The BIG REVAMP aka selling out.

Okay, so times are a changin' and so am I.

Mostly, I decided that while I will continuously write (and rant) about Canadian politics - for indeed, there are few topics which arouse my rant index quite like good ol' pollies - my observational range does exceed the political realm and I am often left inwardly ranting or, worse, outwardly ranting to an uninterested/horrified audience.

So this is the compromise - I will release my rants on my blog and if you choose to read it, you are choosing to go down the war path as opposed to being blindly lead down and having a big shock when I drop the rant bomb.

Firstly, I will make the first and only apology now if I write something which you profoundly disagree with or which greatly offends you. Instead of insisting for an apology, you can just write a bitchy response in the comment section and I promise I won't censor them. I am God of this blog.

Secondly, if there is a topic which has been irking you of late that you wish me to rant about (I am not really sure why that would happen, but I am sure it could happen so I am suggesting it), I will gladly do so.

There, so for the few of you who actually do peruse the blog from time to time, the giant theme shift will be less confusing with this explanation.

At the end of the day though, I am only trying to ignite a bit of thought or maybe even laughter so really don't take anything too seriously. Unless I say so, in which case - print it out and make it your new bible (see afore referenced Godly status).

Thanks to everyone for the encouragement, I continue on with you in mind.

Tough to be tender

Didn't you hear? Cancer is sexy. Well, more specifically, isotope crises.

At least according to Natural Resource minister Lisa Raitt it is.

The tape is OUT and so is the truth. Sloppy minister makes for sloppy aide. After last week's controversy with "secret" nuclear documents left at the CTV offices in Ottawa - for which Raitt offered her resignation and for which her press secretary Jasmine MacDonnell was fired - a new disgrace is plaguing the Natural Resource minister.

A tape recording has been released which was recorded accidentally and left lying around by none other than Jasmine MacDonnell (tough week girlfriend!) The pertinent recording was made in January 2009 during a prolonged car ride between Raitt and MacDonnell. The convo went something like this:

MacDonnell: "OMG...Isotopes? Like, WTF? Most Canadians sooo don't get it."

Raitt: "I know, right? But radioactive leaks are so hot right now. Cancer is sexy."

Well, something like that anyway...you can listen to the real conversation here.

Presumably, what will irk Harper more is the colleague bad mouthing which also took place in the aforementioned conversation. Raitt is heard to be criticizing health minister Leona Aglukkaq, saying she hoped Aglukkaq wouldn't "get anything hot" because Aglukkaq can't hold her own in the house and that her staff is only shielding her.

'Cause its one, two, three strikes - you're out! At the ol' ballgame...

eHELP! Sarah Kramer is spending all our money!

The CEO of eHealth Ontario, Sarah Kramer, was fired from her position this past weekend as a result of the on going scandal over hefty bonuses and ridiculous sums of taxpayer money being splashed out on "consultant contracts".

The eHealth initiative was implemented by the Federal government in 2000. The program aims to have complete electronic health records of all Canadians by 2015, so doctors are able to access information about new and transferring patients more easily, to reduce the amount of paper process needed in keeping physical files as well as reducing wait times and most importantly, the program hopes to reduce the amount of mistakes and mix-ups often made with paper files.

But, of course, no province is perfect! eHealth Ontario - within less than a year of it's creation in September 2008 - has been plagued with scandal. Unbelievably, CEO Sarah Kramer procured a $114,000 bonus (approved by the Board of Directors - many former colleagues of Ms. Kramer at Cancer Care Ontario) within four months of being the CEO of eHealth Ontario! She claimed it was a "carry-over" bonus from her job at CCO, but both companies only allow for a bonus which is made up of 15% the person's annual salary. Considering Kramer's salary is $380,000, this hefty bonus was more like a 30% bonus - twice the allowed rate by a Crown owned company.

Furthermore, it came to light that the company was paying consultants millions of dollars to barely perform. Over five million dollars was awarded by the agency in untendered, unofficial contracts...most of which belonged to business partners and ties of Kramer's. The so-called consultants hired by the agency were paid between $1,700-2,500 a day to read the newspaper and watch T.V.

The big news today is Kramer is out with a severance package of $317,000 - almost a full year's salary for the former CEO. Health minister Caplan claims legally there was little choice in awarding her more money (even though she is being fired by spending too much) because she could chose to take the province to court if they fired her sans-comp.

