Blast from the past - 2006 Dion Policy Channel interview

During the leadership race, way back in 2006, Dion was interviewed by Satya Das from Policy Channel in Edmonton, Alberta. Being at least two years old, the interview is a bit out-of-date and some policies have of course evolved in that time. But I thought it was worth re-posting because it provides an in-depth discussion of several policy areas.

In this bilingual interview, Das and Dion discuss Alberta, the environment, energy, the economy, the north, social justice, especially for Aboriginal people, the Kelowna Accord, international peace and security, and water management.

This interview was one of the major factors in my conversion to big-L Liberalism. I had a good impression of Dion previously, especially as environment minister, and was very glad when he won the leadership. This interview showed that he understands the complex interrelationship between the environment, social justice and the economy - his "three pillars." And also the impact of the environment on international issues, e.g. water security has a huge impact on the potential for violent conflict. I was also pleased with his emphasis on Aboriginal issues, especially education.

Taped in Edmonton during the 2006 Liberal leadership race. The interview is in three parts - parts 1 & 2 in English; partie 3 - en français. (Mouseover the video to select another video from the series.)



PART 1
In this 2006 interview, Dion discusses his experience in government, his vision for the future, "reconciling the people and the planet," Alberta, energy and the environment. "I'm ready right away to be a very good leader and partner for Albertans. Alberta is my country. I fought to keep Alberta as part of my country." Also discusses international issues - democracy, health, avoiding war and violent conflict, human rights. Emphasizes importance of water management around the world.

PART 2
Dion discusses the north, Aboriginal people, education for Aboriginal youth, the Kelowna Accord, the economy, his three-pillar approach, the sponsorship scandal.

PARTIE 3
Stéphane Dion discute la course au leadership libéral (2006); l'Alberta, l'environnement, l'économie; l'approche à trois piliers - prospérité économique, justice sociale et environnement durable; le cercle virtueux; sa vision pour l'avenir.

Canada - You Have a Choice

From Avaaz.ca - Hear/download the song and sign the pledge at http://www.avaaz.ca/ca/stop_harper_pledge/

Artists Unite to Defeat Harper and Fight Climate Change

New song features Canadian musicians to raise hope and awareness

OTTAWA – Canadian artists have joined together to record a song, titled "You Have a Choice," to mobilize Canadian voters to let their voices be heard in support of strong, concrete action on climate change. The song is sponsored by Avaaz, a new web movement with over 300,000 supporters across Canada. Click here to download the song.

"Elizabeth May said it best in the debates, the Harper climate change plan is a fraud," said Avaaz Executive Director Ricken Patel.

"I have also seen first hand how the Conservative government is actively wrecking international progress on climate change."

While the majority of Canadians want action on climate change and believe that Harper is offside with their views, voters often feel that one vote can't make a difference. This is why prominent Canadian artists have come together in support of strategic voting to defeat Harper.

"These bright lights of the Canadian music scene are sending a message to voters: you can make a difference, and we need to come together and strategically support candidates who will defeat Stephen Harper and fight climate change," said Patel.
The Canadian artists who rallied together for this effort include: K-OS, Ed Robertson of the Barenaked Ladies, Ben Kowalewicz of Billy Talent, Adam Gontier of Three Days Grace, Sarah Harmer, Hawksley Workman, Jason Collett of Broken Social Scene, Darren Dumas of The Salads and the Arts Offstage Choir under the direction of David Reed. The song was written and produced by The Hundreds and Thousands' Ian Lefeuvre and K-OS. Lyrics all contributed by the artists. Additional keyboards are performed by Todor Kobakov from Major Maker. The track was mastered by Joao Carvalho.

With bagpipes, swirling guitars, soaring choruses and a chilling choral performance, familiar voices bring a powerful message of the necessity of action and the importance of each and every vote on October 14. “You Have a Choice” will be released to radio stations across Canada, and Canadians can download an MP3 by visiting AVAAZ.ca.
Source: http://www.avaaz.ca/you_have_a_choice/

For strategic voting info for every riding in Canada, visit http://www.voteforenvironment.ca/.

Bounce back and forth on the issues

... with the always-fabulous Baba Brinkman:

Download from: http://www.babasword.com/audio/bounce/Bounce.mp3

And don't miss Social Contract, Power Trip and all the rest at http://www.myspace.com/bababrinkman

Power Trip also on Youtube.




(Thanks for the press release, Andrew Potter.)

Vote smart

The Vote for Environment website has calculated seat counts with and without strategic voting:


It's clear that with strategic voting all of the opposition parties would be better off. We would elect a Liberal minority with strong representation from the NDP and Bloc, one Green and two independents.

The site features recommendations to beat the Tories in each riding, with polls giving current standings.

On their blog, they quote Elizabeth May in yesterday's Toronto Star:

May urged Canadians to do all they can to throw Prime Minister Stephen Harper out of office, including strongly suggesting they shouldn't vote Green if another candidate has a better chance at defeating a Conservative.

"We are too close to the edge of a global apocalypse," May said in an interview. "We have got to grab the opportunities we have. And, clearly, the contribution Canadians can make to a global solution is to get rid of Stephen Harper."

"I'd rather have no Green seats and Stephen Harper lose, than a full caucus that stares across the floor at Stephen Harper as prime minister, because his policies are too dangerous," she said.

If there was ever a time for strategic voting, this is it.

Help Avaaz stop Harper

Save the Planet: Stop Harper!
For the last two years, the Harper government has done everything it could to wreck the world's efforts to fix climate change. At UN negotiations, Canada has been voted the WORST country in the world on climate change 3 times! Now, it's election time, and we have to make sure that Harper pays the price at the polls for his reckless and un-Canadian climate policy.

Avaaz is targeting 3 of Harper's top MPs (including Environment Minister John Baird) where it will hurt them the most -- at the grass roots. Together, we will try to stop their re-election with ad campaigns telling their constituents just how irresponsible they've been in the name of all Canadians. We'll beat them not by supporting any one party, but by appealing to all voters to help save the planet by voting for the candidate most likely to beat the Conservatives. Our ad campaign is ready to launch in these ridings, but we urgently need your help to raise $50,000 this week.
http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_harper/

$53 to celebrate Dion's 53rd birthday

Femmeverte is joining with A United Party, A United Canada - Stephane Dion in challenging Liberal supporters to celebrate Stéphane Dion's 53rd birthday on September 28, 2008, with a $53 donation to the Liberal party or your local Liberal campaign.

Donate online here: https://www.liberal.ca/donate_e.aspx.

Already at your donation limit? Consider volunteering or recruiting a new donor or volunteer.

