Yesterday (01/11/10), Prime Minister Stephen Harper declared himself Canada's economic saviour, telling BNN that by proroguing parliament, he brings stabiliy to the financial markets. By day's end, slumping commodity prices, not Mr. Harper's preposterous claim, drove the S&P/TSX composite index to its first triple-digit loss of the new year and the dollar fell half-a-cent.
Today, the PM and his finance minister are being lectured by Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin page on Canada's structural deficit, saying the government hasn't produced any analysis showing the country's deficit is not "permanent and it won't go away."
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Prorogation upside, downside
Dismissing, for a moment, the reprief we get from minding the kids in this minority parliament sandbox, if there is a silver lining, it is that the government's right-wing justice reform agenda has been put on hold.
The 11 justice bills (for legislation progress chart: click here) that died on the table have "a strong American flavour, and in which the human and financial costs remain hidden,” deal with the Conservative's "tough on crime agenda."
Prorogation breaks the impasse that began building between the government and the Senate (soon-to-be-resolved when the red chamber goes Toy blue after Mr. Harper announces his senate appointments) over two bills and sends others, including controversial sentencing legislation, back to square one.
Liberal senators had insisted on amending Bill C-15 - the government's "reefer madness" marijuana sentencing bill. The upper house also insisted on amending a bill to shield home-business operators from sweeping search-and-seizure provisions.
The government was unlikely to accept the Senate amendments, setting up a cycle between the Commons and Senate bouncing eh bills back and forth.
But prorogation means those amendments cease to exist and both bills will head back before the Stephen Harper-appointed Conservative-controlled non-elected Senate.
Stephen Harper's right-wing social agenda is to mount a direct attack on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Mr. Harper declared prior to prorogation that a vote on an omnibus crime bill was a vote of confidence. Last election, the last triggered by his last prorogation, Jusctice Minister Rob Nicholson, warned that the "anti-crime measures [are] subject to a vote of confidence." The Conservative attack on civil liberaties will be unrelenting until Mr. Harper is defeated.
You should read: click here
The 11 justice bills (for legislation progress chart: click here) that died on the table have "a strong American flavour, and in which the human and financial costs remain hidden,” deal with the Conservative's "tough on crime agenda."
Prorogation breaks the impasse that began building between the government and the Senate (soon-to-be-resolved when the red chamber goes Toy blue after Mr. Harper announces his senate appointments) over two bills and sends others, including controversial sentencing legislation, back to square one.
Liberal senators had insisted on amending Bill C-15 - the government's "reefer madness" marijuana sentencing bill. The upper house also insisted on amending a bill to shield home-business operators from sweeping search-and-seizure provisions.
The government was unlikely to accept the Senate amendments, setting up a cycle between the Commons and Senate bouncing eh bills back and forth.
But prorogation means those amendments cease to exist and both bills will head back before the Stephen Harper-appointed Conservative-controlled non-elected Senate.
Stephen Harper's right-wing social agenda is to mount a direct attack on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Mr. Harper declared prior to prorogation that a vote on an omnibus crime bill was a vote of confidence. Last election, the last triggered by his last prorogation, Jusctice Minister Rob Nicholson, warned that the "anti-crime measures [are] subject to a vote of confidence." The Conservative attack on civil liberaties will be unrelenting until Mr. Harper is defeated.
You should read: click here
Monday, January 4, 2010
Do you have anything to declare?
The ban on HIV-positive people entering the US officially ends today. The 22-year-old law was one of the most restrictive immigration policies in the world for people with HIV but was lifted by President Barack Obama in November.
As the first Canadian TV personality to publicly acknowledge my HIV status and being active in HIV/AIDS awareness, I was never denied entry to the US while so many others were. I often wondered why? Perhaps my file was never red-flagged by US authorities. Perhaps it was profiling. Over the last two decades I crossed the border countless times with my medications for gay journalism conferences, holidays, baseball games, and work.
The ban was brought in by Ronald Reagan, the President who never let the word AIDS cross his lips. Liberal and Conservative governments never made it a bi-lateral human rights issue because the US and Canada seem blind to such abuses existing in our friendship of democracy. They do (i.e. Marc Emery).
The fact that a ban on travel to the US has been lifted - symbolic, in part, to host to 2012 International AIDS Conference - pales against Prime Minister Stephen Harper's cold-shoulder in not attending the XVI International AIDS Conference in Toronto*, his government's court case against Vancouver's Insite and inability to talk thoughtfully about HIV/AIDS in Canada today: on the streets of the Downtown Eastside, in aboriginal communities and to gay youth.
Now, when asked if we have anything to declare when entering the US, every HIV-positive Canadian should loudly declare, "YES! I have HIV!"
* Just before the 11th conference in Vancouver (1996) Jean Chretien announced he had an important fishing vacation that would prevent him from opening the conference.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
A better man for it
(The following is an edited written version of the keynote speech delivered by Dave Brindle at the Canadian AIDS Society World AIDS Day Gala - A red tie affair - December 1, 2009, Ottawa, ON)
My name is Dave Brindle, and I’m here tonight to recruit you. If those words sound familiar, they should. The anniversary of the assassination of gay civil rights leader Harvey Milk was five days ago. Those were his words, as were: "come out." Simple, powerful words.
Harvey Milk did not live to see the onset of the HIV/AIDS horror that killed the thousands and thousands of too-young gay men - whose lives he championed, and forever changed - I am here before you tonight to give his words re-newed emphasis. I think we need to remind ourselves of how effective the simplicity of those words can be in bringing about monumental change, if we are to change the stigma of HIV/AIDS.
Harvey Milk did not live to see the onset of the HIV/AIDS horror that killed the thousands and thousands of too-young gay men - whose lives he championed, and forever changed - I am here before you tonight to give his words re-newed emphasis. I think we need to remind ourselves of how effective the simplicity of those words can be in bringing about monumental change, if we are to change the stigma of HIV/AIDS.
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