KenonCanpolitics

Canada protests to Libya over reports of torture

2012-01-28T09:00:00.000-08:00

The Canadian government is criticizing Libya after reports of torture by both Amnesty International and Doctors without Borders. The latter group is withdrawing doctors from Misrata because patients were brought in to be treated only to face further interrogation. The Libyan embassy in Ottawa made no comment on the accusations.
The Libyan government the NTC has not been able to centralize power so far. Many of the cases of torture and abuse may be happening in areas still controlled by militias rather than by the central government. Canada was an active part of the coalition that helped the rebels defeat the Gadaffi regime.
No doubt the Canadian complaints will not interfere with developing commercial relations any more than Gadaffi's abuse of prisoners in an earlier period. Not long before the rebellion started Canada still had good commercial relationships with the Libyan government including a large project to build a new prison being carried out by a Quebec firm. For more see this CBC article.
Navi Pillay the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights also commented on the Libyan situation saying:."There's torture, extrajudicial executions, rape of both men and women,""Something has to be done immediately to assist the authorities for the state to take control of these detention centres."Pillay said that there were up to 8,000 prisoners in 60 detention centers held by militia groups.

Canada: Several groups concerned that Canada may allow privatization of water services to foreign companies

2012-01-27T17:31:00.000-08:00

Leaked documents that set out Canada's position on trade talks with the EU do not exempt water services. Canada is presently considering a free trade deal with Europe called CETA (Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement).
The documents show that Canada is trying to exempt telecommunications from the agreement and also some agricultural sectors of the economy. There is no mention of water services.
Attached to this article is a CBC audio clip that discusses the issues. On the tape there is a discussion with Stuart Trew representing the Council of Canadians. The Minister of International Trade was not available to take part in the discussion. His office did send a statement however:"The Council of Canadians and the Canadian Union of Public Employees have long claimed, erroneously, that a Canada-European Union Free Trade Agreement will threaten Canada's sovereignty over its water. Those claims are simply not true. As our government has stated previously, Canadian products, services and expertise are absolutely for sale, but our regulations and government powers are not. Nor is Canada's water."
It remains to be seen how long this will turn out to be true. Many countries are anxious to buy fresh water wherever they can get it. However, the statement says nothing about water services and privatizing them. Much of the concern is over the privatization of water treatment and water services rather than the privatization of the ownership of water. On the audio tape there are also interviews with Elizabeth Brubaker who is in favor of greater privatization of water utilities.

Canada: Aboriginal groups claim their consent needed for Northern Gateway pipeline

2012-01-26T12:45:00.000-08:00

The proposed Northern Gateway pipeline would run from the Tar Sands in Alberta to the Pacific Coast where oil would be shipped to mostly Asian markets. The pipeline planned by Enbridge Inc. would cost 5.5 billion dollars.
The route of the pipeline would take it through land that belongs to several aboriginal groups. Shawn Atleo, who is national chief of the Assembly of First Nations said that the bands involved had "the right to free, prior and informed consent" over any projects that affected their territory.
The federal Conservative government is a strong backer of the pipeline and claims it would provide jobs for natives. But a number of bands oppose the project because of the risk of a spill. The concern is not only about leaks along the route but accidents involving oil tankers along the B.C. coast. Some of the bands threaten to block the pipeline construction even if it is approved. However other bands made be able to negotiate a deal with Enbridge.
Aboriginal groups are not on good terms with the Conservative government. They are demanding more control over their resources and over major resource projects a right that they claim treaties gave to them. Chief Atleo noted:"We have continued to lurch from crisis to crisis with deep social ills and deplorable conditions in our communities, very often when these communities are adjacent to major natural resources projects," For more see this article.

Canada: Here pussy pussy. Loose cat delays Air Canada flight

2012-01-25T09:33:00.000-08:00

A cat escaped from its carrier before an Air Canada flight took off from Halifax Nova Scotia bound for Toronto. The flight was scheduled to leave at 5:30 AM but it was not to be.
As soon as the cat escaped it ran into the cockpit. Then the real trouble started. The terrified cat managed to get into an area where there were wires. To get at the terrified cat part of the cockpit actually had to be disassembled.
The plane ended up being grounded for several hours even after the cat Ripples was returned to its carrier. The wires within which the cat found refuge had to be inspected for damage. This is the first time Air Canada personnel can remember a cat getting into the cockpit of a plane. For more see this article. There is a poll about policy re pets at the bottom of the article. Those in favor of allowing pets were more than those opposed. Of those opposed most supported guide dogs as an exception. You still have time to vote.

Canada and U.S. agree to extend softwood lumber agreement for two years

2012-01-23T18:32:00.000-08:00

The Canadian Trade Minister, Ed Fast, announced that a softwood lumber agreement between the U.S. and Canada will be extended for another two years. The agreement settled a long running dispute between the two countries. Both countries decided that extending the current seven year agreement would be preferable to further negotiations.
The agreement was due to expire in 2013 but will now run until 2015. The U.S. had imposed various measures on Canadian softwood lumber imports before the agreement was negotiated. The deal returned several billion in tariffs collected by the U.S.
Canada's lumber market is more or less in the doldrums since the recession and with a slow construction industry in the U.S. Canada is expanding markets into Asia especially China. The U.S. still disputes some aspects of Canadian trade and there is an ongoing panel that is expected to give its ruling this fall. Fast says he is confident that Canada will win out. For more see this article.

Was Canadian naval officer spying for Russians?

2012-01-22T11:54:00.000-08:00

An article in CBC news suggests that perhaps naval officer Jeffrey Delisle was spying for Russia. Delisle is accused of giving secret material to a foreign entity.
The article points out that four Russian diplomats have had their names removed from a list of those recognized by Canada. However on reading the details of the article it is not really clear that the removal was related to the spying case.
Two of those involved were leaving in any event simply because their terms were up. However two others had their credentials revoked after the announcement of the arrest of Delisle. Canada has made no comment on the issue. Russian media quotes the Russian foreign ministry as surprised at Canadian reports since two of the diplomats were finishing their terms in Canada.
This does not address the issue of the other two individuals. Some commentators expressed skepticism that the Russian embassy personnel would be involved in spying. One analyst said that the Russian embassy would be the last place to pick to run a spy operation.
However, embassies collect information as part of their job. Certainly U.S. embassies especially in places such as Pakistan are noted for having spies on staff. I see no reason to think that Russia would not act in a similar manner. Obviously neither Russia nor Canada wants to make an issue of this event and will be happy to see any media coverage fade away.

South Korea removes ban on Canadian beef imports

2012-01-20T08:17:00.000-08:00

South Korean media reports that imports of Canadian beef into the country can resume. The government has lifted an eight year ban on Canadian beef.
South Korea imposed the ban after Canada had a case of Mad Cow disease. Local South Korean distributors will be allowed to sell meat from Canadian cows less than 30 months old.
Canada has always maintained that there was no scientific evidence to support the ban and has sought a WTO review of the ban. However, in June last year Canada and South Korea agreed on a plan that would remove the ban by the end of last year. Canada agreed to suspend its plans for a WTO review in return.
South Korea was the fourth largest importer of Canadian beef before the ban. The re-opening of the market will mean millions in returns to Canadian cattle producers. For more see this CBC article.

Bank of Canada Governor: Europe situation will slow Canada's growth

2012-01-18T13:31:00.000-08:00

The governor of the Bank of Canada Mark Carney claims that the European debt crisis will slow both Canadian growth and global growth. Carney predicted that Canadian growth will be lower by approximately .6 per cent for the year. This will mean the Canadian GDP will be about 10 billion lower than otherwise.
Carney decided that the Bank's key interest rate would remain at 1 per cent, a very low rate. As well he estimated that the debt crisis in Europe would lower the global growth rate by one per cent and growth in the U.S. economy by .8 per cent.
As he has done earlier Carney warned about the high level of personal debt in Canada. This runs at about one hundred fifty per cent of personal income. Carney said:"High household debt levels in Canada could lead to a sharper-than-expected deceleration in household spending," "If there were a sudden weakening in the Canadian housing sector, it could have sizable spillover effects on other areas of the economy."
Many think that the bank will not raise interest rates this year as long as the economy is sluggish and inflation low. But some analysts think that by the middle of next year there will be some hikes in the rates. For more see this CBC article.

Canadian naval officer arrested for spying

2012-01-17T11:01:00.000-08:00

Sub. Lieutenant Jeffrey Delisle who lives in the Halifax Nova Scotia area has been arrested on charges that he communicated information to a foreign entity or terrorist group. He has agreed to stay in custody and has not sought bail.
The alleged incidents in the charge took place between July of 2007 and January of 2011. There is no indication as to what information exactly Delisle is accused of passing on nor to whom it was communicated.
The charges involve both a breach of trust under the Criminal Code with up to five years in prison if convicted and under the Security of Information Act that could lead to life in prison.
Delisle has a long history with Canadian Forces having joined the reserves in 1996 and has been with the regular forces sine 2001. He was promoted in 2008. Delisle worked at HMCS Trinity intelligence. The facility tracks vessels, drones, and underwater devices as they enter and exit Canadian waters. The facility has access to secret NATO data as well. The security breach may have implications as far as other nations sharing sensitive information with Canada. The fact that there is no information at all as to who received the information seems a bit strange. Might this be an ally spying on Canada and so the information would be embarrassing? For more see this CBC article.

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Canadian Premiers meet to discuss health care

2012-01-16T13:07:00.000-08:00

At a meeting in Victoria B.C. Canada's premiers and territorial leaders are trying to hammer out a common policy on health care. The Conservative federal government has announced that it will guarantee health-care funding increases right up to the 2016,2017 year. Up until then the yearly increases were set at 6 per cent.
After that, increases will be related to the growth of GDP but increases will continue at the rate of at least three per cent per annum. These increases were announced unilaterally and without consultation with the provinces as is usual before the federal government announces policy.
Premier Jean Charest of Quebec was angry that there was no consultation with provinces on the question of funding but this unilateral declaration by the Harper federal government. Charest noted:"We have always in Canada, because of our federal system of government, had a dialogue on this, an exchange of information, a dialogue and decisions were made" Charest wants to hold talks with prime minister Harper on future funding. The present accord does not expire until 2014.
Future funding will be per capita after 2014. Some provinces object to this in particular British Columbia where there are many seniors. Seniors cost the system much more. The situation does not look positive for health care in Canada. The federal government is reactionary. Although the Conservatives pledge their undying support for universal health care both they and many of the provinces will be looking to privatize more of the system to support their business friends. The system is likely to change so that the the level of services will not be the same in all provinces. No doubt there will be an offloading of costs so far as possible from the provinces to the individual. Rich provinces will no doubt have better health care systems and poorer provinces will struggle to provide basic care. Manitoba Premier Greg Sellinger said: "The underlying principle is to offer comparable levels of service even if they are different, in such a way that it respects the overall framework of the Canada Health Act," Sellinger is an New Democratic Party premier supposedly on the left. Per capita funding will never achieve the goal he outlines.
The premier of Nova Scotia Darell Dexter also NDP put the matter much more realistically: "Equal funding is not necessarily equitable funding," "This is the problem. We have 16 per cent of our population currently over the age of 65 in our province. We're going to move from 16 per cent over the age of 65 to almost 30 per cent over the next 20 years," Poorer provinces such as Nova Scotia will simply not have the funds to provide adequate care for an aging population if funding is based solely on so much per person. For much more see this CBC article.

Are the Liberals radical monarchists?

2012-01-15T11:38:00.000-08:00

At the Federal Liberal convention that part members voted to retain ties with the monarchy but in a radical move also voted to legalize marijuana. In a move to encourage more people to be involved with the party the convention also passed a motion to a free category of membership. A motion to have U.S. style primaries was also rejected but narrowly.
The motion to legalize marijuana was proposed by the Young Liberals of Canada. However, passing a resolution is one thing having it as part of the Liberal Platform come election time is quite another. Interim leader Bob Rae was coy about whether he supported legalization and whether it would be in the platform. He was also coy about whether he would be in the running for leader of the party.
The rules now prohibit Rae from running. However those rules could be changed should the party executive decide it would be a good idea. Rae has been getting a lot of media coverage of late and sounds as if he is campaigning for leader even though he denies it. For much more on the convention see this National Post article.

Canada: Some Canadians wait up to eight weeks for unemployment checks

2012-01-14T11:51:00.000-08:00

As the Canadian Conservative government cuts back on government jobs there is a noticeable effect on some services including payments to jobless Canadians who collect Employment Insurance. Of course it is really unemployment insurance but the new positive spin Orwellian language calls it Employment Insurance-as if one could not admit such an abomination as unemployment.
At the peak of the recession Service Canada whose task is to ensure that Canadians receive their entitlement payments there were 3,000 term workers hired. However when the terms expired they were not rehired. Only about 450 workers remain and their hours have been cut from full to part time.
Some people are waiting more than eight weeks for their first check to arrive. Service Canada promises to process claims within 28 days. However, there are now more than 80,000 claims that have gone beyond this promised deadline. Is anyone punished. Of course not.
What the government is doing is closing about 100 processing centers and will end up with just 20 larger centralized centers. Of course at the same time this will cut another 600 jobs. Of course the Harper government is not cutting services to corporations. He is extending corporate tax breaks. He is also making sure that the reserve army of the unemployed is eager to take a job, any job, for it is becoming more and more difficult to get the unemployment payments to which unemployed Canadians are supposed to be entitled. For more see this article.

Do you suffer from friggatriskaidekaphobia ?

2012-01-13T17:55:00.000-08:00

That is fear of Friday the Thirteenth if the term was Greek to you! If you do, you are not alone. The Stress Management Centre and Phobia Institute in the U.S. estimates that losses to businesses on Friday the 13th is a whopping 800 to 900 million dollars. Many people in particular avoid flying on that day. Perhaps that is lucky for people on standby!
A National Geographic website claims that in the U.S. alone there are between 17 to 21 million who fear Friday the 13th. Statistics in Canada on auto accidents do not show any increase on Friday the 13th. Some insurers even say that claims drop because fewer people drive on that day.
There are varying theories as to the origin of the superstition. Some claim that Cain slew his brother Abel on Friday the thirteenth. Others say the superstition arose because King Philip the fourth of France arrested the Knights Templars on Friday Oct. 13th 1307. For much more see this CBC article. Some skeptics even schedule special events for Friday the 13th.

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Internet addicts may damage brains

2012-01-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

Those addicted to the Internet show differences in their brains from those who are not addicted. MRI scans of those classified as addicted show damage to both the white matter and fibers that may damage cognitive functions.
However the study of 17 adolescents by Chinese researchers with 16 controls is relatively small. The resulting cognitive impairment is similar to that observed in alcoholics and compulsive gamblers.
Internet addiction is not officially recognized by health care authorities. However there are individuals who appear to feel a compulsion to be on line. The desire is compelling enough to interfere with their everyday life. If forced to stay off line such individuals show withdrawal symptoms. Certainly such behavior is very much like that of an addict. We all probably know such people as well. Perhaps even some bloggers suffer from the addiction. For much more see this CBC article

Canada: Military equipment goes missing on return trip to Canada

2012-01-11T13:03:00.000-08:00

Ten containers shipped from Afghanistan to Canada contained sand and rocks rather than military equipment. Whoever pilfered the goods replaced them with rocks and sand so that the containers would still have significant weight.
The good consisted of tires, tools, and tents. There were no weapons or uniforms included.
A.J. Maritime a Canadian company moves the materials from Afghanistan. The company president said that both in Afghanistan and Pakistan pilfering is a problem for other countries as well.
The Canadian Dept. of National Defence estimates the costs due to losses or property damage to be 4.7 million for 2010. Given the level of losses that work done by private contractors encounter perhaps it would actually be cheaper if such goods were moved by the military and properly guarded. For much more see this article.

Libyan students in Canada hope for funding from new government

2012-01-10T07:57:00.000-08:00

Adel Aktaibi of St. John's Newfoundland and Labrador is one of several thousand Libyan students studying across North America. The students were being funded by the former Gadaffi government.
However, with the rebellion and civil war the program ground to a halt temporarily. Students faced worries about their families back home as well as their financial situation where they were studying.
The head of the Canadian Bureau for International Education went to Libya to meet with members of the Libyan Department of Higher Education and Scientific Research. The new government has guaranteed funding for students such as Aktaibi until the end of May. Nevertheless the students still face some uncertainty for the future. For more see this article.

Conservative Government calls opponents of Northern Gateway Pipeline radicals

2012-01-09T08:52:00.000-08:00

The minister of natural resources Joe Oliver claims that what he calls radical environmentalist are trying to delay Alberta oil sands developments and thereby also derail the Canadian economy. This warning comes just a day before hearings begin into the projected Northern Gateway pipeline.
The prime minister Stephen Harper joined the chorus by noting that the hearings could be hijacked. The proposed pipeline would deliver oil from the Alberta oil sands to Kitimat on the west coast of Canada. From there the oil would be shipped to overseas markets.
Over 4,3000 people are slated to speak on the pipeline over a period of 18 months. The project is naturally supported by big oil companies. The Conservative government is very much favorable to Big Oil and would like to make the process of approval of projects much quicker. In Oliver's letter there is virtually no recognition that there might be serious environmental problems that could trump development. The letter is filled with scare tactics and ad hominem arguments. He mentions in particular foreign money funding these radical environmentalists. No mention that oil lobbyists might be at work on the Conservative government and indirectly assuring that Conservative coffers are overflowing.
Here is a sample of Oliver's language:"Unfortunately, there are environmental and other radical groups that would seek to block this opportunity to diversify our trade," "Their goal is to stop any major project no matter what the cost to Canadian families in lost jobs and economic growth. No forestry. No mining. No oil. No gas. No more hydro-electric dams." Stephen Harper told an audience in Edmonton Alberta home province of the oil sands that he has heard that there is a growing concern that foreign money is financing attempts to overload the public hearing aspects of regulatory hearings.
Harper no doubt is looking for political support for legislation that would make it easier for big oil interests to get their way. Of course this is all presented as attempting to foil nefarious environmental radicals and advance the interests of the average Canadian through development of the oil sands projects. Not mentioned is that this would be great for the one per cent as well. The environmental health of the planet doesn't even figure in these calculations. For more see this article.

