Scoreboard

It’s been a sad month for Canadian politics.  Since at some point we’ll be forced to vote for one of these parties, let’s check the league Scoreboard:

• Liberals +1
• NDP -1
• Conservatives -8

Yikes!  That looks like a Celebrity Jeopardy scoreboard!

Guess who’s back?

Helena "Hell-hole" Guergis, seen here possibly responding to a question that she posed to herself.

Not wanting to stay out of the spotlight for a moment, Helena Guergis is back in the headlines.  This time it’s because according to the CBC at least 2, and according to the Vancouver Sun as many as 5 of her staffers have sent letters to the editor praising Guergis without disclosing their association with her office.

From the Globe:

four different Liberal MPs demanded Ms. Guergis’s resignation after revelations that multiple staff members from her constituency office wrote favourable letters about her to local newspapers. The Liberals alleged there were so many sent that Ms. Guergis must have known what was going on.

“With all these letters coming out, how can the minister continue to deny any knowledge of this orchestrated campaign?” Toronto Liberal MP Yasmin Ratansi said.

There is a huge and a small story here.  It is huge in the sense that it is adding to the body of evidence that the Conservatives have grown too comfortable in power, and small in that it is just another petty act from a terrible politician.  It is not too different a situation than her husband’s, when he had someone impersonate him on radio.

Jaffer (eventually) lost his seat, it’s time for Guergis to step aside as well.  Canadians deserve better representation.

There.  No digs, no jokes, no quips, just the facts this entry.

Hey, we own this country

Jean-Pierre Blackburn, possibly pissed on Tequila, possibly sober.

Here’s one for the scoreboard.  As reported everywhere, Veteran’s Affairs Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn tried to bring a bottle of Tequila on a flight, in violation of the 100ml liquid limit.

Blackburn is according to reports a frequent flyer, and must be well aware of the restriction.

From the Globe article:

Sources told CTV News that, when the minister was asked to relinquish the booze, he became irate and demanded that the security officials empty the bottle in front of him. The argument, said the sources, became so heated that security almost called the police.

This one is just sad, I am led to suspect that Blackburn thought his “privileged” status allowed him to bypass air security laws.  I believe he is our public servant and laws apply to Queen and commoner alike.

Once, shortly after this law was enacted, I accidentally purchased a water bottle in front of security, watching my gaff, they permitted me to down the entire bottle in front of them before discarding it.  Perhaps Minister Blackburn could have been offered the same treatment, the incident could have been avoided.

Or perhaps he’d have made a huge ass of himself like his fellow Conservative, Hell-hole Helena.

Hey (hey!) you (you!) get out out of my photo-op!

Not much to say about this one.

The NDP are real politicians now.

Birds Of A Feather…

Rahim Jaffer, a former Alberta MP facing charges of cocaine possession and drunk driving, is married to current Ontario MP Helena Guergis.

With the Haiti Earthquake and the 2 month vacation mandated by Stephen Harper, it’s been a slow couple of months on the hill.  On the note of Hait relief, Canadians were phenomenally generous to the Haiti relief effort, as evidenced by this data analysis from the Guardian, “owning the podium”, as it were.

So what better way to kick start the utter crap that is the modern Canadian political scene than with a “tell us how you really feel” moment from a Conservative Party MP.

In case you missed it, here are the highlights, courtesy of the CBC.

During pre-boarding screening, the letter said, the Ontario MP refused to remove her footwear, which set off the alarm as she walked through the metal detector.

When Guergis was asked again to take off her footwear, she allegedly “slammed her boots into the bin provided,” and said, ‘Happy f–king birthday to me. I guess I’m stuck in this hellhole.’”
The letter said then, “as the footwear cleared the X-ray conveyor [Guergis] then allegedly shouted at her aide to ‘Get those for me. I’m not walking around here in sock feet.’”
When an Air Canada employee reminded her that passengers are expected to be at the airport two hours before departure, Guergis allegedly shouted, “I don’t need to be lectured about flight time by you. I’ve been down here working my ass off for you people.”

