January 07, 2006

CBC Reality Check is wrong -&- Memory Lane: Native Land Agreements

Update: I have just been told by another friend that some links are bad but that was all. I don't yet know which nor what date -- and it is too late to do anything more tonight. If they are in this post, go to the old NJC/FHTR webpages and some of the information will be there. For the rest, maybe the items are no longer on the original websites; I had included the links below to save people time.

There is only one solution I can see, go to bed and worry about it tomorrow ... or whenever. Hasta la vista. NJC



I received this from a friend:

CBC Reality Check is wrong

[Jan. 6, 06], CBC’s The National ran a so-called “Reality Check” alleging the Conservatives would raise taxes. This report is not just misleading; it is false.

The truth is taxes would be far lower under a Conservative government....

Taxes would be drastically lower under the Conservatives than under the Liberals.

Our tax plan will include cuts to the GST, and large cuts to personal income taxes and business taxes.

Under our plan, all Canadians will pay lower taxes.

Only the Conservative plan will cut taxes for the lowest-income Canadians – the 32% of Canadians whose income is too low to pay any income tax.

.... taxes will be dramatically lower – billions of dollars lower – than under the Liberals. That’s a fact. Details on our entire fiscal platform will be released along with the entire Conservative platform in the near future.

We have been upfront about replacing the Liberals’ inferior tax plan from the outset of the campaign, beginning on December 1st – Stephen Harper’s first announcement on the Conservative tax cut plan. Any attempt to build an argument to the contrary, based on a particular, selective point, is not only misleading, it is false.


There won't be the nefarious schemes for siphoning Canadians' tax dollars off ... the shenanigans that have occurred under Liberal administrations. A Conservative government will pass legislation to achieve transparency and accountability through The Federal Accountability Act, along with other measures to see that millions or billions of Canadians' hard earned money is not diverted where it should not be ... such as to friends and the Liberal Party. There is more to be uncovered, I suspect.




Update re:
1. an article below (INNU: Money for Nothing? January 4, 2006) and 2. a series of posts on the North, natives, Inuit, the week of Dec. 18, 05 -- scroll down.

In December, I wrote on the initiative to develop heritage language(s) in Labrador, part of the UNESCO push for what is described as "preserving" the world's heritage languages and cultural diversity, at the instigation of the francophonie, France and Quebec. This agreement supports much: taxpayer money for cultural travel, grants, et cetera. One example of an initiative is a project for academics to develop Innu-amun in Labrador (Netuashish - Davis Inlet area) which will spur more linguistic development and departmental expansion with native languages, across Canada.

Certain other agreements fit in with this concern for the North and the natives.

Memory Lane: "Land Claims Now Settled Outside Parliament -- by Regulation" ...

http://
newsjunkiecanada.blog
spot.com/2005_01_15_news
junkiecanada_archive.html

Including:
New land-claim and self-government accord worth $350-million to Inuit in Labrador Bill Curry, CanWest News, January 13, 2005

Gov. of Canada supports Nunavut trade mission to Boston BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS (Press release, 6 December 2004)

Gov. of Canada supports Nunavut trade mission to Boston Dec. 6, 04.

Nfld. to ratify Inuit land claim over protests of region's Metis or here

The federal government will sign a new land-claim and self-government deal this month worth more than $350-million with the 5,300 Inuit in northern Labrador . . . . It will give the Inuit control of land and resources on the northwest shores of Labrador, as well as a share of offshore oil resources in certain areas. ... new national park .... Voisey's Bay mine


There is much more in those articles about developing culture and language.

The Labrador Metis Nation, which says the agreement could extinguish the rights of its 6,000 members of mixed Inuit ancestry


See also:

http://
newsjunkiecanada.blogspot.com/
2005_01_13_newsjunkiecanada_archive.html#110563683965465821

Bypassing Parliament, this government has been relieving all Canadians of great swathes of Canada.

Independent ...

The check marks indicate the appointments made by the government, which, in effect means the Prime Minister, starting at the top with the Governor General, though he may have / has had input from advisors. Nevertheless, the final decision is his. Cabinet Ministers serve at the PM's pleasure and may be turfed, at will, by the PM. Judicial appointees, on the other hand, remain in position much longer, hence have great long-term effect. Given the activist nature of the current left leaning Supreme Court of Canada (SCOC), for example, do you think this works for the good of Canada in the long run? Is the SCOC representative of the range of views of Canadians or is it really a governing party court, hence Liberal since they have been in power so long? Is there anything wrong with this? You, the voter, get to choose the Members of the House of Commons, but their influence may be little on the appointment process. Advisors surrounding the PM possibly have a larger influence, but did you elect them or did they come into the PMO as cronies and aides trusted by the Prime Minister? Party discipline renders most MP's puppets of the Prime Minister and his advisors, given the pressures on ordinary MP's to vote with the governing party. As for those in Opposition, party discipline plays a large part also. All MP's are subject to party discipline if they want their nomination papers to be signed for the next election. Parachuting of candidates puts the lie to local riding association power to nominate MP's in some cases.

Note the power of the Prime Minister in this chart. (from the CTV website -- I inserted the red and blue outlines.)




Appointment and Regulation of Judges Wikipedia, "Court System of Canada"

Judges in Canada are appointed and not elected. Judges of the Supreme Court of Canada, the appellate courts and the "superior" courts are appointed by the federal government. Thus, judges of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice are chosen not by Ontario's provincial government but by the same level of government that appoints judges to the federal courts. Meanwhile, judicial appointments to judicial posts in the "inferior" or "provincial" courts are made by the local provincial government. [. . . . ] Those who favour the appointment method point out that the election approach would threaten the judiciary's ability to be independent in its decision-making.


Therefore, Liberal appointees are independent ......


January 06, 2006

Strange things done 'neath the midnight sun -&- Bud Talkinghorn

There are strange things done 'neath the midnight sun

by the men who moil for ... whatever.


As an indifferent sleeper, one whom the thud of a newspaper hitting the door is sufficient to rouse, I often get up at 4 am to read and work. The night before last, I found myself interrupted by the noise and a vehicle's lights trained on a window--and me--as I sat in front of my computer. Shortly thereafter, the car sped away, tires squealing. That is another instance in a relatively short time that I have noted strange vehicle and visitor activity. I say strange because people do not stop there by choice if they want not to be rammed from behind, nor do drivers turn in my driveway by choice. In fact, it might be considered a dangerous place to stop and gawk ... or to turn. Either my location has improved ... or something odd is going on. Why? Do you suppose someone is preparing to throw rotten tomatoes my way? Add this to the strange phone calls to which I have been subject ... and what am I to think? ... Is it possible that something is getting to someone? Perhaps on this website? What is the message? Is there one? These night visitors have been obvious, waiting long enough, it seems, to be certain I note them, then they speed away. Am I supposed to be apprehensive? Of what? Or am I just the recipient of random night gawkers? ... You know, "it could happen to anyone" ...

