(Insert Title Here)

(Insert poignant opening remark here)




Those damn money-grubbing brats!:

Anti-poverty groups are raising the stakes on the Liberal government's promise to reduce the prevalence of low-income families by detailing child poverty rates in all 338 federal ridings — including the above-average rates facing constituents of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Bill Morneau.

(Sidebar: one might suggest eliminating the carbon tax, reducing other taxes and the agricultural supply management boards that inflate prices of everyday goods.)

Just like those money-grubbing farmers and waitresses!


Also:

The federal ethics watchdog has closed the last in a series of probes facing Bill Morneau, deciding that the finance minister didn't violate any conflict of interest laws last year as the sponsor of a pension-reform bill.

Morneau found himself in political hot water when he introduced the pension-reform legislation, which critics insisted would benefit Morneau Shepell, his family company, prompting calls for an ethics investigation into Morneau's involvement in the bill.

Ethics commissioner Mario Dion said in his report that the legislation was so broad in its impact — it applied to all federally regulated private-sector employers, certain Crown corporations and all pension plan administrators — that it exempted Morneau's actions from any punishment.

And - there is no money for what the homeless need right now:

According to a recent report, there have been numerous additions to the Harrington Lake summer residence.

There’s a new patio, a new play structure & swings, a new golf cart, new boat racks, and expenses for a sauna – which the government says Trudeau paid for himself – is costing taxpayers $4,368 to power.

The cost of clearing snow has risen by $17,000.

In total, the new expenses are costing taxpayers about $75,000.

To wit:

A secondary factor, would Trudeau want to be fighting for higher gas prices in 2019?

If Ford keeps his word and pulls out of the cap and trade scheme, the lawsuit could take quite some time.

(Sidebar: this tax.)

That means that Trudeau would be campaigning in the middle of next summer, and over long weekends, to make gas prices go up in Canada’s largest province. Forget good or bad policy, and it is bad policy, this would be bad politics.

A study done by Navigator on why people voted for the PCs in the Ontario election is telling. The first reason given was the promise of lower gas taxes, second was hydro prices and third was the overall tax burden being lowered.

Can you imagine being the Liberal MP telling everyone at the door that you want their vote to make life more expensive?

While Kathleen Wynne was in power this didn’t matter, Trudeau’s Liberals could say it was a provincial decision.

Not anymore.

It would be one thing for the Liberals to have to fight only Saskatchewan. The party has one MP in that province. They won’t get anymore.

If they were to fight Alberta down the road, say if Jason Kenney and the UCP win the May 31, 2019 election, then again, they have 3 MPs.

In Ontario the Liberals have 80 MPs right now.

If Trudeau spends next summer trying to convince voters that they need to pay more for basic functions of modern life he and his party could end up like Wynne’s Liberals. Just 7 seats and holding the caucus meeting in a mini-van.

As much as Canadians like being taxed, at some point (ie - when the beer runs out and it is too expensive to turn on the AC or drive somewhere with AC) they will object. Justin can either rush citizenship of illegal migrants before 2019 or take his chances with the easily-fooled voters blocks he has now.



Oh, dear. This must be dreadfully embarrassing:

Rep. Henry Cuellar also puts into context that some of the children held then and held now are coming across on their own, without parents or guardians. He also points out that some are entering the country with adults that are not their parents, a point the New York Times made in a report back in April.

Some migrants have admitted they brought their children not only to remove them from danger in such places as Central America and Africa, but because they believed it would cause the authorities to release them from custody sooner.
Others have admitted to posing falsely with children who are not their own, and Border Patrol officials say that such instances of fraud are increasing.

Of course all of this context is lost in a world where people just want to yell and scream about Donald Trump and blame him for everything.

Children being illegally trafficked (let us be candid) is a problem that existed in the Obama administration but few have dared to be outraged then.

One simply cannot have a multi-tiered system of immigration where most have to legally declare themselves and work to remain in the country while others may slip in and enjoy the benefits of that country or otherwise be exploited for cheap labour.

Either there is one standard or there are none.


Also - yes, one is damn right that Justin will remain mum on this issue because someone could rightly point out what an enormous douchebag he was to the Yazidis and Iraqi Christians, how he lets ISIS rapists of Yazidi women run loose in Canada,  how he laid out a welcome mat to anyone who wanted to illegally enter the country and how utterly sympathetic he is to vile Islamists and their repugnant ideologies:

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he will not "play politics" over immigration policies when it comes to the controversial U.S. practice of charging and separating illegal migrants from their children when they cross the border into the United States. ...

During question period, NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan urged Trudeau to suspend Canada's Safe Third Country agreement with the U.S. in response to the policy, under which nearly 2,000 children have been separated from their parents and placed in holding facilities.

Trudeau says he won't play politics over the issue, saying his role as prime minister is to stand up for Canadian values but also to maintain a constructive relationship with the U.S.

This is the same lying sack of sh-- who talked smack about Trump behind his back, said that Canada is a "post-national" country and has no core identity.

That might be he let ISIS rapists run loose in Canada.


