Outrage About Census, Less About Pro-Coercive Census, More About Anti-Harper

Gary Slywchuk from the Winnipeg Free Press says this brouhaha over the census is farcical.
He applauds the governments decision to take away the threats of fines and jail time if you don't fill out the long form census and points out there have been 8,000 stories in the news, way more than health care or the economy in which  are issues that all Canadians are concerned about.

On Aug. 11, the federal government announced its intention to, in Industry Minister Tony Clements' words, "introduce legislation this fall to remove threats of jail time for persons refusing to fill out the (2011) census and all mandatory surveys administered by the federal government."
This seemed pretty innocuous and something I personally applauded. I don't know about you, but threats aren't the greatest way to get me to do something.
But, since then, there have been more than 8,000 news stories on the census -- way more articles and commentaries than on our health-care system (just more than 1,000) and only a smidgen fewer than articles and commentaries on the economy. Come on, people, where are your priorities?

Those letters to the editor he points out are less pro-coercive but more anti-Harper.

As for the number of letters to the editor in various publications, it seems obvious, at least to me, that many of the writers were less pro-coercive census than anti-Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

I tend to agree.   If you notice, all that rhetoric has been coming from the anti-Harper, anti-Conservative minions in the media and else where.  Their MO is to find anything to slag the PM and his government about and make them look bad.  My sense is they hate this PM and this government, want them out and will do anything it takes.  It gets more pathetic everyday.

They  thought this issue would resonate with voters, it has  not much like many other issues they thought would. The fact is the general public just does not care about this issue.  What average Joe and Mary Sixpack are concerned about is jobs, economy, their kids, health care not this. 

Day Two, Wayne Doorknob Easter Gets Called Out

Yesterday Dave Rutherford called Wayne Doorknob Easter out for his criticism of Conservative patronage appointments.  Today L.Ian Macdonald comes out swinging at Doorknob Easter.

The Grits wheeled out Wayne Easter, one of the shrillest voices in the House, to denounce Stephen Harper for “another case of the PM having broken (his) word.”
The word being that in his Reform-Alliance days in Opposition, Harper was always quick to denounce the Liberals rushing to the trough, promising to reform the appointments process if he formed a government.
Welcome to the NHL, Wayne. That was then, this is now. Or as Robert Bourassa once put it in a similar context in Quebec: “What, you expect us to do business with our enemies?”
Easter represents a Prince Edward Island riding, and on P.E.I. there is an old saying: “If it moves, pension it; if it doesn’t, pave it.”
Easter likes to work with props to make his case.
He once had his picture taken with a doorknob at a newser whose purpose was to illustrate waste in an upgrade of a government building.
This was a bad career move. The Hon. Member from Doorknob.
At his press conference denouncing Tory patronage, he awarded Harper and cabinet colleagues little trophies with smiling pigs on top. Clearly, it was no time for subtlety.
To be clear, the $25,000 donated to Tory coffers by Conservative appointees was within the individual limit of $1,100 per year under the Harper government’s 2006 Federal Accountability Act.
No law was broken, and no appointments were bought.
And if a couple of future judges once made donations to the Tories, or were party activists while in private practice, it is hardly a first for lawyers, and hardly constitutes buying seats on the bench. Applicants for judgeships have to pass a peer review before their names make a short list. That’s how it works, and generally speaking, it works very well. Imagine, lawyers in politics. Shocking.

Doorknob Easter isn't doing himself any favor with these over the top outrageous exaggerations if not outright mis-truths.  Earlier this year with his shrill over the top outrage he accused former Tory Cabinet Minister Helena Guergis of having a meltdown at the airport in Charletown that later turned out not to be true.  The airport video that was later shown to a few reporters showed Helena did not have the temper tantrum meltdown that Easter had accused her of. In fact she apparently was quite calm through out her whole ordeal. I hope Helena sues the crap out of him.  Maybe he would gain a  little honesty and integrity and therefore  be a little careful in the future with  his accusations. But then I will not hold my breath, afterall  he's a Liberal. I don't think honesty and integrity is programed into the Liberal DNA.

What Doorknob Easter tends to forget when he accuses the PM of breaking a promise he should remember that it was the opposition who scuttled the appointments commission.
Easter or anyone in the opposition or the media has no reason to accuse the PM of a promise broken. The PM at least tried to keep his promise.  Hypocrisy! Nothing but hypocrisy!

Heads up: Dave Rutherford to testify in front of the committee at 9:30 am mtn.  Apparently not being televised but you can catch it online at the CPAC website.

Dave Rutherford-1, Wayne Doorknob Easter-0

A must listen! Dave Rutherford interviewed Wayne Doorknob Easter this morning on his show about patronage appointments. Dave really gave Easter a good smack-down. You can listen right here. Click on 10:00AM then scroll to 35:03.

He says Stephen Harper is the worst PM for patronage appointments. Dave got him on Liberal patronage and Easter said Liberals weren't that bad. Yeah right! Dave points out that PM Harper's patronage appointments are 20% compared to Chretien's patronage appointments at 50%. Dave then points out that our Ambassador to the US, former Manitoba Premier, Gary Doer is an NDP. Then Doorknob goes on to admit that PM Harper has actually made some pretty good appointments. Easter is one of the biggest hypocrites that's for sure. Dave did a really good job putting Easter in his place. Wish we had more journalists that would give Easter a good smack-down like that.

