Better the status quo and the devil you know than a leader and party with a clean record but roots in the West?

Torontonians look at corruption and shrug -- "Better the status quo and the devil you know than a leader and party with a clean record but roots in the West?" Paul Stanway, Edmonton Sun, May 20, 05

TORONTO -- Welcome to the land of the "Belinda Bounce" and the GTA [Greater Toronto Area]. This may not yet be the belly of the beast, but it has surely become the navel of the nation. The days are long gone since a visiting Albertan could rail against the political absurdity of all Ontarians. Or even all residents of southern Ontario [. . . . ]

Is that not disheartening? Mainstream media will play along with the Librano$; after all, that's their bread and butter.



Tory turncoats nothing new Peter Worthington, May 20, 05

[. . . . ] In 2000, when Keith Martin failed to convince members of the Canadian Alliance that he should be leader, he switched to the Liberals and today is parliamentary secretary to the defence minister and a defender of second-hand British submarines that leak underwater.

[. . . . ] It's the Liberals who have made the Bloc a viable threat to Confederation. The Bloc can't get many more seats than they have now.

They too have had a bellyful of Liberal corruption.

Belinda's decision is akin to joining a mafia that governs by intimidation, deceit and malice when it can't get its way by bribery and blackmail. But she calls it acting on principles and ethics. Some "ethics." Tony Soprano ethics.

A tour of defectors that you must read.



A fancy name for tribalism George Jonas, May 20, 05

[. . . . ] Affirmative action was about raising motivations, not expectations. It was about helping all people to meet standards, not about relaxing standards for some. It was about unlocking every door, then inviting every individual from ever group to turn the knob for himself or herself. It wasn't about barring the doors for some and carrying others across the threshold. That's only what it turned out to be. [. . . . ]

It's Jonas' list of Why I Dislike Affirmative Action that is a must read.

How sensible . . . so of course, he will be ignored in this "best of all possible worlds" of asymmetrical * * * * * * . . . . . fill in your own pet peeve there.

Stronach: "the government cannot give you anything it has not taken from you first"

The trouble with CEO conservatives William Watson

[. . . . Belinda Stronach said she believed] "in a smaller government and a more decentralized government. And Liberals believe in slightly larger government, and there's a good saying -- that the government cannot give you anything it has not taken from you first." [. . . . ]

Paul Martin is a former CEO, too, and he's an inveterate meddler. Early childhood education, R&D, machinery and equipment, science and technology: Put our money there and there and there and things will really roll.

To make the economy roll, you need to get out of the way and let it happen. If a government really were fixated on reducing marginal tax rates, Canadians' desire to better their standard of living would automatically generate economic growth. We may not get that kind of government from the new, centrist Conservative party. We certainly won't get it from ex-CEOs Stronach and Martin.

The Feds Found Money to Buy Votes -- Underfund Greater Toronto Enforcement Centre & Infrastructure

Editorial: End immigration chaos

The federal government has routinely failed to fulfill its responsibility to remove those who do not qualify for asylum under the UN convention on refugees. And now we have evidence of the degree to which it has failed even to deal with foreign nationals who are the subject of criminal arrest warrants.

[. . . . ] Of 22,027 warrants issued through the Greater Toronto Enforcement Centre -- the country's largest -- only 146 were assigned to active investigation. The largest component of the backlog involves people whose refugee claims were rejected. But some of the unassigned warrants were for criminal matters, and some of those even involve cases of "serious criminality" -- that means cases potentially punishable by a prison term of 10 or more years.

In explaining the failure, the Citizenship and Immigration Canada internal report notes "the loss of investigative resources" and the inability of already heavily burdened officers to take on new cases.

You will notice there was money to buy votes.



A public-private fix -- Ontario's $100B infrastructure needs are too rich for the public purse. Happily, private-sector investment is being recruited Don Drummond and Derek Burleton, Financial Post, May 20, 05

Private sector funding is needed for public infrastructure because governments simply have not been able to allocate sufficient funds to keep up with the needs. In Ontario, as in most Canadian jurisdictions, one of the reasons is that a rising share of revenues is being allocated to health care costs. Furthermore, with about 12 cents of each Ontario revenue dollar being directed at servicing the province's lofty debt load, infrastructure has been losing out.

Business Deals: Harmony Air China Flights -&- Indian Affairs Oil & Gas Branch

This would have come into force even if Paul Martin had lost the Ebay sale and vote auction in the House of Commons last night. It appears to have been a busy day yesterday . . . before the PM's almost-death experience in the House of Commons.

Harmony to have China flights Financial Post, May 19, 05

Harmony Airways, the tiny, Vancouver-based airline [owned by TK Ho ], has been given permission to begin operating flights to China this year. One month after Ottawa and China signed a new bilateral air services agreement, Harmony has been granted designation by Transport Canada to begin offering flights on a code-share basis to Chinese cities this fall. Code-sharing arrangements allow one airline to sell seats in its name on another airline. [. . . . ] Meanwhile, Air Canada, the only Canadian air carrier that now flies to China, was also given permission to add five more flights a week between Toronto and Beijing. [. . . . ]

Remember Dyane Adam, Minister of the Promotion of French, and her world tour to Canadian embassies? She travelled to China last year. Now, do you suppose we know the reason? Bilingual in Canada will soon be French / Mandarin. . . . . language courses offered at language schools in Quebec?

Related: China, Canada, Networks & Connections, Harmony Airways, Donations to PM, Awards Received & More




Gas firms will spend $58M to tap North Jon Harding, Financial Post, May 20, 05

Yesterday, the northern oil and gas branch of Indian and Northern Affairs awarded six exploration licences for parcels of land in the Central Mackenzie Valley of the Northwest Territories, a region with untapped resource potential but no outside link.

[. . . . ] Apache Canada Ltd., a unit of Houston-based Apache Corp., and partner Paramount Resources Ltd., together secured rights to a pair of parcels and roughly 130,000 hectares worth of land yesterday. The partnership, already active in the region, committed to spending more than $6.7-million.

Maurice Strong, the UN & "Collectivist Tides" -&- Flight of the Earth Council from Costa Rica

The prince of power Peter Foster, May 20, 05, Financial Post

[. . . . ] However, according to David Henderson, former chief economist for the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, the dangerous collectivist tides currently sloshing through both governments and executive suites have their origins down at Turtle Bay.

[. . . . ] Mr. Henderson has laid out his concerns in an excellent recent book, The Role of Business in the Modern World, and in a series of recent speeches (. . . ). However, what Mr. Henderson's plot lacks is a central character. Whom should it be? None other than Canada's own Maurice Strong, the world's best-connected doomster and inveterate promoter of a more powerful UN (which is, admittedly, something of a tough sell at the moment).

[. . . . ] The trends described by Mr. Henderson have their ultimate roots in an almost universal failure to appreciate the strength and complexity of markets, combined with an elitist power lust -- wrapped up in moralistic posturing -- that seeks to exploit such ignorance. These are compounded by a tendency to conform with "conventional wisdom," particularly when it is promoted by governments, CEOs, NGOs and the UN.

Flight of the Earth Council from Costa Rica -- or here

TORONTO, May 14, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In a Financial Post feature, titled Earth Council flees Costa Rica, Peter Foster exposes a recent debacles of Maurice Strong's Earth Council. The Costa Rican government is pursuing the Earth Council for payment of US$1.65-million, for the wrongful sale of a tract of land it donated to the Council. The land was donated by the Cost Rican government with the agreement that, if the Earth Council moved, it would have to return the land.

"In the wake of the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, Mr. Strong -- perennial United Nations player-referee and now a key advisor to Prime Minister Paul Martin -- set up the Earth Council as a 'watchdog' on the process he had started himself," Foster explains. "It was to keep up the pressure for Agenda 21, Rio's doorstop socialist wish list, as well as for global restrictions on carbon emissions (which brought us the horrors of Kyoto)."

Foster describes the Earth Council's mandate to "spread the gospel of sustainable development, and push the notion of an 'Earth Charter,' which had been rejected at Rio." [. . . . ]

Sponsorship: TV Series for China -- Benefits Whom?

Terrorists behind friendly lines Newsbeat1, May 20, 05. Link for the article.

How did promotion of TV series for China aid National Unity? via Newsbeat1, May 20, 05, Montreal Gazette, from an article by William Marsden, The Gazette, May 19, 05

Ex-minister paid to lobby, probe told -- Justice John Gomery questions how David Dingwall's promotion of TV series for China aided national unity

A former senior Liberal cabinet minister was paid $180,038 to obtain money from the federal sponsorship program to make a series of television programs that were broadcast only in China, the Gomery commission heard yesterday.

Just eight months after he was defeated in the June 1997 election, David Dingwall became a lobbyist for Toronto advertising firm Vickers & Benson.

Normally, government officials are required to undergo a "cooling-off period" of one year before they start lobbying.

There are no rules for Liberals, it seems.

Melting Moment, IMET, Myanmar / Burma, Business & China

I Had a Melting Moment

Topic: Hansard from rosemarie59 5/08/2005 20:01:05

Speaking of what goes on in the house, and it's amazing how much you can read on this link which is verbatim from Question Period, that you DON'T read in the newspapers.

Go to: Frost Hits the Rhubarb

Thanks. I'm delighted! Usually, I just get hacks from a far-flung part of the world or email with fake headers. Monkey business.



Slogans: Circle of Confusion Magazine (circleofconfusion.ca) -- Take a break and check these.


Integrated Market Enforcement Teams (IMET's)

Police report 33 current investigations into Canadian financial crimes CP, May 19, 2005

OTTAWA (CP) - Financial crime specialists have at least 33 investigations on the go involving Canadian firms with a market value totalling $55 billion, says the RCMP.

[. . . . ] Best known are probes of finances at high-tech company Nortel Networks and Royal Group Technologies, German said following a presentation to the Senate banking committee Wednesday. [. . . . ]

Stand up for democracy in Myanmar Posted by Stockwell Day on 09:18:38 2005/05/10 from an article by him in the National Post, May 10, 05

On May 3 and 4, delegates of the government of Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) attended a meeting of senior economic officials in Toronto -- at the invitation of the government of Canada. Ken Sunquist, Assistant Deputy Minister of International Business at International Trade Canada, co-chaired the meeting. He responded to protests about the invitation by asserting that while "we discourage companies from trading and investing in Burma," we could not miss an opportunity to "show them the benefits of working together toward a different future."

This is typical of the sheepish line our government takes whenever an opportunity appears to make repressive regimes pay a price for their brutal suppression of their own people.

Myanmar's ruling junta is a savage regime. [. . . . ]

Many journalists are languishing in Myanmar's prisons. [. . . . ]

[. . . . ] Instead of talking about business opportunities, we should be telling Myanmar's junta about our commitment to the promotion of democracy and human rights -- and how this commitment is forcing us to contemplate the speedy termination of diplomatic recognition.

The fact that the Desmarais Power Corp's TotalFinaElf is in Myanmar / Burma would have nothing at all to do with this, of course.




Ted Fishman: China, Inc.: How the Rise of the Next Superpower Challenges America and the World, ISBN: 0743257529 -- Search for the review: "China's Economic Viability Is All in Its Numbers", May 10 2005

[. . . . ] Fishman contends that China is well poised for success by wielding a competitive advantage Japan, the last global entrant, could never provide, an endless and cheap supply of workers. Lots of statistics fortify the strength in China's numbers - there are more workers there than people in this country, there are more Chinese who have studied English there than people who speak English here, and the state owns all the factories and machinery over there versus the capital that has to be invested privately here. Couple this data with an authoritarian government that can manage industrial policy without the distractions of public opinion or politicians running for re-election, and one can see China's preferred position pretty clearly from Fishman's perspective. However, the author is almost too preoccupied with the data and not enough on the culture itself. Unlike Japan, China is a country divided into haves and have-nots ruled by a heartless regime that crushes all dissidents. [. . . . ]

Global Manufacturing - The China Challenge

[. . . . ] * Wal-mart – Buys $18 billion from China, providing a direct link to the US consumer

A massive shift in economic power is under way. A tenfold surge in high-quality Chinese imports at below US manufacturing costs is changing the landscape. In the US, the message is loud and clear – cut your price at least 30% or lose your customers.

[. . . . ] Meanwhile, America's trade deficit with China keeps soaring to new records. It's likely to be more than $150 billion in 2004, and about 12% of that through the world's biggest retailer: Wal-Mart. All the other large retailers (Target, Home Dept, Sears, K-Mart) are following suit.

A new book, "The Chinese Century" has a clear message: If you still make anything labor intensive, get out now rather than bleed to death. Shaving 5% here and there won't work. You need an entirely new business model to compete.

America has survived import waves before, and it has lived with China for decades. But now something very different is happening. The assumption has always been that the U.S. and other industrialized nations will keep leading in knowledge-intensive industries while developing nations focus on lower skills and lower labor costs.

That's now changed. What is stunning about China is that, for the first time, a huge country competes both with very low wages and high tech. Combine the two, and America has a problem.[. . . . ]

Note my comments on hacking above.


Solutions for the China Challenge

Librano$ Sleaze --&-- Andrew Coyne: Murphy-Grewel Tape

Update 1:

Duceppe wants Tory allegation probed -- MP approached Liberals about switching sides, not other way around, friend says Petti Fong with reports from Daniel Leblanc and Gloria Galloway, May 20, 05.

VANCOUVER -- Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe called for an RCMP investigation into a Conservative MP's allegation he and his wife received enticements of cabinet and Senate positions in exchange for their support, offers Prime Minister Paul Martin denied yesterday were ever made.

Mr. Duceppe said the allegation made by Gurmant Grewal, who is an MP for Surrey, B.C. -- as is his wife, Nina -- is "very serious" and called on RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli to investigate the potentially "criminal matter."

Mr. Martin said in the House yesterday that Mr. Grewal approached the Liberals and not the other way around.

"No such offers were made," Mr. Martin told the Commons. [. . . . ]

Of course, if you go to Andrew Coyne's site (scroll down here), listen to the tape, read what is there, you may have your own ideas.

Don't forget, as corruption swirls around the innocents, the Librano$ have become expert at "seeing, hearing and knowing nothing".




PMO negotiates with two more Tory MPs to miss vote Alexander Panetta, CP, May 19, 05

But the audio recording suggests Tim Murphy, Martin's top aide, urged Tory MP Gurmant Grewal and his wife and fellow Conservative MP Nina to abstain during the vote for an unspecified reward down the road.

[. . . . ] On the tape, Murphy is overheard discussing confidence-vote strategy with Grewal.

He tells Grewal that he and Nina could miss several votes this spring, and says he's willing to negotiate something later.

Sleazy and not unexpected in the Librano$ Canada.


Just go to Andrew Coyne's site for these two articles:

* The smoking audio tape

* Yeah, but can she bake a bigger pie?

Hezbollah in America

Hezbollah in America

Aside from al Qaeda, no terrorist group has killed more Americans than Hezbollah, which is bankrolled by Iran to the tune of at least $100 million a year. Hezbollah's main theaters of operation are Lebanon, its home country (where it killed hundreds of Americans during the 1980s), and the West Bank and Gaza, where it helps Palestinian rejectionists target Israel. But the group is active in the United States as well. Hezbollah is believed to have cells in at least 10 U.S. cities.

Although the organization has yet to launch an attack on U.S. soil, its U.S. activities are far from benign. Its work in this country has two major purposes: One is to raise money and smuggle arms to Hezbollah fighters, often by criminal activities ranging from credit-card fraud to cigarette smuggling; and the other is to conduct surveillance behind enemy lines, with a possible eye toward launching attacks on U.S. targets in the event of an armed conflict between the United States and Tehran. [. . . . ]

Search: arrest of Nemr Ali Rahal , credit-card fraud , Mahmoud Kourani of Dearborn , Mohammed Hammoud

Another Lesson in How It's Done: Mainstream Media Kick in to Oust Leader -- & -- PMO: Purchasing Dept. for Liberal Votes

This is presented as unbiased news but . . . if you read to the end, you will learn:

John Duffy is a volunteer advisor to Paul Martin and a registered federal lobbyist.

So why present the following as news in the National Post? I love some of the National Post writers but this bodes ill for the newspaper.

An Asper Media Outlet: "The people have spoken" John Duffy, May 20, 05

To call last night's confidence vote a defining moment restores to that term what years of overuse has robbed it of. The vote harnessed the unities of time, place and action into a political drama as compelling as any in our nation's history. Moreover, last night brought together several narrative threads that have been increasingly visible over the past several months.

The first is the tremendous political resilience of Prime Minister Paul Martin. [. . . . ]

The second major thread of this episode has been the performance of Stephen Harper at centre stage. A pattern is beginning to emerge with Mr. Harper, on two levels. [. . . . ]

The third and final point that has been defined last night beyond further question is the growing supremacy of the people over their parliament.

PMO: Purchasing Dept. for Liberal Votes


Bill Carroll of NewsTalk 1010 online radio and Similar Mainstream Media Opinion on Stephen Harper

This morning Bill Carroll called on Stephen to resign the CPC leadership.

Absolutely not! This is a media point of view coming out of Ontario, the Centre of Canada, the old Progressive Conservatives who hate that a leader comes from the West, those

Throughout his tenure as leader of the CPC, the mainstream media have criticized Stephen Harper's leadership for the following reasons; it is not a definitive list, but it may get you thinking of your own list:

* not "centrist" enough (not from Ontario? not bought by all the "right" people yet) -- or it could refer to . . .

* not "progressive" enough -- as though principles are arrived at after consulting and polling for the concensus of those who have supported the way things are now -- and those who have brought Canada's government into disrepute (perhaps those from the "centre"? Toronto? Ontario? even better if from "progressive" Quebec with all the politically correct views on marriage, gays, assymetrical language rights / promotion / federal job openings limited to 20% of the population?

* not enough charisma (hasn't developed the mendacity to plaster on a sickly, faux-smile -- a practiced art by dissemblers such as . . . )

* not able to keep high-profile people in the party (Liberals-in-conservative-clothing / Red Tories such as Belinda Stronach, Scott Brison, Keith Martin? What education and experience did Belinda Stronach bring, outside her money? What is Scott Brison's salient quality for the Liberal Party but as its front and center mouthpiece for Paul Martin? Should we mention that he proves the Libs are gay-friendly. Keith Martin, I suspect, is genuinely more leftist and is more at home in the Liberal Party.)

* crankiness -- as if there were no reason (Should he pretend that it is fiscally responsible to throw money at every problem? That buying votes from people whose principles are elastic or whose ambitions override other considerations is "leadership"?)

These media types are propagandizing for the disgruntled Progressive Conservatives in order to get power back to Central Canada. If it helps the Liberals, well, the Liberals know how the system works; they invented it. CBC-LPO will take care of Liberal concerns.

An outbreak of real integrity? Of genuine emotion? Of warranted indignation at the criminality being revealed as connected to the government / Liberal Party (alleged, still?) by the Gomery Inquiry? Of real democracy instead of rule from the PMO? A political leader who considers the Canada's citizens' best interests ahead of personal ones? That would ruin everything. We can't allow democracy to break out in Canada; the centre has to maintain control!

Mainly, the media abet the Liberals in keeping the moneyed tribe in power. Why can they not see that attractiveness and charisma are often the garb of self-interest in Canada.

Do any of these media types not understahnd that genuine integrity and principled leadership does not lend itself to currying favour as the follows:

* by handng out power positions in any organization including government, positions not earned

* by dipping into the public purse to to buy the support of every bloc / province that recognizes that the Prime Minister's weaknesses have replaced principles

* by buying support with other people's money for something as crass as remaining in power.

Bring on more Stephen Harpers for me! We could use his character in that house of ill-repute, the purchasing department for Liberal votes, the PMO.

---

Another nail in the coffin of voter cynicism

Jesus saves. Liberals pay cash

Found in the National Post, May 20, 05, A7; it may have come from Kate McMillan of Small Dead Animals.



Another nail in the coffin of voter cynicism

The defection of Belinda Stronach to the Liberals is a final proof, for those who have come to believe that ALL POLITICIANS are driven by bloated egoes, blind ideology or financial gain. Even before this flip-flop, I began to hear a nation-wide chorus of "They are all the same". I don't believe this, but this sentiment has taken on a life of its own. Stronach's move, two days before a crucial no-confidence vote, is so blatant as to defy any positive Liberal spin doctoring. The reasons for her decision range from personal aggrandizment to even more sinister considerations. After all, Daddy ran for the Liberal Party. Was she simply a mole? Money, for her, couldn't have been a consideration. Was it a vindictive ploy to avenge the removable of the Joe Clark Red Tories from the political arena? To push the possibilities to the edge, did she join the ranks of those seduced by Bill Clinton? It was big tabloid news in the US that she attended and canoodled a bit with Clinton at a soiree. Is she the Monica Lewinski of politics? Just to play Freud for a minute, does her sense of entitlement extend to the belief that her wealth and power should have afforded her some top position in the Conservative party? And if it didn't happen, she was going to pick up her toys and refuse to play anymore--at least with those nasty boys. Through a confidential source, I saw how a party of the people could be taken over by big money. Suddenly, all the ground troops were replaced by the back room crowd of this individual.

