The Issue of Poverty

Ignoring the Issue of Poverty Won't Make It Go Away

Older posts:
Cost to eradicate hunger per year
Poverty wages - Next exit 
Rising tuition costs 
Wealth Inequality in Canada 

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The Motion M-534 was passed almost unanimously in the House of Commons calling for an end to child poverty in Canada. The motion states: "the government should work in collaboration with the provinces, territories and First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities to eradicate child poverty in Canada by developing a national poverty reduction plan."

Poverty is a matter of social justice. It undermines human dignity, limiting people's ability to fully participate in their community.

Poverty undermines dignity from the perspective of many different groups: human rights activists who recognize each person's inherent rights, people of faith who affirm that we are created in God's image, and citizens who know that we have responsibilities to each other.

Citizens for Public Justice and Canada Without Poverty have been calling for a legislated national anti-poverty plan for five years.


The federal government still does not have a plan to do something about poverty in this country and as far as we know, there are no plans to develop one any time soon. This is curious, because in a nearly unanimous motion just two weeks ago, MPs including the Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Official Opposition Leader Thomas Mulcair and Finance Minister Joe Oliver all agreed that a plan is needed.

But where is the action? 

This is where we come in. Motions imply movement -- there's a chance now to start, not end -- real action on poverty.

With this motion becoming an end in of itself,  most people will not be okay.

As citizens of a democracy, we have both the right and responsibility to make a difference in the policies and actions of our government. Our political leaders have a responsibility to do more than pass motions to end poverty -- they must listen to the will of the people, and each of us has the responsibility to express our views through active citizenship. This means staying informed, voicing our opinions, and working to end poverty.

See if your own MP voted for Motion 534 and ask them what's next? Let them know that you're not okay with the fact that so many people in Canada live in poverty and ask them when Canada will actually adopt this national anti-poverty plan.

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This May Be The Most Effective Anti-Poverty Program In America

Home visiting programs, which bring professionals into the homes of low-income families to help address the causes of poverty

Scholars agree that kids, raised in environments full of economic, emotional and psychological turmoil, are less likely to succeed in school or at the workplace, and are more likely to run afoul of the law or experience a variety of mental and physical health problems.

(1)  Child First is a Connecticut-based organization that seeks to help distressed families, particularly those in low-income communities.

Child First is a “home visiting” program, which means staff members work with families mostly in their homes rather than in office settings, sometimes meeting as frequently as three or four times a week.

People are most comfortable and most themselves at home.

(2) The Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program brings professionals into the homes of low-income, high-risk families to help them raise their children in physically, socially, and emotionally healthy environments. The program funds voluntary, evidence-based home visiting initiatives across the United States, with models hailed as both cost-effective and backed by data.

Healthcare Queue Jumping in Alberta and B.C.

Canada's medicare system is aging badly, a federal panel said Friday.

The Advisory Panel on Health Care Innovation has released a new report saying there is "no doubt" a major renovation of the medicare system is overdue.

Duckett Memo

A controversial memo sent out in 2009 at Alberta Health Services came under fire as it stated that it was not uncommon for health care executives to receive requests for faster care by prominent individuals.

Source:  CBC News

Raj Sherman Treats Fellow MLAs

In December of 2012, Alberta Liberal Leader Raj Sherman said he has written prescriptions, given advice and diagnosed politicians who dropped by his legislature office but said it wasn't preferential treatment.

Alberta health-care queue-jumping allegations denied

Calgary Flames Skip Lineup To Get Swine Flu Shots

In November of 2009, Calgary Flames and their families skipped lines and received swine flu shots at a special clinic, as thousands of people waited or were turned away for the H1N1 vaccination.

Source:  CTV News



Alberta Doctor Say ER Staff Told To Treat VIPs Faster

An Alberta emergency room doctor told the Alberta Health queue jumping inquiry that medical staff in a busy ER were once pressured to provide care for a "VIP" ahead of a waiting room full of very sick people.


Vancouver Queue Jumping

In 2007, Dr. Brian Day a top doctor in Vancouver and a former president of the Canadian Medical Association admitted to queue jumping on two instances. He said it was not realsistic to expect people to not use their connections when their own or their family's health is at stake.

