Refusing To Go Along To Get Along

The stench of corruption and cronyism that permeates the Ford government here in Ontario is hard to ignore. (See Martin Regg Cohn's column on the latest example, the appointment of Ford pal Ron Taverner as the new and egregiously unqualified head of the OPP.) And while the times are indeed dark in this once proud province, with Ford cabinet members such as Christine Elliott and Caroline Mulroney regularly prostituting themselves, it is heartening to know that some people will not go along to get along, refusing to surrender their integrity, even when that refusal comes at a high cost.

One such person is Cindy Veinot. She deserves both our attention and our respect.

The Ontario government’s chief accountant resigned earlier this fall because she refused to sign off on Finance Minister Vic Fedeli’s inflated $15 billion deficit, the Star has learned.

Cindy Veinot, the provincial controller, quit in September because she “did not agree with accounting decisions made by the current government.”

The issue revolves around the purported size of the provincial deficit, team Ford contending it is $15 billion, while others regard the government co-sponsored Ontario Public Service Employees’ Union Pension Plan and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan as assets, lowering the deficit by about $5 billion.

It would seem that Ms. Veinot is well-qualified to offer an informed assessment:

Veinot, a leading expert on pension accounting who finished first among 63,000 candidates in the 1998 certified public accountants exam in the U.S., contends the holdings are an asset.

So afraid are the provincial Tories of her truth that they have blocked her from testifying at the 'transparency' standing committee examining the state of the province's finances:

Tory sources, speaking on condition of anonymity in order to discuss internal deliberations, admit there has been concern over what Veinot might say under oath.

And so it goes. Corruption and cronyism continue apace at Doug Ford's hectoring hands, with most willing to do what they can to curry and maintain his favour.

How it must gall the premier and his disciples that not all souls can be bought.

UPDATED: An Incisive Medical Assessment

This needs no commentary from me.

DICTIONARY:

Sundowning [suhn-doun-ing]

Verb

Psychiatry: To experience confusion or hallucinations at night as a result of dementia, strange surroundings, drug effects, or reduction of oxygen supply to the brain. See Article 25 of the Constitution. pic.twitter.com/KF6byaMF06

— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@BettyBowers) December 3, 2018

UPDATE: And here's further proof:

The United States, Canada & Mexico just renegotiated NAFTA.

To finalize it, they had a joint signing ceremony.

Donald signed in the wrong place, everyone noticed & then things got awkward.

Watch ⬇️⬇️⬇️ pic.twitter.com/dckYPFw9ag

— Millennial Politics (@MillenPolitics) December 3, 2018

How Many People Really Care?

Tony Burman writes that worldwide, democracy is dying:

In October, a Stockholm-based international institute updated its report on “The Global State of Democracy” — a study of the performance of 158 countries since 1975. It reported an “alarming” decline in the past year in the health of democracy worldwide, warning that “democracy’s global rise has come to a halt.”

According to the study, “the number of countries experiencing democratic decline is now greater than the number experiencing democratic gains,” the first time that’s happened since 1980.

Some of the key features of democratic societies are being unraveled by the state:

... its basic tenets — including guarantees of free and fair elections, the rights of minorities, freedom of the press and the rule of law — came under attack around the world.”

One of the worst offenders is Hungary, as The New York Times reports:

In many ways, Hungary has foreshadowed the democratic backsliding now evident in different corners of the world. Since winning power in 2010, Mr. Orban has steadily eroded institutional checks and balances, especially the independent media. His government now oversees state-owned news outlets, while his allies control most of the country’s private media sources, creating a virtual echo chamber for Mr. Orban’s far right, anti-immigrant views.

The results have been devastating for democracy. A leading news website called Origo, once one of the Orban government's most incisive critics, is now one of its biggest boosters:

“Let’s look at the affairs of Laszlo Botka!” a headline blared this month in a salacious take on the only mayor of a major Hungarian city not aligned with Mr. Orban’s party, Fidesz. “Serious scandals, mysteries surround the socialist mayor of Szeged.”

Taken for granted, democracy has always been fragile. The need to nurture and protect its traditions has never been greater. Unfortunately today, both internationally and domestically, far too many are content to ignore the depredations of government as long as their own backyard is tended to. People ignore their responsibilities as citizens. Voter turnout is poor. The free press in North America struggles for relevance and revenue as more and more seek their news for free from Twitter and Facebook feeds, both notoriously susceptible to manipulation and fake news.

All the signs of impending democratic disaster are there, but ultimately, the question becomes, "How many people really care?"

This Is What Ontario Has To Contend With

Ontario would appreciate the sympathy of saner provinces:


H/t Mackay

A Sendup That Cuts To The Bone

Marie at A Puff of Absurdity recently posted on the dysfunction, debasement and corrosiveness that social media has wrought in human relationships. The following seems like an apt complement to her post:

A Powerful Voice Is Stilled

It was Henry David Thoreau who said, “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation."

Harry Leslie Smith was not part of that mass of men. Harry, who I wrote about several times on this blog, has died at the age of 95.

Smith, who escaped early British poverty and later moved to Canada, found his voice late in life, a voice that many heeded and were inspired by.

He was 91 when his bestselling memoir-cum-polemic in defence of the welfare state, Harry’s Last Stand (2014), was published, winning him a mass following in Britain’s ascendant left and beyond.

Harry became a regular commentator in newspapers, a fixture at speaking events in both Britain and Canada, and a prominent champion of the British Labour party. In the build-up to the 2015 general election, he recorded a party political broadcast for Labour on the NHS, and during the campaign he toured constituencies to drum up support for the party.

To get a sense of the horrors he faced as a youngster, you need only watch the following:



After the war, Harry and his wife moved to Canada and started their family, and for the last 20 years he divided his time between Canada and Britain. To appreciate his impact in Canada, you need only click on the link at the start of this post. No fan of the neoliberalism and austerity favoured by people like Stephen Harper, he was not quiet in his opposition, an opposition borne of his poverty-stricken early days. And it was in this opposition that he reached entire new generations of people on both sides of the Atlantic:

Harry became one of the biggest social media stars in British politics. Within several years, he had sent more than 80,000 tweets and accrued over quarter of a million followers. His widely shared tweets were on a variety of topics: fighting austerity and privatisation, opposing western military interventions, and challenging racism and fascism. He was increasingly preoccupied with rising xenophobia, as demonstrated by the increasing popularity of Nigel Farage and Donald Trump, and saw disturbing parallels with the rise of interwar fascism.

Harry Leslie Smith's was a powerful voice that has been stilled. May he have a well-earned rest, and may his words continue to inspire people to look beyond the cheap rhetoric so many politicians favour and fight for the justice everyone deserves.

Alberta Dishonours Itself

As much as I may strive to be a critical thinker, sometimes things happen that tempt me to succumb to certain stereotypes. Take, for example, the notion that many Albertans are rednecks. As you will see in the following, some are certainly sending that message to the rest of Canada. They should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves.