Weekly Highlights from our Conservative Overlords

Weekly Highlights from our Conservative Overlords

Monday, September 29, 2014

Backbenching - Week 178 - Sept 22-29

I begin this week with a pretty awesome article from Raif Mair.  Wow...I made about six typing errors coming to grips with that first sentence...Anyhow, Rafe talks about Dianne Watts running for the Conservatives.  Which isn't all that interesting.  Until he starts talking about how useless the life of a backbench MP are.  Makes you understand all the hooting and hollering in the House, doesn't it?  Wouldn't we be better off if we all just decided this was a farce?  If all MP's are there for is to vote how they're told...shit...must be a better way to do things?

I must admit that I have some strange tendencies.  All it takes to bring me on side is a bit of grovelling.  I love an underdog.  I think that's why I hated Lance Armstrong so much.  Now that he's sad and apologetic he's coming around for me.  And now Paul Calandra,  I can't help but feel a bit sorry for him.  I mean, his responses in Parliament were absolutely idiotic.  But there's no way he came up with that all on his own.  Now...hung out to dry.  This is the Conservative Modus Operandi.  My question is this: How come they put so many questionable people into positions of authority to begin with?  Bev Oda.  Paul Calandra.  Dean Del Mastro.  Mike Duffy.  Pamela Wallin.  That other guy.  On and on it goes.  And...we still don't really have answers as to what is happening in Iraq.

Statoil is backing out of an OilSands project.  This is interesting for two reasons.  First, does this signify a larger problem within the OilSands?  Second, how come every other fucking country on this earth is allowed to have a state oil company invested in our OilSands, except for us?

Is there anything worse than somebody who wants to "advise" on an issue and not get involved in any other way?  I laughed a bit when our contribution to the ISIS fight was 60 or so military advisors.  Now we might send some planes...really fucking old planes.

The Canadian 1% is still a bit sad.  $191,000 in yearly salary gains you entry.  I mean...must be nice.  But you're basically an American shoeshine boy with that money.

Andrew Scheer does not respond kindly towards questioning of his impartiality.

I actually kind of like Jason Kenney's recent responses on Temporary Foreign Workers.  We'll see if there's any substance to it.  If we're going to sell out the country in the name of jobs, let's at least make sure people can get jobs and salaries go up a bit.  Nobody should have sympathy for Alberta companies complaining that they can't hire cheap foreign labour.

It's tough to figure what Steve is thining about the UN these days.  I mean, don't show up for the climate conference, but show up for dinner?  And then re-announce an announcement that we already announced a few years ago?  That basically does nothing but bring us in line with US Regulations?  At least we brought some cash...Canada forks out a bit of UN money for Ebola...and some more UN money for a maternal health initiative.

This needs to be read because it's just too weird.  A murdered man in France had stolen the identity of Glenn Miller...and was living the life of a washed up Canadian "rockstar".

I'll start by pointing out the obvious.  Nobody thinks this is a good thing or should have happened.  The question is what we should do about it?  The response to the murder of a Surrey teen by a recently released High Risk Offender has been about what you would expect.  I'd like to see a happy medium between keep-everybody-in-jail-forever and do-absolutely-nothing-once-high-risk-offenders-are-released-except-deliver-a-warning.

The Cons look to shaft everybody by re-introducing their union finance law, ignoring the recommendations of the Senate, and limiting debate on the whole sordid affair.  Nothing to see here, folks.

So, ya, there is an argument for stripping terrorists of their passports.  But that comes at a cost.  And I don't trust these assholes enough to give them the right to start stripping citizenship, especially with the loose definition of "terrorist" these days.

Some more info on North Korean refugees.  The reason we don't accept them?  Well, Chris Alexander sucks.  And the loophole seems to be that since South Korea will accept North Koreans, they're no longer considered to be refugees in Canada's eyes.  Which is some fucking loophole.

Monday, September 22, 2014

Chinese Overlords - Week 176-177 - Sept 8-22

Sorry.  Missed a week.  Looks like there was a lot going on.

Steve got his free trade agreement signed with China.  Opinions vary from "China will take over our country" to "Doesn't really matter...everybody else can already sue us over trade issues anyhow."

Our performance in several key metrics for child health is terrible.  Out of 29 countries assessed, we're 27th in child obesity, 22nd in infant mortality and 21st in child poverty rates.  967,000 children live in low income houses/poverty.  I think what those families really need is another tax cut.  Put a couple hundred dollars in their pockets and I'm sure the problem will fix itself.

Steve loses another court battle.  The Ontario Court of Appeal rules a tough-on-crime law unconstitutional.

