Boisclair's racist comment

Andre Boisclair made comments Wednesday about Asian students having "slanting eyes" and has so far refused to apologize.

In a speech made yesterday, he spoke about global competition from Asian economies and how many of the young people come to North America, specifically the United States, to study. "When I was in Boston. I was surprised to see that on campus about one-third of the students doing their bachelor's degrees had slanting eyes," he said.

As if the comment wasn't controversial enough, Boisclair sees nothing wrong with his comment. "I don't have any intention of apologizing," he repeated several times, saying it's a term he uses quite frequently. Imagine how awkward it must be for PQ members of Asian origin to explain Boisclair's comments to their constituents.

I don't understand how Boisclair can possibly hope to become premier of Ontario when he makes comments like this and doesn't see the racial stereotype that it implies and enforces.

Those Conservative Ads

I don't know if you've seen these new ads by the Conservative slamming Stephane Dion but it's making me kind of mad.

First of all, they took their footage from the Liberal Leadership Debates so it was easy to find Liberals criticizing each other. As well, I'm thinking, why are these attack ads showing up? It's not an election year (at least, not yet) and it makes you look bad.

In fact, Conservatives, it's making you look like a bunch of jerks or even better, schoolyard bullies because politicians often stoop to the antics of children even though they're adults. It's strange to think that these people are older than me and yet where is the maturity? You know, that's actually a scary thought.

Okay, so maybe you're trying to get a jump on a supposed "election" but come on. This is almost worse than American Democrats and Republicans starting their Presidential runs this January. I'm so glad we have a law about how long politicians can campaign up here. I mean, who wants to listen to campaign ads for a whole year?

Listen, all you people on "the hill" should be concerned about is running the country. Just do your job and stop wasting time making stupid ads and wasting taxpayers money on things people don't want or care to see.

War in Lebanon

I was going to do a post about how much I loved "The Last Spike" by Pierre Berton but instead, I'm going to vent my anger over Stephen Harper's response to the murder of an entire Lebanese-Canadian family.

It's taken me this long to calm down. You should have heard my response when I woke up to my radio explaining what had happened and Harper's reply. He called Israel's actions a "measured response" against Lebanon because a group called Hezbollah who aren't associated with the government kidnapped two of their soldiers.

I have three words for you Harper and I'll keep it clean.

HOW DARE YOU!

It sounds as if you're trivializing these deaths and the fact that civilians are the ones who are suffering and being killed. The entire country is being held hostage because the airports have been bombed as well as all of the roads out of the country.

Eight Canadians are dead "Steve" and you're just brushing this off your shoulder like so much dandruff. And why have you picked a side in this conflict? Israel is violating international law so why support a country committing an illegal action?But I think we all know why "Steve" is on Israel's side. It's because he's buddy buddy with Bush. And we all know who the US supports.

Harper, when people do a crappy job and don't properly represent their company, they get fired. As of now, you're on notice.

First Conservative Government in 13 years

1. The first Conservative government in 13 years has been elected. It's a minority government though so political jossling is going to be interesting especially when it comes to passing bills. I started rubbing my hands together when I found out the numbers. I wasn't necessarily happy with the actual outcome but it sure is going to make things interesting. Plus, sometimes you need change to shake things up. I hope that Harper does what's best for Canada.

2. The Conservative government says they're going to re-open the same-sex marriage debate with a free vote in Parliament. Many Canadians consider the debate to be over and done with, whether they agree with it or not. So what's the point of going back to the debate? Well, Harper did say that he'd reopen it and, with a minority government, it doesn't seem likely that legislation to get rid of it would pass. So, Harper could say he tried but failed and that might make people on both sides of the debate happy. That's a pretty sneaky plan. Do you think Harper plays chess?

3. David Emerson defected from the Liberal party and became a Conservative, angering many people in his constituency. This is especially true for people at his riding office who want him to repay the money donated to help a Liberal get elected in Vancouver-Kingsway. Emerson thought people would be happy that he wanted to stay in office. I mean, why not shed loyalty for opportunism if it'll get you a job. But you know what, some Tories are pretty pissed about the whole thing. They were passed over for a former 'small l' Liberal. Now some are calling for him to resign or run in a bi-election.

