Will Jason Kenney Apologize to Hungarian-Canadians?

James Bezan is a Conservative MP of Ukrainian descent. He took a few seconds of Michael Ignatieff's Gemini award winning documentary: Blood and Belonging, to paint Ignatieff as a bigot, for comments made in the piece, reflecting on the memories of his youth.



Every now and then a small group of protesters will show up at an event, demanding an apology. One that Michael Ignatieff already formally gave, though I really felt that there was nothing to apologize for.

Had Bezan read the book without a partisan bias, there is a passage that he would have kept with him.

Ignatieff had interviewed the well known Ukrainian nationalist Mykola Horbal, who had been imprisoned many times by the Russians, for refusing to denounce his language, religion and customs.

Horbal's vision for the Ukraine was of one that would welcome Russians, though he certainly would have little reason to. But he says "One Russian defending the interests of Ukraine is more dear to us than a Ukrainian who does the same, for that is expected of him."

Isn't that what multiculturalism is about? People of all nations defending the interests of Canada? And if you prefer something less "head in the clouds leftie", Scott Brison says that muticuluralism represents natural bridges to global markets.

I really detest the Conservative approach to immigrants, exploiting them for votes, and even pitting one group against another. Their newest attack ads suggesting that Ignatieff supports human smuggling. It's just so dirty and so un-Canadian.

The news yesterday was that Michael Ignatieff's wife had not yet received her Canadian citizenship. She was born in Hungary, holds a British citizenship, and has applied for her Canadians papers.

It's a cute human interest story, because it means that she won't be able to vote for her husband, but some of the spin put on this, even by those in the MSM, is deplorable.

When Jason Kenney was being interviewed for Paul Well's book, Right Side Up, he said: "What’s Ignatieff’s wife’s name again? [Ignatieff is married to Zsuzsanna] Exactly. So in the next election it’s Steve and Laureen vs. Count Michael and What’s-Her-Name. It’s almost a dream for us.”

"Count Michael and What’s-Her-Name"? Choosing to keep her Hungarian name makes her unworthy somehow? The brunt of jokes? I've met her and she is one of the nicest, down to earth people.

I don't remember a time when ethnicity was such an issue in this country. It's horrible. And if the media allows this, and in fact continues to fuel it, they should be ashamed.

Let's stick to what's important, beginning with why they are giving Stephen Harper a free ride on Contempt of Parliament, allowing him to instead suggest that his party fell because of a budget that was never voted on.

Jason Kenney up to His Old Tricks. May His God Strike Him Down.

When Jason Kenney was head of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation he lobbied hard against any money going to multiculturalism and demanding an end to the immigration of "undesirables". In the Neoconservative world, this made him a perfect selection to head up Multiculturalism and Immigration.

He has on the other hand, increased the flow of migrant workers, and if they don't do what the big boss tells them to do (including S.E.X. as one woman discovered after being shipped back when she refused her "master"), Kenney launches work place raids and ships them back in the dead of night, without opportunity to even inform family or friends.

It is hard to write an article about Conservative Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's attacks on Canadian racialized communities. As soon as one draft is complete, Kenney is at it again, spinning new lies and venting hateful rhetoric. In a federal cabinet chock-a-block with unsavory characters, Kenney stands first in line. Kenney has expanded his use of arbitrary power and has moved with stealth to significantly reduce the number of family-class immigrants applying from countries of the Global South. While on the one hand Kenney and the Conservatives portray themselves as the friend of immigrant communities, their administrative edicts to Citizenship and Immigration Canada and legislative changes have resulted in the door being shut on immigrants' hands.The most recent step has been a ramped-up Conservative attack on immigrants in early April using workplace raids of unprecedented size and scope.

Another attempt at making the rich richer and the poor, poorer.

Using the distraction of police violence against protesters that was on display at the G20 Summit marches in Toronto, the Canadian government once again affirmed their commitment to the movement of people across their borders only as cheap and replaceable labour. On Saturday, June 26, Citizenship and Immigration Canada announced changes to immigration policy that further restrict immigrants from obtaining residency in Canada through permanent and meaningful employment. This change follows a long line of policy changes that are designed to bring in more temporary migrants while restricting those and other migrants from having safe employment and a chance to obtain permanent residency in Canada.