It would be interesting to see where Magna's political contributions flow now. Two weeks ago Belinda Stronach stood with the Conservatives to call for the fall of the corrupt Liberals: now she sees them as the saviours of Canadian unity--Please! Let's just call her the Madonna of the political scene--today fervent Catholicism, tomorrow Epicurianism, and now mystical Judaism. Who knows, tomorrow the new interest of Bill Clinton? (intellectually, of course) This is what you get when you woo the diletantes. Now she can count on her face fronting the cover of Maclean's magazine. Maybe she will even make the cover of Queer Eye for the Straight Voter. I would compare her to Arnold Schwarzenegger, except Arnold was always a true conservative.

Now we can only wait for the new additions to Martin's "sacred budget" to see how it can be changed to her business advantage. Wait for it: NEWS BREAK! "Magna Corp wins billion dollar government forgivable loan. Bombardier crashes on news." Oh, don't get me started on the vile possibilities of this. A shipping tycoon, whose company has picked up $161 million dollars in "loans", has picked up another tycoon to support his party. Quelle Surprise!, as they would say in Quebec.

© Bud Talkinghorn--It's all enough to make one vote for the Marijuana Party.


PS: Bud, it's too late. The leader of the Marijuana Party joined the Liberal Party, if I recall correctly. NJC

---

A Lack of Resources for Immigration Enforcement

Immigration overwhelmed by crime files -- Warrants untouched Adrian Humphreys, May 20, 05

The vast majority of arrest warrants issued in Canada against foreign nationals -- including those wanted for serious criminality -- are not assigned for active investigation because of a lack of resources for immigration enforcement, newly disclosed documents show.

Of 22,027 warrants issued through the Greater Toronto Enforcement Centre, only 146 were assigned for active investigation at the time a government report was prepared in June, 2003.

[. . . . ] It says 15,000 people who are not Canadian citizens but are facing criminal charges are referred to immigration officials each year by Toronto police alone.

Of those, 30% result in detailed court-tracking or immediate arrest by immigration.

"This document plainly sets out that they are under-resourced," said Richard Kurland, a Vancouver immigration lawyer. [. . . . ]

NewsTalk 1010 & Newsbeat1: Recapping the last couple of months in Parliament

I thought this had been posted yesterday; evidently, I erred . . . again. Here it is today. NJC


Truth

Newstalk 1010 Radio Online

There must be something wrong with Canadians. The slimier the Liberals get, the more we admire them

Devastating assessment but the truth. I cannot believe that Chuck Cadman or David Kilgour would even consider voting for this government, some of whose members may be corrupt (alleged, as yet, but you know in your heart and soul that much is true). Certainly Paul Martin is willing to spend--or promise to spend which is not the same thing--Canadians' money to buy votes.

Desperate, mendacious, corrupt. Do you think this Prime Minister is fit to govern any country? Or are his business interests--the ones he no longer owns--threatened by the light of decency and integrity?




Don't Miss

Recapping the last couple of months in Parliament Newsbeat1, May 19, 05 -- or the complete article by Paul Albers who is a freelance columnist living in Ottawa

If the Liberals manage to survive the budget vote today, it will only be because they defied the will of Parliament long enough to use taxpayer funds to buy votes they would have never gotten otherwise. A Liberal victory would represent the end of responsible government in Canada. We would be left with nothing but an empty shell of democracy where the only virtue is power and the only vice is getting caught.

The Liberal party has raided the public purse, violated electoral law, limited opposition in the House of Commons, defied the will of Parliament and now appears to be bribing Members of Parliament. If that isn't enough to justify an election, what is?"

---

The Crooks Have Won -- & -- Andrew Coyne

The Crooks Have Won

Paul Martin's government has survived with the help of Belinda Stronach and Chuck Cadman. It may be a Pyrrhic victory; that remains to be played out.


It's open season now:

* our government can sell out the country to the authoritarian "friends of . . . ":

* our justices will continue to exacerbate the problems of criminality because they do not uphold the laws as already written and they remember who appointed them or have the same leftist views

* our security forces will remain underfunded . . . for if they had sufficient funding for manpower and resources, they might be able to uncover the proof for what has been occurring for years that we know some of but not yet enough

* our ports of entry will not be closed to criminal gangs and criminality (I believe there have been pacts made with the devil(s))

* gays will marry and the family will be diminished as the basic social structure for rearing children who are buttressed by two opposite sex parents

* mothers will have to go out to work to afford all Paul Martin's profligate $22-$23-BILLION in promises and vote buying to the NDP, the provinces, and to individuals as quid pro quo . . . e.g. daycare, PM won't fund stay-at-home mothers when he can take your children and indoctrinate them in state-run institutions in correct thought

* marijuana smoke will fill the air . . . . pot will be grown legally eventually, though taxed to afford the plutocrats their perqs and payoffs . . . among other things

All is now well in the best of all possible corrupt worlds . . . for those Liberals who know how the game is played and for whom principle is spelled with $$$ and the naked exercise of power . . . . and to heck with the great unwashed. Democracy has been saved from the people.

The governments of Paul Martin and Jean Chretien, the powerful parts, disgust me. I only wish the decent members would see the light.

I just listened to a fine, inspiring speech from Stephen Harper after the vote that Chuck Cadman decided. Stephen Harper is so admirable by comparison to Paul Martin. While the mainstream media lament his lack of charisma, even decry what they call his crankiness in the face of Liberal vote buying, I think he has great potential as a fine Prime Minister. I am cranky about what I see; he's cranky for a lot of us.

The problem for the mainstream media is that they are so used to faux emotion, BS and bribery that they fear genuine, warranted emotion.

As for the Conservative Party of Canada's Deputy Leader, last night, in the face of a personal body blow, Peter MacKay demonstrated his finer qualities; he behaved honourably and gained tremendous sympathy and respect from many of us by his speech. He's made of good Maritime stuff. I am proud of him and of the people who face this corrupt government as the Official Opposition.

PS: Peter, you are fortunate. Now, go find yourself a woman made of more solid stuff who won't need as much tending and watering as the last. I just happen to know a few . . . . . and I'm a born matchmaker. Look for my email.




The smoking audio tape Andrew Coyne's website

APPENDIX: Just to remind people of what the laws of the land say about trafficking in offices... Under Section 119 (1) of the Criminal Code,

every one who ... being a member of Parliament or of the legislature of a province, corruptly
(i) accepts or obtains,
(ii) agrees to accept, or
(iii) attempts to obtain,
any money, valuable consideration, office, place or employment for himself or another person in respect of anything done or omitted or to be done or omitted by him in his official capacity,

or makes such an offer, is “liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years.”

[. . . . ] You follow: an MP whom the government has asked the RCMP to investigate on allegations he insists are completely spurious wanted to cross the floor to join that same government. Of course. Makes perfect sense.

No connection, of course . . .

Volpe asks RCMP to investigate two Tory MPs CTV.ca News Staff, May 14, 05

Federal Immigration Minister Joe Volpe has asked the RCMP and Federal Ethics Commissioner to investigate two Conservative MPs, CTV News has learned. [. . . . ]

---

Revenge of the Red Tories -- & -- Not Fit to Investigate, Nor to Print

The revenge of the Red Tories

If you don't parrot the Liberal or NDP line on social values, then you are simply too redneck to govern. So sayeth a small parade of Red Tories. I suppose the handwriting was on the wall when Jean Charest, the leader of the two person PC rump, jumped ship and became the Quebec leader of the Liberal party. Then we had the spectacle of Scott Brison switching sides. The fact that he actually ran for the combined Conservative party leadership seems to be easily forgotten. But Brison was small potatoes compared to Joe Clark, the resurrected leader after Charest. When he was put back in his cryrpt by Harper and Mackay, Joe's final schtick was "Vote for the Liberals!" Wow! Isn't that loyalty to a political ideology?

Belinda Stronach is simply the latest Red Tory to come out of the closet. She will discover soon enough that the knife she used to stab her party in the back, will be turned on her by the Liberals, once they no longer need her. Ms. Robillard must be fuming that her portfolio has so quickly been turned over to the neophyte Stronach, who has contributed nothing to the Liberals. One can only hope that the electorate will understand her lack of principles. But then the BC voters gave 33 seats to the leftist / socialist NDP. Obviously, the Canadian voter has the memory of a gnat, so who knows. Today we will see where Cadman and Kilgour stand.

© Bud Talkinghorn




All the news that's fit to print

According to David Frum, the Ottawa press gallery thinks there are many Liberal scandals that are not fit to print. I have been frustrated by the lack of inquiry into the $2 billion dollar HRDC scandal. Surely the waste and/or outright theft of such vast sums of taxpayers' dollars warrants press investigation.

In his National Post column (Tuesday, May 17) Frum states that the Press gallery are ideologically joined at the hip with the Liberals they are reporting on. He finds it almost amusing that they nitpick on Harper's "warmth", or his hairdo, while letting massive government fraud slide by unnoticed. As Frum says, "The political reporters, editors and commentators live in an ideological cocoon back in Toronto, where they see abortion and gay marriage issues as Canadians' paramount concerns. Where were these supposedly eagle-eyed reporters during the ten year run of the sponsorship program? Why did it take the Gomery Inquiry to uncover what was wide-open mismanagement and outright chicanery?

A perfect example of this studied neglect was seen in how CBC and The Globe and Mail handled Sheila Fraser's latest revelation that almost $800 million in Liberal ad spending is suspect; chicanery is not limited just to the $250 million in the Adscam deals. Obviously, the liberal / Liberal media is frightened that highlighting this would further harm the LIberal Party, so they have essentially buried it.

Comparisons with such stellar news sources as Russia's Pravda and Isvestia would be apt. Thank God for the National Post, for without it we would get only the socialist, ultraliberal viewpoint, which conspires to keep the Liberals in power in perpetuity.

© Bud Talkinghorn

Comment:

Well, the National Post has some good journalists, Bud, but David Asper's defence of the way things are in it today was part and parcel of the problem. He / his business interests kicked $100,000 into Paul Martin's campaign. Surely, we are not to see the Aspers as unbiased? Then, what is the overall result with their paper? Despite the good journalists, there has not been digging into the sponsorship scandal over the years . . . . nor into the PWGSC and other departments. What about the gun registry? Et cetera.

No news gathering and analyzing organization should be connected to receiving government advertising $$$, nor should its owners be contributing to or in any way be associated with supporting a political party. There might be a way around this if a newspaper openly declared its political bias. As it is, the bias is there, but unacknowledged.

How else are we to get investigative journalism . . . . rather than government press releases and fawning articles from the mainstream media. NJC

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Cadman, Take a Stand Against Corruption -- & -- Memory Lane on $$$ Interests and Political Power

* Contact David Kilgour and Chuck Cadman to Support a Conservative Non-confidence Motion -- No Charge / Toll Free Line 1-866-599-4999

Lines may be very busy but there is still five hours to go before the vote. This is a most corrupt, profligate with Canadians' tax $$$, cynical and vote-buying government to which Canadians have been exposed in most Canadians' lifetimes.

Get rid of the corruption. Vote out the Liberals.

Liberal Sloganator: Create your own ads appropriate to the current situation in Parliament and in Canada





Memory Lane: Reminders from 2004 when Belinda Stronach ran for leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada -- along with a few of my comments



‘FACT CHECK’ REALITY CHECK -- from a year ago on Frost Hits the Rhubarb Mar. 4, 04


To save readers time, I have excerpted my own post from a year ago.

$$$ May Not Bring You Love, but This is a Great Second Best

Andrew Stronach, the brother of Belinda, registered an online gambling outfit in Barbados that is owned by Magna Entertainment Corp., a subsidiary of Magna International.

See article below on Brian Tobin, ex Liberal Minister, who apparently wanted to lead the Liberals but was thwarted by JC or those who saw a new day dawning with Mr. Clean, Paul Martin. Ha!.

Does Ms. Stronach not represent a particular region -- called the Centre? But of course, that is too logical. The Center is the ONLY region, as long as Quebec gets to run the civil service and the government, Toronto remains the centre of the Centre and received opinion -- and nothing changes for the Canadian power elite -- whether Liberal / Red Tory / NDP of the champagne socialist variety. We would not want too many principled MPs in Ottawa, now, would we? Something might change; THEY MIGHT NOT UNDERSTAND HOW THINGS WORK! Really! NJC

[Keep scrolling down on that page. . . . ]

A Newfie Has Made It to the Winners' Circle

Brian Tobin to run Magna's real-estate and gaming firm -- 'To be announced' Sean Gordon, Canwest, Mar. 3, 04

OTTAWA - Brian Tobin, the former Newfoundland premier and federal industry minister, has been tabbed to run the real-estate, gaming and horse-racing company controlled by Magna International chairman Frank Stronach, sources say. [Note that word gaming -- not gambling. NJC] . . . .


Magna Entertainment oversees a panoply of horse-racing and off-track betting interests

[. . . .] Mr. Tobin is one of many former politicians who have joined Magna advisory boards. Former Ontario premier Mike Harris sits alongside Mr. Stronach on the board of Magna International. Former Ontario premier Bill Davis sits on the M.I. Developments board. [Magna International Developments Board NJC]

There is more News Junkie Canada March 4, 2004 -- and mention of the same story here, The Citizen Fink Archives

March 3 [2004]

Well, we can be pretty sure that if Belinda Stronach wins the leadership race, her campaign ads won't be harping on Paul Martin's various upper income and corporate tax breaks, or the shelter in Barbados. As the National Post pointed out today, Stronach's father has saved himself Canadian income tax on about 200 million dollars of salary in the past 10 years - by shifting his 'principal' place of residence, and paying himself through out-of-country branches of his company. Meanwhile, Belinda's brother is taking advantage of Paul's Barbados tax haven for an online gambling operation.

Nope, there won't be much mention of tax havens and CSL if Belinda wins. Yet another reason the Liberals are probably pulling for her in the March vote.

Note: That was written one year ago when Belinda wanted to lead the Conservative Party of Canada.

May 18, 2005, the Liberals now have Belinda and her connections.

Between $$$, the moneyed tribe, global 'business' interests and politics, the circle is unbroken.

Stronach avoids Caribbean connection questions CP, Feb. 28 2004

Documents leaked to The Canadian Press on Thursday show that Futuristic Entertainment Holdings Inc., an online gambling outfit registered in St. Michael, Barbados, was at one time owned by Magna Entertainment Corp., a division of Magna International. Its current status is unclear.

[. . . . ] "I'm no longer authorized to speak on behalf of Magna. I resigned Jan. 20. I was never an officer of Magna Entertainment, so you'll have to ask Magna and Magna Entertainment."

[. . . . ] Most Canadian companies must pay tax of roughly 40 per cent on their income.

Magna founder Frank Stronach - Belinda Stronach's father - and his son Andrew had a falling-out two years ago over ownership of betting software being developed through the company.

Compilation 1: Tsunami $ DART CIDA, PM Power Corp, Oil-for-Food, Cordex Petroleum, Strong, Chretien, Loopholes & More -- & PM Power Corp Oil for Food Cordex Petroleum Maurice Strong

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Hansard: May 18, 2005 -- What Liberals Hope You Forget While Watching Belinda & Peter

Trust Fund for Dirty Sponsorship Money, Gomery: Clause K, Politicized Court Appointments, Sudan: Darfur, Brison Won't Attend Committee: Why? Clothing and Textile Industry, Liberal MP on Traditional Marriage

Hansard May 18, 2005

Mr. Rahim Jaffer (Edmonton—Strathcona, CPC): Mr. Speaker, this Liberal government lost a vote which obliged it to create a trust fund for the dirty sponsorship money. So far, it has not done so. Elections Canada is now preparing to pay $2 million back to the government.

Can the Prime Minister tell us whether he is going to put that dirty money into a trust account, or fund a fourth election campaign with it?

The Speaker: I have the same reservations on this question as on the previous one. The question must be asked in other terms. [. . . . ]

[English]

Mr. Rahim Jaffer: Mr. Speaker, while I did ask if they would return it as a government, the Liberals have rigged every rule in the book to benefit themselves. They have laundered thousands if not millions for ad scam. They rewrote election financing laws to get millions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies.

The only way Canadians can be sure the Liberals are not campaigning with dirty money is to put the Elections Canada subsidy in trust. Maybe it is their intention to buy another election campaign using that dirty money.

[. . . . ] Mrs. Diane Ablonczy (Calgary—Nose Hill, CPC): Mr. Speaker, the government continues to suggest that things must wait for the Gomery report before people can make up their minds about ad scam wrongdoing. Clause k of Gomery's mandate prevents him from telling who is responsible.

Yesterday government bureaucrats admitted they were not waiting for Judge Gomery's report to implement reforms to the system. Why should Canadians have to wait to make a political judgment on the government?

Hon. Scott Brison (Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, [. . . . ]

We are doing the right thing by taking action and changing our processes to ensure better value for Canadian taxpayers, more open and competitive processes and accountable and transparent ones.

[. . . . ]

Mrs. Diane Ablonczy (Calgary—Nose Hill, CPC): [. . . . ] The Prime Minister told Canadians on national TV that only Gomery could tell who was responsible for the organized ad scam scandal, but all the while he knew that clause k explicitly prevented Gomery from naming names.

Day after day televised evidence leaves no doubt that the stain on our nation's honour was put there by the Liberal Party. Gomery's report will just be a summary of facts we already know.

Is it not true that the government is just inventing excuses to hold off the day of reckoning? [. . . . ]

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Justice

Mr. Vic Toews (Provencher, CPC): Mr. Speaker, a top Liberal has given sworn testimony at the Gomery commission that many court appointments in Canada have been based on political consideration and merit plays a secondary role. As long as the Liberal government controls the process, the political pedigree of any candidate will be the overriding consideration.

The Minister of Justice has stubbornly refused to turn the matter over to an independent body for examination when he knows Gomery has no jurisdiction. What is he afraid it will uncover?

Hon. Irwin Cotler (Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, the body is not controlled by the Liberals. It is an independent body. It was the same body that the hon. member presided over. It was good enough for him when he was the attorney general of Manitoba and it is good enough for us when we are the Government of Canada.

Mr. Vic Toews (Provencher, CPC): Mr. Speaker, the justice minister understands perfectly well the distinction between an independent body and the body that controls federal judicial appointments. The denials of the minister are simply not enough. An independent investigation is needed to clear the air. It is more than a coincidence that predominantly Liberal Party loyalists get appointed to the bench, including the minister's former chief of staff.

Why does the minister refuse to put into place a transparent public process that actually limits political patronage?

Hon. Scott Brison (Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, the member earlier referenced Gomery and the work of Justice Gomery. It is important to realize that recently constituents of the hon. member started receiving householders that he sent out. In that householder he said: [. . . . ]
(1435)

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Sudan

Mr. Stockwell Day (Okanagan—Coquihalla, CPC): Mr. Speaker, unilateral action is not the way to resolve the crisis in Darfur. Last week the Prime Minister did not consult with African Union leaders, NATO leaders or even the head of the Sudanese government before rushing to make an announcement that he was sending Canadian military into Darfur without our allies, without the Sudanese government knowing, and without even the means to protect themselves.

Helping people in Darfur is too important to ignore these things. Why did he not at least warn the African Union leaders that he was about to take unilateral action in Darfur?

Hon. Pierre Pettigrew (Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, that is absolutely wrong. There have been the appropriate consultations. The Prime Minister and I have conducted consultations with the government in Iran, the United Nations, the African Union and the government of Sudan.

[. . . . ] Mr. Stockwell Day (Okanagan—Coquihalla, CPC): Mr. Speaker, it is not catalytic leadership; it is catatonic leadership.

I have a statement which was released today by the leaders of Egypt, Libya, Chad, Nigeria, Sudan, Gabon and Eritrea. They said that they reject any foreign intervention in the Darfur problem. Today in Brussels the African Union president, Alpha Konare, said that there will be no troops on the ground unless they are exclusively African. The Sudanese ambassador to Canada said that her country will not allow Canadian military into Darfur. [. . . . ]

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Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates

Mr. Joe Preston (Elgin—Middlesex—London, CPC): Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Public Works [Scott Brison] often says he is open and accountable, but his actions say he is not. We just cannot trust what he says. The truth is that he refuses to attend the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates to be held accountable on the 2005-06 spending estimates for his department. [. . . . ]

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Clothing and Textile Industry

Mr. Alain Boire (Beauharnois—Salaberry, BQ): Mr. Speaker, the textile plants that remain continue to shut down, in Huntingdon and elsewhere in Quebec. This clearly shows that, in its present form, the government's improvised rescue plan cannot solve the crisis.

In light of the mediocre results of its plan, what is the government waiting for to put forward a true plan that would include, among other measures, safeguards, a program for older workers, and a program to support the modernization of the clothing and textile sectors?

Hon. Jacques Saada (Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec and Minister responsible for the Francophonie, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, long before plants began shutting down, we had the pleasure, through the Suroît-Sud renewal committee, of meeting with municipal and local economic stakeholders. We were involved in the renewal plan. Through the Canadian Apparel and Textile Industries Program, or CATIP, and then through the Canadian Textiles Program, or CANtex, we offered funding to industry members, but they did not avail themselves of those funds. We are still there. [. . . . ]

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PETITIONS

Marriage

Mr. Paul Steckle (Huron—Bruce, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to table a number of petitions which include several thousands of names of residents who draw to the attention of the House the issue that the moral good of society be protected as we elected officials make judgments in the House and as we pass laws.

