The internal logic of capitalism has tainted our government’s response to the pandemic. Corporate profits were preserved, while the interests of the working class were disregarded. Pandemic austerity and vaccine nationalism were the primary themes of government responses, and have grave consequences for the working class and health of humanity.
Continue readingTag: Andrew Scheer
Northern Currents –: Conservative Premier Scott Moe sides with Big Oil campaign, ignores the climate crisis
Regina city councillors proposed legislation to ban advertisements from oil and gas industry. The industry responded with an astroturfing campaign. Here we have yet another example of right-wing politicians supporting powerful oil and gas corporations. These corporations are so powerful that they can shape narratives and create false populist movements.
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: “Ottawa, we have a problem.”
The other day, we got a good laugh from a Susan Delacourt column in the Toronto Star. She was comparing former federal liberal leader Michael Ignatieff to conservative leader Erin O’Toole. I could never imagine two guys so different. I first met Michael when he was in his early 20s
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Say what? Conservative Alberta MP’s riding association buys pro-life transit ads in Vancouver
Regardless of exactly how Garnett Genuis’s Vancouver bus advertisement asking how there can be too many children was paid for, the Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan MP well known for his vocal opposition to reproductive rights and the Conservative Party of Canada should both have some explaining to do. Mr. Genuis boasted
Continue readingAlberta Politics: What did Finance Minister Travis Toews actually say about AISH in Grande Prairie last week?
So, what did Travis Toews actually say about Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped when he said whatever he said to a Grande Prairie local news website one week ago today? According to the first report on MyGrandePrairieNow.com, the finance minister, who is also MLA for Grande Prairie-Wapiti, said that
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Assorted content for your Labour Day reading. – Gregory Beatty discusses the class struggle as it’s playing out in the time of COVID. Jim Stanford offers a reminder as to how collective action is more important than ever, while Jerry Dias discusses how the labour movement is exercising its strength.
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: That Tool, O’Toole.
Hypocrite, thy name is conservative. If you did not know where all that bullshit about equal rights at the new conservative leader’s first news conference came from, you have not been paying attention. Erin O’Toole had all the tricks lined up for him to make him conservative leader and leader
Continue readingMontreal Simon: The Fake WE Scandal and the DipperCon Monster
It's been that kind of holiday. I should have been in Scotland running wild in the highlands, but instead I'm practically a prisoner in Toronto. Yesterday I was planning to go and do a little kiteboarding on the other side of the island, but fell asleep in my hammock, and missed
Continue readingMontreal Simon: The Fake Scandal and the Desperation Of Andrew Scheer
I knew the fake WE scandal wouldn't stand the test of time. I knew it would crumble like a sand castle, as the truth caught up with it. Starting with the moment Justin Trudeau testified at Pierre Poilievre's ugly little star chamber, and made the Cons and their NDP stooges look like
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Andrew Scheer And My Wonderful Humiliation Party
In my last post I looked at how Andrew Scheer is cracking up with less than a month to go before he is given the bum's rush as Con leader.And how desperate he is to try to force Justin Trudeau to resign before he does.But if you thought that was just another sign
Continue readingMontreal Simon: The Day Andrew Scheer Finally Lost His Marbles
I knew that Andrew Scheer was slowly but surely coming apart at the seams, and Iooking and acting weirder and weirder.I knew it was just a matter of time before he totally lost itHe's now only a month away from being given the bum's rush as Con leader, and the
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Poll Wars: The Scheer Nightmare Is Almost Over
Golly, what a difference a day makes. Yesterday an Abacus poll made it look like Andrew Scheer and his Cons were heading for victory in the next election.And I really had to wonder about the mental health of many some Canadians, who could stab a decent leader like Justin Trudeau
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Why The Con Media’s Fake Scandal Is Going Nowhere
It's a pandemic nightmare right out of Kafka, where the roar of a media mob turns reality on its head.And a decent prime minister who has worked tirelessly for months to defeat a murderous pandemic, and get the country back on its feet, is suddenly called a "criminal."For the "crime" of failing
Continue readingAlberta Politics: From us to WE: The Dickensian ‘Big Society’ seems to be back again, if it ever left
Who can forget the “Big Society”? Just about everyone, it turns out. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Photo: Justin Trudeau/Flickr). “The Big Society,” cooked up by a senior aide to former British Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, was the ridiculous idea neoliberal governments could shuffle off their key responsibility for assuring
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: And a sneer from Scheer.
It was difficult to assess all sides of the discussion last week to the finance minister’s snapshot of Canada’s financial position. To be fair, minister Morneau is not a dynamic speaker. You needed time as he droned on to grasp the dimension of the how far this pandemic has taken
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Why The Fake WE Scandal Is Going To Hurt The Cons More Than The Liberals
Trust me, the last thing I wanted to do today is write about the absurd WE fake scandal.I had a hammock, a good book, and a big bowl of juicy Washington State cherries ready to go. But then I saw a strangely orange Andrew Scheer in his home studio, calling on
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Justin Trudeau and the Long Road To A New Majority
Since early March Justin Trudeau has been stepping out of his residence every morning to brief Canadians on the Covid-19 crisis.And what his government is doing to try to help Canadians.So I'm glad to see that after leading us to a very good place….Read more »
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: O’Toole should cool it.
It is a pity to waste good political advice on conservatives but MP Erin O’Toole’s current hissy fit with Peter MacKay’s leadership organization could cause irreparable harm in Canadian politics. And rather than being amused by the lack of political smarts of the Erin O’Toole leadership organization, most knowledgeable politicos
Continue readingAlberta Politics: The federal Conservative leadership race takes a turn both sinister and juvenile
Probably the last thing the Conservative Party of Canada needs right now is a side battle over allegations of dirty tricks and data theft between the campaigns of the two leading candidates in an already uninspiring leadership race. I mean, it’s not as if frontrunners Peter MacKay or Erin O’Toole
Continue readingMontreal Simon: The Pathetic Return of the Con Zombie Stephen Harper
In October it will be five years since a pale, shell shocked Stephen Harper stumbled out into the night after being humiliated by Justin Trudeau, the leader he claimed wasn't ready.Since that fateful night Harper hasn't had anything to say about why he lost the election.But now in an interview with
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