Proof That Abolishing the Gun Registry Was Always For the NRA

Unless hunters and farmers are snipers, the Conservative abolishment of the gun registry was always, as suspected, for the NRA.  ALWAYS!  ALWAYS! ALWAYS! 

Not one single farmer or hunter ever crossed their mind, except to solicit funds or votes.  NRA! NRA! NRA!

The neocons turned down an NDP amendment to at least force registration of sniper rifles, but the heartless SOBs said NO!  It didn't help that the NDP put the wrong gun on their advertising leading up to the motion.

I think this will hurt them in Quebec, especially since one of those presenting the amendment, NDP MP Nathan Cullen, had voted in the past to end the registry.  The Bloc are already regaining ground (NDP 37, Bloc 27) and Quebecers are very passionate about this issue.

In other news, it would appear that Harper lied about directing public servants to remove 'Canada' from government parlance and replace it with 'Harper'.

And the Liberals are rising in the polls. 

Several recent polls have suggested the Liberals have rebounded as much as 10 points since their election drubbing, pulling even or even slightly ahead of the NDP, which supplanted the Liberals as official Opposition.

That last election was a fluke, but a fluke that we're all paying for.

Our only hope for the next four years is the "Occupy" movement and we need to get behind it.

A Neocon Barbeque Cooks up a Plate of Ignorance

If you are wondering what Stevie is up to this summer, besides bombing for oil, wonder no more. He's cooking up neocon burgers, hold the lettuce, with his buddy Rob Ford.

I hope their insurance covers having both those men at the same event. Talk about high risk.

Harper is praising Ford for "cleaning up" something that wasn't really messy in the first place. But it soon will be.

Ford plans to close the libraries (can't have people reading. They might get ideas), sell the zoo and cut back on police. This after campaigning on putting more cops on the beat.

From an interview with the Globe's editorial board during his campaign:

Question: Do you honestly believe that adding police officers is a good use of money when the crime rate is dropping?

Ford: "I don’t think we can ever have enough police officers. Do you want 22 extra politicians ... or do you want 100 police officers? And a majority of police have said, I’d rather have 100 police officers. I truly believe that we can run this city with 22 politicians".

Neocons don't need politicians, only salesmen, because everything will be sold. Everything. If Tim Hudak helps to create the perfect storm in Ontario, there will be nothing left.

What little Mike Harris left us with, will be gone. Ford's father was a Harris MPP, so he learned from the master.

Yesterday, the big topic of conversation was that the interim federal NDP leader, Nycole Turmel, was a card carrying member of the Bloc.

This on top of learning that several new NDP MPs are Quebec sovereignists and that Jack Layton had promised that if he was ever prime minister he would repeal the Clarity Act.

Harper made a rare public appearance to state that the leader of a federal party should be committed to Canada.

This from a man who has erased our borders and sold us off to the Americans a piece at a time.

So even if every single NDP was a separatist, they would still be far more devoted to Canada than Harper ever thought of being.

I so dread these next four years.

Gun Control Advocates Say Don't Vote NDP or Conservative

Gun control advocates are urging Canadians to vote either Liberal or Bloc if they want to save the gun registry.

“What’s unfortunate from the NDP is that Jack Layton came to Dawson once and promised us to have a strong position about gun control in his party,” said Hayder Kadhim, who was wounded in the 2006 shooting at Montreal’s Dawson College. “But unfortunately in September I witnessed with my own eyes, that he didn’t hold his promise.”

On Sept. 13, 2006, Kimveer Gill stormed Dawson and opened fire. One student, 18-year-old Anastasia De Sousa, was killed, and many others were injured before Gill turned the gun on himself. Several people who were affected by the Dawson shooting and the 1989 Montreal Massacre held a news conference in Montreal on Thursday. The conference was held at the home of the parents of Anne-Marie Edward, one of 14 women killed in the École Polytechnique massacre in 1989.

Think twice, vote once.

I'm Beginning to Worry About the State of Stephen Harper's Mental Health

"Coalition-building is the only practical way for the right to seize national power .... an alliance with the Bloc Québécois would not be out of place. The Bloc are nationalist for much the same reason Albertans are populists – they care about their local identity ... and they see the federal government as a threat to their way of life." Stephen Harper and Tom Flanagan, Next City Magazine, 1997

Three years later, the Reform Party, then calling themselves Alliance, took the advice of Harper and Flanagan, and their leader, Stockwell Day began "flirting with separatists", as part of his "coalition building".

The separatist Bloc Québécois was part of secret plotting in 2000 to join a formal coalition with the two parties that now make up Stephen Harper's government, according to documents obtained by The Globe and Mail. The scheme, designed to propel current Conservative minister Stockwell Day to power, undermines the Harper government's line this week that it would never sign a deal like the current one between the Liberal Party, the NDP and the Bloc. (1)

The opposition demanded answers, but got none.

Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe held up the letter [of intent] during Wednesday’s question period while grilling the former Alliance leader [Day] over the alleged plan, as well as over the Conservatives’ apparent willingness to form a coalition with the separatist party in 2004.“Will he admit that in 2004, and in 2000, he was prepared to make such a deal with the Bloc?”(2)

According to the New York Times in August of 2000:

Stockwell Day's summer vacation in Quebec was going well. Every day, the rising star of Canada's right appeared on French language television, chatting in francais with his language immersion teachers, fielding reporters' questions about his politique fiscale, or posing for photographs with the eternal friend of language students, le dictionnaire Larousse.