The petitioners believe that the defence of traditional marriage as the bond between one man and one woman is a serious moral good. They also believe that marriage is the lasting union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of others, and cannot and should not be modified by a legislative act or court of law.

The petitioners request that Parliament take whatever action is required to maintain the current definition of marriage in law and perpetuity, and to prevent any court from overturning or amending that definition.

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Out of Control?

Volumes, someone once remarked, can be written on the impiety of the pious. Warren Kinsella, May 13, 2005, National Post via JR and RC

Mr. Martin's British Columbia apparatchiks took over the riding association of former Cabinet minister Herb Dhaliwal, knowing (a) Mr. Dhaliwal was out of the country; and (b) his wife was dying of cancer.

Smuggling opportunities 'limitless' -- PORTS I Criminals are well entrenched in Canada's harbours, RCMP report says Jonathan Fowlie, Vancouver Sun, May 14, 2005

VANCOUVER I Organized crime groups and other criminals are "well entrenched" in Canada's three largest marine ports, and have "limitless" ways to smuggle goods into the country, says a recent report by the RCMP.

"What is undeniable is that criminals are well entrenched in the port environment," says the May 2004 report, which looks at the involvement of criminal organizations, and the possible involvement of terrorist groups, in the ports of Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax.

"Some groups have rooted themselves firmly on the docks over decades," it adds.

[. . . . ] Details of how criminal groups operate at the port are mostly blanked out in the copy of the report released to The Sun, as is much of the information dealing with potential involvement of terrorist organizations.

The 24-page document does state, however, that the presence of criminals at the ports creates a difficult environment for those workers who want to follow the rules.

"With these [criminal] elements exerting general control over their work area, law-abiding co-workers often find themselves coerced into cooperating in illegal acts or turning a blind eye," it says.

"The intimidation tactics can also target customs and police officers," it adds, "but instances are fairly uncommon." [. . . . ]

The following report may not be the one mentioned; it was not named. However, this will give some idea of the situation.

Criminal Intelligence Service Canada 2004 Annual Report on Organized Crime in Canada

Cat #: PS61-1/2004
ISBN: 0-662-68249-1
ISSN: 0839-6728
NCS-SNC 004

Organized Crime at Marine Ports, Airports and
Land Border Areas ............................................................................10




Pillow Talk - Peter and Belinda Revanchist, May 17, 2005

[. . . . ] Belinda: He is such a sweet man, so like Daddy and almost as rich. He said: "Sweet Belinda, cross the floor with me and I will put you in charge of the most renewable of resources, Human Resources. We have been using them to our advantage for decades now and you just never run out of them Belinda. It is amazing, you abuse them, you lie to them, you steal from them, and when they complain a bit, we just lie to them again, throw some of the money we stole from them back to them, tell them we will save them from the scary Conservatives and they come back to us in droves. [. . . . ]

12 Organized Crime Articles

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/national/000908/4108415.html
Ottawa Citizen
Friday 8 September 2000
(4) Mobsters target Parliament, RCMP commissioner says
Aim is to 'corrupt, destabilize' system
Tim Naumetz
The Ottawa Citizen

Organized crime mobs are targeting Parliament and other Canadian institutions in an attempt to spread corruption and political instability, says the new head of the RCMP.

During a remarkably candid news conference, Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli said yesterday that criminal groups are focusing on Parliament, the courts and other institutions with the aim of "destabilizing" the political system.

[. . . . ]



Five police injured in melee at crack den -- Officers barred from project over racial complaints Nicholas Kohler, National Post, May 13, 2005

[. . . . ] Toronto Community Housing suspended non-emergency access rights to police 18 months ago, citing perceptions among its minorities and youth of police racial bias.

Without what is known as an ''Agent of Landlord Letter,'' police can only walk on to private property in response to a call.

"This wouldn't have happened if the police had had the right to patrol here prior," said Cliff Martin, 54, a tenant in the building for 17 years.

"Up until a year and a half ago, this was a very safe building," Mr. Martin said. [. . . . ]

Note, the "perception" of racial bias -- fed no doubt by certain people whose job it is to keep the pot stirring to sell something (news? services?) or gain advantage. How despicable!

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Hansard: May 17/05 -- Creativity Out of the West -- On Separation -- Political Blogs

Question Period - Hansard - May 17/05 via Newsbeat1

Mr. Stockwell Day (Okanagan—Coquihalla, CPC): Mr. Speaker, nobody else seems to know that Canada is talking to them. Darfur is one of the most dangerous places on earth.

Thousands of people have been murdered. Tens of thousands of people have been displaced. Women are being raped in a systematic way. We have now found out that the Canadians troops that are going there will be unarmed. The regime has said that they are not allowed to enter with the ability to protect themselves.

Did the Prime Minister know that our troops were going there unarmed when he made this announcement on Thursday? If that is not true, again, why the confusion? Why is the regime saying nobody is entering there with arms?

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Out of the West: Ideas

Read Libranos and MSM business model at work. Snippets from the CBC peanut gallery:



Via Newsbeat1 and Small Dead Animals


Belinda [Stronach's] recent interview with The Globe and Mail on May 3, 05

She's very supportive of Stephen in what he's doing. She believes the budget is flawed, she's appalled by the politics of the government, the way they manipulate the budget process. posted by Adam Daifallah, May 17, 05



Create!

Librano Sloganator via Kate McMillan on Western Standard

One suggestion made is that we "plaster these all over Liberal election signs".

Go to the Western Standard Shotgun or to Small Dead Animals and create your own.

"buying a corrupt Canada one bribe at a time....what's your price?...let us make an offer." WL Mackenzie Redux, May 17, 2005


Belinda Stronach: "Paris Hilton of Canadian Politics"

Tony Clement's line "She's Paul Martin in a cocktail dress!" Ezra Levant on May 17, 2005

Via Western Standard Shotgun -- Best lines on the occasion of . . .

You've Got to Pick a Pocket or Two

Inspired by a Newsbeat 1 post, Paul Martin "The Librano Tsunami Fraud" , I humbly suggest these slogans:

* Librano$ Tsunami Fraud

* Daddy & Machiavelli would be proud!

* Keith Martin, Scott Brison, Belinda Stronach Rejected as CPC Leaders . . . .Good Liberals All

* PM & Belinda: Same Loyalty Genes

On separation -- out of the West by jetson on the Western Standard, May 17, 05.

This is exactly what I expected the West to feel. Paul and Belinda, you will go down in history.

You know now that I think back through my life in this country all I have been fed is how great Canada is and how evil anyone is that would want to break a country apart. Who the hell says that this version of Canada is the best, except of course the Liberals who owe their jobs and envelopes of cash to Canada.

Its time that we had our own political system, our own control over our social policies, and our own separate state. We are as much different than [sic] Easterners as Quebec is of [sic] the rest of Canada.

Revival of political public may depend on blogs By Val Sears -- For the Ottawa Sun, May 17, 05

With so many Canadians apparently believing that the Liberals are a bunch of thieves and bandits, the Conservative party not a party at all but a collection of special interest groups and the NDP simply overpaid social workers, it seems likely the voter turnout in the next election will be the lowest in history.

This would seem to favour the Conservatives given that the antis -- anti-abortion, anti-same sex marriage, anti-gun registry, anti-whatever -- are passionate people and more likely than the rest of us slobs to get out and vote. [. . . . ]

With the MSM already bought by the Librano$, blogging is the only media outlet conservatives have, for the most part.

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Potpourri -- Reminders

Auditor general says "Canadians expect better" from federal ad contracting Brian Daly, Apr. 27, 2005

MONTREAL (CP) - Federal advertising activities worth $800 million were wrought with "major problems" and taxpayers deserve better for their money, Auditor General Sheila Fraser told the Gomery inquiry Monday. [. . . . ]

Appointment of judges too political, critics say Kirk Makin, May 16, 05, G & M

Scanning a list of every judge on the Newfoundland bench, former Conservative justice minister John Crosbie rhymes off their prior political affiliations.

[. . . . ] While Mr. Crosbie emphasized that most on the list became excellent judges, his summary highlights the fact that who you know and which party you support can be an inescapable fact of life when it comes to landing a federal judgeship.

The issue moved front and centre recently, when Benoît Corbeil, a former senior Liberal Party organizer in Quebec and a witness at the Gomery inquiry into the federal sponsorship program, alleged that judicial appointments had been handed out as rewards to Liberal stalwarts. [. . . . ]

Search: Madam Justice Claudette Tessier-Couture of the Quebec Superior Court , A mediocre appointment made to , indispensable oil to the machinery of a political party , passing over top-rated , a body of approved candidates who also happen to be supporters of

It was ever thus.




The man behind 'MP' Stronach Hill Times, May 16, 05

Well, a day later, it is 'Minister' Stronach.




The World According to Frank: The Life and Times of Frank Stronach

[. . . . ] Stronach’s passion for taking risks also led him into federal politics in 1988 as a Liberal candidate and into the world of horse breeding. Though his political bid was unsuccessful, Stronach saw his horse-breeding venture soar: the company owned by Stronach and his son Andy has become one of the largest and most successful horse breeders in North America, worth more than $100 million.

Original Air Date - Janaury 11, 2000

Monte Solberg May 17, 05, Jack's Newswatch:

"Ya that's it. They care about her [Stronach's] insights on skills training. Sure it will help to have her vote on the budget, but really it's her ideas they want. I bet those senior bureaucrats are salivating at the idea of doing a little "blue skying" with B. on the foreign credentials thing. That's been her strength all along. It's just that we Conservatives didn't see it. We didn't draw that out of her the way we should have, and now we are paying the price."

Another Canadian history lesson Kevin Steel on May 12, 2005 at 02:22 PM




Court points to guilty verdict for Yukos founder CTV.ca News Staff, May 17, 05

Is this the company that Jean Chretien went to Russia to consult on, with or about? I suppose he took mentioned some of his proven tactics. Do read the article.

Khodorkovsky is the former head of the Yukos oil company and was once believed to be the richest man in Russia.

His supporters contend the case against him was based on Kremlin revenge for his funding of opposition parties. [. . . . ]

Editorial: Canada's poisoned soldiers

[. . . . ] At first, they denied any testing had been conducted.
When that was no longer possible, they denied any link between Agent Orange and cancer and other diseases, despite American medical research showing just such a link.

Then, 10 months ago, Prime Minister Paul Martin's Liberals quietly reversed this policy, acknowledging that Agent Orange had been used at Gagetown, and that Canadian soldiers had been harmed. . . .

[. . . . ] Indeed, it's becoming abundantly clear that this stale, corrupt Liberal government, so cheap when it comes to fairly compensating our soldiers and yet so greedy when it comes to helping itself to our tax dollars in AdScam, has no shame left at all.

"Palestinian terrorism, especially coming out of Gaza, has dramatically increased since April."

Business as Usual in the Palestinian Authority by Daniel Pipes, New York Sun, May 17, 2005

[New York Sun title: "Little Change In Mideast Post-Arafat"]
Yasser Arafat's demise in November excited great hopes among those who saw his malign personality as the main reason for Palestinian intransigence.

But those of us who saw the problem as larger than Arafat – as resulting, rather, from the deep radicalization of the Palestinian body politic – expected little change. Indeed, I wrote at the time of Mahmoud Abbas' election to head the Palestinian Authority that, "he is potentially a far more formidable enemy to Israel" than was Arafat.

How do things look half a year after Arafat's death? About as awful as anyone might have expected. Specifically, Mr. Abbas is unambiguously leading the Palestinians to war after the Israeli retreat from Gaza in August 2005. Consider some recent developments. [. . . . ]

France Fighting Mad!

France is finally going to war ... against Google!

Plans by Google to scan millions of books and make them available online has the europeans in a lather. They fear that ... "the continent's contribution to the pillars of recorded knowledge will be crushed by a profit-oriented California company."

They are also concerned about english become overly dominant.

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Shotgun: Early Business with Beijing

Link and do not miss reading the whole Western Standard Shotgun article:

Early Business with Beijing

One of the benefits of doing a large cover story like the Western Standard's current "Puppets of Beijing" is that people start contacting you with information that supplements the overall picture. While it would have been nice to have the info before the thing went to press, nevertheless I appreciate the effort people take to point out this or that fact, correct me, or give me references to other sources, etc. In the long run all this is of tremendous help because it expands the base of credible sources in case the story must be revisited.

One such fact came to light recently is on point with the story. It shows an early business interest that now-embattled UN advisor Maurice Strong (also an advisor to Paul Martin) had in China back in the pre-Deng Xiaoping 'capitalist' reform days (that began roughly in 1978). It is from the book Rae Days: The Rise and Follies of the NDP by Thomas Walkom, 1994. The excerpt is from Chapter 13: "Mo of the Jungle: On and off the privatization bandwagon":

By the 1970s, Strong had been picked by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau to head Petro-Canada, the new state-owned oil company which the NDP of David Lewis (Stephen's father) had demanded as their price for keeping the minority Liberals in power. In November 1976, as Mao Tse-tung's widow and the rest of the so-called Gang of Four were about to be arrested in Beijing, a company linked to Strong was flying antiquities, gold, furniture, and jewelry out of China.

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Family Honour -- Trafficking in Persons

The death of a Muslim woman

BERLIN - In the past four months, six Muslim women living in Berlin have been brutally murdered by family members. Their crime? Trying to break free and live Western lifestyles. Within their communities, the killers are revered as heroes for preserving their family dignity. [. . . . ]

Lengthy and informative -- download this PDF file.

34158US_Trafficking in Persons.pdf

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE PUBLICATION 11150
OFFICE OF THE UNDER SECRETARY FOR GLOBAL AFFAIRS
Revised June 2004
Designed by the Bureau of Public Affairs

Table of Contents

I. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................5
What is the Purpose of the 2004 Trafficking in Persons Report? ...................5
What is Trafficking?............................................................................................9
What is the Human and Societal Toll of Trafficking?.......................................10
Trafficking Is a Human Rights Violation and a Crime .............................10
Trafficking Promotes Social Breakdown...................................................12
Trafficking Fuels Organized Crime...........................................................14
Trafficking Deprives Countries of Human Capital ...................................14
Trafficking Undermines Public Health .....................................................15
Trafficking Subverts Government Authority .............................................16
Trafficking Imposes Enormous Economic Costs ......................................16
How do Traffickers Operate?............................................................................18
What are the Causes of Trafficking?................................................................19
What Strategies are Effective in the War Against Trafficking?.......................21
More About the 2004 TIP Report......................................................................25
What the Report Is and Is Not .................................................................25
What is Different in This Year’s Report ...................................................26
Why This Year’s Report Contains More Country Assessments..................27
How the Report is Used ...........................................................................29
Methodology ............................................................................................29
Step One: Significant Number of Victims ................................................30
Step Two: Tier Placement.........................................................................30
Penalties .................................................................................................31
II. INTERNATIONAL BEST PRACTICES .........................................................................33
International Heroes.........................................................................................35
III. TIER PLACEMENTS ................................................................................................39
IV. COUNTRY NARRATIVES ..........................................................................................40
Africa.................................................................................................................41
East Asia and Pacific........................................................................................85
Europe and Eurasia.........................................................................................115
Near East.........................................................................................................189
South Asia .......................................................................................................207
Western Hemisphere ......................................................................................223
V. SPECIAL CASES...................................................................................................249
VI. UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT EFFORTS ...............................................................255
VII. INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS–MATRIX ..............................................................262
VIII. TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION ACT .............................................................266
IX. GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS ...................................................................................268

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Paul & Belinda, With the AG's New $$$ Revelations, It Was Time to Activate the Belinda Bot -&- Hacker 'friends of'?

Related to today's big political story:

Charles Adler Wants Input From Readers -- Is anyone buying the Belinda-bot? by Charles Adler, Winnipeg Sun, Feb. 24, 2004 -- post on News Junkie Canada, February 27, 2004 (Thanks, Charles Adler. )

4) When is [Belinda Stronach] going to shut up about having run a company with more than 70,000 employees?

5) Who on Earth believes that she ran that company or any company? [. . . . ]

10) Since the grassroots in Western Canada simply cannot take the Belinda bot seriously as a Conservative leader, what would prevent them from wanting to pull the pin and march down the road of western separatism?

If Paul "Porky" Martin is the same old, same old eastern twaddle, and if the Conservatives are being led by a handful of Ontario whoremasters with a chequebook that doesn't quit, why wouldn't hundreds of thousands of conservatives opt for quitting Confederation?

[. . . . ] Do you think that Paul "Porky" Martin is handing the Conservatives an opportunity with his handling of the sponsorship scandal?

Do you think Conservatives would be blowing that opportunity by trying to market to Canadians a Belinda-bot?

Background?

Slush Fund for the Election? Was it Paul Martin who wrote the recipe for Jean Chretien's Pork Supreme?, News Junkie Canada, week of February 22, 2004



Digression? You decide.

Frost Hits the Rhubarb: most popular post lately

It mentions hackers from China; well, they are working overtime and it is advantageous to our government that they do. It makes me realize that those of us who have noted the corruption and/or connections between politicos and business, particularly out of the Authoritarian Tiger must be doing something right for democracy in Canada. We are now subject to endless hacking.

GG & Order of Canada-Aga Khan & Paul Desmarais, Jr., Tax $$$ to Khan's 'centre for pluralism', Maurice Strong, Zenon, China, Kyoto, Coal, Info Control Monday, May 9, 2005

Is there a connection between my posts on . . . . . . whatever you might term my writing on the Liberal government(s), their enablers and the Authoritarian Communist Asian Tiger, along with its links throughout the world and "business"? I think there is.

The hackers out of China are insidious.

Are they concerned that this friendly government not fall? Why else are they so avidly hacking? I have my own ideas.



It was time to wind up and put the Belinda Bot in motion.

CFP's Judi McLeod: 'Back-stabbing Belinda' jumps ship to return to Liberals

"Can there really be any serious doubt that Blondie Belinda is a Liberal, dispatched by the Liberals as a sugar-and-spice hammer against the advancement of a vulnerable, new Conservative Party in Canada?" canadafreepress.com asked in a February 9, 2004 cover story. [. . . . ]

Fraser vows no repeat of $793-million ad scandal -- Note: it used to be mentioned as a $100-MILLION scandal. How Perfect to get this off the front page with the Belinda Bot Andy Riga, CanWest, May 17, 05

Much attention has been focused on the inquiry's revelations about the $250-million sponsorship scandal involving the federal Liberal party, but Judge Gomery also is investigating how Ottawa doled out its advertising contracts.

This week, attention turned to $793-million Ottawa spent on 2,200 advertising contracts between 1998 and 2003. An audit by Ms. Fraser found that civil servants who broke rules for the sponsorship program broke the same rules when selecting ad agencies.

In many cases, there was no evidence a selection process was conducted, and documentation was scarce.

[. . . . ] The inquiry delved into some of the deals Ms. Fraser investigated. One involved $65.7-million in tourism-related contracts that went to the BCP ad agency. In July, 1994, Tourism Canada asked for bids from ad agencies to handle advertising targeting U.S. tourists. Vickers & Benson of Toronto was chosen, with Montreal's BCP coming second.

Both companies had worked on Liberal election campaigns. [. . . . ]

The Auditor General has not even looked at the Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) termites' nest yet. Then there are other scandals shut down by the little guy from shenanigan.

It was time to set the Belinda Bot in motion.

Belinda Stronach--Queen of Political Opportunism, Tax Haven Mavens, & More from the Frosty Cynic

Democracy has been bought again. First, there was that weasel Scott Brison running for the Conservative Party leadership; then when he lost, he picked up his toys and crossed the floor for political gain, to join the Liberal Government and Party that he had claimed was led by "Genghis Khan".

Now Canadians have to listen to this traitorous woman who had accused the Liberal Party of every conceivable excess of arrogance, fiscal mismanagement, and outright fraud. She will, of course, be given a huge political elevation, as a Cabinet member, to "salve her painful soul-searching in making such a move". Martin is ready to boot aside his colleagues' hopes for her new post to win this vote.

As a final bitter joke, Martin has given her the extra position of--try to stifle your laughs--"the advancment of democratic reforms in the governance of Canada". First, Martin ran around the country scattering slush money to every province, now he is into buying the opposition members. As well, Paul Martin has just this morning had the effrontery to suggest that this ideological betrayal by Stronach was not orchestrated to win the no-confidence vote. Thankfully, the reporters en masse broke into raucous hoots at this naked lie. As one of them asked of Stronach, "If this was purely a personal disagreement with the Conservative ideology, why didn't you cross over as a mere Liberal backbencher?" She stumbled over that question, because there was no reasonable answer, except sheer opportunism. Despite Ms. Stronach's arduous promises to help correct the Liberals' "democratic deficit", she has only helped further it. Shameful.