My takeaways from this experience:

• Looks like more of the same “we are the law” attitude from the Conservative party.
• The latest slam by the Conservatives to the Maritime provinces; namely that Charlottetown or its airport allegedly constitute a “hellhole”.
• This is not Canadian.

You might recall her husband Rahim.  He has been something of a news maker, the Sun provides the Coles Notes:

Rahim Jaffer, when he was a Canadian Alliance MP in 2001, tried to pull a fast one when he had aide Matthew Johnston impersonate him during an interview on Vancouver talk radio heard nationwide.

….

More recently, Jaffer, who was also a Conservative MP and was featured in anti-drug ads, was charged Sept. 17 by OPP in Palgrave with possession of cocaine and impaired driving.

Jaffer lost his seat to the only non-Conservative MP in the province of Alberta.  Maybe it’s time Helena lost hers.

Watching the outpouring of support for Haiti, I know one thing for certain, Canadians deserve better.

War? Recession? War Crimes? Time for vacation!

"I am the law!"

Harper has decided that now –in the midst of a war, accusations of war crimes by top officials, and the continuing recession– is a good time to take a two month break.  Proroguing parliament is nonsense and disrespectful to Canadians.

• the budget officer “will report” without Parliament.  In a series of photo opportunities without debate, no doubt.
• rather than face charges of treatment of detainees, this government chooses to use a “time out”.

These politicians are so divorced from reality it is truly absurd.  If Harper has had enough of the heat and wants a change of pace, he should feel free to get a new job, like the rest of Canada, who cannot prorogue their jobs.

I can’t believe we’re paying for this.

Senate Appointments

 

I am actually not personally opposed to the purpose of a senate, although it is a salient grenade used by the parties.  Only the NDP have stuck to their guns, refusing to accept Lillian Dyck’s desire to sit as an NDP senator (as the party does not advocate the senate).  Personally, I think the sober second thought, devoid of any threat of being removed from office, allows these people to operate with autonomy from the party whips.  This autonomy I appreciate, but it is a dangerous position for the parties who now spar over the fate of the senate.  Given these life appointments, experience is crucial if these people are to bring insight and value to the senate.  I decided to pull up some recent senate appointments, to see how their sober second experiences stack up.

Past Liberal appointments:

• Mary Sandra Lovelace Nicholas – aboriginal women’s rights advocate
• Larry Campbell – RCMP officer, drug squad, BC chief Coroner
• Lillian Dyck – neuroscientist, sought to sit as an NDP senator
• Romeo Dallaire – veteran of the Rwandan Peacekeeping Mission, numerous awards, citation

Some recent Conservative Senators:

• Linda Frum – Journalist
• Mike Duffy – Journalist
• Pamela Wallin – Journalist

 

Scoreboard

Since at some point I’ll be forced to vote for one of these parties, let me check my Scoreboard of who is the least bad, by my own blog categories:

• Liberals 0
• NDP -1
• Conservatives -3

That looks like a Celebrity Jeopardy scoreboard.

It wasn’t me, it was the one armed man…

"It wasn't me, it was the one armed man!"

Ignatieff seems to have called off the hounds and may stop constantly threatening an election.  He also has dumped Ian Davey for a former Chretien aid, Peter Donolo.

It may be nothing more than an attempt to shift blame for the prolonged incomprehensible election brinkmanship onto the “strategy guy” (also responsible for Coderre’s resignation), but I am going to award the Liberals a point for backtracking on this one.  It is a normal course of action.

Dreadfully little of that these days.

Get your dirty logo off my money…

 

Taxpayer money, Conservative logo.

 

This is sickening.  If you want to put your logo on a donation, take it from your party coffers or have your supporters donate on your behalf.  I don’t want any of these parties taking credit for taxpayers revenues.  Considering the appalling record of the party at recognizing and responding to the recession, taking credit for the spending it never wanted to provide is exceptionally insulting.

Take this branding effort and consider the finding by the Globe that Conservative ridings received 38% more stimulus funding and the suggestion seems fairly clear.