With newspapers reporting ''informal negotiations'' between his party, the Canadian Alliance, and the Bloc Quebecois, whose stated goal is to make Quebec an independent nation, Mr. Day refused to rule out teaming up with the Bloc in coalition after general elections, expected next spring, in order to dislodge the governing Liberals. (3)

And according to political science professor and author, Trevor Harrison:

Day repeatedly journeyed to Quebec ... During August and September, Day stepped up these efforts, going even further to suggest the Alliance party welcome Quebec separatists and might even consider forming a national coalition government with the Bloc Quebecois .... But Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe said he wanted nothing to do with Day whose values (re: gay rights, abortion, youth justice) Duceppe described as "inspired by the United States..." (4)

Harrison referenced this story: "Bloc leader denounces Day's ideas", Edmonton Journal, August 14, 2000.

And as further proof that Stephen had no qualms about joining the Bloc Quebecois, Tom Flanagan, the man who co-wrote the 1997 piece promoting "an alliance with the Bloc", confirmed Harper's intent in 2004.

The author of Harper's Team: Behind the Scenes in the Conservative Rise to Power, managed the Conservative 2004 and 2006 election campaigns. But he insisted he "wasn't a part" of a coalition proposal made by then Official Opposition leader Harper, NDP leader Jack Layton and Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe in September 2004 that would have included the Bloc as a full partner. (5)

"The Bloc as a full partner"?

So why is Stephen Harper, speaking in Edmonton recently, firing up an imaginary "threat" about an imaginary "coalition", which if it existed, which it doesn't, would be dangerous since it included "separatists"?

"Some of you may ask me when the next election will be," he said. "The answer I give everyone is, ask the Liberal-NDP-Block Quebecois coalition. Canadians don't want an election. Our government is not seeking an election. We as Canadians are focused on the number one priority of Canadians and that is the economy." He repeatedly attacked the "coalition." "Think about what that means for our country," he said. "Giving a veto to a party that believes in the break-up of this country. That is what that means." (6)

He was attacking NDP MP Linda Duncan, and she fought back. Go Linda.

Alberta's lone opposition MP says the Prime Minister pulled a nasty piece of politicking by showing up in her riding to bash her before the Thanksgiving weekend. "Clearly he came here with the intention of slagging me personally," NDP MP Linda Duncan said. "Welcome to the world of Stephen Harper politics. This is the way he operates."

Harper warned voters about the dangers of a coalition between the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Quebecois. He bashed the NDP as leftist ideologues and said Duncan was bent on "shutting down Alberta's energy industry and putting thousands of Albertans out of work." On Saturday, Duncan said Harper's allegations are "beyond the realm of ludicrousness." Duncan has been an outspoken critic of the oilsands, but insisted she's merely pushing for the enforcement of already existing environmental laws and regulations. Her opinions, she said, are hardly radical. That Harper would single her out for criticism isn't a surprise, Duncan said. "I already know I have a target on my head." (7)

Is Stephen Harper About to Snap?

In 1962, after having his government reduced to a minority, John Diefenbaker began to show signs of stress. He blamed it on the U.S. President, John Kennedy, and was convinced that he was out to get him.

After the 1962 election, Diefenbaker was unshakable in his conviction that Kennedy was out to destroy him. "It's now very clear," he said later, "that it was part and parcel of the beginning of actions by President Kennedy and his associates to get rid of the Conservative Party of Canada." Diefenbaker now wallowed in a swamp of miseries, beset, he felt, by a horde of malignant enemies, deeply wounded by his election pummelling ... and always obsessed with Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy ... personal blows battered his fragile psyche, sending him into a tailspin that verged on an emotional breakdown. He collapsed like a pierced balloon. (8)

And according to his old friend Alvin Hamilton:

"He was completely off his rocker ... You have to admit it, he was unstable. He just seemed confused.... He thought Kennedy was trying to gun him down." "I don't think anybody ever said anything or would say that it was mental illness, but certainly all of us knew that he was subject to fits of depression and to a much greater emotional instability than had been the case previously ... His mind was so black and so sour." (8)

Eventually, as Diefenbaker's actions became even more erratic, his own party was forced to remove him.

So why is Harper's party not stepping in now? His behaviour is clearly erratic and damaging.

- He's seeing coalitions that don't exist, increasingly paranoid that they are out to get him.

- He's still promising to scrap the gun registry (6), despite the fact that 2/3 of Canadians want it left intact.

- He's attacking military experts who speak out against the purchase of his war toys.

- He's promoting partisan attacks on the International stage. Again.

- He's following through on scrapping the long-form census, despite the fact that it is angering even his own supporters.

- He accused the opposition of supporting "White-collar criminals, pedophiles, bank robbers and violent offenders" (6), because they don't want more prisons for criminals that don't exist.

- He completely ignored a senate report on reducing poverty, despite the fact that his own senators worked on it.