Scott Brison's betrayal was more logical. Like so many homosexuals I have known, his sexual identity seems to be the core driving force of his existence--life lived through a gay filter, if you like. The Conservatives were not about to advance his agenda, so he was willing (for a price, of course) to switch to a party that was. Stronach's rationale might be more baffling--to some, although Stephen Harper may have given the reason. He stated that he could see that Stronach had political ambitions, possibly for the leadership itself. That wasn't going to happen. He also refuted Belinda's statement that he heard about her turncoat move first by her. Rather, he said that he first heard about it from Peter MacKay, who is crushed by her defection, so it has been reported. Here we have a woman who consistently accused the Liberals of undermining business in Canada--herself a plutocrat--now suddenly reversing her opinion. Small wonder that Joe Public believes that politians have a credibility level below that of used car salesmen. Her proclaiming that she won't support a party that allows the the Bloc Quebeois to advance, is absurd. No party has advanced that party more than the Liberals' scurrilous behaviour in Quebec. Cynicism about politics is now total.

Bud Talkinghorn--Stephen Harper had the last word: "There is no grand principle involved her decision; it was pure personal ambition."




Commentary, Background and Predictions

There is a possibility that the West will split off from Canada; they have effectively been disenfranchised from participation in real governing by a cabal of moneyed interests from the centre of the Canadian world, abetted by self-interest from the East. Maritimers don't yet realize that it serves the Liberals and the Centre to keep them bent low in servitude for the money they get.

Liberal methods, particularly in the Maritimes but not limited to the Maritimes, range over the following -- and undoubtedly many more:

* Employment Insurance gerrymandering by playing one area off against another even within one province so as to split voting between groups and parties. This method has endless variations all related to "initiatives" and government control of who gets what for stooping low -- or lower.

* Short term contracts / jobs -- the way of the world Down East

* ACOA grants to friends and supporters -- e.g. foundations pay for workshops, conferences, groups meeting at local universities for supporters,

* Student grants for research (See June 24, News Junkie Canada for one example having to do with ACOA or Technology Partnerships Canada and developing gambling software. Ho Ho Ho, as Stanley Ho, immigrant businessman and now Canadian, must be saying today. Originally, he earned his millions or is it billions as gambling czar of Macau .)

* Playing Red against Blue Tories, in any number of ways, so as to maintain corrupt Liberal regimes. Language has been one of the more effective ones because jobs are tied to whether one speaks the language of power; you figure it out.

* Don't ever underestimate the naivete of people from the boondocks of Canada who desire to be photographed with, whose complaints can be papered over and who will be quieted down--even satisfied--by rubbing shoulders with power. Da Boss Paul Martin, ex-Capo Jean Chretien and their ilk know this.

People like Belinda are rewarded with even more clout for lack of principles -- and of course, Stronach's business connections will not suffer unduly, nor monetarily. Watch for Magna to win . . . . in some way. Remember, Daddy Frank Stronach ran for the Liberal Party. I suspect Daddy is proud. Is Paul Martin's father proud, as well?

The East: will it be bought again? . . . . This time because of the Atlantic Accord which is of dubious value to Maritimers anyway, that is, the Maritimers who need jobs because they're not on the gravy train of the government. If so, how short-sighted and how sad.

There is just a faint hope that Quebeckers will see the Stronach move for the cynical moneyed ploy that I think it is . . . . . and they will massively reject the Liberals. To the best of Quebeckers, think.

Stronach's interests were evident at the time of her entry into the CPC leadership. All she needed was to see an end to governing as the Liberals and Moneyed Interests know it . . . . . and tribal affiliations would kick in.




The Gay Marriage Red Herring which will be played by MSM / LPO-CBC and the Liberal Corruptos of PM and JC

As for gay marriage, it is a red herring, designed to be trotted out whenever PM Paul Martin, the Liberals and their MSM / LPO / CBC minions need to draw attention away from the cynicism and corruption of MONEY and LIBERAL alliances. Stephen Harper's desire to let the House of Commons MP's decide contentious social issues, among many items, would upset the tradition of power and control from the moneyed centre, where it is easily harnessed if true democracy might break out.

Note those and their dependents who would support the status quo:

* Paul Martin (Research a bit and note his weak position that might be exposed.) and his predecessor Jean Chretien (he of the APEC, spiked Sidewinder Report, other corruptions era -- and that is just what we know at this point. Then dig into PWGSC / Public Works and Government Services Canada for a really big department which needs the light of day, particularly into its contracting and sales.

* The PMO, filled with Earnscliffe cronies--those who helped shiv-in-the-back-Martin fulfil Paul Martin's--or his Daddy's--ambitions by finding those who would do the dirty work of sticking the knife in to replace candidates (BC, for example) in order to defeat Jean Chretien

* Unprincipled Liberal lackeys who have been so brain washed they cannot imagine democracy (Not all Liberals are unprincipled, one must keep reminding oneself.)

* Mainstream media (MSM) hangers on who depend on Canadians' money for their jobs, so they have become the Liberal Propaganda Organs; CBC comes to mind.

* Those who contract with this government and therefore fear uncertainty (They have to know who to pay off, after all.)

* Recipients of Canadians' tax money via noblesse oblige from the PMO -- beneficiaries of Crown Corporations, agencies such as ACOA and foundations grants and probably some other groups that would fit in here that I have forgotten.

* The crooks who know that their staying out of jail depends upon keeping Paul Martin in office -- and the electorate anaesthetized in myriad ways. (That topic deserves another post.)

* Favoured groups who have nothing to gain but favours if the money spigot keeps spouting -- Make up your own list here but, for me, NGO's who get those world trips on globablization and the environment, women's issues, CIDA grant recipients who get to travel first class around the globe . . . . . and the like.

This is not the definitive list, but off the top of my head in a hurry, it may cause to make up your own.




"Liberal" Belinda Stronach Related

How Have Liberals Gained Control of the Hoi Polloi for So Many Years? News Junkie Canada, March 14, 2004

Brian Mulroney, Mike Harris, Bill Davis: What is the Common Denominator in Their Support for Belinda? Magna? -- News Junkie Canada, March 14, 2004

$$$ May Not Bring You Love, but This is a Great Second Best -- Ms. Stronach has criticized high taxes and promised to make Canada the most competitive tax jurisdiction in the world. News Junkie Canada, March 4, 2004

Frank Stronach shelters $198M from taxman, Conservatives have slammed Martin for comparable tactics, Robert Fife, Ottawa Bureau Chief, Mar. 3, 04

OTTAWA - Frank Stronach has avoided paying Canadian income tax on almost $200-million of compensation and fees since 1994, corporate figures show. [His residence is in Switzerland, I have read. NJC]

[. . . . ] Canadians can escape taxes if they set up their principal residence in tax havens, such as Switzerland, the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and Barbados.

[. . . . ] Since she resigned as CEO of Magna to run for the Conservative leadership, Belinda Stronach has not directly attacked CSL's tax avoidance strategy nor has she defended the use of tax havens to escape paying taxes at home.

On the campaign trial, Ms. Stronach has criticized high taxes and promised to make Canada the most competitive tax jurisdiction in the world. She would eliminate the tax on capital investment and decrease personal and corporate tax rates. [. . . . ]

I have copied this last one here because it was so precient. I have been a cynic a long time.

The Frosty Cynic, NJC

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Updated -- Traitorous Red Tory Belinda Stronach Joins Paul Martin's Cabinet

Updated -- Traitorous Red Tory Belinda Stronach Joins Paul Martin's Cabinet

Need one say more?

As Stephen Harper has just said of Belinda Stronach, "no principles, just blind ambition" (loosely remembered, obviously as I have heard and read various remembrances)

If you go back in the News Junkie Canada files (Jan. / Feb. 2004) and possibly in Frost Hits the Rhubarb archives, you will find out background on who supported her and possibly, you will understand today's defection more clearly. I am not surprised though Peter MacKay may be.

You will find that those Red Tories who want NO CHANGE will undoubtedly follow her. There is too much to be lost; follow the money trail, the networks, the connections.

Canada's democracy is doomed.



LPO - CBC

CBC is elated; just check Susan Bonner's tone. Despicable! The Liberal Propaganda Organ in full spate.




Update 1:

Belinda is now talking about "putting personal interest aside and focusing on the national interest" -- and interestingly, she is now being asked about whether Peter MacKay, Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, will follow her. A noncommittal answer has been given.


For ethical principles, follow the $$$.

Canadians are FOOLS if they vote in more Liberal corruption, aided and abetted by those who put $$$ ahead of Canada. Remember, her father and owner of Magna, Frank Stronach has been living in Europe -- for the same reasons I suppose, as Paul Martin's sons have what used to be PM's ships (CSL) registered in tax havens abroad. (some built abroad, in China, as well)




Update 2:

Nfld. Tories waver -- MPs fear uproar if Atlantic deal dies with government Allan Woods and Grant Robertson, May 17, 05, CanWest

OTTAWA - Two Newfoundland Conservatives are casting doubt on their intention to topple the government in a Thursday vote because they fear a backlash in their ridings if they are forced to kill a $2-billion Liberal deal for the Atlantic provinces.

Norman Doyle and Loyola Hearn admitted yesterday they are under pressure from constituents, Premier Danny Williams and thousands of online petitioners to support the budget, and they urged the government to create separate legislation for the Atlantic Accord that can be fast-tracked through the House of Commons before the end of the week.

Neither MP would vow to support their party's attempt to defeat the government and both suggested the two budget bills could be further altered before they are put to a vote.

"There are so many things happening, so I'm going to wait for a day or two before actually saying beyond a shadow of a doubt that the budget vote is on today and I'm voting for or against it. I'm just going to play those cards when the time comes around," Mr. Doyle said. [. . . . ]

The problem in the Maritimes is that the Liberals have created a dependent culture in return for Maritime votes.

* Through judicious "giveaway" programs, which simply buy the votes of Maritimers with other Canadians' money,

* Through creating Maritimers' dependence on government rather than relying on the self-reliance of which Maritimers are capable,

the Liberals have exacerbated Maritimers' dependence.



Now is the time to email your principled MP's or Canada will never be rid of the unprincipled money corruption which runs this country.

MP Email Addresses -- Email Doyle, Hearn and principled MP's if you ever want to end the culture of moneyed interests and corruption that run Canada

See PM 'Misleading' Canadian Public on Atlantic Accord -- Paul Martin is an even more mendacious and unprincipled PM than I thought. What type do you think he draws around him?

For background, check News Junkie Canada and possibly Frost Hits the Rhubarb Jan/Feb 2004 for more on those who supported Belinda Stronach's candidacy for the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada. Links will come, if time permits.



As for Separatism, the cry of the desperate Liberals . . .

Do you really believe Quebeckers will leave Canada if the Liberals are defeated or is it not more likely that they might consider it because of the overweaning Liberal CORRUPTION. Spare us the CBC fearmongering about Quebec separation because of a CPC Bloc agreement to defeat corruption. Quebeckers are not stupid. They hate the corruption as much as TROC. Within Canada, they have the best chance of maintaining their culture in a healthy way.

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UNSCAM, Video, Cdn. Terrorists PDF, MSM-LPO, Camp Gagetown: Canada's Dirty Little Secret

The Naming of Names

Oil for Food: The List Goes On Claudia Rosett, National Review Online, May 13, 05 -- or here

[. . . . ] According to the report, the list of terrorists named by these Iraqi officials as engaging in this quid pro quo includes “the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Abu Abbas, and the Mujahedeen-e Khalq.”

[. . . . ] The regime steered a massive portion of its allocations toward Security Council members that were believed by the Hussein regime to support Iraq in its efforts to lift sanctions — namely, Russia, France, and China.”

Link for names of individuals.




New Survey Finds Huge Gap Between Press and Public on Many Issues Joe Strupp, May 15, 2005

NEW YORK A survey to be released Monday reveals a wide gap on many media issues between a group of journalists and the general public.

[. . . . ] Six in ten among the public feel the media show bias in reporting the news, and 22% say the government should be allowed to censor the press.

[. . . . ] Perhaps the widest gap of all: 8 in 10 journalists said they read blogs, while less than 1 in 10 others do so.

Government already censors the news by subtle but effective purse string methods; Canada is ahead of the US in this area, possibly.




Video: Teach Kids Peace -- Don't miss.


Suspected Canadian Terrorists Aroad -- Download the .pdf



Canada's dirty secret -- Government admits hand in veteran's Agent Orange death May 15, 2005, Greg Weston, Calgary Sun

KINGSTON, Ont. -- Forty years after the American military was allowed to test-bomb a New Brunswick army base with deadly "Agent Orange" herbicide, the Canadian government is finally admitting that veterans are dying as a result of being poisoned.

The Department of National Defence has confirmed that in 1966, U.S. forces doused forested areas of the Gagetown base with the infamous chemical defoliant, testing it for clearing jungle during the Vietnam War.

Since then, Agent Orange has been linked to a horrifying array of cancers, diabetes, respiratory diseases and blindness among U.S. veterans -- not to mention two generations of sick Vietnamese -- and even birth defects in children of vets. [. . . . ]

In a landmark decision, the Department of Veterans Affairs has ruled Sellar's cancer was caused by his exposure to Agent Orange. "The department is aware that Agent Orange was used as a herbicide for defoliation on the training grounds of CFB Gagetown," the confidential memorandum states.

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Peter Newman--An old lefty laments the decline of Jean Chretien

I was a bit shocked to see Newman's critique of Chretien in The National Post (May 14, 05). He started by sharing his recollections of the early Chretien, whom he saw as a humane, self-deprecating individual in his political infancy. However, Lord Acton's maxim: "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely", proved to define Chretien's rise in power and his later personna.

Newman sees Chretien's attempts to discredit the Gomery Inquiry as consistent with his past behaviour. When the Somalia Commission got too close to the top brass and senior politicians, he closed it down. Even worse was his attitude to the Horace Klever Inquiry, which showed that blood transfusions were knowingly given, despite the fact that they were contaminated with Hepatitis C and HIV. Ottawa knew this was happening; yet did nothing about it. The Liberals also refused to grant financial aid to those that became infected until public outrage forced them to act. As for the HRDC scandal, Chretien blatantly lied when he claimed that only $6,500 went missing. Newman notes that: ". . . a Human Resources' internal audit revealed that at least 469 departmental files lacked proper documentation or follow-ups. When the Auditor-General confirmed the problem, Chretien shut down the subsequent hearings by forbidding Liberal members to attend, thus denying the inquiry the necessary quorum."

Now the Gomery Inquiry is getting testimony about suitcases of illegal campaign money being delivered to his riding of Shawinigan, where he had called his candidates. Are we to believe that Chretien didn't know about these candidates being financed with secret cash? The electorate should remember that it is not simply Paul Martin and his gang that have besmirched the Liberal brand, but also the man who led the party for 11 years. The sponsorship scandal was incubated, and ultimately controlled, by Chretien. For Liberal insiders to try to now distance themselves from his most egregious actions is like all the Nazi monsters at Nuremberg claiming Hitler was the only one responsible. The judges didn't buy that argument, nor should the public buy the Liberals' feeble alibi that they were only following Chretien's orders.

© Bud Talkinghorn

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Newsweek has thrown a match into the Islamic tinderbox

The Newsweek story of the desecrated Koran has been retracted, but that will make little difference to the damage done. As Henry Champ, the CBC's American correspondent points out, it probably will make no impact. In the Islamic world, the logic or truth of a story never effects the twisted reality the masses want to believe. Newsweek, in its liberal desire to discredit President Bush and the war on terror, has been totally remiss in publishing a volatile report without checking its source fully. The reprecussions will continue, no matter how loud the denials are. Mind you; it doesn't take much to inflame Muslim sensibilities. Just remember the orgy of murder and mayhem that occurred when a NIgerian TV woman made a remark about Allah and the beauty contestants. Christians were slaughtered in the streets and their churches were burned down. These victims had nothing to do with the woman's remarks--remarks that, while perhaps insensitive, were basically innocuous. But then there are supposedly intelligent Muslim scholars who perpetuate the nonsense that Mossad was behind the Sept 11 terrorist attacks. Another myth that has become a truism for millions of Muslims around the world is that the West is on a crusade to conquer them. The endless attacks by Muslims against Christians around the world seems to be conveniently forgotten, or if acknowledged, then perverted into its opposite. Nevertheless, for all their hatred of the infidel West, they flock to it by the millions--either legally or illegally. There is no reverse movement by Westerners to their countries. Unless huge financial remuneration is offered, no Westerner would choose to move there. And with the increasing fear of the natives running amok over some slight or wild rumour, even those workers are going to be hard to find.

As a Westerner, I remain perplexed about the irrationality of the Iraq situation. On the one hand the Sunnis feel they have lost their death grip on power, while on the other hand they refused to participate in the Iraqi elections--therefore effectively marginalizing themselves. Plus the mainly secular Baathists have aligned themselves with the religious fanatics. Even if as a combined force they could topple the government, they would soon be at each other's throats. Finally, I am mystified by the insurgents' barbarous attacks on the Shiites, Chaldean Christians and Kurds. Yes, these people are all seen as infidels and apostates; nevertheless, they make up the majority. A religious war could annihilate the Sunnis. All those communities are armed to the teeth. It is not like the good old days when only the Sunnis had the weapons and secret police force. Besides, I hardly think Iran would sit idly by and let the Shiites be wiped out again. It all smacks of a collective death wish on their part. It has surprised me that the Shiite and Kurds have not exacted revenge by now. However I think that time is coming soon. The American appetite for holding such a country together is weakening. When they depart, vast butcheries will begin with Syria, Iran and Jordan drawn into the fray and the "noble experiment of democracy" will be reduced to ashes.

© Bud Talkinghorn


My Perspective

Bud, I have known intelligent Muslims who must or should be outraged at the mindless malicious misinformation bruited about as truth in their communities abroad and, I fear, here. Think of madrassahs and mothers who see jihad suicide as a viable career move on the road to finding compliant maidens. I suspect Allah does not hold the allure of those 72 virgins awaiting a young man who has just blown his face off. Look at how much of the Muslim world educates its children in hatred. Is there something missing that I just don't get? Hatred is burning the Muslim world up from within.

One of my acquaintances, whom I considered to be a fine young man happens to be Muslim. I cannot believe he would agree with the above described mindset; he was too intelligent. Where is he today? He intended to study immigration law. I hope he has done something worthy. He was a handsome, highly capable young man; yet, he raised my eyebrows when he said his concern in Canada was whether he would be the victim of racism, and that was long before terrorist activity had arrived in North America. No, not racism then I didn't think but today likely a victim of furrowed eyebrows when he and his fellow Muslims do not speak out against insanity like the above is quite likely. Where are the moderate voices? NJC

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PM 'Misleading' Canadian Public on Atlantic Accord, Levant: Grits will sell Anything, Research Firms That Work for Gov.

Paul Martin blamed the Conservatives for creating a negative tone -- Martin says Atlantic Accords will die [unless everyone votes Liberal to keep the corruption going, I would guess] from this article, "PM calls on Harper to resume respectful dialogue", CTV.ca News Staff, May 16, 05

Martin . . . saying that many elements of the bill would otherwise die, including the Atlantic Accords.

"What guarantee do the Canadian people have that the prime minister will respect the vote in the House in the future?" Conservative Deputy Leader Peter MacKay asked during question period later Monday. [. . . . ]

What Paul Martin said is simply not true, as Stephen Harper has told Canadians. Harper has said there would be an Atlantic Accord. Frankly, Harper has a stellar record on his words actually meaning something, compared to Paul Martin, Jean Chretien, and a few other government characters -- not all, of course.

Paul has misspoken himself . . . again.




Research Firms' Rankings

Do the mainstream media report on this information, along with the poll results?

Research Firms for all Public Opinion Research by Business Volume POR Annual Report 2002-2003, via Newsbeat1

[. . . . ] In 2002–2003, the Government of Canada used the services of 74 research firms to fulfill its public opinion research needs. Ekos Research Associates headed the list both in the number of projects and the dollar value. Ipsos-Reid came second, while Environics Research Group came third. A complete listing of all the firms can be found in Appendix Two [Complete Listing of Research Firms by Business Volume]

[. . . . ] Ekos Research Associates' syndicated studies accounted for nearly 40 percent of the investment by the Government of Canada. Ipsos-Reid placed second with the Environics Research Group third. [. . . . ]

Real-life 'Libranos' -- Questions of criminal activity remain unanswered May 16, 2005, Ezra Levant, Calgary Sun

In 1989, Morselli's car mysteriously exploded in a crime that has yet to be solved. Before Dezainde went to testify last week before the Gomery inquiry, he sought RCMP protection.

Search: a "made member" of the Bonanno crime family, Why did the RCMP warn Jean Chretien against appointing , immigrate to Canada , reaching into Parliament , only the tip


Grits will sell anything Ezra Levant, May 9, 2005

Search: selling judgeships

York University Nathanson Centre for the study of organized crime and corruption -- an invaluable resource

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Why the Liberals are hanging on to a Thursday vote

The Liberals were shocked, yes shocked, to hear Harper claim that the Thursday date for a no-confidence vote was rigged to exclude two sick Conservatives. "No," they exclaimed, "It had nothing to do with two cancer-stricken Tories. How could the Tories stoop so low as to suggest it?" Well, if you believe Warren Kinsella, it is easy to believe. Kinsella wrote in The National Post (May 13, 05) that he nearly resigned from the Liberal Party. In 2002, Martin's party machine in BC took over Herb Dhaliwal's riding, while Dhaliwal was out of the country and his wife was dying of cancer. Those responsible for this act of treachery to one of their own--a former Cabinet minister--are Martin's trusted advisors today. As Kinsella says, "I have witnessed a lot of political thuggery, but I have never before seen anything as disgusting as that." So, are we to be "shocked" that the Liberals would do the same to two political rivals?

