(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding

The Indian bombings made me think back to the 1970's and the song below -- written by Nick Lowe (right in 2007) and recorded in the most known version by Elvis Costello & The Attractions.

(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding

As I walk through

This wicked world

Searchin' for light in the darkness of insanity.
I ask myself Is all hope lost?

Is there only pain and hatred, and misery?
And each time I feel like this inside,

There's one thing I wanna know:

What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

Ohhhh

What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?
And as I walked on

Through troubled times

My spirit gets so downhearted sometimes

So where are the strong

And who are the trusted?

And where is the harmony?

Sweet harmony.
'Cause each time I feel it slippin' away, just makes me wanna cry.

What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

Ohhhh

What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?
So where are the strong?

And who are the trusted?

And where is the harmony?

Sweet harmony.
'Cause each time I feel it slippin' away, just makes me wanna cry.

What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

Ohhhh

What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

Ohhhh

What's so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

Deaths as bombs rock Indian capital

Al Jazeera reports below on the brutal attacks in India.

India, readers will recall, has the largest Muslim population of any nation but is home to a Hindu majority.

India is a secular nation but internal religious tensions have been rising in recent years.

Readers will also remember that Pakistan, India and Bangladesh were once one state under the Raj and the strife following partition was dreadful (well, that's an oversimplification ignoring the partition on Bengal (which was somewhat distinct) but that's too much history for a simple point which is the region has religious issues that have caused nations to break apart in living memory).



Deaths as bombs rock Indian capital


A group calling itself the Indian Mujahedeen has claimed responsibility for a series of bomb blasts that have rocked India's capital, New Delhi, leaving up to 20 people dead and 40 injured.
Six explosions hit five separate areas in New Delhi's bustling business district within minutes of each other on Saturday, injuring weekend shoppers.

Police also found an additional two bombs which they successfully defused, Al Jazeera's corresondent reported.

Bloodstained clothes, badly damaged cars with shattered windows and mangled motorbikes littered the areas where the explosions took place.

Television broadcasts showed a scene of chaos, with wounded people being carried away by civilians and emergency service workers.

Shakeel Ahmad, Delhi's home minister, told Al Jazeera "the number of casualites may go a little higher, because the number of people admitted to different hospitals is still not known".
The so-called Indian Mujahedeen group, which also said it was responsible for a string of five bomb attacks in July in the western commercial city of Ahmedabad that killed at least 45 people, made the claim in an email to India's NDTV, the Press Trust of India said.

NDTV quoted the email as saying: "In the name of Allah, the Indian Mujahedeen has struck back again."

Little is known about the group who also threw down a challenge to India's security agencies in the email, saying "do whatever you want and stop us if you can".

Full story here: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2008/09/200891314524580165.html

On-line vote swapping investigated

Online vote swapping reviewed
By THE CANADIAN PRESS

OTTAWA -- Canada's electoral watchdog is investigating the legality of an online vote-swapping scheme.

Chief electoral officer Marc Mayrand said yesterday that Elections Canada is looking into a Facebook group aimed at preventing Stephen Harper's Conservatives from winning a majority on Oct. 14.

The scheme may be nothing more than "organized strategic voting," Mayrand said in an interview.

But it may also fall afoul of the law, which prohibits people from selling their votes or accepting an incentive or material benefit for voting.

"Right now, we have very little information," Mayrand said.

Readers are right! There is a long time before October 14 and we will do very well this election!

Some of the comments have said I am too negative about the election.

Fair enough, I agree I should hold off posting some of the more negative numbers without analysis -- it is a long time before the vote and I suspect that most Canadians will think long and hard before giving the Conservatives another term.

And our leader grows on people over time -- look at the leadership battle. He is a very solid leader and the best candidate for Prime Minister.

Let's see where the numbers are October 14!

Dumb idea -- High heels for toddlers

Radio reports today about a new idea for girls six months to four years.

High heels.

They are soft for safety reasons but are spike heels and can be worn by toddlers.

Apparently they are selling well world wide.

Not being a woman I don't know if high heels are empowering or the reverse.

But on babies? It seems wrong on so many levels.

South Africa's Zuma Is Victorious in Court

Zuma will almost certainly be the next President now.

By Karin Brulliard

PIETERMARITZBURG, South Africa

-- A South African judge dismissed corruption charges against ruling party leader Jacob Zuma on Friday, likely clearing the path for the former freedom fighter to become the nation's president next year.

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/12/AR2008091200939.html?referrer=emailarticle>

James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

STRENGTHEN RELATIONS BETWEEN CHRISTIANS AND JEWS

Interfaith relations between Christians and Jews can be a template for all such relations. This is especially true as the two faiths are, perhaps, so close as merely to be versions of each other. As the Pope says (of Catholics) "we are Semites".

VATICAN CITY (VIS) - At 5 p.m. today in the apostolic

nunciature in Paris, the Pope received representatives of the French Jewish community to whom he indicated that Christians and Jews "share a relationship that should be strengthened and lived", and that "these fraternal bonds constitute a continual invitation to know and to respect one another better".


"The Catholic Church", he went on, "compellingly repeats, through my voice, the words of the great Pope Pius XI: ... Spiritually, we are Semites.

The Church therefore is opposed to every form of anti-Semitism, which can never be theologically justified. The theologian Henri de Lubac - in a 'time of darkness', as Pius XII described it - added that to be anti-Semitic also signifies being anti-Christian. Once again I feel the duty to pay heartfelt recognition to those who have died unjustly and to those that have dedicated themselves to assure that the names of these victims may always be remembered. God does not forget!"

Good Morning

Search helicopters and police

Coming home one night this week I saw a police helicopter with search lights circling slowly, flooding parking lots and school years with light.

I considered what the police were doing.

Such an effort -- at least 45 minutes circling -- meant the police were looking for a dangerous individual.

How would they catch such a person? What dangers did they face directly? Maybe the police in the air were safe but the police on the ground were not so protected.

My sense is (and nothing showed up in the media) that whomever they were seeking got away. But the danger the police on the ground faced was real enough.

It's easy to be maudlin about police ('Our cops are tops') or to go the other way ('police are racist oppressors') but the truth is police have a difficult and dangerous job protecting us from ourselves. Much police work is dull tedious stuff. Some police treat civilians with a whiff of arrogance. But almost all police are decent people doing a demanding job that is 99% boredom and 1% terror.

Not a job for everyone.

And the helicopter reminded me of that.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Attacks on Dion stripped down

This is a good thing for the nature of the debate -- on the other hand it may reflect newfound confidence?

CTV Parliamentary Correspondent Graham Richardson reported Friday that the Tory war room confirmed taking a fresh look at the site and making changes.

An option to make your own Dion "inaction figure," a "street-debate" feature, an excuse generator, policy slot machine and an option to create your own Dion ad, have all been removed.
That followed the removal of another controversial feature of the site earlier in the week -- a puffin that flew across the screen, pooping on Dion's shoulder. The controversy was quickly dubbed "Puffingate."

Then on Thursday, Conservative communications director Ryan Sparrow was suspended for comments he made about a grieving father whose son was killed in Afghanistan.
Jim Davis, father of slain soldier Cpl. Paul Davis, old CTV's Canada AM that a pledge by Harper to pull out of Afghanistan by 2011 was "irresponsible."

Sparrow then suggested in an email to CTV News that Davis was a Liberal supporter, inferring his political affiliation could be his motivation for the critical comments.

He was quickly suspended from the campaign, and Conservative Leader Stephen Harper said the email was "inappropriate" as it questioned "the motivation of a father of a deceased Canadian soldier."