Progressives for Dion

Confused voter? Read this: http://progressivesfordion.ca/alerts/

Dion on As It Happens - audio

Stéphane Dion discussed the Liberal platform and took questions from listeners on this evening's As It Happens (CBC Radio One):

http://www.innutube.com/play_audio.php?audio=77
(Note: audio will start automagically when you click the link)

Who is interfering with Facebook?

Guest post by Deb Prothero

Although I am trying to get some work done today, I was curious about the Liberal Campaign Launch, so I went online.

Facebook is one of the places I check out for recent activity that might be interesting. Under updates, I was online as this one came in:

Anyonebutharper.ca
From Mean People Suck
Hey folks,

I’m part of a non-partisan movement Voting to Win against Stephen Harper. You can check out our website at www.http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://anyonebutharper.ca. The movement is comprised of hundreds of Canadians — Liberals, NDP, Green, Bloc -- from across Canada all working collaboratively to promote strategic voting. We’re not the only group doing this, by the way. Vote for Environment http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://(http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://voteforenvironment.ca), Department of Culture http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://(http://www.departmentofculture.ca) and even the CAW are all urging Canadians to vote strategically. If we work together, we may prevent a Harper majority government from becoming a fait accompli.

I’m writing this message because I need YOU to help spread the word.

Please visit http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://anyonebutharper.ca and choose ONE of the Anyonebutharper videos and share it with your network. The “SHARE” plug-in with the green icon allows you to easily share this video on Facebook, Myspace, Digg, and so on. It even lets you post it on your blogs and send it to friends via email. If you are so inclined you may even share One Video a Day for the next FOUR days.

And lastly, if you could please copy/paste this message and send it to FIVE of your friends, that would be great!

I know that if we all work collectively and harness the power of our networks, we can stop what seems inevitable from happening!

Vive la revolution!
(read less)
Today at 10:13am | Opt Out | Report Spam

I chose to click on the link and lookie here:

The following website has been identified as malicious:
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://anyonebutharper.ca
The link you have clicked has been identified by Facebook as a malicious web site. For the safety and privacy of your Facebook account, we strongly suggest you avoid visiting this address.

Has someone been tinkering with Facebook or are the Conservatives really scared now after Nik Nanos' numbers yesterday showed that Dion has the momentum now and Harper is yesterday's news. Just because a majority of Canadians do not want Harper and are trying to organize a strategic response, does this mean the Conservatives or individuals supporting the Conservatives should interfere with that online effort? What about free speech or is that only for Conservatives?

And if I were to label something malicious, it would most certainly be the last two years of activity directed against Stephane Dion by the Conservatives in parliament and the Conservative Party of Canada's attack advertising campaign.

Stephane Dion has been a superhero in handling the malicious attacks, in my opinion.

The Green Shift, good for corporate Canada

Stéphane Dion explains the tax advantages for corporations in The Green Shift policy.



Dion on TVO's The Agenda, September 18, 2008. See the complete interview on the TVO website.

Healthy environment = healthy economy

Dion links a healthy environment with a healthy economy -

Canadians should not pay more taxes. But we need to be taxed differently to be stronger collectively.... When we ask Canadians, "What is your priority, the economy or the environment?" my answer is both. We need to bring them together instead of opposing them.

Stéphane Dion on TVO's The Agenda, September 18, 2008. See the complete interview on the TVO website.

Telling the truth in both official languages

Stéphane Dion on TVO's The Agenda, September 18, 2008. Asked by Steve Paikin about his progress with English, Dion replied: "I don't speak English as well as Stephen Harper. But I say the truth better than him in both official languages."



See the complete interview on the TVO website.

Stéphane Dion on The Hour With George Stroumboulopoulos

Stéphane Dion on The Hour With George Stroumboulopoulos -

intro, bio & interview:
http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/videos.html?id=861028632

cold open:
http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/videos.html?id=860999220

Listeria victim's family angry over Ritz jokes

CBC / CP coverage of reaction to Conservative Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz's jokes about the listeriosis epidemic. In this clip, Dennis Schroh, son of a listeriosis victim, called Ritz's statements "ruthless and disrespectful." (September 19, 2008)

Conservatives to kill meat inspection in Manitoba: Ag Union

Agriculture Union media release:

Conservatives to kill meat inspection in Manitoba

WINNIPEG, Sept. 18 /CNW Telbec/ - If elected, a federal Conservative government plans to stop delivering provincial meat inspection programs in Manitoba leaving local consumers exposed to the risk of unsafe meat. The plan is revealed in a secret Treasury Board of Canada decision record, dated May 6, 2008, documenting the acceptance of a proposal concerning "Provincial Meat Slaughter Establishments (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia)" which calls for the "elimination of federal delivery of provincial meat inspection programs."

"Meat produced in provincially registered facilities in Manitoba would not be inspected by anyone under this plan," says Bob Kingston, President of the Agriculture Union - Public Service Alliance of Canada, which has launched www.foodsafetyfirst.ca, a tool for voters to email their local candidates during the federal election to urge them to make a commitment to food safety. The campaign is being organized jointly with the Professional Institute of the Public Service Canada.

The Treasury Board decision record says that following approval of a detailed implementation plan, "including risk mitigation and communications strategies," the cuts will come into force.

In Manitoba, the federal government delivers provincial meat inspection programs ensuring provincially registered slaughter facilities meet sanitation and other safety regulations. There are more than 30 provincially registered meat establishments in Manitoba that produce everything from beef to bison, ostrich to turkey and whose products cannot be shipped outside the province. "As we've seen during recent weeks, the federal government should be increasing food inspection, not cutting it," Kingston says.

The government of Stephen Harper has steadily cut funding for food safety programs and shifted responsibility for safety assurance to the food companies themselves.

According to current Treasury Board of Canada forecasts, funding for food safety programs will have declined by almost 30% from $359 million in 2006/07 to $254 million in 2010/11 under Mr. Harper's watch.

Meanwhile, the government plans to expand industry self-policing of safety. The same Treasury Board record also reveals plans to: "shift from full-time Canadian Food Inspection Agency meat inspection presence to an oversight role, allowing industry to implement food safety control programs and to manage key risks."

The Food Safety First campaign is urging federal candidates to endorse a four-point commitment to food safety:

1. Hire 1000 additional inspectors and veterinarians to improve industry compliance with safety regulations.
2. Place a moratorium on industry self-policing.
3. Remove obstacles that prevent CFIA inspectors and vets from taking immediate action when they encounter potential public health risks in the plants they inspect.
4. Restore the system of public audit reports which were cancelled under pressure from the meat industry.

"Voters can visit www.foodsafetyfirst.ca to send a message asking their candidates to make a commitment to food safety. When the candidates are asking voters for their support, there's no better time to ask the candidates to make this commitment," Kingston said.

