Harper-Conservatives In Deficit Long BEFORE Recession (A Friendly Reminder)

Just a kindly note for all the revisionists (and not-so-journalistic journalists) out there...

From the latest Goodale Weekly Update:

For the week beginning October 18^th, 2010

MR. HARPER’S DEFICIT BEGAN BEFORE HIS RECESSION!

Last week, while Parliament was adjourned for Thanksgiving, the Harper government dribbled out its Financial Statements for the 2009-2010 fiscal year (which ended last March), and its mid-term Update for this current year.

Years of precedent dictate that these key fiscal documents are presented in Parliament, with a full explanation from the Finance Minister and immediate scrutiny by M.P.’s.

But such honest transparency is non-existent in this government.

The nasty fact the Conservatives are trying to downplay is the size of their deficit. It’s two billion dollars higher than they predicted. At $55.6 billion, this is the worst federal deficit in Canadian history.

That has to be embarrassing for a so-called “conservative” government. They are the biggest-borrowing, most-indebted, highest-spending regime ever.

Mr. Harper blames it all on the recession. But the truth is, this Harper/Conservative deficit began BEFORE the recession, not because of it!

As soon as he seized office in 2006, Mr. Harper began slopping money around like there was no tomorrow. His federal spending ballooned by 18% (three times the rate of inflation) BEFORE there was any hint of a global downturn.

Mr. Harper also eliminated all the contingency reserves and prudence factors that Liberals had built into federal budgeting as fiscal “shock absorbers” against sudden nasty surprises – like maybe a collapsing housing market in the US or the failure of some big American banks.

When those things actually happened in 2008, there was no cushion to fall back on, because Mr. Harper had squandered it in his previous two years. So Conservative red ink just gets deeper.

And hard-pressed middle-class families are left to fend for themselves on such necessities as family care-giving to tend to a disabled child or an aging parent, the high cost of higher education and adequate pensions for a decent retirement.

VICTORY FUND

Harper Party Lying About Loss Of Security Council Seat

... In the "what else is new?" department...

Lawrence Cannon claims that "Iggy's to blame" for the security council seat (and not the Harper Government's international ineptitude), then goes on to drop this one-liner boner:

"Some would even say that because of our attachment to those values that we lost a seat on the council. If that's the case, then so be it."

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/10/12/un-vote012.html#ixzz12DdNEdiE

Larry. Larry... Larry: Either you blame Iggy - with a VALID reason (which you don't obviously have), or you go on with your PMO claptrap and spin your way into a line that obviously states the truth: IT WAS HARPER-CON FOREIGN POLICY THAT COST US THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL SEAT.

VICTORY FUND

Canada Must Defend Saskatchewan's Interests - Goodale

Ralph Goodale discusses how we need to do more to stand up for Saskatchewan's potash industry...

CANADA MUST DEFEND SASKATCHEWAN’S INTERESTS

When it comes to potash, what’s right for Saskatchewan must prevail!

Except for one smaller mine in Atlantic Canada, the entire Canadian potash industry is located in Saskatchewan. It is a multi-billion-dollar sector with the largest potash reserves in the world. And while prairie soils don’t require much of it right here at home (yet), Saskatchewan potash fertilizer is crucial to food production worldwide.

This industry represents a big chunk of the provincial economy, and as we learned recently, market fluctuations in potash can shift Saskatchewan’s balance-sheet from surplus to deficit in the twinkling of an eye.

So, if any transaction materializes for the sale of the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan – by far the biggest industry player – it must be reviewed by the Government of Canada under the Investment Canada Act to achieve what is best for Saskatchewan, not just some vague “net benefit” to Canada.

Furthermore, the federal government must be far more public and transparent in analyzing any potash deal than it has been on many other recent resource industry takeovers. Some of those deals have gone badly sideways, like US-Steel in Hamilton and Vale-Inco in Sudbury.

With respect to potash, secrecy won’t do! Saskatchewanians and Canadians need to know what the government’s analysis is, how “net benefits” are determined, and what conditions or performance guarantees are demanded by the feds.

Moreover, there must be tangible, enforceable remedies available to Saskatchewan if any condition or guarantee is breached.

