Conservative Fiscal Mismanagement - June 9, 2010 Update

Pondscam, G20 spending and security issues, Jets.

If you haven't been living in a cave, then you have probably heard about most of these issues.
To summarize:

Pondscam/G20
The Harper Conservative government has decided to spend $1.9 million on a temporary pavilion that will included a fake lake - right beside Lake Ontario! It is only for visiting journalists and people cleared for G20 access! They have also spent millions more on various things around cottage country (in ridings with Conservative MPs), supposedly for the couple of days that the G8 visitors will be in Huntsville, but in many areas far away from Huntsville! And, of course you know that the bill for security for the few days of the G8/G20 is about $1.1 BILLION! - which is many times more than the most expensive bill for security in other countries previous to this summit (including the USA and Britain).

Security issues for G8/G20
The Harper Conservatives got the RCMP to select a security company for the summit security. The company they selected is from the USA. Security companies working in Ontario must be licensed to work here. It usually takes months to clear the license application. The RCMP and the Conservatives didn't think about that. So, they have left the Ontario government to scramble to speed up the licensing process.

Jets
Canada, up until the Paul Martin Liberal and now the Harper Conservative government, has a military know for its peacekeeping role in the world. For this purpose, you would think that you would not need a lot of fighter jets. Admittedly, we probably need to modernize our military equipment. But 65 new fighter jets! You would not need this many new fighter jets unless you were seriously threatened with invasion from a neighbouring nation (which we aren't), or, you wanted to wage an offensive war against another nation. We are involved as aggressors in an illegal war in Afghanistan. And we are planning on pulling out next year. So, what do we need all these jets for (which cost an awful lot of money: $9 BILLION)?

Links
Pondscam/G8/G20
Pondscam
Fake lakes and fiscal mismanagement
Lemme get this straight; more tax dollars so Steve can pretend to be green?
Will Stephen Harper's Conservatives DROWN in the fake lake - er - I mean the Water Feature?
Dumbest excuse put forth to defend Conservative fake lake
Stephen Harper and the Drowning Pool
One other thing $1 billion buys
The Fake Lake
From fountains to gardens to buried hydrants, it's a new world in the near North - Toronto Star
Water's for fighting (Central Canada Edition)
Conservatives get caught using G8/G20 as a reason to throw Billions into key federal ridings
Mea Culpa: It's a $1.9 million alley, not just a fake lake
photos of projects in cottage country - Toronto Star
Mad hatters, ScamWow - and the summit circus continues

Security company hired by RCMP for G20 not licensed in Ontario - Globe & Mail

Jets
Canada needs 65 fighter jets?

The Israeli flotilla attack: victimhood, aggression and tribalism

The Israeli flotilla attack: victimhood, aggression and tribalism - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com
Glenn Greenwald writes an excellent analysis of the attack and of the bigger picture.

Excerpt regarding victim-hood, aggression and tribalism:

What this really underscores is that the mentality driving both
Israel and the U.S. is quite similar, which is why those two countries
find such common cause, even when the rest of the world recoils in
revulsion.  One of the more amazing developments in the flotilla
aftermath is how a claim that initially appeared too self-evidently
ludicrous to be invoked by anyone -- Israel was the victim here and
was acting against the ship in self-defense --has actually become
the central premise in
Israeli and (especially) American
discourse about the attack (and as always, there is far more criticism of
Israeli actions in Israel than in the U.S.). 

How could anyone with the slightest intellectual honesty claim that
Israel and its Navy were the victims of a boat which Jon Stewart said
last night looked like "P Diddy's St. Bart's vacation yacht"; or
that armed Israeli commandos were the victims of unarmed civilian
passengers; or, more generally, that a nuclear-armed Israel with the
most powerful military by far in the Middle East and the world's
greatest superpower acting as Protector is the persecuted victim of a
wretched, deprived, imprisoned, stateless population devastated by 40
years of brutal Israeli occupation and, just a year ago, an unbelievably
destructive invasion and bombing campaign?  The casting of "victim" and
"aggressor" is blatantly reversed with such claims -- which is exactly
the central premise that has been driving, and continues to drive, U.S.
foreign policy as well.  In Imperial Ambitions, Noam Chomsky --
talking about America's post-9/11 policies -- described the central
mental deception that is at the heart of all nations which dominate
others with force (and if you're one of those people who hear "Noam
Chomsky" and shut your mind, pretend that this comes from "John Smith"):

In one of his many speeches, to U.S. troops in Vietnam, [Lyndon]
Johnson said plaintively, "There are three billion people in the world
and we have only two hundred million of them.  We are outnumbered
fifteen to one.  If might did make right they would sweep over
the United States and take what we have.  We have what they want."  That
is a constant refrain of imperialism.  You have your jackboot
on someone's neck and they're about to destroy you.

The same is true with any form of oppression.  And it's
psychologically understandable.  If you're crushing and destroying
someone, you have to have a reason for it, and it can't be, "I'm a
murderous monster."  It has to be self-defense.  "I'm protecting myself
against them.  Look what they're doing to me."  Oppression gets
psychologically inverted; the oppressor is the victim who is defending
himself.

Thus, nuclear-armed Israel is bullied and victimized by starving
Gazans with stones.   The Israel Navy is threatened by a flotilla filled
with wheelchairs and medicine.  And the greatest superpower the Earth
has ever known faces a grave and existential threat from a handful of
religious fanatics hiding in caves.  An American condemnation of Israel,
as welcomed as it would have been, would be an act of senseless
insincerity, because the two countries (along with many others) operate
with this same "we-are-the-victim" mindset.

* * * * *



A prime cause of this inversion is the distortion in perception
brought about by rank tribalism.  Those whose worldview is shaped by
their identification as members of a particular religious,
nationalistic, or ethnic group invariably over-value the wrongs done to
them and greatly under-value the wrongs their group perpetrates.  Those
whose world view is shaped by tribalism are typically plagued by an
extreme persecution complex (the
whole world is against us!!!; everyone
who criticizes us is hateful and biased!!!).
...
 It's just far more significant -- and far more destructive -- when the
groups convincing themselves that they are the Weak and Bullied Victims
are actually the strongest forces by far on the planet, with the
greatest amount of weaponry and aggression, who have been finding
justifications for so long for their slaughtering of civilians that, as
Israeli Amos Oz suggested
this week about his country, there are virtually no limits left on
the naked aggression that will be justified.

The aftermath of the Israeli attack on the aid flotilla - Links & Posts part four

Latest news
Over the weekend the ship MV Rachel Corrie was stopped in international waters and all the passengers and crew were taken prisoner by Israeli forces. This time the Israeli forces did not fire on people on the boats before going aboard or during. No one was killed or injured. However, as the ship of peaceful aid activists bringing aid to Gaza was in international waters, this was still an illegal seizure/kidnapping and constitutes a war crime.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/06/gaza-blockade-rachel-corrie-israel

War crimes/Piracy
http://english.pravda.ru/world/africa/05-06-2010/113675-again_israel_commits_outrage_ag-0
The fact remains that the UN has declared Israel's blockade of Gaza illegal. The ships were intercepted in international waters and Israel has no legal jurisdiction over Gaza’s waters. Period. Israel is also in breach of her obligations under international law including the notion of "Collective Punishment" [Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention].

Furthermore…"under article 3 of the Rome Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation of 1988, it is an international crime for any person to seize or exercise control over a ship by force, and also a crime to injure or kill any person in the process. The treaty necessarily adopts a strict approach. One cannot attack a ship and then claim self-defense if the people on board resist the unlawful use of violence.

