Ndp Guilty of Fraud over Layton Illness

The continued silence over the circumstances of Jack Layton illness confirms that what we were told at the news conference announcing his departure was not exactly the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, actually far from it.

When Jack told us he was taking time off to combat his illness and would be returning in September, he was misleading us. The truth was that he was going off to die. Very sad, but true.
Talk of returning was utter balderdash, a complete misrepresentation.

To all you Laytonites who have deified Jack in death, I don't care how many outraged comments I get.
Call me insensitive, a rat, a miserable SOB, it won't stop me from telling the truth, Layton lied and the Ndp deceived Canadians, from coast to coast.

This post is not intended to denigrate Jack Layton's memory.
Not many people facing a terminal illness decide to take a round the world cruise, embark on a journey of discovery or a quest to complete a bucket list.
Most just want to continue their lives as is, go to work and hope for a miracle. 
That Jack Layton deceived Canada about his illness is understandable and forgivable, he did what you or I would probably do in the circumstances. It is human nature.

But Jack's illness and prognosis was  known by the powers that be in the Ndp party and they should be held accountable for not disclosing the truth. Even if Jack wanted to continue as if he wasn't gravely ill, the party had an obligation to tell the truth.
His former top aide, Anne McGrath, let part of the deception slip;

"From the moment he received the bad news from cancer tests in mid-July, McGrath says, Layton began scripting in intricate detail how his death and funeral should play out, planning how he could cushion the blow to his beloved party and motivate New Democrats to carry on his work." LINK

And so, at the same time that Ndp media types were ghost-writing helping Jack craft his 'Letter to Canadians' to be published posthumously, the Ndp web site was promoting the fiction that Jack would be back.

I pulled this screen-shot off that website, because I knew then, that I'd be writing this column now, and would be calling them out for their callous and insensitive exploitation of Jack's illness.

Exploitation at its worst.

It's amazing what you can get away with, when the Press refuses to do its job.

After Jack's death, journalist after journalist wrote that looking at Jack during the news conference, they were convinced that he was dying, yet not one dared to put pen to paper at the time, or even ask for details or a clarification.
Why?
Since when is politeness, fawning and deferential treatment part of the Press' mandate in covering our politicians?

While I was one of the very few to say what everyone thought, I was lambasted as being insensitive and cruel.
It was a case of political correctness gone wild, to the point that the country collectively decided to allow Mr. Layton and more importantly the Ndp to live out a fantasy in public, with nobody brave enough to call out the liars.

Last week Apple Computer announced the departure of Steve Jobs, who as most know has been suffering from cancer for quite a while now. There was no talk of him returning to work at a later date, the implication not lost on anyone.
The stock price fell by 7% in response. Had Apple intimated that he might be  back, perhaps the stock wouldn't have fallen, but the company dared not tell the lie, there would have been legal implications.

Last week there was also speculation that Sydney Crosby wasn't doing as well as expected in his recovery from a concussion and perhaps he won't be ready to start the season. Speculation was also made that his team wasn't disclosing that fact in order not to hurt ticket sales.
I have no idea if that is true, (I hope not) but if so, I'm sure you'll agree that it is patently dishonest of the team to misrepresent the facts.

The Ndp needs to come clean. Stonewalling is unacceptable. Now that Jack is gone, there is no more issues of privacy and not disclosing the nature of his illness only confirms our worst assumptions.

The Ndp is perpetrating a massive cover up and fraud over the circumstances of Jack Layton's illness.

From the beginning, the party mapped out a strategy that can best be described as making lemonade when presented with lemons, the lemons being Layton's unfortunate medical situation.

When things calm down, demands will be made for full disclosure. Questions are already being asked in the French press. Accusations are flying in vigile.net and the Ndp will have to face the music sooner or later

Many Layton supporters will say that all this doesn't matter, that the circumstances as to who knew what and when they knew it, are irrelevant and if the Ndp and Layton did indeed misrepresent his illness, it isn't a big deal.

Sorry, it is a big deal.

If Jack had been diagnosed with a serious second cancer before last May, 2nd's election, he and the Ndp are guilty of perpetrating an unpardonable fraud on Canadians. Given what we can piece together, it is likely he and the party did exactly that.