After all, Ontario MP Harold Albrecht once campaigned on a promise saying MPs who cross the floor should have to run in a bi-election to confirm their allegiance to their promise to their new party. But now Albrecht seems to have changed his mind. "I expressed that, yeah. I would prefer that when someone crosses the floor they would have a byelection," he said Thursday. "But I want to talk to my colleagues about that."

It really doesn't matter to me who crosses the floor to what party because sometimes your views change or aren't in line with your own party's. But when you do it less than two weeks after a federal election, it just doesn't look good. It gives the impression or at least makes me think that Emerson had made up his mind before the election. That means he would have run as a Liberal, knowing he would defect and really that's lying to your constituents. The reason I say this is because I imagine that considering defection to another party would take longer than two weeks. Also, it makes the Tories look as if they're no better than the Liberals. And really, to me, the Tories have lost the high ground. There was all this talk of morals and cleaning up government. Well, didn't they want to get rid of the party that Emerson was from and now they're inviting him back in? As my good fried Spock would say, that is illogical.

Oh, and let's not forget the double standard here people. When Belinda Stronach crossed the floor many people said she was "whoring herself out for power". I suspect that this was said expressly and only because she was a woman. So now that a man has defected from a party, I want to see some stories saying the same thing where the word "gigolo" is used extensively in conjunction with Emerson's name. Equality for all right?

4. There's scandal in the NHL and it possibly might be linked to Wayne Gretzsky and his wife. His assistant coach for the Phoenix Coyotes, Rick Tocchet is accused of running an illegal gambling ring. Say it aint so Great One!

The investigation is still ongoing and Gretzky hasn't been charged with anything, neither has his wife. He said he doesn't know if his wife was involved with the ring but wouldn't you know if your spouse was gambling with thousands of dollars? Thousands of your dollars? Anyway, something that's more worrying is what's going to happen at the Olympics. Gretzky is the general manager for the men's hockey team heading to Turin and his job has been called into question. For now he's going to stay the general manager but some people have said that he should step down if he indeed was involved with the illegal gambling. Others are saying that this might hurt the men's chances to win gold because the issue might be distracting. All I'm saying is if anyone, and I do mean anyone is planning on betting on the Men's Hockey Team, don't be so quick to judge. The Canadian head ice-maker for the hockey rink, Dan Craig, said he wouldn't be putting a loonie in the ice. For those of you that believe in luck, you know what that special coin did for the men's and women's hockey teams in Salt Lake.

I don't think that the loonie really had any bearing on the outcome of the games but it has developed into a tradition that's been used by various teams in various sports. And besides I like the idea of it. So here's to hoping someone continues the tradition and sneaks a loonie or even a toonie under the ice.

Voting not important to hockey players

A recent story in the Globe and Mail quotes several hockey players as saying that they won't be voting in the upcoming election. Their excuse?

"It's not really important to me," said Montreal Canadiens centre Mike Ribeiro.


Now, in their defence, a lot of them are saying that they don't feel they have a right to vote because they are uninformed about the issues.

"To be honest, it's kind of a shame, but I'm much more into following American politics right now ... just from being in the U.S.," veteran Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Sean Burke said recently. "I'm embarrassed to say that as a Canadian, I try to keep up with some things but I'm really uninformed politics-wise in Canada.

"I could vote because I'm still a Canadian citizen, but I'm so uninformed I would be casting an unfair vote," added the native of Windsor, Ont.

Okay, it's perfectly fine to admit that you're ignorant about what's going on in Canada if you live in the US. I can't imagine that news stations and radio down there would talk about Canada very much. But, to say that you're uninformed and then not do anything about it, well, I'm sorry but what the bloody hell is wrong with you?If you're uninformed you don't just say you're uniformed and let it slide. You, GO GET INFORMED. Good grief Charlie Brown aren't these guys supposed to be role models?

Oh and by the way, a little frozen chicken told me that election day is supposed to be the coldest of the year. My advice, be smart like me and go to the advance polls. A number of people have already done this and advance poll voting is up 25% from 2004. So if you get it done early, you can stare dismally at the TV on Monday and hope to gods the country isn't screwed. Now isn't that something to look forward to?

But this story isn't all depressing. Some players did say they were going to vote.

Chad Kilger of the Toronto Maple Leafs, son of former Liberal MP Bob Kilger, said he's already voted. He cast his ballot in an advance poll on Christmas Eve while home in Cornwall, Ont., during the NHL break. Now that there is a man exercising his democratic rights.

