-life activism in response a bill to ban coercive abortion introduced by CPC MP Rod Bruinooge.

OTTAWA, Ontario, April 20, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada (ARCC) has responded to Conservative MP Rod Bruinooge's purposed bill to ban coercive abortion, unveiled in a press conference last week, by calling instead for a ban on “coerced childbirth,” and even suggesting that Canada outlaw pro-life activism.

“The entire anti-choice movement has been trying to force women into pregnancy and motherhood for decades, by working to outlaw or restrict abortion,” said Joyce Arthur, ARCC's coordinator, in a Monday press release. “Perhaps we need to protect women from this coercion by criminalizing anti-choice activism!”

This is unbelievable! Is there nothing these people would do in order to shut the pro-lifers up? It's OK for them to have their say but it's "criminal" for anyone to have an opposing view. See something wrong with that picture?
To me abortion means the killing of a baby. Tell me that's not wrong. Yet speaking out to save the lives of those little ones is wrong. Something just doesn't jive here. Just doesn't make sense to me.

Update: It's been a tough week for pro-choicers

More Good News That The Media Should be Talking About

Once again news that the media is neglecting to report in lieu of the non-story soap opera that has been consuming the National Media in Ottawa. This is the story they should be talking about. It's a a positive story that is good for our economy. The good news stories lately about our economy is something they should be boasting about.

Investors pick Canada

Investors are pouring more money than ever into Canada, drawn by earnings growth that almost equals China's and shares trading for 17 per cent less.

International funds pumped in $2.7 billion in the past year as analysts forecast companies in the Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index will boost profits 42 per cent and pay the best dividends relative to global equities on record. The market value of Canadian stocks has risen the most among the 15 biggest nations this year. Prices rose 2.8 per cent and the Canadian dollar is up 3.6 per cent

It's proof the Harper government has steered us through the economic storm fairly well and investors are finding Canada a a safe haven in which to invest Our economy is stable and doing better than most. Our currency is strong. Our deficit and debt even though too big in my opinion, is still a lot less than in the US, UK, Greece, Japan, etc. So I say to investors, keep on investing. Good for us, maybe not so good for other jurisdictions though.

Why is the media not widely reporting this? Another case of I suppose, if they can't find a scandal in it to try and tar the Harper government with, they'll ignore it. Also because it's not a Liberal or a Coalition of the Losers government that is responsible for creating the environment in which investors want to invest here. A Liberal or Coaltion of the Losers government would have actually been a disaster for investors.

I would hope the media would give credit where credit is due but not holding my breath.

Update: GM pays back government loans. h/t BlueDog

DETROIT (AP) -- General Motors Co. has repaid $8.1 billion in loans it got from the U.S. and Canadian governments, a move its CEO says is a sign automaker is on the road to recovery

Liberal Party of Toronto to Vote Against Scrapping the Long Gun Registry

 Mr. Z (Michael Ignatieff) will clamp down and crap the whip on his MPs and make them vote against scrapping the long gun registry. It has been nothing but a boondoggle that has cost taxpayers over $2 billion a year that's  treated farmers and duck hunters like common criminals.

OTTAWA - Michael Ignatieff has come up with a compromise he hopes will mollify critics of the long-gun registry and thwart a Conservative attempt to scrap it.

Declaring it a matter of national unity, the Liberal leader announced Monday that all his MPs will be required to vote against a Tory private member's bill aimed at eradicating the controversial registry

That's sure to win the west and the rural areas in  regions where they need to win in order to beat the CPC.  Way to go Mr. Z! Keep it up!  You're a great asset to the Conservatives.

Every Unborn Baby Should Have a Chance at Life

 One year ago the Mckenzie family faced what could have been a family tragedy. They had found out their unborn baby had heart condition that would have meant the baby would have probably died before or even during birth. They could have easily chose to abort but they chose life for their little girl. The baby underwent surgery in utero that saved her life.

A year ago, Vicki and her husband, Ian, 33, had no idea whether their baby was going to survive one minute out of the womb, let alone one year. In March 2009, at 30 weeks gestation, doctors at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa discovered the baby had a heart condition called critical aortic stenosis, which causes a narrowing of the main outlet valve in the left ventricle. Without treatment, the baby would likely die of heart failure before or during birth.


But the recommended treatment - a fetal heart intervention - is on the cutting edge of medical technology. Doctors repair the valve while the baby is still in the womb. It hadn't been performed successfully in Canada before, and in the United States, where about 24 attempts had been made, half of the babies died.

