Voltaire in the Blogoshpere

I may not agree with what you have to say but I will defend your right to say it. We all know that old chestnut from Volataire. Some just quote it. And some of us put it into practice. And then we get credit, blush, for doing so. As I did with my defense of the Blogging Tories which garnered this.




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Canada
Federal Election
blogs
Blogging Tories
CBC
Politics

Slugger Ed

Ed Broadbent, the NDP secret weapon came out today with a pugalistic attack on Paul Martin and the Liberals. It will send them reeling over the weekend as it hits the print media tommorow.

And the slugger gave Martin a sucker punch but good. Glass jawed Martin hit the mat, the Liberal war room was all a buzz.

In this corner we have Big Ed, in the orange and green trunks. In that corner in the bleeding red trunks, Paul Martin. Big Ed comes out swinging.

"I saw Paul Martin during the 1990s after we had surplus after surplus and building up surplus as well, while millions of kids went to bed hungry, while thousands of Canadians were homeless and we were the only G-8 country without a housing program. Doing nothing on the environment. In fact George Bush did more on the environment than Paul Martin...These are not progressive people. The only time they talk about being progressive is in the dying days of an election campaign." Ed Broadbent's last statement as an MP

Damn fine prose. That opening line about I saw Paul Martin, reminds me of Howl.. I saw the best minds of my generation......etc.

Ed has not yet retired. That won't happen till January 23. Something the Liberals had hoped we would all forget.

Fri 20 Jan 2006
Liberal attack on Ed misses mark

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Canada
Federal Election
Politics
Ed Broadbent
Paul Martin
NDP
Liberals

Softwood Solution

So here is the solution to the Softwood lumber dispute, do it the good old fashioned capitalist way with mergers and acquisitions. However do not expect the corporate welfare bums in Canada's and Quebec's forestry industry to give up their whining and dining at the taxpayers expense.

Canfor pushes into U.S. forests

Takes over rival in softwood spat

Jason Kirby, Financial Post

Published: Friday, January 20, 2006

VANCOUVER - At one time Mack Singleton was a thorn in the side of Canadian lumber producers. As former head of the U.S. lobby group that pushed heavily for softwood duties he once compared Canada's economic system with that of North Korea and Cuba.

Now Mr. Singleton and South Carolina-based New South Companies Inc., which he co-owns and runs, is a cornerstone of Vancouver-based Canfor Corp.'s acquisition strategy that will probably see Canada's largest forestry company snap up other U.S. industry players.

On Wednesday, Canfor said it would pay US$205-million for New South in an all-cash transaction, diversifying its business away from British Columbia and giving it access to lumber from a major European producer through a marketing agreement.

"We've committed to growing with our customers and that is what we'll do," said Jim Shepherd, CEO of Canfor. "This is a step for us to do that."

The irony is some Canadian forest companies such as Canfor are flush with cash partly because the ongoing softwood lumber dispute has forced them to become more efficient. That money could be used to consolidate the fragmented mom-and-pop lumber industry south of the border.

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Canada
softwood lumber
B.C.
NAFTA
USA
forest industry

Liberals Refuse To Speak To Union

While making a big deal about Conservative candidates missing forums, the Liberals have refused to answer the Federal Corrections Officers union; Union of Canadian Correctional Officers (UCCO-SACC-CSN) Federal election questionaire. Dumb move that.

And it does have blowback since this is after all Landslide Annie's file.

And there is a certain irony in all this since one of her biggest supporters is Union President Dan MacLennan of AUPE who is a provincial prison guard.

Of course UCCO has been without a contract for five years. So why would the Liberals talk to them now after not having talked to them for all this time.

I guess its ok to embrace Buzz but to offer your own union workers a fair deal, well thats a bit much to ask.

Arrogance and a culture of entitlement. These are Paul Martins Canadian Values.

Also See:

Landslide Anne in Trouble

Laurie Hawn Chicken Hawk

Conservatives Turn Left

Liberals Abandon Redmonton

Redmonton Votes

Redmonton Not In The Bag for the Conservatives

Tags
Canada
Federal Election
Edmonton Centre
Anne McLellan
Politics
Edmonton
Conservatives
Liberals
Laurie Hawn
Buzz Hargrove
Strategic Voting

unions
Alberta
Edmonton
Labour
Prison Guards
CSN
AUPE

Abortion Is Privatized Health Care

A year ago when I launched this blog one of the first issues I wrote about was the denial of womens rights to publicly funded abortion services .A Woman’s Right to Choose? Choose What?

