STRASBOURG, France, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Europe's human rights court on Thursday threw out a complaint by two French Muslim girls who were expelled from their school for refusing to remove their headscarves during sports lessons. France, which takes secularism in state schools very seriously, passed a law in 2004 banning pupils from wearing conspicuous signs of their religion at school after a decade of bitter debate about Muslim girls wearing headscarves in class. "The court observed that the purpose of the restriction on the applicants' right to manifest their religious convictions was to adhere to the requirements of secularism in state schools," the European Court of Human Rights said.
The two girls were 11 and 12 when they were expelled in 1999. After French courts ruled against them, they complained to the European court that their school had violated their freedom of religion and their right to an education. The court, based in the eastern French city of Strasbourg, rejected both complaints by a unanimous ruling of seven judges. It said the school had done its best to balance the interests of the girls with respect for France's secular model, and their expulsion was a consequence of their refusal to respect rules of which they had been properly informed. It also said they had been able to continue their education by correspondence classes (etc . . . )
Read the full text of this story at:
http://www.vision.org/visionmedia/article.aspx?id=9458
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Ok, I'm surprised but pleased
Today's coalition rally at Toronto City Hall took place on a dark cold Saturday. There was no reason to go except to support the coalition -- no free food and precious little glory.
But the square was packed. Thousands of people came to protest and rally behind the 62% Majority.
I didn't expect that type of turnout.
And the crowd was energized and positive. No one was down in the mouth and labour activists stood shoulder to shoulder with Bay Street lawyers and chanted support for the coalition.
I am impressed.
Formal and real government
This week's drama reminded me that Canada has two forms of government -- the formal and the real.
Look through the documents that make up our Constitution and what you find is a monarchy with vast powers granted to the Queen. You see not a word about political parties or the Prime Minister's Office. A visitor from outer space reading the Constitution would think we live under much the same system as England had in the 1760's.
In fact, of course, the Queen plays virtually no role at all in the government ( was she consulted before the Governor General decided last week? Doubtful). The PMO is a vastly powerful office and, arguably, we have a Prime Minister more powerful than the American President.
The difference between the paper and the reality seldom matters but sometimes (as last week) it does. When the Governor General made her decision last week she couldn't look at a section of the Constitution and say 'ah ha! That's the rule'.
Does this mean we should have a new constitution, perhaps a republic as some Conservatives are suggesting? To my mind no, but there is an issue of the indeterminate about our Constitution that is troubling.
Look through the documents that make up our Constitution and what you find is a monarchy with vast powers granted to the Queen. You see not a word about political parties or the Prime Minister's Office. A visitor from outer space reading the Constitution would think we live under much the same system as England had in the 1760's.
In fact, of course, the Queen plays virtually no role at all in the government ( was she consulted before the Governor General decided last week? Doubtful). The PMO is a vastly powerful office and, arguably, we have a Prime Minister more powerful than the American President.
The difference between the paper and the reality seldom matters but sometimes (as last week) it does. When the Governor General made her decision last week she couldn't look at a section of the Constitution and say 'ah ha! That's the rule'.
Does this mean we should have a new constitution, perhaps a republic as some Conservatives are suggesting? To my mind no, but there is an issue of the indeterminate about our Constitution that is troubling.
pour l'encouragement d'autre
This is a sad story. Boy George, regardless of whether you liked or hated his music, is a man of considerable talent; to have fallen to this level is a tragedy.
And, of course, it is a terrible crime. I have, over the years, come across people who have sexually assaulted escorts and often they justify their behaviour by suggesting the crime was really not a crime because of who they assaulted. I cannot say what happened here but the crime is one that needs to be punished if only pour l'encouragement d'autre
LONDON - British singer Boy George was found guilty on Friday of falsely imprisoning a Norwegian male escort by handcuffing him to a wall.
The former Culture Club frontman was at Snaresbrook Crown Court in east London to hear the verdict, which came at the end of a two-week trial.
The jury broke to consider its verdict at around noon on Thursday. He will be sentenced later.
The 47-year-old, tried under his real name George O'Dowd, denied falsely imprisoning Audun Carlsen at his flat in April last year, the Press Association reported.
O'Dowd told police he had invited Carlsen to his home after a cocaine-fuelled pornographic photo shoot in January because he suspected the Norwegian of stealing pictures from his computer. During the trial, Carlsen countered that the singer had handcuffed him to a wall and beaten him with a chain because he was angry he had refused to sleep with him when they first met. O'Dowd did not give evidence during the trial. The court heard Carlsen describe how he sustained injuries during their meeting in April, 2007, from being beaten and handcuffed.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/George+guilty+imprisoning+male+escort/1039487/story.html
ZooAtlanta Panda Cub to be named Monday
After more than three suspenseful weeks collecting ballots from over 45,000 excited voters, Zoo Atlanta will announce the new giant panda cub’s name on Monday, December 8, 2008, at his 100 Day Naming Celebration. Voting to name the 3-month-old bear opened on November 3 and closed on Wednesday, December 3.
Voters flocked to zooatlanta.org to make their selections from 12 names submitted by the Zoo Atlanta family and extended family. The contenders represent Zoo staff; Zoo Members; the Zoo’s MySpace community; residents of Chengdu, China; and five local radio stations. The most dedicated of the cub’s fans also voted in person, casting their ballots at 12 polling locations outside the Zoo’s Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Giant Panda Conservation Center. The individual or organization responsible for submitting the winning name will win a private reception for 50 at Zoo Atlanta and an exclusive viewing of the cub.
Friday, December 5, 2008
This is Canada - Power is earned, not taken
A very good line. It suggests there is something wrong with the Parliamentary majority being the government.
Basically the Conservatives want an American structure to the federal government (indeed the Post has called for a Republic). The American system is fine -- it has endured for 200 plus years and just recently showed its vitality. But the American system is not our system.
Here power 'is earned' by gaining the confidence of the House. And that's what Stephen Harper has not gained. He may survive a while more, but by mean spirited games instead of government he has lost the support of the House. Support he had after the election.
By the way, Dofasco just announced its Hamilton workforce was cut back to 4 days a week. Oshawa is looking at disaster. Even Alberta is suffering from a drop in the price of oil.
Maybe we should (all Parties, Liberal, Conservative, NDP and Bloc) focus on government for a bit?
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Basically the Conservatives want an American structure to the federal government (indeed the Post has called for a Republic). The American system is fine -- it has endured for 200 plus years and just recently showed its vitality. But the American system is not our system.
Here power 'is earned' by gaining the confidence of the House. And that's what Stephen Harper has not gained. He may survive a while more, but by mean spirited games instead of government he has lost the support of the House. Support he had after the election.
By the way, Dofasco just announced its Hamilton workforce was cut back to 4 days a week. Oshawa is looking at disaster. Even Alberta is suffering from a drop in the price of oil.
Maybe we should (all Parties, Liberal, Conservative, NDP and Bloc) focus on government for a bit?
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
University Club Toronto
The University Club in Toronto is one of the last private clubs left in the city.
It has been around for over a hundred years and is an historic location just north of the American Consulate on University Avenue.
Unlike many other clubs the University Club was never 'restricted' -- it always, from the very start, took all races and creeds, provided only that the person joining had a university degree (hence the name University Club -- the club is not connected to University of Toronto at all).
Each year the Club does a number of holiday events generally to raise money for charity. Here we see the Christmas tree.
Debtors prison?
Can a family law debtor be incarcerated for failure to pay a temporary support order? Today the Court of Appeal said yes (Fischer v. Ontario (Family Responsibility Office), 2008 ONCA 825) and in so doing made some useful comments about the nature of incarceration in the context of unpaid support:
[25] Further, the case law and the FRSAEA recognize that imprisonment for non-payment is meant as a means of enforcing the support order and not as a means of punishing the payor. The payor must be released upon payment of the amount owed: see s. 41(10)(i). A committal order, imposed as a term of either a temporary or final order in a default hearing, is intended to induce compliance with the payment terms of the order. The prospect of imprisonment hopefully focuses the payor's mind on the importance of making the required payments. The enforcement rationale for imprisonment upon non-payment makes sense only if the payor has the ability to make the payments required by the order... .
[25] Further, the case law and the FRSAEA recognize that imprisonment for non-payment is meant as a means of enforcing the support order and not as a means of punishing the payor. The payor must be released upon payment of the amount owed: see s. 41(10)(i). A committal order, imposed as a term of either a temporary or final order in a default hearing, is intended to induce compliance with the payment terms of the order. The prospect of imprisonment hopefully focuses the payor's mind on the importance of making the required payments. The enforcement rationale for imprisonment upon non-payment makes sense only if the payor has the ability to make the payments required by the order... .
RECOGNISING THE IMPORTANCE OF NATURAL MORAL LAW
Especially in the face of moral relativism a re affirmation that there is a natural law, the Noahide laws, is important.