Vancouver Canucks centre Brendan Morrison will be playing in St. Louis the night of the election but the native of Pitt Meadows, B.C., thinks it's important for everyone to vote. "When you're younger it's something you take for granted," he said. "When you get older you realize what has happened in history before you. A lot of people have put their lives on the line to be able to have our country where it is today. It's a privilege to vote and something special."

Ottawa Senators defenceman Chris Phillips, a Calgary native, will also vote. "I can't speak for everyone, but I'm a Canadian citizen and I will definitely be voting this year," he said.

And you know, I kinda want to thank them for taking the time to actually go and do this. It's kind of sad actually, when you have to go out of your way to thank people for voting.

Canada Votes 2006: English Language Debate

Okay kids, raise your virtual hands if you watched the english language debate last night. Now, what did we learn?

Listening to old white guys is boring. But you know what, I stuck with it. I listened to the whole thing despite the fact that at several points I wanted to smash the tv with a hammer.

It was definitely an improvement over the debate that took place last election. I think I did mention this before but the candidates were the same four guys. Except in '04 they were a bunch of screaming old white guys. They interrupted one another and kept getting louder and louder.

This time around, they seemed very subdued. It was almost as if the moderator had given them all doses of Ritalin to calm them down. Or maybe, if they behaved badly, a whistle would blow and they'd receive a game misconduct and get kicked out of the debate. That would have been more interesting and last time it was. It was funny watching how red in the face everybody got and how the poor moderator couldn't get them to shut up.

Oh, and one more thing. Journalists and tv news anchors say that young people are apathetic about politics and elections. Well, I'm a young person and I care about who wins. In fact, I've already voted so I'm already way ahead of some of you. I mean, I care about Canada. It's my home and I want the best for it. That and the fact that I've filed income tax two years in a row and I figure now that I'm in it for the long haul I might as well have someone I like running the country.

But I think that decision would be a lot easier for millions of Canadians if one of the options on the ballot was "None of the above". To me, these four men have made a mess of things in Ottawa equivalent to buying a sinking yacht so your family can sail to Barbados, underwater. I mean, sometimes I just have to ask myself, would 50 000 monkeys do a better job?

Minute Men line up on Canadian border

The Minuteman Project was a top news story some time ago so I decided to see how things were going considering the time of year and the weather.

This project was started by a group of Americans, led by a man named Jim Gilchrist, who wanted to stop illegal immigrants from crossing the Mexican-US border into Arizona. Apparently the 2000 mile southern border of the state is very easy to cross. Mr. Gilchrist found volunteers on the internet and way back in April he had about 900 people lined up along the border and some of them were armed.

Since then it's gained the attention of the media and government, thought the US Border Patrol said that they were more of a hindrance than a help. There have also been rumblings that this group is motivated by racism and anti-Semitism.

So how does this all tie in to Canada? Well, in October a group of volunteers decided to patrol the Canadia-US border. They actually set up "border checkpoints" and said they were watching for people who were attempting to enter the US illegally.

I didn't find any information that said the group patrolling along our shared border was armed but let's say that at least some of them were. I want to know what they plan on doing with those guns. If they see somebody illegally crossing the border are they going to shoot them? Are they allowed to do that? I don't have the answers so if someone else does, please let me know.

Am I happy about these private citizens who are possibly armed patrolling the border? No, six ways to h-e-double hockey sticks no. But the good news is that the Minutemen took down the checkpoints a little while ago but said they'll be back in the spring.

This is what I have a problem with. You're dedicated enough and willing enough to patrol the border yourself and set up your own checkpoints but you aren't willing to patrol through the winter? Look, if you're that paranoid about illegal immigrants then you have to be willing to stick it out. Also, now that this has been printed in the media, wouldn't now be the opportune time for people to illegally cross the border?

It sounds to me like this project hasn't been completely thought out. I mean, as we speak, think of the wave of illegal immigrants that must be sneaking into the US. Those poor border states, especially Idaho. If it wasn't for that tiny little corridor, they wouldn't have to worry about illegal immigrants.

My message to these Minute Men. I don't really understand your concern with the Canadian border but it's just too bad that you couldn't stay, at least for a minute or two. It would have been fun to see all of you freeze your little heinies off.

The government has fallen! The government has fallen!

My utmost apologies for my lack of blogging but currently I'm in the midst of finals. But this just means that after finals are over, I'll have a lot more time to post. Anyway, back to my catch-up post.

