Canada’s place in the world

As we make cuts to CIDA, Foreign Affairs,
disband Rights & Democracy, eliminate Elections Canada’s ability to help
with elections abroad, and compound our loss of a seat on the UN Security
Council, it needs to be asked if we’re threatening our international reputation.
The answer would seem to be a resounding “yes.”

As the fire ratchets up over the auditor general’s findings on the F-35 file, it looks like the Liberal MP on the public accounts committee wants to call a whole lot of names to answer questions about

just what happened. We’ll see whether this actually happens or if the Conservatives
will use their majority to shut this down. And just for fun, here are more quotes about the F-35 contract that was spoken about but apparently has never
existed.

Here is more about the lapses in air
transport safety that the auditor general’s report uncovered.

There are warnings that the public service
cuts could be more than just 19,200 jobs because it could also mean that
thousands of term employees won’t be renewed. There will be a big number of
cuts from civilian employees at both DND and Health Canada.

The Speaker has found no prima facie breach
of privilege in the fact that the Conservatives aren’t answering order paper questions
as they should be. This is actually very bad news for the state of our
democracy and the health of Parliament.

The team that blew open the Robocon story
has obtained a training manual on aggressive tactics from conservative call
centre RMG, which is employed by the Conservative Party, among others. It should
be little surprise that the majority of people they call are retirees in rural
areas – the Conservative Party’s base, in other words.

The owner of H2O Water Professionals wishes he’d never met Bruce Carson and his girlfriend, as his company has since gone
bankrupt and he’s been forced to work abroad. Carson’s activities and alleged

influence peddling are under police investigation, and nobody yet knows how a
man with Carson’s past could obtain clearance to work in the heart of
the PMO.

And here are a few of the barbs that Bob
Rae and Thomas Mulcair have been lobbing at one another.

PS – Check out my latest video post, episode
two of the Lord and Smith Commission.