VATICAN CITY, 5 DEC 2008 (VIS) - This morning in the Vatican, the Pope received participants in the plenary session of the International Theological Commission. The meeting coincided with the conclusion of the commission's five-year mandate, the seventh since it was created.
Referring in his remarks to a soon-to-be-approved draft document entitled "The search for universal ethics. A new look at natural law", the Holy Father pointed out "the urgent need, in the current situation of culture and of civil and political society, to create the conditions necessary to raise awareness of the indispensable value of natural moral law".
"Natural law", he went on, "is the authentic guarantee everyone has to live free and respected in their dignity as human beings, and to feel they are defended from any form of ideological manipulation and all abuses perpetrated on the basis of the law of the strongest".
Commenting then on the question of the "meaning and method of theology", which the members of the commission have been studying over the last five years, Benedict XVI indicated that "the real task of theology is to enter into the Word of God, to seek to understand it and to make it understood in our world, and thus to find the answer to our great questions".
"Methods in theology cannot be constituted only on the basis of criteria and norms common to other academic disciplines, but must above all observe the principles and norms deriving from the Revelation, and from faith in its personal and ecclesial dimensions".
After highlighting how "the fundamental virtue of theologians is that of seeking obedience to the faith, which makes them collaborators of truth", the Pope affirmed that "obedience to truth does not mean giving up research or the effort of thought. Restiveness of thought, which in the life of believers can certainly never be fully placated because they too are searching for and studying the Truth, will nonetheless be a restiveness that accompanies and stimulates them on their pilgrimage of thought towards God, and in this way it will bear fruit".
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Not a hill to die on
The suspension of Parliament is an accomplished fact.
Whether we, as Liberals, like it or not it's done. Whether it's a good precedent for the future (it's not) it's done.
So now what?
The future has to be based on what the Conservatives propose when the House returns. If it is a sensible budget we should support it. If not then not.
There is no point in bringing down the government in January just because we wanted to in December.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Thought about suspending Parliament
It will become a customary tool for the Prime Minister (Conservative, Liberal or NDP) when facing a confidence vote. Remember, Parliament can be suspended for a year less a day so today's result may prove problematic in years to come ... .
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
A Canadian poem
Perhaps a bit dark/glib but it made me smile... .
"A Prayer"
by George Bowering
Lord God
if I have but one life to live,
I hope this ain't it.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Practice tip -- clients ought to restrain emotions in court
It is perfectly proper for the Court to observe an individual's demeanour in court and to base rulings thereon. So ... tell your clients to restrain themselves in court.
See today's decision in R. v. Ghadban, 2008 ONCA 811:
[2] The trial judge was able to observe the change in the appellant's demeanour following her denial of the adjournment and it was open to her to act on her observations in proceeding. ... .
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
See today's decision in R. v. Ghadban, 2008 ONCA 811:
[2] The trial judge was able to observe the change in the appellant's demeanour following her denial of the adjournment and it was open to her to act on her observations in proceeding. ... .
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Back to normal -- sort of
With Parliament being suspended we will be entering a period of intense campaigning. Almost a new election but without a chance for Canadians to vote. What happens now is not clear. Probably we will have an election early in the new year but even that is unsure.
I guess for now I'll go back to blogging about bears.
Knut is looking for a home -- my sense is somewhere in Germany is good. Maybe he could be with Flocke one day?
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
PM gets his wish
Hardly a surprise except how long the meeting took. Expect a flood of political ads.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has obtained Governor-General Michaëlle Jean's consent to temporarily shut down Parliament, a move that allows him to avoid a confidence vote next week that was expected to defeat his government.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has obtained Governor-General Michaëlle Jean's consent to temporarily shut down Parliament, a move that allows him to avoid a confidence vote next week that was expected to defeat his government.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
NP's live blog
This post from the National Post speaks to the point I made this morning -- Canadians aren't political junkies.
10:42 a.m. ET: Steve Woodhead: NP's Julie Smythe just let us know this interesting fact about those protestors: "I checked it out. A bit amusing. Pro-Harper people are mostly Tory staffers trying to pretend they are just a spontaneous gathering of outraged citizens. Less than 50, then less than 20 pro-coalition people. All shouting slogans, with pins, banners, etc."
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
10:42 a.m. ET: Steve Woodhead: NP's Julie Smythe just let us know this interesting fact about those protestors: "I checked it out. A bit amusing. Pro-Harper people are mostly Tory staffers trying to pretend they are just a spontaneous gathering of outraged citizens. Less than 50, then less than 20 pro-coalition people. All shouting slogans, with pins, banners, etc."
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Political junkies and Trekies
The last week has been like a drug to an addict for political junkies like me.
Every day, almost every hour, brings a new development. The blogosphere is on fire and my emails include comments that civil unrest and rioting will follow the Governor General's decision to suspend, or not to suspend, Parliament.
Junkies like me are hooked.
But the world is not made up of political junkies. Indeed, very few Canadians are political junkies -- I'd venture a bet that we are significantly outnumbered by Trekies.
But there is a significant difference between political junkies and Trekies; the Bloc exists and the Borg do not.
Even if politics bores Canadians government is acknowledged as necessary, especially in bad times.
That's why suspending Parliament is such a bad idea -- it may be good politics for the Conservatives but it's bad government. We have a Westminster system and that means the government is those who have the confidence of the House. Stephen Harper knows this -- that's why he asked to take over from Paul Martin without an election (when he'd have to rely on the Bloc for support). I'm not sure how the spin is working but we need a functioning government and for now that means Mr. Harper needs to step aside.
The politics is exciting for people like me but it hurts the nation.
The end of Atlantis springs to mind.
Atlantis was a rich and wealthy land. But it continued to exist only by the sufferance of the gods. Tragically, pretenders to the Throne fought amongst themselves seeking power but not hearing the rightful demands of the people. Seeing this the gods became angry and Atlantis is no more.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Every day, almost every hour, brings a new development. The blogosphere is on fire and my emails include comments that civil unrest and rioting will follow the Governor General's decision to suspend, or not to suspend, Parliament.
Junkies like me are hooked.
But the world is not made up of political junkies. Indeed, very few Canadians are political junkies -- I'd venture a bet that we are significantly outnumbered by Trekies.
But there is a significant difference between political junkies and Trekies; the Bloc exists and the Borg do not.
Even if politics bores Canadians government is acknowledged as necessary, especially in bad times.
That's why suspending Parliament is such a bad idea -- it may be good politics for the Conservatives but it's bad government. We have a Westminster system and that means the government is those who have the confidence of the House. Stephen Harper knows this -- that's why he asked to take over from Paul Martin without an election (when he'd have to rely on the Bloc for support). I'm not sure how the spin is working but we need a functioning government and for now that means Mr. Harper needs to step aside.
The politics is exciting for people like me but it hurts the nation.
The end of Atlantis springs to mind.
Atlantis was a rich and wealthy land. But it continued to exist only by the sufferance of the gods. Tragically, pretenders to the Throne fought amongst themselves seeking power but not hearing the rightful demands of the people. Seeing this the gods became angry and Atlantis is no more.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Prediction
Later today the Governor General will decide whether or not to suspend Parliament.
I predict she will not.
What follows then is beyond my limited powers of prediction.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Stéphane Dion's address to the nation
December 3, 2008
Check against delivery
Check against delivery
Address to the Nation by the Leader of the Official Opposition
House of Commons, Ottawa
Canada is facing the impacts of the global economic crisis. Our economy is on the verge of a recession. Canadians are worried about losing their jobs, their homes, their savings. Every economist in the country is predicting increased job losses and deficits for the next few years.
The federal government has a duty to act and help Canadians weather this storm.
Stephen Harper still refuses to propose measures to stimulate the Canadian economy. His mini-budget last week demonstrated that his priority is partisanship and settling ideological scores.
The Harper Conservatives have lost the confidence of the majority of Members of the House of Commons. In our democracy, in our parliamentary system, in our Constitution, this means that they have lost the right to govern.
Canadians don't want another election, they want Parliamentarians to work together. That's our job. Canadians want their MPs to put aside partisanship and focus on the economy.
The Liberal Party and the New Democratic Party are ready to do this. Jack Layton and I have agreed to form a coalition government to address the impact of the global economic crisis. The Bloc has agreed to support this government on matters of confidence. The Green Party has also agreed to support it.
Our system of government was not born with Canada. It is ancient. There are rules that govern it and conventions that guide it.
Coalitions are normal and current practice in many parts of the world and are able to work very successfully. They work with simple ingredients: consensus, goodwill and cooperation. Consensus is a great Canadian value. In this spirit, we Liberals have joined in a coalition with the NDP. We have done so because we believe we can achieve more for Canadians through cooperation than through conflict. We believe we can better solve the challenges facing Canada through teamwork and collaboration, rather than blind partisan feuding and hostility.
