Will African Union step up?

Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga has urged the African Union to suspend Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe until he allows free and fair elections.

The call came as Zimbabwe's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) opposition said the country faced a constitutional crisis. The situation in Zimbabwe overshadowed the African Union summit in Egypt.

**********

UPDATE: Question asked... and answered

"Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe has been warmly welcomed at a summit of African leaders, despite international concerns about the legitimacy of his re-election."

Silly me.

**********

LAST WORD: Going with the African solution

Presidential spokesman George Charamba had harsh words for Western pressure: “They can go hang. They can go and hang a thousand times.”

Yeah... we're all shocked.

*

I guess it's smarter...

...than cutting your house in half with a chainsaw.

-- PERTH, Australia -- A man who auctioned his life - his house, his car, his job, even his friends - on eBay said Monday he is disappointed with the selling price: almost $384,000.

Ian Usher, a British immigrant to Australia, put everything he owned, as well as introductions to his friends, on the online auction site after a painful breakup with his wife prompted him to want a fresh start.

*

Not the Queen's English

Obviously, another blatant case of not enough "social workers."

-- LONDON -- A British high school student has received credit for writing nothing but a two-word expletive on an exam paper because the phrase expressed meaning and was spelled correctly.

These days, in this uber-enlightened age, there is apparently no such thing as a bad boy.

"The example cited was unique in the experience of the senior examiner concerned and was used in a pre-training session to emphasize the importance of adhering to the mark scheme: i.e. if a candidate makes any sort of response to a question then it must be at least given consideration to be awarded a mark."

**********

RELATED: Speaking of stiff... er... upper lip

-- LONDON -- Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in Britons aged over 45 has more than doubled in less than a decade, a report said Monday, blaming in part Internet dating and drugs that counter erectile dysfunction.

Men in the 55-59 age bracket were more likely to have an STD than anyone else, while rates were highest in women aged 45 to 54, the study published in the Sexually Transmitted Infections magazine said.

They said that as people with more liberal sexual attitudes got older, the situation was likely to get worse.

**********

LAST WORD: It's not all bad news

Check out Britain's answer to Al Gore...

-- LONDON -- Reports out of London say Prince Charles' income grew last year even as his carbon footprint shrank, thanks in part to an Aston Martin that runs on a byproduct of wine.

For domestic travel, the prince's Jaguars, Audi and Range Rover now run entirely on biodiesel made from used cooking oil, and his 38-year-old Aston Martin is fuelled by bioethanol from surplus wine.

All that on an annual income of only 32 million dollars.

Simply amazing.

*

Ontario Liberals celebrate...

...propping up notorious Star Chamber tribunals...

-- TORONTO -- Ontario residents filing human-rights complaints will have faster service and access to free legal support as a result of changes to the province's Human Rights Code taking effect Monday.

“We're bringing human-rights protection into the 21st century,” Attorney-General Chris Bentley said. “We're making sure that the rights outlined in the code actually have the strong public protection they require.”

The changes to the code streamline the process for individuals who feel they have been discriminated against, Mr. Bentley said. “They're going to have the type of legal support that they've never had before.”

Pretty exciting news indeed, for the Sockpuppet 3 and their ilk. The Liberals have really decided to pump up the jam.

I mean, for example, how much mental anguish can be healed for a mere 10 gees?

The legislation also removes a $10,000 cap on awards for “mental anguish” caused by discrimination. The law also outlines that individuals can now be compensated for injury to dignity, feelings and self-respect.

*

The thing is, Ujjal...

I'm pretty sure Casey and Finnegan had a prior commitment...

-- OTTAWA -- Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day has favoured former police and corrections officers for new appointments to the National Parole Board since the Harper government took office in 2006, government records show.

Of the 36 new members Mr. Day has named to the board since he became minister that year, 23 are retired police officers or former federal and provincial corrections staff.

Yeah... I'm shocked.

Turns out the Conservative Party isn't gonna blindly meander down the "flood the cities with social workers" garden path espoused by the fiberals.

Mr. Day has also re-appointed a further four retired police officers and four former corrections administrators who were named to the parole board by Ms. McLellan and previous Liberal ministers.

Just another reason why, folks.

(h/t reader rich)

Crack CTV reporting...

...reveals not-so-secret police death squad... in Aylmer, Ontario, correction, Quebec...

Robert LeClair told CTV Ottawa that it was his brother David who was shot by police Saturday morning. LeClair said police showed up at his brother's door, allegedly to investigate a complaint filed by David's girlfriend. "He said, 'You're under arrest now.' He took out his pepper spray, sprayed, and then took out his black stick, hitting him with it in the house," said LeClair.

LeClair said the officer then led David outside and told him to lie on the ground. When David refused, the officer took out his gun and threatened to shoot him.

When David still refused, LeClair said the officer shot his brother three times in the side.

Another family member places the shooting back inside the house.

"My brother-in-law was on the floor, shot three times. The cop was still there, he had the gun in his holster but his hand was on it, he didn't want to let it go," said Robert Pombert, the alleged victim's brother-in-law.

Yeah... I bet that's exactly how it happened... both times.

**********

UPDATE: The story just keeps getting better

Apparently, the cop who murdered sonny... also clubbed 73 year-old mom... who was, strangely enough, looking pretty hearty and unbruised during her subsequent tv interviews.

Mrs. Leclair, 73, said police had searched the home in the past -- although she referred to it as "harassment."

At least two officers "USUALLY SHOWED UP AT THE HOUSE" to calm Mr. Leclair down and defuse the situation if necessary, his family said.

Mr. LeClair was, as they say... "known to police."

**********

UPDATE2: It just continues to get better & better

Apparently Officer Mad Max wasn't content to just club Mom...

“He put a gun to her head and said you’re going to get it next. He was screaming at the top of his lungs,” said Robert LeClair.

I guess Mommy Dearest was just too traumatized to mention that herself... in the CTV interview last night.

Good thing the media mentioned David LeClair was a roofer... I was beginning to think this guy was a Buddhist monk.

**********

WELCOME, YET AGAIN, READERS OF CANADIAN CYNIC

So what kind of dumbstick actually falls for an over the top media feeding frenzy like we have here?

Hey, CC... how you doing with those monsters under your bed?

That's what's really hilarious.

BOO!

**********

UPDATE3: The Ottawa Citizen is now reporting...

Mr. LeClair's sister-in-law apparently snapped pictures of him as he lay there dying.

Two questions come to mind.

How many people actually live in this house... and what kind of freak... instead of summoning help, or offering first-aid... takes pictures of a family member who is lying on the ground bleeding to death?

**********

LAST WORD: Family now blaming cops...

...for not having tasers...

David LeClair would be alive today if the Gatineau cop who shot him had a stun gun, the victim's sister-in-law charged yesterday.

*

“Excuse me,” he said.

"You can't say those words. Those words are illegal.”

“What words?” I asked, bewildered, given that by then I'd said probably 2,000 words.

“Suicide bombing,” he whispered.

*

Still not smart enough...

To piss outside that legendary "Big Tent"...

"Chretien's supporters say their guy has been utterly vindicated, and they hint broadly that Paul Martin owes his former boss a big, fat apology."

"Martin's people say nuts to that -- their hero has nothing to apologize for. Chretien's the one who should be sorry."

No wonder poor Steffi can't seem to get anywhere.

He's too busy lookin' over his shoulder.

*

I'm from the government...

...I'm here to save you...

“I drive a little dinky car,” she said. “Yes, OK, I'm doing some damage, but it's not a fleet of limousines and it's not cross-country flights.”

**********

RELATED: Is the sky really falling?

And, more to the point, what's with all the "death camp" imagery?

Dr. Hansen is overfond of the specious and chilling analogy: He has written of the “crashing glaciers serving as a Krystal Nacht” and, although he later repented of the metaphor, compared coal trains to “death trains – no less gruesome than if they were boxcars headed to crematoria, loaded with uncountable irreplaceable species.”

Yessirree... the progressive, compassionate left.

*

Don't look at me...

I'd set myself on fire... before I ever, ever voted for one of these guys...

Public housing tenants who fire guns, deal drugs or assault neighbours shouldn't be evicted from Toronto's public housing projects, says provincial Housing Minister Jim Watson.

"If someone has been convicted of a crime we can't kick them out of public housing for that reason," Watson told the Sunday Sun.

Oh, please Mr. Hug-a-thug... do tell...

"Whether it's a serious crime involving a gun or a white collar crime, we don't have the luxury of simply telling that individual that they are not eligible for social housing.

He says Human Rights legislation and other relevant laws mean serious crimes do not equate to automatic eviction, also conceding the system is "never perfect."

Yeah, I know... I just about threw up.

Your Liberal party in action.

*

"As Woody Allen would say..."

"...it was a travesty of a mockery of a sham."

*

Those darn kids, huh?

The inevitable result of all the liberal yip-yap about flooding cities with social workers to solve all our problems... you know, like safe-injection sites and legalising drugs...

Toronto police officers seized more than $126,000 in illegal drugs and charged two men with trafficking during a raid on a fraternity house near the University of Toronto late Friday.

Uniform and plainclothes officers had to force their way into the Delta Kappa Epsilon Alpha Phi house when the occupants refused to answer the door, police said. Some tried to escape out a back door but were nabbed by officers waiting outside.

Police seized more than $126,000-worth of Ketamine and cocaine as well as a psilocybin, better known as "magic mushroom."

**********

UPDATE: Scummy details float to the surface

The fraternity seeks to add something extra to the U of T experience, said the website: "It is accurate to say that the social and personal skills learned here are not taught in class. `Deke' helps sculpt well-rounded gentlemen, scholars, and jolly good fellows."

Yong Park, 21, a current student at U of T, faces drug possession charges. Wasseem Malleye, 29, a graduate of the university, is charged with drug and weapons offences. They appeared in court yesterday morning.

**********

LAST WORD: So much for "victimless" crime

York Regional Police are investigating the sudden death of a woman inside an all-ages rave club this morning.

Police were called to Club Rio on Woodbine Ave. in Markham after security guards found a 21-year-old woman lying unconscious in the club, at around 4:30 a.m. She wasn’t breathing and security guards could not find a pulse.

“She was left to die at the back of a club,” said Det. Const. Jim Woodcock, adding that she was frothing at the mouth when she was found.

*

Funny how everything he touches...

...just turns to shift...

The environment, last year's top issue, has been pushed to No. 3, with just 16 per cent of Canadians surveyed saying they now consider it their primary concern.

This shift could make it more difficult for Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion to sell the carbon-tax plan he unveiled last week, a complex scheme to cut greenhouse-gas emissions that will be the cornerstone of his party's platform in the next election.

**********

UPDATE: Not just "the West"

He's pissing off the whole country... one Premier at a time.

*

No word yet...

...on where the Liberals are with their "Same Slippery Silicone" legislation...

In his most recent book, "Love and Sex With Robots," Levy says human relationships with androids, humanoids, fembots, malebots, intelligent machines, Stepford wives, or any other name they may adopt, are "inevitable."

"If you want to, you can have a robot that is completely faithful, or you can have a robot that is programmed to be completely faithful so long as you're completely faithful, or a robot that strays every now and again."

"It just depends on what you want."

(h/t reader rich)

You ever notice...

...every single time these guys are on the pointy end of an ass-kickin'... suddenly, they're all about the negotiations...

“If the government thinks there is any issue to address, that should be resolved through talks, not by the use of force,” said Munsif Khan, spokesman for the Vice and Virtue Movement.

“We are ready for talks with the government.”

So, Munsif... last week you're sawing heads off folks... and now you're buckin' for a Nobel Peace Prize.

Funny how that works.

*

Do the Right Thing

Stephen Harper steps up... yet again.

-- OTTAWA -- Canada was set to impose diplomatic sanctions against Zimbabwe after Prime Minister Stephen Harper condemned what he called a “corrupted vote” in the African nation.

“Our government has condemned the corrupt vote in the strongest possible terms,” Mr. Harper told a meeting of B'nai Brith International.

He called the election process in Zimbabwe “an ugly perversion of democracy.”

*

Meet the dangerous folks...

...Mayor Super Dave Miller of Toronto wants to put out of business.

**********

RELATED: Tell me, Mr Mayor...

,,,which gun club did this guy belong to?

It all started over a minor insult that led to an argument, humiliating Doa Trong Nguyen in front of his girlfriend.

Twelve hours later, Nguyen walked into a Dundas St. W. karaoke bar and shot Sanh Duong at close range as he sat eating with his wife and seven friends.

*

Orwell was right

Some animals are "more equal" than others.

