UPDATED: In The Outer World

...no one can hear Dean Del Mastro scream his innocence despite his conviction on three counts of overspending in his 2008 election campaign. In Del Mastro world, however, his guilt is just a subjective matter:

The judge's ruling "was not a final decision," Del Mastro said. "I've in no way broken any of the laws governing elections."

"I know what the truth is. That's her opinion. My opinion is quite different."

The delusional soon-to-be-former Conservative MP from Peterborough is now engaging it what seems best described as a 'Hail Mary pass':

MP Dean Del Mastro is filing to reopen his defence against allegations he spent too much in the 2008 election and covered it up.

Del Mastro, in an interview with Rosemary Barton on CBC News Network's Power & Politics last Friday, said there was a debate until the last few days of the trial whether they should bring a motion to present additional evidence. In the end, however, he and his lawyers did not.

"We were confident that the ruling was going our way. We felt that we had put forward a very strong case, we thought that we had not just Elections Canada precedent but actual statements and evidence provided by the chief auditor at Elections Canada that entirely supported our case, but ultimately we didn't hear that considered in the ruling."

His faint hope to escape his fate, one hopes, will be quickly quashed by the sentencing judge. But until that sentencing, it appears he will be hanging on to his seat. Let's pray that the poor man's grip on reality, despite what is implied by his recent pronouncements, is less tenuous.



UPDATE: Mr. Del Mastro has also said that he won't resign because he got a strong mandate to represent the people of Peterborough. Apparently, the good folks of that community disagree with his stand. The Peterborough Examiner offers a sampling of constituent comments:

"Very arrogant of DDM to insist the judge got it wrong, that 'He knows the truth.'"

"Wow, the hubris of this guy is really unbelievable. He is a convicted criminal, yet in lieu of any sort of apology or even an acknowledgement of his wrongdoing, instead he offers 'that is her opinion.' Yes, Dean, it WAS her opinion. And it is the ONLY "opinion" that matters. Step down now."

"I think that Dean will just have to accept that he was fairly tried and convicted and deal with it just like anyone else found guilty of a crime would have to.

Another reader had these suggestions for riding association president Alan Wilson, who continues to express support for the convicted Del Mastro:

"First, apologize for Dean as he won't. Second, completely separate and disown Dean. Third, demand his immediate resignation. The time you Cons are taking to make a stand is going to have a price tag on it. If you don't take a solid stand quickly you risk going down with this sinking ship."

Thus far, there is little indication that planet Earth has succeeded in making contact with the errant former beloved of Mr. Harper, or those who aid and abet him.

You Can Never Be Too Careful

...I guess.


H/t Toronto Star

All Along The Watchtower

"There must be some way out of here," said the joker to the thief,
"There's too much confusion, I can't get no relief.
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth,
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth."

"No reason to get excited," the thief, he kindly spoke,
"There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.
But you and I, we've been through that, and this is not our fate,
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late."

-Opening lyrics to All Along The Watchtower, by Bob Dylan

I couldn't help but think of this iconic song after reading the latest U.N. Climate Report, which can perhaps be best summed up in this excerpt:

Pointing to the solution, the IPCC said the costs associated with mitigation action such as shifting the energy system to solar and wind power and other renewable sources and improving energy efficiency would reduce economic growth only by 0.06 per cent annually.

And [IPCC chairman Rajendra] Pachauri said that cost should be measured against the implications of doing nothing, putting “all species that live on this planet” at peril.

Here is a soulful and slowed down version of the Dylan classic for your discernment:

More On The Walking Dead

My friend Dave in Winnipeg is always urging me to subscribe to Frank magazine for its unforgiving political assessments, the kind of commentary that rarely, if ever, finds its way into the MSM. It is advice I should heed.

Not one to show respect for the politically deceased, Frank offers its latest on the ignoble career of Dean Del Maestro, the once up-and-coming parliamentary secretary to the great one himself, Stephen Harper. Enjoy.

It's Hard To Keep A Dead Man Down

Even though it is a day past Halloween, don't let your guard down just yet. The dead still walk among us.

Was Nathan Cirillo A Hero? - Part 2

Yesterday's post revolved around a column by The Hamilton Spectator's Andrew Dreschel in which he questioned whether the circumstances of Nathan Cirollo's death qualified him as a hero. I predicted that he would likely be subject to a barrage of criticism, given that the young man's death was so recent, and a state funeral had essentially been accorded him.

Today's piece by editor-in-chief Paul Berton confirmed this. While some comments were supportive, others were not so complimentary:

An online petition urged The Spectator to have Dreschel fired. Others wanted us to remove the column, which was apparently "going viral" on social media, from thespec.com.

Another said,

"How can you print one day that he's a hero and the next day that he is not?"

I was glad, however, to see that Berton is standing his ground:

I acknowledge the timing of the column may have been premature and insensitive, and I take full responsibility for that. But a newspaper should not refuse to print opinions simply because they may offend.

As devastated — and as proud — as so many of us were in Hamilton this week, does wondering what it all means in the modern scheme of things take away from that?

He goes on to say:

But isn't that the nature of any good newspaper — to reflect all opinions, no matter how popular or unpopular?

Isn't that the nature of a democratic community? To make sure we can learn from all events?

The funeral brought this community together — and enlightened us. Might not a frank conversation do the same?

I wonder if the irony is lost on all those thousands who lauded Cirillo for his protection of our freedoms who now seem, through their intolerance, to value it so little?

Was Nathan Cirillo A Hero?

As I noted on this blog previously, it is always a tragedy when a young person loses his or her life, whether to accident, disease, or mayhem. The lost potential is incalculable. Like me, however, I suspect many found the mythologizing of Nathan Cirillo's murder, his passage on the Highway of Heroes, and what amounted to a state funeral, attended by an array of dignitaries, including the Prime Minister, a little much. And as a cynical observer of the political landscape, I cannot escape the notion that all of the ceremony will prove to be of great benefit to the Harper regime's propaganda machine and its ongoing efforts to reduce our civil liberties.

This morning, a friend of mine alerted me to a piece by the Hamilton Spectator's Andrew Dreschel. It is a frank and honest assessment of this past week's spectacle. It is also brave, as I suspect it will earn him a barrage of hate mail.

While in no way detracting from the loss of this young man, Dreschel offers an unsentimental assessment of what happened:

The 24-year-old Hamilton reservist was murdered in cold blood by a homeless crack addict with terrorist notions while he was ceremonially guarding the National War Memorial in Ottawa.

Cirillo's death was tragic and senseless, but in no way was it heroic.

Dreschel then goes on to talk about what constitutes heroism: those who display remarkable courage,

by performing brave deeds and daring feats — risking or sacrificing your life to save others, valiantly defending a position, boldly destroying the enemy.

But Cirillo never got the chance to show the stuff of which he was made:

He died unprepared and unarmed, the unlucky victim of a seemingly deranged killer who was himself gunned down after storming Parliament.

All of the subsequent coverage gave this tragedy a life of its own, culminating in what the writer describes as secular canonization.

Dreschel ends on this note:

Through no action of his own, the accidental victim had become an accidental hero. But sadly, like all accident victims, he just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Unsentimental and accurate, the column raises some disturbing issues that we should all be honest enough and brave enough to confront. Of course, it is right to feel grief and empathy in tragic situations; obviously it is part of what makes us human. But we should also be keenly aware that those very human responses can work to our detriment if they are not leavened by the knowledge that those in positions of trust with far darker motives may try to exploit them to their own advantage.