I think the stress of the piling scandals and potentially damaging report card on the stimulus spending, is wearing him down. Maybe it's time his party recognized that he may not be in the best emotional state, and started looking to have him removed.

He's clearly a danger to himself and others.

Sources:

1. Bloc part of secret coalition plot in 2000 with Canadian Alliance, By Daniel LeBlanc, Globe and Mail, December 03, 2008

2. Harper ‘lies’ about coalition details: PM ‘shameful’ in portraying crisis as national unity issue, former NDP leader says, Canadian Press, December 3, 2008

3. Rightist Shocks Canadians By Flirting With Separatists, By James Brooke, New York Times, August 3, 2000

4. Requiem for a Lightweight: Stockwell Day and Image Politics, By Trevor Harrison, Black Rose Books, 2002, ISBN: 1-55164-206-9, Pg. 75

5. Ignatieff 'quality guy,' Flanagan says, By: Frances Russell, Winnipeg Free Press, November 12, 2009

6. PM attacks 'coalition' in fiery speech, By Andrew Hanon, QMI Agency, October 9, 2010

7. 'Welcome to the world of Stephen Harper politics': NDP MP takes exception to PM's warning she wants to put 'thousands of Albertans out of work', By Archie McLean, Edmonton Journal, October 10, 2010

8. Kennedy & Diefenbaker: The Feud That Helped Topple a Government, By Knowlton Nash, McClelland & Stewart, 1991, ISBN: 0-7710-6711-9, Pg. 171-173

Stephen Harper May Get His Coalition Government, Only This Time He's Out of the Loop

The Reform-Alliance-Conservative parties tried twice to lead a coalition government.

In 2000, it was Stockwell Day courting Gilles Duceppe, until Duceppe put the brakes on.

"Day repeatedly journeyed to Quebec ... During August and September, Day stepped up these efforts, going even further to suggest the Alliance party welcome Quebec separatists and might even consider forming a national coalition government with the Bloc Quebecois .... But Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe said he wanted nothing to do with Day whose values (re: gay rights, abortion, youth justice) Duceppe described as "inspired by the United States..." (1)

The New York Times also covered the story and quoted Conrad Black as saying that he was against it and that Stockwell Day should quit fooling around.

''The Canadian Alliance leader needs to stop playing footsie with Quebec separatist leaders right now,'' thundered the The National Post, which has more commonly been a cheerleader for Mr. Day. In an interview on Tuesday, Conrad Black, chairman of The National Post, said the strategy would not work.

In 2004, it was Stephen Harper's turn to court Duceppe and Jack Layton, though Layton eventually pulled the plug, leaving Harper without enough seats to make it work.



Then in 2008, learning from Harper and Day, the opposition parties got together to form a coalition to remove the Reform-Alliance-Conservative Party and all hell broke loose. Suddenly it was now undemocratic ... a coup ... treason! Wow. What a difference less than a decade makes.

But the Hill Times is suggesting that now might be right, given that we are the only Parliamentary system that has never used this valuable and democratic tool to make government work.

While parties in Australia and Britain are working together to make Parliament work after citizens there elected 'hung' Parliaments recently, Canada's minority government is stuck in a hyper-partisan adversarial environment, say some political scientists. And they think the country's antiquated first-past-the-post voting system is at least partly to blame. "The old, simple two-party polarity just doesn't exist in any country in the world, except the U.S.A.," says London School of Economics political scientist Patrick Dunleavy.

The number of parties vying for seats in many western Parliaments tends to be growing, says Prof. Dunleavy. New parties are gaining ground over traditional players. In the last 20 years, Canada has seen the emergence of the Green Party and regional movements such as the Bloc Québécois and Reform Party in the West. Australia's own Green Party is rising.

In dealing with the changing nature of politics, "The other countries in the Westminster model group have adapted to coalition politics," says Prof. Dunleavy. "But Canadians seem to have more of a difficulty than the British and the Australians."

With 2/3 of Canadians rejecting the Harper regime, this could be the best, and possibly the only solution, to ensure that all citizens have a voice.



Sources:

1. "Bloc leader denounces Day's ideas", Edmonton Journal, August 14, 2000.

Stephen Harper and a House Divided

When the Reform Party had their great electoral success in 1993, their leader Preston Manning was ready. He knew what he had to do.

Stephen Harper explains:

The Progressive Conservative party is very much comparable to the Whigs of the 1850s and 1860s. What is happening to them is very similar to the Whigs. A moderate conservative party, increasingly under stress because of the secession [Bloc] movement, on the one hand, and the reaction to that movement from harder line English Canadians on the other hand.

... But I don't use this comparison of the pre-Civil War lightly. Preston Manning, the leader of the Reform party has spent a lot of time reading about pre-Civil War politics. He compares the Reform Party himself to the Republican party of that period. He is very well-read on Abraham Lincoln and a keen follower and admirer of Lincoln. The Reform party is much closer to what you would call conservative Republican ... The Reform party is very much a modern manifestation of the Republican movement in Western Canada; the U.S. Republicans started in the western United States. The Reform Party is very resistant to the agenda and the demands of the secessionists, and on a very deep philosophical level. (1)

Manning had read every word ever written about Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican President of the United States, and just as old Abe had to deal with the secessionists, so too did Manning. He donned his top hat, grabbed his cane, and with his trusty lieutenant Stephen Harper by his side, he marched up Parliament Hill.

