February 28, 2005
M. St-Maurice goes to Ottawa
It is with mixed feelings that I note that Marc-Boris St-Maurice, my former leader, has quit as leader of the Marijuana Party and joined the Liberals. Under Marc-Boris’ energetic leadership, I was convinced in 2000 to run in the Toronto riding of St-Paul’s, against the incumbent, Carolyn Bennett. While I managed to take 514 votes, the good people of Forest Hill didn’t seem as offended... [More >>]
February 28, 2005
Repent! Or we’ll shoot ourselves in the foot
No disrespect to the man who holds my ticket out of the second circle of hell, but I am beginning to question the public relations savvy of Dr. Rowan Williams, aka The Archbishop of Canterbury. At a time when all flavours of Christianity around the world are dealing with various internal intolerances, abuses and squabbles over what, exactly, Jesus would think about this or that sexual practice, the... [More >>]
February 26, 2005
Good for Liza
It kills me to say this, but Liza Frulla has a lot to be pleased about. She did a good job keeping culture away from major budget cuts. Of course, I’m still waiting for stable funding for the CBC, which Chretien promised, oh, 12 years ago now. [More >>]
February 26, 2005
Federalisme Rentable: Landry signs up
Reading up on a bit of Quebec history a while ago, I came across an interesting comment by an old-school hard-line separatist named Pierre Bourgault. He denounced most Quebecers, including most of his fellow PQ supporters, as being not really committed to sovereignty for Quebec, despite an apparent rise in support for sovereignty. “I don’t believe it,” said Bourgault. “They... [More >>]
February 25, 2005
We’re not in Kansas… wait a minute…
I hope Margaret Atwood is taking notes, because I think we’re about to enter The Handmaid’s Tale, part Two—The Empire Strikes Back. Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline , is seeking access to the medical records of late-term abortion patients, with the apparent motive of prosecuting child rapists. Okay, so he’s a pro-life Republican and, sure, one of the doctors whose files... [More >>]
February 24, 2005
Still kickin ass
No, not Motley Crue (though they are coming to Montreal in a few weeks). Warren Kinsella. (Yah, I know, he said he liked the book I half-wrote so it’s sucksucksuck from Potter.) Here’s Warren explaining Stephen Harper’s job to him Here’s my schedule from my days in the Office of the Leader of the Opposition, circa 1990 to 1993: 1. Get up, have breakfast, go to work and attack... [More >>]
February 24, 2005
Name This Magazine
So the National Post reports today that Boston’s FleetCentre arena, home of the Celtics and the Bruins, has auctioned off 13 days of naming rights — each for a single day. Golden Palace.com, a Toronto-based internet gaming site, paid US$35,000 for the first day, and subsequent days have fetched US$2,500 to US$5,000. Owners of the arena have made more than US$80,000. The arena needs a new... [More >>]
February 24, 2005
The Wrecking Ball
Jason Sherman’s night of political theatre is returning to Toronto’s Factory Theatre on Feb. 28 at 8 p.m. The fall show (see story in This Magazine) sold out in 10 minutes. www.thewreckingball.ca [More >>]
February 24, 2005
Good Morning Springton—are you ready to… talk federal finance!
What do we need to know about the federal budget on a snowy midweek morning? A) It was delivered; #2) the Conservatives are still (astutely) afraid of an election, so they’ll support it and the government will survive. Enough said. Time to turn the dial away from CBC radio’s endless yammering and enjoy some classic rock. Am I right? Well, if you live in Toronto… not so much. Over... [More >>]
February 24, 2005
Budget 2005
All kinds of fun stuff in the papers today, though the Post is more fun than the Globe. The Post even has a budget ditty, set to the tune of The Gambler. Of course, if you want actual analysis, the Globe has an excellent insert that has helpful graphs tracking revenues and spending, debt and deficit and other sorts of things, going back two decades. The focus, in particular, is on the Headwaiter’s... [More >>]
