I enjoyed this.

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CBC Newsworld aired Charles Ferguson's No End In Sight on Sunday night. No End In Sight was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at this year's Academy Awards and it's about the American occupation of Iraq.

I finished it last night and it does an excellent job of taking everything you think you know and stitching it all together. The people interviewed are people with integrity, people without political bias who were part of the reconstruction effort. People like General Jay Garner, Richard Armitage, Col. Lawrence Wilkerson and Ambassador Barbara Bodine. It's overwhelming and compelling evidence that serious mistakes were made by the Bush administration in the two year period following the invasion of Iraq in March 2003.

The wiki page summarizes the gut wrenching role of L. Paul Bremer role in this text book example of arrogance and incompetence.

According to No End in Sight, there were three especially grave mistakes made by L. Paul Bremer, the head of the CPA:

• A move toward "De-Ba'athification" in the early stages of the occupation. Saddam Hussein's ruling Ba'th Party counted as its members a huge majority of Iraq's governmental employees, including educational officials and some teachers. By order of the CPA, these skilled and ultimately apolitical individuals were banned from holding any positions in Iraq's new government.
• Not providing enough troops to maintain order. The looting of Iraqi museums sent chilling signals to the average Iraqi, telling them that the American forces did not intend to maintain law and order. In addition, arms depots were available for pillaging by anyone who wanted weapons and explosives.
• The disbanding of the Iraqi Army, which made 500,000 young men with weapons and training unemployed and bitter. Many of them decided that their best chance for a future was to join or, together with the rest of their unit, become a militia force.

The film cites these three mistakes, as well as many others, as the cause of the rapid deterioration of occupied Iraq into chaos.

It would be easy to Dubya-bash at this point. He was the man in charge, the commander-in-chief, and he has to be accountable. In this instance, it's clear he deferred the responsibility for post-war Iraq to others, and he showed no interest in taking part of the process or even questioning the decisions of Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, L. Paul Bremer or Paul Wolfowitz. He let others make one bad decision after another, without adequate planning or even talking to those in the know. Bush was a puppet and history will view him as such.

I actually don't know of anyone, other than those who defend George W. Bush's every decision for pure shock value, who believes the occupation of Iraq is going well. If you're unsure, or if you believe Dubya when he pronounces "In the Battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed" in front of a "Mission Accomplished" banner, I highly recommend this excellent documenatary. As you'll see, there's no end in sight.

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Laugh if you will, but we've been playing will.i.am's "We Are The Ones" quite a bit these last two days. Even my kids love it and can be heard chanting "O-BAM-A, O-BAM-A" as they play around the house. The Obama message of change and hope is only getting stronger.

Meanwhile, Hillary's latest ad uses scare tactics, appealing to the fears of the voters. Watch it here.

Now watch this 23 second clip of Bill Clinton.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

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will.i.am is at it again. First there was "Yes, We Can" and now "We Are The Ones".

"Yes, We Can" packed a more powerful punch, in my opinion, because it was pinned upon a Barack Obama speech, but I will admit the background O-BAM-A here is pretty catchy.

Any way you slice it, Hillary is in some serious trouble, and so is John McCain.

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Do you remember the Thrilla on Capital Hilla? I wrote all about it that May 19, 2005 night if you need to refresh your memory.

Here's a taste of what I wrote that day:

When Independent Chuck Cadman sided with the Liberals, it completed Paul Martin's Hulk Hogan-like rebound from certain defeat. When Hulk Hogan wrestled, there was always a part of the match when he was getting pummelled and appeared certain to lose. Then, with each punch, slap and kick, he'd shake as if his body was being shocked and he'd start to get stronger and stronger until he was able to block a punch and return the favour. Hogan would win in the end, much like Martin has won today. Martin appeared certain to fall until Belinda's epithany and Cadman's last second surprise.

Chuck Cadman passed away that summer and now his wife Dona, in a forthcoming book, Like A Rock: The Chuck Cadman Story, alleges the Conservatives offered Chuck Cadman a million-dollar life insurance policy in exchange for his vote.

Cadman's daughter, Jodi, corroborated her mother's story, saying her father discussed the offer with her and her mother because he couldn't talk about it publicly. Prime Minister Stephen Harper is in full denial mode even though there is an audio copy of an interview between him and the book's author, Tom Zyturuk. Here's a transcript from the CBC.

"The insurance policy for a million dollars, do you know anything about that?" Zytaruk asks.

"I don't know the details. I know that there were discussions," Harper replies on the tape. "This is not for publication?"

"This will be for the book, not for the newspaper," answers Zytaruk, who works for a Surrey newspaper.

Harper goes on to explain on the tape that the offer to Cadman was "only to replace financial considerations he might lose due to an election." He adds that the offer was carried out by people who were "legitimately representing the party."

He also tells Zytaruk that he knew there was little chance Cadman would agree.

"They wanted to do it, but I told them they were wasting their time. I said Chuck had made up his mind," Harper said.

The shit's really starting to hit the fan now. Following Adscam, Harper is trying to present himself as Mr. Clean, but there's a lot of smoke here for there to be no fire. Cadman was in the last stages of terminal cancer and Harper needed his vote, but an indecent, unethical and illegal offer of a million dollars couldn't taint the Surrey, British Columbia MP's integrity. Cadman couldn't be bought, and in the end, he very well may help defeat Harper's Conservatives once more.

There really should be a Chuck Cadman Day.

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For years I've been referring to Hillary Clinton as the next president of the United States of America. I firmly believe the democratic nominee will win the day next November and I've felt Hillary Clinton would likely end up with that nomination.

Today, I'm sensing Barack Obama has seized the momentum. Obama, a brilliant orator, has people talking about change. He's motivating people, giving Americans hope and faith that there will be sunlight after eight years of darkness.

I don't have a preference, but I want the winner of Obama v. Clinton to be the next president of the USA. Here's a fantastic video inspired by Obama's message of hope.

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Shockingly, Dubya's administration lied like a rug during the two years following 9/11. A nonprofit journalist organization called Center for Public Integrity worked with the Fund for Independence in Journalism found that President Bush and top administration officials issued hundreds of false statements about the national security threat from Iraq in the two years following the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The study concluded that the statements "were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses."

The study counted 935 false statements in the two-year period. It found that in speeches, briefings, interviews and other venues, Bush and administration officials stated unequivocally on at least 532 occasions that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction or was trying to produce or obtain them or had links to al-Qaida or both.

"It is now beyond dispute that Iraq did not possess any weapons of mass destruction or have meaningful ties to al-Qaida," according to Charles Lewis and Mark Reading-Smith of the Fund for Independence in Journalism staff members, writing an overview of the study. "In short, the Bush administration led the nation to war on the basis of erroneous information that it methodically propagated and that culminated in military action against Iraq on March 19, 2003."

If you're scoring at home, Dubya won with 259 fibs with Secretary of State Colin Powell finishing second.

Worst. President. Ever.

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I just shared Dubya's great cover of "Happy Xmas (War is Over)", and now I see the President of the United States of America is at it again.

This time Dubya's taking on R.E.M.'s "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)". He does a pretty good job, too.

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We're having a pretty good discussion about the separation of church and state in the comments of my What Really Matters? entry. After sharing my concern at the overtly religious nature of Dubya's Christmas Card I had a laugh when I came home from work today and found I had received a holiday card from Stephane Dion.

Stephane Dion's card has a picture of his family on the front, with their dog Kyoto, and this text on the inside in both English and French.

From our family to yours, we wish you all the best this holiday season, and health, happiness and prosperity in the New Year.

Stephane, Janine, Jeanne & Kyoto

That's the kind of secular holiday greeting I'd expect from a politician.

Why did I get a card from the next Prime Minister of Canada? Did everyone get one? Did you get one? Am I on some Liberal Party mailing list or is Dion a fan of my Harper bashing?