Gaza Flotilla activist Ken O'Keefe is a former US Marine, Gulf War vet, and now Irish and Palestinian citizen. He describes his treatment at Israeli hands here:
http://rustyidols.blogspot.com/2010/06/are-we-not-brothers.html

More eyewitness accounts continue to contradict the report put out by Israeli officials: commandos opened fire before boarding Gaza flotilla, then shot and tortured people at will.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/01/gaza-flotilla-eyewitness-accounts-gunfire

http://theruthlesstruth.com/wordpress/2010/06/01/eyewitness-accounts-demolish-israeli-lies-commandos-opened-fire-before-boarding-gaza-flotilla-then-shot-and-tortured-people-at-will/

http://gazaflotillasurvivors.posterous.com/

http://www.newshoggers.com/blog/2010/06/eyewitnesses-both-activists-and-reporters-contradict-israeli-account.html

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/03/reporter-disputes-israeli-account-of-raid/
Israel has confiscated some of the most important material for the investigation, namely the films, audio and photos taken by the passengers [and] journalists on board and the Mavi Marmara’s security cameras. Since yesterday, Israel has been editing these films and using them for its own PR campaign. In other words, Israel has already confiscated most of the evidence, held it from the world and tampered with it. No court in the world would [trust] it to be the one examining it.

Israel has rejected the UN proposed investigation into the Israeli raid on the flotilla.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/06/israel-flotilla-inquiry-un-chief

Israel apologizes for video spoof of Gaza Flotilla
The IDF also retracted their earlier statement that their soldiers were attacked by Al Qaida mercenaries aboard the flotilla.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/06/israel-youtube-gaza-flotilla

The Israeli government press office distributed the video link to foreign journalists at the weekend, but within hours emailed them an apology, saying it had been an error. Press office director Danny Seaman said the video did not reflect official state opinion, but in his personal capacity he thought it was "fantastic".

Government spokesman Mark Regev said the video reflected how Israelis felt about the incident. "I called my kids in to watch it because I thought it was funny," he said. "It is what Israelis feel. But the government has nothing to do with it."

The clip features a group led by the Jerusalem Post's deputy managing editor Caroline Glick, wearing keffiyehs and calling themselves the Flotilla Choir. The footage is interspersed with clips from the recent Israeli raid on the Gaza-bound aid ship, the Mavi Marmara.

The clip has been praised in Israel, where the mass-circulation daily Yediot Aharonot said the singers "defended Israel better than any of the experts".

But Didi Remez, an Israeli who runs the liberal-left news analysis blog Coteret, said the clip was "repulsive" and reflected how out of touch Israeli opinion was with the rest of the world. "It shows a complete lack of understanding of how the incident is being perceived abroad," he said. Award-winning Israeli journalist Meron Rapoport said the clip demonstrated prejudice against Muslims. "It's roughly done, not very sophisticated, anti-Muslim – and childish for the government to be behind such a clip," he said.

The Israeli Defence Force has also apologized for doctoring tapes of Israeli naval officials speaking to people on the Mavi Marmara.
http://palestinenote.com/cs/blogs/news/archive/2010/06/05/israel-admits-it-altered-flotilla-audio.aspx
New York - The Israeli military admitted on Saturday that it had released a misleadingly altered audio recording of a radio transmission with the "Freedom Flotilla" aid convoy in which activists are allegedly heard telling Israeli soldiers to "shut up, go back to Auschwitz."

The Pixies and other bands cancel shows in Israel to boycott the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
http://artthreat.net/2010/06/pixies-israel/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+artthreat+%28Art+Threat%29

Passengers on the Mavi Marmara aided and protected injured Israeli soldiers even while the attack and shooting of passengers took place.
http://aliabunimah.posterous.com/blog-post-israel-hasbara-fails-again-pics-sho

Freedom Flotilla 2 planned. To be twice as big as the first one. Turkey, Egypt, Lebannon and other countries wish to participate.
Also, if Israel does not apologize to Turkey for the attack on the flotilla (at least 9 Turkish citizens were killed by the Israeli forces), then Turkey will cut military and trade cooperation with Israel.
http://english.pravda.ru/world/asia/07-06-2010/113694-israel-0

Iran's naval forces may escort the next aid flotilla
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/06/gaza-blockade-iran-aid-convoy
"Iran's Revolutionary Guard naval forces are prepared to escort the peace and freedom convoys that carry humanitarian assistance for the defenceless and oppressed people of Gaza with all their strength," pledged Hojjatoleslam Ali Shirazi, Khamenei's personal representative to the guards corps.
Also, regarding future aid flotillas:
Israel's no-compromise attitude to aid convoys could be tested again after two Lebanese organisations pledged to send boats to Gaza in the next few days. Reporters Without Borders is attempting to assemble 25 European activists and 50 journalists for a boat leaving Beirut. The Free Palestine Movement is planning a similar attempt.

George Galloway, the founder of Viva Palestina, announced in London that two simultaneous convoys "one by land via Egypt and the other by sea" would set out in September to break the Gaza blockade. The sea convoy of up to 60 ships will travel around the Mediterranean gathering ships, cargo and volunteers.

Rabbis visit Turks injured in the flotilla raid
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-212460-100-rabbis-visit-injured-call-israels-attack-on-flotilla-piracy.html


IAEA (the International Atomic Energy Agency - the world's nuclear watchdog) turns its attention to Israel.
http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2010/2010/06/201067185820611286.html
Yukiya Amano, the new director general of the IAEA, is already drawing up a report discussing ways to make Israel open up its facilities to international inspection and sign up to the international non-proliferation treaty, which would commit it to disarmament. That should be delivered in September.

How Israeli propaganda shaped U.S. media coverage of the flotilla attack

What goods does Israel bar from the Gaza Strip?

What exactly is the Blockade of Gaza?

The Israeli Flotilla Attack: Victimhood, aggression and tribalism

The Crisis in Gaza - An International Tipping Point


And, in Toronto, Canada, 20 Pride honorees have return their awards to protest the banning of the group Queers Against Israeli Apartheid from this year's Gay Pride Parade. Actually, Toronto Pride banned the phrase "Israeli Apartheid". And, since QuAIA include that in their name, they are banned too.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/820161--20-pride-honorees-return-trophies-in-protest?bn=1

Latest Nanos poll: Conservatives and Liberals down, NDP up

Change between May 3, 2010 and June 3, 2010
Conservatives 35.6% (down 1.6)
Liberals 29.2% (down 4)
NDP 20.7% (up 4.5)

Of note:
Conservatives down 13 points in the Prairies and NDP up 10.1 points there.

Ontario:
Conservatives up 6.1
NDP up 2.4
Liberals down 9.2

Atlantic:
NDP up 8

BC:
Liberals down 10.9
Greens up 5.7

Fall election looking more likely

Parliament could shut down early, fall election likely | The Hill Times - Canada's Politics and Government Newsweekly
Government and opposition MPs are
targeting an early adjournment for Parliament's summer recess, with a
leading pollster and one of the most politically savvy NDP MPs saying a
fall election call is likely, possibly before the scheduled return in
September.

...

Israeli government press office video making fun of the flotilla raid

Israel Apologizes For Circulating Spoof Video Mocking Gaza Flotilla (VIDEO)
Click the link to watch the video.
...

The video was made by a website, latma.co.il, run by Jerusalem
Post editor Caroline Glick, who described the clip on her blog as featuring "the Turkish-Hamas "love boat"
captain, crew and passengers in a musical explanation of how they con
the world." The video has been viewed nearly 1.5 million times on YouTube.

"The contents of the video in no way represent the official policy of
either the Government Press Office or of the State of Israel," a
statement from Israel's Government Press Office said, according to CNN.

However, according to the Guardian, a spokesman for the Israeli
government said that the video did reflect most Israelis' view of the
incident. "I called my kids in to watch it because I thought it was
funny," the spokesman said. "It is what Israelis feel. But the
government has nothing to do with it."

