fellowtraveller

Excellent, and it is why you'll be left whining and scratching your head again in a few months. Perhaps if you paid less attention to mindless ideology and more to business, you'd have a clue.

Laugh ...out....loud.... How brainwashed or naive can you be? The last two appointees to our Supreme Court were done partly for their judicial acumen, and partly for their adherence to Liberal values, both small and large 'L'. At the time, Cotler freely admitted that, and made no apologies for it. With the samesex and pot law and many other Charter issues upcoming, he said he was proud to appoint these women, who he was confident would support the govts agenda. Can't be a plainer statement of bias than that from a Cabinet Minister. At least the US process has a review and confirmation element.

Wrong. How quickly you forget. He had a majority and delayed everything possible until after the election. His recent 'decision' (an outright lie actually) on missile defence is a disgraceful play to his caucus and Liberal convention. We're getting what we deserve for continuing to vote for this exhausted and corrupt Party.

For what it is worth, the perspective from the outside is that BC is finally removing its head from its anus and returning to some semblance of fiscal sanity and responsible governance. It is understandable that the Left hates the situation, but that's life in the big city. The flood of economic refugees to Alberta has slowed to a trickle.

Working in what way? Rayner is terminated, which looks appropriate. His lack of action against the rank and file shows a disproprtinate sense of loyalty to officerswho clearly operated outside the rules. He got caught and so did they. His actions were a gross misjudgement, and he deserved to be fired for that. A search for a new chief has begun. Life goes on.

Lois Hole, Lt-Gov of Alberta has passed away. source For once, all of the politicians are telling the truth. Mrs. Hole was truly a remarkable woman. She was that special type that set out to make a difference, and did make a difference. My condolences to her family.

Something the OP will never have to fret about.

They already are everywhere I've lived in Canada. I blame Brian Mulroney for trucks in the left lane.

Some people just love that democratic deficit. Joe Stalin would love this place.

Ceemes, this and the rest of your post are completely wrong. A free vote is not a vote of confidence or non -confidence. It is usually a vote on a 'moral' issue. The death penalty or abortion are other examples. The status of the government is not at question no matter how the vote goes. PM Martin is a coward for not allowing the Ministers to vote as their peers are allowed. Typical and gutless to a degree of cynicism matched only by his predecessor. Lester Pearson would be rolling in his grave. Their obliagtions do not conflict, their first obligation is to represent their constituents. That is who elected them , not the Liberal Party. The PM has released all of their peers from a whipped vote, yet for purely political reasons, does not release the Minsiters. What a corrupt and cynical point of view. You may forgive them, I do not. It is insulting in the extreme to all of us.

More baloney. Cabinet Ministers are, first and foremost, Members of Parliament, and are elected specifically to represent their constituents. Their appointment to Cabinet is secondary to thatv prime responsibility. When the Prime Minister calls for a 'free vote' on a matter of conscience and in the same breath orders his Ministers to vote as ordered, he insults the very democracy he is sworn to defend.

Unfortunately it makes the common error that all men are created equally, which is patently wrong. More correct would be a statement that all people must be treated equally.

No, the NHL is an umbrella organization representing the owners and regulating the on and off ice activities of the commerical groups that own the teams. Each team is a business. The NHLPA does the same for players, who each negotiate personal services contracts under the general guidelines of the league. It is not a union in the traditional sense.

Not really. The fed government still retains the responsibility of defining the WHO of marriage, and each province may define the HOW of marriage. I don't think the Suprreme Court did anything to change that in their ruling. Perhaps a compromise is best since Canadians are split pretty much 50-50 on this issue. Every province could allow the civil union of two people, but reserve the term marriage for those who have a religious ceremony within their church. Really, it's just semantics but it will address the freedom of religion issues as well as allow same-sex partnerships to be fully recognized under the law.