Had Jack not led the last election campaign for the Ndp, there would be many more Bloc and Liberal members in the current Parliament.
If you're a supporter of the Ndp perhaps you don't see the harm, but if you are a Liberal or a Bloc supporter, the  deception is galling.

For all those of you staring angrily at the screen, muttering about how evil I am to write this post, remember that it is me calling for the truth to come out, whatever it is, and it is you advocating  a continued cover up.

When I wrote my post after the famous Jack Layton news conference entitled  Did Jack Layton Lie?
I was subjected to scores of nasty comments and emails, yet that post became the all-time most read piece that I ever wrote and continues to get hundreds of hits every single day.

Canadians want the truth.
Canadians deserve the truth, whatever it is, whatever the fallout.

Weekend Update volume 34

Gilles Proulx's Adventures in Fantasyland

Once again, Quebec's resident anglo basher Gilles Proulx has passed off as fact what is not, in his continuing battle to cast Quebec's English community as unilingual and arrogant.

Brian Mulroney's famous grouse against Bryce Mackasey, that "There's no whore like an old whore, can be aptly paraphrased to describe Gilles Proulx-,  'There's no bigot like an old bigot.

In another one of his tedious screeds that he penned in the Journal de Montreal he outlined a series of measures that he believes that Jean Charest needs to address. One of these issues is;

"The need to teach French in English schools starting in Grade One"
("La nécessité d'enseigner le français chez les Anglos dès la première année du primaire ") LINK

Readers, is there an English school in Quebec that doesn't teach French from grade one?

Clearly Mr. Proulx is out of touch with reality and its a bit sad that idiots like him are given a forum to misinform the public with outright nonsense, in an attempt to besmirch the reputation of an entire community and to foster discord.

Perhaps Mr. Proulx should have read this letter sent to Le Devoir by a French teacher in an English school, before mindlessly shooting his bigoted mouth off.

"I am writing to help demystify what English school in Quebec is .
Did you know that most schools of the English Montreal School board offer a bilingual education program (50% of the courses are in French and 50% are in English)? In addition, other English schools offer a more extensive program (immersion): Kindergarten to Grade 2, instruction exclusively in French, and in the third to sixth years, a bilingual education.

I am a French teacher in Grade 6 at  Gardenview, an English school with a French immersion program. I teach the following subjects: French, social studies, art and religious ethics to a class, while my partner teaches English (first language) and mathematics. So I teach 50% of the curriculum in French with two classes and my partner 50% of the curriculum in English.

Believe it or not, my English students follow the same curriculum as the French school (we use the grammar book Guillemet 6). They converse, read and write without problems in both languages​​. Many of my students were accepted to private French schools. In addition, the immersion program continues in Lauren Hill high school, but that immersion will be 70% to 30% French and English.

My question is: why is it that this aspect is never addressed by the Quebec media?"
Jean-Michel Brunet - June 3, 2010 LINK{FR}

Quebec government looking to muzzle free press
With most of the francophone media (87%) in favour of government regulation of the press and the creation of a 'professional' status bestowed by the government oversight agency, the group that represents mostly English and ethnic media is aghast at the idea.

An Affront to Free Expression ... by Beryl Wasjman for the Suburban 

"Over a year ago Dominique Payette, a former journalist and now professor at the Universite de Montreal, was mandated by Culture Minister Christine St-Pierre to study ways in which media in the regions of Quebec and independent presses in the cities could be helped in light of new technologies. Her final report, presented last week, went far beyond her mandate. In fact, it is the greatest affront to free expression since the language laws. It deserves a resounding rejection. Among her fifty-one recommendations are the following: mandatory membership by all news organizations in the Quebec Press Council; use of the state's money power to coerce membership by withdrawing provincial advertising to all those who will not submit; giving the council - now a voluntary organization with only moral suasion - sanction power; controlling who is called a journalist by organizing a professional corporation  to control admission and demanding language testing for all those seeking professional accreditation. "Accredited" journalists would be given preference for matters ranging from government information flow to protection of sources."