But before any proposed transaction gets that far – and beyond routine assurances about office locations, jobs, investment plans, community contributions, new technology, environmental standards, etc. – Saskatchewan needs to be absolutely guaranteed that any potash marketing strategy under any new ownership will be at least as beneficial to Saskatchewan as that which exists today.

If that’s not rock-solid, where’s any “net benefit”?

VICTORY FUND

Greatest PM Remembered

Posted over at Morton's Musings (by moi):

Sometimes you need to look outside of your closed circle (speaking to the haters out there) to realize what others think of someone. Most Canadians revere PM Trudeau. Around the world - outside of Canada - PM Trudeau is even more respected. As you travel around the world and talk to locals, Trudeau's name is very well spoken of (as is Chretien, more recently). It is a sign of the greatness of the man - the mark he left on the world.

I was in awe of PM Trudeau ever since I first met him in Montmartre Sk. in 1980 (before that, actually - my father is a huge fan). His politics were (and are) right. Would be great to see such vision today. Someone needs to have the cajones to try something bold - not cower in the corner worrying about what every single faction of a population will think. If you act out of compassion for all, with respect for human rights, and in the interest of the greater population, you will succeed.

VICTORY FUND

Thank You!

A special "thank you" to all MPs who voted to keep the long gun registry... And a very heartfelt "thank you" to Michael Ignatieff for showing the leadership and resolve in ensuring Liberals voted unanimously in this issue which speaks directly to the safety of all Canadians.

This is the start of something big. The caucus is strong and united... Only good things can come of that.

Thank you.

VICTORY FUND

Goodale Urges Education As Key To Canadian Success

Ralph Goodale's latest Weekly Update:

CANADA MUST INVEST MORE IN EDUCATION!

One of the most expensive things most Canadian families have to deal with is the high cost of post-secondary education.

But higher learning – beyond high school – is no frill. It’s an imperative in today’s knowledge-based, technology-driven and skills-intensive world.

Competition is fierce. Opportunities for young people with only a high school diploma are shrinking, while prospects are steadily expanding for those with further education through universities, colleges, technical schools or apprenticeships.

But it’s costly. For too many, it’s unaffordable?

Canadian families are among the most indebted in the western world. For every dollar of disposable income in the average Canadian household, there is nearly $1.50 in debt. And interest rates are now on the rise again. Debt servicing costs will soon crowd out other priorities.

In the aftermath of recession, one of the most useful things a government could do to help hard-pressed families would be to relieve some of the costs of accessing post-secondary education for their kids.

Such investments to tear down financial barriers to greater knowledge and better skills would also help make our country more productive and competitive on a global scale.

Before the recession struck, Canada’s biggest economic deficiency was slow productivity growth. Many countries were seriously outstripping us in fostering high quality, homegrown brain-power, and in applying science and innovation to bolster economic growth, disposable incomes and living standards.

The productivity/competitiveness challenge is now even more urgent for Canada.

But Stephen Harper says the only thing we have to do to recover from recession is fight the deficit, which he started to create BEFORE there was any recession. Slash the Government of Canada, he says, and all will be well.

But deficit-cutting alone is NOT the answer. Canada also needs to invest – most especially in education.

Good for families! And good for productivity!

VICTORY FUND

Don Martin Thinks Reform-a-Tories (The Bumper-Sticker Party of Canada) Are Happy?

Highly unlikely.

Don Martin is way off. Having grown up and lived on the Prairies for 40 years of my life, I saw the vitriolic rise of the Reform Party. They are a "bumper-sticker party", and their bumper sticker had 3 causes on it:

1) No to the gun registry

2) No to the Senate

3) No to the Wheat Board

That's it.

That's all this current crop of so-called "conservatives" have ever been about. If anyone thinks there weren't NRA talons attached to the Conservatives hides on this, you're dead wrong. In gun shows on the Prairies in the early 90s the NRA stamp was everywhere (as were Reform rank-and-file and MPs).

Like one commenter said, losing this does not help them. They've already logged all the more vitriolic of their flag-carriers. The debate has actually done more to galvanize the gun control groups.

Low-brow, lowest-common-denominator politics fueled by a bumper-sticker campaign. If you don't believe the bumper-sticker comments, go to the home of the bumper sticker party, where you can STILL see the bumper stickers to this very day...

