Another Harprocracy

Vote for this post on Progressive Bloggers

So PMS (Prime Minister Steve-o) was in Saskatchewan for three days and what was the sum total of things he said and did. This story sums it up nicely.

Harper reaffirmed his government’s May 2 budget commitment of $161 million in new funding to train 600 more officers and hire 400 more civilian support staff, including federal prosecutors. This will be done over two years.

Harper’s appearance at the RCMP training depot was part of a two-day visit that included filming a cameo appearance on Corner Gas and a Conservative barbecue at Sherwood Forest Country Club on Tuesday. It is the first time Harper has been in Saskatchewan as prime minister.

Gee, I wonder what Stephen Harper, Leader of the Opposion would have to say to a Prime Minister who traveled to a province at taxpayer expense to attend a political fundraiser, appear on a popular television program and re-annouce spending from the budget.

Here's what Peter MacKay would say if HE was in oppositon:

For example, the Prime Minister's high-flying use of the Challenger jet in his pre-election campaign cost Canadian taxpayers almost $1 million. Between January and May, the Prime Minister used the jet 26 times to make rehashed announcements... When will the Prime Minister pay back this money to Canadian taxpayers for his pre-election campaign?

Is Bush an Idiot? Round 2

So one of the very first posts I ever made on this blog was to ask "Is George Bush an Idiot"

to recap: The White House Press corps was being spun by the claim that George Bush spent his summer vacation reading the existentialist novel "The Stranger" by Camus. Needless to say, I joined the ranks of people who expressed some scepticism that this was true. Now the Man himself is trying to claim that not only did he read Camus (although he couldn't remember what it was about) but he also read, and I quote, "Three Shakespears" (sic)

BWAA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

But wait, let him tell you about it himself, after all, the President has an "ek-leck-tic" reading list.

12 Conservative MP's from Saskatchewan in Trouble

Welcome to Paul Wells' Readers: (And there are a lot of you!) this post is from last year
Read my latest post on this topic here

The conservative MPs from Saskatchewan told the people of this province to vote for them in the last election campaign because they would deliver on an equalization deal for the province. Now they are cutting and running from that promise:

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"Let me give you a 100 per cent guarantee, Prime Minister Harper will give Saskatchewan the best deal it's ever had from any prime minister ever, "

- Saskatchewan MP Brad Trost

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So the Prime Minister was in Saskatchewan yesterday and his office was running the show with typical arrogance. They told one reporter from Regina that, “What you see on (the Prime Minister's itinerary) advisory is what we want you to know. If we're not telling you, we don't want you to know.”

Can you believe these guys?

Of course, PMSH made no comment on the biggest federal-provincial file in the province, the only one that all the newspapers have been writing about and the one that his own MP’s sent him a letter saying it could cost them thier seats in the next election. The one that one of his MP’s went out on a limb to say that PMSH would give us the “best deal it’s ever had from a Prime Minister”

Well, just to keep the MP’s on their toes – here is what the Saskatchewan MP’s have had to say about the equalization deal – before they formed government of course. It would be weird if ALL 12 SASKATCHEWAN CONSERVATIVE MP’s spoke out against the current equalization deal and called for an immediate change.

Yes, that would be weird. (the links are to the actual quotes in Hansard)

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“The matter of equalization has to do with Saskatchewan's natural resources which by right of the Constitution we should have complete access to, we should have total and complete benefit of. It is a right which is being taken away from us through the equalization process…. We want nothing more than the basic principles of fairness applied.”
- Mr. Bradley Trost (Saskatoon—Humboldt, CPC) Hansard

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“Saskatchewan has been ripped off by the federal government when it comes to equalization …Because of equalization, revenues from the very resources that are keeping the province afloat are being handed to the federal government which in turn distributes the money among the have not provinces”
- Mr. Garry Breitkreuz (Yorkton—Melville, CPC) Hansard

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Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak on the equalization question…. We can find inequities that exist between provinces particularly as they relate to Saskatchewan. In that regard, there have been many studies commissioned showing that Saskatchewan has had the bad end of the deal on this one… All Saskatchewan wants is to be treated fairly and equitably… It is our position that non-renewable resources such as oil and gas should not be in the formula. The Minister of Finance, a native of Saskatchewan, has an obligation to the citizens of Saskatchewan and those in particular in Souris—Moose Mountain to ensure that the past injustices done to Saskatchewan are not repeated again.
- Mr. Ed Komarnicki (Souris—Moose Mountain, CPC) Hansard

