New Conservative Ads

These new ads are pretty slick - down to earth, showing off a variety of young, good looking MPs, and hitting the right notes on the issues.  Well, except for the healthcare one.  Can we just have one party in Canada that says privately delivered healthcare is here already, delivers results, doesn't cater to the rich, and isn't eeeevvvviiiillll?

 

Health Care For All | Opportunities For New Canadians | Choice In Child Care | Lower Taxes

Katrina devasatation

Check out the photos, and here's a blog of events. Marshal law, evacuations, looting, arrests, rescues. What a nightmare.

Hitchens in the Weekly Standard

Now there's something you don't see every day...in any event, Hitchens looks back on the disaster that was the 90s, and marvels at the world's reluctance over Iraq.  The whole thing is excellent.

 

For anyone with eyes to see, there was only one other state that combined the latent and the blatant definitions of both "rogue" and "failed." This state--Saddam's ruined and tortured and collapsing Iraq--had also met all the conditions under which a country may be deemed to have sacrificed its own legal sovereignty. To recapitulate: It had invaded its neighbors, committed genocide on its own soil, harbored and nurtured international thugs and killers, and flouted every provision of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. The United Nations, in this crisis, faced with regular insult to its own resolutions and its own character, had managed to set up a system of sanctions-based mutual corruption. In May 2003, had things gone on as they had been going, Saddam Hussein would have been due to fill Iraq's slot as chair of the U.N. Conference on Disarmament. Meanwhile, every species of gangster from the hero of the Achille Lauro hijacking to Abu Musab al Zarqawi was finding hospitality under Saddam's crumbling roof.

 

 

Paul Krugman is an idiot

In an otherwise interesting George Will column on economics and how dumb the New York Times is, I came accross this gem:

"By 2005 or so, it will become clear that the Internet's impact on the economy has been no greater than the fax machine's."

For more gems just like this, click here.

The big Russian mess

Russians, whose lives are shorter and poorer than they were under communism, have more abortions than births to avoid the costs of raising children, Bloomberg.com reported Tuesday quoting the country's highest-ranking obstetrician...The average Russian man now dies at 58.8, the shortest life expectancy in Europe and five years fewer than 15 years ago, the Statistics Service said. Russian women have the fourth-lowest life expectancy in Europe, 72 years, the service said, citing its own data and figures from the World Health Organization and European Union.  -- full article

 

I don't for one minute agree with the implication that Russians were better under communism - freedom is worth more than material wealth - but it's hard to believe how far down hill things have gone in this once great superpower.  They need real leadership, and strong support from the west.

Not quite so popular

Decima Research found that support for Michaelle Jean plunged from 59 % to 38 % recently.  Ouch.

More good news

Remember last spring, when the Army's recruitment efforts fell short for a few months? The media's glee would have made you confuse the New York Times and Air America.

When the Army attempted to explain that enlistments are cyclical and numbers dip at certain times of the year, the media ignored it. All that mattered was the wonderful news that the Army couldn't find enough soldiers. We were warned, in oh-so-solemn tones, that our military was headed for a train wreck.

Now, as the fiscal year nears an end, the Army's numbers look great. Especially in combat units and Iraq, soldiers are re-enlisting at record levels. And you don't hear a whisper about it from the "mainstream media."...

This is unprecedented in wartime. Even in World War II, we needed the draft. Where are the headlines? -- NY Post (read all the details in the full article)

Canadian politics update

It looks like things in the House of Commons will be interesting once they get back at it - the NDP says there is no deal anymore, and a Liberal Minister will likely resign for health reasons. 

 

But while Canadians don't trust PM Paul Martin, they don't know what to think about Harper according to recent polling.  And speaking of polling, the numbers sit somewhere around where they were in the late spring (sorry, can't find the link).  Libs ahead, but by less than 10 points.

 

Good news for a change

Must read from a non partisan, well respect analyst.  It's nice to finally read something more than the usual quagmire, vietnam, and retreat analysis.  Let's hope the message gets out a little more...

Polls in the United States may show that Americans have become less supportive of our efforts in Iraq...But the Pew polls in these Muslim countries demonstrate that those attacks have moved Muslim opinion against the terrorists and toward democracy...

This is not to say that everybody in these countries has good things to say about the United States. But we are not engaged in a popularity contest. We're trying to construct a safer world. We are in the long run better off if Muslims around the world turn away from terrorism and move toward democracy, even if we don't like some of the internal policies they choose and even if they don't have much affection for the United States.

Two generations ago, Americans, at the cost of hundreds of thousands of deaths, changed minds in Germany and Japan. The Pew Global Project Attitude's metrics give us reason to believe that today's Americans, at far lower cost, are changing minds in the Muslim world.

 

$7 Billion

Alberta's surplus could reach $7 Billion this year. That's more than Saskatchewan's total budget for the year. What to do with that money is a very nice problem to have. Very nice indeed. And really unheard of - try to think of another country or jurisdiction that is debt free, economically booming, and rolling in dough? They are blazing new trails, and it will take special leadership (read: not King Ralph) to navigate successfully through the challenges they face. But wait, there's more: the feds are sitting on $9.5B! Let's all agree that a) we are over taxed in the Great White North and b) that we need to reduce taxes starting today.