Source:  The National Post

Reasons Stephen Harper is bad for Canada --- Part 3

Quotes About Economics, Capitalism And Banking

There are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation. One is by the sword. The other is by debt.

Banks have done more injury to the religion, morality, tranquility, prosperity, and even wealth of the nation than they can have done or ever will do good.

~ John Adams

Without big banks, socialism would be impossible.

~ Lenin

When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic.

~ Benjamin Franklin

Reasons Stephen Harper is bad for Canada --- Part 2

Reasons Stephen Harper is bad for Canada ---- Part 1

Corporate Whistleblower Richard Grove

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Del Mastro's perp walk

This footage will be in a campaign ad thanks to the Conservatives passing a law allowing use. 

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Here are five questions raised by Dean Del Mastro's 2008 campaign spending:

5. Was He Reimbursed For The $21,000 Personal Cheque

Federal election spending laws say candidates can contribute $2,100 to their campaigns, a tenth of the amount in question. Del Mastro says his campaign or his riding association reimbursed him for any election expenses, but records on the website of Elections Canada show no sign of a repayment that big. The records show the campaign reimbursed Del Mastro a total of $437.54 for his 2008 run. Likewise, the expenses filed by the riding association show $96,670 in transfers to Del Mastro's campaign, but none to him. 

4. Why Isn't The $21,000 Paid To Holinshed Research Group Listed In The Election Return?

After a 2009 falling-out over a contract with Del Mastro, Frank Hall, president of Holinshed Research Group, filed a suit in small claims court. The claim was dismissed as abandoned June 8, 2011, meaning Hall let it lapse. But the records he filed in the claim are still available. They show a $21,000 invoice, as well as the personal cheque from Del Mastro. The Sept. 14, 2008 invoice lists 630 hours of voter identification phone calls, plus election day get-out-the-vote calls. But the Elections Canada return lists only two Holinshed expenses: one for $10,000, categorized in a miscellaneous "amounts not included in election expenses" category, and another for $1,575 for election surveys or other research.

3. What Happened To The Other $11,000?

If the $10,000 Holinshed expense listed in the campaign costs comes from the $21,000 invoice, Del Mastro's campaign has up to another $11,000 unaccounted for.

2. How Does The $21,000 Fit In Under The Spending Limit?

Del Mastro's campaign spending limit was $92,566.79. The expenses he submitted to Elections Canada show he spent $90,987.52 or 98.29 per cent of his cap (before the election agency reviewed and got more detailed information from him, records showed he spent $91,770.80, or 99.14 per cent of his cap). Elections Canada records suggest that if the $21,000 invoice is included, he would have exceeded the limit. Del Mastro did not explain the additional $21,000.

1. What Happened To Holinshed?

The Ottawa-based research and polling company appears to be out of business, with its website out of service and its phone disconnected. The firm did work for at least 10 federal Conservative candidates in the 2008 election, and worked with Ontario Progressive Conservatives as well. As the CBC's Kady O'Malley pointed out last fall, Holinshed got $125,000 from the federal government to develop GeoVote, a voter ID system. The cash was part of the Canada Economic Action Plan. The project website says the money was to develop "the firm's flagship application GeoVote used in support of election campaigns and data management used in preparation for upcoming elections." It also seems to be the only political polling firm to have got stimulus money.

Obesity In Canada

Obesity In Canada Is Growing Steadily Worse.

Statistics Canada (StatsCan) shows that the proportion of obese Canadians now sits at 20.2%, up from just over 15% in 2003.

The number of men who report being obese sat at 21.8% in 2014, up from just over 15% in 2003. The proportion of obese women grew from 14.5% to 18.7 per cent in the same time frame.

Obesity has been identified as a result of a lack of "food security," meaning access to nutritious and affordable meals.

The higher rates of obesity in Atlantic Canada, meanwhile — 30.4 per cent of people in Newfounland and Labrador are considered obese — have been attributed to a lack of physical activity, The Canadian Press reported in 2013.