-- Fraser River, BC -- A federal program in 1998 that allowed a native-only commercial fishery a day ahead of the usual commercial fishing season in B.C. did not violate the charter rights of non-aboriginal fishermen, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled Friday.

The Supreme Court ruling upheld the 2004 convictions of more than 50 non-native B.C. fishermen who took part in a protest fishery during a prohibited period.

*

Wanna make a difference...

...and actually save lives? Then forget about the stupid tasers... and read on...

A project called the World Community Grid relies on thousands of individual volunteers who donate their computers' idle time to a variety of research projects; in addition to cancer research, they include improving rice crop yields, discovering dengue fever drugs, climate modelling in Africa and designing anti-HIV drugs.

*

I hope you're sitting down...

...because it's a victory for "free speech"... in British Columbia.

-- OTTAWA -- Freedom of expression requires that the media be capable of publishing provocative stories and comments without living in constant fear of lawsuits for libel and defamation, the Supreme Court of Canada said Friday.

In an 8-1 ruling that set out to modernize libel law and the defence of fair comment, the court found that a controversial B.C. broadcaster – Rafe Mair – did not libel a Christian-values advocate, Kari Simpson.

“Public controversy can be a rough trade, and the law needs to accommodate its requirements.”

*

Coming soon to CBC

The exciting premiere of CSI Deseronto...

"Looks like Shawn scared them shitless so they ran away, like the chickenshit drunken racists they are, which was his goal."

"He threw the spear at the truck to mark it for future identification. It worked."

Sure, that makes perfect sense... it's not like you could, you know... read the license plate.

Another triumph for ancient Mohawk wisdom.

**********

UPDATE: Brant found guilty, then set free

Mohawk protest leader Shawn Brant was found guilty on two criminal charges Thursday at the close of a trial that heard details of an intense roadside confrontation between a Napanee family and native protesters near Deseronto.

After two days of evidence into the matter -- which centred around an April 21 incident near the corner of Bells and Lower Slash roads -- Justice Stephen Hunter said he found "sufficient evidence" to convict Brant, 44, of carrying a dangerous weapon and breaching court-imposed conditions.

Hmmmm... you've got previous criminal convictions... you're, in fact... out on bail... and you throw a spear at someone.

That's pretty serious shit, right?

Apparently not if you're aboriginal.

Brant was also given one year of probation with strict terms, including conditions that he is not to participate in or plan protests. However, he is permitted to attend meeting of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte band council or activities "initiated by police services."

In addition, Brant was given a five-year weapons prohibition, but "will be permitted to have traditional native fishing (equipment) and will be allowed to hunt," using firearms while on the reserve, said Hunter.

Of course, to get a walk like this... there obviously must be mitigating circumstances...

Defence counsel Howard Morton, who early in the proceedings leveled accusations that provincial police were looking for any way to pin charges on his client, called no evidence or witnesses to bolster his case during the trial.

Oops.

*

Flea on tail... attempts to Wag the Dog

With a little bit of help from the Toronto Star.

-- MONTREAL -- Suspected terrorist Adil Charkaoui is calling on Ottawa to force CSIS to be more transparent with its evidence after the Supreme Court ruled today that the spy service breached his rights.

Charkaoui hailed the decision as a victory that should prompt changes to the way CSIS deals with terrorist threats.

Hey, Adil... I never knew you had mad policy skillz.

I'm thinking I smell NDP candidacy.

**********

RELATED: Speaking of Wag the Dog

POLICE sniffer dogs trained to spot terrorists at railway stations may no longer come into contact with Muslim passengers – after complaints that it is against the suspects’ religion.

A report for the Transport Department has raised the prospect that the animals should only touch passengers’ luggage because it is considered “more acceptable”.

British Transport Police last night insisted it would still use sniffer dogs – which are trained to detect explosives – with any passengers regardless of faith, but handlers would remain aware of “cultural sensitivities”.

The good news here is that this leaves much more time to sniff out those diabolical 70 year-old nuns.

**********

LAST WORD:

Dear Britain,

The more you apologize for stupid shit like this, the more you will be apologizing in the future for ever more innocuous “offenses.”

You will never be done with it, you will never be able to satisfy these people until you utterly BEND TO THEIR WILL, and you will apologize yourselves right into cultural oblivion...

*

More hurtful words

Did you hear the one about the obnoxious, whiny, drunken... ahhhhh, never mind...

**********

UPDATE: Ezra has the latest

"Finally, we have some top talent looking into the matter of what is or isn't funny. Forget about Jerry Seinfeld or Jay Leno; we've got the dour sourpusses at the HRCs on the file."

"Once they come up with the magic recipe, wannabe comedians around the world will simply have to follow the instructions of the HRCs, and -- presto! -- the laughs will follow."

"At least that's the logic of a government agency that seeks to be the arbiter of what is or isn't funny."

And you've gotta love it when he gets right down to the nitty-gritty...

If a lesbian tells a joke about lesbians, and it's not funny, do you still have to laugh?

"If you don't, is that discrimination?"

Gotta love it.

*

Congratulations Fenris Badwulf...

...on your new career opportunity.

*

Don't fool yourself

This ruling wasn't about guns. It was about personal freedoms... and the rights of law-abiding citizens.

And it's especially interesting to note where the two presidential hopefuls shake out here.

-- WASHINGTON -- John McCain welcomed a Supreme Court decision invalidating a District of Columbia handgun ban. Barack Obama sought to straddle the subject by saying he favors an individual's right to bear firearms as well as a government's right to regulate them.

McCain, to his credit, doesn't mince words.

"This ruling does not mark the end of our struggle against those who seek to limit the rights of law-abiding citizens. We must always remain vigilant in defense of our freedoms."

Obama, on the other hand, and not for the first time... tries to spin this thing both ways.

In other instances, Obama refused to articulate a position when asked whether he thought the D.C. ban was constitutional.

The campaign would not answer directly Thursday when asked whether the candidate agreed with the court that the D.C. ban was unconstitutional, simply pointing back to his statement.

I happen to believe that, in a democracy, the rights of law-abiding citizens are way up near the top of the page.

Maybe Barack Obama should stop trying to play both sides of the street... and decide whether that's important to him as well.

**********

UPDATE: CTV does it again

Just watched Lloyd and company, during a report on this very story... (a handgun ban in Washington, DC)... run a montage of images of various persons noisily firing machine guns.

How's that for journalistic integrity?

**********

LAST WORD: What's up with the Supremes?

The Supreme Court Second Amendment decision comes on the heels of decisions to allow enemy combatants access to the American legal system and striking down death penalties for child rapists.

The decisions exemplify the fault lines in American political opinion and how they are played out in the courts.

*

Just a little off the top, huh?

Gotta say... I get queasy just thinkin' about this.

-- ZURICH, Switzerland -- A Swiss court has found the Somali-born parents of a teenage girl guilty of arranging the removal of their daughter's clitoris.

It is the first time a court in Switzerland has ruled on female circumcision.

The court in Zurich handed the parents each a two-year suspended prison sentence and ordered them to pay their daughter compensation to be determined later.

A suspended sentence.

That'll teach 'em.

**********

RELATED: Meanwhile, back in the GTA

"But in a collective honour-based society, if one person loses his or her honour, then the whole family, clan or village loses its honour, too."

*

While Canada...

...works on banning "hurtful words"... the United States of America reaffirms the constitutional right of the citizenry to "armed self-defense."

-- Bloomberg -- A divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution protects individual gun rights, striking down the District of Columbia's handgun ban and raising election- year questions about weapons restrictions elsewhere.

The 5-4 ruling resolves a constitutional question that had lurked for two centuries.

The majority justices said they had "no doubt, on the basis of both text and history, that the Second Amendment conferred an individual right to keep and bear arms."

Speaking as someone who has actually possessed a "concealed carry permit"... (no... of course not in Canada)... I applaud this decision.

And while the right to keep and bear arms does not currently exist in Canada... I would advise local junkies, burglars and other assorted miscreants to head for fuzzy-bunny Toronto to ply their trade.

In this neck of the woods... we fight back.

**********

UPDATE: Speaking of "hurtful words"

"Anyway, Kady O'Malley came up with her slim red BlackBerry in hand and told us the Canadian Human Rights Commission had dropped its complaint against Maclean's for the excerpt from Mark's book America Alone."

"Mark said he was disappointed, and joked that maybe he should appeal the decision."

*

Gotta watch that bias, huh Max?

I don't know if I can subscribe to the theory that justice is... or can even pretend to be... totally blind.

-- OTTAWA -- The Federal Court has struck down Justice John Gomery's 2005 finding that former prime minister Jean Chrétien bore some responsibility for the federal sponsorship scandal that rocked the Liberal government.

Justice Max Teitelbaum ruled Thursday there were indications of bias on the part of Gomery toward Chrétien during his commission of inquiry into the scheme, which resulted in $1.1 million of government sponsorship money being diverted to the Quebec wing of the Liberal party.

But hey... isn't bias a sword that cuts both ways?

Justice Max Teitelbaum effusively welcomed the now retired political heavy-weight.

"Before you are asked to be sworn in, Mr. Chrétien, on behalf of the court, I would like to welcome you here. The court truly appreciates you taking the time and making the effort to be here," the judge said. "You may have been given a copy of my judgment as to why I requested that you be here on a motion made by Samson First Nation peoples.

It's because of all you have done for this country as minister of Finance, I think, minister of Justice and, of course, minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development."

"So thank you, sir, for coming."

The prosecution rests.

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Finally , we have a Judge that confirms that Paul Martin and Jean Chretien were TOO stupid to know what went on under them during their reign of power."

*

Back to the good old days...

...of "No Irish need apply."

-- U.K. -- Equality minister Harriet Harman has set out plans to allow firms to discriminate in favour of female and ethnic minority job candidates.

She said firms should be able to choose a woman over a man of equal ability if they wanted to - or vice versa.

And, if your Granny ever harboured any fantasies about being a firefighter... there's good news there too...

The plans, which will be adopted first across England then Wales and Scotland, will also ban all age discrimination.

Setting out the plans in a Commons statement, Ms Harman said the proposed bill - due later this year - would "address the serious inequalities that still exist" in the UK.

The "serious inequalities"... unlike in, you know... the socialist paradise of Zimbabwe.

Good grief.

*

Reading, writing and...

...I sure hope this place doesn't train medical lab technicians...

The owner of a local private college is facing bribery charges for allegedly attempting to pay off a public official after the college was accused of granting fraudulent diplomas.

The Ministry alleges that money was offered to an official in exchange for a report that would have stated the college was in compliance with provincial standards.

Zhenxiang "Gordon" Yi, 45, was taken into custody on Friday, and has been charged with two counts of bribery. He is scheduled to appear in court on July 4.

*

Well... nice website and all...

...but is anybody actually keepin' an eye on those other... cough, cough... less agreeable guys?

*

Bernier begs to differ

In his 11-minute speech to a crowd of about 400, Mr. Bernier contradicted Ms. Couillard's claims that Mr. Bernier had known all along that in the 1990s she had a boyfriend and ex-husband tied to Quebec's Hells Angels.

“Did Ms. Couillard inform me of her past ties with people involved in organized crime? The answer is no. She did not inform, and no one else ever informed me, at any level."

*

No compromise from Mohawks

Sorry, Deseronto... aboriginals demand the Crown clear existing owners off the land....

Mohawk officials were told the government will not buy land from non-natives to ensure the Culbertson Tract -- a 923-acre parcel of land which the government agrees was never surrendered -- is returned to native control.

Instead, the government will offer money to allow the band to purchase tract properties if their owners willingly put them up for sale. The government is prepared to offer additional money as compensation for any land that can't ultimately be returned, Strahl said.

Apparently, though... that's not good enough.

Get ready for Caledonia... Part II.

*

Paging Taliban Jack

So, Jacko... you figure you know some secret that the Pakistani government just can't figure out?

-- South Waziristan -- Residents and local officials say that those murdered were among at least 27 members of the pro-government Bhittani tribe kidnapped by Taliban militants during a raid on the town of Jandola earlier this week.

District Coordination Officer Barkatullah Marwat told VOA by telephone that Taliban militants killed most of their captives and dumped their bodies just outside the town.

The rise in the extremist activities is occurring despite Pakistani government attempts to engage militants in talks to end the violence.

We're all ears.

*

Dear Mayor Miller

I was just wondering if you could tell me which skeet-shooting club... this gentleman belongs to.

-- TORONTO -- Parolee Andre Blair was on two separate bails -- one for possessing a semi-automatic handgun and another for drug-dealing -- when he committed the execution-style killing of Andrew Latouche.