Canada Party running for U.S. presidency

2012-01-07T13:56:00.000-08:00

A video by a retired U.S. marine suggests that the Canada Party --his own invention--should be the U.S. presidential candidate. Comments have been both favorable and unfavorable but the likes are 3,300 with just 100 dislikes so far.
The video touts Canadian superiority in various areas but also makes fun of Canada as well including our prime minister Stephen Harper. Chris Cannon is the name the Vancouverite uses on line.

Cannon claims that he served six years with the U.S. marines including time as an intelligence officer and a counter-terrorism specialist. Now he teaches creative writing at the University of British Columbia. He could teach creative video production if he put his mind to it as well! His video has received more than 27,000 hits since being posted on January 3rd. I am not sure how a party, particularly a foreign party, could run for the U.S. presidency. Perhaps an Israeli party might manage it though.

2012-01-06T15:38:00.000-08:00

While the job statistics in the U.S. looked somewhat brighter in December the situation was somewhat gloomier in Canada. Nevertheless the unemployment percentage is still considerably less here than in the U.S. even though there was a slight increase to 7.5 per cent here.
While 18,000 new jobs were created in Canada overall there was a loss of 26,000 full time jobs in December. More Canadians were looking for work and this caused the unemployment rate to edge up by .1 per cent.
In 2011 the Canadian economy has added 199,000 job but almost all of this growth was in the first half of the year. Most job growth has been in part time jobs rather than full time positions. Quebec has been worst effected by slow job growth losing 25,700 jobs during the year. Alberta is the province with the lowest unemployment rate at 4.9 per cent. Alberta is rich in oil and natural gas deposits. For more see this article.

Canada: Feeding the military industrial complex through the JSF

2012-01-05T13:22:00.000-08:00

Back in 1996 the JSF Joint Strike Fighter program was begun. The program aims to replace aging existing planes with new advanced planes both in the U.S. and some allies. The program was supposed to make affordable planes by using 80 per cent of the parts of the three different models in common. But critics complain that not only is the plane not turning out to be cheap but is not even very functional. For example Winslow Wheeler an analyst for the Center for Defense Information in the U.S. says: "The history of multi-role fighters, even for single services, is terrible. They do nothing well. ... The F-35 never will be able to fulfil its mission, because it is too heavy to fight other aircraft in the air, but too fast, thin-skinned and lightly armed to support troops on the ground."
Nevertheless nine countries signed on to the program. Canada is one of the participants. Others include the UK, Australia, Israel, and even Singapore. The U.S. will pay the bulk of development costs but Canada has invested 168 million. In all the nine partners are slated to buy about 3,100 planes over a total of 25 years.
Canada is to buy 65 F 35A planes. The first delivery is not until 2016. However the program has been beset by problems especially concerning costs for the planes and servicing. The cost estimates continually rise. In June 2010 the estimates were for 156 million per plane. This is already double the original estimates and likely to rise even further. In may of this year the U.S. General Accounting Office said: "After more than 9 years in development and 4 in production, the JSF program has not fully demonstrated that the aircraft design is stable, manufacturing processes are mature, and the system is reliable,"
In Canada also cost estimates vary widely. The Canadian Dept. of National Defence estimated the total cost of its 65 planes at 17.6 billion. The Parliamentary Budget Officer however estimated the cost at 29.3 billion. The Budget Office reckons the cost of each plane at 148 million almost twice the cost estimate of the DND of 75 million.
Many critics wonder whether Canada really needs these fighters costing billions of dollars when the government is strapped for cash and anxious to reduce the deficit. However the care and feeding of the global military industrial complex takes priority over such needs as repairing the social safety net and other social spending needs. For more see this article.

Canadian Junior teams loses to Russia

2012-01-04T10:26:00.000-08:00

Russia downed the Canadian juniors even though the Canadians had a perfect record in the preliminary round. The final score was 6 to 5.
Russia had built a huge lead eight minutes into the third period of 6 to 1. But the Canadians fought back and scored 4 goals. It was not enough to defeat the Russian squad.
In the second period after they got close to the Russians the Canadians took several damaging penalties. The Canadian goal tender Scott Wedgewood was not at his best either. He left the game after the fourth Russian goal after a Russian forward crashed into him.
The Canadians will now face Finland on Thursday for the bronze medal. For more see this CBC article.

Canada: Occupy Fredericton Camp is dismantled

2012-01-03T08:59:00.000-08:00

While many Occupy sites have already been closed down an Occupy encampment next to the city hall in Fredericton New Brunswick has been ongoing since October 15th last year. In November the mayor Brad Woodside said he wanted Fredericton to be a shining example of how to deal with protesters. He said at that time that he had no plans to close down the encampment. Fredericton is the capital of the province of New Brunswick on the Canadian east coast.
However Woodside now claims that the protesters have stayed too long and that he is concerned about health and sanitation issues. The city ordered an evacuation notice for Jan. 1 2012. There were three protesters and one police officer at the site when it was dismantled early this morning (Jan. 3) by city workers. I have appended a video. As you can see it was still dark. It takes a minute or so to see much. You can hear the chainsaws at work. There were no arrests or injuries.
Dana Hart a protester said that it was a cowardly act. A lawyer for the protesters is going to court to argue that they have a right to remain in their encampment under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Hart said the mayor should have taken the protesters to court. Most of the protest sites in Canada and the U.S. have been closed down. Perhaps after winter is over their will be a North American spring in the U.S. and Canada and the Occupy movement will start growing again. For more see this article.

Canada: Nutritional supplements slow aging in mice

2012-01-02T11:52:00.000-08:00

The entire article can be found here in CBC news. The article says it might be possible to "cure" aging. This language is a bit strange. I did not know that aging was a disease. I thought it was a natural process common to all living beings. However, the idea of extending our life span is no doubt something that many of us would desire as long as we remained relatively healthy.
Researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton Ontario found that mice that took their supplement actually learned tasks faster as they aged! Instead of their motor functions slowing down as is common as people age they acted like restless teenagers! This could be embarrassing for teenagers if the same thing happens with grandpa and grandma when they partake of this potent cocktail of nutrients.
The researchers were able to double the lifespan of crickets. Although most of the supplements used in the experiments can be found at health food stores, researchers warn that they have not been tried on humans and their safety is not at all assured when used by humans. This probably will not matter. I hope that the health food industry is not helping to finance the research! Much more including some of the ingredients is available at the link above.

Canada scores perfect record at World Junior Hockey Championships

2012-01-01T19:04:00.000-08:00

In the preliminary round the Canadian junior team scored a perfect record of 4 wins and 0 losses. Their final game of the first round was against the U.S. Canada won by a score of 3 to 2. The Canadians scored 27 goals while letting in only 5 in the games played so far.
The U.S. Canadian game was close even though Canada was ahead 3 to 0 after the first period. The U.S. fought back in the third period and scored two goals in the third period with just under seven minutes remaining. The Canadians manage to regroup and hold off the U.S. for the win.
The U.S. has had a poor series. A 5 to 2 loss against the Czech Republic knocked the U.S. team out of the medal round after an earlier U.S. loss to Finland. For more see this article.

Two Grenada police charged with manslaughter in death of Toronto man

2011-12-31T12:31:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday Oscar Bartholomew died from wounds received while in custody at the St. David's police station in Grenada. He, his wife, and a cousin had stopped by the station so his wife could use the washroom. Bartholomew thought he recognized a female officer as an old friend and hugged her and lifted her off the ground before realizing that he was mistaken.
Other officers took his actions as an assault on the officer and arrested and allegedly beat him. After being denied medical treatment for several hours he was transported to the hospital where he died of his wounds.
An eyewitness said that Bartholomew was bound and beaten by five officers. Two officers are now charged with manslaughter indicating the Grenada authorities are serious about investigating the incident. Bartholomew died of trauma to the head and multiple wounds to the body according to an autopsy. Bartholomew is originally from Grenada and was visiting relatives with his wife over the holidays. For more see this article.

Canadians and Japanese equally happy

2011-12-31T08:30:00.000-08:00

Leger Marketing surveyed about 53,000 people in a total of 58 countries. Leger asked participants whether they were unhappy or happy in 2011. The happiest country was Fiji. People there no doubt enjoy the weather and beaches and laid back life style.
Canada ranked 23rd. In spite of the poor economy and disasters in Japan they tied with Canada. An even bigger surprise was that Afghans were happier than Americans.
No doubt some countries that are relatively well off have unhappy people because expectations are high. This may explain the Afghan U.S. anomaly. Relatively, the situation in Afghanistan is probably not as bad as it has been. In the U.S. unemployment, and the general economic situation has been worse than earlier and looks bad for the future.
Canada's net happiness score was 47 per cent much above Afghanistan at 35 and the U.S. at 33 per cent. Fiji the happiest country had a net happiness score of 85. The score is the result of subtracting the percentage of happy people from unhappy people. For more see this article. Among Canadians those in Alberta are the unhappiest! This result perhaps also shows that happiness is based upon expectations rather than ones actual conditions. Alberta is relatively well off and booming compared to many other provinces.

Toronto Stock Exchange declines 11 per cent over year

2011-12-30T19:16:00.000-08:00

The Toronto Stock Exchange lost almost 1500 points during 2011 a drop of 11 per cent from the beginning of the year. The exchange finished the year on a positive note closing up 113.9 points Friday.
U.S. market fell on Friday but the Dow Jones index was up 640 points or 5.5 per cent for the year. The S and P index was almost flat. The NASDAQ ended down two per cent for the year.
Gold and metals sub-indexes on the Toronto exchange also posted significant drops. Even though the price of oil rose over the year the energy index also declined. The loonie has risen slightly in relation to the U.S. dollar.

Harper Government not campaigning for seat on UN Security Council

2011-12-29T07:29:00.000-08:00

Foreign Affairs minister John Baird says that the Harper government will not be campaigning again for a seat on the UN Security Council. Last year Canada lost out to Portugal in a campaign for the two year term in the Council.
Baird said: "you never want to stand for something and not be elected,""Listen, I mean, we don't go along to get along. That's just not a phrase," Certainly Baird gets along with Israel and also with those attempting to sabotage the Kyoto Accords and some other environmental issues.
Baird said that if Canada had not been so vocal about human rights in Iran, Iran might have voted for us. I am not sure whether this is meant to be humor or not! The loss in the campaign last year was the first for Canada since the formation of the UN. Canada usually support U.S. policies at the UN but on Israel the Harper government manages to be if anything even more supportive of Israel on most policy issues. For more see this article.

Amazon comes first in poll of customer satisfaction

2011-12-28T20:22:00.000-08:00

Foresee runs a poll of the 40 largest online retailers about every six months. Amazon.com came first in the survey at 88 out of a 100 possible points. This was the 14th consecutive time Amazon has been first and was up two points from the last survey.
Among the big losers in the survey was Netflix. Although the company had come close to the top of the surveys earlier, in this survey it fell to a rating of 79 and suffered the largest decline of any retailer. The drop happened after Netflix tried to raise its prices and split off its DVD service from its streaming service. The customer reaction was so negative that the company scrapped its plans. However the damage was already done. Netflix shares have lost more than half their value this year.
Gap was another poor performer in the ratings this year but Overstock.com came last at a rating of 72. Tiger Direct improved the most with a gain of six but still only at 79. More information can be found in this BNN article.

Grenada: Canadian man from Toronto dies after alleged police beating

2011-12-28T13:49:00.000-08:00

A 39 year old Canadian, Oscar Bartholomew, died after being arrested by police who thought that Bartholomew was attacking a female police officer. Apparently Bartholomew thought a female police officer was an old friend. Bartholomew was originally from Grenada. He hugged her and lifted her off the ground before realizing his error.
Unfortunately, the police took his actions as an attack on the officer. Grenada Broadcast reported he was beaten by police and succumbed to his injuries at a local hospital. Bartholomew and his wife were in Grenada visiting for the holidays. He, his wife and a cousin had stopped at the St. David's police station as his wife needed to use the bathroom. It was at this point that Bartholomew mistook the female officer for an old friend.
The Prime Minister of Grenada said there would be a full investigation into the incident. The cousin who was present claimed police left Bartholomew bleeding in his cell for 3 hours before finally summoning an ambulance at the insistence of his wife. For more see this CBC article.

Christmas cats and cats playing in the snow

2011-12-27T15:14:00.000-08:00

The appended video shows that cats can enjoy snow. They may not like swimming but some of them at least can enjoy frolicking in the snow.
None of them seem to know how to make snow angels. One frisky cat manages to be sure-footed as it chases something across the ice.
No doubt PETA will not like some of the cats shown dressed up in Xmas costumes. However the cats themselves probably are not all that much perturbed if they are offered treats in return.

I set out food regularly for our local strays. One or two have become regulars who shelter in our old garage. They are enjoying the holidays and the relatively warm weather but I have not noticed them playing in the snow very much! Here is the link as well. I don't really know if these cats are Canadian cats.

Boxing Day: Guess what Canadians are shopping for bargains

2011-12-26T10:31:00.000-08:00

There were early morning lineups across the country in some big malls. The West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton Alberta and the Eaton Centre in Toronto all had lineups as shoppers waited to snatch bargains in many areas including electronics and clothing.
The Yorkdale Shopping Center in Toronto expect up to 100,000 to shop today. In some of the Atlantic provinces however big store cannot open because of local laws governing the Boxing Day holiday. There were a lot of deals Xmas Eve especially on line. This may mean lower sales for Boxing Day sales. Also, this year a lot of Canadians were lured into purchasing items on Black Friday.
However sales of many electronic items have dropped from last year's volumes and this may mean that some Canadian consumers are waiting for the traditional Boxing Day sales. The lineups at the Eaton Centre in Toronto saw 500 people in line at 6 AM this morning! Wide screen TV's were among the discounted items and they were bought by many. Canadians are already very much in debt but being patriotic they continue to ensure that the economy does not go into depression!

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Former Conservative MP suing Stephen Harper

2011-12-23T17:52:00.000-08:00

Former Conservative MP Helena Guergis is filing suit against Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party as well as other individuals. Among other claims she alleges that the party and Harper defamed her.
Guergis was formerly a member of Harper's cabinet. In April 2010 she was forced to leave after allegations were made against both Guergis and her husband Rahim Jaffer. Jaffer also a former MP is joining his wife in the suit.
The suit is against not just Harper and the Conservative party but a host of others associated with Harper including his principal secretary, a law firm, and a former Harper chief of staff. All are alleged to be involved in spreading rumors about Guergis. Among the rumors were that Guergis had used cocaine. There was an even a claim that there was video evidence of this--which was never produced.
Altogether Guergis' suit asks for over a million dollars in compensation. The RCMP eventually cleared Guergis of all charges but she had already resigned from her cabinet post of Minister of State for the Status of Women. The Conservative Party removed her as a candidate in her constituency. Guergis ran as an independent but did not win. For much more see this article.

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Canada: Female officers may file class action suit against RCMP.

2011-12-21T13:31:00.000-08:00

Since a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation news story in November featuring sexual harassment charges by high profile Corporal Catherine Galliford many other current and former female members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police have come forward with other complaints.
Many who have come forward say that there were inspired by the testimony of Galliford to come forward themselves. There now are at least 25 who may join a class action suit against the force. Lawyer Alexander Zaitleff along with six other lawyers is collecting data for the case. He maintains that he has been receiving stories from every province about abuse. Another lawyer involved said that the suit would likely be filed on behalf of one or two specific plaintiffs but he will then ask that the suit be certified as a class action. This would allow others to join.
Corporal Krista Carle started a Facebook group open only to women with complaints of abuse. She noted that some involved have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress syndrome. Some can no longer work Until she saw the Galliford news report she felt that no one would ever believe her own story of harassment. For more see this article.

Harper government warns of further spending cuts

2011-12-18T18:04:00.000-08:00

The government has yet to negotiate a new Health Accord with the provinces. The present accord expires in 2014. The government has promised an increase each year of 6 per cent to the provinces until 2016, two years after the agreement expires Jim Flaherty the finance minister says that such increases cannot be sustained.
The poorer provinces must rely on transfers from the central government to ensure that they can offer health care services that are comparable to those in richer provinces. Prime Minister Harper would like to see radical changes in both the health care system and a reduction in the size of the welfare state.
Harper had this to say about Canada and Canadians.""In 1997, Harper delivered a controversial speech for a conservative American think tank in which he said, "Canada is a northern European welfare state in the worst sense of the term, and very proud of it", "if you're like all Americans, you know almost nothing except for your own country. Which makes you probably knowledgeable about one more country than most Canadians", ""

The government has been promising to balance the budget through 4 billion in savings over three years. But now a government spokesperson Jason Kenney says that the cuts could be larger, up to 8 billion dollars. The government does have money to spend on new Stealth fighter jets and also to build up the prison system. The new Conservative crime bills will guarantee that more prison facilities will need to be built. Perhaps Harper's admiration for U.S. conservatives is leading him to attempt to catch up with and surpass the U.S. in incarceration rates. The U.S. has the world's record for incarceration.

He may be cute, Harper that is, but watch out for his claws.

Canada: Hay bales set on fire at Occupy Winnipeg

2011-12-17T17:37:00.000-08:00

With harsh winter weather setting in the Occupy Winnipeg site is now down to five tents and three of them have been ordered removed because they are not regularly occupied. On October 15th about 400 people marched to the park area where the encampment is located.
The hay bales were used as a wind break. They had been ordered removed as a fire hazard. Someone set them on fire during the night. No one was injured and nothing else was burned. Back on Nov. 25th someone burned an unoccupied tent as well.
One of the three tents that are to be removed is actually a yurt structure in which meetings were held but with the numbers dwindling so are the meetings no doubt. There are only two tents left that are regularly occupied. Other people no doubt drop by but few want to stay in the frigid weather with no heat. A representative of those remaining said that they plan to beef up security. However with only two tents left it may be problematic to find people to act as security guards! For more see this article.

