Derek 2.0

How is the article dishonest? Are not the Liberals attempting to replace Harper's appointments with their own? Likewise, has the Supreme Court ruled that rules and protocol associated with judiciary judges don't apply to citizenship judges? You can give all the benefits you like, but doesn't change the fact that the Liberals simply want to put in place their own patronage appointments and are bullying these current officials from within the PMO. The Liberals are the ones governing.......what is hypocritical is the Liberals exerting political pressure and control from within the PMO......the very same thing they accused the Harper PMO of doing.......that is hypocritical.

Well that didn't take long: Furthermore, the cause: and this boils down to: So Trudeau's PMO is attempting to muscle out Harper's patronage appointments, so they can make their own patronage appointments.....none the less, the Liberal House leader (and Trudeau's PMO) are using a bully pulpit to interfere with lawfully appointed judges........ And as noted, from the Supreme Court of Canada: So should LeBlanc, and Trudeau's PMO, be able to apply pressure on judges to resign (so they can put their own judges in), or is this the first (apparent) ethics breach by the Trudeau Government?

It was the CBC article with the Rempel quote. So why is the provision of "welcome kits", housing, language training etc in our "National Security Interests"? That is a laughable defense!!!!!!!

Simple......natural selection. In such a scenario, those with chronic illnesses and the (frail) elderly would die off in weeks......those that require prescriptions, like heart medicine or insulin, would follow once their supplies were exhausted within a ~month.......in the interim, many would start to die off from infections and other "third world" diseases related to sanitation, contaminated water and food.......depending on the time of year, many would die from exposure......and then starvation.......in essence, the first couple of months would return society to the animal kingdom. The way to avoid said calamities, is to avoid said people, or, as is more common since the dawn of man, reformation of "tribal groups" of like minded people, born out of geographic location, restoring a semblance of society among their "tribal" group........history would simply rinse and repeat, until civilized society was restored, either by the Government or through the creation of "new" governments.

Are any of said mentions untrue? I did, if you won't give the Tory Immigration critic the time-of-day, I don't know what more can be said. So now you're to suggest this move by the Liberals was to sidestep international trade agreements?

The Americans can currently track any orbital launch from around the globe, and could continue to do so even after said attack......and they very much so have the means to respond. And I'm not ignoring a massive solar flare, any more than a killer asteroid or alien invaders, but putting it into context.......if a solar flare powerful enough to halt all modern electrical systems on Earth were to occur, organic life on the planet would forever be altered.

And that returns to the probability of an EMP attack......those nations that could attack the United States also have nuclear arsenals of their own.....and there is no expectation that they would attempt to attack the United States and not expect a nuclear response.......as such, any EMP attack would be followed with the aggressors own nuclear weapons.

Yes indeed..........without a doubt it will be interesting to see who endorses who, as the field begins to narrow. I would expect the South Carolina primary will be the make or break point for many.

Again, where is the innuendo (quote it), with mention of what is public record? Is stating the Prime Minister was years prior a drama teacher to be construed as a "smear" also? As mentioned, other members experience (of this Government) appear celebrated. And in said article, its mentioned her concern over lack of transparency with other facets of the Syrian refugee program........information this Liberal Government won't provide, citing "security".... You've offered your speculative reasons as to why the Liberals refuse a measure of transparency in the awarding of contracts.......what makes other members musings any less valid? Clearly, the only way this Government could end such speculations is to make their process public........something they seem unwilling to do.

And that is the major fault of the article.......launching a ballistic missile from a vessel brings about a whole host of complexities....launching a ballistic missile and being able to deploy a thermonuclear device into low Earth orbit to generate a NEMP is even more complex .......as I said, you can count on one hand the nations States that are able, and can afford, to do this. If a Terrorist group was able to obtain a hydrogen bomb, they would detonate it in a city....not attempt to launch it into low Earth orbit over the United States. The majority of modern military equipment is EMP protected, be it through isolation, insulation and redundancy......and very expensive silicon carbide computer chips..........For instance, you could produce a EMP protected Smartphone, but it would cost as much as your car. The reason military equipment is EMP protected is because there was/is an expectation it could operate on a nuclear battlefield.........if you want a nations civilians infrastructure to be EMP protected, you will pay military prices for it..........and that doesn't make sense, as said, any nation that could launch such an attack on the United States would be precipitating a nuclear war on itself. Is it a threat? Sure, the writers of The Day After even used it as plot device over 30 years ago. Is it a probable threat? No more so than a nuclear war and far less likely than the threat posed by a terrorist groups obtaining a nuke (or biological or chemical weapon) and deploying it in a large North American City.

Exactly, every dollar spent on guarding against an EMP attack, is a dollar not spent on ports of entry security.....a terror group getting a nuclear/chemical/biological weapon is far more likely than an EMP attack.

Still a ways to go, but Rubio is looking pretty strong in third, right on the heels of Trump........if this strong third place finish holds true, and Trump can be brought down to Earth, Rubio is in a good position once the other establishment (Bush, Kasich, Chrisite) guys drop out, and I expect back Rubio.