Our coalition is a consensus to govern with a well-defined program to address the most important issue facing the country: the economy. It is a program to preserve and create jobs and to stimulate the economy in all regions of the country. The elements of the program need to be spelled out and this is what we will do if we are allowed to present it to the House of Commons.
We share the frustration Canadians have about a political crisis that has been allowed to take prominence over the more important economic challenges we face. Elsewhere in the world, leaders are working to cope with the recession, to bring forward the kinds of investments that will help their people and their economies. Politicians are working together. Rivals are working together.
Mr. Harper's solution is to extend that crisis by avoiding a simple vote. By suspending Parliament and continuing the confusion. We offer a better way. We say settle it now and let's get to work on the people's business. A vote is scheduled for next Monday. Let it proceed. And let us all show maturity in accepting the result with grace and the larger task of serving Canadians in mind.
Within one week, a new direction will be established, a tone and focus will be set. We will gather with leaders of industry and labour to work, unlike the Conservatives, in a collaborative, but urgent manner to protect jobs.
To stimulate the economy and create good well-paid jobs we will not only accelerate already planned investments, but invest significantly more in our country's infrastructure. Helping our cities like Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal or Halifax build modern, efficient public transit systems.
Investing in our rural communities so that cherished ways of life are protected for future generations. We can stimulate our economy through investments in clean energy, water and our gateways.
We will invest in our manufacturing, forestry and automotive sectors to protect and create jobs. We believe that in these tough economic times the government has a role to play to ensure that those who are doing their share for the prosperity of our country can continue to provide for the wellbeing of their families.
In times like this our compassion as a country is tested. We believe it is imperative that the government offers Canadians who have already lost their job, whether in the factories of South Western Ontario or the forests of Eastern Quebec and British Columbia, the support they need to live in dignity and develop new skills.
That is precisely what we intend to provide.
Earlier today I wrote Her Excellency the Governor General. I respectfully asked her to refuse any request by the Prime Minister to suspend Parliament until he has demonstrated to her that he still commands the confidence of the House.
If Mr. Harper wants to suspend Parliament he must first face a vote of confidence.
In our Canada, the government is accountable for its decisions and actions in Parliament.
In our Canada, the government derives its legitimacy from an elected Parliament.
Allow me to end tonight on a personal note. If I am entrusted with the role of Prime Minister for the next months that I have left to serve, I will work day and nights to combat this economic crisis, to do what it takes to minimize its effects on Canadians, to protect jobs and to create jobs.
I will serve my country until my time to serve is at an end.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Harper's prorogation of Parliament is an unprecedented abuse of power
OTTAWA - A request by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to prorogue Parliament would be an abuse of power that is unprecedented in Canadian history, Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion said today.
"Following the December 1st announcement of a formal agreement between the three opposition parties, the Prime Minister is now considering proroguing Parliament until the end of January 2009," Mr. Dion wrote in a letter to Governor General Michaëlle Jean. "With this request for prorogation, the Prime Minister is asking you for permission to continue to lead a government that does not have the confidence of the House of Commons.
"You cannot accept this violation of our constitution and this affront to our parliamentary democracy. The Prime Minister, your chief counsellor, has already de facto lost his legitimacy in the eyes of the majority of Members of the House of Commons. He has lost his legitimacy to give you counsel."
Mr. Dion called on the Governor General to refuse the Prime Minister's request for prorogation so that he can be held accountable for his actions in the House of Commons.
"Proroguing Parliament until the end of January will do nothing but prolong this parliamentary crisis and could well intensify the economic challenges our economy is facing. A month without a government that commands the confidence of the House is too long during these times of economic turmoil. Who can predict what urgent intervention by the government will be required?" Mr. Dion wrote.
"To delay the inevitable, the intention of the opposition parties to defeat the government at the first occasion, will only exacerbate this period of uncertainty."
Mr. Dion said in light of this unprecedented economic crisis, it is imperative that Canadians have a stable government ready to take on the challenge.
"Canadians want a government that is ready to propose concrete measures to help our economy. The current government no longer has the confidence of the majority of Members of Parliament. The Liberal Party and the New Democratic Party are ready, with the support of the Bloc Québécois, to offer as of today, a stable government, entirely focused on the responsible management of our economy," he said.
Important limitations case released today by OCA
St. Jean v. Cheung, 2008 ONCA 815:
[43] While the new Limitations Act may have retrospective application in respect of purely procedural matters, extinguishing the right to pursue a claim is not purely procedural as it would alter substantive rights. In Martin v. Perrie, [1986] 1 S.C.R. 41, at para. 17, the Supreme Court of Canada quoted with approval the following extract from the decision of the High Court of Australia in Maxwell v. Murphy (1957), 96 C.L.R. 261, at pp. 277-78:
Statutes of limitation are often classed as procedural statutes. But it would be unwise to attribute a prima facie retrospective effect to all statutes of limitation. Two classes of case can be considered. An existing statute of limitation may be altered by enlarging or abridging the time within which the proceedings may be instituted. If the time is enlarged whilst a person is still within time under the existing law to institute a cause of action the statute may well be classed as procedural. Similarly if the time is abridged whilst such person is still left with time within which to institute a cause of action, the abridgment might again be classed as procedural. But if the time is enlarged when a person is out of time to institute a cause of action so as to enable the action to be brought within the new time or is abridged so as to deprive him of time within which to institute it whilst he still has time to do so, very different considerations could arise. A cause of action which can be enforced is a very different thing to a cause of action the remedy for which is barred by the lapse of time. Statutes which enable a person to enforce a cause of action which was then barred or provide a bar to an existing cause of action by abridging the time for its institution could hardly be described as merely procedural. They would affect substantive rights. [Emphasis added.]
[44] At p. 700 of Sullivan, these notions are succinctly summarised in the following terms:
When a new limitation of action provision comes into force, it may extend or shorten the period within which an action must be commenced. If the provision comes into force before the period has lapsed, and if applying it would not have the effect of extinguishing the right of action, then its application to those facts is said to be purely procedural. In such a case, for both parties, the only thing that is lost or gained is time. However, when the effect of applying the new provision is either to extinguish an action that was still viable when the provision came into force, or to revive an action that was barred, more than time is at stake. In such a case, the provision affects the substantive rights of the parties and cannot be considered purely procedural.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Bloc part of secret coalition plot in 2000 with Canadian Alliance
A document obtained by The Globe and Mail shows that the scheme would have propelled then Alliance leader Stockwell Day to power in the coalition. A lawyer who was described then as being close to Day, says he didn't discuss the matter with the MPs
DANIEL LEBLANC
Globe and Mail Update
See proposal here:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/v5/content/pdf/coalit.pdf
OTTAWA - The separatist Bloc Québécois was part of secret plotting in 2000 to join a formal coalition with the two parties that now make up Stephen Harper's government, according to documents obtained by The Globe and Mail.
The scheme, designed to propel current Conservative minister Stockwell Day to power, undermines the Harper government's line this week that it would never sign a deal like the current one between the Liberal Party, the NDP and the Bloc.
Bloc officials said that well-known Calgary lawyer Gerry Chipeur sent a written offer before the votes were counted on election day on Nov. 27, 2000.
According to prominent sovereigntist lawyer Eric Bédard, who received the proposal, Mr. Chipeur identified himself as being close to Mr. Day, the leader of the Canadian Alliance at the time.
"I never had the impression that I was involved in theoretical constitutional discussions," Mr. Bédard said, adding he had never met Mr. Chipeur before.
A Bloc official said the link between Mr. Chipeur and Mr. Bédard was facilitated by Rodrigue Biron, a former Parti Québécois minister who was part of the unite-the-right movement in the late 1990s.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
DANIEL LEBLANC
Globe and Mail Update
See proposal here:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/v5/content/pdf/coalit.pdf
OTTAWA - The separatist Bloc Québécois was part of secret plotting in 2000 to join a formal coalition with the two parties that now make up Stephen Harper's government, according to documents obtained by The Globe and Mail.
The scheme, designed to propel current Conservative minister Stockwell Day to power, undermines the Harper government's line this week that it would never sign a deal like the current one between the Liberal Party, the NDP and the Bloc.
Bloc officials said that well-known Calgary lawyer Gerry Chipeur sent a written offer before the votes were counted on election day on Nov. 27, 2000.
According to prominent sovereigntist lawyer Eric Bédard, who received the proposal, Mr. Chipeur identified himself as being close to Mr. Day, the leader of the Canadian Alliance at the time.
"I never had the impression that I was involved in theoretical constitutional discussions," Mr. Bédard said, adding he had never met Mr. Chipeur before.