The Agriculture Union - PSAC represents federal food inspectors and its President Bob Kingston is an Inspection Supervisor on leave from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Before going on a leave of absence to serve as an elected union officer, Kingston spent 25 years as a CFIA and Agriculture Canada inspector, including 15 years as a multi-commodity supervisor, a senior level inspector position.

For further information: Jim Thompson, (613) 447-9592

Source: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/September2008/18/c5823.html

h/t T. Thwim

Dion on The Current

Here's audio of Dion's interview with Anna Maria Tremonti on CBC Radio's The Current yesterday:

http://www.innutube.com/play_audio.php?audio=65


He explained very clearly how the green shift will support lower and middle income people.

Gerry Ritz - "stupid and insensitive remarks"

CTV coverage of Conservative Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz making "stupid and insensitive remarks" about the listeriosis epidemic. Roger Smith and Bob Fife talking to Mike Duffy. Note the exchange between Duffy and Fife around 3:00.



Some commenters over at Maclean's blogs think the controversy about Ritz's jokes is being over-blown. I don't agree.

It's worth noting that the minister in charge of the safety of the country’s food supply thinks that the deaths of people due to unsafe food is a joking matter. There were about 30 people on that conference call, it wasn’t a private aside, he knew a lot of people were listening and he thought it was fine to joke about people dying.

Family members of people who died don’t think it was funny. The daughter of one victim called the comments “hurtful” and “disrespectful”: http://watch.ctv.ca/news/election-2008/ritz-under-fire/#clip93578

This is what the phrase “adding insult to injury” means.

Coming on the same day as the CMAJ editorial that puts the responsibility for the listeriosis deaths squarely in the lap of the federal government, it is legitimately big news.

If family is everything, why not show some respect for the families who have lost loved ones? And why not some respect for families who have to feed their kids, their elders, family members with other medical conditions who are particularly vulnerable to listeriosis?

And how can the country have confidence in a minister who takes no responsibility for and doesn’t understand the seriousness of one of his core files - food safety?

The mother of all ridiculous claims

OK, so the real femmeverte is back and merci mille fois to Deb Prothero for alerting us all to uranium-related and many other Conservative nefariousnesses while fv has been busy cleaning litterboxes, taking cats to vets and other feline maintenance duties. (Oh yeah and that pesky day job, necessary to bring home the cat food and pay the vet bills.)

Now I'm sure I'm absolutely the last person in the blogosphere to see this, but it bears repeating so I'm going to shamelessly steal the whole thing from the Green website. Hey, we're friends, right? And I like their colour scheme.

12.09.2008
Secret government study belies Harper's claim that carbon tax will cause recession

TORONTO – The Green Party is releasing a secret report to the federal government from one of Canada's leading economists, obtained under the Access to Information Act in 2007. The report supports a carbon tax as an effective way to make significant cuts in greenhouse gas emissions and concludes that a $50/tonne tax on carbon would have an insignificant impact on the Canadian economy and would open tremendous economic opportunities. The model estimates this carbon tax shift would cut emissions by about 36 megatonnes (MT) by 2010, 59 MT by 2015 and 114 MT by 2030 (Table 3).

Green Party leader Elizabeth May May diverted from her intended remarks at a campaign event in Toronto today to point out the hypocrisy of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and thereby kicked off the leaders' debate.

The study, undertaken for Natural Resources Canada by M.K. Jaccard and Associates (MKJA), calculates the impact of carbon taxes of between $10 and $250 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) beginning in 2006 and applied throughout the economy at a single rate.

The report – Cost Curves for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction in Canada: The Kyoto Period and Beyond – concludes that the GDP impact of a $50/tonne tax shift is less than 0.1% of GDP per year until 2010, is virtually zero during the next five years and is then positive after 2015 (see chart below).

Further, the report projects net financial savings to those who take action as a result of the tax shift, after taking into account the investment in emissions reductions. At $50 per tonne, that windfall comes to $13.8 billion by 2010 and climbs from there (see chart below).

"Mr. Harper's ridiculous claim that taxing carbon will bring about economic ruin and a recession is starkly contradicted by his own research," said Ms. May. "In fact, this report shows a positive impact on GDP beginning in 2015. With this in the public domain it is clear that Mr. Harper is deliberately distorting the evidence. Mr. Harper's fear mongering on a carbon tax is a deliberate and premeditated effort to demonize a sensible plan.

"The government’s own analysis proves that a $50 carbon tax shift will benefit businesses and individuals, and will achieve deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. The Prime Minister should now explain to Canadians why, in the face of this compelling evidence, his government stubbornly refuses to consider the carbon tax option and continues to viciously attack those who do. Mr. Harper must bring some
honesty into this debate."

In remaining doggedly opposed to even considering a carbon tax and attacking those who do, Conservatives are ignoring a growing international consensus among leading economists and a government-commissioned study contradicting its warnings of economic meltdown.

The Green Party of Canada would implement a $50 per tonne carbon tax shift – with matching cuts in income and payroll taxes – as the cornerstone of a comprehensive plan for a green energy future that will reinstate Canada as a leader in the global
campaign to prevent catastrophic climate change.

"When we first released our plan to put a price on carbon, Environment Minister John Baird saw fit to deride our plan as 'the mother of all tax increases' even though we propose a tax shift with no net increase in revenue," said Ms. May. "It's another example of the government's willingness to deliberately mislead Canadians in support of its ineffective and widely discredited climate change policies."
To download the report and supporting documents go to www.greenparty.ca/carbontax.

h/t to Saskboy & Green Assassin Brigade

Why Uranium?

Guest post by Deb Prothero

Ever since last week's announcement by Harper about implementing some of the recommendations of the Competition Policy Review Panel's "Compete to Win" Report from June 2009, I've been wondering why in the world did he specifically talk about uranium? Who was that message for? Commodities investors, Bay Street, the average voter? It just didn't add up.

When things don't add up, I smell a rat and try to follow its tail.

Starting with the make-up of the Competition Review Panel: L.R. (Red) Wilson, CEO of BCE, chair; N. Murray Edwards, CEO of Canadian Natural Resources (one of the largest investors in Oil Sands); P. Thomas Jenkins, CEO of Open Text; Isabelle Hudon, CEO Montreal Board of Trade and Brian Levitt, Partner and Co-chair Osler, Hoskin and Harcourt (also member of board of BCE).

The Panel was appointed in June 2007 and issued their report in June 2008. Little commentary by the media or criticism by others of the report can be found online. Report here: http://www.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/cprp-gepmc.nsf/en/h_00040e.html

Their recommendations are worth considering but in the environment of a balanced analysis of the impact on the Canadian economy prior to implementation.

So, back to uranium.