The new change to immigration policy restricts residency applicants to applying only if they have arranged employment or have experience in 29 specific occupations. Previously, there was no upper limit to applications, the criteria for residency was broader, and work experience in over 38 occupations was accepted. The change highlights four broad patterns that have played out in Canadian immigration policy over the past few years. First, Jason Kenney, the Citizenship and Immigration Minister, has charted a course for Canadian immigration policy that treats migrants as disposable labour. Under the new policy changes, temporary foreign workers and students are no longer eligible to apply for residency even if they have the necessary points for immigration. Instead, they are rewarded for their contribution to the Canadian economy with a "thank you" and "good-bye" from the government.

It's a good thing Kenney isn't a believer in the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, because if he was alive today he would be fighting hard against Kenney's evil. Maybe he'll just get his father to strike him down. Of course, the electorate could do the same thing. If we can't get rid of Jason Kenney at the polls, we can at least ship his party to the other side of the room where they can do less damage.

His horrendous policies are legitimizing slavery.

Jason Kenney Not Racist Just Wrong on Multiculturalism

"Reform is somewhat un-Canadian. It's about tidy numbers, self-righteous sanctimoniousness and western grievances. It cannot talk about the sea or about our reluctant fondness for Quebec, about our sorrow at the way our aboriginal people live, about the geographically diverse, bilingual, multicultural mess of a great country we are." (Vancouver Sun, April 8, 1994)

The fact that William Gairdner's book The Trouble with Canada was seen as a manifesto for the Reform movement in Canada, says a lot. The Reform Party was never about protecting our Canadian identity, but instead they just wanted to 'fix us'. They are the anti-government government, and the anti-Canadian moralists who believe that they know what's good for us, even if that means completely losing 'us' in the process.

In the above video we see Jason Kenney stammer and stall, with his typical 'deer in the headlights' look, when he is presented with a question that he does not have a scripted answer for. His explanation over his decision to demand that new immigrants can speak either French or English, is verbose and patronizing.

He may not be a racist in the traditional sense but his ideology is deeply rooted in the notion of a Judeo-Christian, Anglo-Saxon hierarchy. In Kenney's view, our society should be more homogeneous; a melting pot and not a buffet. He seeks to change Canadian society from one of diversity, to one based on his myth of 'Canadian values'.

In an interview with blogger Stephen Taylor, he stated that multiculturalism was a Conservative initiative, boasting of how it was Brian Mulroney who first created the office. What he doesn't say is that when he was with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, he lobbied against multiculturalism and public funds going to support cultural events.

So what has changed? Potential voters. No one has been more adept at exploiting immigrant communities. Even the provincial Tories sought him out and like a side-show hawker he traipsed them around to meet his new pet projects.

Canada is a multicultural country and proud of it

Michael Ignatieff once said "There is no reason why ethnic heterogeneity is incompatible with national unity." We can be proud of our individual cultural roots, while recognizing them as part of a broader multicultural society.

Enough of Multiculturalism—Bring On the Melting Pot
Lawrence Martin,
Globe and Mail
March 31, 2009

Issues don’t get much hotter than immigration. It’s where political correctness abounds, where allegations of intolerance and racism are but a breath away, where ministers had best show finesse with their pronouncements.

Not so Jason Kenney. Our man at the immigration turnstiles has been in a bull-in-a-china shop mode lately. He’s told newcomers they have to speak our official languages better, he’s barred British MP George Galloway from admittance, he’s accused refugees of systematic abuse of the system, he’s called for more integration of immigrants, and he’s gone to war with the Canadian Arab Federation, a group that accuses him of being a shill for the Jewish community.

It’s serious stuff. The purport is that immigrants must do more to conform to Canadian standards. The minister wants to tighten the definition of what it means to be Canadian. The pitch—when in Rome, do as the Romans do—is for less multiculturalism and more melting pot.

The Conservatives are saying that there’s too much tolerance, that there needs to be limits. Mr. Kenney, for example, has ended the heritage language program wherein Ottawa helped pay for children to learn their parents’ language.

The government, favouring a more selective immigration process, brought in legislation last year that allowed it to fast-track the types of immigrants it wants and freeze out those it doesn’t. Critics said it gave too much prerogative to the immigration minister. Many Liberals were pushing for increased immigration, saying an aging population and declining birth rate will reduce the population and, in turn, hinder economic growth.

