Friday, February 23, 2007

Somewhere In Heaven Rt. Hon. Pierre Trudeau Smiles

It is a great day for Canada. The Supreme Court ruling striking down security certificates is huge. Bigger still is the declaration that our Charter of Rights applies not just to Canadians, but to foreign nationals as well. In essence it protects humans - which is really what human rights are all about. The Court, and the Coalition for Justice are to be lauded for the actions they took to instigate this 9-0 unanimous decision.

We hear some neoCons harping about the fact that these laws were passed by a Liberal gov't. Sure they were - in the light of the most brazen attacks ever seen on North American soil (in this century at least). Canadians were almost feeling as paranoid as their American neighbors. The Reform/Alliance unanimously supported the laws. But beyond supporting them, the Reformers are on the record as being their shrieking, angry selves and attacking the government for not going far enough. It was a Reform/Alliance opposition backed by one giant conservative media conglomerate (all the CanWest/Global group) who consistently bashed the Liberal gov't on being "soft on terrorism". They came up with fantastic stories (based on these very cases in the Supreme Court) about "Canada's weak borders and lax immigration laws", and basically accused Canada of allowing, first, terrorists to enter the country and plot attacks, then somehow being responsible for them entering the US. If a Liberal gov't passed the laws, it was certainly due to overwhelming demand - and a loud pro-US lobby - at that time ("at that particular time" is a very key point here).

Jump to 2007, where police have successfully investigated alleged terrorist groups WITHOUT the help of the Anti-Terrorism laws. Most lawmakers feel that the laws have passed their necessary life-span. This is the very reason the Liberal gov't instituted a "sunset clause". Liberals were aware of how draconian such laws can be if left unfettered. The "sunset clause" for the anti-terror laws is a critical component which ensured that citizens could have a reprieve from said laws IF it was deemed that there was less of a threat - or no real threat.

The security certificate decision will impact the greater argument concerning the anti-terrorism laws. Canada is a "safe" country. We need to continue our tradition of being globally neutral. When we ally ourselves with a particular side, it should be through the auspices of our Parliament and the United Nations (security resolutions, and mandates, etc.). Maintaining our neutrality and even-handed fairness will help us continue to grow as the greatest nation on earth.

As a party, we Liberals need to ensure the public is aware of the ongoing battle with neo-Con extremism, so we can protect Canadian democracy. It is our duty to educate the electorate on ideology, rather than strictly focus on platform (which can too easily be mimicked by other parties). It is critical that citizens know about the underlying ideologies which feed the various party apparatus. What do the membership of a party think? A party machine will often say or do things based on public opinion, however laws made by that party when in power are very often dictated by the party membership, and their ideological bent.

Today the Supreme Court helped fire a strong salvo in the coming ideological battle. We Liberals need to ensure we are prepared to carry the standard of human rights into the fray.

Somewhere In Heaven Rt. Hon. Pierre Trudeau Smiles

It is a great day for Canada. The Supreme Court ruling striking down security certificates is huge. Bigger still is the declaration that our Charter of Rights applies not just to Canadians, but to foreign nationals as well. In essence it protects humans - which is really what human rights are all about. The Court, and the Coalition for Justice are to be lauded for the actions they took to instigate this 9-0 unanimous decision.

We hear some neoCons harping about the fact that these laws were passed by a Liberal gov't. Sure they were - in the light of the most brazen attacks ever seen on North American soil (in this century at least). Canadians were almost feeling as paranoid as their American neighbors. The Reform/Alliance unanimously supported the laws. But beyond supporting them, the Reformers are on the record as being their shrieking, angry selves and attacking the government for not going far enough. It was a Reform/Alliance opposition backed by one giant conservative media conglomerate (all the CanWest/Global group) who consistently bashed the Liberal gov't on being "soft on terrorism". They came up with fantastic stories (based on these very cases in the Supreme Court) about "Canada's weak borders and lax immigration laws", and basically accused Canada of allowing, first, terrorists to enter the country and plot attacks, then somehow being responsible for them entering the US. If a Liberal gov't passed the laws, it was certainly due to overwhelming demand - and a loud pro-US lobby - at that time ("at that particular time" is a very key point here).

Jump to 2007, where police have successfully investigated alleged terrorist groups WITHOUT the help of the Anti-Terrorism laws. Most lawmakers feel that the laws have passed their necessary life-span. This is the very reason the Liberal gov't instituted a "sunset clause". Liberals were aware of how draconian such laws can be if left unfettered. The "sunset clause" for the anti-terror laws is a critical component which ensured that citizens could have a reprieve from said laws IF it was deemed that there was less of a threat - or no real threat.