That family gave that baby life. Every child should have a chance at life. Each one is a gift from God. You never know, each child that has been aborted had potential. Who knows we might have aborted someone who would have found the cure for cancer by now, found a cure for poverty. Maybe another Einstein. We just don't know because we didn't give these little ones a chance.
All of us pro-lifers need to stand up for the most vulnerable in our society and that being the unborn. We need to speak up for those who can't speak for themselves.

 On a related note: Eight members of the Pro-life Campus club of the University of Calgary may face expulsion for displaying "graphic images" on campus.

Eight members of Campus Pro-Life have been ordered by the university to attend separate hearings next week for what the school has labelled a “major violation” of the non-academic misconduct policy for defying orders from campus security at an April 8 rally.

More here on the Campus Pro-life Club at LifesiteNews

“We shall not abandon the unborn child to be murdered,” they stated.  “We shall not desert the single mom in crisis. We shall not allow the evil of abortion to remain unexposed.  We shall not be intimidated by the threat of force.  We shall not be scared by the threat of expulsion.  We shall not back down from the stand we have made.”
“If they are to punish us, then we are content to let history revile them for their suppression of liberty,” they added.  “If they are to punish us, then let the blood of the unborn child be upon their heads.  If they are to punish us then let the pain of the suffering mom be upon their conscience.”
“So let the university do whatever action their twisted worldview sees fit, for we fear not the judgment of tyranny,” they concluded.

Kudos to those students who are standing up for our most  those precious unborn babies and informing others of what actually happens when one of those babies are aborted!   

When Does Freedom of Information Cross the Line?

The opposition and the media have been screaming for the government to release all information concerning the treatment of Afghan detainees.
They're demanding all unredacted documents even though it may put our troops in greater danger. The government has released some but not good enough. They want everything. You need to be able to trust those looking at those docs as not to leak them. We have such a partisan parliament, you can't trust any opposition member not to leak anything to the media that could be sensitive and put our soldiers at greater risk.
Now they want all information concerning the Jaffer/Geurgis issue before even RCMP have concluded their probe.    They should just shut up for now until an investigation if there will be an investigation is concluded.  We will all know then.  Right now it's all based rumors and innuendo destroying a couples reputations.The Mounties will determine if there's legitimate evidence to proceed. So we should all relax and wait.

 I think there is a fine line where freedom of information is concerned between the need to know so that changes can be made to improve something and just to use for gossip.  Angelo Persichilli  lays out perfectly.  Freedom of information can be easily abused for partisan purposes to play gotcha politics and embarrass the government to score some political points instead of hold a government to account (which is legitimate.)

Freedom of information is the essence of a democratic system, but the misuse of this freedom can damage democracy almost as much as its absence.
                                                 *****************
We resort to the Freedom of Information Act to find out how much a minister spent for a dinner but we don't ask why many of Canada's native people live in Third World conditions despite an annual budget of $12 billion, or how the banks gouge consumers with quasi-hidden fees, or how multinational corporations bleed medicare with huge, out-of-control profits. 
                                                  ****************
Using demands for information to document gossip is not accountability but a parody of it.
Watching Question Period lately I feel like I'm watching ants swarming around a dead bone while the flesh and soul of our country is being devoured elsewhere.


Yeah, I understand the concept of holding the government accountable. That should absolutely by done but when it crosses the line, the other side should be held accountable. After all we pay ALL of the Members of Parliament and they should be working on issues that matter most to us, the bread and butter issues not wasting our money on foolish witch hunts as a way to gain a political advantage. They should ALL be held accountable.

How about helping the government work on pension reform?  They've asked for your assistance, all you Honorable Members. Now get to work, that's what your employer expects. Anyway that's what all of you were griping about during prorogation, you wanted to work.  So well, stop the games and work!

All You Alberta Bashers:Take Note!

  We have been classified as evil by the  warmists.  The Quebec Premier and the Mayor of Toronto demonized us last December in Copenhagen.   Alberta's green house gases have fallen!

The Calgary Herald reports numbers revealed yesterday say that our CO2 emissions went down since 2008

The Stelmach government and Alberta oilpatch -- often painted as the environmental laggards of Canada -- received a few doses of good news Thursday, with new data showing provincial greenhouse gas emissions have fallen, as Ottawa further delayed cap-and-trade plans.