Liberal patronage appointments-good

Conservative patronage appointments-bad

Heads up , Dave Rutherford has been called to testify at the Industry Committee tomorrow about the long form census. I think he said around 9:30AM EST.   He has no clue why just that he's been called. Should be interesting.


Go and read more that's related to this topic from fellow blogger.  (h/t) Paulsstuff

So You Think You Can Dance, Inuvik

How cool, PM Harper puts on his dancing shoes and joined in on some  traditional native dance last night in Inuvik and stole the show.

INUVIK, N.W.T. — Prime Minister Stephen Harper: So you think you can dance?
While he may not be trading in his suits for a shot at reality fame any time soon, the Conservative leader is apparently not shy about busting the odd move.
Three days into his week-long Arctic visit, Harper stole the show on Wednesday evening with an impromptu dance as aboriginals beat drums and sang traditional songs.

I bet the PM was more authentic and did a lot better than Iffy's dance at Caribana in Toronto earlier in the this summer.
Apparently he was quite a hit with the locals and had a good time.

Around 300 people packed into a stuffy recreation centre in Inuvik, NWT on Wednesday night, waiting for a glimpse of Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
While he was having private meetings, the Inuvik Drummers and Dancers entertained the crowd, warming up for their turn in front of the PM.
Restless children entertained themselves with video games, while some fanned paper plates to stir up some fresh air.
Finally, Harper arrived, shaking hands with elders and children alike, before making his way to the front of the room.
For a few minutes he gamely watched the dancers perform, until Lillian Elias issued an invitation.
"Our tradition is that we invite everybody to join us when it is time for us to have a dance, a freestyle dance," said Elias, 67, who has been dancing about 10 years.
Health Minister Leona Agluuykak, who is from Inuvik, was first to her feet, joining a growing crowd preparing to the gentle beat of a drum.
Seconds later, Harper rose.
He accepted a pair of traditional cowhide and beaver fur gloves, and as the drumbeats picked up he shyly swayed and bounced.
But as the community closed in and their shouts grew louder, Harper grew bolder.
He crouched and shimmied, adding his voice to the chorus.
At the end, wild applause and a high five from one of the dancers.

Our PM obviously can let his hair down, enjoy himself and have some fun and can relate with regular people because he is a regular guy. He's a Tim Hortons, Walmart middle class kind of person. Neither he nor his wife were born with silver spoons in their mouths.  He and Lorraine knows what it's like to work hard, and pay the bills because they have lived in the real world.  It's quite different with Iffy, where it's actually an effort to try to  blend in. and connect. He can't do it, he just pretends, because he's just too much of an elite. 

I think PM Harper should relax and let his hair down more often. He deserves it.

Kill Bill C-391,the Long Gun Registry

CPC MP Candice Hoeppner has sponsored Bill C-391 to scrap the ineffective costly long gun registry. The third and final vote comes up in approximately a month from now. Liberal MPs who had previously supported Candice's Bill will now vote against it because their leader,Iffy says he will now whip his members. Three Lib MPs have three different reasons. for changing their minds.

Three Liberal MPs, three different reasons why they will now vote against a private member's bill to repeal the long-gun registry — or at least, why they won't be voting for it.
And only one of them says it's because of the party whip.

It is clear though one Liberal MP is conflicted. Larry Bagnell, MP from the Yukon. What is he to do?

As for Larry Bagnell, Yukon MP, “there won’t be a choice” in how he is expected to vote. “It’s certainly not easy,” he said.

“It’s easier this time, in the sense that Ignatieff’s put forward a compromise, which no other Liberal leader has,” said Bagnell.

So it's now up to the NDP whether the registry will be scrapped or not.  Twelve NDP members had supported Bill C-391 before and I hope they will continue to support Candice and her bill.  The NDP suggests that  some Lib MPs will skip the vote when it comes up but Doorknob Wayne Easter claims  that's not an option. Have we not all heard that story before? That's what they've been doing it since 2006, why should they change now?

Several NDP MPs, who have a free vote, have suggested that some Liberal MPs may not show up.
But that’s not an option, said Easter.
“I’ve found it more troublesome often to not to show up, than to vote. Not showing up is...just not the way to do it,” he said, before adding:

Those MPs better remember who they actually work for.  They work for their constituents not their party or interest groups.
Meantime the National Post editorial lays out a good reason for killing the bill.

We stand among the abolitionists. The gun registry criminalizes law-abiding gun owners by penalizing them if they fail to register their guns. Yet it scantly inconveniences actual criminals, who don't register their guns anyway. Moreover, the cost of the program, estimated at over $2-billion, is far out of proportion to the theoretical effectiveness of the registry in preventing crime (though, admittedly, most of that money is a sunk cost). Even if it were true that a life or two had been saved because of the registry, orders of magnitude more good could be done with that money if it were instead invested in any number of other areas -- from projects to target cybercrime and child pornography, to programs to divert the at-risk youth who might one day be tempted to join the ranks of criminal gun-toters.

It's time to pressure those opposition MPs who previously supported Bill C-391 not to cave, stand up for their constituents and support Candice one more time to finally get rid of this cumbersome, intrusive, money sucking program.