The Power Of The Makeover

A FB friend put this on his page. I hope you agree that it deserves to be spread widely.

This Is Terrible

Disgraceful. Absolutely disgraceful. (Heh, heh heh)



H/t Murray S. Grant

Political Spin: This Story Isn't True, But It Is Gratifying

My friend Gary sent me this yesterday, an apocryphal story that nonetheless offers certain pleasures. Enjoy!

Remus Rudd

Stephen Harper's great-great uncle.



Remus Rudd

No matter what side of the political fence you're on, THIS is FUNNY and
VERY telling! It just all depends on how you look at the same things.

Judy Harper an amateur genealogy researcher in Northern Ontario, was
doing some personal work on her own family tree. She discovered that
Prime Minister Stephen Harper's great-great uncle, Remus Rudd, was
hanged for horse stealing and train robbery in Winnipeg in 1889. Both
Judy and Stephen Harper share this common ancestor.

The only known photograph of Remus shows him standing on the gallows at
The Manitoba Provincial Jail.

On the back of the picture Judy obtained during her research is thisharper
inscription:

'Remus Rudd horse thief, sent to Stony Mountain Jail 1885, escaped
1887, robbed the CP AND CN trains six times.

Caught by Mounted Police Force, convicted and hanged in 1889.'

So Judy recently e-mailed Prime Minister Harper for information about
their great-great uncle, Remus Rudd.

Believe it or not, Harper's staff sent back the following biographical
sketch for her genealogy research:

"Remus Rudd was famous in Ontario during the mid to late 1800s. His
business empire grew to include acquisition of valuable equestrian
assets and intimate dealings with the CP and CN Railways..

Beginning in 1883, he devoted several years of his life to government
service, finally taking leave to resume his dealings with the railroads.

In 1887, he was a key player in a vital investigation run by the Mounted
Police Force. In 1889, Remus passed away during an important civic
function held in his honour when the platform upon which he was standing
collapsed."

NOW That's how it's done, Folks!

Now that's a real POLITICAL SPIN!

In Praise of Political Cartoonists

Where would we be without their pithy insights?

But Can It Be Mixed With Kool-Aid?

Is it possible that at the start of their political careers, Stephen Harper and Rob Ford consulted with Cornelius Grouppe for campaign advice and recruitment methodology?

Be Careful Where You Paddle

I guess this is what happens when we forget our place.

More About Our Prime Paragons of 'Virtue'

Just a few reminders about the moral thugs within our midst:

Tides Canada's charity status attacked Pro-oilsands group accuses it of illegal political activity

Thomson: In the end, pipeline is a political decision

Justice minister won't send Del Mastro file to prosecutors Inappropriate to do so: Nicholson

Elections Canada investigating claims workers at company owned by Del Mastro's cousin were reimbursed for donations to MP's campaign

Stephen Harper: Then and now

Ex-Harper adviser Bruce Carson charged with influence peddling Critics dispute Kent’s greenhouse emissions figures

Peter Kent's Office Keeps Quiet About Report Linking Human Activity To Extreme Weather: Document

Conservatives ask court challengers for $250,000 deposit Council of Canadians backs voters who want 7 MPs' election wins overturned

On The Harper Regime's Lawlessness

Once again, Star readers come through with their perceptive indictments of the Harper regime's contempt for both the rule of law and democracy:

Re: Ottawa’s misrule of law, Opinion July 17

Professor Audrey Macklin’s piece on Ottawa’s disrespect for the law points to a culture of justice by vendetta and racism in this government. How is it otherwise when one sees a white Anglo-Saxon indicted felon received in this country without question, and sought out by the press, while the government dumps all over a boy soldier the likes of which Canada signed the international convention to protect and rehabilitate?

This government has demonstrated on a number of issues now that it thinks it is above the law; it chooses to break it at will and challenging us to stop them. So far nothing, and no one, has.

So, where is our “democracy,” the rule of the majority?

Frank Arturi, Toronto

If we live in a country that has majority government that was not elected by the majority of voters, and if that government refuses to abide by the laws and constitution of our country, and if the political representatives belonging to the governing party refuse to condemn its behaviour, “by definition” are we living in a democracy or an oligarchy?

Randy Gostlin, Oshawa

Amen!

H/t Stephen Lautens

New Disgrace For Both Harper And Kent

Environment minister’s office urged bureaucrats to blame media for recycling controversy

Nope, no surprises here in the depth of contempt both the P.M. And Peter Kent feel for the people they 'serve'.

See Stephen, See Stephen Run

While the purpose of this Harper-initiated site may be to inspire fear of the NDP under Thomas Mulcair, I think it suggests a measure of, shall we say, nervousness, on the part of Mr. Harper and company.

H/T Kady O'Malley

Stephen Harper's Pathological Hatred

While I stand by my comments about The Globe and Mail in my last post, the paper does have one real asset in the person of Lawrence Martin. Unlike other Globe employees who seem strangely constrained ideologically, Lawrence is consistently robust in his criticism of the Harper regime.

Today's column is no exception, as he reveals the roots of dear leader's pathological hatred of Elections Canada.

The Nation's Editorial Boards: Harper Voter Suppression Stonewalling Bad For Democracy

At least that seems to be the consensus at the following newspapers:

The National Post

The Vancouver Sun

The Hamilton Spectator

The Toronto Star

The Calgary Herald

The Lethbridge Herald

The Ottawa Citizen

The St. John's Telegram

And the list goes on, with one predictable exception, of course: The Toronto Sun

So far, Canada's self-proclaimed newspaper of record, as far as I can determine, has not deigned to offer its editorial insights on the crimes.