Those secessionists wouldn't stand a chance and if it meant Civil War, so be it.

Preston Manning is not averse to raising the spectre of violence when he discusses the Quebec issue. He does not raise the possi­bility of violence often, but when he does, he does not elaborate on what he means — another use of deliberate ambiguity. He has, however, planted the seed, evoking the image of violence often enough to establish it in the public mind.

... "Such terms will be judged satisfactory if they are fair and advantageous to Canada [and] if the new relationship can be established and maintained without violence ... " No one in Canada was anticipating violence over Quebec at this time, and there was little evidence that the Meech Lake impasse was about to dominate the politics of the country. Preston Man­ning was already positioning himself as the man who would, in his own words, "call Quebec's bluff." (2)

Some of the Reformers were even demanding that the Bloc members sign oaths of allegiance. They weren't fooling around. But alas Manning never got to deliver his Ottawasberg address. Most Canadians thought he was nuts.

Changing of the Guard: Next up Stockwell Day

With Manning not getting the job done, there was a new commander of the troops, now calling themselves the Alliance Party, with Stockwell Day leading the charge. Conrad Black had hand picked him as a charismatic saviour of Canada who would unite the Right-Wing flank and do battle against the evil left and everyone else who got in their way.

Before long Black was traipsing him around to $1,000.00 a plate fund raisers and allowing Ezra Levant to host parties at his house.

But what Black may not have known was that Stockwell Day had a past, and when that past was brought to light, it looked like sure defeat. But Stocky really wanted to be prime minister, so he came up with a new battle plan. He would fraternize with the enemy. If he could form a coalition with the secessionists together they could take down the Liberals.

But then the New York Times got wind of this plan and ran with the story: Rightist Shocks Canadians By Flirting With Separatists. Boy was Conrad Black ever ticked!

''The Canadian Alliance leader needs to stop playing footsie with Quebec separatist leaders right now,'' thundered the The National Post, which has more commonly been a cheerleader for Mr. Day.

In an interview on Tuesday, Conrad Black, chairman of The National Post, said the strategy would not work. ''It makes it too easy for the Liberals to represent him as a separatist fellow traveler, ambiguous about the future of the country.''

Jason Kenney was Stocky's campaign manager and once he crawled out from under the bed, he had to come up with another plan. Not that the original one had a chance. The Bloc wanted no part of them.

"Day repeatedly journeyed to Quebec ... During August and September, Day stepped up these efforts, going even further to suggest the Alliance party welcome Quebec separatists and might even consider forming a national coalition government with the Bloc Quebecois .... But Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe said he wanted nothing to do with Day whose values (re: gay rights, abortion, youth justice) Duceppe described as "inspired by the United States..." (3)

When the story came to light in 2008, Stockwell Day denied it, suggesting that his DNA would not allow him to enter into a coalition with separatists. Another little white one because Stock's father was a member of the Western Canada Concept party, a group who wanted the Western provinces to separate from Canada. Maybe Stock just forgot.

He didn't stand a chance anyway. Most Canadians thought he was nuts.

Next Up Stephen Harper

So far Canada's Republican Party (aka: Reform, Alliance, Conservative Party of Canada) was not doing so well with the secessionists. Not for lack of trying. When the same-sex marriage bill was passed the new commander Harper cried foul, claiming that it wasn't legitimate because it was supported by separatists.

Where do they keep getting these guys, we asked?

But in 2004 Stephen Harper now had his chance to be Prime Minster, but he lost the darned election. Simply because most Canadians thought he was nuts.

Where Did I put those secessionists?

Poor Stephen Harper was devastated. But while at home licking his wounds he came up with a plan. So he called together Gilles Duceppe of the Bloc and Jack Layton of the NDP, and together they fired off a letter to the Governor General. They were going to form a coalition government and Harper was going to be an "unelected prime minister". He could hardly wait.

However, this time it was the left flank that deserted the battleground, as their leader Jack Layton had a change of heart (or came to his senses). And when Harper's coalition attempt came to light, he denied it and went on a rant about "separatists" and "socialists".



So to recap. Preston Manning ready to do battle with secessionists, force a civil war, and become the first Republican prime minister. Stockwell Day prepared to join forces with secessionists to take down the Liberals. Stephen Harper wanted same sex marriage bill defeated so plays secessionist card, but then pulls it back when he wants to play footsie with "separatists" and "socialists".

Whew! But at least after all of that, the Conservatives are finally ready to admit that the Bloc are a legitimate Canadian Party. Or at least I thought so.

Apparently they are now once again squawking, suggesting that the Bloc should not be allowed to see the documents relating to the alleged torture of Afghan Detainees, because they are separatists. AAAAARG!!!!

And they wonder why most Canadians think they're NUTS!!!!

Sources:

1. Full text of Stephen Harper's 1997 speech, Canadian Press, December 14, 2005

2. Preston Manning and the Reform Party. By: Murray Dobbin Goodread Biographies/Formac Publishing 1992 ISBN: 0-88780-161-7, pg. 218-219

3. "Bloc leader denounces Day's ideas", Edmonton Journal, August 14, 2000.