Numbers released Thursday by the federal government reveal Alberta's emissions decreased nearly one per cent in 2008 from the previous year (most recent data available) to 244 megatonnes, after substantial increases in recent years.

Well, Alberta bashers, what have you got to say now, are we still evil?  Are we still the bad guys?  Is the eastern press reporting this? If not why not?  I haven't been able to find anything in the eastern press on this. The Calgary Herald article was the only one.    Where is rest of the media?  Maybe because it tells a different story about Alberta. Guess there's nothing in it they can turn into a scandal.

Is This Legitiamate Legislation Or Partisan Politics?

With all the Lame Stream Media focusing on the Guergis/Jaffer soap opera in the last weeks, something else very important has gone under the radar that the media should be widely reporting. That being a NDP private members Bill C-282 sponsored by New Brunswick NDP MP Yvon Godin. It would require all Supreme Court judges to be bilingual.    It was passed with all three opposition parties supporting it.  The coalition at work I see.  It has now gone to the Senate.

That piece of legislation would discriminate against  fully qualified people who can't speak french, mainly those in the west and could divide the country.  Language would come  first.  That's an outrage!

Liberal Globe and Mail contributer, Robert Silver reports on what retired Supreme Court Judge John Major has to say about this.

A NDP private member's bill - Bill C-232 - passed the House of Commons last week. The legislation would require that all future Supreme Court justices be bilingual. Specifically, the act says that:
"Section 5 of the Supreme Court Act is renumbered as subsection 5(1) and is amended by adding the following:
(2) In addition, any person referred to in subsection (1) may be appointed a judge who understands French and English without the assistance of an interpreter."
On CBC Radio's The Current today, retired Supreme Court judge John Major came out and spoke strongly against the bill in a rather remarkable intervention for a former justice.
Among his more interesting comments:
1. According to Major, only two or three current justices would qualify as "truly bilingual" - capable of fully understanding a case without translation. This is a key point Major makes - that the level of language skill required to understand a complex legal case is not something you can learn in a month in french (or English) immersion or even high school second-language skills. It requires perfectly bilingual LEGAL second language skills, a rather rare skill that disqualifies the vast majority of Canadian lawyers.
2. If the bill passes, you will no longer have "the best," "most competent" people appointed to the bench. He says the bill would be a big "step backwards."
3. The regional inequity of the proposal is problematic to Major - specifically in terms of disenfranchising the West. He says there would "be a very modest number" of qualified candidates in the West and you would have to "settle" for lesser candidates to meet this qualification.
4. He criticizes by specific reference former justice minister Irwin Cotler and Bob Rae that he was "astounded" the bill got through with their support.
NDP official languages critic Yvon Godin (who proposed the bill) appears on the show both before and after Major. His rebuttal of Major was weak, to say the least as were, in a bit of irony, his English language skills. 

This Bill MUST NOT BE ALLOWED to pass in the Senate.  Contact all Senators now to make sure this bill does not become law!  I think this whole this is about partisanship politics especially on the Liberals part. They should know better. 
What's going to happen when Ruby Dhalla's bill comes up?  You know the one would reduce to three, from ten, the number of years elderly immigrants to Canada have to wait before being eligible for an Old Age Security pension.

We pay these people to come up with this kind of stuff? No wonder Canadians are turned off politics. I beginning to get turned off too.

Parliament has become out of control, with the media's help I believe and it needs to be fixed.  

Media this is to you, report something important for a change, instead of tabloid rumors and innuendo!

Foxnews Ambushes Al Gore

Al Gore has crawled out from underneath his rock. Watch here.


Go Fox, keep up the good work! Wish we had a version of you here in Canada.

On a related matter it seems there has been a public split between Al Gore and President Obama since the President announced that he would allow expanded offshore drilling.

What's In the Liberal DNA?

First you have the Federal Liberal Party.  They have no direction, no policies except to raise the corporate tax rate and are a party with no real unity.  They have leader who is out of touch with regular Canadians. He was coaxed to come back to Canada in hopes of becoming PM asap after being out of the country for 34 yrs. They have lost touch of who they are and what they stand for. They are a party adrift. Canada's Liberal Party has lost it's way.

Next you have the Alberta Provincial Party where a popular MLA yesterday quit the Alberta Libs  to sit as an Independent.  Dave Taylor former radio talk show host turned MLA for Calgary-Currie Calgary has sat in the Ledge in Edmonton for 6yrs. under the Liberal banner. The reason he sited for leaving  was under
leader David Swan, the party has gone adrift.  Swan is out of touch with Albertans.  They weren't getting any traction, no one was talking about them.