The aftermath of the Israeli attack on the aid flotilla - Links & Posts part three

Latest news
More details come out about the massacre on the Mavi Marmara as some of the activists return home to Turkey. Some people were shot point-blank while not threatening the soldiers, some wounded were thrown overboard, and blood evidence was washed off the ship by the Israeli forces.
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-212066-100-israel-killed-more-than-9-threw-wounded-into-sea-witnesses-say.html
In a shocking account, Humanitarian Aid Foundation (İHH) President Bülent Yıldırım, who returned on Thursday, said a photographer, whose first name was Cevdet, was shot in the forehead by a soldier one meter away from him. “Our Cevdet [Kılıçlar], he is a press member. He has become a martyr. All he was doing was taking pictures. They smashed his skull into pieces. We soon made out that these were real bullets they were firing. Rubber bullets also kill because you shoot at very close range, between one-and-a-half and two meters.”

Kevin Ovenden of Britain, an activist on the ship that arrived in İstanbul on Thursday, also said a man who had pointed a camera at the soldiers was shot directly through the forehead with live ammunition, with the exit wound blowing away back of his skull.

There were also claims that Israeli official reports on the number of people killed are untruthful. Yıldırım said, “Until now they have returned nine dead bodies, but our list is bigger. There are people missing.” Speaking to journalists at Atatürk International Airport shortly after his return, Yıldırım said: “We saw 38 injured who were brought back to us by doctors after the attack. Now they are saying there are 21 people who have been injured.” Yıldırım was on the main passenger ship, the Mavi Marmara, which the Israeli navy attacked at the start of its raid.

Another witness, Yücel Köse, who was on the ship Gazze repeated Yıldırım’s allegations of missing people. “The Mavi Marmara was bombed right in front of our eyes. They threw the wounded into the water,” he said. Köse said the soldiers were upset when some of their men were held by activists aboard the Mavi Marmara.

19-year-old Furkan Doğan was killed by four bullets to the head -- all fired at close range -- and one bullet into his chest, also fired at close range. He said Doğan was studying at a private high school in Kayseri and hoped to become a doctor in the future.

The council also confirmed yesterday that eight of the nine bodies brought back from Israel belong to Turkish citizens. The ninth person was identified as a US citizen of Turkish origin. More than 500 activists who were brought to Turkey were examined on Thursday by 120 forensic medicine experts and their assistants.

People thrown into the sea

Activist İdris Şimşek, who also arrived on Thursday, claims that four wounded activists were thrown into the sea. Şimşek also stated that there was immense psychological pressure on the activists. Şimşek said they expected some harassment but had no inkling of what would happen, noting that they were not expecting an armed attack. He also mentioned that there were no weapons, including a small Swiss army knife that some foreign press organs claimed was on the ship. He stated, as many other activists have, that the person who was waving a white flag to surrender was shot by soldiers. He said that he saw many people lying in puddles of blood after the soldiers opened fire.

Erol Demir, another activist on the Mavi Marmara, said they had footage of the chaos and the carnage on the ship, emphasizing that the footage will show the real face of Israeli solders to the entire world. “They even shot those who surrendered. Many of our friends saw this. They told me that there were handcuffed people who were shot.” All activists stated that Israeli helicopters sprayed cold seawater onto the ship for three hours.

Hakan Albayrak, a journalist from the Yeni Şafak daily who was also on the ship, said: “It was an outright massacre what Israel did out there. They attacked us in international waters. We protected our ship. We had no weapons. I think we lost more people.”

Activist Özlem Şahin Ermiş said 60 soldiers took her hostage. The prisoners were harassed by violent attack dogs and some were badly bitten. She also noted that they were not fed any food or given anything to drink during their initial interrogation on the ship.

See also:
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-212094-100-activists-israel-attacked-ships-without-warning.html


Israel admits it sabotaged ships:
http://www.freegaza.org/en/home/56-news/1202-sabotage-on-the-high-sea
Cyprus, June 4, 2010) On Tuesday,, Colonel Itzik Tourgeman told the Knesset Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday that two more ships are on their way to try and break the naval blockade of Gaza. The head of research in the operations division said, "The ships have not reached their target as of today because covert action was taken against them." http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/187299

We had suspicions about our two boats, Challenger 1 and 2 and their mechanical problems as they sailed toward the flotilla, but we were not going to say anything unless we could prove it. Turns out we didn't have to prove it. Israeli mouthpieces did.

The Guardian ran a piece the same day, saying,

Israel gave strong indications today that its forces had secretly sabotaged some of the ships bound for Gaza as part of the freedom flotilla.

Matan Vilnai, the deputy defence minister, was asked on Israel Radio whether there had not been a smarter alternative to direct assault. He answered that "all possibilities had been considered," adding: "The fact is that there were less than the 10 ships that were due to participate in the flotilla."

An unnamed Israeli Defence Force source who briefed the Knesset's foreign affairs and defence committee on the widely criticized armed interception of the flotilla at sea, also spoke of "grey operations" being mounted against the flotilla."

More Links and Posts

Did Israel deliberately murder civilians aboard Freedom Flotilla?

Peace activists claim Israeli forces attacked them saying 'One minute.'

Israel says aid ship Rachel Corrie will not be allowed into Gaza

Denis Halliday urges Irish-Americans to defend the Rachel Corrie

Margaret Attwood on Israel's Shadow

Israel defiant as UN Rights body sets up probe into raid

Turkey launches legal proceedings against Israel

Suffocating Gaza - The Israeli blockade's effects on Palestinians

The myth of Israeli morality

Gaza we are coming

Protesting G8/G20 - part one

An Invitation: From Copenhagen to Toronto | Toronto Community Mobilization Network
The Group of 8 Leaders and the Group of 20 Leaders are meeting in
Ontario, from the 25th to the 27th of June, 2010.

Following the collapse of the Copenhagen Climate Summit, they will
be discussing the global economy, development and climate change.

These gatherings are about trying to fix capitalism, a system that
cannot be fixed; about creating unsustainable trading solutions to
ecological catastrophe; about ensuring the continued exploitation of
people of colour and the South and about celebrating war as a means to
create puppet allies and maintain imperialist power. The so-called
leaders at these gatherings do not represent us. ...

NO to sound cannons at G20 Summit in Toronto & other notes
1. Common sense out of the RCMP on this one: "Mounties
shun ‘sound cannons’ in urban settings ahead of G20." A few points
here...the RCMP reviewed the use of the "Long Range Acoustic Devices"
and decided they weren't for crowd-control. The Vancouver Police also
committed for the Olympics not
to use the alert function on these cannons. Further, the Globe report
contains another warning from a doctor at Sick Kids about the prospect
of hearing damage. As this writer put it, "...there
but for a cool-headed officer at the controls, the entire grassroots of
our city could be chancing hearing loss." I think we can fairly
offer up a resounding NO to the use of these devices at the G20 and
beyond. The risk is too great for citizens to bear.

They Don't Value Democracy
...
Protesters in the streets are essential in a democracy. If there is
civil unrest, the media needs to see it, otherwise it’s assumed all is
well. The more than $1,100,000,000.00 the Conservatives are spending of
our tax money to HIDE and suppress protest at the G20 meetings, is an
attack on democracy in this country. Its not
Harper’s first attack on our democracy and freedoms, and it’s
probably not the last.

The aftermath of the Israeli attack on the aid flotilla - Links & Posts part two

Latest News
The ship MV Rachel Corrie is on its way to Gaza bringing more aid supplies. It was supposed to be part of the original flotilla, but it was delayed. It is currently waiting for another ship in the Mediterranean, and it expects to reach Gaza sometime before Monday.
The MV Rachel Corrie is carrying aid activists from Ireland, Malaysia, Scotland and England, including former United Nations assistant secretary-general and advisory panel member of the Perdana Global Peace Organization Denis Halliday and Nobel laureate Mairead Maguire.

The Irish Prime Minister has said that Israel will face serious consequences if any harm comes to the Irish citizens on board.
The Israeli ambassador to Ireland has said that Israel does not expect any confrontation or violence when the MV Rachel Corrie reaches the exclusion zone.
However:
http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=177134
Israel will use more aggressive force in the future to prevent ships from breaking the sea blockade on the Gaza Strip, a top Navy commander told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
"We boarded the ship and were attacked as if it was a war," the officer said. "That will mean that we will have to come prepared in the future as if it was a war."