Outraged Ontarians are crying out for their tax dollars to be repaid, the blatant spending by eHealth Ontario could have possibly gone to a health care system which is constantly needing more and more governmental funding. Of course, this will never happen. The money that eHealth Ontario has blown over the last eight months is gone - happily financing the pockets of the upper crust Ontarians who, ironically, are the ones least in need of such huge financial pay-offs and bonuses.

Is this not a time of economic crisis?????

The first step has been taken by firing the superfluous CEO but next it is time to hold accountable the Provincial government for failing to monitor the preposterous amount of money eHealth Ontario has spent on absolutely nothing! David Caplan must step down from his position as Health minister because unfortunately he has proved that he cannot uphold one of the major responsibilities of the Health minister.

The McGuinty government not only owes Ontarians (and Canadians) a BIG apology but BIG ACTION. Whether or not the government chooses to hold Caplan accountable within the coming weeks is now a matter of speculation but so long as the Opposition calls for his resignation, McGuinty will barely be able to ignore it. Only time will tell if the Ontario Liberals can redeem themselves for this gargantuan mistake.

A 'faint hope' at distraction?

When all else fails - tug some heart strings.


The Tories are looking to remove the 'faint hope' clause from the Criminal Code of Canada, originally instated in 1976 when the death penalty was abolished, as Minister of Justice Rob Nicholson announced today. The clause allows prisoners convicted of First and Second-degree murder to appeal for an earlier parole than initially sentenced. The process is by no means quick 'n easy, there is a considerable amount of effort that has to go into the application process by the applicant, the judge and the potential jury.

Naturally, as most questions of crime and punishment go, the faint hope clause has often provided a good deal of controversy to Canadians. How could it be conceivable to release a person convicted of murder back into the public? Is a life sentence not then made obsolete? Will rehashing the past for families' victims not further the monumental pain they have already experience?
Conversely, is the purpose of prison merely a means of punishment or also a means of rehabilitation? Shouldn't prisoners have some hope if it is proved they have changed? Is it undemocratic to disbelieve the judgment of a jury who believed in the rehabilitation?

It is hard to argue that a person who has committed the horrific and irreversible crime of murder should be allowed back into the public, particularly difficult to argue with the families of the victims. Murder is a travesty and the punishment should always be severe - but have we lost all confidence in humankind that we fully believe a person cannot change?
Whatever the perspective, reviving this former election promise at this particular time should not be seen by anyone as anything else but life support for Harper's government. Public opinion of the party has been in steady decline, mostly because of Harper's smear campaigns (outside of elections, no less) and the ballooning national deficit. The Liberals are hardly the answer to Canadians' prayers but with election talks looming, it would seem the Reds are no longer in the red and are making a big effort to come out strong against Harper.

So the faint clause, now? Of course. By appealing to emotive voters and on the fence supporters with a "fulfilled election promise" (even if it has been on the very low priority back burner for almost a year), Harper is hoping to revive the gung-ho git'er done image of his Conservatives. Harper's flagrant use of a highly emotional and sensitive Canadian issue as an election tactic is downright dirty.

Both the Liberals and the Tories are planting election seeds, while the NDP is having none of it. Ignatieff goes to Quebec to talk ARTS. Harper reverts to his highly supported 2006 election promise of repealing the 'faint hope' clause.

It is too little too late for Harper. Layton comes off as sympathetic for holding his stance on a more generous EI and Ignatieff smooths over the sore issue of Harper's art cuts (particularly sensitive in Quebec). And Harper? He tries his luck with a bill that he should have passed a year ago if ever, a bill which appeals to the emotive side of Canadians and voters.


References:

CBC - (05/06/09): "Tories to repeal 'faint hope parole' clause"

Globe and Mail (05/06/09): "Tories move to eliminate faint-hope clause from Criminal Code."

The big, electoral elephant in the room.

Ottawa, we have a problem.

Is it just me or is the prospect of a summer election a terrible, terrible idea? For everyone. All politicians, all parties, all voters, all non-voters and all Canadians in general.

But let's back up. How is it possible that less than a year has gone by since our last federal election and already we are facing the possibility of again going to the polls? Our last federal election came only two years after the 2006 election during which the Tories finally got their minority reign of terror - excuse me - government. The Liberals choice of leader backfired big time because the party became more fragmented and barely able to come to inter-party decisions, let alone be an effective opposition for Harper's conservatives. (Not to mention Harper could bully wee Stephane in the house as much as he pleased without really fearing for a witty English comeback. Admittedly, French debates were another story). Dismayed enough with another election and having to chose the "lesser of evils" (as opposed to the best party for the job), Canadians' apathy towards the politics of their own nation worsened. Millions of dollars were spent on an election which ultimately succeeded only in annoying Canadians - to the point of a records low voter turn out - and in giving Harper's conservatives a slightly larger minority government. But at the end of the day, nothing had seemed to change much in the eyes of most Canadians - money was being spent, paper was being wasted, and all the same major players were, instead of explaining why they were best, crying out on why their opponents were worse.