Then you have the Quebec Liberal Party where they are in the middle of a mess.  There have been  allegations where "stacks of cash were forked over by construction company bosses and illegally funnelled into party coffers."
The claims are too, that Premier Charest knew what was going on.  Wow! Sound familiar? Looks to me they have lost their way too.

Is it in the Liberal DNA or what?  I think we can clearly see at least two provincial Liberal parties are very much like their federal cousins.  Alberta Libs like the federal party-"adrift".  Federal Libs-"adrift"
              Quebec=cash funneled back into party coffers    Federal Libs=cash funneled back into party coffers
At least the Alberta Libs haven't been accused of any corruption but then again they haven't had the reins of power either, thank God.

What Is the Political Class?

Mr. Iffy claims he's part of the political class. 

"Even more unusual, is his characterization of himself as someone in the "political class." He's used this term before, including at the recent thinkers conference the Liberals hosted in Montreal. According to some definitions, the term political class was originally coined to describe a "ruling class".
Mr. Ignatieff is someone with great talents as a wordsmith, so one has to surmise that he really does think of people in politics as a somehow different "class" from other people. If he doesn't think that, his advisers should encourage him to stop using this term. If he does, he'd best prepare to explain what he means because he can likely count on hearing his political opponents bring this up as part of a renewed effort to cast him as an elitist."

Well what is meant by the political or ruling class?
 Here you can find  great explanation.

.Barbara Yaffe says Scott Reid, yes "beer and popcorn" former communications director for Former PM Paul Martin, Scott Reid, said that was a dumb and makes him look like an elitist. Well, duh, that's what he is. Consider his heritage, How could he possibly connect with us, the little people?

Social class

Social classes are the hierarchical arrangements of people in society as economic or cultural groups. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political economists and social historians...

Power elite

A power elite, in political and sociological theory, is a small group of people who control a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, and access to decision-making of global consequence...

Social class

Social classes are the hierarchical arrangements of people in society as economic or cultural groups. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political economists and social historians...

Means of production

Means of production , are things used byhuman labourers to create products. They include two broad categories of objects: instruments of labour and subjects of labour...

Sovereign state

A sovereign state is a political association with effective internal and external sovereignty over a geographic area and population which is not dependent on, or subject to any other power or state...

Government

A government is the body within a community, political entity or organization which has the authority to make and enforce rules, laws and regulations.....

 Recent remarks by Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff about his being a member of "the political class" have left him wearing a dunce cap. Political commentators Bruce Anderson, Scott Reid and Tom Flanagan have stated that use of such phrases leaves Ignatieff looking elitist and bolsters Conservative Party attacks suggesting that the Grit chief is too full of himself.

                                                 ***********************

Dumb, dumb, dumb, said Scott Reid, whose criticism is surprising because he's a die-hard Liberal and former communications chief for former Liberal PM Paul Martin. Reid says this type of talk only reaffirms the fact that Ignatieff doesn't seem to know how to connect with ordinary voters, the great middle class out there who should be directed to focus on the Conservative MP's misbehavior rather than Ignatieff's own insulted status as a member of the ruling class.

 If that's how you see yourself, Mr. Iffy, you might as well call up your former employer at Harvard and see if there is a position open for you.  Most Canadians want someone who can relate to them, someone who knows what it's like to work at a real job, raise children  and pay the bills etc. and enjoys regular activities that most Canadians enjoy, such as hockey for instance.  Hmmmm..........I think we already have someone like that in the big chair.

Give It Up Liberals, The Muckracking Is Getting You Nowhere

With all the faux scandals in the last four years that the official opposition Liberals and their cheerleaders in the MSM has wanted to pin on the Conservatives. seems they're just spinning their wheels. They throw things out there hoping something will stick. Seems like voters are not buying what the Liberals and the MSM have been selling.

Kelly McParland in the NP hits the nail on the head as he analyses the latest Ipsos Reid Poll in light of all the shenanigans and antics on Parliament Hill lately.

CPC-37%

Libs-27%

NDP-15%

Grn-10%

In case you're having trouble deciphering what that means, here it is: Nothing has changed in the 4+ years since the Tories were elected.

What Should the Qualifications of a Governor General Be?

