Well guys, it's been a lloooooonnnnggg time since I've posted on this beautiful internet thing that is known to most as a blog, and to myself as my personal ranting space, so I guess I better fill in the blanks of the past month-ish since I've posted.
High school is over for me. I got my provincial exam marks back, and I did okay, 78% in Chem 12, 87% in English 12, and 93% in History 12. Not bad, right? Although, I was sort of hoping for 3 A's, guess that government sponsored $1000 just wasn't meant to be mine. C'est la vie, I suppose.
Speaking of money, I've been having to save up a lot of it to go to university in the fall. The particular institution that I decided on was Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, about an hour and a half south of Canada's capital. I'm going to be attending with my best friend, and I'm looking forward to driving out there across Canada to move in our shoe-box room in residence.
Before I could worry about that though, I attended my sister's wedding ceremony and reception, the latter of which I prepared an 11 minute slideshow for and helped to MC. She's very happy now, and after just returning from her honeymoon, she's still glowing.
So, that's basically what's been going on while I've been on summer vacation here in Alberta. I have to go back soon. I'm going to miss all my extended family out here once again, and I'll look forward to seeing them next time.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
A Grain of Salt
Don't you just love cabinet shuffles? I think that they say so much about the current government. I also think that they're mostly just about playing politics.
Let's look at the current cabinet shuffle in Ottawa as an example. Fraught with political intrigue and scandal, Harper takes out some of the ministers who aren't doing a good job, or at least who the public thinks aren't doing a good job, or who the PM thinks the public thinks aren't doing a good job, and installs MP's or senators who will do a better job, or get him elected in a hard-to-get province.
The examples in the most recent Ottawa two-step sashay are Maxime Bernier being permanently replaced by David Emerson (interesting choice there), a senator taking over Dave's old portfolio, and another random dude from the province of Quebec taking over the one that HE left. Apparently, the PM wanted Emerson for Foreign Affairs because he's from BC, and so will be a good guy to have in there leading up to the Olympics in Vancouver.
The Senator? He's from Montreal, where Harper wants votes the most. If he can capture some of those oh-so-precious Quebec seats in the next election, he may not have to worry quite so much about not being able to crack the liberal fortress that is Ontario.
The other random dude is from Quebec too, and my guess is that he won't do anything unless he's got orders in triplicate delivered from the PM in person. Harper has these guys on such a tight leash, you can't even get into the running for an MP's seat without a pre-installed, conservative approved set of puppet strings attached to your arms, legs, and mouth.
Anyways, the guys who have been doing well are sticking around. Flaherty still has the Finance portfolio, which he deftly wields like a sword against angry Liberals and Ontarians alike, and Baird still wears the spiked collar of the Minister of the Environment, needing no provocation whatsoever to attack any critic of the Conservatives confusing environmental policy.
With Dion still unwilling to call an election, even with his new Carbon tax measure (I think he's waiting for summer to be over), it looks to me like we could be indeed looking one of the longest minority governments in history. And one of the most partisan too.
And the best part is, no one really seems to care. I guess that's what this site is going to change.
We'll keep our fingers crossed.
Anyways, I hope that all wasn't too random for ya. Cheers.
Let's look at the current cabinet shuffle in Ottawa as an example. Fraught with political intrigue and scandal, Harper takes out some of the ministers who aren't doing a good job, or at least who the public thinks aren't doing a good job, or who the PM thinks the public thinks aren't doing a good job, and installs MP's or senators who will do a better job, or get him elected in a hard-to-get province.
The examples in the most recent Ottawa two-step sashay are Maxime Bernier being permanently replaced by David Emerson (interesting choice there), a senator taking over Dave's old portfolio, and another random dude from the province of Quebec taking over the one that HE left. Apparently, the PM wanted Emerson for Foreign Affairs because he's from BC, and so will be a good guy to have in there leading up to the Olympics in Vancouver.
The Senator? He's from Montreal, where Harper wants votes the most. If he can capture some of those oh-so-precious Quebec seats in the next election, he may not have to worry quite so much about not being able to crack the liberal fortress that is Ontario.
The other random dude is from Quebec too, and my guess is that he won't do anything unless he's got orders in triplicate delivered from the PM in person. Harper has these guys on such a tight leash, you can't even get into the running for an MP's seat without a pre-installed, conservative approved set of puppet strings attached to your arms, legs, and mouth.