Maybe I did have an excuse for being a bit ratty that day and then forgetting to give credit where credit was due, rosemarie59. I did leave an apologetic response (comments) to the author of the Jan. 4, 06 summary. For others who send mail via spoofed email addresses, may you rot in hackers' ****. Fill in your worst nightmare; then add eternity to it. NJC



Massive arson attacks in France over New Years--Get used to the new normal

The CBC TV news reported that French immigrant youth had set aflame "400 or more" cars on New Year's eve. Actually the number was quite a bit higher--like 452. This, compared to 300 last year. It seems it has been a an ethnic tradition for years, which one hopes doesn't leave the shores of France. Violence and arson affected 250 towns and cities. Yet CBC assured us that the French are quite pleased that it didn't add up to more--like the 10,000 cars and 200 businesses torched this summer. What a sad admission.

© Bud Talkinghorn


It's OK Corral time for Palestine

Daily, we get images which suggest that not only Gaza, but the whole of Palestine is chaotic. Shoot-outs in the streets between the different lawless segments are now commonplace. Abbas has lost much of the real power, while Hamas, and the other Islamic terrorist organizations have gained. All talk of two mutually respectful neighbours is in tatters. Suicide attacks bring instant retaliation from the Israelis. Shin Bet, the Israeli security branch, has announced that even during the "truce", they aborted over a hundred suicide raids, and other violent actions. This fact rarely makes the liberal media's reports on the reality of this confrontation. The reality might disturb their preferred vision of an oppressed Palestinian people.

Even the strongest military branch of Fatah does not back Abbas fully. They want the rampant corruption in the PA stopped. However, Abbas has inherited Arafat's cronies, so it became an impossible demand. And in Gaza, Abbas faces a wide collection of criminal gangs and warlords, on top of Hamas. The worst case scenario would be for Hamas to sweep the up-coming elections. Then Israel will know that even the pretense of peace will be abandoned. It will be as though they had irrefutable future proof of what Hitler planned for them in 1939. Eventually, if the situation approaches anarchy, retaliation may have to take the form of invasion and wholesale assassinations of terrorists. By 1944, nobody among the Allies said, "Oh, if we firebomb Dresden, there may be civilian casualties." All Germans were considered the enemy. So it may come to be in Palestine. And while the neighbouring Arab states would never accept the resultant Palestinian refugees into their states, they will gladly arm them

© Bud Talkinghorn


Oh, Bud, watch Canada's portals for them ... if they're not already here. I note a definitely pro-Palestinian tone to the MotherCorps -- not that they would ever admit it. They are so blatant in their biases. NJC




"If it bleeds it leads"--the dumbing down of the news

The bleeding never stops on TV. If the actual blood disappears, there are always the survivors, the mothers, the bereft friends to interview. The emotional toll must be recorded for a rapt audience of voyeurs. Then we can quarterback their grief portential--"Gee, he didn't seem distraught." That he might be in shock is rarely considered. Then there are always the grief groupies to tap. The "friend" (who hasn't spoken to the victim in six months) suddenly on cue gushes about "how special he/she was". This ghoulishness has always been a staple of TV news, but it is now getting absurd.

Last night, to Murray McLaughlan's unusually feverish CD, "Gullivar's Taxi", I watched "Fear Factor"--with the sound off, as I will submit myself to only so much punishment. That episode was set in The Bates Motel. It involved cute, bikini-clad women being buried alive in a coffin filled with worms, then a few rats tossed in, dirt then dumped onto their coffins. An in-coffin cam picked up her reactions. Some further nonsense had their boyfriends and ex-husbands / boyfriends trying to excavate them in time. I suppose the real fear factor is whether the ex-husbands / boyfriends will even be bothered digging them out. This program is a constant ratings winner. So maybe we can't blame TV news for emulating it. As the viewing audience sinks to new schlock lows, the news must try to keep up.

© Bud Talkinghorn--For my own gratuitous thrill, I must mention that CBC, our "cultural beacon" is also as capable of this disaster-grief wallowing as the rest. It is just that they try mightily to tie said disaster to Bush or Cheney.


So much for a public broadcaster as presenting programs a cut above the rest ... Instead, they wallow more and more ... grasping for viewership. If only they would develop a balanced perspective and serious, high-minded programs ... but they pander ... and lose viewership. A pity they could not view their efforts from another perspective and recognize the viewership potential out there waiting for something truly better, even high-minded, something that honours the highest ideals for its citizenry, for Canadian families, presenting programming that celebrates the best of Canadians--not just those on the gravy train or the teat, those who have paid their dues to the panderers ... and of course, their union dues to the 'right'--or is that 'rights'--groups? NJC

January 04, 2006

INNU: Money for Nothing?

Update:

I forgot to add that this summary was written by rosemarie59.
NJC



Apparently, some, if not all, CNEWS Forum back comments posts were missing this morning ... Maybe they are up again now, maybe not.

The moral? It pays to make friends with Pack Rats R Us -- which, in this case, came through with a copy.

INNU - Money for Nothing?

This is something I haven't seen addressed in the MSM. It has to do with the government's plans to develop a new language for the Innu. Why, you may wonder? When the problems in that region appear to be related to fetal alcohol syndrome, glue sniffing, poverty as a result of these circumstances, why would the government focus on the development of a new dictionary as a panacea?

The link is quite long and there are preceding entries which the blogger makes to establish the argument that meeting the goals of the UN are of greater priority to this government than fixing the multi-generational impact of drug and alcohol abuse that plague the First Nations.

Notice the mention of language czar Dyann Adam's trip to China and how the blogger ties this in to what seems to be a 'make work project' for academics disguised as a program to help the Innu.

Remember an interview sometime in 2005, subject, Paul Martin, done by Peter C. Newman, in which the PM revealed his vision for a new world government? Seemed to me the grand illusions of a man drunk from expectations of power that in a reasonable world would never come to fruition. Consider his connections at the UN; his best friend Maurice Strong, personal advisor to Kofi Annan and Martin. Strong, most recently disgraced by his alleged ties to 'oil for food', is hiding out in China. But is he still pulling strings? Then there is Louise Frechette, she too a former high level mouth-piece at the UN, who has resigned (?) her position there and taken a position---where else but in the halls of academia?---at a southern Ontario university.

