Away for the day

Many apologies, dear reader, for the lack of posting today. I was away in Victoria. Tomorrow's posts will be extra-epic to make up for today's shortfall.

Until then.

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

First, from the October issue of The Agora, via the Agora News site: Arts Community Shouldn't Depend on Government Funds.

At the Victoria Politics Examiner: Elections BC refusing to answer questions.

At Defend Geert Wilders: Geert Wilders and the Koran on Trial; and Democracy raises its head again within the PVV.

Fun with technology

A few rather interesting stories.

Boing Boing: Reddit user flames Flickr photographer; Flickr photographer threatens copyright lawsuit.

Wired: Unpublished Iraq War Logs Trigger Internal WikiLeaks Revolt.

Wired: FBI Drive for Encryption Backdoors Is Déjà Vu for Security Experts:

The FBI now wants to require all encrypted communications systems to have back doors for surveillance, according to a New York Times report, and to the nation’s top crypto experts it sounds like a battle they’ve fought before.

Back in the 1990s, in what’s remembered as the crypto wars, the FBI and NSA argued that national security would be endangered if they did not have a way to spy on encrypted e-mails, IMs and phone calls. After a long protracted battle, the security community prevailed after mustering detailed technical studies and research that concluded that national security was actually strengthened by wide use of encryption to secure computers and sensitive business and government communications.

Now the FBI is proposing a similar requirement that would require online service providers, perhaps even software makers, to only offer encrypted communication unless the companies have a way to unlock the communications.

In the New York Times story that unveiled the drive, the FBI cited a case where a mobster was using encrypted communication, and the FBI had to sneak into his office to plant a bug. One of the named problems was RIM, the maker of BlackBerrys, which provides encrypted e-mail communications for companies and governments, and which has come under pressure from India and the United Arab Emirates to locate its severs in its countries.

According to the proposal, any company doing business in the States could not create an encrypted communication system without having a way for the government to order the company to decrypt it, and those who currently do offer that service would have to re-tool it. It’s the equivalent of outlawing whispering in real life

Boing Boing: Obama administration wants encryption backdoors for domestic surveillance.

More to come, I'm sure...

Thoughts on driving

A couple of stories that have caught my eye - OK, they caught the eye of other people who sent them on to me, but same difference. On with the post.

CTV News: Texting laws aren't making U.S. roads safer: study:

Laws to restrict U.S. citizens from texting and driving may not be making American roads any safer, according to a new study from the Highway Loss Data Institute.

The Arlington, Va.,-based HLDI says it has analyzed the rates of collision claims in four states, before and after texting while driving was banned.

It compared the results to the collision rates in nearby states where no such laws are on the books.

The HLDI found that in three of the four states where the bans came into effect, the rates of claims actually slightly increased after texting laws were enacted. And the patterns of collisions didn't differ much from states without texting laws in place.

In a statement released Tuesday, HLDI President Adrian Lund said the findings "call into question the way policymakers are trying to address the problem of distracted driving crashes.

"They're focusing on a single manifestation of distracted driving and banning it. This ignores the endless sources of distraction and relies on banning one source or another to solve the whole problem."

Meanwhile, here in BC our own disgusting driving laws aren't getting by without protest...from libertarians. Via CBC News: B.C. drunk driving laws irk civil libertarian (irk?):

Canada's toughest impaired driving laws came into effect in B.C. on Monday, but civil liberties advocates worry the province may have gone too far with the automatic roadside suspensions and fines that don't give people a day in court.

Under the new laws, drivers caught with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or higher or those who refuse to give a breath sample will:

Get a three-month driving ban.
Get a $500 administrative penalty, and a $250 driver's licence reinstatement fee.
Have their vehicle impounded for 30 days.
Have to pay for the towing and impoundment costs
Have to pay for the mandatory use of an ignition interlock device for one year.
Face possible criminal charges.
The total cost adds up to almost $4,000, and it can all be triggered during a roadside stop by a police, without any immediate criminal charges or time in court.

Robert Holmes, the president of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, is concerned the process tips the scales of justice unfairly against the accused, without providing for a day in court.

"The government seeks to clip all of that out, eliminate the ability to have a fair process where you get your day in court and take away from people their ability effectively to challenge action the state may wish to take to eliminate people's right to drive," said Holmes.

Meanwhile, see if you can tie the two threads above together:

But Public Safety Minister Mike de Jong says 133 people died in B.C. last year because of impaired driving, and the new rules are designed to quickly change people's behaviour without tying up the courts with legal cases.

"It seems the only way you can change behaviour is by imposing sanction that has dramatic impact on people's lives," said de Jong.

Apparently, nobody has shared the results of that HLDI study with Mr. de Jong.

Gettin' busy in Canada

Alright, here's the deal. I'm one of those libertarian types that thinks that prostitution should be a legal practice. Whenever the practice is driven underground, it leads to more violence toward working women, and more deaths. It's a bad idea to make prostitution illegal - to make it legal introduces the prospect of regulation, at least.

So, with the news that an Ontario Superior Court justice - Susan Himel - has issued a ruling decriminalizing the practice of prostitution in that province, I have to say: good.

As Kirk Makin reports in the Globe:

A Superior Court justice gutted the federal prostitution law in Ontario on Tuesday, allowing sex-trade workers to solicit customers openly and paving the way for judges in other provinces to follow suit. Justice Susan Himel struck down all three Criminal Code provisions that had been challenged – communicating for the purposes of prostitution, pimping and operating a common bawdy house.

The decision will take effect in 30 days unless Crown lawyers return with arguments that are strong enough to persuade her to grant a further delay, Judge Himel said.

Her landmark ruling drew immediate fire in Ottawa, which has little time to regroup and battle the judgment. A domino effect of judicial decisions could quickly topple prostitution laws across Canada, as happened several years ago with prohibitions against gay marriage.

[...]

Ms. Scott said that prostitutes will begin pressing immediately for a regulation regime that includes workers’ compensation, health standards and inclusion in the country’s income-tax scheme. “We don’t have to worry about being raped or robbed or murdered,” she said.

It seems that Ottawa is, indeed, going to appeal this decision. I guess they don't want to risk the framework of anti-prostitution laws that have been put in place in Canada. Personally I find that kind of offensive - like we can't be trusted with our own moral health - but whatever. They can do what they like.

But this ruling struck a blow for a very liberal position, and from now on the debate over prostitution law in this country is going to be irrevocably changed. Good for Justice Susan Himel.

Not everyone is quite as supportive of the decision, however. As a good representative of the more socially-conservative crowd, I thought Barbara Kay would serve well:

Many libertarians will applaud the legalization of prostitution, which is in theory a victimless crime. The reality is that high-end prostitutes already know how to look after themselves, while low-end prostitutes are usually just trying to get from one drug fix to another. They will have little interest in pre-screening their johns, because they are desperate women. Does anyone really believe that they are going to spend their money on an “office,” advertise their services, keep accounts, submit to regular health testing and pay taxes on their income? Dream on. Does anyone really believe that pimps will then become vacuum-cleaner salesmen?

The danger to prostitutes will continue, because the kind of men who frequent prostitutes and the kind of men who control them don’t have a lot of respect for them on the whole. Nor should they. Being a prostitute is a shameful, indecent activity, and any sex worker who demands respect as a matter of course is fooling herself. She is not respectable. Politically correct people will say she is, but she isn’t. The danger will continue, the pimps will still control the desperate girls and society as a whole will think less of itself. And all because nobody really takes a good look at the word “harm” and asks themselves what a healthy society looks like, and what kind of newly designated “normal” behaviours, stamped kosher by the courts, bring harm to that healthy body.