Facts About Childhood Obesity

Over Half Of Obese Children First Become Overweight By Age 2

http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/obesity/facts.htm

http://www.letsmove.gov/sites/letsmove.gov/files/Let_s_Move_Child_Care_Fact_Sheet.pdf


17 Percent Of Children And Adolescents Are Obese
According to the Center For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 17% (or 12.5 million) of kids and adolescents aged 2 - 19 years in the United States are now obese.

Obesity Rates Among Kids Ages 2-5 Have Doubled In 30 Years
The rate among this age group increased from 5% to 10.4% in 1976-1980 and 2007-2008.

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.htm


One In Five Kids Is Overweight By Age 6
Obese kids are more likely to also be obese as adults, which puts them at risk for heart disease, diabetes, and more adult health problems.

The Childhood Obesity Rate Has Almost Tripled Since 1980

CDC data shows that there was an increase in the pervasiveness of obesity in the American population between 1976-1980 and then again from 1999-2000, the prevalence of obesity increased.

One In Seven Low-Income Preschoolers Is Obese
Obesity in low-income 2- to 4-year-olds rose from 12.4% of the population in 1998 to 14.5% in 2003 but increased to 14.6% in 2008.

http://www.cdc.gov/media/pressrel/2009/r090723.htm

Less Than Half Of Preschoolers Consume Two Daily Servings Of Fruit
And only 25% of kids in this age group get the recommended three daily serving of vegetables. One way to make sure your child gets the amount of fruit and vegetables that they need is to serve them at every meal.

One-Third Of High School Students Get The Recommended Amount Of Exercise
In 2011, only 29% of high-schoolers in a survey participated in 60 minutes of physical activity each day, which is the amount recommended by the CDC. It’s best for kids to get three different types of exercise: aerobic activity, like walking or running, muscle strengthening activities like push-ups or pull-ups and bone strengthening activities like jumping rope.

http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/physicalactivity/facts.htm

http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/children/index.htm

Childhood Obesity Is Linked To A Wide Range Of Health Problems
High blood pressure, diabetes and other cardiovascular issues have been previously tied to obesity. But a 2013 study found that obesity also puts kids at risk for other health issues such as ADHD, allergies and ear infections.

The Food Industry Spends Over $1.6 Billion To Market To Kids Each Year

This number was documented by the FTC in 2008. According to the APA, there are strong associations between the increase in junk food advertising to kids and the climbing rate of childhood obesity.

Marketing Food To Children and Adolescents

here's how your Senators voted on Bill C-51

Heroes and Zeros - here's how your Senators voted on Bill C-51

https://openmedia.ca/blog/heres-how-senators-voted-bill-c-51

The fight over Bill C-51 is far from over




RCMP officer to Bill C-51 protester: “You could be branded a terrorist” [VIDEO]


The the rank-and-file of our national police force may be struggling to distinguish between legitimate dissent and terrorism.

Asked about his opinion on Bill C-51, the Anti-terrorism Act, 2015, the RCMP officer responded with: “Whenever you’re attacking the Canadian economy you could be branded a terrorist.”

Harper is determined to criminalize legitimate dissent.

“Kill Bill C-51": Conservative Supporters Tell Stephen Harper

Game-changing supporters of the Conservative Party of Canada are warning Stephen Harper that Bill C-51 could lead to his political downfall.

More than 60 of them have signed a letter asking Harper to “kill Bill C-51″ because it could result in “a split in the Conservative moment” and his defeat during the 2015 federal election, scheduled for October 19.

“Do you really want to live in a C-51 Canada that you don’t govern?” the letter asks. “We thought not. We don’t either. Kill Bill C-51.”

Canada --- Banking

“The road to power is paved with hypocrisy, and casualties.”

Study Reveals Secret Bailouts to Canadian Banks

Canadian Banking System Exposed - Bill Abram

  

Corrupt Banking System Explained By 12 Year-Old

Magna Carta, June 15, 1215

Magna Carta (Latin for "the Great Charter"), also called Magna Carta Libertatum (Latin for "the Great Charter of the Liberties"), is a charter agreed by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury to make peace between the unpopular King and a group of rebel barons, it promised the protection of church rights, protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and limitations on feudal payments to the Crown, to be implemented through a council of 25 barons.

Read more at  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Carta

Here's an excerpt from Magna Carta:

"No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights ... or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgement of his peers and the law of the land." 