Steve likes his secrets.  A growing number of topics are considered "Cabinet Secrets" and won't be released for 20 years.

The Department of Justice suggest that Peter MacKay and Steve were wrong to criticize the Chief Justice and that she had every right to comment on Supreme Court appointments.  Man.  Somebody is not getting a mother's/father's day e-mail this year.

Great week for Canada.  Bad week for Rod Anders.  Sleepy Time loses another nomination battle.  Could this be the end for him in Canadian politics?  I bet he shows up as a Wild Rose candidate soon.

Steve's precious Museum for Human Rights has opened up.  And the Cons seemed concerned about the contents of the exhibits.  I'm surprised Steve hasn't been spending weekends there, working on his diorama on how the Charter of Rights ruined oil development.  Interesting that as they trumpet human rights, there's been a lot of the work in the background to deny them for trans-gendered people.

Canada appears to no longer be granting North Korean refugee claims.  Because we all know how safe and effectively governed that country is.

The MP who proposed a law to empower MP's has been pressured into amending the bill.  What we really need to stop things like this from happening is some sort of something...a bill perhaps?...to empower MP's.  And you know that a bill that when the PM blesses a bill that is supposed to reel back a little bit of power from said PM....well...maybe it's a bit of lip service.

There's some proof that the government has been tracking hundreds of peaceful protests, panel discussions, etc.

No money to investigate the effects of global warming.  Lots of money for an expedition to support Steve's pet project/fascination with the lost Franklin expedition.

This article speculates that the Conservatives have something to fear over mandatory voting laws.  Which would explain why they've made such an effort to suppress vote participation.

Apparently our fighter jet choice is down to the F-35 and the Super Hornet.

Monday, September 8, 2014

Nice Abs - Week 175 - Sept 2-8

A Jewish group nominated our illustrious leader for a Nobel Peace Prize.  Which sounds horrible.  But...I mean...sounds like just about anybody can nominate anybody for one of these things.  So no biggie.

We're #1!  We're #1!  Canada leads the world!  In deforestation of pristine forests.  And it's not even close.

A request to interview a government scientist about Rock Snot spurred a giant round of e-mails and confusion within the government.  And no interview.  Lots of discussion about what he should be allowed to say if there was an approved interview request though.

Some details on the Tory plan to embarrass the Liberals.  Surreptitious recordings...baited questions...and they appear to have no shame over it.

I'm a bit scared.  If we consider the number of people on our no fly list to be a State Secret...Shit.  It's like a boy guarding his precious beans.  If that is the information we think will prevent terrorist attacks, we're screwed.

Brian Mulroney suggests that he would create a national inquiry over the missing women issue.  And suggests Harper shouldn't have picked a fight with the head of the Supreme Court.  For any American readers to make sense of this...imagine voting in a really terrible Conservative President in 20 years time...and then George Bush Jr. steps out of the woodwork to talk about how terrible a job that new guy is doing.  Meanwhile...Numerous government reports contradict Steve's assertion that the missing aboriginal women's issue is "not sociological".

This is amazing!  Last year, Employment and Social Development Canada put together a report that suggested the Canadian middle class has seen wage stagnation.  Finance Canada is angry because this  "appears to conflict with the general message in Budget 2014 and previous internal briefings", so they put together a new report that says the opposite.  Man.  What the fuck are these guys up to?

America has decided that our anti-counterfeiting law doesn't suck enough.

Are the Liberals floating mandatory voting laws?  Fuck.  The Cons are going to freak the fuck out about this.  If the census is a totalitaran overstep, imagine forcing people to vote.

Do we really have something to gain as a society by preventing convicts from reading?

A story about oil advertisements and environmental records and how spending money to convince Americans Keystone XL is great doesn't work.  Probably because nobody in the US gives a shit about how this affects Canada.

More problems with more tough on crime legislation.  There's a known error in a bill, but the Senate approved it anyway.  It's a stupid law anyhow.  And I think this proves the point that the Conservatives are more concerned with the optics of their stance than with actually accomplishing anything.

Chicken Hawk Steve derails added military spending requirements for NATO.  Why spend your own money when you can talk tough and hide behind the US?

Mobilicity is suing the government for screwing things up with respect to their potential sale to Telus.

I'm okay with a Mr. Big sting being used in extreme circumstances, with regulations and controls in place.  But it seems like it has become the go to tool for the RCMP and some of the tactics they use are bound to produce false confessions.  That's not a "loophole".  That's illegal.  Details of numerous recent Nova Scotia murder trials that involved these stings.

