Rick Hillier Watches Too Many Movies Me Thinks

"Pro-life feminists have ... come to see abortion as part of a male agenda to have women more sexually available,"

WTF!? Conservative MPs have lost their minds man.

The Big Red Think...Who Gets to Go?

The Liberals' Big Red Thinkers Conference is set to take place in January 2010 in Montreal.

It's rumoured that only 200 Liberals will be "invited" to the event. Also rumoured is that an additional 200 non-liberals will be invited.

A couple or three questions come to mind.

1. Who are these elite 200, and where have they been thinking for the past few years.

2. WHO CHOOSES THE ELITE 200??? This is possibly the most important question.

3. What was the purpose of the Non-Leadership/Policy Convention, the Renewal Committee and the Change Commission and the Red Ribbon Report and, and and and..... if the engagement of the grassroots wasn't enough to THINK about?

4. How much is this thinkers conference? And who pays? Especially since Ontario Liberals have to pay, three weeks later, to attend their waaaaaaay, long overdue AGM in Windsor?

Anyway, that's my thinking about the thinkers. Feel free to think about it and think your thoughts in writing here.

Liberal MPs Taken out of Mothballs

Well it's about time. Donolo on day one sends out smart, veteran MPs to counter Conservative cronies.

As the post below shows, Irwin Cotler has found a new reason for existance as an MP with these libelous 10 percenters.

And lo and behold, so too does my old friend Joe Volpe.

I look forward to hearing from more of the old vets on the team.

Stephane Dion Should Sue that Lying Bastard

Joe Preston, you have no f@ckin' clue what you're talking about.

Ignatieff's New Team Impresses

It's no big secret that many, many, many a Liberal were disappointed with the Leader's office in recent times. But, today, yes today, we have hope my fellow Liberals.

The adults are now taking over the sandbox and aren't just supervising. They're building castles in the sand.

With the exception of the odd one staffer, I gotta say that the entire Donolo Team is enough to make me excited about this party again.

Repeat after me..... HOPE. Change. HOPE. Change. HOPE. Change. HOPE......

Another Conservative $100 Million Boondoggle

Turns out Prime Minister Harper wants a legacy built in his own backyard. Too bad it's the National Portrait Gallery that has to suffer because of it. Why the shroud of secrecy? Why the Friday night announcement?

Personally, I Feel Blackberrys should be Banned from The HoC Chambers

The House of Commons has become a joke anymore. People (yes all parties) are preoccupied with their twitter/facebook/text messaging/browsing while in the sacred chamber. Long gone are the days of the Parliamentary pages buzzing to and fro with messages. What ever happen to decorum?

I'll give a gold star to the first party to move a motion to ban electronic device use by MPs while in the Green Chamber. Anyone? Anyone?

Con MPs Dykstra and Raitt to go in front of Ethics Commissioner

Just in case some of you think that this Veteran offender Rick Dykstra is a gift to mankind, have a little gander at this release by Democracy Watch. As for Raitt? We already knew her moral compass disappeared the day she was elected.

Some of the highlights:

Democracy Watch also confirmed with the same staffperson that the rental cost for a Luxury Suite, which holds 20 people, is minimum $3,500, and for a Double Box (which holds 40 people) is minimum $4,500, and for the Executive Lounge (which holds 80 people) is minimum $6,500. Therefore, given that Rick Dykstra invited 60 people to his fundraising event in the Owner's Box, by its own rental rates (which clearly establish the market value of renting boxes at the Rogers Centre), Rogers should have charged Mr. Dykstra minimum $5,500 to rent the Owner's Box.


In addition, neither Rogers nor Mr. Dykstra have provided information concerning the cost, and amount paid (if any), for the other perk offered to attendees of the event, namely attending batting practice before the baseball game between the Blue Jays and the New York Yankees (who are now leading in the Major League Baseball World Championship Series) that was held the day of the event, and meeting members of the Blue Jays team.

As for Raitt?

The new information concerning the fundraising event for Minister Raitt is that she recused herself on October 9, 2009 under the Conflict of Interest Act from dealing with any matters concerning the Cement Association of Canada or its registered lobbyist Michael McSweeney (who played a significant role in the holding of the fundraising event for Minister Raitt).


By recusing herself, Minister Raitt has essentially admitted that the services provided to her by Mr. McSweeney are a prohibited “gift” under the Conflict of Interest Act (and, it is Democracy Watch’s opinion, also under the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons (MPs Code)) because the services could “reasonably could be seen to influence” Minister Raitt’s decisions and create a private interest that puts her in a conflict of interest.

Rick Dykstra Defends his Blackberry Disrespect of Veterans and the Fallen

So Jane Tabor dismisses any wrongdoing by the Conservative MP.

That's right Jane. Rick is such an upstanding guy.

But after a quick call to the MP’s office, it seems Mr. Dykstra was live-blogging at the event. In fact, he used his BlackBerry to take a picture of the cenotaph and the wreaths around it. Then he sent out a message, which he posted on his website:

“It was a very calm and peaceful two minutes this morning at 11am. With a picture of Warrant Officer Dennis Brown at the foot of the cenotaph. He gave his life in Afghanistan. I took this picture this morning during our ceremony at the Cenotaph in downtown St. Catharines, now named Veteran's Way.”

Let's have a look at the visual evidence again shall we. Notice the thumbs on the keyboard. Notice the index fingers positioned in the typing position around the top of the Balckberry and the other fingers wrapped around the bottom of the Balckberry.

I guess it's okay to live blog a memorial ceremony according to Dykstra's own defense of the offense. He was "live-blogging". Did you here that folks? A sitting MP was "live-blogging" a memorial ceremony. Far more important than just standing there and honouring Canada's finest like everyone else in the picture.