A Bloc official said the link between Mr. Chipeur and Mr. Bédard was facilitated by Rodrigue Biron, a former Parti Québécois minister who was part of the unite-the-right movement in the late 1990s.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Professor Hogg is a leading constitutional scholar and not a Liberal
Peter Hogg - Constitutionnaliste
"Si un premier ministre ayant perdu l'appui parlementaire refusait de demander la dissolution ou de démissionner, alors le Gouverneur général n'aurait d'autre choix que de démettre le premier ministre et de demander au leader de l'opposition de former le gouvernement (…)"
(La Presse, 3 décembre, 2008)
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
"Si un premier ministre ayant perdu l'appui parlementaire refusait de demander la dissolution ou de démissionner, alors le Gouverneur général n'aurait d'autre choix que de démettre le premier ministre et de demander au leader de l'opposition de former le gouvernement (…)"
(La Presse, 3 décembre, 2008)
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Rae to Foreign Affairs? From National Post
"Leadership hopeful Bob Rae's team argued for Industry, but he appears headed for the hot potato portfolio of Foreign Affairs. "
That should calm some of the extremist comments from CJC co chair Rabbi Bulka.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Setting aside an order made on consent
Today brings an interesting comment regarding setting aside a consent order. The Court's authority is based on 'justice of the case' and not a mechanistic application of guidelines.
See Stoughton Trailers Canada Corp. v. James Expedite Transport Inc., 2008 ONCA 817:
[1] In our view, the motion judge erred in principle in holding that her discretion to set aside the consent order was circumscribed by the factors set out by Master Sandler in Chitel v. Rothbart (1984), 42 C.P.C. 217. As pointed out by Sachs J. in Beetown Honey Products Inc. (Re) (2003), 67 O.R. (3d) 511 (S.C.J.), the discretion is broader and should be exercised where necessary to achieve the justice of the case. See also the decision of the Divisional Court in Chitel at (1985), 2 C.P.C. (2d) xlix. In this case, there were reasonable grounds for questioning the correctness of the default judgment especially as against the individual defendant. Also, the funds to comply with the order, while not paid by December 31, 2007, were available before the return date of the motion.
James Morton
See Stoughton Trailers Canada Corp. v. James Expedite Transport Inc., 2008 ONCA 817:
[1] In our view, the motion judge erred in principle in holding that her discretion to set aside the consent order was circumscribed by the factors set out by Master Sandler in Chitel v. Rothbart (1984), 42 C.P.C. 217. As pointed out by Sachs J. in Beetown Honey Products Inc. (Re) (2003), 67 O.R. (3d) 511 (S.C.J.), the discretion is broader and should be exercised where necessary to achieve the justice of the case. See also the decision of the Divisional Court in Chitel at (1985), 2 C.P.C. (2d) xlix. In this case, there were reasonable grounds for questioning the correctness of the default judgment especially as against the individual defendant. Also, the funds to comply with the order, while not paid by December 31, 2007, were available before the return date of the motion.
James Morton
Constitution and precedent are on coalition's side; Ignorance of parliamentary rules is distorting debate over legitimacy
The Toronto Star
Wed 03 Dec 2008
Page: AA08
Section: Opinion
Byline: Peter H. Russell
Source: Special to The Star
Wed 03 Dec 2008
Page: AA08
Section: Opinion
Byline: Peter H. Russell
Source: Special to The Star
As Canadians live through the current political uproar in Ottawa it is important that they understand the constitutional rules of our parliamentary democracy.
The first rule is that when we hold an election we do not directly elect a prime minister. We elect a House of Commons. It is this elected chamber of Parliament that decides who governs the country.
The second rule of parliamentary government is that it is the leaders of the party or coalition of parties that have the confidence of a majority in the House of Commons who have the right to govern.
Immediately after an election the incumbent prime minister remains in office no matter how badly he or she may have done at the polls. In 1993, Kim Campbell was still prime minister of Canada even though she her party had elected only two MPs. It was obvious that a Campbell Conservative government would not have the confidence of the newly elected House of Commons so she tendered her resignation to the Governor General. The Governor General then called on Jean Chretien, whose Liberal party had won a majority of seats in the House of Commons, to form a government.
The situation is not always so clear. After the 1985 provincial election in Ontario, the incumbent premier, Frank Miller, whose Conservatives had won the most seats but were nonetheless in a minority position in the Legislative Assembly, formed a government and prepared to meet the newly elected Legislature. But when it became clear that Liberal Leader David Peterson and NDP Leader Bob Rae, whose parties between them had a majority in the Legislature, had signed an agreement whereby the NDP for two years would support a Liberal minority government so long as it pursued certain legislative priorities, Miller submitted his government's resignation to the Lieutenant Governor.
These precedents and many, many others illustrate the basic point that in parliamentary democracies we elect parliaments not prime ministers, and that the Governor General (or the presidential head of state in a republican parliamentary system) must be advised by ministers who are supported by a majority in the elected house of parliament.
Now let's apply these rules of parliamentary democracy to the situation Canada now faces. After the Oct. 14 election, Stephen Harper remained Prime Minister, formed a new government and prepared to face the House. Although his party had improved its seat total it was still in a minority position in the House. This meant that to continue in office Harper would have to win enough support from the opposition benches to secure the confidence of the House.
For a few days it appeared that Harper would reach out in a conciliatory manner and garner the parliamentary support he needs on order to have the right to govern.
But, to put it mildly, on Nov. 27 just a few days into the session, through his finance minister's economic update, he made an abrupt U-turn. Instead of seeking support from the opposition, his government presented an in-your-face, take-it-or-leave-it position.
The opposition parties - all three of them - decided not to take it. Instead, they announced that they would use their collective majority in the House to vote no confidence in the Harper government and support an alternative coalition government.
The no-confidence vote is to take place next Monday. If the government loses that vote, the rules of parliamentary democracy give Harper two options. He can tender his government's resignation to the Governor General and clear the way for Madame Jean to ask Stephane Dion to form a Liberal-NDP coalition government. Or he can ask the Governor General to dissolve the 40th Parliament so that we can elect the 41st Parliament.
The first option - resignation - would be entirely constitutional. It involves no "usurpation" of power but is an honourable way out of the present impasse.
If Harper were to take the second option, the Governor General would have to consider carefully whether to grant his request for a dissolution. Her primary concern must be to protect parliamentary democracy. A steady diet of elections - four in four years - is not healthy for parliamentary democracy.
If there is an alternative government available that has a reasonable prospect of being supported for a period of time by a majority in the House of Commons, she would have reason to decline Harper's request. Harper would then have to resign, and the Governor General would commission Dion to form a government.
If this happens, again there would be no "usurpation" of power but a proper application of the rules and principles of parliamentary democracy. It has been very disturbing to hear over the last few days, from people who should know better, wild unparliamentary theories about our system of government. Elections are not simple popularity contests in which the leader whose party garners the most votes gets all the power.
I am greatly concerned that there is so little public knowledge of the constitutional rules that govern our parliamentary system of government. These rules are not formally written down in a legal text or taught in our schools. Maybe the most important lesson to take from the situation we are now living through is to begin to codify as much as we can of this "unwritten" part of our Constitution and to ensure that it is well taught in our schools.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
What's going to happen?
My prediction:
Harper will seek to prorogue -- he'll get the delay -- there'll be a flood of Conservative media -- and we'll all be back after Christmas to deal with the economy which needed dealing with now.
Harper will seek to prorogue -- he'll get the delay -- there'll be a flood of Conservative media -- and we'll all be back after Christmas to deal with the economy which needed dealing with now.
Ezra Pound
For reasons unclear to me Ezra Pound has become a central figure in the intellectual life of this century. He was a nasty man, but there is no denying he was also a great poet, perhaps the greatest of the last century.
Here is a part of Canto CXVI, the last canto completed by Pound:
I have brought the great ball of crystal;
Who can lift it?
Can you enter the great acorn of light?
But the beauty is not the madness
Tho' my errors and wrecks lie about me.
And I am not a demigod,
I cannot make it cohere.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Coalition deserves chance -- today's Star
The Conservatives' reaction was fast and furious to news that the opposition parties have signed off on a historic deal to kick them out of office and replace them with a coalition government.
His voice dripping with scorn, Prime Minister Stephen Harper yesterday accused Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion of playing "the biggest political game in Canadian history" and of relying on "socialists" (New Democrats) and "separatists" (Bloc Québécois) to vault himself into power. Harper's ministers and MPs used language like "deal with the devil" and "secret cabal" to describe the arrangement.
The suggestion was that the coalition deal was illegitimate and undemocratic, a coup d'etat.
It is nothing of the sort. It is the way our parliamentary system works, especially in the immediate aftermath of the election of a minority Parliament. Furthermore, the Harper government created an opening for the opposition parties last week by tabling a provocative "economic statement" that failed to address the economic crisis but contained poison pills it must have known they could not swallow.
Harper and his government took some steps away from those toxic measures last weekend, but it was too late. The opposition had made up its collective mind that Harper could not be trusted.