VICTORY FUND

Next Time Harper Refers To His Bogus Hockey "Book"...

The next time our loserish PM yaps about his "hockey book", let's have our party leadership challenge Harper and his band of misfits to a "friendly" - on ice - hockey game... Liberal caucus against Conservative caucus... And may the best caucus win.

My bets are on Ken Dryden and the Liberal Team... But let's just try to make this happen. Might be a good way to lighten up the hostile atmosphere Harp has created on the Hill...

VICTORY FUND

Conservatives Ignore Middle Income Families and "Average" Canadians - Goodale

Ralph's been a busy Deputy Leader of the Opposition today... Another great update from Mr. Goodale:

RALPH GOODALE’S REPORT

A weekly commentary by the Member of Parliament for Wascana

For the week beginning August 30^th, 2010

CONSERVATIVES IGNORE AVERAGE MIDDLE INCOME FAMILIES

Whenever Stephen Harper is confronted with the daily pressures on average Canadian families, he resorts to cold, irrelevant comparisons. Just be content that the Americans are doing worse, he says.

Conservatives admit the recession damaged Canada’s standard of living. Canadian household debt is now the highest in the western world, and the cost of servicing it is rising.

That makes affording child-care that much more difficult. And a lot of families face the double challenge of also caring for elderly parents or a child with special needs.

For too many families, high costs block the way of qualified young people who want to get into university, college or an apprenticeship program. But they can’t afford it, so they stay home.

Only a fraction of Canadians can expect an adequate pension when they retire. And for 2 million near-seniors who tried to build a nest-egg for their golden years, their dreams were destroyed when Mr. Harper broke his promise about Income Trusts -- $25 billion in retirement savings were vapourized.

Retirement numbers are about to skyrocket with the big baby-boomer generation beginning to turn 65 next year, and that will increase pressures on medicare, homecare, pensions and retirement facilities.

But forget all that, Mr. Harper says, Conservative priorities are different. So what are they? Here’s the list:

· $1.3 billion for an inglorious G-8/G-20 extravaganza;

· $26 billion for untendered, non-competitive military contracts;

· $6 billion annually for tax cuts for the wealthiest corporations;

· more than $1 billion for extra spending on partisan advertising and consultants, plus 20% more for the Prime Minister’s Office;

· $30 million more for a dumbed-down Census; and

· $13 billion for more jails.

With boondoggles like these, Conservatives can’t be concerned about their deficit, and they’re certainly thumbing their noses at average middle-income families.

VICTORY FUND

Harper to Veterans: Scr@w You...

Cutting Veterans Affairs is NOT the way for a PM to "play Commander in Chief"... Ralph Goodale talks about Stephen Harper's double-talk regarding the military and veterans:

MR. HARPER BREAKS FAITH WITH VETERANS

This summer was filled with absurdities flowing from Stephen Harper’s Conservatives.

It started with their outrageous G-8/G-20 spending boondoggle, which cost nearly $1.5 billion for three days of big-shot schmoozing in Toronto to achieve exactly nothing for the global economy.

Then came news of $26 billion for totally uncompetitive, untendered government contracts that failed to get decent value for taxpayers’ money.

That was followed by the inexplicable dumbing-down of the Canadian census, resulting in a more expensive process to collect less reliable data. Thousands of Canadians have voiced their opposition to this Conservative foolishness – the most recent being the Saskatchewan School Boards Association.

Then the Parliamentary Budget Officer exposed up to $13 billion in increased Conservative prison costs – “to combat unreported crime”. Say what?

And now, the Harper government has announced they’re cutting the department of Veterans’ Affairs and firing the Veterans’ Ombudsman, Colonel Pat Stogran.

Talk about absurd!

Stephen Harper is quick to wrap himself in the flag and claim to be a big supporter of the military. But he fails to put his money where his mouth is.

When governments make decisions to send the brave women and men of the Canadian Forces into harm’s way, they must also shoulder the solemn obligation of ensuring those soldiers are properly taken care of when, God willing, they get back home.

Ombudsman Stogran exposed the grim reality that this is not happening. Indeed, he described the federal government’s treatment of many veterans as “deliberately obstructive and deceptive”. He spoke truth to power.