Now Paul Martin has challenged Stephen Harper over the issue of abortion and the Not Withstanding Clause, which has nothing to do with the real issues that surround abortion in Canada.

Canada's Martin says rival anti-abortion extremist

Stephen Harper’s Covert Support for Cheryl Gallant




Womens groups along with Dr. Morgentaler are demanding that the Conservative party speak up on their position about a womans right to choose. Considering that the majority of their party members are anti-choice. Do I need to point out that this conflicts with the very essence of Libertarianism, something many of the same Tories claim to be.

"Last call" to guarantee Canadian women's right to choose - ACPD wants specific commitments now from Stephen Harper

Mr. Harper characterizes a woman's right to choose as a polar extreme - Women demand clarity and assurances

Beware! Fundamentalist Conservatives at the Gates! Callwood, Egan, Mallick, Morgentaler and Walker warn against a Conservative majority

Morgentaler warns: 'Don't vote Conservative'

And again I would say they may worry about Harper's party being full of anti-abortion advocates but that is not the issue.

The Liberals have their fair share of anti-abortion advocates as well, many who will probably retain their seats in this election. Liberal and Conservative MPs join together to fight woman’s right to choose

The real issue is that abortion services are privatized in Canada. And there is a certain irony that the Supreme court ruling that created this situation, the one that Paul Martin is now defending, allowed by ommission, the private delivery of abortions, leaving the provinces off the hook for providing this essential medical procendure.

ABORTION IS PRIVATE HEALTH CARE IN CANADA.

Women in Canada have the right to choose to have an abortion what they do not have is the right to this medical service being provided for by the provinces or in public hospitals! So in effect it limits their rights, and their right to choose.

It has to do with the simple fact that in all the provinces in Canada abortion is a privatized medical procedure.

In Edmonton last year all abortion services were abdicated by Captial Health Authority to the Morgentaler clinic. Edmonton Privatizes Abortion Services

Private for profit health care delivery is what Dr. Morgentaler offers. So anyone who claims that there is no private health care in Canada is forgetting this one simple fact, abortion is privatized in Canada. He has in fact offered his clinics as an example of private health care delivering a service the public system can't or won't.

Where the state still offers it in hospitals it is a primitive D&C procedure that is invasive and harmful to women's health. It is barbaric compared to the vacuum procedure perfected by Dr. Morgentaler.

In provinces where no abortion services are offered by the State, women have to go out of province, shades of the Tory election platform, to get abortions but the province only pays a portion of the rate charged them.

The same now occurs in Alberta where medicare will only pay a portion of the fee of the total cost of the medical service provided by the Morgentaler clinic.

This is the real issue around abortion, not some phony debate Martin wants to raise. The real issue is that neither the Tories or the Liberals plan to end the privatized delivery of a healthcare service (abortion) for women in Canada.

Morgentaler asks all parties to support abortion rights

Dr. Morgentaler, who started doing abortions in 1968, made his comments after testifying in a class-action lawsuit aimed at getting Quebec to reimburse women who have had abortions in private clinics or specialized women's centres.

He is part of court cases in Manitoba and New Brunswick that are trying to get compensation for women for abortions in private clinics.

He was particularly harsh in discussing New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord's stand on the issue, calling his government "reactionary."

Earlier in the day, Dr. Morgentaler told Quebec Superior Court it would be "criminal" for the provincial government to not reimburse women who had abortions in private clinics.

The lawsuit argues the payments are guaranteed under the provincial health insurance law. Procedures done in hospitals are covered.

Nadia Genois of the Women's Health Centre of Montreal said later a victory in the case is vital.

"The cause is very just," she said. "It's important that all women can have access to abortions, free and legally and also with a quality of care."

And women are the majority in Canada,so we could say that the majority of Canadians face discrimination in that a specific medical procedure they need is not available to them in the public health care system!