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Saskatchewan is simply not getting its fair share out of equalization…. Just last week the Prime Minister visited Saskatoon, but refused to substantially negotiate or discuss the equalization matter with our premier…. Saskatchewan faces challenges. Its population has increased 14% since the Great Depression, while other provincial populations have flourished. With major industries in crisis, a static population and mounting fiscal pressures, we cannot afford to wait forever for this federal government to attend to this problem…. We need our NDP government in Saskatchewan to be supportive of our efforts to get a better deal for Saskatchewan. We need a provincial government that wants our province to prosper on the backs of its own industries. At the very least we need a provincial government that will hold the federal government to its constitutional obligations…. I plead with the government and the minister across the way to negotiate a fair deal with the province of Saskatchewan and to do it without delay.
- Mrs. Carol Skelton (Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, CPC) Hansard

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“The equalization formula that we have has totally shafted the province of Saskatchewan from every standpoint…. A good deal of the problem I have identified is the gross unfairness in the equalization formula. I want to point out a couple of those discrepancies. I also want to point out that the Conservative Party has clearcut policies on this matter as opposed to the government across the way…. I want to make it clear that this formula is grossly unfair to a province that has non-renewable natural resources…. This is bad policy. It is terrible policy…. This formula is unfair. It is shocking. I do not know what terminology I could use to describe the matter….. As a resident of Saskatchewan, I am looking at a formula that does not serve our province very well at all. As I stated at the onset, in many respects it shafts the people of Saskatchewan to the umpteenth degree. What is the government's response to this very serious problem? The finance minister says that it is too complicated to discuss.
- Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick (Prince Albert, CPC) Hansard

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"The truth of the matter is that in Saskatchewan the only elected official who is not demanding the same deal as was afforded Premiers Hamm and Williams is the Minister of Finance. That is shameful. Will the minister or his designate stand in the House today and do what is right, do what is fair, and simply commit to the elimination of the clawback provisions and give Saskatchewan people the same deal as afforded to Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia?"
Mr. Tom Lukiwski (Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, CPC) Hansard

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"Representatives of the people of Saskatchewan are obliged to speak out against an equalization system that penalizes our province with an over-emphasis on non-renewable resources and a complete failure to accurately measure fiscal capacity. The detrimental effects of the present equalization formula should not be under-estimated. It has and continues to have a real effect on the prosperity of the residents of Saskatchewan, robbing them of economic benefits resulting from energy revenues…. The concept of equalization is to assist have not provinces. However, under this formula, we could conceivably cement the economic stagnation of some provinces, such as my own, for decades to come. The treatment of Saskatchewan's non-renewable resources under the equalization formula is, to quote Courchene, “not only inequitable, it is fiscally and economically immiserating”`. We cannot allow this situation to persist."
- Mrs. Lynne Yelich (Blackstrap, CPC) Hansard

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“A tremendous number of our graduates and our kids are working in Alberta in that oil patch that Alberta started before this equalization formula became a hindrance. I take exception to that…. The whole equalization process, and the fundamental word in there is equal, has become a political process, not a practical process. One can argue that formula is as flawed as the equalization one and I would agree. It needs to be changed…"
- Mr. Gerry Ritz (Battlefords—Lloydminster, CPC) Hansard

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"I have a lot of people in my riding who would like to know why, when those parties were making this deal, there was not a single penny for agriculture and not a single penny for a fair deal for Saskatchewan in terms of equalization, an agenda that this party has been driving for months as the only ally of the Saskatchewan people in moving this issue forward."
- Mr. Andrew Scheer (Regina Qu’appelle, CPC) Hansard

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There is no equalization deal for Saskatchewan, which is what the Conservative Party has been consistently demanding from the government. To put it into perspective, a new equalization deal would have meant an additional $750 million for Saskatchewan, my province, this year alone.
- Mr. Dave Batters (Palliser, CPC) Hansard

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It was interesting to hear him say that equalization is not really about equality. It seems to me that it is…. We know that the current equalization formula is flawed…. We agree that Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia deserve to keep their offshore gas and oil revenues. However, we think that what is fair for those provinces is also fair for Saskatchewan…. . This change should be a slam dunk.
- Mr. David Anderson (Cypress Hills—Grasslands, CPC) Hansard

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"This is not something just unique to the Conservative Party, but we believe there is a tremendous flaw in the current equalization formula… It is estimated that Saskatchewan, had it received that same deal a decade ago, would have received an additional $8 billion for the province from non-renewable resource revenues…. In regard to equalization, Saskatchewan is being treated very unfairly…. By not providing a fair deal for Saskatchewan, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance have turned their backs on our province"
Mr. Maurice Vellacott (Saskatoon—Wanuskewin, CPC) Hansard

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That's all 12 Saskatchewan MPs!