Blistering Andrew Coyne

He actually posted something on his blog, at long last. 

 

This isn't a sales clerk we're hiring. This is supposed to be the position of supreme honour and prestige in the country, one with important symbolic and substantive roles. It should be filled by titans, revered national icons, whose love of country is reflected in the love their country has for them.

 

GGgate

The Star blames Martin for not doing his homework, but this is priceless:

 

Martin got part of his job right. Jean's selection sends an important signal: She's an accomplished journalist, an immigrant, a member of a visible minority and a francophone with charm to burn in both official languages and several others beside. We trust she will emerge from this current ordeal stronger and better prepared for the task ahead.

Like I've said before - the highest affirmative action posting in the land.

Canadian Medical Association says yes to 2 tiers

It's a major change for the association, which until now has been unequivocal in its support for a strong public system. The last time the CMA voted on such a motion was in 1996 when it reaffirmed its support...Supporters of the motion said too-long waiting lists are an urgent problem, the system is faltering and it needs help from the private sector.

"Governments have had 40 years to get the monopoly system right and the casualties are piling up - one of them has been my wife," said Dr. John Slater of Comox, B.C. "I have stopped believing in Santa Claus and I have stopped believing the government will ever fix the monopoly system." -- canada.com

CBC

I thought the CBC was bad when the union was at work. Yikes. I generally flip by the radio station occasionally when whatever I'm listening to is in a commercial, but I've learned my lesson. I haven't watched the TV channel in years, but I guess no one else is watching either. Update: I fixed the link. And check out this story on what's happening at the CBC. I particularity like the alleged "ratings high" for radio - "a two point jump in market share to 12.6 per cent with an audience increase of 22 per cent". Ooooh.

Worth Reading

The Silent Bush boom; lots of good stuff here, especially about the poor communication apparatus in the W White House.

 

Disconcerting details about the fatal shooting in London after the bombings. 

 

Bush compared with FDR; now that doesn't happen every day...

 

 

The AP looks inward

And asks, why do we only report deaths from Iraq?  Ok, so they weren't quite that honest, but it's a start

Rushdie in Reason (Via David Frum)

Reason : You wrote an essay criticizing President Bush and other Western leaders for claiming after 9/11 that "this is not about Islam." In what way is this about Islam?

Rushdie : Well, you know, that was said for good reasons. It was said to minimize the backlash against Muslims. But just in terms of actual fact, it is absurd. It is not about football.    The fact that it is about a particular idea of Islam that many Muslims would reject does not mean it is not about Islam...

Reason : What they mean is that it is not about Islam properly understood. That it is about certain extreme followers of Islam who might not be interpreting the religion correctly.

Rushdie : Yes, but Wahhabi Islam is becoming very powerful these days. To say that it is not about Islam is to not take the world as it really is.

Reason : They are trying to make sure that Islam does not become synonymous with terrorism in the public mind.

Rushdie : Of course, there is nothing intrinsic linking any religion with any act of violence. The crusades don't prove that Christianity was violent. The Inquisition doesn't prove that Christianity tortures people. But that Christianity did torture people. This Islam did carry out this attack...

Reason: Where does this leave us on the question of democratic reform in Islamic countries? Do you think that Islam lacks a crucial piece to build a foundation for freedom?

Rushdie : What it has is an extra piece that believes that religion can be the foundation for a state. It's a question of removing that piece rather than adding something. There have been various moments in the history of Pakistan when attempts to Islamize the country were resisted strongly by both generals and civilian governments. It's not inevitable that a country full of Muslims will seek to Islamize its structures. But I do think there is a need for a widespread realization among Muslims that you cannot build a state based on religion. Pakistan is proof of that. Here was a state that was built on religion, but a quarter of a century after it was founded it fell apart, because the glue is not strong enough.

 

Michele Jean

David Frum argues forcefully here that she was a terrible choice for our head of state. And here he points out who would have made a better choice (even Bob Rae!). Well worth reading both. Update: Jean and her husband have potentially strong ties to the separatist movement in Quebec. Outstanding choice!

Our humble Governor General

On the controversy of Michele Jean also being a French citizen:

 

"From Samuel de Champlain to Michaelle Jean, we went a long way," said Ms. Jean last week when asked for her thoughts on the monarchy.  "Having a person like me as governor general of Canada will mean a lot, not only to Canadians, but all abroad.  "I think it will mean a lot for humanity."

 

You can't make this stuff up.

Boots on the ground

Nice to see our soldiers taking over responsibility from the Americans in Afghanistan, even if it is only 250 or so.  I've also been really impressed with the new head of the Canada's military: he says what he thinks and doesn't gloss over the truth.  My kind of guy.

This might be the best Mark Steyn column ever

And all I can say is ouch. Read the entire article, but registration is required (and free). The Western Standard really is worth reading from time to time anyway.