Now, all due respect to Barbara Kay ( and to those who agree with her ), but both of these arguments, I think, fall somewhat short.

A) Nobody thinks that pimps are going to become 'vacuum-cleaner salesmen', but the decriminalization of prostitution will mean that, when a woman is beaten up by her pimp, she can actually go to the police. When you're operating illegally - solicitation - or in a legal gray area - having sex for money, divorced from solicitation - going to the police doesn't really strike one as a good prospect, does it? Now women can go to the police when one of their clients or their bosses starts to get rough.

Not to mention that being able to make your business aboveground undoubtedly removes the temptation to cheat on your taxes or launder your money. Less crime over-all, y'all.

B) Whether or not prostitution is a 'respectable' trade or not is irrelevant to this discussion. Whether or not what one does is worthy of respect shouldn't have anything to do with whether it's legal. To place the onus for maintaining our society's collective self-respect on government regulation is asking for trouble - moreover, it's downright lazy.

Final words courtesy of George Carlin.

Tax my carbon

Monte Paulson reports, via The Hook:

Economist Marc Lee is making the case that the B.C. Liberals' cut corporate income taxes so deeply that the provincial carbon tax -- which was presented as part of the justification for those cuts -- is now a money-loser for provincial taxpayers.
"B.C.'s carbon tax was supposed to be 'revenue neutral,' meaning all carbon tax revenue would be 'recycled' to British Columbians through personal income tax cuts, corporate income tax cuts and a low-income credit," Lee writes on a Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) blog called Policy Note.

"But recent budgets have shown a carbon tax deficit: tax cuts have completely swamped carbon tax revenues. While some were concerned that the carbon tax would be a 'tax grab', instead we [have] a carbon tax is that is revenue negative not revenue neutral," Lee writes.

Lee argues that while the government's tax cuts came reasonable close to covering the carbon tax in it's first year (2008/2009), the "carbon deficit swelled" in 2009/2010 when "carbon tax revenues were $542 million, while tax cuts and credits cost $767 million" for a deficit of $225 million.

Read the rest.

Yet another nail in the coffin of the BC Liberal reputation for fiscal responsibility. As the Northwest Territories considers implementing a carbon tax of their own, let's hope that their government is more dollar-savvy than ours.

And now, a message from the Electronic Frontier Foundation

From the ol' inbox:

The U.S. government has made two proposals this week that threaten online speech and privacy in radical new ways. Either one, if passed by Congress, will fundamentally rewrite the rules of the Internet. EFF is fighting hard for your rights and needs your help.

These proposals are the most frightening we've seen in a long time. The first is a bill called the "Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act," which would give the Justice Department new powers to censor websites accused of aiding "piracy." The second is an Obama Administration proposal that would end online privacy as we know it by requiring all Internet communication service providers -- from Facebook to Skype to your webmail provider -- to rebuild their systems to give the government backdoor access to all of your private Internet communications.

EFF is battling these threats to Internet users' privacy and freedom of speech, and we need your support. More than half of EFF's funding comes from individuals like you, and none of our funding comes from government grants. That means that when EFF goes toe-to-toe against government attempts to snatch away your rights, we pull no punches in defending the civil liberties of all technology users and innovators.

Become an EFF member today, and join the ongoing fight for privacy, free expression, and civil liberties on the Internet, as we face down these threats and secure a better future for us all.

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

At the Victoria Politics Examiner: The return of Wilf Hanni; and The BC Conservatives gain one ex-MP, lose Chris Delaney.

At Defend Geert Wilders: Wilders angry at political tint to queen’s speech; and Negotiators in last dash for coalition agreement.

Meanwhile, at The Propagandist, I've written a fairly lengthy article about the performance of the Sweden Democrats in the recent Swedish election: Victory And Violence In Sweden.

Spending on the brain

Here are a few stories that have popped up in the news lately, as regards the Conservative spending plan.

Gordon Isfeld, via the Vancouver Sun:

OTTAWA — The federal deficit continued to narrow in July from year earlier, when the government was piling up a record shortfall in an effort to fuel Canada's economic recovery through spending programs.

The deficit totalled $473 million during the month, down from $5.8 billion in July 2009, according to a Finance Department report released Friday.

Revenue, meanwhile, was up $1.9 billion, or 10.5 per cent, due mainly to higher personal and corporate income tax.

Program expenses fell $3.6 billion, or 16.6 per cent, to $18.2 billion, "primarily reflecting one-time support provided to the automotive industry in 2009-10, as well as lower operating expenses of departments and agencies, including National Defence," the department said.

Meanwhile, Aaron Wherry at Macleans.ca:

For a billion dollars, this country got to host the G8 and G20 summits. It also got the supplies necessary to organize a pretty kick ass rave.

The highlights include $2.8 million for rental cars for the RCMP; $1.4 million on communications “cabling;” and $439,000 on portable toilets. Then there was $14,000 on glow sticks and $85,000 for accommodation and snacks at Toronto’s swank Hyatt Regency hotel.

More from Aaron Wherry here, and from John Ivison in the Post.

On a related note, also via Aaron Wherry at Macleans.ca:

Of the sectors thriving under the government’s stewardship, perhaps none has fared as well as the news conference staging industry.

The contract — which requires recipient groups to submit photos of their Economic Action Plan signs — says eligible expenses for signage include maximum costs of $2,250 for a small sign and $4,250 for a large sign. Another $2,500 can be charged for a “permanent plaque.”

And speaking of stimulus, Andrew Mayeda reports: Late stimulus projects will be treated fairly.

Meanwhile, Don Martin in the Post predicts a continued freeze on EI premiums ahead:

Sources say the Harper Cabinet soon will receive an internal report on extending the freeze on employment insurance premiums by another year.

Keeping rates frozen is a political no-brainer for a government trying to pump up its economic credentials.

And finally, Tasha Kheiriddin, also in the Post, predicts that it's going to be economy, economy, economy, all the way until the next election:

For election purposes, the stimulus deadline might be one of the few financial lines in the sand the Conservatives can draw with the Liberals. Once stimulus is done, the Tories will also need a second economic act – and to pass it, a majority government.

Conveniently, February-March happens to be the traditional budget season in Ottawa. The budget is a handy, if obvious, sword on which a government can fall, because it provides a ready-made campaign platform, especially if the economy is your ballot question of choice.

This leaves the Tories with a comfortable window to prepare for a spring vote. Already, they are changing gears at PMO, with a new, economically-savvy chief of staff, Nigel Wright, set to assume duties no later than January 2011.

Last word goes to Doug Saunders, who compares the relative economic performance of East and West Germany respectively, with some interesting results.

The headache continues

Bob Mackin, via The Hook:

The scheduled Saturday marketing relaunch of the Olympic Village is on hold until sometime in October as the future of its developer seems foggy.

Millennium Development lost a Village-related tax ruling in B.C. Supreme Court on Aug. 16. City of Nanaimo sued Millennium in June over a cancelled project and Millennium has yet to begin its Evelyn project behind Park Royal in West Vancouver. On Tuesday, it was hit with another lawsuit.

Alberta-based Launchvision claims in B.C. Supreme Court filings that it agreed to buy 503-77 Walter Hardwick Ave., but now wants its $156,500 deposit refunded. Launchvision charges Millennium with breach of the Real Estate Development and Marketing Act over the validity of its disclosure statements.