Full Story here: http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/546757
His voice dripping with scorn, Prime Minister Stephen Harper yesterday accused Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion of playing "the biggest political game in Canadian history" and of relying on "socialists" (New Democrats) and "separatists" (Bloc Québécois) to vault himself into power. Harper's ministers and MPs used language like "deal with the devil" and "secret cabal" to describe the arrangement.
The suggestion was that the coalition deal was illegitimate and undemocratic, a coup d'etat.
It is nothing of the sort. It is the way our parliamentary system works, especially in the immediate aftermath of the election of a minority Parliament. Furthermore, the Harper government created an opening for the opposition parties last week by tabling a provocative "economic statement" that failed to address the economic crisis but contained poison pills it must have known they could not swallow.
Harper and his government took some steps away from those toxic measures last weekend, but it was too late. The opposition had made up its collective mind that Harper could not be trusted.
Full Story here: http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/546757
Parliamentary process
Interesting opinion piece in the Vancouver Sun today. It's structured as a memo to Stephen Harper.
See a brief excerpt below:
"... As a good place to start, stop whining.
Your complaints that the Liberals are trying to take power without earning it, that they are somehow engaged in a nefarious and un-Canadian coup attempt, ring hollow, not only in light of your own attempts to unseat the Liberals when you were in Opposition, but in the context of our parliamentary democracy.
It's true that Liberal leader Stephane Dion didn't get as many votes as you did. But if it were undemocratic for someone most Canadians had voted against to become prime minister, you would never have got the job. In fact, a majority of Canadians who voted picked one of the parties in Dion's coalition.
As you know, the essence of our system is establishing and maintaining the confidence of Parliament, regardless of whether you have a majority of seats under the direct control of your party whip. Unless members of one of the three opposition parties get cold feet before next Monday, it now sounds likely that you and former prime minister Joe Clark will have a lot more in common than you used to.
Given that the Liberals came out of their caucus room Monday looking happier than they have since before Gomery became a household name in Canada, and that the Bloc Quebecois and the New Democrats can't believe their good luck, it's unlikely that they plan to back off.
But that doesn't mean you are out of options. The best one is to go back to the issue that you should have been focused on all along -- restoring confidence in the economy."
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
See a brief excerpt below:
"... As a good place to start, stop whining.
Your complaints that the Liberals are trying to take power without earning it, that they are somehow engaged in a nefarious and un-Canadian coup attempt, ring hollow, not only in light of your own attempts to unseat the Liberals when you were in Opposition, but in the context of our parliamentary democracy.
It's true that Liberal leader Stephane Dion didn't get as many votes as you did. But if it were undemocratic for someone most Canadians had voted against to become prime minister, you would never have got the job. In fact, a majority of Canadians who voted picked one of the parties in Dion's coalition.
As you know, the essence of our system is establishing and maintaining the confidence of Parliament, regardless of whether you have a majority of seats under the direct control of your party whip. Unless members of one of the three opposition parties get cold feet before next Monday, it now sounds likely that you and former prime minister Joe Clark will have a lot more in common than you used to.
Given that the Liberals came out of their caucus room Monday looking happier than they have since before Gomery became a household name in Canada, and that the Bloc Quebecois and the New Democrats can't believe their good luck, it's unlikely that they plan to back off.
But that doesn't mean you are out of options. The best one is to go back to the issue that you should have been focused on all along -- restoring confidence in the economy."
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Harper is history?
Today's Editorial in the Globe is not one I agree with. Any government formed from the last election is based on a lead role for a Party that did not win a majority of seats in the House. The coalition merely changes who is the minority Party leading. That said, I can see that the situation will be difficult -- the put it mildly.
From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
December 1, 2008
First Stephen Harper united the right; now he has succeeded in uniting the left. However much he backtracks from his horrendous miscalculations of last week's hyper-partisan economic update, the damage has been done. With yesterday's inking of a formal agreement among the Liberals, the New Democrats and the Bloc Québécois to defeat the Conservatives next Monday, Canada is careering toward an experimental and unstable government at the time it can least afford one. Thank you, Mr. Harper.
To leave Canada's response to a global economic crisis in the hands of an opportunistic coalition of also-rans led by Stéphane Dion is to invite great risk. With the opposition poised to defeat the Conservative government in less than a week's time, it may require great selflessness – if not from Mr. Dion, then on the part of Mr. Harper – to prevent it.
All that said, the Editorial does point out one fact -- Harper is probably history. (On the other hand, let's not bury the man before he's dead -- he may well have a trick or two left).
From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
December 1, 2008
First Stephen Harper united the right; now he has succeeded in uniting the left. However much he backtracks from his horrendous miscalculations of last week's hyper-partisan economic update, the damage has been done. With yesterday's inking of a formal agreement among the Liberals, the New Democrats and the Bloc Québécois to defeat the Conservatives next Monday, Canada is careering toward an experimental and unstable government at the time it can least afford one. Thank you, Mr. Harper.
To leave Canada's response to a global economic crisis in the hands of an opportunistic coalition of also-rans led by Stéphane Dion is to invite great risk. With the opposition poised to defeat the Conservative government in less than a week's time, it may require great selflessness – if not from Mr. Dion, then on the part of Mr. Harper – to prevent it.
Canadian poetry
Here's a fine resource for Canadian poetry on line:
http://www.uwo.ca/english/canadianpoetry/longpoems/longpoems.htm
And a brief passage from Oliver Goldsmith's
THE RISING VILLAGE 1825
THE RISING VILLAGE
Thou dear companion of my early years,
Partner of all my boyish hopes and fears,
To whom I've oft address'd the youthful strain,
And sought no other praise than thine to gain;
Who oft hast bid me emulate the fame
5
Of him who form'd the glory of our name:
Say, when thou canst, in manhood's ripen'd age,
With judgment scan the more aspiring page,
Wilt thou accept this tribute of my lay,
By far too small thy fondness to repay?
10
Say, dearest Brother, wilt thou now excuse
This bolder flight of my advent'rous muse?
http://www.uwo.ca/english/canadianpoetry/longpoems/longpoems.htm
And a brief passage from Oliver Goldsmith's
THE RISING VILLAGE 1825
THE RISING VILLAGE
Thou dear companion of my early years,
Partner of all my boyish hopes and fears,
To whom I've oft address'd the youthful strain,
And sought no other praise than thine to gain;
Who oft hast bid me emulate the fame
5
Of him who form'd the glory of our name:
Say, when thou canst, in manhood's ripen'd age,
With judgment scan the more aspiring page,
Wilt thou accept this tribute of my lay,
By far too small thy fondness to repay?
10
Say, dearest Brother, wilt thou now excuse
This bolder flight of my advent'rous muse?
Monday, December 1, 2008
Romanian wisdom
Good for politics...
'Just fight battles big enough to matter but small enough to win'
The Prime Minister will be Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion
It is truly amazing. Stephen Harper has united the Left in Canada.
· The Prime Minister will be Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion.
· The Minister of Finance will be appointed from the Liberal caucus.
· The cabinet will be composed of 24 ministers plus the Prime Minister. Eighteen of these ministers will be appointed from within the Liberal caucus. Six of these ministers will be appointed from within the NDP caucus, plus six Parliamentary Secretaries, sworn in as Privy Councillors, will also be named from the NDP caucus. In the event the Prime Minister chooses to appoint a larger cabinet, the NDP proportion will be maintained.
· The Liberals and NDP will work together on a "no surprises" basis and the government will put in place a permanent consultation mechanism with the Bloc Québécois.
· The top priority of the new Government is an economic stimulus package designed to boost the domestic economy including:
· Accelerating existing infrastructure funding and substantial new investments, including municipal and inter-provincial projects (such as transit, clean energy, water, corridors and gateways). This would certainly include addressing the urgent infrastructure needs of First Nations, Métis and Inuit;
· Housing construction and retrofitting; and
· Investing in key sector strategies (like manufacturing, forestry and automotive) designed to create and save jobs, with any aid contingent on a plan to transform these industries and return them to profitability and sustainability.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
· The Prime Minister will be Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion.
· The Minister of Finance will be appointed from the Liberal caucus.
· The cabinet will be composed of 24 ministers plus the Prime Minister. Eighteen of these ministers will be appointed from within the Liberal caucus. Six of these ministers will be appointed from within the NDP caucus, plus six Parliamentary Secretaries, sworn in as Privy Councillors, will also be named from the NDP caucus. In the event the Prime Minister chooses to appoint a larger cabinet, the NDP proportion will be maintained.
· The Liberals and NDP will work together on a "no surprises" basis and the government will put in place a permanent consultation mechanism with the Bloc Québécois.