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I am not American nor have I ever lived in the United States of America, so I realize how it may be perceived were I to throw stones at our neighbours to the south. Fully understanding that we aren't perfect up here and those living in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, a couple of grains of web dust I've absorbed lately have me frightened for my friends in the States.

First I read about Barbara Walters and her concerns about the Christmas card she received from the White House.

“Usually in the past when I have received a Christmas card, it's been 'Happy Holidays' and so on,” said Walters.

But the veteran anchor expressed dismay that President Bush and the First Lady would send out a “religious Christmas card” with a direct Bible verse from the Old Testament printed inside:

“You alone are the LORD. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.”

After reading the scriptural message of the card, Walters asked in a critical tone, "Does this also go to agnostics, and atheists, and Muslims?"

"Don't you think it's a little interesting,” continued Walters in her questioning, “that the president of all the people is sending out a religious Christmas card?"

The card, which was paid for by the Republican National Committee, closes: “May the joy of all creation fill your heart this blessed season 2007.”

When did the nation of America and Christianity become so intertwined? America doesn't have an official religion, does it? Does Dubya know this? Aren't there many Americans who are non-Christian?

Then, I saw the ad below from Mike Huckabee. Huckabee is in hot pursuit of the GOP presidential nomination and has clearly decided to focus on the evangelical Dubya voters. Could a political ad be more religious? This scares the shit out of me. Is there any separation of church and state in the USA anymore?

If Huckabee is Bush 2.0, God help us all.

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John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War is Over)" packs a punch at this time of year, but this cover by George Dubya Bush is even more powerful.

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I have a $50 bet with a friend regarding our next federal election. I say Stephen Harper's Conservative Party will be completely shut out in the 416. My friend says they'll win at least one seat in Toronto. I'm so confident they won't, I would have bet up to $500.

The fact is, Stephen Harper is not our Prime Minister. Following the 2006 federal election, I wrote about the lack of blue in the T-Dot. This city has 23 seats and 20 went to the Liberal Party while the other three went to the NDP. At the time, I wrote the following.

Stephen Harper's Conservative Party cannot win in Toronto because of how close to our hearts we cherish our socially liberal values. The mere suggestion of repealing our abortion laws or revisiting the same-sex marriage debate upsets the average 416er. Toronto, like Montreal and Vancouver, is a progressive, open-minded, accepting and sensible city that will not sacrifice these values at any cost. So long as the Conservatives can't make a dent in Canada's big cities they will never win a majority.

As Royson James points out in today's Star, Harper has already written Toronto off. He knows he can't win a seat here, and he's not even going to try. Royson believes Mark Warner was ousted as a Conservative candidate because "he kept talking about urban issues – things that mattered to the people of Toronto Centre - like housing, poverty, health and social services".

So Canada's Prime Minister does not represent us in Canada's largest city. We didn't vote for him, and he's not interested in our future support. He'll focus on the West and Quebec and leave the 23 Toronto seats for the red and orange to fight over.

It's a damn shame it's come to this. Torontonians are without a Prime Minister and there's nothing we can do about it.

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Excluding the one-hit wonders, those who visit this site after Googling "running playlist" or "mp3 collection or whatever, the vast majority of people who visit this site live in Ontario. That's not surprising, I'm blabbing about very Toronto-centric stuff which loses its appeal the further you go from the GTA border. Most of you reading this right now are reading this from the province of Ontario.

I have a question for you. Why didn't you vote yesterday? Only 52.6 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot, a record low. Almost half of those who could, voted, and I'm curious as to why you'd just skip the entire event.

I'm not trying to shame you, I'm honestly just curious. Feel free to leave a comment as anonymous if you like. Why didn't you vote?

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Dalton McGuinty's Liberals just won the first back-to-back Liberal majority government since Mitch Hepburn won 70 years ago. The Liberals took 71 ridings, 17 more than the 54 needed for a majority in the 107-seat legislature, and left just 25 seats for John Torys' Progressive Conservatives.

Here are my final thoughts about the 2007 Ontario election.

The 416 Rejects the Right (Again)
Stephen Harper may be our Prime Minister, but he doesn't hold a single seat in Toronto, Canada's largest city. Federally, Toronto is a sea of Liberal red with a little NDP orange sprinkled in for good measure. The same is true provincially as every Toronto-based MPP this morning is a member of the Liberal party except for a few NDPers. Ever since we gave Mike Harris a majority in the mid-90s we've completely rejected every party right of the Liberals.

I Batted .500
In my riding, I batted .500. The MPP candidate I voted for won handidly as Cheri DiNovo got 18,186 votes to Sylvia Watson's 11,900. For the third election in a row, Parkdale-High Park has gone NDP orange and I'm stating to refer to the place as Orange County.

I only batted .500, however, because I was on the losing end of the referendum on electoral reform. My fellow Ontarians voted heavily for the existing first-past-the-post system over a proposed mixed member proportional (MMP) system. I saw that coming, though.

My Wife Ends a Lengthy Streak
For as long as I've known her, my wife has blindly voted Liberal in every single federal and provincial election. Last night, for the first time in her life, she voted for a member of a different party. I successfully sold her on the Radical Reverend.

How the Hell Did This Happen?
If you had told me two months ago Dalton McGuinty would win a big majority in this election, I would have laughed in your face. Does anybody actually like this guy? I can't remember a time when an administration was so disliked and so victorious. How many Ontarians went to the polls last night and held their nose as they voted?

John Tory couldn't even win his own seat and despite appearing to be a good leader on paper, never captured our fancy. He's missing that intangible quality that successful politicians seem to have. He may be a smart businessman but he just scored a key own-goal in crunch time. Dalton owes him a Coke.

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When I first wrote about the Ontario referendum, I admitted I was undecided. Since then I've heard compelling arguments on both sides. The Star even did a nice job surmising the pros and cons of mixed-member proportional representation.

Q: What are the advantages of MMP?
A: Smaller parties like the Greens, the Family Coalition and the Freedom Party would have a chance at winning seats in the Legislature even if they cannot win a riding outright. Any party that wins at least 3 per cent of the popular vote would be awarded four "list" seats. It would mean the end of majority governments when a party has won less than half the vote and prevent scenarios like former NDP premier Bob Rae's landslide victory in 1990 with 37.6 per cent of the vote.

Q: What are the disadvantages of MMP?
A: Critics charge the 39 "list" MPPs would not be directly elected and the parties could use the lists as a sort of Senate to reward party apparatchiks, financial donors or others. As well, it would likely spell the end of decisive, majority governments since no party has won 50 per cent or more of the popular vote since 1937.

Although I'm concerned about how this list is determined and used, it's hard to argue against the more democratic nature of MMP. I've always wanted the ability to vote for the party I wanted in charge without having to vote for that party's candidate. MMP gives me that and gives a better shot to parties outside the big two.

Having now admitted I'm leaning toward voting for MMP in tomorrow's referendum, I don't think it has a snowball's chance in hell of passing. Too few know about this referendum and when you're faced with a question you're not prepared for, you're going to vote for the status quo. I predict FPTP will win by a landslide.

Oh yeah, and in that other things we're supposed to vote on tomorrow, the writing's on the wall. Political Science students can study the John Tory campaign as a perfect example of how to botch a breakaway slam dunk. McGuinty will be first past the post but only because the favoured horse decided to shoot himself in the hoof before the opening bell.

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Most people in Ontario who go to the polls will know who they're voting for, or at least which party they're voting for, but how many will be ready for the referendum? Are you ready for the referendum for an electoral system?

The Question
Which electoral system should Ontario use to elect members to the provincial legislature? a) The existing electoral system (First-Past-the-Post), or b) The alternative electoral system proposed by the Citizens' Assembly (Mixed Member Proportional).