Did you Ever Wonder Just How Inhumane the Harper Government Was?

Despite the fact that all experts agree that our best defences against contacting and spreading H1N1 are to wash our hands, cover our mouths and STAY HOME if we're sick, the Reform Conservatives refused to allow a Bloc MP to pair his vote because his daughter has H1N1 and he believes that he does too.

Instead they made him show up for the vote, risking all others in the House. Dimi-Witty claimed that they already moved up the voting to accommodate him. What difference does it make what time he shows up sick. HE WAS SICK!

If there was ever a good reason to reject neo-conservatism, this is it. 'There is no such thing as society', 'there is no such thing as humanity'.

They want this gun registry scrapped so bad that they not only resort to blackmail, but would risk the health of everyone on Parliament Hill. Unbelievable!

Tories criticized for refusing to accommodate MP with possible H1N1
By Meagan Fitzpatrick,
Canwest News Service
November 4, 2009

OTTAWA — While MPs were sitting in the House of Commons Wednesday night awaiting their turn to vote on the long-gun registry, some were also wondering why Bloc Quebecois MP Claude Guimond was sporting a surgical mask.

Following the vote, Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe told reporters that Guimond likely has the H1N1 flu but had to come to Parliament Hill to vote because the Conservatives refused to "pair" his vote.

Duceppe said a request was made Wednesday morning to have a Tory MP miss the vote to balance out Guimond's absence if he stayed home sick, but the request was refused.

"We asked again five minutes before the vote to pair him, they refused," said Duceppe. "I think it's just disgusting from the Tories to have such an attitude."

Duceppe said Guimond's daughter had H1N1 and that the MP is awaiting confirmation on whether he has the illness that is gripping the nation. The Public Health Agency of Canada has consistently said that anyone who is sick should stay home.

Dimitri Soudas, press secretary for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, said the pairing arrangement that is sometimes used in Parliament did not apply to Wednesday's circumstances.

"Pairing wasn't an option," he told Canwest News Service.

According to Parliament's procedural guidelines, pairing is defined as an arrangement where a government MP and an opposition MP agree not to vote for a specific period of time which allows MPs to be absent on other business. The arrangement is worked out either through the whip offices of each party or by the MPs themselves.

Soudas said all members of the Tory caucus planned to attend the controversial gun registry vote and that it's incumbent on MPs to decide whether they can or cannot attend votes.

He said the Conservatives did accommodate Guimond by moving up the scheduled time of the vote.

Opposition MPs said the government should have been more reasonable and co-operated with the Bloc's request.

NDP MP Paul Dewar said Guimond was trying to abide by the government's own advice to stay home if you're sick.

"I find it unfortunate and I think it's really sad that they decided not to accommodate Mr. Guimond," said Dewar, adding that a mixed message has now been sent to Canadians.

"They're basically saying here's the advice for Canadians but we'll do the opposite. They should be held accountable for that."

Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett, the party's health critic, also expressed shock that the Bloc and Tories didn't pair votes.

"I am speechless . . . this is ridiculous in terms of an example," she said.

Gilles Duceppe on Board With EI Reform

When I first learned that Ryan Sparrow had not only been rehired by the Conservatives but would be working with Diane Finley, I knew that EI reform would be long on message and short on substance.

This was the catalyst that could trigger a fall election, something Stephen Harper is terrified of; so they needed a master of spin, and there are few better at it than Mr. Sparrow.

I wonder if Kory Teneycke's leaving had anything to do with Ryan's return? Teneycke had tried to change the way that the Conservatives dealt with the press, by actually allowing MPs to talk. Mind you they only read press releases from the PMO, but at least we learned they weren't all mute.

But back to EI reform and a possible fall election.

Less than a year ago, Stephen Harper couldn't wait to get to the polls. He even broke his own law to make it happen, though his eagerness had more to do with the "In and Out" scandal that was threatening to bring down his government. A total of 66 Conservative candidates from the 2006 election campaign, including several elected MPs and cabinet ministers, could have been facing (alleged) fraud charges.

Witness testimony and hard evidence was becoming increasingly difficult to downplay, so Harper immediately closed down the committee, launched yet another lawsuit against the Canadian people and distracted us all with an election.

The case is still on the back burner and last I heard the Conservatives counter suit will begin in November. Can't wait to hear how they're going to defend (allegedly) forging receipts to claim expenses they never incurred.

In many respects it will be better if Harper is out of office at that time, because he will no longer be able to abuse his power to deny accountability. This is a very serious matter that can't be simply swept under the rug, and puts the entire legitimacy of his office into question.

But now that the opposition parties are threatening to bring down his government over much needed reform to EI, he's begging us to protect him. There are even rumours that he may again go to the Governor General on his hands and knees asking her to once again prorogue parliament.

Will she? I hope not. But if she wants to avoid an election during an economic crisis, that the Conservatives denied was even coming; she could always ask Mr. Ignatieff to head up a coalition government that best represents the majority of Canadians. Harper has certainly been throwing the 'c' word around a lot these days.