And so as Chicken Licken predicted, the government has fallen. Of course, no one believed him after a chunk of the Peace Tower conked him on the head. But then again, he did run around screaming that the government was falling when in fact, he should have said that the Parliament buildings were falling.

But does it really matter that the plucky little clucker was right? I think a lot of people were fed up with what what happening on "the hill". This includes myself of course but at the same time I didn't want an election.

This was mostly because I wondered who was going to actually go vote. I mean, in the middle of January there are lots of people who are snowed in and don't want to make the trek to the polling station. What about those Snowbirds who migrate down to Florida for the winter? What about the growing sense of apathy among young people?

Why should I be worried? Why should you be worried? Well if we look at our numbers for the last election, it's kind of scary. Apparently the voter turnout for the 2004 election was the lowest it has ever been since Confederation. When was Confederation you might ask? For those of you who can't remember what you did in Socials 10, Canada became a country in 1867. That's 138 years people, for those of who can't remember what you did in Math 8. It's almost as if your great-grandfather built a bridge on his property and when you finally inherited the place you decided to chop up the bridge for firewood because you were too lazy to a) chop up brush wood b) install a gas fireplace or c) put on a friggin sweater.

But there are ways that you can vote without going to the polling stations on January 23. Canada had the first Internet election in North America. So this is a possibility perhaps for some ridings, even with the security issues. You can also vote by mail if you don't want to leave your house on election day. I believe you can also vote early whether you're an absentee voter or not.

So, when the time comes and we're all sick of those ads and posters and campaign signs please go out and vote. Because otherwise, you're not allowed to complain. At least, that's the way I see it. If you don't exercise your democratic right and then you complain about who was elected, you better go cry in the corner because no one is going to care about your whining.

Christmas Election = Trouble for Jack Layton

I just got the best news a relatively new voter could possibly get. I might get the chance to exercise my democratic right close to Christmas. Do I mind that my holiday season, one of the few times during the year I get to see my family is going to be filled with propoganda and debates where party leaders will scream at one another?

Well, yes. I voted in my first election in '04 and by the time it was over I never wanted to vote again. Mainly because I forced myself to read the party platforms and watch the english language debate. The entire thing was disgusting. Though I am grateful to live in Canada because in the US, the candidates seem to campaign for years. I'm quite sure that any campaigning longer than 36 days would cause my head to explode with confetti.

So thank you very much Jack Layton, for pulling your support from the Liberals. If it comes down to a Christmas election I can gaurantee that at least one person will put a horse head in your bed. And can you guess who's going to do that? Me! Of course, the horse head will be made of paper mache but I'll slip it between the sheets when it's still drying.

So just you watch it. A non-confidence motion will secure your fate by the duck thief mafia. That goes for any other political leader who thinks they're gonna pull a fast one. Give the people some peace until spring. Then we'll roll up our mudflaps and start digging holes in which to place candidates signs, tv commercials and irritating MPs.

So what if this all comes to pass and Jack Layton finds out I was the one who put the paper mache horse in his bed? I can just see steam billowing out of his ears when he asks why.

My response? I'll glare and then smile. "Well Mr. Layton, you just kinda piss me off."

Holy Gomery Report Batman!

So it's been almost a week since the Gomery Report went public and I can tell you the fur did indeed hit the fan.

So let's break this down. Who is the victim?

The Canadian People.

Who is guilty?









#1 Former prime minister Jean Chretien. He was partly to blame for mismanagement, as he was responsible for the program.

#2 Chretien's chief of staff - Jean Pelletier - who failed to manage the program properly.

#3 Chretien's friend, Jacques Corriveau, the central figure in the kickback scheme. He provided funds to the Quebec wing of the Liberal party. He benefitted personally from the program as well.

#4 Alfonso Gagliano, directly involved in decisions in spending sponsorship money.


PM Paul Martin was "absolved of personal blame" in the scandal because he wasn't involved in the supervision of spending. John Gomery said:

"Mr. Martin, whose role as finance minister did not involve him in the supervision of spending by the PMO or (Public Works) is entitled, like other ministers in the Quebec caucus, to be exonerated from any blame for carelessness or misconduct."


So what have we learned? That politicians and politics make you want to wash your mouth out with acid. At least, that's how I feel.

The Secret Mulroney Tapes

In instances like this where formerly famous men with possibly fake hair spew blasphemy, I need to blurt out an expletive.
What the crap.