Hmmm. But, the Israeli forces attacked the flotilla in international waters. They shot and killed people on the ships before they were ever on board, and then they shot and killed more once they boarded (according to witnesses on the ships). What the Israeli forces did constitutes a war crime and an act of war.


http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/canada-backs-us-opposition-to-un-led-flotilla-inquiry/article1588895/
The USA and Canada are against an impartial UN investigation of the attack, and prefer that Israel run the investigation.


Links/Posts
Turkey will never forgive Israel
... Nine people - eight Turks and a US national of Turkish origin- were killed in Monday's pre-dawn raid on the Mavi Mamara, which was carrying aid to Gaza in a bid to break Israel's strangling blockade of the territory. ...
... Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal, who reported from the ship during the raid, confirmed that live ammunition had been used by Israeli commandos as they stormed the ship.

He said that he witnessed some of the killings, and confirmed that at least "one person was shot through the top of the head from [the helicopter] above."
Activists killed

Elshayyal was on the top deck when the ship was attacked and said that within a few minutes of seeing the Israeli helicopters, there were shots being fired from above.

"The first shots [coming from Israeli boats at sea] were tear gas, sound grenades and rubber coated steel bullets," said Eshayyal.

"Live shots came five minutes after that. There was definitely live fire from the air and from the sea as well."

He confirmed that some passengers took apart some of the ship's railings to defend themselves as they saw the Israeli soldiers approaching.

"After the shooting and the first deaths, people put up white flags and signs in English and Hebrew," he said.

"An Israeli [on the ship] asked the soldiers to take away the injured, but they did not and the injured died on the ship." ...


http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2010/0603/breaking24.html
... an Indonesian doctor was shot in the stomach as he helped a wounded Israeli soldier.

"As the clash was going on upstairs on the deck, we were taking care of Israelis downstairs, as we gave them water, we were informed that our friends died there," Mr Yildirim said.

"We told the Indonesian doctor to take the soldier back. He took his patient back, and as he was going back, they shot him 5 times in the stomach." He added soldiers had herded activists on deck and a helicopter had sprayed them with water to subdue them.

It Was Pure Hell
A 2-man Malaysian news crew that was on board the MV Mavi Marmara recounts the attack.

We are all with the MV Rachel Corrie
... We are all watching Israel, we are all watching the MV Rachel Corrie, a vessel constructed in Germany in 1967 and owned by the Irish arm of the Free Gaza Movement. The MV Rachel Corrie is carrying medical equipment, wheelchairs, school supplies and cement. ...

City aid worker seized in massacre "badly beaten"
AN EDINBURGH activist seized by Israel in the Gaza aid massacre was today reported to have been badly beaten. ...

World enraged with Israel's attack on Peace Flotilla

MV Rachel Corrie heading for Gaza - With the full support of the Irish Government

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2010/0603/breaking60.html

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2010/0603/breaking3.html

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=289291

http://www.examiner.com/x-17122-SF-Muslim-Examiner~y2010m6d3-The-MV-Rachel-Corrie-carries-foreward-the-Freedom-Flotilla-Movement

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/middle-east/2010/06/01/evidence-belies-israeli-claim

The Silent Jewish Majority
... the majority of Jews remain silent about the "controversial" policies Israel carries out in their name as a self-declared "state of the Jewish people" ...

Children behind Israeli bars

Can the MV Rachel Corrie heal the wounds left in the wake of the USS Liberty?

IDF murder of Rachel Corrie Remembered

Cops at every bank in Toronto

Accidental Deliberations: One man's terrorist
Read the above link.

In Toronto, last week and this week, every time I've gone to a bank or bank machine, there has been a guard there. Not the usual security guards, but a bullet-proof-vest wearing extra guard standing around the front of the bank or bank machine. At every singe bank or bank machine location! I would say this is overkill in terms of security for the G8/G20 that isn't even here yet. This explains part of the $1.1 billion security bill.

Canada backs U.S. opposition to UN-led flotilla inquiry

Why am I not surprised? - Peace, order and good government, eh?
from the Globe & Mail:

Canada is backing the U.S. position that Israel can lead
the investigation into the bloody raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.

The United Nations Security Council issued a statement, watered down
by U.S. objections, that calls for a credible, impartial investigation
into the incident. But the Obama administration said later the
investigation should be led by Israel.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper dodged questions in the Commons on
whether he supports the Security Council resolution, but a senior
government official said in diplomatic circles, Canada is backing the
idea Israel should lead the investigation

Okay, for all those who think that having the Israeli's, the ones who carried out a planned night-time commando raid on a humanitarian aid flotilla - a raid that had been planned by the Benjamin Netanyahu (Prime Minister of Israel) and his cabinet for a week - is a better idea than having an independent UN investigation, here is a scenario for you:
If that is a good idea, how about letting the Iranian government carry out their own investigation as to whether they are creating nuclear weapons or just facilities to supply nuclear energy? The scale is much different, but the reliability of the investigative results would be the same.
Of course if only the Israeli's investigate their raid (or if they are controlling the investigation) then they will say they did no wrong.
Get with reality Harper! You too Obama!

The aftermath of the Israeli attack on the aid flotilla - Links & Posts part one

http://bastardlogic.wordpress.com/2010/06/01/flotilla-israel-gaza/
Excerpt:
Until Israel lifts its illegal, immoral blockade of Gaza, many more people, Palestinian and Israeli, will continue to live in fear of escalating hostilities and almost guaranteed casualties. This is the frame in which we need to centre any discussion of the Freedom Flotilla raid or any other incident that occurs as a consequence of furthering Israel’s unacceptable policy of collective punishment.

We in the US & Canada who recognize the insustainability of this ongoing moral calamity must pressure our leaders to cease enabling the Israeli government as it makes a mockery of human rights and international law — and, in the process, offers a stark vision of the most clear and present danger to the purportedly democratic character of the Jewish state.

http://jessezimmerman.blogspot.com/2010/06/finkelstein-on-flotilla.html
American political scientist Norman Finkelstein: "During Israel's massacre in Gaza, December 2008 and January 2009 afterwards, Israeli officials were saying that they wanted to show the Arab world that they were capable of acting like a lunatic state and like mad dogs, that they wanted to restore the Arab world's fear of Israel. And, that's why they acted like a lunatic state and like mad dogs in Gaza.
But, after yesterdays events, we really have to ask the question: "Is Israel acting like a lunatic state, or, has it become a lunatic state? And, that's not just rhetoric. It's a very serious issue.

What happened with the Gaza Flotilla was not an accident. You have to remember that the Israeli cabinet met for fully a week. All the cabinet ministers discussed and deliberated how they would handle the flotilla. There were numerous reports in the Israeli press, numerous suggestions, numerous recommendations about what to do. At the end of the day, they decided on a night-time armed commando raid on a humanitarian convoy.

Israel now is a lunatic state. It's a lunatic state with between 2 and 3 hundred nuclear devices. It is threatening war daily against Iran and against the Hezbollah in Lebanon. Hezbollah in Lebanon has already stated on several occasions that if Israel attacks, it will retaliate in kind.

Things are getting out of control. We have to ask ourselves a simple basic fundamental question. Can a lunatic state like Israel be trusted with 2 to 3 hundred nuclear devices when it is now threatening its neighbours, Iran and Lebanon, with an attack?"
Watch the video at the link.


http://jessezimmerman.blogspot.com/2010/06/naomi-klein-on-flotilla-incident.html
Naomi Klein speaks out about the flotilla incident at a rally in Toronto, Canada, May 31, 2010


http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-western-leaders-are-too-cowardly--to-help-save-lives-1987989.html
Robert Fisk: Western leaders are too cowardly to help save lives.
It is a fact that it is ordinary people, activists, call them what you will, who now take decisions to change events. ...


http://fillibluster.blogspot.com/2010/05/israel-not-winning-many-new-supporters.html
Warren Goldstein writes this at HuffPo:
"Let's get this straight. Israel is enforcing a blockade against Gaza that is in blatant defiance of international law.