Facebook group pairs Canadians willing to swap votes in the federal election

I guess it's legal but something just doesn't feel right about it.

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - A Facebook group is helping pair up Canadians willing to swap votes in the federal election to keep the Conservatives from winning seats in tight ridings

About 600 people have become members of the "Anti-Harper Vote Swap Canada'' group, and that includes several British Columbians making their plans known online.

Chantal Ingram wrote she's going to try to get her sister to join the group since she lives in the Pitt Meadows-Maple Ridge-Mission riding. She says she doesn't live in any of the ridings affected but wants to help spread the word.

Mat Savelli the group's creator says it's a formalized way of strategic voting so people can feel like their votes count. He says the Facebook forum allows people to state their voting preferences and find someone who matches and who is willing to trade.

Votes swapping or pairing began on various websites during the federal election in the U.S. in 2000

Who's afraid of Cadman now?

It seems as if the Prime Minister doesn't want to risk losing an injunction during the election.

The claim he needs to focus on it to help the lawyers is, of course, nonsense. The client's job is long ago done -- it's now up to the lawyers and the judge.

The problem is (as I tell clients every day) litigation is unpredictable and a judge might just say the injunction was an uncalled for tactic. And that might look bad ... .

Harper seeks delay in hearing over Cadman libel suit

TIM NAUMETZ
The Canadian Press
Fri, 12 Sep 2008

OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Stephen Harper wants a judge to put off a hearing in his $3.5-million defamation suit against the Liberal party that is scheduled to be held during the federal election campaign.

Mr. Harper's lawyers filed an "emergency" motion for an adjournment with Superior Court Justice Charles Hackland, court officials said Friday.

Richard Dearden, Mr. Harper's lawyer, will argue Mr. Harper's campaign schedule prevents him from paying close attention to the legal details of the lawsuit he filed over an allegation that Conservatives attempted to bribe a terminally ill MP in 2005.

The move came at the same time lawyers for the Liberal party filed their own motion with Judge Hackland asking him to order Mr. Harper to produce documents which Mr. Dearden has failed to provide, despite promises to do so.

Mr. Harper sued last March after the Liberals posted website headlines suggesting Mr. Harper was aware that two senior Conservatives attempted to bribe independent MP Chuck Cadman before a critical Commons confidence vote in May, 2005.

In a book published this year, B.C. author Tom Zytaruk quoted Mr. Cadman's widow, Dona, as saying her dying husband told her Conservatives offered him a $1-million life insurance policy in return for voting against the Liberals and rejoining the Conservative party.

Dona Cadman later testified in an examination in the lawsuit that her husband told her the Conservatives also offered him a caucus position as deputy justice critic and other considerations she said she could not remember.

Mr. Harper sought the hearing he now wants postponed in an attempt to get a court order to stop the Liberals from using a tape recording at the centre of the affair.

The prime minister says the tape of an interview Mr. Zytaruk conducted with him outside Dona Cadman's home in September, 2005 has been doctored.

On the tape, Mr. Zytaruk is heard asking Mr. Harper about the allegation Conservatives offered Mr. Cadman a $1-million life insurance policy, and Mr. Harper is heard responding he was not aware of the details and knew only that Conservatives approached Mr. Cadman to discuss "financial considerations" in return for voting against the Liberals.

Mr. Harper hired three forensic sound experts to review the tape and added $1-million to his original lawsuit on the basis of their sworn affidavits that the recording had been altered.

Dona Cadman, however, testified in one of the court examinations that Mr. Zytaruk played the tape for her right after he interviewed Mr. Harper. She also listened to the disputed copy during the examination and told Liberal lawyer Chris Paliare that she believed it was the same version she heard after the interview.

Mr. Harper has testified he knew nothing about the insurance policy and only authorized Doug Finley, his top political organizer and campaign manager, to offer Mr. Cadman election campaign support, including a repayable loan and other financing from the party.Tom Flanagan, another senior Conservative adviser, went along with Mr. Finley on the visit.

A hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday on Mr. Harper's request to adjourn his injunction application.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Harper well into majority territory -- 15% lead poll

This is remarkable. I don't really know what else to say -- we may be facing a very long four years... .

Tonda MacCharles
Ottawa Bureau

OTTAWA — Despite several missteps in the first week of campaigning, the Conservatives under leader Stephen Harper have gained momentum among Canadian voters that could win a majority government, according to a new poll.

The Canadian Press Harris/Decima survey conducted from Monday through Thursday this week shows the Conservatives leading its opponents nationwide with a 41 per cent approval rating.

That's a 15-point lead over the Liberals who trail behind at 26 per cent, the NDP at 14 per cent, the Greens at 9 per cent, and the BQ at 8 per cent.

In key battleground regions, the Conservative efforts at promoting Harper's leadership as steady and competent appear to be paying off.

In Ontario, the Conservatives have an approval rating of 41 per cent, taking a big lead over the Liberals. Under leader Stéphane Dion, the Liberals trail at 34 per cent in what used to be a party stronghold, followed by the NDP at 13 per cent and the Greens at 11 per cent.

"In Ontario, it's a big switch," said Harris/Decima president Bruce Anderson.

Anderson called the Conservative momentum "remarkable" and attributes it to several things — the sheer volume of Conservative political advertising, compared to the other parties, and the effectiveness of their message, in giving voters reassurance about Harper and reasons to vote Conservative.

Full story:

http://www.thestar.com/FederalElection/article/498157

Superhero Bear

Flocke to the rescue...

Harper says he'll open up Canadian firms to foreigners

Module body

Interesting approach -- of course the question is whether Canada really needs more foreign ownership. It's not as if we don't have plenty of it already... .

OTTAWA - Stephen Harper took his campaign to Halifax on Friday, promising to make it easier for foreign investors in Canada - and hoping for no more blunders by his Conservative war room.

The prime minister made six promises aimed at attracting foreign investment, including more than tripling the threshold for foreign investment reviews to $1 billion.

Full story here:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/080912/national/fedelxn_main

Judge's behaviour called 'astonishing'

The Globe and Mail
Fri 12 Sep 2008
Page: A7
Section: National News
Byline: Kirk Makin
Dateline: TORONTO
Source: JUSTICE REPORTER
TORONTO -- A senior Crown attorney told a judge's misconduct hearing yesterday that he was personally and professionally shattered when Ontario Superior Court Justice Paul Cosgrove turned a murder trial into an investigation of a "giant, so-called conspiracy" by state officials.

Curt Flanagan, chief Crown attorney for a region in Eastern Ontario, said Judge Cosgrove acted on every innuendo and "scurrilous, malicious" accusation of wrongdoing hatched by Kevin Murphy, defence counsel for Julia Elliott.

"When a trial judge is making findings against a Crown attorney in relation to a so-called giant conspiracy, it has a tremendous effect," Mr. Flanagan said. "It was astonishing. I lost sleep over it. I was stressed by it.

"It was a shattering experience to be attacked professionally without any evidence. The most important thing to a lawyer is his credibility and integrity. "
Mr. Flanagan's impassioned account came on the final day of a Canadian Judicial Council inquiry into whether Judge Cosgrove was biased against the Crown and has lost his ability to function as a judge. After a raucous, 18- month trial ending in 1999, Judge Cosgrove stayed Ms. Elliott's murder charge and alleged 150 instances of perjury, fabricating evidence, obstructing justice and conspiracy by the Crown and police.
Ms. Elliott had been accused of murdering and decapitating her former lover, 64-year-old Larry Foster, on Aug. 18, 1995.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

What's the campaign about? Who's prettier?

I am a Liberal, no news there, and I am glad to see Conservative missteps in the election. (But I have memories of elections of the past where we made some errors too).