For me, I was just happy to hear that Gilles Duceppe had lent his voice to the 'unemployed' in this country who are being silenced because of Harper's ideology. When our PM was President of the National Citizens Coalition, he hated the fact that we had such a lenient system. His NCC demanded that seasonal workers and 'pregnant' women be removed from the system and always felt that EI recipients were getting a 'free ride'.

And then of course his famous speech when he said: "Canada is a Northern European welfare state in the worst sense of the term, and very proud of it... In terms of the unemployed, of which we have over a million-and-a-half, don't feel particularly bad for many of these people. They don't feel bad about it themselves, as long as they're receiving generous social assistance and unemployment insurance."

I really like Gilles Duceppe. A very smart man who has Stephen Harper's number.

Bloc threatens government over EI changes
By ELIZABETH THOMPSON,
NATIONAL BUREAU
Edmonton Sun
August 1, 2009

Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe is threatening to bring down Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government unless it makes changes to Canada's employment insurance system.

In a message posted on the Bloc's website yesterday, Duceppe said the committee set up by the Conservatives and the Liberals to examine the EI system appears to be "an empty shell intended to buy them time."

"This committee will only prolong the injustice experienced by the unemployed who do not now have access to the system."

Duceppe, who believes people should qualify for EI after 360 hours of work, says he will wait to see the committee's report and then decide whether to support it.

READY

"If we find ourselves in elections, the Bloc Quebecois will be ready. It is already. And I am too."

Duceppe's comments come as Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff has suggested he could trigger an election this fall and Harper is warning an election could hurt Canada's fragile economic recovery.

Defeating the government, however, will take the combined vote of the Liberals, the Bloc and the NDP. (We only need to hear from you now Mr. Layton)

Duceppe's message will likely quash rumours he is about to resign as Bloc leader.

In his posting, Duceppe says he is looking forward to hitting the road for his summer tour and discussing the Bloc's proposals with Quebecers.

Bloc officials say Duceppe has a busy schedule planned this fall.

The Numbers Don't Lie. The Conservatives Did Not Get a Stronger Mandate

Despite the fact that the Conservatives continue to claim that Canadians gave them a stronger mandate in 2008, the numbers tell a different story.

Only vote splitting and apathy, brought on by the horrendous Conservative attack ads, gave them more seats.

After the story broke about the "In and Out" scheme, Harper's Party was in serious trouble. Breaking the rules may have put his legitimacy into question, but alleged fraud was a criminal matter.

So how did he deal with it?

He abused his executive powers to hamper the investigation, shut down the ethics committee and called an illegal election. He then launched a ridiculous civil suit, that put the case on the back burner.

However, the allegations are still there and hopefully soon Canadians will get their day in court. They cheated US and Harper is now suing US. What does that tell you about this government?


But back to the numbers and why I believe a coalition or an alliance of the left, is the best option for our country; if we want to get on track to solving the multitude of problems we are facing.

A serious attempt was made during the last election to initiate strategic voting. Sadly it didn't work, and the Conservatives ended up with more seats, despite the fact that they received less votes.

The election also saw the lowest voter turnout in our history. On election night it was felt that this would play in favour of the incumbents because by and large, Conservative voters were said to be older and wealthier and more apt to get out and vote. Do we really want old rich guys having all the power?

But lets compare the results from 2006 to 2008.

Conservatives
2006 - Total votes 5,374,071 which represented 36.27% of ballots cast for 124 seats
(Note: This was the election where they broke the rules and the alleged fraud involving 66 candidates is still on the table)

2008 - Total votes 5,208,793 which represented 37.63 of ballots cast for 143 seats
Their percentage went up slightly but despite the fact that they were able to drive voters away from the Liberals, none of those were driven in their direction, because they received 173,210 fewer than in 2006.

Liberals

2006 - Total votes 4,479,415 which represented 30.23% of ballots cast for 103 seats

2008 - Total votes 3,627,890 which represented 26.24 of ballots cast for 77 seats
(The horrendous attacks on Dion led to the Liberals downfall, but ironically their numbers were climbing until Steve Murphy and Mike Duffy created a mini scandal with the Liberal leader's false starts. Both men have been charged with ethics violations, but Duffy was rewarded with a senate seat and Murphy a one on one interview with the PM during the Parliamentary crisis. Is their a senate seat in his future too, since he did what the Conservatives couldn't at that time .... knock Mr. Dion out of the race?) As a result the Liberal numbers were down by 851,525 but none of them went to the Conservatives.

NDP

2006 - Total votes 2,589,597 which represented 17.48% of ballots cast for 29 seats

2008 - Total votes 2,512,886 which represented 18.2 of ballots cast for 37 seats
(The NDP were down by 76,711 votes but still managed to get a few more seats)

Bloc

2006 - Total votes 1,553,201 which represented 10.48% of ballots cast for 51 seats

2008 - Total votes 1,379,991 which represented 9.97 of ballots cast for 49 seats
(The Bloc were down by 173,210 and they lost two seats)

Green Party

2006 - Total votes 664,068 which represented 5.2% of ballots cast for 0 seats

2008 - Total votes 940,297 which represented 6.8 of ballots cast for 0 seats
(The Green Party was the only one to gain votes and yet they still have no seats.)