I had recalled a CBC radio interview which I heard recently, discussing an agreement with the US for a "cradle to grave" approach to uranium. The agreement is called Bush's Global Nuclear Energy Partnership, a "cooperation of those States that share the common vision of the necessity of the expansion of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes worldwide in a safe and secure manner," according to the website of the organization (http://www.gneppartnership.org/). Did you know that Canada signed this? I didn't.

Reports (http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=96ca068c-5191-4829-b63d-767648f0522f&k=76488) last fall claimed that, "The cornerstone commitment of the partnership is its 'cradle-to-grave' plan to have all spent fuel from the world's reactors shipped back to GNEP uranium-supplier nations for secure disposal at nuclear-waste sites."

Hey, wait a minute. Did that just say that the SPENT FUEL will be shipped back to GNEP uranium-supplier nations? Does that mean that Canadians get to take back all the spent fuel from the US? Well, yes on the surface and in the writing of the agreement that's exactly what it says.

But wait a second, our fearless new government, now dissolved and seeking reelection, wants to reassure us. Remember the brilliant star in Harper's cabinet who fired Linda Keen the evening before she was to give evidence to a parliamentary committee. Yeah, that Gary Lunn. Here's what he has to say.

"We made it unequivocally clear that we will, under no circumstances, ever accept any nuclear spent fuel back from any other country," Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn said in another CanWest article (http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=532e51e0-089b-4f55-a5af-6d99960282a7&k=23825). "So this is a good initiative and Canada should be at the table to ensure that we have a voice."

But how can he say that, when Harper has signed an agreement with the US (or has he not signed and its in the negotiation phase) indicating that in fact we will be required to accept their spent fuel, if we supply the uranium. Guess Gary Lunn is smarter than me. Or maybe Harper/Bush have a different concept of what cradle-to-grave means. I thought it was about much-valued social safety nets which we adopt from Scandinavian countries with a Canadian twist. They seem to be talking about protecting investors from risk and responsibility from cradle-to-grave for every penny they invest!

So how about other agreements with the US... what do they say?

Uranium production and management is definitely an SPP priority being discussed by the North American Energy Working Group: http://www.pi.energy.gov/naewg.html. See the following quote on the Department of Energy website in the U.S.:

"Specifically, the trilateral working group explores policies, regulations and technological innovations with a view to encouraging the most optimal, efficient and sustainable development of hydrocarbons, energy efficiency, renewable energy, clean power, and nuclear energy and their related infrastructure as well as ensuring frameworks are in place for markets to work most effectively."

Reducing the barriers to foreign involvement in Canada's uranium industry is, in a big sense, about creating a more seamless North American uranium and nuclear market, which is an SPP priority (probably the U.S.'s biggest priority.)

Now I'm getting worried. Harper is going to allow greater foreign investment in Canadian companies, especially uranium. Doesn't that mean that the profits leave Canada? So not only will the American-owned multi-nationals get the profit from our uranium. Canadians living in uranium rich areas will get the pollution from the extraction. Then once the Americans are finished with the uranium, they're going to ship us the spent fuel!

I thought the softwood lumber deal negotiated by Harper and Emerson was the sell-out of the century but this uranium deal takes the cake. The Americans couldn't convince the residents around Yucca Mountain to accept the spent fuel so now they're adopting the unique approach of shipping the used uranium back to where it came from - Canada!

When are we going to see some discussion about this agreement? If uranium is one aspect of the "Compete to Win" report, when are we going to see some healthy criticism of its recommendations and ideas? And when I say healthy criticism, I am serious. There are aspects of the Competition Policy Review Panel report's recommendations which may in fact be necessary or important since some parts were implemented 20 years ago and need updating.

BUT, I have not heard anyone in this campaign offer any information about this issue and I'm listening. When are the Canadian media going to inform us about our choices? When are all the parties going to give us some real information about our choices?


Tip of the hat to the local Council of Canadians for some tips and links.

What happens when you quit your job?

Seems to me that Employment Insurance benefits are denied if you quit your job. Harper quit his job and now he wants more - he wants a majority.

I've observed a successful strategy that Harper has employed and it is distressing to watch it play out. His abuse of the Parliamentary system seems to have gone unpunished. Through an abuse of the confidence motion (more than any other Prime Minister in history), Harper has set all the progressives against each other. Jack Layton is blaming the Liberals for propping up the government and Liberals are blaming Jack.

So it is a perfect storm. The NDP are blaming the Liberals for doing what they had no choice but to do. Jack should be aiming his guns at the Conservative abuse of the minority Parliament. Making a bill a confidence motion used to be a move taken with care. Heck, I saw more confidence motions in the last parliament than in the entire 30 plus years of previous voting.

Why isn't Harper being blamed for the ruination of the minority Parliament. He abused the rules; quit his job and now he wants to collect on benefits!

Don't think that's fair and why are we propping him up by shooting at each other.

Right, let's get on that!

Right wing, free enterprise, deregulated meltdown.
So we want a majority conservative government?

Thanks for telling Canadians that we are becoming more like conservatives, Harper - pretty insulting, I'd say. You say we're becoming more like the conservative Americans who are engaging in melting down their economy???

Good job on the economy, Steve!

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/09/15/world-markets.html

Let's tie our balloon to that basket:

http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2008/09/14/financial-makeover.html#socialcomments

The Crux of the Matter

The Crux of the Matter

Harper wants us to believe in his newly minted fatherly image. What does a conservative father believe?

According to George Lakoff’s book, “Moral Politics – How Conservatives and Liberals Think”, conservative fathers are strict, authoritarian figures where the father can protect the family in a dangerous world, support the family in a difficult world and teach his children right from wrong.

Obedience is implicit. That is, obedience of the electorate, obedience of the parliament. Once Harper gets a majority, he’ll do all the thinking, thank you very much. The rest of us can go back to work and shopping while he dismantles our federation handing over the juicy bits to American multi-national corporations, as he’s done so handily with the income trust matter. Don’t worry your pretty little heads about these tough economic issues.

What is our federation’s role? It alone stands in the way of the complete corporatization of our society, in my opinion. Without a federal state, our universal health care (among other important institutions) is at risk of being privatized completely. This is what this election is about.

When will we get to the crux of the matter in this election?

Harper has gleefully explained exactly what this country would look like when he's done with it, especially during his National Citizens Coalition days. We will have war, increased military spending, increased prison populations, no arts and no health care. That's his vision.

My vision of Canada is much different. We need to pull together as a nation to weather the coming economic storm from the south and to carve out a positive role for Canada and Canadians in the global effort to solve the greenhouse gas emissions problems. Without a federation, we'll be 10 provinces and territories fighting over scraps whilst the world crumbles around us without our leadership.

As has been succintly said, "The world needs more Canadas." But not the sort that Harper envisions!

Disbarred & jailed - how much more qualified can you get?