In March 2006, Blair shot 28-year-old Latouche -- who was sitting in the front seat of a van -- four times from less than a foot away, striking him twice in the head and twice in the upper chest.

And it seems ol' Andre had been around the block a few times...

The jury never heard that Blair was on two different bails when he killed Latouche. In November 2004, he was sentenced to the equivalent of 45-months custody and had a weapons ban for a 2002 home invasion robbery while using a restricted or prohibited weapon.

So tell me, yer blondeness... you think taking guns away from, say... an Olympic target shooter... would'a slowed this guy down?

Myself... I'm gonna go with no.

**********

RELATED: And yet more "gangs and guns"

Four young people were shot by a gunman after an argument last night outside the Tim Hortons at Hwy. 8 and Dewitt Road. "I heard the gun six or seven times," siad Naim Morina, 22, of Ancaster.

He said one friend, Adam Rexha, was shot twice in the left arm and once in the right. Another, Agi Gashi, 21, was shot three times in the leg, he said. According to Morina, Gashi's girlfriend drove him to hospital. Marina said he did not know what the argument was about other than it was "some beef from a couple years ago."

Police say the gunman is a white man, five-foot-six to five-foot-nine. He has a slim build, crooked teeth and white hair. He was wearing a grey hoody. Police are looking for four others in the group.

Police added they were "dressed like gangsters."

Yeah... I'm shocked.

*

Make it so, Joe

Apparently... I mean, who knew... there are good guns and bad guns.

-- TORONTO -- The day after the city okayed a plan prohibiting shooting ranges, gun clubs and firearms promotion on city property, some Toronto officials were scrambling to fashion a compromise to protect the Sportsmen's Show.

Allowing the annual show, with its displays honouring the "shooting sports," to continue at city-owned Exhibition Place, argued Councillor David Shiner, would be inexcusable.

"We want to ban all guns, but the deputy mayor (Joe Pantalone) wants to support a show that highlights the sale of guns because it's at Exhibition Place?"

"We're being hypocritical here on council," Shiner said yesterday.

The deputy-mayor was quick to, er... return fire...

Pantalone insists the five-day show will go ahead in March 2009.

"In our opinion, anything we do to control guns locally will not compromise them because their show is basically kosher.

"There's no handguns, no rifles on the premises, no ammunition for either one of those. Those are facts," Pantalone said.

Of course, that's total horseshit.

In fact, there are rifles at the annual show.

Ray Sriubiskis of Canadian National Sportsmen's Shows, which runs the Toronto event, confirmed rifles are on display and for sale to qualified buyers.

Maybe they should reconsider banning stupidity within city limits.

**********

RELATED: They obviously don't read their own polls

"We asked whether cancelling the leases of two gun clubs that rent city-owned property would have an impact on gun violence. Here’s what you had to say...

*

So it looks as though...

...this years woodcutting, or as I like to think of it... chainsaw therapy... can finally begin in earnest.

This last week, for the first time since fall 07, I was able to get the truck all the way through the waterlogged spots out back... and enter the woods proper.

I've cleared the trees that have fallen across the road, thrown down grass seed on the raggedy patches and tried to figure out where I need to head next. There's another 100 meters or so to reach the back fenceline and some low spots to duke around, but I've got a pretty good idea where I need to push through.

It's always a little daunting figuring out which tree comes down next. Unless you're cutting deadwood, there's a real awareness that you're bringing an end to a living thing, that is perhaps even older than yourself. It's not a choice made lightly.

At the same time you have to keep your guard up... a man in the area was killed a couple of years back when the tree he was felling took a quicker, unexpected trajectory than he had figured. It's something to watch for... if the tree is rotten, or even cracked inside... it can shear off, windmill around and do some pretty ugly things to flesh and bone.

On a brighter note, lots of hoofprints out back, the deer have obviously not forsaken us. Mrs. Neo also found some fawn tracks on her daily constitutional. The dragonflies are out in force and there's a considerable frog population on both sides of the house.

And we still have our too-friendly solvent-sniffing groundhog... who has taken to hiding out in the engine compartments of our two vehicles.

A couple more days... and the boy is home from school for the summer.

All in all... a not unhackable existence.

*

If you're really concerned about...

...saving lives in Ontario, then tasers should be way, way down the list...

Premier Dalton McGuinty and the Liberal government are putting lives at risk by covering up the extent of the deadly C. difficile outbreak in Ontario hospitals, the province's opposition parties charged Tuesday.

There have been at least 264 deaths at seven Ontario hospitals since 2006 from C. difficile, a drug-resistant bacteria that spreads in health-care institutions.

So why are the McGuinty Liberals trying to play down this situation? Even the Ontario Ombudsman is concerned enough to want to get a piece of this.

Ombudsman Andre Marin asked for the power to investigate families' complaints about C. difficile deaths at Ontario hospitals in his annual report issued last week, and said his office "would have been all over" the outbreak much earlier on if he had the authority.

Marin, who called C. difficile a tragedy, questioned the government's hesitancy and suggested it was "trying to contain perhaps an embarrassing situation."

But that doesn't seem to concern the Premier and his political pals...

The government has rejected all calls for an inquiry, saying it learned enough from a coroner's review into C. difficile deaths in Sault Ste. Marie.

Health Minister David Caplan was not available Tuesday to comment on the C. difficile outbreak and the charges of a government cover-up.

I don't get it.

**********

RELATED: A question asked...

The father of an Ontario man who died in police custody after being hit by a stun gun says he is angry that a taser was used on his son.

"I'm mad ... Did they have to use that taser thing?" Noel Marreel asked yesterday.

And answered...

The father said his son had been in trouble with the law before. "He was not an easy child. He's been on drugs off and on since he was 16. You name it, I think he's tried them," he said.

"He'd be good for a while and the downward spiral would start. Then he'd be going to jail and I would be bailing him out."

*

Gracias, Senor Buzz

Mexico is riding a boom in small-car sales that has put the nation's vehicle production on track to pass Canada for the first time and become the second-largest vehicle manufacturer in North America this year.

There's more investment in small cars under way in Mexico. Ford Motor Co. will spend more than $3-billion (U.S.) in the biggest single automotive investment yet in the country, which will begin producing subcompact Ford Fiesta cars for North America in 2010.

GM is spending $650-million and hiring 2,000 workers to build its Chevrolet Aveo and Pontiac Wave subcompacts.

One major factor in Mexico's favour is labour costs, and the country is maintaining that edge with further wage reductions. Mexican workers agreed this month to a two-tier wage system that cuts hourly pay for newly hired workers to about half the current level of $4.50 an hour.

*

Another fuzzy-bunny...

...Toronto Star poll... goes horribly awry...

"Do you think cancelling the leases of two gun clubs that rent city-owned property will have an impact on street gun violence?"

**********

RELATED: Farmers, hunters, target shooters...

...totally off the hook... again.

A 40-year-old man has been charged in connection to the death of his father, Toronto's 27th homicide this year.

Donald Cuthbertson Jr. was arrested at his home on Carlaw Ave. just after midnight today. He has been charged with second-degree murder.

*

Answering this year's...

...biggest urban fashion dilemma... what all do you wear to an execution?

-- TORONTO -- Closed-circuit videotape of events leading up to the shooting death of a Toronto teenager in Etobicoke 10 days ago suggests it was “an execution,” the lead homicide investigator said Tuesday.

Both suspects live or lived close by the crime scene, police believe. Both are black men in their 20s.

The gunman was wearing what Det. Ryan said has been described as “ugly checkered red shorts knee length in size... I am hoping someone recognizes the shorts ... you can't miss them."

Just one question, Detective... "Which Toronto gun club did these two gentlemen belong to?"

Oh.

**********

WELCOME READERS OF DR DEMENTO, uh... DAWG

I think the Dawg... needs a good worming.

*

Police Officers with guns...

In our schools... I'm not joking...

The chief will meet with Toronto District School Board to discuss the school resource officer initiative that would assign 30 officers to schools across the city starting this fall.

Blair says the consistent presence of uniformed officers will help build trust between youth and police.

You mean, like it does... in the Jane-Finch corridor?

**********

RELATED: In other "security related" news

The CHRC flushes another 75K down the shitter.

*

Salaam and "Bake 'em"

Once again... the capricious and unknowable "Will of Allah."

-- PAKTIKA -- Afghan officials say a U.S.-led coalition airstrike killed 15 militants who attacked a government building in eastern Afghanistan.

The officials say the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force bombed the militants Tuesday as they were withdrawing from an attack at government headquarters in Paktika province. Four insurgents were wounded in the attack.

Also on Monday, the U.S. military said U.S.-led forces killed 55 militants, including three Taliban leaders, during recent clashes in Paktika.

*

A flying banana over Texas?

Somebody please tell me this is a hoax...

-- MONTREAL -- A Canadian art project involving a giant banana, helium and the state of Texas was already considered bold and controversial - now there are doubts about whether the massive piece of fruit will ever fly.

Despite getting about $105,000 from Quebec and federal art-funding agencies, Canadian artist Cesar Saez's flying-banana project appears to be meeting turbulence. According to his project's webpage, the Geostationary Banana Over Texas has failed to get enough grassroots funding to ensure its planned launch date in August.

That is when Mr. Saez has said he would release a 300-metre banana, about the size of three football fields, over the Mexican desert and see it drift over the Lone Star State.

**********

RELATED: Even Snopes seems confused.

*

And that's why...

...we call him "Special" K.

*

Iran opts to stick with...

...that age-old, toddler-tested strategy of plopping down on their butt and screaming blue murder...

Iran has condemned as illegal new EU sanctions against Tehran over its uranium enrichment programme. A foreign ministry spokesman said the sanctions would make Iran more determined to obtain the technology.

The UN Security Council approved a third round of sanctions against Iran over the issue in March 2008.

Of course, if you're up against the doddering old United Nations... that just might work.

UN replies... "Hey, don't make me issue a 'sweeping condemnation'!"

**********

RELATED: In other "Religion of Peace" news...

-- JERUSALEM -- Palestinian militants on Tuesday fired three homemade rockets into southern Israel, the first such attack since a cease-fire between Israel and Gaza militants took effect last week.

Israel condemned the attack as a "gross violation" of the truce, but did not say whether it would retaliate.

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said the rocket attack came because of "Israeli provocation this morning" and added that Hamas was "committed to the calm." He said Hamas will talk with other factions and make sure they are committed, too.

Well, heck Sami... as long as you're going to "talk to them..."

(via reader rich)

**********

UPDATE: Guess what dickheads... "Rockets count."

Israel says it has closed its border crossings with Gaza in response to a Palestinian rocket attack on southern Israel that breached a ceasefire.

Hamas, which controls Gaza, said the closings violated the truce agreement.

*

Progress, huh?

The net could see its biggest transformation in decades if plans to open up the address system are passed.

The net's regulators will vote on Thursday to decide if the strict rules on so-called top level domain names, such as .com or .uk, can be relaxed.

The openness of the new system could pave the way for a .xxx domain name, after more than half a decade of wrangling between its backers and Icann.

**********

RELATED: And speaking of pornography.

*

Hence the term... "going postal"

Think about how much money, and more importantly, aggravation... we could save... by contracting this out to someone like Federal Express...

In May, 74-year-old David Oke discovered Canada Post was -- after 40 years -- no longer delivering mail to his bright green mailbox at the end of his driveway in rural Ontario. His service was stopped, he was told, because his name appeared on only one side of the mailbox instead of the requisite two.

His Peterborough County neighbour, Bruce Warr, 82, also stopped receiving mail a few days later. The reason: His mailbox was on a crooked post.

Forget about going after criminals... let's punish everybody's rural grandparents.

*

Oh yeah...

Let's see you prove it...

As the trial of the first man charged under Canada's Anti-Terrorism Act got under way four years after police raided his home in the Ottawa suburb of Orleans, the Crown gave a two-hour summary of its case, in which it will present dozens – perhaps hundreds – of intercepted conversations to show that the accused admitted he had a one-track mind.

**********

UPDATE: Lawrence Greenspon decides to help the prosecution

Mr. Greenspon contends that if the Crown wants to hear evidence about Mr. Khawaja's activities before the meeting, it should call any of the five terrorists jailed in London for plotting to detonate a fertilizer bomb, as their ties to the Canadian suspect date back longer.

Sure... those extremely helpful convicted terrorists.

We'll get right on that.

*

We're the Liberal Party...

...and we're just gonna "shift" all over you.