Those are the words from which habeas corpus, prohibition of torture, trial by jury and due process of law have stemmed from the last 800 years.


Magna Carta is considered a seminal building block of democracy because simply put, it established that everyone is subject to the rule of law.

Magna Carta is the foundation of many of what we consider to be fundamental human rights and constitutional rights. Particularly the right of habeus corpus,  which is the right to test your detention, the right to be free essentially from executive detention. You have a right to go to court, the king can't just send you into a prison, or the president (or Prime minister) can't without taking you to a court. The prohibition on torture came out of it. Really fundamental rights.

It's very important to talk about Magna Carta particularly for two reasons:

(1) Let's look at those rights and see how they've come down and whether there's more than lip service being paid to them by our current politicians.

(2) When people talk about the Magna Carta they forget about another charter of liberty that occurred at roughly the same time and was considered equally important at the time, and that's called "The Charter of the Forest".

Magna Carta gave what we call political and judicial rights. 

The Charter of the Forest actually gave economic rights. And it's ignored of course in this country and in the United States, particularly because this is a country that doesn't believe in economic rights.

Does Harper believe in economic rights? I don't think so.


Have your say

YOU CAN'T FIX ...

Harper's Permanent Record

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NAFTA

Election 2008 fact sheets for activists

After 15 years under NAFTA Canada is a much more unequal society. 
Freetrade boosters still credit the agreement with increasing employment and prosperity, but though 'compensation' for a few corporate CEOs has rocketed up, NAFTA has in fact contributed to the loss of manufacturing jobs and exerted a downward pressure on wages. Here’s the real story on jobs and NAFTA: 

• In the last 6 years, we have lost 350,000 manufacturing jobs. That’s like 150 good jobs
disappearing every day. And it’s getting worse.

• The job loss is hitting many different industries all over the country: auto, food
processing, forestry products, textiles, metals, furniture etc. The details are different but
the story is the same: decline in orders lost to cheaper imports, missed investment, job
cutbacks and plant closures.

• Too many of the new jobs being created today are low-paying, insecure jobs with fewer
benefits, particularly for women.

• Canada is increasingly becoming a society of haves, and have-nots with the gap in wealth growing every year. 

A new government must act decisively to ‘manufacture’ good jobs

NAFTA, massive corporate tax cuts and do-nothing industrial policies promoted by Ottawa are destroying Canada’s manufacturing sector - this at a time when corporate profits are at an all time high. Free trade policies have hurt both Canadian workers and workers in poorer countries.

Mexican workers were promised that joining NAFTA meant that their wages would become ‘first world’ within a generation, but it hasn’t happened. This year hundreds of thousands of impoverished workers and landless farmers have repeatedly taken to the streets demanding that Mexico renegotiate NAFTA, or pull out. In Canada recent opinion polls show that a majority here also want to reopen NAFTA and get a better deal. A new Canadian government should:

• Renegotiate NAFTA to ensure more and better jobs, economic development and social justice – or get out of the agreement.

• Regulate foreign investment, ensure that new investment goes into strategic sectors, and target the creation of a new generation of ‘green jobs’.

• Re-invest in Canada’s social programs eroded during 15 years of NAFTA, and protect worker’s pensions from disappearing because of the actions of fly-by-night corporations.

• Provide a just income for the unemployed.

• Say no to any other ‘free trade’ deals in the works, especially with Colombia where trade unionists are being targeted in a state-sponsored campaign of annihilation. 

What you can do

o Ask the candidates what they will do to ensure more and better jobs

o Send an op. ed. to the media and/or write a letter to the local newspaper

o Spread the word at local union, community or church gatherings. 

Harper's record

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BLOCKING PROGRESS IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE

Despite the scientific evidence, and an overwhelming consensus among Canadians that something must be done to slow global warming, the Harper government has been at the forefront of efforts to block and reverse progress in this area.

Climate Action Network named Canada the country most active in blocking, stalling or undermining the UN climate negotiations in Poland.

At the end of 2011 Canada became the first country to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol. A Montréal Gazette banner captured the international mood: “Kyoto rejection cements Canada’s rogue reputation.”