It must be Friday:

Bruce Carson was named this week as the first executive director of the new Alberta-based Canada School of Energy and the Environment.

The institute recently got $15 million from the Tory government.

Carson, who was disbarred and jailed in the early 1980s for defrauding law clients, will split his time between the Prime Minister's office and his new post until after the next federal election. http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/479507

Obviously his alleged background "defrauding law clients" will be excellent experience in selling the Conservative ecoFraud policies.

Canadians can be proud that individuals of his stature are selflessly prepared to serve their country, putting the public interest before their own.

Pretense of Protection

Guest post by Deb Prothero

Pretense of Protection

Since the federal election campaign appears to have started (I received another flyer from our MP, paid for by taxpayers), hopefully the St. Thomas Times Journal is anxious to print more letters refuting the lies contained therein. Although I do recall that there is a one-per-month editorial letter policy so they may not take this up for awhile.

The flyer (paid for by taxpayers) from our local MP that I received last week, says “To keep Canadians safe from shoddy and tainted products, the Conservative Government knows we all must work together.” Why then are they cancelling the funding for BSE testing of all Canadian beef?

Together we Canadians have worked together to try to save the beef industry after the import ban imposed by many countries in 2003. Some of us bought more local beef, paid taxes for some relief programs and the farmers were forced to drastically reduce their beef herds during the crisis. The farmers also worked really hard to develop reliable testing so that Canadian beef would be trusted again. That’s called working together and the world has taken notice by allowing imports of Canadian beef now.

But this Conservative government intends to remove the testing so we won’t know if or when there is any BSE. It’s called the Texan shut up and shovel method of damage control.

The implication through photos on the flyer is that by banning the use of plastic baby bottles containing BPA, the Conservative government is “helping ensure your child’s safety”. But what of the cans of soup and beer and those dental implants which are also lined with the same BPA plastic?

Scientists throughout Europe, Japan and the United States have investigated BPA and have determined that the BPA scare in Canada is based on “a speculative field of scientific research built around the theory of endocrine disruption theory.” In other words, the “precautionary principle” is rampant in Ottawa.

When the Conservatives take the side of speculative science to frighten Canadians, I wonder about their motives. Do they want to pretend to protect us or are they really actually going to do it? Do they believe in science or only in some science? What of climate change science or is that the wrong kind of science – the consensus variety?

When the world wide scientific consensus on BPA indicates that it is safe and the experiments indicating minute potential risk cannot be duplicated, it appears the Conservatives are latching onto a pretend issue to pretend to protect children (and possibly get votes from mothers – say it isn’t so!). Otherwise, if their belief is that the science is real and they’re not just trying to get votes for pretentious pretending policy, then they would also ban the use of BPA in cans of soup and beer and dental plastics, wouldn’t they? Or are voters who use soup, beer and dental plastics expendable?

I’m not entirely reassured by the flyer’s assertion that “new powers to pull unsafe products from store shelves.” The Conservative government intends to leave meat and food inspection up to the corporations instead of independent or government inspectors.

I fully expect to receive another 10% flyer (paid for by taxpayers) explaining to Canadians (or at least Elgin-Middlesex-London voters) that the hamburger company supplying the Wendy’s restaurant will be deciding what is fit for human consumption, and how that’s a good thing brought to you by the Conservative government. Given the local meat inspection scandals and cancellation of BSE testing, I can’t say I’m reassured.

And finally, the Conservative government says it is “cracking down on manufacturers and importers of dangerous products.” Umm, didn't we have to return pet food and lead painted toys recently? This flyer was received in the same week that Niagara farmers are pulling up their peach trees because they can’t compete with canned peaches from China. If the peaches from China become known as a dangerous product or they come in cans lined with BPA that becomes banned, and there are no more Canadian peaches, will peaches become extinct?

Imagine a future generation of Canadians denied that particular sweet, fuzzy treat of summer! And all because this Conservative government wants to pretend to protect you and yours without actually doing it.

Conservative criminalization of poverty advocated in flyer

On Wednesday last week, I received a menacing-looking flyer from our local MP indicating that "Age is No Excuse" and reminding me the Conservative Government believes “no one is above the law”. The flyer says, “The Conservative Government supports tougher laws so young punks and thugs will learn to take responsibility for their serious crimes.”

In Saturday’s Toronto Star, in the last of an eight part series on Crime and Punishment, I read there is a consensus among Canadian experts on the front-end reforms needed for safer communities: reduce poverty and school drop-out rates; invest in comprehensive childhood development initiatives; make housing affordable; increase access to health care and rehabilitative programs; and reduce incarceration rates, partly through alternatives to jail, and (then) direct those savings to neighbourhoods with a high number of offenders.”

The Conservative Government of our MP wants Canadians to adopt an American-style justice system where one in a hundred adults are in prison, the highest incarceration rate in the world. The American system of incarceration has not reduced crime rates. Yet, in Canada, we learned from a study of police departments published last week that Canada has the lowest crime rates in over a decade. Criminalizing poverty hasn’t worked in the USA, why would I believe the Conservative Government has the answer when the experts are shouting loudly to do the exact opposite of what they are purporting as a solution?

Seems to me the Conservative Government is trying to sell a bill of goods that is not even of their own invention. Criminalizing the poor, the homeless, the poorly educated, the mentally ill, the unemployed and those addicted to drugs or alcohol is no sound way to solve the problems of our society.

Neither is raising the fear level of the population through menacing flyers (which taxpayers pay for). The experts say, “the new ‘tough on crime’ measure put it squarely in the pay-more-later camp.” We can pay now to solve our problems through solutions that get at the core of the issues or we can pay much more later by criminalizing them.

Seems to me the experts win the point. We can’t afford the Conservative Government’s approach.

Mark Knopfler - True love will never die

Well Mark Knopfler and the band hit Toronto last night with a fabulous show (does he know how to play an un-fabulous show?) at the Molson Amphitheatre - 2 hours of pure bliss for thousands of diehard fans including femmeverte.

The biggest surprise? No Money for Nothing encore. Not my absolute fave among his repertoire anyway so not a huge disappointment. Great rocking opening with Cannibals, beautiful treatments of Straits' songs So Far Away, Romeo & Juliet, Telegraph Road (very much on our minds as we spent a couple of hours stuck in traffic on the QE2 wondering if we would even make it in time for the encores - 6 lanes of traffic, 3 lanes mooooving slooooowwwwww), Brothers in Arms, and of course Sultans of Swing.

Plus some great tunes from Mark's solo albums including What It Is, Speedway to Nazareth (shout-out to TO of course), Song for Sonny Liston, Why Aye Man, Sailing to Philadelphia and True Love Will Never Die. Then he sent us all home happy with the always magical Local Hero theme.