A flotilla of activists attempts to break the blockade and supply humanitarian aid to Gaza.

And Israeli commandos in international waters board some of the ships, in order to take them over, and have the nerve to complain when they are attacked?"
Read more at the link.


http://the-mound-of-sound.blogspot.com/2010/06/egypt-to-israel-screw-you.html
Egypt opens its border to Gaza


http://www.pogge.ca/archives/002770.shtml
Irish humanitarian aid ship the MV Rachel Corrie is still sailing for Gaza, in spite of Israel's recent, devastating attack on other vessels in the Gaza aid flotilla, resulting in at least nine dead activists and hundreds of prisoners.

The ship, named after 23-year-old U.S. peace activist Rachel Corrie -- who was crushed to death in 2003 by an American-built bulldozer operated by the Israeli army -- has been pleading with the international community to pressure Israel into leaving them alone.

The Irish government, for its part, has threatened Israel with "the most serious consequences" if any Irish national, captured or currently aboard an aid vessel, is harmed.
...


http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/06/20106201756414515.html
Israel starts freeing aid activists


http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2010/06/201061202744315242.html
Anger in Turkey over Israeli raid


http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2010/06/20106162847943928.html
Israeli "friends" also to blame - by Mark Levine.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/06/2010618503229683.html
Global rallies continue


http://english.aljazeera.net/news/2010/06/20106193546785656.html
Passengers recount mid-sea horror


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/middle-east/2010/05/31/live-coverage-aftermath-israels-flotilla-raid
Live coverage from June 1, 2010

Jack Layton for Prime Minister

Young Liberal pushes 'Stop Harper' coalition; Conservatives brag on economy - The Globe and Mail
...

Indeed, an
Angus Reid poll yesterday showed that the Conservatives led by
Stephen Harper would defeat a coalition led by Michael Ignatieff 40 – 34
per cent.

But with Bob Rae as Liberal leader, the coalition and Conservatives
would be tied; if Jack Layton were leading the show, the coalition would
win.

...

Lyin' Brian - we want our money back!

Analysis: Bad day for Brian Mulroney is good day for Liberals - thestar.com

OTTAWA—Thirteen years ago, the federal Liberal government handed over
$2 million and an apology to former prime minister Brian Mulroney for
damage done to his reputation.

Now, in the wake of a damning report on the cloudy business
dealings of Mulroney and the now-imprisoned German lobbyist Karlheinz
Schreiber, Liberals want their money back. Or, more correctly, they
think Canadians should get their money back.

“Mr. Mulroney received a $2.1 million settlement from Canadians
after he claimed, under oath, that he had no business relationship with
Karlheinz Schreiber. Justice Oliphant called Mr. Mulroney’s excuses
‘patently absurd,’ ” Liberal MP Siobhan Cody said in the Commons on
Monday.

“Will the government immediately launch legal proceedings to
recover the $2.1 million and launch a broader inquiry to finally get to
the bottom of the Airbus affair?”

Not while Conservatives are in power.

G8/20 Toronto Community Mobilization

Toronto Community Mobilization Network | collaborating for change in toronto and the world
Information, workshops, resistance. Get informed. Spread the word.

May 21, 2010 

 

This statement is being released by the Toronto Community Mobilization
Network after being incorrectly quoted and incorrectly represented in
the mainstream media. 

 

Please forward to alternative media sites, social justice listservs, on
blogs and other social media. 

 

The Toronto Community Mobilization Network is *not* an umbrella group.
The Toronto Community Mobilization Network is *not *organizing any
actions. 

 

So what does the Toronto Community Mobilization Network do? The Toronto
Community Mobilization Network works to support education, outreach,
infrastructure such as food and housing, coordinate legal and medic
teams, and community based mobilizations leading up to and during the
G20 Summit in Toronto. We do so within the framework of solidarity and
respect (http://g20.torontomobilize.org/SolidarityRespect). 

 

A calendar of events from June 21-27, 2010 is hosted on our website so
that people struggling for social justice are able to attend events that
fit their political viewpoint and their expectations of effectiveness
and safety. The Toronto Community Mobilization Network does not speak
for these individual actions. 

 

The Toronto Community Mobilization Network organizes for justice and
dignity through supporting community groups and concerned residents to
share their outrage and their hope in the months leading up to and
during the G8/G20 Summits in June 2010. 

 

"The G8/G20 causes immense violence on Indigenous people, poor people,
on women and on people of color around the world. The G20 and its banks
are responsible for the global financial meltdown and the resulting
austerity measures that have deprived many communities of choices", says
Syed Hussan of the Toronto Community Mobilization  Network. 

 

"Canada hosts the Tar Sands, exists on stolen native land, has enforced
exclusionary immigration policy, cut social support for women and poor
communities, is inaccessible to disAbled people and has been named as
one of the worst global environmental culprits time and again", he adds.

 

"Communities in Canada and around the world oppose Canada and the G20
policies and in their place are implementing their own people based
solutions to resolve the ongoing economic and social crises in our
lives", says Sharmeen Khan of the Network.

 

Khan adds, "Forms of resistance and solutions are diverse because the
majority of communities impacted by the G20 are not homogenous.  But our
diverse communities are our strength and we respect and learn from
these different alternative perspectives."

 
http://g20.torontomobilize.org/

B'Nai Brith debunked

The Z-Files: Even Jonathan Kay from National Post Thinks So...
Excerpt:
I would probably never agree with Jonathan Kay or anyone who writes for the National Post on anything but this. B'Nai Brith, I believe, has been debunked so many times. This is the same organization, remember, that praises Pastor John Hagee, the pastor who formed Christian United For Israel and believes that Adolph Hitler was sent from God to help Jews find the promised land and has been quoted as saying that Jews "have everything but spiritual life" and that anti-Semitism was the result of the Jews' "rebellion [against God]." So, B'Nai Brith seems to be calling 'Anti-Semitism' left and right (mostly Left) on anyone and everyone who criticizes Israel's human rights violations, but is content to praise a man who has actually said blatantly anti-Semitic things. Strange.

The Armageddon Factor by Marci McDonald

chapters.indigo.ca: The Armageddon Factor: The Rise Of Christian Nationalism In Canada: Marci Mcdonald: Books
A must-read for any Canadian who is still thinks Stephen Harper and his Conservative government might be good for this country.

From the publisher:
An urgent wake-up call for all Canadians who think that this country is immune from the righteous brand of Christian nationalism that has bitterly divided and weakened the United States.

In her new book, Marci McDonald documents the startling extent of the influence that the religious right already wields in Canada and shows how, quietly, often stealthily, it has provoked far-reaching changes in Canadian policies and institutions, including our public service, our schools and our courts.

In four short years, galvanized by their failure to stop same-sex marriage, not only have conservative Christians developed a permanent infrastructure in Ottawa, designed to outlast whatever party is in power, but they have done so by borrowing the rowdy style of the American religious right to which most of their leaders boast close ties. Their rise has been tied to the election of Stephen Harper and it is no secret that evangelicals have already re-shaped Harper''s foreign policy in the Middle East, guided by what McDonald terms the Armageddon Factor. But few Canadians are aware that a militant band of conservative Christians with a direct pipeline to Harper''s cabinet is also attempting to reshape the country''s social, cultural and even scientific policies, driven by a belief that Canada has a biblically ordained role to play in the final days before Armageddon and the Second Coming of Christ.