But let's be candid, the Tory missteps so far are pretty small beer. You can argue they reflect an attitude that is a real problem but in general there isn't anything overwhelming. And Harper has reacted swiftly to every gaffe.

So why the huge Toronto Star headline "Email gaffe shelves Tory aide"?

Maybe it's helpful -- certainly the casual reader would think Harper is chasing Obama to the bottom of the polls -- but there is a risk of the 'boy who cried wolf'.

This is a serious election with real choices. The Liberals offer ideas (as do the Conservatives). (The Liberal ideas are better but that's not really the point). An election decided on who's campaign is prettier is an election decided on chance alone.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Adducing fresh evidence on appeal where Crown non-disclosure exists

Yesterday's Court of Appeal decision in Toronto (City) v. Gallos, 2008 ONCA 617 shows the distinction in the rules relating to adducing fresh evidence on appeal in normal circumstances and where the fresh evidence is sought to be adduced where there was prosecutorial non-disclosure.

In such cases the test, while non-trivial, is considerably easier than in the ordinary course. The Court held:

[50]          Under Taillefer, [[2003] 3 S.C.R. 307 ] the test for admission of fresh evidence where the prosecution has breached its disclosure obligations is twofold: i) whether there is a reasonable possibility the verdict would have been different had the breach not occurred; and ii) whether there is a reasonable possibility that trial fairness was compromised as a result of the non-disclosure. Unlike under the Palmer test, the applicant is not required to demonstrate that it is probable that the fresh evidence would have affected the verdict: see Taillefer at para. 78.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Something is very wrong here -- Gas prices to rise 12.9 cents a litre

Something is very wrong here. Where is the Competition Bureau? Why is gas cheaper (even taking taxes into account) in America?

JOSH WINGROVE Globe and Mail Update Thu, 11 Sep 2008

Gas price watchdog and Liberal MP Dan McTeague says drivers in Toronto and Western Canada will face the largest one-day price increase he's ever seen on Friday, when pump prices could jump as much as 12.9 cents per litre.

He predicts the massive increase for the Greater Toronto Area, Ottawa, Calgary and Kelowna, B.C., while he expects prices in Montreal to go up nine cents.

Gas prices ranged between $1.21 and $1.299 per litre in Toronto Thursday night; Mr. McTeague predicts an average price of $1.366 per litre by Friday morning.

The increase outpaces rises in wholesale costs by about a four-to-one ratio, Mr. McTeague says, and is disproportionate to pump price increases in the United States, where gas is about 20 cents a litre cheaper, on average. He lashed out at a "lack of leadership" by the Harper government on the issue, saying it hasn't done enough to keep gas prices under control.

"If you can do that [increase] in one day, imagine what can happen in one year," Mr. McTeague said in an interview Thursday evening, standing at the corner of a gas station while cars honked in support. "This is a harbinger of other things that can happen down the road. We need to look for leadership down the road."

The increases come as U.S. gasoline wholesale prices jumped to unprecedented levels Thursday. Mr. McTeague says such hikes take a while to work their way to the pumps in the United States, while Canadian gas companies see to jump at the chance to boost prices.

American wholesale prices jumped Thursday as Hurricane Ike threatens the American Gulf Coast, a refining hub. But when Hurricane Gustav struck a few weeks ago, there was little increase in Canadian pump prices, Mr. McTeague noted.

"Our economy is shrinking and gas companies are ripping Canadians off," he added in a statement. "This extra 10 cents/litre does not reflect any sort of supply and demand dynamic."
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Canadian Wildlife

A rare Orange duck from Quebec... .

GAS PRICE ALERT

GAS PRICE ALERT!!

Gasoline will be up almost 13 cents across Canada tonight!

Canada's trade surplus falls to $4.9B as import growth passes export growth

Module body

By Eric Shackleton, The Canadian Press

TORONTO - Canada's economy let off more steam in July as the trade surplus with the rest of the world fell by 12 per cent compared with June and the housing market cooled for the sixth month in a row, according to data released Thursday. The loonie tumbled to its lowest level in a year on the news.

On the trade front, Statistics Canada reported Thursday that the surplus faded to $4.9 billion in July from a revised $5.6 billion in June, when the surplus was 3.5 per cent smaller than originally thought.

In a recent survey, the average forecast of economists was that the July surplus would come in at $5.6 billion, down from the $5.8 billion that Statistics Canada initially reported for June.

Exports rose 2.2 per cent to $44.3 billion in July with volume up 1.7 per cent and prices up half a per cent. Imports rose 4.6 per cent to $39.4 billion, the fourth monthly increase in a row, with the volume of imports up 3.6 per cent.

On currency markets, the loonie fell on news of the lower trade surplus, losing 0.75 of a cent to 92.73 cents U.S., its lowest level in a year.

Meantime, the trade surplus with the United States, which takes a major portion of Canada's natural gas and crude oil exports, fell to $8.9 billion, down 8.25 per cent from $9.7 billion.

Pensive Flocke

Perhaps she is pondering the upcoming election???

Statements by young persons under the Youth Criminal Justice Act

Today’s decision in R. v. L.T.H., 2008 SCC 49 clarifies the rules regarding statement taken from young persons.

The accused young person was charged with dangerous driving causing bodily harm. Upon his arrest, the police read the young person a form advising him of his right to retain and instruct counsel, to consult a parent or an adult relative in private, and to have a lawyer and adult present while a statement was taken. The young person said he understood. The police also read him a waiver of rights form, which he signed. Following a voir dire, the Youth Justice Court judge ruled that the young person’s videotaped statement was inadmissible. She ruled that the Crown had to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the statement was voluntary and that the requirements of s. 146 of the Youth Criminal Justice Act (“YCJA”) relating to the taking of statements given by young persons to authority figures had been met. The judge was not convinced that the young person fully understood his rights and options before giving his statement. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, set aside the verdict of acquittal and ordered a new trial.

The Supreme Court of Canada allowed the appeal.

The procedural rights set out in s. 146 represent one instance of the enhanced protection Parliament has seen fit to provide for young persons. The relevant parts of s. 146 provide that no statement by a young person to a person in authority will be admissible in evidence against that young person unless: (i) the statement was voluntary (s. 146(2)(a)); (ii) the person who took it “clearly explained to the young person, in language appropriate to his or her age and understanding” the young person’s right to silence and right to consult counsel and another appropriate adult (and the requirement that any person consulted be present during the interview) (s. 146(2)(b)); and (iii) the young person was given a reasonable opportunity to exercise those rights (s. 146(2)(c). Finally, s. 146(4) provides that young persons, subject to certain conditions, can waive their right to consult counsel and an adult before making the statement and can also waive the right to have counsel and the adult present when the statement is made.

The test for compliance with s. 146(2)(b) is objective. It does not require the Crown to prove that a young person in fact understood the rights and options explained to them. That said, compliance presupposes an individualized approach that takes into account the age and understanding of the particular young person being questioned. An individualized, objective approach must take into account the level of sophistication of the young person and other personal characteristics relevant to their understanding. Police officers, in determining the appropriate language to use in explaining a young person’s rights, must therefore make a reasonable effort to become aware of significant factors of this sort, such as learning disabilities and previous experience with the criminal justice system.

