I See That Rob Anders' Replacement Is No Prize Either

I'm sure some hoped that when Rob Anders, the Conservative MP for Calgary Signal Hill and national embarrassment, lost his riding's nomination to run in the 2015 election, he might be replaced by someone with at least a modicum of balance and rationality. Alas, the new torchbearer for the riding, Ron Liepert, is proving such hopes were futile.

An appearance on the CBC's The Current the other day amply demonstrates that while he will fit in well with the ethos that dominates the Harper regime, his 'logic' and his contempt for opposing views will prove to be a deep affront to those who favour reasoned argument over ad hominems:

Debating the Keystone pipeline with Greenpeace Canada's Keith Stewart, Liepert repeatedly complained of "extreme environmentalists" with "extreme arguments" waging "extreme environmental attacks on Alberta's oil industry" for calling for a transition to renewable energy sources.

After labelling critics of unsustainable oil and gas development as "extremists" several times, Anna Maria Tremonti finally interrupted Liepert and asked him point-blank: "Why do you call them 'extreme environmentalists'?"

"Because individuals like your guest would like to see fossil fuels eliminated across the world. That is simply not going to happen. You know, he lives in this dream world where somehow airplanes are going to fly with solar power, how transit in his city is going to be powered by renewables from wind. This is just a dream world that these extremists live in and we have to face reality. If you were to shut down the oil and gas industry in Canada today -- I don't have the statistics in front of me -- but our unemployment rate would probably be pushing 20% in this country. And we'd be living in a dream world that simply cannot exist."

As you will hear in the following excerpt, Stewart responded to Liepert's ranting calmly and rationally, two qualties that I am sure were completely lost on the political aspirant.

One of Nature's Hidden Affronts

I assume this requires no commentary from me:

H/t janfromthebruce

Like That Embarrassing Relative At Thanksgiving Dinner

That's who Calgary West Conservative M.P. reminds me of. You know, like the slightly off uncle who says embarrassing and inappropriate things at family get-togethers that cause the rest of the guests to cringe, stare off into the distance, and quickly try to change the topic.

Well, the Tory exemplar who once accused Nelson Mandela of being a terrorist is at it again, this time suggesting that NDP leader Thomas Mulcair helped to hasten Jack Layton's death.

This kind of lunacy must give pause to even the staunchest of believer.

Oh, and in case you forgot, Anders is also infamous for his short attention span in the House of Common:

Guess Who Doesn't Support Our Troops?

If you guessed Stephen Harper's Conservative Party, you are correct. While dear leader and company pull out all of the rhetorical stops about supporting the troops when it serves their ideological purpose, they are decidedly niggard when it comes to helping them when they are no longer fodder in distant lands.

The most recent insult to those brave men and women (I don't dispute their valour, only the cause that so many gave their lives for) comes from that national disgrace, Calgary West MP Rob Anders (yes the same Anders who embarrassed all of us when he voted against making Nelson Mandela an honorary citizen, decrying him as a communist and a terrorist) when he dozed off while vets were making a committee presentation on homeless vets. Caught in his act of somnolence, he lashed out at the vets, calling them “NDP hacks” and supporters of Vladmir Putin.

Just another of the many reasons Harper and his troops are unfit to govern.

You can read the entire sad tale about Conservative hypocrisy and demagoguery here.

As Usual, The CBC Is Under Attack By The Right-Wing

I have written before about how I feel that the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has, in many ways, sold out to the Conservative Government. Undoubtedly not having understood the sad history of appeasement, they have pursued that profitless course, trying to convince the government of its bones fides by giving right-wing cranks like Kevin O'Leary his own show, and allowing Peter Mansbrige to play the role of the obeisant sycophant during his interviews with those who hold power.

Nonetheless, the Right is implacable. As is so widely evident in their destructive rhetoric, they cannot tolerate opposing views, even when they hold power. It is therefore not surprising that there is a concerted move afoot to defang ( I mean defund) the CBC even further.

As reported in a Globe story entitled CBC funding under microscope in Conservative survey:

Conservative Senator Irving Gerstein, who chairs the Conservative Party’s fundraising division, recently sent a letter to supporters that included a 10-question “National Critical Issues Survey” seeking input to help the government set its priorities for the fall and into 2012.

One question asks whether the more than $1-billion Ottawa spends on the CBC is “good value” or “bad value.”

Meanwhile, two Conservative MPs, Rob Anders and Ed Holder, are taking it a step further, asking their constituents in surveys whether the government should keep funding the CBC.

Mr. Anders, a Calgary MP who has always been a controversial maverick on the right wing of his party, now features a petition on his website calling on Parliament “to end public funding of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.”

Some may recall that Anders, who had an interesting previous life as a professional political heckler in the U.S., was also the moral and mental genius who was the sole parliamentarian to vote against Nelson Mandela being recognized as an honorary citizen of Canada, labeling him a communist and terrorist.

Need I add more?