Thanks again to Ashley for driving - her superb navigation meant we didn't miss a second of the show after all despite the worst the QE2 could throw at us. Sorry you didn't get to take home Mark's National guitar, Ash ;-(

Here are a few pix...

The Green Shift announcement

Here's a YouTube playlist with Dion's complete Green Shift / le Tournant vert speech (4 parts, EN/FR) - http://ca.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=AEB06DA71023E70E

Cadman video retrospective

For your convenience/viewing pleasure, here's a playlist with 18 QP and scrums snippets on the Cadman affair, February 28 to March 6, 2008: http://ca.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=F6E4E6DC3FB51A1F

This might be a helpful or even entertaining supplement to Kady's Tale of the Tape: Unspooling the Timeline post.

The March 4, 2008 QP exchange wherein the prime minister had every opportunity to complain that the tape wasn't completely copacetic (as reported by Aaron Wherry) - but didn't - is here: http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=c5TqE-2anHk

So pop up some popcorn and don't forget your blood pressure meds, antidepressants, Laphroig, whatever.

Max & Julie - The soundtrack

So I was listening to the Wilburys today, and halfway thru Tweeter and the Monkey Man my mind was drawn inexorably toward the latest twists in the Max & Julie story.

Having a look at the tracklist, it seems like Volume 1 wouldn't be a bad soundtrack for l'histoire Max & Julie.

Handle With Care
good advice but obviously ignored

Dirty World
absolutely

Rattled
that too

Last Night
transcript of bedbug provided by Stéphane Laporte

Not Alone Any More
flashback - Minister Bernier shows off his new girlfriend

Congratulations
there's always a silver lining

Heading for the Light
as in "there's light at the end of the tunnel and it's a train"

Margarita
flashback - romantic holiday in Aruba

Tweeter and the Monkey Man
"La même année, Volpato a été condamné à six ans de pénitencier pour sa participation à un complot d'importation de 180 kg de cocaïne."

End of the Line

Frog blog

à propos d'absolument rien . . .

This little frog was on my french door at 1:45 am on a rainy, thundery Friday night / Saturday morning.



And this doe - a dear, a female deer - was outside my kitchen window a couple of evenings ago. Sorry about the red-eye but I didn't want to freak her out by taking any more pix.

Fortunately for any viewers out there I didn't get any pix of the mouse massacre later the same night, but here's the prime suspect:


Ling puts the "fur" in "furocious"

Free the KI6 and Robert Lovelace

Text of letter to Premier McGuinty

Dear Premier McGuinty,

Non-Aboriginal people owe a huge debt to the original peoples of this country for welcoming us to what is now Canada, teaching us how to survive here and agreeing to share their land and resources with us.

In return we've abused them and robbed and defrauded them of the same gifts they generously agreed to share. We put them in jail for daring to defend their traditional lands in a peaceful and respectful manner.

This abuse has to stop, it has to stop now.

And as the Premier of Ontario, you are one of the people who has to stop it.

As a Canadian and Ontarian I demand that you rescind Platinex's exploration licence in traditional Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug territory and free Chief Donny Morris, Deputy Chief Jack McKay, Head Councillor Cecilia Begg, Councillors Samuel McKay and Darryl Sainnawap and band employee Bruce Sakakeep.

Likewise you must act now to stop Frontenac Ventures' activities on traditional Ardoch Algonquin First Nation territory and free Robert Lovelace.

It is not the people incarcerated, but Platinex, Frontenac Ventures, and the Governments of Ontario and Canada who have brought the province and country into contempt for their treatment of these matters from the beginning, by ignoring their legal and moral duty to consult the First Nations peoples concerned.

Ontarians and other Canadians are no longer prepared to look the other way while the governments elected to represent us perpetuate the abuse of Aboriginal people.

Private, for-profit interests cannot be allowed to trump First Nations interests and environmental interests any longer. The greed of mining companies is not more important than First Nations rights and environmental protection. The treatment of Aboriginal people in Canada makes me and many others ashamed of the country we love deeply.

First Nations people have been patient with us for many generations. It's time we got it right. Free the KI6 and Robert Lovelace and let's not let it happen again.

I do not want to hear excuses from you as to why you cannot do this. You're the Premier - it's your job - end of story.

Thank you.

---

AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine on the jailing of the KI6 and Robert Lovelace:


(See the entire speech here)

Links to more information:

• Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug website
• Free the KI6
• KI Friends blog

Attawapiskat

Or - When is a negotiation not a negotiation?
When is a deal not a deal?

When it's the federal government screwing First Nations again, this time over funding for a school at the Attawapiskat First Nation near James Bay.

In an interview with the Timmins Daily Press, Susan Bertrand, a spokesperson for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada emphasized that talks planned with the Attawapiskat council are not negotiations and that a school for Attawapiskat is still "not on our five-year plan."

It's important to note that treaties with First Nations specifically included education. The Government of Canada is reneging on a legal contract by not providing educational facilities to the Attawapiskat First Nation and other communities like it. Schools are not optional extras, they're legal obligations that the Government of Canada or the British Crown committed to in exchange for land. That's exactly the same as a store taking your money and then not giving you the goods that you paid for - but on an enormous scale. So why do we tolerate it?

High school graduation rates for First Nations students are dropping, while First Nations are experiencing rapid population growth. As AFN National Chief Fontaine observes in the video below, these children are Canada's future. They deserve a decent education as a matter of justice and fairness. But we also need to provide First Nations children with good educational opportunities now, so that they are prepared to take a significant role in Canada's future development.

Learn more about the fight for a school in Attawapiskat here.

Hear AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine talk about the Attawapiskat situation and First Nations poverty in general:

From a speech to the Ontario Energy Association, January 24, 2008 - see the full speech at - Part 1 and Part 2.

Sign the "First Nations Children of Attawapiskat Fight for a School" petition to Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl at http://www.petitiononline.com/FNCA08/petition-sign.html.

For more on this issue, visit the Fighting for a School for Attawapiskat website.

So many scandals, so little time...

There's so much choice, where to start?

More questions about the Cadman affair - Dion in Question Period, March 6, 2008
"Will the Prime Minister admit that he was talking about addressing Mr. Cadman's financial insecurity in exchange for his vote?" Question Period, March 6, 2008 (EN/FR).



Ken Dryden with still more questions about the Cadman affair, Question Period, March 6, 2008.


Geoff Regan has some questions for James Moore about the Cadman affair, Question Period, March 6, 2008.
Moore responds "My mom used to tell me don't believe everything you read in the newspaper." For all the stuff the camera doesn't capture, read Macleans.ca blogger Aaron Wherry's entertaining account of the episode, "The Commons: A bad joke"


"We don't know how to choose among all the scandals"
"Was the Prime Minister misleading the House or was his chief of staff misleading him?" And for the romantic among you, don't miss Harper's billet doux to Jack Layton. (Question Period, March 6, 2008 on NAFscam, FR/EN)


And today's scrum (environment motion, NAFscam) - "This government has been wrong, wrong, wrong about the environment..."

