Trying to make a big impact from the starting gate, Nycole Turmel stood up and started listing off the various social conservative evils that the Conservatives are contemplating – opening up the debates on capital punishment and abortion, and now
Continue readingMy journey with AIDS...and more!: Finding Émile
I reached another marker this week in my posthumous, intriguing, fan-like relationship with Montréal poet Émile Nelligan (1879-1941) when Craig’s partner, Claude, drove me to the site of his burial in Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges. Even with a map of the cemetery it took us a while to find Marker #588 in
Continue readingIf You Screw Them We Will Come.
WeAreAllLivingInPottervilleNow RobberbarronVille So. Why is Caterpillar moving talking our money and running and opening up shop in the fine state that hosted the ‘A-Fiat-Is-Still-A-Fiat’ Bowl last week. I mean, to my naive ears it didn’t make sense that the Robberbarrons were going to the northern, sensible state of Indiana when
Continue readingRandom Ranting Raving and Ratings: Harper Conservatives on Liberal’s Plan for OAS – 2004
Back in 2004, the Harper Conservatives accused the Paul Martin Liberals of having a “hidden agenda” to raise the age to qualify for the Old Age Security to 67. The Conservative Party of Canada had acquired the information on the Liberals through access to information. As far as I… ..
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Comparing two carbon bombs: LNG vs Enbridge pipeline
With the spotlight on the federal government’s aggressive push to export tar sands bitumen via the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline to Kitimat, and from there by tanker on to China, the BC government reclaimed some attention on the energy file when it released its Natural Gas Strategy last week. With
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: Wanker of the day
Lorne Gunter, whose National Post column on the census is thoroughly dissected at Calgary Grit. Incidentally, should Tony Clement pop up to claim vindication since Statistics Canada has released the first set of results from the recent census today, feel free to remind him that the population data we’re getting
Continue readingthe woodshed: There is a reason Florida has its own tag on FARK
Ah Florida, land of orange blossoms, beaches, golf courses built on gator-filled swamps and the early bird buffet special. Home to Disneyland, retirement paradises and more crazy per capita than any other state in the union except maybe Utah. I’m not sure if it’s too much time in the sun
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: There seems to be a difference of opinion here
This is Tony Clement, after citing some numbers plucked out of context: So clearly [Old Age Security] is unsustainable… One wonders where Clement gets his information. It’s certainly not from the Parliamentary Budget Officer. The oncoming demographic time bomb of baby boomers retiring won’t cause a fiscal crisis Canada’s budget
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Make It the Canadian Webcasting Corporation by Crawford Kilian
Columnist says the CBC should ditch both TV and radio, and the technologies of those media.
Continue readingCanadian Dimension Feed: Alert! Episode 202
Micheal Vonn, Policy Director of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association discusses soon-to-be introduced “lawful access” bills to expand police surveillance powers. The federal government has announced that it will soon be introducing legislation to increase the ability of police to intercept private communications and access more personal information stored
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Budget could put CBC Hamilton in jeopardy
FRIENDS says that expected funding cuts in the upcoming federal budget would have devastating consequences for listeners and viewers and could scuttle new services the CBC has promised to Hamiltonians and residents of several other communities.
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Ruling on Sun News’ Krista Erickson is a triumph for the obnoxious by John Doyle
Columnist says nobody should be surprised that the CBSC failed to find fault in Krista Erickson’s approach to a recent interview with Canadian dancer Margie Gillis as there is no regulatory mechanism for the censure of obnoxious behaviour on TV.
Continue readingCanadian Progressive World: China to quiz Stephen Harper on human rights?
As Prime Minister Stephen Harper leads a high-powered Team Corporate Canada to China, there’s justifiable speculation that the PM will not question China’s appalling human rights record. At least not publicly. Once, powerful western …Read More
Continue readingDeSmogBlog: The Business of Risk – Insuring Against Climate Change
Insurance_Photo.jpg When it comes to assessing risk, the insurance industry is one of the leaders in the field. Whether it is health insurance, car insurance, or homeowner’s insurance, the industry is forced to analyze every possible scenario for a given person or structure, and impose a fee based on the
Continue readingOccupy Ottawa: China to quiz Stephen Harper on human rights?
As Prime Minister Stephen Harper leads a high-powered Team Corporate Canada to China, there’s justifiable speculation that the PM will not question China’s appalling human rights record. At least not publicly. Once, powerful western democracies …Read More
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Aussies Fight Back Against Big Coal Propaganda Mill
What you’re looking at appeared in full page format in the Sydney Morning Herald. It was published in reaction to a call by whacko global warming denier Lord Monckton for Australia’s “super rich” to fund an Aussie equivalent of FOX News. The ad/public service announcement was the doing of an
Continue readingBlast Furnace Canada Blog: Where is the politically independent bureacracy? Going, going …
There’s still quite a bit of fallout from last week’s rather surprising admission that employees on the federal government’s payroll, the permanent civil service, were recruited to take part in a citizenship “reaffirmation” ceremony — and broadcast on the Conservative’s semi-official organ, Sun News TV. Seems that some of the
Continue readingCalgaryGrit: Mandatory Response
Lorne Gunter’s article on today’s release of short form Census data is so bad that it necessitates a response. Point-by-point: So the 2011 census results are being released today, or at least some results are. Is anyone else as surprised as I am that there is any data to announce?
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Stephen Harper and the Hockey Doctrine
As we all know Great Nerd Leader likes to pose as a hockey fan, a hockey book writer, and a road hockey warrior. And wherever he goes a shiny set of goal posts seem to follow him. Like here on the tarmac of some airport, where his former flunky Dimitri
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