In his book Unlikely Utopia, Michael Adams contests the need for melting-pot initiatives, saying it’s the absence of a strong Canadian identity that helps make this country free of prejudice and a place where immigrants can feel comfortable. Communities with a stronger, more confined sense of themselves are less tolerant. In parts of Quebec and Europe, multiculturalism is seen as a threat. In Canada, Mr. Adams notes, it’s a source of pride.

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The Unlikey Utopia: The Surprising Triumph of Canadian Pluralism
By Michael Adams
Viking Canada, 2007

A LOSE-LOSE PROPOSITION?

"It sometimes appears that multiculturalism has very few friends in this country. Pundits tell us that Canadians, like citizens of other Western countries, are too “tolerant” for our own good. Multiculturalism, once seen as a fair-minded, idealistic vision that Canadians could be proud of is now commonly blamed for a host of social ills: civic apathy, loss of identity, gender inequality, fragmentation, ghettoization, even racism and terrorism. Where as multiculturalism was once seen as good for immigrants and good for Canada, it is now a lose-lose proposition. Or so some commentators tell us.

"When ordinary Canadians are surveyed, however, another picture emerges. Canadians do have concerns about their country’s immigration and refugee policies, and they have concerns about the social integration of newcomers. On the whole, however, Canadians remain proud of their country’s diversity and the way that diversity is managed: an approach we call multiculturalism. Over the past four decades multiculturalism has become central to Canadians’ sense of themselves and their country. In 2003, 85 percent of Canadians said that multiculturalism was important to Canadian identity. More Canadians cite multiculturalism as central to the national identity than bilingualism or hockey. Also in 2003, four out of five Canadians (81 percent) agreed that multiculturalism has contributed positively to the national identity."

A SOURCE OF IDENTITY AND PRIDE

"Not only do Canadians feel that multiculturalism is a central part of their country’s identity, it’s also increasingly a source of pride. In 1985 we asked Canadians to tell us in their own words what made them proud to be Canadian. Multiculturalism was in tenth place. People were more likely to cite the beauty of the land, Canada’s natural resources, and even the physical size of the country. By 2006, multiculturalism had climbed to second place. Only Canada’s democracy was more often named as a source of national pride. Immigrants themselves are especially likely to take pride in Canada’s multiculturalism and to feel that it’s an important part of Canada’s identity. But at still only 19 percent of the population, it’s not only immigrants who are driving this trend; native-born Canadians increasingly see their country as being defined and enriched by its diversity and by the official response to that diversity: multiculturalism.

"As political philosopher Will Kymlicka puts it in the Constitutional Forum (13:1, 2003), Canadians aren’t unique in living in a diverse society. Rather, “Canadians are distinctive in the way that they have incorporated Canada’s policy of accommodating diversity into their sense of national identity.” Public opinion data certainly suggest that multiculturalism holds an ever more central position in the imagined community that is Canada.

"In 2006, an international Ipsos-MORI study found that 75 percent of Canadians believe that overall, immigrants have a positive influence on the country. The country with the second most positive attitudes, Australia, was slightly over half (54 percent), with the United States not far behind (52 percent). In Western Europe, Germans (47 percent) were the most positive about immigrants’ influence on their country, with Spain (45 percent), France (45 percent), Italy (44 percent), and Great Britain (43 percent) hovering just below."

SUPPORT FOR IMMIGRATION

"Remarkably, as immigration rates have increased, the proportion of Canadians believing there is too much immigration to this country has actually diminished. In 1977, when Canada’s immigration rate was only 3.5 people per thousand population, about two-thirds of Canadians believed the rate was too high, while about a third were satisfied. Today those proportions are roughly reversed: as of 2006 only about a third of Canadians believe there is too much immigration to this country, while about two-thirds think it’s about right or too low.

"Recall that at present Canada has one of the highest immigration rates in the world: 6.6 per 1,000. Even given this exceptional practice, Canada achieves a level of support for immigration that many countries with lower rates of intake can only dream of. One common anti-immigrant sentiment is the idea that immigrants come to a new country and take jobs from the native-born. Most Canadians aren’t buying that old saw.