So, the saga continues, and a development continues a slow death:

Marketer Bob Rennie said only 26 deals had closed between May 15 and Sept. 1. Of the 737 market-rate suites, 254 were sold. Just over half the 120 rentals had tenants. The 252 non-market units are awaiting a deal with BC Housing.

At least we'll always have the bills to keep our memories refreshed.

Fellow travellers

Binks at Free Canuckistan does what he does best, and with a slightly new format methinks.

Meanwhile, Xanthippa of Chamberpot fame has started a new blog. Check it out.

Fun with copyright

Boing Boing:

Microsoft's DRM makes your computer vulnerable to attack.

Comic explains the fight over music copyrights.

Americans: sign petition to fight Great Firewall of the USA .

Meanwhile, on a relatively related note, Luiza Ch. Savage at Macleans.ca: Obama wants wire-tappable BlackBerries.

The latest in petty tyranny

The latest in the Clarington saga, via the ol' inbox:

First day of court tomorrow

Tomorrow, at 2 p.m., we will be in Whitby to defend against the charge that my parents were running a "commercial conference centre" on land zoned Agricultural.

Although I asked for full disclosure from the prosecutor on August 14th, we haven't received anything. Our lawyer tells us that we will get disclosure tomorrow, and, assuming the municipality wants to continue with the charges, we will set a new court date for the case. We're pretty nervous, to be honest.

But we're buoyed by the thought that so many across Canada (and abroad) have supported us, have written letters to our representatives, have made phone calls to our mayor and council, have signed our petition, and have contributed to my mom and dad's legal defence fund. We're also buoyed by the Ontario Landowners Association's call to support our family by showing up at court.

Thank you for all of your support. It means a great deal to us!

In solidarity.

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

At the Victoria Politics Examiner: An update on Recall.

At the Libertas Post blog: Meet the new chief of staff.

At Defend Geert Wilders: VVD Liberals overtake anti-Islam party in latest poll; Indonesian ambassador ‘unwise’ to say PVV voters may be ‘psychotic’; and Acquit Geert Wilders!

Thoughts on drugs

Colby Cosh at Macleans.ca:

The guilt ought to lie heavy upon us, for Murphy’s reflections on “Marijuana—A New Menace” are, as McKay’s remark suggests, nonsense—lurid, racist, sexually pathological, self-contradicting old-lady balderdash that openly pre-empts the whole notion of evidentiary support. “There are plenty of folk,” writes Murphy, “who pretend to themselves that they yield to narcotic enchantment in a desire for research and not for sensual gratification…but, however kindly in judgment, one finds these statements hard to credit, and even if credited, only demonstrates these persons as rascals-manifest.” (Gotta love that hyphen.)

We thus ought to trust other authorities, Murphy suggests: one such is the Chief of Police of Los Angeles, California, who tells her that “Persons using this narcotic smoke the dried leaves of the plant, which has the effect of driving them completely insane. The addict loses all sense of moral responsibility. Addicts to this drug, while under its influence, are immune to pain, and could be severely injured without having any realization of their condition. While in this condition they become raving maniacs and are liable to kill or indulge in any form of violence to other persons, using the most savage methods of cruelty…If this drug is indulged in to any great extent, it ends in the untimely death of its addict.” A medical informant adds that the drug is used to induce “hallucinations which are commonly sexual in character among Eastern races.” Murphy, having double-checked this information in the Encyclopedia Britannica, expresses skepticism but does attest that “It is…a peculiarity of hasheesh that its fantasia almost invariably takes Oriental form.”

I laughed when I read this, I have to admit. Colby does a good deconstruction job after the jump.

Phone it in

Andrew MacLeod at The Hook:

A change to the housing and social development ministry's phone system has made it even harder to get help, said Renée Ahmadi, an advocate with the Action Committee of People with Disabilities.

“The word negligent comes to mind,” said Ahmadi, who at any time works with some 30 people who need assistance getting help from the ministry that administers the welfare system and support for people with disabilities. “Why is it the state can be negligent of the most vulnerable people? It just doesn't sit well with me.”

Last January Ahmadi told The Tyee that whenever she left a message through the ministry's toll-free, province-wide phone system, it was taking at least four days to hear back from anyone.

Now, she said, the ministry has changed the system so it is impossible to leave a message. Instead the system hangs up on the caller if there's nobody there to answer, she said.

How comforting.

Fun with copyright

From the Electronic Frontier Foundation: Censorship of the Internet Takes Center Stage in "Online Infringement" Bill.

Reuters: Stevie Wonder urges U.N. bring light to the blind.

Boing Boing: Multinational copyright companies will require French ISPs turn over 150,000 subscriber names and addresses per day; and Brighton, England town council says that councillor is violating copyright law by youtubing the council meetings.

Not disturbing at all

David Kravets, via Wired:

T-Mobile told a federal judge Wednesday it may pick and choose which text messages to deliver on its network in a case weighing whether wireless carriers have the same “must carry” obligations as wire-line telephone providers.

The Bellevue, Washington-based wireless service is being sued by a texting service claiming T-Mobile stopped servicing its “short code” clients after it signed up a California medical marijuana dispensary. In a court filing, T-Mobile said it had the right to pre-approve EZ Texting’s clientele, which it said the New York-based texting service failed to submit for approval.

EZ Texting offers a short code service, which works like this: A church could send its schedule to a cell phone user who texted “CHURCH” to 313131. Mobile phone users only receive text messages from EZ Texting’s customers upon request. Each of its clients gets their own special word.

T-Mobile, the company wrote in a filing (.pdf) in New York federal court, “has discretion to require pre-approval for any short-code marketing campaigns run on its network, and to enforce its guidelines by terminating programs for which a content provider failed to obtain the necessary approval.”

Such approval is necessary, T-Mobile added, “to protect the carrier and its customers from potentially illegal, fraudulent, or offensive marketing campaigns conducted on its network.”

Read the rest. H/t to Brock.

Who needs government censorship?

The bastard child of the mother of all bubbles

By Jim Quinn, via TheBurningPlatform.com:

There is no doubt the home price bubble inflated by Easy Al Greenspan between 2000 and 2006 was the Mother of All Bubbles. Robert Shiller clearly showed that home prices were two standard deviations above expectations. Despite the unequivocal facts that Dr. Shiller put forth, millions of delusional unsuspecting dupes bought houses at the top of the market. These were the greater fools. They actually believed the drivel being spewed forth by the knuckleheaded anchors on CNBC. They actually believed the propaganda being preached by David Lereah from the National Association of Realtors (Always the Best Time to Buy) about home prices never dropping.

Read the rest.

Blogus interruptus

The updates, they just aren't coming this weekend. Things will be back to normal by tomorrow, I swear. Until then, feel free to wander around the joint - I'm sure I've got something in the archives that's worth reading.

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

At the Victoria Politics Examiner: Another third party enters BC politics; and BC Liberals get a chance to show some fiscal responsibility.

At The Propagandist: Iran Takes Another Step Toward Barbarism.

At my Agora blog: The BC Ministry of Environment v. the world.

At Defend Geert Wilders: Dutch Queen calls for stability.

An alarming tendency

The bill to kill the long-gun registry was, instead, killed, and conservatives will have to reconcile themselves to that fact - at least, for as long as it takes the Conservative Party to draft another, similar repeal bill.

