Herald Column: Principle or Bruised Ego?

This week's Calgary Herald column from yours truly looks at Guy Boutilier's turfing from the Tory caucus and what it represents: 

For all I know, he is motivated solely by concern for the residents of his riding and given the punishment meted out, it's hard to see this as a politician trying to advance his career. Frankly, Boutilier may be on solid ground, however forcefully he chooses to make his case. Clearly, he has widespread support in his riding.

And really, who am I, a talk show host and columnist, to question someone who went to Harvard-- with Barack Obama, no less. Well, not really with Obama per se, but they were there at the same time and may very well have passed each other in the hall at some point. I've never even visited Harvard and cannot say that I've ever been anywhere near Obama. Boutilier 2, me 0. (Although, I do find it odd that in the context of a discussion on long-term care in the Fort McMurray region, we would be confronted with information about Boutilier's alma mater and his former classmates. I would find myself much more sympathetic to Boutilier's plight had he not gone to such pains to remind us of his glorious CV.)

Yes, MLAs ought to stand up for their ridings and their constituents. Yes, politicians should be free to speak their minds. Yes, Premier Ed Stelmach appears both petty and ruthless in his handling of this matter.

But those touting the Boutilier-as-martyr narrative should consider the following question: Would Boutilier have so vocally championed this cause if he were a member of Stelmach's cabinet?

Further to that: Does Boutilier believe he ought to be in cabinet? The answer to the second question is quite obvious--plainly implied in the following quote, "If the premier doesn't want to have a guy who graduated from Harvard with Barack Obama, that's fine."

Not only does that reveal a desire to be a cabinet minister--as he once was --it also suggests Boutilier may have been a little more willing to bite his tongue if only such a post had been offered in the first place.

Furthermore, if Boutilier were premier, how would he have handled the
matter?

 

(...)

 

Perhaps this is all symptomatic of a deeper problem. What truly spurs people into seeking elected office in the first place? I suppose some ego must be a prerequisite if one is to thrive in the political arena, but the accumulation of such haughtiness can often make politics unbearable.

None of this suggests Boutilier should shy away from standing up for what he thinks is right: It's crucial for democracy to have politicians voicing what's truly in their hearts.

It's depressing, though, that it so often takes bruised egos to provide the necessary motivation.

 

 

 

The rest here.

Was Diane Ablonczy Thrown Under a Bus?

I've always had a lot of respect for Diane Ablonczy. She's a hard-working MP and, at least in my dealings with her,  has always been very accessible and straightforward.

 

So I find it concerning that she's apparently been rapped on the knuckles over funding for Toronto's Gay Pride Parade:

Controversy erupted Monday amid suggestions federal Tourism Minister Diane Ablonczy was pulled from a key file weeks after granting $400,000 to Pride Week from the -Marquee Tourism Events Program.

The $100-million Marquee program was quietly moved to Industry Minister Tony Clement two weeks ago.

 

(...)
The $397,500 awarded to Pride was used to improve access for disabled people, infrastructure spending and to help bring artist Kelly Rowland to perform.

(...)

Saskatchewan Tory MP Brad Trost criticized the grant, telling a conservative website it was an "isolated decision" that did not sit well with a number of Tories. He also hinted Ablonczy was yanked from the file as a result.

Clement's office insists the move was not due to the grant.

And the director of another of Canada's premier gay and lesbian festivals said yesterday she has received even more support since the Tories took power.

UPDATE: Trost has more to say.

 

Maclean's magazine's Kady O'Malley joined us to discuss this controversy - you can listen to that interview via the player at right and read more of her coverage here.

 

Meanwhile, rather than address the matter head-on, the government is deflecting: 

The federal cabinet minister now responsible for giving Pride Week any new money said the government is reviewing the program to see what "value for money" it gives taxpayers.

Industry Minister Tony Clement told reporters that it's "appropriate" to review the Marquee Tourism Events Program after its first year, a review he suggested had nothing to do with its controversial sponsorship of Toronto's gay pride parade.

 

 

Well, that's all well and good, but it a) does not address whether Ablonczy was indeed admonished, and b) is all after the fact: the millions have already been spent. If the government wants to have a discussion about whether we need funds like this is the first place, then great. If the government believes that we should fund tourism events, but just not gay ones, then they should stand up and say so.

 

Yes, there may be nudity in the Toronto gay pride parade, but there's likely much nudity to be encountered at the Toronto International Film Festival, which received millions from this tourism fund. In fact, as David Akin details, there are several gay events which have received funding from this government.

 

Governments are not obligated to fiund every event under the sun. It can be a slippery slope, however, when governments are empowered to revoke funding for "offensive" events. "Offensive", of course, is in the eye of the beholder - a Liberal or NDP government might have a very different view of what's "offensive" and the social conservatives demanding such an approach of this government are being rather short-sighted.