And as always happens to those who speak the truth in Stephen Harper’s Canada, Colonel Stogran got sacked.

So he joins the ranks of other victimized public servants – Linda Keen, Peter Tinsley, Paul Kennedy, Kevin Page, Mark Mayrand, Richard Colvin, Munir Sheikh, etc. The list is absurdly long!

VICTORY FUND

From the "Please Change Your Name" Department...

The British Columbia Progressive Conservative Coalition... whoops - I meant "Liberal" party... has been taking some flak regarding their secret discussions with the Harper Conservatives PRIOR TO the last provincial election... Seems operatives in the Federal Government were holding discussions with BC bureaucrats on the ins and outs of the HST.

Needless to say, these imaginary "Liberals" are creating some flak for real liberals, and it ain't helpin'...

So BC cousins that married the redneck hater-kid from down the street (BC Liberals are the remainder of the right of the old BC Liberal Party, and the Socreds, Provincial Conservatives, AND Federal Reformers, in a coalition of the "I wear a tank-top and mullet, and am ready to pummel anyone who disagrees with me" parties), please change your name. Anything would work: "BC righties"; "Stephen's Disciples"; or the "We have reformers in our midst who will soon re-form a provincial conservative party with Zalm as their leader Party"...

Okay... have to admit the BC Liberals have done some pretty good (and liberal) things: The carbon tax is definitely a symbol of that good. Hopefully the REAL Liberals in BC can stand up and clean the party of all the right wing clowns who have surfaced to influence decisions...

VICTORY FUND

Goodale Hammers Reform-A-Tories For Abuse Of Middle Canada

RALPH GOODALE’S REPORT
A weekly commentary by the Member of Parliament for Wascana

For the week beginning August 30th, 2010

CONSERVATIVES IGNORE AVERAGE MIDDLE INCOME FAMILIES

Whenever Stephen Harper is confronted with the daily pressures on average Canadian families, he resorts to cold, irrelevant comparisons. Just be content that the Americans are doing worse, he says.

Conservatives admit the recession damaged Canada’s standard of living. Canadian household debt is now the highest in the western world, and the cost of servicing it is rising.

That makes affording child-care that much more difficult. And a lot of families face the double challenge of also caring for elderly parents or a child with special needs.

For too many families, high costs block the way of qualified young people who want to get into university, college or an apprenticeship program. But they can’t afford it, so they stay home.

Only a fraction of Canadians can expect an adequate pension when they retire. And for 2 million near-seniors who tried to build a nest-egg for their golden years, their dreams were destroyed when Mr. Harper broke his promise about Income Trusts -- $25 billion in retirement savings were vapourized.

Retirement numbers are about to skyrocket with the big baby-boomer generation beginning to turn 65 next year, and that will increase pressures on medicare, homecare, pensions and retirement facilities.

But forget all that, Mr. Harper says, Conservative priorities are different. So what are they? Here’s the list:

• $1.3 billion for an inglorious G-8/G-20 extravaganza;

• $26 billion for untendered, non-competitive military contracts;

• $6 billion annually for tax cuts for the wealthiest corporations;

• more than $1 billion for extra spending on partisan advertising and consultants, plus 20% more for the Prime Minister’s Office;

• $30 million more for a dumbed-down Census; and

• $13 billion for more jails.


With boondoggles like these, Conservatives can’t be concerned about their deficit, and they’re certainly thumbing their noses at average middle-income families.

VICTORY FUND

Liar, Liar, Pants On Fire...

Harper and his "government" have a penchant for flat-out distorting the truth to the Canadian public.

The two most recent cases:

1) RCMP study finds gun registry to be effective - including cost effective - and National Police Chiefs support it overwhelmingly. Harper would rather risk lives than focus on gun crime - he's too ideologically tied to the US Prison system, and his bogus "tough on crime" snake-oil sales routine...

2) NORAD calls "routine training flights" of both NATO and Russian aircraft "no threat" to Canadian sovereignty at precisely the same time that the PM would lie and have us believe we were under threat from our Russian allies. According to Canadian NORAD spokesperson: "Both Russia and NORAD routinely exercise their capability to operate in the North. These exercises are important to both NORAD and Russia and are not cause for alarm.Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/2010/08/25/cf-18s-russians-airspace.html#ixzz0xgyXGOuU"Way to treat our "friends and allies" Stevo...