· The top priority of the new Government is an economic stimulus package designed to boost the domestic economy including:
· Accelerating existing infrastructure funding and substantial new investments, including municipal and inter-provincial projects (such as transit, clean energy, water, corridors and gateways). This would certainly include addressing the urgent infrastructure needs of First Nations, Métis and Inuit;
· Housing construction and retrofitting; and
· Investing in key sector strategies (like manufacturing, forestry and automotive) designed to create and save jobs, with any aid contingent on a plan to transform these industries and return them to profitability and sustainability.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
OMG!
Political history, unlike anything Canadians have seen since the first world war, has been unfolding in Ottawa Monday afternoon. If the Opposition's strategy is successful, Canadians will soon be governed by Stephan Dion. The Liberals agreed to support a tentative deal with the NDP -- backed by the Bloc Quebecois -- to form a coalition government with Stephane Dion as interim prime minister. Dion said he is sending a letter to Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean advising that he has the confidence of the House of Commons to form government should the Conservatives fall. The Liberals and NDP have agreed to an immediate $30-billion economic stimulus package supported by the Bloc Quebecois, as part of a possible coalition deal to topple the Harper government. However, the package will not include a rollback of corporate tax cuts. Former NDP leader, Ed Broadbent, said it covers a lot of areas including the auto sector. The Liberals and NDP are hammering out their fine differences Monday in a bid to oust the Harper Tories. Political heavyweights, such as Roy Romanow, John Manley, Paul Martin and Frank McKenna, would form an economic panel to guide the coalition.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Oh my!
Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion, New Democrat Leader Jack Layton and Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe will hold a press conference
Date: Monday, December 1, 2008
Time: 4:30 PM
Location: Railway Room
253-D Centre Block
Ottawa, Ontario
Please note that all details are subject to change. All times are local.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Date: Monday, December 1, 2008
Time: 4:30 PM
Location: Railway Room
253-D Centre Block
Ottawa, Ontario
Please note that all details are subject to change. All times are local.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Auto industry - a telling factoid
A telling factoid from the news today:
Tony Faria, an auto industry specialist at the University of Windsor, said that once new contracts negotiated by both the CAW in Canada and the United Auto Workers in the United States come into effect, Canadian employees of the Big Three will cost their employers about $27 an hour more than their American counterparts.
(http://www.canadaeast.com/business/article/496927)
Assuming the factoid is true -- and it may not be; there is a lot of figures thrown around that are more smoke and mirrors than real (what about health costs? are they factored in?) -- then Canadian employees of the Big Three are doomed. Who would pay $27/hr more for the same work? Especially when the economy is so poor?
Tony Faria, an auto industry specialist at the University of Windsor, said that once new contracts negotiated by both the CAW in Canada and the United Auto Workers in the United States come into effect, Canadian employees of the Big Three will cost their employers about $27 an hour more than their American counterparts.
(http://www.canadaeast.com/business/article/496927)
Assuming the factoid is true -- and it may not be; there is a lot of figures thrown around that are more smoke and mirrors than real (what about health costs? are they factored in?) -- then Canadian employees of the Big Three are doomed. Who would pay $27/hr more for the same work? Especially when the economy is so poor?
Superior Court at Windsor
Ontario has some fine Courthouses -- many are old and stately -- some are modern. Here is a shot of the Superior Court at Windsor.
The Endeavour Botanical Illustrations
'Ipomoea indica'
James Cook's historic voyage of 1768-1771 on the HMS Endeavour was the first to be organized specifically for scientific exploration. The Royal Society of London commissioned the journey to the South Pacific to observe the eclipse of the sun by Venus and to take measurements that would permit advances in ocean navigation. During the journey, the naturalists on board would also collect more than 30,000 samples and describe more than 1,400 species new to science.
The Endeavour sailed for South America in August 1768, rounding Cape Horn and heading into the uncharted Pacific. The team took the eclipse measurements, mapped the coasts of New Zealand and Australia and sailed home via southern Africa, sighting England more than 1,000 days after setting sail. Their expedition produced major discoveries in geography, natural history and medicine, and artist Sydney Parkinson's sketches were eventually published in 21 large bound volumes.
The Botany Library at London's Natural History Museum holds all the surviving botanical art: illustrated here is just one of these wonderful pictures.
We need leadership
What a difference a week makes.
Last Monday who would have imagined that we could be looking at a new election? Or a coalition government under Liberal leadership? Or Stephen Harper proroguing Parliament until January when he could come back with a full-fledged economic plan?
(Or that Harper, after uniting the Right would go one step further and unite the Left? Say what you will about the man he does get results!)
That said, in the midst of a truly catastrophic economic collapse we don't have the luxury of letting the country run itself -- we must have a government that governs.
For now I don't really care who that government is. (Yes I want a Liberal government long term but what we need right now is a competent government of any stripe).
The Conservatives, if they take into account the views of the majority of MP's (remember the Conservatives are a minority), can be a good competent government. I'll admit that the bizarre combination of inaction and partisan pot shots in the economic update makes me doubt their ability to govern but it's still possible.
A Liberal/NDP coalition would be unlikely to last long but it has the benefit of being sure to move quickly on economic issues. The concern about the Bloc cooperating is bogus because Bloc cooperation is what kept Harper in power. My bigger concern, as a Blue Liberal, is going too far left with the NDP but in times like these that's a risk I'll take.
The worst thing would be for Harper to prorogue Parliament (and, what, govern by fiat?). We need leadership. I can accept that leadership from Harper if it's real. I can also accept it from a coalition.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Last Monday who would have imagined that we could be looking at a new election? Or a coalition government under Liberal leadership? Or Stephen Harper proroguing Parliament until January when he could come back with a full-fledged economic plan?
(Or that Harper, after uniting the Right would go one step further and unite the Left? Say what you will about the man he does get results!)
That said, in the midst of a truly catastrophic economic collapse we don't have the luxury of letting the country run itself -- we must have a government that governs.
For now I don't really care who that government is. (Yes I want a Liberal government long term but what we need right now is a competent government of any stripe).
The Conservatives, if they take into account the views of the majority of MP's (remember the Conservatives are a minority), can be a good competent government. I'll admit that the bizarre combination of inaction and partisan pot shots in the economic update makes me doubt their ability to govern but it's still possible.
A Liberal/NDP coalition would be unlikely to last long but it has the benefit of being sure to move quickly on economic issues. The concern about the Bloc cooperating is bogus because Bloc cooperation is what kept Harper in power. My bigger concern, as a Blue Liberal, is going too far left with the NDP but in times like these that's a risk I'll take.
The worst thing would be for Harper to prorogue Parliament (and, what, govern by fiat?). We need leadership. I can accept that leadership from Harper if it's real. I can also accept it from a coalition.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
We need a new leader now
After the election I sat down with various community leaders to ask what they thought the Liberal Party needed to do to win in my Riding.
Almost everyone said 'there's no rush -- the next election is at least 18 months away' (in fairness one person said there would be an election in January but I thought he was wrong).
Well, almost everyone was wrong.
I don't know what is going to happen in the next week but for certain we are already fighting the next election now.
And so we need a leader now.
Dion is leader in name only now. Whether he stays on for a while he does not have the support of caucus or, bluntly, membership.
Waiting now until May creates a vacuum that helps the Conservatives and hurts Canada as a whole.
Let's keep the May convention but have it as a confirmation of whom ever is appointed by the Party apparatus now.
My support is for Michael Ignatieff. I see him as a man of principle and great intellect who is a political centrist. The other candidates are also solid but now is a time for a sensible and moderate leader.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Almost everyone said 'there's no rush -- the next election is at least 18 months away' (in fairness one person said there would be an election in January but I thought he was wrong).
Well, almost everyone was wrong.
I don't know what is going to happen in the next week but for certain we are already fighting the next election now.
And so we need a leader now.
Dion is leader in name only now. Whether he stays on for a while he does not have the support of caucus or, bluntly, membership.
Waiting now until May creates a vacuum that helps the Conservatives and hurts Canada as a whole.
Let's keep the May convention but have it as a confirmation of whom ever is appointed by the Party apparatus now.
My support is for Michael Ignatieff. I see him as a man of principle and great intellect who is a political centrist. The other candidates are also solid but now is a time for a sensible and moderate leader.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
The writer behind the pen
The eleventh and early twelfth century Sufi philosopher Abu Hamid al-Ghazali made in interesting observation when he compared a physicist to "an ant who, crawling on a sheet of paper and observing black letters spreading over it, should refer to the cause to the pen alone". The pen prints the letters but there is a writer behind the pen.
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4
Together the Opposition is the Majority
I agree with Bob Rae. Something clicked last week.
The combination of incompetence and meanness on display in the economic statement, in these times, made a persuasive case that Mr. Harper and his team are not capable of meeting the obligations this Parliament has to Canadians.
The Opposition, as a group, realized it is, together, the majority in the House
Amateur Hour In Ottawa - NDP/Bloc alliance discussed on conference call taped by Conservative
Let's ignore the point that the NDP have been considering a coalition with the Bloc -- there's little one can say about that.