But until that happens, I thought that these poll results were rather telling. They're pre-registry vote, but still illuminating:

An Angus Reid public opinion poll released yesterday shows 54 per cent of British Columbians support abolishing the long gun registry -- higher than the national average of 46 per cent who support scrapping it.

The poll comes as the House of Commons prepares to vote on the future of the controversial registry which requires owners of rifles and shotguns to have them registered.

The poll also shows Canadians are divided on the issue of having a complete ban on possession of handguns with 44 per cent in favour, 44 per cent op-posed and 12 per cent undecided.

In B.C. only 37 per cent of residents believe a complete ban on handgun ownership was justified with 57 per cent saying it was unjustified. In Quebec the opinions were reversed with 54 per cent supporting a ban and 29 per cent opposed.

For me, this has good news and bad news. The good news is, a lot of people in British Columbia can tell the difference between a farmer or a hunter with a few rifles in their home, and organized crime. That's awesome.

The bad news is, what I find to be a rather alarming amount of people in BC favor an outright ban on certain types of fire-arms.

Now, I don't own hand-guns. But I think that, if I chose to do so, I should be able to. It all comes down to presumption of innocence - as long as I'm not harming anyone I should be able to do as I please. This might not be comfortable to some people because they don't trust their neighbors to act safely or nicely - but I find that begs the question: so what?

We already have a gun registry which allows the government to butt unnecessarily into our affairs. Let's not start banning hand-guns too, and start beefing up the illegal gun trade even further.

Lecture of the week

Thanks to the fine efforts of Eeyore at Vlad Tepes, Ayaan Hirsi Ali in Denmark:

vimeo version II Ayaan Ali Denmark from Vlad Tepes on Vimeo.

I haven't had a chance to listen to the speech yet, but it certainly looks quite interesting.

The BC Ministry of Environment v. the world

Sean Holman at Public Eye Online:

Last week, we told you the ministry will be spending at least $60,000 on a consultant who can improve the inadequate advice its been giving to site operators in northeastern British Columbia on how to assess that environmental damage. The consultant is expected to consult with stakeholders as that guidance document is drafted.

But, according to a document posted on the province's procurement Website, those stakeholders will include government ministries, two petroleum industry groups, the society regulating professionals authorized to review contaminated sites, as well as "individual oil companies and individual consulting firms."

Municipalities and landowners didn't make that list. The document also states there isn't "a role for First Nations at this stage," with those groups only being engaged if the advice the consultant develops is turned into "formal technical guidance" for the industry.

That's a concern for West Coast Environmental Law Society lawyer Andrew Gage.
"If the government doesn't get these guidelines on contaminated sites right, it's not industry stakeholders that pay the price. It's the people who live in the Peace River," he stated in an email.

Read the rest.

I don't live in the Peace River area, so I don't have a stake in this. But one would think that, if the Ministry of Environment is truly committed to this course of action, they would have thought to include municipal and native representatives in the stakeholder mix.

Maybe there's an innocent explanation - there probably is - but it still looks bad on them.

The latest in human rights

Alright, some of these stories might be a tad dated, but I thought they were worth highlighting all the same.

Especially this one, from Scary Fundamentalist:

With an increasing number of remedial orders issued by Human Rights Tribunals being overturned on judicial review nationwide, it seems prudent to have as much judicial oversight as possible. Especially in light of the fact that most, if not all, orders contravene the respondent's Charter rights in increasingly novel ways.

McNoughton responds by advising governments to block the reach of the courts, making Tribunal decisions more "certain and final". How dare those pesky judges question that which is handed down by the almighty Tribunal?

Her opinions leave plenty of food for thought when wondering why McNoughton was not renewed as the BCHRT chair.

Read the rest.

Meanwhile, Blazing Cat Fur laments: The Jackbooted Deviants Of The CHRC:

In their failed effort to railroad Free Dominion the Jackbooted Deviants at the Canadian Human Rights Commission cited the following "potential hate crime", a Flyer entitled "Does Mohammed merit criticism" which was erroneously attributed to the Freedo site.

The Flyer contained one of the "Mohammed Cartoons" as well as a picture of a Christian Girl who had been beheaded by Savage Bloodthirsty Muslims in Indonesia.

[...]

The Wee CHRC Deviant Catherine Labelle knew enough to doubt that they could act on the Flyer which had been distributed to mailboxes and hence was beyond CHRC internet jurisdiction. However after a back and forth e-mail consult it was suggested that the complainant contact the Cops so they could exact at least some revenge against the individual who dared distribute the flyer, the individual who dared criticise the child rapist moon worshipper mohammed. You can follow the back and forth here.

Read the rest.

Finally, Patrick Ross at the Edmonton Conservative Examiner:

Late last year Court of Queen's Bench Justice Earl Jones determined that the AHRC frequently overstepped its constitutional and legal boundaries. The tribunal seemed to consider itself bound by few rules of procedure, and its rules of evidence were extremely lax. It's since been the role of Mason to fix the problems.

It's unsurprising that Alberta would make the decision to the lead the country in reform of its Human Rights Commission. Hopefully, other provinces will choose to follow Alberta's example.

Read the rest.

More to come, I'm sure...

An indepth essay on the origins and history of Chewbacca

You know you want to read it.

Thoughts on drugs

Dan Gardner:

Please allow me to put in print what an awful lot of Latin American politicians would like to say to their Canadian colleagues:

You know how the illicit drug trade has plagued the countries of Latin America for decades? You know how it spreads corruption, undermines governance, and distorts economies? You know how it stacks corpses like cordwood?

You know the carnage happening in Mexico right now? More than 26,000 people dead?

You know all that? Good. Because you are responsible.

Yes, you. None of this would be happening if the drug trade hadn't been banned -- that just handed it on a silver tray to thugs, gangsters, terrorists, and guerrillas. And you know who banned it? Your country. Canada.

Big man, Soros

Takedown notices for all! H/t to the burning kitty.

Privacy is for suckers anyway

David Kravets, via Wired:

The Obama administration has urged a federal appeals court to allow the government, without a court warrant, to affix GPS devices on suspects’ vehicles to track their every move.
The Justice Department is demanding a federal appeals court rehear a case in which

it reversed the conviction and life sentence of a cocaine dealer whose vehicle was tracked via GPS for a month, without a court warrant. The authorities then obtained warrants to search and find drugs in the locations where defendant Antoine Jones had travelled.

The administration, in urging the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to reverse a three-judge panel’s August ruling from the same court, said Monday that Americans should expect no privacy while in public.

“The panel’s conclusion that Jones had a reasonable expectation of privacy in the public movements of his Jeep rested on the premise that an individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy in the totality of his or her movements in public places, ” Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Smith wrote the court in a petition for rehearing.

The case is an important test of privacy rights as GPS devices have become a common tool in crime fighting, and can be affixed to moving vehicles by an officer shooting a dart. Three other circuit courts have already said the authorities do not need a warrant for GPS vehicle tracking, Smith pointed out.

Read the rest. H/t to Brock, who also points me toward this article: Feds’ Requests for Google Data Rise 20 Percent.

It's almost enough to make a fella paranoid.

Update: Meanwhile...via Boing Boing: MPAA: ACTA's censoring firewalls will help governments avoid Wikileaks embarrassments .

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

I've actually started to produce some original content over at the Victoria Politics Examiner. Shocker, right? My latest there: The Greens go local.

