Quite a few members of the Parliamentary Press Gallery, and not a few Big Names in Canadian media, talk to each other on Twitter. It’s fascinating to follow – like listening in on a party line.

In an unrelated matter, we’ve been drinking strawberry daiquiris, and I’m using an iPad to post this on QuickPress.

You’re welcome.

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Randy Denley:

“As a safety program, the boater-licensing regime has more holes than a leaky rowboat. Even though boat owners must be licensed, unlicensed people who’ve never been in a boat in their lives can still rent them after filling out a safety checklist. Twelve-year-olds can operate boats of up to 40 horsepower, and can run bigger boats if they have a 16-year-old on board. Children under 12 can also operate boats up to 10 horsepower.”

(When I worked for him at the Ottawa Citizen, I didn’t ever argue with Randy, and I’m not about to argue with him now. But I had been under the impression that the new boat regs make it tougher for children to do what they once did on the water – which was, pretty much anything, no limits.)

In any event, Randy’s overall point is correct: Canada tolerates things taking place on the water that would never happen on the nation’s highways.

I have a laminated Pleasure Craft licence in my wallet. I got it last Summer. I was ten minutes early for a lunch with a Liberal friend, and I saw a boat-exam company had a booth nearby. I walked up, paid the fee, and did the exam. I got every question right, except one about sailing. I don’t sail.

I own two motor boats, however, and I try to be serious about safety. I don’t let anyone onboard unless they are wearing a life jacket at all times. Everyone has to stay in the seat they were assigned, and there’s no moving around mid-journey. And the stuff I regularly see on other boats – like open bottles of booze – are verbotten.

The craziest part about the new “rules,” in my opinion, is the rental thing. You can stagger up to a marina carrying a two-four, pretend to listen to the “safety checklist,” pay the rental, and then get handed the keys to a speedboat with a 300hp Merc. No questions, no problems.

There have already been a number of boat tragedies this Summer, and there’ll be plenty more before the end of August. Happens every year. Many of them could be avoided if Transport Canada got its head out its arse, and stopped treating the nation’s lakes and waterways like they were the Wild West.

Will they? I doubt it. The Harper Reformatories are libertarians more than they are conservatives. The only extra police activity they favour involves beating the Hell out of weird-looking people during the G20 weekend.

In the meantime, boating deaths and injuries will continue as before.

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The first political party I belonged to makes a bold move. Smart. What do you think?

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Seeing this, some Grits might be moved to recommend making some big changes, but they’d fall on deaf ears, I suspect. What would you suggest be done to fix this?

Liberal support down significantly: poll
CBC News
Last Updated: Thursday, July 8, 2010 | 5:08 AM ET

Support for the federal Liberal party has sunk to its lowest level in more than a year with the Conservatives taking a 10-point lead over their political rivals, a new EKOS opinion poll suggests.

The poll, released exclusively to CBC, suggests that 34.4 per cent of respondents would vote for the Tories if an election were held today, compared with 23.9 per cent for the Liberals.

In recent weeks, the Liberals had narrowed the Tory lead to three to four percentage points. But over the past week, the Liberals have taken a nearly seven-point drop in support.

According to the poll, the Conservative Party is leading in every region except for Quebec and in Atlantic Canada, where they are tied with the Liberals, who are losing ground in some key areas and not leading in any region.

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If true, this is an absolute disgrace. It should concern every Canadian:

“As Sarah began pleading with them to give her father a little time and space to get up because he is an amputee, they began kicking and hitting him. One of the police officers used his knee to press Pruyn’s head down so hard on the ground, said Pruyn in an interview this July 4 with Niagara At Large, that his head was still hurting a week later.”

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Bought a new bunch of Livestrong bracelets yesterday at Nike; I’ve been wearing one non-stop since my Dad got sick, more than six years ago.

This CP story is a nice one, and shows the power of fighting back against this damned disease.  If you want to send Jack your best wishes, you can email him at: LaytoJ@parl.gc.ca

***

Well wishers like ‘wind under your wings,’ says cancer stricken NDP leader (Layton-Health)

OTTAWA _ NDP Leader Jack Layton says he’s getting a big lift from public support for his battle against prostate cancer.

“I’m getting well-wishes from all over the place,” said Layton, who’s remained in the public eye since announcing last February he had contracted the same cancer his late father defeated 17 years ago.

“I have no doubt they have an impact. It’s like you’ve got this wind under your wings.”

He told a news conference Tuesday _ just hours after his latest medical checkup _ he feels good and doctors are “really happy” with his progress.

Layton, who turns 60 later this month, said he feels better all the time, despite losing 10 to 15 pounds and adhering to a strict diet that includes broccoli, cooked tomatoes and a southeast Asian berry called goji, known for its medicinal qualities and health benefits.

“I’ve cut out a lot of things I used to love to eat,” he said. “So I’m down to the weight I was when I was 25, and they say that’s good for your health in general, anyway. I’m feeling very good.”

The New Democrat leader said it appears his progress is following the same path as that of his father, Robert, who made a full recovery.

“I’m very, very optimistic,” he said. “So far, so good.”

The elder Layton, a Progressive Conservative cabinet minister in Brian Mulroney’s government, died in 2002 at age 76 due to complications from Parkinson’s disease.

Virtually every member of Parliament wore a teal-and-blue-striped tie or scarf inside the House of Commons one day in March in support of Layton’s fight. They’re the colours of Prostate Cancer Canada.

“His public gesture of courage showed Canadian men and their families that they are not alone in their daily fight to combat this illness, but more needs to be done,” Conservative MP Jim Abbott said at the time.