So we're no longer a great military nation. But nor are we a great peacekeeping nation: we do less than notorious sabre-rattlers like Britain and America. Compared to the Scandinavians and the other niceniks we're a poor aid donor, and our immobile rapid-reaction force is of no practical use in humanitarian crises. M. Chrétien's legacy-building Africa initiative of 2002 is known only to Canadians. Everywhere else, it's credited as Tony Blair's Africa initiative. We have less influence internationally than we did in the 1940s--before we had a flag, an anthem, or our own citizenship. Even if the Trudeaupian vision of Canada were sufficient for a national identity, it suffers from the basic defect of being a bald-faced lie.

Let's go back to those GDP figures: Canada's GDP per capita is US$31,500--about three-quarters of the U.S. figure, and, if you're a visitor from California or Connecticut, Canadians don't appear especially wealthy. But we supposedly "choose" to pay high taxes because we're so virtuous. So where does all the money go? Not to the military, not to UN peacekeeping, not to overseas aid. Few other western taxpayers get such a pathetic flatulent squeak of a bang for their buck. Maybe the government could set up a special program to give grants to Quebec marketing firms to investigate where the dough went. But the fact is one of the largest, wealthiest nations in the history of the world is entirely absent from the world scene. It's not just that we punch below our weight, but that we don't punch at all.

It's just occured to me that Canada is in serious need of an identity crisis - we need to sort out who we are and what we stand for.

Niger famine

Why is it so hard to raise awareness and money to help famine victims?  It does seem that there is a crisis in Africa every 6 months or so, and thus we can be forgiven for not rushing to donate everytime the UN puts out a press release.  And certainly aid money is only a bandaid on a gaping wound - oppressed people living under corrupt governments.  A long term solution will have to involve an emphasis on individual liberty, democracy and free markets.

 

But bandaids are still necessary in the short term.  Please consider giving.

Elections are won on the ground

This is an outstanding analysis of political technique and the effect on recent elections.  Don't miss it.  David Frum argues that turnout is a reflection of the number of volunteers you have on the ground going door to door, not on how much you spend on advertising.

Hiroshima remembered

The truth, as we are reminded so often in this present conflict, is that usually in war there are no good alternatives, and leaders must select between a very bad and even worse choice. Hiroshima was the most awful option imaginable, but the other scenarios would have probably turned out even worse. -- Victor Davis Hanson

Ernest (Smoky) Smith

This is a great story.  As a nation, we are going to honour the last surviving recipient of the Victoria cross, who passed away this week.  I'm proud to see that we still remember, and still honour, brave men like this.

 

Smith earned the Commonwealth's highest award for valour for his actions in Italy during the Second World War, when he singlehandedly fought off German tanks and dozens of troops on a road beside the Savio River.

 

War on Terror

David Brooks makes some very important points about the nature of the enemy and the present conflict. 

 

We have learned a lot about the jihadists...that about 75 percent of anti-Western terrorists come from middle-class or upper-middle-class homes...65 percent have gone to college, and three-quarters have professional or semiprofessional jobs, particularly in engineering and science...Ra ther than deferring to custom, many of them have rebelled against local authority figures, rejecting their parents' bourgeois striving and moderate versions of Islam, and their comfortable lives.  They have sought instead some utopian cause to give them an identity and their lives meaning...

 

This new definition of the enemy has seeped into popular culture...but its implications have only slowly dawned on the policy world.

Steyn on Fire

How does he manage to be this well informed, and this well written? 

 

Those whom we erroneously call "liberal" have no stomach for the defense of liberalism...The Islamists can't win, but we can certainly lose – all by ourselves, and, as the Europeans are discovering in this first stage of their demographic death-spiral, civilisational suicide is never painless.

 

And here's his take on our new Governor General:

 

Canada's first Hong Kong-born anglophone Governor-General is to be succeeded by our first Haitian-born francophone Governor-General, but the important thing is that like her predecessor Michaelle Jean is a pillar of Trudeaupian statist "public service". In Canada, anyone can grow up to be viceroy, as long as they have a show on the CBC. If you watch Newsworld, you'll know that Mme Jean anchors the tediously PC documentary slot that follows the National on nights when they're not rerunning Antiques Roadshow. I'd have preferred one of the Antiques Roadshow guys myself.

I've been trying to think of what to say about our new head of state...just like our hold head of state?  If I was a tad more cynical I would suggest that the GG seems to be Canada's most visible affirmative action vacancy...

SC opening - in Canada

Rest assured that this wont get nearly the attention or careful deliberation it deserves, as there really is no such thing as confirmation hearings in Canada for any level of justice.  It's too bad really, that Parliament doesn't insist on a stronger role in vetting for the Supreme Court especially.  It is especially unfortunate when you think about the impact that the courts now have on every level of our society and their active role in changing, not just interpretting, laws. 

 

When it comes right down to it, the Prime Minister in our system really is close to a benevolent dictator.  The separation of powers is so shallow - the PM appoints the Governor General, Senators, and Supreme Court justices, not to mention cabinet, and a whole host of patronage appointments.  No wonder Paul Martin was so eager for the job.