Roadkill Wackyness Part 3

Every once in a while I wade into the Small Dead Animals Message Boards to find you the best that right-wing nutjobs have to offer. They never disappoint.

From "The Lesser Known Eisenhower Quote"

No racism here, move along now.

He [Eisenhower] also said something like, "if there's ever a nuclear war, just run outside with your rifle and shoot all your neighbors, because living will be worse than dying. You'll be doing them a favor."

maybe something in the German makeup [means] they are good at conducting wars.

see, the problem was and gawd Im not trying to be racist here, but japanese are far more recognizable than aryans within the european dominant society of US A at the time. they were simply much easier to ferret out and heave into the internment camps.

From "Fox News Journalists "Converted To Islam""

Ah, the sensitivity for Islam is touching.

Here are todays praying times for Islam's latest converts. I'm sure they are just as easily converted into "Miller Times"

Proves to us further that the Muslim philosophy is "convert or be killed"

wonder how ol' allah views this recruitment tactic re how it puts moe-ham-mad's whole thing in a bad light.

Hamas, Hezbollah and all the other savages like them work closely with western media productions

Unlike the God of Islam, if these belong to virtually any other religion, God will know and forgive. Some way we all worship the same God. Not true. Too bad Muslims don't worship a loving and forgiving God.

I wish those intending to convert to Islam would understand that there is a misprint involved. It is not 72 virgins, but a 72 year old virgin.

From "CBC DeProgramming Note"

One poster was kind enough to tell us all the things that are causing the problems in the world today. They all stem from the same source apparently,

The Liberal Party of Canada, The Status of Women, The CBC, The United Nations, Muslims of Terrorist Inclination, Hez-B, Al Quaida, One World Governance, TorStar, G&M, Canadian Journalism "schools", Environment Canada, Charter of Rights, Kyoto Protocol, Criminal Rights over Victims Rights, Trudeau/Suzuki support of Castro, State Day Care support, not SAH Mothers, Soft on Terrorism, Soft on Crime, MSM, MSM polls, UN/Saddam Oil FF Scandal, Mourning the fall of Berlin Wall, Greenpeace

I'm sort of hurt that in that hate-filled rant they couldn't find time to mention the NDP. Aren't we a threat to society like Muslim Terrorists or Greenpeace.

Solar Power in Saskatchewan

For those of you who don't know I am a guest blogger over at the Saskatchewan Citizen's Federation. I have put my new post up there.

Right-Wing Blog-o-sphere owes Peggy Nash Apology

Ms. Nash corrects the record on Question Period

"I don't advocate a change in the definition of Hezbollah"

"I did not, did not, call for Hezbollah to be taken off the terrorist list"

"The solution has to be - not more violence, but peace"

Can you imagine of the MSM had misquoted a Conservative MP this badly? The crys of "liberal-bias" and "MSM can't be trusted" would be so deafening that the Internet would have collapsed under the shere righteousness of it all

The following Conservative Bloogers Owe Ms. Nash an apology (I'm not holding my breath)
bound by gravity
celestial junk blog
back seat blogger
fortress of knowledge
saskatory

and of course: Small Dead Animals (and her comment sheep)
for the infamous Peggy Nash says "Death to Jews"

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the Liberal Party and the Dippers are as dangerous as the terrorists

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It's high time the Liberals and NDP we're labelled as terrorist support organisations, as well as rascist anti-semites and summarily banned.

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The NDP and the Liberals have gone from being laughable to really being a threat to western civilization.

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The leftern world within is the biggest threat to our way of life, not the Hezbollgh or any other terrorist organization

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.....Support ..GENOCIDE....Vote Liberal or NDP........

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for many leftists it's less about standing up for muslims and more about murdering jews.

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Shilling propaganda for the enemy should be considered treason and treason's punishment should be a long drop from a short rope.

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Elizabeth May (New Green Leader) says "Vote NDP"

So the greens have elected a new Leader

Elizabeth May

I know that everyone out there was paying a great deal of attention to this riviting leadership race and it is possible that Ms. May could be the next Prime Minister of Canada and......

Oh.

Wait.

Sorry, that's the start of my post for the results of the Liberal leadership convention.

My guess is, if you're like me, then you have never heard of Ms. May - so on the off-hand chance that you care:

Age: 52 (Born in US)

Occupation: Lawyer

Claim to Green Fame: Executive Director of Sierra Club of Canada

Now here is the kicker.

When she was the Executive Director of the Sierra Club - they gave the NDP higher marks than the Green Party.

Ah, the commericals write themselves

from the news release:

"The party positions put the NDP and the Bloc at the head of the class with the NDP earning an A+ and the Bloc getting an A, tying with the Green Party. Paul Martin and the Liberal Party platform earned a B."

Woops!