Layton said he’ll be taking a little time with his granddaughter Beatrice this summer, but it’ll more likely be in the confines of his Toronto riding than on the northern whitewater rapids he and wife Olivia Chow like to navigate.

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• Credit where it’s due, etc.: The Harper government – and principally due to the anti-tobacco convictions of the Prime Minister, I believe – has been far tougher on Big Tobacco than the minority Liberal government that immediately preceded it.  This latest move, on prohibiting flavoured cigarettes aimed at addicting children, is a great one.  I have a very personal interest here, but I think it’s high time that the feds – and the provinces – also started taking legal action against tobacco companies for lost health care costs.  Will they?  So far, few Canadian jurisdictions have.  Maybe Harper will, and lead the way.
• Conservatives fighting conservatives, etc. This one is fascinating.  Since the G20 debacle, a furious debate has been raging within conservative circles, online and off.  Typically pro-police and anti-protestor, some conservatives (such as Mike Brock, who is not crazy, and Mr. and Mrs. Blazing Cat Fur, who possibly are) have found themselves in the unusual position of being targeted by police during the G20 – simply for standing on a sidewalk.  If what the three of them experienced is in any way true, they deserve to be upset.  However, not all rightists feel that way: some, like the mouth-breathers who congregate at Small Dead Animals, have been highly critical of Brock and the Furs.  Personally, I feel the latter deserve some measure of credit for playing against type, and actually championing civil liberties.  As a result, they come out looking like the true free speechers.
• G20 about-face, etc. Inevitably and belatedly, Toronto police have acknowledged that they cannot and should not ever review their own conduct.  Along with being utterly contrary to the rules of natural justice, their earlier insistence that “police investigate police” suggested that they knew they made some big, big mistakes on the ill-fated G20 weekend (see above), and were hoping to cover it up.  Time to get at the truth.  There are simply too many stories of G20 police abuse for all be false.  A welcome development.
• Israel is a democracy, and others aren’t, etc. This story is both sad and encouraging all at the same time.  Sad, because it makes clear that a minority of Israeli soldiers were indeed involved in highly discreditable conduct.  Encouraging, because Israel is pretty much the only country in the entire Middle East that would even bother to investigate such abuses – and then, when found to exist, prosecute them to the full extent of the law.  When was the last time any of the countries surrounding Israel did that?  Never, pretty much.
• Ravens, crows, etc. As my kids and some friends will tell you, I am a raven/crow nut; I’m obsessed by these birds.  Along with chimpanzees, some of these creatures (such as the incredible New Caledonian crow) are the most intelligent animals on the face of the planet.  I have raven native art all over my apartment, and if I ever get the courage (and find a certifiably safe tattoo place in Toronto), I’m going to get Beau Dick’s Hands of Creation applied to my arm.  Anyway, I digress: the discovery of a rare white raven in B.C. is a huge, huge deal, and the harbinger of much good fortune.  We need it!
• The power of stories, etc. Nice column in the Winnipeg Sun, spotted only because it came up in one of those Google Alert things.  As someone privileged to work for disabled adults seeking justice, I can indeed attest to this: facts tell, but stories sell.

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11:40 – There are huge trucks trying to get past a big traffic jam at Pinewood Studios, where lunch with Her Majesty is happening. Horns honking, much chaos. There is a clear need for a Toronto police presence. (First time anyone’s said that since before the G20, I’ll wager.)

11:55 – I’m inside the cavernous reception area, beside an old plane. They’re playing the theme from ‘Ghostbusters.’ I don’t understand why, but they are.

1:09 – We’re seated, but still no Queen. And now they’re playing the theme from ‘The Godfather.’ Not a choice I would have made, but I’m not an expert in protocol.

1:25 – Her Majesty walked right beside our table! She smiled at Bob Richardson and I, and sort-of nodded! She did not, however, seek my opinions on coalition governments.

1:40 – Bob and I were apparently just spotted on TV applauding the Queen as she walked by. Unanimous reaction: “What are those two disreputable barnacles doing there? How’d they get in?”

1:55 – Nice lunch. But now they’re playing the French national anthem, La Marseillaise. Who is running the music for this event? Charles de Gaulle?

2:20 – CTV’s Richard Madan just told me I’m on TV watching half of Metric play an acoustic set. I’m wearing a suit. It’s weird watching a rock’n’roll band when you are wearing a suit. Unless you’re Bryan Ferry or Robert Palmer, I guess, in which case it’s acceptable.

2:50 – The Queen and The Best Premier In Canada just walked by us.  The luncheon is concluded.   Bob and I will now step into the blast furnace that is Toronto’s weather, today, and tell everyone about our Royal encounter.

Which, I guess, we have now done.

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This story – I swear to God – is the blackline story on the front of today’s Toronto Star:

“To some, it is a cultural ritual. Others consider it a cosmetic procedure that ensures a son will look like his father. A growing faction believes it can save lives. Still others say it is a desecration of the human body.

Male circumcision has long incited debate over its merit.

But the controversy over preserving an infant boy’s foreskin has reached a new frenzy as Canadian and U.S. health authorities are poised to issue major evaluations on circumcision and its potential health benefits.

The reassessments by the Canadian Pediatric Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics are being welcomed by pediatricians who say the new guidance for parents is long overdue. Critics, however, are incensed the procedure – which they liken to genital mutilation – is even being talked about in medical circles.”

What do you think, Internet?  Vote now, vote often!  Results will become government policy, so don’t lose this important opportunity!

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