Is this social engineering run amok? This government's day-care program, through which they have taken a hard line against the value of mothering---institutional care is preferable and paramount to a stay at home mom or dad--- coupled with staffing universities with Liberal thinkers, and their feel-good program for the Innu, a program so pie-in-the-sky one would think it was a project to challenge exceptional minds. But it's not. This regime sees the creation of a new language, a new dictionary as the cure-all for drug addicted, poverty stricken natives! If it weren't so sickening it would be laughable!

As one Innu spoke, 'they don't want us to get well, they make money off us'. [. . . . ]

It's the kind of thing you'd expect to read about a third world country. But this is Canada and they're not using my taxes and yours to treat the symptom, [they're] throwing [money] at the intellectual elite to busy themselves with a language program. What good will that do? Oh, I know, it'll be sold as having a goal of enriching natives' heritage. But please. These people need to have a reason to get up in the morning with the knowledge that they're doing something meaningful for themselves and their families, like working.

I can't get rid of the thought: 'they don't want us to get well, they make money off us'.


An excellent summary of the situation. There is more here and the full catastrophe here. Scroll down for all seven parts which you probably didn't read the week before Christmas (FHTR week of Dec. 18, 05) nor the week after -- "Follow the Yellow--Red--Brick Road #1" to "Follow the Yellow--Red--Brick Road #7" and there are related posts during that time period, as well.

Liberal attack ad remix

What happens when you place blogging and multimedia tools in the hands of the electorate?

You get the Liberal Attack Ad Remix.

This was created without taxpayer money!



Copy this URL: http://www.stephentaylor.ca/archives/000508.html

and send it to your MSN/Yahoo/AIM/ICQ and email contacts.

UPDATE: The video was created by "Grig" at FD to the best of my knowledge. If anyone knows more, drop the info in the comments.

UPDATE: You can view the original Liberal attack ad here:

http://www.queensu.ca/politics/politicalads/2004/2004.htm


The above was posted by Stephen Taylor at this site:

http://www.stephentaylor.ca/archives/000508.html

Polls & Public Opinion Research Firms Ranking -- $$$ -- Who is paying for the polls now?

Update: I gave the link in the post below but I had problems uploading the jpegs -- until now.


Keep a perspective on polls and polling companies. Do they ever ask you? Who is paying them right now? Do they work free of charge in hope of a later consideration? Who are those people on the street that are asked their opinions? Think interviews that you see on the news, whatever the media, e.g. CBC, Global TV and CTV. Also, consider who get through for call-in opinion programs during an election -- the ordinary Canadian's opinions. Don't be snowed ... by so-called experts ... by that trusted, connected bit. You know what opinions they want.

Keep listening, noting and laughing at how they slant news, how the tone will tell you what they're thinking. It's a hoot. Notably, CBC is apoplectic ... again.

Then vote according to your own experience and common sense.

The following graphs show what polling firms worked for and made money from government in 2004-2005








Reports, Expert Political Judgment, AG on Sponsorship, Graphs & Polling -&- Arty Types: Are these funded by the Canada Council?

News items, comments and excellent links to two reports are worth reading: Newsbeat1 Jan. 3 and 4, 2006 and the Report of the Auditor General of Canada, Chapter 3: The Sponsorship Program Nov 2003 and here for more meat and graphs on polling companies, how much money they make from government, number of contracts, et cetera.

When you see a poll reported, check these for another perspective.



Expressing oneself ... uh, colourfully ...

For the CNEWS Forum crowd, was it not Scott Brison, as opposed to Scott Reid, who said something or someone" can blow me"? to a candidate he was not supporting -- re: Topic: scott reid foot in mouth again?

There is a post on FHTR to that effect, I seem to remember, but check.


Reaping what we sow -- more comments


The Liberals are Innocent-Really via Bourque -- link to here



Arty types: Are these funded by the Canada Council?

Check out these: Ottawa!!! , More Than Money, Le beau-frère, Encore 4 ans avec lui ?


Check this -- free! posted by gl1800, Jan. 3, 05 -- via this site



Poetry for the season by Kilkee -- via CNEWS Forum


Photo: Canadian Politician

http://
www.blogstream.com/gallery.mod?G=_ALL
&RT=&PRID=831&IID=573&IMG=573_831.jpg



What? No photo op? -- Is there a disconnect? How do Goodale and his spokesman run the department? -- "No meeting set between Goodale and RCMP: Spokesman" -- so Goodale met with the RCMP --

http://
david-akin.electionblog.ctv.ca/
default.asp?item=126838


Book Review:

The trouble with "experts" posted by casper34, 1/03/2006 09:19:00


Has anyone else noticed that experts for the most part seem to be full of sh1t [sic]? Yet everyone seems to so heavily weight their opinions - politicians, media, academics. Whenever us common people using common [sense] make a suggestion, we can be assured that we will be corrected by "but the experts say ...

I thought I would do a little investigation on my theory that for the most part the “experts” are wrong.
Anyway I came across a book by Philip Tetlock “Expert Political Judgment: How Good Is It? How Can We Know?” Now, I haven’t read the book yet but I think he is on to something.

Here are parts of a review from The NewYorker regarding his book:

Expert Political Judgment: How Good Is It? How Can We Know?

There is more of the review of the book and further discussion from others -- but my favourite lines are these from caspar34 .


I am tired of being told that because I don't have an advanced PHD in B.S. that my opinions aren't valid. Only the experts get to propose solutions to society's problems, old-style common sense is all wrong in their opinion.

Someone said "Don't forget some academics are educated far beyond their level of intelligence"


Bang on! The letters after the name stand in for common sense sometimes, I suspect -- an opinion from one of the great unwashed, me, I need hardly add. NJC


Is it possible? A $200 Google PC? -- Get in line ... behind me ... Well, first I'll check where it was made.


Rage, rage against the dying of a child, Toronto Guns-Drugs-Gangs & the Race Industry

76% blame lax judges for gun violence -- Toronto poll James Cowan, with files from Gus Kim, National Post; with files from Global News, January 04, 2006

The race industry kicks in. -- Who appointed this woman as "spokeswoman"? Was she elected to speak for the rest? Do they even know she is speaking for them?

[. . . . ] "We've had more than 40 black youth die as the result of gun violence and we have not seen our governments react in such an immediate and strong way," said Sandra Carnegie-Douglas, a spokeswoman for the Coalition of African Canadian Organizations.

"We wonder if it was a black youth that was murdered on December 26 whether they would've moved as quickly." [. . . . ]

Gangs were also the top concern for Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Residents of British Columbia and Atlantic Canada were more often worried about drugs and drug trafficking. [. . . . ]


Obviously, for the "spokeswoman", gangs, drugs and trafficking are not the problem in Toronto.