Thats what should piss off women and progressives. That abortion is not free and accessible. The privatization of it allows it to be restricted to those who can pay.

That is the real debate we should have over abortion. Over to you Jack.


Also see: Right To Choose


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Canada
Federal Election
Politics
abortion
women
NDP
Conservatives
Liberals
medicare
healthcare
privatization
Dr. Morgentaler

Soccer Dads

That's right its the Canadian version of NASCAR Dad's . This election lets peak in and see what Soccer Dad's are saying. Over at The Voyageurs: Canadian Soccer Supporters There seems to be alot of discussion about Green's and it's not just the field conditions. Defintely not NASCAR dads.



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Canada
Federal Election
Politics
blogs
soccer
NDP
Conservatives
Liberals
Green Party

More On Edmonton Strathcona

Well I discovered that we have an entry in the Wikipedia
Edmonton—Strathcona - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

And Democratic Space is having a lively debate over the two way race that is happening here, which does not match his riding predicition. Go figure.

I think it has to do with that little fellow saying; It's de signs boss, de sign's.




SEE Edmonton Strathcona

SEE Linda Duncan

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Canada
Federal Election
Linda Duncan
NDP
Alberta
Politics
Edmonton
Conservatives
Rahim Jaffer
Edmonton Strathcona

Jaffer and his Blogger are Spooked

In an Edmonton Journal riding profile for Edmonton Strathcona Rahim Jaffer admits the NDP campaign has him spooked. Spooked. Let me repeat that for all you disbelievers out there, spooked. What was that about a spectre haunting ....oh never mind.

And if Jaffer is spooked Edmonton Strathcona rightwhingnut blogger The Third Edge of the Sword ( aka Feynman and Coulter's Love Child) is even more freaked.
He is freaked Jaffer would admit this, then he is freaked at the Layton rally held a stones throw away from his house, where Jack announced that this WAS the riding the NDP were fighting to win.

• Jack Layton is predicting an NDP win in Edmonton Strathcona. Dear God, lets hope he's wrong. That's my riding, for Pete's sake. (He said it at Bonnie Doon Community Hall too, which I could hit with a baseball from home. Stupid work).
  
• Jaffer confirms that concern in today's Riding Profile of Strathcona in the Journal. Shit.

Freaked the poor bugger. Say TTEOTS you want to vote for a winner or a wiener. Nah guess we can't convince you to vote NDP. Well at least we know you won't split the vote by going Liberal. I have TTEOTS as a disparaging fan of my blog.

And what can I say, the Linda Duncan Webperson who surfs the blogs for the Citizen Media section , scroll waaaaay down the In The News page it is under Mainstream Media, actually linked to TTEOTS blog.A blog that hates the NDP with a passion. Now that's cheeky.

19 January 2006
. And conservative blogger Feynman and Coulter's Love Child is spooked by all the talk of an NDP win in his riding.

Yep Linda's campaign is NO FEAR. I am impressed.

SEE Edmonton Strathcona

SEE Linda Duncan

Tags
Canada
Federal Election
Linda Duncan
NDP
Alberta
Politics
Edmonton
Conservatives
Rahim Jaffer
Edmonton Strathcona

Another Liberal For Linda

Liberal blogger Daveberta has finally taken the plunge; daveberta endorses linda duncan in edmonton strathcona. For all the right errr left reasons. Unlike those Liberal bloggers who have decided to go Tory. Way to go Dave.

See I told you it was a two way race. Why won't you guys believe me?!


SEE Edmonton Strathcona

SEE Linda Duncan

Tags
Canada
Federal Election
Linda Duncan
NDP
Alberta
Politics
Edmonton
Conservatives
Rahim Jaffer
Edmonton Strathcona

Why I Moderate This Blog

So I can find where all the comments are in order to reply to them like I did here

Moderating is not censorship unless you make a really offensive remark or are a spam artist. In which case I have always had the option to delete. I let comments run with that provisio.

But having been burned by some twit who loaded my instant comment box in the sidebar with downright nastiness, I removed the feature, I decided to moderate. That and like I said it makes it easier for me to track the comments and comment back. Otherwise you have to scroll, and scroll, and scroll, and.......

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blogs