Meanwhile, at Defend Geert Wilders: Wilders can say whatever he likes; and Former VVD leader quits in protest at coalition talks.

Update: Also at the Victoria Politics Examiner: Gordon Campbell looks for a graceful exit.

And in local news

What is up with Langley these days? From Katie Hyslop at The Hook:

The Langley District Parent Advisory Council (DPAC) announced today it wants the Ministry of Education to remove the Langley School Board and replace it with an official trustee until the next municipal election in November 2011.

I'll bet his mother is proud

A good day for democracy:

Monday was LaVar Payne’s day to shine. You may have never heard of the Conservative backbencher from Medicine Hat, Alta. — but if you tuned into question period, you likely heard him. Payne, a first-term MP elected in 2008, carried on a running stream of abuse from the back row Monday, the cupped hand at the side of his mouth helping project his nasal whine into the farthest reaches of the Commons.

Today's reading

Alright, here's my latest at the Libertas Post: More Thoughts on the Liberty Summer Seminar. Solidarity with the Jaworskis, y'all.

By the way, have you signed the petition, yet?

Libertarians v. SoCons

Gerry Nicholls in the Post outlines the troubles faced by his candidate's - Bill Binnie, running as a Republican for the Senate in New Hampshire - campaign thanks to opposition, not from the Democrats, but from Republicans of a more social conservative bent who didn't like Binnie's lassaiz faire stance on abortion.

What followed was, essentially, the Right tearing itself apart as the fiscal conservatives and libertarians faced off against social conservatives in New Hampshire. Bill Binnie got caught in the crossfire, poor guy.

I won't use this as a chance to beat social conservatives over the head with a club. I respect that they had their principles, and they weren't going to support someone else with opposing principles. But there's a lesson to be learned here: the Republican Party will not do well if it can't get its constituent members to play nice.

Fun with copyright

David Kravets, from Wired.com:

Lawmakers introduced legislation Monday that would let the Justice Department seek U.S. court orders against piracy websites anywhere in the world, and shut them down through the sites’ domain registration.

The bipartisan legislation, dubbed the Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act, (.pdf) amounts to the Holy Grail of intellectual-property enforcement. The recording industry and movie studios have been clamoring for such a capability since the George W. Bush administration. If passed, the Justice Department could ask a federal court for an injunction that would order a U.S. domain registrar or registry to stop resolving an infringing site’s domain name, so that visitors to PirateBay.org, for example, would get an error message.

Read the rest. H/t to Brock.

Update: Boing Boing: Bill gives DoJ power to close sites accused of piracy anywhere in the world.

Those who don't build must burn

By Jim Quinn, via TheBurningPlatform.com:

Ray Bradbury wrote his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 in 1950. Most kids were required to read this book when they were seventeen years old. Having just re-read the novel at the age of forty-seven makes you realize how little you knew at seventeen. It is 165 pages of keen insights into today’s American society. Bradbury’s hedonistic dark future has come to pass. His worst fears have been realized. The American public has willingly chosen to be distracted and entertained by electronic gadgets 24 hours per day. Today, reading books is for old fogies. Most people think Bradbury’s novel was a warning about censorship. It was not. It was a warning about TV and radio turning the minds of Americans to mush.

Read the rest.

Because I can

Yoani Sanchez:

Another update on Binksgate

It seems that the boobs at Wordpress have temporarily shut our pal Binks down again - another complaint filed, presumably by a certain doctor who really, really loves Canada.

Wordpress fail. Binks, you should stick with Blogger for now. If the urge to switch over to a paid service strikes you, may I suggest Typepad? I've heard good things.

Update: And...Binks is back for now. Until the next complaint leads to another take-down, followed by another complaint, then another, etc. I hate to be a downer, but this seems like a temporary fix at best for now. Wordpress still fails.

Today's reading

Alright, here's my latest.

At the Victoria Politics Examiner: Railroads and tickets ; and Conflicts of interest in energy, mines and petroleum resources ministry .

At my Agora blog: The latest from the BC Lottery Corporation.

At Defend Geert Wilders: More divisions emerge between coalition talks parties; and Geert Wilders’ trial is coming soon (October 4, 2010). Last step to support him with a SITA action.

Fun with copyright

Via Boing Boing:

Europeans: EU Parliament set to turn absolute Internet policing power over to ISPs and entertainment giants.

Stevie Wonder to WIPO: get your copyrights out of my disabled rights.

Scalzi, Wheaton, friends do DRM-free ebook to benefit Lupus foundation.

Another conflict of interest? Sheesh.

Another story from Sean Holman at Public Eye Online:

Senior bureaucrats aren't supposed to work for any company they've recently had substantial involvement with for at least a year after leaving the provincial civil service. But the Campbell administration decided those guidelines didn't conflict with the former head of the government's oil and gas division joining the Canadian subsidiary of EOG Resources Inc. - a Houston, Texas-based firm developing natural gas reserves in northeastern British Columbia.

Gordon Goodman was put in charge of that government division more than two years ago.

In that position, he was responsible for administering programs that can, in certain circumstances, reduce the amount of money - or royalties - companies must pay the province when extracting oil and gas resources.According to records obtained via a freedom of information request, two applications approved by Mr. Goodman in 2009 for such reductions came from EOG Resources Canada Inc.

An energy, mines and petroleum resources ministry spokesperson stressed those applications, which had been reviewed and recommended by government staff, were among hundreds Mr. Goodman gave the green light to.

One of them will provide the company with a $3.84 million royalty credit to help EOG build a road to shale gas projects in the Horn River Basin.

The other will reduce the royalty rate for the first phase of development for those projects.

In a letter dated January 4, 2010, Mr. Goodman notified EOG the government had finalized that rate reduction.

Three months later, on April 16, he left the civil service to work for the company.

Read the rest.

It seems that NDP energy, mines, and petroleum critic John Horgan, at least, is on the ball with this story. He is quite understandably upset about this development, and hopefully he'll see some answers to the questions that he's sent to his counterpart in government, Bill Bennet.

I'll be sure to post any further developments, should I happen across them.

Railroads and tickets

According to this report by Neal Hall in the Times Colonist, BC Rail spent over $150,000 on sports tickets and a golf club membership in the years leading up to its sale to CN Rail:

The information emerged during defence counsel Kevin McCullough's cross-examination of Brian Kenning, a former board member of B.C. Rail.

McCullough noted that when the government sold the publicly owned railway to CN Rail for $1 billion in 2003, B.C. Rail was drastically reduced in size and the single shareholder was B.C. taxpayers.

But in 2004, B.C. Rail spent $72,276 on tickets to Vancouver Canucks hockey games. "That seems like a lot of money, no?" McCullough asked. Kenning agreed.

In 2006, B.C. Rail put out another $45,349 for pricey Canucks seats, McCullough pointed out. That's a total of $117,625 over those two years.

Kenning suggested the Canucks tickets may have been part of a long-term contract with the Canucks that continued after the railway was privatized.

But McCullough showed Kenning B.C. Rail financial statements for 2005, which showed no purchase of Canucks tickets.

However, the company paid $29,000 for B.C. Lions football tickets in 2005.

McCullough also asked why the board paid for a golf club membership for B.C. Rail president Kevin Mahoney from 2004 until 2007, four years after the railway was sold. "It was a perk given to him at the time," Kenning said, adding the golf club membership was eventually terminated.

Read the rest.

This isn't particularly surprising, and it isn't particularly out-of-the-ordinary behavior. But you have to admit it's still a little bit aggravating - particularly from a Crown corporation that, by some accounts, was being set up to fail.

