Da Legal Stuff...
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Now, with that out of the way...Let's Web Talk.
Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Clause and if you are a blue blooded ultra Conservative stalwart his name is Stephen.
Conversely, believe it or not, Steve Clause also visited his gifts on Newfoundland and Labrador this Christmas even after failing to win a single seat in the Province during the last election.
Yes indeed, it also seems Newfoundland and Labrador is the recipient of more than a little of the PM’s Christmas spirit this year (unintended of course).
When it comes to cronyism no better proof of the PM’s spirit of giving can be found than the senate appointment of disgraced Newfoundland and Labrador MP Fabian Manning. A man who had the audacity to sit, laugh and even egg on the Prime Minister in the House of Commons a couple of years ago as the latter publicly ridiculed Manning’s home Province.
Indeed, no better example can be found unless you also look at the Prime Minister’s appointment of CTV’s Mike Duffy, a national political correspondent with more than a little bias toward his ultra conservative friends. A bias that has exposed itself more and more in recent years, especially when interviewing federal Tory friends or when snidely deriding Newfoundland and Labrador Premier, Danny Williams.
Oh well, I guess that’s just the way things work in Ottawa, nothing new under the sun there.
What more would anyone expect from Santa Harper than a long list of patronage appointments after promising to never appoint senators. I guess the spirit of Christmas was just too much for the PM to resist. With plenty of personal time on his hands, having suspended Parliament so he couldn’t be forced to answer to a non-confidence vote in the House of Commons, the pork barrel spirit must have moved him to act.
Never having been a fan of blind partisanship there may be those who will be amazed at what I’m about to say next, but I would like to offer my heart felt congratulations to both Mr. Duffy and Mr. Manning.
At least with both of these men squirreled away inside the dusty old red senate chamber Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, along with Canadians in general, will no longer have to suffer through their partisan, one sided and self serving drivel.
There’s an old saying to the effect that the best way to relegate someone into silent obscurity is to appoint them to the Canadian senate. Looking at these appointments from that perspective perhaps the greatest Christmas gift of all this season has been given by the PM to Newfoundland and Labrador with the appointment of these two individuals.
Always look on the bright side folks. Always look on the bright side.
Merry Chrismas everyone.
Canada’s current government has been in office for about two years. Not once in that time has Prime Minister Stephen Harper seen fit to meet with the provincial and territorial leaders at a first minister’s conference. Suddenly with the high Canadian dollar impacting export businesses from east to west Harper has agreed to just such a meeting, but only after several Premiers demanded it. My question is why. Why now, why not earlier and why this particular issue?
It’s not like there weren’t any serious issues or concerns that needed to be discussed before now.
Sometime between now and January the Prime Minister says he will sit down with the first ministers and discuss the impact of the rising dollar. Oddly enough, of all the issues facing the people of Canada, a high dollar is arguably one government can do the least to resolve.
It’s possible to ease corporate tax burdens, lower tariffs or subsidize specific industries, but the value of the dollar is not something political leaders have any real control over. On the other hand, there are a myriad of issues our leaders can and should be addressing but aren’t. These other issues that may not grab headlines or provide the same kind of photo-ops as a soaring loonie but they are issues that hav real solutions. Solutions that would do far more for the Country in the long run than moaning about a high dollar.
Why aren’t the first ministers and the PM trying to resolve the deadlock over an east/west power grid? A grid that would allow provinces to wheel power across the country, without impediment, to areas that desperately need it.
What about the issue of senate reform? Rather than simply talking about abolishing the senate why isn’t the PM spending some time (up front) working with the provinces to find a way of reforming that tired old body and making it do what it was designed to do, provide regional representation to all areas of the Country?
Why, with so many seniors on voting lists across Canada and with more entering their so called “golden years” every day, is nothing being done to help older Canadians live out their lives without having to choose between medications, food and home heat? Millions of older Canadians are doing exactly that. The Old Age Security plan is designed to keep seniors at or below the poverty line and heaven forbid you paid into a pension plan, out of your pocket, because you’ll soon find that your foresight has won you the prize of having your government pension reduced.
There are countless issues that affect all Canadians and that need to be addressed. Issues that the government has far more ability to control and manage than the Canadian dollar. Why have these not warranted the attention of Stephen Harper or the first ministers? Why have they not resulted in a leader’s conference or been addressed at all?