"As of 2008, four out of five (82 percent) believe that overall, immigrants have a positive effect on the Canadian economy. Just one in five (20 percent) believe that immigrants take jobs away from other Canadians."

---------------------------

Jason Kenney just doesn't get it. His interpretation of 'Canadian values' has little to do with being Canadian, and clearly lacks any value. We ain't broke. Why do you want to fix us?

I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK DAMMIT!!!

Jason Kenney Cripples Refugee Board to End Multiculturalism

I love this clip of the absolute blow hard Jason Kenney. He tries to impersonate Conrad Black by throwing in big words and pretending to understand them.

However, for all of his cries of wanting to fix the refugee system, we know from his past that he is absolutely against Canada being a multicultural society. Not that he's above exploiting immigrants for political gain, but like Stephen Harper, he's a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

For instance, why would he appoint an anti-gay activist to determine whether refugees fleeing persecution and possible death for their sexual orientation, be given safe haven?

Political Interference Crippling Refugee Board:

Jason Kenney's comments are bringing personal harm to refugee claimants and may have overstepped the legal line between politics and independent refugee decisions, say several immigration experts.
By Michelle Collins
Embassy Magazine
Published July 22, 2009

Jason Kenney has compromised his position as immigration minister by repeatedly slamming the validity of various refugee claims and blatantly undermining the independence of Canada's refugee tribunal, legal and immigration experts, including former IRB chairman Peter Showler, are charging.

Over the past several months, Mr. Kenney has publicly declared asylum claims by U.S. war deserters to be "bogus," accused would-be Mexican refugees of systematically abusing the system, and questioned the legitimacy of refugee claims by Roma from the Czech Republic.

Mr. Kenney has said that the Roma face no state persecution in the Czech Republic—where attacks on their communities by radical groups are said to be on the rise—in spite of the fact that the Immigration and Refugee Board has approved nearly all such claims. In 2008, 94 per cent of Czech Roma claims were accepted, while in the first six months of 2009, 72 of the 90 cases heard were accepted.

"There are a lot of concerns here," said Toronto immigration lawyer Max Berger. "The minister has to strike a delicate balance, on the one hand preserving the integrity of our refugee program, and on the other hand not making public pronouncements that could be seen as political interference in the operation of his own refugee board."

In June, Mr. Kenney referred to a report on the Czech Republic, conducted by IRB researchers, as proof the Czech government was committed to improving the legal and economic opportunities for Roma, and suggested this was evidence that Czech Roma face no real risk.

"If someone comes in and says the police have been beating the crap out of them, the IRB panelists can then go to their report and say, 'Well, actually, there's been no evidence of police brutality,'" Mr. Kenney told the Toronto Star on June 24.

The appearance of political interference by the minister has led Roma Canadians to launch a lawsuit against Mr. Kenney and the Immigration and Refugee Board, alleging "institutional biases" against Czech Roma refugees. Lawyer Rocco Galati told the Toronto Star that the suit will focus on the IRB's report about Czech Roma, which the community says is discriminatory.

Peter Showler, a former chairman of the IRB and director of the Refugee Forum at the Human Rights Research and Education Centre at the University of Ottawa, said Mr. Kenney has absolutely introduced institutional bias into the refugee board's decision-making. He said Mr. Kenney's comments have caused a "significant amount of damage" to individual refugee claimants from Mexico and the Czech Republic, as well as to the judicial process.

"I am not aware of a single previous minister of immigration who has made such remarks, who has intruded on the judicial process in this way; not one," Mr. Showler said. "This is extraordinary and I think he has overstepped the line, and I think the courts are going to tell him that he's overstepped the line."

The Refugee Lawyers' Association of Ontario has also spoken out against Mr. Kenney's comments, which they say undermines the IRB's independence and tarnishes its integrity.

"The Canadian public should be shocked that a minister would interfere so blatantly in the work of an independent body," Geraldine MacDonald, president of the association, said in a July 13 press release.

Members of the Immigration and Refugee Board are responsible for hearing refugee claims, analyzing the evidence of each case, and ultimately approving or rejecting the claim. The IRB is an independent agency, however its members are appointed by Governor in Council (Cabinet) decisions, based largely on recommendations from the immigration minister.