So, Dion makes arguably his best move since becoming Liberal leader and exits stage right, where Michael Ignatieff enters stage left as interim leader and eventually is chosen by Liberal party members as the official new leader. Oh yeah, and something exciting happened in there and Canadians cared about politics briefly but then Mr. Harper decided to prorogue parliament and we forgot all about it. Now, at first glance, Ignatieff seems almost nightmarish to oppose Stephen Harper. He is well spoken in English and in French (except for that pesky Parisian accent, tisk tisk) - almost too well spoken, often coming off as arrogant and elitist - his presence on the Canadian scene was certainly lacking considering he taught at various Ivy League and prestigious universities for several decades abroad. He is involved in artistic endeavors, he is MP for a relatively affluent neighborhood in Toronto (the horror!) and he is not particularly public about his religious affiliations - though he is Russian Orthodox. He is Harper's anti-Christ. And that is exactly why he is the most suitable leading opposition to the Tories, because it came a time to fight fire with fire. Harper is notorious for his slander attacks and for a strict control of his cabinet and Dion simply did not have the presence to stand up to the constant barrage of finger pointing and mud slinging Harper and his ministers (when they are allowed to speak) are best at. Mr. Ignatieff - Intelligent? Certainly. Arrogant? Maybe. Capable of effectively opposing Harper on the floor? Definitely. It seems to take a lot more to fluster Ignatieff than just accusations and constant references to past Liberal failure. And in a way, that is where his similarity with Harper lies. Because, whether you love him or hate him, Stephen Harper can hold his own on the floor in parliament. He is almost non-chalant about responding to opposing party accusations (particularly when they are made by Layton and the NDP). So here we find Canadians in an interesting position. Because Canadians are getting sick of Harper's slander campaigns, of the Tories deficits and broken promises and of constant cabinet shuffles which make our heads spin.
Now, amidst heated debate over EI, our national deficit (Thanks Flaherty, stand up job as always) and a case of the forgetful ministers' aides, it seems that Ignatieff is in a "tough spot" on whether or not to bring down the Canadian Federal parliament and call an election. Most Canadians, if polled, would say NO MORE ELECTIONS, STOP WASTING OUR MONEY! And rightly so. The incredible amounts of money it takes to put on elections and run campaigns is staggering and could easily be put towards something, ANYTHING but another election! But, Ignatieff insists that the Tories are leaving him little option despite his efforts to create a cohesive government that can make real decisions to help the average Canadian.

The problem is no one is playing grown-up here. The House has become so bitter that instead of deciding what can get done together, it is a constant battle on what cannot get done and how it is everyone else's fault. No one in any party is ever held accountable for anything and as such there is constant ammunition from all sides to point out the inefficiencies of one another.

Enough is enough. This aforesaid summer election would be a terrible idea. You think voter turn out was low in the fall? Try having on mid-July during cottage season. It seems that the idea is so petrifying, most Canadians are acting like it isn't going to happen. Like a sort of national denial, where everyone complains about the government but refuses to consider the distinct possibility that we might actually be going to the polls again for the third time in three years. Denial ain't just a river in Egpyt, it is a political mentality in Canada.
And so, if an election is called? As Russell Peters would say, Somebody's gonna get a hurt real bad.

What Canada does not need is another election. Unless we completely restructure our governmental system, we need to make our Parliament work. There will be a perpetual minority government as long as the parties continue to bicker with each other and instill hopelessness in the hearts of Canadians. The parties need to work together by compromise, negotiation, discussion and most importantly action. Voter confidences needs to be restored and money can be best saved and put towards our economy during this recession. At the very least, parties need to tell us why they are going to do what we need them to - NOT why other parties are not going to do it. Canadians too need to shed their apathy towards politics and speak up, make our voices heard. This is what we want and this is why we do not want an election.

And so we wait with baited breath in hopes of avoiding another election... but ultimately only time and the decisions of our policy makers will tell whether or not we hit the polls in the summer heat. And if this is the case? Vote. That is all there is to it.