What the heck is First-Past-the-Post?
It's a horse racing analogy. Basically it's winner take all and it's the system we use today after inheriting it from Mother England. We cast one vote for our MPP and whoever gets the most votes wins the seat. Then, the political party that wins the most electoral districts is asked to form a government.

What's this new Mixed Member Proportional thingy?
This one is tricky, even for a smart guy like me. You vote twice on election day, once for your MPP and once for a political party. The MPP is the "Local Member" and the other vote determines the number of "List Members" each party gets. It adds proportional representation so the winning party is the one with the largest number of seats in the legislature, including both "Local Members" and "List Members". I told you this one was trickier.

I'm not sure how I'm voting in the referendum and luckily there's a site that explains things a little better than I did. You'll find it at http://yourbigdecision.ca. If you're ready for the referendum before you head to the polls, you'll feel less stupid when you're asked to choose the way we choose our whipping boys and girls.

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Freddie P just wrote about my Political Apathy entry from last week. In his entry of the same name, he says my entry made him sad. Here's what he wrote.

Every day I check in with several blogs and among those I enjoy very much is Toronto Mike.

Mike has a blog that’s usually very warm and fuzzy filled with tons of pop culture and neat stuff about the city we love.

However, the other day Mike had a posting entitled Political Apathy and it made me sad. I'm glad Mike isn't voting Liberal, but it still made me sad.

Mike talked about not really caring about the upcoming provincial election and I wondered how that could be. At the same time, it explained to me how someone like Dalton McGuinty survives.

Personally, given four years of McGuinty lies and deceit I can't see how anyone could "not" be into this election. We owe it to ourselves, our families, our friends and our province to become involved.

At the risk of being lumped in with the majority of people who don't know nor care what is going on in the arena of politics, I feel I should clarify a few things. Firstly, I don't vote for the leader. I know this makes me the exception, but I actually vote for the MPP. In fact, I write quite a bit about the local Parkdale-High Park happenings at www.torontomike.com/politics/, so I'm not nearly as apathetic as you think.

So yes, I'm jaded and bored by the McGuinty ~ Tory war of words, but I do follow the local race closely and take my vote very seriously. That's another thing, I actually vote. That also makes me the exception.

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Here in Ontario, the signs have sprouted on our lawns like fall flowers. We must be due for an election or something. Oh yes, we're going to the polls next month to vote for our MPP.

I haven't written about politics in a while because I'm jaded by the whole sport. Last time I voted for an MPP, which wasn't that long ago because we had a by-election last September, I found something I could sink my teeth into. The Radical Reverend Cheri DiNovo won the day making Parkdale-High Park the only riding in Toronto with both an NDP MP and an NDP MPP. With a pseudo NDP mayor, this neck of the woods couldn't be more orange.

Although the race is just getting started, I'm totally bored by the Tory - McGuinty war of words. I find DiNovo far more interesting. Her party doesn't have a prayer, but at least she offers more than a well drafted sound bite.

Wake me when it's time for me to cast my vote.

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I don't get a vote, but if I did I'd vote for Hillary in 2008.

If you want to know why, watch this...

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My NDP MP Peggy Nash will have a difficult battle on her hands when we next go to the polls. Gerard Kennedy plans to run for the federal Liberals in the riding of Parkdale-High Park where he was MPP for over seven years.

Gerard Kennedy is quite popular in these parts and historically Parkdale-High Park has voted Liberal. Peggy Nash rode an anti-Sarmite Bulte wave to power, but can she beat Kennedy?

I'm thinking we could be going red again.

For more on Peggy Nash's victory, check out these entries.

• What The Sam Bulte?
• Pro-User Zealots
• Same Ol' Threat
• More Sam Bull Spit
• Bulte Nashed

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As promised by the PM, the Conservatives tried to pass a motion to reopen same sex marriage legislation. It was defeated 175-123 this afternoon.

C-38 filled me with pride and I'm glad to see it stick. It's time to move on and let it be.

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The Liberal Party of Canada has selected Stéphane Dion as their new leader. That means Stéphane Dion will be the next Prime Minister of this great country. It's all unfolding according to plan.

I layed out the plan back in January, just before Harper's Conservative party won a minority government. Paul Martin was to step aside and a fresh face was to assume leadership of the party. This person would be far removed from Adscam and will lead the Liberal party to victory in the summer of 2007.

It's all unfolding as it should. The great national Harper experiment won't last long. Stay the course, Neddy. Stay the course...

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The winner of our Mayoral election may be a foregone conclusion (have they called it yet?) but at least there's enough of a race that one feels compelled to cast his or her ballot. Do our neighbours to the west in Mississauga even bother to follow their Mayoral race?

I realize we're voting for more than a Mayor today, but when it comes to the top municipal position, Hazel McCallion has held it for as long as I can remember. Hurricane Hazel has been Mississauga's mayor since 1978, almost 30 years ago. She's so popular, no serious challengers bother to run against her. This time around I see she has two challengers but somehow I don't think she's too worried about the outcome.

She's money in the bank so long as she's breathing.

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Hey Ontario, it's votin' day. According to the City of Toronto website for such matters, you can vote in the City of Toronto municipal election if you are:

• a Canadian citizen
• at least 18 years old
• a resident of the City of Toronto
• a non-resident owner or tenant of land in the City of Toronto, or their spouse
• not prohibited from voting under any law

Got that? Personally, I find that list awfully confusing. It starts off as a list of "must-be's". You must be a Canadian citizen, you must be at least 18, you must reside in Toronto, that part is clear enough, but what's this fourth item? "A non-resident owner or tenant of land in the City of Toronto, or their spouse". My brain hurts just parsing that statement. Clearly you can't answer yes to both #3 and #4, so this list isn't a bunch of "must-be's". It's also not a "one must be true" list. In other words, it's as clear as mud.

If you can vote, you should. We are fortunate to have fair and democratic methods in place for the selecting of political representation. To not take part in the process or to feel like our opinion doesn't matter, would be to waste the incredible power that we possess.

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Our continent felt just a little more sensible this morning, didn't it? Americans voiced their disappointment in Dubya and his military quagmire tendencies loud and clear yesterday, giving Democrats control of the House. It's also looking like they'll hold an edge in the Senate.

The writing was on the wall, but it still felt good seeing it come to fruition. Perhaps the world (and by world I mean Jesusland) hasn't gone completely mad. Perhaps there is hope for an open mind, an educated approach, a worthy cause. I'm still smiling.

If you're wondering what I really think of Dubya, here's a taste.

• The Problem With Dubya
• Dubya Delusional?
• The S Factor
• State of Dubya
• Human Kleenex
• The Fog of Dubya
• How History Will View Dubya
• How Bush Blew It
• The Worst President Ever
• Stealing the 2004 Election

Memories...

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Did you know there is a municipal election here next week? You've probably seen the signs on lawns and green space throughout the 416. You might even know the names of David Miller's challengers. We're going to the polls next Monday so add that to your Google calendar.

Exactly three years ago this week I wrote this endorsement of David Miller. John Tory and David Miller duked it out to see who would succeed Mel Lastman. I liked Miller for the job because I saw him as an intelligent person with a worthwhile vision doing his very best for the greatest city on the planet.

Three years later, I'm a little disappointed in Miller. Let's just say I expected more. I still back him this time around, but mainly because there isn't a strong enough alternative to secure my vote. Here's hoping in three years time we're discussing promise fulfilled in the local election scene.

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When I started this blog, I lay down ground rules for myself. One rule was and is "never write about work". Writing about work is asking for trouble.

Garth Turner, the MP for Halton, also writes a blog. Turner writes about his job. In fact, that's the refreshing allure. He uses his blog to communicate with his constituents, giving them a peek at the daily life of an MP and sharing his views on various subjects, even if it puts his own party in a negative light. The Conservative Party didn't like this very much and suspended him from the caucus.

His blog gets 1.5 million hits a month and that figure will only grow with this news. Read his entries, it's like taking a cool shower on a hot, sweltering day. It's damn refreshing and something I wish all MPs did.