Why would you go to England as the PM of Canada and give your opinion that Scotland should remain in the UK?  What can you possibly gain from that?

This is a horribly depressingly awesome list of things threatened by climate change.

Omar Khadr is once again trying to sue the Canadian government.  For $20 million.

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Who to believe? - Week 174 - Aug 25 - Sep 2

I try to keep the swearing to a minimum on this little blog.  Something about "expanding the audience"...but what the fuck?  This is amazing!  Last year, Employment and Social Development Canada put together a report that suggested the Canadian middle class has seen wage stagnation.  Finance Canada is angry because this  "appears to conflict with the general message in Budget 2014 and previous internal briefings", so they put together a new report that says the opposite.  Man.  What the fuck are these guys up to?  How the fuck can we take these guys seriously?  Fuck!

Steve's fancy "We Hate Communists" memorial?  He has appropriated the land from a project for a new Federal Court building.  The name of that unbuilt building/project?  The Pierre Elliot Trudeau Judicial Building.  And they're spending a pile to make it happen.

Oh man...can you imagine saying this shit with a straight face?  CRA is auditing a left leaning think tank because of "bias"...They're aware of the Fraser Institute, right?

The Globe lays out the insane number of "tough on crime" bills that are being introduced (and passed) without anybody really noticing.  Except for this one.  This one was noticed.  There was a massive clerical error made with one of the Cons tough-on-crime bills.  They sent the wrong version to the Senate for review.  Could their own cuts have derailed their plans?

What the fuck is wrong with these stupid anti-science, Conservative zealots?  The PC leader in New Brunswick is arguing that Justin Trudeau is wrong to push for more research into fracking.  Which is a fucking stupid position to take.  This argument that "fracking is safe and has been going on for 50 years" is imbecilic.  The process and scale now is way, way different than it was.  To argue that we shouldn't look into the effects of massive fracking projects is stupid.  Hope this imbecile doesn't get elected.

What does Stephen Harper hope to accomplish with all his tough talk on Russia?  We have nothing to back this up.  Even if we did, what do we want?  World War III?  You're supposed to talk trash behind doors, not to the newspapers.  Only a psychopath would deny the existence of global warming and then suggest that it's effects are an opportunity (the Arctic) and stoke fears that the Russians are coming.  As well, I know one thing an International crisis doesn't need: An official Canadian delegation tweeting snarky comments at the Russians.

Peter McKay posed for a photo in a shirt supporting a gun rights group that supports an end to firearm regulation in Canada.  Take the craziest shit the NRA wants and they want that here.  "No Compromise".  And then...Is Peter MacKay delusional?  Only an imbecile would argue that sex workers are not stakeholders in new prostitution legislation.

More bad deeds with temporary foreign workers.  A Saskatchewan company laid off Canadian workers and brought in TFW's.  And there are some safety issues related to language skills and qualifications in a big Oil Sands construction project.

Veterans groups are questioning why the government is spending millions to commemorate old wars while shafting current veterans.  This is a good question.

Somebody is trying to rally Conservative staffers against their evil oppressors - Conservative MP's.  They point out two interesting things: 1) Of course, the Conservative majority approved raises for MP's, but cut money for office staff, and 2) Libs and NDP pay their office staff better.

"Traditional Family Values".  "Tough-on-crime approach".  "Safe and sensible firearms policy".  Who can argue with that?  What happened to a "steady hand on the tiller".  The article also notes that the Tea Party is about "traditional family values".

Our financially responsible government wanted to mothball a bunch of private jets that the Liberals bought because they were "excessive".  But then kept them, because they used them so much.

The government spent $24M promoting the Keystone pipeline in the US.  It had little impact.

The Tyee speculates that our days of "easy oil" are well and truly gone.  Oil company profits prove it.

The Harper Government hasn't filled a post to oversee the mining industry.  It's been vacant for over a year.

The Conservatives are upset that "the media" dares to not like them...asks for money from supporters.

This is a really...funny?...interesting?...article on how Canadians get off on punishing people.

This article tears Stephen Harper's "not a sociological phenomenon" comment apart.  Some info on why a public inquiry might be called for.

The Harper Government is telling civil servants to delete their e-mails.

A Conservative Senator has to apologize for hiring his girlfriend.

Canada has the most business friendly tax policy in the world.

This isn't even vulture capitalism.  It's like super aggressive alien invasion capitalism.  Funding for Robert Mugabe's brutal genocide can be traced directly back to American hedge funds.

Great news!  An LNG train derailed.  And it didn't explode!  We're making progress, people.