Begging Bowl

Oh this is rich, pardon the pun, Cherniak is begging online for folks to pay his way to the Liberal Convention.

I thought there were laws against panhandling.

But of course he is not a poor person........


Private Needs and Public Space: Politics, Poverty, and Anti-Panhandling By-Laws in Canadian Cities" by Damian Collins and Nicholas Blomley,
examines the recent rise in anti-panhandling regulations in Canadian cities within the greater context of a North American movement to purify public spaces. Being geographers, their focus is the interaction of geography and law. Their stated aim in this essay is to spatialize anti-panhandling by-laws. They are intrigued that the individual transaction of begging for money is politicized and regulated because it occurs in a space that is public. Their argument focuses specifically on Canadian downtown spaces, highlighting as dynamics in this contemporary situation the great financial investment in urban spaces, growing economic disparities between the inhabitants of city cores, and moral apprehensions about how the homeless spend this money. There is fear that allowing certain marginalized people to pursue their lives in our streets will promote socio-economic decline, and prevent the majority from being able to engage in legitimate public activities. The authors suggest that this regulatory movement is more than a further privatizing of public space. The private actions of the panhandlers have become enmeshed in public values regarding the appropriate use of public space. Examining the interaction of law within society as well as the space it occupies is key to a greater comprehension of the issue.

See:

Cherniak


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Voodoo Doll

This is just what everyone needs. The ultimate Voodoo Doll of the Self-Righteous Right Wing. Unfortunately you can't tell it to STFU. Because like the real Dr. Laura it just keeps on talking. But you can stick pins in it

Also available the Ann Coulter Love Doll.

Our Price: $29.95 Product Details: Type: Book and Doll Item#: c6766 ISBN#: 0

Brand New: Listen to Dr. Laura Preach, Teach & Nag! Preorder now and be among the first to own a "Dr. Laura Talking Action Figure" when they ship in early November! "Dr. Laura Talking Action Figure" Dr. Laura Schlessinger is not only one of the most popular radio personalities in America, she is also a best selling author of 14 books, including 4 children's books. Best known for her no-nonsense approach to parenting and her unwavering commitment to children, Dr. Laura always believes everyone should "go do the right thing". Now you can share Dr. Laura’s wit and wisdom with your friends and family with the "Dr. Laura Talking Action Figure".

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China Needs Free Unions

I was taken to task for being quick to denounce the new China Labour Law. Apparently I was another one of those cheerleaders on the left who apparently did not give the American Chamber of Commerce their due, according to China Law Blog. China's Proposed Labor Law:Going After Capitalists Like China, 1967

Dan Harris the blogger does praise one union blogger saying;

"I did come across a single blog post, however, that actually engaged in some thought and analysis on these issues. In a post, entitled, "Unions in China," on the decidedly pro-union Peter Levine blog, Mr. Levine actually seeks to discern what is going on with China's labor laws and with the American Chamber's (AmCham) opposition to them.

Levine then goes on to say in an addendum that he is "beginning to think" that the New York Times article was misleading because the proposed law would not in "any way increase the independence of unions in the PRC. It would impose some new labor laws, but they might not be enforced fairly. Workers would have no voice in their enforcement. There would be no increase of pluralism or democracy."

Bravo, Mr. Levine for starting an important discussion that just about everyone else in the blogosphere seems to want to avoid.

Well gee Dan, I said that too. "The restructuring of China from a State Captitalist economy to a mixed economy forces it to liberalize its labour laws. This does not yet mean that there will be independent worker controled unions, but it is a step forward.What China needs, is a new workers movement and free unions not State unions."

Dan's concern and that of the American Chamber of Commerce is that China labour laws will not allow employers to fire shiftless, lazy workers. This is a surprising admission from a lawyer who should know better. The fact is that union grievance procedures also mean that employers cannot just fire workers without 'just cause". It's the trade off for management rights in a contract. And it is to the benefit of employers, because otherwise they would be sued under common law. Which is far more costly.

See:

China

State Capitalism

Unions


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Lyle Oberg Is Scary

Lyle Oberg is scary. As the guy who is running second for the PC leadership, we should all be worried. While the self identified social conservatives in the Tory leadership race such as Ted Morton and Victor Doerksen are seen as such, Oberg is just the same.

When he was Minister of Social Services he wanted to kick the disabled off AISH. He denounced the report critical of the Governments failure to provide safe long term care for seniors.

What makes him scary is that he has downplayed his social conservatism by focusing on infrastructure, taxes and other 'safe' populist issues, rather than moral issues. That makes him more dangerous than either Morton or Doerksen.

See:

Alberta

Ted Morton

Lyle Oberg



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Cardston Home of Bigots

Cardston Crazies Still At It They want to ban same sex marriage in their town.