Read the rest of this article in the Suburban 

McGill 'modifies' MBA program to defend tuition hike 

With a wink and a nod McGill has been given permission to continue charging  $32,500 for it's MBA program.
The education department accepted a 'modified' plan and will no longer impose a 2 million dollar fine on the university for charging more than allowed.  LINK

Unionized Hydro Quebec workers to spend $2 million to fight progress

Union- Don't replace the tried and true!

The unionized workers of Hydro-Quebec are raising money by taxing members in order to raise a war-chest to fight the monopoly's decision to install automated electricity meters in homes and business', which would mean the loss of about 800 jobs among meter-readers. LINK
Said a union spokesman;
"If we lose this battle they'll be coming after our adding machines and fountain pens, carbon paper and fax machines. We'll be forced to give up our IBM Selectrics in favour if these newfangled computers which are completely unreliable"
WE'VE GOT TO DRAW A LINE IN THE SAND!"

Royal Bank embraces Bill 101- in New Brunswick!

It seems that the Royal Bank of Canada remains fully committed to French language rights and Bill 101, applying its rules to signs in of all places- a New Brunswick branch of the bank.
Activist Buddie Miller wrote to the bank seeking clarification of its policy. Here is the response;

Dear Buddie:
Your email message requesting clarification on RBC’s signage at our Dieppe, N.B. branch has been forwarded to my attention.
We recognize that New Brunswick is Canada's only official bilingual province and we work hard to ensure we are incorporating bilingualism into our business activities. Wherever there is a need for bilingual services, we have signs, information and advertising in both English and French, as well as staff who speak both languages.
When we make decisions regarding signage, we consider our merchandising rules, the size of our information material, available space and the configuration of the premises. We also want to be sensitive to the cultural and community environment in which we operate. In Dieppe, where the population is considered 75 per cent Francophone (according to the Town of Dieppe website), we elected to use a bilingual sign for the entrance of our branch which displays the French language first.
Through our investigation we determined that the signage you refer to was in fact developed by our national office to comply with Quebec language laws, as you reference in your email. Recognizing that this type of signage is not required in New Brunswick, we have begun taking steps to have this sign replaced to reflect French and English equally.
Thank you for highlighting your concerns to us.
Kind regards,

Hmmmm. Do you think the RBC would apply this noble policy to branches in Quebec towns that have a majority of English residents and make English the priority language?

How about making English the priority language at the RBC branch at branch at Cavendish/Kildaire  branch in Cote St. Luc where English residents outnumber Francophones by 3 to 1.

Ha!
Readers, say it with me--- "NOT A FRIGGING CHANCE!"

Montreal opposition leader proposes a "Diversity Office" to get rid of diversity
You'd think that the function of a "Diversity Office" would be to promote diversity, but not according to opposition leader Louise Harel.  She wants to create this office to hire ethnics minorities for city jobs, not to reflect Montreal's ethnic reality, but rather to assimilate them into Francophone culture and in order to promote the French language.
Very clever!     LINK

Note to Readers;
Last Monday I wrote  a piece entitled "Early Quebec Election? Don't Count on It,"
in which I predicted that, in spite of speculation, Premier Charest would not call an early election. On Wednesday, the Premier did in fact announce that such was the case. Link
No, I had no prior information as some readers emailed to inquire.

_________________________________________

Best line heard immediately after Tuesday's earthquake felt in Montreal'

"Oh, Oh! You think the Champlain bridge is still standing!"

Best line heard immediately after the Montreal mayor announced funding for a plan to knock down the Bonaventure Expressway

"Just give it time, It'll fall down by itself!"

 _________________________________________

Further reading:Weekend Review Volume 33

Have a good weekend!

Suprise! Pauline Marois is Right!

As the feeding frenzy progresses, with militants seeking to undermine or outright destroy the Parti Quebecois, I can only sit back in utter amazement at a spectacle that reminds me of an unstable and desperate mental patient inflicting tiny cuts on his body by way of multiple stab wounds, leading to that proverbial 'death of a thousand cuts.'


Ever since May 2, sovereigntists have been looking for someone to blame for the election debacle, but since Gilles Duceppe has slinked off the stage, it appears that Pauline Marois has been drafted as the sacrificial lamb, destined to become the fresh kill, necessary to feed the blood lust of those separatists furious with the negative turn of events, a wild mob determined to wreak vengeance on someone, anyone.