Related and some comments on the shootings:

RE: Racial issues surface on eve of Toronto gun violence
posted by tangle2foot, 1/03/2006 21:39:05

[. . . . ] As soon as the meeting is complete the news conference will state that the vast majority of these gun incidents are the result of black gangs. The Coalition of African Canadian Organizations will then start screaming discrimination and racial profiling. This country has gotten so damn politicaly correct that regardless what the "whites" do they will be blamed.

The race card is used more as a weapon than as a statement of fact. Those who sream racism the most tend themselves to be the most racist.


He had that right!

There are many more comments but one writer, CliffStir, 1/03/2006 21:47:07 says:

Read the following link, THEN tell me that the police only care about "white" folk.



Lost Innocence Pulse24, Jan. 4, 05

The mother of tiny shooting victim Shaquan Cadougan thinks she knows who the gunmen were trying to hit when they struck her four-year-old boy by accident.

She believes her other son, budding basketball star Junior Cadougan, was the intended target.

CityNews interviewed Junior three months ago when he was an enthusiastic participant of the Hoops Unlimited program, which tries to keep kids off the streets. [. . . . ]

Anyone with information about the shootings is asked to call police or CrimeStoppers at 416-222-TIPS (8477).


Search: urban turf war

There is a racism industry at work, there are those who know and won't speak out, and then, there are others who have legitimate fears ... who know something that could help ... but know the possible consequences. The community apparently, most of the time, is not helping, whatever the reason.

Some people don't want these kids to go straight ... Salesmen will be needed?



Reaping what we sow by David Frum, National Post, Published: Tuesday, January 03, 2006 -- posted by Foxers, Jan. 3, 05

If there is any problem in Toronto, the Mayor insists, it is traceable to the United States: [. . . . ]

And naturally Prime Minister Paul Martin agreed. [. . . . ]

The Prime Minister, the Mayor and the media are hiding crucial facts. Here are three:

[. . . . ] More broadly: Canada's overall crime rate is now 50% higher than the crime rate in the United States. Read that again slowly -- it seems incredible, but it's true. It's true too that you are now more likely to be mugged in Toronto than in New York City. [. . . . ]




Rage, rage against the dying of a child

Should a parent not be outraged? Death is not the time for understanding and compassion -- "Parents not angry at teen accused of running down their daughter" -- 04 Jan 2006, CBC News

[. . . . ] Kuldip Dhadda says she's praying for the family of the accused as well as her own.

"I don't feel angry but I hope he learns something from this," she told CBC News.

"I hope people will learn from this. It could happen to anybody at any time." [. . . . ]


Something is all wrong with this response. What? -- From the parent of a newly killed child ... unnatural? ... too tolerant? ... afraid? ... What?

The alleged perpetrator:

Police charged 18-year-old Samrat Ramnik Dhuna with 11 offences, including criminal negligence causing death and impaired driving causing death.



National Securities Comm. - Income Trusts - Abortion - Old Films

Response to a reader: I don't remember seeing the comment before -- on a post from Bud or me last March (link below) so this is an update response.

Abortion as birth control: Based on my experience this Christmas season a child brings so much joy to a whole family, and over years: You have no idea how true what I wrote then is. I have seen this week two children related to that baby brother. What a wonder to see. They bring their love with them, as my favourite auntie used to say. Thank you for commenting. NJC

http://
frosthitstherhubarb.blogspot.com/2005/03/
bud-talkinghorn-abortion-as-birth.html




Montreal v. Calgary: Ontario sacrifices Toronto as home to a national securities commission, paving the way for an exercise in competing federalism Joe Oliver, Financial Post, January 04, 2006

Big news in the arcane but important world of securities regulation: Ontario has decided that the headquarters of a proposed Canadian Securities Commission (CSC) will not be in Toronto, or anywhere else in the province for that matter. The Purdy Crawford Blueprint for a New Model concluded [. . . . ]


Search:

Canada's uniquely decentralized regulatory system
a province offering key concessions that may prove persuasive politically

In the West, there is an abiding concern that
rules exacerbating the regulatory burden on small- and medium-size enterprises (SMEs)
inspired by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. A "council of ministers"
reduces Ontario's effective control of securities regulation
A Calgary HQ would appeal to Western
Quebec's position has been unequivocal
will in fact retain shared jurisdiction
It provides Quebec a more robust role than it has been able to secure in the current system
a bilingual head office in Montreal means senior positions for Quebecers, including quite likely either the chair or chief commissioner
by competitive federalism.



Might I suggest that with competitive federalism, that is, the federalism that has been in practice, there hasn't been much competition? The game kept up by the federal government has overwhelmingly bent in one direction. Make a guess. Enough, already! Canada exists from sea unto sea and into the North and the Arctic, though if the Liberals get to sign many more agreements, that may be ceded to ... whoever. NJC




Surprise!

Breach of trusts -- "The pattern looks like this: Announce a criminal investigation, then claim secrecy when it comes to the details." Terence Corcoran, Financial Post, January 04, 2006

How fascinating to see the Liberals swept up in an investigation of corporate crime by one of their own creations: the RCMP's Integrated Market Enforcement Teams. With much political fanfare, six IMETs were created across the country in 2003 as the Liberals rode the great post-Enron regulatory stampede to clean up allegedly rampant malfeasance in Canada's securities markets. Just two weeks ago Bank of Canada governor David Dodge released a rah-rah speech (delivered to an RCMP management retreat) in which he portrayed the police force's IMETs project as a great venture in the war on "economic crime." [. . . . ]

They seem to have taken his words to heart.
[. . . . ]


Search:

The income trust trading that has snared
If tipping is involved
the only other basis for a criminal investigation would be Section 122 of the Code: breach of trust
doesn't define
An annotation in a law book on the Criminal Code
It would be a great ironic tragedy if
THE CRIMINAL CODE SAYS ...:




RCMP interview Goodale in income trust probe NatPost, Jan. 4, 05


China's success goes beyond mercantilism Matthew Davis, Financial Post, January 04, 2006

Strong evidence of China's emergence as a global economic powerhouse are these twin facts: a large foreign exchange reserve that China is holding, especially in dollar-denominated assets, and a large amount of foreign direct investment (FDI) going into China that rivals FDI into the United States. [. . . . ]

A new National Bureau of Economic Research working paper argues that the mercantilist explanation is an "intriguing story, but the facts do not support it." [. . . . ]





Films -- old and older -- enjoyed lately and recommended

Scandal -- John Hurt
My House in Umbria -- the Umbrian setting is evocative; I want to visit. The story touched me; I could watch it again.
Miss Julie -- different -- on power and position
Robin Williams on Broadway -- If you can get over the word f****, he will make you laugh until the tears come.