All of the factors listed in s. 146(2) have been determined by Parliament to be appropriate preconditions to the admissibility of a statement by a young person and all must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

Where a trial judge is not satisfied that the young person understood his or her right to consult counsel and a parent and have those people present during the statement, or, is not satisfied that the young person appreciated the consequences of waiving those rights, the statement should not be admitted. [

Adopting a single standard of proof for compliance with each component of s. 146 offers significant advantages over a fragmented approach. It is consistent, moreover, with the relevant principles of statutory interpretation — in particular, the presumption that legislation is internally consistent and coherent. The provisions of the YCJA should be read harmoniously. In accordance with the presumption of coherence, s. 146 must be interpreted in light of the YCJA’s declaration of principles (s. 3). Those principles emphasize fairness and proportionality consistent with young persons’ higher levels of dependency and lower levels of maturity and the related need for greater procedural protections. Section 146, in its entirety, is aimed at fulfilling one of the objectives of the legislation — to offer enhanced protection to young persons and ensure they are treated fairly. In practical terms, adopting a single standard ensures that the trial judge’s mind is properly directed to this task.

The trial judge was therefore bound to find the statements inadmissible if she was not satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that the young person’s rights were explained to him in language appropriate to his understanding or if she had a reasonable doubt whether the young person understood his right to counsel and therefore could validly waive it. It is clear from her reasons that she was left with a reasonable doubt in both respects.

Senior Tory spokesman suspended

Oh dear ...

Globe and Mail Update September 11, 2008 at 12:57 PM EDT MONTREAL —

Senior Conservative Party spokesman Ryan Sparrow has been suspended from the campaign after suggesting the father of a slain soldier who criticized
Stephen Harper today was a Liberal.

Mr. Sparrow sent an email to CTV News today suggesting that Jim Davis, the soldier's dad, is a supporter of Liberal Michael Ignatieff.

He has also been ordered to call Mr. Davis and apologize for his comments. Tory Senator Marjory LeBreton, a national campaign co-chair, said there's no excuse for Mr. Sparrow's behaviour.

"When a family suffers the loss of a loved one, it's a tragedy beyond belief ... and politics should never enter into it," she said. Ms. LeBreton said Mr. Davis' criticism today was justified comment. "It's entirely appropriate thing for him to say because he lost his son."

Mr. Harper was forced to defend his decision announced Wednesday to pull Canadian troops out of Afghanistan in 2011 in the face of criticism from Mr. Davis, whose son Corporal Paul Davis died in Kandahar in March 2006.

He told CTV's Canada AM he was shocked by Mr. Harper's comments. He said his son will have died in vain if Canada withdraws before its mission is complete.

"I couldn't believe he would say something so irresponsible as that," Mr. Davis told CTV. Mr. Davis setting a deadline "undermines the work our soldiers are doing and it undermines the mission." CTV Washington bureau chief Tom Clark, who is reporting on the Tory campaign this week, said he received an email from Mr. Sparrow on Thursday after he raised Mr. Davis' criticism at a scrum with Mr. Harper. In the email, Mr. Sparrow said that Mr. Davis supported Mr. Ignatieff, a former Liberal leadership candidate. It also contained a link to a page on Mr. Ignatieff's website offering condolences on Mr. Davis' loss.

Mr. Harper said he "doesn't accept" the notion Cpl. Davis will have died in vain and said Canada is determined to pull out by 2011 because by that time it will have had soldiers deployed in the deadly province of Kandahar for six years.

"Six years in Kandahar? We were in World War II for six years. We've got to be able to get to the endpoint," he said.

"If we don't set end dates and we don't have targets the mission will go on forever … [and] we will end up being responsible for the ongoing management of Afghan security."

Another Harper spokesman Kory Teneycke said Mr. Sparrow has been suspended and ordered to apologize to Mr. Davis."Obviously, that's not appropriate. And he will be contacting the father directly to apologize and is being suspended immediately from the campaign, (for) the duration of the campaign."

It's the latest in a series of gaffes involving the Tory campaign.

The party has already had to backtrack three times this week: first after opposing the participation of Green Leader Elizabeth May in the leaders debates; then by editing an ad on its website showing a bird pooping on Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion; and then damping the flames after a Halifax candidate had to resign after it was learned she had a criminal record.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Judge apologizes for botched 1998 murder trial; However, he may still be removed from the bench; his peers say his conduct amounts to more than a few erroneous findings of fact

A sad story but fortunately very rare.

The Globe and Mail
Thu 11 Sep 2008
Page: A4
Section: National News
Byline: Kirk Makin
Source: JUSTICE REPORTER

Ontario Superior Court Judge Paul Cosgrove shocked a rare disciplinary inquiry yesterday by delivering an abject, 11th-hour apology for botching a rancorous 1998 murder trial.

However, a Canadian Judicial Council panel hearing his misconduct case promptly fired back a curveball of its own, saying that it will continue hearing evidence that could result in the removal of Judge Cosgrove from the bench.

"What is he apologizing for?" British Columbia Chief Justice Lance Finch, chairman of the panel, asked sharply. "Does the judge characterize this as being strictly an error, or as judicial misconduct? What I don't understand is whether he has acknowledged judicial misconduct."

As a result, far from drawing to a close today, the inquiry will hear from several witnesses affected by Judge Cosgrove's erratic behaviour at the murder trial of Julia Yvonne Elliott - including senior Crown counsel and a police officer.

Judge Cosgrove explained in his apology that he found himself surrounded at the Elliott trial by hard-driving lawyers engaged in open warfare. He said that it all added up to him making many poor judgment calls.

"I stand before you humbled and chastened," he said, his voice quavering slightly. "I have thought about that trial virtually every day for 10 years. It was like nothing I'd seen before - or since. At times, I lost my way.

"In particular, I regret any intemperate, denigrating or unfair language I may have used in what was the most stressful trial of my career," Judge Cosgrove said.
In staying Ms. Elliott's murder charge, Judge Cosgrove cited 150 breaches of her Charter rights by police and Crown officials - including senior officials who played virtually no role in the case.

Judge Cosgrove, his lawyers and CJC commission counsel Earl Cherniak were clearly taken by surprise yesterday when the panel elected to press ahead, rather than swiftly wrapping up the inquiry.

Mr. Cherniak had suggested after Judge Cosgrove's apology that his apparent sincerity meant that he no longer deserved the extreme punishment of removal from office. A "strong and pointed admonition" from the entire CJC would suffice, Mr. Cherniak suggested.
However, Chief Justice Finch remarked that Judge Cosgrove's sins amounted to much more than a few erroneous findings of fact. Instead, the judge made "many, many findings of deliberately dishonest conduct by various people," Chief Justice Finch said.

He also voiced suspicion about the timing of Judge Cosgrove's change of heart:

"There has been a significant expenditure of public money in the process. As far as I can see, nothing has changed between then and now."
Alberta Chief Justice Allan Wachowich also expressed skepticism, wondering aloud why Judge Cosgrove's "epiphany" did not come years earlier.

"It would have been better for all concerned - including the public purse - if the apology had been made earlier," Mr. Cherniak agreed.

Judge Cosgrove's apology also contained a highly unusual offer - to refrain from ever presiding over another case involving the Crown if the CJC would permit him to remain on the bench, which would effectively preclude him from hearing criminal cases or anything else in which the Crown had a role.

His apology came six days into the hearing, which is aimed at determining whether he harboured bias against the Crown.

Attorney-General Michael Bryant lodged a complaint about the judge's conduct with the CJC in 2004, shortly after the Ontario Court of Appeal ordered a retrial of the Elliott case and repeatedly singled out Judge Cosgrove for criticism.

Judge Cosgrove said yesterday that, while he has come to accept the stinging Court of Appeal judgment without reservation, it failed to dislodge his abiding belief that he had kept an open mind and had done his best to conduct the Elliott trial fairly.

"It is evident to me now that I did not intervene often, or forcefully, enough,"

Judge Cosgrove said. "With hindsight, my attempts only met with modest success."