© Bud Talkinghorn



My Perspective:

This morning I heard our mendacious PM use his pork photo op and daycare deal announcement in Nova Scotia to make a partisan election speech decrying the behaviour in the House -- wink, wink, nudge, nudge -- it's all the Conservatives' fault. The man who hardly graced the House of Commons while questions were being asked arising from the Gomery Inquiry now is calling for the Conservatives to join him in improving the tenor of debate in the House. Paul Martin was actually attempting to pin the blame for the breakdown in Parliament on the Conservatives rather than on the corruption of the Liberals.

Even the Governor General just upped the $$$ value of the ADSCAM and other corruption; check for the stories on that.

The PM is so deficient in honour. He diminishes the office; he will go down as one of our worst Prime Ministers, I suspect. Blatantly un-Prime Ministerial!



PS: PM is veering close to chunder-causing if I hear that unctuous voice show "very very great concern" about every topic again -- the man who did nothing to fix the democratic deficit, among other sins of omission, or is it commission.

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Canada shipbuilding in Shanghai -- CONNECTING THE POWER

Note: There are new posts below this, several, in fact. I just thought this should be at the top.


Canada shipbuilding in Shanghai Judi McLeod, Canadafreepress.com, May 16, 2005

CSL has moved shipbuilding from Canada and the West to Communist China.

[. . . . ] But a few days after his June 28, 2004 election as Canadian Prime Minister, 83 kilograms of cocaine, [. . . . ]

Search: Power Corp. , Canada China Business Council , Bombardier , Nortel , new Canada-China Air Agreement , People’s Republic of China



Do not miss the background and the graphic: How the biggest scandal in history unfolded Canada Free Press, Mar. 5, 05.

Search: CONNECTING THE POWER

Scroll down for the graphic of power in Canada with Power Corp. at the centre.



As part of the Power structure, note that Quebec's Bombardier--wait for it--is Lead 'Assymmetrical' Snout at the Trough in a post entitled "Bombardier Pork Billions: Technology Partnerships Program, Export Development Canada EDC, Etc".

Police Week 2005 -- & The Reality, Harper's Oratory, LPO Sound Bites, Military Bargaining Chips, Lib Friends & Crown Assets

Police Week 2005-to those who serve on our behalf- many thanks!! -- which links to our Deputy PM Anne McLellan: "Police week 2005: Working together for safer communities"

Hansard: Mar. 28, 03 -- The Reality via Newsbeat 1

[. . . . ] Need I remind the government that its slash and gouging of the RCMP that occurred in 1993 resulted in 2,200 positions being lost, a loss that has never been recouped despite years of protests and requests for increased spending.

Last year the commissioner of the RCMP openly admitted that 2,000 RCMP officers were withdrawn from other enforcement duties to respond to the terrorism crisis. These officers were taken from assignments previously considered to be priorities, such as fighting organized crime and providing frontline policing in Canadian communities. Many of those jobs were left unattended. In the commissioner's own words these files were “put on the back burner” while the RCMP attempted to apprehend terrorists suspected of using this country as a staging ground. [. . . . ]

Think of the four young RCMP officers killed March 4, 05. We remember and we offer our condolences to their families, along with thanks for the work all of them do for us.



Your taxes went to their friends

No way to make policy May 16 via Newsbeat1.com

Kilgour told CTV's Question Period last week: "I don't want to see Canadian soldiers killed. But Canada has to stand for something in the world."

Yes, it does -- and we don't doubt Kilgour's passion on this issue. But Canada has to stand for more than using its soldiers as bargaining chips of a panicked prime minister. [. . . . ]

Harper's oratory that the media semed to miss Newsbeat1 -- or the original here



Friendship

Crown asset disposal-Man got 4 hectares, house, barn for $1 www.Newsbeat1.com

Liberal Propaganda Organs and Sound Bites

Coren on the demonization sound bites

[. . . . ] "Yes, it's frightening. Also frightening that people don't think, frightening that they speak in sound bites, frightening that they have lost the ability to question the status quo, to be offended by the abuse of their own money, to move out of their tired little political comfort zones." [. . . . ]

PM and Co-dependents flooding the country with $$$ -- your $$$ & Oil Prices: Farmer's Dilemma

The PM and his co-dependents are flooding the country with money they supposedly didn't have, in order to try to buy another election by bribing Canadians with their own money

Check CNW for current $$$ "initiatives" to buy your votes: GOVERNMENT OF CANADA news releases


Additionally, that webpage had a link at bottom so permit a small digression; there is a point to this. Listen to ex-Min. Allan Rock on global warming; the Liberals have been planning for a long time -- "managing" -- "initiatives" -- planning to "help them administer a changing Canadian Arctic"

a multi-media spiel on past initiatives in the Arctic

[. . . . ] a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker intended to raise international awareness of Canadian arctic science and answer major questions on the effects of global changes in the Arctic. The ministers also announced that the Government of Canada would invest $25.7 million over the next four years in ArcticNet, a new Canadian Network of Centres of Excellence.


Headed by Louis Fortier, a professor at Laval University, the new Network of Centres of Excellence will look at the scientific challenges resulting from Arctic warming using a cross-sectoral approach involving natural, social and medical science experts, that is, more than 145 researchers from 41 Canadian and foreign universities. ArcticNet will provide the information required to develop response strategies intended to help Canada deal with the environmental and socio-economic effects of Arctic warming. Northern residents and their governments will play a critical role in ArcticNet research, which will help them administer a changing Canadian Arctic.

Search: Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), and the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)

Does anyone's nose begin to twitch at that "initiative"?

Farmers' Dilemma

Who is drilling for and buying up oil around the world?

Diesel costs hurting fruit, vegetable growers -- Soaring fuel prices hitting American farmers from all sides

Farmers are squeezed by higher prices for the diesel that runs their harvesting and irrigation equipment, for the fertilizer made by combining nitrogen with the hydrogen in natural gas, and for the transportation of crops to your local supermarket.

[. . . . ] "Fertilizer prices went crazy," said Craig Ito, grows peaches, plums, nectarines and other fruit and in Fresno, the county with the country's highest farming grosses. [. . . . ]

If only the Liberals could keep Canadians from knowing the truth -- Whistleblowers and More

Note: I thought I had already posted these items, but apparently, I had not; at least, I couldn't find them, though some bits may have appeared a while ago.

Skim the titles to be reminded of the pattern of government repression of information and attempts to destoy whistleblowers.



If only the Liberals could keep Canadians from knowing the truth -- ADSCAM was diversion of Canadian taxpayers' money to Liberal friends.

Think about:

* Jon Grant: Canada Lands

* Francois Beaudoin: Business Development Bank

Accusations foretold sponsorship fiasco -- Same names pop up in complaints. Charges of political interference and cronyism dogged Liberal Party as early as 1998 Andy Riga, The Gazette, April 30, 2005

The allegations flew: lucrative federal jobs for Liberal friends for little or no work, sweet government deals for Liberal-connected Quebec firms, Ottawa funnelling funds to Jean Charest's Liberals, even bizarre boondoggles, including $170,000 spent on a plan to send 10 "mobile gazebos" across Canada.

The ensuing uproar got former Public Works Minister Alfonso Gagliano turfed from the federal cabinet in 2002.

[. . . . ] This is the story of the forgotten scandals, the ones that might have exposed the tip of the iceberg and could have been nipped in the bud as early as 1998, just as the sponsorship program was getting into gear.

[. . . . ] Grant was appointed Canada Lands Co. chairperson in 1995, after retiring from Quaker Oats Co. of Canada after 18 years as chief executive. In 2002, two months after his term at Canada Lands expired, he went public, accusing Gagliano and his staff of pressuring him to hire Gagliano's friends and trying to meddle in commercial dealings at the agency. Jean-Marc Bard, Gagliano's chief of staff at the time, insisted on playing a role in all Canada Lands transactions in Quebec, Grant said, adding Bard told him: "Canada is yours, Quebec is ours." Bard has denied making the statement. [. . . . ]

Search: Tony Mignacca , this was systemic , A 1998 internal Canada Lands memo , Michel Couillard , Emmanuel Triassi , Robert Charest - brother of Jean Charest , give $50,000 to the Charest Liberals , less than half its assessed value , "Rene Lepine, a longtime Liberal Party contributor" , Michele Tremblay , Canadian Mint , "Maurizio Creuso, who Gagliano had known since 1983" , Mr. Choo-Choo , "Six days after Grant's first media interview, Chretien "




The terrifying reign of 'da Boss' Lorrie Goldstein, April 10, 2005, Toronto Sun

[Francois Beaudoin] was smeared in the media. His cottage and home were raided, not by police, but by BDC lawyers and accountants. Incredibly, a judge had authorized the search. Meanwhile, Carle was on the phone to Chretien's office, co-ordinating statements in the media and the Commons. Judge Denis would later describe this as "incredible ... Carle was convinced the prime minister is the only shareholder of the BDC. They are no longer looking like a corporation should, to give the media just the facts ... but only to repeat the position of the Prime Minister's Office."

Vennat then wrote two letters to RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli asking the Mounties to investigate Beaudoin for "misappropriation" of bank property and as the source of a "forged" document related to Shawinigate that had been leaked.

Home raided

Six months later, the Mounties showed up at the Royal Montreal Golf Club, claiming there were investigating the membership of Beaudoin's wife. [. . . . ]

Search: "Beaudoin, was an honest public servant who had the courage to say "no" to Chretien" , Michel Vennat and Jean Carle


Think about:

* Allan Cutler: Public Works

* Cpl. Robert Read: RCMP

* Staff SGt Stenhouse: RCMP

* Selwyn Pieters: IRB

* Brian McAdam: Foreign Service

Do you see a pattern? Our Liberal government has made the lives of decent people miserable, their careers and lives ruined, all to keep us from knowing the truth. We have been governed by thugs; we live in a thugocracy. The plan has been to keep Canadians blindfolded -- rather than to admit there are many problems and to fix them -- when they, themselves, are not part of them.

Do you really think Canadians need any more information? All they have to do is turn on the televison, listen to the radio and think for themselves.

Evidence of ex-RCMP Corporal Robert Read before a Parliamentary Committee

[RCMP] Corporal Robert Read (As Individual): Good day, sir. Thank you for inviting me here.

My name is Robert Read. I'm now retired, but I was a corporal in the RCMP. In 1996 I was assigned to Mr. McAdam's case and appointed to meet with him, listen to his complaint, and try to find what was actually happening with his complaint, what were the facts of the matter. Many parts of Mr. McAdam's complaint are detailed, and many were found to be true. I worked on Mr. McAdam's case until 1996, when I was ordered to desist, in September, I guess it was, 1997.

What I discovered was that when Mr. McAdam made his complaint in 1991 and it was investigated by the RCMP in 1992, the RCMP discovered that the computer in Hong Kong was entirely vulnerable, that the safeguards were not put into effect. Anyone and everyone who had access to the system could issue visas in Hong Kong, that is, anyone in the high commission in Hong Kong who had access to the computer, with a little bit of knowledge, could issue visas. It appeared that this had been happening for years, probably from 1986 until 1991. I compare Mr. McAdam to the sheriff in town, because various people in the high commission brought their suspicious pieces of evidence to him, and he gathered them and presented them to the RCMP when the RCMP arrived in 1992.

So after listening to various pieces of the story, I went to the RCMP central file room, got the 1992 files, and sat down and started to read them. After I had been reading them for several weeks, I came across a report called the Balser report, which, in obtuse language, said the computer is vulnerable and showed how it was possible to misuse it.

The thing to understand is that Mr. McAdam in 1992 was on station in Hong Kong. Mr. McAdam is a very frank person. He was kept out of the informed circle. The RCMP and his superiors told him everything was under control and in good hands. It was in their hands, but what they were in fact doing was covering up the facts from Mr. McAdam, because he had been in the service for 29 years and was not one to mince words. So through bureaucratic manoeuvring, they got Mr. McAdam back to Ottawa and isolated him. Finally, he took his retirement, because he was so entirely frustrated by his superiors' apparent lack of interest in the details of his findings.

The thing was that they knew before he did; they knew that the RCMP had found this. Their own technician, Mr. Balser, had found this and had told them they had a disaster here. It was a disaster beyond bureaucratic scope. It was actually a political silver bullet, which it would have been a disaster to report honestly. So they kept this from Mr. McAdam, because he was not someone who could be told to keep it under his hat.

(1605)

It was just the fact that he came back to Ottawa and periodically came to the RCMP and demanded answers and demanded inquiry. My boss, of course, did not know of this cover-up that had been perpetrated in 1992—we were now in 1996—so he assigned me to delve into the case and I looked into it. It was only by an examination of these files from 1992 that I discovered the cover-up.

I also was not one to mince my words. I said to my boss, “This is what's happened”. My boss is a very nice gentleman, but he just wasn't responding to what I was telling him. As the months went on, it occurred to me that the RCMP were going to continue this cover-up, which I believed at that time was perpetrated by Immigration and Foreign Affairs.

Finally, I made a complaint against my boss for obstruction of justice. That was in 1997. I then went on sick leave when I perceived that, yes, this was really going ahead and the cover-up would continue no matter what I did. So I was off on stress leave, sick leave, for six months, during which time I reformulated my complaint, now against four superior officers who had direct knowledge, who I had evidence were part of the cover-up.

A few months later I went back to work. The RCMP gave me a job essentially shuffling paper—making photocopies, you might say—for a while. Finally, six months later they sent me to the personnel office to work as a personnel clerk.

What happened after that was that they cornered me in a bureaucratic way. It appeared that I was going to be stabbed in the back, so what I did was go public. This was now in September 1999, and I went public in a newspaper. I didn't really understand this at the time, but I believe now that this was in fact done expressly, that my bosses in fact had made a decision and put this pinch on me and made me go public.

I did go public and made allegations in 1999 that there was a cover-up, that there was loss of control of the computer. I was subsequently suspended with pay, was charged with divulging confidential information, was put on trial, and was convicted of doing that, in fact, in 1992. It was at my trial in 1992, through listening to the testimony of various people who were called to my trial, that I realized the RCMP had to have been in the know from 1992, from the original investigation. I had suspected the original investigator from the RCMP was in fact on the take or corrupt or something else. From my trial, however, I can see that he was following orders when he covered up the whole affair in his files.

(1610)

The reason the RCMP would do this, I think, was for fear of national security. This problem was big enough that it could be a real arrow through the heart of the government. To admit that our way of life is now so complex that we cannot control our own computers in the federal government is a very serious matter. It's a political problem as well as a bureaucratic problem. So this is my opinion of why it happened. It was a question of national security taking precedence over a criminal investigation. I believe this is why Mr. McAdam was frustrated for so long and that, in fact, the national security question was being addressed.

Whistleblower -- Culture of Corruption --- more taxpayer money down a black hole

Senator Kinsella: "I think one gains respect not by showmanship, but by the quality and content of our gross national product and the efficiency of our labour"

Whistleblower: New embassy massively over budget Kathy Tomlinson, CTV News

[. . . . ] Today, the historic site has been transformed into an architecturally-stunning 10 story complex with a price tag of $180 million. The cost is higher than the Canadian embassy in Washington, DC -- which is regarded as Canada's pre-eminent showcase abroad.

The Berlin embassy was built in a private-public partnership between the Canadian government and a German company: the Hannover Leasing Group.

By the time it opened on Friday -- 4 years after its initial completion date -- Canada's contribution was $102 million, with Hanover picking up the rest. The original cost to the Canadian taxpayer was estimated at $39 million.

The over-runs have gone largely unnoticed, according to one Conservative Senator. [Kinsella . . . . ]

Waiting for justice after the Gomery Report?

[. . . . ] white collar crimes in Canada are treated with a slap on the wrist. They usually end up with a year or two of jail time in a minimum security facility. It is better to get justice by throwing the Libs out than "waiting for the gomery report- as martin keeps saying, since he knows not much is going to happen to them anyway.Amogst other things , there is no truth in sentencing in Canada either. [. . . . ]

Lawyer gets three-year sentence for money laundering Paul waldie, Mar. 31, 05

Toronto lawyer Simon Rosenfeld received a three-year prison sentence for money laundering yesterday, less than half what Crown prosecutors were seeking.

"I leave it up to you to determine what message that sends," Crown attorney Rosemary Warren said briskly after the sentence was handed down by Madam Justice Tamarin Dunnet of the Ontario Superior Court. [. . . . ]

Liberal Culture of corruption

PM has screwed up Peter Worthington, Apr. 29, 05

Let's cut to the chase. Paul Martin's "deal" with Jack Layton was motivated by one thing -- his fear of becoming a footnote to history like other short-lived PMs: Joe Clark, John Turner, Kim Campbell.

That boils down to desperation and ego -- always a volatile combination that provokes odd behaviour [. . . . ]

A piece of the puzzle May 5, 05

We're wondering what Chuck Guite could possibly have to gain by fibbing to Justice John Gomery about the role prominent Liberal cabinet ministers played in deciding which Quebec advertising firms received federal contracts.

[. . . . ] Martin spokesman Scott Reid was quick to dismiss Guite's testimony. [. . . . ]

A similar denial came from Manley. [. . . . ]

It's a strategy that we have seen all too often from the federal Liberals. When there's any suggestion of wrongdoing, start with a firm denial and stick to that story until the facts prove otherwise.

Obviously Guite's allegations have yet to be proven. Yet his testimony adds one more element to a fresco being painted by witnesses at the Gomery inquiry. [. . . . ]

No Class!

Gritically injured Link Byfield, April 29, 2005, Calgary Sun

Martin was an earnest boy-wonder with his sleeves rolled up for action, a sharp political genius surrounded by sharp younger political geniuses, who would re-energize the Liberal party and remake Canada.

That was the hype.

The media repeated it, and the public believed it.

Now, look at them, trailing in the polls for the first time in two decades, ridiculed by the media, issuing contradictory policy statements every 20 minutes, and desperately clinging to office by auctioning off public expenditures and private patronage.

If Martin had any real class, self-respect or smarts, he would not have gone on television . . . begging the nation for a few more months.

He would have gone to the governor general and asked for an election. [. . . . ]

---

RCMP Dismantling of Counterfeiting Network & Bolton's sin is telling truth about system

RCMP: Dismantling of Counterfeiting Network

MONTREAL, Tuesday, May 10, 2005 - Police officers from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrested early this morning in Montreal and yesterday in Toronto two individuals involved in a Canadian banknote, credit card and passport counterfeiting network. The arrest of these two individuals is part of Project CHARNY, a year-long initiative carried out by members of the RCMP Counterfeit Section and Immigration Section in Montreal and Toronto.

During the investigation, police officers were able to infiltrate the network, which operated mostly out of Montreal and Toronto and specialized in manufacturing and circulating counterfeit money. Several bogus money purchases put investigators on the trail of a Toronto-based network involved in forging passports and illegally manufacturing other identification cards.

The investigation led to the seizure of $284,000 in counterfeit bills, 92 documents of biographical data for Canadian passports and more than 9,000 plastic cards used to make forged credit cards, SIN cards, health insurance cards and Quebec/Ontario driver's licences.

Searches executed during Project CHARNY also led to the discovery, in Cornwall, of the computer equipment used to make false pieces of identification. A third suspect was identified and charged.

A total of 13 charges were laid against three Canadian residents originally from Sri Lanka and Lebanon: Rajmohan JEYARAJAH, a 31-year-old from Mississauga, Thulasinathan THANGAVELU, a 38-year-old from Montreal, and Mohammad A. HASHMI, a 44-year-old from Cornwall. [. . . . ]

Are these members of the infamous LTTE or Tamil Tigers, the group that intimidates other Tamil immigrants to Canada so as to continue in their nefarious ways? The groups feted by Liberals such as ex-Min. Maria Minna, MP Jim Karygianis and the PM? Courting votes, I suspect.

This is only one example -- the result of years of Liberal government and their self-serving immigration-for-votes policies. There is no concern for Canadians, just for remaining in power. The decent immigrants do not want this, nor do those of us born here. Turf the party of pork and vote buying.




US Ambassador Designate to the UN: Bolton's sin is telling truth about system

Bolton's sin is telling truth about system Mark Steyn, Sun-Times, May 15, 05

Remember the tsunami?

[. . . . ] John Bolton's sin is to have spoken the truth about the international system rather than the myths to which photo-oppers like the Canadian prime minister defer. As a consequence, he's being treated like a container of Western aid being processed by Indonesian customs. Customs Inspector Joe Biden and Junior Clerk Voinovich spent two months trying to come up with reasons why Bolton's paperwork is inadequate and demanding to know why he hasn't filled out his RU1-2. An RU1-2 is the official international bureaucrat's form reassuring the global community that he'll continue to peddle all the polite fictions, no matter how self-evidently risible they are. John Bolton isn't one, too. That's why we need him.