-- OTTAWA -- Stéphane Dion's cross-country tour promoting his “green shift” hit a potentially embarrassing pothole Monday as a Toronto environmentalist took legal action over what she describes as “blatantly unethical” trademark infringement.

A firm already operating as Green Shift sent a cease and desist letter Monday afternoon to the Liberal Party and the company is considering whether to sue for damages.

Ms. Wright recalls being told by the senior Liberal aide: “I just want to let you know that you're going to be getting a lot of hits on the website.”

Ms. Wright said she warned Ms. Telford the Liberals could expect a lawsuit if they went ahead and used the name.

“I said, more importantly, why would you do that to a nice, friendly, environmental organization?”

Of course, when the shoe is on the other foot...

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Dion wants to shift the green from your wallet into the Liberal's wallet."

**********

RELATED: The kindly face of Liberalism

A Liberal spokesman discounted the company's protests that the Liberals mimicked Green Shift's web domain name, by adding the article "the" before Greenshift.ca.

"We rightly own the domain name," said Dunn.

**********

LAST WORD: Craig Oliver forgets his meds...

CRAIG OLIVER: "However, they did offer us Jason Kenney, the Minister of Multiculturalism, to attack the government's green plan..."

You mean the Fiberal tax grab, right Craig?

(via sda)

Yeah, sure... we get it

The word according to CanLaw...

"Legal Aid Ontario -- Legal aid is officially available across the province, to lower-income people for a variety of legal problems, including criminal matters, family disputes, immigration and refugee hearings and poverty law issues such as landlord/tenant disputes and employment insurance."

"However in reality, it is largely reserved for women, gays and minorities."

"White men need not apply."

**********

RELATED: You might want a second opinion.

*

I gotta tell ya, Mo...

I don't think shavin' off the beard... is gonna fool anybody.

-- OTTAWA -- Mr. Khawaja, beardless and with long wet hair parted in the middle, simply pleaded “not guilty” in a soft-spoken voice to each of the seven terrorism charges he faces.

A perfectly nice, successful Canadian life... but you just had to piss it all away.

Not so "Islamic Yeehaw" now, huh buddy?

*

Who's kissin' up to "Big Corn"?

I thought Obama was touting himself as the "candidate of change"... the guy who wouldn't get sucked in by the lobbyists...

Nowadays, when Mr. Obama travels in farm country, he is sometimes accompanied by his friend Tom Daschle, the former Senate majority leader from South Dakota. Mr. Daschle now serves on the boards of three ethanol companies and works at a Washington law firm where, according to his online job description, “he spends a substantial amount of time providing strategic and policy advice to clients in renewable energy.”

Mr. Obama’s lead advisor on energy and environmental issues, Jason Grumet, came to the campaign from the National Commission on Energy Policy, a bipartisan initiative associated with Mr. Daschle and Bob Dole, the Kansas Republican who is also a former Senate majority leader and a big ethanol backer who had close ties to the agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland.

Sounds sorta like he's actually the "candidate of spare change."

Not long after arriving in the Senate, Mr. Obama himself briefly provoked a controversy by flying at subsidized rates on corporate airplanes, including twice on jets owned by Archer Daniels Midland, which is the nation’s largest ethanol producer and is based in his home state.

**********

RELATED: But no controls on ethanol... right?

U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama has proposed a clampdown on energy speculation which he believes is responsible for record-high oil prices.

*

Brits decide... "enough is enough"

Sorry, Tupac... "Use a gun... you're done."

A man has been jailed for at least 20 years for the murder of a woman caught in a "Wild West" style shoot-out. Magda Pniewska, 26, was shot in the head in New Cross, south London, in October last year.

The conviction for murder of someone who was known not to have fired the fatal shot was described by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) as "unprecedented".

CPS lawyer Jane Scholefield said: "Even though the defendant did not fire the fatal round, and even though Magda Pniewska was not the intended target of either gunman, the defendant bears a joint criminal liability for her death.

"Each fired their guns with intent to kill at a time when there were bystanders present between them."

Why didn't Canada bring this hammer down on Richard Steele?

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Actually, we had a similar law here in Canada."

"Unfortunately, it was struck down as being, you guessed it, unconstitutional."

**********

RELATED: Toronto cops 'tighten the net'

Homicide investigators, meanwhile, have traced evidence from cartridge casings found near where Dylan Ellis and Oliver Martin were murdered June 13 on Richmond St. W. to records of a handgun used in a previous crime. No details have been released.

*

We're finally gonna start...

...checkin' tickets on the Gravy train...

The 19th-century Indian Act that governs most of Canada's 600 First Nations says little about fiscal transparency.

"So that's going to change and that's going to be of great benefit to First Nations individuals who say, you know, 'I want to hold the chief and council's feet to the fire, just like I would at city hall or ... with the federal government,''' Strahl said.

And even the opposition isn't gonna argue that this isn't necessary...

The policy shift echoes the failed First Nations Governance Act, a broader legislative attempt by the former Liberal government to tighten financial controls.

Former prime minister Paul Martin, as he took the Liberal helm, abandoned the bill after months of backlash from native chiefs who said they weren't fully consulted.

Well... at least we know Steffi doesn't get his intestinal fortitude from anywhere strange.

*

Apparently John Bull...

...hasn't been totally neutered...

The British government views forced marriages, often performed after beatings or threats of violence, as a human rights abuse, far different from arranged marriages to which the bride and groom consent.

It is Rawlins's job to stop them. In an age of increasingly fluid migration, and aided by instant communication, the British diplomat works 3,700 miles from London to help women from her own country.

But it wasn't always so...

Before 2000, British officials tended to view forced marriages as a foreign custom not theirs to judge. But these British-raised young women are increasingly worldly and assertive, and many now have cellphones hidden in their burqas or handbags.

From even the remotest villages, they are increasingly calling for help. And the British government has set up a special group to rescue them.

Bravo.

*

The moral and legal equivalent...

...of a judge in a criminal trial inviting the police and prosecutors over to his home for dinner -- while the trial is still going on.

*

A Tale of Two Shooters

Here's just one of the things that drives me crazy about the CBC... they're not above shilling the deaths of these two unfortunate young men... but in their blindly politically-correct madness... they won't even provide a description of the shooter.

The only possible suspect is a man seen riding away from the murder scene on a mountain bike. Police say they believe whoever was responsible for the shooting is "familiar with the area" around Niagara and Bathurst streets.

See how helpful that is? The CBC has winnowed down the pool of possible shooters to any one of the million or so males in the city of Toronto. Good work guys.

Thankfully, there are still folks in the media who are determined to provide actual details that may help apprehend the shooter.

It's expected they'll plead for information about the man who so callously took the lives of two such promising young men. Cops think he fled the scene on a mountain bike, and have only a limited description of him.

He's:

* Male,
* Black,
* Light complexion,
* Light coloured shirt,
* Dark coloured pants.

That description... and the fact that he's believed to be from the immediate area, narrows the suspect pool way down.

And with this thing beginning to look like a "thrill kill"... the cops are gonna need all the help they can get.

**********

WELCOME READERS OF DR DEMENTO, uh... DAWG

I think the Dawg... needs a good worming.

*

The Leftbot Solution

Shoot a gun, deal drugs or assault a neighbour and your days in Toronto's public housing should be over.

"The truth is, nothing can be further from the truth," Harry Fine, a former adjudicator on the provincial body that resolves disputes between landlords and tenants, tells the Sunday Sun.

In fact, Fine insists, there's a revolving door for bad tenants in this city's troubled public housing projects.

The Toronto Community Housing Corp. evicts problem residents and the province's Landlord and Tenant Board lets them back in.

"In my informed position, the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board is the most serious impediment to cleaning out the bad guys from social housing," Fine tells the Sun.

"The regulatory regime is out of control."

Yeah... let's drop another 300 million taxpayer dollars down this uber-socialist black hole.

*

Ooooh, ooooh, over here...

C'mon Pearly... I'm poisonous too.

**********

RELATED: Ezra wants a piece of this

"I'm enormously jealous of Blazing Cat Fur."

"Good heavens, what do I have to do to get notice by Eliadis? I've been charged with the hate crime of publishing cartoons."

"What has BCF, that whippersnapper, ever done?"

*

Hey, dumbass...

Here's a breaking bulletin... many Canadians don't appreciate being held hostage...

The Kelly Lake Cree Nation took down a highway blockade near the Alberta-B.C. border Saturday because of a close call with angry and dangerous drivers, band spokesman Clayton Anderson said.

Anderson said he was walking toward a vehicle at the blockade on Highway 52, about 180 kilometres southeast of Chetwynd, in northeastern B.C., when "this guy just steps on the gas and practically runs me over."

Hey, Clayhead... why don'tcha try this sorta shit over in Chechnya... I bet they'd love your lawbreakin' ass.

Better yet... just call a cop... and file a complaint.

And... oh yeah... next time you should try not to forget your spear.

*

Toronto's Mayor Miller...

...renews call for city-wide "Cutlery Free Zone."

-- TORONTO -- Police were called to the rear laneway of 11 St. Joseph St. in the Yonge and Wellesley Sts. area at about 3:00 a.m. after witnesses reported a large fight.

A man had been involved in a scrap with several other people and had been stabbed 11 times and slashed in the throat during the melee.

**********

UPDATE: My mistake... that's 2 stabbings

**********

LAST WORD: And an attempted abduction

-- TORONTO -- Toronto police say a mother interrupted a man apparently trying to abduct her toddler through an open window Saturday night.

The three-year-old girl was playing alone in her bedroom when police say a man reached through an open ground floor apartment window and tried to take the child.

Just then the toddler's mother walked in and screamed.

*

Blessed be his name

The capricious and unknowable "Will of Allah."

-- Diyala Province, IRAQ -- Fifteen people have been killed and 39 wounded by a female suicide bomber in the northern Iraqi city of Baquba.

The bomber detonated the device in front of a group of policemen at the entrance to a local government and law courts complex.

A number of civilians are said to be among the casualties.

C'mon now... it's all for a good cause, right?

If only we could bring back Saddam.

*

The face of...

...Canada's newest class of entrepreneurs...

VONGKOSY, Sataya, 32, Male
NGUYEN, Van, 30, Male
CHANMANY, Velle, 27, Male
PHOMMAVONG, Thongsay, 46, Male
ARANA-ECHEVERRIA, Aususto, 51, Male
ARANA-BATRES, Guillermo, 30, Male
CHALAIDOPOULOS, George, 32, Male
BATRES DE ARANA, Ana, 50, Female
NHIEU, Van Hao, 31, Male
LEO, Santo, 22, Male
CABRAL, David, 35, Male
MOK, Chung, 26, Male
SHERZADY, Sharame, 33, Male
KHAN, Sannullah, 25, Male
KAMIMURA, Chika, 23, Female
VONGKOSY, Rhisada, 28, Male
VONGKOSY, Khamvilay, 53, Female
VONGKOSY, Lamphada, 57, Male
KOTSIAKOS, Peter, 38, Male
CHALAIDOPOULOS, Konstantinos, 35, Male
LEE, Byeong-Oak, 27, Male
NACHMAN, Elan, 34, Male
FUNAKI, Kana, 22, Female
LERCH, Cyprian, 38, Male
RAZEK, Amjad, 22, Male
GOULD, Hartley, 49, Male
LY, Peter, 26, Male
CHANMANY, Vieng, 26, Male
ING, Hung, 33, Male
JACOBSON, Ian, 28, Male
ARANA, Augusto, 24, Male
LEO, Domenic, 48, Male
WASILUK, Daniel, 31, Male
MOK, Mei-Chun, 53, Female
RICAFORT, Eric, 37, Male
LEEBODY, Chris, 32, Male

*

McCain and O'Bama

Two Irish guys duking it out to become the next President of the United States.

With the exception of their Éire roots, no two candidates could be more different from one another - unless one of them had a vagina.

Which, to be honest, has yet to be determined.

**********

RELATED: Much like our own Stephane Dion...

...he's flexible.

*

Yes... by all means...

Because that's what we all absolutely want to do... "cater to it."

-- TORONTO -- New public housing complex "CATERS TO SINGLES" under age 25 who have a child.

A product of more than $2 million in federal funding, the centre near Jane St. and Sheppard Ave. W. will open its doors to 27 pregnant women or single mothers who are homeless or at risk of it.

Five women live in the centre already, and it is expected all units will be full by the end of July, project manager Leslie Gash said.

Yeah... no kidding.

If you FINANCE it... THEY WILL COME.

**********

RELATED: of course, there's always "Plan B"

"Look out Warren Buffett. There's a new sheriff in town."