This is why we need either proportional representation or a coalition of the left, because as it is, the majority of Canadians are without a voice.

Stephen Harper Found in Bed With Separatists

I still find it mind boggling that the Conservative caucus was allowed to get away with their horrendous attack on Quebec and Francophones during the Parliamentary crisis.

Their shrill battle cries empowered the crazies and some of the comments seen around message boards, were astounding. I remember one from Alberta claiming a desire to 'lay waste' to Quebec on the way to do battle with 'Ontario'. Another suggested it was time to get rid of the 'Frenchies' once and for all, and even Diane Finlay sent out an email calling Gilles Duceppe 'a citizen of France' (that contained three spelling mistakes).

It is the duty of a Prime Minister to keep a country united, but instead Stephen Harper played on old hostilities to divide the country, just to save his job.

Of course, he's never really been a federalist and in a speech he made to the National Citizens Coalition, when he was the Reform Party MP for Calgary West, reveals that he would much rather see a loose federal government, than a united Canada. “Whether Canada ends up as one national government or two national governments or several national governments, or some other kind of arrangement is, quite frankly, secondary in my opinion.”

Now in his defense Paul Martin made the same accusations against Harper when he formed his coalition in 2004, to reverse the results of the election. The non-confidence-mania that defined Martin's tenure became talking points that Stephen Harper was in bed with the separatists to bring down the Liberals.

I never really liked Paul Martin as a Prime Minister. I think he was and still is a brilliant financier, and many of the initiatives he put in place are helping Canada today to stay on solid footing during this economic crisis. But he ran too many attack ads and I hate attack ads.

But what I do find horrendous is the way that Stephen Harper will defy some legislation based on the support of 'separatists', (he once claimed that the gay marriage law lacked legitimacy because it was sailing through with the support of the Bloc) but has used that same 'separatist' support to push his own bills.

And then of course there was Stockwell Day's proposed Coalition with the Bloc to become an unelected Prime Minister in 2000, until a Liberal majority put an end to the notion.

But despite the horrendous display throughout much of December and January, we've learned recently that Harper may once again try to schmooze the 'separatists' and 'socialists' to hold onto power. He really wants to be in charge when the Olympics takes place, to see how his new NAFTA on steroids security plan will play out.

Tories court Bloc and NDP in bid to hold onto power
April 29, 2009
CTV.ca News Staff

Tory insiders say the party is hatching a survival plan to keep the surging Liberals at bay and delay any potential election long enough to enjoy the international limelight at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver.

A major plank of the plan would see the Tories delay next year's budget and deliver it in late March -- two months later than when the budget was handed down in 2009.

That would deprive the Grits of an important confidence vote before the Olympic flame arrives in Vancouver next February, at which point the Conservatives hope the economy will have turned around.

Over the past months, the recession has provided much grist for the Grit mill, and allowed the official opposition to attack the government as insensitive and incompetent.

"We intend to be there (for the Olympics)," one senior Tory told The Canadian Press on Wednesday.

A second part of the plan will see the Tories launch a series of attack ads this summer focusing on the Liberal's popular new chief, Michael Ignatieff. (so this was not in response to the Grit Girl ads, as they suggest)

However, the Tories will need the NDP and the Bloc to play ball if they hope to stave off a non-confidence vote before the 2010 Winter Games, to be held from Feb. 12 to 28.
So far, it appears the NDP and the Bloc are willing to back up the Tories -- at a price.

Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe has been pushing for a tax-harmonization deal with Ottawa and wants improvements to the EI system. It's expected that Duceppe will lay out his formal demands on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Parliament witnessed a bizarre move when the Conservatives voted in favour of a Bloc motion that transfers $2.6 billion to Quebec and allows the province to administer its own sales tax.

Meanwhile, NDP Leader Jack Layton appears open to the idea of working with the Tories. However, his support is contingent on the condition that Ottawa deliver EI reform, provide stricter credit card regulations and increase pension protection.

Personally, I'm hoping this government is gone by the time the Olympics rolls around. I want my country back.

Tory Caucus Supports Child Trafficking in Shocking Tape

Gotcha didn't I? However, that headline is no more convoluted than the one in the

Karl Rove style pamphlets distributed by the Conservatives in Bloc ridings recently.

After voting against a hurriedly drafted human trafficking bill, presented by Stockwell Day's pet, Joy Smith, because they didn't want to take power away from judges, they have been accused of supporting pedophiles.

However, when you listen to the Lisa Raitt tapes bashing Joy Smith, and the resulting comments made by the Tory caucus, you can see clearly that it was a political move that carried with it a lot of hard feelings.

Kind of like kids saying that their sibling got a bigger piece of cake than them, Smith's colleagues were clearly jealous and saw this as favouritism.

And what did they say about the importance of the bill? Absolutely nothing. So who's supporting child trafficking now?

"Raitt said Smith had made a bad move by introducing a private member's bill to introduce mandatory minimum sentences for human trafficking of children."Speaking of career-limiting moves, I’m in shock that that MP, Joy Smith, brought forward private member’s legislation on human trafficking," Raitt says on the tape.

"She’s on Canada AM. And the reason being is that there’s no way any of us should be introducing anything around justice issues or finance issues right now.