And so poor Pauline is being treated no better than a piñata,  bashed around joyfully by blindfolded, directionless children, intent on destruction in the hopes of winning the candy.

So what is Pauline's great crime?
Why did her popularity collapse taking her from hero to zero in a matter of months?

Obviously it was the disaster of May 2, that triggered a stampede, led by the vigile.net rabble who exploded in utter frustration, watching the foundation of their forty years of sovereigntist militancy go up in smoke or down the drain, both metaphors, equally appropriate.

And so they have come to the startling conclusion that sovereignty can only be achieved by.... well..er.....hmmmm..... they haven't really said.

What they have said is that the PQ and Marois' go-slow approach is the wrong path to follow. Given the pragmatic point of view of the current PQ leadership that a referendum would be a disaster, the Marois approach is to take over government and rule with a sovereigntist optic until those mythical winning conditions materialize.

Not a great plan, but readers, what else can Marois and the PQ do?

Obviously the people are not in favour of a referendum or sovereignty, with  a new poll indicating that only 32% of voters would vote YES. On top of it, many of those who would vote YES, don't want a referendum either, believing realistically, that the inevitable loss would cripple Quebec even more in relation to the RoC.

Now the 'go-fast' sovereigntists, including a bunch of hardliner MP's who quit the PQ caucus to sit as independents took part in a weekend seminar to launch yet one more sovereigntist group, the "Nouveau Mouvement pour le Québec" dedicated to support a more aggressive approach, which turns out to be nothing more than organizing province-wide coffee klatches to talk up the separatist option.
In response Marois announced that she too will organize some meetings.
I  can't wait!

Frankly, it's pitiful.

The weekend rally which attracted about 400, was a rag-tag collection of disaffected PQ faithful combined with more radical elements including some ex-FLQ terrorists and present day wannabes from the RRQ, splitting off into a radical camp whose denunciation of the PQ has hurt the party to the point that support has plunged to just 24%, ten points behind Jean Charest's Liberals.

Readers, I have read dozens and dozens of these PQ and Marois denunciations in the mainstream press, as well as on the pages of vigile.net.
It was a colossal waste of time.
After bashing Marois and the PQ for a go-slow approach, nobody has a better solution, probably because there isn't any.

For an incredibly simple and straight forward analysis, read this magnificent article in the Toronto Star by Pierre Martin, a professor of political science at the Université de Montréal.

"Like many other idealistic political movements, the Quebec sovereignty movement suffers from a chronic incapacity to find the proper balance between idealism and realism; conviction and pragmatism; rationality and emotion. 

In all mass movements for change, true believers provide vital energy, but they often are viscerally incapable of understanding the hesitations of those they wish to rally to their cause. This is why many rock-solid sovereignists always distrusted the professional politicians who stepped forward in their name to run a “mere province” or to fill seats in a “foreign” parliament.

Read the entire article, you won't regret it.   Sovereignty and its discontents 

Watching the war between separatists reminds me of the war between Iraq's Saddam Hussein and Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini where I cheered for neither one side or the other, just that the war would go on forever......

Yes, I know I'll get mail for that comment......

Jack Layton RIP

'Smilin' Jack'-A well-deserved nickname of affection

I wasn't one of those who voted for Jack Layton and I certainly didn't share his ideals and policies.

But many, many Canadians did.

The success of the Ndp in the last federal election can be squarely attributed to his tremendous popularity and personal charisma, especially in Quebec, where almost everyone voting for the Ndp, voted for Jack and not the local candidate or even the party platform.

Not since Pierre Elliott Trudeau did a Canadian politician capture the hearts and minds of so many Canadians, transcending politics and party affiliation.

It's somewhat two-faced to praise someone in death who you didn't like or support in real life, but  I can say with honesty that I felt remorse at the passing of someone who meant so much to so many people.

If Moammar Khadafy or Bashar al-Assad dropped dead tomorrow of a heart attack I would probably raise a glass in celebration.
But even though I disliked Jack's politics and that of the Ndp, I cannot help but feeling badly for his family and for the loss that so many Canadians feel.

