blueblood

Being homeless in my opinion is hell, no bed, no warmth, no guarantee of food. At least in jail you get these. I'm not surprised more bums don't commit crimes, they'd go to jail, they'd get warm food, a bed, a warm home which in my view is better than living on the street. There are lots of first degree murderers and organized crime members that education wouldn't help as well. Most murder is pre meditated (for example Paul Bernardo, Laci Petersen case) and for organized crime kingpins --> they made millions, why should they go to a life where they'd make so much less? But for knocking off a 7-11 when your 14, that's where the education comes in, but what if they reoffend anyway? It would seem that that education was all for nothing.

I dont see the hypocracy. We have signed a treaty with other nations and it states we will not send anyone back if they are facing the death penalty. Now if we can extradite someone before being convicted and sentenced to death, well then fine with me and our govt. Plenty of first world countries do not even entertain extradtion in any form. We do not let all the murderers out because we have convicted them and incarcerated them for crimes on our soil. Look at this more simply. We have a murderer running around on our streets scott free. He has escaped justice, should he be running around free while other murderers are locked up. This is a loophole that is being exploited and needs to be closed. we don't have to drop him off at the airport, we can just boot him out of a plane with a parachute. The point is we cannot have murderers running around our streets in Canada.

So what gives this murderer the right not to face justice? It's not our business to detain/try him, it's bangledesh's. If I was in the bangledesh gov't i'd be hopping mad. By not extraditing this person is a flat out obstruction of justice even if it is barbaric. He did the crime in Bangledesh, he should pay for it there. Why not let all the murderer's in Canada out then. This is hypocricy in it's finest.

We outlaw pedophelia, it's disgusting. Even though a 14 yr. old might want to get with a 25 yr. old badly, it's still outlawed. Iranians think that if a woman gets raped she is to get stoned to death. No, laws are the rules of society, follow them or go to jail/leave. The majority of Canadians brought in gun control, it's a law, we all have to follow it. The majority decides I don't have a right to property, that's the law I follow it. We have a right not to be disgusted, those relationships are often manipulated and oppressive. Also children born to incest are unhealthy. The charter was meant as protection, not to be abused in this way. An orderly society is one that follows the laws that govern it, oh guess what that includes incest and polygamy. What the charter is suppossed to undermine democracy? A key pillar of democracy is majority rules, which is my view. We shouldn't be under a dictatorship ruled by a piece of paper. You are damn rights minorities should be grateful, the majority decided to have a society that welcomed them, they could have easily said we want a different society. Your definition of society is consistent with a society like Lenin's and Trotsky's ideal country.

Guyser is going to tear me in half for this one but here I go... Kim Walker got sent to jail for killing somebody (In my opinion he had just cause, it's not right in a lot of ways its a belief that's all) Now this other guy killed somebody, and he gets to immigrate to Canada and run around Scott free, this guy just got away with murder. If I can accept that Kim Walker commited a crime and got punished for it, this other guy should be punished as well. We have no business becoming a safe haven for criminals, we also have no right to interfere with the justice system of another country. It's too bad Bangledesh has the death penalty, maybe he should have thought about that when he committed treason. Quite the double standard here.

Studies have shown that education, while serving time, is extremely beneficial for both society and the person incarcerated. If they do work while in jail they are paying their keep, 5-6 bucks a day that they get for working 8 hours or more, is NOT getting paid to be in jail. For example, the City of Nanaimo, has a contract with the medium security detention facility located there. They give the facility x amount of dollars for the contracted work the inmate crews do. The inmates who go out each day, get paid between 5 and 6 bucks per day, while they are working 8+ hours. The facility integrates the difference in monies paid out and received, into their operational costs. And it is a significant amount. So in truth, the workers are paying for their incarceration costs plus, receive pocket money towards when they get out, or to buy personal items within the jail. Moreover, as I stated above, if the inmate does take skill courses and post secondary education, they must either get student loans to do so, or have a private funding source. The course rates are lower because the inmate is NOT attending the educational facility and thereby is not contributing to the associated costs of direct attending said facility. And I believe that is fair. That seems all fine and good for someone going through rehab. There is the problem with hardened criminals and repeat offenders, maybe they are just born criminals and won't change. I believe this also sends out a very dangerous message to the poor especially the homeless, it's alright to commit crime; for causing harm to society you will get a warm place to live, guaranteed food, entertainment, lax employment, belong to a society --> there's more incentive to go to jail than to stay out. What's next subsidizing prostitutes for conjugal visits on a regular basis? I agree that education and all that will help, but it should be provided to the prisoners that truly want to reform and have undergone a psych evaluation. Society should also accept that those who are truly reformed are no longer "bad guys" and should not discriminate against/judge them as that's half the problem.

