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There is big money in government contracts for disasters like Iraq, Katrina. Haliburton, etc. would not make the big bucks they are used to making.

Dear shoop Maybe somebody hasn't informed you Chretien has retired. You seem to forget how things work in Canada. It was PM Martin who appointed Justice Gomery was it not? So Gomery will come out and say Chretien bad, Martin good, and life will continue along its merry way in Canada. And the 2% of Canadians who care about this issue any more will thank you for commenting on it. Cheers

This will be an interesting political game. Ottawa will not choose the question - that is prerogative of the Quebec legislature. However, Ottawa will have to indicate before the referendum whether it considers the question clear enough. The separatists (being unapologetic hypocrites) will try to defend their right to choose the question. However, they will have to be careful. If they refuse to recognize the clarity act and use the previous referendum question then they will likely find it difficult to get international recognition since the any objective observer would agree that the terms set by the supreme court are extremely reasonable.My bet is the PQ will try to organize a committee of eminent Quebequers that includes selected federalists to choose the question and claim that what ever question that committee chooses is clear enough. I don't think they give the Liberal opposition MLAs a chance to veto the question because they would be afraid an honest question would not get the majority required. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Quebec can propose any question they want but Ottawa will decide whether or not to accept the question so basically Ottawa has veto power. In practical terms Ottawa rules on the question. Having said that it is not clear even if we are going to have another referendum, but Ottawa certainly needs to be prepared just in case. The reason I say we may not even have another referendum is that the word is out that the current crop of PQ leadership aspirants are nothing to write home about, and that Charest will rebound and may very well get re-elected. One of the things that has never received much publicity is that if Canada is divisible, Quebec is divisible. My understanding is that a large part of Quebec, Ungava (Northern Quebec) for instance was given to Quebec and it will be taken back by Canada should Quebec leave. These kind if discussions are needed before referendums not after them.

Dear August Are you getting your political parties mixed up? Duplessis was Conservative. Cheers,

Dear Shady, Do you even take the time to reflect on the other points of view to see whether or not they make any sense? From my observation of your posts, and a few others here, Bush could go out and kill his mother in plain daylight and you would find some excuse to rationalize his behaviour as appropriate. I find it very offensive that you accuse Argus of being an anti-Bush loonie. I am shocked that you would ever suggest such a thing. Of course he may be very concerned with what we have observed surrounding the US government's actions in relation to Hurricane Katrina, but seriously, who in their right mind would not be? If you take the time to review what has been written here, instead of churning out your blind Republican dogma, you might be surprised to find out there is not a shred of evidence to support your claim. Bush appointed one of his political buddies with few qualifications to one of the most crucial positions in the country. Some people have probably died unnecessarily because of Brown's mistakes. Today because of the political crisis this is creating for the Republican future election opportunities, Brown had to be and was removed from his role at FEMA. There are already obvious problems with Brown's qualifications. On my way home from work today I heard on the radio that Brown's resume has been discovered to contain falsehoods. If proven to be true I would imagine serious criminal charges will be pending. If I were in your position I would be saying to myself right about now, there are obviously some very serious mistakes that have been made by my president, and myself for having supported such a regime, and we need to make some wholesale changes to correct things. Where is your sense of responsibility? Right now you are looking more and more like a passenger on the Titanic. Do you really want to hit the iceberg? Cheers,

The Disaster President It appears that Bush and the Republicans are now going to pay the political price of of the American frustrations that have been building ever since Ronald Reagan took office. something certainly needs to be changed down there as they appear to be spiraling out of control. Good luck America as you are going to need it.

Let the People Rebuild New Orleans What a superb idea. Let the victims in on how the city is to be rebuilt rather than making them the victims once again.

I'm glad the NYT is not retracting. What a baffoon. Look at these comments.

Bush thanks Canada. Bush joins other Americans in thanking Canada for Katrina relief efforts

The strength of Canada's economy has sure taken the wind out of the sails of the Conservatives. With the Canadian economy doing so well all the Tories have been doing is firing blanks for years and years now. Today our canuk dolla is trading above US$0.85 the highest it has been in 13 years.

Disarray Marked the Path From Hurricane to Anarchy They really do need an independent investigator, free of both Republicans and Democrats, to do an investigation. So now Bush & the Republican controlled congress are going to investigate themselves. What is wrong with Americans? Can they NOT handle the truth?