He's been kicked out of caucus, but the web-based MP has solidified his role as the voice that doesn't tow the company line. No matter what you think of his politics, this is a very good thing.

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Stephen Harper won't admit to rooting for a particular NHL team. He was born in Toronto, lived in Calgary and rules Ottawa. In typical political style, he realizes that deciding on a favourite will upset a large portion of voters. He's happily assumed his perch on the fence.

On Wednesday night, he and his son attended the Leafs ~ Sens game at the ACC. As James mentioned, he was caught wildly (for him, it was wild) celebrating Mats Sundin's goal on a penalty shot. In that moment, we caught a glimpse of an unguarded Prime Minister, reacting with his gut and not at the mercy of his spin doctors.

It's known that Harper's son is a Leafs fan. It's not a far stretch to assume pops feels the same way. The fact is, there was no blue in the T.Dot following the last federal election. Twenty Toronto seats when to the Liberals and the three others went to the NDP. Perhaps Harper feels rooting for the Leafs will help him gain some ground in the GTA and the rest of Southern Ontario?

Of course, there's a dangerous flip-side to that strategy. Many out west root for the Flames, Oilers or Canucks. If Harper is revealed as a Leafs fan, he may be alienating his base. If they think he's gone Toronto, he's in big trouble. The rest of Canada hates Toronto, or so I've been told.

I choose to believe that we caught our very first glimpse of the man in a natural state. He was very happy to see the blue and white pot a goal against the Sens and he pumped his fist in delight. I can dislike the man's politics, but I've gotta respect that passion for Canada's team.

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If not for that silly two term limit, Bill Clinton would still be the President of the United States of America. He's actually smart, imagine that! An intelligent, well-spoken President.. those were the days.

He appeared on "Fox News Sunday" this past weekend and it turned into quite the battle. I've never watched a minute of Fox News in my life, so I didn't see it live, but thanks to YouTube we can all enjoy it again and again.

Check out Bill Clinton vs. Chris Wallace. A conservative hit job indeed.

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Cheri DiNovo, the NDP candidate in yesterday's provinicial by-election in Parkdale-High Park, will replace Gerard Kennedy as our Member of Provincial Parliament. She beat Liberal candidate Sylvia Watson by more than two thousand votes. For the second time in less than a year, this riding which previously overwhelmingly supported the Liberal candidates both federally and provincially, has gone orange.

Before we look at the numbers, you might want to catch up on what you've missed with regards to this nasty little by-election. Hit the following for more information.

• By-election Bonus Ballot
• Political Smear in Parkdale-High Park
• DiNovo's Wrestling Match With Sin
• The Polls Are Closed

Since they realigned the provincial electoral districts to match the federal borders, Parkdale-High Park voted Liberal candidate Gerard Kennedy to power twice. Last time out, in 2003, he received 57.8% of the vote and won by over 16000 votes. It wasn't even close. The Liberal Party dropped from 57.8% of the vote and an overwhelming victory to 33% of the vote and a defeat to the NDP in less than three years.

The same trend can be seen federally. In 2004, Liberal candidate Sarmite Bulte won her third consecutive term as Member of Parliament for Parkdale-High Park. Earlier this year, she too lost to NDP candidate Peggy Nash by more than two thousand votes. The two elections, only nine months apart, are a near exact mirror of one another.

For more on January's federal election, check out these entries.

• What The Sam Bulte?
• Pro-User Zealots
• Same Ol' Threat
• More Sam Bull Spit
• Bulte Nashed

Did Parkdale-High Park turn orange or did they reject red? As a voter in the riding, in both instances I supported the NDP candidate because I was dismayed by the Liberal candidate. With Sarmite Bulte there was her conflict of interest with regards to our copyright law. With Sylvia Watson, there was the relentless assualt on Cheri DiNovo's character based on sermons she delivered to her congregation at Emmanuel Howard Park United Church. I suspect others in my riding felt the same internal pressure to vote some where else and none of us were willing to move to the right. The NDP reaped the benefits.

I'm glad the Radical Reverend survived the storm. I'm a proud supporter of both her and Peggy Nash. I think we look good in orange.

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They're counting votes right now in Parkdale-High Park. The polls have been closed for half an hour and results should soon start coming in. This wasn't your typical by-election. The Liberal party sensed their powerful grip on my riding weakening and wiped some smear on the festivities. Things escalated with sensational press releases unfairly charging NDP candidate Cheri DiNovo with linking Karla Homolka with Jesus Christ. I'm telling you, it's been a thriller here in Parkdale-High Park.

Will the Liberals keep Gerard Kennedy's seat? Will DiNovo and the NDP follow in the footsteps of Peggy Nash and pull off the upset victory? Did Taryn and I back the right horse? All will be told tonight in what I predict will be a photo finish.

Anyone who tells you politics is boring doesn't know what they're talking about.

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Pete's comment on this entry about political smearing in my Parkdale-High Park riding got me reading NDP MPP candidate Cheri DiNovo's sermon from October 2, 2005. Pete's comment was "Well I think she's screwed now after saying Karla Homolka is being treated by the media as Jesus was by the Jews when being persecuted. She should know better in a Polish (mostly Catholic) area. She just shot herself in the foot for good. Race is over!". I had to read for myself how Karla Homolka was being linked to Jesus Christ. Here's the controversial sermon from the Radical Reverend in its entirety.

'Love the Sinner Hate the Sin' is Not Christian

Reverend Dr Cheri DiNovo

I think, more than any other topic, the word 'sin' conjures up about two thousand years of really bad preaching and really poor theology. So I'm going to wrestle with 'Sin' today.

Martin Luther once said, "Though we commit adultery a hundred times a day and as many murders, nothing can separate us from the love of Christ Jesus." He also said something else, bad boy of theology that he was, "Sin boldly and love Christ more boldly still."

Did you know that the saying, "Love the sinner, hate the sin" has absolutely nothing to do with our faith? It is not to be found anywhere in the Bible. It was said by Mahatma Gandhi on one of his not so good days and it has been used to beat people up. It has been used to do violence to people ever since. Something Gandhi would never ever have wished. When I was sparring with the person who helped organize the rally against same sex marriage at Queen's Park a couple of weeks past, I heard those lines from his mouth. So that's why I thought we should talk about them. He said we should hate the sin, meaning in this case, homosexuality, but we should love the sinner.

Now in the Bible there's no place for that kind of noise. In the Bible there is no separation ever between the sinner and the sin. You can't separate them out. When I heard this gospel passage from Jesus I remembered that when I first heard it, I heard it this way and your probably did to. Jesus saying the Pharisees, they're okay, they don't need me, they've already got their act together. The sinners, the poor ones, the sick ones, that's who I'm really here to help.

That is not what it says! And that is certainly not what he meant. What Jesus is saying in that passage is that those Pharisees, the ones who think they are righteous, don't have a clue. They will never be able to 'see' me or experience my ministry. Only the ones who know they are sinners will be the faithful ones, will be the ones able to experience my ministry, experience the divine in their lives. Only they will get it! Why would he say something like that? If you already know everything you can't learn 'nothing'. If you know that you know nothing, you can potentially, learn everything.

What does 'sin' mean biblically? It doesn't mean 'bad'. It doesn't mean 'bad things'. Sin means, and there are two main words for it, a Hebraic word for it, 'chatta't' and there's a Greek word, 'hamartia'. Hamartia and chatta't mean, approximately, separation from God. Hamartia is an archery word. It means that you let the arrow go and you miss the mark. The arrow goes astray. Somehow all of us have taken a wrong turn, a wrong path. We've taken a wrong road. We've turned our gaze from the divine, the source of all love and become embroiled in all sorts of other 'stuff'. That's sin.