Governor General Michelle Jean's term will be up in a few short months and will not be extended. The Prime Minister is searching for a new one. With all that said, what should the qualifications of new GG be? They can be an example and set the tone for the nation.

Should a GG have to be born in Canada? Should they have to speak fluently both official languages? Should the GG be a man or a woman? Should they be able to hold dual citizenships? What should be the job requirements?

Dan Gardner of the Ottawa Citizen has a good article on whether or not it should be mandatory for a GG to be bilingual. Apparently, yeah, they should.

I don't really care if the GG wasn't born here or not or do I care about the color of their skin. Look at our current one, Michelle Jean. She was born in Haiti and has done a remarkable job as GG. In fact I will be sad to see her leave. She's one of the best Governor Generals in my lifetime.

A GG in my mind should a have a full knowledge of Canada that should include our history and be able to carry out the official duties of a Governor General while reflecting Canadian values. For instance here are the duties that is required of a GG.

Official Duties of the Governor General of Canada

The official duties of the Governor General of Canada include:

• giving Royal Assent to bills passed in the Canadian House of Commons and Senate
• reading the Speech from the Throne which outlines the Canadian federal government agenda for a new session of Parliament
• executing orders-in-council or cabinet decisions
• appointing superior court judges, on the advice of cabinet
• summoning, closing and dissolving Parliament, on the advice of the Prime Minister
• inviting the leader of the party with the most support in the House of Commons to form the government. That party leader becomes Prime Minister.
• in times of emergency or special circumstances, exercising the special personal authority of the Governor General to appoint or dismiss a prime minister or dissolve Parliament. This authority is rarely used.
• receiving and sending ambassadors.

The Canadian Governor General plays a strong role in encouraging excellence in Canada through a system of honours and awards such as the Order of Canada and promotes national identity and national unity.

The Governor General of Canada is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Armed Forces.

One I think,should also have a decent set morals because one in a high position like GG, standards should be set fairly high because they represent the country to the world and are in the public limelight and reflect the morals and values of the country.

But then again , all of us should set for ourselves a decent set of morals standards to live by too.

So, have your say. Remember, the Governor General whoever they maybe, represents all of us.

A Good News Story Gone Under the Radar

This should have been the top news story the last couple of days instead the Guergis story. It seems to have gotten hardly any press. Gee, I wonder why. Could it be because it's a good news story? That it makes the government look good because of the good work the government has done handling of the recession and the media doesn't want you to hear about it?
Maybe they haven't hardly reported on it because it might make the opposition and some in the media look foolish for all the gloom and doom that was propagandized for months over a year ago, you think? It could be too that sensationalism and negativity sells. Good news doesn't quite so much. Pathetic if you ask me.

Canada's growth outshines rest of G7

Loonie's slip insignificant as rate hike likely to add strength while economy's `firing on all cylinders'

Meanwhile, the Organization for Economic Development and Co-operation, or OECD, said Canada's economy likely grew 6.2 per cent (give or take a percentage point) in the first three months of this year.
That far outpaces growth of 2.4 per cent in the U.S. The average for G7 nations is 1.9 per cent.
"It just reflects the economy's momentum and the fact it seems to be firing on all cylinders now with exports and manufacturing turning up," Guatieri said of the report.
The OECD expects Canada's economy to grow 4.5 per cent through the second quarter – nearly twice the G7 average. - This from the Red Star of all places, even though buried.


"Canada is benefiting from its past good policies, in spite of the fact that Canada was severely hit through trade ... from south of the border," OECD chief economist Pier Carlo Padoan said during a news conference in Paris.
Padoan noted Canada had entered the recession with stronger fundamentals than its peers in terms of growth, the banking sector and the government's fiscal position. Canada's debt relative to its economy is the lowest in the G7. - Isn't this exactly what PM Harper and Minister Flaherty was saying all along?

This is a good news story that has been buried by the majority of the media.We are better off than most countries. Look at our neighbors to the south, they are in big trouble financially. This story should be shouted from the rooftops because it affects every Canadian unlike other stories that the Lame Stream Media's been focused on lately.

Come on Lame Stream Media, what's hindering thee?

Update: Go and enjoy the perspective on the same topic from fellow blogger Iceman.

What Should Be Done With Helena?

With all the troubles that Helena Guergis has been having lately, is it time for her to step aside? I am so sick and tired of the Helena and Rahim soap opera. If I want to tune into a soap opera, I might as well watch the Young and Restless or some other soap. Those at least are probably more entertaining, I don't know. I mean this is just getting ridiculous.