It's funny you are convinced that minimum wages for working people are pure evil but you are on the fence when it comes to welfare cheques for people who decide not to work. I know it's funny actually, I just don't think you need both welfare and a min. wage. Anyhow, I just think that come divorce time, if the stay at home partner has an income, she won't be entitled to the working partner's income. It's sort of an income for themselves (it's not much but it's something) IMO since our society already hands out welfare cheques to those that don't have real jobs, why not to stay at home parents, its sort of funny how it works. Mind you I'm all for tossing out the whole legal concept of marriage and the benefits that go with it. I see point taken.

Agreed. Some stay at home mom's do a great job of raising their kids too. In a market sense yes. Why should someone be automatically entitled to another's income? If the stay at home person makes an effort, then they have somewhat of a point, but if they sit on the couch and watch their ass grow then no, they aren't entitled. It's a case by case basis, but no they should show why they should get a say in the finances.

Pretty much. But Blue blood brought them into the discussion. I agree. Therefore, the only thing to compare is abolishing the minimum wage. Ireland has joined the club to have a minimum wage. Just the opposite of this thread. After their boom. That's my point. I can assure you that if the companies were going to have to pay 8.65 euros an hour off the gun, all those companies would be investing elsewhere.

Slave labour? Hardly. You are really laying the foundation for arguing for privatization of of our penal system. They are already learn employable skills, if they so choose. Unless of course, the CPC government keeps cutting them. Moreover, there are many many programs here in BC, where inmates do community service projects, or projects for private enterprise, and get paid 3-8 dollars a day or some other equally low amount. Not quite like a sweatshop where the prisoners should be making T-shirts for Nike instead of some kid from bangledesh. They work for 16 hrs. a day and 0 dollars an hour and the money from the products funds the prison food, cells, etc. The staff is gov't employees to reduce the risk of corruption from a private firm.

How right wing of you. If the kids become law abiding citizens who work hard that's being raised properly. I've also seen some kids that attend day care that weren't raised properly, it happens. I'm not attacking your precious women with the gold digging statements, i'm attacking gold diggers in general, men are bad for it as well. In my town there is a guy who is married to a female pharmacist and all he does is sit on the couch and watch his ass grow. IMO no man or woman has a right to a dominate spouses assets and bank account. If one partner gets full custody of children pending a divorce, why should the other have to bankroll them, if they don't have any say in how they are raised?

A combination of an extremely low corporate tax rate combined with low wages was what kicked off the Irish economy, Wiki clearly states that. The min. wage was probably brought in due to pressure from who knows what saying that "oh we're awash in money, let's cut into profits and bankroll the poor. It also states in Wiki that with these high wages, there is outsourcing to eastern european countries. Read the entire article in Wiki under the Celtic Tiger. They shouldn't have touched the min. wage because if there ever becomes a recession trouble is coming. They're economic masters because they dropped the corporate rate and provided cheap labour to foreign investment.

I think quite a few people who commit first degree murder are financially secure as well. Murder is generally pre-meditated for a variety of reasons. And to think we as taxpayers have to bankroll TV given to the prisoners. Good Lord it's at the point where it makes more sense for a bum to commit a crime than to be a law abiding citizen as life in jail is now better than life on the street.