Terry Weaymouth inspects a removal order on an abandoned tent. The yurt in the background has also been ordered removed

Canadian Wheat Board: Farmer elected members booted and replaced by government appointees

2011-12-16T17:51:00.000-08:00

After passing legislation that would remove single desk selling from the Wheat Board the Conservative government has now replaced five farmer elected board members with their own appointees. These five immediately voted to discontinue the suit filed against the government. The former Wheat Board sued the government and had won on the grounds that the government was required by law according to the Wheat Board Act to hold a plebiscite among farmers first. NOTE: In single desk selling all wheat and barley in the western prairie provinces is marketed through the Wheat Board. This gives the board the power of a monopsony. The board was formed in the depression by farmers who believed they were at the mercy of large grain companies who bought their grain at prices that were too low.
The agricultural minister put a familiar spin on what happened. It is all about freedom of choice or marketing freedom. No doubt the large grain companies were cheering as well. Others cheering are the U.S. who filed over a dozen suits against the board claiming that the board gave prairie farmers an unfair advantage. Farmers in the room where agriculture minister Gerry Ritz was speaking apparently cheered his speech.
The Wheat Board itself had taken a plebiscite on whether farmers wanted to remove the single desk selling monopsony and a majority said they did not. The Conservative government in the last election campaign promised to remove those powers but also said it would hold a plebiscite of farmers. But it did not. It just threw out the elected farmer board and ignore a judgment of a court that their action was illegal. For more see this article.

New border deal may close some smaller U.S. Canada crossing points

2011-12-15T18:40:00.000-08:00

Among the changes involved in the new U.S. Canada border deal is the closing of some border crossings with little traffic and merging others. In some cases the U.S. and Canadian officials could share the same building. The deal also suggests that border crossings should mirror each others working hours. As it is now the U.S. side and Canadian sides can have different hours of operation!
The small crossings involved range from one coast, St. Stephen New Brunswick in the east to Chopaka B.C. in the west. Proposed closings include three crossings in Manitoba, in B.C two, and Alberta Quebec and New Brunswick one each.
As well as sharing facilities, mirroring hours of operation and closing facilities the plans also suggest having unmanned crossings. There would be a camera but guards would be stationed elsewhere. However, many have expressed concerns that since there would be no one to search vehicles the crossings would attract those trying to smuggle goods from one country into the other. There are several crossings where Canada has closed its office but the U.S. post remains open. Travelers can enter the U.S.. through these crossings but must go elsewhere to come back to Canada. For more see this article.

TD bank cuts Canada growth estimates

2011-12-14T14:19:00.000-08:00

The Toronto Dominion (TD) bank lowered its growth predictions for Canada's economy both in 2012 and 2013. The bank predicts that commodity prices will be weaker in the next two years and exports will grow slower. However at least the prediction is still for positive growth.
The bank predicts growth of 1.7 per cent in 2012. In September it had predicted growth of 1.9 per cent. In 2013 the growth is now predicted at 2.2 per cent as compared to 2.6 per cent back in September. The European financial crisis and a possible European recession will put a damper on global growth.
The bank sees unemployment now at 7.4 per cent to increase to from 7.5 to 8 per cent. The bank also sees high personal and government debt slowing growth. On the European crisis the bank was quite negative. It predicts that Greece will likely default on its debt next year. European banks will be forced into buying bonds of member countries and become a lender of last resort. Progress towards a fiscal union will take years according to the bank. For more see this article.

Canadian debt goes up and net worth goes down

2011-12-13T13:08:00.000-08:00

Statistics Canada released figures showing that the net worth per household dropped by $4,600 (Canadian) last quarter mostly because of declines in the value of equities and pension assets. In spite of relatively hard times Canadians have continued borrowing. Over a year the per capita debt has risen by $2,200 dollars to a total of $46,100. The total is a humongous 1 trillion dollars in mortgages plus another 448 billion in consumer credit.
The governor of the Bank of Canada warned Canadians they must ease up on spending as the level of debt averages over 150 per cent of income as the most recent Statistics Canada figures show. Net household worth has been declining as debt has been increasing. In the third quarter of this year net household worth dropped 2.1 per cent. This is the second consecutive quarter in which net household worth has declined.
Government debt has also been rising. In the second quarter government net debt was 46.3 of GDP but this last quarter was 46.9 per cent of GDP. This is still quite moderate compared to many countries. Canada's problems may be more with consumer debt. Consumers saddled with large debts in a sluggish or declining economy are not a recipe for growth or even social peace. For more see this article.

Canada: Face veils disallowed while taking citizenship oath

2011-12-12T13:19:00.000-08:00

Immigration minister Jason Kenney has placed a ban on wearing face covering garments during ceremonies at which immigrants recite the oath of citizenship. The ban would include the niqab and burkas among other things. This may cause problems if the ceremony is held outside in minus 40 degree since no doubt full face ski type masks will be covered (pun intended) by the ban. Batman better stay in the U.S. as well.
The ruling is in line with what is happening in Quebec where a similar ban will force women to unveil when receiving government services and laws in some European countries which ban the veils in public. Tunisia bans the veils at universities a practice that has caused recent demonstrations by Salafists.
Kenney takes the position that it is not a religious but a cultural tradition and at the pilgrimage to Mecca women must unveil themselves. Even if it is not a religious obligation but a cultural tradition this does not seem a reason to ban the veil. The practice does not seem to harm anyone. When my wife attended her citizenship ceremony the people arrived in all sorts of attire. Some were in suits, a few had traditional dress of their homeland, others dressed very casually. The citizenship guide notes that it is appropriate that those taking the oath wear their traditional dress should they wish. Several men seemed to be taking time off their construction work and were in work clothes.
Of course liberals will say the niqab or burkha are signs of women's oppression. Nice that Islam haters can go along with this. Of course the veiled women themselves are never asked if they want to have the veil removed. No need to consult these brainwashed, oppressed women. Free them whether they like it or not.
Apparently citizenship judges and some MPs complained to Kenney that women wearing the veil could not be seen reciting the oath. Surely the point is to be heard. Put a microphone in front of them if you can't hear them. Are dumb people --those who cannot talk-- refused citizenship on the grounds they cannot be heard reciting the oath. I think the whole issue is politicized and used by politicians as a means of gaining support. Lets see the opinion polls on support for the banning. I expect they will be very much in favor. For more see this article.

Drunk RIM executives cause plane to divert to Vancouver

2011-12-10T12:21:00.001-08:00

The two Research in Motion executives have since been fired. RIM makes the Blackberry. The two were on a flight from Toronto to Beijing.

Their behavior was so disruptive the plane finally diverted to Vancouver where the two were arrested. George Campbell, 45, and Paul Alexander Wilson, 38, were charged with mischief and pleaded guilty. The judge ordered that they pay 72,000 in restitution. They were given suspended sentences. They will be on parole for a year.

Apparently the two were quite drunk even at the start of the flight. They drank enough to pass out but then woke up and started yelling at each other Campbell lay belly down in the aisle kicking. One of the two assaulted one flight attendant and threatened another.

Crew members finally handcuffed the two with plastic restraints and tapes but they managed to chew through them! Flight attendants and passengers continued to restrain the two until the plane landed. Researach in motion is one thing but heavy drinking and rowdiness in motion are quite another. For more see this article.

Canada: Conservative government will go ahead and break the law to end Wheat Board monopoly

2011-12-09T08:21:00.001-08:00

Agriculture minister Gerry Ritz will go ahead with a bill that a federal judge has just ruled breaks the law. Ritz noted that the government of Canada has the sole right to act amend or repeal any piece of legislation. While that is true it is irrelevant. The situation here is that the government has been found to have broken an existing law. Rather than break that law the government should first repeal it. But this Conservative government has a number of times showed its contempt for parliament, it is now just showing contempt for the law.
The court ruling found that Ritx broke the law by violating a section of the Wheat Board Act. As interpreted by the judge this requires that the government consult the Board and hold a plebiscite among farmers to see if they support the changes. The government is appealing the decision but is going ahead with passage of the bill even during the appeal process.
The Conservative government has been a long time critic of the Wheat Board and is supported by some farmers. However a plebiscite held by the Wheat Board showed a majority actually support keeping the monopoly. Nevertheless the Conservative election platform pledged to remove the monopoly.
The monopoly was formed in the depression by prairie farmers who felt they were exploited by the big grain companies. It has been the subject of over a dozen complaints by the U.S. that the monopoly is an unfair marketing practice but all were lost. Now the Harper Conservative government has come to the rescue of the big grain companies. Of course this is all in the name of free choice. For more see this article.

Canada will not make further commitment to Kyoto protocol

2011-12-08T11:12:00.001-08:00

As expected the environment minister for the Canadian Conservative government Peter Kent announced that Canad would not make any renewed commitment to the Kyoto Protocol. Kent' speech at the UN Durban climate conference was interrupted by a protest message.
Six protesters members of the Canadian Youth Delegation stood as Kent began to speak. They turned their backs revealing the message "Turn Your Back on Canada" emblazoned on their T shirts. They were quickly removed and had their accreditation cancelled. The crowd however applauded the demonstration.
The U.S. also has refused to sign on to Kyoto. Indeed Canada is often accused of pushing a U.S. type position at the conference. The Canadian position is that major emitters such as China and India must be involved in any new agreement. Developed countries such as the U.S.and Canada after themselves being responsible for global emissions over decades now want developing countries to bear the burden as well as they finally begin to develop their own economies. '
Countries seem to put their own short term economic interests first and foist responsibility for tackling environmental problems on others rather than taking the lead themselves. The Conservative Harper government has always been opposed to Kyoto and made no attempt to meet targets. Observers expected Kent's announcement. Canada earned the fossil of the day award the other day. For more see this article.

New Canada U.S. border deal: Big Brothers are tracking you

2011-12-07T12:50:00.001-08:00

Canada and the U.S. have just agreed on a number of border control issues. The deal is supposed to make both trade and travel between the two countries easier. There are a total of 36 new measures meant to make it easier for people and goods to cross the border but without compromising security.
The changes involve costs as well, including a billion dollars in infrastructure projects over five years. Certainly some of the changes will make it much easier for goods to cross the border. For example, goods can be inspected and cleared for export at the place where they are manufactured and then cleared for shipment in sealed containers. The shipment will then not need to inspected at the border. There are also agreements to harmonize standards.
Among the most controversial changes are the exit controls. Canadians departing the country would have their departure recorded with Canadian authorities. However, Canadians would still need to clear only U.S. customs and immigration. The difference will be in the sharing of information. All information collected by the U.S. officials would be shared with Canadian customs officials and information collected by Canada customs on people entering Canada would be shared with U.S. officials.
The Canadian Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddard is critical of this provision. She wants to know what controls there will be to make sure the system is not abused and how much information will be shared. What happens to someone who is falsely accused of being a security threat?
We know already what happens when Canadian Intelligence Services shared intelligence with their U.S. counterparts. Maher Arar a dual citizen of Canada and Syria was detained while transferring planes on his way back to Canada. He was interrogated and then rendered to Syria where he faced further interrogation and torture. The U.S. deported him to Syria on the grounds he was an Al Qaeda operative.
Even though Arar was eventually cleared of any terror connections by an extensive investigation in Canada the U.S. refused to cooperate with the investigation and has never changed their position. He could not even fly to the U.S. to receive a human rights award because he is on a no fly list. The Canadian government on the other hand awarded him compensation of ten million dollars.
We can all feel secure now that the two Big Brothers have agreed on the manner of sharing their information on each of us. We can soon look forward as well for both nBig Brothers to collect bio-metric information as well. For more see this article. The Arar Inquiry is archived here.

Wheat Board sues Federal Government

2011-12-06T13:19:00.001-08:00

A lawyer for the Canadian Wheat Board told a federal court in Winnipeg that the Conservative government Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz broke the law when he ended the Board's monopoly on marketing western wheat an barley. Another lawyer for the board Matthew Fleming noted:"Farmers were promised a vote. The minister himself made that promise."'
A section of the Canadian Wheat Board Act that set up the board says that changes to the marketing of wheat and barley cannot be changed except "the producers of the grain have voted in favour of the exclusion or extension." The agriculture minister interprets this to mean that the farmers must vote only on what commodities will be excluded or included not the monopoly powers of the board. However as critics noted he did promise a vote on the monopoly issue as well.
If the court interprets the section in the manner of the agriculture minister no doubt it will find that no law has been broken. The Wheat Board lawyers seem to anticipate this result by arguing that the court should rule that the government has a duty to hold a plebiscite since it had promised to do so.
If the Wheat Board wins its case the Conservative government may be forced to hold a plebiscite before the monopoly powers are set to end on August 1st 2012. The U.S. representing the interests of big grain companies has been a constant critic of the board challenging the Board's powers several times but losing every time. The challenges often claim that the Board gives the farmers an unfair market advantage. A list of 14 challenges and their disposition can be found here.
The Board was set up by farmers back at the time of the Great Depression. By binding together they sought higher prices for their grain. Now some farmers want the power to seek better deals themselves. Good luck as individual farmers face bargaining with oligopolistic global grain buyers. For more see this article.

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CWB board chair Allen Oberg speaks to reporters outside the federal courthouse in Winnipeg. (Claudine Richard-Beaudoin/CBC)

OECD reports that wealth gap in Canada is increasing

2011-12-05T13:33:00.001-08:00

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development has released new figures on the wealth gap between rich and poor in OECD countries. The gap is widening in most OECD countries including Canada. In Canada the top 10 per cent of Canadians earn ten times what the bottom 10 per cent own.

The actual annual income of the top ten per cent was 103,500 in 2008 while the average of the bottom ten per cent was just 10,260. This is the highest the gap has been in decades. Even in the early nineties the gap was just 8 to 1.

The richest one per cent are doing just fine as their share of income has gone from 8.1 per cent back in 1980 to a whopping 13.3 per cent in 2007. The richest one tenth of one per cent have done even better as their share in the same time period has gone from 2 per cent to 5.3 per cent.Furthermore, the share owned by the richest 0.1 per cent of Canadians more than doubled, from two per cent to 5.3 per cent.

Norway, Germany, Sweden and Denmarks all have much lower ratios between top and bottom ten per cent. In those countries the ratio is 6 to 1. The UK, Italy, Japan and Korea have the same ration as Canada at 10 to 1. The U.S. and Israel have a higher ratio at 14 to 1. But there are many countries with much higher ratios than these. Mexico and Chile have a ratio of 27 to 1 and Brazil although it is not a member of the OECD has a whopping 50 to 1 ratio.

While tax rates are often being lowered on the well off benefits that used to make up for the wealth gap are being eroded. The OECD Secretary General put the matter succinctly:"The social contract is starting to unravel in many countries,""This study dispels the assumptions that the benefits of economic growth will automatically trickle down to the disadvantaged and that greater inequality fosters greater social mobility." It seems that the trickle down theory should be replaced by a trickle up theory. For more see this article.

First Nations form united front against pipeline but there is no unity

2011-12-04T19:51:00.001-08:00

A total of 55 First Nations groups have formed a united front against a proposed pipeline that would bring oil from the province of Alberta's oil sands to the west coast port of Kitimat for export. However at one native group has signed an agreement with Enbridge the company who would build the proposed line.
In a statement the First Nations group said: "These First Nations form an unbroken wall of opposition from the U.S. border to the Arctic Ocean," The group said they would stop the pipeline legally or otherwise even putting themselves in the way of bulldozers.
The costs of the pipeline is projected at around 5.5 billion. With the delay in the Keystone XL pipeline to the Texas coast there is more pressure to approve the Enbridge pipe line to the west coast. Completion of the line would make it much easier to export Canadian oil to Asian markets.
Although the Northern Gateway project as it is called has been heavily criticized by environmentalists and many native groups at least one aboriginal nation has signed on to the project. The Gitxsan First Nation has taken an ownership stake in the project. The band hopes to make millions through its stake. The chief said:
“Over time we have established a relationship of trust with Enbridge, we have examined and assessed this project, and we believe it can be built and operated safely,” The company says that it is in negotiations with other first nations as well. For more see this article, and also here.

Research in Motion stock motion is down

2011-12-02T18:46:00.001-08:00

Research in Motion (RIM) the Canada-based company that makes the Blackberry has been selling off its Playbook tablet at huge markdowns from its original price. I saw it on sale at Futureshop the other day advertised at 200 dollars marked down from 500. Of course they had none in stock!
RIM had introduced the Playbook in April at a time when iPad had already established a clear dominance of the market. In the third quarter of this year RIM sold 150,000 Playbooks compared to 11million iPads sold by Apple.
RIM shares dropped more than 8 per cent the other day. Once a favorite with investors, this year the price of the stock has dropped about 70 per cent. The company warned it would not meet its financial targets. RIM market share has been eaten up by the Apple iPhone and also Google's Android devices. A global outage of its network for the Blackberry also hurt consumer confidence in the company.
For much more detail see this article.

Canada: Unemployment rate rises in November

2011-12-02T10:22:00.001-08:00

In contrast to the U.S. the unemployment rate in Canada climbed last month to 7.4 per cent but it is still considerably better than in the U.S. Canada lost a total of 18,600 jobs last month. Last month the unemployment rate was 7.3 per cent.
The news was not all bad in that there was an increase of 34,600 full time jobs. This was more than offset by a decline of 53,300 part time jobs.
The unemployment situation varies by province. Newfoundland and Labrador had a rate of 13.2 per cent up from 12.9 the month before. In the three prairie provinces unemployment is lower than the national average at between five and six percent although Saskatchewan lost some jobs last month and unemployment went from a low 4.1 to 5.1. This is still a rate many provinces can envy. For more see this CBC article.

