Late entry in the contest, and worth a look:

Comments (7)

Middle son and I listened to this story on CBC radio this morning with delight.

Not only did Leonard Nickelray survive – he survived, he told the media, while he was listening to Pennywise and Rancid!

(Smart middle son observation: “Dad, it sounds like listening to punk rock loud was the reason he almost got killed.”  I told him I wasn’t interested in a contrarian son.)

Anyway, to equip you, too, with supernatural powers, and the ability to withstand collisions with speeding locomotives, here’s Pennywise with (naturally) ‘Knocked Down.’

Comments (1)

We give you Cheryl Gallant.

She’s always been a loon. She is a loon now.  She always will be a loon.

Why is anyone surprised?

Comments (14)

Ignatieff shows some leadership.  Good.

The other day, Chantal Hebert wrote that Harper’s secret perimeter deal would split Liberals. With the greatest of respect, she’s flat wrong. Every Liberal I have spoken to sees this pact as a potential threat to our sovereignty – whether they admire Barack Obama or not.  (And I do.)

John Manley and Frank McKenna – who will almost certainly be trotted out to defend this thing – are not in the mainstream of the Liberal Party anymore. They’re smart fellows.  But whatever they have to say about the secret deal is of no force and effect with any Grit I know.  In fact, it will propel many Liberals in the opposite direction.

What we know about the perimeter deal so far frankly stinks. In the main, the secret agreement seems to involve handing over personal information about Canadians to the Americans, in exchange for illusory customs benefits. If the Reformatories want to fight an election over their desire to integrate Canada with the United States, I welcome that. They’d lose.

Michael Ignatieff, increasingly, doesn’t sound afraid of that prospect either:

“Canadians need to know: How much decision-making authority over Canada’s immigration policy is Mr. Harper prepared to give to the U.S.? Does the Conservative government intend to yield to U.S. demands that we change our immigration and refugee system? In a perimeter security deal, who will speak for new Canadians?

On America’s other land border, with Mexico, ‘security co-operation’ has led to significant U.S. control over Mexico’s security priorities and intelligence operations. Is this the future Mr. Harper envisions for Canada?

These and other questions must be answered, but the Conservative government seems determined not to answer them. We still do not know how much the proposed perimeter security measures – including new border infrastructure and expanded digital capacity – will cost, or if they will be included in the next federal budget. We still do not know who will sit on the Beyond the Border Working Group, or when it will present its recommendations.

Parliament is the place to answer these questions, in public, in front of the elected representatives of the Canadian people.”

Comments (61)

Comments (7)

“Despite making more than $100,000 a year as an MPP, [Jim] Wilson said he often finds himself “broke” at the end of the month.”

Comments (19)

Last week, Hudak’s office stated clearly that “if elected premier, he would not cut the health tax or Ontario’s health care budget.” Tory MPP Sylvia Jones followed that up by repeatedly accusing Liberal Health Minister Deb Matthews of “lying” for saying that Hudak intended to cut the $3-billion health premium.

By Monday, Hudak had reversed himself (and Jones). He said cutting the health premium, which costs taxpayers up to $900 per year, is still “on the table.”

“He flipped last week, flopped today,” said Matthews, clearly enjoying the chance to lob Hudak’s favourite “flip-flop” criticism of Premier Dalton McGuinty, back at him.

Amid all this flip-flop and beer talk, though, remains a more serious issue: What is Hudak’s health care plan?

Comments (18)

Awesome Eighties-ish tunage, sung by a guy (Adam Thompson) who I met in Ottawa’s Place du Portage 100 times every day.  My daughter and I car dance to this one.  You will too. Glaswegians.  Figures.

Comments (0)

From Ted Betts, and Laura Brown:

Comments (2)

From a great Grit, Taylor Scollon:

Comments (0)