Good, Here is Ireland Minimum Wage increase recommendation for 2007 The % affected by minimum wage is in the same neighbourhood as here. Now did their minimum wage come before or after their boom? Eastern Europe is starting to kick off and they have very low wages.

Does this stay at home mom have a working husband, or are we talking single moms? Does the question apply also to stay at home dads? Yah, I'll say she has a working husband, i think single stay at home moms already receive welfare. Good point, It also applies to stay at home dads. I'm just really curious at this. On one hand, if she wants to get money he/she should go out and get a job like everyone else. On the other another income makes it easier for the family to get ahead, he/she can more afford to stay at home and properly raise the child, thus help reduce the burden on daycare and the other costs of a non properly raised child. Another point is in the case of marriage when it comes to divorce it could essentially negate gold digging. I'm on the fence as far as my opinion goes.

Just a question, should a stay at home mom get a welfare cheque? I'd like to see where this can of worms would go...

Free Markets aren't working in Africa very well. They're working exceptionally well in Ireland.

Circular logic. Doesn't work. ???? A major belief in Catholicism is abstinence, really getting to know your partner, and no promiscuity. Also they don't believe in condoms and all that. If you follow the first three, you won't need condoms in the first place. IMO if you don't follow the first three you aren't following the rules of catholicism. IMO if you don't believe in the first three and use condoms, calling yourself a true blue catholic is hypocricy. Following Catholicism to a T and/or using protection should stop the spread of aids. From the looks of things AIDS down there is spread because of ignorance, stupidity, selfishness, and carelessness. Education would help the most.

yup to OP, not only that work 16 hrs. a day making things that we'd normally import to fund the prisons.

I don't know, since IMO gays don't take marriage for granted theirs will have more of a chance of working out since they want it so bad. Who knows maybe a lot of the selfish I want I want I want types could learn a thing or two from them.

The US has 300 million people. In the world maybe six billion. The world including Russia and China love to hurt the US, and are not afraid of it. The US needs to be more isolationist. Let these other big boys take care of the world's bad boys. IOW a foreign policy similar to the first 30 yrs. of the 20th century?

ctv hmm, he gets all choked up and offended about anti-gay. Yet it's all right for Bill 101 and "reasonable accomodation". You can't have your cake and eat it too. The quicker these clowns get out of politics the better.

Society is made up of individuals, all those individuals have rights. The rest of that post is a slap to the face of the primary principle of democracy --> Majority rules. Sorry this isn't an elitist country either. A minority of Canadians are criminals, our will is imposed over them, if the majority decides something else is criminal, than those "minorities" are SOL. You get over it.

Why have laws in the first place then? By that logic car thieves are going to feel discriminated against because thier right to steal cars is being infringed upon. This catering to minorities has got to stop. We now live in a society where anyone has the potential to succeed. Why should the majority be punished all the time? We have rights to an orderly society too. There's having rights and abusing them, I think the line is starting to be crossed. Of course laws are discriminatory, they are discriminatory to those that don't follow them. Our society decided that incest was wrong and against the law. IOW if you are incest you don't fit into our society which means you either go to jail or leave (putting it bluntly). The minorities who feel oppressed should be grateful that they are even allowed to be in Canada and even allowed to complain, this is granted due to the benevolence of the majority. If someone doesn't fit in to society, maybe it's time that that person left to where he is tolerated.

Il a gagne parce que les Liberaux detestent de nouveaux gens dans le parti. C'est hors de la zone de confort. Ignatieff est extreme par les normes Liberales sur la politique etrangere. Rae est les NDP. Kennedy peut ne parler pas francais. Il n'y avait pas d'autre choix. Aucun hasard. Aucun accident. Les vieux Liberaux protegeant leurs interets. I thought Kennedy wasn't too bad in french, he can learn like Harper did. The thing is though if the bloc keeps winning seats there, wouldn't it be in the best interests of the Liberals to cater a bit to Western voters to get some seats, with a united right party it's now very hard to gain a majority without the west. Harper threw the Easterners a bone, the Libs can throw the west one. IMO Kennedy is the best choice, new face, new ideas.