You just can’t touch those two things."It was widely known among Conservatives that bills dealing with justice or finance issues were to be introduced by cabinet only, as justice and the economy are the pillars of this government.

At least one Conservative however suggested Raitt's comments about Smith reflected what a lot of people in the caucus thought then.

The fact that the Conservatives can treat such a sensitive subject in so callous a manner as using it for attack ads, shows they don't care so much about children, as they do about their careers.

Just When You Thought the Conservatives Couldn't Sink Any Lower

Did you think that the Conservatives had hit bottom when they had to cherry pick tapes of Michael Ignatieff from his days as a journalist, to run attack ads? Well guess again.

They have proven that they're capable of anything with their new attacks, this time aimed at the Bloc Québécois.

Because the Bloc, as Harper knew they would, voted against the hurriedly drafted human trafficking bill, presented by Stockwell Day's pet, Joy Smith, they are now being accused of supporting pedophiles.

The opposition of Gilles Duceppe and his caucus, was simply that they don't want to take power away from judges, and know that mandatory minimum sentences will do nothing to prevent the crime.

That doesn't stop Harper though. Once his evil juices start flowing, look out.

Of course this isn't the first time the Reformers have made these kind of allegations. Stockwell Day cost taxpayers almost a million dollars when he wrongfully accused a lawyer and school board trustee of promoting child porn, and Harper tried a similar attack on Paul Martin.

This reminds me of the days of the inquisition, when charges of infanticide were used to justify having someone burned at the stake so they could steal their stuff.

Tory ad suggests Bloc protecting child traffickers rather than children
July 3, 2009
CBC News

Bloc Québécois MPs are outraged over Tory attack ads suggesting the separatist party is soft on pedophiles and child traffickers.

The ads, which were part of pamphlet sent to homes in Bloc ridings, show a shadowy man leading a child from a playground with a banner below declaring in French, "Your Bloc MP voted against the protection of children."

"They try to mention that we want to protect criminals, and it's totally untrue," said Bloc MP Michel Guimond.

"They are crazy. They think they will have support of Quebecers with those type of pamphlets."

The Conservatives argue that they are just pointing out the Bloc was the only party to vote against a law that would impose minimum sentences in child trafficking cases.

"I think we can all draw our conclusions from that when the three political parties in Canada had a position, and the Bloc has a contrary position," Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Canon said Friday in Gatineau.

"Canadians can, and Quebecers can, determine whether or not they're soft on crime."

But Guimond told the Globe and Mail that his party voted against the bill because it prevents judges from exercising their discretion.

“Minimum sentences have no dissuasive effect,” he said.

In the 2004 election, the Tories used a similar tactic, suggesting that then Liberal leader Paul Martin supported pornography because he was not in favour of Conservative proposals to toughen child pornography legislation. Some observers believe that move backfired and instead sparked a backlash against the Tories.

Liberal party strategist Scott Reid said the Conservatives are using the latest ad to identify potential supporters in Quebec.

"This prime minister is trying to put forward the most intense, overt conservative message possible in the province of Quebec because if people respond to that message, then he knows for sure that those are hardcore Conservative voters," Reid said.

Reaction appeared to be mixed among some Quebec voters.

"I have no problem with statements that are really bold, if you're trying to get attention," said one voter.

"Seems like a desperate move, actually," said another.

I agree with the latter comment. However, people from Quebec are smarter than this. If Harper took a minute and actually spoke with them, he would know that. Of course, the fact that we're paying for this propaganda is beyond belief.

Stockwell Day Makes Secret Deal With Separatists

Despite their fictitious campaign during the parliamentary crisis, the Conservatives have long been in favour of coalitions. But even before Stephen Harper formed his in 2004 with the Bloc and NDP; Stockwell Day made a secret deal with the Bloc and Progressive Conservatives in 2000, when he was leader of the Canadian Alliance Party.

Overconfident in his bid to oust Jean Chretien and overturn the results of the 2000 election, he planned to form a coalition with the separatist Quebec Party, and the PCs, then name himself Prime Minister.

All of this was uncovered by Daniel LeBlanc, journalist for the Globe and Mail.

Bloc part of secret coalition plot in 2000 with Canadian Alliance
A document obtained by The Globe and Mail shows that the scheme would have propelled then Alliance leader Stockwell Day to power in the coalition. A lawyer who was described then as being close to Day, says he didn't discuss the matter with the MPs

DANIEL LEBLANC
OTTAWA
Globe and Mail

The separatist Bloc Québécois was part of secret plotting in 2000 to join a formal coalition with the two parties that now make up Stephen Harper's government, according to documents obtained by The Globe and Mail. The scheme, designed to propel current Conservative minister Stockwell Day to power, undermines the Harper government's line this week that it would never sign a deal like the current one between the Liberal Party, the NDP and the Bloc.

Bloc officials said that well-known Calgary lawyer Gerry Chipeur sent a written offer before the votes were counted on election day on Nov. 27, 2000. According to prominent sovereigntist lawyer Eric Bédard, who received the proposal, Mr. Chipeur identified himself as being close to Mr. Day, the leader of the Canadian Alliance at the time ....