Search: The part of the tsunami aid operation that worked , all that the so-called "multilateralists" require is , Bolton would have no problem getting nominated as U.N. ambassador if he were more like , $425 million , "spent so far? Fifty thousand" , even when the entire planet is on the same side , working through the approved transnational bureaucracies and throw even more "resources" at

Bliss on the GG's Job in "Canada's House of ill repute"

Canada's House of ill repute Michael Bliss, National Post, May 14, 2005

Michael Bliss is a professor of history at the University of Toronto and the author of Right Honourable Men: The Descent of Canadian Politics from Macdonald to Chretien

Canadians ought to realize that this week's breakdown of their Parliament is far more serious than any of the thuggish revelations from the Gomery commission. As of this weekend, we are in the historically unprecedented situation of having a Prime Minister who is clinging to office by recklessly disregarding the fundamental principles of our democracy. It is a shocking act of proto-tyranny, which justifies the extreme resort of intervention by the Governor-General.

[. . . . ] The Governor-General cannot intervene solely on her own initiative, but if she receives a request to intervene from the leaders of the parties that are daily demonstrating their control of the House of Commons, she can and must act. It has been reported that Mr. Harper and Mr. Duceppe have decided to appeal to Governor-General Clarkson. If they do, she has a clear duty to take note of the situation in Parliament and request that her Prime Minister seek the confidence of the House at the earliest opportunity, which is Monday. If he refuses to do his, the Governor-General ought to make known to Parliament her displeasure -- a step that would almost certainly have an immense effect on public opinion. [. . . . ]

---

Bombardier Pork Billions: Technology Partnerships Program, Export Development Canada EDC, Etc

"The aerospace company's project to manufacture a new regional jet will cost more than US$2.1-billion and is based on taxpayers paying a third of the cost."

For Bombardier, the pork keeps coming John Williamson, National Post, May 14, 2005

John Williamson is federal director of the Canadian Taxpapers Federation.

Federal Transport Minister Jean Lapierre told a big whopper yesterday in Montreal. When the Liberals' Quebec lieutenant announced Ottawa will hand $350-million to Bombardier Aerospace, he described it as a "repayable contribution." The "repayable" qualifier, which Ottawa dangles every time it subsidizes big business, is meant to reassure taxpayers their money is not being squandered by politicians. But Mr. Lapierre knows it's not true. Pigs will fly before tax money paid to Bombardier is repaid to the federal government.

[. . . . ] Taxpayers don't even know the full extent of Ottawa's corporate welfare program. The $1.12-billion subsidy does not include any loans or financing guarantees provided to Bombardier clients through Export Development Canada (EDC), a government-owned company not required to release its loan portfolio. But Canadian Business magazine reported in 2004 that "of the $6.5-billion in gross loans receivable EDC had outstanding to aerospace customers at the end of 2003, 85% went to Bombardier's customers."

Just last week, EDC provided US$230-million to two subsidiaries of Delta Air Lines. The money came from a $1.2-billion fund established by the federal government in 2003 to aid Bombardier's regional jet sales. A similar loan of US$150-million was provided to Delta in July 2004 to purchase jets from Bombardier.

Bombardier chooses Montreal area to build new aircraft; Ottawa pays $350M Allan Swift, CP, May 14, 2005

MONTREAL (CP) - Bombardier Aerospace has decided to build its new CSeries aircraft in the Montreal area, with the support of nearly $900 million in government aid - including $350 million from Ottawa and $110 million from Quebec.

[. . . . ] It has been estimated that Ottawa [That is Canadian taxpayers' $$$] has since 1972 contributed $1 billion to the Montreal-based aerospace company and has received $275 million in royalties from aircraft sales.

Quebec has about 43 per cent of the country's $22-billion aerospace industry, the third-largest in the world after the United States and Europe, employing 80,000 Canadians.

[. . . . ] John Williamson, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, denounced the subsidy, saying the money was being squandered in "the federal government's corporate welfare program."

Feds pony up for risky Bombardier jet -- $350M federal investment Nicolas Van Praet, Financial Post, May 14, 2005

[. . . . ] The U.K. government said it would contribute up to $421-million to help Bombardier develop the CSeries. Quebec pledged $118-million, and said it would pay up to $175-million for a factory it will lease to Bombardier to build the planes. In all, governments yesterday promised Bombardier a combined $1.06-billion. Quebec and Ottawa's commitment together is worth $643-million, less than expected.

Federal Transport Minister Jean Lapierre and Environment Minister Stephane Dion proudly announced the aid at a news conference in Montreal yesterday, arguing the money would benefit all Canadians. The financing is to be structured under Ottawa's Technology Partnerships Program. Mr. Lapierre said Bombardier would repay the government through royalties from CSeries sales.

[. . . . ] The Canadian Taxpayers Federation challenged Liberals to release Bombardier's record for repaying subsidies. "Bombardier is a welfare sinkhole," it said.

And the CD Howe Institute said Canadians should view Ottawa's move with suspicion.

"What you want is the accounting, at least a try at showing that this makes any sense," said Finn Poschmann, associate director of research at CD Howe. "The justification [the public] sees is never a proper cost-benefit analysis."

---

Andrew Coyne: The Real Adscam Mystery

The real Adscam mystery Andrew Coyne, National Post, May 14, 2005

Where did they get the cash? Not the money -- we know where they got that. They got it from us: [. . . . ]

We know why they did this: to escape detection. What's not clear is how. Where does anyone get their hands on $200,000 in cash? You can't just walk into a bank and cash a cheque for 200-grand, in small bills please, unmarked, and be sure to scramble the serial numbers, won't you? Even if you make a lot of little withdrawals, there are bound to be questions asked. There are laws about these things. To scrape together that kind of cash without attracting attention, you have to draw from a large number of separate and unrelated sources, and do so in a way that does not leave a paper trail of its own. Or you have to know the kind of people who can do that for you.

As shady as they seem to be, I somehow doubt that even Liberal party executives possess those kinds of skills. [. . . . ]

Why was Daniel Dezainde so deathly afraid of Joe Morselli? [. . . . ]

"Organized crime mobs are targeting Parliament and other Canadian institutions in an attempt to spread corruption and political instability, says the new head of the RCMP. [Ottawa Citizen of September 8, 2000]

Warren Kinsella: the Impiety of the Pious, Robert Fulford: "Canada's handout culture"

Volumes, someone once remarked, can be written on the impiety of the pious. Warren Kinsella, May 13, 2005, National Post via JR and RC

[. . . . ] For me, this week's controversy stirred memories of one dark evening, approximately three years ago, when I very nearly quit the Liberal Party of Canada. It was the night that Mr. Martin's British Columbia apparatchiks took over the riding association of former Cabinet minister Herb Dhaliwal, knowing (a) Mr. Dhaliwal was out of the country; and (b) his wife was dying of cancer.

Having written a book with the title Kicking Ass in Canadian Politics, and having seen more than a few political donnybrooks in my day, I cannot claim to believe that politics is ever played with the Marquess of Queensbury rulebook. It is not, it has never been, and it never will be. But to humiliate a Cabinet colleague whose wife was dying of cancer? I've witnessed a lot of political thuggery, but I had never before seen anything as disgusting as that. It was only a friend in Ottawa who talked me out of quitting the Liberal party, on that night.

[. . . . ] But ask yourself a question: If, as Mr. Gray wrote, the federal Liberal leader's lieutenants were permitted "to hijack the riding of a cabinet colleague whose wife was dying of cancer," would they then hesitate, even a moment, to take advantage of the illnesses of two MPs who aren't cabinet colleagues?

PM will grovel for votes, lie, spend other people's money like a drunken sailor. He has no concept of what is honourable. An embarrassment. In short, a PM with no class.




Canada's handout culture -- Gay and not so proud: Noriega of the north Robert Fulford, National Post, May 14, 2005

The ugly truth of this sour political springtime is that no one was surprised when Paul Martin discarded his principles, made a financial treaty with the New Democrats and then went across Canada throwing money in all directions, some $20-billion in all, give or take a few billion.

[. . . . ] Our method of government corrupts expectations and frustrates progress. In one crucial way it resembles our health system: We know it doesn't work but we can't imagine changing it. So we live in a culture of grantsmanship and special pleading. Whether you make a movie or an aircraft, you require government money, therefore government approval. The system leaks into the arts like poison in the water table, explaining every failure. If our broadcasting is mediocre, as it usually is, we can say that the government doesn't give us enough money. Who can argue with that? Almost everyone says the same thing.

[. . . . ] In 1980, I despised Jimmy Carter but had no hope for the movie actor the Republicans put up against him. I was colossally wrong. The tragedy of contemporary Canadian politics is that we never had a Reagan.

Watch for the hysteria on CBC over the idea that the spigot might be closed.

I just watched some superb nature programs on PBS. Privatize CBC and get it completely out of reporting the news and politics for it is a government agency.

---

Aboriginal school loses half its funding, Philippine Immigration, Hells

Aboriginal school that's 'doing all the right things' loses half its funding Sarah Schmidt, CanWest, May 14, 2005

[. . . . ] Supporters of the First Nations Technical Institute have been quietly lobbying the government for months after Ottawa told school officials it was chopping its long-standing annual contribution by almost half -- from $2.7 million to $1.5 million -- for the coming school year.

The institute, located in the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory near Belleville, Ont., is a magnet for Aboriginals from across Canada because of its success rate. The employment rate of graduates is 90%. [. . . . ]

Indian Affairs Minister Andy Scott was unavailable for comment Friday, but Katherine Knott, the department's director of education for the Ontario region, said her hands are tied by the funding rules. [. . . . ]

Shameful.




Filipinos set their sights on Canada -- Immigration rising: Moribund economy has middle class seeking better future Mynardo Macaraig, AFP, May 14, 2005

MANILA - Canada is fast becoming the country of choice for many middle-class professional Filipinos who are leaving the tropical Philippines in droves to seek a better future for themselves and their families overseas.

Armed with a college degree and a good career history with a multinational electronics firm in Manila, Ferdie Del Rosario plans to quit his job and emigrate to Canada. [. . . . ]

Filipinos are the third largest group of immigrants to Canada, just behind the Chinese and Indians. Approximately 12,000 immigrated last year alone, Canadian officials said. [. . . . ]

If you read the fine print on this, I believe a Filipino must have a relative here already. Check; you may find that this is actually immigration from another Asian country via the Phiippines. Make a guess.

The Paul Martin Liberals need votes. If the family members here vote for another reign of the corrupt Liberals, they will be able bring in a massive number. . . . . It's just the way the Libs have arranged it.




A Super Idea from BC! Is it possible?

Drug trade fuels violence -- Indo-Canadian youth exploited by Hells Angels, distraught dad says Kim Bolan, Vancouver Sun, May 14, 2005

Hells Angels are criminalizing Indo-Canadian youth by using them in organized crime, says the prominent father of a young man charged this week in connection with an April 26 kidnapping and assault.

Harjit Singh Atwal, a former member of the International Sikh Youth Federation, said the Hells Angels should be banned in Canada, just as the ISYF and Babbar Khalsa were banned.

[. . . . ] Charged along with Bobby Atwal and Narwal in the April 26 incident are: Mandeap Singh Johal, Jasraj Singh Bains, Harkamal Singh Cheema and Gurdip Singh Sidhu. All are Surrey residents.

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The true offspring of Howard Wilson--another ethics lapdog

Speaking of ethics, The National Post (Wed. 11) showcased the lack thereof in the new, (supposedly improved) Ethics Commissioner, Bernard Shapiro. After months of investigating and $150,000 in legal payments, Shapiro claims that Judy Sgro is innocent of all influence peddling charges against her. However, he refused to release his complete report to a House of Commons committee. He did admit to using the same law firm to handle the case which is presently defending the Liberal party at the Gomery Inquiry. This is a firm which donated $165,000 to the Liberals between 2000 and 2003, as well as donating $25,000 to Paul Martin's leadership campaign [That is the part we know about; check.]. The firm was also picked without any tendering procedure. The whole thing is akin to hiring Lucky Luciano to investigate Al Capone.

Ed Broadbent--the only NDPer I would ever consider voting for--criticized Shapiro for exempting both John Manley and Lyle Vanclief, two former Liberal cabinet ministers, from the two year restriction on lobbying. Broadbent also pointed out that Shapiro has done nothing about investigating eight decisions by Howard Wilson, his predecessor, which were overturned by the courts. The vicious slandering of Mr. Beaudoin, who was forced out of the Business Development Bank by Chretien, so Chretien could appoint his buddy, Jean Carle, is the most famous case. And then there is Shapiro's failure to honour his promise to review and update the electorate on Paul Martin's position in regards to when he should recuse himself from financial decisions. Considering that Martin's CSL raked in $161 million in government loans, grants, and other sums, that should have been his first concern. [Now, Bud, don't forget PM has "absolutely no" interest in CSL since he sold it to his sons -- so we can all rest easy -- can't we? NJC]

All in all, there is every indication that Mr. Shapiro is turning out to be another of the Liberal's "democratic deficits". If the watchdog over government ethics is merely another Martinite lackey, than what hope do we have of stemming the slimy practices we keep seeing emerge?

There have been so many scandals in the Liberal years that it is almost impossible to remember them all. Stephen Harper this week in Parliament mentioned one of these I had forgotten. Groupe Action made a report on something that the Liberals' claimed was lost; so they were paid another half million to reproduce an almost identical report. I suspect if we could get to the real corruption that occurred throughout the Liberals' reign, it would be a billion. The Gomery Commission will only show us the tip of the iceberg of this fraud. A poll today (May 9th) showed that 63% of those polled thought Paul Martin was dishonest. I shudder to think how high the number would have been if they had asked about Jean Chretien's veracity.

© Bud Talkinghorn

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Gomery Inquiry: Envelopes to Suitcases of Illegal Loot

From envelopes of illegal loot to suitcases of it, the Gomery Inquiry just keeps getting better

Witness Marc-Yvon Cote, the chief Liberal organizer for Eastern Quebec, has testified before Justice Gomery that he lugged a suitcase filled with $60,000 to Shawinigan. It was to pay the Liberal candidates whom Chretien had assembled in his hometown. Some of it was given to nine candidates there and some to nine other candidates later. This collaborates earlier testimony of how secret money was funnelled to Liberals during the 1997 election. Along with the "fake volunteers" (as Mr. Corbeil called them), the entire Liberal campaign was tainted with fraud. Despite the revelations growing more sinister by the day, the Liberals have actually gone up in the polls, depending upon the media spin -- particularly from the LPO [Liberal Propaganda Organ] and assorted other mainstream media minions. Perhaps this is why the Bloc and the Conservatives feel they must strike now. Personally, I see this trend upward for the Liberals as a horrifying example of Canada's moral and ethical decline. Surely we can rise above the level of Mexico in terms of accepting massive political corruption.

© Bud Talkinghorn

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The Dark Stain of Darfur -- Paul Martin

This week we have seen a surrealistic adventure in political realpolitik. The key player was the disaffected Liberal, David Kilgour. Kilgour laid down the guantlet: Either Martin comes up with a reasonable plan to stop the carnage and rape in Darfur, or he can kiss goodbye to Kilgour's non-confidence support. The clambering of all parties to assure him that they were behind his resolve to stop the genocide was almost comical. Kilgour wants Canada to commit no less than 500 troops to combat the rampaging Janjaweed militia, who have killed around 300,000 black Sudanese in the last two years. He is probably right in saying that any less than that number would be practically meaningless. After all, you are talking about an area the size of France and a combatant that is supported by the regular Sudanese airforce.

Here is how Paul Martin picked up Kilgour's guantlet. PM promised to send in "up to 100 troops", who would be unarmed "support" members for the African Union troops. These are the same AU troops that have been accused of human rights abuses, when sent to Sierra Leone and the Congo. Martin knows their record, but to be diplomatic, refuses to publically acknowledge it. He has succumbed to the same mindless blather as his counterparts in the UN. It is typical pol-speak. Just as the UN thug states pay lip service to the idea of bringing peace to the innumerable African hotspots, so Martin has committed himself to an airy-fairy plan of action, which will do nothing to suppress the violence.

Kilgour thinks another year's delay in real action would cost another 50,000 deaths. Martin did commit to throwing money at the problem--$170 million in total, over two years. This is the same man who has tried to bribe the Canadian voters (and the NDP) with about $20 billion in promises. However, I suspect Kilgour is not impressed. He knows, as does any thinking person, that it will take boots on the ground, along with lots of firepower, to stop the Janjaweed. People who rape, burn and kill with impunity do not respond readily to diplomatic chit-chat. You have to kill a goodly number of them to get their attention. The Sudanese government has murdered millions of their black brethern in southern Sudan for years, but has been undeterred by world-wide condemnation.

The Arab league has actually supported this bloodthirsty regime and the despots of black Africa are loathe to interfere in another member's repression--think what that would lead to. Why their own daily crimes against humanity would be the lead-off everyday in the General Assembly. No, it is better to stay on point and reflexivly condemn Israel for its villainous subjugation of the Palestinians.

When Martin goes down to defeat there is the perfect position for him as Secretary-General of the United Nations. There he could dither and obfuscate to his heart's content. So long as he kept increasing the delegates' salaries and threw great cocktail parties, he would be boffo. As an extra perk, he could lambaste the Americans without fear of retaliation at election time. He could even hire Carolyn Parrish as his press secretary.

© Bud Talkinghorn

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Follow the money trail

The Liberals are scattering loot to Ontario and Quebec with abandon. Their new motto: "Flags are not enough". I read the list of Liberal grants in The National Post and with a few nods to key East and West Coast weak areas, the bulk went to these two provinces. The fact that the Liberals still cling to their past record of fiscal responsibility does not stop them from making absurd promises. Depending on whose figures you accept, the Liberals have now committed between $15.7 billion and $20 billion to various programs. The ever-tricky Finance Minister, Ralph Goodale, can only "estimate" that the present federal surplus will be around $9 billion. So how can the government fulfill their promises without driving the country into deficit? Just as Chretien's legacy will be one of grand larency, Martin's will be of squandering a fine fiscal policy for the sake of staying in power at all costs.

© Bud Talkinghorn

PS: As for Martin's 'fine fiscal responsibility', Bud, remember that as Finance Minister, he started paying down the debt and stopped Canadians' whoosh into further debt, the legacy of Trudeau, Mulroney, Chretien, Quebec influence and the usual claque. PM did collect too much in taxes and in other ways so as to have $$$ for election pork when he needed it. For example, I believe he over-collected employment insurance from participants and under paid out on claims, to further buttress his shiv in the back shoving JC aside, along with sitting MP's and others, to run the country with the intention of being elected and re-elected.

I still think there is more to Paul Martin's utterly undignified desperation to remain Prime Minister than mere "very very" great concern about everything and his desire to serve -- more even than mere money. Of course, that is just in my humble opinion which is worth . . . . . NJC


Related: Resistance is futile Michael Dabioch on March 28, 2005

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Spare the Rod, Librano$, "There is never political interference in the CRA"

"There is never political interference in the CRA"

Tax racket 16 May 2005, Andrea Mrozek, WesternStandard.ca

[. . . . ] Duff Conacher, co-ordinator for the Ottawa-based government ethics watchdog Democracy Watch, says the most worrisome part is that we may never know whether someone pulled strings at the CRA to make [Stephen] LeDrew's life miserable because the inner workings of the tax department are largely beyond public scrutiny. "There is no assessment possible of whether it is fair or unfair treatment," he says. "They [the CRA] are allowed to operate too much in secret." Of course it's always possible somebody allowed that to happen for a reason. [. . . . ]

Spare the rod... 16 May 2005, Ric Dolphin

Search: reminiscent of Canada's equalization scheme , into the rabbit warren , incentives for self-reliance , the moment Charest attempted to prosecute , an almost pathological distrust of , Faced with this reality , finally getting tired of the tantrums

This is a good article; in fact, I love the Western Standard. Check it out -- as I have urged before.




Librano$

Librano$ Make Joe Volpe mad. Buy a Libranos T-shirt

Get something for nothing; isn't that the Canadian way? . . . This is NOT a Liberal promise; you will actually get it.

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In Remembrance of Mother: dedicated to all those who did not have a demonstrative, loving mother

The following article comes from someone who wishes to remain anonymous. I did not publish it on Mother's Day, partly because of other pressing concerns and partly because it will probably offend most people. It does not have that "icky-sweet, I remember Momma" tone of most Mother's Day tributes. Yet, I think it is far more realistic for all those who remember a somewhat different kind of mother. For that reason, I think the message is more important than are flowery words easily gushed forth for one day of the year . . . if you read to the end.

Note:

I have edited this by listing items and making other small changes but the essence has not been altered. NJC

Yesterday, I forgot it was Mother's Day, until it was almost over. I thought about why. As a mother, mine was extraordinarily responsible, though hardly what one would term a "loving" parent. I never heard her say anything about loving, but her life was a tribute to making do, to stoicism and shouldering responsibility, even when she felt most unready and perhaps quite unequal to the task. She survived.