Judge Cosgrove added that there is no more "traumatic ordeal" a judge can have than to face removal after a searing public hearing convened by his peers.

"Aside from my family and my faith, being a judge is the most important thing in my life," he said.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Top judge says province's family law needs revamp

Of all our legal system the family area is in the most urgent need of reform -- although criminal is not far behind.

Brockville Recorder and Times
Wed 10 Sep 2008
Page: A8
Section: News
Byline: BY THE CANADIAN PRESS
Dateline: TORONTO

There is a large appetite for the review and reform of Ontario's family courts, Ontario Chief Justice Warren Winkler said Tuesday.

Currently, there are only 17 "unified," or dedicated family courts scattered in various pockets of Ontario. None are located in Toronto.

"The time has arrived to implement a properly serviced unified family court system," Winkler said a ceremony to mark the official opening of Ontario's courts for the year.

Winkler's comments were echoed Tuesday by the top judges in Ontario's lower courts.

Chief provincial court Justice Annemarie Bonkalo said judges are faced with handling a high volume of child protection, custody and support cases, and an increasing number of people who don't have a lawyer, meaning judges are forced to spend valuable court time giving basic advice and help.

"Like Chief Justice Winkler, I worry that our courts might not always be able to meet the challenge," said Bonkalo, adding that she supports Winkler's call for a family law review.

"Coming to a just decision is much, much harder when litigants are on their own in court."

Across Ontario, the need for strengthening the province's family law system is at "the tip of everyone's tongue," Attorney General Chris Bentley said after Tuesday's speeches.

The province last month pledged to review the handling of child custody cases following the death of seven-year-old Katelynn Sampson of Toronto, who was permitted to stay in the care of a woman who had a criminal record for drugs, prostitution and violence. The girl's caregiver, Donna Irving, is charged with second-degree murder.

But Bentley blamed some of the challenges caused by delays in the system to a long-standing shortage of federal court judges, adding that it's up to the federal government to make a unified system.

"We have supported the call for an increasingly unified court, but it's not within my control," he said.

Some of the pressure from the judges' shortage will be relieved, said Bentley, with the recent hiring of eight new federal judges.

A report last spring from the Ontario Bar Association found that the province's legal system has reached a "breaking point." There is an acute shortage of judges and many people are finding the system too complicated and expensive since they can't get help they need through an underfunded Legal Aid program, it said.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

MP Cheryl Gallant ludicrously claims Dion will "tax or ban firewood"

Now I don't normally blog Party press releases but this one is so amusing I decided to break my usual custom.

OTTAWA-The Liberal campaign today revealed that controversial Conservative MP Cheryl Gallant has outrageously added to the growing litany of fabrications about the Liberal Green Shift plan, baselessly claiming it will "destroy the lives" of many Canadians by "taxing or banning the use of firewood."

These claims are contained in Ms. Gallant's taxpayer-funded householder that is arriving on constituents' doorsteps this week in her Eastern Ontario riding of Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke.

Ms. Gallant's mail-out contains other fabrications including an absurd claim that the plan will result in "increasing gas pump prices by 60 per cent which would equate to $1.70-$2.00 a litre at the pump" and would lead to "spiking electricity bills up to 50 per cent more each month."

These statements are all outrageous fabrications. The Liberal Green Shift plan does not impose a tax or a ban on firewood. Period. It also does not impose a tax on gasoline at the pumps meaning that Ms. Gallant's claim of a massive hike in gasoline prices is pure fiction.

Ms. Gallant's claim of monthly skyrocketing electricity bills is also a complete fabrication. According to statistics from Natural Resources Canada, Ontario residents would see their energy bills rise just 2.7 per cent in the first year as a result of the Green Shift plan, with costs rising to approximately 10 per cent annually by year four.

Not surprisingly, Ms. Gallant appears to be deliberately misleading her constituents by failing to mention the "shift" aspect of the Green Shift and the significant tax cuts that will more than offset any increases in energy costs. For example, a family of four, making $60,000 per year will receive approximately $1,300 in additional tax benefits. A single mother with two children making $35,000 per year will get more than $1,600 back in her pocket.

The Liberal campaign noted that Ms. Gallant can normally be relied upon to come out with an outrageous statement every election, recalling that in 2004 she said an Ottawa abortion clinic was exactly the same as terrorists beheading hostages in Iraq (CBC News, May 13, 2004) and in 2000 said firearms owners must resist the firearms registry or "go like lambs to the gas chamber as the Chrétien Liberals strip away our rights." (National Post, November 21, 2000)

A copy of Ms. Gallant's householder is available here:

Part One <http://www.liberal.ca/images/pages/080909_gallant_ctop.jpg>

Part Two <http://www.liberal.ca/images/pages/080909_gallant_cbot.jpg>

Part Three <http://www.liberal.ca/images/pages/080909_gallant_p3top.jpg>
Part Four <http://www.liberal.ca/images/pages/080909_gallant_p3bot.jpg>

http://www.liberal.ca/story_14462_e.aspx <http://www.liberal.ca/story_14462_e.aspx>
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Surge in support for NDP in B.C. swing ridings: poll

The danger of vote splitting is very real. If you will recall, one of the reasons the Conservatives were in the wilderness so long was because their vote was split between two Parties. On the other hand, note the striking drop in Conservative support -- down five full points. Also note the Greens are holding solid (and yes, I did notice, the Liberals are also down by two points.)


Surge in support for NDP in B.C. swing ridings: poll

The New Democrats have seen their support jump sharply in key battleground ridings in B.C., following recent campaign stops by Jack Layton in the province, according to a new Strategic Counsel poll.

The latest survey of 10 swing ridings in B.C., conducted from Sept. 7-9 for CTV and the Globe and Mail, shows the NDP gaining six points (percentage-point change from a Sept. 6-8 poll in brackets):

Conservatives: 36 per cent (-5)
New Democrats: 30 per cent (+6)
Liberals: 21 per cent (-2)
Green Party: 12 per cent (none)

In the past five days, the New Democrats have almost doubled their support in those 10 ridings. They started the campaign at just 17 per cent.

"There's a strong tradition of NDP support in British Columbia," the Strategic Counsel's Peter Donolo told CTV.ca on Wednesday. "What we're seeing is a strong revival among the traditional base -- lower-income women, and those with lower education."

Full story here:

http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/abc/home/contentposting.aspx?isfa=1&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V3&showbyline=True&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20080907%2felection2008_080907

Seven Years Later

At the time of the 9 11 attacks there was much said about how the world had changed forever.

In a sense the world did change -- and certainly some things, airports, security generally, passport regulations, have changed. But perhaps the most striking thing is how things have not changed.

Except on the edges life is very much the same as before here in Canada. Yes, we have had terrorist scares in the last seven years but they have been, and are being, dealt with by the ordinary criminal process.

Our lives go on and the nation has not been intimidated by terrorism.

And that's a good thing.

We should pause to remember the dead; we should say a prayer for them and remember them. But the real goal of the terrorists -- terror -- has eluded them

Flocke eats fruit salad

Grapes, melon, banana and a little cheese

HUMOUR FOR LEXOPHILES (LOVERS OF WORDS):

I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me.

Police were called to a day care where a three-year-old was resisting a rest.

Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off?
He's all right now.

The roundest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference.

The butcher backed up into the meat grinder and got a little behind in his work.

To write with a broken pencil is pointless.

When fish are in schools they sometimes take debate.

The short fortune teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.

A thief who stole a calendar got twelve months.

A thief fell and broke his leg in wet cement.
He became a hardened criminal.

Thieves who steal corn from a garden could be charged with stalking.

