Disisng Canada's CEO's

I like it. I like it a lot. Todays column in the Ottawa Sun. The Sun of all places. Dissing Thomas Acquino and his private club of Canada's wealthiest and self indulgent elite. The Canadian Council of CEO's. Michael Harris spares no punches. How to run Canada into the ground




Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Canada, CEO's, corporations, Acquino, politics, globalisation, globalization, reform,

What Debate?

So is there going to be a debate on the Third Way which is still a mote in Ralphs eye?

Medicare advocates stage protest at legislature
Opponents of Alberta's proposed 'third way' health care system protested on the steps of the legislature Thursday on the first working day of the spring session. Even before the protest got underway, health minister Iris Evans was confronted by demonstrators who grilled her about the 'third way.' Klein has declined to release any details of his proposed health reforms, though he has indicated it will involve a role for private and public medicine. Evans ensured the protestors that the government isn't planning to do away with public medicine. "I want you to just hear that at the start but then come and we will talk."

Talk about what? There is no bill there is no legislation. And Evans maternal patting of protestors on the head is disingenuous.

Evans sees private health services within a year

Pay for faster health access, Evans says

Yeah let's talk about that Iris. As I said here the Third Way will not be debated in public, in the legislature. It will be snuck in the back way through orders in Cabinet.

EDITORIAL: Lots of questions
Edmonton Sun, Canada - 9 Feb 2006
Near the end of her editorial board meeting with the Sun yesterday, Health Minister Iris Evans was asked about the timeline for implementing the government's so-called Third Way health-care reforms. Evans said she hoped the changes would be in place within a year.

I have to agree with this guy about the whole Third Way legislation discussion which isn't happening.

We need more medical doctors and fewer spin doctors when it comes to health reform.
– Paul Hinman is Alberta Alliance leader and MLA for Cardston-Taber-Warner

I know, I know frightening when even the right wing rump party challenges the PC's, Party of Calgary, about its intentions.



Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Evans, Health, Minister, Alberta, Canada, Klein, Hinman, Friends, of, Medicare, Healthcare, Third, Way

Coal=Cancer

Ya gotta love King Ralph here he is saying that Alberta will Cure Cancer. Cure Cancer. Let me repeat that folks Cure Cancer.

I know people refer to the current oil boom as the Alberta Miracle but this is taking that miracle business a little to literally.

And then King Ralph goes and says in the same breath that we are going to expand our extraction of Coal and make sure we export it and use it more.

Ahem Coal causes cancer, it's from the sulpher dioxide byproduct of incomplete combustion.

Oh yeah he said clean coal. But there is no clean coal being used in Alberta or anywhere in Canada or North America for that fact.

Melchin told the audience that his province is eager to develop clean coal technology and it's working with Texas on a zero-emission coal-fired plant, which is expected to start generating electricity in the United States by 2012.Melchin pushes clean coal in Ontario

Aha this must be the wink, wink, secret new energy source George Bush has been talking about. Bush: Energy technology breakthroughs imminent

So I guess we are going to cure cancer in Alberta with clean coal. And that would be a miracle.

This is clearly Klein's swan song his legacy sitting of the Alberta Legislature.Praise Klein and maybe he will quit Which must be why he has these goofy notions of Curing Cancer and Creating Clean Coal. Yep it really is time this goofus retired.

Half of Albertans want Klein to retire soon; a party poll was reported saying 30 per cent of members cite his departure as key to renewal



Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Klein, coal, cancer, Alberta, legislature, government, politics, environment, health, energy, Bush,

Wishful Thinking

The headline reads;

Alta. backs away from privatized health-care system

Throne speech focuses on cutting wait times, slashing cancer rate

EDMONTON -- The Alberta government signalled Wednesday that it's backing away from any plans to privatize health care

But the photo attached tells the real story.

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Klein, Third-Way, Alberta, Canada, Medicare, Healthcare,

TANSTAAFV

TANSTAAFV-There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Vote.

Same Sex Marriage and Missile Defense, two issues that will now face the Canadian parliment as Free Votes. Be still my beating heart. Parliment will now have the Conservatives allow its MPs free votes,though how it intends to force the other parties not to whip their votes well thats a horse of a different colour. And the difference between a Whipped vote and Free Vote is......nada, nothing, zippo.

In the past sitting of the Parilment the Conservatives voted en block on issues, no significant variance amongst them. Ok one or two voted for SSM and then Stronach crossed the floor, because of the shunning that such Free Voters got from the rest of the party apparatchiks. But on Bil C-48 they voted as one,it was a budget bill after all, which is why Stronach left . On other less contentious and media watched issues everyone on that side of the house in the Official Opposition voted as the one. See How'd They Vote?"

So then what is this sacred cow the Conservatives have embraced this oh holy of holies the Free Vote? It is the last vestige of the Refrom Party that dwells in the Conservative Party, sort of like the vestigious reptilian portion of our brain. Once upon a time it was about the Reform Party doing politics differently, being a Party that allowed its MP's to vote on behalf of their constituents following their consulting with their constiuents. The last MP to do so was Chuck Cadman, who remained the last Reformer standing on principles. The rest moved to political pragmatism and expediency to gain power. Chuck's constinuency has elected an NDP member to replace him, not a Conservative!

In todays Conservative autarchy the Free Vote is, as the Bard said, much 'ado about nothing.'


With apologies to Robert Heinlein who wrote : TANSTAAFL (There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch) One way or other, what you get, you pay for.


Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Conservatives, Canada, Government, Parliment, Votes, Free, Votes,

This Wasn't An Election Promise

Tories to re-open missile defence debate So now that the Harpocrites are going to ressurect this dead issue, will it be long before we are sending troops to Iraq? Hey they wanted to do that to, despite their protests to the contrary during the election. Now where did I put that Conservative election campaign policy guide the Blue Book. Oh yeah here it is, hmmm let's see.....Nope not here. Unlike the Red Book where Liberals broke promises, the Conservatives are keeping promises they didn't make.

OTTAWA (CP) - Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor says he's willing to reopen the controversial debate on ballistic missile defence if the United States extends another invitation.

However, the minority Conservative government would eventually put the question before the Commons and since all three opposition parties have opposed the idea in the past, the concept is likely dead before it starts.

"It would really, ultimately, be up to a vote in Parliament," the minister told reporters Thursday.

His comments came as a former Pentagon official was in Toronto urging Canada to spurn missile defence and instead lead an international charge against space weapons.

Phil Coyle, an assistant secretary of defence and senior weapons tester at the U.S. Department of Defence from 1994 to 2001, said missile defence is seductive but unworkable.

"All you get is a scarecrow defence."

And to think some Blogging Tories pooh-poohed me when I predicted this because Derek Burney one of Harpers key post election advisors has been outspoken in his promotion of BMD/US Canadian joint Missle Defense.


Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Canada, Conservative, BMD, Harper, USA, Bush, Missles, Defense, O'Connor, Politics, Military, NORAD

Teachers Win Right To Free Speech

The 'democratic' state reveals its true authoritarian nature when it comes to mediating labour struggles. It is ALWAYS on the side of the employer. Now the B.C. Teachers union has won a landmark Free Speech case. The howls will arise on the right, you know those folks who are currently eating everything Danish, and defending the right to publish stupid cartoons. They will complain about activist judges, blah, blah. But the point here is that when the State is your employer you have to watch out for them gagging your right to free speech as has occurred in right wing Alberta. In B.C. this case is a victory for workers against the State. B.C. teachers can talk shop with parents, government disappointed
VICTORIA (CP) -- B.C. teachers are legally entitled to talk shop with parents despite a court challenge by their employer. The Supreme Court of Canada refused Thursday to hear an appeal of an earlier B.C. Court of Appeal ruling that allowed teachers to talk to parents about their concerns during parent-teacher interviews.




Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
B.C., Teachers, Union, Labour, Free, Speech, Government, Gag, laws, Supreme, Court

Third Way MIA

King Ralphs mauch touted 'Third Way' in Medicare reform is still MIA. It wasn't in his TV Inofmercial the other night and yesterday it was absent, MIA in fact, from the Throne Speech.

“This session, government will take steps to improve access, sustainability, choice, innovation and efficiency in Alberta’s health-care system,” said the speech.Despite its references to offering choice and innovation in health care, it provided no details of Klein’s proposed “third way,” which could open the door to private health insurers and for-profit hospitals offering services now covered by medicare.

Guess after all this time, all those focus groups, all the studies, all the reviews, after Bill 11 , after King Ralphs Grand Tour touting his reforms, this new bill has yet to be written!

Klein conceded yesterday the legislation has yet to be drafted, but he still hopes to push ahead after some form of consultation with Albertans."Hopefully it will be done this spring, but I am waiting to see what the legislation will look like."

You would think these guys would have it prepared. But of course not. In Alberta everyone knows the real legislation is done in cabinet, by decree. Where the government doesn't have to face the discomfort of democarcy and Question Period. And of course mass disapproval and the disapproval of the masses.

What is the Third Way?

February 23: Vigil in Support of Public Medicare 12:15 pm Front steps of the Alberta Legislature building Vigils on the steps of the Leg will be every Monday evening at 7:15 pm and Wednesday afternoon at 12:15 pm while the Legislature is in session.

Copyright © 2006 Friends of Medicare.

This is what the rest of Canada is going to have to get used to soon, with the Harperites now in power in Ottawa, Alberta.

Here is the Alberta version of Accountable Government.

When answering a question on health care from New Democratic Party Leader Brian Mason, Klein said he’s been inundated with requests for more money from Alberta’s regional health authorities.
How much money are they asking for? Well....
KLEIN: “Without going through the whole list, the total is $100.6 billion — $100.6 billion this year alone — and they (New Democrats) have no solution other than to spend, spend, and spend more.”
$100.6 billion? That’s 10 times the size of the entire health budget!
Klein repeated the $100.6 billion figure five more times — a figure he puzzlingly used to browbeat and berate the New Democrats, as if they want to spend $100 billion more on health care.
Oops — he later dropped the figure to $10.6 billion.
Double oops — after Question Period he dropped the figure yet again to $1.6 billion.
Klein said he made a mistake. He did the math himself on what the health authorities are requesting and came up with the wrong number — twice.

Wow that sounds just like an anwser those guys in Ottawa that just got turfed used to give in QP.. Will Klein Share Chretiens Fate?






Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Canada, medicare, healthcare, Klein, Alberta, Third, Way, reform, privatization, privatisation, Legislature, legislation,

Ouch

Klein needs vision where his money and mouth are
Globe and Mail, Canada - 1 hour ago
By DEBORAH YEDLIN. CALGARY -- Ralph Klein is looking more and more like the second coming of another Alberta premier -- Don Getty.

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Klein, Alberta, Getty, Premier, Canada, Politics,

Harpers Broken Promises: Accountability

Democracy Watch has issued a press release documenting five, count em five, broken promises by Temp PM Harpocrite on Accountability. And after they gave the Conservatives the thumbs up as having the best policy during the election. Well that was then this is now. Remember that the Harpocrite failed to pledge he would keep his promises when asked during the French language debate. Now we know why. It wasn't that his french was that poor.


Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Harper, Conservatives, Accountability, DemocracyWatch, Government, Cabinet, Canada, politics