Meanwhile in Manitoba... will Selinger be a Weir?

The last throne speech authored by a 'replacement premier' in Manitoba was in 1968, when poor Walter Weir assumed the burden of leadership from that highly over-rated, quasi-progressive, and so-called conservative, Duff Roblin.

Roblin, who had become frustrated by the inability of Manitoba to bear the costs of his mega-project projects, abandoned Manitoba's ship just as his “regime was beginning to falter”. After a decade in power Roblin claimed that provincial power had “lost much of its savour and appeal.” Much like the recently departed Doer, hapless Roblin then sought to trade the keys to his provincial office for one on a larger, grander, and presumably more important stage. In the end, unlike Doer, Roblin failed. Because, again unlike Doer, his chosen escape hatch came without any guarantees.

Enter Walter Weir and his infamous Throne Speech in 1968. So, with this in mind, I would like to simply say:

Whatever else happens today, I hope that Premier Greg Selinger does not forget how 'replacement' Premier Walter Weir's inaugural Throne Speech marked the beginning of the end of his government.

The last thing Mr. Selinger needs to do is to emulate Weir. He cannot afford to see his speech categorized (a la Weir's) as little more that "five well spaced pages of legistative balloon juice and whiffle dust"! He cannot, as did Weir, leave the opposition "smacking their lips in anticipation" of the upcoming session. He cannot give us promises that are blinded by their lack of vision.

If nothing else, Mr. Selinger should, indeed must, take the opportunity he has today to stake his claim to the office he now holds. He must provide Manitobans with absolute proof that this NDP government is HIS government. That it will reflect his promises, his goals, his identity, and his commitment to try harder than his predecessor. He must convey that the old, albeit successful, but ultimately unsatisfactory NDP way of doing business and making 'safe policy' is over. In short, he must demonstrate that he will aspire to do greater things than his predecessor.

The last thing Mr. Selinger (and Manitobans) want to read in tomorrow's paper (or on today's internet) is that his Throne Speech fell short. That it missed its mark. That, as was said of Weir's, it amounted to little more that "a slender legislative programme" marked by an "anything - but bold approach." Because what we don't need is Selinger's Throne Speech to be seen, amid the all heraldry, pomp and circumstance, as something "strictly in the pop-gun category".

After all, after a decade of Doer, we deserve more!

[re: quotation marks - most are from March 3rd, 1968 edition of the Winnipeg Free Press and Roblin's biography - oops, maybe it is the March 5th, 1968 edition of the Freep I am citing - check both if you need as I am doing it from memory!]

Grey Cup 2009- A Baker's Dozen equals Defeat

Oopsie!

“There were 13 men on the field, ... a lack of communication ... It’s just totally 100-per-cent disappointment. ... a disappointment that will be with our football team for their lifetimes.” Ken Miller - Head Coach, Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Really? NO SHIT! And, but for presence of one functional abacus on the sidelines, it needn't have ended the sad way it did. Pity.

Dear Saskatchewan Roughriders,

Thanks for the effort, you played a helluva game ... too bad it all came down to one simple fact - in the CFL the fielding of a Baker's Dozen is a big no-no.

Better luck next year guys!

And as for the Rider coaching staff, sheesh! I mean c'mon! Hope you all bone up on your math skills during what is, surely, going to be a very long off-season.

Sincerely,
Fat Arse

My Grey Cup Checklist

Functioning TV - check
Comfy Couch - check
Chips & Dip - check
A raft of Cold Beer - check
Functioning Bladder - check
Working Toilet - check
Simmering Pot of Spicy Chili - check
Ample Arsewipe - check
More Cold Beer - check

Alas, all is ready. All that's left to say is...

GO RIDERS GO!

Pundit Dung of the 1st order: Andrew Coyne's intentional obfuscation of the issue at hand.

So I read this Coyne piece. I upchucked and then recoiled. His pro-Tory agenda is clearly on display. His goal, seemingly, is to deflect our attention from Harpo's &Co's responsibility for its role in the ongoing torture of Afghan detainees.

What Coyne fails to understand with the publication of his column is that we have an absolute right to know the truth about our present elected government's conduct on this file. All Coyne's article does is play unaccountable politics with a very serious issue. All he does is try to interject crass partisanship crap into the debate. Shame on him. Below is my stated objection to his tactics:

"Andrew,

Pundit dung of the first order sir.
Truth be told I have come to expect more than shoddy, lazy, and such obviously pro-PC partisan analysis from you. Sadly, you seem to be intent on obfuscating the issue at hand.

Really sir, it is not the historical paternity tale of our Afghan Detainee Policy (ADP) that is germane at this point, it is the current Government of Canada's inability to straightforwardly address the known issues of abuse. Our current government's shameful effort to censure and attack those who would speak truth to power can not go unchallenged. Our current government's absolute failure to be transparent on this issue must be challenged.