What's more interesting is the staggering incompetence shown by talking about this on a conference call open to a Conservative (can't they get a secure conference line? or is the NDP caucus compromised? I have secured conference calls for Riding meetings!!!).
This is not the sort of thing to reflect well on the NDP -- the Bloc gets points for being pragmatic but who cares about that.
I have very dull criminal clients who are bright enough to know "what you say on a telephone you say to the world". Why would Layton crow over this stuff on a telephone line? (I mean really: "Let's just say we have strategies. This whole thing would not have happened if the moves hadn't been made with the Bloc a long time ago and locked them in early.").
Amateur hour in Ottawa -- I'm think if we had an NDP/Bloc alliance I'd pump for Gilles Duceppe as Prime Minister ... .
NDP, Bloc in coalition talks before fiscal update: tape
The New Democrats and Bloc Quebecois held talks to form a coalition party well before the opposition's uproar over the government's fiscal update, CTV News has learned.
NDP Leader Jack Layton was in talks with Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe for a "considerable period of time," reported CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife on Sunday.
Layton held a telephone-conference meeting with his caucus Saturday morning that was recorded by a Conservative member. According to the audio tape, Layton appears to take credit for the possibility of a coalition.
"Let's just say we have strategies. This whole thing would not have happened if the moves hadn't been made with the Bloc a long time ago and locked them in early," Layton says. "Because, you couldn't put three people together in one or three hours. The first part was done a long time ago."
Full story here: http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/abc/home/contentposting.aspx?isfa=1&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V3&showbyline=True&date=true&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20081130%2fconservative_budget_081130
What's more interesting is the staggering incompetence shown by talking about this on a conference call open to a Conservative (can't they get a secure conference line? or is the NDP caucus compromised? I have secured conference calls for Riding meetings!!!).
This is not the sort of thing to reflect well on the NDP -- the Bloc gets points for being pragmatic but who cares about that.
I have very dull criminal clients who are bright enough to know "what you say on a telephone you say to the world". Why would Layton crow over this stuff on a telephone line? (I mean really: "Let's just say we have strategies. This whole thing would not have happened if the moves hadn't been made with the Bloc a long time ago and locked them in early.").
Amateur hour in Ottawa -- I'm think if we had an NDP/Bloc alliance I'd pump for Gilles Duceppe as Prime Minister ... .
NDP, Bloc in coalition talks before fiscal update: tape
The New Democrats and Bloc Quebecois held talks to form a coalition party well before the opposition's uproar over the government's fiscal update, CTV News has learned.
NDP Leader Jack Layton was in talks with Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe for a "considerable period of time," reported CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife on Sunday.
Layton held a telephone-conference meeting with his caucus Saturday morning that was recorded by a Conservative member. According to the audio tape, Layton appears to take credit for the possibility of a coalition.
"Let's just say we have strategies. This whole thing would not have happened if the moves hadn't been made with the Bloc a long time ago and locked them in early," Layton says. "Because, you couldn't put three people together in one or three hours. The first part was done a long time ago."
Full story here: http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/abc/home/contentposting.aspx?isfa=1&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V3&showbyline=True&date=true&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20081130%2fconservative_budget_081130
Danny Boy
Oh Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling
From glen to glen, and down the mountain side
The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying
'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide.
But come ye back when summer's in the meadow
Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow
'Tis I'll be here in sunshine or in shadow
Oh Danny boy, oh Danny boy, I love you so.
And if you come, when all the flowers are dying
And I am dead, as dead I well may be
You'll come and find the place where I am lying
And kneel and say an "Ave" there for me.
And I shall hear, tho' soft you tread above me
And all my dreams will warm and sweeter be
If you'll not fail to tell me that you love me
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.
From glen to glen, and down the mountain side
The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying
'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide.
But come ye back when summer's in the meadow
Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow
'Tis I'll be here in sunshine or in shadow
Oh Danny boy, oh Danny boy, I love you so.
And if you come, when all the flowers are dying
And I am dead, as dead I well may be
You'll come and find the place where I am lying
And kneel and say an "Ave" there for me.
And I shall hear, tho' soft you tread above me
And all my dreams will warm and sweeter be
If you'll not fail to tell me that you love me
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.
cui bono?
It might make sense that a Pakistan group funded by the shadowy Pakistani intelligence service would be behind these outrages – the Pakistani intelligence service deeply opposes recent moves towards peace between India and Pakistan.
However the attacks, apart from the gratuitous attack on Jews, were focused on financial institutions and that is more of an Al-Qaeda technique.
Or it could be a local Indian group – there are plenty of home grown terrorist organizations in India.
Indian police: Pakistani militant group behind attacks
A high-ranking Indian police official says a Pakistani militant group called Lashkar-e-Taiba is behind the Mumbai terrorist attacks that killed at least 174 people, including two Canadians.
The only gunman captured by police, identified as Ajmal Qasab, has told authorities that he was a member of the group, according to Joint Police Commissioner Rakesh Maria.
"Ajmal Qasab has received training in an L-e-T training camp in Pakistan," Maria said Sunday, using the group's acronym. "Our interrogation indicates that the terrorists had other places that they also intended to target."
A Pakistani official responded by demanding that India provide evidence to support the claims.
"This is only an allegation. We have demanded evidence of the complicity of any Pakistani group," said Farhatullah Babar, a spokesman for President Asif Ali Zardari. "We will take the strictest action against any group or individual ... if India provides us the evidence."
Indian authorities have said 10 gunmen were involved in the attacks and all but the one in custody were killed.
According to The Associated Press, a U.S. counter-terrorism official had suggested some "signatures of the attacks" were consistent with Lashkar and another group, Jaish-e-Mohammed, thought to be based in Kashmir.
Some experts say Lashkar was created by the Pakistani intelligence service to wage a clandestine war against India over Kashmir.
Story here: http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/abc/home/contentposting.aspx?isfa=1&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V3&showbyline=True&date=true&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20081130%2findia_attacks_081130
However the attacks, apart from the gratuitous attack on Jews, were focused on financial institutions and that is more of an Al-Qaeda technique.
Or it could be a local Indian group – there are plenty of home grown terrorist organizations in India.
Indian police: Pakistani militant group behind attacks
A high-ranking Indian police official says a Pakistani militant group called Lashkar-e-Taiba is behind the Mumbai terrorist attacks that killed at least 174 people, including two Canadians.
The only gunman captured by police, identified as Ajmal Qasab, has told authorities that he was a member of the group, according to Joint Police Commissioner Rakesh Maria.
"Ajmal Qasab has received training in an L-e-T training camp in Pakistan," Maria said Sunday, using the group's acronym. "Our interrogation indicates that the terrorists had other places that they also intended to target."
A Pakistani official responded by demanding that India provide evidence to support the claims.
"This is only an allegation. We have demanded evidence of the complicity of any Pakistani group," said Farhatullah Babar, a spokesman for President Asif Ali Zardari. "We will take the strictest action against any group or individual ... if India provides us the evidence."
Indian authorities have said 10 gunmen were involved in the attacks and all but the one in custody were killed.
According to The Associated Press, a U.S. counter-terrorism official had suggested some "signatures of the attacks" were consistent with Lashkar and another group, Jaish-e-Mohammed, thought to be based in Kashmir.
Some experts say Lashkar was created by the Pakistani intelligence service to wage a clandestine war against India over Kashmir.
Story here: http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/abc/home/contentposting.aspx?isfa=1&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V3&showbyline=True&date=true&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20081130%2findia_attacks_081130
Mr. Harper's 2004 letter to then-Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson
In a 2004 letter Stephen Harper sought to become Prime Minister without an election.
Mr. Harper's 2004 letter to then-Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson requested that she turn to him if Paul Martin's newly elected government were defeated in the Commons. Harper wrote:
"We respectfully point out that the opposition parties, who together constitute a majority in the House, have been in close consultation. We believe that, should a request for dissolution arise this should give you cause, as constitutional practice has determined, to consult the opposition leaders and consider all of your options before exercising your constitutional authority...".
Mr. Harper's 2004 letter to then-Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson requested that she turn to him if Paul Martin's newly elected government were defeated in the Commons. Harper wrote:
"We respectfully point out that the opposition parties, who together constitute a majority in the House, have been in close consultation. We believe that, should a request for dissolution arise this should give you cause, as constitutional practice has determined, to consult the opposition leaders and consider all of your options before exercising your constitutional authority...".
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Justice stands still - A poem from Zimbabwe
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What They Hate About Mumbai
SUKETU MEHTA, The New York Times
MY bleeding city. My poor great bleeding heart of a city. Why do they go after Mumbai? There's something about this island-state that appalls religious extremists, Hindus and Muslims alike. Perhaps because Mumbai stands for lucre, profane dreams and an indiscriminate openness.