Code for English/French translation for your Blog

There was some good feedback for my translation code. (See below) I have added the code to my blog as a sidebar feature (look to the side) and have included the code snippet below so that others can steal it and put it on thier web sites.

All I ask is that you leave in the reference back to my blog for other people to use to get the code ;-)

Blogging in Both Official Languages

I would love to be able to speak/type French and thus reach a broader audience.

However, linguistics are not exactly my strong suit.

Programming and code editing are my strong suit(s)

As well as stealing and modifying good ideas.

So - as a prototype - I bring you blogging in both of Canada's official languages.

If people like this I will work on making modular code that others can add to their blogs.

Here is the code that you see on my side bar:

<div style="border: 1px solid #cccccc; background-color: white; width: 100px; text-align: center; padding: 0 0 10px 0;"><p style="margin: 0"><br /><div style="clear: both;"></div><form action="http://www.google.com/translate"><span style=""> Translate this Blog</span><input dir="ltr" value="http://giantpoliticalmouse.blogspot.com/index.html" name="u" size="55" type="hidden"> <span style="">from </span><br/><select name="langpair"><option value="en|fr">English to French<option value="fr|en">French to English</select><input value="en" name="hl" type="hidden"><input value="UTF8" name="ie" type="hidden"><input value="Translate" type="submit"></form><br /><a href="http://giantpoliticalmouse.blogspot.com/2006/08/blogging-in-both-official-languages.html">Get this code for your blog</a></div>

You have to change value="http://giantpoliticalmouse.blogspot.com/index.html"
to the url for your own blog

Saskboy says this code works on wordpress:


<div style="border: 1px solid #cccccc; background-color: white; width: 100px; text-align: center; padding: 0 0 10px 0;"><p style="margin: 0"><br /><br /></div><div style="border: 0px solid #cccccc; background-color: white; width: 180px; height: 100px; text-align: center; padding: 0 0 5px 0;"><p style="margin: 0"><br /><form action="http://mail.yahoo.com/config/login?/http://www.google.com/translate"><span style=""> Translate from</span><input dir="ltr" value="http://www.abandonedstuff.com" name="u" size="55" type="hidden"> <br/><select name="langpair"><option value="en|fr">English <span onclick="BLOG_clickHandler(this)" class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">au</span> <span onclick="BLOG_clickHandler(this)" class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">francais</span><option value="fr|en">French to English</select><input value="en" name="hl" type="hidden"><br /><input value="UTF8" name="ie" type="hidden"><input value="Translate" type="submit"></form><br /><a href="http://mail.yahoo.com/config/login?/http://giantpoliticalmouse.blogspot.com/2006/08/blogging-in-both-official-languages.html">Get this code too</a></div><br />

I officially concede the fight to Walmart

*sigh*

Monte Solberg should call on Kenney to resign

Isn't this interesting.

It seems that Monte Solberg (Now Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) had this to say about the conduct of a Liberal Cabinet minister when confronted with association with supposed terrorist organizations

Let's take a lookee-see at Hansard, shall we...

Mr. Monte Solberg (Medicine Hat, Canadian Alliance): Mr. Speaker, Canadian Tamils are law-abiding good people but in any group there are a few bad apples. Right now the Department of Citizenship and Immigration lawyers are arguing at the supreme court to have a man deported because of his association with FACT, a group they say is a fundraising front for the Tamil Tigers. Last year the finance minister and the CIDA ministers argued there was nothing wrong with attending a FACT fundraiser.

The Speaker: Before the minister answers, the question had to do with whether ministers were raising money for other purposes. It has nothing to do with the responsibilities of the government and I am inclined to rule the question out of order.

Hon. Maria Minna (Minister for International Cooperation, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, during question period the member for Medicine Hat referred to both myself and the Minister of Finance and said that we had attended a terrorist dinner or function and that we support terrorists. We attended a community event. When he says things like that, he is painting members of the Tamil community as a whole as terrorists. I attended a community event that was made up of respectable Canadian citizens. I did not attend or have dinner with a group of terrorists. I take this as an offence and I ask for an apology. I do not support terrorism and neither does my colleague. That is absolutely unacceptable.

The Speaker: From time to time some hon. members of the House say things that may cause some offence to some other hon. members. I think the member has made a point here that has clarified the situation, insofar as she is concerned, under the guise of a question of privilege.

We have a disagreement here on an interpretation of what the nature of this meeting was.

Hon. Paul Martin (Minister of Finance, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, it is difficult to understand how there can be a valid difference of opinion as to the nature of the meeting given the fact that the minister and I were there and the hon. member was not.