The opposite of sin is not purity or goodness. The opposite of sin is faithfulness. When we turn toward the divine we are saved. Now, you heard Paul talking about the 'Law' and he talks about the law throughout his writing, the law of course we know as the Ten Commandments, the law of Moses, the law of the Torah. What are the Ten Commandments about? They're about this, a checklist for everything we all commit every day of our lives. That's what they point out to us. The Ten Commandments are a way of saying from God to us, "Everyday you practice violence in your heart. Everyday you commit adultery or lust. Everyday you have idols before me etc. Everyday all of you do all of these things." And it's only in turning to God and God's giving of God's self in Christ that all of that is taken away from us. We'll never be able to do it on our own. We can't even attempt it. We can't even walk the first step along that path without the assistance of the divine. Luckily we have the divine with-in and with-out us. Luckily if we turn we can walk that right path but we can never, never take credit for it. We can only ever give credit to Christ. This is all very Pauline.

Another quote that I like is from H. G. Wells. He said, "Moral indignation is just jealousy with a halo around it." And you know , most of the Christian world is engaged in moral indignation most of their days. So we're going to vow to stop that moral indignation, that jealousy with a halo around it. We're going to vow to do what Christ called us to do, which is to love our neighbour as ourselves and to never, ever, ever, judge them. So that saying, "Love the sinner, hate the sin" has no place in any Christian theology ever.

Now I don't know about you but I am absolutely appalled by what I see in our newspapers lately so I'm going to rant about it for a moment. Every day we are subject to what I consider a kind of sadistic pornography. Now I know it sells papers but every day we pick up the Star or the National Post or the Globe and we see the picture of Karla Homolka on the front cover. I can only imagine what this does to the families of the victims. I know what it does to me. Here's what it does to me, trying to follow Christ. What it does is detract from the news on the 8th page in much smaller type and smaller headlines that says things like '800 People Have Died Since the Iraqi Elections' It detracts from headlines on page six that talks about what's happening in Cuba at the American detention camp in all of our names. It detracts from the news on the fourth page about the horrors of what we have done to our Islamic brothers and sisters. That's what it does and it allows us to create a scapegoat, remember Jesus was a scapegoat, and just pour all our hatred and frustration on this one woman. How sick is that? What it prevents us from doing mostly is to look in the mirror at our own sinfulness/separateness from God and do something about that.

I did a wedding a couple of weeks back and one of the musicians sat down and told me that a sex offender had just been released from prison and was going to take up residence on her street and she was saying, "I've got a twelve year old daughter." And I said to her, "You know that sex offender is probably the least likely person in all of Canada to do anything to your daughter." Karla is the least likely person in all of the world right about now, to do anything to anyone. She going to be dogged by paparazzi everywhere she goes. She's going to be hunted like a wounded animal. It's going to be sick. She's not going to be going anywhere and doin' nothin'. Who is, meanwhile? The people most likely to abuse children are in the children's own house, relatives, stepfathers, people they know. The second most likely people to abuse children or to hurt someone are people in positions of respect, that's right, doctors, priests, ministers, lawyers, people that families turn to and trust. Isn't it weird that we focus on this one woman's image and we forget all about that?

"Judge not" said Jesus. He also said, "Blessed are the peacemakers." He also said "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and soul." And he also said, "Love your enemies." "Love your enemies." What does that look like? It looks like this, "Love your enemies." The greatest enemy is the one we look at every day in the mirror every morning when we attempt for one more day to turn our gaze from the ways of the world to a different kind of world, a different kind of being, a different kind of spirituality and a different kind of Christianity and that's a Christianity that follows Jesus Christ. Not the Christianity that you hear about from pulpits that preach, "Hate the sin and love the sinner." But the kind of Christianity that says, "I came for the sinner and you're all sinners." The kind of Christianity that says, "We're the greatest sinners of all." The kind of Christianity that says, "I will never cease to be human but I can look toward God." The kind of Christianity that advises us to "Love our enemy" and "Judge not."

It brings to mind one of my favourite Mahatma Gandhi quotes, a saying that should be headlined in every paper, every day and that is, "An eye for an eye just makes the whole world blind."

Amen.

Those with political motivation can easily isolate shocking parts of this sermon and present them out of context. I've read it three times and I don't find it minimizes Homolka's accountability or presents her in any way as Christ-like. The controversial linkage comes as she warns us of scapegoating and follows that up by reminding us that Jesus was also a scapegoat. It never gets any stronger than that.

When the polls close on Thursday, I fear Pete might be right. The average voter may be scared red by the mere mention of Homolka and Jesus in the same paragraph. The average voter will read the Liberal Party headline that DiNovo "compares the media's treatment of Karla Homolka to the persecution of Jesus Christ" without reading the complete sermon. The average voter might play it safe. That's too bad.

At Emmanuel Howard Park United Church, DiNovo delivers some radical sermons. She's on the edge, reaching out, preaching from the heart. Isolating certain phrases from these sermons and using them politically is unethical and unfair. Hearing a politician who doesn't sanitize everything in ambiguity is as refreshing as a cold shower on a hot summers night. She still has my vote. In fact, for the first time in the eleven years I've known her, my wife is strongly considering giving her vote to a party other than the Liberals. That alone is a miracle.

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I mentioned that we in the Parkdale - High Park riding are going to the polls this month in a provincial by-election to replace Gerard Kennedy as MPP. Signs, signs, everywhere there're signs. Now we have a little smear campaign against NDP candidate Cheri DiNovo to make things a little more interesting.

I only heard about it last night during the CBC radio newscast but a little digging this morning points to this entry and this entry as sparkplugs. These entries reference a VisionTV bio that states DiNovo "embraces street people, addicts and the impoverished into the church because she believes they call her congregation back to the essence of Christianity" and this juicy quote from one of her sermons: "I think I did a really good job and I spoke for quite awhile and I said, "Okay, your turn, questions?" There was this silence and then one kid put his hand up and asked, "What drugs did you sell?" And I answered, "LSD that I imported in hollowed out Bibles (the first introduction I had to the Bible) and back then it was the good stuff, not the kind of crap you kids do." That happened this week."

Cheri DiNovo is intriguing the say the least, and she's the candidate that first captured my attention when the election date was announced. A nice little fact check reminds us that she's quite accomplished and definitely worthy of consideration. When taken out of context, these quotes can be shocking to some, and that's the point. This riding voted NDP in the recent Federal election and clearly the Liberal candidate is getting a run for her money this time around. A little shock in the final week might just be enough to scare the weary back to the comfort of Dalton's big red machine.

It doesn't work for this voter, however. Now I'm really starting to dig the radical reverend. The fact she openly speaks about selling LSD in hallowed out Bibles is refreshing. She's admitted her mistakes, turned her life around and is now giving back to her community full throttle. Politics could use a few more Cheri DiNovos.

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As I mentioned last week, I'm lucky enough to live in a riding that will be going to the polls in a couple of weeks to elect a new MPP. This has brought out the sign people.

They come out every time there's an election, either Federally, Provincially or Municipally. The sign people come to your door and ask you if it's okay to put a sign on your property promoting their candidate. An NDP sign guy just rang the door bell. The PC sign guy was by on the weekend. It's sign people season.

When I first became a home owner, about five years ago, I made a decision that nobody would get free ad space on my property, even if I supported the candidate. Sure, if my brother or a good buddy was running I might make an exception, but otherwise my standard answer is "no". I just don't do the sign thing.

I always laugh at the people who say yes to every sign guy who comes to their door. They've got the PC candidate, the NDP candidate, the Liberal candidate and the Pot Party candidate's signs on their lawns. Either they're undecided or they're easy. I suspect they just don't care. I care, and that's why I just say no.

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Lucky me, I get to vote again on September 14th. Gerard Kennedy was my MPP but he decided he might aim a little higher and shoot for federal Liberal leadership. That left the Parkdale-High Park seat open and we'll fill the sucker next month.