(via sda)

"THE SLIGHT STUFF"

Yeah... here's what most people are looking for in a war-time Prime Minister.

-- TORONTO -- Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion has scolded Stephen Harper over his criticism of the Liberals' so-called green shift.

“I call on the prime minister to debate with me any time on TV on this issue in a respectful, meaningful and adult way,” an angry Mr. Dion said on Toronto's Centre Island.

“It was vulgar and I don't think Canadians are impressed by that.”

Yeah... not like this... huh, Steffi?

Hey, Milquetoast... did he use "hurtful words"?

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Did you see Dion squirm on Prime Time Politics on CPAC when he was asked that since he was so confident in his plan would he be willing to go to the people for a vote?"

**********

LAST WORD: Oooooh, Steffi... that's gonna leave a mark

"Our plan will be good for the environment and good for the economy — good for the planet, good for the wallet."

Of course... that'll be Revenue Canada's wallet.

*

Maybe McCain should consider...

...switching sides... and joining the Republican Party.

-- OTTAWA -- Senator John McCain says he would favour returning Toronto-born Omar Khadr to Canada from Guantanamo Bay if Prime Minister Stephen Harper requested it.

On the environment, the Arizona senator appeared to align himself more closely with Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and Quebec Premier Jean Charest than with Harper.

This is the public face of Conservatism in America?

Good grief.

*

Paging Taliban Jack

Hey, Jacko... you think you can negotiate with these guys... let's start with an easy one... our putative allies...

-- RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- A Saudi newspaper says religious police have arrested 21 allegedly homosexual men and confiscated large amounts of alcohol.

Al-Medina daily says the Commission for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, which employs the religious police, was told Friday of a large gathering of young men at a rest house in Qatif, in eastern Saudi Arabia.

Homosexuality is seen as a sin in Islam and prohibited in Saudi Arabia and most other Muslim nations. In the conservative kingdom, the offence can be punished by flogging or prison.

You fix that one... AND THEN we'll talk about you negotiating with the people we're at war with, ok?

I'll be waiting for your report.

*

It may be old news...

...but I've found a new hero...

"Sheriff Joe Arpaio created the "tent city jail" to save Arizona from spending tens of millions of dollars on another expensive prison complex. He has jail meals down to 20 cents a serving and charges the inmates for them.

He banned smoking and pornographic magazines in the jails, and took away their weightlifting equipment and cut off all but "G" movies. He says: "They're in jail to pay a debt to society not to build muscles so they can assault innocent people when they leave."

Hey, Corrections Canada... are you listening?

He started chain gangs to use the inmates to do free work on county and city projects and save taxpayer's money. Then he started chain gangs for women so he wouldn't get sued for discrimination.

He took away cable TV until he found out there was a federal court order that required cable TV for jails. So he hooked up the cable TV again but only allows the Disney channel and the weather channel.

When asked why the weather channel, he replied: "So these morons will know how hot it's gonna be while they are working on my chain gangs."

Gawd... I think I'm in love.

(h/t reader northern annie)

**********

UPDATE: HE'S BAAA-AAAAAK

**********

WELCOME, YET AGAIN READERS OF CANADIAN CYNIC

Yes, yes, CC... we all know how kind & compassionate you are. Say, while we're at it... let's revisit your pet theory about those dastardly, evil Jews.

Now, I have to say it's pretty flattering that CC apparently reads... not only every word I write these days... but all the comments too.

And maybe I've unfairly pegged the Cynic, who also apparently has nothing to do with Stephen J. Walter, who once also blogged as Canadian Cynic... as a nasty, uncaring fellow.

Apparently CC is all about disabled rights. Who knew?

If only he had as much compassion for the grieving mother of a dead Canadian soldier.

Funny how that works.

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS: The lefties reply...

Romantic Heretic says... "My first thought when reading stuff like this is to plant some cocaine on the people who think it's a wonderful idea. And tell the authorities about it."

No surprise here, huh? Say hi to CC for me.

It's not, as you might guess...

...an Elmore Leonard crime thriller...

Two men appeared in court in Windsor Thursday on attempted murder charges in connection with the weekend shooting of Lucky Suites.

Gytteau Nerestant, 29, and Yvenel Billy, 23, both of Toronto, were arraigned Thursday.

It's just another day in Dalton McSlippery's "no such thing as a bad boy" Ontario.

*

From Deseronto to Beijing

I bet you never knew infamous spokes-native Shawn Brant had Olympic aspirations...

Brant jumped out of his car, grabbed a six-foot-long fishing spear from the rear seat and ran towards the altercation, Lalonde said.

"His eyes were crazy-looking ... he was in a rage," he said, adding Brant ran up to the scene yelling "'Is it on? Is it on?'" Brant, he said, held the spear only a few feet away from his face, "and at that point, I knew it was time for us to get out of there.

"There was no doubt in my mind he would have stabbed me with it ... he had a crazy look in his eye." As he retreated to his truck, Lalonde said other protesters from up the road were arriving at the scene. "I told Michael to get in his truck and leave, which we did ... we left pretty quickly, of course."

As the two trucks sped away, Brant threw the fishing spear at Lalonde's truck like a javelin thrower, he recalled.

The spear struck the rear tailgate of his vehicle, he added.

*

C'mon, sheeple...

Just wake up... and smell the jihad...

You know what is the really sobering thing about that ongoing terror trial in Brampton?

It's not even the hate, chiefly for Jews and Americans, that one of the group leaders preached at the drop of a hat and the top of his lungs with almost magnificently ungrammatical, near-illiterate, Koran-ignorant hysteria.

It's that he felt so free to preach it.

It's that he felt comfortable enough to hand out jihadist CDs outside at least one Toronto mosque and to occasionally turn up in combat fatigues at another.

It's that he giddily talked to one of his alleged co-conspirators about the obligation to kill Jews whenever one finds them.

It's that the leadership of the group regularly met at a half-dozen mosques in the GTA, usually on Fridays, the day of communal prayer.

*

Farmers, hunters...

And Olympic target shooters... totally off the hook... AGAIN.

"It came out of a gun shop in Chicago and it was all part of a shipment of 237. We had one and then, poof, we had another one."

From that trace was born Project Blackhawk, which ended Thursday with the arrests of 36 people -- the key members of the alleged ring -- facing a total of 443 charges, and the seizure of 83 firearms over the two-year investigation. The number of seized firearms was more than police initially reported.

Since the initial two guns appeared, others belonging to Yildiz began appearing on GTA streets, including four taken from members of the Point Blank Soldiers, a Regent Park based gang.

Another handgun from the Chicago collection was recovered during the recent Project Kryptic raids, which targeted a Crips gang in North York.

*

The Gift of Fear

Speaking of weakness, how ‘bout those Liberals?

When the best news were byelection wins by Bob Rae and Martha Hall Findlay, both considered leadership contenders as soon as Stéphane Dion loses the next election, it's a grim scenario.

Having backed away from repeated government invitations to trigger an election -- the Throne Speech, budget, Afghan mission extension, crime bills, immigration amendments and even footdragging by the Senate -- the Liberals have opted to spend the summer campaigning for a carbon tax instead of their own mandate.

In doing so, they've surrendered the best scenario for gaining ground to hopes that an economic downturn in the fall will backlash against the government, a rather morbid plan.

Oh yeah... congratulations to Stephen Harper on achieving the longest minority reign since the election of 1921.

*

Flat, black and glows in the dark

Israel has carried out an exercise that appears to have been a rehearsal for an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, US officials have told the New York Times.

"They wanted us to know, they wanted the Europeans to know, and they wanted the Iranians to know," a Pentagon official is quoted as saying by the newspaper. "There's a lot of signalling going on at different levels."

The helicopters and refuelling tankers flew more than 1,400km (870 miles), roughly the distance between Israel and Iran's main uranium enrichment plant at Natanz.

**********

RELATED: In other "kicking jihadi ass" news

Afghan government officials took reporters to see piles of rotting corpses, some that were missing limbs. Officials said 56 Taliban died in the fighting, along with two Afghan soldiers and one civilian.

You guys might wanna practice that uprising thing a little bit.

*

GOOG-411

Don't know where to find the closest pizza parlour? No access to a computer or a phone book?

Just call Google. Let them figure it out.

Today Google Inc. launched a Canadian version of its voice-recognition local search phone service GOOG-411. Canada becomes the first country outside the U.S. to gain access to the service.

*

It's not really a tax

Just think of it as a "pollution premium"...

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty is changing his tune about federal leader Stephane Dion’s carbon tax plan.

McGuinty, who had vetoed the idea of a carbon tax in Ontario, now says he “likes the sound” of Dion’s plan, which was unveiled Thursday.

Yeah... imagine my surprise.

**********

RELATED: Libs blast "hurtful language"

After previously labelling Mr. Dion's plan “insane” and “crazy,” Mr. Harper continued to firebomb the Liberal proposal with indelicate language.

“The carbon tax plan is like the national energy program in the sense that the national energy program was designed to screw the West and really damage the energy sector — and this will do those things,” Harper told a small crowd in Saskatoon.

“This is different in that this will actually screw everybody across the country.”

Indelicate language!!!

Quick... call the CHRC!!!

*

Uptight straights...

...spoiling everybody's fun... yet again...

-- PROVINCETOWN -- It's a slow week in the northern territory of the Cape Cod National Seashore when a man with a yellow towel flashing passers-by is the sole complaint about public sex acts.

(h/t wonderwoman)

Quick, Mayor Super Dave...

...lets go raid the nearest gunclub...

Vimos, who works as a spray-painter, said he can't help but feel angry because his car is the last place he would have expected to have to dodge bullets.

"I just have to thank God, I've been given another chance," said Vimos, surrounded by his wife, their two grown children and two young grandkids -- loved ones who just as easily could have been planning his funeral yesterday.

It's the third time this year an innocent bystander has been struck by a stray bullet, but the other two men did not survive.

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

It never ends.

*

Parental Rorschach Test

So put yourself in this father's shoes and try figure out what you would do.

-- Nelson, Lancashire -- A teenager has been jailed for three years after his father told police he had found bullets in his son's bedroom.

His father discovered 11 bullets in the room and called the police - who also found a handgun under the bed.

Is it a hard decision... or is it easy?

What does that say about you?

*

Or, my friend Amir...

...and I'm relying on Occam's Razor here... it could just be you're a really shitty driver...

Taxi driver Amir Ebrahimi said yesterday that cops harass cabbies because they speak English poorly and have no union.

"They don't care about us; they know we are landed immigrants," said the Iranian-born cabbie of 16 years.

"If we were Canadian, they would be nice to us. They don't like us."

Geez, buddy... that sounds pretty horrible...but if you really, really believe that... maybe you'd be better off grabbing the next flight to kindly, progressive, all-embracing Tehran.

Yeah... that's what I thought.

**********

RELATED: Here's a thought...

...maybe he can call a social worker.

*

How much money would they save...

...if they just fired all these "analysts"?

The analysts had to also estimate how often people with disabilities play miniature golf and whether they would go more often if courses were more wheelchair-friendly.

Then they needed to determine how much time those golfers would save via the new requirements. (According to the DoJ, about 7.2 minutes per visit.)

Finally, they calculated how much the miniature-golfers would benefit—in total, about $485 million worth over 40 years. The same logic can be applied to figure the benefits of more accessible fishing piers, bowling alleys, and ATMs.

*

Do they really not get it...

...or do they just not care?

"It is increasingly obvious these commissions were set up deliberately to lower the standard of proof and get around rules of natural justice, thereby ensuring people who would never be convicted in court are punished to the satisfaction of the activists and special interest groups that hover around the tribunals."

(via bcf)

Talk about chump change

I've got an idea... let's have a little debate about the two billion plus dollars the Fiberals pissed away on the "Farmer Bob Rifle Registry."

“We have been told that federal correctional officials estimate they will increase the sentenced population by 1,000 prisoners per year,” the judge said in an interview.

It costs about $80,000 a year to keep a penitentiary inmate, so the additional burden of those on mandatory minimum sentences multiplies out to $80-million.

Help me out here... what's the cost of letting a thousand extra criminals run around for a year?

You could ask the families of Dylan Ellis and Oliver Martin.

**********

RELATED: Or you could ask these folks...

Two suspects are in police custody after a home invasion in which an elderly Halton couple were beaten, bound and robbed at gunpoint.

The victims, both in their 80s, returned to their trailer home just west of Campbellville on Monday night to find two men inside.

The men, one of whom was armed with a .22-calibre rifle, assaulted the victims, tied them up with a rope and left them in the trailer before stealing their van and personal items including identification and credit cards, police said.