Film recommended by a friend that I hope to enjoy.

Robin Williams in Carnegie HallI have not seen it yet


January 03, 2006

Coren: Down the rabbit hole, G Gibson: Taking on the Indian industry, RCMP Investigations by OfficiallyScrewed

From a friend: Entitlements



Michael Coren: "Down the rabbit hole" -- excellent!

"We're all part of some great hallucinatory novel. We're Alices in a liberal Wonderland, where truth is fiction and ideas suddenly have no basis in reality."

Oh Alice, where did your country and your civilization go? ....

Television, movies, advertising, socialization, music, culture, education -- they are all to blame. They encourage or refuse to contradict the cult of the thrill, of the orgasm, of the rush, of easy power and dominance over others. Young men in particular have no concept of love or concern. Gentleness and co-existence are as foreign to them as a college degree or a book without pictures.

But let us not only blame the male. There are young women whose every third word is an obscenity, who are expert at copulation and procreation but fail miserably at education -- girls with their hard faces in permanent grimaces who belittle friends who do not invite every man onto their bodies.
[. . . . ]


So, folks, is that all there is?



Gordon Gibson: "Taking on the Indian industry" -- excellent

Taking on the Indian industry -- Politicians don't talk about native policy because not only do they not have answers, they won't even ask the hard questions Gordon Gibson, Citizen Special, Published: Thursday, December 29, 2005

[. . . . ] The hard question, the explosive one, is whether Indians are ordinary human beings like the rest of us, and if they are, what right do we have to use our money and our laws to induce Indians to live in a parallel society?

Of course, Indians have some special inherited property rights, but so do the children of wealthy parents. No problem there. Alas, we have a racist Constitution that in Section 91(24) refers to "Indians and lands reserved for the Indians." This clause has singled out one particular group of Canadians, and has made lawful on the one hand the terrible adverse discrimination of the past, and on the other the enormous "Indian industry" of today.

The survival of the industry requires everyone to accept the notion that Indians are so profoundly different from other Canadians that they cannot prosper in mainstream Canadian society. The industry promotes a parallel society, which needs elites, lawyers, bureaucrats, consultants ... and needy clients. The industry flourishes by encouraging Indians to stay out of the mainstream, on separate lands, with separate governments, and -- by all of the odds -- to stay poor. [. . . . ]


Search:

the collective
powerful individuals -- because collectives need leaders.

sense of grievance,
segregation from the mainstream
cultures only decline if they are abandoned by their adherents and that is really nobody else's business




Insider reporting -- insider trading?

Finance springs a leak -- Sheila Copps, Jan. 1, 05

[. . . . ] The big surprise is that the RCMP would launch a criminal investigation in the middle of an election campaign. Kudos to Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli .... Judy Wasylycia-Leis for doing her job. And to the blogosphere. If anyone wants to know why the RCMP decided to the pursue the matter, check out a few political blogs for this twisted tale of trusts. [. . . . ]

During Martin's tenure, advance budget details were commonly leaked to massage media messaging. Friendly reporters were provided with news nuggets with the expectation of favourable coverage of the minister and his message. Unfavourable news was leaked to discredit foes -- "money-grabbing" ministers in other departments (present company included).

It is high time somebody got to the bottom of the leaking. It is also not unreasonable to wonder how ordinary Canadian investors are protected against insider deals. Ordinary investors need to know their governments and regulatory bodies are in their court. [. . . . ]


Search:

'Senior moment'
forensic financial experts tracking
Former finance employee Don Drummond -- now senior vice-president and chief economist of the TD Bank Financial Group





33 RCMP Investigations into Liberal Government Activities OfficiallyScrewed.com, TrustOnlyMulder at 11:01 pm on December 29, 2005

RCMP investigations into Liberal government activities [. . . . ]

DND: [. . . . ]

Public Works: [. . . . ]

Industry Canada: [. . . . ]

HRDC:

• More than half a dozen bureaucrats have been "removed" from their jobs at a Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC) in Toronto following a police investigation into projects funded under one of the department's grants and contributions programs
(St. John's Telegram, September 15, 2003).

Radwanski:

• .... as many as 12 ongoing RCMP investigations into the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. (Hansard, October 1, 2003).

CCRA:

• ... four tax department computers were stolen containing confidential personal information on more than 120,000 Canadians. (Windsor Star, September 30, 2003).

• ... a charge of Breach of Trust by Public Officer against a former employee of the Canada Customs & Revenue Agency (CCRA), alleging that she disclosed confidential tax payer information to an unauthorized person. (release via Canada News Wire, October 7, 2003).

Aboriginal Affairs:

• The investigations into the Virginia Fontaine Addictions Foundation. ....

• Health Canada ... a $6.8-million funding deal with a Winnipeg-based native health organization. (Winnipeg Free Press, February 22, 2005)

• Andy Scott revealed that when financial irregularities were found at Keeseekoose First Nation, the RCMP was called in and charges laid. (Globe and Mail, November 16, 2005)

[There is more on FHTR from that week.]



Citizenship and Immigration:

• A prime suspect in the sweeping RCMP probe into alleged bribery of federal immigration judges twice bought his way out of jails in India before paying a human smuggler $8,000 to bring him to Canada. Last month, RCMP detectives alleged in sworn affidavits that Singh and members of his criminal organization pressured immigrants in Ottawa and Montreal to pay bribes of $10,000 to $15,000 that were shared with two Immigration and Refugee Board judges in exchange for favourable rulings. (National Post, July 5, 2003)

• In one of Canada's most serious cases of passport theft, the RCMP foiled a scheme to sell 246 stolen blank Canadian passports -- but not before some of them found their way into the hands of international people-smuggling rings. (Globe and Mail, October 26, 2004).

• The RCMP are probing allegations about immigration officer at Pearson Airport ....

• ... Immigration Minister Judy Sgro's office ....

• ... Citizenship and Immigration Canada official ....


• According to media reports, the RCMP actually investigated allegations that Paul Martin supporter Gurbax Singh Malhi was using to granting of ministerial permits as a way to arrange political and financial support for Martin's leadership campaign. The RCMP reportedly looked into the matter but closed it when witnesses refused to cooperate (Globe and Mail, March 10, 2005)

Transport:

• ... security clearances granted to airport workers, 73 cases have been deemed suspicious or incomplete enough to forward to the RCMP ...

• Liberal MP Robert Thibault has asked the RCMP to look into the privatization of the Digby wharf: "I've asked the solicitor general and advised the minister of transport that I have asked for an RCMP review of the matter," he said (Chronicle-Herald, February 10, 2005). The RCMP have no plans to reopen an investigation into privatization of the Digby wharf however (Chronicle-Herald, April 1, 2005).