Canadian finally removed from UN terror list

2011-12-01T13:56:00.001-08:00

Abousfian Abdelrazik a Canadian citizen born in Sudan was arrested when he went to Sudan to visit his mother in 2003. Sudanese authorities suspected that Adbelrazik had ties to Al Qaeda. Abdelrazik says he was tortured by his Sudanese captors and asked questions that he thinks were prompted by CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service)
While he was imprisoned Abdelrazik's passport expired and he ended up having to live in the Canadian embassy in Khartoum. In July 2006 the U.S. listed Abdelrazik as an Al Qaeda supporter and the UN also added his name to a list of terrorists.
However, Abdelrazik has never been charged with anything. Quite the opposite he has been cleared by both the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) and CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Agency) of any terrorist connections.
In June of 1909 Federal Court Justice Russel Zinn concluded that CSIS had been complicit in arranging Adbdelrazik's arrest. He also ruled that the Canadian government had denied his constitutional rights by not issuing him a visa to return to Canada.
CSIS asked for a prompt review of the case more than two years ago. But two years later the investigation seems to be dying a slow death. No one from the CSIS has responded to reporters' questions about the status of the investigation.
However finally Abdelarzik's name has been removed from the UN's terrorist list. Abdelrazik has been trying to clear his name ever since he returned to Canada in June 2009. If the case of Maher Arar is any precedent Abdelrazik will probably never get the U.S. to change their characterization of him as an Al Qaeda supporter. Arar is still on a no fly list. Arar was rendered to Syria after he was held during a transfer of planes in the U.S when he was on his way back to Canada. He was deported on the grounds he was an Al Qaeda supporter. He was deported to Syria even though he was a Canadian citizen and told U.S. authorities he would be tortured there. Even though there was a long expensive inquiry in Canada that cleared Arar and awarded him ten million dollars the U.S. has never changed their position. For more on Abdelrazik see this article.

Global City Ratings: Three Canadian Cities make top 20

2011-11-30T09:42:00.001-08:00

In a ranking of 221 cities globally Mercer company based in New York rated Vienna number one. The company used 39 factors in coming up with the ratings.
Although many of the top cities are in Europe, Canada has three cities in the top twenty. Vancouver manages to be in the top ten at number five. Ottawa is number 14 and Toronto 15. Auckland in New Zealand is third. There are several Australian cities in the top twenty as well.
The United States did not have even one city in the top twenty but Honolulu made number 29 and San Francisico 30. The Big Apple New York made 47. The worst rating went to Baghdad. If you have to go to Baghdad probably staying at the humongous American embassy would be a good place.
For much more see the entire article here. Photos of the top 20 cities are here.

Report: Northern Gateway Pipeline involves unacceptable environmental risks

2011-11-29T18:14:00.001-08:00

Enbridge Company based in Calgary would like to build a pipeline called the Northern Gateway from Alberta to the west coast port of Kitimat in northern British Columbia. The pipeline would transport bitumen from the Alberta Oil Sands to the port and then the oil would be exported.
A new report by several groups including the Canadian Pembina Institute and the U.S. Natural Resources Defense Council claims that the pipeline would involve unacceptably high environmental risks. Any spill of the bitumen could have a disastrous effect on the region's sensitive habitat according to the report.
The report notes that cleaning up bitumen is much more difficult than cleaning up regular oil. Paul Stanway who manages communications for Enbridge claimed that the report said nothing new and simply repeated earlier criticisms. He maintained that the project would entail some risk as would any project of similar size and scale.

Map of proposed pipeline route from Alberta to BC.

Given that the criticism that has been generated by the Keystone XL pipeline that is to carry Alberta oil down to the Texas Gulf Coast there is renewed pressure to build a pipeline from Alberta to BC so that Canada can diversity it exports of oil to countries such as China. Many environmentalists however, oppose not just new pipelines but also any rapid development of Oil Sands oil since its production produces considerably more greenhouse gases than regular oil. For more see this article.

Inflation hits cost of Twelve Days of Xmas items

2011-11-28T08:43:00.001-08:00

For the first time the cost of all the items mentioned in the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas carol is over 100,000 dollars U.S. However some items declined slightly including the five gold rings. On the other hand the cost of turtle doves, pear trees, and partridges has increased considerably.
Some items have stable prices including maids-a-milking, ladies dancing, and lords leaping. No doubt this is due to the high unemployment numbers. There is a reserve army of milk maids, leaping lords, and dancing ladies.
The annual total is a Xmas gift to the public from PNC Wealth Management. This year the exact total given is 101,119 dollars U.S. The U.S. price index rose by 3.9 per cent during the same period while the increase in the items saw an increase of 4.4 per cent. The percentage increase in the total is much smaller than last year. For more see this article.
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Moncton snowblower ad goes viral

2011-11-26T19:17:00.001-08:00

Weh-Ming Cho's ad for his snowblower on Kijiji has gone viral. The ad can be found here. There is a photo of the snowblower as well. However it is not the snowblower that has caused the ad to go viral it is the humorous text that Cho has appended as a sales pitch.
I do not want to spoil the fun for you. He starts out by noting that if you are one of those muscular granola eating types who glories in shoveling snow you might as well stop reading now!. I am not sure what the copyright violation rules are for reproducing actual text from ads.
Whatever those rules are maybe some one will take the CBC news to task for reproducing his text. But that seems the only way to capture his humor. Anyway here are a couple of bits from the ad just as samples. When I read it the ad had over 300,000 hits. I don't know if he sold the machine yet.
The ad notes: "This isn't some entry level snowblower that is just gonna move the snow two feet away. This is an 11 HP Briggs and Stratton machine of snow doom that will cut a 29-inch path of pure ecstasy," "And it's only four years old. I dare you to find a harder working four-year-old. My niece is five and she gets tired and cranky after just a few minutes of shovelling. This guy just goes and goes and goes." Another rather racy tidbit:
""I want you to experience the rush that comes with smashing through a snowdrift and blowing that mother trucker out of the way"" The CBC article is at this site. Cho lives in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada where the machine would certainly be handy!

Brandon University strike ends with agreement

2011-11-26T11:10:00.001-08:00

Late Friday evening the Brandon University Administration finally reached an agreement with the faculty union. The strike was the longest university strike in Manitoba history. It began way back on Oct. 12, interrupting the school year a little over a month after classes started. There have been longer university strikes. A strike at Laval University in 1976 in Quebec lasted four months! More recently in 1997 York University faculty went on strike for 55 days. However long strikes or any strikes are the exception rather than the rule.
Earlier a mediator had suggested binding arbitration to solve the dispute. Although the administration agreed the faculty wanted to continue negotiation. Later Labour minister Jennifer Howard had ordered the faculty to vote on the last administration offer. The vote was to take place next week.
The tentative deal will allow faculty to return to work as early as next Monday evening a much faster resolution that having to vote on the latest administration offer which the union recommended be rejected. Now the faculty are voting on an agreement that the union supports. It is quite likely to pass.
The university president Deborah Poff says that the university will make sure that students will be able to complete the school year. Possibilities involve extending the next term and pushing back December exams into the new year. No doubt everyone is relieved that the strike will be over. Solving the crisis through an agreement shows that collective bargaining can work although in this case the two sides took much too long to finally settle.

Afghanistan: Tim Horton's ends Afghan mission!

2011-11-25T10:13:00.001-08:00

The iconic Canadian coffee and doughnut chain is closing down its one outlet in Afghanistan. The restaurant catered to troops located at a base near Kandahar. Canadian troops will be withdrawn except for around one thousand who will train Afghan forces.
The outlet sold 4 million cups of coffee, 3 million doughnuts as well as supplies. For almost a decade Horton's was part of the U.S. chain Wendy's International but Wendy's sold off the company in 2006 and it is now again headquartered in Canada.
While closing shop in Afghanistan Tim Horton's is rapidly expanding in the United Arab Emirates where it expanded this year. They plan to open over a hundred stores within five years in Dubai, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait. The busiest Tim Horton's is in the far north of Canada in Yellowknife Northwest Territories.
U.S. military will be able to continue enjoying Tim Horton's at outlets on bases in Fort Knox Kentucky and
Norfolk Virginia. Tim Horton's is named after its famous hockey star founder Tim Horton. For more see this article, and here.

Manitoba: Brandon University Faculty to vote on Administration offer

2011-11-25T08:58:00.001-08:00

(Brandon Nov. 24) Brandon University faculty will vote on the Administration's latest offer next week. The vote was imposed by the government and will be overseen by the Labor Relations Board. The 240 members of BUFA have been on strike since October 12.
A mediator had suggested there be binding arbitration but this was not accepted by the union which wanted to continue negotiations. The union has recommended faculty reject the Administration offer and calls the vote a waste of time.
However given the pressures to end the strike the faculty could very well vote for the offer. Should the offer be rejected Jennifer Howard the minister of Labor and Immigration has said that binding arbitration could be an option.
The students are perhaps the biggest losers in the strike. Most of the fall term has been lost. Some are demanding their fees back. However, the intention seems to be that the faculty will make up the time after the strike ends. In fact one of the issues in dispute is compensation for the extra faculty time required to make up this lost class time. For more see this article and also this letter to the editor.

Wages in Canada rise only marginally over the last year

2011-11-24T11:45:00.001-08:00

Over the last year ending this September wages in Canada rose a mere 1.1 per cent according to figures from Statistics Canada. This is the smallest increase since November of 2009.
Although the average showed a small increase over the year, September average weekly earnings of non-farm workers actually declined by .3 per cent. This is just the nominal decrease and does not take into account that the inflation rate was 3.2 per for the month. Average weekly wages have been declining since April when they reached a peak of 4.1 per cent.
The uncertain economic outlook may lead to a lessening demand for increased wages as many workers are happy enough just to have work. The government points out that 600,000 jobs have been created since the recession. However the other side of this story is that almost a million more have entered the labor market. Unemployment remains at 7.3 per cent. This is a large reserve army of the unemployed that will also keep wages low. For much more see this article.

Police move to evict Occupy Toronto protesters

2011-11-23T08:42:00.001-08:00

Police have moved into to evict Occupy Toronto protesters from their camp in St. James Park. As of this posting there had been quite a bit of shouting from protesters after tents were tagged and then removed.
The protesters have been in the park since Oct. 15. However, one woman has been arrested by police. An eviction order was upheld by a judge yesterday.
A few protesters have chained themselves to a yurt that had not yet been removed. It is used as a library. An estimated 200 protesters remain in the camp so there could very well still be confrontations between police and protesters.
The protesters are considering a move to a different public space in the downtown area. In Vancouver Occupy Vancouver protesters moved their protest to a different park after being ordered to move off courthouse grounds. For more see this article.

Sam Gindin: Understanding and Fighting Against Austerity

2011-11-20T18:42:00.001-08:00

The linked video is the first half of a session sponsored by the GWTA (Greater Toronto Worker's Association) recently on austerity. Sam Gindin is a former research director for the Canadian Auto Workers. He retired from the CAW in 2000 and now teaches at York University.
The sessions discusses some of the causes of the current financial crisis and how the crisis works to impose all sorts of belt tightening measures upon workers. He also takes up the forms of resistance that are growing throughout the world.
Here are a few of his points in summary form. Gindin points out that measures to weaken unions and the power of workers began back in the 1980's when neo-liberal policies began to be introduced. Globalization and the demands for competitiveness helped decrease the power of workers in advanced capitalist countries. Certainly that process continues today.
Gindin also mentions that there is now a demand to lower expectations. Capitalist critics argue that the entitlements of workers especially unionized workers are a cause of the debt crisis crushing some countries. Good pensions plans and high wages are no longer affordable.Gindin speaks of democracy becoming thinner as policies are more and more determined by the needs of the system and the one per cent.
What is happening in Greece and Italy in response to the crisis are good examples of the point Gindin makes. Politicians are replaced by technocrats often linked with the European financial system. An attempt to let the Greek people have a referendum on austerity measures is met with dismay and in effect blocked. For much more see the video.

Canada: Canadian Imam returns home from detention in Saudi Arabia

2011-11-20T08:56:00.001-08:00

Usama Al-Atar is an Edmonton imam who was arrested and allegedly beaten by the religious police in Saudi Arabia. He was on a pilgrimage at the time and speaking in a cemetery in Medina.
Al-Atar is expected to speak about his ordeal today. He called his detention horrid. He was held for almost 36 hours before his release. A British member of the group who was with Al-Atar said that the police virtually strangled Al-Atar.
Al-Atar is a relatively liberal Muslim and a peacemaker. No doubt this is why the Saudi religious police attacked him. Here are a few words from his website:
I am a Human
I am a human.
I have a mind, and I have a heart,
I want to live in peace, equality and justice.
....Can I not speak about freedom, or call for communication?
I see people, standing in peace, with a flower in their hands,
Requesting their governments to meet their demands.
Demands for justice, for equality, for respect,

Obviously a subversive type of person judged by Saudi standards. For more see this article.

Diapers and Politics

2011-11-19T13:53:00.001-08:00

There are several famous quotes in this category. The first is attributed to Jose Maria de Eca De Queiroz a 19th century Portuguese writer. See this link
Politicians and diapers should be changed frequently and all for the same reason. (Translated from Portuguese)

Another version is attributed to the U.S. author Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
“Politicians are like diapers; they need to be changed often and for the same reason.”

I saw another version when surfing today but there was no source cited.
"" Governments are like diapers.When they need to be changed,it’s often for the same reason!""

Commentators on one posting noted that at least diapers are clean when they arrive! None of the websites I searched on this gave the precise source from which the quote was taken.

Postal Workers win case--after 28 years

2011-11-19T12:02:00.001-08:00

In a case that finally wound up at the Supreme Court Canada Post workers won after 28 years. Canada Post Corp. says that it will respect the Court ruling.
In 1983 the Public Service Alliance of Canada filed suit under the Canadian Human Rights act charging that women were being paid less for doing the same jobs as men. In 2005 the Canadian Human Rights tribunal finally ruled in the union's favor but reduced the award to half what had been asked.
Canada Post appealed and won in Federal Court in 2008. The Federal Court of Appeal upheld the ruling but with one dissenting judge. The Supreme Court agreed with the reasoning of the dissenting judge and unanimously sided with the workers. The total bill will be up to 250 million to compensate female clerical staff who worked at Canada Post between 1983 and 2002. Given the length of time it took to settle the issue no doubt some of the money will go to the workers' estates!

Canada wins meat labeling case against U.S. at WTO

2011-11-18T19:09:00.001-08:00

The WTO(World Trade Organisation) ruled in favor of Canada's complaint that U.S. country of origin rules for meat labeling (COOL) lowered processing efficiency and distorted trade between the two countries. The ruling will apply not just to cattle and hogs but also to other commodities such as chickens that were also subject to the COOL label requirements. Mexico had joined Canada in arguing the case before the WTO.
In 2008 when COOL was introduced Canadian animals had to be segregated and processed in separate lines to be packaged and labeled. The added costs caused some U.S. processors to refuse to buy Canadian livestock or to buy them only at deep discounts. Some U.S. processors actually sided with the complaint against the U.S.
The U.S. can file an appeal within 60 days. However Canada won on all counts. The Canadian agriculture minister hopes that he can reach an agreement with the U.S. on implementing the decision of the WTO. The COOL requirements are estimated to have cost the Canadian livestock industry up to 5 billion dollars. One result of the requirements has been to provide an incentive for Canada to further diversity its export markets for livestock. For more see this article.

NDP MP Pat Martin swears at Conservative closure of debate

2011-11-18T12:54:00.001-08:00

Pat Martin a Manitoba New Democratic Party MP used distinctly unparliamentary language in a tweet. He may swear by the New Democratic party but he swears at the ruling majority Conservative party. To quote Martin with appropriate omissions: "This is a f--king disgrace ... closure again. And on the Budget! There’s not a democracy in the world that would tolerate this jackboot sh--."
Martin did not apologize for his outburst but claimed that his language expressed his frustration at the government's tactics. Closure is rarely used in Canada and usually when the opposition is using tactics to deliberately hold up legislation. Martin noted that he is a construction worker by trade and he said that this is the way that they communicate with each other.
I worked as an inspector on pipeline construction years ago and I can attest that in my experience Martin is telling the truth about construction workers' language at least in the past. Naturally several Conservative MP's called the language completely inappropriate and expressed their strong moral disapproval. One MP even wants the house speaker to rule on the language since Martin made his tweet while actually in parliament. Of course the Conservatives and much of the media seem to concentrate upon Martin's use of language rather than the inappropriateness of the Conservative use of closure. For more see this article.

Would you want an Occupy protest in your own area

2011-11-18T08:56:00.001-08:00

The CBC is asking Canadians whether they would want Occupy protests in their area. I happen to live in rural Manitoba in a village of about 150 people. I expect that a large group of campers would be welcomed. I even have an almost acre lot with an old garage on it with a stove inside. Our local park is much too small for any reasonable sized protest to use.
If the protesters want to use public property the Trans Canada trail that used to be a railroad runs through the village. It is hardly ever used and certainly people could camp along the right of way. The local store would probably be quite happy to have increased business. They also carry beer and liquor!
There is no hotel in town but hotels in nearby towns would be happy to have reporters as customers. Restaurants too would show an increase in business. Before the protesters set up camp though they would need to get locals to clear the snow off their camping areas. The encampment would be a good survival training area. The temperature is going below minus twenty in the next few days.
In a short time we will have Xmas lights up and burning. This year we could attract people not just to see the lights but to come and visit the largest Occupy protest in rural Manitoba.

Wheat Board supporters protest on Parliament Hill

2011-11-16T12:32:00.001-08:00

A group of farmers opposed to the Conservative government's bill to end the Wheat Board monopoly on marketing wheat and barley in western Canada protested on Parliament Hill yesterday. Drew Baker the farmer who led the rally said: "On our own, we will have little power to negotiate with big American companies, and that concerns me." The U.S. has long challenged the Wheat Board monopoly as giving Canadian farmers an unfair advantage in global marketing.
Where the U.S. complaints have always failed , western farmers themselves have now achieved what the U.S. and the grain marketing giants have long desired, an end to the Wheat Board monopoly. Farmers have done so by voting in large numbers for the very Conservatives who promised as part of their platform to end the monopoly. A Wheat Board organised vote later showed that a majority of farmers actually support retaining the system.
The board is run by directors elected by farmers. Only two of the elected board members favor the changes in the government bill. The remainder support the retention of the single desk system as it is called. The system gives the farmers collectively considerable power to negotiate good prices for grain sales.
The government legislation would also dismiss the farmer-elected directors of the board. The board had been controlled by members elected by farmers since 1998.
The Wheat Board has launched a lawsuit challenging the government's bill. The suit claims that the bill violates the Canadian Wheat Board Act. The Wheat Board Act specifies the minister cannot change the system without holding a vote of Prairie grain farmers. The Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz promised during the latest election campaign a vote would be held. The only vote held was by the Wheat Board itself. The Conservatives claim that the abolition of the monopoly was a prominent part of the campaign platform and since they were elected with a majority they already had a mandate to change the system. For much more see this article.