Experts say Mr. Kenney's disrespect of the principle of independence is of grave concern because it introduces external political factors into the members' decision-making process.

"The people who are members of the IRB ultimately depend on the minister of citizenship and immigration, and more generally the government, to keep them in their jobs," said Audrey Macklin, an associate professor at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Law. "When the minister pronounces on the validity, or lack thereof, of refugee claimants from any country without having heard the particular case and knowing the individual circumstances, there is the risk that individual decision makers whose jobs ultimately depend on the minister's decision to appoint and reappoint them, will be unduly influenced.

They might be fearful when their time comes up for reappointment that he will examine their acceptance rates from the countries where he has deemed refugee claimants to be bogus, and penalize them."

The perception of such inappropriate control by Mr. Kenney has become so prevalent that numerous immigration lawyers are turning to the courts for recourse. Mr. Berger said he and a number of other lawyers in Toronto now have applications in federal court alleging "an apprehension of bias" regarding Czech refugee claims.

"You have board members who are called upon to decide these refugee claims, and at the same time these board members are looking to this minister for reappointment at the board," Mr. Berger said.

Janet Dench, executive director of the Canadian Council for Refugees, said it is inappropriate for the immigration minister to publicly prejudge cases and that in doing so he has disrespected the proper divisions of responsibilities.

"It's extraordinary how often you hear public figures say 'I can't comment on this because it's before a tribunal,' somehow Jason Kenney doesn't seem to be applying that rule to the cases of refugees," Ms. Dench said.

By publicly stating his personal opinions on what he thinks the outcome of determinations should be puts the IRB into "a very vulnerable position" and slights refugees, she said.

"It just treats refugees of being so undeserving of even the most basic consideration... like the refugee system is just about trying to deal as quickly as possible with an inconvenience rather than taking seriously the rights of refugees," Ms. Dench said.

Errol Mendes, a professor of international law at the University of Ottawa, said Mr. Kenney's "blanket statements" about claimants from other countries, such as Mexico and the Czech Republic, are dangerous. As the most senior person in the immigration department, the onus is on Mr. Kenney to respect the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, Mr. Mendes said, adding there is nothing in the '51 convention which suggests claimants from democratic countries, such as the Czech Republic and Mexico, are not entitled to a fair hearing.

"Given all that, at least in terms of the spirit of the rule of law, I think he has abdicated his responsibility to be a responsible minister of immigration and citizenship," Mr. Mendes said. "And we could add to that multiculturalism too, because this certainly goes against the spirit of multiculturalism, to basically stereotype entire peoples as potential fraudsters."

Liberal Immigration critic Maurizio Bevilacqua advised Mr. Kenney to take heed of such concerns.

"I think the minister has to be very careful and balanced in his comments," Mr. Bevilacqua said. "He must of course state his opinion about Canada's immigration system because that is his job, but he has to do it in a manner that doesn't unduly influence people's decisions on the cases that they're dealing with."

Breaking the System, Blaming the Refugees

Particularly frustrating for many close observers has been the lack of government attention to addressing the refugee problem systematically, rather than politically.

Mr. Showler, in two recent op-eds for the Ottawa Citizen, has outlined the challenges facing the Immigration and Refugee Board. He lambasted the government for neglecting to avert the present crisis, which led to Mr. Kenney imposing visa requirements on all citizens of Mexico and the Czech Republic, and subsequently calling for an overhaul of Canada's refugee system.

"In addition to creating significant delays and spiralling new costs in our refugee programme, the sheer volume of these claims is undermining our ability to help people fleeing real persecution," Mr. Kenney said in announcing visas for Mexico and the Czech Republic on July 13. "All too often, people who really need Canada's protection find themselves in a long line, waiting for months and sometimes years to have their claims heard. This is unacceptable."

Just four years ago however, Mr. Showler points out that the IRB had an inventory of approximately 21,000 claims, with a capacity to decide 25,000 claims annually. But because the government has failed to reappoint experienced members and fill vacancies left by departed members, the IRB is now saddled with a backlog that exceeds 65,000 claims.

Indeed, the IRB was functioning, Ms. Macklin agreed, until the government starved it of its main resource—decision makers.

