Advice for the Premier

Ontario Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty is in some political hot water these days thanks to a damning auditor general's report.

According to this report the Liberal government dished out $32.5 million in "year-end grants" to assorted Ontario cultural groups, in a process that was "not open, transparent, or accountable."

Sounds bad. Now more than ever, Premier McGuinty needs a good spin doctor. But unfortunately his main political advisor is too busy spinning to save his own skin.

So I will fill the void and offer the Premier some advice. Here is my memo:


Dear Premier:

With an election just months away, you really need to deal with this Auditor General fiasco. Fortunately, I know a way to not only stop the bleeding but to turn this whole situation into a real vote getter.

How?

Simple. I note the Auditor General says you gave $1 million to the Ontario Cricket Association. OK nobody cares about this obscure sport. But what if you said the Ontario Cricket Association wasn't about the sport but about the actual insect?

Tell voters that crickets are actually an endangered species and that the Association needs the million bucks to set up a wild life preserve to protect these cute little creatures.

Imagine the photo op of you handing over the check to the president of the Association, with thousands of grateful crickets chirping in the background.

This is political gold.

You would certainly win over the votes of animal lovers and secure a strangle-hold on a long over looked voting bloc -- entomologists.

Yes, this plan might require you to do a little lying, but that should not be too hard, after all you are a Liberal.

Topping up to protect my skin

According this news report caffeine and exercise may help prevent skin cancer.

Well at least I am halfway safe.

Suzuki is Coming to Town

Is it just me, or are those PowerWise TV ads just a little creepy?

If you live in Ontario, you probably know the ads I am talking about. They feature Canada's number one aggravating environmentalist, David Suzuki sneaking into people's homes so he can skulk around their basements, peer into their refrigerators and steal their light bulbs.

Shouldn't he be arrested for doing that kind of thing?

But I guess the idea behind this marketing campaign is to present Suzuki as some sort of eco-Santa Claus.

"You better be good, you better not waste energy, because David Suzuki is coming to town ....He sees you when you idle your car, he knows when you leave lights on, so be good for goodness sake .... or else"

Anyway, all I can say is Saint Suzuki better not snoop around my house, or my vicious guard dog Ace will give him such a nasty glare it won't even be funny.

Island Wedding

I was lucky enough to be a guest at a wedding held at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club.

Here's a shot of the Toronto skyline taken from the ferry taking me to the RCYC.

And here's a photo taken just after

the marriage ceremony.

Crack photographer that I am, I kind of missed the bride and groom, except for her veil.

But trust me, she was a beautiful bride.

Media Update

I am scheduled to appear on the radio show Newsline (CFAX Victoria) at 11:30 AM this morning to talk about my Sun column.

Of course, I love doing radio interviews.

Why?

Because listeners hearing my voice, probably say to themselves, "Hey that guy sounds so smart, he must have a full head of hair."

Divine Advice for the Left

Here is a column I wrote which appears in the Sun Media chain today.

It's my attempt to unseparate religion and politics.

Media Update

Tonight at about 8:40 PM EST, I am going to be on The World Tonight, on CHQR radio in Calgary.

Topic: is the "New Conservative government" still new?; and what about those nice things Brian Mulroney was saying about the New Conservative Government.

Roman Politics

I am reading a book on the history of Republican Rome and came across this quote from a speech Cato the Elder was giving to his fellow citizens on the perils of demagogues:

"The Roman people are like sheep: you cannot budge one of them on its own, but when they are in a flock they all follow their leaders as in a single body. In the same way, when you come together in the Assembly you allow yourselves to be led by men whose advice you would never think of following in your private affairs."

Kind of reminds me of today's political parties.

Choice in Education

Ontario PC leader John Tory has promised to provide public funding for "faith based" schools.

As someone who has always supported the idea of parental choice when it comes to education, I think this is a step in the right direction.

If you are going to fund Catholic schools, why not fund other religious schools?

I just hope, however, that Tory's plan isn't just to turn religious schools into carbon copies of public schools.

As Doretta Wilson of the Society for Quality Education put it, "We are waiting to see to what extent the Conservatives will require participating schools to submit to the regulatory burden that is crushing publicly-funding schools. If for example, eligible schools are forced to hire provincially-certified teachers or use provincially-approved textbooks, they will be in danger of losing their uniqueness.”