A few days ago Canadians who watch news, or listen to the radio or read newspapers or who have ears, heard about the new book on Brian Mulroney, the most hated PM in Canadian history. He's been referred to as "Ronald Reagan's lapdog" and that's the polite version. This is completely opposite to the "encounter" between Pearson and Johnson where our PM was practically assaulted and reference was made to urine on carpet.

All of this information that's recently 'come to light' is from a book written by Peter C. Newman. This once-but-no-longer good friend of the former PM wrote a book called "The Secret Mulroney Tapes". It's basically a book of recorded phone conversations he had with Mulroney. The only thing was, Mulroney didn't know he was being taped. It's like being Punk'd but Ashton Kutcher nevers shows up.

Newman says Mulroney claims he helped "precipitate the end of communism in Europe". I don't know about you but this make me wonder what he was smoking when he said this but perhaps it's just me, and I'm having a brain aneurism. "I led a revolution," he said. Maybe it was just in his office with plastic army men who take over and declare him 'Emperor of the World'. But even though this may have just been a fantasy world the former PM dwealt in, Emperor of the World does have a nice ring to it.

Here's a quote from the National Post, a beloved Canadian newspaper. "The guy brokered the deal to bring down the Berlin wall, did he? Next thing you know, he'll be claiming he invented insulin and the internal combustion engine," said Warren Kinsella, who worked for Jean Chretien when the Liberals were in opposition.

But what made me most angry was the fact that he apparently claims he'll go down in history as the most influential Canadian prime minister ever. Uh, what kind of backwards alternate reality are you living in Mr. Mulroney? Perhaps it's one where people call you Master and clean your shoes by licking them. But of course, we can't take this at face value. It's only Newman's word that these are Mulroney's words. Oiy.

In the book Mulroney spews insults left and right. From people (Trudeau, to Chretien, to Campbell), to provinces (apparently he hates the west). For years I heard horror stories of how he tried and almost succeeded in tearing Canada apart. And now, regardless of whether the book is truthful or not, I just think he's a jerk.

MP Gurmant Grewal Bribery Scandal

On my 50th post I talked a little about how Conservative MP Gurmant Grewal was in a bit of trouble about trying to get people to take a package of his on a plane. I also talked about how he secretly taped conversations where the Liberals were trying to bribe him into crossing the floor.

Recently he was cleared in an immigration case. He has also been cleared of any wrongdoing in the "airport incident".

Things have just gotten worse for this man. Apparently when some people made donations to his party and his campaign, their cheques and money went missing. They never received tax receipts but the cheques were deposited. And apparently they weren't cashed with the riding association or Conservative party. Hmmmmm. Could the gnome underground have stolen the cheques? I wouldn't be surprised if they had an agent in every political office in the country. They're crafty little critters and it seems that they've moved on from stealing car keys and hiding remotes.

The RCMP is now investigating five such cases and I'm wondering just what dirty little secrets they're going to find. Perhaps at one time he used to collect hot pink flamingoes or perhaps he has a fetish for used whoopie cushions. You'd be surprised how many closets people have with mismatched skeletons.

By the way, the gnome in the picture is missing his pet fox. If anyone's seen it, let me know.

Gurmant Grewel + secret tapes

So this is my 50th post! In celebration I decree throughout the land of Blogdom that there shall be free spam for everyone!

It seems like all I'm blogging about "these days" is politics in Canada but you know what, the politics here are actually getting juicy. People crossing floors left and right (okay that was bad), national scandals, missing money, secret tape recordings. Now I can't say that the politics are as interesting as the time when Mulroney screwed everybody over with WaterGate because well, that was before my time. So, this is the big thing of my time...in Canadian politics. I wish I could make that sound more interesting but I doubt that MPs would juggle flaming chainsaws on CPAC if I asked them to.

So, I actually had to find out about from a podcast because of my lack of media sources where I'm living now but Gurmant Grewal's allegations are starting to sound suspicious.

This is the man that secretly taped conversations with Liberals. (Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh and Tim Murphy, Prime Minister Paul Martin's' chief of staff). Supposedly they hinted at the fact that he might be able to further his career if he missed the important non-confidence vote a few weeks ago. Perhaps they were promising him a pool full of jello or a sculture made out of macaroni that he could offer to Harper as a grain-product sacrifice, I really don't know.