That is not the issue. The other part of the issue is that it is alleged that we support terrorism and fundraising activities for terrorism. That is clearly not the fact. It not only besmirches us, it besmirches the entire Tamil community, but it is our own privileges that we are raising this.

Mr. Monte Solberg (Medicine Hat, Canadian Alliance): Mr. Speaker, I simply have to bring some clarity to this situation. During question period I certainly did not suggest in any way that the Minister of Finance and the minister for CIDA knowingly supported this group.
What I am alleging is simply that the department of immigration, CSIS and other government organizations have pointed to the fact that FACT is a front for a terrorist organization. I argue that both ministers should have known that as they are cabinet members and that they should renounce that group that they in fact unknowingly supported.

So according to Monte Solberg just associating with an organization that is related to terrorist organizations is enough. As Solberg himself says, you don't have to knowingly support the group, just show up at their events. That's enough to get you in trouble if your own department claims the group is involved with terrorists.


To Recap:

Liberals attend event put on by group that the Canadian Government says is affiliated with terrorists - Monte Solberg condemns them.

Conservatives attend event put on by group that the Canadian Government says is affiliated with terrorists - Monte Solberg says what?

When Kenney resigns he should take Stockwell with him

Update:

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Some other folks seemed to like this post and it has gotten some attention
Cerberus
Fragmunt
Pogge

Even CBC is now mentioning Stockwell Day in this story

A good days work if I say so myself

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So according to Rational Reasons Jason Kenney should resign.

Kenney is not suggesting we talk to this banned terrorist group, he is actually talking to them. He is, in fact, speaking at a rally for them. Unlike Wrzesnewskyj, Kenney is actually a member of the Government and a direct representative of the Prime Minister.

The terroist group in question is the the National Council of Resistance of Iran. Whose is also known as the Mujahedin-e Khalq,(MEK) according to the US State Department

Wow! I'm sure glad the Minister in charge of Canadian Security didn't meet with this group too.

Woops!

Mr. Stockwell Day:

What did Canada do last week? There is a group called MEK, which CSIS has called a terrorist group. I have spoken to MEK, a group of expatriates from Iran who are opposed to the regime in Iran. I have made the case to them. They said that if we are committed to attacking innocent civilians, that is not good and not right, but at the same time we ban this group--

from hansard

Liberal Leadership Dropouts Prediction

The CBC lists the money raised by the different camps:

My analysis:





Cerberus has the following endorsements from Liberal MPs and Senators




If you set a reasonable(to me) threshold that you need at least 10% of the endorsements and 10% of the fundraising to be a serious contender then the only ones left are:

Rae, Ignatieff, Kennedy and Dion, and maybe Brison.

Expect Findlay, Fry, Bennet, and Dryden to all drop out before the convention.

Volpe want's to play kingmaker and so will stay in.

Sask MP draws line in the sand over Equalization

It seems that one of the Saskatchewan Conservative MP's - Brad Trost - has really drawn a line in the sand on the equalization deal, according to the CBC

Brad Trost said while caucus discussions are confidential, MPs from Saskatchewan are intent on keeping their promise to get a new equalization deal for the province.

"Let me give you a 100 per cent guarantee, Prime Minister Harper will give Saskatchewan the best deal it's ever had from any prime minister ever, " he said.

A 100% guarantee, eh? That's a pretty strong statement. For those of you that missed my earlier post on equalization, here is the conservative plan:

The plan
A Conservative government will:
• Work with the provinces in order to achieve a long-term agreement which would address the issue of fiscal imbalance in a permanent fashion.
• Work to achieve with the provinces permanent changes to the equalization formula which would ensure that non-renewable natural resource revenue is removed from the equalization formula to encourage economic growth. We will ensure that no province is adversely affected from changes to the equalization formula.

"Ensure that non-renewable natural resource revenue is removed from the equalization formula" sounds like a pretty specific campaign promise to me.

What does Trost have to say:

Asked if that would be the same deal the Conservatives campaigned on, Trost said: "If it isn't, it better be better."

So therefore, unless Trost is the biggest liar in what will be a caucus full of liars if this deal does not happen then the Conservatives will HAVE to live up to this commitement

Right?

Right?

Let's see what his fellow MP Tom Lukiwiski had to say:

Before the Conservatives formed the goverment, Lukiwski said the two proposed changes to the equalization formula could mean at least $2 billion a year extra for Saskatchewan government coffers.

Now, Lukiwski will only guarantee that the deal will be a good one.

In fact, Lukiwski went as far to say, "we're going to be happy with whatever announcement is made."