*

The real reason...

Aboriginal land claims take years and years to hammer out...

Calling the federal government's policy "unacceptable to the Mohawk nation," the Chief of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte has halted negotiations into the Culbertson Tract land claim.

R. Donald Maracle told The Intelligencer Wednesday his band has arranged an emergency meeting with Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl next week to voice its displeasure over how the claim is unfolding.

Hot on the heels of the Mohawks pulling out of the Caledonia negotiations.

Oh, the wily white man.

*

Speaking of "ludicrous"

So Chief... what you're saying is the first twenty-nine arrests are deductible?

-- VANCOUVER -- Saying his city is plagued by a "ludicrous" trend that sees career criminals released back onto the streets despite dozens of convictions, Vancouver's police chief is calling for a 30-strikes-and-you're-out policy for the worst chronic offenders.

Settle down there, Buford... you wanna take us back to the "dark ages"?

(h/t reader rich)

Well... at least we know...

...what side they're on.

-- HAMILTON -- Hamilton's gay pride festival says it banned the Canadian military this year over alleged human rights violations around the world.

Festival organizers say they banned the military this year because they received a complaint from a new Canadian who feared the military because of previous persecution by soldiers.

Uh, guys... wouldn't this sorta be like banning African immigrants... because you're afraid of Robert Mugabe?

Just askin'.

**********

RELATED: How come we're always playin' defense?

"A prime minister for our times would recognize that, while he’s saying sorry for residential schools, his entire country is being turned into a residential school."

"He’d notice the censorious state’s intrusions into contemporary life under the pretext of 'public hygiene' or 'human rights'."

"He’d apologize for the cultural arrogance of Canada’s hate - or health-police trying to tell editors what to put into their periodicals, clergymen into their sermons, or parents into their mouths."

(via shaidle)

Why is this a surprise...

...to so many folks?

Out in BC... the government helps junkies shoot heroin... and they're reportedly looking into state-subsidised whorehouses. In recent years, everything we thought we knew about the institution of marriage has been flushed down the toilet.

Why wouldn't Quebec try to take over raising your kids for you?

-- OTTAWA -- If you deny your children access to TV or withhold their allowance, can they take you to court? And win?

That implausible scenario emerged after a judge in Gatineau, Que., sided with a 12-year-old girl who challenged her father after he refused to let her go on a school trip for disobeying his orders to stay off the Internet.

If we, the people, are willing to let them get away with stuff like this... we deserve whatever happens.

Fortunately, there are still people willing to fight this insanity.

Experts in family law and child welfare say they were dumbfounded by last Friday’s ruling by Superior Court Justice Suzanne Tessier.

The father, who is appealing the decision, was “devastated” by the ruling, Beaudoin said. He is refusing to take his daughter back “because he has no authority over her.”

We need that Conservative majority government now.

Let's turn back the madness.

**********

RELATED: Meanwhile, the Liberal-dominated senate...

...quietly puts the icing on the cake...

A proposed law that could see parents charged for spanking their children is heading to the House of Commons after clearing a major hurdle in the Senate.

The bill, supported by the Liberal majority, quietly passed third reading in the Senate on Tuesday night despite Conservative objections to the legislation.

*

Globe and Mail...

...mounts another attack on Canadian's credulity... no word yet on how many readers have died laughing...

“The insurgents are forcing NATO to respond to their agenda,” a security official in Kabul said. “People are pretty freaked out, and rightfully so.”

Well, actually... the "Taliban agenda" in these villages has so far pretty much consisted of dozens of insurgents being shredded by vastly superior Canadian and Afghani firepower... so I think we can guess who's doing most of the "freaking out."

But hey... never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

*

I suppose all that jihad stuff...

Was just "whistle while you work", huh?

While Lt.-Cmdr. Kuebler often asserts that Mr. Khadr remains hopeful, he indicted on Wednesday that Mr. Khadr's outlook is not overly optimistic.

"It's tough for him to believe anything good is going to happen."

Guess what, dumbstick.

Actions have consequences.

*

Kick-off... again

More loose body parts turning up in Lotus land...

Another human foot is believed to have been discovered on a B.C. shore, the sixth such grisly discovery in the last ten months.

RCMP in Campbell River on Vancouver Island said a local woman strolling a beach found an Adidas sneaker this morning, containing what appears to be a man's foot.

“It's certainly suspicious,” Sergeant Mike Tresoor said in an interview.

Well, thank you Inspector Clouseau. Any other details?

It appears to be a man's right foot, size 10. The first four were also right feet.

The mystery continues.

What's not to like?

Sure... why wouldn't you wanna give Mayor Super Dave Miller even more control over your existence?

-- TORONTO -- Miller has been aggressively lobbying the provincial government for greater mayoral powers -- including the ability to meet in private with his executive committee, much like a cabinet would.

Premier Dalton McGuinty -- who has already granted the mayor new taxing powers -- is open to the idea and city and provincial officials have been meeting to hammer out details.

Wonder what the "dynamic duo" are gonna be banning next?

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"This is the same group of mental midgets that scream about "transparency and accountability" every time Harper's name is mentioned."

"Oh, I forgot: THEIR model of openness and fairness is a Human Rights Commission."

*

Deadly Taliban fighters...

Are mostly just gonna end up dead.

-- ARGHANDAB, Afghanistan -- Afghan and Canadian forces moved into villages in the Arghandab district outside Kandahar on Wednesday to root out Taliban militants, killing at least 36 insurgents, the Afghan Defence Ministry said.

Also, 12 insurgents were killed in Maiwand, another district in Kandahar province, the ministry added.

Canadian and NATO officials disputed claims that insurgents had gained control of a number of villages. Alliance officials said Taliban strength in the area had been greatly exaggerated.

Yeah... who coulda seen that coming?

*

Senseless

Talk of firearms, gun crime and senseless violence will have no place in the funerals of two young men shot to death last week in a seemingly unprovoked attack that has devastated the city.

Two Toronto ministers plan to free the services they will lead in the next two days of any political messages.

*

Airbrushing the Politburo

So it is not a review of the CHRC's corrupt conduct -- their hiring of corrupt staff, drummed out of real police forces; their tampering with evidence; their tampering with official transcripts; their lying under oath; corruption and interference with investigations; their rejection of complaints that would embarrass them; their own serial commission of Internet hate speech offences, etc., etc.

And it certainly doesn't deal with the current elephant in the room: the RCMP and Privacy Commissioner's investigations of the CHRC for hacking into a private citizen's Internet account.

None of that is covered in Moon's mandate. All of that is being ignored.

That's no coincidence.

*

“A man’s commitment to his beliefs..."

"In the past year, Gore’s home burned through 213,210 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity, enough to power 232 average American households for a month."

They stab it with their steely knives... but they just can't kill the beast.

*

"A planned and deliberate act"

Yeah, sure... why don't you just "show me the honour" here...

Before 16-year-old Aqsa Parvez even stepped inside her family's Mississauga home last December, Peel Regional Police now believe, there was a plan to kill her.

And yesterday they went before the court to upgrade the original second-degree murder charge against her father to first-degree.

A little background.

**********

RELATED: TDSB trots out Johnny Cochrane defense

The Toronto District School Board has a new Urban Diversity Strategy. Apparently, they've decided to dump all the blame on those ignorant, "insensitive teachers."

But instead of recommending special programs tailored for children of various high-risk groups – Portuguese children, for example, or those from Somalia or Afghanistan – the staff suggests helping all teachers be more sensitive to the challenges diversity can bring.

*

Sunni Days

Once again... the capricious and unknowable Will of Allah.

-- BAGHDAD -- Explosives stowed in a minibus obliterated part of a bustling marketplace and set ablaze a crowded apartment building in the heavily Shiite Huriya district of northwest Baghdad, killing at least 51 people and wounding 75 late Tuesday afternoon, Iraqi security officials said.

And forget about the sociopaths that built, planted and triggered the bomb... we know who the real bad guys are...

“Now the Americans are bringing outsiders to secure our neighborhood, and look what happened!” screamed a man named Muhammad who said his wife and child were killed. “Maybe we should bring back the old days.”

Yeah... bring back the murderous despot... there's the solution.

The list is long. Indeed, unending. However, the solution to all our problems is always simple: return to an imagined past which, mercifully for the people of the seventh century, never existed.

(via shaidle)

**********

RELATED: Meanwhile... back in Afghanistan

Let the martyrdom commence...

A top provincial official in Kandahar said gun battles killed two Afghan troops and 16 Taliban. Ahmed Wali Karzai, the brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, also said hundreds of families had fled to the city, and that some of the villages had already been cleared of Taliban.

*

You need to "'ave da trust..."

I'm from the Opposition... I'm here to save you.

-- WINNIPEG -- A carbon tax would be good for the planet and for Canadians' wallets, Liberal Leader Stephane Dion said Tuesday as he pitched his soon-to-be-released green plan.

But Prime Minister Stephen Harper quickly came out swinging, dismissing the idea as "insane."

"This tax will be revenue neutral is like, 'The cheque is in the mail.' It's like, 'I'll respect you in the morning.'"

"It's just not believable."

(h/t reader rich)

**********

RELATED: Yeah... it'll be "revenue neutral"

Remember how the "Farmer Bob Rifle Registry" was gonna eradicate crime... AND PAY FOR ITSELF?

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Revenue neutral tax? That's like a "smell-neutral fart".

**********

LAST WORD: Oops... he screwed up & admitted it

"The Liberals have acknowledged that oil companies may pass the cost of the tax on to consumers."

Oh, Steffi.

*

From the province...

That brought you... "Robert Willie Pickton."

-- VANCOUVER -- A fifth human foot has washed ashore in southwestern B.C., and this time it's a left one. Police say two people out for a walk spotted a left foot floating in water off Westham Island on Monday morning.

Four other feet have washed up on shorelines along islands in B.C. in the last year; all have been right feet wearing socks and shoes.

You'd think these people might have more important things on their mind than, say... lynching Mark Steyn... but alas, apparently not.

With a prescience I certainly don't understand... CTV has apparently ruled out foul play.

La-la land.

**********

RELATED: OWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!

So... you think you're having a bad day?

*

So much for the myth...

Of the criminal genius...

Two men have been found guilty of murdering a 15-year-old boy who was shot dead as he slept at his home in south-east London.

Michael Dosunmu was shot four times when gunmen burst into the family home in Peckham in February 2007.

The Old Bailey heard that Michael was mistaken for his older brother who was to be killed in revenge for a murder.

Yeah, Mr. Pimp...

We feel your pain...

According to George Flint, Director of the Nevada Brothel Owners' Association, revenue for the 25 businesses in his membership organization is down by as much as 45 percent.

The reason: Sex for money may be recession resistant but it's not recession proof.

Several of the hardest hit are the houses of prostitution in Nevada's rural northern areas, which get roughly 60 percent of their business from truckers.

"Some of these brothels are out in the middle of nowhere so fuel prices have an effect, says Dennis Hof, owner of the infamous Moonlite Bunny Ranch.

*

Lemme say it really, really slow...

"If you want to see gun crime reduced... you've got to go after the criminals."

Like, say... this guy.

*

Scary, hidden agenda?

I guess sometimes all the stars just happen to line up perfectly...

Marc Mayrand has refused to speak publicly about the case since the Commissioner of Canada Elections executed the search warrant with RCMP assistance on April 15-16 as part of a probe of alleged ad spending violations by the Tories during the 2005-06 election campaign.

"If we can dispel this story [the leak], we will have only positive media coverage," replied Ms. Vézina, the associate deputy chief electoral officer in charge of political financing. "And the alternative is that we appear to be partisan or biased or vindictive and at the moment the media seem to believe we tipped off the CBC and the Liberals."

Sections of the e-mail exchange between Mr. Mayrand and Ms. Vézina were blacked out.

Mr. Mayrand declined an interview request.

*

Globe and Mail mounts huge push...

...in Toronto, CANADAHAR... to sell newspapers.

-- KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- Hundreds of Taliban fighters took over several villages in southern Afghanistan on Monday just outside the region's largest city, and NATO and Afghan forces were redeploying to meet the threat, officials said.

Of course, what the Globe isn't saying here is... one... the scary invaders are a bunch of raggedy-ass guys with Ak-47s, strolling into an undefended clump of medieval mud-huts occupied by a bunch of unarmed but equally raggedy-ass subsistence farmers... two... that 500 man figure they're bandying about, is something somebody just pulled outta his ass, and... three... every time these donkeyheads actually stand and fight... they get their asses kicked from here to... literally... eternity... by Canadian troops.