The tapes were released and many people agree that the tapes were doctored or edited. An audio expert hired by the Conservatives says the tapes are clean but is he to be believed? Prior to them being released to the media, they were in the hands of the Conservative party. The Tories admitted some segments of the tapes had gone missing. So, does this mean that some thief out there gets his jollies by clipping bits of tape and stealing them?

Wait, the story gets better. It turns out Grewal was at the Vancouver airport and was trying to get a package to Ottawa. But he wasn't leaving until the next day. So he bothered various people, trying to get them to take the package for him. You're not allowed to do this in Canada. You either send it by courier or you take it on the plane yourself. I guess that's because there might be a bomb in the package or a deadly fruitcake that's been sitting in the back of your freezer ever since your mother-in-law made it.

Anyway, what was in the package? One of the unedited tapes that were supposedly all handed over to the RCMP (our police guys). So what does the man do? Well, he does what any man in his situation does, mows the lawns of Parliament. Okay no, he took a leave of absence. My prediction? He's gone. He's gone like dinner when the dog's left alone with it.

Who is telling the lie?

New Ambassador to Canada

Well, America's ambassador to Canada, Paul Cellucci is leaving his job. We should all be singing Auld Lang Syne because it's a new year. That guy has been pissing me off ever since he said he was "disappointed and upset" about our decision not to join the war in Iraq. That's a very diplomatic way of putting it because from what I got from his own mouth in interviews, he was disgusted. He just doesn't seem to like us and don't you think you should like your job if you're going to do it well?

The man who's going to replace him is David Wilkins and from what I read in the paper, he's a nice guy but then, on the net, he's a southern fundamentalist. And I just can't decide which one to disbelieve more so I need your help. Well actually, I need help from someone who has seen him in action or knows him or at least delivered pizza to him.

Is he a nice guy? Does he use fabric softener? Does he remember the summer of '69? My one problem with the man is that he has visited Canada exactly once, in the 70s. I can't see how he would have gotten a very good impression of my country as the only colours that existed in the 70s were brown and orange. He said he doesn't know a lot about Canada so I expect him to do some reading. I can't see how he can be worse than the man he's replacing so I hope he does a good job.

Two asides completely unrelated to this topic: 1) In another interesting developement, a Liberal member of Parliament located in Labrador has died, meaning that an election needed to be held. A Liberal was elected to the seat, making the seats dead even 153-153. Independant member Chuck Cadman holds the balance of power. This message is for him: Chuck, if you screw this up, I'm coming to your house, duck taping you to a chair and making you listen to a CD of Joan Rivers singing, set to repeat.

2) Did anyone watch the Contender finale? I had imagined myself not being able to watch grown men beat each other to death but I was actually cheering them on. Carnal rage? Sadistic? I prefer to call it, living through someone else's actions. But I won't spoil it for you, let's just say that the man I was gunning for won. I always thought boxing was more bloody but there were few cuts and little blood. Vampire boxers, now there's a cable access show if I've ever heard one.

Belinda Stronach jumps the shark

I just about choked on my dinner when I saw this on the news. One reason for this may have been that it came without any warning. There were no whispers in the bathrooms of Parliament and there were certainly no secret emails that accidentally got sent out to everyone on your mailing list.

In an interesting turn of events... Belinda Stronach has crossed the floor to join her once mortal enemies, the Liberals. Both camps were surprised and when Steven Harper heard of this he immediately called Paul Martin out and challenged him to a silly string fight.

I was absolutely disgusted though with what the media reported, playing interviews where various men said that she was "whoring herself out for power." Now, we all know that politicians do this but it's not put in these words. And if Stronach was a man named Bernard, do you think anyone would have said she was "whoring herself out"? They would have used different words and I wonder why it is that when a woman does something like this that it's put in those words. As far as I'm concerned she saw an opportunity and she took it. If it turns out to be the worst decision she's ever made, don't worry, she'll pay for it. Martin might hand her the Ministry of Poopy Politics or the Ministry of Watching Kitchen Floors Being Retiled Improperly.

But in my opinion, she's the one that saved the government on Thursday during the budget vote. I would have actually liked to see her cross the floor but since that wasn't going to happen I just imagined Martin doing his little "GleeHands" signature move when he found out about Stronach's move. And as much as I dislike politicians for all the backdealing and whatever, I'm glad we're not going to have another election yet. I don't think I could handle another 36 days of propoganda being shoved down my throat. I couldn't eat for days after that happened the first time.

