On last night’s episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Jon got right into our parliamentary issue with his first topic of the night.

Finally, Canada is relevant again. (for good reason or bad)

It’s amazing how many important points are actually hit on with this segment. Jon manages to talk about issues I planned to write about over the next two weeks. Comically, he mentions Prime Minister Harper’s (bowl-shaped, perfect) hair, one of the great mysteries of our time. “What kind of magical creatures hair doesn’t get messed up, IN A HAIL STORM?”. Thank you Jon, I couldn’t have said it better myself.

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For those who didn’t know, on Sunday, November 23, 2008, every single person in the US got a free Dr. Pepper. The soft drink company promised a free can to every citizen if Gun ‘N’ Roses released their album in 2008.

What does this have to do with politics?
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Toronto Bans Water Bottles

The City of Toronto and its mayor, David Miller, have proven that they are serious about taking steps to help reduce the city’s impact on the environment. Will the measures prove to be successful in the end? I believe the recent mandatory $.05 charge for plastic bags will reduce demand— citizens already have more cloth bags than the need. I am more sceptical about the success of the water bottle ban. It lacks the scale of the “grocery bag tax” as it only pertains to municipal grounds. How about a $1.00 “bottled water tax” instead (with a non-toxic water bottle advertising the policy sent to every household in Toronto?).
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Regardless of your views on his political ideology, it is hard to debate Sam Gindin’s arguement and suggestion from a November 26^th article:

“First, as absolutely essential as the bailout is, it won’t end the crisis in the auto industry even if the Detroit-based companies adjust their models. That’s because the industry has so much excess capacity and slow growth will characterize at least the next few years, if not beyond. This means that even as the union lobbies to achieve the bailout, it needs to raise its perspective beyond auto. It needs to start thinking about the application of existing facilities and skills to a larger set of products. Here, the environment re-enters, but rather than being a threat to jobs it holds out the potential of adding jobs. If the environment is going to be seriously addressed in this century, it will mean changing not just the kind of cars we drive and how they are powered, but everything about how we work, consume, travel, live. To that end, auto’s assembly, component and tool and die shops, along with its body of skilled and committed workers, are an asset that can be converted into producing wind turbines, solar panels, parts for mass transit vehicles, more energy-sensitive industrial machinery and more energy efficient home appliances.”
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Harper is definitely out in the cold, but he’s hoping this break will let him ignite the Conservative pilot light.

PM Stephen Harper asked Santa for a prorogation of parliament and he got it… Well actually he asked Governor General Michaëlle Jean but either way, he will be having a long Christmas holiday.

For those of you who are not up to date, firstly, take a look at Michael’s post regarding the Liberal and NDP alliance. To summarize, the Liberals and NDP decided that they were sick and tired of Harper’s inability to take action to save the economy so they decided that if they formed a coalition, then their combined seats would give them a majority. It is important to note that the Bloc Quebecois support the coalition in the no confidence vote, but they are not technically part of it.
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How any Canadians can trust Harper is beyond me. After over 2 hours of discussion with Governor General Michaelle Jean, a decision to prorogue parliament has been made. Aside from over exaggerating the Liberal-NDP coalition and a quick advertising campaign that directly mislead Canadians about the coalition, Harper still felt compelled to look directly into the TV cameras and lie to Canadians yet another time.

On Thursday Dec. 4, 2008, he stated that:
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It scares me when Canada is called a safe haven for terrorists by many other countries. For years, terrorists have been setting up shop in Canada by taking advantage of Canada’s liberal immigration laws and lacking screening process. Once in Canada, they are able to operate freely in any part of the country, mainly as a result of weak law enforcement. Terrorists find it easy to enter Canada by posing as refugees and crossing the unprotected US-Canada border.

In fact, there are currently 40 recognized terrorist organizations operating in Canada according to Public Safety Canada. Some well-known players on the list include: Al Qaida, Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, Hamas, Hezbollah, the Tamil Tigers and the Palestinian Liberation Front. Our very own intelligence service stated, in a report from August 2002, that aside from the US, Canada hosts the most international terrorist organizations in the world.
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