Kennedy, of course, was a member of the Liberal party, and Toronto city councillor Sylvia Watson will now suit up for McGuinty's team. I'm rather intrigued by the NDP candidate Cheri DiNovo. She's a United Church minister who performed North America's first legal same-sex marriage five years ago. During the federal election earlier this year, my riding went orange with NDPer Peggy Nash beating out Liberal incumbent Sam Bulte. It may very well go orange again.

The fun never stops around here...

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I know those in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, but I don't really care if my house shatters and I've got a lot of stones weighing me down. Our man Harper has a rather hateful opinion of same-sex marriage but Dubya seems absolutely obsessed with it and has been desperately lobbying for a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. Of all the issues his country is facing these days, this is the one that gets his knickers in a knot.

Thankfully, the US Senate blocked the measure earlier today. Dubya, ever the persistent little shit, seems hell-bent on pursuing a constitutional amendment defining marriage as solely between a man and a woman. Why he would waste such energy on such a homophobic agenda when there's a quagmire in Iraq, an illegal immigration crisis at home and soaring energy costs is inexplicable to me.

In related news, Harper has promised to hold a free vote in Parliament this fall to learn whether MPs still support a law passed last year allowing same-sex marriages. The passing of C-38 was a moment of pride for this nation and Harper too ought to move on to more important issues. Harper and Dubya, cut from the same archaic cloth.

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I just read a very interesting Rolling Stone article from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Here's an excerpt.

Nearly half of the 6 million American voters living abroad never received their ballots -- or received them too late to vote -- after the Pentagon unaccountably shut down a state-of-the-art Web site used to file overseas registrations. A consulting firm called Sproul & Associates, which was hired by the Republican National Committee to register voters in six battleground states, was discovered shredding Democratic registrations. In New Mexico, which was decided by 5,988 votes, malfunctioning machines mysteriously failed to properly register a presidential vote on more than 20,000 ballots. Nationwide, according to the federal commission charged with implementing election reforms, as many as 1 million ballots were spoiled by faulty voting equipment -- roughly one for every 100 cast.

The reports were especially disturbing in Ohio, the critical battleground state that clinched Bush's victory in the electoral college. Officials there purged tens of thousands of eligible voters from the rolls, neglected to process registration cards generated by Democratic voter drives, shortchanged Democratic precincts when they allocated voting machines and illegally derailed a recount that could have given Kerry the presidency. A precinct in an evangelical church in Miami County recorded an impossibly high turnout of ninety-eight percent, while a polling place in inner-city Cleveland recorded an equally impossible turnout of only seven percent. In Warren County, GOP election officials even invented a nonexistent terrorist threat to bar the media from monitoring the official vote count.

It's a compelling argument and well supported by trustworthy citations. The 350,000 voters in Ohio alone who were prevented from casting ballots or having their votes counted would have put John Kerry in the White House.

My prediction from that day was wrong, but maybe it was right? I had the Electoral College votes going to Kerry by a whisker. Little did I know Dubya and his Republican cronies were gonna steal the sucker. I hate the bastard.

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With Ken Dryden's announcement earlier today, there are now ten candidates in the Liberal party leadership race. Eight of them happen to hail from Toronto, a city near and dear to this blogger's heart. The ten hopefuls, in alphabetical order, are:

• Maurizio Bevilacqua
• Carolyn Bennett
• Scott Brison
• Stephan Dion
• Ken Dryden
• Martha Hall Findlay
• Gerard Kennedy
• Michael Ignatieff
• Bob Rae
• Joe Volpe

I don't have a vote, but I do have a favourite. A few months ago I wrote an entry entitled "Prime Minister Ken Dryden" in which I discussed the fact Ken Dryden could be our next Prime Minister. Afterwards, a number of people cracked jokes about the possibilty. Many thought I was kidding. The fact of the matter is, I was completely serious.

Yes, hearing him speak is going to bore us to tears, but he's an intelligent, compassionate thinker who I trust at the helm. When he speaks about loving this country and wanting the best for his country, there's a sincerity in his tone that cannot be faked. Most importantly, he's a man of integrity, exactly what the doctor ordered for the Liberal party at this juncture.

If not Dryden, then Gerard Kennedy. You can't go wrong with a left-leaning Torontonian. If you're a betting man, throw a loonie down on Michael Ignatieff. I'm sticking with Dryden's record. Eight seasons and four Stanley Cups. The other nine combined haven't won a single one.

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It's been three months since I've written about Stephen Harper and his Conservative crew. I wanted to take some time to let the dust settle and see whether my fears he'd be a Dubya Jr. were justified. He's been Prime Minister of Canada for three months and what I've seen frightens this proud Canuck.

I'm sure I remember Harper promising a more transparent, open government. I first raised a Spockian eyebrow when the press wasn't advised of a Cabinet meeting earlier in the month. Reporters were restricted to the foyer of hte House of Commons, a flight below their usual perch outside the room. Then, I read in Time a couple of weeks ago that offiicals decide which reporters get to ask questions at Harper's press conferences and "sometimes pass over those they suspect have questions they don't want to deal with". These tactics reke of Dubya and appear anything but transparent, but it was something I read today that prompted this entry.

Harper's government barred the media from covering the return of the flag-draped coffins of our four soldiers killed in Afghanistan. Corporal Matthew Dinning, Bombardier Myles Mansell, Corporal Randy Payne and Lieutenant William Turner were slain in a roadside bomb blast Saturday in southern Afghanistan in the deadliest attack against Canadian forces since we deployed to Afghanistan in 2002. Banning media coverage of the coffins of our slain service men and women is a page directly out of George Bush's handbook. It's clearly an attempt to minimize the growing casualites in Afghanistan. Harper has also decided we won't lower the flag on Parliament Hill in honour of our fallen heroes. We'll do that but once a year, on Remembrance Day. That's not only wrong, it's disrespectful.

If Harper believes he can continue in this direction without suffering the consequences at the polls, he's underestimated the Canadian public. He won a minority goverment not so much because people were drawn to him but because people were dismayed with the Liberal Party. With this kind of leadership, the plan won't be denied.

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The Associated Press has obtained and made a confidential government video public. This video confirms the suspicions many of us had about Dubya and his government's preparations for Katrina.

The day before Katrina struck, Dubya attended a briefing about Katrina during which he was clearly warned about the coming disaster. He didn't ask a single question during the briefing but he did assure state officials that "we are fully prepared." The rest is an unfortunate and ugly piece of history.

I'm not surprised, are you? Back on September 12 I wrote about how Bush blew it. The average American knew more about what was happening in New Orleans than the President.

How this guy got re-elected is beyond me. The problem with Dubya has been crystal clear for some time now. According to polls, his approval rating is at an all-time low of 36%. I'm shocked it's that high.

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There were 23 seats up for grabs in Toronto last night. On a night when the Conservative Party was elected to form a minority government, Toronto had other ideas. Not a single one of Toronto's 23 seats went to a Conservative candidate.

In 2004, every one of our 23 seats went to the Liberal party except for Jack Layton's riding. This time, the result was identical except Olivia Chow won her riding and Peggy Nash won my riding. That gives us twenty Liberal MPs and three NDP MPs. In Montreal and Vancouver, the results were similar with the Conservative party also being shut out in both cities.

Stephen Harper's Conservative Party cannot win in Toronto because of how close to our hearts we cherish our socially liberal values. The mere suggestion of repealing our abortion laws or revisiting the same-sex marriage debate upsets the average 416er. Toronto, like Montreal and Vancouver, is a progressive, open-minded, accepting and sensible city that will not sacrifice these values at any cost. So long as the Conservatives can't make a dent in Canada's big cities they will never win a majority.

The plan is coming together nicely. Paul Martin's resignation as leader is imminent and a new leader will emerge who doesn't belong to Jean Chretien or Martin. The new leader will unite this nation and return us to our former stature as the envy of progressive nations across the globe.

