On the way back into the big city, I picked up the new Rolling Stone – mainly ’cause Saskatchewan’s own Sheepdogs were on the cover, picked to be the first unsigned band ever to make the RS cover.  Great story, and great to see success come to four guys who have worked so hard.

Also great: these two quotes in the Austin Scaggs story:

“We got our picture taken with [Stephen Harper],” says [lead singer Ewan] Currie.  “Which is akin to having your picture taken with Bush.  I mean, people really hate this guy in the artistic community.”

And:

[Upon spotting, in a Saskatoon drinking hole, a drunk in a spandex shirt with a huge tattoo on his face]: “He’s probably from Delisle,” says Cullen.

I love it.  Anyway, here’s one of their tunes.  Congrats to them, and to their hometown.  Much deserved.

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In political circles these days, there is apparently nothing more coveted than the very thing we all hope our kids will never be.

You know, a hayseed. A bumpkin. Political scientists have a fancy moniker for it, a “populist.” But whatever you call it, it’s certainly in political vogue these days.

And the simplest route to political power, it seems, is the one that involves appearing, well, simple. Feel like mocking books and art? Go to it, pardner! Think higher education – or even education – are overrated? Speak your mind!

Most usefully, are y’all in the mood to bash nameless “elites”? Fill yer boots! Give ‘er!

It’s a tad ironic, given we all presumably send our kids to school so they can read books and learn and use their minds and succeed where we didn’t. But it’s a fact, nonetheless: Aspirants for high office now widely regard education and knowledge as an impediment to political success. That’s the “populist” credo at work.

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Ontario Conservative leader Tim Hudak forgot and then eventually if grudgingly remembered that he signed an petition not that long ago to revoke government funding of abortion services. Why he signed it is apparently a mystery even to himself, because he says that if elected he certainly wouldn’t do what the petition he signed called on politicians to do, if you can follow that.

Forgetfulness is the only reason I can think of why a politician would sign a petition demanding he do something and then promise to refuse to do it if elected.

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How very interesting:

“But the little Ford-Harper On the Road yuck fest video that went viral Wednesday, then AWOL Thursday, apparently didn’t sit right with the Prime Minister’s Office.

The video was yanked from YouTube, although by Thursday night it had mysteriously popped back up on the site.

It had been taken down by the user, one of the 800 or so Ontario Conservatives who attended a tribute to Finance Minister Jim Flaherty at Ford’s mother’s home Tuesday evening.

Harper’s office took care of that.”

What happened? Well, I’m told that Hudak’s folks went ballistic after seeing Harper’s maladroit suggestion that cities, provinces and the entire country be run by the Conservative Party. If anything can sink Hudak’s party, it’s that.

Polling I’ve seen – and they’ve seen – makes crystal clear that Ontarians don’t want the same Con cabal running everything. They want some checks and balances in Canadian democracy.

Arrogant, pompous, dumb: Harper’s comments were all of those things.

And they may have just helped to sink Tim Hudak.

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That’s the only rational explanation for Harper’s boneheaded move, here.

He has now enabled us to say:

“Stephen Harper wants the Conservative Party to run Toronto, the country, and the province too. Do you want the same party running everything? Is that a good idea?”

God is indeed a Grit.  Thank you, Lord.

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But it’s just as likely part of the Liberals’ search for a wedge issue like the one they exploited so well in 2007, when then-Progressive Conservative leader John Tory lost his grip on the campaign over his promise to extend funding to faith-based schools.

The Liberals raised such an issue last month, accusing Tory leader Tim Hudak of hiding his views on abortion. Hudak, it turns out, had signed a petition during the Tories’ 2009 leadership race favouring withdrawal of public funding for abortion. His response to questions on the issue in July — “I may have signed a petition from my riding in that respect” — was feeble. Hudak said he would “not reopen” the abortion debate, but the issue may have been partly responsible for his party’s recent drop below 40% in the polls — the magic number for a majority government.

The abortion ambush was legitimate. Abortion is one of the most enduring hyper-political issues in Canada. You’d better have your stance clear when you’re looking for a leadership position.

Just how strong are Hudak’s beliefs on abortion, and is he likely to act on them? He has to explain.

This is fair game in politics.

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Turmel’s separatist leanings have been columnized ad nauseum. My question is different: who found it? Was it the media, an enemy in the NDP, or the Reformatory research bureau? Whoever did it, my sincere congratulations. This was quite the take-out. The NDP has been damaged, big time.

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I’ve had a Berry since the very first one. I loved RIM’s products for years – but the company didn’t love me back.

In my opinion, pretty much everything coming out of RIM, now, is a disappointment. Their apps are a joke. Their OS are buggy. Their innovations aren’t innovative. They make dumb business decisions. They miss their own product deadlines.

I own an iPhone, and it gives me no problems. It does everything I want it to do, and then some.

There’s only one thing left that keeps me carrying a Blackberry, too.

The keyboard.

The iPhone’s on-screen keyboard is a disaster. It is only useable for a few words at a time, and then your head explodes.

The Blackberry keyboard, however, is still a marvel. It works. Their keyboard, in fact, is all that keeps the company from a trip to the dirt farm.

So that’s why I’m hoping the new Berrys – long, long delayed – continue to offer the best keyboard. If they don’t, I’m gone.

If they don’t, RIM will be gone, too, I think. And that would be a huge blow for innovation in this country.

What’s your take, O faithful readers?

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Here:

In 1996, under the Harris Conservatives, an MPP by the name of Frank Klees introduced a private member’s bill that would limit access to abortion by mandating parental notification before any minor can terminate a pregnancy. Regardless of the myriad of reasons a young woman may not want her parents to know.

Tim Hudak voted in favour of the bill. The same Tim Hudak, who as premier, would be Ontario’s chief lawmaker. And Frank Klees is still an MPP.

In all, 34 MPPs voted in favour of this legislation. All of them Conservatives.

So, what would Hudak, a pro-life leader, do as premier? The questions continue to mount but his silence speaks volumes. In absence of answers, his record stands.

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