Mother and I never really knew what made the other tick; it made for a strange relationship but Mother will be remembered with gratitude for the lessons she taught, or allowed me to learn, not that she always realized what lessons I would take from her. Other lessons evolved as a result of this strange relationship with one who would never have chosen me as a child. Nor, for that matter, in the earlier years, would I have chosen her; she was too demanding of perfection, dissatisfied with me and my efforts and too undemonstrative. Besides, her regard was conditional upon making the right noises whether truly meant or not and, of course, bending to her iron will. I chose never to stoop . . . and so we were at loggerheads. She was also an expert in playing one against another, whether through praising a neighbour child or a family member to demonstrate and emphasize my shortcomings. She had her ways, very effective ones.

Yet her weaknesses brought me unexpected and positive consequences. How sad for both of us and yet, it was the lessons she taught by example, added to the ones she passed on unintentionally, that have been most influential and beneficial in my life.

She taught, not by talking and patiently explaining, for she was not the type to do that, perhaps could not. Certainly, better than empty words she could not feel--mimicking the sounds of a loving mother--she taught lessons harder to learn. They have proved to be her most valuable legacy. While what she taught may seem austere, without humour and fun, her influence, detailed below, has been more valued by me.

* Whatever else happens, work keeps one going. Don't waste time worrying; just dig in and get the necessary work done. Either the worst will happen or it won't, but you'll have the immediate work done, anyway.

* Work and sleep cure almost everything; for the rest there are a cuddly kitten and / or a puppy, along with wildlife and birds.

* Expect nothing; you'll never be disappointed . . . and plan for the worst. The bottom can drop out of your world with no warning.

* A person can survive almost anything; just put one foot ahead of the other, no matter what happens. It will pass.

* Nature, trees, water, wildlife and solitude are a balm for the soul, a way to re-energize and face another day.

* Friendships are ephemeral--except for one or two; never trust anyone too far nor too much. Things change unexpectedly so prepare to survive.

* Practice frugality--of the home-made bread, baked beans, and preserves variety. Learn to grow it, do it or make it yourself--well enough for survival, at least. Learn to make and love foods that can be stretched, such as soups by adding liquid and vegetables.

* As a single parent, she was always there -- no boyfriends, no second husband. There would be no more frivolity if there ever were any. Life would be hard and serious. From the point of view of a child, that sense of responsibility and a father not replaced is reassuring, whatever it might have been for her. No-one could take the place of her husband and a perfect father, for so he seemed by comparison, in my childish mind. Yet, it was she who was left with the work, hence, her next lessons.

* Keep learning even when you don't understand, for you must be ready to support yourself whatever happens. Maybe you'll figure it out; at least you will learn to persevere. Some day it will all come together--to click in--and you'll know--or you won't--but you will have learned not to quit much of anything you must do. Just maybe, there will be an epiphany and you will understand.

* Stick with something--or someone--just because it is the right thing to do. Take care of those who took care of you, particularly, family -- not in the Liberal government $$$ sense, but in the old-fashioned sense of just doing what has to be done, even when you don't want to. It may bring good karma--or you will feel virtuous and that is not a bad feeling either. It won't last so you'll have to renew . . . . . and renew.

* The things you accumulate will only become junk to be moved about or given away. What you put in your head won't need to be stored anywhere else and you can always pack in more. You can't take anything with you so what happens to material goods in the end won't matter at all. Give away things whenever you can bring yourself to, even what seems most valuable because of the memories associated with them. Things that trigger memories have value for that reason, so you don't have to give all away.

* Having food and a roof over your head are just about enough.

* Give to the poor . . . and to drunks and fools; you never know when you will be part of that group that slipped through the cracks . . . for whatever reasons . . . whether through one's own fault or not. You just don't know what will happen so build up a stash of good works in case there is a God who keeps a reckoning. Which brings me to the last one . . .

* Go to church, synagogue, temple or place of worship, even when you're not sure what can be known, given the imperfection of the human mind and even though you think you do not believe, cannot believe, or are convinced you are too smart for all that. Places of communal worship and fellowship are a bulwark for the family and support the best instincts of a society, even though there have been a few bad apples associated with them. It is important to remember that a little awe and fear of a Supreme Being, First Principle, or whatever that God is named, along with the concept of eternity, help to put things here in perspective. We pale to insignificence, as do our concerns, when we consider eternity.

There were other lessons which don't come to mind right now; this is enough to show that this was a kind of love, for it gives a child what is necessary to keep going in the face of adversity, to survive. Some lessons arose out of her example; others arose out of necessity because of her. Not all lessons were as negative and austere as they sound for, unexpectedly, they have have led to a kind of peace, in the Buddhist sense of desiring little. It is very difficult not to desire a few things, but it may come close. Not all lessons have been observed scrupulously but it was Mother who led me to them.

Thanks to my Mother who was a good parent carrying a heavy load.

It is not a bad legacy for an "undemonstrative" parent, is it?

The fun stuff one can learn for oneself.

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UNSCAM: Pascua and Galloway

Report on oil allocations granted to Charles Pasqua and George Galloway BBC

United States Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs Norm Coleman, Chairman Carl Levin, Ranking Minority Member

Report on oil allocations granted to Charles Pasqua and George Galloway prepared by the majority and minority staffs of the permanent subcommittee on investigations released in conjunction with the permanent subcommittee on investigations May 17, 2005

Oil for influence: how Saddam used oil to reward politicians and terrorist entities under the united Nations oil-for-food program [. . . . ]

On June 19, 1999, two days after SOMO’s June 17th letter concerning Pasqua, Tariq Aziz’s staff informed SOMO that Bernard Guillet was the authorized representative of Charles Pasqua:

Please be informed that Mr. Bernard Guillet) is the diplomatic and political advisor of Mr. (Charles Pasqua), the French politician and former Minister of the Interior; Mr. Guillet represents Mr. Pasqua in receiving the oil allocation allotted to the latter.38 That same day, the Executive Director of SOMO and the Oil Minister held a telephone conference to discuss the allocation to Charles Pasqua. The substance of that conference was captured in a follow-up letter from SOMO to the Oil Minister.39 That letter was entitled “The French Personality Charles Pasqua” and states: With reference to the telephone conversation with your Excellency

This morning, 06/19/1999, the Swiss company Genmar is the authorized company by Mr. Charles Pasqua to lift the quantity allocated to him in phase 6. SOMO then indicated that it would execute a contract with Genmar for Pasqua’s allocation. [. . . . ]

Prime Ministerial Mendacity & the Atlantic Accord -- Polling

Update: For some reason, this seems to have been a very popular post.

GG & Order of Canada-Aga Khan & Paul Desmarais, Jr., Tax $$$ to Khan's 'centre for pluralism', Maurice Strong, Zenon, China, Kyoto, Coal, Info Control posted May 9, 05

Search: "GG Honours Aga Khan with Honourary Companion & Paul Desmarais, Jr. with Officer of the Order of Canada -- Is it a cross-pollination of networks?"

Paul Martin will lie and lie--huffing and puffing fake concern about. . . well, just about everything--all to cling to power. He dishonours the office of PM. It may be one thing for the minions to flout the truth; it should be quite another for the leader of the country to do it.

Liberals target Nfld. Tory MPs Loyola Hearn and Norman Doyle Dene Moore, May 13, 05

[. . . . ] "And the future of that budget really is in the hands of Loyola Hearn and Norman Doyle," the prime minister said after a brief ceremony attended by Premier Danny Williams.

"Depending on how they vote will (decide) whether, in fact, the budget succeeds or not. So the Atlantic accords are in their hands and I really hope they do the right thing."

Hearn (Conservative) said if the prime minister was concerned about giving the province what it wants, then the federal Liberals should have voted in favour of a Conservative motion Friday that would have separated the offshore accord from the budget.

"This has nothing to do with the Atlantic Accord," Hearn said from Ottawa. "This is about trying to save the skin of the Liberal government."

Stephen Harper will deliver on his commitment to the Atlantic Accord." [MP Peter MacKay]

Related:

Grits cling to power

Health Minister to woo Independent MP




Polling

SOURCES OF VARIATION IN PUBLISHED ELECTION POLLING: A PRIMER By Cliff Zukin, Professor of Public Policy, Rutgers University, October 2004. -- via Newsbeat1

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Winning in Business in Canada: More Tripping Along the Yellow Brick Road

I have noted a great degree of cross-pollination between educational institutions, honourary degrees, other awards, political donations, civic celebrations, networks in Canada which have gone global, powerful figures in our government, what appear to be political favours and great success in business. See what you think.

On a sunny spring day, this is lengthy and possibly not worth reading. I simply don't know. It intrigued me.




China, Canada, Networks & Connections, Harmony Airways, Donations to PM, Awards Received & More

For an airline begun such a short time ago, in the face of extremely difficult times for the air industry, David TK Ho's Harmony Airlines' rise has been meteoric. Of course, it helps to have studied in Canada years ago, to be very wealthy, and . . . .

2002

Mar. 12, 2002, TK Ho, immigrant from Hong Kong and owner of David T.K. Ho Enterprises, started Harmony Air with no planes or pilots at that point; he did bring money.


2005

Last month WestJet was reported (National Post) to be asking the Canadian government to help protect Canadian airlines, presumably from foreign competition; fortunately for Mr. Ho, he is now a Canadian citizen or has landed immigrant status.

Harmony One Step Closer to Introducing Service to China

Vancouver, BC April 19, 2005: Vancouver-based Harmony Airways is applauding the conclusion of China and Canada's new bilateral air agreement and moving forward with plans to introduce daily passenger service to China.

Harmony Airways has applied to Transport Canada for designation to fly to China. Once designation is granted, the carrier could start daily service as early as summer 2006. In the meantime, Harmony is working on cooperative agreements with Chinese based carriers to introduce service on a code shared basis. Code sharing allows passengers to conveniently connect from Harmony to other partner carriers using one ticket and a single, through fare. [. . . . ]

Using credit cards? Think about that.




How was this achieved?

In another news release from the Harmony Airways website: TK Ho sponsors "HSBC Celebration of Light" -- Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Vancouver, BC, July 29, 2004

Harmony Airways, formally HMY Airways [donor to Paul Martin's campaign], is pleased to sponsor the annual HSBC Celebration of Light. As Vancouver's own airline, we believe in supporting the communities we serve. We are honored to be apart of this annual event, an event that brings enjoyment and pleasure to people throughout the Greater Vancouver area. [. . . . ]

Note: "pleased to sponsor . . . . we believe in supporting the communities we serve". Which communities? There appear to be connections in real estate in Canada and in Hong Kong and a few other places. Ho's "in" with China and the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank are useful, as well. Scroll down for more on HSBC of the above. Search: "HSBC Celebration of Light". Note the networks of involved citizens.



2003 September

Another news release on the Harmony Airlines website, as well, mentions another connection for air business success -- perhaps useful also with connections between Canada and China.

Vancouver, BC Sep 25, 2003
Harmony Airways returns from meetings with Chinese Civil Aviation Authorities. Harmony Airways China Advance Team returned from Beijing on Thursday after a very successful round of discussions with China Civil Aviation Officials. [. . . . ]

2003 February

Now to the 'Celebration of Light" company and more business networks related to the BC 2010 Olympics and construction projects, highway construction, and the like.

The HSBC (bank) is one of Li Ka-shing's companies, along with Cheung Kong Holdings, involved in construction of the Black Tusk Highway leading up to Whistler and the Olympics 2010. HSBC was mentioned as a sponsor, along with TK Ho and Harmony Air, of the "HSBC Celebration of Light" Radical Press, 2/19/2003. Note the date.

Caveat: This information was compiled by a group who were (are?) against the 2010 Olympics at least in part because they thought the whole thing was an excuse for the taxpayers to be forced to provide and pay for the new / upgraded infrastructure needed for businesses to develop in BC, particularly along the route between Vancouver and the Olympic site in Whistler. Read with that bias in mind and decide for yourself what you think. NJC

[. . . . ] Li Ka-shing's companies: Omnipoint Corporation, priceline.com Incorporated, VoiceStream Wireless Corporation, Western Wireless Corporation, Global Crossing Ltd., Breakaway Solutions Inc. and Husky Energy Inc. (Husky Board Members also include: Stanley's wife Eva, Terry Hui, President and CEO of Concord Pacific Group Inc., Martin Glynn President, Chief Executive Officer and a director of HSBC Bank and Victor Li, son of Li Ka-shing & Managing Director and Deputy Chairman of Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited Canada).

[. . . . ] HSBC (of which Li Ka-shing is a Principal and Director) is aptly represented on the Bid Board by Eric Major, Director, HSBC Capital (Canada) Inc. and Milton Wong, Chair, HSBC Asset Management Canada Ltd. (responsible for assets of $4 billion at HSBC). HSBC purchased M.K. Wong & Associates to form HSBC Asset Management Canada Ltd. Merrill Lynch Canada (reportedly owned by Thomas Fung, Fairchild Group) is represented on the Bid Board by Guy Savard, Vice-Chair & Chair, Quebec Operations, Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. Merrill Lynch International is reportedly owned by Li Ka-shing and Thomas Fung. Bid Board Member, Ms. France Chrétien-Desmarais is daughter of the Honourable Jean Chretien, [then]Prime Minister of Canada. Mr. Chretien, was from 1986 to 1990 a Senior Advisor with Gordon Capital Corporation in Montreal. Gordon Capital is principally owned by Richard Li (Li Ka-Shing's son) Gordon Capital owns HSBC Securities.

Ms. Chretien-Desmarais husband is Andre Desmarais, President and Co-Chief Executive Officer of the family-owned Power Corporation of Canada [.] Power Corporation of Canada is a diversified management and holding company. Power Corporation of Canada has holdings in leading financial services and the communications sector.

Through its European-based affiliate Pargesa group, Power Corporation holds significant positions in major media, energy, water, waste services, and specialty minerals companies. Power Corporation also has diversified interests in Asia. [. . . . ]

Power Financial Corporation is a diversified management and holding company with interests in the financial services industry in North America. Its Europe-based Pargesa group, holds significant positions in major media, energy, water, waste services, and specialty minerals companies.

[. . . . ] Power Corporation of Canada is a partner with Li Ka-shing in CITIC Pacific Limited (China's largest diversified Hong Kong-traded company. Its activities are concentrated in four main areas: infrastructure, trading and distribution, real estate and industrial manufacturing). Mr. Desmarais is a Director and/or Member of the Board of: Great-West Lifeco Inc., Investors Group Inc., London Insurance Group Inc., Pargesa Holding S.A., Groupe Bruxelles-Lambert S.A., Bertelsmann A.G. Mr Desmarais is also a Director of CITIC Pacific Ltd. and Bombardier Inc.

In addition, Mr. Desmarais is Chairman of the Canada China Business Council; Member of the International Advisory Council of CITIC; Member of the Trilateral Commission; Member of the Chairman's International Advisory Council of the Americas Society; Member of the Business Council on National Issues and Member of diverse foundations and trusts in Canada and a Member of the Hong Kong Chief Executive's Council of International Advisers (The CECIA advises the Chief Executive from an international perspective on strategic issues pertinent to the long-term development of Hong Kong).

As mentioned, Ms. Chretien Desmarais' husband Andre is a Director of Bombardier Inc. [. . . . ]

Li Ka-shing reportedly also holds an exclusive right to use the CN Tower for a period of 35 years (obtained for $2 billion CDN). Financier Robert Fung, was appointed by Prime Minister (and former business partner) Jean Chretien to Chair the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Task Force on behalf of the Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario and the City of Toronto. The new corporation was to involve construction of large-scale infrastructure projects that would permanently improve Toronto's waterfront, as well as support the city's bid for the 2008 Olympics. [The decision gave the Olympics to Vancouver but I understand the waterfront improvement is to go forward. Check this. NJC]

His report detailed a strategic business plan for the $12 billon renewal, development and financing of Toronto's waterfront. Fung was afterward appointed as Chair of the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation.

Search: Do we see any trends here that may help us find the answer? , Can anyone really rationalize the spending of billions of dollars , AND HERE COMES THE REALLY SAD PART FOR TAXPAYERS:



2003 October -- CSL wins award in Hong Kong

There are other connections and networks of interest -- and awards.

The winning campaign: Citation For Outstanding TV Campaign -- “One2Free ‘SMS Lovers’" -- Hong Kong CSL Ltd. -- Paul Martin's CSL--ex-company--divested to his sons. Check when.

Professional Institute of Management and education Press Release 27/10/2003

“One2Free ‘SMS Lover’” marketing campaign by Hong Kong CSL Ltd won the Gold Prize of the HKMA/TVB Award for Marketing Excellence 2003. [. . . . ]

. . . Mr T K Ho, Group General Manager, Television Broadcasts Ltd presented the trophies and certificates at the Award Presentation Luncheon this afternoon (Monday, 27 October 2003). The Award Presentation Ceremony also featured the keynote address on "Beyond Light & Power" by Mrs Betty Yuen, Managing Director, CLP Power Hong Kong Ltd.

This unique Award on marketing, organized by the Association since 1985 and sponsored by Television Broadcasts Ltd . . . .

2002

Entrepreneur’s latest venture is an airline

[. . . . TK] Ho readily acknowledges that he was not the best of students. “I did not work hard academically,” he admits.

That is a strange comment to make when on his airline website is listed the fact that, actually, Dr. Ho, born and raised in Hong Kong and now a Canadian entrepreneur, has his doctorate in Commercial Science from the University of Richmond in Virginia.

The airline was launched in November 2002 as HMY Airways, an acronym for Harmony. It is owned by Dr. David T.K. Ho, an energetic Canadian entrepreneur who was born and raised in Hong Kong. Dr. Ho started HMY Airways . . . After all, people are the most valuable resource inside any organization, he says. Dr. Ho received a doctorate degree in Commercial Science from the University of Richmond in Virginia. [Was that an honourary doctorate?. . . . ]

Milestones
* June 2004 - Launch of service to Honolulu and Maui, Hawaii
* May 2004 - HMY Airways becomes Harmony Airways
* March 2004 - David Sylvester named new President of HMY Airways [. . . .]
* March 2003 - HMY receives Transport Canada approval to operate as a scheduled domestic and international airline [. . . .]
* February 2002 - Dr. David T.K. Ho announces plans to start a new Vancouver-based airline [. . . . ]

Apparently, this airline is not failing. In fact, May 9, 05, in the National Post there was an article which stated that Gary Collins, Finance Minister of BC's Liberal government and possibly in line for party / government leadership, had left his position to join Harmony Airways as President & CEO.

No-one leaves a position of that calibre unless there is certainty that the airline is going to get what it needs from regulators and thus, there is money to be made.




2003

The former deck-hand who bought the company -- Paul Martin will be the first Canadian prime minister with a true, blue-ribbon background in business November 4, 2003, Glen McGregor, Ottawa Citizen

Note in the excerpt below the use of the words "craven right-wingers". Bias?

Search:

Paul Martin's entry into the business world came
Mr. Martin met Maurice Strong
leap from company climber to stand-alone magnate
CSL turned to shipyards in China and Japan to

[. . . . ] One question never answered about CSL's transformation was the source of its money during its capital-intensive expansion in the 1990s. The building of new ships would have required tens of millions of dollars. At the same time, Mr. Martin was finance minister and pondering the contentious issue of bank mergers, and was also responsible for the approvals of foreign banks in Canada.

[. . . . ] Only this year, with Mr. Martin's political fortunes ascending, were the details of the agreement with Mr. Wilson scrutinized more closely. In fact, through his term as finance minister, Mr. Martin had regular meetings with CSL officials to discuss the company's major new undertakings. The meetings were chaperoned by Mr. Wilson, and usually held in his Ottawa office.

[. . . . ] Another avenue the opposition may choose to explore is the links between the new prime minister and his legions of political donors, who have contributed an astounding $11 million to fund Mr. Martin's leadership campaign. The donor list reads like Who's Who of Canada's corporate elite, with Bay Street entrepreneurs such as Gerry Schwartz and Miles Nadal, and blue chippers such as Joe Rotman. There are loyal Liberal backers like Toronto developer Elvio Del Zotto and Senator Leo Kolber, and craven right-wingers, like Hal Jackman and the Stronach family of Magna Corp. Vancouver billionaire Jim Pattison gave from the west coast and the Irving family from the east.

Scroll down for more about the Irvings special tax considerations, on top of the special consideration whereby the Irvings managed not to have to pay taxes on the money (now-deceased) K C Irving was taking out of the country to Bermuda. You will have to research this last part. I read about it.

The donors' list shows that Mr. Martin's support from the business world is transnational, with Chinese billionaire Li Ka Shing and Hong Kong airline operate David TK Ho donors to the Martin leadership campaign, through Canadian companies. [. . . . ]

Public Declaration of Declarable Assets [. . . . ]

Cordex Petroleums Inc. (oil and gas exploration and production) (Alberta) - 4.6 per cent owned by The CSL Group Inc.

It is a very small percentage but this is the company mentioned in articles relating to Maurice Strong and the UN.



2003 and the Ethics Commissioner Howard Wilson's Imprimatur

Office of the Ethics Commissioner: Paul Martin - 7th Disclosure -- Contributions, including contributions in-kind, collected outside of a blind trust, which are known to the candidate

(Reporting Period - July 1, 2003 to close of business on August 31, 2003)
Cash Contributions . . .