The security certificate decision will impact the greater argument concerning the anti-terrorism laws. Canada is a "safe" country. We need to continue our tradition of being globally neutral. When we ally ourselves with a particular side, it should be through the auspices of our Parliament and the United Nations (security resolutions, and mandates, etc.). Maintaining our neutrality and even-handed fairness will help us continue to grow as the greatest nation on earth.

As a party, we Liberals need to ensure the public is aware of the ongoing battle with neo-Con extremism, so we can protect Canadian democracy. It is our duty to educate the electorate on ideology, rather than strictly focus on platform (which can too easily be mimicked by other parties). It is critical that citizens know about the underlying ideologies which feed the various party apparatus. What do the party members of a party think? A party machine will often say or do things based on public opinion, however laws made by that party when in power are very often dictated by the party membership, and their ideological bent.

Today the Supreme Court helped fire a strong salvo in the coming ideological battle. We Liberals need to ensure we are prepared to carry the standard of human rights into the fray.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Conservative Xenophobia Raises Its Ugly Head - Yet Again

As a proud South Asian Canadian I am shocked by Stephen Harper's attack on Sikh Canadians today. Now Canadians are well aware of racist statements made by conservatives Reformers, and Alliance MPs and candidates in the past. We are also pretty aware of Harper's now classic:
“You have to remember that west of Winnipeg the ridings the Liberals hold are dominated by people who are either recent Asian immigrants or recent migrants from Eastern Canada; people who live in ghettos and are not integrated into Western Canadian society.”- Rt.Hon. Stephen Harper, PM of Canada”.
The very definition of Conservative is "resistant to change" - like the change new immigrants and cultural change bring to a country. Harper's neo-Cons have repeatedly shown their anti-immigrant bias - whether in policy constructed to leave out the disadvantaged in society, or in glad-handing immigration policy which really amounts to a hill of beans in the real world.

Harper's comments today are all the more shocking (for average Canadians - not for those of us who lived in his riding and know this man) when you consider this is what he says in public - just imagine what Stephen Harper thinks of certain minorities in his private life. Just imagine what he thinks behind closed doors in his (very non-multi-cultural) cabinet meetings when he formulates policy.

Harpo's attack today was an attempt to (very inappropriately) attack an MP of resounding integrity based on the mere questioning of a (non-blood) relative in a terrorism case. Forget the fact that this man may have been nothing more than a mere witness, or a community leader in the know, and had no link in any way to the events. Forget that we have a justice system in this country (we all know what the Conservatives think of the Canadian Justice System).

Harper did a very ugly thing today: the deliberate and blatantly racist attack on an entire minority group based on a racist stereotype.  This is not new for Reformers.  Remember when a turbaned Sikh wished to join the RCMP, and Harper's (then Reform) now Western Conservative compatriots helped attack the Sikh community by opposing Sikhs in the RCMP, and lauding the creators of a very racist button being distributed at rallies in Western Canada?

Stephen Harper singled out a turban-wearing Sikh MP, and the entire Sikh community today. In speaking to many Sikhs in Surrey today we can confidently say that he has also angered this community. More importantly he has shown his true colors today (and those of his right-wing party), and any feeble attempt by him to curry favor in this community (as we know are bound to happen come election time) will fall on very aware ears. I urge all Liberals to carry this message forward when speaking with people from my community. I know this will be my main focus during the next few months. We have to ensure the large Sikh communities in Vancouver, Victoria, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, and Montreal are aware of Harper's public feelings towards us, and the callous way in which he will try anything to paint us all with the same brush.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Bravo Ralph!

It is great to see a man with impeccable integrity exonerated like we knew he would be. Ralph is a good friend, and really a great human being - besides being an incredibly honest and successful politician.

The Conservative SMEAR tactics were hurtful during the election. We all know the so-called sponsorship scandal was nothing more than a couple of low-end nobodies who just happened to hold a party membership (some even worked for the Cons previously). We now also have PROOF that the Cons relied on vicious drive-by smears to eke out a tiny minority. We need to turn the tables this Spring. Our MPs and candidates need to be witty and quick on their feet to succeed, and help us get the soundbites we'll need this election.

Time to get to work folks!

Happy Flag Day Canada!