Nice new look by Harper, by the way. Must have had advice that the Conservative "government" was being too closely tied to "stupidity and ignorance", so he chose to don the specs.

Looks like the media has stopped taking the cow patties lying down... Good on the media! Finally some real journalism.

VICTORY FUND

Conservatives Hurt Small Business

From Ralph Goodale's weekly report...


RALPH GOODALE’S REPORT
A weekly commentary by the Member of Parliament for Wascana
goodale@sasktel.net


For the week beginning August 23rd, 2010

CONSERVATIVE TAXES HAMMER SMALL BUSINESSES

At a time when the Harper government is promising to slash federal programs and services to fix its deficit – its self-imposed and unnecessary deficit – Conservative business tax policies are out of whack.

On the one hand, for the biggest and wealthiest corporations, Mr. Harper is going to borrow another $6 billion every year so he can cut the Large Corporation Income Tax Rate by a further three points (i.e., another 20%).

Corporate tax cuts on borrowed money (i.e., while the government is running a deficit) make no sense.

The large businesses benefiting from this Conservative largesse – at your expense – have already had their tax rates slashed recently by more than one-third. Those rates are already the second lowest in the G-7. They’re already 25% lower than US rates.

These extra tax cuts for big corporations are simply unaffordable right now, and unnecessary.

On the other hand, for small and medium-sized businesses – the ones which generate 80% of all Canadian jobs – Mr. Harper is promising only a tax increase.

At the end of this year, the Conservatives are going to increase payroll taxes by driving up Employment Insurance premiums – by a whopping 35%. These escalating Conservative EI taxes will become the fastest growing source of revenue for the Harper government.

What’s the logic in that? Just when our economy is struggling to recover from a recession, the Conservatives impose a big new tax-on-jobs. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business says Conservative EI taxes “will kill jobs and undermine economic recovery”.

It doesn’t have to be this way. To help battle a previous Conservative recession that burdened this country in the early 1990’s, a new Liberal government coming into office in 1993 cut EI premiums, year-after-year, 13 consecutive times – by 40% overall.

That helped to generate 3.5 million net new Canadian jobs!


-- Post From My iPhone

Go Time?

Much discussion on these blogs the past couple of days on whether it is "go-time" for an election (in Fall), or not.

Agreed, it is "go-time". We must, however, have an airtight deficit fighting plan, AND a measure to help all the people who will be jobless in the coming "double dip" part of this recession. Home prices are going to collapse by 2011, with up to millions of Canadians living in negative equity (owing more for their homes than they're worth). Many more still will not be able to renegotiate their higher mortgages - which will be up for renewal next couple of years (if they bought in the last 3 or 4 years - thanks to the Harper governments suckering them into "buy, buy, buy!" fever).

A Liberal/CMHC mortgage bailout program - even if a small amount - would be a huge help.

Win back the lost members of the South Asian community. Start with an apology in the H of C for the Komagata Maru incident. Harper/Kenney refused to apologize in Parliament - and the FACT that so many Canadians are ignorant of this black mark in our history just illustrates how Harper shoved the false apology under the table at a park in suburban Surrey BC - where no-one would hear him. He and Nina Grewal were booed off the stage. Iggy needs to speak out about the negative undertones our government is taking to the Sri Lankan refugee issue. The government is creating an atmosphere of hate/mistrust when most of these people haven't even had a fair shake in our system.

The economy is already showing signs of weakness, and a strong likelihood of downturn next year. We need to ensure that this is pointed out to be Harper's fault. Our meme has to be that Harper f'd up a 13 Billion dollar surplus, and spent it on tax cuts for the rich, and fighter jets, and other pet projects, when Canadians are losing jobs daily, and stand to lose their homes (just like South of the border).

VICTORY FUND

Deficit - Thy Name Is Harper

From Ralph Goodale's latest update...

CONSERVATIVE “DOUBLE-SPEAK” ON THE DEFICIT

When Stephen Harper laments the federal deficit and claims he has to cut programs and services to save money – here are 10 things to remember:

1st -- When these Conservatives came into office in 2006, they inherited a thriving economy, the best fiscal situation in all the G-8 group of world-leading countries, declining debt and taxes, and budget surpluses of at least $13 billion per year.