Cardston was the first Mormon settlement in Alberta. The irony being that while Cardston today opposes Same Sex Marriage, it's original settlers were polygamists.

While no longer polygamist, Mormon Cardston continues it's white only seperatist culture.


The Mormon Way
By Bruce Serafin
How wonderful it must be, I thought, to grow up Mormon and blonde in Cardston! A similar idea came to me the next day when I went to eat my lunch in Cardston's municipal park. Four Mormon families (each of the young women in long skirts, tight around their hips and rear ends) were sitting at the park's tables; a Native family sat far from them at at the edge of the park. People go where they’re comfortable; and in Cardston, Mormons and Natives didn't mix.

The Alberta Temple, located in Cardston, in southern Alberta, and dedicated in 1923, was the first LDS temple built outside the United States and its territories. Constructed of handhewn white marble from British Columbia, it won architectural acclaim.

Mormonism is a political as well as relgious movement, as a political movement it is Republican and socially conservative.

LDS lobbying efforts in several states against the ERA in the 1970s threatened to reawaken major apprehensions of priesthood influence on LDS voters.

In Canada that means it is the base for the Reform/Alliance/Conservative party federally and the Tories provincially.

Cardston is represented by the Alberta Alliance, a right wing rump party that was created by Randy Thorsteinson.

Former Social Credit Party of Alberta leader Randy Thorsteinson was selected as the first leader of the party. Thorsteinson, a devout Latter-day Saint, had quit the Social Credit Party in April 1999 in protest of an internal party proposal to limit the involvement of Mormons.

Th AA Party Leader and MLA for Cardston, Paul Hinman supports Republican Ted Morton for leader of the P.C.'s. Morton is famous for his bill C-208 which would have done what Cardston wants but for the whole of the province. Morton is also notoriously anti-native. He would feel right at home in Cardston.


A tip o' the blog to A Slap Upside The Head for this.

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Carnival of Socialism 10

Wow the Carnival of Socialism is now ten.



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Carnival

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Life Goes On

This is good news. Life will survive a nuclear war/nuclear winter. Of course not human life.....

Scientists Discover Bacteria That Use Radiated Water as Food; 'A Completely Different World'

Subterranean bacteria hint at life on Mars



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Wetmonton

Hark what light on yonder window breaks....why it's the sun....after weeks of depressing overcast weather and cold rain.If I wanted to live on the Wet Coast I would move there. But for the past three weeks Edmonton has had rain. Rain in October.

Not exactly our normal weather for the fall. Sigh. But at least it's a dry rain ;)

Rainfall in Edmonton varies from 36.0 to 258.0 (mm/month).

Rain mm inch 500 20 400 16 300 12 200 8 100 4 0 0 J F M A M J J A S O N D

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Ralph Keynes

Oh what a clown King Ralph is. Having spent a decade denouncing Keynesianism, he ups and turns out to be one....

Klein's advice to cities illogical

Ralph Klein found the biggest cow pie in the field this week and jumped right in -- with both feet.

The premier now says Edmonton and Calgary should put off building new roads and arenas because it's just too expensive in this overheated economy. Don't worry about all those new citizens who need libraries, more transit and fire halls.

"Delay the projects. Put them on hold until they're affordable," thundered Klein, who will retire shortly -- though it's not soon enough in our view.

The premier then proceeded to pass on a little helpful advice.

"The best time to build is during a recession or depression. That's when you get the best possible prices," he said.

Really? So why did Klein spend a decade doing exactly the opposite?

Because he is a neo-con who said Keynesianism was dead all that is important is to fight the debt and deficit. And of course toss in the privatizing of public services, which leads to private profit at public expense.

Shame on Ralph

Alberta Liberals say Ralph Klein is being hypocritical for telling cities to delay projects with runaway costs when his own government is routinely approving massive cost increases on its own projects.

The Liberals produced documents showing more than 50 projects with cost overruns as high as 106% in the past two years - and that doesn't even include recent projects.

"Ralph is saying you have to get your costs under control," said Liberal MLA Maurice Tougas.

"Maybe he should practise what he preaches. We've found cost overruns by the truckload."

Tougas said he was concerned millions of dollars in overruns are being quietly approved behind closed doors without any discussion in the legislature.

See:

Klein


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PET Would Not Be Amused

The quiet death of Trudeau Liberalism. Grits declare Quebec a nation And the guy touted as the New Trudeau, well he ain't. Frontrunner Michael Ignatieff was among those to welcome the move. "I speak for those who say Quebec is a nation, but Canada is my country," Ignatieff said in his opening remarks.

Of course the NDP already beat them to it.



Also See

Liberal Leadership Race



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