That is subjective.......if the Sun releases a "massive EMP", in the region of over 50 MeV+ ( the amount of energy needed to start screwing things up on Earth) the accompanying radiation will be of far more concern........when you're dying of radiation sickness, not been able to play on your smartphone will be the least of your worries.

There is no need to spend huge sums of money guarding against a remote (at best) threat. The calculus is simple: If a nation state launches a nuclear attack on the United States, the United States will respond with their own nuclear weapons. If a nation State explodes a nuclear device several hundred KMs above the United States, the United States will respond with nuclear weapons. Deterrence has worked for over 60 years. Of course I do, but then I don't succumb to very remote threats and suggest we as nations states spend a fortune to guard against it, when there is already a significant deterrent in place. Sure, and I cited the actual Commissions report.........your point? Yes few nations, as in three. The United States, Russia and probably the Chinese to a limited degree.......let me know when "private corporations" develop their own thermonuclear devices..........If we were to receive a geomagnetic storm (solar flare) of a magnitude of a NEMP over North America, lack of electricity will be the least of our worries.

Ahh no.........Change trillion(s) with billion and you might be closer....here is the actual Commission report to help better understand the scope of actually protecting against an EMP attack (far better that blogs, Alex Jones and the Sun).....far more costly and complex, balanced with the fact that very few nations would have the ability to actually conduct such an attack, and those that could, would be on the receiving end of the US nuclear triad, and the ending of their culture and civilization inside an hour.

Again, where is the implication? If we were conversing government defense policy, would noting the current MND's previous career be seen as a "smear"? What of the Finance Minister's past career in the private business sector being noted in a topic on monetary policy, is that also a "smear"? It would seem, in this Government's infancy, such credentials are applauded........so its strange that you denote corruption with a member of this Government with direct knowledge of the immigrant service industry......that would seem something to celebrate loud and proud!!!!! Fake outrage? Not the least, I'd very much like to know the process the Liberal government used to award contracts related to the settlement of Syrian refugees..........that they refuse, citing "security" is forever vexing........

Again, what smear Waldo? Quote it. Did you not refer to the previous Conservative government? I fail to see why mention of the previous Liberal Government's, regardless if its tenure was over a decade ago, past practices involving the awarding of contracts is off key......after all, there are previous members of that past Government, in this present government, including the minister in charge of the Syrian refugee file. Trying to denigrate the program? They are doing that themselves, none the less, that is not reason for the Liberal's close door policy on the awarding of refugee service contracts...........

What is the cost? Again, where do you get a couple of billion as cost? The US DoD paid a couple of billion to upgrade their EMP protected E-4 fleet a decade ago......a fleet of four aircraft........and you want to upgrade the entire power grid of North America for 2 billion?

An interesting subplot to the standoff and the Government's response: I heard this "conspiracy" about a week ago, and discounted it........until a friend forwarded me this four year old story: furthermore: In addition: So we have uranium mining, by a Canadian company partially owned by Putin, in addition to a proposed gold mine that employs the former county sheriff, all relying upon leases granted by the BLM, who's local offices are in the refuge...In addition, alleged collusion between the county judge and his cousin that works for BLM.............I wonder if the Bundy gang really do/did have evidence of corruption as they claim......sounds like a plot for a movie with Steven Seagal...

The cost to mitigate the after effects of a nuclear war for the entire population in the 50s and 60s, through civil defense measures, was too much for most countries then.....when it was far more likely then we'd see a nuclear exchange with the Soviets, versus a massive EMP attack today. Not unless you hardened those facilities too........in BC, the ,majority of public buildings wouldn't even survive an earthquake.........so again it returns to cost.

I don't know how you consider a map useless.....don't you have roadmaps in your car? -------- Five years worth of food, 6 months of water and water treatment tablets and filters for a decade+.

Cost is subjective........public/private utilities are only one part of the problem, the end users grids would be far more costly..........you have any idea how much it would cost to rewire your own home and replace most of your electronics? ---------- As to Texas, its far easier and already is to an extent, as the State itself is already isolated from the North American power grid..........one of the reasons the American military has a large footprint in the State, and its home to major military/aerospace/hightech/energy industries.

Last fall during hunting season........if a person doesn't have a map, or know how to read one, see Darwinism. The best maps are easily purchased (or even downloaded and printed) from your Province's forestry/natural resources ministry......in the United States, it would the USGC.

Without a doubt, waterborne viruses found in untreated water would off lots of people.......dying from dysentery wouldn't be a pleasant way to go out.

Agreed, if the ability to (own) read a map to find locations of food "collection points" is the plan, social Darwinism will come into play severely....and quickly. Simply put, in such a scenario, the majority will rush the grocery stores.....those slightly smarter will rush the warehouses and distribution points.....and those even smarter will avoid the chaos with the supplies they have on hand at home. Those expecting a semblance of civility should study a phenomenon know as the "blue flu", an infliction that effects the emergency services in major disasters or civil unrest (see Katrina for example), in which said officers/paramedics/firefighters/doctors/military etc bugger off and look after their own families.........as made evident by the New Orleans police department, it shouldn't be a surprise to find in such scenarios the first responders looting alongside the rest of society.