Happy Flag Day! It is truly too bad that Canadian politics this past year or so do not reflect the values and spirit of Parliament in the days when our new flag was born.

Bear down team. We need to do everything we can to remove the neoCon scourge from the halls of Parliament. Talk to friends, neighbors, and co-workers to ensure they are well-educated on the policies of this government, as well as what Liberal ideology is all about.

Remember the flag. Peace.

Bravo Liberals! Our Strongest Opposition Moment Since The Election!

Well, it's about time. We finally have mounted a successful gambit in the Opposition Benches. Nice to see our experience and intelligence taking a front seat to our lost stumblings of the past several months.

On a lot of blogs on Liblogs I see bloggers talking about how Stephen Harper is governing like a dictator, and not someone with a slim minority government. The thing that many of us forget (hopefully not most of us) is that Harp is fully aware of the fact that we can't have an election right now... that most of the opposition is not ready (whether with policy, fiscally, or just plain mentally).

The puppetmaster team (Harp's US electioneering advisors) are fully aware of current Canadian political reality. He can be aggressive in his policy because he doesn't know anyone who will oppose him. His handlers can position him as the "tough, go-getter, driven" leader who is standing alone against the opposition. Harper is very good in this "lone gun" role. For neoCons, machismo and bravado are keys to turning public opinion into the flag-waving, beer-swilling, iconographic egoism we see represented by extreme conservatism in the United States. We're talking about a brand of machismo and extremism - punctuated by anger, fear, and hatred - that we haven't seen since Europe circa 1930s. What I fear most is that some of the public may look past his extreme policy just because they feel bad for him.

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Sure... They Can Organize Now...

I'm a huge fan of education. My years in University were enjoyable and rewarding. I am, and will continue to be a HUGE supporter of the Canadian student, and this nation's education system.

Yesterday we all got to view some of the best, most encouraging, and well-planned student protests I've seen in years (and I've had the chance to set up a few myself...). Understanding that the student's main lament is extremely high (albeit not at US levels yet) tuition, I have one question:

When PM Martin was promising a program that would cover the 1st and final years of Canadian University students' tuition, where the @%T^#Q! were all the students? Why could we not get them out to vote the same way they came out for these protests??? This is just as much an open-ended question for our own party, as it is for Canada's students.

There are only a couple of parties which would really try to do something for education funding, and research funding. Harper's Cons are not one of them.

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Pathetic Harper

Stephen Harper looked pathetic this week when arguing that Stephane was "denying" the science of clean air. It would take much more than Harper's stumping to change the truth on this one. Harper has been caught in an "inconvenient truth" situation... He was part of the "Alberta Oil Cartel" (so to speak) which got the neo-Cons elected - through all sorts of 3rd party manipulation (see National Citizen's Coalition, certain church groups, the Big Oil lobby, NRA, Farmers For Justice, etc., etc.).

Up to this year key Cons have been denying global warming. Now that polls are showing this to be a possible election issue, Harpo decides he needs to destroy the issue - rather than do anything about the actual problem. Harper looked like a clown when questioning Dion's commitment to the issue. He continues to gripe about Dion not doing anything... then goes on to cancel programs we Liberals did put into place (ex: Energuide). He fails to consider that Mr. Dion was part of a cabinet - not the PM - and may have had a lot less say than Ministers of other portfolios (ex: Finance, Public Works, etc.). There were many other priorities in the post-911 era.

Whatever the reason (and we don't need to make excuses), it is just a joke for the Cons to be questioning a dedicated intellectual's commitment to this matter. I had a few opportunities to meet with Mr. Dion over the years. I clearly recall the environment being the framework of a discussion he had with Young Liberals in the Westin Hotel in Calgary way back in 2004. He talked about how important the issue is, and how important Kyoto is. This was back when Mr. Dion was engaged in Mr. Harper's "war against Kyoto". Mr. Dion was a champion for Kyoto. If there was any reason why we Liberals couldn't do more than we did, it was due to the very LOUD NOISE coming out of Alberta - led by Mr. Harper, and Ralph Klein - both rabidly opposed to any measures that would impact Alberta's oil industry.

Mr. Harper is now in a bit of a conundrum. Unfortunately his lies about "a greener Canada" wouldn't cause him to lose votes in Alberta - no matter how angry people there get. Alberta is a very safe province for Harp. This makes it very easy for him to lie to the rest of Canada. All I gotta say is: If you think things are a little scary now, just see what happens if these clowns are given an accidental majority by the Canadian people.