thoughts for 2009

Whereas:
-Support for socialism died (in most parts of the world) due to corruption and ineffectiveness, leading to non-responsive to the needs of the people; and

-Nationalism is going the same way, mired in stakeholder consultation/communication planning loops and poisoned with petty partisanship; and

-Capitalism is imploding because of the rotten core and the absence of regulatory assurance; and

-Consumerism, the punch-drunk high of unbridled environmental exploitation and nouveau-riche giddiness, is environmentally unsustainable and economically doomed;

I ask you,
What -ism do you think will drive the next generation??
(this is a serious question - the first to answer "geo pr-ism" wins a kick in the ass)

I wish you a balanced 2009.
Happy Festivus!

what's the frequency kenneth?

my mental song dial is stuck between stations right now; i can tell there are a couple of songs competing in the background noise but its too vague and broken to be discernable. kinda neat.

petition

http://causes.ca/signatures/petition?cause_id=2

letter to GG

Excellency,
I have been shocked again and again at the belligerence, divisiveness, and contempt for Canadians that Mr. Harper has shown, all the while marketing himself as an "ordinary" Canadian and "protector" of democracy. I hoped the recent election would bring about a more humble, cooperative nature, and initially that is what he portrayed. Unfortunately, that was probably only a ploy to buy time and public opinion while preparing a budget update that clearly goes against core values of this country: respect, fairness, equal opportunity for personal growth, and entraide. His party's actions time and again indicate to me that they wish to diminish all Canadians to "ordinary" status, such that they can be easily manipulated (need to look no further than the conflicting attacks in English and French) and poorly paid, with limited ability to defend let alone promote themselves (example: the contempt for galas). I do not believe that the Conservative Party of Canada is taking this country down a good path.

Given the Parliament we have elected, I believe the Liberal-NDP Coalition is the most effective means of achieving a government that is fair and representative of the values Canada enjoys at home and has promoted abroad. I cannot say whether proroguing the current session will be beneficial or not (likely best merely to cool tempers and let coole heads prevail), but I do humbly request that you grant the Liberal-NDP Coalition the opportunity to form a government, with all the authority of your position and a reassuring speech that we must remember what we stand for together, not only with our traditions, but with our vision.

Sincerely,

sigh

after writing and erasing three rambling rants on the proposed coalition, how harper's reacting to it, and how disappointed I am that so many Canadians seem to be lapping up the obviously manipulative lies without questioning harper's raw contempt for quebec, i've decided i have too many thoughts to write interesting words.
i'm going to bed.

who's being undemocratic?

Nelson Wiseman, political science professor at the University of Toronto, […] dismissed Harper's attacks on the coalition, who reportedly called it an "undemocratic seizure of power."

"The Conservatives are arguing it's undemocratic, but actually elections don't elect governments," said Wiseman. "They elect Parliaments. Parliaments make a government. Parliaments can break a government."

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/02/gg-return.html

deconstructing Conservative party lies

Broadbent (past leader of NDP) speaks out:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/03/coalition-broadbent.html

And former GG speaks up:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/12/03/parl-schreyer.html

This type of scenario (arguing over who/what we vote for/give a mandate to (i.e., party or MP)) will never be put to rest until we elect a President (or GG), independently of parliamentarians we send to the Commons. This is the real democratic reform this country needs (Senate reform is purely a red herring that simultaneously provides a convenient excuse to abolish it in the quest for absolute rule).

this is NOT a "coup d'état"

from Google:

(Fr. "strike at the state") the sudden overthrow of a government by a small group.
www.nmhschool.org/tthornton/tignorterms.php

A sudden, decisive exercise of power whereby the existing government is subverted without the consent of the people, in a more or less violent fashion.
arabbox.free.fr/islamaphonia1/Muziq.htm
"without the consent of the people" - that must be why Conservatives are desperately trying to rally Canadians...

a sudden and decisive change of government illegally or by force
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
nothing illegal or forceful about this

A coup d’état (also coup) is the sudden, illegal overthrowing of a government by a part of the state establishment — usually the military — to replace the branch of the stricken government, either with another civil government or with a military government.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coup d'état
nothing illegal about this

The sudden overthrow of a government, differing from a revolution by being carried out by a small group of people who replace only the leading figures
en.wiktionary.org/wiki/coup d'état
for the record, wiktionary's big sister wikipedia defines it a lot better:
A coup d’état, often simply called a coup, is the sudden unconstitutional overthrow of a government by a part — usually small — of the state establishment — usually the military — to replace the branch of the stricken government, either with another civil government or with a military government.
there is nothing unconstitutional about this proposal, unless they go so far as to disregard an unfavorable decision by the Governor General...

So please, if you're ignorant, please feel free to continue calling this a coup d'etat.

Information - bad for public opinion!

...You'd think that's the marketing mantra for the conservatives these days.

They've created a website, rally 4 canada (i'm not going to honour them with a link or even correct spelling), with a lot of misinformation. allow me to deconstruct some of their lies:

Layton negotiating with Duceppe "for quite some time to form a plan to seize power" - that's what opposition parties do during a minority government. In fact, I'm pretty sure the Conservatives were doing the same when Martin was PM...

"and to overthrow the government" - that's part of how the first past the post system is supposed to work.

"overturn the results of the last election" - overturn the results, you mean introduce non-elected members to parliament? clearly Harper is trying to implant the (FALSE) notion that Canada elected Him personally. (that's NOT how our system works, folks!)

"without seeking consent from we the Canadian voters" - the electorate does NOT choose who the government will be - they, we merely choose who we send from our riding to REPRESENT us. Forming the government is the responsibility of the party representing the most ridings, and consent is only required from the Governor General (symbolic, I know).

"from we the Canadian voters" - WE ??? disappointingly reminiscent of the divisive neo-conservative (somebody will surely correct me) friend or foe strategy.

"the Bloc Quebecois is dictating the terms of the next government" - meanwhile, in French, they mock the Bloc for "selling out to a federalist party."

"this unelected government" - again, their members were elected exactly the same way the cons. were; besides, in a minority government, MORE people voted AGAINST the party in power than in favor...

"the government of Canada would be at the mercy of the people committed to destroying our confederation." - how is that different from before? The Bloc has (when convenient to Quebec) supported the previous cons. minority government on surely several occasions. Doesn't that also put Harper's government at the mercy of the same good people?

"people committed to destroying our confederation" - there's an interesting hint of Trudeau in that! fact of the matter is, separatists just don't believe that the current direction Canada is heading in corresponds to the promises made during Confederation; they are bitter over the ol' "bait and switch" that was pulled on them time and again, and they are simply there to ensure an eventual transition is orderly and respectful when (if) ever they choose to go their own way. That's a little different from say, Iran committed to destroying Israel, for example, wouldn't you agree? Additionally, they have a better chance of creating a ideologically compatible federal atmosphere with Dion and Layton than under Harper.

"democracy-loving Canadians... gather to support democracy" - uhm, didn't we do that at the polls six weeks ago? what's undemocratic about parties coming together to represent a majority of ridings trying to form a government? didn't the old PC and Reform parties do exactly that a few years ago?

"support democracy, not political games" - ha, that's funny coming from them.

"in this time of crisis" - what crisis? I thought our "fundamentals were strong," this was only a "technical recession," and "a good time to invest" ?

Funny too, how I can't find the rally 4 canada website in French... might actually allow people to compare their claims! No wonder they are against "expensive" bilingualism - it just makes it harder for them to divide and conquer.