I care not what stripe our government of the day wears (PC Blue or Lib Red) it's irrelevant. Fact is, the government of the day, the government TODAY, owes us all an explanation. Do they, in OUR name, as OUR government participate in and/or condone and abet illegal war practices that any reasonable Canadian would deem inhumane treatment? Did they, do they, support policies that knowingly lead to the torture other human beings? It's a simple questions that deserves an honest answer. What Paul Martin did in 2005 is, of course, important. More importantly, however, now that more facts are known, is WHAT IS STEPHEN HARPER HAS (OR HAS NOT) DONE to live up to our international legal obligations NOT TO TORTURE HUMAN BEINGS?"

Dazed and Confused: Cotto and boxing, Harper and climate change

It's kinda weird. On climate change, as with so many other issues, Harpo's almost like a zombie? I mean Christ, if even Obama can't get his attention, what chance do the rest of us have?

And talking about dazed and confused, I'm glad I was not in Miguel Cotto's boots last night going toe-to-toe with the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet ... ouchie!




Ever had a bad day at the office? Did you come home looking like this? No? Me neither, err, well not too often at least. The photo kind of reminds me of our Tory government's climate change strategy ... all bloodied.

Poor Cotto, he ended up like the Tory climate change strategy at APEC that also involved a warm-up round, lots of bobbing and weaving, spinning, weak-kneed qualified backpedaling, all to no effect = "The final communique from the leaders summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum here was largely silent, though, on any hard commitments to cutting the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change."

Ah, another optimum outcome for Harpo & co. on the climate file, another status-quo wet-dream success, another day of no progress!

Manitoba MP Shelly Glover: Nothing to see here kiddies, just stay to the right

[Above: MP Shelly Glover doggedly sticks to her message that: "In PM Harpo's world, staying to the right is always the right choice."]

Does the Tory branding exercise know no shame?
Judge for yourself, read this:

St. Boniface Tory MP Shelly Glover recently offered Louis Riel students free water bottles, but trustees turned Glover down when they learned that the bottles would bear the Conservatives' logo.

"The bottles were personalized and had her name and the Conservative logo," Louis Riel school board chairwoman Marilyn Seguire said Thursday. ....

Seguire said that it was not clear how many water bottles Glover was offering, or how they would promote students' interest in French immersion.

.... Glover said she offered the water bottles as a way to congratulate students doing well in French immersion and as an incentive that would be available to other students if they did better in their French immersion courses.

"I went to a French immersion program. When I was in French immersion, we had incentives to speak French in the hallways," Glover said.

But when Glover was told that the school board had turned down the water bottles because they bore the Conseravtive[sic] logo, she said, "I know where you're going with this," and said she would have to gather more information before commenting further.

Don't know about you, I can hardly wait for the rationale she's going to pull out of her arse to justify this one. However, I doubt she will admit the truth; ergo, that it is part of the wider Tory plan to "get 'em young and get 'em early"

Update: Too funny. Just checked site-meter, in the 1/2 hour since the this post went up, it appears that at least one group has noticed it! Again, too funny. What do they care what a blogger thinks?

	gc.ca	Nov 13 2009	9:38:15 am	2	0:03
	gc.ca		9:32:31 am	1	0:00
	gc.ca		9:26:45 am	2	0:00
	gc.ca		9:20:56 am	3	18:07
	gc.ca		9:17:07 am	3	22:15

Talk about Class: Brett Hull's HHOF acceptance speech

Outspoken? Sure. Occasionally mouthy? Sure. A great hockey player? Definitely.

Well spoken? YES!

Brett Hull's acceptance speech at the recent Hockey Hall of Fame induction ceremony definitively proves that he is, indeed, a better man than his father Bobby. Humble and reflective, his words serve as a shining example of how these things ought to be done:

This Is What a Failure Looks Like

12-17-09 - Update on the original post below. Go figure?


Winnipeg Blue Bombers 2009 season record:

7 wins - 11 loses

Need we say more?

Travesty! Ontario's H1N1 vaccination policy.

Canadian values? Equal access for all? Not in Ontario.

You know Ontario's health system is fundamentally broken when you see stories like this:

"A private clinic [Medcan] in Toronto .... located in the heart of the city's financial district .... said on Friday that ... customers have been able to access the vaccine without lineups, even receiving valet parking.

However, to be added to the clinic's list of 40,000 clients and receive the shot, customers must first undergo a "comprehensive assessment" which costs $2,300 ... a spokesperson from the clinic said."

In recent days, Torontonians have become increasingly frustrated with the city's public vaccination facilities. On Saturday, .... Lineups stretched into the thousands and many people waited in the rain for hours only to be turned away empty handed.

[....]

Medcan applied early for the doses and received about 3,000 of them from Toronto Public Health [somebody should be fired?]. If new clients are deemed to be in the high-risk group, they can then be immunized without waiting in line. They even receive valet parking."