The Ndp has been blessed with worthy and principled leaders, more than any other federal party. Although in my estimation Jack Layton doesn't hold a candle to Tommy Douglas, Ed Broadbent, or David Lewis, he did deliver what all of them could not -opposition status.
That was no mean feat, attributed to one thing and one thing alone- the popularity and the connection that Jack made with so many Canadians.
For that, Jack should go down in  history as one of the most beloved politicians in Canadian history, much as it pains me to say so.

He was a card, a bullshitter, a button pusher, a politician extraordinaire, but he inspired people to believe in something better.
How many Canadian politicians can say the same?

Our Parliamentary democracy functions best when there is a strong, vibrant opposition, one that presents an alternate view of the universe and attacks the government over base principles.
In it's brief tenure in the last Parliament, the Ndp put up a feisty defence of the Post Office back-to-work legislation, that set a tone for what was to come over the next years of a majority government.
I was truly looking forward to years of strident and effective opposition. Without Jack, the Ndp is diminished and so too, effective opposition.

His loss will be felt by all of us who support democracy.

Heaven help us if Thomas Mulcair wrests the laurel of power from the Ndp.
He is everything that Jack was not- cynical, cruel, phony and a shameless self-promoter.

You don't have to be a supporter to acknowledge the contribution that Jack made to the Canadian political scene.
His  tragic passing, in the prime of his political life is cruelly unfair on a personal level and reminds us all to live in the moment.

Jack Layton - July 18, 1950 - August 22, 2011, RIP

Early Quebec Election? Don't Count on It.

You'd be smiling too!

Will he or won't he? That is the question.

Will Premier Charest call an early election or will he ride out his mandate for another two and a half years?

In the dog days of summer, when political stories are in short supply and journalists have an obligation to fill columns, it's time to engage in fanciful speculation.

The sudden collapse in support of the Parti Quebecois and the small uptick in Liberal Party support, coupled with the fact that Francois Legault's new party is not up to speed, might indicate that it's a good a time for Premier Charest  to take the plunge and call a snap election.

But it isn't going to happen.

If anything the May 2, federal election showed us is that it doesn't take much organization to win an election, especially when the voters are out for a change.
Like the NDP, Francois Legault could field a group of shnooks and still probably wipe the floor with the hapless Liberals and Peekists. There are a good number of sitting members (from all parties) of the National Assembly who are ready to jump ship to his new party and should he combine forces with the AQD, it would likely be a majority government.

Given the odds of defeat, Premier Charest will wait it out.
Not to say things will be better in two years, but why accept a sure defeat now?

Even if a miracle of miracles happens, the Liberals could hold on to power as a minority government, it still doesn't help Mr. Charest who is sure to go down to personal defeat in Sherbrooke.
The Premier has held his seat by less than a 10% margin in each of the two last elections and not even he can believe, given his collapse in personal popularity, that he will be re-elected.

The only possibility that I can think of is for Mr. Charest to run in Westmount, an Anglo riding where  he would win handily. Mr. Charest has lived in the wealthy Montreal enclave for a decade and has virtually no ties left to the Sherbrooke riding that he represents. There has been a stink in the Press lately about members of the National Assembly not living in the ridings that they represent and so he could make the case quite successfully that it's appropriate to run in Westmount.

If the polling numbers remain decent and the PQ. continues into its descent into oblivion, there is a chance things can work out for the Liberals, perhaps as a coalition government with the new Force Quebec.

But there's another issue mitigating in favour of Mr. Charest running out his mandate.

His pension.

In June 2013, Jean Charest turns 55 years old and becomes eligible for his federal government pension. It makes sense for him, on a personal level, to wait it out until then so that in the event of an election defeat, he isn't left scrambling to find an income.

Having served almost 14 years in Ottawa, Charest is entitled to about 70% of the average of his best six years in Parliament and having been a cabinet minister, that works out to about 100 grand a year.

But wait! 

Mr. Charest is also eligible for his Quebec Parliamentary pension and at age sixty he'll collect another 100k (on top of his federal pension) for life, courtesy of Quebec taxpayers.