The latest from the BC Lottery Corporation

Regular readers may have noticed that I don't think too highly of the BC Lottery Corp. It's not that I'm against gambling - far from it - although I would prefer private as opposed to public involvement in such enterprises.

Instead, what bothers me is the way that the BC Liberal Party has latched on so tightly to gambling and allowed it to expand to such a degree - going into online territory, no less - after years of that same party having opposed gambling. That bothers me: the Liberals were against it until they were for it. And, thanks to Sean Holman at Public Eye Online, here's another development at the BC Lottery Corp. to show, yet again, this development:

The British Columbia Lottery Corp. is considering making changes to a controversial program that rewards casino goers when they gamble. Established four years ago, participants are given a so-called "gold player card" that can be inserted into slot machines across the province. For every dollar that's spent at a machine, the player earns points worth half-a-cent each that can be redeemed for cash. Participants are also eligible to participate in exclusive contests and events, as well as receive hotel room and meal discounts.

In 2006, American anti-gambling activists exclusively told Public Eye that program was "diabolical," referring to it as an "addiction stimulus device" - descriptions rejected by the Crown corporation. Now, according to a document posted on the government procurement Website last week, the corporation is thinking about offering "other benefits" through that program.

Again, I'm not opposed to gambling. These things don't particularly bother me in and of themselves, although I can certainly understand why they might bother others. But between the reversal in polarity within the BC Liberals on this issue, and, quite frankly, the sheer incompetence with which they have handled this portfolio, I'd rather they stayed out of the whole thing altogether.

What a sweet gig

Sean Holman, at Public Eye Online:

Most top provincial bureaucrats would have had to work for 10 years in the civil service to get six weeks of annual vacation. But the government appears to have let Robin Junger, who is now the province's energy, mines and petroleum resources deputy minister, jump that queue. According to records obtained via a freedom of information request, Mr. Junger - who joined the civil service on October 1, 2007 - presently receives "six weeks vacation per calendar year," payment of his Law Society fees and a maximum annual salary of $232,000.

What deficit?

Thoughts on drugs

Tom Flanagan in the Globe and Mail:

While I believe the conservative view on gun crime is closer to the truth than the liberal view, I also think conservatives should be more consistent, and re-examine their views about an issue that is more important than the long-gun registry – prohibition of mind-altering drugs.

Curiously, prohibition of drugs, at least in Canada, began as an initiative of Liberal politicians. Opium was criminalized in 1908, when Mackenzie King was deputy minister of labour, serving Wilfrid Laurier’s government. Marijuana was added to the list in 1923, when King was prime minister. The logic was the same as that of gun control – if people misuse something (guns, drugs), change the environment by taking away the object.

Prohibition of drugs was part of the broader progressive agenda of the early 20th century, including prohibition of alcohol, political rights for women, eugenics, nationalization of utilities, and proportional representation. It represented the triumph of the new “positive” state, at a time when conservatives were still enamoured of Victorian gentlemen such as Sherlock Holmes, who carried a pistol when he needed it and injected cocaine when he wanted to.

Over time, conservatives have become enthusiastic champions of drug prohibition, while liberals and other leftists are starting to move on. The critics have done us all a favour by pointing out the enormous damage caused by prohibition: corruption, criminality and even civil war in drug-producing countries such as Colombia and Afghanistan; an increase in property crime, as the high price of illegal drugs leads users to pay for their habit by stealing; the growth of organized crime and outlaw gangs running the illegal drug industry along with associated sidelines such as smuggling and money-laundering. The prohibition of drugs doesn’t work any better than the prohibition of alcohol; drugs are now just as widely available as was alcohol before the repeal of that prohibition; and, like the prohibition of alcohol, prohibition of drugs is doomed to repeal in the long run.

Some prominent Canadian conservatives, such as former Fraser Institute president Michael Walker, Conservative MP Scott Reid, legal writer Karen Selick and financial journalist Terence Corcoran, have led the way in decrying drug prohibition, but their position has to become more appreciated within the conservative movement. Conservatives need to see that the war on drugs, like the gun registry, is profoundly incompatible with their basic values. Prohibition leads to hypertrophic growth of the state’s security and surveillance apparatus, arbitrary searches and seizure of property, pointless criminalization of innocent activities, and growth of genuine criminality as a spinoff from the trade in forbidden drugs.

Read the rest.

From the inbox

Got this via the Amnesty International BlogProject mailing list:

Many of you may have seen the news a couple of weeks ago of Chinese legal adviser Chen Guangcheng being released from prison after serving a four years and three months jail sentence for “damaging public property and gathering people to block traffic”. Since his release, he and his family have endured harassment from local authorities and are now facing the very real prospect of starving to death in their own home in the Shandong province in China. In the morning of 13 September, Chen Guangcheng’s wife Yuan Weijing tried to go to a nearby market to buy food but the people standing guard outside their home prevented her leaving the house. The family now relies on vegetables grown in their garden.

Chen Guangcheng, his wife, Yuan Weijing, their five-year-old daughter and his 76-year old mother are now under effective house arrest. No one, including his brothers, has been allowed to visit them since his release. Chen Guangcheng’s son is staying with Yuan Weijing's sister in Yinan county, Shandong province so that he can go to school. They too have been harassed and are under heavy surveillance.

Amnesty's urging people to take action to end the harassment of Chen Guangcheng. Please spread the word and take action here.

Fun with copyright

From TorrentFreak: Prof. Richard Dawkins Advocates the Use of BitTorrent:

The majority of Dawkins fans are not located in the UK, and this caused the usual problems. Due to copyright restrictions only people in the UK could see the show, but luckily for people abroad Professor Dawkins had the ultimate solution.

“Is there any way to watch this from Australia? I’d really like to see it,” one commenter wrote on Dawkins official website, followed by another saying, “I´d like to see it, too. Is there any way how to watch it from Czech Republic?”

Dawkins, a man of answers rather than questions, had an easy solution.

“Do you mean that none of these work in your countries?” the Professor commented under his official account, while linking to several YouTube links and a torrent file on The Pirate Bay.

Ironically, one of the YouTube links has been taken down after a copyright complaint from Channel 4 (before it was set to private). The torrent file on The Pirate Bay, however, is still very much alive.

It appears that Professor Dawkins thinks that the world would be a better place without copyright restrictions, in this particular knowledge-spreading instance at least. Perhaps that’s a good topic for a future documentary?

Read the rest. H/t to Xanthippa.

Meanwhile, from the Calgary Beacon: THE PIRATE BAY: A THUMB IN HOLLYWOOD AND THE MUSIC INDUSTRY’S EYE SINCE 2003.

And at Boing Boing: Intel + DRM: a crippled processor that you have to pay extra to unlock.

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

At the Victoria Politics Examiner: Some light reading on court and taxes; and The bright future of Gordon Campbell.

At my Agora blog: When incompetence just isn't enough.

Court and taxes

BC Rail and the Harmonized Sales Tax: two topics that will never, ever, die. Here's some light reading on both subjects.

First, BC Rail. Brian Kenning's testimony ground on throughout the week. Coverage from the Times Colonist (with more here ), Bill Tieleman ( with more here ), and the Legislature Raids blog ( just keep scrolling - there's a lot of content there ).