Canada has become the lead cheerleader for Big Oil and their neoconservative agenda. 

Clean Energy Jobs

Guess which industry employs more Canadians? The oilsands or clean energy?

Answer:   clean energy

Employment in Canada's clean energy sector has jumped 37% in the past five years, says a new report from the think tank Clean Energy Canada, and now exceeds employment in the oilsands.

There were 23,700 people directly employed by the clean energy industry in 2013, compared to 22,340 jobs in the oilsands

Those job gains were the result of about $25 billion in new investment over the past five years, the report said. It singled out Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia as the three provinces leading the way in clean energy investment.

The federal government has helped lay the groundwork for green energy, but has done very little to build on it.

Clean Energy Canada would like to see a federal industrial policy, based on tax and research incentives, like the one that helped Canada's aerospace and oil sands industries in their infancy.

If the federal government got engaged we could be a real world leader in clean energy, but the federal government is really missing in action.

Harper Conservatives - Income Inequality

Income Inequality Has Skyrocketed Under The Harper Conservatives

Neglect TV ad | Harper Conservatives are not there for you

JULIAN ASSANGE ON TPP

"It is mostly not about trade ... Only 5 of the 29 Chapters are about traditional trade."

The others are about regulating the internet, and what information internet service providers have to collect, they have to hand it over to companies under certain circumstances, the regulation of labor conditions, regulating the way you can favor local industry, regulating the hospital, health care system, privatization of hospitals, so essentially every aspect of a modern economy, even banking services are in the TPP.

So that is erecting and embedding new ultramodern neoliberal structure over U.S. law and the laws of other countries. And putting it in treaty form.

By putting it in a treaty form, there are 14 countries involved, that means it is very hard to overturn, so if there is a desire, a democratic desire to do it on a different path. For example, to introduce more public transport. Then you can’t easily change the TPP treaty, because you have to go back to the other nations involved.

What if, for example, the government or a state government decides it wants to build a hospital somewhere, and there is a private hospital has been erected nearby.

Well the TPP gives the constructor of the private hospital the right to sue the government over the expect loss, the loss in expected future profits. This is an expected future loss, this is not an actual loss that has been sustained, this is a claim about the future.

Governments can be sued over free trade treaties. For example, Togo, Australia, Uruguay are all being sued by tobacco company Phillip Morris to prevent them from introducing health warnings on cigarette packaging...

TPP -- Our Worst Nightmare

The Trans Pacific Partnership is our worst nightmare. It will affect everything from GMOs and labeling, food safety, environmental issues, public health, jobs, the Internet and much more and will give nearly unlimited power to the big corporations. 

TPP - Our Medicines

Time is running out to change a trade deal that could jeopardize people's access to affordable medicines

TPP would restrict access to generic medicines, making life-saving treatments unaffordable to millions.

TPP would give pharmaceutical companies longer monopolies over brand name drugs. Companies would be able to charge high prices for longer periods of time. And it would be much harder for generic companies to produce cheaper drugs that are vital to people’s health.

How much damage has to be done before people will finally start waking up?

Musings #1

A good relationship is with someone who knows all your insecurities and imperfections but still loves you for who you are.

Travel. As much as you can. As far as you can. As long as you can. Life’s not meant to be lived in one place.

The two hardest things in life are hello for the first time and goodbye for the last.

Be proud of yourself for how far you have come, and never stop pushing to be the best you can be.

When you remember a past event, you are actually remembering the last time you remembered it, not the event itself.

Don't be afraid of change. You may end up losing something good, but you will probably end up gaining something better.

80% of people remain quiet even when they really want to say something in order to avoid an argument with someone they care about.

Never blame anyone in your life. Good people bring you happiness, bad people bring you experience.

Psychology fact: The people who smile, laugh and joke around the most are usually the unhappiest.

People who get mad at each other over silly things, are usually the ones who care about each other the most

VOLTAIRE quotes

No Enbridge .... Keep B.C. Beautiful

Pope Francis strikes again

Pope Francis: 'Many powerful people don't want peace because they live off war'

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/05/11/1384007/-Pope-Francis-Many-powerful-people-don-t-want-peace-because-they-live-off-war

Smedley Butler War is a Racket

War is a Racket by Smedley Butler

5 Things To Know About Patrick Brown

Not Exactly A Newcomer

Brown is a three-time MP representing the Ontario riding of Barrie. He was first elected to the House of Commons in 2006.