Tim Murphy and Ujjal Dosanjh:

• The RCMP investigates allegations of Tim Murphy and Ujjal Dosanjh making offers to Conservative MPs to try and get them to cross the floor.

Finance:

• RCMP reviewing complaints of possible leak of income trust announcement: Staff Sgt. Paul Marsh told Bloomberg News. (CTV.ca, November 30, 2005)


If you don't check the whole list, you might find yourself OfficiallyScrewed .com


Bud: Fulford "Do not Disturb", Campbell: "Betrayal & Deceit: The Politics of Canadian Immigration", Truth, Censorship, Multiculturalism

Dear Robert Fulford

Let me send you my congratulations on exposing a horrific truism. Your column in The National Post, Dec. 31, 05, "Do not Disturb" was, in fact, very disturbing. I have played Cassandra many times about the gathering threat of Islamo-fascism. After a while, one begins to feel like a paranoid, or as the Left would refer to me, a xenophobe. However, I continue trying to show Canadians the imminent danger that awaits them. In the Iran of the early 1970's, a multitude in Isfahan chanted hysterically, "Shah-in-Shah"; then, we watched six years later, the cries turn to the praise of Khomeini.

When Spanish police raided the house of one of the masterminds of the Madrid train bombings, they found a detailed map of the Montreal subway system--along with photos of various stations -- a potential target for Ressam as well, should his operation in L.A. go well. Yet our populous has bought into the myth that we are the world's poster child for tolerance and inclusivity, hence exempt from terrorism. Attack the meek and mild? Unthinkable! To al-Qaeda we are infidels of the worst kind--gay marriage, legalized swinger sex, and women's rights--all are anathema to the fundamentalist mindset. Ironically, the very Left that supports their "insurgencies" will be the first to go to the firing squad. Did the barbaric slaughters in Beslan, Iraq and London not ring some bells with these people? The polls of British-Muslims that came out of the aftermath of those bombings were chilling. They exposed their true feeling about their new country. Frankly, the majority despised the democratic values of Britain. A large number admitted that they condoned the attacks, or with a minority, might even have participated in them. I seem to be the only person who keeps reminding people of this revealing poll. My exposure to Muslims suggests that sentiment might be the same in Canada. The Liberals wisely do not discuss these polls. Nor does the opposition, because they would be subject to 'racism' charges.

We can give in to this dream of equal tolerance, or we can follow the maxim of Johan Goethe, who said,

Let us not dream that reason can be popular. Passions, emotions, may be made popular, but reason remains ever the property of the few.


Never has there been a time when the citizenry must be more alert; especially in a time of chemical and biological threats of the most dire kind. That people are so blindly ignorant of the threat is terrifying. Or perhaps this is our Roman moment, where a former-day Neil Postman, would tell the populous that they were "amusing thermselves to death". Keep up the fine reasoning. You are fighting, not only for Canada, but for civilization itself.

As for your analysis of the Iraq war, I couldn't concur more. Iraq had a monster, Saddam Insane, who wantonly--and unsuccessfully--waged two wars against his neighbours. The cost in Iraqi lives was nearly a million human beings. Besides the combined Western intelligence believing that Saddam had WMDs, he was obviously capable of any treachery towards the West. He was so evil that humanitarian concerns alone meant he had to be removed. As with Ressam, if the jihadis were not engaged in blowing up other targets--Iraqi children and policemen--who would they prefer to blow up? Us, of course. I can never remember the wording, but to paraphrase, "The sleep of reason produces monsters". Oh, and Happy New Year!

© Bud Talkinghorn -- About this topic, you wouldn't happen to be my mental doppelganger, would you?



Friends described Warrayat as deeply religious

Where have we heard that one before?

Muslim in 'personal attack' on Home Depot -- Crashes through store with Quran, Palestinian flag in trunk Dec. 31, 05
With a copy of the Quran and a Palestinian flag in his trunk, a Jordanian-turned-U.S. citizen crashed his car into a Home Depot in Arizona where he formerly worked, igniting an explosive blaze in the stores' paint section and causing $1 million in damage.

The Dec. 18 attack in Chandler, Ariz., by 24-year-old Ali R. Warrayat was a carefully planned "personal statement," the East Valley Tribune of Mesa, Ariz., reported. [. . . . ]

He also said he was mad at the United States for proposing a 700-mile fence along the Mexican border and wanted to make the country "more free." [. . . . ]


What makes these fellows so crazed? Is it their holy book? I think so. The restrictions on normal relationships with half the world adds to it. You don't have to have a sexual relationship with a woman to enjoy a friendly relationship, but these men are taught the most strange attitudes toward women, about which they seem to obsess. Houri heaven seems to be their greatest desire -- well perhaps taking a few infidels along for the journey comes first -- but the rewards. Ah ... It's to die for. NJC



Betrayal & Deceit: The Politics of Canadian Immigration

Book review

The author, Charles M. Campbell, was an immigration and refugee board (IRB) member for ten years. Through his extensive connections to current board members and for the next 18 years, Campbell continued to follow IRB trends. What he found could only be labelled treason. As one of his confidantes told him, "You wouldn't believe how the system is abused. If the public knew, there would be riots in the street." Even former LIberal Minister for the Environment, Davis Anderson--no right-wing crank he--has mused about his former job at the Immigration Appeals Board (IAB) as an eye opener. He was quoted as saying: "The system is corrupt and the immigration board has become a wretched monster that's out of control." Several IRB members told Campbell that they are forced to just automatically accept the bogus claims from economic refugees on the first query. Twenty-five countries were to receive this preferential treatment--many of them from terrorist supporting countries. The comment from another IRB source put this way: "We no longer protect refugees. We just let in any liar that comes along."

Campbell pinpoints two periods when the Immigration Act was changed detrimentally. In 1978, the Act gave peeference to "family class" immigrants. The theory was that the family would guarantee that the relative would not become an economic burden on Canada. A few years ago, the government was forced to admit that the taxpayer was funding these 'sponsored" people to the tune of $800 million a year, because the sponsors were reneging on that commitment. No sponsors were fined, as that scandal would reveal the tremdenous cost of the Liberals' reunification program. They may be deadbeats, but they vote Liberal.

