Michael Hardner

I think you're right. The story may or may not be true, but it was picked up by the AP when it happened, then disappeared. I hate conspiracy theories, but this seems like a much better candidate for one.

So you advocate fighting lies with lies then ? I hope we haven't really fallen that far. I would submit that it's time for people to start thinking more critically on both sides of the great centre line.

I can't believe I'm rating them higher than Leafless is, but .... 3/5 stars.

Charles: Fair enough... but look at the first post. Some excerpts: The headline: False. Very misleading. Just look at the posts in this thread. Most people, me included, assumed that this study showed something real. We trusted the information posted, and accepted it. I dropped my guard, and was fooled by the official look and impartial language of the site. I didn't read the actual report, because it was subscription only. Only when I found a critique of the report did I realize how much I'd been fooled. These types of Trojan horses are worse than political advertising - much harder to spot. The NBER clearly has some kind of agenda, or they wouldn't stoop to deceive as they did here.

The NBER study seems to be deeply flawed. Exactly, Auguste. Link: Scroll Down to the Second Story... If this point, and the others made in the article are true then the study should be rejected outright.

I'm cringing at the definitions of 'left' and 'right' as they get flung around on these forums. Often, it seems to come down to things posted on those cartoon right-and-left bookends - Rabble and FreeDominion. Good forums posters tend to develop nuanced, intelligent, and fully independent views over time. MLW is the best of these forums, IMO, and there are many posters whose political foundations I can't even label. So why do we contantly have to tie ourselves to the embarassments at Rabble, and Free Dominion ? Or, more accurately, why do we have to tie our political opponents to those forums ? Auguste: Yes, and he had a reasonable response. Threats to public safety should be dealt with, and there's no need to play 'CNN Crossfire' and bring up tangential issues. Mr. Rae got it right, and he's a leftist. BD: Wrong. The left is always tying conservatives to the most extreme conservative views out there just as the right does the same to liberals. I'd like to see us stop talking about those lousy boards, and the closed-minded posters there. Argus: And has our prime minister made any admonishments to the Muslim world ? I don't remember any such thing. This is an example of the reverse - the right is here given CREDIT for hard line views of their extreme cousins. There was a threat made to public security, and the RCMP and CSIS dealt with it. It sounds like the Liberals sensibly left this alone as there's no politics to be played here. If some people on Rabble want to write that this shows we're a police state, etc. etc. etc. they should represent no one but themselves. Kimmy: The cooler heads on both sides are marginalized in a sensationalized news world, IMO. I read that 28% of NDP voters approve of Harper's government, so it seems there are still some people who have open minds out there.

The other stories I saw at the time provided more detail. For example, 'Alaska' refers to an island off the mainline that is within the territory of the state. I'll see if I can find more...

As I said, the story was picked up by AP so it can't be too far out there. It was also reported in other outlets as well. I honestly think this was just missed.

Link This story came out in 2003, and was even picked up by AP but was not reported. A North Korean missile was apparently found in Alaska (!) in 2003. No conspiracy here, just another dropped fly ball by the media, I guess...

Good for you. The CPC set the bar pretty high when it comes to accountability and so forth, but surely some of these types of trips are going to happen. During the Chretien era, as we now know, there was a luxury box at the Molson Centre filled with bureaucrats and ad-men who were PAID to be there. This is much better.

Still nothing on this story. I'd have to agree that a CPC backbencher would have got more coverage from the CBC, and probably the other outlets would have picked it up. But... isn't it amazing that there is nothing reported on this ? Even for a private members bill ? It could eventually go to a vote. MapleLeafWeb informs us so much better than the MSM.

Harper seems to be waiting for the country to come to him, rather than to put himself out there in every photo-op he can find. He's being himself, and that should be enough. If his popularity starts to grow, it will be interesting to see how the coverage of him changes. CTV/CBC still seem confused about him. They're covering the issues, which is good, but there's a big void of personality coverage that will have to be filled sooner or later.

The nature of this story also leads me to think that the school board new that a political point was being made [by the girl] . They're hyper-aware of controversy, these people, and probably hoped to quell it before it started.