Daily dose of double-talk - video of the Cadman case in QP, March 4, 2008

Highlights from today's Question Period on the allegations regarding Chuck Cadman.

Stéphane Dion: "Mr. Speaker, we all heard the tape. First question: can the prime minister tell Canadians - Is it really his voice on the tape? Yes or no?"


Ken Dryden:



Ruby Dhalla:

Questions in the House - Cadman allegations, March 3

Liberal leader Stéphane Dion & Deputy Leader Michael Ignatieff question the government on the allegations regarding Independent MP Chuck Cadman. Question Period, March 3, 2008. (EN/FR)

Liberal MP Ken Dryden questions the government on allegations regarding Independent MP Chuck Cadman. Question Period, March 3, 2008.

Stéphane Dion takes media questions about the Cadman allegations and the threatened libel suit. (March 3, 2008. EN/FR)

Afghan detainees - Irwin Cotler in QP, Feb. 29, 2008

Liberal human rights critic Irwin Cotler questions the government on the resumption of transfers of Afghan detainees to Afghan officials. (FR/EN, Question Period, February 29, 2008) [02:21]

Liberal MPs question government on Cadman allegations, Feb. 29, 2008 (video from QP)

Liberal MPs Ralph Goodale, Raymond Simard, Marcel Proulx and Garth Turner continue questioning the government about allegations that the Conservatives attempted to bribe Independent MP Chuck Cadman in May 2005. (Question Period, February 29, 2008.)

Video 1 - Ralph Goodale & Raymond Simard [EN/FR 5:25]


Video 2 - Marcel Proulx & Garth Turner [FR/EN 6:03]

Liberals question government on Cadman allegations (video coverage)

Liberal leader Stéphane Dion, Deputy Leader Michael Ignatieff and several Liberal MPs questioned the government during Question Period today about allegations that Conservatives tried to bribe Independent MP Chuck Cadman. Here are videos of Dion, Ignatieff, Karen Redman, Dominic LeBlanc, Sukh Dhaliwal, Todd Russell, Raymonde Folco and Sue Barnes pressing the government for straight answers:

One mile wide and one inch deep

Stéphane Dion's response to the federal budget, February 26, 2008: "A budget that is one mile wide and one inch deep." (EN/FR)

More on the Liberal response to the budget at http://www.liberal.ca/story_13624_e.aspx (EN) or http://www.liberal.ca/story_13624_f.aspx (FR).

And today's Question Period (EN/FR) -
Stéphane Dion asks the prime minister to bring back Bill C-30, the revised Clean Air Act, supported by all three opposition parties and dropped when Parliament was prorogued in the fall of 2007. Dion notes that the Conservative plan is so weak that polluters won't pay, they'll get paid. That would be by you and me, the taxpayers. Paying polluters to pollute - now that's getting things done!

Hallucinating about the Afghan mission

The Irrational Post strikes again with a hallucinatory editorial about Dion's position on the end of the Afghanistan mission.

Dion has said for a year (since February 2007) that the combat mission must end in February 2009, and that Canadian troops could have other roles in Kandahar, including providing security, training and help with development projects.

He has explained many times that a "combat mission" is defined as "proactively seeking out" the enemy, whereas security is more defensive in nature.

Are the people at the Irrational Post too stupid to understand that, or are they perhaps a little less than objective?

On February 12, 2008, Joan Bryden of the Canadian Press was interviewed about Stéphane Dion's Afghanistan position. Bryden said:

Stéphane Dion has actually been pretty clear for about a year now about the Liberal position, which is, 'the end of the combat mission in February 2009.' He has been unequivocal and categorical about that point for a long time... It's been a good spin job by the Conservatives to put all the onus on the Liberals. The Conservatives are the ones who have actually changed their position.

Dion reiterated his long-standing position on Thursday (February 21, 2008) during an interview in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan:

The Conservatives owe a big debt of gratitude to their friends at the Irrational Post for their help in spinning the story.

Video of today's QP & scrum + Sunday's CTV QP

Question Period, February 11, 2008"



Stéphane Dion questions Peter Van Loan on the timeline for the mission in Afghanistan. [03:50]

Scrum, February 11, 2008

Stéphane Dion takes questions from the media on the upcoming budget and the deadline of the Afghanistan mission (EN/FR, 11 février 2008) [4:52]


CTV's Question Period, February 10, 2008

Stéphane Dion discusses the timeline of the Afghanistan mission (February 10, 2008). [08:50]

Stéphane Dion - A strong, positive and inspiring leader

What kind of a leader is Stéphane Dion?

Strong on the environment, social justice, human rights and the economy. And cool too! Who needs a rose and an opera cloak when you've got a leather backpack and a hockey stick? Top it all off with a great brain and a sense of humour - what's not to love?

In this video, Dion plays ball hockey, jokes with Gavin Crawford of This Hour Has 22 Minutes and does some standup comedy at Toronto Summit 2007.

He's strong and inspiring on the environment, Aboriginal issues and human rights.

We can no longer use our atmosphere as a free garbage dump.

Indigenous people are suffering, and we Canadians must be leaders for human rights in the world.

That's why we have a Canada on this planet - to protect human rights.

If you like the positive messages in this video, please vote for it at http://liblogs.ca/news.en.cgi?99!

"With our plan, Canadians are winners"

Stéphane Dion's stellar performance during Question Period, February 5, 2008, on assistance for Canada's manufacturing and forestry sectors.

We have proposed ... to make targeted investments in our manufacturing and forestry sectors to stimulate the economy, create jobs and green technologies right here in Canada. But the finance minister says he's not capable of identifying winners. Mr. Speaker, with our plan, Canadians are winners.

Also today's scrum on Dion's expectations for his meeting with the prime minister on the Afghanistan mission. (Click the "menu" button on the video player to see the second video.)

Why does the prime minister fire public servants for doing their jobs?

Stéphane Dion, Question Period & scrum, February 4, 2008



1. Stéphane Dion, Question Period, February 4, 2008. [03:53]
Dion questions prime minister about the threatening and firing of public servants, e.g. Deanna Allen, vice-president of the Canadian Wheat Board. "Why does the Prime Minister fire public servants for doing their jobs? Why does the Prime Minister insist on crushing dissent, on silencing those who dare to disagree with him?"

2. Stéphane Dion scrum, February 4, 2008 [05:55]
Stéphane Dion takes questions on Afghanistan mission (meeting with Harper), Bill C-3 (security certificates), aid package for one-industry towns (forestry).