Voter Suppression: Canadians Continue To Vent Their Fury

While the rogue Prime Minister continues to deny his party's involvement in voter suppression, Canadians continue to vent their fury.

“My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: / Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!

The face of unrepentant smarm:

The Criminals In Ottawa - Why Am I Not Surprised?

Based upon a report in The Ottawa Citizen, it appears that Stephen Harper and his crew, through a company called Racknine Inc., engaged in fraud aimed at voter-suppression in the last federal election by attempting to send voters to the wrong polling station.

Elections Canada is investigating. Interim NDP Leader Nycole Turmel calls the tactics a disgrace. I call them criminal acts.

Thomas Walkom Warns About The Real Cost of OAS Reform

While Stephen Harper stooge Diane Finley does her master's bidding by sowing the seeds of conflict between young and old over Old Age Security, Star columnist Thomas Walkom warns that it is the young who will pay the price for Tory tampering.

Department of National Defence Follies: $21 For A Bag Of Concrete Worth $2.67

While the Harper regime tells the rest of us that we must tighten our collective belts, its military arm, the DND, is spending, well, like drunken sailors. May I suggest that a trip to Home Depot might save about $18.50 per bag of concrete?

Being Stephen Harper Must Be Frustrating At Times

Were I a more compassionate and empathetic man, I suppose I could at times muster a modicum of sympathy for our dark lord, Stephen Harper. Why, you may ask - doesn't he now enjoy a majority government that allows him to impose his will throughout our once fair land? Doesn't he already exert a wholly unholy influence over our once robust structures of democracy? Doesn't he regularly show contempt for the truth, both inside and outside Parliament?

Of course he does, but consider the almost unbearable frustration he must be experiencing now, one that may lead him to a new assault on democracy, not because his will is being thwarted, but because it is being slowed down by those pesky environmentalists he alleges are in the sway of 'foreign interests.' According to today's Star,

Prime Minister Stephen Harper says environmentalists funded by “foreign money” are trying to hijack public hearings on the controversial Northern Gateway oilsands pipeline — and the government would like to put a stop to such activities.

In high demagogic dudgeon, Mr. Harper warns about dark foreign forces arrayed against us, a threat to both our economy and our way of life, as more than 70 native groups oppose the project and 4,300 people have signed up to give evidence at the hearings on the environmental and economic impact of the proposed $5.5 billion pipeline. Our dear leader decries the use of foreign money to really overload the public consultation phase of regulatory hearings just for the purpose of slowing down the process.

“This is something that is not good for the Canadian economy and the government of Canada will be taking a close look at how we can ensure that our regulatory processes are effective and deliver decisions in a reasonable amount of time,” he said after a government announcement in Edmonton.

Annie Roy, a spokesperson for the Northern Gateway review panel, responded by reminding Harper that the panel “is an independent body, mandated by the Minister of the Environment and the National Energy Board,” to hold public hearings.

But since Harper is a man not the least bit deterred by the once powerful traditions of Parliamentary democracy, expect him to find a way to shorten, even abrogate this environmental process.

Santa's Hit List

Well, here it is, Christmas Eve, and Santa has been rechecking his list, and five have been struck from it. This sad distinction goes to the following, who perhaps can be consoled by the fact that they have something in common: they are devoid of any recognizable morality; they have shown consistent contempt for the opinions and values of others, and they are all members of the same club, The Conservative Party of Canada.

5. Minister of National Defence Peter McKay - Peter has been an exceedingly naughty boy this year, living large at the expense of the taxpayer, and abusing what he mistakenly believes are his toys and lying when he gets caught. My sources reveal as a consequence of his bad behaviour, he will be on the no-toy list for decades to come.

4. Government House Leader Peter Van Loan – Struck from Santa's list for defending the indefensible, his novel but morally depraved explanation of why spreading false stories about Irwin Cotler was an exercise in free speech and good for democracy. Santa has grave doubts about whether he will ever see the error of his ways, and so a lifetime ban from the list is likely.

3. Jason Kenny, Canada's Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism - Jason has had a busy year sowing discord and promoting Islamophobia, but his biggest sin, in Santa's eyes, is his betrayal of Sayed Shah Sharifi, the brave Afghan interpreter who put his life and the lives of his family in danger to provide services to our troops, only to be told he really isn't in danger and thus can't emigrate to Canada. Another lifetime ban from Santa.

2. Environment Minister Peter Kent – His cabinet title and his name together constitute one of the clearest examples of oxymoron that either I or Santa have ever seen. For betraying Canadian integrity, for thumbing his nose at the world by putting profit before the effects of climate change that are already very apparent, Santa predicts a stormy time ahead for this less-than-sterling steward of Mother Nature.

1. Prime Minister Stephen Harper – The dear leader gets primacy of place on Santa's hit list for one very obvious reason. Without Harper, the moral bankruptcy infecting Canada today would not be possible. Setting a tone that shows only contempt for democracy, the courts, public opinion, and the health of developing nations, he, as the master puppeteer presiding over a feckless and opportunistic group of marionettes, is responsible for our current political moral vacuum, thus ensuring the disaffection of large numbers of Canadians, record low turnouts in elections, and general disgust with the political process, all part of his grand plan to ensure the Conservative Party as Canada's natural-governing party.

Usually a jolly and optimistic fellow, Santa holds out absolutely no hope of an Ebenezer Scrooge regeneration for this man's shriveled spirit.

Merry Christmas to some, and to some a good night.