Christmas wishes from the Liberal Party of Canada

Not at all, and you have no reason to doubt that. I support same-sex marriage, while at the same time thinking that the way this issue has been handled by the Liberals from the beginning is a disgrace and an insult to democracy from the beginning. Try , if yoiu can, to separate the issue from the process. I am speaking to the process here.It does not normally bug me that MPs are ordered to vote the party line? No, but it bugs me that the PM can pretend it is a free vote while in the next sentence instructing Ministers to vote as ordered. It can't be both a free and a whipped vote, that would be contradictory. The Libs know a truly free vote would also be a very close vote. They know that many caucus members will vote their conscience or with their constituents. Baloney. Votes of conscience have traditionally been free votes, there have been no consequences for voting as you see fit in a 'free vote'. Nor should there be, why should htere be any penalty on a vote of conscience. There wasn't for death penalty or abortion issues. To allow some of your party to vote as they wish, and others to toe the line, is to me the essence of hypocrisy. It's not surprisng though, given that it happens so frequently with this govt and we are such a pack of sheep for allowing it.Can you spell democratic deficit? A sick joke, and it is on us.

Why not? It is Sgros responsibility. Why do you assume that the Immigration employees that were bribed were immigrants? If any of the corrupt government employees were born here, I guess that means that Canada has an inherent culture of corruption.

No. The Liberals know that if they intervene, it could cost them a few votes no matter what they did. They'd never risk it, not their style.

for the Liberal Cabinet, who have been publicly ordered by Prime Minster Martin to vote for the legislation , without regard to the wishes of constituents or their personal views. Anybody else have a problem with this hypocrisy? Not the same-sex marriage issue, but the ongoing democratic deficit in our country. There have been two other Parliamentary votes in recent times on this same subject. In 1999, the Liberals repeat the Liberals defined marriage as legal only between a man and a woman. The motion passed with overwhelming support from the Liberals - who voted against same -sex marriage. In 2003 the Conservatives introduced the EXACT same motion, and the vote was this time barely defeated with a very small margin, same sex marriage was approved by a few votes. This time, since it was non-binding motion, all parties voted their conscience EXCEPT the Liberal Cabinet, who were obliged by the PM to vote the Party line. Martin is pulling the same stunt again, and it sickens me to the core.

I agree with kimmy, and this may be the #1 issue. A secondary related issue that bothers me is the bland acceptance, by many Canadians, of corruption at the highest levels.

I agree with kimmy, and this may be the #1 issue. A secondary related issue that bothers me is the bland acceptance, by many Canadians, of corruption at the highest levels.

It is baloney. Alberta has standardized testing, and leads Canada in student achievement and is nearly the best in the world. The results of this are incontestable and have been all over Canadian papers for days. The testing was done by a subagency of the UN. The union apologists like Eureka would have you believe this is entirely coincidental. In every jurisdiction where testing is proposed the teachers have fought hard against it, mainly because it does identify substandard teachers and schools. The purpose of the testing though is really to identify kids that need help. It is a discredit to the profession that they mask this blatant self-interest behind a purported care for the children. Teachers 'Associations' need to formally separate union activities from their admirable advocacy of improved educational standards if they wish to re-establish credibility with the public. Parents aren't stupid, they can see what is going on. Many if not most professions have readily defined performance indicators. Education, led by 'professional associations' has fought and continues to fight any kind of assessment. It is very disappointing.

Tommy Douglas is a fine Canadian, but his real vocation was a Bible Pounding, fundamentalist, fire and brimstone evangelical Christian preacher. I wonder if he'd be so well regarded today in our oh-so politically correct world, that vocation is so....Republican.

Baloney, that's what the teachers union propaganda would have you believe. They hate standardized testing not because of anything to do with the children, but becuase it will ultimately identify crap teachers as well as students that need help. Teachers have fought tooth and nail against any kind of performance indicators. There is absolutely nothing wrong with having a standard means of assessment in our schools, and it is long overdue. If you had them everywhere , you wouldn't have people speculating what 30% of tax money is spent on, and wondering if we're getting our moneys worth.

You mean a MINORITY of the people in those two provinces elect the NDP governments, contrary to NDP policy everywhere else. I don't want to hear any more whining when it happens elsewhere, hypocrite.