For those out there who aren't Canadian and don't know what the heck I'm talking about. Belinda Stronach is a former Conservative and opposition member.

I had a little bit of an inkling that she was a lefty-righty (a place to the right of left that might make you a buddy of lefties instead of righties) after she sided with the government on same-sex marriage. This all sounds more like a fight to the death over which hand you use to write with. But often, politics really is a high school drama. Anybody ever watch Degrassi? "After that scene where Harper got in bed with Duceppe I just couldn't watch another episode." *sniff* "I was so upset." They act like a bunch of children with a lot of money and they don't know what to do with it.

As for jumping the shark; she hasn't gone off the deep-end, I just remember that "Happy Days" episode as being very surprising. Okay no, I saw the re-run. But you don't see someone jump a shark every day do you? "After that scene, where the Fonz jumped the shark, I just couldn't watch another episode. That poor shark; can you imagine the trauma it must have gone through, the thousands of dollars it must have spent on therapy?"

Prediction: BC bankrupt by 2010

Well, the new logo for the 2010 Olympic games was unveiled a few weeks ago and the first thing I thought was...fingerpainting. It looks like one and it looks like it was done by a child.

Yeah yeah the red stands for the flag and the yellow is for BC's sunsets and the blue is for the ocean. Blah blah blah. Normally I would paste a picture on the top of this post but it's under copyright. Please, who is going to steal a child's fingerpainting?

And why an Inukshuk? I know it's an Inuit symbol but wouldn't this be a more appropriate logo if the games were taking place in the north? Well, more north than BC is. And since the games are taking place on the west coast, wouldn't a west coast logo be more fitting? Yes I've heard people on the news saying that the logo is supposed to represent all of Canada and not just BC but does an Inukshuk symbolize all of BC?

Here's some background. Inukshuk means, "in the image of a man". Traditionally they acted as compasses or guides for safe journeys. If anyone has anything they'd like to say about Inukshuks, let me know.

And who exactly is going to get to go to these games? Rich people in Vancouver and travellers from other countries. Everyone in BC is going to have to pay for them but not everyone is going to get to go. That's like having a birthday party where all the kids in the class buy you presents but only six kids actually get to go.

One more thing. By the time 2010 roles around, it will have been more than two decades since the games were held here. Didn't Montreal just finish paying off the 1976 Olympics?

Diamonds in the NWT

Did you know the Northwest Territories is now the diamond capital of North America? Wait, it gets even better, do you know how much in royalties these guys get for this billion dollar natural resource? Nothing, or as my thesaurus says, "not a sausage" though I'm not sure sausages really apply when it comes to the NWT.

Guess who currently owns the rights to the royalties? That's right, it's the federal government. They own the resources and the revenues. Apparently Paul Martin is dedicated to resolving the resource issue but nothing seems to have actually happened that makes me think anything will actually happen. It's like waiting for Godot, except in this case, everyone in the Northwest Territories is waiting for Martin to return the family jewels that he just happened to "borrow".

Right now the PM is involved in something that he calls, "Northern Strategy". It gives the three northern territories $40 million each for them to put in their pockets for them to use on a rainy day. First of all, what is $40 million going to buy you? That's penny candy money. It's apparently supposed to help the territories "buy stuff" along with transfer payments they receive annually. It looks more like Martin tried to buy off the territories using whatever he happened to have in his pocket. (This happened to include meter change, bellybutton lint and a piece of paper with the word Iqaluit on it).

This is directly from the Western Premier's Conference that took place in Kelowna, BC, 2003. This is one of their recommendations.

"Northern devolution agreements with the Northwest Territories and Nunavut to arrange for the transfer of powers over northern lands, water and resources, including a fair share of resource revenues. Premiers agreed that the Territories, similar to provinces, should manage and control the scope and pace of development of their resources and must benefit from this development, in order to create strong, self-reliant territories that contribute to the benefit of all Canadians."

While that's a bit wordy, even the western premiers look like they support the transfer of natural resource control back to the territories.

But why wouldn't the government want to give control back to the Northwest Territories? They have a population of approximately 38 000 and every year they're given a transfer payment because they're deemed to be a "have-not" territory. If they were given back control of the diamonds mines, wouldn't the revenues be enough to make them a "have" province and therefore, the government would no longer have to make transfer payments to the territory? Sure the diamonds might be worth more than the transfer payments for one year but in the long run the diamonds aren't going to last forever and the Northwest sure isn't going anywhere.