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In my Parkdale-High Park riding, NDP Peggy Nash defeated Sam Bulte 20690 to 18489. One of those 20690 votes belonged to me.

This is a new age of communication. The main stream media no longer controls all information disseminated to constituents. Bloggers have real power when it comes to spreading thoughts, ideas and knowledge. My first entry about the perception Bulte was firmly placed in the recording industry's pocket came after reading this entry on Michael Geist's blog. Living in this riding and having a keen interest in our copyright law, I followed up that entry with this, this, this, this and this. Other local bloggers with a far higher profile than I also began writing about this concern and before you knew it I was reading about it in the mainstream media.

Bulte might have got away with this in a different age, but in 2006 there's nowhere to hide. Nash's victory is a victory for us all.

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With a half an hour remaining until live election night coverage and my Leafs down 2-0 in the second intermission, this would be a good and fair time for me to unveil my prediction. Our election gag law is proof that this prediction is not based on any actual data.

1. Conservative: 130
2. Liberal: 88
3. Bloc: 56
4. NDP: 33
5. Green: 1

Here's hoping I'm wrong.

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When you don't vote, you let others speak for you.

We are fortunate to have fair and democratic methods in place for the selecting of political representation. To not take part in the process or to feel like our opinion doesn't matter, would be to waste the incredible power that we possess.

The power of a single vote is staggering. It is our right to stand up and be counted, and the way we do that is by casting our ballot. Don't forget to vote in today's Federal Election.

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Michael Moore's latest blog entry is aptly named "Michael Moore Statement on Canadian Election". In it, he hopes our threat to elect a Conservative government tomorrow is a joke, or as he calls it, "reverse irony". Here's a taste of what he's written.

These are no ordinary times, and as you go to the polls on Monday, you do so while a man running the nation to the south of you is hoping you can lend him a hand by picking Stephen Harper because he's a man who shares his world view. Do you want to help George Bush by turning Canada into his latest conquest? Is that how you want millions of us down here to see you from now on? The next notch in the cowboy belt? C'mon, where's your Canadian pride? I mean, if you're going to reduce Canada to a cheap download of Bush & Co., then at least don't surrender so easily. Can't you wait until he threatens to bomb Regina? Make him work for it, for Pete's sake.

His entry has pissed me off. Not because he's an arrogant American belittling us but because he's bloody well right. I hate the idea of that party in power in my country. Twins from Bolton has me thinking about the undecided voters. There may be more than we think, and they may like the idea of a Conservative government as much as I do. Maybe this is all a joke and we aren't really about to elect a guy "who should really be running for governor of Utah".

Do you believe in miracles?

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I have to get one of these for my car. Inspired by Sam Bulte's infamous statement, the words now define a movement. Proudly pronounce yourself a pro-user zealot!

It's the final weekend before Monday's vote. Thankfully, it's looking like we'll avoid a Conservative majority. I've come to grips with the reality of a Conservative minority a long time ago. In December of 2003, polls showed Paul Martin had 48% of the popular vote. Today, it's half that. The more Canadians got to see Martin as their leader, the less they liked him. My last sentence in my last entry of 2004 echoed this sentiment.

Is this a leader?

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I've written quite a bit about Sam Bulte this month. It began with this entry, continued with this one and seemed to conclude yesterday with this one. Checking in on the news of the day has inspired me to write one more about my current MP.

In this Toronto Star article, Bulte was asked about whether it was right that she accept money raised at a recording industry fundraiser considering the fact she has worked on a copyright law. She said, "They are not hosting a fundraiser for me. ... It's a celebration of my support for the arts community."

As Michael Geist points out, Bulte's own website and brochures for this $250-a-plate get together clearly refer to it as a fundraiser. Accordion Guy is even sharing a screen capture of Bulte's site which refers to the event as a "FUNDRAISER" in red, capital letters. There's also the official invitation which calls it a fundraiser and clearly states "All funds raised will go to Sam's re-election campaign".

There's something rotten in the State of Denmark. She's insulting the intelligence of every one of her constituents. How can she tell Canada's most read newspaper that an event is not a fundraiser while promoting the fact it's a fundraiser all over her official web site?

Fellow Parkdale-High Park voters, I urge you to seriously consider NDP candidate Peggy Nash. Enough Bulte.

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Earlier this month, I wrote about Sam Bulte and her conflict of interest. She's the MP in my riding who has backed U.S.-style copyright laws while the Canadian Recording Industry Association and the Canadian Motion Pictures Distributors Association filled her coffers. I admitted in that entry that I was giving Peggy Nash, our NDP candidate, serious consideration.

Last week I wrote about Sam Bulte's "pro-user zealot" statement. I pointed out that in 2004, Bulte won by less than 3,500 votes over Nash. I called upon my neighbours to send a clear message that this kind of behaviour is not acceptable. I had made up my mind.

It's deja-vu all over again. Apparently, I had these same thoughts last time. Here it is in black and white. At that time, only a few weeks before the last federal election, I confessed "I've been considering the possibility I might cast my vote for Jack Layton's NDP."

This will be the fifth federal election I've voted in. The previous four times I cast my vote for the Liberal candidate. The streak will be broken Monday night.

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I've spent the past week or so coming to grips with reality. Stephen Harper will soon be my Prime Minister. Join me in my time machine as we revisit an entry I wrote on June 11, 2004.

June 11, 2004 / 19:13 EDT

Fear
I fear the Conservative Party will win the election on June 28th and Stephen Harper will be my new Prime Minister.

Harper's Conservative Party is starting to show its stripes. Comments are being made by Conservative Party candidates that suggest they are homophobic and anti-abortion. Anti-abortion is itself a misnomer because nobody is actually pro-abortion, but pro-choice. I believe it's essential that a woman in Canada retain the legal right to abortion. Furthermore, I believe homosexuality is a characteristic one is born with and not a lifestyle or choice. As such, we must protect the rights of homosexuals in much the same manner we must protect the rights of minorities or women.

Harper has vowed to reverse the decision made by Quebec, Ontario and B.C. courts of appeal to give gays and lesbians the right to get married. In the latest remark, Frank Luellau, the Conservative candidate for Kitchener-Conestoga, told The Globe and Mail that homosexuality "is not a natural kind of relationship" and that it is the "constitutional right to freedom of religion and freedom of association" for a religious group to fire or refuse to hire gays and lesbians. Leullau's comments follow those of Cheryl Gallant, the Ottawa-area MP who last week said the Conservative caucus wants to repeal legislation that places sexual orientation in Canada's anti-hate law. Later, she was quoted at an anti-abortion rally equating abortion to the beheading of American contractor Nicholas Berg.

On top of all of this, Harper promises Canada will pull out of the Kyoto Protocol. He claims it's irrelevant and unworkable. Everything I've read about Kyoto suggests it's not only relevant but necessary. Kyoto calls for a 6 percent cut in the emission of greenhouse gases from 1990 levels by 2012. The environment is the lowest of priorities for this party.

This is not a party I could ever support. One of my favourite things about Canada is the fact that we're an open minded progressive nation. I've always considered us to be proactive rather than reactive and our liberalism a trait admired by the free world. I wrote this almost one year ago and it says a lot about what I want my Canada to be. I fear the Conservative Party will win and I see that as one giant step backwards.

For all their faults, the Liberal Party is indeed the best option for Canada. Please put aside your issues with Dalton McGuinty or your anger at the sponsorship scandal and envision a Canada with Harper at the helm. Better yet, look down and check out Dubya. Their politics are eerily similar.

I won't be writing a similar entry this year. I, too, have lost faith in the Liberal Party. I didn't like my options back in April and I don't like them much better now, but the writing's on the wall. My only hope is that we stick with the plan and limit this imminent Conservative victory to a minority government. I no longer fear the Conservative Party will win, I now fear they will win a majority and I'd rather not find out the hard way precisely what that entails.