Also:

A new poll shows far more Canadians want a “less welcoming” approach to illegal border crossers than want a “more welcoming approach.”

According to the Nanos Research poll, 43% of Canadians say Canada should be “less welcoming” to illegal border crossers, while just 14% want Canada to be “more welcoming.” 36% say Canada should “continue its current approach.”

The survey also asked Canadians their thoughts on accepting Rohingya refugees. 37% said they “support” accepting refugees, while 25% say they “somewhat support” it. 14% “somewhat oppose,” while 18% “oppose.”

It's also brazen to attack churches. Just saying:

A mosque in Edson, Alta., was set on fire late Saturday night shortly after a small group of people left the building following evening prayers.

The three people who were praying inside had left the Edson Mosque, about 200 kilometres west of Edmonton, and were still in the parking lot when the fire started at the building's south entrance at around 11 p.m. local time. 

Mosque security camera footage captured the flames as well as a person in a dark hoodie leaving the property with what appears to be a red jerrycan.

Also - someone will make an example out of Omar Khadr, right? I mean - he bragged about killing people:

Alexandre Bissonnette should not be sentenced to spend his life in prison without ever being eligible for parole, his lawyers pleaded in Quebec Superior Court on Monday, because he does not fit the profile of a serial killer.

Premier-designate Doug Ford places a freeze on hiring public servants:

Ontario's incoming premier has put the public service under a hiring freeze as part of a series of measures meant to limit spending as he re-examines the province's books, raising concerns among some government workers.

A spokesman for Doug Ford said the Progressive Conservative leader has also directed government ministries to cancel "subscription-based services" and to restrict out-of-province travel.

"The people of Ontario work hard for their money and they expect their tax dollars to go to the services we all depend on," Simon Jefferies said in a statement.

 
Good.



US lawmakers warn the Canadian government about Huawei and spying:

Senior lawmakers on U.S. intelligence committees are warning the Trudeau government that Chinese smartphone maker Huawei – which has turned Canada into a key research centre for next-generation mobile technology – is a national-security threat to a network of Canada’s allies. 

Republican Senator Tom Cotton and Democratic Senator Mark Warner told The Globe and Mail that the Chinese telecom giant is a grave cybersecurity risk and its smartphones and equipment should not be used by Canada and other Western allies. 

Of paramount concern is an all-out drive by the Chinese technology conglomerate to become a world leader in the next-wave 5G telecommunications technology, which is expected to bring near-broadband speeds to smartphones and enable such breakthrough technologies as driverless cars.

A spokesperson for Mr. Cotton, who has tabled legislation to ban the U.S. government from dealing with Huawei, said he instructed the director of the National Security Agency, Lieutenant-General Paul Nakasone, to “engage with Canadians” and other members of the “Five Eyes” intelligence-sharing community “to educate them on the threat” and keep Huawei out of their 5G networks.

Five Eyes is an intelligence-sharing network among Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Britain and the United States.

Huawei is largely shut out of the U.S. market and Australia is currently considering blocking the Chinese national tech champion from supplying equipment to the construction of 5G telecommunications infrastructure – a move that would further frustrate the Shenzhen-based company’s ambition to be the world leader in this technology.

Why would Justin listen?

Also:

During a visit to Ottawa this week, Tibet’s exiled political leader was warning Canada not to fall into a trap as its trade relationship with China deepens.

Especially amid recent uncertainty with Canada’s biggest trade partner, the United States, it makes economic sense to engage with China, said Lobsang Sangay, president of the Central Tibetan Administration, a “government-in-exile” based in India that represents Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.

But Canada should be careful not to self-censor or turn a blind eye to human rights abuses by the Chinese government, he said in an interview with the National Post. It’s a trend that he said he has watched in Australia, which entered into a free-trade agreement with China in 2015.

Again, why would Justin listen?




Dreadful:

Three people were confirmed dead and almost 100 injured after a strong earthquake hit Osaka on Monday morning, rattling one of Japan’s industrial heartlands and halting trains and factories across the region.

The earthquake struck at 7:58 a.m. local time, with an initial magnitude of 5.9 that was later revised upwards to 6.1. At 13 kilometres it was relatively shallow, and caused heavy shaking that registered a lower 6 on the Japanese scale of 7. It was the strongest shaking registered in Osaka under records which date back to 1923. As the quake was centred inland, there was no fear of a tsunami.

It began as one might expect - in the Czech Republic:

Spears crossed, swords touched and arrows flew in a Czech forest over the weekend as hundreds of fans of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit reenacted a major battle.

More than 1,000 people, dressed in costumes from Tolkien's books, took part in the Battle of the Five Armies, according to organizers of the annual event, held in a forest near the Czech town of Doksy, 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of Prague.

They fought with wooden weapons and any sharp points were wrapped in plastic to avoid injuries.

Although inspired by well known stories from Middle-earth, the results of battles at the event are not predetermined, and on several occasions the evil side has actually won.

"We come here to enjoy a great battle, great atmosphere, have a little fight and to meet people one sees only once a year," said Lucie Zavadilova, attending the battle for the sixth time.

(Merci beaucoup)