Canada looks to market more oil in Asia

2011-11-15T18:52:00.001-08:00

The delay in approval of the Keystone XL pipeline has led Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to look for other markets for Canadian oil and gas particularly in China. Harper should have been diversifying markets even before this delay. China and other Asian countries need oil and probably will pay more for it than the U.S.
Canada has deliberately made itself into an oil supplier primarily for the U.S. The NAFTA agreement cements this relationship. While Harper talks about finding new markets for our oil, the eastern provinces of Canada import almost all their oil from abroad. It would make much more sense to have oil from Alberta flow to Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes rather than down south as far as Texas!

Obama and Stephen Harper at APEC

Chinese president Hu Jintao has welcomed Harper's move to market oil in China. He has invited Harper to visit China next year. However, to ship large quantities of oil to China a pipeline from Alberta to Kitimat British Columbia would need to be approved. There will be considerable opposition to building that pipe line from environmentalists and first nations groups.
Many environmentalists want to block further development of Tar Sands oil. They claim that production of Tar Sands oil involves the emission of far too many greenhouse gases. First nations in the area also have complaints about the effects of production on them. Given the dependence of the global economy on fossil fuels the environmental concerns will in the end not likely be powerful enough to stop further increases in production. For more see this article.

Tommy Douglas NDP leader was spied upon for decades

2011-11-14T14:53:00.001-08:00

Recently declassified material shows the RCMP were spying on Tommy Douglas the leader of the Federal NDP as he called for a probe of the RCMP in April of 1963. The RCMP were drafting memos casting suspicion on Douglas' own activities.
The Library and Archives Canada had fought for six years to keep the RCMP files on Douglas secret. The new pages became available when a federal judge ordered a review the nine volume dossier with a view to releasing more. The pages released are still fragmentary. Over two hundred pages of the dossier remain entirely secret.

Although Douglas was a premier of Saskatchewan and a hero to many for bringing the first universal health care scheme to the province of Saskatchewan he was watched by RCMP spies for more than four decades. His ideas were obviously regarded as a threat to the powers that be. For more see this article. For more about Douglas see this site.

Critics claim Mulroney should pay back libel settlement

2010-06-04T17:43:00.000-07:00

I doubt that Mulroney will ever pay back the money. He has always been devious and crooked and no doubt happy to enjoy his settlement money. Of course he will also continue to maintain with a very wounded tone that he is completely innocent of any wrongdoing. The Liberal government was wrong to pay off Mulroney in the first place. They should have let the issue go to court.

The Oliphant inquiry was very narrow in its focus so a lot of the important questions remain not only unanswered but unexamined. This is from the Star.

Pay back libel settlement, critics tell Mulroney

Richard J. Brennan

OTTAWA—A chorus of voices is demanding former prime minister Brian Mulroney pay back the $2-million libel settlement he was awarded in 1997 in light of an inquiry that says he was less than forthright while testifying under oath.

“I think this money was acquired effectively through false pretenses, and Canadians feel it’s wrong,” Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff told reporters Tuesday.

“I think Mr. Mulroney’s let Canadians down, and I think (Prime Minister Stephen) Harper as a close friend, apparently confidante, should tell Mr. Mulroney to give the money back,” Ignatieff said.

Others say Mulroney should pay back the money with interest.

In his report on the Mulroney-Schreiber affair released Monday, Justice Jeffrey Oliphant said Mulroney had an obligation to tell the truth about his business dealings with German-Canadian arms dealer Karlheinz Schreiber, who gave him three envelopes stuffed with at least $225,000 cash for lobbying work that was never done.

“Mr. Mulroney was well aware when such disclosure was clearly called for,” Oliphant said.

When pressed during question period about whether the government is prepared to go after Mulroney for the money, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson was vague.

“The report is now with the appropriate authorities who will study it. And the government will respond to any recommendations in this area in due course,” said Nicholson.

While Oliphant’s extensive report does recommend ways this kind of conflict of interest can be avoided??, it does not specifically direct the government to seek to retrieve the money from the former prime minister.

“Of course Mr. Mulroney should have to pay back the money. It’s very clear from what emerged in that report that that’s what he should do, the legal fees as well,” NDP Leader Jack Layton told reporters, referring to the $1.8 million Canadians had to pay for Mulroney’s legal fees in the libel suit.

Layton and Ignatieff agreed moral suasion should be tried first. If that doesn’t work, then they say legal action should be investigated.

Bob Rae hints at Liberal-NDP accord.

2010-05-29T16:08:00.000-07:00

I doubt that Ignatieff is anxious to join an accord with the NDP. In any event the way the polls are drifting up for the Conservatives I doubt Ignatieff would be at all inclined to join with other opposition parties to defeat the government in the first place. Rae is just living in the past because the future does not look that great for the Liberals. I wonder what Ignatieff thinks of all this musing by Rae! Perhaps the NDP could form a coalition with the Conservatives after the next election if the Conservatives do not get a majority. This would be like the Liberal Democrat Conservative Coalition in the UK. This is from the GlobeandMail.

Bob Rae hints at Liberal-NDP accord
Bill Curry

Bob Rae says there’s no rule preventing the Liberals and the NDP from ganging up and toppling a newly elected Tory government: He’s done it before and now he’s hinting it may happen again.
In a brief memoir posted this week on his website, the former Ontario NDP leader and premier delivers a shot across the bow as he looks back 25 years to an agreement he negotiated with the Liberals at Queen’s Park.
“This week marks the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Liberal-NDP Accord in Ontario. The election in early May of 1985 had elected a minority Parliament, with the Conservatives at 50 [seats], the Liberals at 45 and the NDP at 25. The vote split was roughly 37/37/25 [per cent],” the Liberal MP writes.
“On the night of the election the commentators (and the Conservatives under Frank Miller) went to bed thinking it was a Conservative minority. That was the way it had been in 1975 and 1977 when Bill Davis had used the rivalry between the NDP and the Liberals to stay in power.
“My own thoughts were different. I went to bed disappointed that the provincial NDP (of which I was then the leader) had not gained more seats, but convinced that politics could not just go on as before.”
Mr. Rae’s musings about Liberals and New Democrats working together come as polling numbers show the federal Conservatives remain comfortably in first place but that the combined support for the Liberals and the NDP is greater than the support for the Tories.
Coalition talk is also in the air after Canadians watched the British Conservatives form a coalition government with the third-place Liberal Democrats. The Liberal Democrats had also negotiated with the second-place Labour Party, which led critics to attack the failed proposal as a “coalition of losers.”
Conservatives here are already warning that there are signs the Liberals are making nice again with the NDP.
In his web post, Mr. Rae describes how he and then-Ontario Liberal leader David Peterson consulted their caucus members and constitutional experts to craft an accord between the two parties that allowed the Liberals to govern without fear of “Russian roulette” threats of snap confidence votes. In exchange, they adopted some NDP policies in what Mr. Rae describes as a “working partnership,” rather than a formal coalition.
The arrangement in 1985 has been raised often in recent years in light of the pressure on the Governor-General to sort out minority-Parliament issues in Ottawa. Constitutional experts point out that the 1985 example showed the Lieutenant-Governor in that case did choose to allow another party to form a government, rather that require another election, after the governing party faced defeat on a confidence vote.
In the final sentence, Mr. Rae delivers a thinly-veiled hint that his web post is more than a simple stroll down memory lane.
“In a Parliamentary system elections produce a Parliament, and Parliament makes a government. That was the lesson learned in 1985. Prattle about ‘winning a mandate’ with less than a majority in Parliament is just that – partisan spin, all sound and fury, signifying nothing. It is a lesson worth remembering.”

Top Harper Aide refuses to testify before parliamentary committee.

2010-05-25T09:19:00.000-07:00

Surely the public will wake up one day and realize that this government has absolutely no respect for the parliament and will do everything it can to frustrate its activity when it fears that some political harm might come of it. However one might think that the public would not be all that pleased with attempts to avoid accountability. Even with a weak opposition leader such as Ignatieff eventually people may come around to the view that this government just has to go if we are ever to have accountability and not constant attempts to dodge it. This is from ctv.

Top Harper aide refuses to testify before committee

Canada AM: Robert Fife in Ottawa
The Tories are launching another showdown with the opposition over the powers of parliament, saying only cabinet ministers and not their political staff can appear as witnesses before committees.

Date: Tue. May. 25 2010 11:21 AM ET
One of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's top aides is refusing to appear before a Commons committee for a scheduled appearance today.

Harper's director of communications, Dimitri Soudas, has been called to appear before an all-party committee as they investigate allegations of political interference in the release of documents under the Access to Information Act.

But speaking to CTV's Question Period Sunday, Soudas said cabinet ministers, not staffers, will only go before committees, announcing a new "government-wide" policy.

"Ministers are the ones who are accountable and answer to Parliament," Soudas said.

Government House Leader Jay Hill told the House of Commons that the committee system doesn't play fair when questioning staffers.

A number of other government staffers are now not expected to testify later this week.

The matter is expected to set off a row with the opposition, who just won a hard fought victory over the release of documents relating to the Afghan detainee issue.

"The Harper government doesn't hesitate to blame political staff when they're caught carrying out the Conservative culture of deceit," Liberal House Leader Ralph Goodale said in a statement Tuesday. "Now that Parliament wants to hear from those staffers, they're trying to cover it up. Does the Prime Minster need to be reminded again that it is Parliament, not him, who decides the rules?"

Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe has called the government's move "just unacceptable."

Tuesday's committee has been looking into whether Sebastien Togneri, as an aide to then-Public Works Minister Christian Paradis, pushed bureaucrats to "unrelease" a 137-page report on the government's real estate portfolio that had been approved for release to The Canadian Press.

The document was later released with 107 pages blacked out.

Togneri has appeared before the committee twice, including with his lawyer at his side.

Last Thursday, Human Resources Minister Diane Finley surprised committee members Thursday when she appeared instead of her communications director, Ryan Sparrow. Sparrow was to address a report that he had blocked an information request by the Globe and Mail.

Privatization in City of Winnipeg

2010-05-17T18:17:00.000-07:00

It seems that more and more long term contracts for water, sewage, etc. are being contracted out supposedly to save money but often at the expense of quality and service. These public private partnerships (PP3s) are increasingly popular and often increasingly under scrutiny for their shortcomings. This article illustrates some of the problems with the Winnipeg city plans. This is from the CCPA Manitoba office.

Fast Facts: Contract with Veolia for waste-water treatment does not pass the smell test
by Lynne Fernandez
Manitoba Office |
On May 12 EPC unanimously voted to accept a report prepared by Winnipeg Public Services. The Report recommends that the City award a contract to Veolia for the design, construction and, it appears, the shared operation of the South and North End sewage treatment plants. The Report assures readers that this is a good deal for Winnipeg. But those of us who have been following the process are not convinced.

Winnipeggers will be forgiven for not fully understanding what is at stake, or for not being able to follow the complicated, increasingly arcane recommendations and business plans leading to this week’s report. The CCPA and citizens’ groups raised enough concerns about the initial Plan A — first presented in November, 2008 — that the City came up with a Plan B. Plan B was passed by council last July, in spite of the many concerns voiced by citizens’ groups.

Plan B did not allay CCPA’s concerns around the plan to create a Municipal Corporate Utility (MCU) to provide water and potentially other services for the City of Winnipeg, and to enter into a public-private partnership (P3) for the upgrades to and operation of the North and South End Sewage Treatment plants. The MCU is on hold pending amendment of the Winnipeg Charter by the Province.

The mayor and his supporters responded to these concerns by removing the terms “P3” “corporatization” and “strategic partner” from their vocabulary. This isn’t the first time bureaucrats and the Mayor have tried to control the message by changing language. Neither P3 nor strategic partner are to be found in this latest report (Plan C). The first question that arises, then, is whether or not the contract with Veolia is a P3 and if so, what kind of P3.

Some P3 models protect public interest more than others. The City, well aware of these differences, modified the wording in the Report so that “the Public Service has pursued an innovated model of collaboration with world-class sewage treatment service providers where City utility staff will continue to operate and maintain the sewage system”. So the word operate has been taken out of the mix, making the arrangement a design/ build model of a P3, preferable to a design/build/ operate model.

But the plot thickens. The recommendations on page 1 of the Report tell us that the CAO will be granted authority to “enter into a multi-year contract with Veolia that conforms to the terms set out in this Report”. The terms are summarized in the vaguest of terms, but we learn on page 4 that “multi-year” means 30 years. We know that the upgrades have to be completed by 2014, so what will Veolia be doing for the remaining 26 years? Operating the waste-water treatment plants, of course.

The report assures us that City management and Veolia experts will work together in the spirit of partnership to provide service excellence and best possible cost of service for citizens” and that City staff will continue working under the supervision of City managers.

Where does all this leave us? We appear to have a design-build-operate P3 with a multi-national corporation infamous for its predatory business practices in developing countries, and with a less-than-stellar reputation in the developed world – in spite of what the report claims. We will never know the details as Veolia will claim that it has the right to safeguard its business transactions. For example, the City will be able to terminate the contract “if ever required”, but we are not told at what cost.

Supposedly this arrangement will save Winnipeggers between 10 and 20 percent over the 30 years. Details as to how they arrive at this estimate are sketchy. Why, for example, did they use a discount rate of 6% to calculate net present value? These small details can make a big difference to the bottom line.

They claim that taxpayers will be protected throughout the 30 year “program” because if service standards are not met, or if capital cost targets are missed, Veolia will forfeit margins to “share these costs with the City”. Will the City have to share such costs under all circumstances? What if Veolia is solely responsible for such shortfalls? Supposedly the City is willing to share the risk because it “will continue to control operating and maintenance parameters by which the sewage system shall operate”. This may sound reassuring, but a cautionary tale is in order at this point.

Consider a report by about the Indianapolis Department of Waterworks and its P3 partner, Veolia. The report found that “the city too often relied on the Department of Waterworks’ board, on consultants and on the private operator, Veolia Water, rather than on the department’s own staff ‘to ensure safe and efficient operation, maintenance and management’ of Indianapolis Water”.

Veolia is the private partner in a 20-year, $1B P3 contract to run Indianapolis Water. The author — who ironically works for CH2M Hill, one of Veolia’s competitors — is critical of Indianapolis’ water department and “its ability to ‘stand up’ on behalf of taxpayers”.

One must be careful when relying on a report by Veolia’s competitor, but this account is more a defence of public oversight of a P3 than it is a criticism of Veolia. The tone of the report is that we expect private companies to behave badly, so we need strong public oversight of these partnerships.

This brings us full circle to the most glaring omission in Winnipeg’s Plan C: the role of the MCU in the contract between the City and Veolia. Will the Province ensure that Winnipeg’s proposed MCU provides sufficient oversight? The fact that the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission — the equivalent to our Public Utility Board — is not standing up to Veolia is cause for concern. Not until we know how the Province is going to amend the Winnipeg Charter and how the MCU will accommodate the contract between the City and Veolia will we have a sense of what this deal means for Winnipeggers.

More than $2 billion and the future governance of our public utilities will be at stake on May 19 when council votes on this issue. We hope Winnipeggers will be there to register their concerns.

Lynne Fernandez is a research associate with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Manitoba.

New Vehicle Sales down in Canada

2010-05-17T16:29:00.000-07:00

Household debt is at record levels in Canada so it is not too surprising that big ticket items such as new cars should be recording a dip. What is more surprising is that they have been increasing over the last few months. This is from the VancouverSun.

New vehicle sales down in Canada: StatsCan

...

OTTAWA — The number of new vehicles sold in Canada dropped in March by 4.2 per cent, with a sharper decline in truck sales a major factor, Statistics Canada reported Friday.

The decrease to 132,867 vehicles sold sliced gains made in February — when an increase of 8.1 per cent was reported — by nearly half, with all but one province posting a drop in new vehicle sales.

The federal agency said new truck sales — which also factor SUVs, minivans, vans and buses — fell 5.7 per cent to 67,960 in March, but continued its "upward trend" that started in early 2009.

Passenger car sales fell 2.5 per cent to 64,907, with a sharp decline of 5.7 per cent in North American-built vehicles negating a 1.5 per cent increase in sales of foreign vehicles, which registered its third straight monthly gain in sales.

Saskatchewan felt the largest swing in new vehicle activity, recording a 14.1 per cent decrease in sales after three consecutive months of reported gains.

Ontario, with a drop in sales of 4.2 per cent, was largely responsible for the national decline. In March, 48,881 new vehicles were sold in Ontario, down from just over 51,000 in February.

Nova Scotia and Manitoba also experience double-digit percentage declines, with decreases of 13 per cent and 11.7 per cent, respectively.

British Columbia, which also encompasses the territories, declined 0.9 per cent, marking the fifth consecutive month that region has experienced a drop in new vehicle sales.

Prince Edward Island — which reported an increase of 7.6 per cent — was the only province to register gains in March. It was the first increase in sales since December 2009 for Canada's smallest province.

© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

Agreement reached on release of detainee documents.

2010-05-14T19:31:00.000-07:00

I am surprised that all the parties were able to work this out. However no doubt none wanted to provoke a constitutional crisis or even an election so it should not be too surprising. The Conservatives were holding out for veto power but did not get that. However, they must be satisfied with the checks that are provided against release of sensitive documents. This is from the CBC.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he's satisfied with the agreement on the release of Afghan detainee documents.

In St-Félicien, Que., for a funding announcement, Harper called the deal "reasonable.

"I believe it meets both our objectives: obviously to abide by the Speaker's ruling but also — and this is extremely important — for the government to protect our legal obligation to keep confidential certain documents," he said.

"I do hope that it will work and that everyone will be satisfied with the arrangement."

The Conservative government and the opposition parties reached a compromise earlier Friday. A committee of MPs, who would be required to take an oath of confidentiality, will be able to review uncensored documents to determine their relevance.

Documents deemed relevant would then be passed on to a panel of experts who would determine how to release the information to all MPs and the public "without compromising national security."

The documents are at the centre of accusations that prisoners were tortured by Afghan authorities after being handed over by Canadian troops. The government maintained that releasing the documents posed a threat to national security and the security of Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Justice Minister Rob Nicholson announces the agreement on Afghan detaineee documents in the House of Commons on Friday. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

Justice Minister Rob Nicholson tabled the deal in the Commons on Friday afternoon.