How did we come to this? How did this happen? It was only one month ago I joked about the gift to the Liberal Party from The Washington Times. "Does the average Canadian want a "pro-free trade, pro-Iraq war, anti-Kyoto, and socially conservative" leader? No. Do we really want our Prime Minister to become "Mr. Bush's new best friend and poster boy for his ideal foreign leader?" Absolutely not."

It seems I was wrong. I mis-read the general will. You're actually going to do this, aren't you?

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My riding had a candidate meeting last night. Liberal MP Sam Bulte was there and somebody asked her if she was willing to take the copyright pledge. If you read this blog, you've read all about Sam Bulte and her transparent conflict of interest.

Local blogger Accordion Guy also lives in my riding and he took this video of Bulte's response. My favourite part is when Bulte says "People support me because they support my voice for the artist and I will not allow Michael Geist and his pro-user zealot Electronic Frontier Foundation members to intimidate me into silence my voice."

In 2004, Bulte won by less than 3,500 votes over NDP candidate Peggy Nash. There must be at least 3,500 pro-user zealots around here who won't allow Sam Bulte to intimidate them into silencing their voice. They'll be heard from on January 23.

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I watched the debate last night. It's too bad I can't vote for Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe because he seems to be the best of the four. Stephen Harper remains a stiff, unlikeable presence but he didn't drop the ball no matter how often I pricked that voodoo doll. Jack Layton kept repeating the same rehearsed catch-phrases over and over again and Paul Martin held his own but didn't excel when he really needed a KO.

The Toronto Star is frightening Torontonians today with a headline that exclaims the Tories are headed for a majority. I've come to grips with the reality that we're likely headed for a Conservative minority government, but a majority is a completely other matter. A majority for Harper would blow up my 18 month plan for this fine nation. Here's what I prescribe:

1. On January 23, Canadians vote and a Conservative minority government is formed. The Liberal Party has been in power too long and Canadians want to punish them for recent scandals and send them a message that they don't have a natural right to lead. Paul Martin, Finance Minister for years during Chretien's rule, is too closely associated with an era of corruption. A change of this nature is required to shake things up.
2. Paul Martin, humbled by defeat, will step aside. A fresh face will rise to assume leadership of the party. Who this person is, I'm not certain, but he or she will be far removed from Adscam.
3. In the summer of 2007, the Conservative minority government will be defeated and Canadians will return to the polls. This time, with the Liberal Party having learned their lesson and with a new, vibrant leader at the helm, the result will be very different. The fact is that most Canadians disagree with Conservative Party values and want to vote Liberal, and in the summer of 2007 they will once more. Harper's 18 months in office will end and a new Liberal majority government will be formed.

A Conservative majority screws up the whole plan. Danger! Danger!

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The Liberal MP in my riding is Sarmite Bulte. I've written about this so called democracy and the conflict I share with many Canadians. We're less than three weeks from election day and I'm as torn as ever.

Each and every election, either federal or provincial, Taryn blindly votes Liberal. Sarmite Bulte could be Idi Amin and my dear wife would vote for her. Taryn and I share socially liberal views and our united distrust and distate for the Conservative Party of Canada means we share a great deal of political ideology. I, however, refuse to blindly vote for an MP simply because they represent the Liberal Party of Canada.

Despite everything in the Gomery Commission, Sam Bulte was probably going to secure my vote until I read this. Here's a brief description of the story.

TORONTO -- U.S. studios and music labels were drawn into the Canadian federal election fray Tuesday after coming under fire for a planned Jan. 19 fundraiser for a key Liberal member of Parliament. The controversy follows Sarmite Bulte, a federal M.P. and parliamentary secretary for Canadian Heritage who has backed U.S.-style copyright laws, issuing an invitation for a CAN$250-a-plate fundraiser hosted by the Canadian Recording Industry Assn. and the Canadian Motion Pictures Distributors Assn. The event was scheduled to take place four days before Canadians vote for a new federal government on Jan. 23. The CMPD, the CRIA and other copyright holders have long pushed Canada to tighten lax laws against copyright piracy. A copyright reform bill that Bulte helped write recently died when the ruling Liberal Party dissolved Parliament and called a national election for Jan. 23.

Reading that piece struck a serious nerve with me and got me hunting for more. That's when I found this excellent write-up from Michael Geist. Here's a brief excerpt from this entry.

In May 2004, the Canadian Heritage Standing Committee released what is now widely described as the "Bulte Report", a remarkably one-sided report on the future of Canadian copyright. The report addressed WIPO, ISP, and education issues, siding in every instance with the views of rights holders such as the Canadian Recording Industry Association...

Fast forward to the current election campaign and it is clear that Ms. Bulte remains closely aligned with those same rights holder organizations. Her website lists a number of campaign events, the most interesting of which is a $250.00 per person fundraiser on January 19th featuring Cowboy Junkies singer (and CRIA President Graham Henderson partner) Margo Timmins...

Within the boundaries of the Election Act, MPs are of course free to fundraise any way they like and individual Canadians are free to contribute to those same MPs. However, with the public's cynicism about elected officials at an all-time high and Canadians increasingly frustrated by a copyright policy process that is seemingly solely about satisfying rights holder demands, is it possible to send a worse signal about the impartiality of the copyright reform process? At $250.00 a person, I have my doubts that many of the artists that Ms. Bulte claims to represent will be present. Instead, it will lobbyists and lobby groups, eagerly handing over their money with the expectation that the real value of the evening will come long after Margo Timmins has finished her set.

Bulte is clearly owned by US copyright industries and will serve her masters with extreme copyright laws. This is all unfolding in plain view, it's astounding how blatant she is. Canadian copyright laws in this digital age are far too near and dear to my heart for me to cast my one and only vote for someone so clearly bought by freedom-suppressing conglomerates.

Hello Peggy Nash, I believe it's time for change.

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Patrick Basham's commentary in The Washington Times from earlier this month is entitled "Gift From Canada?" and it's all about Stephen Harper putting a big ol' smile on Dubya's face. According to Basham, Harper may be Canada's Christmas gift to Bush. Here are some excerpts from the article.

Why does President Bush hope Christmas comes a little late this year? Because on Jan. 23, Canada may elect the most pro-American leader in the Western world. Free-market economist Stephen Harper, leader of the opposition Conservative Party, is pro-free trade, pro-Iraq war, anti-Kyoto, and socially conservative. Move over Tony Blair: If elected, Mr. Harper will quickly become Mr. Bush's new best friend internationally and the poster boy for his ideal foreign leader.

Though still a young man in political terms, Stephen Harper may not receive a better opportunity to gain power and to steer Canada in a more conservative direction. If he and his fellow Conservatives can seize this opportunity to recast the policy debate, it will reveal a great deal about the evolving nature of Canadian political culture.

A Harper victory may prove to be the exception to the international rule -- a rare foreign event that manages to put a smile on President George W. Bush's face.

If you ask me, Basham's "Gift From Canada" is actually a gift to the Liberal Party from The Washington Times. The verbal duel this week between David Wilkins and Paul Martin is further proof that being perceived as America's bedfellow negatively impacts a party's popularity at home in Canada. Does the average Canadian want to put a smile on Dubya's face by giving him a gift? No. Does the average Canadian want a "pro-free trade, pro-Iraq war, anti-Kyoto, and socially conservative" leader? No. Do we really want our Prime Minister to become "Mr. Bush's new best friend and poster boy for his ideal foreign leader?" Absolutely not.

We already fear Harper's hidden agenda and conservative rhetoric, Basham simply reminds us of what we could be in store for. If a vote for this guy is a vote for Dubya, Martin just received everything on his Christmas wish list and more.

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Richard Reeves asks the question. Is Dubya the worst President ever?

James Buchanan, the 15th president, is generally considered the worst president in history. The case against Dubya to assume that position is strong:

• He has taken the country into an