Stéphane Dion - won't back down

Stéphane Dion - he'll stand his ground and he won't back down - on national unity, Canadian sovereignty, climate change, human rights, poverty, youth, the arts, the economy, farmers, what's right for Canada, Canadian winters. (Music: I won't back down, Tom Petty)

Happy Groundhog Day! Joyeux jour de la marmotte ! Happy Groundhogmanay!

It's not about the shadow, it's about the groundhogs.

Check out A Baby Groundhog and a Big Leaf


Orchestral manoeuvres in the yard

What part of "February 2009" don't you understand?

"The combat mission must end in February 2009." Sounds pretty clear to me. And completely consistent with what Dion's been saying since February 2007. Here's today's scrum on the Afghanistan mission and the Dimitri Soudas/Rosdev affair as well as QP on Afghanistan:

The vast left wing conspiracy

Yay! I finally showed up on the Vast Left Wing Conspiracy! Well it might have happened a while ago but it was taking so long I finally gave up checking and then tonight, there I am, right at the top of the page, an official member of the vast left wing conspiracy and purveyor of leftist propaganda!

Oh - you don't care? Well sorry to bother you. I had to tell somebody and the cats just weren't very enthusiastic about it. (If it doesn't involve fancy feast, cheese, mice or birds it's hard to get their attention, although they think the Flying Spaghetti Monster has possibilities on two counts - the flying bit, like birds of course, and the meatballs look pretty tasty to my little Pastifarian carnivores. Yeah, gross I know, but I'm not a cat.)

"When will the prime minister realize that the buck stops with him?"

Dion - "Mr Speaker, the Prime Minister allowed his government to mislead Canadians on an issue as serious as torture. They even blamed the military for their own failure of leadership. This is completely unacceptable. Why won't the Prime Minister do what he should have done months ago - Stop blaming others and take responsibility for his own decisions?

Harper - "I'm not sure what the honourable member is even talking about."

He's been living in a bunker with no outside access for the last week?

Dion - "When will the prime minister realize that the buck stops with him on the leadership of this mission and that he cannot scapegoat the military - this is completely unacceptable."

Harper - "This government hasn't attempted to scapegoat the military for anything."

Oh well then, that's all right. All those annoyed military types can just get over it.

Really, don't you just cringe when you hear Milliken refer to Harper as the "Right Honourable Prime Minister?" I mean it's a bit of an oxymoron.

Today's QP and scrum -

Holy stromatolites in vegan "meat" sauce!

The Flying Spaghetti Monster (pasta be His name) has accomplished yet another miraculous . . . well . . . uh . . . miracle.

Scientists have "discovered" organic material in 2,724-million-year-old stromatolites. And not only were fossilized microbes present,

Our results support microbial mediation for the formation of the Tumbiana stromatolites, and extend the geologic record of primary aragonite by more than 2,300 Myr. (Source : Nature Geoscience, Published online: 27 January 2008)

Holy Rigatoni and Elbow Macaroni! But what's that got to do with His Noodliness, you ask? Just everything!

We have evidence that a Flying Spaghetti Monster created the universe. . .
He built the world to make us think the earth is older than it really is. For example, a scientist may perform a carbon-dating process on an artifact. He finds that approximately 75% of the Carbon-14 has decayed by electron emission to Nitrogen-14, and infers that this artifact is approximately 10,000 years old, as the half-life of Carbon-14 appears to be 5,730 years. But what our scientist does not realize is that every time he makes a measurement, the Flying Spaghetti Monster is there changing the results with His Noodly Appendage. We have numerous texts that describe in detail how this can be possible and the reasons why He does this. He is of course invisible and can pass through normal matter with ease. (Source: Open Letter to Kansas School Board)

Now while I know about as much about palaeo-this-that-and-the-other as your average Kansas School Board trustee, that's pretty impressive. And it must be true, because the picture looks just like a plate of spaghetti - uh make that Spaghetti. It almost makes me wish Mr. Tory had won the provincial election so we could have FSM/ID taught in our schools (with instructors respectfully attired in full pirate regalia of course).

RAmen. May you be touched by His Noodly Appendage. Now excuse me, I've got to go clean the litter boxes.

(Not familiar with the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster? Hie thee away to http://www.venganza.org/ and get educated.)

Now it's the lawyers' fault

Last week it was the military's fault for not telling the government. That didn't go over so well.

So today it's the lawyers' fault for disclosing the information to the court.

Whose fault will it be tomorrow? Stay tuned to QP for the next exciting installment.

Monday's QP & scrum (on combat mission in Kandahar post-2009)....

1. Question Period, January 28, 2008. Opposition leader Stéphane Dion questions Harper on lack of disclosure re the change to the Afghan detainee transfer policy.
2. Scrum discussing continuation of the combat mission in Kandahar after 2009. (EN/FR)

Sandra Buckler & the sound of screaming

It's up to PM whether to fire spokeswoman over Afghan comment, says Tory MP
(Canadian Press, January 26, 2008, 6:20 pm)

. . . But one telephone receiver was shaking with the sound of screaming as a livid Department of National Defence official vented his fury at the Prime Minister's Office.

The military official said his colleagues are incensed by the insinuation that they would be incompetent enough to withhold key details on a politically charged file from their civilian bosses.

He said the Canadian Forces should be receiving plaudits for having signed a detainee-transfer deal when Foreign Affairs failed to do so in 2005, and for having then immediately halted transfers when proof of torture was uncovered in November.

"Instead we've been wearing this," the military official said, shouting loudly enough to shake the phone receiver. He described the mood at DND as "outraged and frustrated." . . .

Stéphane Dion on Afghan detainees, Mulroney-Schreiber

Stéphane Dion on transfer of Afghan detainees

[09:44]

Press conference on January 25, 2008. Stéphane Dion gives a brief review of Harper government record followed by lengthy discussio Stéphane Dion gives a brief review of Harper government record followed by lengthy discussion of Conservative policy on transferring Afghan detainees (scrum, January 25, 2008). Dion reveals that he and Michael Ignatieff were informed confidentially of the change in detainee transfer policy while in Afghanistan earlier in January. Dion and Ignatieff were bound by confidentiality not to disclose the information until it was made public by the government. Stéphane Dion, chef de l'Opposition, commente la politique du gouvernement sur le transfert de détenus afghanes (point de presse le 25 janvier 2008). (EN/FR)

Stéphane Dion commente l'affaire Mulroney-Schreiber

[00:38]

Point de presse le 25 janvier 2008. Stéphane Dion, chef de l'Opposition, commente l'affaire Mulroney-Schreiber - «on a besoin d'av Point de presse le 25 janvier 2008. Stéphane Dion, chef de l'Opposition, commente l'affaire Mulroney-Schreiber - «on a besoin d'avoir une enquête complète». (Français)