As I was studying eligibility requirement and benefits related to the Quebec pension plan for politicians, I came across a detail that bowled me over for its generosity.

Early retirement. 

The Quebec parliamentary pension starts paying at age sixty (federal at 55,) but it seems by taking a reduced payout, Mr Charest can start his pension early, at the exact same time as his federal pension kicks in.
Now for readers to understand how attractive this offer is, let me explain how it works when ordinary Canadians take their Canada Pension early, at sixty instead of sixty-five.  
 
That pension is reduced by ½ of one percent for each month that we retire early before reaching sixty-five years old. That means that if you retire at age sixty instead of sixty-five, (60 months early) your pension will be reduced by a whopping 30% (60 x .05%) 
And so, if you are eligible for a $600 dollar a month pension at sixty-five, you can retire early at age sixty and immediately receive a pension of $420 a month. Read a full explanation

When a Quebec politician retires early, the penalty is nowhere near as harsh, in fact, it is so laughably small that any politician who is no longer serving would be a fool not to exercise the option.

While we ordinary plebeians take a penalty of 30% to retire at age sixty instead of sixty-five, a Quebec politician who takes an early pension at fifty-five instead of sixty is slapped with a crushing penalty of just 5%! 
Yes, that is not a typo! That is six times more generous than what is provided to ordinary Canadians.

In fact under the rules of the plan, a Quebec politician can take a pension at forty-five years old and take just a 25% penalty.  Incredible!
All this is explained in a document which you can download (French only) entitled;
Le Régime de retraite des membres  de l’Assemblée nationale 

In the case of the Premier, early retirement would mean his $100,000 pension would be reduced by a measly $5,000 to $95,000. If he started to collect at age 55 instead of sixty years old, over that five year period he would collect and extra $475,000. If he collects his reduced pension for thirty years, let's say to 85 years, he would have been penalized just $125,000 for taking an early pension, a net gain of $350,000. 
How do you say no-brainer in French?

Each year that Mr. Charest hangs on, adds $7,500 to his annul pension. If he holds out until the end of his mandate it will mean an additional $18,000 a year added to his pension. FOR LIFE+ INDEXED!
At a certain point one has to believe that the pension considerations will affect his decision to call an election.

At any rate, if he stays until the end of 2013, he will be entitled to a combined federal/provincial pension of about $200K.

Yes, $200,000 a year. 

When Charest hits sixty years old, the pension will become indexed. In other words, it will rise automatically with inflation each year, not too shabby a deal!

And so Mr. Charest will be free to pursue other interests at fifty-five years old, financially secure.

All this being said, I can assure readers that given the circumstances, Charest would forgo his pension to remain Premier. He adores the job.
He loves the trappings of power, the political rumbles in Parliament, the foreign travel, rubbing shoulders with the glitterati, the intrigues and the political gamesmanship of the National Assembly. All of it!
In this respect Mr. Charest is unique. 
How many Canadians Premiers resign or cut short their career at the summit of power, worn down by the daily grind in a pressure-cooker job?  Quite a few, including Gordon Campbell, Danny Williams, Ed Stelmach and Gary Doer and that's just recently.

But Mr. Charest soldiers on, more at home and comfortable with the job of Premier today, as ever before. 
At any rate, should Mr. Charest be shown the door, he's too young at 53 not to work. 

But outside of politics, there aren't a lot of opportunities for Mr. Charest. 
I know he abhors the diplomatic corps, where he'd have to take orders from political superiors
and having burned his bridges with Prime Minister Harper, there will be no opportunities for a juicy federal appointment.
As for joining a law firm, Mr. Charest has little experience, having never really practised law. Being a Wal-Mart greeter at a law firm, taking rich clients to lunch, isn't really his speed and teaching at a university is much too boring.
Perhaps his good friend Mr. Sarkozy can hook him up to some sort of an international type of position, but who knows.


No, Jean Charest  prefers to do what he does best and what he loves- being Premier and he will have to be dragged away from his job, kicking and screaming. 

Putting his Premiership up for grabs prematurely is not his style, not without some pretty good prospects for success and Mr. Charest has always been expert at judging odds.