We'll never run out of math teachers because they always multiply.

When the smog lifts in Los Angeles, U.C.L.A.

The math professor went crazy with the blackboard.
He did a number on it.

The professor discovered that her theory of earthquakes was on shaky ground.

The dead batteries were given out free of charge.

If you take a laptop computer for a run you could jog your memory.

A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two tired.

A will is a dead giveaway.

Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.

A backward poet writes inverse.

In a democracy it's your vote that counts;
in feudalism, it's your Count that votes.

A chicken crossing the road: poultry in motion.

If you don't pay your exorcist you can get repossessed.

With her marriage she got a new name and a dress.

Show me a piano falling down a mine shaft and I'll show you A-flat miner.

When a clock is hungry it goes back four seconds.

The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine was fully recovered.

A grenade fell onto a kitchen floor in France, resulted in Linoleum Blownapart.

You are stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.

Local Area Network in Australia: The LAN down under.

He broke into song because he couldn't find the key.

A calendar's days are numbered.

A lot of money is tainted: 'Taint yours, and 'taint mine.

A boiled egg is hard to beat.

He had a photographic memory which was never developed.

A plateau is a high form of flattery.

Those who get too big for their britches will be exposed in the end.

When you've seen one shopping center you've seen a mall.

If you jump off a Parisbridge, you are in Seine.

When she saw her first strands of gray hair, she thought she'd dye.

Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead to know basis.

Santa's helpers are subordinate clauses.

Acupuncture: a jab well done

Credibility and Reasonable Doubt

The principles established in R. v. W.(D.) (1991), 63 C.C.C. (3d) 397 (S.C.C.). have an entrenched place in Canadian criminal law.

In W.(D.), the Supreme Court of Canada considered the manner in which a jury should be charged on the principle of reasonable doubt. Justice Cory, writing for the court, suggested that in a criminal case where credibility is the central issue and the accused testifies, the jury charge should include the following instruction in order to ensure that, as the trier of fact, the jury remains focused on reasonable doubt:

First, if you believe the evidence of the accused, obviously you must acquit.

Second, if you do not believe the testimony of the accused but you are left in reasonable doubt by it, you must acquit.

Third, even if you are not left in doubt by the evidence of the accused, you must ask yourself whether, on the basis of the evidence which you do accept, you are convinced beyond a reasonable doubt by that evidence of the guilt of the accused.

Unfortunately some misunderstood W.(D.) to mean that a form of language had to be followed by a court considering credibility and reasonable doubt and any variation from that form would be a reversible error.

Today’s Court of Appeal decision in R. v. Sparrow, 2008 ONCA 616 emphasizes it is not the form but the substance of W.(D.) that must be followed. The Court writes:

[53] The trial judge was not obliged to adopt any particular structure in fashioning his reasons or a specific order in reviewing the evidence adduced at trial. Nor was he required to articulate the W.(D.) principles at each stage of his analysis of the evidence. Moreover, the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court of Canada confirms that the steps identified in W.(D.) need not be religiously followed or articulated… .What is required is that the trier of fact remain focused on the paramount question, namely, whether, on the whole of the evidence, the trier of fact is left with a reasonable doubt about the guilt of the accused … .

Elizabeth May will join leaders debate

This is only right and proper -- the Greens are not some fringe group -- they are a real Party with real support. Besides, it is good to have some (slight) gender balance in the debates. I guess the NDP and Conservatives realized they looked very bad excluding 1 in 10 Canadians.

Andrew Mayeda and Mike De Souza, Canwest News Service

Published: Wednesday, September 10, 2008

TORONTO - Green Leader Elizabeth May will participate in the leaders' debate after the Conservatives and NDP dropped their opposition to her appearance in the broadcasts.

Moments after the Tories backed down Wednesday, the broadcast consortium told May she would be welcome at the English and French debates Oct. 1-2 in Ottawa.

Dull but important topic

Mandamus.



A writ of Mandamus or simply Mandamus, which means "we command" in Latin, is the name of one of the prerogative writs in the common law, and is issued by a superior court (appellate court) to compel a lower court or a government officer to perform mandatory or purely ministerial duties correctly.



Mandamus is a judicial remedy which is in the form of an order from a superior court to any government, subordinate court, corporation or public authority to do or forbear from doing some specific act which that body is obliged under law to do or refrain from doing, as the case may be, and which is in the nature of public duty and in certain cases of a statutory duty.



Mandamus may be a command to do something or not to do a particular thing. Mandamus is supplemented by legal rights. It must be a judicially enforceable and legally protected right before one suffering a grievance can ask for a Mandamus. A person can be said to be aggrieved only when he is denied a legal right by someone who has a legal duty to do something and abstains from doing it



When a Justice of the Peace makes a decision and the prosecutor loses, it is not uncommon for the prosecutor to bring an application for Mandamus which is, in effect, an appeal.



But when the application is heard it is usually unopposed so only the prosecutor is heard. And that means only one side of the story is heard. And that often means the appeal does not get the full hearing it needs.



Why should anyone care? Because it leads to the law on speeding, red lights and other Provincial Offences, which are the sort of cases that impact ordinary people, being skewed in favour of the prosecution.



We need a rule that no Mandamus application is heard without someone arguing against it.

Statement by Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion on the death of Richard Monette

A sad loss for Canada.

On behalf of the Liberal Party of Canada I would like to express my sincere condolences to the family and many friends of Richard Monette, former Artistic Director of the Stratford Festival of Canada.

From performing on the stage to directing award-winning productions to raising the Stratford Festival to a level of international prominence, Mr. Monette has left an indelible mark on the theatre community in Canada. During his 14 years as Artistic Director, he produced the entire Shakespearean canon, managing to captivate first-time theatre goers and returning fans alike. His efforts will ensure packed audiences at the festival for many years to come.

Across Canada and around the world he will be remembered for breathing new life into some of our most-loved characters and for bringing out the very best in Canada's finest stage actors. He will be deeply missed.

James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Supreme Court Appointment -- Leaks

I'm not sure the impact is quite as serious as this article suggests but leaks like this are unfortunate. Certainly it does appear the vetting process may be problematic.

The Globe and Mail
Wed 10 Sep 2008
Page: A10
Section: National News
Byline: Kirk Makin
Dateline: JUSTICE REPORTER
JUSTICE REPORTER -- The federal government has permanently damaged its Supreme Court of Canada nomination process by appearing to leak confidential information about judicial candidates to a cabinet minister, Newfoundland Justice Minister Jerome Kennedy said yesterday.
Mr. Kennedy was sharply critical of Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn for stating publicly that two Newfoundland judges turned down invitations to fill a Supreme Court vacancy.

Under a vetting procedure created over the past few years by successive federal governments, the identities of judges considered for Supreme Court vacancies are strictly confidential.

"Based on Hearn's comments, I have to tell you that I'm flabbergasted at the involvement of a minister in a situation that should be confidential," Mr. Kennedy said in an interview yesterday.

"The integrity of the whole process has been called into question and, at a minimum, the process is flawed."
In an e-mail statement last night, Mr. Hearn said that he learned through "contact with the legal community" during the summer that some potential candidates did not intend to be considered for the Supreme Court vacancy.

"The formal application process for the position was later announced," the statement said. "Minister Hearn had no involvement in that process, and had no knowledge of the applicants."

The statement criticized Mr. Kennedy for publicly naming two senior Newfoundland judges who he had put forward as candidates in a recent letter to federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson.
(Mr. Kennedy responded that the names were selected in consultation with the chief justices of the province's two highest courts. He said that the two judges were willing to be considered, and that mentioning their names was a compliment to them.)