Anyways, the guys who have been doing well are sticking around. Flaherty still has the Finance portfolio, which he deftly wields like a sword against angry Liberals and Ontarians alike, and Baird still wears the spiked collar of the Minister of the Environment, needing no provocation whatsoever to attack any critic of the Conservatives confusing environmental policy.
With Dion still unwilling to call an election, even with his new Carbon tax measure (I think he's waiting for summer to be over), it looks to me like we could be indeed looking one of the longest minority governments in history. And one of the most partisan too.
And the best part is, no one really seems to care. I guess that's what this site is going to change.
We'll keep our fingers crossed.
Anyways, I hope that all wasn't too random for ya. Cheers.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
A Grain of Salt
I've never been quite so shocked in my life.
I don't think that I had noticed it before, but the media around the country has finally started calling Stephane Dion's liberals "Grits" again. It's music to my ears guys, the symbolic nickname is back and the Liberals are once again looking like danger red instead of muted pink.
Why did this happen?
My guess is that due to the recent events that have been piling up against the Conservatives in the past few days; like the Cadman Affair, the Conservative HQ raids, and the Bernier scandal, coupled with the fact that Dion has finally started to show his policy zing again is the reason behind the long forgotten but much loved jargon. Harper is losing control over what happens in Ottawa and Dion finally has a clue.
The new Liberal Carbon Tax borrowed from their provincial counterparts in BC looks like it could sell. Tax energy and electricity but not fuel, seeing as the price of that is already high enough. The plan is promised to be revenue neutral as well, giving Canadians a tax break with the green loonies and putting some of the cash towards environmental technologies.
It's the kind of thing where you ask yourself, "Hey, why didn't anyone think of this before?" Well, someone probably did, they just had to clear it with 50 different people first, look at five hundred different test runs and opinion polls to see if it would fly with the public, and get the forms signed in triplicate by every single party bureaucrat you could think of, and their mothers before the kids brought the forms back to school late the day after it was due, except that it was a long weekend then Marty had this thing in Montreal that couldn't wait and....sorry I'm ranting. But seriously, the Carbon Tax idea was probably thought up six years ago and Dion liked it. But things just take so long to get rolling in politics that it hasn't even seen the light of day until yesterday, or whenever it was that the Grits introduced that policy.
And it still might not become reality. Obviously, the Liberals aren't in government, so they can't really get it passed until they get there. Of course, they could talk to all the other parties for reinforcements, but in that case we'd probably have an election.
And we know how skittish Dion is about calling those.
But, there's a gleam in his eye, a spring in his step and a sparkle to his smile that hasn't been seen since he won the leadership contest.
So look out Harper. It's blue season and you're in the crosshairs.
I don't think that I had noticed it before, but the media around the country has finally started calling Stephane Dion's liberals "Grits" again. It's music to my ears guys, the symbolic nickname is back and the Liberals are once again looking like danger red instead of muted pink.
Why did this happen?
My guess is that due to the recent events that have been piling up against the Conservatives in the past few days; like the Cadman Affair, the Conservative HQ raids, and the Bernier scandal, coupled with the fact that Dion has finally started to show his policy zing again is the reason behind the long forgotten but much loved jargon. Harper is losing control over what happens in Ottawa and Dion finally has a clue.
The new Liberal Carbon Tax borrowed from their provincial counterparts in BC looks like it could sell. Tax energy and electricity but not fuel, seeing as the price of that is already high enough. The plan is promised to be revenue neutral as well, giving Canadians a tax break with the green loonies and putting some of the cash towards environmental technologies.
It's the kind of thing where you ask yourself, "Hey, why didn't anyone think of this before?" Well, someone probably did, they just had to clear it with 50 different people first, look at five hundred different test runs and opinion polls to see if it would fly with the public, and get the forms signed in triplicate by every single party bureaucrat you could think of, and their mothers before the kids brought the forms back to school late the day after it was due, except that it was a long weekend then Marty had this thing in Montreal that couldn't wait and....sorry I'm ranting. But seriously, the Carbon Tax idea was probably thought up six years ago and Dion liked it. But things just take so long to get rolling in politics that it hasn't even seen the light of day until yesterday, or whenever it was that the Grits introduced that policy.
And it still might not become reality. Obviously, the Liberals aren't in government, so they can't really get it passed until they get there. Of course, they could talk to all the other parties for reinforcements, but in that case we'd probably have an election.
And we know how skittish Dion is about calling those.
But, there's a gleam in his eye, a spring in his step and a sparkle to his smile that hasn't been seen since he won the leadership contest.
So look out Harper. It's blue season and you're in the crosshairs.
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