As the stomach churns, I have come to the conclusion that she should step aside, for the betterment of the government so they don't have to be distracted by this sideshow while they're trying to get things done. She should at least take a temporary leave from her cabinet post. She has real issues and needs the time to take care of them. Let one of our other fine women in caucus take over her files for awhile like for instance, Shelly Glover or Candice Hoeppner.

This for the media and the opposition is like a dog with a bone. They're out for blood. Let's not give them anymore ammo. There are so many important issues that should be focused on.. Like we still have our brave men and women in Afghanistan in harms way. There's immigration, justice and corrections problems etc to deal with. We all know the opposition and the media will hang on this story until something is done.

The sooner this is dealt with, the better. Maybe then we can move on and deal with those problems that need dealing with.

There, I had to voice my thoughts and get things off my chest. I am not going to post about the Helena, Rahim soap opera again. I will deal with the important issues of the day. Now, let's get on with other matters, shall we?

Update: Helena Guergis has tendered her resignation . h/t Lorraine

The Hyporcrisy of Hillary and the Liberals

Claire Hoy points the hypocrisy of the Liberals and the other opposition parties on Hillary Clinton's visit last week compared to if where Condoleeza Rice preaching to us on our we should conduct our affairs. Not only the opposition who would be screaming, the MSM would be too. "How dare Condoleeza Rice come here and dictate to us what our public policies should be!" Oh the horror!

Remember Condoleeza Rice? She was George W. Bush’s secretary of state from 2005 to 2009, a position now occupied by Hillary Clinton.
Consider the outrage we would have heard from Liberals, New Democrats and Bloc Quebecois, had Rice breezed into town and lectured us on our foreign policy.
And that outrage would have much of our mainline media, most of whom would have taken great umbrage at the arrogance - and outright rudeness - of a visiting official from a friendly country abusing her host’s hospitality.
Rice was never crass enough to do it. Clinton, alas, is.
.........................................................................
Yet, quite apart from defending our country from the notion of foreign politicians dictating to us, you’d think that a self-declared genius and patriot such as Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff would see through the hypocrisy, in Clinton’s position.
No such luck. Ignatieff, and much of his Liberal caucus, applauded Clinton, although they fell on their collective faces when their motion supporting foreign abortion funding failed because several Liberals joined the Tories to defeat the idea that abortion is simply a family planning tool for Third World persons.
Liberal MP Scott Brison - who used to be a Tory MP, but quit in a snit after his party made it clear it didn’t want him as leader - took great delight in Clinton’s unprofessional foray into our domestic politics.
Brison, who would be among the first to scream had Rice done something like this, chirped that “Hillary Clinton’s smackdown of the Harper government was really something to see.”

Then he goes on to point out the hypocrisy of Hillary Clinton

So here comes Hillary, lecturing Harper on his initiative, mainly on the grounds that it does not promote public funding of abortion abroad. Incredibly, her comments came on the very week - the very same week - that her own boss, President Barrack Obama, agreed to buy the votes of pro-life Democrats in Congress for his healthcare bill by promising to sign a presidential decree which - wait for it - would ban public funding of abortions in the United States.

This

And finally, just what, exactly, is Obama’s abortion position. Well, his first act as president was to cancel the Bush plan that banned U.S. funds from paying for Third World abortions. He says Americans should help pay for those abortions. But then, when it comes to U.S. soil, Obama says tax dollars can’t fund abortions.
So which is it? Is it morally and fiscally responsible to publicly fund abortions or not? Apparently not when it comes to unborn American babies. They’re too precious. But hey, no problem aborting Third World babies. What does that really say about their feelings toward the Third World? Yet Canada’s opposition parties, simply to make political points at home, are applauding this appalling double standard. Shame on them.

Yes, I agree, Shame on them. All of them! Just think if Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon went to Washington D.C. and tried to dictate to them their what their policies ought be. I don't think any congressman or senator, Democrat or Republican would applaud that at all. Neither would any of their media and they shouldn't. Who would blame them? You'd hear outrage here though, from our opposition and the media. "You just can't go and tell another sovereign country what their polices should be." That's what they would say. So it's different if a left wing Democrat, Hillary Clinton comes here and does that. It's ok in their eyes because she's a Dem not a Republican.
So yeah, double standard for sure. Disgusting!