The second change came in 1998, "when the IRB started accepting refugees at a rate five times that of other refugee-accepting countries." We now accept over four times that of the United States, and the vast majority of immigrants come from undemocratic, impoverished, and corrupt nations. The results of that miscalculation can be seen by Campbell's story of the influx in 1983 of Iranian "refugees", who had extensive connections with the Asian heroin trade. Within five years of their arrival, Montreal police linked them to 300 drug rings in the city. Over 100 of these "desperate" refugees had been convicted of drug smuggling and the addicted population had tripled. Not one of these individuals was deported. The reason goes back to Trudeau's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It seems that one of these freedoms was for criminal refugees or immigrants not to be sent home. They might be tortured, you see, so they get to remain in Canada and torture us with violent crime, heroin trafficking and frauds too numerous to name.

Mr. Campbell goes on to expose the main immigration myths. The abridged versions of these are as follows:

Myth #1: Canada's immigration rate has traditionally been 1%. This is not true. From 1960 to 1993 the average rate was 0.63% "It was only 1% in the year 1975. For twenty-four of those years it averaged 0.51%. This lie was concocted so that the Liberals could justify a million new immigrants every three years.

Myth #2: This one goes straight to the heart of our materialist society. Because of our low native birth rate we need many more citizens to keep those pension schemes afloat. Actually, Campbell shows that between 1991-95 there was an increase of citizens. For those five years with zero immigration factored in, there were 138,500 more citizens. Also what the immigration lobby never wants to talk about is that, while some of those immigrants will be an economic blessing, others will be a burden. Let your minds roam to a future of declining health care professionals; yet hundreds of thousands of aged "family class" claimants will also be demanding care. The government never wants to let you see the flip-side of the coin.

Myth #3: Canada needs a larger population. Various Canadian and American demographic studies have found no correlation between larger population size and economic advantages. If large size were so beneficial, then Mexico, Bangladesh and Nigeria would be economic giants--rather than the basket cases they are. (Why is Mexico included? A poll revealed that 46% of Mexicans would move to the US if they could and the Mexico - US border incursions tell the tale.)

Myth #4: Immigrants earn more and contribute more to Canada than do native-born citizens. Here Campbell employs charts to show the truth, charts showing that, since the introduction of "family class" immigration, the average immigrant has fallen below the Canadian average economic level.

Throughout Campbell's book (published by Jasmine Books, West Vancouver, 2000), he documents the unreal immigration scenarios that have been played out by the Liberals. The entrepreneur investment plan that allowed (mainly Chinese) investors to enter Canada was largely a failure. Campbell uses statistics to show that many of these merely wanted to park their illegal assets here, while escaping to a lenient country that would not deport them. The "Ice Queen", Lee Chau-Ping, who was on the run from her massive crystal meth smuggling between China and Hong Kong, was a classic example. Nobody in the IRB checked out the story of her assets--which Campbell insists was the common practice. I am old enough to remember the Hong Kong cop, who really did have millions when he landed here. How somebody who make less than $10,000 a year amassed this fortune was never seriously investigated. Personally, I know of two of these entrepeneur-class cases, where no native Canadian was hired for their "business". In the case of the restaurant, it soon was sub-divided into tiny immigrant stores. As the restaurant shrunk, the number of wait staff seemed to increase. Locals came to the conclusion that it was nothing but a way station for illegal Chinese. In some cases, the migrant put up only $90,000, with Canadian banks loaning the rest. Many of those "businesses" failed, but the extended family got permanent resident status. But I digress.

The Australian model of immigration is the one which Campbell favours. It has not--unlike ours--become captive to special interests, the immigration lobbyists, or the activist courts. The criteria to enter that country is stringent. The economic gain to Australia, along with the candidates' ability to integrate are what count. Family integration is severely restricted. Refugee acceptance is far, far below ours.

Meanwhile, our dysfunctional IRB merrily goes on with its feckless policies of allowing illegal immigrants and refugees to enter our country. We haven't yet seen the worst of Europe's problems, with ill-educated, unable to assimilate immigrants bombing their fellow citizens or committing massive arson attacks--10,000 cars and 200 public buildings in France during a two week rampage--but the lawlessness and social breakdown exhibited in the Caribbean areas of Toronto, makes visible the tip of the iceberg. Beneath that tip are the extremist Muslim sleeper cells--the Khadrs, Jabarahs and Ressams--and other like-minded people. We must drain the swamp that allows 36,000 deportees to flee into our ghettos and produce more problems for society. The immigration voter jolt that the Liberals have enjoyed in every election must not be allowed to continue, to absurdity. The Liberal gain is your pain. Canada cannot afford it. Enough!

© Bud Talkinghorn




Truth, Self-censorship, Courage & Political Correctness

This Dane has spine! -- Flemming Rose, Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, kulturredaktør Posted by Dave on 10:39:52 2006/01/02, In Reply to: Re: What an opportunity!

[Re: ] Flemming Rose, cultural editor of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten. This is the paper that published provocative cartoons of the prophet Muhammad.

Rose forwarded me an article from the International Herald Tribune, reprinted below. He and his newspaper are to be commended for his courage in standing up to Muslim pressures and threats.

There is a reprint of the article: "Cartoons ignite cultural combat in Denmark", by Dan Bilefsky International Herald Tribune, Jan. 1, 05

COPENHAGEN When the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published 12 cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad - including one in which he is shown wearing a turban shaped as a bomb with a burning fuse - it expected a strong reaction in this country of 5.4 million people.

But the paper was unprepared for the global furor inspired by the cartoons, which provoked demonstrations in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir, death threats against the artists, condemnation from 11 Muslim countries and a rebuke from the United Nations.

"The cartoons did nothing that transcends the cultural norms of secular Denmark, and this was not a provocation to insult Muslims," said Flemming Rose, cultural editor of Jyllands-Posten, Denmark's largest newspaper, which has refused to apologize for publishing the drawings.

"But if we talk of freedom of speech, even if it was a provocation, that does not make our right to do it any less legitimate before the law," he added in an interview [. . . . ]

Rose, of Jyllands-Posten, who has worked as a journalist in Iran, said he decided to commission the cartoons when he heard that Danish cartoonists were too scared of Muslim fundamentalists to illustrate a new children's biography of Muhammad.

Annoyed at the self-censorship he said had overtaken Europe since the Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh was murdered last year by a Muslim radical for criticizing Islam's treatment of women, he said he had decided to test Denmark's free speech norms.
[. . . . ]

"Muslims who come here reject our culture," Krarup said. "Muslim immigration is a way for Muslims to conquer us, just as they have done for the past 1,400 years."