Second, the Harmonized Sales Tax. It seems that Fight HST held a rally in front of Colin Hansen's office in Vancouver yesterday - there are plans for another in front of Gordon Campbell's office on the second of October. In other Fight HST news, the group is also ratcheting up its talk about recall campaigns; William Watson in the Financial Post analyzes the anti-HST phenomenon in a must-read article; and Tasha Kheiriddin in the National Post offers a salute to the ball of pure rage that has driven BC politics to the point of referendum - when compared to the rather lay-down-and-die approach to protest in Ontario, we're downright bombastic here.

Meanwhile, in light of Colin Hansen's comments that there will be no refunds to taxpayers if the HST referendum sees the tax stricken down, Carole James has, you guessed it, said that such refunds should actually be given. Go figure.

Rob Shaw in the Colonist has profiled the Standing Committee on Legislative Issues, which sent Fight HST's anti-HST petition to referendum earlier this week, in an article that I can't believe I haven't linked to already. It's worth checking out, even in retrospect. Paul Willcocks and the Times Colonist editorial board have some post-referendum speculation that you should probably check out. Vaughn Palmer, as usual, has some pre-referendum analysis, and not one, but two post-referendum articles that are well worth reading.

Finally, Rob Shaw ( again ) in the Times Colonist provides this particular piece of news:

B.C.'s harmonized sales tax is legal, but it's ultimately up to voters to decide whether the controversial tax will survive, the province's top court ruled yesterday.

B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman dismissed a petition by former premier Bill Vander Zalm to quash the HST because it's unconstitutional.

Vander Zalm had argued the tax was illegal because it was created and imposed on the province by the federal government, without an explicit act of the legislature.

But Bauman sided with B.C. government lawyers -- and a group of intervening business associations -- who said the HST was an agreement for a national tax to benefit the Canadian economy and did not require a specific B.C. law.

Read the rest.

Well, that's it for now, but I expect there will be more to come. There always is...

Don't mess with the cops

Via Slashdot:

BitterOak writes

"A Calgary man is facing criminal charges of libel for criticizing police. According to the story, the RCMP have filed five charges against John Kelly for claiming on his website that Calgary police officers engaged in perjury, corruption, and obstruction of justice. What makes the story unusual is that the charges are criminal and not civil. Even in Canada, which has much less free speech protection than the United States, it is extremely rare for people to be charged criminally with libel. It is almost always matter for civil courts."

Sadly, you'd think that if anyone could figure out a way to get someone charged criminally with libel, it'd be the cops. Which begs the question: aren't there better-spent uses of police resources?

And in local news

By Janet Steffenhagen, via the Times Colonist:

The Merchant Law Group, based in Regina, has commenced an action against the Coquitlam school district on behalf of Anne McGuinness, who was asked last year to pay $45 for a course workbook for her student. When she refused, the school withheld the child's report card until she made payment, according to a statement of claim filed in B.C. Supreme Court.

The statement says the district was "unjustly enriched" by charging fees it knows to be illegal and should pay restitution to McGuinness and other parents who were similarly charged for public education.

In a telephone interview from his Regina office, Tony Merchant said the Coquitlam action is just the beginning, and he plans to seek certification for class-action lawsuits over school fees in a number of districts in B.C. and Saskatchewan -- two provinces where he says the law is clear in requiring public education to be free of charge.

Read the rest.

A sad tale

Blazing Cat Fur publishes a rather sad tale from an anonymous Jewish doctor:

"I am a physician in practice for twenty years.

I am also Jewish. I have never hidden this from my patients.

Not too long ago, I had a Muslim lady, wearing a veil, bring a young child to me. The patient had been having long-standing bowel problems and was losing weight. No other physician had been able to help.

In one visit the problem was solved. The mom called to make an appointment for me to see her other young child who also had a health problem that other physicians had been unable to help.

Before I saw the second patient the mother sent me a long e-mail. She announced that she had joined an international effort to boycott anyone, group or business that supports Israel. She wrote that if I support Israel she would no longer allow me to care for her children. She went on at length about how the Israelis are oppressing Muslims and are criminals who must be brought to justice.

I replied that I do support Israel as a Jewish state. I added that I question the wisdom of any mother who would deny her children quality medical care based on her politics.

She then sent me a short email saying that I am arrogant and that the real reason she will not return is that her kids hate me.

In twenty years of practice caring for people from many backgrounds I have never experienced such a situation.

My Muslim patients used to be pleasant and religion was not discussed. However, in the last few years something has changed with many of them. They are now demanding that I act according to their view of things or be punished in some way.

This ideology is demanding power and will never accept "No" for an answer."

When incompetence just isn't enough

Sean Holman, at Public Eye Online:

In British Columbia, when an oil or gas well is permanently plugged, the company responsible for that site is required to assess and cleanup the environmental damage its caused. But the provincial government has long known the advice its been providing to do those assessments has been insufficient for wells located in northeastern British Columbia, resulting in "inefficient and ineffective" remediation. The environment ministry made that disclosure late last month when it quietly announced on the government's procurement Website it was looking to spend at least $60,000 hiring a consultant who could improve that advice.

[...]

In an email, an environment ministry spokesperson confirmed the government has known about that problem for two-and-a-half years. At the time, it was "prioritized below other needs." But "now that progress has been made in other areas, this issue has advanced as a priority."

Hunh. So for over two and a half years our government has known that its measures for dealing with oil or gas well clean-ups is insufficient. I know I'm sure glad that a massive environmental disaster didn't take place in that time.

The bright future of Gordon Campbell

Doom, doom, and gloom. Gordon Campbell's fate would seem to be sealed, and future prospects aren't particularly bright. He certainly hasn't shown many signs that he will be leaving his position voluntarily, despite an accumulation of events indicating that perhaps it's time. In the end, it'll either depend on death by voter or death by party - I suppose that's a given.

Death by voter seems fairly assured, if it comes to that. Between BC Rail, the Harmonized Sales Tax, Olympic over-spending and rights-suspension, and all the other issues that are currently dragging Gordon Campbell's ratings down in the polls, surviving through another election doesn't look at all likely. And that's if Gordon Campbell felt like running for a fourth consecutive term anyway - not exactly an easy thing to do, even without toxic polling numbers.

The only thing that might save Gordon from the voters is time and goodies. Making consessions like he has on the HST referendum might well herald a softer, gentler Gordon Campbell more attuned to the voters' needs - throw in a few more incentives and he might just win a couple of votes, or at least do some damage control.

Maybe. But that's where the time comes in. Sad to say, voters have surprisingly short memories. Perhaps if Gordon can actually start making a few people happy here and there, for long enough, he can at least get voted out of office in something that isn't complete disgrace. He's gone either way, but let's talk legacy: leaving at 12% in the polls isn't exactly a glamorous exit.

Now, death by party has its possibilities - especially if the BC Liberal Party wants to survive in the near future. But in the past, the BC Liberal Party has been rather indulgent with their leader - Gordon's cabinet certainly seems to still be backing him for now - and the thing called back-bone hasn't featured too prominently in years gone by. Perhaps that's going to change, although, as Vaughn Palmer points out, we might not want to hold our breath:

In an effort to put the blame where it properly belongs, Nelson is one of two Liberal insiders -- Langley riding president Jordan Bateman is the other -- to highlight the opportunity at hand for party members this fall.

They can send the premier an eviction notice by voting non-confidence in his leadership at a series of locally based riding association meetings. The vote is by secret ballot. The option is there for every paid-up Liberal who is inclined to find out when and where the meetings are being held and show up.