What it boils down to, is that parents should have alternatives to public schools not clones. Otherwise what's the point?

Free Speech and Free Dominion

The Modern Day Inquisition AKA the Human Rights Commission is setting its censoring sights on the Free Dominion website.

Why?

Well a complaint was lodged against the site because it allegedly posted comments considered anti-Islamic.

Mind you, the person who complained isn't even a Muslim -- she is offended on behalf of Muslims.

Anyway, the upshot is the Free Dominion site could actually be shut down over this, meaning a voice will be silenced.

Slowly but surely, we are chipping away at the right to free speech in this country, and that's a tragedy.

As someone once said, "Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself."

The man who said that also happened to be a Muslim who knows something about the dangers of censorship. His name is Salman Rushdie.

Harper's Foreign Policy

Sometimes when I criticize Prime Minister Stephen Harper for betraying his principles, conservatives remind me that conservatism at least still shapes his foreign policy.

It's pointed out to me, for instance, that Harper stands behind Israel, that he is tough in the War on Terror and that he is --- unlike the Liberals -- a reliable and strong ally of the United States.

But even in those areas Harper is backtracking. He recently seemed to be toying with the idea of extending monetary aid to the Palestinian Authority; he is now hinting he will pull Canada out of the war in Afghanistan; and on his recent trip to Latin America he engaged in Liberal-style America bashing.

And none of this is surprising.

A government that bases its policies on the latest polls instead of on principle can never be relied upon to do the right thing.

Update: Prime Minister Harper is no longer toying with the idea of sending cash to the PA; he is now actually doing it.

Supporting the Troops but not the War

In today's Toronto Star, Rondi Adamson neatly skewers the Jack Laytons of the world who oppose Canada's war effort in Afghanistan while at the same time they claim to "Support our Troops."

One Less Blogging Tory

My friend Wonder Woman is no longer a Blogging Tory.

She has dropped out of the blogroll to protest what she says is censorship at the popular site.

Here's her explanation.

Media Update

I am scheduled to appear on the Dave Rutherford Show at Noon EST today to talk about election gag laws.

Toronto's Tax Troubles

Today's the day, Toronto's Politburo will vote on whether or not to extract yet more money out of the pockets of the city's taxpayers.

Commissar David Miller is pushing for massive tax increases because otherwise, he would be forced to cut necessary and needed services, such as a pay increase for himself.

And a lot is on the line for City Councillors who enjoy such essential services as free parking, free zoo admission, free golf and yes even free lunches.

Indeed without a tax hike the entire structure of the Soviet Socialist Republic of Toronto could come crashing down.

Which is why I am glad groups like the Canadian Taxpayers Federation have done such an excellent job of opposing the tax.

Superman?

Think Superman is a hero?

Think again. Check this out or this.

Black Verdict

What Conrad Black has had to endure in his battle with the United States government is a travesty.

I hope his appeal process is successful and his good name is ultimately restored.

But whatever happens, I will always consider Conrad Black a great Canadian and my friend.

American Elections Now a Little Freer

Just found this out (thanks mom). I have a column in today's Windsor Star.

It's on a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling which undermined an American election gag law.

That's the kind of Supreme Court rulings we need in this country.

Some Irritating Truths

Here's a couple of interesting items from Patrick Basham and John Liuk of the Democracy Institute.

The first is an article published in today's Washington Times examining the politicized science that fuels the Global Warming hysteria so evident at the recent Live Earth concerts.

As Basham and Liuk put it, it's a case of "politicized science in the service of government, rather than science in the service of the truth."

Secondly, in this piece from Spiked Online, they look at the harmful, unintended consequences of tough anti-smoking laws.

Let us Pray

Here's a letter to the editor I wrote which was published in today's National Post:

Michael Coren's column gave me an idea. If it's OK to pray for religious conversions, maybe it's also OK to pray for political conversions. With that in mind, the next time I go to church, I will say a prayer for Stephen Harper to convert back to true conservatism.
Sacrilege? Perhaps, but Divine Intervention, it seems, may be last hope for the Conservative party.