Before running for federal office, he served as a city councillor in Barrie. He was first elected to council at the age of 22.

Avid Hockey Player

Brown is the popular host of "Hockey Night in Barrie." His charity tournament for the Royal Victoria Hospital has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars and featured Hockey Night in Canada's Don Cherry and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Also, he's been endorsed by Wayne Gretzky.


He's Friends With India's PM

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi refers to Brown as “Patrick Bhai” – or brother, according to The Globe and Mail.

Brown has been to India more than a dozen times, according to TVO's Steve Paikin.

He's A 'Pragmatic Conservative'

Speaking on CBC's Metro Morning, Brown said that he would support good ideas, regardless of which party they come from. 

"This gang that ran the party, they came out and voted against the last budget without even seeing it. And my philosophy is this: there's no monopoly on a good idea," he said.

Double-Duty

While campaigning for the Ontario PC leadership, Brown kept his federal seat.

Brown's campaign communications director told CBC that since Confederation, only 35 MPs have run for a provincial party leadership without stepping down from the House of Commons, including Jean Charest, Brian Tobin, Catherine Callbeck and Bob Rae.

Highlights From Federal Budget 2015

A balanced budget
The budget is balanced, with a projected surplus of $1.4 billion this year, increasing to $4.8 billion in 2019-20.

...But a smaller cushion going forward
The federal contingency fund drops to $1 billion in 2015-16, returning to $3 billion by 2019.

Tax-Free Savings Accounts
As expected, the budget increases the annual contribution limit on TFSAs to $10,000 from $5,500.

For households...
The budget extends compassionate-care benefits under the employment insurance system from six weeks to six months for Canadians caring for gravely ill family members.

For seniors...
The budget changes the rules governing registered retirement income funds, or RRIFs, to allow seniors to preserve their retirement nest eggs for longer.

For small business...
The small business tax rate drops from 11 per cent to 9 per cent by 2019.

For the auto industry...
The budget provides up to $100 million over five years to foster innovation among Canadian automotive parts suppliers.

Cash from GM stock sale
The sale of the government's General Motors shares, purchased in 2009 as part of an effort to help the auto industry weather the storm in the wake of the 2008 recession, generated a net gain of $2.1 billion.

The Military
The 2015 budget provides an additional $11.8 billion for the Canadian military over 10 years, starting in 2017.

It also provides up to $360.3 million for the extended and expanded mission against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and $7.1 million for the recently announced military training mission in Ukraine.

Plus, $23 million over four years to upgrade security at Canada's military bases.

National security
The budget provides $292.6 million over five years for the RCMP, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to fight terrorism and enforce the government's new anti-terror law.

It also provides $12.5 million over five years, followed by an additional $2.5 million a year, for the Security Intelligence Review Committee, which oversees CSIS.

Parliament Hill security
The budget provides $60.4 million over three years to buttress Parliament Hill security, $27 million over give years for tighter security at federal court and registry offices, and $10 million over five years for Ottawa police.

Cybersecurity
The budget provides $58 million over five years to better protect computer networks and critical infrastructure against cyberattacks, and $36.4 million over five years to address cybersecurity threats.

What Liberals Would Change About Bill C-51

The Liberal Party of Canada is supporting the federal government's controversial anti-terror legislation, but the party has called for several amendments.

Justin Trudeau has said that if the following changes are not made to Bill C-51 before it passes, Liberals will do so if they win the next federal election.

OVERSIGHT
Creation of a national security committee of parliamentarians with up to six MPs and three senators

SUNSET CLAUSES
Expiry of certain provisions after three years, unless Parliament decides to renew them.

REVIEW
A comprehensive parliamentary review of the bill after three years.

PROTECTING PROTEST RIGHTS
Removal of the word "lawful'' from a section that states the bill's information-sharing provisions do not apply to "lawful advocacy, protest, dissent and artistic expression.''