But it remains to be seen whether many of the estimated-by-Bateman 40,000 or so members will take the trouble.

Meanwhile, Sean Holman raises the question of whether or not those members of the BC Liberal Party who raise trouble for the party - oh so publicly - will be muzzled like some of their rabble-rousing predecessors have been.

At any rate, it seems that Gordon has taken to attending Liberal Party events where delegate selections - and a vote on whether or not Gordon Campbell should continue on as leader of the party - happen to take place. Will this help sway a few insider votes in his direction? Well, only time will tell.

So, what does the future hold for Gordon Campbell? It doesn't look too bright, that's for sure. Not that Gordon should be too worried: he'll undoubtedly get a nice, cushy gig doing something or other in the private sector once the public has had enough of him. But until then, I think the strategy is to hold out for as long as possible in order to ensure as graceful an exit as possible.

Fun with copyright

From Boing Boing:

Multinational record industry shill calls Canada's new copyright bill "a license to steal".

Intel threatens lawsuits against HDCP jailbreakers.

Business Software Alliance deploys yet another BS study to "prove" fighting piracy creates zillions of jobs.

Meanwhile, at the Electronic Frontier Foundation: Jack-Booted Thugs and Copyright Enforcement.

When Japan Collapses

By Jim Quinn, via TheBurningPlatform.com:

Only a partisan two-bit hack economist/liberal rag columnist from an Ivy League University with a Nobel Prize could look at the following two charts and conclude that the Japanese Government failed to revive the Japanese economy over the last twenty years because they spent far too little on fiscal stimulus. Japanese government debt as a percentage of GDP was 52% in 1989, prior to their real estate and stock market crash. Today it stands at 200% of GDP. Current budget projections show the debt reaching 250% of GDP by 2015. Meanwhile, Japanese consumers and corporations have been reducing their debt for the last 16 years. The net result has essentially been a 20 year recession.

Read the rest.

Homeschoolers FTW

Vox Day:

Of course, the irony is that after having homeschooled her daughter long enough to make sure she had caught up, the mother promptly stuck her back in school again. I don't recommend limiting homeschool to only 45 minutes a day, but given that pace, consider how fast even children of average intelligence can advance simply by spending three hours a day on their academic education.

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

At the Libertas Post blog: A petition to save the Liberty Summer Seminar.

At Defend Geert Wilders: More infighting among Dutch Christian Democrats.

A petition to save the Liberty Summer Seminar

Crossposted from the Libertas Post blog:

A petition all on its own can rarely save the day, but it's a good place to start.

The Libertas Post has talked before about the Jaworski family, and their troubles with local municipal authorities for hosting the Liberty Summer Seminar on their property. Their right to hold a backyard event in their own backyard is being challenged.

Think that's ridiculous? Well, it seems a petition has finally come into being. Make your opposition heard. Support the Jaworskis' cause. Sign here.

Today's reading

Alright, here's the latest.

At The Propagandist: Propaganda Videos.

At Defend Geert Wilders: Cabinet negotiations to take two more weeks.

Tories and Strauss

Every so often, I like to highlight a few places where I think the Tories could be doing a little better. Civic duty and all that.

At any rate, the whole 'hockey arena' thing hasn't been flogged to death enough. The Post: Proud moments in Canadian democracy:

Memo to Mr. Toews: Way to disprove the long-held belief that the entire Conservative caucas is just an extension of Prime Minister Harper (or the Leader, if you prefer).

Meanwhile, Don Martin: Harper’s arena damage control; Chris Selley disagrees:

The National Post’s Don Martin (and the rest of the media) must’ve heard something from Stephen Harper yesterday that we didn’t. He thinks the PM has “pretty much slammed the door to federal funding for Quebec City’s proposed new hockey arena.” That’s certainly what he should be doing, as Martin explains — his Western Cabinet ministers, despite the usual public professions of fealty, are apparently not amused. And we’re quite sure that’s what he’ll eventually do. But all we heard yesterday was this: “[P]rofessional sports are first and foremost the responsibility of the private sector. And if there is a role for the federal government, it must be equitable across the country and also affordable.” That door doesn’t even seem to be closed, let alone slammed shut.

Aaron Wherry finds Chuck Strahl confirming the private investment angle.

Meanwhile, Tasha Kheiriddin points out that, as the Tories prepare for ( what looks like an unlikely ) fall election and a ( more likely ) spring election, it's going to be economy, all day every day:

Even the parties’ respective sub-narratives will likely tie into the economy in some manner. The Tories have already raised the spectre of a coalition propped up by separatists, which they could argue would destabilize the economy. Meanwhile, the Liberals are bashing Mr. Harper’s “mean” regime, which they could accuse of hurting “vulnerable groups” at a time when they are already suffering due to the economic downturn.

Finally, I thought that this article by Rick Salutin in the Calgary Beacon was rather interesting:

I’m talking political philosophy here, not Viennese waltzes. People keep asking why Stephen Harper acts as he does, it looks so buttheaded. He seems to muck up his own prospects: firing decent people, lashing out, raising the partisan rhetoric, proroguing Parliament haughtily, binging on military toys, mauling the census – he’s a bright boy, it’s hard to figure.

I used to favour a theory of political Tourette’s, the kind portrayed by Robert Redford in 1972’s The Candidate. You suppress your political ideals for the sake of electability as long as you can; then the buildup leads to random outbursts. But there’s another explanation: Straussianism.

Leo Strauss was a German-Jewish thinker who escaped Hitler for the U.S. but despaired over the depravity that liberalism might lead to there as it had in Germany, after the liberal 1920s. He felt almost any means were valid to save Western civilization but, due to liberalism’s strength, the strategy had to be cautious, secretive, even duplicitous, with the truth confined to an elite. This rarefied vision became highly influential when it was spread by his students (and theirs) in government, think tanks and media during the Reagan and Bush years. It’s a prominent force at Mr. Harper’s intellectual home, the University of Calgary. What does it illuminate in his behaviour?

Secretiveness, an aura of manipulation and a sense of hidden agendas. From a Straussian view, these are good things as means to noble ends. When I studied in the U.S., Straussian students used to lurk, literally, around antiwar protests or demos. Some sneakiness is routine in politics but here it gets a high-minded intellectual justification. It’s almost romantic.

The coverage continues...

Update: Paul Vieira.

Thoughts on drugs

H/t to Boing Boing:

And in local news

Andrew MacLeod at The Hook:

The long-awaited auditor general’s report on the operations of the Langley School Board, previously reported on by The Tyee, recognizes the board has made some necessary changes to its financial controls since it found itself mired in $13.5 million in debt earlier this year. But there are some key points that still need to change — mainly their inability to get along.

“Although the board is performing some of its governance responsibilities and meeting weekly, we found that the board is not functioning well, nor modelling a positive ‘tone at the top, ’”writes Auditor General John Doyle in the report, which was released Friday, September 10. “ The lack of good working relationships amongst the board trustees poses a significant risk to the overall success and future financial health of the district.”

Then, a development. Katie Hyslop, also in The Hook:

Not even a week after Langley School Board Chair Joan Bech made a public statement promising the board would try harder to get along, Bech has decided to take her ball and go home.

Bech submitted a letter of resignation to the board this morning, saying she was planning to finish her term and not run for re-election as she is moving to the Sunshine Coast, but the political climate of the board spurred her to resign before the board’s first meeting next week.

Is it just me, or are local politics more volatile than other forms of government?