Get ready for a Saskatchewan Screw Job - Harper Style

NDP Not "Left" Enough for Buzz

According to the Globe the reason why the CAW left the NDP was:

"Are you ready for this? According to In the Eye of the Storm, the CAW is cutting off ties with the NDP because New Democrats are too right wing. Yes, that's right, Canada's official socialist party, the party led by social activist Jack Layton, is not left wing enough for Buzz Hargrove."

Now it all make sense. I mean, Buzz wouldn't want to associate with ANYONE who wasn't left-wing, would he?

Bush Admits Iraq has nothing to do with 9/11

Bush finally realizes what the rest of the world figured out some time ago:

President Bush was in the midst of explaining how the attacks of 9/11 inspired his “freedom agenda” and the attacks on Iraq until a reporter, Ken Herman of Cox News, interrupted to ask what Iraq had to do with 9/11. “Nothing,” Bush defiantly answered. Watch it.

It is impressive that even Bush now claims that Bush was wrong. Keep this up and Steve Harper and the CPC will start admitting that Bush was wrong. Then (If Steve-o says it enough) then the blooging torries will start to admit that Bush was wrong. Then (If enough of the wank-o-sphere says it) maybe even Small Dead Animals will admit that Bush was ......

Never Mind.

Even I can't stretch that far.

Here is the transcript:

BUSH: The terrorists attacked us and killed 3,000 of our citizens before we started the freedom agenda in the Middle East.

QUESTION: What did Iraq have to do with it?

BUSH: What did Iraq have to do with what?

QUESTION: The attack on the World Trade Center.

BUSH: Nothing. Except it’s part of — and nobody has suggested in this administration that Saddam Hussein ordered the attack. Iraq was a — Iraq — the lesson of September 11th is take threats before they fully materialize, Ken. Nobody’s ever suggested that the attacks of September the 11th were ordered by Iraq.

Really? No one has suggested that Saddam Hussein ordered the attack. Eh? Nobody EXCEPT BUSH HIMSELF (and Cheney).

President Bush yesterday defended his assertions that there was a relationship between Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda, putting him at odds with this week's finding of the bipartisan Sept. 11 commission. "The reason I keep insisting that there was a relationship between Iraq and Saddam and al Qaeda: because there was a relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda," Bush said after a Cabinet meeting.

Source: Washington Post

President George W Bush confided to colleagues that he believed that Saddam was directly involved in the attacks. "He probably was behind this in the end," he said. In his State of Union speech in January, Mr Bush made the case for confronting Iraq, saying: "Saddam Hussein aids and protects terrorists, including members of al-Qa'eda."

Source: Daily Telegraph

The war on terror, you can't distinguish between al Qaeda and Saddam when you talk about the war on terror.

Source: White House News Release

Vice President Dick Cheney has again linked former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein with al Qaeda as he defended the US decision to invade Iraq.

Source: New Zeland Times

Small Dead Animals Libel's NDP MP

So over at Small Dead Animals "Kate the Krazy" has crossed the line. She has fabricated a quote from Peggy Nash NDP MP. Kate claims that Ms. Nash said, quote, "Death to Jews".

Of course, Ms. Nash said nothing of the sort.

Here is a screen shot of the site:

And some reading for you from wikipedia:

As with most Commonwealth jurisdictions, Canada also follows English law on defamation issues (although the law in the province of Quebec has different roots). At common law, defamation covers any communication that tends to lower the esteem of the subject in the minds of the ordinary members of the public (Murphy v. LaMarsh (1970), 73 W.W.R. 114). The perspective measuring the esteem is highly contextual, and depends on the view of the potential audience of the communication.

Roadkill Wackyness Part 2

So again, the Comments Section of SDA is an filthy, filthy place. Some Gems for you:

the Liberal Party and the Dippers are as dangerous as the terrorists

It's high time the Liberals and NDP we're labelled as terrorist support organisations, as well as rascist anti-semites and summarily banned.

The NDP and the Liberals have gone from being laughable to really being a threat to western civilization.

The leftern world within is the biggest threat to our way of life, not the Hezbollgh or any other terrorist organization

.....Support ..GENOCIDE....Vote Liberal or NDP........

for many leftists it's less about standing up for muslims and more about murdering jews.

Shilling propaganda for the enemy should be considered treason and treason's punishment should be a long drop from a short rope.

But my personal favorite was this one:

if you can’t manage your extremists you are not fit to govern our country. Go take a walk in the wilderness for 13 years and don’t come back until you isolate your nutbars.ont>

Ring, Ring.......Ring, Ring

Hello?

Hi, this is the pot, is the kettle around, I wish to call him black.

I mean COME ON.

The New Blogger Beta

This post is all about my experience with the new blogger beta (that this blog is built in). I list some of the pros and new features, then I list the cons and things that I am having trouble with, then some hacks to help some other people and finally some Firefox extensions that can help bloggers work with the new blogger beta.