About the Author
MARCI McDONALD is one of Canada''s most respected journalists. The winner of seven gold National Magazine Awards, she is also the recipient of the Canadian Association of Journalists'' investigative feature award. A former bureau chief for Maclean''s in Paris and Washington, she has interviewed Ronald Reagan, George Bush and Bill Clinton, and spent five more years in the United States as a senior writer for US News & World Report. A winner of the Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy, her study of the backstage machinations behind the free trade deal led to her book, Yankee Doodle Dandy: Brian Mulroney and the America Agenda. Her controversial cover story in the Walrus, "Stephen Harper and the TheoCons," inspired this book.

Canada has the 2nd lowest taxes for business next to Mexico

Canada scores well in tax report - thestar.com
So, we could still roll back a lot of the corporate tax cuts that the Harper government had introduced and plans on, and we would still be competitive. Then we could fund social programs again and reduce our deficit and then our debt.
Same goes for Ontario, McGuinty.

Harper government cancels funding for Toronto Gay Pride Festival

Decision to nix Pride funding a ‘slap in the face’ - thestar.com
Simple. Harper hates Toronto. Tony Clement hates Toronto and he is in charge of the funding this year (and, the Conservative party is pretty much anti-gay, anti-equality, anti-rights and they just don't got no sense.) Clement will bend over backwards to screw Toronto. So, there he goes.
Hopefully, there will be an election soon and we can get rid of these guys and steer the country back to normal mode from asshole mode.

Climate Change Accountability Act finally on its way to the Senate

New Democrat climate change bill passes House of Commons | NDP

OTTAWA – Today [May 5, 2010], the New Democrat Climate Change Accountability Act (Bill
C-311) passed its final vote in the House of Commons by a vote of 149
to 136.

“It is a great day for Canada as we finally have a blueprint for
greening our future,” said New Democrat Leader Jack Layton. “We would
not be here without the thousands of Canadians who called and wrote to
their Members of Parliament, pushing them to finally adopt meaningful
climate-change legislation.”

“It’s been a lot of work with a lot of ups and downs,” said Bruce Hyer
(Thunder Bay–Superior North), who introduced the bill in the House. “But
finally Canada will be on its way to having clear regulations and
frameworks for fighting climate change. We can at least hold our heads
up high in the international community.”

...

We don't need ignorant people like Senator Nancy Ruth in our Senate

Aid groups advised to ‘shut the f--- up’ on abortion - thestar.com
Excerpt:

OTTAWA – Aid experts alarmed by Canada’s new anti-abortion stand in
foreign policy have been advised to “shut the f--- up” or risk Prime
Minister Stephen Harper taking even more harsh measures – abroad, or
maybe even at home if abortion becomes an election issue.

“We’ve got five weeks or whatever left until G-8 starts. Shut the
f--- up on this issue,” Conservative Senator Nancy Ruth told a group of
international-development advocates who gathered on Parliament Hill
on Monday to sound the alarm about Canada’s hard-right stand against
abortion in foreign aid.

...

This kind of attitude and behaviour is totally inappropriate coming from a Canadian senator. She should be removed from office immediately. The Senate is supposed to be the part of our government that gives thoughtful and intelligent second thought to our bills before they are allowed to pass. It is not for crude potty-mouthed bigots to embarrass us to the world.

Although Ruth is a Conservative senator, she was appointed by Paul Martin back when the Liberals were governing. I think Ruth was emboldened by the fact that Harper has gotten way with so much damage to our institutions in the face of the ineffectual Liberal opposition, so, she felt that she could now act the way she felt in her Conservative heart, instead of acting responsibly and with civility as a Canadian senator should.


See also:
Senator's profanity reveals Tory culture of intimidation

Israel's enablers

Dawg's Blawg: Israel's enablers
Exerpt:
We enthusiastically chose to become a colonial society, ignoring international treaties, expropriating lands, transferring settlers from Israel to the occupied territories, engaging in theft and finding justification for all these activities… We developed two judicial systems: one — progressive, liberal in Israel. The other — cruel, injurious in the occupied territories. In effect, we established an apartheid regime in the occupied territories immediately following their capture. --former Attorney-General of Israel Michael Ben-Yair

Link to main article:
Canadian journalist Jeet Heer opens a discussion of Israel and her enablers in today's National Post, of all places. A strong supporter of the two-state solution (a sovereign Palestine coexisting with a sovereign Israel), Heer takes issue with those who have encouraged--and continue to encourage-- Israel in its cruel and reckless treatment of the Palestinians.

And, in case the story is taken down, here it is, from the National Post, April 29, 2010:

Jeet Heer: The Jewish state and its enablers
Posted: April 29, 2010, 10:30 AM by NP Editor
Jeet Heer, What's your peace plan?

This month, Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak declared that Israel must withdraw from Palestinian territories. “The world isn’t willing to accept — and we won’t change that in 2010 — the expectation that Israel will rule another people for decades more,” he said. “It’s something that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world.”

Is he right? Is peace even possible? And if so, what form should a final agreement take? Those are the questions we asked National Post writers in our series What’s Your Peace Plan?

---

Belligerent, self-destructive men aren’t always loners. Think of Ernest Hemingway. He abused his body with drink, constantly picked unnecessary fights and alienated those he loved. In short, he wrecked his life and his final act of self-slaughter was merely the last in a long string of self-inflicted wounds. But despite his shoddy antics, Hemingway was rarely alone in his folly. He was surrounded by cronies who egged on his terrible deeds, celebrating misbehaviour as a form of manly defiance. These cronies were enablers who encouraged the worst excesses in their hero making any possibility of self-correction much more remote.

Israel is the Hemingway of nations. Like the great writer, Israel is admired by many for its courage and fighting prowess and indulgently allowed to go on pursuing those elements of its behaviour that can only end in disaster. And just as Hemingway had his bar-room buddies who cheered on his alcoholism, Israel has its enablers, foreigners who encourage the Jewish state to follow the self-destructive path of keeping the Palestinians permanently immiserated.

When we talk about the barriers to peace in the Middle East, we have to realize that there are more than two parties involved. Aside from the Israelis and the Palestinians, there are also the vicarious warriors who sit in comfort in North America and encourage a reckless policy of intransigence. Peace requires not just a change in course for the people in the region, but a confrontation with the enablers who make diplomacy virtually impossible.

What does it mean to say that Israel is self-destructive? If we look at the simple demographics of the region and add up all the Palestinians who are inside of Israel proper, plus Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem, plus those who are under occupation, we find a population nearly as large as the number of Jews living in the same territory. The luckiest of these Palestinians live as second-class citizens in Israel, with formal rights but little access to political and social power. The unluckiest are caught in a stateless limbo, under the tender mercies of an occupying army. This state of affairs has lasted more than four decades. If it continues indefinitely, then Israel will truly become the contemporary incarnation of apartheid-era South Africa. The logic of the situation was spelled out by former Israeli prime minister and current Defence Minister Ehud Barak. “If, and as long as between the Jordan and the sea, there is only one political entity, named Israel, it will end up being either non-Jewish or non-democratic,” Barak noted. “If the Palestinians vote in elections, it is a binational state, and if they don’t, it is an apartheid state.”

For Israel to survive as a Jewish democracy, a two-state solution is absolutely necessary. What is the major stumbling block? Ever since the late 1940s, the Palestinians have been squeezed into smaller and smaller bits of land. The original UN partition plan of 1947 would have given Palestinians 45% of the disputed land and Israel 55%, but after Israel’s War of Independence it was in control of 78% of the land, and since 1967 it has occupied all 100% of Mandatory Palestine. The Palestinian leadership since 1988 has accepted the 78-22 divide as the basis for the two-state solution, yet Israel’s leaders have been unwilling to consent to even that — to the creation of a genuinely independent Palestinian state on that remaining 22%, or the equivalent thereof, with secure borders, contiguous territory and internal autonomy. It is true that certain Israeli negotiators offered land swaps and came close to the 78-22 formula but none have ever accepted a clear 1:1 territorial exchange.