"[The government] manufactured the backlog," Ms. Macklin said. "You have a situation where the government took a system that was functioning, broke it, blamed asylum seekers for breaking it, and is now using that as an excuse to dismantle the entire system. There's something pernicious about that, and disingenuous at best."

Without enough members, the processing time has slowed—something the Mexican government points to as the root cause of the multiplying number of cases from Mexico in recent years. In 2008, more than 9,400 Mexicans filed refugee claims in Canada, making it the number one source country for refugee claims.

"Organizations have taken advantage of Canadian response times to assess refugee claims, where excessive delays have become appealing in the filing of illegitimate cases," the Mexican government said in a statement on July 13.

Acknowledging that there are indeed fraudulent claims made, Mr. Berger also pointed to systematic problems as the cause. Effectively addressing such problems, he said, is a viable alternative to Mr. Kenney's drastic measure of imposing visas.

"The reason bogus claims come to Canada is because they know that after their refugee claim is refused...they know that they will be able to stay in Canada for seven, eight, 10 years, until the immigration department gets around to removing them," Mr. Berger said. "Now if the minister took the removal process seriously and removed claimants properly after their appeals have concluded, then these people wouldn't be coming here in the first place and we wouldn't have come to this position."

Jason Kenney Lied? Oh, no. Say it Ain't So!

An odd story came out yesterday suggesting that there were three Liberal MPs who were considering crossing the floor to the Reform-Conservatives. The little weasel Dimitri Soudas got in on the action yesterday, suggesting that one of them was Rhuby Dhalla.

Of course, today it was revealed that the rumours came from Jason Kenney's office and were completely fabricated. I can't imagine Jason Kenney doing something that underhanded, can you? Hrrmmpphhh! Did he get help from this guy? Or this guy?

There was more news from Kenney's office though. That he was going to fix the refugee problem. This from a man who when CEO of the bogus Canadian Taxpayers Federation, spoke out against multiculturalism. This from a man who is abusing his office to engage in a witch hunt, deporting immigrants, many not even given a chance to tell their families where they are. This from a man who follows the teachings of John Hagee, and is currently being sued by the Arab community for singling them out.

Yeah, he's credible.

PMO denies aide's claims about possible defections
No truth to Jason Kenney office's report that 3 Liberals were interested in joining Tories, spokesman says
October 7, 2009

OTTAWA–The Prime Minister's Office sought Tuesday to distance itself from reports coming from Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's office about possible defections of Liberal MPs to the Conservatives.

Dimitri Soudas, a PMO spokesperson, said there was no truth to claims made to the Star by Kenney's communications director, Alykhan Velshi, about three Liberal MPs interested in crossing the floor to the Conservatives.

Outside the main entrance to the Parliament buildings, Soudas called out to a Star reporter that Velshi's information was "bulls---." He then in a conversation with the reporter could not explain why the communications director to the immigration minister would tell the Star about the potential floor-crossers if they didn't exist. (Velshi used to work for George Bush. Enough Said)

Nor could Soudas explain why he was "outing" Velshi on Tuesday afternoon as the source of the tip to the Star. Soudas went on to explain that only the PMO knows certain information and Velshi wouldn't have had the kind of facts the Star was seeking.

Kenney's office was involved when Wajid Khan, a former Liberal MP from Mississauga, crossed the floor to the Conservatives in 2007.

Velshi, when asked on Monday whether there was any truth to speculation about Liberal MP Ruby Dhalla (Brampton-Springdale) crossing the floor to the Conservatives, said that there had been talks with three Liberal MPs, but Dhalla was not among them. Velshi made the remarks in the Commons foyer, with other reporters nearby.

According to Velshi, the three Liberal MPs had made the approach to the Conservatives, but he did not know their names. He volunteered, however, that Dhalla wouldn't be a good catch because "she's going to lose" to the Tories in the next election. Velshi said he was sure of his information when asked whether it was solid enough to be published.

The Prime Minister's Office, though, perhaps interested in cultivating peace with the Liberals, was quick to reassure reporters Tuesday that Conservatives were not in talks with any Liberal MPs about floor-crossing. In a break from normal practice, the PMO also told reporters the name of the government aide who spoke to the Star.

With Jason Kenney vying for Harper's job, is there a little domestic squabble going on her?