The Good

Very user friendly for newbies to the whole bogging thing. I was able to get a blog up and running in a few hours and that was with some custom javascript and flash animation that most new bogglers would not be using.

The dynamic rearrangement of contest is superb. If you want to move your profile up or down (for example) then it is just a drag-and-drop operation.

The color coding and layouts are also well done. Of course, right now you are limited to the templates that are provided in blogger but again, for most new bloggers that will not be an issue.


The Bad

Feeds! My god the Feeds! I have had nothing but grief trying to get an rss feed to work from this page. You still can’t auto-discover it properly (hence the stupid “XML” box to click over to the feed) I was either getting all my posts showing up as being on the same day (the current day) or in some cases showing up in 1969! (This would make me one of the oldest bloggers in history – which was kind of cool!)

After getting feedburner set up I managed to get a /xml.rss to appear with right dates on my site, but my feedburner feed is still wonky! If anyone has any suggestions on how to fix this (I spent all last night on google groups looking for answers) then please, for the love of God, let me know!


The Ugly

NOT BEING ABLE TO EDIT THE HTML DIRECTLY.

Arrrrg. Beta.blogger does not yet allow you to edit the html of your blog directly like you could in the classic.blogger. This is a severe handicap for the new beta and I can only hope it is their top priority fix. This has led to all sorts of hacks and fixes – some of which I am detailing below.


Uploading Images for use in the Page Elements

Without being able to edit the HTML code directly, I needed some workarounds to do what I wanted. I am indebted to this site for showing me how to upload my images so that I could then use them in my different page elements.


Firefox Extensions


Web Developer

This one will be even more useful after beta.blogger lets you directly edit the html. For now it lets you find the url of the pictures you are posting (useful for making test posts to upload pictures see) and for examining the css of the blog.


View Rendered Source

This has helped me track down some of the bugs/features/bugs of the layout and picture rendering aspects of beta.blogger For example, trying to line up all the applets and widgets in the sidebar was wuite the challenge!


Collorzilla

Of course. The color templates and choosers in beta.blogger are pretty good, but there was a few times when I had to go in and find the exact hex code for a color to synchronize it correctly.


Linkchecker

Standard plugin for all web page development.


Measure It

This gives you an on-screen ruler. Great Extension! Helped a lot with figuring out how bit to make some of my images.


HTML Valuator

Helped me catch a couple of quirks that I would have overlooked otherwise.

Roadkill Wackyness Part 1

So one of the funniest bloogers in Canada (IMHO) Canadian Cynic once again wades into the cesspool of slime that is the Small Dead Animals comments section (eeewwwww) and come back with some gems. My favorite:

"The author is obviously perturbed, hence potentially dangerous. Maybe 3-5 years at Gitmo Spa & Resort would make him understand a thing or two..."

Which CC deftly points out means: "Guantanamo Bay: Because if we allow differences of opinion, the terrorists will have won."

With all due respect to CC. He didn't even get the best comments from the den of hate-filled, gibbering-with-Buch-loving-mania, crazier-than-the-cat-lady-from-the-simpsons, pit that is the Small Dead Animals Comment Forum.

Here are some other great lines:

"However, at the time and in the proper context, I kind of understand how McCarthy and his supporters must have felt."

"I don't think witch hunts are the problem, it's the messenger."

"The rest of us will be in the woods lobbing missiles into Torontostan."

"McCarthy was right . It's just that his methods were wrong."

"If Canada had gone through our own communist witch hunts, we would not be saddled with the likes of Layton, Hargrove, Trudeau, Chretien etc"

"I had heard that John F. Kennedy was the co-council sponsor of the McCarthy hearings/trials. Anyone know about that?"

I Sh%$ you not. These guys are totally off the deep end. As for the last one (I just can't resist this stuff) Robert Kennedy was briefly council to the committee and that's as close as you get. Which a 45-second trip to wikipedia found out for me.

And now, having read SDA for more than 2 seconds, I leave to take a 2 hour shower. (eech!)

Perhaps Equalization is "too political"

Hey! It looks like the Saskatchewan Tories have disappeared.

One can also see why our supposedly accountable Conservative MPs have run like scared rabbits since the Harper letter was pulled from the proverbial hat.

The best explanation came from Lukiwski's secretary who said Wednesday that he was in the riding and not in cell phone range.

Lukiwski is a Regina MP. He has been in his riding out of cell phone range since Wednesday.

There again, this is the same Tom Lukiwski who failed to mention equalization in his spring MP report entitled Keeping our Commitments! (Hey, didn't you move that motion in March 2005 calling for the Liberals to immediately sign an equalization deal with Saskatchewan, Tom? Tommy, Tommy, can you hear me?)