The one Israeli leader who was willing to break with the longstanding policy of permanent domination over the Palestinians was the late Yitzhak Rabin, and for his trouble he earned an assassin’s bullet from a fanatical Israeli nationalist. Since Rabin’s assassination, Israel has continued building settlements so that now more than 60% of the West Bank is out of bounds for the Palestinians. The logic of the settlement policy is to make any viable Palestinian state impossible, leaving only a few isolated islands of self-government amid a hostile sea of setters. In effect, the Israeli elite has worked to create the equivalent of the Bantustan system that apartheid South Africa tried, with a Palestinian puppet government assigned the job of keeping a restive population subservient.

Israel’s recalcitrance can be seen not just in its treatment of the Palestinians, but also its high-handed scorn for its own allies. The most famous recent example is the announcement of yet more settlements during the visit of U.S. Vice- President Joe Biden. The Netanyahu government has insulted other allies recently, including Turkey and Germany. Even Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government was offended by the continued building of settlements.

Why does Israel continue to indulge in behaviour that will lead to its own isolation? Here is where the enablers come in. The Israeli elite feels it can get away with this course of action because there is a strong contingent of Western public opinion that will defend them no matter what they do.

Who are the enablers? Some are Jews in the Diaspora who feel, either out of tribal loyalty or guilt at their comfort, that Israel deserves unconditional support. Others are Christian millennialists who view the Middle East as a playground for their own apocalyptic fantasies. Still others are regular conservatives nostalgic for the imperialist days of yore when Westerns nations could impose their will on the unruly masses of the Third World. Some of the enablers have genuinely good motives. After the Holocaust, concern for the survival of the Jewish state is a strong moral imperative. What the enablers don’t realize is that the policies they defend will doom Israel as a Jewish democracy.  

Whatever their motivations, the enablers, and the Israeli intransigence they support, are a stumbling block to peace. The so-called “peace process” of the 1990s failed because the Clinton administration allowed Israel to continue building settlements, undermining any faith the Palestinians had in the honesty of either the United States or Israel. The current attempt to restart the peace process is also likely to fail because every time the Obama administration criticizes Israel it is attacked by Israel’s enablers.

A successful peace process requires a strong American government that is willing to pressure both the Israelis and the Palestinians to make the sacrifices necessary for a genuine two-state solution. Which means a successful peace process requires challenging and refuting Israel’s enablers. The road to Jerusalem lies not through Baghdad but through Washington, and perhaps through Ottawa.

National Post
jeetheer@hotmail.com

Harper intends on breaking the law again

Harper digs in over Afghan documents - thestar.com
Evidence has shown that the Conservative government knowingly ordered our troops to hand over prisoners in Afghanistan into the hands of people who were torturing the prisoners. This is a war crime.

Now, Harper and his Conservative government, is saying they won't hand over the documents relating to this, even after the Speaker of the House made his ruling on the issue. It has been made quite clear that by not handing over the un-censored documents, Harper and his government will be in contempt of parliament - which is a serious crime too. It is a crime against the people of Canada and our democracy.

I say lock them up and throw away the key.

Contemptible Conservatives record of obstruction

Dose of Democracy for Harper’s Obstructivist Conservatives | Conserving Memory

Excerpt:

To finish things off Milliken gave the Conservative government two
weeks to work with parliament to comply with the document requests.
According to an article
in the Toronto Star⁴ (27 April 2010)

“If they don’t, the Conservative government could stand
charged with contempt of Parliament and the supreme law of the land.”

Troubled TTC Still The Better Way

The TTC has been getting a lot of media coverage lately - complaints, the fare hike, management, unions, etc.
And this has brought out opinion pieces, some useful, and some written by trolls who do little research and just try to stir up anger.
But, if you compare the service and the fare cost with other systems, our TTC stands out as still a good service for the fare.
From my own experience and from the experiences of friends across Canada, the TTC seems to provide more frequent and reliable service than those of other transit systems in Canada.
And, the cost of our fare is at least comparable to systems around the world.

Here are some examples:
Toronto - $3.00 cash fare. Very little government subsidy (local city subsidy only)

Ottawa - $3.25 cash fare. A significant portion of government subsidy. Service overall is not as good as Toronto's

Stockholm, Sweden - $2.85. Largely subsidized (and taxes are much higher there too). Apparently great service. Publicly managed and privately operated.

New York City - $2.25. Largely subsidized.

London, England - $6.25. Largely subsidized. Public-Private operation. Frequent delays and overcrowding.

These are just a few examples. But, as you can see, the fare to take the TTC is comparable to the others - it comes out about average. And, considering our current funding problems, our fare is very reasonable, especially when you take into consideration that the majority of the TTC operating money comes solely from fares.

I ride my bike most of the time. I used to ride the TTC regularly (throughout the '80s) and now I ride it on occasion. For the most part, when I ride the TTC, service is frequent and there have been few delays. And $3 is far far cheaper than paying for cab fare.

Could it be managed better? Yes.
Could the operators be more civil to the public? Yes.
But these are minor issues compared to the funding issues. The TTC needs better regular funding - it needs the Ontario government funding back. And, to get this, it is not an issue of courage by our current politicians. We know that the Conservatives and Liberals will not return the regular funding of the TTC. What it will take to return the regular provincial funding is electing MPPs in Toronto from a party that DOES support returning the funding - the NDP.
But, where will they get the money? Simple. They will roll back the huge tax cuts to corporations that the Mike Harris government put in place and the Dalton McGuinty government left in place.
Oh, but then the corporations will pull out of Ontario! No, even if we roll back those tax cuts, the corporate taxes will still be about the lowest in the industrialized world.

Maybe if we put enough pressure on the Liberal MPPs in Toronto they will return the funding. Maybe.

Toronto Mayoral race - initial words from Joe Pantalone

InsideToronto Article: Pantalone opposes privatization, pushes for vote for immigrants

Toronto transit - The TTC - to privatize or not.

Here are two opinion pieces regarding the TTC and whether it should be privatized or not.

OPINION: TTC Privatization is Not the Best Answer - CityNews

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/crime/article/774686--in-socialist-stockholm-an-outsourced-transit-service

I don't believe that privatizing is the answer for the TTC.
The number one problem for the TTC is funding. It is the most underfunded (by upper levels of government/tax dollars) of all the transit systems in North America. This is mainly due to Mike Harris, who totally stopped the regular provincial funding of the TTC. And now, thanks to the McGuinty government, this sorry trend continues.
You will notice in the article about the transit system in Stockholm, that the government funds that system far more than the government here funds the TTC.
Without proper funding, the TTC cannot function properly. And, without proper funding, the system in Stockholm, privatized or not, would not be able to offer the good service it does. When you have to stretch your resources so thin, it is difficult to manage and give good service. That is why service has gone downhill in Toronto.
 
From article one: Talk about
privatization will do nothing to solve this. There is no way
privatization will cover the $220 million funding gap. Indeed, it could
make it worse, as busy, profitable routes are sold off and less revenue
flows to the TTC. Moreover, privatization isn’t going to magically
produce the billions of dollars needed to build Transit City. Focusing
on privatization distracts us from the real issue of how to get the
province to meet its historic funding commitment.

We need to pressure the mayoral candidates, as well as the Toronto MPPs regarding the return of the provincial funding for the TTC.  Regaining regular provincial government funding is the key to fixing the TTC.

War on cyclists in Toronto

NOW Magazine // Daily // The war on bikes
Excerpt:

Since rejoining the ranks of the civilized a couple of weeks back
(ie: those who bike ride to work) a few things have become painfully
obvious.

Antipathy
towards cyclists is at an all-time high in the city, at least it seems
to me after a couple years hiatus from the biking brigade.

Some of that
attitude has without a doubt been fuelled by the bike-hating bile being
spewed by mayoral wannabe Rocco Rossi.

The media’s negative editorializing on the
subject isn’t helping.

...