Last Friday, in a surprising move, Prime Minister Stephen Harper circumvented an all-party committee his government set up to vet a short list of candidates by simply naming a nominee: Mr. Justice Thomas Cromwell of the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal.

Over the weekend, Mr. Hearn attempted to quell anger in his home province by saying: "Why didn't Newfoundland get the Supreme Court judge? Because at least two of the top people didn't want it."
Mr. Kennedy alleged yesterday that, besides using leaked information for political gain, Mr. Hearn's statement suggested that entire vetting process has been a sham.

If the government was secretly offering the judgeship to preferred candidates, Mr. Kennedy said, it renders the vetting process meaningless.

"If the PM can usurp a process as serious as the appointment of a Supreme Court of Canada justice, how can we trust him when it comes to any processes he puts into place or promises that he gives us?" Mr. Kennedy asked.

The vetting committee was scheduled to interview judicial candidates privately in the Atlantic region this week. It would have submitted a list of three candidates to Mr. Harper within a week or two, NDP justice critic Joe Comartin, his party's representative on the all-party vetting committee, said yesterday.

Mr. Comartin said that besides being false, Mr. Hearn's statement is very troubling because, "he should not have had any of that kind of information."
Whatever the case, it could be much harder to guarantee confidentiality in future, Mr. Comartin said. "I have to wonder how seriously the members of that committee will treat the confidentiality document we signed," he said. "Up to this point, we all felt very much obliged to protect, to the utmost, the identity of all the names on the list."

Mr. Kennedy predicted that Newfoundlanders will punish Mr. Harper on election day for playing fast and loose with the nomination process.

"What's gone on here is that Stephen Harper has shown himself to be heavy- handed, arrogant and oppressive in his dealings with anyone who dares to stand up to him," Mr. Kennedy said. "The message we will send to PM Harper on election day is we will not be intimidated by anyone."

James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

APOSTLES: COLLABORATORS IN TRUE JOY -- Vatican News

VATICAN CITY, 10 SEP 2008 (VIS) - At his general audience this morning, celebrated in the Paul VI Hall, the Pope dedicated his catechesis to St. Paul's view of the. meaning of apostolate.

The Pauline concept of apostleship went "beyond that of the group of Twelve" explained the Holy Father. "It was characterised by three elements: the first was the fact of having seen the Lord, in other words of having encountered Him in a way that marked his life. ... Definitively then, it is the Lord Who confers the apostolate, not individual presumption. Apostles do not make themselves but are created so by the Lord".

The second characteristic is that of "having been sent. In fact, the Greek term 'apostolos' means envoy, ... the representative of a principal. ... Once again the idea emerges of an initiative arising from someone else, from God in Jesus Christ, to Whom one is duty-bound", of "a mission to be accomplished in His name, putting all personal interests aside".

"Announcing the Gospel and the consequent founding of Churches" is the third requisite. "The tile of apostle", said Pope Benedict, "is not and cannot be a merely honorary title. It truly, even dramatically, involves the entire existence of the person concerned".

St. Paul also defined apostles as "servants of God, Whose grace acts in them", said the Pope. "A typical element of the true apostle ... is a form of identification between the Gospel and the evangeliser, both share the same destiny. Indeed no-one so much as Paul highlighted how announcing the cross of Christ is a 'stumbling block and foolishness' to which many react with misunderstanding and refusal. That happened then and it should be no surprise that the same thing happens today".

"With the stoical philosophy of his time, Paul shared the idea of tenacious perseverance in all the difficulties he had to face; but he went beyond the merely human perspective by recalling ... God's love and Christ's. ... This is the certainty, the profound joy that guided the Apostle though all those events: nothing can separate us from the love of God, and this love is the real treasure of human life".

"As we may see, St. Paul gave himself to the Gospel with all his life", said the Holy Father in conclusion. "He undertook his ministry with faithfulness and joy that he 'might by all means save some'. And though aware of his own relationship of paternity - even, indeed, of maternity - towards the Churches, his attitude to them was one of complete service, declaring: "I do not mean to imply that we lord it over your faith; rather, we are workers with you for your joy'. This remains the mission of all the apostles of Christ in all times: to be collaborators of true joy".

(Used with pemission)
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Health Care Tops Concerns

A CBC poll says Canadians see the most significant issue for this election.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Lipstick on a pig

Language matters.

Sadly Obama had a slip of words and used the (not uncommon) phrase noted above.

But in this election such phrasing is a problem.

At least it's not puffin poop!

Contract to make a will in a certain fashion if breached does not affect validity of the will

Today’s decision in Frye v. Frye Estate, 2008 ONCA 606 makes clear the estate law point that the power to dispose of property in a will is not constrained by contract. Thus, a contract to make a will in a certain fashion, if breached, does not affect the will’s validity – at most it can lead to a claim for breach of contract.

This point is worth noting, especially in the family law context.

The Court writes:

[19] First, on a conceptual level, contractual obligations do not constrain a person’s ability to bequeath property by means of a will. For example, a contractual obligation to make or to refrain from revoking a will gives rise to an action for breach of contract and does not affect the validity of the will itself: see A.H. Oosterhoff, Oosterhoff on Wills and Succession, 6th ed. (Toronto: Thomson Carswell, 2007) at 126–27. The trial judge concluded that “Cameron Frye was bound by the provisions of the Shareholders’ Agreement as amended and had no right to transfer by his Will shares in the corporation to his sister Cheryl.” Cameron Frye may have been bound by the provisions of the Shareholders’ Agreement, but his right to bequeath his shares was entirely another matter.

Dion's looking good

Dion is looking good -- he is a campaigner as anyone who watched his leadership run knows.

OTTAWA - Liberal Leader Stephane Dion has moved to trump the Tories with a promise to double the Harper government's $1,200-a-year child care allowance and restore the court challenges program abolished by the Conservatives.

Full story here:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/080909/national/fedelxn_main

Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana is not dead ... .

Odd how these ridiculous stories get traction -- make up anything, forward it on to five friends, and see where it goes... (By the way, did you see that the Greens have replaced May as Leader with James Morton, formerly a Liberal???).

Miley Cyrus is not dead

Teen queen is fine after rumours she was killed

Hannah Montana fans can breathe a big sigh of relief. Contrary to Internet rumours starting last Friday and brewing over the weekend, the 15-year-old star of the Disney show is alive and well.

The false report claimed that Miley Cyrus was on the way to film scenes on the Hannah Montana set when her car was hit by a truck and she was killed, reports BuddyTV.

The article included witness testimonies saying the truck was going “at least 55 mph” and had “run a stop sign.” It was accompanied with a false Yahoo! News story screen shot and concluded by stating Cyrus was rushed to the Pacific Alliance Medical Center.

Who's afraid of Elizabeth May?

The Prime Minister it seems.

Apparently he is the nameless leader who refused to debate if May was allowed to participate in the leaders' debate.

Why?

My guess is that she would do well and siphon votes from the Conservatives. Remember, most Canadians don't know the Greens are a right leaning party with an environmental focus. The Greens are tinged blue and are a credible place for conservative (small 'c') voters. Being on the debate would allow May to explain this and open the door to getting Tory votes (and yes liberal voters who were very concerned about the environment and felt the Green Shift was not enough).
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Knut, Flocke and Wilbaer -- Bear Combo

This combination photo shows polar bear cubs (top to bottom) Knut, Flocke and Wilbaer playing in their zoo enclosures in Berlin December 5, 2007, in Nuremburg April 8, 2008 and in Stuttgart April 16, 2008.

