Pierre Trudeau named the worst Canadian

The people have spoken... and Pierre Elliot Trudeau, the father of our flawless constitution and wonderful National Energy Program, has been voted the Worst Canadian. Wow! I love this!

Yes I know, my boy Harper is on the list, as is Mulroney. Big deal, they aren't number one!

While I find this quite amusing, I don't necessary agree with it either.

I don't think its fair to say that Paul Bernardo and Carla Homolka were better people than Trudeau. As much as Trudeau was arrogant, wrong, elitist, etc I do believe he always had the best intentions, and he did what he thought he was right. The same cannot be said about the other two.

He was just horribly wrong, and Canada paid the price.

But its always nice to see him or anything Liberal get some bad press.

This is a good start Canada, but we have only started to make up for our terrible choice for Greatest Canadian...

RIP 6 Brave Canadian Soldiers...

The news of the deaths of the 6 Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan today has hit me hard. It comes as we approach the 1 year anniversary of the death of my friend, Cpl. Anthony Boneca, who was tragically killed in Afghanistan on July 9th 2006. However, instead of Canadians thanking these soldiers for their bravery and dedication to this country, all over the news sites we get the political ramblings of Jack Layton and the leader of the opposition.

I saw neither of the two's press conferences, nor do I want to. I read through the reports from National Newswatch and I am, quite frankly, sick to my stomach. There is nothing wrong with debating the mission itself, but today is just simply not the time for it. I will give Jack Layton at least some (relative to Stephane Dion) respect in that I believe he is sincere, and is offering alternatives rather than just talk. But Stephane Dion has not done this. He has used this tragic event as an opportunity to announce the Liberals position on Afghanistan.

Contrary to what he said, which was "You know what is the views of the other parties and what is the view of the official Opposition", we DO NOT know "what is" the position of the Liberal Party Mr. Dion. Nor do I believe you will have one until it is time to vote on the issue. At which point you will make a strategic POLITICAL decision. If you do currently have one coherant policy, you have done absolutely nothing to communicate it.

I know I am in some respects no better than them for playing their game in this post. But my intent is not to engage in political partisan games, rather it is to ask these two political leaders to save these statements for another day. Today is a heart wrenching time for the families and friends of those brave soldiers who have given everything for this country, and I think we owe it to them, and all those left to serve, more than that.

Here are the lyrics to a song by Julian Austin, from his touching tribute to Canadian Soldiers titled "The Red and White". It pretty much sums up how I am feeling at the very minute and I encourage anybody who happens to read this blog to download it.

This country sometimes
Make me so damn mad I could cry
Cause we never thank our hero’s enough anymore
How many of us thank a soldier
For everything they do
We can’t forget all those who serve who sacrifice
All for the Red and White
Lest we forget our hero’s who fought and died
For the Red and White

Lets not turn these tragic events into an excuse for political positioning, rhetoric and oppirtunism. There will be plenty of time for that in the weeks to come. I am saying this to both sides of this mission, both pro and anti-Afghanistan. All I ask is for some respect for these young soldiers family and friends. Rather than bickering over the next few days, can we please come together and thank those who put their lives on the line, day in day out, for a live that we all take for granted. Can we not pay our respects to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, for just a few days... without this partisan crap. C'mon Canada, is that too much to ask?!?

To the friends, family, and fellow soldiers of Capt. Matthew Johnathan Dawe, Cpl. Cole Bartsch, Pte. Lane Watkins, Master Cpl. Colin Bason, and the two who remain to be named, my thoughts and prayers are with you. You were indeed brave soldiers and deserve nothing but our collective admiration and respect. You are true Canadian heroes. You will be sadly missed, but never ever forgotten....

Joe Comuzzi a Conservative!!!

I remember shortly after the last election, talking with two of my Liberal friends about what this parliament would look like. The one asked the other, "I wonder which Liberal will be next to cross to the Conservatives?" This was shortly after David Emerson had crossed to sit in cabinet. They both hummed and hawed, so I piped up.

"Joe Comuzzi" I said. We all laughed, moved on, and never talked about it again.

Fast forward 17 moths to today. The Chronicle Journal in my hometown of Thunder Bay, Ontario is reporting that on Tuesday, "Joe Comuzzi will join the Tories."

As much as I don't like to see floor crossings, and as much as I would prefer Joe to run in a by-election, I can't say I am disapointed. In fact, I am fairly excited. Not just because this is the first time I have had a Conservative representing me in Ottawa, but because I know Joe's reasons for his decision are honorable. He is, in my opinion, a riding guy, and he understands that his riding and increasingly himself, do not mesh well with the neo-leftist Young Liberals that are beginning to take over that party. From my three very brief discussions with Comuzzi, I believe he is a good fit with the Conservatives.

The riding however, will still be slow to warm up to the Conservatives.

Thunder Bay is a blue collar, heavily unionized town, who has traditionally voted Liberal federally since the days of CD Howe. The last time there was a Conservative representing the riding now held by Comuzzi, the oldest member in the house (Joe Comuzzi) was only 2. In the last election, Conservative candidate Bev Sarafin placed third with around 8000 votes, while Comuzzi and the dipper candidate fought it out with around 13000 votes each.

Unless Comuzzi changes his mind and decides to run in the next election as a Conservative, I believe that the riding will now go NDP. If he does run again, it is anyone's guess. What Joe will do is warm up the community to the Conservative brand. If after all these years ol' Joe can warm up to the new Conservatives, why not the city of Thunder Bay.

While this may not help the Conservatives party much in a coming election, in that I think the NDP will win in Joe's riding, it may help in the longer run. By helping the Conservative brand in northern Ontario, and hopefully costing the Liberals a usually safe seat, Joe's decision may now lead to an end to the Liberal hegemony that has had a firm grip on the region federally and provincially for years.

Any hope the NDP has in the riding in the long term, is through the old-left trade union wing of the party. The city has already lost enough jobs in the forestry industry, and will only lose more if the environmental movement gets its way. This will put the new-left environmentalists who are taking over the NDP, at odds with the best interests of city.

Hopefully, the Conservatives are going to be much better positioned to win the riding in the future now that ol' Joe has decided that the Conservatives aren't all that scary after all. As the Liberals and NDP continue their progression into the party of the new-left ultra-urban Toronto and Montreal voters, the Conservative party has a great opportunity to turn heads in riding's like Thunder Bay-Superior North where voters are being left behind as their traditional parties cater to seat rich areas of the country that are increasingly out of touch with the concerns of life in Northern Ontario.