PONDERABLES
Considering that the Liberals could run a fire hydrant in the Toronto Center riding and win, and that she’s already lost two elections there, why is rookie Green Party leader Annamie Paul planning to run there again?
And as party leader doesn’t she have an obligation to run where she has the best chance of winning?
THINGS I FIRMLY BELIEVE
Justin Trudeau didn’t win the last election, the hapless, dithering Andrew Scheer lost it, and if Erin O’Toole doesn’t significantly up his game, Trudeau will again win by default.
When Auston Matthews passes the puck he doesn’t expect to get an assist, he expects to get the puck back in a better scoring position.
The most unlikely universal behaviour resulting from COVID-19 is going into a bank to get money while wearing a mask.
UNPRINCIPLED CABINET BEHAVIOUR
Because his principles have always been conveniently malleable, unprincipled behaviour by Justin Trudeau is not surprising. But for his entire cabinet to join him in abstaining from voting on the Conservative motion declaring Chinese suppression of the Uyghur Muslim minority to be genocide was stunning. With one exception (more on this below), the cabinet didn’t even participate in the vote!
Justin Trudeau has consistently shown disdain for parliament, but he and his cabinet cohorts effectively going into hiding during an important parliamentary vote was a historic snub, surpassing even the worst of his father, Pierre. That Justin allowed his backbenchers to vote their consciences, and that they all voted in favour of the motion, doesn’t let him off the hook, but instead highlights the appalling failure of the prime minister and his cabinet to do the job they were elected to do. That they abstained rather than having the guts to vote against the motion says a lot about their collective character. They behaved more like.Republican senators than Liberal cabinet ministers.
THE ONE EXCEPTION
Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau was the only cabinet minister to participate in the genocide vote, most likely at Trudeau’s behest. But this was just more disdain for parliament because Garneau stated he was abstaining “on behalf of the entire cabinet.” Garneau, like all MPs, cannot vote on behalf of anyone other than himself.
NEW DEPTHS OF HYPOCRISY
Trudeau descended to new depths of hypocrisy when, even though he earlier unequivocally stated that Canada has engaged in genocide against Indigenous women and girls, he hid behind a highly technical UN definition of the word as his reason for refusing to so characterize the Chinese actions. This, even though former Liberal justice minister, and internationally renowned human rights advocate, Irwin Cotler, and many other human-rights experts, disagree with him. Again, his professed admiration for the Chinese dictatorship, a totally inappropriate position for a Canadian prime minister to take, and one which he’s obviously unwilling to denounce, rears its ugly head.
WELCOME RETURN TO DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS
The video get-together between Prime Minister Trudeau and President Biden was a welcome return to the U.S. and Canada again being friends as well as neighbours. Although it was was primarily an exercise in diplomacy, two aspects stood out. The first was the inclusion of Deputy Prime Minister Christia Freeland and Vice-president Kamala Harris, as well as key cabinet members from both countries, a signal that, like all good neighbours, the two countries can once again work out differences without resorting to threats and insults. The second was Biden’s pledge to help free Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig from a Chinese prison.
MORE PAROLE BOARD LUNACY
On September 27, 2015, a spoiled, rich playboy by the name of Marco Muzzo, blew through a stop sign while driving drunk in a rural area just outside Toronto. He hit a family van, killing three children and their grandfather. The children were aged 2, 5, and 9. He was sentenced to ten years in prison, but on February 9th, after serving only four years (one year for each life he snuffed out) he was granted full parole. That was bad enough, but it’s now been revealed that the parole board was concerned about Muzzo’s lack of empathy for the people he had “harmed” and that he tended to care more about himself than about them. The panel also stated that Muzzo has “work to do, particularly in the area of … community acceptance.” Yet they let him walk free.
TRUMP’S TAX RETURNS
The U.S. Supreme Court has cleared the way for a grand jury convened by Manhattan District Attorney, Cyrus Vance, to obtain details of former president Donald Trump’s tax records. This means Trump’s business and personal finances for the years covered will effectively be laid bare for the DA’s office to examine. Even though details won’t be revealed unless charges ensue, it’s an intriguing situation.