HMY Airways Inc. 25,000.00 . . . [Harmony air used to be called MY air]
David T.K. Ho Enterprises Ltd. 25,000.00 . . .
DTKH Burrard Properties Ltd. 5,000.00 . . . [see below]
[. . . . ]

DTKH Burrard Properties -- Is this David TK Ho's? -- perhaps part of David TK Ho's Enterprises?

Applicant

W. T. Leung Architects Inc.
300-973 West Broadway
Vancouver, BC
V5Z 1K3

Owner of Development

DTKH Robson Development Ltd.
c/o W. T. Architects Inc.
300 - 973 West Broadway
Vancouver, BC, V5Z 1K3

How strange that DTKH does not have its own address but uses the architect's.



On the way to the above information on how to win--or is it gain influence in Canada when you are a businessman from away, in this case, Hong Kong, I found the following contributors to Paul Martin's campaign:

10 Toronto Street $ 25,000.00 . . .
AIC Limited 100,000.00 . . .
Alliance Communications 100,000.00 . . .
Bombardier 25,000.00 . . .
CanWest Global 100,000.00 . . .
CN Railway 25,000.00 . . .
J.D. Irving Limited 100,000.00 . . .
Torys 50,000.00 . . .

How does a street address contribute to the Prime Minister's campaign?

Number 10 TORONTO STREET By Bruce Bell

When Gillies and Hollinger . . . . What those two hapless friends found was a massive yet overlooked gold vein that was to become the richest gold producer in the Western Hemisphere. Sadly however Benny Hollinger, after selling his share to Noah Timmins (founder of the Shania’s hometown) dies a few short years later of a massive heart attack. Nevertheless his name lives on in Hollinger Inc the company once headed by the infamous yet charismatic Conrad Black whose headquarters at Number 10 Toronto Street, the former 7th Post Office, is still very much a jewel in our crown.

CanWest Global, previously owned by Conrad Black and now owned by the Aspers, as a mainstream media outlet, is unbiased at $100,000? To survive in business in Canada, it looks as though donations to PM and/or the Liberal Party are essential.

CN Rail is a crown corporation. Why is it contributing to a Liberal campaign?

Let's see, the Irvings, compared to other and smaller business owners, are getting extraordinarily favourable tax considerations for its LNG terminal in St. John NB, I believe. No quid pro quo for $100,000? And the moon is made of green cheese.

Curious, I searched AIC. (See below.)




The innocent must pay $58.8-million to Affected Investors? Why?

How about a simple apology, guys? -- among them, AIC Ellen Roseman, Mar. 18, 05

[. . . . ] Yes, these managers have agreed to pay $205.6 million to unit holders affected by the practice. But that's not the same as saying they're sorry.

[. . . . ] The OSC singled out 20 fund managers that allowed market timing. But 15 of them identified the problem at an early stage and shut it down with "negligible harm to investors."

The remaining five fund managers — AGF Funds Inc., AIC Ltd., CI Mutual Funds Inc., Franklin Templeton Investments Corp. and I.G. Investment Management Ltd. — are among the largest companies in the industry.

New $10 million AIC Institute for Strategic Business Studies

The Chair and the Institute are endowed by the generosity of AIC Investments and its Founder, Mr. Michael Lee-Chin, with matching funds by McMaster University and government sources . . . knowledge based economies of the 21st Century.

Search: AIC's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Lee-Chin , who started the Kitchener-based investment firm called AIC Limited which handles $11 billion in assets. Also, Lee-Chin funded the AIC Institute for Strategic Business Studies at McMaster University. AIC handles mutual fund sales and global fund management. There has been a problem.

IN THE MATTER OF THE SECURITIES ACT R.S.O. 1990, c.S.5, as amended - and - AIC LIMITED SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT or The Harm Caused by Market Timing of Mutual Funds

7. In November 2003, the Commission, in co-operation with the Investment Dealers’ Association of Canada and the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada, began an inquiry into potential late trading and market timing in the Canadian mutual fund industry.

8. In its review of AIC, Staff found no evidence of late trading occurring in AIC Funds. Staff has not found any evidence of market timing by any insiders of AIC or any evidence of ongoing market timing activity in AIC Funds. The following facts relate exclusively to market timing by certain third party investors in AIC Funds.
15. . . . . for the years 1999 to 2003

17. AIC entered into agreements with three Market Timing Traders

24. AIC agrees, as a term of settlement, that it will make a payment in the amount of $58.8 million to Affected Investors

"Three institutional investors holding accounts in AIC Funds have been identified as having profited as a result of frequent trading market timing strategies that were pursued in certain of the AIC Funds (the “Relevant Funds”) in the period from January 1999 to September 2003 (the “Market Timing Traders”). The Market Timing Traders traded in AIC Funds through one or more Canadian investment dealers."

Search: In the period January 1999 to September 2003 , "Due to the time at which the foreign markets close, the price of foreign equities held in the portfolio of a foreign fund, and therefore the price of the foreign fund, will not reflect this pricing correlation until the following trading day." , "17. AIC entered into agreements with three Market Timing Traders that contained the following basic terms:" , no public disclosure of these agreements , VII. TERMS OF SETTLEMENT , will make a payment in the amount of $58.8 million to Affected Investors

What "institutional investors"? Why "no public disclosure of these agreements" and, if AIC did nothing wrong, why is it going to "make a payment in the amount of $58.8-million to Affected Investors?

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A Freebie and a Bunch of Goodies

Reid Morden spy agency boss when Air India Flight 182 destroyed tapes discovered by Judi McLeod, Canada Free Press, Thursday, May 12, 2005

Election by Media by Garth Pritchard, Canada Free Press, Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Canada Free Press columnist Garth Prtitchard, is an award-winning documentary filmmaker living in Alberta.

[. . . . ] I would argue that Canadians should never get their news from an agency of the government of Canada--which is what CBC is--but more about that another day.

Over the last few months I have been staggered by Canadian Press--it represents most newspapers and radio stations in Canada--and the Prime Minister’s Office is using them as its propaganda machine. CP has become the puppet of the PMO. [. . . . ]

Jean Chretien, a legacy of government corruption, waste and scandal: Paul Tuns' fascinating read by Judi McLeod, Canada Free Press


Libranos Screensaver compliments of Ezra Levant / Shotgun

This is a free gift from all of us at the Western Standard. Just click the link for your screen size, save it to your computer, and run the program to automatically install your new screensaver.

Perhaps your Liberal friends would like one to remind them why they won't be voting Liberal -- or are they so in thrall to the Liberal Propaganda Organ that they can no longer think for themselves? It happens to people who are brought up by government institutions and force fed "right thought" by social engineers. Never mind. Show them yours.

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40% Failure in Teaching Literacy

40 per cent fail literacy test, StatsCan finds CTV.ca News Staff

The study, done in 2003, involved more than 23,000 Canadians and also looked at literacy scores in six other countries.

[. . . . ] The average literacy score for Canadians in 2003 hasn't changed significantly since 1994 when the same survey was conducted. [. . . . ]

I assume students' self-esteem is still high.

The federal government is able to impact upon the provincial jurisdiction of education in many ways subtle and otherwise. Do you want the feds to regulate daycare too and to give your child a start in the world of education through daycare? It is pure social engineering and buying of votes. Free enterprise in most cases would do a better job; at least you would be able to choose.

After reading the following article, if I see another ad touting "teacher" and "fun" in the same sentence, I shall chunder. Learning to read is not rocket science for most and there were--maybe are--some old-fashioned non-computer literate teachers who did a great job teaching reading. Of course, they weren't told they must not use phonics, and various other tried and true methods, along with omitting mention of grammar; they didn't have to be attractive, young and fun. . . just capable. How many people from two generations ago attended country school for just a few years, then left with enough reading ability to read and to teach themselves? They read; they had little spending money, chores to do and they went to adult work relatively young. They had heard the word "no" and their tender psyches survived. They did not waste time playing games on a computer nor watching TV. They learned to do other things, often by reading. Parents were involved because they were not grubbing for the next bigger home, car or whatever.

A friend has criticized me for wanting to return to a world long gone. No, not so. I love computers but I learned to read and to read for knowledge and pleasure before I learned to read from a computer screen. If we valued parenting and allowed--indeed encouraged--one parent to stay home and do the job of parenting while the other brought home the bacon, our children might actually be read to, want to learn to read and actually read. It might nip their increasingly rude behaviour and violence as well; they might not have the freedom to try drugs. Parental control beats government control every time. If only . . . . .

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PM: $22-Billion to Buy Your Votes -- Day Care, Gomery Testimony, Harper, GG

Paul Martin: cost to date of buying your votes--approx. $22-23-BILLION

Don't give Paul more time to spend your money--nor to announce his plans to.

Thinking Critically -- excellent preparation for listening to and talking about issues and media




Gomery Inquiry Index

Transcripts up to May 12, 2005 via Newsbeat1

Download the testimony of witness #109. Daniel Dezainde [in French] but you may find a translator online. The result may can be very uneven, rough, etc. but it is a start.

Witnesses who have just appeared or are yet to come before Justice Gomery -- Check for transcripts.

110. Antonio Mignacca
111. Beryl Wajsman
112. Giuseppe Morselli
113. John Welch
114. Clément Joly

* Office of the Auditor General of Canada (panel)
* Sheila Fraser
* Ronald Campbell
* Louise Bertrand

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Stephen Harper

May 12, 2005 Issue 26

“In the normal course of events, the Leader of the Opposition is expected to hold the government to account on particular policies that the opposition feels are misguided, but in normal times the opposition understands and respects that the government has a mandate from the people to implement its policy agenda in general terms, even while opposing specific motions. But there are also cases when the opposition must hold the government to account in a more fundamental way and tell the government that it has lost the moral authority and democratic legitimacy to govern this country. Today is one of those more difficult days, where it falls to the Leader of the Opposition to tell the Prime Minister and the government that they cannot carry on.”

Stephen Harper, House of Commons, May 11, 2005

On Tuesday, May 10, a majority in the House of Commons clearly expressed its will for the government to resign “because of its failure to address deficiencies in governance of the public service.” With this vote (153 in favour, 150 opposed), the House showed that it no longer has confidence in a corrupt Liberal party in government.

Yesterday, May 11, Stephen Harper rose in the House of Commons to speak about why a government and a governing party which have been shown to be corrupt, fiscally irresponsible and blatantly undemocratic have lost the moral authority to govern. Mr. Harper delivered the speech that he would have given had the Liberals not taken away scheduled opposition days in the House of Commons. Our Leader said that, “the real judge of the honesty, candour and competence of the government is the public.”
It is now Paul Martin’s responsibility to demonstrate that he has the confidence of the House at the earliest opportunity, which he has refused to do, preferring instead to buy time. We should have a clear vote of non-confidence in the government immediately.

* Facts to consider: Paul Martin has lost confidence and the moral authority to govern. Click here.

* To read Stephen Harper’s May 11 speech in the House of Commons, please click here.

[. . . . ]

The Governor General is in a rather compromising position:

* She was appointed by the Liberal government of Jean Chretien
* She was asked to remain in that position by Paul Martin
* As a former CBC employee, she was part of the Liberal Propaganda Organ of the Liberal government
* She has swanned around the world on taxpayer $$$ for a few years now. It may be difficult to wean her away from the good life.

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For some perspective in an election period or for future use:

Paul Martin is $ 22.5-BILLION--or is it $ 23-BILLION into your pockets to maintain his dicey position as "leader". He has more announcements on spending your money for your vote in his plans.

Do Canadians not see PM and the corrupt Liberal regime for what it is? Unworthy.

Moving Forward: Governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador sign Agreement on Early Learning and Child Care

NEWS RELEASE
May 13, 2005
Glenwood, Newfoundland and Labrador
Prime Minister Paul Martin and Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams, along with Social Development Minister Ken Dryden and Newfoundland and Labrador’s Acting Minister of Health and Community Services Loyola Sullivan, announced today an historic Agreement in Principle that further supports the development of quality early learning and child care (ELCC) for young children and their families in Newfoundland and Labrador.

[. . . . ] This announcement follows the Government of Canada’s February 2005 budget commitment to invest $5 billion over five years to enhance and expand high-quality developmental early learning and child care in collaboration with provinces and territories.

[. . . . ] The Government of Canada recently signed similar Early Learning and Child Care Agreements-in-Principle with Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Ontario and expects to put similar agreements in place with the remaining provinces and territories over the coming weeks.

There was much boilerplate in the middle but it appears that this is a repeat announcement of funding, though signatures and a photo op are involved. Paul Martin still "cares" "very very" much about . . . . . . . well, just about everything. What he really cares about is himself.

For more of the same: PM's website

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A Small Tour

Classical music is making a comeback in China



Bilingual Education Posted by Iftikhar on 12:05:37 2005/05/11 via Canadian Coalition Forum

[. . . . ] In my opinion teaching English is cultural imperialism in action.

[. . . . Muslim pupils ] become jack of languages but master of none and there is a possibility that a minority develops negative attitudes towards languages.

Bilingual education is not going to help Muslim children to raise their standard of education because native teachers are not suitable and the management of LEAs is in the hands of those who not fit for such adventures.

[. . . . ] State schools are unable to cater for the emotional, social and spiritual development of Muslim children. Parents can withdraw their children from assembly but only a small minority does in the culturally mixed London Borough of Newham; only five children are exempted in 2001-2002.

The silent majority of Muslim community has been engaged in setting up Muslim schools with Muslim teachers as role models. Now there are more than 120 schools and more are in the pipeline, four of them are state funded while others have to charge fees. The waiting lists are lengthy. There are thousands of parents who can't afford to pay but they would like their children to attend Muslim schools. There should be an alternative and British Government should be thinking seriously about introducing Voucher System so that parents can choose where to send their children. DFES and LEAs should provide financial help to set up schools. [. . . . ]

Coming to an area near you . . . So much for the building of a nation, part of the original mandate of public education in Canada, as well as in Great Britain. Now, everywhere, immigrants and refugees come and expect to change the nation to their ways. Don't miss the follow-ups and other threads.




Might the Saudis Blow Up Their Oil Infrastructure?

Might the Saudis Blow Up Their Oil Infrastructure? or Daniel Pipes FrontPageMagazine.com, May 11, 2005

Investigative writer Gerald Posner reveals something most extraordinary in Secrets of the Kingdom: The Inside Story of the Saudi-U.S. Connection, his book to be published by Random House later this month: that the Saudi government may have rigged its oil and gas infrastructure with a self-destruct system that would keep it out of commission for decades. If true, this could undermine the world economy at any time.

[. . . . ] The Saudi planning began in earnest, he reports, after the Kuwait war of 1990-91, when the Iraqis left behind an inferno of oil-field fires … which, to everyone's amazement, was extinguished within months, not years. In response, the Saudis thought of ways to assure their oil would stay off the market. They began

exploring the possibility of a single-button self-destruct system, protected with a series of built-in fail-safes. It was evidently their way to ensure that if someone else grabbed the world's largest oil reserves and forced them to flee the country they had founded, the House of Saud could at least make certain that what they left behind was worthless.

This became a top-priority project for the kingdom. Posner provides considerable detail about the mechanics of the sabotage system, [. . . . ]

Al-Qaeda's gloves are off in Pakistan May 10, 2005, By Syed Saleem Shahzad

In the past 10 years, an estimated 600,000 people are believed to have been involved with jihadi groups in the country, but most of them disassociated themselves from these organizations after September 11, 2001, due to government pressures or other reasons. Now, only 50,000 are believed to be active members of militant organizations. [. . . . ]

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Rebranding Canada -- the Inukshuk? -- CRTC & VOIP

Does this include replacing the Canadian flag with the Inukshuk which has been chosen to replace the flag for the 2010 Olympics in BC? I wondered what was wrong with the Canadian flag -- source of pork and corruption (Flying the flag in Quebec -- Liberals's ADSCAM -- ex-Min. Sheila Copps' department buying flags -- perhaps to flutter above the corruption, the television ads -- et cetera).

It will take more than re-branding. What Liberal ad executives win with this project?

Canada the brand is getting an extreme makeover CTV.ca News Staff

Spurred by market research that the number of travellers coming to Canada is on the decline, the Canadian Tourism Commission no longer believes that promises of "Mounties, mountains and moose" are enough.

So, the commission is embarking on a massive makeover of the national brand.
Instead of picturesque images of vast prairies, dramatic coastlines or majestic mountains, potential travellers will soon be seeing advertising that promises "experiences" and "adventures" in a welcoming, culturally-diverse country.

Ah, yes, in preparation for the Olympics. Check the company / companies involved, the cynic in me says.





CRTC will regulate phone calls over the Internet

CRTC will regulate phone calls over the Internet David Akin / CTV.ca News Staff

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has ruled it will treat increasingly popular phone services over the Internet in the same way as traditional local telephone service.

That means that the country's two dominant phone companies, BCE and Telus, won't be able to stifle competition by pricing services below cost.

[. . . . ] Analysts say Bell, Telus, and the other established phone giants stand to lose 20 per cent of their local phone revenues as the cable companies move aggressively onto their century-old turf.

But some smaller players already active in the market -- companies like Primus and Vonage -- are worried Bell and Telus will use their market clout unfairly.

And the CRTC is worried about that, too. The regulatory body says it will restrict the prices

Bell, Telus and some other big players can charge. [. . . . ]

Why do I suspect that, with government / CRTC involvement, it is the ordinary citizen who will lose, in the end?

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No Thanks to PM from Sudan, Stewart Bell Keynote Speaker in TO, John Thompson on Tigers, David Latner: Logical Fallacies, Hate Crime

Update to Paul Martin and his promise of aid to promote peace in Sudan.

Sudan will graciously accept the money . . . but they don't want Canadian troops. I wonder if they would accept CIDA advisors? Check the National Post for this.




Stewart Bell Keynote Speaker

Notice of meeting: "Democracy in the Middle East -- The Dawning of a New Era" via Daniel Pipes

Monday, May 16, 2005 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm

Moderator: Margaret Wente: Author and award-winning columnist with the Globe & Mail
Keynote Speaker: Stewart Bell: Chief Report of the National Post, author and award-winning foreign correspondent and many more featured panalists...
Free Admission, Metro Hall Council Chambers, 55 John Street. [Toronto, Canada ]

Stewart Bell wrote "Cold Terror" on terrorism in Canada. Other participants are Mark S. Anshan, Rev. Majed El-Shafie and Salim Mansur (Toronto Sun).

Check this website, the links and contributors -- e.g. speakers on Global Issues

These are only a few of those associated with the site.

* "Ted Belman is a retired lawyer and Editor of www.IsraPundit.com, an Internet site covering news and views on Israel and the Middle East."

* "Al Gordon is Vice-President of the Canadian Coalition for Democracies. He is a multi-patented entrepreneur who has used and admired Israeli technology for decades."

* "Tom Kaye, Chief of Police of Owen Sound and former Chairman of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, is a specialist in anti-terrorism having trained in Israel and the USA."

* "David Latner is a lawyer, teacher and founder of the non-partisan policy website www.GreatDebate.info -- logical fallacies" Do not miss the list with explanations -- excellent preparation for listening to and talking about issues for the forthcoming election.

* April Newsletter: Read this list before "Let Lying Tigers Sleep"

Let Lying Tigers Sleep by John Thompson, "author of Other People’s Wars: Overseas Terrorism in Canada. He heads the Mackenzie Institute, a think-tank focusing on organized violence and political instability."

On the edges of large Indian nature preserves, farmers and fishermen often protect themselves from wild tigers by wearing a false face mask on the rear of their heads. Tigers like to attack from behind and this two-faced look evidently confuses them.

When it comes to dealing with terrorism, Ottawa has a two-faced approach of its own that confuses our friends and allies. We are full and active partners with other nations in dealing with Al Qaeda and the Jihadists, yet have a different face when it comes to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (the LTTE). We tolerate their political fronts, when we should be shutting them down. [. . . . ]

The LTTE is the only terrorist group to kill two national leaders (Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lanka’s President Premadasa); they pioneered the use of suicide belt-bombs; and during the 1990s, used more suicide attackers than all other terrorist groups combined. Their cadres are known for brutality and ruthlessness, but also for the innovative nature of their techniques and weaponry.

Matched to this is a global structure combining heroin trafficking, skilled passport forging and people smuggling, and layers of numbered companies to move money around. The acme of their commercial skills is best reflected in the 1997 hijacking of a shipment of 32,400 mortar bombs for the Sri Lankan Army from a Tanzanian ammunition plant. The vessel charted to carry the shipment disguised its LTTE ownership, and the Sri Lankan Army got their mortar bombs — one Tiger-fired salvo at a time. [. . . . ]

There is much more if you link.




It’s a Hate Crime After All

It’s a Hate Crime After All 04.26.05

A couple of weeks ago I told you about a hideous crime that occurred in Brooklyn. A large group of black, future penitentiary inmates beat up a small group of white girls while shouting “black power” and “white crackers.” For insane reasons, I’m sure, the cops decided not to charge the thugs-in-training with a “bias” crime.

The title of the post, Sorry, Whites Not Protected Under ‘Hate’ Crime Law, was intentionally provocative. I wanted to provoke your anger toward the blatant bias in the reporting of so-called hate crimes. I think the very concept “hate crime” is absurd, but since these ridiculous laws are on the books, they must be applied fairly. City prosecutors in Brooklyn agreed: [. . . . ]

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