Jason Kenney Wages War on the European Union

The above video shows Jason Kenney stumbling through an interview concerning his controversial decision to demand that immigrants coming to Canada be able to speak either English or French. When he gave that stupid smile and said it was so they could talk to their neighbours, I wanted to smack him. I've lived in my house for more than 20 years and still don't know half my neighbours.

You also see him mentally rooting through his bag of Conrad Black big words hoping that he doesn't appear as stupid as he actually sounds.

However, his latest fiasco demanding that Czechs and Mexicans obtain visas before coming to Canada, may be his worst action yet, because he has now made us enemies of the European Union. Travellers were once proud to display a Canadian flag on their backpacks or luggage, but not anymore.

The Harper government has assumed the role of the Bush Administration, making us the most unwelcome country in the Western world. And Jason Kenney may be the new Conservative leader if Harper is forced to resign. Yikes.

'Visa war' feared as EU threatens retaliation
Push for asylum system overhaul 'likely to backfire'
By Mike Blanchfield and Marianne White,
Canwest News Service
July 16, 2009

The Swedish presidency of the European Union threatened retaliatory action toward Canada on Wednesday over new visa requirements for Czech citizens, as broader government plans to overhaul the refugee system drew widespread criticism.

Critics and experts said Canada has sparked a "visa war" that could harm its trade ambitions with the European Union and its NAFTA relations, because of the new visa it announced Monday for citizens of the Czech Republic and Mexico.

Sweden, which holds the rotating EU presidency, said Wednesday it favours a retaliatory visa on Canadian tourists visiting the 27-country bloc.

While forcing Canadian tourists to get a visa for Europe would be a major change, the EU's review process could take months, and is far from a done deal.

Still, remarks Wednesday by Sweden's Migration and Asylum and Policy Minister Tobias Billstroem stand in sharp contrast to Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's Assurances To Canwest News Service a day earlier that European retaliation was not at all likely.

"As the presidency of the EU, we are in favour of this reciprocity," Billstroem told Agence France-Presse.

Kenney said Canada reluctantly imposed the new visas because refugee claims from Mexico and the Czech Republic have skyrocketed in recent years.

Kenney also said Canada's asylum system needed a major overhaul to reduce delays and abuse. Mexico and the Czech Republic have become the top two countries sending refugee applicants to Canada.

"We need to streamline the system to provide faster protection for real victims of persecution, while showing bogus claimants to the door much more quickly. Until we're able to come up with reforms along those lines, unfortunately, the visa policy becomes our only recourse," Kenney said. (Brian Mulroney's baby)

Janet Dench of the Canadian Council for Refugees said Kenney is using proposed reform as a "political football" to position the government in the lead-up to a possible fall election.

"One wonders:Why would he be coming forward in saying he's going to introduce what would necessarily be very controversial legislation that would have little chance of getting through a minority Parliament?" Dench told Canwest News Service.

She said that, although some changes should be made to the refugee system, it is fundamentally very sound.

"The problem is not in the system, but in the failure of the government to appoint enough board members to avoid a backlog," Dench said.

"Kenney's shock-treatment approach to fixing Canada's refugee-claimant system, which is widely perceived to be broken, is likely to backfire, because the same well-orchestrated lobby of immigration lawyers and domestic ethnic groups who oppose reform of the current system have mobilized to criticize his attempt," said Fen Hampson, director of the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs in Ottawa.

"We're going to get into a visa war, because the Mexicans are going to turn around and do the same thing to us," Hampson added.

Liberal Foreign Affairs critic Bob Rae said the Conservative government's " mishandling" of the visa issue would hurt Canada's trade ambitions with the EU and its economic partnership in NAFTA with Mexico.

"This latest diplomatic misstep can only harm Canada-EU free-trade negotiations and the upcoming security and prosperity summit with our NAFTA partners," Rae said in a statement. "It's just another example of how the Conservatives are ruining our trade relationships, costing Canadian jobs, and further eroding our international reputation."

In May, with the help of the Czech government that then held the EU presidency, Canada began formal talks on a free-trade pact with the European bloc. Next month, Prime Minister Stephen Harper meets his Mexican and American NAFTA counterparts, presidents Felipe Calderon and Barack Obama, at the "Three Amigos" summit in Mexico.