What could they do with the royalties from the diamonds? Well, they might build some decent highways to replace the ones that seem to be crumbling due to increased traffic, mainly industrial traffic that I assume must be because of the diamonds. I did consider suggesting they build one of those large safes with a diving board like Scrooge McDuck but I think that diving into a pool of diamonds would be a one way trip.

Canada Votes 2004

So on Tuesday I exercised my democratic right and voted in a federal election for the first time ever. I did think it would be a little more glamourous than a little cardboard booth and newspaper-like ballot but that doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things.

Making a decision was one of the toughest things I've had to do because after watching the English language debate I was disgusted with all of the candidates who participated. Why would I want to vote for someone as rude and egotistical as any of them? But apathy was not an option for me, though at times I felt a kind of despair for Canada. What kind of a future are we creating if we're voting against somebody instead of for somebody? I say this because it seemed to be the mindset for the election.

In my opinion it was a vote between a lesser of evils and I believe that's why only 60% of the population actually voted. Over the past 40 years, the government has backed out of promises and changed their party platforms after being elected. I would think that this makes people believe that their vote doesn't count, which is why so few people actually turned out to vote. Apparently this is the lowest voter turnout in over 100 years. The last time the percentage was at 60% was in 1898. As far as I'm concerned this is bad. Apathy is contagious and will only continue to spread if the government continues to break the promises they make to people. After all, what's the point in voting if your voice will be ignored anyway?

The only good thing to come out of this election I believe, is that the government will now have to listen to the people. With the minority government and the NDP (not really) holding the balance of power (they only have 19 seats), they will have to tread very carefully to make sure they don't step on anyone's toes. Because if the NDP don't agree with a particular vote then the government will probably receive a vote of non-confidence from the opposition. This means another election will have to be held in short order. For example, nine months after Joe Clark was elected in 79-80, an election was called after his government received a vote of non-confidence. Usually minority governments last about 18 months but I don't like the fact of having to go back to the polls that soon.

Quote: "Elections are won by men and women chiefly because most people vote against somebody rather than for somebody."

- Franklin P. Adams

Election Time

Okay, so it's election time in Canada. On June 28th we'll have a new PM (perhaps) and because I'm now eighteen, I can vote. Of course, I haven't gotten my card yet but I know that I am going to vote, despite the fact that so many young people are disenchanted and/or apathetic to the government.

I think it's important to vote because then you have the right to complain about the gov if they screw something up. Besides, every vote counts, especially in this close a race.

The problem I have now is choosing who to vote for because I've ruled out not voting. The debate on tv didn't help much because first off, not all the parties were represented. The Green Party leader Jim Harris was all set to debate with the other leaders but he didn't even receive an invite. Second of all, in the debate the leaders did what you expected them to do. They avoided answering any questions by simply asking more questions or answering a question that hadn't been asked. I'm sure this kind of roundabout talk really helped the undedcided votes come to a decision (myself being one of them).

The leaders also tended to talk over one another and interrupt whenever possible. Harper looked like he was wearing a wig and somehow reminded me of Marty McFly's dad. Martin kept dancing from foot to foot, Layton drove me crazy because he kept gesturing with his hands and Duceppe looked extrememly angry throughout the entire debate.

What have I gained from this experience? What have undecided Canadian voters gotten out of this? I would say, absolutely nothing. There was no clear winner but there was some mud-slinging. This of course made me wonder where these leaders got their manners from. Perhaps they should be hit with nerf bats every time they insult another party leader. I mean, what does insulting do? It just makes you look bad and creates arguments.

So I would say that I spent two hours listening to four grown men argue about how wrong the other was and how they were going to be the next government. I can't see how they wouldn't have had a headache from all the shouting by the time it was over. I know I did.

I had hoped that writing this little rant would have made my decision a little more clear but it hasn't. It looks like I'm going to have to look elsewhere to determine who to vote for in the 2004 Election.

Quote: "There exists a limit to the force even the most powerful may apply without destroying themselves. Judging this limit is the true artistry of government. Misuse of power is the fatal sin. The law cannot be a tool of vengeance, never a hostage, nor a fortification against the martyrs it has created. You cannot threaten any individual and escape the consequences."

- Muad'dib on Law
The Stilgar Commentary