Why bike registration fees are wrong

» Bike fees: Misinformed, misguided and a step backwards for Toronto • Spacing Toronto • understanding the urban landscape
Excerpt:

From today’s Toronto Star:

Giorgio Mammoliti boldly announced Wednesday that if
elected mayor, he would introduce a $20-$30 registration fee for bikes.
“It’s an agenda that seems to be taking over so far in this election.
It’s all about the downtown core and the downtown agenda, and the
suburbs don’t want to continue to subsidize these pet projects,” he
said.

With all due respect, he’s got all his facts wrong.

Cyclists live and ride all across
the city, and there are major infrastructure projects happening in the
suburbs right now to help ensure that cyclists have a safe place to ride
in every part of Toronto.  In fact, the city (along with federal and
provincial funding) is spending $23 million in North York and
Scarborough to build bikeway trails – far more than is being spent
downtown.  (The downtown bikeway projects will cost an estimated
$330,000 this year.)

So his math is completely backwards.  Not only that,  but according
to the city’s own Cycling Survey (2009), utilitarian cycling is growing
faster in the suburbs than in the core. (download PDF report highlights)

...

Toronto - bike lanes divide mayoral candidates.

Bike lanes divide mayoral candidates - thestar.com
Let's see, one for bike lanes, one on the fence, and the rest against them.
Another reason I'll be voting for Joe.

Opposition considering Censure of the Tories

Censure Tories over detainee handling, MPs urged - thestar.com
Excerpt:

Mendes, one of the country’s top constitutional scholars, said
Parliament’s power exceeds that of the various national security laws
that have been used to censor government memos and diplomatic cables
describing who was warned about possible war crimes violations going
back to early 2006, when Canadian soldiers moved to Kandahar province.

That leaves MPs with two paths forward: they can ask the Supreme
Court of Canada to rule on their right to access the information, a
process that could take years; or they can invoke a rarely used power to
censure, expel and even imprison any member of the House of Commons for
contempt.

I say, throw Harper and his gang of crooks in jail so parliament can get on with its work.

Mike Harris Library? More appropriate to name a rifle range after him.

Is a Mike Harris library a silly idea? - thestar.com
Looks good on the people who kept voting in this horrible horrible man who destroyed Ontario. But ...

But this "learning" library is going to be in the core of the Nippising University and Canadore College.  It would be a totally inappropriate name, considering the hate Harris had for education while he was premier of Ontario.

Nipissing Students (and Friends) Against the Mike Harris Library - Facebook page
Interview with creator of this page:
http://www.baytoday.ca/content/news/details.asp?c=36232

A Harris Library would be an insult
Excerpt:
"This is a very cynical attempt to whitewash the political record of a
man whose legacy will forever be stained with the blood of one of our
citizens, " said Madahbee. "This would be an insult to the Anishinabek
and all First Peoples in Ontario if Mike Harris’ name is attached to
the library in any way.”

Madahbee was commenting on reports that
Nipissing University in Harris's home town of North Bay was planning to
name a new Learning Library after the former premier, a move linked to
a recent $15-million donation to the Faculty of Education by financier
Seymour Schulich.

“From a First Nation perspective, it would be
more appropriate to name a rifle range after Mike Harris than a
library,” said Madahbee. “His contribution to our collective knowledge
is anything but a positive one."

A step in the right direction for Quebec

Quebec bans niqab from government services - thestar.com
MONTREAL—Muslim women will need to uncover their faces from now on if
they want to deal with the Quebec government, according to landmark
legislation tabled Wednesday in the province.
...

That inquiry pointed out one lingering inconsistency in the argument
of those who claim to be defenders of a secular state: the giant
crucifix that still hangs on the wall of the provincial legislature.

Wednesday’s bill was silent on the Bouchard-Taylor commission’s
recommendation that the crucifix also be removed.

Canadian electoral districts now more unequal than ever

Unequal votes threatening Canadian democracy, study finds - The Globe and Mail
Excerpt:
According to the study, if Ontario was properly represented in the
House, it would have 117 seats, rather than the current 106. British
Columbia would increase from 36 to 40, while Alberta would have 31
rather than 28.

Harper's crime laws rely on people's ignorance

Prime Minister's tough-on-crime agenda energizes base, appeals to swing voters | The Hill Times - Canada's Politics and Government Newsweekly
Excerpts:
Craig Jones, executive director of the John Howard Society of Canada,
said the government's policies are meant to appeal to the "Tim Hortons
crowd" and rely on people's ignorance about crime in Canada and the
justice system. But he predicted the as-yet-unknown costs that will be
incurred through increased enforcement and incarceration would "shock
and awe" Canadians when the numbers are eventually released.

...

Canada's overall crime rate declined by 15 per cent between 1998 and
2007, and the Crime Severity Index, which tracks the relative severity
of a crime in comparison with other crimes, declined by 21 per cent.
Experts appearing before both the House of Commons and Senate Justice
committees testified that mandatory minimum sentences do not deter
crime, and in the U.S. have led to skyrocketing incarceration rates. A
2001 report by the federal Justice Department reached the same
conclusion.

Yet the government is forging ahead with its
"tough-on-crime" agenda.

Tories obstruct truth and justice yet again

Tories muzzling widow of rights agency head, she says - thestar.com
Federal Conservatives are trying to block a grieving widow's emotional appeal to speak on behalf of her dead husband, the former president of Montreal's embattled Rights and Democracy.

Suzanne Trepanier says she has important details about the workings of the agency – and the tensions she blames in part for Rémy Beauregard's death Jan. 8 from a heart attack.

...

Harper hiding behind troops

Travers: Harper uses troops as political shield - thestar.com
Excerpt:
Determinedly obtuse reasonably describes his response this week when asked on YouTube why Conservatives routinely hide behind the troops when questioned about abuse.

Harper answered by again using soldiers as a shield. There's no evidence, he said for the umpteenth time, that Canadians did anything wrong.

That's an artful dodge that ducks not one but two of the most salient points. One is that the Red Cross, diplomat Richard Colvin and Afghan human rights watchdogs provided compelling warnings that Canadian prisoners were routinely tortured by Afghans. The other is that international law requires only suspicion, not proof, before a country transferring prisoners must act to protect them from abuse.

Harper's stonewall defence is disingenuous at best, deceptive at worst. It suggests he doesn't know the law or fears the truth.

Equally troubling, the Prime Minister's determination to shift the focus away from himself, ministers and most senior commanders puts at risk the very troops and military institutions that Conservatives accuse political rivals of attacking.

As sure as war is hell, the Afghanistan story will inevitably unfold and the walls will come tumbling down. When they do, Harper, his cabinet and at least one chief of defence staff will have much to explain.

If the opposition does not force an election, then the will have given up a lot more power

Travers: They used to behead kings for what Harper is doing - thestar.com
If the opposition parties do not vote to hold Harper in contempt for not releasing the Afghanistan-related documents regarding the torture scandal, then they are basically handing over their power to the prime minister's office and saying that they are answerable to the prime minister and not the other way around (as it is/is supposed to be).

Why is Toronto not so bicycle friendly yet?

So, this is a cycling city? - thestar.com
This story doesn't touch on the root of the problem. The root of the problem is the anti-cycling councillors who have been blocking real progress in making Toronto a much more bicycle-friendly city. So, it is not the city's track record or the Mayor's track record that is problematic. It is the voting record of a group of councillors. If I had the links for the stories on their voting records on this issue, I would add them to this post. But such news is not covered much by the MSM - but then they publish a story like this without any background - now, why is that do you suppose?

Harper government covering up the torture of Afghan prisoners because they intended them to be tortured

CBC News - Canada - Canada wanted Afghan prisoners tortured: lawyer
Federal government documents on Afghan detainees suggest that Canadian officials intended some prisoners to be tortured in order to gather intelligence, according to a legal expert.

...
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2010/03/05/afghan-attaran005.html#ixzz0hQyJZnx9