2nd -- Mr. Harper squandered all that financial strength by 2008. He overspent at three-times the rate of inflation, slashed all contingency reserves and prudence factors from the federal budget, and put the country back into deficit again while the world economy was still buoyant and BEFORE there was any recession.

3rd -- The Harper government turned a $13 billion Liberal surplus with a $50 billion Conservative deficit.

4th -- The Conservatives are making their deficit worse, by $6 billion per year, by further cutting taxes for the biggest and wealthiest corporations (which already enjoy one of the most favourable tax rates in the world).

5th -- Mr. Harper runs a bloated Cabinet, and now he’s increasing the size of his own office by another 20%.

6th -- The Conservatives have wasted more than a billion dollars on extra partisan consultants and self-serving advertising.

7th -- According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, Mr. Harper is increasing prison costs in Canada by $10-$13 billion.

8th -- By dumbing-down the Census, the Conservatives will actually increase StatsCan administrative costs by $30 million – to collect unreliable data.

9th -- Mr. Harper blew $1.3 billion on extravagant arrangements for G-8/G-20 meetings, which accomplished nothing of any consequence.

10th -- The Conservatives are pushing $26 billion out the door to buy new military equipment, without a whiff of competitive tendering.

How is any of this “fiscally responsible”?


-- Post From My iPhone

F The Haters... Offer Refuge To The Genuine Refugees!

Couldn't put it much better than over at The ScottRoss.

When people like this risk life and limb to get to Canada, you have to begin to reconsider the citizenship (and former "citizenship) of Conservative Party poster-children like former Canadian "citizen", Conrad Black... or people who call this country "a third world Northern European power"... then shamelessly wave the flag like they invented it (and they DIDN'T)...

Scott nails it when he says we have more than enough space and resources. More than any other nation. If we can't help them, who should???

Glad the churches are looking to help - even if their crazy NeoCon fanboys (and girls) are foaming at the mouth, ready to send in the Airborne Regiment...

VICTORY FUND

"Count Me In"

"Count Me In".

That was the tagline that went out with the census when I was young. The idea was that this was part of your duty as a citizen of this great land. You were doing your duty to ensure OUR government - that was supposed to act in our best interest - had the info to do so. Sort of like volunteering (or being drafted) for military service for "God and Country". You know - your duty for your country when she asks for it.

It seems pretty partisan and downright stupid, that the very same people who would disdain anyone who criticized the military are the same people who seem to have a problem with this particular service for our country. Then again, they're probably the "chicken-hawk" warmongers who wouldn't have the guts to step into a uniform either - instead sending young kids from impoverished and economically poor demographics abroad instead.

Seems to me you give more private info when you give blood. Certainly applying for university makes you spill a lot of personal "beans" - including detailed questions about sexual activity. Yet, we still line up to give blood - because it's our duty to help others in our society. Heck, most of us give up more personal/private info about ourselves on Facebook - daily.

Speaking of "online intrusion", doesn't this Conservative Party (with taxpayer help) collect all sorts of data on every private Canadian citizen? The answer is a resounding "YES!" They even keep info on your race/ethnicity. Seriously. Go check CPC HQ. They target mail to specific demographics/ethnic groups/cultural groups, etc. They spent megamillions on this apparatus. When trying to buy "ethnic" vote they target mail ridings with their propaganda, hoping to ensnare a few unwitting victims...

Being the richest political party, we can slowly see what the Conservatives are doing: cutting off election (per vote) funding for other parties; setting up their own info gathering resource; then killing off the best public info source. The most heinously partisan move that could be made... and they choose very benign sounding tacts - hoping the public won't notice, or just won't care.

"Stand up for Canada"??? More like stand up for themselves.

Time to rage against this machine...

Stand up and say, "Count Me In"...

VICTORY FUND

Conservatives' Wish To "Dumb Down" Canada

Another solid Goodale writeup...

MAKING A MESS OF THE CENSUS

The Harper Conservatives have provoked a hostile reaction by their arbitrary destruction of Canada’s census.

Who would have thought a topic as seemingly dry as changing the operating procedures at Statistics Canada would trigger such universal condemnation? But Canadians get it.