 

Former MP Monte Solberg sums it up well: 

So you can either scrap all grants for all parades, or you can fund the thing like you always have and devote your efforts to fixing the three or four other things that really do make a difference, none of which involves parades, costumes and nudity.

My ideal is to let everyone raise their own money to hold their parades and the police can be there to make sure that most of the people, keep on most of their clothes most of the time. That's never been a problem at the Rodeo Day parade in my town but then again it's usually cold in Alberta at the beginning of June.

Whatever. The bottomline is that after all the years Diane has contributed to building the conservative movement in Canada she deserves better then to be ratted out by a colleague on an issue that is a complete loser for the party.

Herald Column: Protecting Bountiful's Children

This week's Calgary Herald column from yours truly offers a suggestion to politicians eager to show their resolve in protecting children from sexual predators: apply our existing laws: 

Promising to get tough on hypothetical future offenders provides no excuse for inaction on current ones.

 

An affidavit filed last week in B. C. Supreme Court would seem to confirm that indeed we have failed to act. The Criminal Code is quite clear on the parameters of sexual exploitation, yet clear violations of the law are spelled out in a court document merely for informational purposes.

 

The affidavit contains information regarding Winston Blackmore, who, along with James Oler, has been charged with polygamy. The two men are leaders in the fundamentalist polygamous cult based in Bountiful, B. C.

 

The affidavit informs us that of the 25 wives taken by Blackmore, nine of them were under age; of those, four were just 15 when they married the much older Blackmore. In fact, one of those 15-year old brides gave birth to a child the following year, which should provide even further proof of the sexual nature of the relationships.

 

There may be solace in that these men could be jailed anyway -- a polygamy conviction brings with it a potential five-year sentence.

 

It is a charge, however, that makes no pretence of protecting children: it makes no distinction between a 15-year-old girl and a 35-year-old woman. Whether we need laws to protect consenting adults from one another is debatable, but it is most egregious that our top priority in this instance is not the children of Bountiful.

 

The problem is clearly not the law itself. Just recently we saw a Calgary teacher plead guilty to a charge of sexual exploitation over a relationship with a student that turned sexual when the girl was 15.

 

We will find out later this month just how long Blaine Harrison will spend in jail for his crime, but it is a glaring blight on the system that one man will be sent to jail for a crime being flagrantly committed elsewhere in this very country.

Happy Canada Day, CAF Style

UPDATED & BUMPED: Damage control: 

The Canadian Arab Federation moved to distance itself from one of its own executives who resigned yesterday after he apparently posted "F--- Canada Day" on his Facebook page, called Canada a "genocidal state," and said he "couldn't be more ashamed to be Canadian."

The tirade on Omar Shaban's profile stirred up a firestorm of controversy and put CAF leaders in damage-control mode as they were quick to condemn the posting on the social networking site.

Just after 8:30 last night, Shaban, 23, resigned his post as the CAF's executive vice-president for Western Canada, CAF national president Khaled Mouammar confirmed.

"There was a big outcry from our member organizations and it was felt that he had to correct that," Mouammar said. "He decided that the best thing for him to do was to resign."

 

Here's the CAF's news release (PDF). More coverage from BCF here. UPDATE: The Calgary Herald weighs in, too

 

 

ORIGINAL POST: The Canadian Arab Federation describes itself as being committed to: 

1. The protection of civil liberties and the equality of human rights;
2. Combating racism and hate in all of its forms;
3. Working with all politicians and all levels of government on issues of importance to Canadian Arabs to promote community empowerment through civic participation;
4. Assuring the accurate representation of Arabs in the media, and in all areas of civil society;
5. A strong, vibrant multicultural Canada.

 

They seem to have left off #6 - insulting and denegrating Canadians: 

As the rest of Canada celebrates the nation’s 142nd birthday today, a Vice President of the Canadian Arab Federation has labelled the country a “genocidal state” and the described its national day as “F**k Canada Day.”

Omar Shaban, who lives in Vancouver, BC made these comments on his Facebook page, declaring, “It’s finally Canada Day ... Couldn't be more ashamed to be Canadian.”

Yesterday, the Facebook status of the CAF vice president welcomed July 1, 2009 with the slogan, “Happy Genocide Day Canada.”

 

Thanks to Tarek Fatah for catching this. Let's not forget, there was an actual controversy over whether the federal government should give taxpayer dollars to this organization. I would certainly hope that discussion is now closed.

 

I suppose I shouldn't really be surprised by this, given all the reasons I've had to write about the Canadian Arab Federation. But this is truly shameful.

 

UPDATE: Barbara Kay weighs in.