So enough with the leftbot propaganda, please.

Just the facts, ma'am.

**********

And yet another link from the Cynic... I guess he's managed to shake his pursuers.

I would expect no less from an Evil Death Ray Engineering Assistant.

*

We cried out... "Show us you('re) nuts"

So they did.

*

Cry me a river

Horrible, evil Conservatives are at the root of all of Canada's problems... well, except when they're not.

-- OTTAWA -- Canadians convicted of crimes abroad have been told they must now undergo security checks by Canada's spy agency before they can be transferred to a prison in this country.

Critics suggest the policy was introduced at the request of Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day, who does not approve of returning drug dealers to Canada to serve their time.

Unfortunately... "suggesting something"... doesn't make it true.

"The International Transfer of Offenders Act [introduced under the Liberals in 2004] is clear, and there is a requirement for the Minister to consider several factors prior to consenting to a transfer," Ms. Leclerc wrote in an e-mail, "one of which is if the offender will, after the transfer, commit a terrorism offence or criminal organization offence."

"Soldiers in our streets... with guns... I'm not kidding."

*

You think you got problems?

They're fighting a war in Motor City, Ontario...

"It was literally a fight to the finish," says Visconti, who has had a business in Oshawa for 28 years. "Because, you know, we were beating up on the poor, the homeless, and the struggling addicts ... and 'Look at you, you're some rich bitch that owns the building, yet some guy can't get a free meal around the corner.'

"I don't care if he gets a free meal," she counters. "But when he comes over here every morning, and he's crapping and pissing on my property, or breaking into my store because he needs to make money ... now I don't feel like I'm picking on the poor any more."

*

It's interesting to note...

That, invariably... "doing the right thing"... doesn't involve the line of least resistance...

Britain will announce extra troops for Afghanistan later - bringing numbers to their highest level yet, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said.

The increase would bring overall UK numbers in Afghanistan to more than 8,000 - mostly based in Helmand.

It's easy to turn your back on trouble, or confrontation.

The UN did it in Rwanda. They're doing it again, to a large extent, in Darfur and Zimbabwe.

It's hard to take a principled stand. It's harder yet to put your money where your mouth is.

I'm proud that Canada and Britain and others have taken a stand. It isn't easy and, as we've seen, there is a price to be paid.

Sometimes you've just gotta fight... for what's right.

**********

UPDATE: Toronto "Red" Star publishes outrageous report...

...that Canadian military is complicit in child rape...

"Canadian soldiers serving in Afghanistan have been ordered by commanding officers "to ignore" incidents of sexual assault among the civilian population, says a military chaplain who counsels troops returning home with post-traumatic stress disorder."

No specifics, of course... just an incendiary allegation.

I guess that'll sell a few papers.

**********

RELATED: UAE on the bubble?

"There is a high threat from terrorism," an official travel advice notice for the country said. "We believe terrorists may be planning to carry out attacks in the UAE."

**********

LAST WORD: Nothing to do with Canada, right?

THINK AGAIN...

Five conspirators in their 20s each got sentences of nearly 20 years.

Still, a loose end dangles in Ottawa. The British Crown said the detonator design was Canadian, and the RCMP arrested a 24-year-old computer programmer a few hours before the British arrests.

And that man, Mohammad Momin Khawaja, is a week away from hearing direct allegations that he is the brains behind the Digimonster.

*

Jadewarr ain't the only one

The wonderful world of wi-fi thievery...

"Mine wasn't a particularly sociable apartment building, but wi-fi transcends urban alienation. You can draw your blinds and grunt at me on the stairs all you want, No. 7, but I can see your network just fine."

"Some people thought of creative names for their networks: ParisBrooklyn, MessageInaBottle. Some were boring: linksys, NETGEAR, default. I was always happy to see the boring ones, because the people who don't bother thinking of clever names for their home networks are the same people who don't bother to password-protect them."

"Anybody who calls his hot spot WebOfDarkness isn't going to give me any wireless love."

"I think YouHavSomNerv was on to me too."

*

Aboriginal group...

...demands "Mr. Rogers style" policing.

-- CARLYLE, Sask. -- The head of Saskatchewan's largest aboriginal organization is demanding a meeting with Canada's public safety minister, to talk about what he calls “Rambo-style” policing after RCMP on Saturday shot and killed a man on a reserve southeast of Regina.

The man, identified by a close relative as Chase McKay Standingready, 21, was fatally shot on the White Bear First Nation Saturday morning after police said he was armed with a knife.

Apparently though, this wasn't an armed man confronting police officers... it was more of "a martyrdom."

“One life is one too many "to be sacrificed" to open the eyes of governments to come and help us bring about safe communities,” Mr. Joseph said.

No disrespect here, Chief, but this type of sacrifice looks to be a problem particular to this part of the country...

Saskatchewan again had the highest rate of all provinces, with 4.1 homicides for every 100,000 people.

Now that's one hell of a variation from the mean... what's up with the not-so-gentle folk of Saskatchewan?

Saskatchewan stands out for two reasons, he said: It consistently has the highest crime rate, and it has the highest percentage of native Canadians in its justice system.

Oh.

*

Father's Day - separate realities

Barack Obama calls on Afro-American men to step up and take responsibility...

"The Illinois senator said that too many fathers in the African American community are MIA in their families – acting like boys rather than men – and the foundations of the family and the community has suffered."

Of course, there are guys... who don't need to be reminded.
(via great pumpkin)

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Dear Senator Obama, what is the correct temperature for bottled milk for my infant, and, while I have your attention, what is the appropriate curfew time for my 11 year old daughter?"

*

Now you just have to decide...

Is the glass half full... or half empty?

While the Canadian media is making itself giddy over the Taliban jailbreak in Afghanistan... I suspect Canadian troopers are quietly pleased about the suddenly 'target-rich' environment.

Meanwhile, the news that should really concern people is tucked away in a dark corner...

A draft report released by a former U.N. weapons inspector found that the international smuggling ring that supplied nuclear designs to Iran, Libya, and North Korea also obtained the blueprints for an advanced nuclear warhead, The Washington Post reported Sunday.

"These advanced nuclear weapons designs may have long ago been sold off to some of the most treacherous regimes in the world," Albright wrote in his report, which was obtained by the newspaper.

Funny how that works.

(h/t reader rich)

**********

RELATED: Perhaps a little background...

...would help flesh out the narrative...

"When you consider all this in tandem, with the fact that A.Q. Khan, Pakistan's foremost atomic scientist, is some sort of freebooting nuclear pirate, it's a little unsettling, to say the least."

**********

LAST WORD: Diplomatic chewing gum & baling wire

The situation poses a number of strategic dilemmas for the US. US-led forces may have to assume the security responsibility for an area that Pakistan has effectively abandoned to the Taliban while simultaneously being pummeled by the "outrage" of same Pakistani politicians who abdicated it in the first place.

In the worst case Pakistan will demand all the dignities of sovereignty over an area for which they will assume no meaningful control. At the same time, the US must respond to this situation without wholly alienating Pakistan through which the bulk of US supplies pass. Afghanistan will be effectively lost if the supply lines are irrevocably closed.

While Pakistan remains broken it cannot effectively control its territory; and border problems will only get worse. A fractured Pakistan will ipso facto mean that radical Islamic organizations will always have a safe haven within its formal borders.

**********

POSTSCRIPT: Yet another link from Canadian Cynic

Hey, buddy... you're still a little peeved, huh?

Those bad people still chasin' you?

*

So, you Big City Libbers...

How about you volunteer your neighbourhood for that new "safe-injection site."

-- TORONTO -- "You're not immune," warned Staff Sgt. Courtney Chambers. "As we've seen in the past, some of these guys are indiscriminate when they engage in their violent activities."

However, he added that a lot of the violence is contained to certain areas of the city where there is drug activity.

And never you mind about personal responsibilty... "Super Dave" Miller and Dalton McSlippery will take care of your every need.

More basketball courts, more social workers... and yes please... more taxpayer funded heroin parlours.

The perennial Liberal nanny-state recipe for success.

**********

RELATED: And while we're at it...

...let's scrap that ineffectual, get out of jail free... "Young Offenders Act."

**********

LAST WORD: Hey, Babycakes... hang on a second

*

That's why it's called "War"

And not "Circle of Friends."

-- KABUL, Afghanistan -- “Baitullah Mehsud should know that we will go after him now and hit him in his house.”

“And the other fellow, (Taliban leader) Mullah Omar of Pakistan should know the same,” Mr. Karzai continued. “This is a two-way road in this case, and Afghans are good at the two-way road journey.

And Pakistan is gonna have to decide where to put their chips... once and for all.

His comments come as Pakistan is seeking peace deals with militants in its borders, including with Mr. Mehsud.

Mr. Mehsud, who is based mainly in the South Waziristan tribal area, has said he would continue to send fighters to battle U.S. forces in Afghanistan even as he seeks peace with Pakistan.

*

The Wooden Periodic Table Table...

Has to be seen... to be believed.

*

Measuring up

Well... looks like I'm way above average...

The average Canadian woman's weight is 153 pounds (69.4 kg) and height is 5' 3.4" (161 cm).

Her male counterpart weighs 182 pounds (82.7 kg), and is 5' 8.5" (174 cm) tall.

Hmmm... gonna have to work on that one.

*

Of course... dismissing the question...

Isn't actually the same thing... as saying "no"...

Reporters later asked McGuinty if that flexibility could include tax hikes to offset dropping government revenues, and got an uncharacteristically snippy response.

The premier loudly asked why anyone would raise taxes in a time of economic challenge, insisting that "not even the NDP support that."

Ooooh, Dalton... that's really hittin' below the belt...

McGuinty seems to dislike questions about tax hikes after breaking a promise not to raise taxes in his first term by introducing a new health care premium of up to $900 for every Ontario worker.

He called reporters silly for daring to raise the issue.

*

And bear in mind...

They're not simply making this shite up... they're also getting you, the taxpayer... to pay for it...

"I can tell you right now, having read every ruling issued by the Alberta HRC is recent years, that there is no "Maria", and there is no "Maria's story".

There has never been a ruling about a woman whose parents came to Canada from Mexico, who was upset about Mexican jokes that aren't funny."

"It's a fabrication."

"That's called propaganda -- telling new Latino immigrants that they're coming to a bigoted province, where Mexicans are treated poorly."

Only in Canada, you say?

**********

FROM EZRA'S COMMENTS:

"The Government of Alberta has issued a pamphlet stereotyping members of certain ethnic minorities as whining, pathetic losers."

"That is discrimination."

**********

LAST WORD: More Victimology

Support of the Politically Correct Tryanny attracts strange bedfellows. With the swing in public opinion clearly moving against them Haroon & Farber have turned to race baiting as their last sordid defense.

(via bcf)

Or... and I admit...

I'm just spitballin' here... the dead guy could have just left the knife at home...

"People are way upset. They have got Tasers and they have got pepper spray. There could have been some other way than to shoot to kill."

And please, folks... make up your minds... now tasers are the solution?

**********

RELATED: Un-freakin'-believable.

Yeah... more social-workers. That'll solve everything.

*

Somehow... I remain unsurprised

And another blaring headline... "Peace Accord Brings More Violence to Somalia"...

Violence in the Somali capital Mogadishu and elsewhere has increased dramatically since a U.N.-backed peace agreement was signed Monday in Djibouti between Somalia's transitional federal government and a moderate faction of the Islamist-led opposition group in Eritrea.

But, but, but... we signed the magical piece of paper!!!

The befuddled United Nations... in fact, the Elmer Fudd of international diplomacy.

*

I've gotta confess...

That's pretty much my personal rule of thumb for a healthy, happy, well-adjusted community...

"It's comfortable here and you don't have to worry. There's a person with a beard and breasts who happily walks down the main street in Picton and nobody cares."

You go girl, er... you.

*

More hypocritical "smoke and mirrors"...

From Toronto Mayor David Miller...

A "shocked" and "infuriated" Mayor David Miller offered condolences on behalf of the entire city to the grieving families of Thursday's double murder while again renewing his call for a nationwide handgun ban.

"Like everyone, I was shocked to hear the news of (Thursday) night's shooting."

Gee, Mr Mayor... I can't understand why... I mean, shouldn't you still be "shocked and infuriated" over the double shooting the that occurred downtown on Wednesday?

Or does your outrage have a 24 hour shelf life.

The fact is, murders in "Toronto the Good" were up 20% in 2007, up from 70 in 2006 to 84 last year. And... your war on gun clubs notwithstanding... the shooters and indeed the lions share of the shootees, come from the same demographic as they did the year before... and the year before.

