A Spark Of Integrity

If one follows politics closely, it is easy to become quite jaded. On almost daily display are scenes of arrogance, condescension and the corrupting influence of power. We are reminded of those sorry aspects of our species regularly by Ontario's Doug Ford government, one I hesitate to label by any other name, as it seems increasingly to be a one-man show.

However, once in awhile we are reminded that there are still those who place principle over ideology and demagoguery, who realize their larger obligation is to the public good, not their political masters.

This was made evident earlier this week in the tale of Doug Ford's chief of staff, Dean French, a name you may have heard recently as the one who arranged for the firing from OPG of Alykhan Velshi, whose 'crime' appears to be his status as the former chief of staff to Patrick Brown.

French's latest foray into crossing lines has become public knowledge because of some brave insiders who reported his transgression to The Toronto Star.

Premier Doug Ford’s chief of staff ordered senior political aides to direct police to raid outlaw cannabis stores the day marijuana became legal and to show “people in handcuffs,” the Star has learned.

The edict from Dean French — an unelected political aide — in two conference calls the morning of Oct. 17 met stiff resistance from staff in the community safety ministry and the attorney general’s office, said four Progressive Conservative sources familiar with the situation.

“We’re not a police state. We don’t have the right or the ability to direct police to do anything,” said one insider who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal matters.

Resistance, in any form it takes when dealing with overweening governments, is to be encouraged. The next ray of hope is reflected in Progressive Conservative MPP Amanda Simard, who has found the courage to criticize her own administration:

Last week, the Ford government announced it was breaking its election promise to build a French-language university, and axed the office of the French-language services commissioner. The government said the office’s responsibilities would be absorbed by the provincial ombudsman.

In a rare move, Progressive Conservative MPP Amanda Simard released a statement on her Facebook page saying she was disappointed by the cuts.

“You have an ally in me, and I will never let you down,” Simard said in a translated version of the post. She said the cuts “disappoint me greatly, and I share this disappointment and frustration today, having initially worked internally as much as possible to reverse these decisions.”

Simard is apparently one of the few truly bilingual members of the Ford government, and is also the parliamentary assistant to Ford lapdog and Francophone Affairs Minister Caroline Mulroney.

Why is this an example of the integrity and courage we all pine for in our politicians? Make no mistake about it: she will pay a heavy price for her independent thinking. People like Ford, often described as a bully during his one term on Toronto city council, expect unquestioning fealty from all their adherents. It is the way of the authoritarian, and examples must be set when people step out of line.

Expect a demotion for Simard in the near-future. But while she may lose influence, she has achieved something far more important. She has shown that resistance is never futile, that every defiant gesture is a refusal to submit to arbitrary authority. Such is the human spirit, not yet vanquished.

One hopes Simard's example and that of the insiders who refused to defer to Dean French may serve to inspire others in the time to come.

Well, This Certainly Did My Heart Some Good

WHO DID THIS?????? pic.twitter.com/6BDOM4lApu

— ALT- Immigration 🛂 (@ALT_uscis) November 19, 2018

Such Passion

Too bad we can't muster some of that in North America.

White Privilege On Steroids

While the Lord of the Flies criminality at St. Michael's College should upset everyone, especially the parents of students attending that prestigious institution, I find it telling that those same parents are blaming the media more than they are the school for these terrible events. Given that the tuition to this elite day school starts at $20,000, some moms, who no doubt are used to getting their way in most matters, seem to feel they should also have control over what the media reports:



I guess there are some things that even money can't buy.

Rejecting The Politics Of Expedience

A letter in today's print edition of The Star by Jack Gallop of Thornhill urges all of us to reject the demagogic politicians who expediently pander to our fears; instead, we need to heed the consensus position of climate-change scientists and act accordingly for the greater good:

For those of us who see the stark and convincing evidence that we are destroying our planet through human-induced climate change, the cry has gone out to governments to take strong action to reduce our carbon footprint before this planet we call home reaches the point of no return.

And, according to environmental science, that point is fast approaching.

But people vehemently protest when ideas such as cap and trade (a program that was working extremely well) or a carbon tax are initiated. We want action, but not if it costs “me.”

The Ford government prefers to tap into our fears and inherent self interest by stating that saving the environment will cost too many jobs and add to the cost of operating our vehicles and heating our homes. So they fight the very initiatives they should be supporting.

Rather than justifying inaction, it is government’s responsibility to lead the way in educating every citizen on the environmental emergency facing this and future generations. Instead they close their eyes to this inconvenient truth, saying they got elected on improving the economy so that’s their priority.

Nothing is more important than doing all that can be done to reverse the effects of climate change. And it is time for each citizen to insist that we are willing to inconvenience ourselves and contribute financially to government and private initiatives to save our planet.

Present and future generations will be grateful instead of cursing our stupidity and short-sightedness.

A Cannabis Beacon

For those seeking to ingest 'the herb' legally and are looking forward to the opening of bricks and mortar stores in Ontario April 1st, Premier Doug Ford has taken all of the guesswork out of finding such emporiums. Conveniently, they will be be found within 150 metres of schools.

The real story for me, however, is the brazen contempt for truth and language that Doug and his enablers are indulging in as he betrays an election promise:

“I won’t put it besides schools like you did,” Ford said in a spring election debate to then-premier Kathleen Wynne. The Liberal government had planned to open its first state-run marijuana outlet 450 metres from Blantyre Public School in Scarborough."

That the Ford government is betraying basic safety measures to keep cannabis out of the hands of young people is not lost on some people:

“It’s troubling that Doug Ford’s latest back-door decision — this time to allow pot shops to move within a stone’s throw of kids’ schools — was done without any consultation with parents or communities,” said Deputy NDP Leader Sara Singh.

However, in the world we now inhabit, black is white and white is black. Consider the words of Attorney General Caroline Mulroney who, each time she speaks, seems to slide further and further into self-induced whoredom, as she

... insisted the guidelines, including the smaller distance buffer from schools, are in the best interest of the public.

“The purpose of these regulations is to keep kids safe and to ensure all people operating in this tightly-regulated retail system behave with integrity, honesty, and in the public interest,” she said in a statement released over the supper hour.

The hours of opening “are consistent with on-site retail stores for alcohol and will provide retailers with the flexibility to respond to local market conditions and consumer demands,” the statement added, referring to LCBO agency stores that are part of convenience, hardware and other stores in rural and remote areas where there are no liquor stores nearby.

In the corrupted currents of this world, Mulroney's words no doubt will be lapped up by those insensate Ford supporters who, like their Trump counterparts in the United States, stand by their man and his underlings unconditionally. In their cult-like devotion, they can see only one 'truth', that which is pronounced by their dear leader.

It must be nice to live with such certitude. However, for those of us who retain some critical faculties, these are bleak days indeed.

"What Do I Have To Do To Earn A Decent Life?"

As my disenchantment with humanity and myself grows, I look for things to counteract the deep cynicism that has gripped me, things that demonstrate the resilience, strength and compassion that groups may no longer possess but individuals still do. The following is an example, the story of Jen Powley, a woman who has had MS since her teen years. Now completely immobilized at the age of 41, she faces some wrenching decisions about her future as she asks the question in this post's title.

While many might throw in the proverbial towel at this point, given the Nova Scotia government's unwillingness to allow her the means to live a decent life, she struggles on, her spirit undiminished.

She is someone we could all learn a lesson from.