Multiculturalism & the highest form of tolerance

It’s the demography, stupid -- "The design flaw of the secular social-democratic state is that it requires a religious-society birth rate to sustain it. Post-Christian hyper-rationalism is, in the objective sense, a lot less rational than Catholicism or Mormonism." -- Mark Steyn This article originally appeared in The New Criterion, Volume 24, January 2006, on page 10

Most people reading this have strong stomachs, so let me lay it out as baldly as I can: Much of what we loosely call the western world will survive this century, and much of it will effectively disappear within our lifetimes, including many if not most western European countries. There’ll probably still be a geographical area on the map marked as Italy or the Netherlands— probably—just as in Istanbul there’s still a building called St. Sophia’s Cathedral. But it’s not a cathedral; it’s merely a designation for a piece of real estate. [. . . . ]

Hmm. Lady Kennedy was arguing that our tolerance of our own tolerance is making us intolerant of other people’s intolerance, which is intolerable. And, unlikely as it sounds, this has now become the highest, most rarefied form of multiculturalism. [. . . . ]


This is lengthy and Mark Steyn is his usual brilliant self -- always a delight to read. As well, there is a Khadr tour.



Globe and Mail Five-Part Series on Israeli Security Barrier It began Jan. 2, 06

The first installment, entitled "The WALL: Vital protection or land grab?" may be viewed online at www.globeandmail.com -- or you may need to be subscribed. You could buy the G & M.

In its January 2 edition, the newspaper introduced the series as follows:

In the first of a five-part series, The Globe and Mail's Middle East correspondent, Mark MacKinnon, examines Israel's controversial security barrier, its impact on the lives of Israelis and Palestinians and implications for the peace process.

Today: Enhanced security or land grab? Or both?

Tomorrow: After the bombs, barrier brings peace to Afula

Wednesday: The wall's cruel twists and turns

Thursday: On the outside looking in: Jewish settlers ponder their fate

Friday: United in opposition: Israelis and Palestinians battle the wall


You may comment by writing to letters@globeandmail.ca or calling 416-585-5000.

Forward a copy of your communications to action@honestreporting.ca .




January 02, 2006

Bud Talkinghorn

I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided, and that is the lamp of experience. I know of no way of judging of the future but by the past.
Patrick Henry, 1775




Happy New Year especially for a friend who wrote to me this season. This Was Once a Love Poem by Jane Hirschfield -- a woman who has a way with words



Handgun crime--Lessons from Miami

Miami's black community has suffered from rampant gun murders for decades, while Toronto has just begun to discover those pangs. In 1994 in Miami, a "Breaking Story" was featured on television. It involved seven black youths who had stolen three cars and driven them up to the 163rd Street mall. They used one car to smash through the plate glass window of a clothing store. The rest stormed the store with handguns ready. After looting the store of expensive leather jackets, they fled in the remaining two cars. In their flight down the I-95 expressway, they damaged four vehicles. One car speeding off the Liberty City exit hit a car at the bottom. The female driver died instantly, while two occupants in the get-a-way car died in hospital. The survivor was quoted as saying, "That bitch deserved to die." The members of the other car were captured after a gun battle. Nobody said, "Miami has lost its innocence". That had disappeared decades before.

A friend related a story to me from years ago. He awoke to find a tall guy at the foot of his bed. He feigned sleep but managed to reach his golf club from under the bed. He came up swinging. The man ran away. When the Miami police showed up, they found the invader had left behind two pieces of plasticized rope. They surmised that one was to strangle my friend to death, the other to tie up his wife so she could be raped--then probably murdered also. When the husband asked how he could protect himself, the cops said, "Next time have a gun under the bed, and blow the f***er away."

He told me that that is what 31 Miamians did that same year. Not one was convicted for defending himself. Years later, Larry, a Miamian friend in South Dade, told me how he and his neighbours prevented the massive looting that followed Hurricane Andrew. They sat on Larry's roof with pistols and shotguns, while the bedsheet they displayed across their front yard stated flatly: "You loot, we shoot". Nobody on their street was burgarized.

Now E.W. Bopp, a British Columbian, has written a letter to the National Post editor that informs us that in 1999 Florida had signed a bill called "10-20 LIFE". It set out a minimum 10 year sentence for a crime committed with a gun and 20 years minimum if the criminal discharges his weapon. If death occurs it is an automatic 25 to life--or maybe a one way trip to "Old Sparky". In the six years of its existence, gun crime has fallen 30%, while the state has grown 16.7%. That is Canada's answer, not bleating as Martin did about the poor murderers feeling "excluded". Let's give our Vancouver and Toronto gun thugs some real "exclusion"--say 20 years in the Big House.

© Bud Talkinghorn


Bud is just warming up for 2006.

I like a man with a plan who cuts straight through to his point ... no detour through 'exclusion', nor 'root causes', nor checking whether that would be all right with the racism industry 'stakeholders'.

New Year resolution for PM & Team: Cut the bluster and bafflegab; end the canvassing of voting blocks; fix the problem(s). Go straight to them and root them out. March them to exclusion from the rest of the citizenry, right to the slammer. And, by the way, fund justice for victims, instead of funding friends.

By the way, what MP's or Ministers received the stolen money PM has said the Liberal Party will pay back or has already paid back? Is it being used to fund candidates this time? Interest on that money? NJC



Interesting true crime stories

During the decade-long Lebanese civil war a truce was called each year. It was harvest time for hashish. Since the Phalangist Christian forces controlled the country's ports and the Muslims controlled the Bekkas (Bekaas?) valley marijuana-producing area, an economic solution had to be reached. So a short truce was called between the combatants. Phalangist trucks were allowed to carry the dope to the ports. The profits were split equally. Each opponent used most of the money to buy arms, so they could go back to slaughtering each other. A charming story, I thought.

CNN presented the purportedly true story of how Pablo Escobar and his cocaine cartel were brought down. After Escobar escaped from his luxurious "jail"--where drugs, prostitution and executions of rivals were allowed, the gloves were taken off. While the combined forces of the Colombian police, the Cali cocaine cartel, and the Delta Force of America had failed to track him down, a new group called "Los Pepes" suddenly emerged. These were ex-supporters of Escobar's enterprise. Recruited mainly from a right-wing death squad, they systematically assassinated most of Escobar's organization. When Escobar retaliated with a huge bombing campaign, Los Pepes blew up a 12 story apartment building housing his relatives and supporters. Finally, without any allies, he was forced to live like an animal. Former (surviving) gang members kept giving up his various hiding holes. At last, he was cornered in a house above Medellin, where he was gunned down. Sometimes you simply have to play with bad guys to get your man.

For the crime freaks out there, let me suggest the story of Charles Sohbraj. For years he was INTERPOL's top concern. He was captured and put in maximum security prisons in Iran, India, and Greece; however, he managed to escape from them all. Tom Thompson, in his book "Serpentine" followed his incredible crime wave that stretched across continents. There are numerous Canadian victims included. A must read for the aficionado of true crime.

© Bud Talkinghorn