"In your ruling on April 27, you were confident that members of Parliament of all parties could come to an agreement," Nicholson told Speaker Peter Milliken. "I just want you to know that confidence was not misplaced.

"It's an agreement that complies with Canadian laws, it does not compromise national security and it does not jeopardize the lives of Canadian men and women who serve in uniform."

Liberal House leader Ralph Goodale told the Commons that "the participants in the talks over the last 2½ weeks have all tried, I believe, to get it right."

The agreement came hours before the extended deadline agreed to by the Speaker. He had ruled that MPs had the right to see the documents, and he gave all parties two weeks to reach a compromise that would protect national security.

The all-party committee asked for an extension until Friday at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Had an agreement not been reached, the government could have faced a contempt of Parliament motion, which could have triggered an election.

Final day for agreement on Afghan detainee document disclosure

2010-05-14T07:50:00.001-07:00

I expect that the Conservative government knows full well that the Liberals in particular will not risk an election at this time. The Conservatives will continue to insist on having a veto over what is released in order that nothing damaging to their credibility should emerge. One would think that Conservative credibility is already damaged but nevertheless the polls show no dip in support. Ignatieff's leadership would no doubt account for this! This is from The Star.

Speaker Peter Milliken extends deadline for Afghan document disclosur

Richard J. Brennan

CHRIS WATTIE/REUTERS
OTTAWA – House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken has agreed to extend until Friday the deadline for the Conservative government to hand over uncensored Afghan detainee documents to Parliament, or at least arrive at an all-party agreement on how to do it.

The sticking point on the release of controversial Afghan documents is the fact the Conservative government still wants to have the final say over what is made public, opposition MPs said Tuesday.

“The key issue is what happens in the events the government doesn’t agree with information that should be disclosed or how it should be handled,” NDP house leader MP Libby Davies told reporters.

Fellow New Democrat MP Jack Harris suggested more bluntly the government still wants a type of veto over what should be released to Parliament and what should be kept secret for national security reasons, despite the speaker’s ruling to the contrary.
“The real issue here is who makes the ultimate decision and our point of view is that it has to be Parliamentarians who make that ultimate decision … that’s the process we proposed. No veto,” Harris s
aid, referring to the MPs who will make up the review committee.

In his ruling, Milliken made it clear he wants Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government to hand over uncensoredd documents. Otherwise, the government risks being found in contempt of Parliament, which could precipitate an election.

NDP MP Joe Comartin suggested if a deal is not reached by Friday, then one might not be reached at all. “Our sense is we’ve had enough time, exchanged enough concepts and ideas and proposals and that it’s decision-making time,” he told the Toronto Star.

Afghan mission has become incoherent.

2010-05-11T08:59:00.000-07:00

The U.S. is now trying to make things appear more coherent by covering up all the cracks and disagreements in Obama's meeting with Karzai. The Marjah offensive has left US marines in control because there are not enough Afghans willing or able to take over. They probably realize that trying to rule the area will make them targets for assassination. Let the NATO troops die not them.

Even the Kandahar offensive seems in doubt and it is not clear exactly how it is supposed to take place. If there is house to house fighting that would be a disaster. The locals have made it clear they do not want an offensive. These are the locals that NATO is there to protect. It is all an expensive farce paid for by US and allies taxpayer dollars and lives. Even Harper seems to have changed his tune and no longer wants further commitment at least to a military role. This is from the Toronto Star.

Siddiqui: Afghan mission has become incoherent

By Haroon Siddiqui
Editorial Page
You may disagree with Stephen Harper’s warfare with Parliament to keep Afghan detainee documents secret. But there’s some logic to it.

The papers may implicate our army, diplomats and/or allies. Or blow holes in the Conservative defence that it did not preside over any actions in violation of the Geneva Conventions, which make it a war crime to knowingly hand detainees over for torture.

You may also disagree with Harper’s refusal to hold a parliamentary debate on what Canada should do in Afghanistan after our July 2011 deadline for military withdrawal. But there’s logic to that as well.

Harper does not want MPs reminding Canadians that he has changed his Afghan policy. After famously posing for the cameras in a military vest in 2006 and pledging that Canada would never cut and run, that’s precisely what he plans to do next year. He wants Canada to undertake only civilian and humanitarian duties. He won’t countenance any role for the military except training Afghan troops and police, even though said training cannot be done without leading the trainees into combat. He just does not want to go into an election this year or next with Afghanistan as a campaign issue, especially with his own caucus divided on it.

That makes perfect sense from his partisan perspective.

However, there’s little logic left in Canada’s military mission in Afghanistan. That’s because the NATO mission itself has become incoherent.

Initially it went awry under George W. Bush. But Barack Obama was not going to become the first president to admit defeat in war, so he opted for the contradictory goals of a military surge and a military withdrawal.

“We must win in Afghanistan.” Yet “America has no interest in fighting an endless war.” But how do you win by telling the enemy to just wait you out?

You settle for a limited goal: “We must deny Al Qaeda safe haven. We must reverse the Taliban’s momentum and deny it the ability to overthrow the government in Kabul.”

Your aim is not to win but rather not to lose.

Even that becomes problematic when your declared goal is to prevent the collapse of a government you are publicly quarrelling with because it is corrupt, inefficient and in cahoots with military and drug warlords. Hamid Karzai is also disliked by a majority of Afghans for those very reasons.

Left with no credible partner in Kabul, you court others at the provincial and local levels. You go native, hold mini-loya jirgas and throw cash around. You look foolish.

Meanwhile, despite pledges to avoid civilian deaths, the carnage continues, and also the lying that often accompanies such incidents:

U.S. military admits role in killings of women (an April 5 headline). Two men and three women, two of them pregnant, are killed in night raids. It is said the women were already dead when the soldiers arrived, “tied up, gagged and killed” by relatives. The Times of London says the soldiers had dug bullets out of the bodies and washed the wounds with alcohol before lying to superiors. NATO recants.

Civilians killed as U.S. troops hit Afghan bus (April 13). Five are killed and 18 wounded.

NATO apologizes for killing unarmed Afghans in car (April 22). Four are shot dead, including a boy. It is said that two were “known insurgents.” NATO later recants.

Afghan death sparks protests (April 30). A prominent civilian is killed in a night raid in which troops blindfold 15 people, including women and children, and send in sniffer dogs. Outraged residents say: “They disgraced our pride and our religion by letting their dogs sniff the holy Quran, our food and the kitchen.” Hundreds protest, chanting, “Death to America,” “Long live Islam.” (A perfect example of how people get “radicalized” and “Islamized.”)

We are in Afghanistan to save Afghans from the Taliban but the Afghans are now as afraid or more afraid of NATO bombs and convoys and checkpoints as they are of Taliban attacks.

That’s why an overwhelming majority want an end to the war through negotiations with the insurgents. Hence Karzai’s $160 million package to buy the “good Taliban.” Hence, in theory, the American onslaught on Kandahar, not so much to vanquish them but to force them to the negotiating table. But Obama and Karzai come across as playing on different teams.

Meanwhile, the Taliban are going from strength to strength, even according to a Pentagon report. They are assassinating officials who cooperate with NATO, which is not able to protect them or international civilian workers. The United Nations announces a pullout of its 200 staff.

As for NATO members, they all vouch for the American mission but refuse to supply any more troops. Even Canada, which has done more than its share of the fighting, lets it be known on the eve of the Kandahar offensive that it will “strive to avoid large-scale fighting with the Taliban this summer,” according to a Canadian Press report.

This is a mission operating on a wing and a prayer.

hsiddiqui@thestar.ca

Obama administration demands Amnesia from Reporters.

2010-05-10T15:37:00.000-07:00

Of course the judge did not want Interrogator # 1 associated with Joshua Claus because of Claus' spotty record. The judge demanded that the reporters play by the rules of keeping such unpleasant information hidden from the public. There was no security issue here so applying the rule was not to protect security. Applying the rule was to avoid damaging information from getting out to the public. Hence the reporters had to disciplined. This is from the huffington post.

Dan Froomkin

Obama Administration Demands Amnesia From Reporters Covering Gitmo

Jack Newfield, the legendary investigative reporter, once wrote that if government officials had their way, journalists would be "stenographers with amnesia."

The "amnesia" part, at least, was generally considered a bit of an exaggeration.

But now, the Pentagon has banned four reporters from covering the military commissions at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, because they refused to forget something that had already been reported to the world.

The four reporters were covering military commission hearings at which defense attorneys for Canadian detainee Omar Khadr argued that confessions he made as a gravely wounded 15-year-old shouldn't be admissible in his upcoming trial because they were made under duress.

And indeed, witnesses earlier this week described how Khadr's interrogation began when he was still sedated and lying wounded on a stretcher. A medic testified that he once found Khadr chained by his arms to the door of his cage-like cell, hooded and in tears

But the defense's star witness, on Thursday, was the first U.S. Army interrogator to question Khadr. The interrogator admitted that in an attempt to get Khadr to talk, he told the boy a "fictitious" tale of an Afghan youth who was gang-raped in an American prison and died.

And it wasn't just what he said that was significant, it was also who he was. The interrogator was Army Sgt. Joshua Claus, who pleaded guilty in September 2005 to mistreatment and assault of detainees at the Bagram prison in Afghanistan.

Claus was a central figures in the interrogation of an Afghan taxi driver named Dilawar whose death in U.S. custody in 2002 was ruled a homicide by military investigators and was the subject of a New York Times investigation and the Oscar-winning documentary, "Taxi to the Dark Side".

The military judge presiding over the hearing insisted that Claus's name was protected information, and that he should only be referred to as Interrogator # 1.

But since it was already public record that Claus was Khadr's first interrogator -- and he'd even given an interview last year about his desire to testify -- the four reporters used his name in their Wednesday reports, previewing his testimony.

That was enough to get them thrown off the island.

"That reporters are being punished for disclosing information that has been publicly available for years is nothing short of absurd," Jameel Jaffer, deputy legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement. "Any gag order that covers this kind of information is not just overbroad but nonsensical. Plainly, no legitimate government interest is served by suppressing information that is already well known. "

The decision was announced by Col. Dave Lapan, the Pentagon's director of press operations. He emailed the four news organizations that they could send other reporters to cover military commissions in the future, but that another violation would get their organizations banned entirely.

The decision Is being appealed.

"The company lawyers are looking at the ground rules, the timing of this, and Carol's reporting, in preparation for appealing this decision," said John Walcott, Washington bureau chief for McClatchy Newspapers. Carol Rosenberg, one of the four banned reporters, works for McClatchy's Miami Herald.

The other three reporters are Michelle Shephard of the Toronto Star, Paul Koring of Toronto's Globe and Mail and Steven Edwards of CanWest Newspapers.

"I'm not sure I understand the logic of trying to redact a name that has been in public for some time, of a man who has granted at least one major interview, and been convicted and sentenced," Walcott told HuffPost.

"I hope that this decision is about what the Pentagon said it's about, and that is an attempt to protect a witness -- and not about some of the embarrassing testimony that emerged in the tribunal this week.

"I also hope it is not intended to have a chilling effect of tribunals going forward," he said. "It won't on us... In fact, it may have the opposite effect."

John Stackhouse, editor in chief of the Globe and Mail, was also skeptical. "Banning the information now -- when it is already known around the world -- serves no apparent purpose other than to raise more questions about the credibility of the Guantanamo courts," he said in a statement.

Khadr was shot twice in the back during a Special Forces raid on a suspected al Qaida compound in Afghanistan. He confessed under interrogation to having thrown a hand grenade that killed U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Speer, 28, and has been charged with murder as a war crime and conspiring with al Qaida. Khadr is now 23.

Claus gave an interview to Michelle Shepard of the Toronto Star (one of the four banished reporters) in March 2008. Shepard wrote:

A former U.S. soldier who spent weeks interrogating Omar Khadr says he wants to testify before a Guantanamo Bay court and rejects any accusations that he harshly treated the Canadian detainee.

In the first interview he has given since leaving the army, Joshua Claus told the Toronto Star that he feels he has been unfairly portrayed concerning his work as an interrogator at the U.S. base in Bagram, Afghanistan.

"They're trying to imply I'm beating or torturing everybody I ever talked to," Claus said by telephone yesterday. "I really don't care what people think of me. I know what I did and I know what I didn't do."
Shepard also reported in that story:

Khadr's lawyers fought to get access to Claus at a Guantanamo hearing earlier this month after the prosecution had dropped him from a previous witness list.

Navy Lt.-Cmdr. Bill Kuebler accused the prosecution of trying to hide Claus' identity because he had been involved in the interrogation of an Afghan detainee who died in U.S. custody.

Nancy A. Youssef reported Thurdsay for McClatchy Newspapers:

On Wednesday, the judge in the case, Col. Patrick Parrish, reminded reporters that even though Claus' name was public, a protective order intended to keep him anonymous applied to journalists as well.

Rosenberg's report that day included the following sentences: "Canadian reports have identified that interrogator as Army Sgt. Joshua Claus, who pleaded guilty in September 2005 to mistreatment and assault of detainees at Bagram. He was sentenced to five months in jail."

Rosenberg said her story was filed before the judge's warning. She said Claus' name had already been revealed.

"All I did was report what was in the public domain," Rosenberg said....

Pentagon officials said it didn't matter that Claus' name was already widely known.
"If his name was out there, it was not related to this hearing. Identifying him with Interrogator No. 1 was the problem," Lapan said.

"The judge shouldn't have had to remind them. The stories that appeared before violated the rules."

The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press on Friday announced it is seeking a meeting with Department of Defense officials to discuss the banishment. The committee also notes that the president judge had previously insisted that a video of an interrogation of Khadr be played in a closed session with no spectators, despite the video's availability to the public on YouTube.

President Obama severely criticized the Bush administration's military commissions during his presidential campaign, and immediately suspended them upon taking office. But five months later, he reopened the door to their use, and now they're up and running again.

The White House is widely expected to overrule Attorney General Eric Holder's decision to try the highest-profile terror suspects, including alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, in federal court, and send them to military commissions instead. Holder, for his part, is gamely trying to defend military commissions to skeptics.

But nothing says "kangaroo court" quite like banning the free press.

*************************
Dan Froomkin is senior Washington correspondent for the Huffington Post. You can send him an e-mail, bookmark his page; subscribe to RSS feed, follow him on Twitter, friend him on Facebook, and/or become a fan and get e-mail alerts when he writes.

Premier Stelmach in Washington Selling the Oil Sands

2010-05-09T18:11:00.000-07:00

The oil drilling rig disaster has given Stelmach an opening to sell Washington on the virtues of tar sands oil. It may be dirty but it will not pollute U.S. coast fisheries and beaches! It will be interesting to see if Obama changes his mind about not importing dirty oil. Actually, I do not see why Stelmach is so concerned about marketing Tar Sands oil. If the U.S. will not use the oil certainly China and no doubt many other countries will buy it and probably at better prices into the bargain. This is from the Edmonton Sun.

Premier Stelmach in Washington
By LINDA HOANG, EDMONTON SUN

Premier Ed Stelmach has made a trip to Washington D.C. to convince American legislators they need Alberta oil.

The Premier met with U.S. senators in an effort to try and improve the image of Alberta's oil sands. He talked about how greener policies by the Obama government that could distance the U.S. from Alberta oil could be damaging for both sides.

"We have to ensure that U.S. legislators are aware of the impact their decisions have on Alberta and Canadian energy suppliers and the impact it might have on American workers," he said. "We must ensure that all interests in this legislation understand the risks to their economies."

Stelmach said the trip was positive and senators were aware of how important the Canadian oil supply is.

Board: Afghan authorities beat citizens on whim.

2010-05-07T18:05:00.000-07:00

Although turning over detainees in these circumstances is probably a war crime I expect nothing will be done. Eventually the opposition will get tired of attacking the government or realize that probably the vast majority of Canadians could care less or may even think that the detainees are getting what they deserve. Thinking otherwise would be to be soft on terrorists. I expect that soon the whole issue will disappear. However perhaps no agreement on the issue of release of documents will be reached and then there could still be a few fireworks.

Afghan authorities beat citizens on 'whim': board
By CBC News
CBC News

Canadian soldiers saw and talked about Afghan authorities beating citizens in the street "on an apparent whim" around the time a suspected Taliban fighter turned over to Afghan police was assaulted in June 2006, a military board of inquiry has found.

The board revealed the suspected insurgent who was assaulted by Afghan police in front of Canadian soldiers wasn't considered a detainee because of the soldiers' confusion over the policy in place.

But the inquiry also admitted it could not locate a number of documents and records related to the incident, including war diaries, radio chat logs, as well as daily, weekly and individual patrol reports.

Field report transcript

20:00 14 Jun 06 [location redacted]

Stopped along Rte [redacted] and held up a vehicle that was proceeding south down the route. Stopped and searched the three individuals in the white van and got a very weird feel from one of them.

Had the terp [interpreter] come and he [unclear] that the individual was in all probability enemy (Taliban) due to his accent and his false story of being from Kandahar city. So I had him lie down on his stomach, then conducted a detailed search. (I had him empty his pockets prior to this) catalogued all his items and then took down his particulars (name [redacted] from Uruzgan).

We then photographed the individual prior to handing him over, to ensure that if the ANP did assault him, as has happened in the past, we would have a visual record of his condition.

The ANP Section Comd, [redacted] then arrived, asked the suspect a couple of questions and concurred with our assessment that the individual was enemy.

We in good faith handed the PUC [person under control] over to them so that he could be transported to the Zhari District Centre [Forward Operating Base Wilson] where [watchdog] (a radio call-sign for military police) could get him. That was the last I saw him. [redacted] is one of [redacted] men.

(View the report [http://www.cbc.ca/news/pdf/soldier-055.pdf] )

The incident, first disclosed last December by Gen. Walter Natynczyk, Canada's top military commander, immediately prompted opposition parties to accuse Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government of misleading Canadians over its claims that there was no evidence that detainees transferred by Canadian troops into Afghan custody before 2007 were abused.

During a routine mounted patrol, the soldiers pulled over a vehicle and singled out an individual for searching due to "suspicious activity." The soldiers handed over the man to a passing Afghan National Police truck to be taken to the Afghan National Security Force (ANSF) in Zhari district, and then noticed the police assaulting him when the truck pulled away.