Dear Renegade Those blanket statements you use to try and tar this group or that group are useless and without substance. Unless one is an historian, quite frankly who cares how badly the right winger Mulroney screwed up, who had the biggest debts of all btw, or what Tuudeau did, or what a mess Mike Harris, whose policies just got trashed by the business community, made in Ontario. At one time all parties use to run deficits, now that is no longer de rigueur. Let's live in today's world. The federal government has had surpluses for the past now more than 10 years, isn't it, and the debt is slowly being reduced. Financially what more could one wish for? Unless we see signs of an inpending recession I'm sure that Goodale will be offering some kind of a minor tax break just before we go to the polls in March, 2006. But if you don't want to pay taxes you had better leave Canada because they are here to stay. Cheers,

Bloc makes big promises while NDP produces results I remember within the past year Layton saying he was going to take on the Bloc. It's nice to see him keep his word. This is the first time that an NDP leader has meet with Quebec's business leaders, the Conseil du Patronat, and so it seems that Layton is moving the NDP more to the centre of the political spectrum. Everybody wants to be in the middle.

Link Nothing like scientific research from some of Canada's major business corporations to put an arrow through the heart of the howling tax cut lynch mobs, eh! This will be good news for a lot of low income and poor Canadians when it goes into effect.

Canadians ready for sovereign Quebec: Duceppe What is the Bloc presently in the polls in Quebec, 45%, is the latest I think. Canadians ignore Mr Duceppe's Bloc Quebecois at their peril. Federal Election Results For Quebec --------Bloc-------------------Liberal Year----Seats-----%--------Seats-----% 2004---54----------12%-------19 2000---38---------------------37 1997---44---------------------26 1993---54---------------------19

Ottawa should heed echoes of '95 This problem of the possibility of Quebec separation from Canada reminds me of the energizer bunny ads - it just keeps coming and coming. If the US Administration was that unprepared for the clearly forecasted Hurricane Katrina, will our Canadian government be any more ready for the next Quebec referendum? Didn't some of PM Martin's cabinet ministers already suggest that the Clarity Act might not be used.?

How do you like this headline - same paper today's edition:

If you think the media is biased here in Canada try the US. You ain't seen nothing yet. Of course the media is biased, so what? Since when is it their job to be impartial, or to be fair.The press are businesses, not democratic institutions. They all have their political connections. If you think the media is biased now, just wait until the CBC lockout is over. The CBC might as well be an official arm of the Liberal party. Anyway this smaller surplus takes the heat off the Liberals for tax cuts. Probably the reason the surplus is smaller now is because the NDP wrangled $4.6 billion from the Liberals to keep them in power. As a matter of fact David Miller the Mayor of Toronto was running around town today with an oversized cheque. He was very happy! Check with the mayors in your province as they probably got some money as well. all sorts of games can be played with the finances. To keep his surplus low goodale probably shoved through some expenditures at the last minute. Perogatives of power I suppose. you seem surprised. Are you relatively new to following federal politics?

Black Dog also explained to me this week that if I view the profile of a member by clicking on a member's name, there is a feature in the profile options entitled "Ignore User". that is available by clicking on it as well. I tried it out a bit this week and am finding it quite useful. I recommend it and I'm sure some people will want to use it for me.

Dear August, I just discovered that "View New Post" feature this week as well, and it saves us a lot of time. Superb. Thank you Greg and the people at MLW. Cheers,

FWIW I'm enjoying this important debate and trying to learn a bit. Dick Cheney is certainly a man to watch, and to keep track of, as my hunch is that he will be the Republican presidential candidate in 2008. He will only be 67 years old in 2008, and I believe Ronald Reagan was 69 when he entered the White House. Sorry for the interruption.

Dear August I have been thinking about the Roberts nomination. It seems to me that Bush is trying to turn back the clock, that he wants to go back to the good ole days, except that perhaps they weren't such the good ole days, for some segments of society. I mean think about it. It appears that the Americans are moving in the direction of removing women's abortion rights. I'm just absolutely astounded in today's world, that this kind of issue is even being discussed. Unbelievable contrast to Canadian society, for sure. Cheers,

Dear renegade, That's a valid point. I suppose that we try and match people up with their communities as much as possible however it is never even going to be exactly right. What if someone calls in sick, vacations , etc.? Cheers,

Dear CES Yes I think I understood the subtle difference that you were pointing out and because at least some of us seem to be a little bit touchy about our US-Cdn connection due to NAFTA, softwood, etc, I thinks perhaps we may be splitting hairs. I didn't read anything into it, but one never knows for sure. I hope McLellan was being friendly as the US has just experienced a terrible tragedy, and we need to be there for them right now. Cheers,

Well, here's some good news for Harper, I think. September 8, 2005