Mumbai is all about dhandha, or transaction. From the street food vendor squatting on a sidewalk, fiercely guarding his little business, to the tycoons and their dreams of acquiring Hollywood, this city understands money and has no guilt about the getting and spending of it. I once asked a Muslim man living in a shack without indoor plumbing what kept him in the city. "Mumbai is a golden songbird," he said. It flies quick and sly, and you'll have to work hard to catch it, but if you do, a fabulous fortune will open up for you. The executives who congregated in the Taj Mahal hotel were chasing this golden songbird. The terrorists want to kill the songbird.
Just as cinema is a mass dream of the audience, Mumbai is a mass dream of the peoples of South Asia. Bollywood movies are the most popular form of entertainment across the subcontinent. Through them, every Pakistani and Bangladeshi is familiar with the wedding-cake architecture of the Taj and the arc of the Gateway of India, symbols of the city that gives the industry its name. It is no wonder that one of the first things the Taliban did upon entering Kabul was to shut down the Bollywood video rental stores. The Taliban also banned, wouldn't you know it, the keeping of songbirds.
Bollywood dream-makers are shaken. "I am ashamed to say this," Amitabh Bachchan, superstar of a hundred action movies, wrote on his blog. "As the events of the terror attack unfolded in front of me, I did something for the first time and one that I had hoped never ever to be in a situation to do. Before retiring for the night, I pulled out my licensed .32 revolver, loaded it and put it under my pillow."
Mumbai is a "soft target," the terrorism analysts say. Anybody can walk into the hotels, the hospitals, the train stations, and start spraying with a machine gun. Where are the metal detectors, the random bag checks? In Mumbai, it's impossible to control the crowd. In other cities, if there's an explosion, people run away from it. In Mumbai, people run toward it — to help. Greater Mumbai takes in a million new residents a year. This is the problem, say the nativists. The city is just too hospitable. You let them in, and they break your heart.
In the Bombay I grew up in, your religion was a personal eccentricity, like a hairstyle. In my school, you were denominated by which cricketer or Bollywood star you worshiped, not which prophet. In today's Mumbai, things have changed. Hindu and Muslim demagogues want the mobs to come out again in the streets, and slaughter one another in the name of God. They want India and Pakistan to go to war. They want Indian Muslims to be expelled. They want India to get out of Kashmir. They want mosques torn down. They want temples bombed.
And now it looks as if the latest terrorists were our neighbors, young men dressed not in Afghan tunics but in blue jeans and designer T-shirts. Being South Asian, they would have grown up watching the painted lady that is Mumbai in the movies: a city of flashy cars and flashier women. A pleasure-loving city, a sensual city. Everything that preachers of every religion thunder against. It is, as a monk of the pacifist Jain religion explained to me, "paap-ni-bhoomi": the sinful land.
In 1993, Hindu mobs burned people alive in the streets — for the crime of being Muslim in Mumbai. Now these young Muslim men murdered people in front of their families — for the crime of visiting Mumbai. They attacked the luxury businessmen's hotels. They attacked the open-air Cafe Leopold, where backpackers of the world refresh themselves with cheap beer out of three-foot-high towers before heading out into India. Their drunken revelry, their shameless flirting, must have offended the righteous believers in the jihad. They attacked the train station everyone calls V.T., the terminus for runaways and dreamers from all across India. And in the attack on the Chabad house, for the first time ever, it became dangerous to be Jewish in India.
The terrorists' message was clear: Stay away from Mumbai or you will get killed. Cricket matches with visiting English and Australian teams have been shelved. Japanese and Western companies have closed their Mumbai offices and prohibited their employees from visiting the city. Tour groups are canceling long-planned trips.
But the best answer to the terrorists is to dream bigger, make even more money, and visit Mumbai more than ever. Dream of making a good home for all Mumbaikars, not just the denizens of $500-a-night hotel rooms. Dream not just of Bollywood stars like Aishwarya Rai or Shah Rukh Khan, but of clean running water, humane mass transit, better toilets, a responsive government. Make a killing not in God's name but in the stock market, and then turn up the forbidden music and dance; work hard and party harder.
MY bleeding city. My poor great bleeding heart of a city. Why do they go after Mumbai? There's something about this island-state that appalls religious extremists, Hindus and Muslims alike. Perhaps because Mumbai stands for lucre, profane dreams and an indiscriminate openness.
Mumbai is all about dhandha, or transaction. From the street food vendor squatting on a sidewalk, fiercely guarding his little business, to the tycoons and their dreams of acquiring Hollywood, this city understands money and has no guilt about the getting and spending of it. I once asked a Muslim man living in a shack without indoor plumbing what kept him in the city. "Mumbai is a golden songbird," he said. It flies quick and sly, and you'll have to work hard to catch it, but if you do, a fabulous fortune will open up for you. The executives who congregated in the Taj Mahal hotel were chasing this golden songbird. The terrorists want to kill the songbird.
Just as cinema is a mass dream of the audience, Mumbai is a mass dream of the peoples of South Asia. Bollywood movies are the most popular form of entertainment across the subcontinent. Through them, every Pakistani and Bangladeshi is familiar with the wedding-cake architecture of the Taj and the arc of the Gateway of India, symbols of the city that gives the industry its name. It is no wonder that one of the first things the Taliban did upon entering Kabul was to shut down the Bollywood video rental stores. The Taliban also banned, wouldn't you know it, the keeping of songbirds.
Bollywood dream-makers are shaken. "I am ashamed to say this," Amitabh Bachchan, superstar of a hundred action movies, wrote on his blog. "As the events of the terror attack unfolded in front of me, I did something for the first time and one that I had hoped never ever to be in a situation to do. Before retiring for the night, I pulled out my licensed .32 revolver, loaded it and put it under my pillow."
Mumbai is a "soft target," the terrorism analysts say. Anybody can walk into the hotels, the hospitals, the train stations, and start spraying with a machine gun. Where are the metal detectors, the random bag checks? In Mumbai, it's impossible to control the crowd. In other cities, if there's an explosion, people run away from it. In Mumbai, people run toward it — to help. Greater Mumbai takes in a million new residents a year. This is the problem, say the nativists. The city is just too hospitable. You let them in, and they break your heart.
In the Bombay I grew up in, your religion was a personal eccentricity, like a hairstyle. In my school, you were denominated by which cricketer or Bollywood star you worshiped, not which prophet. In today's Mumbai, things have changed. Hindu and Muslim demagogues want the mobs to come out again in the streets, and slaughter one another in the name of God. They want India and Pakistan to go to war. They want Indian Muslims to be expelled. They want India to get out of Kashmir. They want mosques torn down. They want temples bombed.
And now it looks as if the latest terrorists were our neighbors, young men dressed not in Afghan tunics but in blue jeans and designer T-shirts. Being South Asian, they would have grown up watching the painted lady that is Mumbai in the movies: a city of flashy cars and flashier women. A pleasure-loving city, a sensual city. Everything that preachers of every religion thunder against. It is, as a monk of the pacifist Jain religion explained to me, "paap-ni-bhoomi": the sinful land.
In 1993, Hindu mobs burned people alive in the streets — for the crime of being Muslim in Mumbai. Now these young Muslim men murdered people in front of their families — for the crime of visiting Mumbai. They attacked the luxury businessmen's hotels. They attacked the open-air Cafe Leopold, where backpackers of the world refresh themselves with cheap beer out of three-foot-high towers before heading out into India. Their drunken revelry, their shameless flirting, must have offended the righteous believers in the jihad. They attacked the train station everyone calls V.T., the terminus for runaways and dreamers from all across India. And in the attack on the Chabad house, for the first time ever, it became dangerous to be Jewish in India.
The terrorists' message was clear: Stay away from Mumbai or you will get killed. Cricket matches with visiting English and Australian teams have been shelved. Japanese and Western companies have closed their Mumbai offices and prohibited their employees from visiting the city. Tour groups are canceling long-planned trips.
But the best answer to the terrorists is to dream bigger, make even more money, and visit Mumbai more than ever. Dream of making a good home for all Mumbaikars, not just the denizens of $500-a-night hotel rooms. Dream not just of Bollywood stars like Aishwarya Rai or Shah Rukh Khan, but of clean running water, humane mass transit, better toilets, a responsive government. Make a killing not in God's name but in the stock market, and then turn up the forbidden music and dance; work hard and party harder.
If the rest of the world wants to help, it should run toward the explosion. It should fly to Mumbai, and spend money. Where else are you going to be safe? New York? London? Madrid?
So I'm booking flights to Mumbai. I'm going to go get a beer at the Leopold, stroll over to the Taj for samosas at the Sea Lounge, and watch a Bollywood movie at the Metro. Stimulus doesn't have to be just economic.
Suketu Mehta, a professor of journalism at New York University, is the author of "Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found."
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