When they caught up with the man, they determined he had a bloody nose and some contusions from the police hitting him with their shoes. They gave him medical treatment, food and water, Maddison said.

The incident wasn't reported to superiors because the soldiers mistakenly "did not believe there was a requirement to report such events," Maddison told reporters on Friday.

"In the minds of soldiers who are trusted on the field to make the right decision and save lives, in their mind, this was not a detainee event that required reporting.

"In their minds, this was a person under their control and that they were facilitating the transfer to the ANSF. So there was a discrepancy that emerged on the battlefield between the intent in the policy and how it was being operationalized in the field."

....
As for the missing documents, Maddison said the board was "absolutely confident" it had what was required to make its findings. The board is investigating why some diaries "were not in place," but the fact that some daily briefings and situation reports could not be located "didn't come as a significant surprise," he said.

"There is a certain amount of what we call the fog of war."

Natynczyk, chief of the defence staff, was forced to correct himself in December when he first learned of the case, a day after telling a parliamentary committee the individual was captured by Afghan forces, not Canadian soldiers. He then ordered an inquiry into how the incident failed to climb up the military chain of command to him or his predecessor, Rick Hillier.

The board made no recommendations on improving detainee transfer reporting because it found the military now has a "unambiguous" management system of documenting and reporting detainees in place.

The detainee issue came to the forefront last November following allegations by Richard Colvin, a former senior diplomat with Canada's mission in Afghanistan. Colvin, now based in Washington, told a parliamentary committee that prisoners were turned over to Afghan prison officials by the Canadian military in 2006-07, despite his warnings to the Canadian government that they would be tortured.

Government and military officials - past and present - have vehemently denied his allegations.

Opposition MPs have called for a public inquiry into the Afghan detainee affair and demanded to see uncensored documents pertaining to the issue. The government has refused, citing national security.

Last week, House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken ruled the government was wrong to deny MPs access to the documents and called on all parties to find a solution that would balance national security concerns with Parliament's right to examine the material.

Harper axes funding for 11 women's groups.

2010-05-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

It seems that the Conservatives are protesting a bit much when they accuse the Liberals of bringing up the abortion issue. After all the issue was brought up by the Conservatives in their refusal to fund programs that involve abortion rights and now it seems they are attacking liberal women's groups who might campaign for those rights as well. This will keep some in the Conservative base happy anyway. The piper will not pay you unless you pipe the piper's tune. This is from CTV.

Harper government axes funding for 11 women's groups

CTV.ca News Staff

A women's rights group is charging that the Harper government has cut funding for 11 women's groups in the last two weeks, just prior to June's G8 summit at which maternal health to a key part of the agenda.

Kim Bulger, executive director of Match International, said her group was one of the groups to lose funding.

International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda said the group's funding was cut due to performance issues.

The funding cuts were revealed a day after Conservative Sen. Nancy Ruth advised a gathering of women's groups that they risk a backlash from the government unless they "shut the f--k up" on the abortion issue. She said she fears there will be more of an anti-abortion response from her party if women's groups continue to speak out.

"If you push it, there will be more backlash," Ruth said. "This is now a political football. This is not about women's health in this country."

Bulger blamed the funding cuts on the "ideologically driven" Conservative agenda against feminist groups who support funding abortion as part of maternal health initiatives in developing countries.

The government announced last week that it will only fund family planning, but not abortion, in its new policy.

During question period Tuesday, Liberal MP Bob Rae said Ruth's comments are part of the "culture of intimidation and bullying" used by the Tory government to quiet their critics.

"If you have a disagreement with the government, just shut the F up," is how Rae characterized his political opponents' style.

Transport Minister John Baird said the government disapproved of Ruth's comments.

"The language is unacceptable and in no way, shape or form represents the views of the government," he said

But Baird replied that the Liberals were trying to start a "culture war" by opening the divisive abortion issue.

"Canadians don't want to drag the abortion debate in the maternal health discussion," he said. "This government is focused on how to make a positive difference in the lives of mothers and newborn children in the developing world."

Ignatieff wants Harper to extend Michaelle Jean's term as Governor General

2010-05-03T07:31:00.000-07:00

I have mixed feelings about Michaelle Jean. Some of her work has been exemplary but in other respects it has not. She gave in to Harper and prorogued parliament but she also proudly presented a medal to General Natynczyk for service in Iraq an operation that Canada was not even supposed to be involved in. From wikipedia.

Natynczyk attended the U.S. Army War College, and was subsequently appointed Deputy Commanding General, III Corps andFort Hood. In January 2004, he deployed with III Corps to Baghdad, Iraq, serving first as the Deputy Director of Strategy, Policy and Plans, and subsequently as the Deputy Commanding General of the Multi-National Corps (Iraq) during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Natynczyk led the Corps' 35,000 soldiers, consisting of 10 separate brigades, stationed throughout the Iraq Theatre of Operations.^[2]^[4] He was later awarded the Meritorious Service Cross specifically for his combat efforts in Operation Iraqi FreedomJanuary 2004 to January 2005.^[5]

Perhaps as a great admirer of the US and former supporter of the Iraq war Ignatieff admired this action of Michaelle Jean.

As the article points out it is unusual for politicians to plump for a particular person for this post but then Ignatieff probably knows little about Canadian tradition in any event. One tradition he will probably learn about soon and that is that unsuccessful leaders get unceremoniously dumped by their parties.

'Bravo, Michaelle Jean': Ignatieff's GG endorsement raises eyebrows
By: Stephen Thorne, THE CANADIAN PRESS

OTTAWA - Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff is urging the prime minister to extend Michaelle Jean's term as Governor General when her five-year appointment expires in September.
In an unusual break with the non-partisan tradition of all things GG, Igantieff issued a news release Sunday saying the Queen's Canadian secretary consulted him on a successor at Stephen Harper's request.
Jean has served her country with "distinction and honour" and deserves Canada's thanks, Ignatieff said.
"We just think somebody ought to get up and say: 'Bravo, Michaelle Jean; you've done a great job for Canada and in our view it would be great if you continue,"' Ignatieff told reporters after a Sunday speech.
Within hours on Sunday, the topic of Ignatieff's comments was becoming political fodder - just the sort of thing critics of his public declaration warned would happen.
The Prime Minister's Office issued an official statement saying Jean has done "an exceptional job representing Canada" and that she and Harper "have an excellent working relationship."
The governor general is the Queen's representative in Canada, effectively - albeit largely ceremonially - the head of state.
Appointed by the prime minister - formally by the Queen - her roles include the power to name a new government, a particularly sensitive issue in the current minority Parliament.
"One of the governor general's most important responsibilities is to ensure that Canada always has a prime minister and a government in place that has the confidence of Parliament," says the GG's website.
"In addition, the governor general holds certain reserve powers, which are exercised at his or her own discretion."
Her powers were put to the test in December 2008 when she tossed Harper a lifeline and granted his request to prorogue Parliament while his Conservative minority was about to be toppled by an opposition coalition.
"The governor general is non-partisan and non-political," says the website.
Robert Finch, dominion chair of the Monarchist League of Canada, said Ignatieff's "peculiar" public endorsement risks politicizing the appointment process and compromising the GG's independence.
"I'm a little bit blown away," Finch said in an interview. "It's certainly unusual for a leader of an Opposition - or anybody, actually - to go public with their suggestions as to who should be governor general.
"It kind of opens the realm to politics and you don't want politics entering into the nomination process of the governor general."
Finch suggested such a move can start a slippery slope, whereby political parties ultimately line up behind one candidate or another.
Jean was appointed by former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin in 2005. The subject of her replacement has been widely discussed since Harper recently confirmed her term would not be extended.
Several names have been floated as potential successors, including disabled-rights campaigner Rick Hansen; former defence chief John de Chastelain; Inuit leader Mary Simon and Reform party founder Preston Manning.
A Facebook page has even sprung up where tens of thousands are advocating Montreal-born actor William Shatner - Star Trek's Captain Kirk - for the job.
"It's time for Canada to boldly go where no country has gone before," it says.
The traditional five-year terms of Canadian governors general have been extended on several occasions - by as much as two years. Among those who've been kept on were Roland Michener, Jeanne Sauve and Jean's predecessor, Adrienne Clarkson.
Said Ignatieff's release: "Ms. Jean has done a superb job. I am calling on Stephen Harper to reconsider his decision to replace her."
He said Canadians were "deeply moved by her strong and passionate performance" after the devastating earthquake in her Haitian homeland, which reportedly killed more than 200,000 people.
Her role in bringing attention to Haiti and its people's plight has been "significant, profound and needs to be sustained," Ignatieff said.
Jean has also been a powerful advocate for aboriginal and Arctic peoples, and a proud commander-in-chief who has stood alongside Canadian troops in Afghanistan, he added.
"As a francophone woman who overcame great obstacles to get where she is today, and as the first black Canadian appointed as governor general, I can't imagine a better role model for young Canadians, particularly young girls," said Ignatieff.
Finch said he can't imagine what Ignatieff's thinking.
"It risks (undermining) the whole non-partisan nature of the Crown," he said.

Cracks in Opposition approach to Afghan detainee issue.

2010-05-02T18:06:00.000-07:00

The difference hinges on whether Frank Iacobucci should be used to help resolve the problem. Iacobucci has already been hired by the Conservatives to advise them on what could be released uncensored. Why Ignatieff would also accept him is a bit hard to comprehend since Iacobucci in accepting the Conservative job which in effect implies that his vetting the documents is appropriate compared to MP's doing so. Neither the NDP nor the Bloc Quebecois go along with relying on Iacobucci. Perhaps next week the parties will come to a resolution. It is quite doubtful that Ignatieff would ever contemplate anything that could result in an election!

Cracks appear in opposition's approach to Afghan detainee issue
By Steven Chase
Globe and Mail
Parties divided on whether they should call on retired judge to resolve the problem of accessing uncensored documents

As the search continues for a parliamentary compromise on Afghan detainee records, the real question appears to be whether opposition parties can remain united.

There were glimmers of progress Thursday in high-stakes negotiations between the Harper government and the opposition majority over how to grant MPs access to uncensored versions of detainee documents without breaching national security.

Liberals, Conservatives and New Democrats emerged lauding what they called a willingness to work on a solution after this week's historic ruling by Speaker Peter Milliken reaffirmed Parliament as the supreme authority in the land with a virtually unfettered right to demand documents. Talks continue next week.

But opposition parties are divided on whether they should call on retired Supreme Court Justice Frank Iacobucci to resolve the problem. He's already been hired to advise the Conservative government privately on whether any of the information blacked out by censors can be made public.

A big problem, should MPs tackle the documents directly, is how all four parties bridge inevitable disagreements about whether particular portions of redacted records can be released.

Legal scholars say it would help legitimize the process if an independent party with no political stake in the outcome was brought in to help scrutinize records.

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff said this week he would consider relying on Mr. Iacobucci if the former judge's mandate could be changed to make him report to Parliament instead of the Tories. Some Liberals are leery of committing senior MPs to reading mountains of documents - a process that because of the need to swear an oath of secrecy would neuter their ability to speak publicly on the treatment of detainees after Canadian soldiers hand them over to Afghan officials.

Thursday, however, the NDP and Bloc Québécois flatly dismissed the notion of turning to Mr. Iacobucci.

Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe said the former justice is effectively tainted because he consented to being part of a process the Harper government previously argued was superior to letting MPs scrutinize uncensored documents.

"He accepted to be hired by the government knowing perfectly that was a question here in the House saying that the members have the right to know," Mr. Duceppe said.

NDP defence critic Jack Harris said his party wants MPs to serve as the filter for what should be released or withheld.

"We want Parliamentary oversight, not a proxy."

Opposition parties, who comprise a majority in the Commons, passed a rare "order-to-produce" motion in Parliament for the documents last December, but the minority Conservatives responded by releasing heavily censored versions of records.

The Liberals, NDP and Bloc Québécois pressed the matter because they want more details on detainee handovers in the face of allegations that prisoners captured by Canadian soldiers were transferred to torture at Afghan hands - and because they want to ensure censors are not hiding records of misdeeds.

In a widely accepted verdict, Speaker Milliken ruled this week that the government does not have a unilateral right to censor documents and gave the Commons two weeks to work out a compromise that would allow MPs to see unredacted copies.

If a solution cannot be found, the government could be voted in contempt by the opposition majority - a situation that would be all but certain to trigger a snap election and undermine the reputation of Canada's Parliamentary system.

The NDP appears to favour a two-stage process where a select group of Parliamentarians screen the tens of thousands of pages of documents, deciding what censored passages can be released. Under this scenario any new freshly released information would be funneled to the Special Commons committee on Afghanistan.

U.S. border agents inspecting more at British Columbia crossing

2010-05-01T12:18:00.000-07:00

Even though the Olympics are offer customs staff remain at high levels. While states and cities and towns reduce services of all kinds even police anything that has to do with security it seems is sacrosanct. This also may help to reduce tourism just what the US needs when the economy is struggling to recover.

U.S. border agents inspecting more travelers heading into Canada
JOHN STARK - THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

Thanks to the increase in border staffing meant to handle the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, B.C., U.S. Customs and Border Protection is conducting more inspections of northbound travelers as they leave the country.
CBP spokesman Tom Schreiber said the outbound inspections have intercepted big drug shipments and fugitives in the past, and making those inspections more frequent should pay off.
"These operations have high-value results," Schreiber said.

For an outbound inspection, a group of uniformed CBP officers use traffic cones to funnel northbound vehicles into a single lane for visual checks and possible questioning and search.
Some see such inspections as one more hassle that discourages cross-border trade and tourism.
"This is part of the ongoing militarization of the northern border," said Bellingham immigration attorney Greg Boos, who crosses the border almost every day. "I think it points out that perhaps CBP has too much staff at the border."
Once a rarity, outbound inspections have become commonplace, Boos said.
"They used to only do this on nights when there was a good rock concert in Vancouver," Boos said. "Now I may be seeing this one out of four times, one out of three times I cross."
Ken Oplinger, president of the Bellingham/Whatcom Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said he also noticed a significant increase in the frequency of outbound inspections in the weeks just before the Olympics.
"It's certainly an inconvenience," Oplinger said. "It does tie up traffic, for NEXUS users especially. It sends an absolutely horrible message."
Schreiber said U.S. agencies have conducted outbound inspections from time to time for decades, even before the 2001 terror attacks that put increased emphasis on border security. But in the past, those agencies concentrated their limited staff on incoming traffic, and outbound inspections were rare. In the weeks leading up to the Olympics, that changed, and the permanent increase in staffing levels is enabling CBP to do more outbound inspections while still covering the inbound travelers.
"It's something we do when resources permit," Schreiber said. "We have the staffing now. It's fair to say that we've been doing more."
CBP does not release specific numbers on its staffing levels.
The inspections of departing traffic are being increased because they have been effective in the past, Schreiber said. In July 2009, a Calgary man was caught at the Peace Arch with 183 pounds of cocaine and 55 pounds of heroin.
In October, another Canadian was caught with 192 pounds of cocaine. And in September, a California man suspected of killing his wife was nabbed in the same way.
As Schreiber sees it, there should be some unpredictability to border law enforcement.
"Being unpredictable is one of the factors we try to layer into our operations," Schreiber said.
On April 20, unpredictability went too far, Boos said. On that day at the Peace Arch, outbound inspections were conducted by shotgun-toting officers.
Duncan Millar, another immigration attorney, said he saw a similar display of shotguns the same evening at the Pacific Highway crossing.
"They were holding these things at the ready," Millar said. "It was very alarming."
The CBP's Schreiber described a shotgun as "a tool that is common in law enforcement," but he said the April 20 show of force was not routine.
On that night, Schreiber said, CBP received reports that the suspect in the shooting deaths of four people in a North Hollywood, Calif., restaurant might be headed north.
"If you see (shotguns) out of the ready rack, there is probably something going on," Schreiber said.
The shooting suspect was later arrested in the Seattle area.
But the added outbound security may have some indirect economic costs if it further discourages cross-border trade and tourism, long a mainstay of Whatcom County's economy. Millar said many of his Canadian clients are now crossing the border as little as possible.
"I've had some of them say, 'Forget it. I don't want to deal with it,'" Millar said.
Reach JOHN STARK at john.stark@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2274.

Read more: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2010/04/30/1409273/us-inspecting-more-travelers-heading.html#ixzz0mgYOTtFD

Making criminals pay by charging the taxpayer more!

2010-04-29T07:25:00.000-07:00

2 Billion is a small price to pay to have the Harper Conservatives look to be hard on crime and criminals. The money can be made up by cutting back on expenditures on the social safety net. The worse off should show more responsibility and not depend on the government so the 2 billion can be cut from benefits. This will build character as will double bunking of criminals .This is from the Toronto Sun.

Crime bill cost $2B: Toews
By CHRISTINA SPENCER, PARLIAMENTARY BUREAU

OTTAWA - Legislation that prevents criminals from getting extra credit for time served will cost the federal government about $2 billion over five years, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said Wednesday.

Reacting to news reports that the Parliamentary Budget Office has estimated the cost at up to $10 billion, Toews said, “Our government understands that there will be a cost to this.” But he said Budget Officer Kevin Page’s estimates were flawed.

The government bill, which is now law, eliminates so-called two-for-one sentencing that lets criminals claim double credit for time spent in detention prior to being sentenced. Two-for-one was meant to acknowledge that the conditions in which they are often held are not on par with those available to sentenced prisoners.

Toews said the government would save the costs of the added incarceration its legislation will bring, in part, by having prisoners bunk together in the same cell.

“Many western democracies do that; there’s nothing inappropriate about that,” he said. “The Conservative party stands behind the idea that individuals should

in fact serve the time they’ve been sentenced to.”

Double bunking, he said, is “an appropriate solution, it can be done in an appropriate and constitutionally acceptable manner.”

Toews was not able to say what the costs would be for other crime bills the Conservatives have reintroduced since prorogation.