Don't confuse GTA, City of Toronto and Metro Toronto. Metro Toronto doesn't exist anymore - it was amalgamated into the City of Toronto comprising the old cities of Toronto, York, North York, Etobicoke, and the borough of East York. I may have left something out there but I don't think so. GTA is 'Greater Toronto Area' which means exactly what it says. I would say that "cities" such as Mississuga would be included as they're essentially suburbs, but not cities such as Hamilton, Barrie and Oshawa as they were/are large centres on their own. Any survey that puts Toronto so high on the list of biggest cities in NA must be counting some of the large suburbs in there...

She should be allowed to mention God, of course. If the school was anticipating that this speech was going to spoil the ceremony (ie. too heavy-handed, too controversial etc.) then they should have taken the opportunity to discuss it with the girl beforehand. They had a chance to do that, but it appears that they didn't do it.

Of course decentralization, and more provincial powers play well in Quebec, but what about the question of money ? At some point, Harper is going to reduce the amount of transfer payments, isn't he ? Doesn't everybody think this has to happen at some point ? Will Quebec still 'like' him then ?

I would say it would include Burlington, Mississauga, Toronto, Brampton, Richmond Hill, Vaughn, Pickering, Ajax, Whitby... maybe even Oshawa.

Auguste: Just a note here - I believe that publicity isn't usually counted in the film's "budget". The budget usually includes the costs to make the film - production, and post production costs - only.

Is this some kind of international law or are you speaking of a particular nation here ? It sounds like you're talking about Canada, so perhaps you could reference the specific law and what exactly they're not allowed to discuss. Government officials meet with individuals and groups all the time to discuss policy, so I don't know what you refer to here.

He was jailed indefinitely for terrorism in S. Africa, when he was commander-in-chief of a group known as Umkhonto we Sizwe. While he was in prison, the group committed acts of violence and sabotage including the car-bombing of a bar called Magoo's in Durban, and an attack on a nuclear plant. After he was released, he became president of the reconciled South Africa. His release is commonly associated with the end of Apartheid in SA, one of the most reviled and racist social programs in history. Terrorist or Freedom Fighter ? For those of you who want to put everything down in a government policy, now be aware that there's no way to codify morality. And if you appoint someone to make moral judgements on your behalf, be aware that you won't agree with them all the time.

Then make it happen. You can do your community a great service. Get a copy of the video, post it on the 'net, then phone City TV and give them the link. My opinion is that there's more laziness out there than bias. The media is only as bad/good as we allow it to be.

The discussion is drifting, but I agree with the earlier posts that pointed out that Harper's statement is non-denominational, and would be welcomed by practicing people of most faiths. The idea that Harper is GWB's idealogical twin is such a lazy argument. The CPC is to the left of the Democrats on many issues, social-wise. I think that it's a shame that such an innocuous and positive statement would be the subject of so much debate. We seem to spend more time arguing symbols and signifiers than actual policy.

Well, I understand your angle on this argument, but I'm used to hearing it from liberals not conservatives like you. When does the 'protect the people from themselves' argument 'kick in' for you ? I've always been leery of this argument when leftists use it, as it has a built-in elitism. In the past I've heard it used to argue for censorship, banning cigarettes, banning gambling. Now you seem to be using to protect people from an addictive fundamentalist religion.

Enskat: Are you saying this is happening and not being reported ? I urge you to record these incidents and take them to the press. If this is true, you'll get your story. I was in the local area, and my take is that the main bias from the Toronto press is they don't want to hear about this.

It would be nice if political discussions could move forward without all these tertiary characters that pop up. Ms. Sheehan has every right to mourn and to be upset, and her son had a right to disagree with the war, but he had already signed his life away by enlisting. America has a volunteer army. I'm glad that the peace movement was successful in stopping the draft, but can we really expect a military to function by allowing soldiers to de-conscript ? I don't think so. I'm a pacifist, so I wouldn't enlist. What kind of pacifist enlists anyway ? I'm sorry the lad is dead, but we can redesign the way all of society works around sad stories. The military machine will be dismantled eventually, just not this way.