PROTECTING CHARTER RIGHTS
A guarantee that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service's new disruptive powers would not violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

WATCHDOG REPORT
An annual report from the privacy commissioner on information-sharing conducted under the law.

7 Ways Boomers Will Change The Food Industry

Waning Influence

Boomers' influence will start to wane as incomes slide and households shrink.

A Trend Towards Fresh And Healthy

Fresh and healthy items will continue to gain importance, as will products that help with specific dietary needs that result from growing older

Community Ties

Stronger ties to the community produce more desire for locally produced and more environmentally friendly products

Conservative Attitudes Towards Food Prices

Boomers, however, seem much less willing to pay up for sought-after attributes

Traditional Brands And Supermarkets

Baby Boomers like their traditional brands and traditional supermarkets

Shopping Conventionally

Smaller Package Sizes

Aging will drive Boomers to smaller package sizes and magnify health/wellness  and fresh trends

Income levels significantly influence Baby Boomer purchasing behavior

Harper - CUBA

Martin Luther King Jr Quotes: Peace and War

7 Reasons The Cuba Embargo Needs To Go

The rest of the world hates it

The United Nations has voted for 22 years in a row to condemn the Cuban embargo in lopsided votes. Last year only Israel and the United States itself voted against the resolution.

UN General Assembly renews call for end to US embargo against Cuba


It's ineffective

The idea behind the embargo is to topple the Communist government. More than five decades later, the policy has led to the overthrow of zero out of two Cuban heads of state.


It's expensive

The embargo on Cuba doesn't just hurt the Cuban economy -- it costs U.S. businesses as well. The United States loses out on $1.2 billion in forfeited earnings from lost trade with Cuba annually, according to the Harvard Political Review.

From the Archives: Reexamining the Cuban Embargo 


It's undemocratic

A poll by the Atlantic Council, a non-partisan think tank, found that a solid majority of Americans favors normalizing relations with Cuba. You'd never guess by looking at the behavior of the U.S. government.


Cuba isn't a threat

The idea behind the embargo emanates in part from the Cold War-era notion that a Soviet-aligned government 90 miles off the coast posed a grave security threat. That may have been true during the days of the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, but it's tough to make a reasonable case that Cuba poses a threat to the world's most massive military machine today.


It targets the wrong people

The embargo aims to cower the Cuban government into submission by engendering resentment among a cash-starved populace. If one takes the U.S. government at its word that it aims to free a country from an oppressive government, why punish the people you're supposedly trying to help?



Its time has passed

While it's up for debate whether the embargo was ever a smart policy, today it's clearly anachronistic. The United States now does business with China, Vietnam and Russia, but not Cuba. The policy, first partially implemented in 1960, has survived 11 U.S. presidents with nothing to show. Give it a rest.


The U.S. and Cuba have normalized relations

With the United States and Cuba normalizing diplomatic relations for the first time since 1961, maintaining a trade embargo has ceased to make any logical sense. Get with the times, Congress.


  

College : Go chase your dreams

Harper: Beating the Drums for the Next War

Pope Francis asks us to...

Pope Francis asks us to elect politicians who care about

the poor people instead of the wealthy

Meanwhile in Harpo land

The Raging Grannies - Bill C51

The Raging Grannies have come out too. These lovely ladies are considered 'extremists' by the RCMP. 

Julian Assange Quotes

Don't let politicians manipulate you

Politics of fear

Canadian Politics of Fear

Rafe Mair: How Quickly Politics of Fear Could Transform Canada 

Harper's Police State Law

Harper doesn't support our soldiers

What did Steve do?

Blaney : The Yes minister

The Yes minister: Can Steven Blaney stand up to the boss he loves?

MORE than 1186 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women

In the very words of the prime minister: "… it isn't really high on our radar, to be honest."

There are more than 1186 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. 

This post is pinned as a memorial and reminder

describing them as legal fees

Harper carefully avoids bribery activity by describing them as legal fees:  ... Or life insurance

Non-voters outnumbered

The divide on Bill C-51

Harper Record : Job Loss

“Canada has lost nearly 400,000 manufacturing jobs since Harper took over. It’s time for change, yet the Liberals have no plan to support job creation” said Nathan Cullen

Source:  Conservative auto sector promises are too little too late