Making the Long-Form census questionnaire “optional” will corrupt the data upon which the country functions. Canada’s world-leading reputation for statistical honesty will evaporate.

Beyond just bean-counters and number-crunchers, opposition to this “dumbing down” of the nation’s data-base reaches every corner of Canadian life.

Protests have come from provinces, municipalities, universities, healthcare providers, top economists like the renowned Don Drummond, think-tanks like the Canada-West Foundation, the Federation of Independent Business, the Canadian Association of Retired Persons, the Conference of Catholic Bishops, the United Way, the Ukrainian-Canadian Congress, and thousands more.

These are not just snooty elites. This is Main Street Canada speaking out spontaneously, just as they did when Mr. Harper misused prorogation to padlock Parliament. People instinctively understand that what this government is doing is wrong!

With no honest statistics to rely on in future, policy-making will be driven by ideology, not facts and figures. Truth will be a casualty.

Yes, taking about an hour once every 25-years or so to fill out that pesky Long-Form is a nuisance. But most people accept it as a responsibility of citizenship – like obeying the speed limit, getting a marriage license, serving on jury duty, or paying taxes (so we can have healthcare, schools, paved roads, an army, police officers and old age pensions).

And Statistics Canada has never once violated anyone’s privacy.

If the Harperites are really concerned about an “intrusive mandatory process” for the Long-Form, why are they content to leave that exact same process in place for the Agricultural Census?

Is this discrimination against farmers, or just Conservative hypocrisy?


-- Post From My iPhone

The World's Most Interesting Man...

He is the most interesting man in the World. Begging pardon from Dos Equis (Mexica's finest beer), our ads to sell our man should be roughly akin to their hilarious beer ads.

We have our own "international man of mystery". Someone who has adventured around the globe - every Canadian kids childhood dream (okay, after playing in the NHL). Ignatieff is a swashbuckling international adventurer, and his pen was his sword.

Our ads SHOULD include some tasteful clips of Michael reporting from the war zone (with voice overs explaining his clear understanding of international affairs); some good clips of his BookTV interviews...

REform-a-Tory ideologues are morons - let them pretend that being worldly means being an "elitist". Most thoughtful citizens WANT an elite performer to be their PM/leader. My beer-chugging, Rockstar-playing buddies would make shitty PMs... Seriously. When the Prime Minister of India is an Oxford graduate, just how does a college dropout from Canada relate to such a man to help smooth over an international trade deal? Answer? Harper doesn't. We need the best of our best in our international diplomatic corps, and in our Parliament, so we can continue to secure the international deals which make Canada's own economy prosper.

We are an export-focused, resource-based economy, that is trying to move to a more "knowledge economy" model, and no Reform-a-tory is able to facilitate that. Science and research goes against the grain of everything they believe in.

Posted earlier at The Scott Ross...

Let's just get this election on with... Ignatieff the former WAR CORRESPONDENT, diving in and out of combat zones with balls of steel (and several TV shows), and Harper, the chunky, basement-dwelling pimple-faced teen grown up, with serious Napoleon complex, a dictator fetish, with less than half the cajones it would take to walk anywhere NEAR a warzone. Our guy's the international swashbuckling marauder, and Harper's the wimp that couldn't find any friends in all of Ontario...

Perhaps Iggy CAN speak French in Russian...?

VICTORY FUND

Latest Ekos Has Libs/Cons In Dead Heat - Cons Drop Below 30%...

For the first time since 2006, the Cons have dropped below 30%, according to the latest Ekos survey.

What's going on? Well, the Liberal Express tour for one. While some fellow bloggers say recent events are the reason (Long Form Census, etc.), there IS the underlying theme of "that Iggy guys a pretty decent dude... I could vote for his team" going on. That thought will operate in the background in the minds of all those who have read kindly articles towards the Iggster during the tour. Couple THAT with the continued coverage of Harper "thought-control" shennanigans, and the perscription is written...

The Liberal Summer Campaign should continue to focus on Conservatives trying to hide the truth from the public, Conservatives distorting facts, and Conservatives generally playing a hyperpartisan game in the most hyper-partisan Ottawa there has ever been...

Hear that sound? It's the Liberal Victory Train - coming to your town this Summer.

VICTORY FUND