Christina.spencer@sunmedia.ca

Blackwater (Xe) trained Canadian troops

2010-04-28T08:34:00.000-07:00

Apparently legal problems and human rights issues count for nothing when awarding contracts. If Canadian troops learned from Blackwater then they learned that all that counts is protection of your client. The citizens of the country you are occupying don't count. If they don't scatter fast enough just shoot them because that makes sure your clients are safe.

It seems this company has enough connections and cheerleaders that it does not matter much about its legal and human rights problems. Canada has done its bit to support the profits of private contractors that are part of the military industrial complex. This is from the National Post.

Blackwater trained our troops
Defence spent more than $6M at controversial U.S. security firm

Tom Blackwell, National Post

The department sent a succession of personnel to Blackwater's Moyock, N.C., training compound from 2005 to as recently as April 2009, some of them learning tactics for working in dangerous settings, records obtained through access-to-information legislation indicate.

The work continued even after the U.S. State Department cancelled its pricey security contract with the company in Iraq amid mounting criticism of Blackwater's actions.

The training courses included defensive driving and "close protection" in hostile environments, as well as specialized weapons use, a DND spokesman said.

The U.S. firm was judged to be the best bidder in tenders put out for the work, and controversy associated with other aspects of its business would not have come into play, Major Vance White said.

"We require some sort of specialized training ... and if that company wins the contract, then they've obviously proven they can provide the training we need," he said. "What they might do in another part of their company doesn't detract from the fact that they have capacity to provide excellent training."

Despite its notoriety, in fact, Blackwater, recently renamed Xe Services, has been called the "Cadillac" of security training outfits.

One critic, however, called the contracts "appalling" and said the government should be prohibited from doing business with the company, or any others accused of serious human-rights abuses.

"This group is akin to a bunch of gangsters or mercenaries," charged Steven Staples, president for the liberal-minded Rideau Institute. "I would have to really question what the military thinks it can learn from an organization like Blackwater: How to kill civilians? How to operate outside the law? How to bilk taxpayers?"

Blackwater is the most contentious example of a recent trend in many countries to contract out services traditionally performed by military and other government security forces.

Though it started as a training centre for police officers and soldiers, the firm earned more than a billion dollars in the past several years by providing protection to U.S. diplomats in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some detractors portray its overseas staff as a de facto private army, while others praise the guards' aggressive safeguarding of American officials.

Blackwater employees eventually were accused of indiscriminately harming civilians in the course of that work, allegations that came to the fore with the killing of 17 Iraqis during a 2007 incident in Baghdad. U.S. authorities charged five of the guards involved with manslaughter in 2008, though a judge threw out the charges this past December. Days later, however, the Justice Department charged two employees for a Blackwater subsidiary with murder in a 2009 Kabul shooting that left two Afghans dead.

The State Department cancelled the Iraq close-protection contract in January 2009.

Four senior Blackwater executives were charged this month with weapons offences. Two former employees accused Blackwater in court documents of chronic billing fraud; a U.S. government auditor concluded last year the firm had been overpaid $55-million by the State Department.

An access-to-information request submitted last fall to Canada's National Defence Department for the previous five years of "call-ups" -- contracts under a standing order for services -- elicited a string of transactions from late 2005 until April 2009.

Maj. White said he did not know if the department was continuing to deal with Blackwater today. The censored documents contained little information about the services provided, other than references to training and accommodation at the Blackwater headquarters.

There were also small contracts for equipment, such as rental of pistols and "carbines" and purchase of ammunition for the guns. Individual call-ups ranged from less than $100 to just over $1-million, totalling about US $6-million.

In 2007, an official with the U.S. Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association told The Washington Post that Blackwater was considered the Cadillac of training services. "You've got the best of the best teaching close-quarter-combat tactics," he said.

tblackwell@nationalpost.com

Ex-CSIS chief rejects new anti-terror powers

2010-04-27T08:49:00.000-07:00

The Tories are bound and determined to throw tid bits to their right wing base and show that they are tough on terror. You would think it would be embarrassing to ask for powers that a former intelligence chief says are not necessary. But being necessary and being politically advantageous are not the same. Harper is depending upon the fear developed by the war on terror to help moves such as this boost his political fortunes. The opposition should call him out on this one and perhaps he will change his mind. This is from the montrealgazette.

Ex-CSIS chief rejects new anti-terror powers

Tories try to revive 'preventative arrest'

BY IAN MACLEOD, CANWEST NEWS SERVICEAPRIL 26, 2010

Two contentious anti-terrorism powers the government intends to revive are unnecessary, potentially dangerous and cross the line between state security and individual rights, Canada's former spymaster says.

"We should think very carefully before we take that step," Reid Morden said of the government's proposed Combating Terrorism Act, unveiled Friday by federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson.

Police and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service have "perfectly sufficient powers to do their jobs," said the former director of CSIS. "If they're properly resourced ... they don't need more powers."

The bill would re-introduce two lapsed laws to the Criminal Code giving police extraordinary powers to apprehend imminent terrorist threats.

"Preventive arrest" would allow individuals to be arrested without warrants in the belief that the arrest will disrupt terrorist activity and prevent a looming attack. Those arrested need not have committed any crime and can be detained for up to 72 hours. A judge can also impose conditions on their release and violators can spend up to a year in jail.

The other exceptional power, investigative judicial hearings, would allow police and prosecutors to bring a person before a court and compel them to disclose information related to possible terrorism. Self-incriminating evidence they might give cannot directly be used against them in any subsequent legal action. Judges also could order the hearings be held in secret.

The powers were originally introduced by Jean Chrétien's Liberals in November, 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Criticism from civil libertarians and others forced the government to water down the provisions with a five-year sunset clause.

But when the Harper government proposed a three-year extension in February 2007, the Commons was engulfed in days of bitter debate, with MPs finally voting 159 to 124 against the resolution.

The Justice Department said the proposed legislation would add "safeguards" to those in the original legislation to protect individuals snared by the laws. No specifics were given.

That neither power was used in their first five years is proof, the government has argued, that the measures were not abused.

Morden takes a different perspective. "I honestly don't see that we have either suffered, or that (police) would have been able to do anything more if they'd actually had these powers."

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

Winnipeg Journalist Val Werier honored.

2010-04-25T08:58:00.000-07:00

I knew Val personally as we served on the Manitoba Law Reform Commission long ago. I always admired him as a journalist and he contributed a great deal to the work of the Commission. He was always urging the members who were mostly lawyers to use simple straightforward language in our reports. He is 93 already, means I must be a few years older too since that was back in the days when Ed Schreyer was premier. This is from winnipegfreepres.

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Werier honoured for Lake Winnipeg columns

VAL Werier's relationship with Lake Winnipeg has lasted a lifetime.
That's part of the reason why the Lake Winnipeg Foundation has awarded the longtime journalist the Alexander Bajkov Award for his writings on the massive body of water and its importance to the makeup of Manitoba.
"I've won a few awards in my time but this one is special," Werier said Friday.
For over 70 years, Werier has served as a reporter and story-teller in this province. Lake Winnipeg has been his focus for most of that time, from the days of camping up in Boundary Park as a teenager to present-day cottage ownership in the region.
Werier, who turns 93 in June, is as passionate as ever about the lake.
"I've written about that lake going back 50 years," said Werier, who still works as a freelance columnist for the Free Press. "I feel it is the most important thing in our province; it's a source of our power, it's a source of beauty and it's a source of our great heritage."
The Alexander Bajkov award is presented to a person or group who has contributed to the health of Lake Winnipeg.
"(Werier's) legacy of many impassioned columns has stirred citizen awareness and activism as well as focused public policy issues," LWF president Bruce Smith said in a release.

Former Ambassador: Diplomats knew detainees could be tortured by Afghan government.

2010-04-24T07:52:00.000-07:00

This is just part of the dirt that goes on and goes on without anything ever being done about it because no one wants anything done about it. In fact the dirt might be useful in getting intelligence from detainees as the result of torture. Or it may be that it is done just because there is hardly any alternative. Perhaps they could give them to the US to be tortured in Bagram on occasion!

Of course diplomats cover their ass with nonsense toilet paper they get from the Afghan government that assures them that no one will be tortured. The same sort of crap wipe was given by the Syrian government in the case of Canadians such as Arar who were tortured there. Organisations such as Amnesty have consistently documented torture in both countries. But for the diplomats all that is required is the proper ass wipe to show that you have made certain there will be no torture. This is from the TorontoSun.

Former ambassador: Diplomats knew detainees could be tortured
By ALTHIA RAJ, PARLIAMENTARY BUREAU

OTTAWA — Diplomats knew detainees could be tortured but the Afghan government assured Canada they would be treated humanely, a former Canadian ambassador to Afghanistan testified Wednesday.

“Our reports for several years indicated that there was a high likelihood that torture was going on in Afghanistan detention facilities. However, we were confident that, based on information we had, that no Canadian transfer detainees had been abused or mistreated,” said David Sproule, Canada’s ambassador in Kabul from October, 2005, to April, 2007.

Sproule was testifying before the committee investigating allegations that Canadian Forces knowingly transferred detainees to Afghan authorities knowing they faced the risk of possible torture.

Diplomats obtained assurances “from the highest levels” of the Afghan government that detainees would be treated in accordance with international legal standards, he told .

“Just because the Afghanistan government provides those assurances, it doesn’t absolve Canada of its obligation if torture happens in Afghan facilities,” said Liberal defence critic Ujjal Dosanjh.

NDP foreign affairs critic Paul Dewar said diplomats couldn’t have known if any detainees were being tortured because they didn’t have the monitoring in place to know if did.

“They weren’t looking for Canadian detainees and they weren’t looking for abuse, it seems, so guess what? They didn’t find any,” he said.

Detainees who are tortured are probably reluctant to come forward because Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security, where they are held, is also responsible for investigating their claims, he said.

“No wonder they don’t have many facts or proof that there is torture going on,” Dewar said. “The people alleged to have taken part in the torture, are investigating it.”

althia.raj@sunmedia.ca

Issue of release of documents on detainees could end up in Supreme Court.

2010-04-21T18:01:00.000-07:00

It remains to be seen whether the parties can sort this issue out or if Milliken can give a ruling that will satisfy the opposition. In any event I expect that any Supreme Court ruling would be in favor or some restrictions on the release of documents in the name of National Security. That is a sacred cow which must be kept so that governments can always have a way of avoiding scrutiny or accountability. This is from the Star.

Struggle between Parliament and government could reach Supreme Court
April 21, 2010

Susan Delacourt

OTTAWA–Will the Supreme Court of Canada have to step in to sort out the power struggle between the House of Commons and Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government?

It’s a solution that some parliamentary experts and observers believe is possible after Commons Speaker Peter Milliken issues his historic ruling on whether Parliament or the government have the right to control the documents in the Afghan detainee controversy.

“On this one, I think that’s something the government certainly could do,” said Ned Franks, professor emeritus at Queen’s University and one of the country’s leading parliamentary scholars.

Milliken is expected to announce as early as Thursday his verdict in a serious, five-month-old standoff between the Harper government and the opposition in the Commons, which forms a majority. Milliken’s ruling could have significant implications for how power is exercised in parliamentary democracies – not just in Canada, but beyond.

In December, the three opposition parties banded together and passed a parliamentary order, compelling the government to produce all documents related to Canada’s treatment of detainees captured by Canadian forces in Afghanistan. The order has the force of law, but the government has argued that other laws, protecting national security for instance, weigh against wholesale compliance with the parliamentary dictate.

In many ways, this is a sequel to another constitutional crisis – specifically, the standoff immediately after the 2008 election, when the opposition parties banded together in a coalition that threatened to unseat Harper’s government.

The Liberals and New Democrats put together a coalition-government proposal, with tacit agreement from the Bloc Quebecois. But the Conservative government, in a massive public-relations campaign, argued that the coalition was undemocratic and a sop to separatists.

Governor General Michaelle Jean granted Harper a request to prorogue Parliament, but reportedly made clear, in a two-hour discussion with the Prime Minister, that the government was being granted the stay of execution on condition that it co-operate better with the majority opposition in the Commons.

Now, a little more than a year later, Harper’s refusal to co-operate with this parliamentary order could be viewed as defiance of the Governor General’s instructions. In that case, if this dispute lands in front of Jean again, she may have no choice but to dissolve Parliament, recognizing that it has become dysfunctional.

The Supreme Court, however, could represent a compromise of sorts. If Milliken sides with the argument that Parliament prevails over government, the Justice Department may well draft a formal reference to the Supreme Court – in the form of a constitutional, not a political question — about which laws have precedence in the case of a dispute.

In other words, rather than going to the Governor General, and almost certainly an election, the problem would head to the Supreme Court, where everyone could buy some time.

It’s not unheard of – former prime minister Jean Chretien asked the Supreme Court to sort out the rules of secession in the late 1990s and the current, Conservative government is asking the Supreme Court to issue an opinion on whether the federal government has the authority to establish a national securities regulator. The provinces and Liberal senators have also been urging Harper to put his Senate-reform ideas to the Supreme Court.

Franks said this isn’t an ideal situation in the current standoff – in a perfect world, Parliament wouldn’t defer to the Supreme Court to sort out its own powers. Franks suspects and hopes that Milliken is able to issue a ruling that treads somewhere down the middle, allowing the government and the Commons to sit down and solve this standoff themselves.

“I would far rather see the two sides in Parliament sort this out than have it go to the Supreme Court,” Franks said.

Canada's Senior Commander in Afghanistan investigated for accidental rifle discharge.

2010-04-20T08:30:00.000-07:00

Although the general orders himself investigated to be transparent he was helped along by the fact that a reporter had already heard about the incident. It will be interesting to see how much detail if any emerges from the investigation. Somehow I doubt he will face court martial. The general is not alone as the article points out there have been hundreds of cases of accidental weapon discharges among Canadian troops in Afghanistan. This is from the Telegraph

Canada's military chief in Afghanistan 'fired rifle in air base'
Canad's senior military commander in Afghanistan has ordered an investigation into himself after he accidentally fired his rifle while loading it at an air base.

By Toby Harnden in Washington

Brigadier-General Daniel Ménard, who commands the Canadian and American troops who make up Task Force Kandahar, approached the media on Saturday, citing a need for openness, to say that his C8 carbine had fired unexpectedly at Kandahar air base on March 25th.
His disclosure followed inquiries from the independent war reporter Michael Yon. If an investigation concludes that the incident was a negligent discharge, then Brig-Gen Ménard, who once served as an exchange officer with the Royal Welch Fusiliers, could face a court martial under Canada's National Defence Act or a fine or reprimand.

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Two Canadian sources suggested to Mr Yon that Brig-Gen Ménard had fired his rifle inside an American helicopter and that he had nearly hit a Canadian official.
Brig-Gen Ménard stated that no property was damaged but declined to discuss further details because of the ongoing investigation. It is unusual for such a senior officer to carry a rifle.
In the past 18 months, more than 600 Canadian Forces soldiers have been convicted of negligently discharging their weapons. Most of those incidents involve junior soldiers or recruits and many of them an instance of pulling the trigger prematurely during firing range practice.

Canada has most prisoner transfers in Afghanistan

2010-04-19T20:39:00.000-07:00

As usual the Harper government is secretive about everything refusing to release figures about how many detainees are transferred even though other countries do so. As is done ad nauseam security reasons are given. Apparently other countries do not share these concerns. Not only that but the Human Rights organisation has trouble gaining access to these detainees. This is from the CBC.

Canada tops allies in Afghan prisoner transfers

Canada outstripped its NATO allies almost two-to-one in the number of prisoners it turned over to Afghan authorities in the first nine months of last year, figures prepared for the Afghan government show.

The statistics were compiled by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission and made available to The Canadian Press. The federal government does not disclose them.

Furthermore, the commission complained in its latest annual report that it is still frustrated in attempts to check on prisoners handed over to the country's notorious intelligence service, the National Directorate of Security.

The commission, which relies heavily on Canadian government funding and mentorship, said between January and the end of September 2009, it was notified that 267 suspected insurgents had been transferred to NDS by Canada, Britain, the Netherlands and Denmark. The United States has its own system for dealing with captured Taliban.

Among NATO allies, the Canadian army was way out in front with 163 prisoners. Britain followed with 93 confirmed transfers; the Netherlands 10 and Denmark 1.

Unlike those countries, who make these numbers publicly available, Ottawa refuses to release its figures, citing operational security and the safety of troops as the reason. Before the U.S. surge, the explanation was that giving away the number of captured with so small a Canadian force on the ground would help the Taliban track where their people might be.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/2010/04/18/canada-afghanistan-prisoners.html#ixzz0la5jLYwL

Michel Chartrand Quebec Labour leader dead at 93.

2010-04-18T12:36:00.000-07:00

Chartrand fought all his life for working people and also for the Quebec separatist cause. He was known for his fiery speeches and salty language. He was jailed by several different Quebec regimes for his activities most famously during the War Measures Act. More is available at this site.

Memories of Michel

Michel Chartrand, an outstanding leader of the Quebec labour, nationalist, socialist and social justice movements, died on April 12 at the age of 93.

A multitude of Québécois worked with Michel in the causes that marked his long life, and the Quebec media this week are full of tributes to his contributions. Translated below is an older tribute by 110 well-known activists, published on the occasion of his 90th birthday, that summarizes some of the key events of his life. It is followed by some personal memories of my own.

— Richard Fidler.

In Praise of a Passionate Defender of the Workers

Le Devoir, November 18, 2006

Next December 20, Michel Chartrand will celebrate his 90th birthday. One of the very few public personalities to have never deviated from his ideals, this exceptional fighter has for 70 years participated in all the memorable events in Quebec's history. He has become an integral part of those events since he has been on the line of fire in all the major social and political battles, starting in the mid-1930s. For example, during the Fifties, in the “Grande Noirceur” [the dark days of Duplessis], he acted as a spearhead of the trade-union movement, which was the real opposition to Duplessism and opened the way to the Quiet Revolution. Chartrand personally paid the price, being jailed no fewer than seven times in the course of the hard-fought conflicts that marked that period, the best known of which were those in Asbestos and Murdochville.

The fate he suffered then gave a foretaste of the troubles he would later have with the legal system and the many further jailings – including his detention for four months under the War Measures Act decreed by the Trudeau government during the October Crisis of 1970. His trial – like that of all the 300 or so other persons unjustly jailed at that time – ended in a dismissal of the charges.