I have the answer!

They have all taken their lessons from their boss, Steve-o. This whole equalization file has become "too political" and so they are avoiding making any comment about it. (see below post if you don't know what I am talking about)


Of course, it wasn't too political to put in thier platform:

Fiscal imbalance

In the last eight years, the federal government has amassed enormous surpluses. Meanwhile, many provinces have seen reduced revenues and have had to run deficits in order to pay for education, health, and other social programs. While some sectoral and ad hoc agreements with provinces have temporarily reduced the financial pressure, it is time for a comprehensive agreement.

The plan

A Conservative government will:
• Work with the provinces in order to achieve a long-term agreement which would address the issue of fiscal imbalance in a permanent fashion.
• Work to achieve with the provinces permanent changes to the equalization formula which would ensure that non-renewable natural resource revenue is removed from the equalization formula to encourage economic growth. We will ensure that no province is adversely affected from changes to the equalization formula.

Harper and AIDS

This is interesting

TORONTO (CP) - Stephen Harper's government will not make any announcements about HIV funding or other measures to coincide with the International AIDS Conference because the prime minister says the issue has become too "politicized."

Yeah. I can see that. It's not like Steve-o is a POLITICIAN or anything. I can see where he would not want to involve himself in making political comments.

Oh wait, that's crazy.

It is as if Harper is going out of his way to piss of AIDS activists.

As the Frog Lady points out, it's almost as if Harper was avoiding a large area around Toronto and the Aids conference this week. It's almost as if there was some sort of...barrier...around this event, one made out of rubber....


But to be fair, Harper has a track record of not making foreign aid annoucements - he prefers to give credit to his Ministers...Right?.....Right?.....Nope

From the Office of the Prime Minister:

"Prime Minister Stephen Harper expressed his satisfaction today with the G8 engagement on the Middle East, energy security, infectious diseases, and education and innovation"

I guess THOSE infectious diseases didn't include AIDS, eh?

But it's not like the government was putting all that much money into THAT program were they?

"Canada will disburse $250 million in new funding in 2006-07 to the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in the fall."

I guess Tuberculosis and Malaria are APOLITICAL enough that Harper felt comfortable making an announcement about funding THOSE diseases, but I'm suuuuurrrrreee he questioned his people long and hard about being "too political" when it came to this announcement regarding AIDS.

But that is the one and only time that Steve-o has been political about AIDS, right?

right?

Nope.

Remember the whole "tainted blood scandal"? That was also partially about AIDS, remember?

"Tens of thousands of blood transfusion recipients in Canada contracted the AIDS and hepatitis C viruses from contaminated blood and blood products in the 1980s."

"Prime Minister Stephen Harper, whose Conservatives promised in opposition they would compensate all victims, said [his] plan still had to be approved by courts where people seeking compensation have launched class action lawsuits."

Woops! Another time when it wasn't too "political" to talk about AIDS. And parade grieving families in front of the camera. And condemn the Liberals for not doing enough.

Actually, that was very, very political, wasn't it?

However, let's be fair to Harper for not making any AIDS announcements. He was busy making another announcement at the time

"Canada is significantly boosting humanitarian aid to Lebanon, adding $25 million in assistance to the war-torn country, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Wednesday."

I guess the war in Lebanon ISN'T a political issue, since we know how much the Prime Minister avoids making announcements about political matters. And he made this announcement.

This week.

About a political topic.

So, in conclusion, Harper makes political announcements all the time, including this week, about relevant and topical issues. Which makes sense, given that he is a politician. He has also made political announcement about AIDS, both in regards to foreign policy and domestic issues, putting out press releases and calling press conferences to announce these partisan moves.

So Steve, you want to try again? Given that your claim that you avoided talking about AIDS this week was because the "issue has become too 'politicized'" is total and complete bunk - what's the real reason?

My suspicion is that it is another example of being Bush's sidekick

Is Bush an Idiot?

Bush claims he spent his holiday reading existentialist literature.

Do you belive it?

*looks for flying pigs - sees none*

Yeah, me neither.

Hey: I got here first.

Conservatives Afraid of the Middle East

So according to the Star:

Just before a parliamentary delegation left for Beirut, Prime Minister Stephen Harper's office decided that no Conservative would be part of the trip.

Tory MP Dean Del Mastro (Peterborough) pulled out, telling organizers the Prime Minister's Office had security concerns.

Gee Steve, do ya think it has something to do with all your "Measured Response" crap? You think the people over there might, just might, have a problem with that.

Don't worry, they will be too busy rebuilding thier homes to give you that much trouble.

This is my first post on my new blog