This undated photo shows from left to right, Abdulla Ahmed Ali, Tanvir Hussain, Assad Sarwar. All three were found guilty of conspiracy to murder to plotting to bomb seven trans-Atlantic airliners in the summer of 2006. (AP / Metropolitan Police)

The criminal prosecution of terrorists (who are merely criminals) works and here is proof.

A London jury has found three men guilty of conspiring to kill people using homemade liquid explosives.

However, after 50 hours of deliberations the jury couldn't agree on whether the men intended to use the bombs on planes.

The jurors had been told by prosecutors that the plotters planned to kill thousands of people by smuggling liquid explosives onto jetliners leaving Heathrow airport, then to detonate them while in the air.

Abdulla Ahmed Ali, Assad Sarwar and Tanvir Hussain were all found guilty of conspiring to kill "persons unknown."

Full story here:

http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/abc/home/contentposting.aspx?isfa=1&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V3&showbyline=True&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20080908%2fbomb_plot_080908

Stephane Dion's Language Skills

Concerns about Stephane Dion's language skills have been grossly overblown. He speaks well and with passion; and he clearly understands and communicates fluently in both Official Languages (I wish I could!).

What's more important, and here I echo Michael Ignatieff, Stephane Dion listens and cares about what he hears. He is perhaps the most decent and honourable man in public life I have been privileged to meet; and I don't say that lightly. The personal attacks on Stephane Dion have been scurrilous.

Regardless of what colour you put on your lawn sign, you will have to agree Stephane Dion is a good man. It is wrong to attack the man; his ideas are fair game, his policies are open to debate, but his quality and character are not.


Liberal Leader Stephane Dion has revealed a hearing condition may be to blame for his oft-criticized English-language skills, saying it's difficult for him to isolate sounds.

Dion was asked about this hearing problem on a campaign stop at Saint-Lambert, Que. where he was appearing in support of Liberal candidate Roxanne Stanners.

Before explaining his condition, Dion joked that he would need the reporter to repeat his question because he could not hear very well.

"If I am in a cocktail (party) and everybody speaks at the same time, I have difficulty," Dion said. "It affects my ability to catch the music of the beautiful language of English."

While he said he's not sure what his condition is called, Dion said he has been tested by doctors and told that it's something that has been passed along through his family.

"I hear everything when it is isolated, but when it is confused with other sounds it is completely confused," he said. "My mother has the same problem; it is kind of a hereditary problem, but it does not stop me from listening to Canadians."

Since Dion took over the reins of the party's leadership, there's been criticism of his English language skills, but CTV's Roger Smith said this is the first time Dion explained he has a condition that makes it difficult for him to comprehend the language.

"This is the first time we've heard anything about a hearing problem or disability that might explain his problems in English," Smith told CTV Newsnet. "It's the first time that he has revealed this publicly, the reason for his lack of proficiency in English."

Asked why he only spoke up about the problem now, during an election campaign, Dion said he doesn't know why and said he shouldn't have.

Deputy Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff told CTV's Canada AM on Monday that he wasn't aware of the hearing problem but said Dion has made his objectives for the country more than clear to him.

"I can understand him and I think he has the sincerity, the conviction and above all the determination," said Ignatieff. "It's hard to remember a leader of a major party that has been subject to the same sustained attack. Canadians love underdogs and they get tired of seeing some getting knocked around.

"This is one tough, resolute politician and he will make a very good PM."

Damage to rental property caused by disability

Today's decision in Eskritt v. MacKay, 2008 ONCA 611 deals with an argument that damages caused to a rental property as a result of a disability on the part of a tenant are not recoverable. The Court summarily rejected that argument saying:

[2]               The appellants submit that the trial judge erred in awarding the respondents amounts on account of damage occasioned as a result of Mr. McKay's disability.  We reject this submission. The trial judge made a finding of fact that the damage caused to the respondents' premises went beyond reasonable wear and tear. This finding was available on the evidence.

[3]               The Human Rights Code does not obviate a disabled person's responsibility to pay for damage to a landlord's premises extending beyond reasonable wear and tear. The appellants have produced no authority to that effect and, in our view, that is not the intent of the Human Rights Code. In any event, m
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4

Panda in Atlanta

After some scares the newborn panda in Atlanta seems to be doing well. The picture shows Mother Lun Lun nursing her tiny cub.

Here's the most recent panda report:

It was another good day and night for Lun Lun and cub. Rest came much as one might expect for a nursing mother – short-lived bouts of sleep interrupted by the occasional cub vocalizations. Lun Lun responds by cradling him closer or repositioning herself in order to keep her cub warm and comfortable. The cub is nursing well and gaining weight, and Lun Lun continues to appropriately attend to his needs.

See here for more:

http://www.zooatlanta.org/animals_giant_panda_cub_updates.htm

Adam McKay: We're Gonna Frickin' Lose this Thing

Interesting piece on how different the American election looks now the conventions are over.

Elections are funny things -- they don't always go as expected. And that's true in Canada too ... .

<http://nl.huffingtonpost.com/link.php?M=291065&N=638&L=3113>

"Stop saying that!" my wife says to me.

But this is not a high school football game and I'm not a cheerleader with a bad attitude. This is an election and I as things stand now, we're gonna frickin' lose this thing.

REALITY CHECK ON WHY AN ELECTION -- Toronto Star

The claim: That the minority Parliament was dysfunctional and at an impasse and therefore the Conservatives were justified in ignoring their own legislation that set Oct. 19, 2009 as the date of the next election.

Who said it: Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

The facts: This minority Parliament was the second-longest in Canadian history.

There have been 65 bills and three budgets passed by the House of Commons since the Conservatives were elected on Jan. 23, 2006.

Opposition leaders say that uncertainty is a reality of minority parliaments and that Harper should have abided by the spirit of his fixed-date election legislation.

"Fixed dates stop leaders from trying to manipulate the calendar," Harper told reporters in May, 2006 when he introduced the legislation.

"Hopefully, in the next election, we can run on our record and we won't need the manipulation of the electoral calendar," he said.

Another loss in Afghanistan

Very sad. Our troops are fighting a difficult and capable enemy.

GRAEME SMITH From Monday's Globe and Mail

KABUL — A Canadian soldier who saved a comrade's life after a bomb attack two years ago was himself killed by a similar bomb yesterday, during a patrol at an undisclosed location in the Panjwai district west of Kandahar city.

Sergeant Prescott Shipway, 36, was remembered for his gallant actions under fire during a Taliban attack on his previous tour in Afghanistan, as the Canadian military mourned its 97th death of the mission.

The improvised explosive device that killed him detonated at 12:30 p.m. local time. Little more information was released, but Brigadier-General Denis Thompson offered some detail about another blast, on June 21, 2006, when one of the sergeant's colleagues had his legs blown off.

"Disregarding the danger to himself, he [Sgt. Shipway] secured the area of the blast and began treating the casualties, one of which had lost both his legs," Brig.-Gen. Thompson said. "Using the radio, he got some direction from the chief surgeon and was able to stop the bleeding and save the soldier's life.

"As a measure of how Kandahar has grown more violent, the day of Sgt. Shipway's life-saving actions in 2006 was considered - at the time - one of the worst single 24-hour periods of violence since the arrival of Canada's battle group in southern Afghanistan. No troops were killed that day, but six injuries were enough to make headlines.

Full story here:

http://m.avantgo.com/ui?ag_url=52616e646f6d495628a927ddc6f939ba211388749eab5dcf1f26c712638d42d66fdea4ab42dc45287d63e53fba7d60bd0bd62034961a249c13c29d50a561803a55904d66989a4c708e33467cd90ebd6e&ag_channel=4179&showNav=0&ms=globeandmail

James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4