And guess what, 'yer blondeness'... it's already illegal to walk around armed in public, and yes... shoot people. You're gonna make it, what... more illegal?

So spare us all "your shock"... and start to address the actual problem. Let's get the cops out there in force and sweep problem areas for guns and drugs.

Put the thugs in jail, and hey... try to keep them there.

Because your "shock" isn't worth a bucket of warm spit... especially to the families of Dylan Ellis and Oliver Martin.

**********

UPDATE: Batter up!!!

Toronto recorded its third gun death in three days with the shooting death of a man in the west end -- just one of several gun incidents overnight.

The shooting occurred in the Jane Street and Woolner Avenue area (north of St. Clair Ave.) around 1:30 a.m. Sunday. The victim, a man in his early 20s and the city's 26th homicide victim of 2008, was pronounced dead in hospital.

**********

RELATED: Got your latest tax assessment?

Or even your latest electrical bill...

The $75-million cash injection the city will pocket from the $200-million sale of Toronto Hydro's telecom arm to Cogeco will be used to help fix public housing, Mayor David Miller said yesterday.

Miller said the money will be enough to cover the work required for 25% of the community housing repair backlog. Toronto Community Housing has an estimated repair backlog of $300 million to $350 million.

**********

LAST WORD: So, you take 300 million taxpayer dollars...

...and build another Regent Park.

In what almost seems like a bad turn out of Rio de Janiero or New York in The Bonfires of the Vanities days, the three kids from uptown Toronto seemed to be on the wrong block at the wrong time.

Until recently, prostitutes, dealers and petty thieves lurked in this area, residents say, swiftly adding that the area has changed dramatically for the better.

**********

POSTSCRIPT: Yet another link from Canadian Cynic

Hey pal... you still sleepin' 'UNDER' your bed?

*

Blatchford on Bernier

When news of Ms. Couillard's second Tory boyfriend, Public Works adviser Bernard Coté, emerged this week – he resigned, condemned, as it appears are most of Ms. Couillard's partners, to an unfortunate end – I sent a note to a male friend.

“What?” I asked. “There's only the one woman in Ottawa, so they all have to sleep with her?”

His very funny reply, delivered by phone due to him being what a mutual pal correctly describes as a “Presbyterian squire” too mannerly to use such a line in a note: “You could move there.”

*

The Power of Cherniak

Don't underestimate the magical powers of The Elfin One... he can piss off people who don't even live in this country...

"I'm an American lawyer for whom this blog is an alternate universe, one Orwell might have imagined on a really bad drug trip."

"But hey--that's free speech, no? What I want to know is whether any of you, especially Mr. Cherniak, can tell me how I can violate Canada's speech laws. I'll happily submit to the jurisdiction of one of your amusing little tribunals if I'm charged."

"Here's a shot: "People unwilling to abide the speech of others, even if it's highly offensive and, in the perception of the person hearing it utterly false, are incipient fascists who have to have their appetite for oppression curbed, if necessary by whatever degree of force is required."

"I hate such people."

"Is that "hate speech"?"

"If not, what must I add to quality?"

Oh... gawd... take... deep breaths... wipe... away... tears.

*

So Michael... I've gotta ask...

If even bending over and grabbing your ankles isn't gonna make these folks happy... what exactly is your next move?

*

Latest Toronto homicide victims id'd

The good news is... there was a witness in the car who survived...

Dylan Ellis and Oliver Martin were shot and killed as they sat in their high-end Range Rover SUV around midnight Thursday after watching a basketball game with friends.

Because the victims were driving a high-end SUV, police are exploring the possibility the incident was an attempted carjacking, Det.-Sgt. Giroux said.

Both victims were still wearing their seatbelts when emergency crews arrived at the scene.

Dylan Ellis was the grandson of the late Toronto businessman and philanthropist Mariano A. Elia.

So Mayor Miller... you got any more happy horseshit about shooters at perfectly legal target ranges... or can we just go after the scum-sucking shit who did this?

**********

UPDATE: Witness apparently was a girlfriend

A third passenger in the backseat of the vehicle, whom Det. Sgt. Giroux identified as a friend, is cooperating fully with the investigation. Media reports suggest she is the girlfriend of one of the victims and told police a man was seen fleeing the scene on a bicycle.

And CBC has more...

At least 19 police shell case markers covered a street in downtown Toronto where two men were shot and killed early Friday.

The two victims had been best friends since Grade 1. Police said the families are "devastated" by the killings. "They were certainly, in my opinion, targeted," said the detective, who is leading the investigation.

Police are looking for at least one black male seen fleeing the area on a bicycle. They say they also believe whoever was responsible for the shooting is "familiar with the area" around Niagara and Bathurst.

**********

RELATED: Meet Toronto's powerful "gun lobby"

Several speakers, most of them amateur and hobby shooters as well as gun club operators, told yesterday's meeting that the CNRA Gun Club at Union Station and Scarborough Rifle Club have spotless records and were being unfairly penalized.

Its members show utmost caution handling, storing and transporting their guns, they said, adding the two operations are in no way contributing to Toronto's gun problem.

One of the strongest pleas came from Avianna Chao, a pistol shooter heading to the Beijing Olympics who trains primarily out of the CNRA club.

"I've never met a gang member at a shooting range'' she said, adding that it's the "peaceful nature'' of sport shooting that attracts so many professionals.

**********

WELCOME READERS OF CANADIAN CYNIC

Today CC has put nine... count 'em, nine... links to me in one post.

Sounds like he's really pissed about something, huh?

Hey buddy... those people still spyin' on you?

Say, CC... you do know there are pills that can help with that sort of thing, right?

Get well soon.

*

Mother Nature kicks ass

-- JERUSALEM -- Israeli researchers who grew a sapling from a date seed found at the ancient fortress of Masada said on Thursday that the seed was about 2,000 years old and may help restore a species of biblical trees.

*

Bloodthirsty Insurgency 101

Remember class... "Too many kooks spoil the bomb."

-- GAZA -- The armed wing of Hamas has admitted that a massive explosion in the Gaza Strip on Thursday was caused by militants preparing an armed operation.

Seven people, including a four-month-old baby were killed in the blast, in Beit Lahiya, in the north of the strip. About 50 people were wounded, among them 15 children, Palestinian medics say.

Hamas had initially blamed the explosion on an Israeli air strike.

Of course they did.

**********

RELATED: Even "Pals" aren't pals...

Rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah have held two days of talks in the Senegalese capital Dakar.

A joint statement said that the meetings had restored an "atmosphere of trust and mutual respect".

The two factions have been bitterly opposed since June 2007 when Hamas took control of Gaza by force.

And Israel is supposed to negotiate peace with these madmen? They can't even get along with each other.

You might as well try to reason with a cat.

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Whoooooaaaaaaa!!!!!!!
Leave cats out of this.".

*

Entertainment District, huh?

Toronto's latest "double bill"...

Two young men were shot and killed inside a parked Land Rover in the entertainment district overnight.

Gunfire erupted in the Richmond and Niagara Sts. area just after midnight, police said. Police believe the two men - both 25 years old - were in the area visiting a friend when they were shot at close range.

Media reports suggest the pair may have been targeted because of their high-end vehicle.

**********

RELATED: Try not to confuse...

...this double-shooting with the one that occurred on Wednesday.

**********

LAST WORD: Even the suburbs are heating up

*

I gotta say, Premier McGuinty...

I was already plenty unhappy when I heard you were gonna use taxpayer dollars to fund sex-change operations... but subsidising porn is just way freakin' over the top...

-- TORONTO -- Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty is defending the use of tax credits to help fund a controversial new movie about the sex lives of young Canadians.

C'mon Dalton... is this something you're gonna be taking your kids to see?

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"My doctor asked for a cancer screening lab test at my latest medical. Not covered by OHIP, but sex change operations are?"

"Does OHIP have enough money for one and not the other?"

Good question.

You could email Dalton McGuinty and ask.

**********

RELATED: Who needs strip clubs?

"I agree. That's hot. I'm going to go buy some cellophane and a bottle of ketchup for the ol' lady."

*

File this one under...

Stuff you really don't wanna hear on your next visit to the hospital...

An emergency room doctor tried unsuccessfully to remove the nail with a pair of pliers. "He looked at me and said, 'I need a claw hammer,'" Chandler recalled.

"I thought, 'Ah, he's just teasing.'"

*

Calling all...

Wiccans, Rastafarians and Druids... you wanna make sure you're not late filing your paperwork...

-- TORONTO -- Ontario's governing Liberals tried to say “Amen” Thursday to a thorny proposal to replace the Lord's Prayer in the legislature, opting instead to make time for an additional ritual that would better reflect the province's diverse cultural and religious landscape.

Critics called the move a calculated retreat in the face of massive public outcry to preserve a decades-long tradition. But in averting a controversy, the government may have created a new debate over which additional faiths pass muster.

And, of course, the Liberal government's oh-so-politically correct solution is only gonna throw additional fuel on the volatile religious fires.

The premier has dropped a “real hot potato” in the legislature's lap, said Opposition Leader Bob Runciman.

“It's going to be problematic, there's no doubt about that, in how you determine what's appropriate, what's not appropriate,” he said.

“He opened up a real can of worms here. No one was asking him to go down this road and now where the road ends is a big question mark right now.”

This whole "my beads are holier than your beads" thing... is turning out to be a pain in the body politic.

Time to actually separate Church and State.

**********

RELATED: Pastafarians are gonna want a piece of this

"I think we can all look forward to the time when these three theories are given equal time in our science classrooms across the country, and eventually the world; One third time for Intelligent Design, one third time for Flying Spaghetti Monsterism, and one third time for logical conjecture based on overwhelming observable evidence."

"Blessed be His Noodley Goodness."

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Who'd ever have dreamed that endless compromising might leave us compromised?"

*

Damn you Ezra...

Sitting there in your wildly idling Hummer, smokin a stogie with the air conditioner goin' full blast... and all the windows down...

There's something ineffable about being a free man, about saying what you want, about not being afraid of what someone else thinks.

It feels pretty good.

I'd encourage you to try it.

Go ahead.

You've got some pretty big balls, my friend.

Of course not everybody appreciates that good ol' "free speech" point of view...

(But note the thinly-veiled allusion to violence in Hector's letter: "...it is very fortunate for Canada not to have suffered property loss or injury/causality here or abroad".

I think he meant casualty, but frankly his poor command of English adds a degree of menace, don't you think?

*

"Various sensitivities"

You mean like avoiding a horrible, painful death from a biological contaminant?

The union representing Defence Department employees is pushing the government to put more women on emergency response units after a group of female workers was stripped naked and scrubbed down by an all-male team responding to an anthrax scare.

Union of National Defence Employees John MacLennan also complained that his members were, "given no choice by the emergency response team"... you know... the option to simply walk away and further spread a possible threat.

(h/t reader rich)

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Therefore, beginning next week, all male firefighters will be ordered to cease rescue operations should a female victim be involved and they will be required to do nothing more than speak soothing words until female rescuers arrive."

*

When that "nuclear hotline" rings...

...at 3 o'clock in the morning... will Barack Obama fall over the night table and break a leg?

Everybody knows that the very first rule in picking a vice president is to do no harm. Really, you can choose anybody. How dumb would you feel if it turned into an embarrassment? This is why the careful, modern candidate sets up a screening system.

Now ask yourself: how dumb would you feel if you got in trouble over your selection for the vice-presidential screener.

Talk about unnecessary disasters. It’s like having your career ruined because you invited the wrong person to host a party in honor of your nephew’s godparents.

*

Yet another violent gang of...

...farmers, deer hunters and Olympic target shooters rampages through Toronto... leaving a bloody mess in its wake...

An 18-year-old man is fighting for his life and a 15-year-old boy is lucky to be alive after a brazen daylight shooting in a Regent Park play area yesterday. At least six shots were fired as the two victims sat on a park bench behind 463 Gerrard St. E. around 4:20 p.m.

The 18-year-old victim was shot multiple times in the chest and was in critical condition last night in intensive care unit following surgery.

The 15-year-old boy, whose family only arrived in Canada from Somalia a few years ago, was shot in the legs and also underwent emergency surgery. He is expected to live.

Police believe there could be a link between yesterday's shooting and another that happened around 2 p.m. Tuesday near Sherbourne and Carlton Sts.

**********

RELATED: Good morning... Mr. Mayor
Slow day down at City Hall?

**********

LAST WORD: No farmers here either

*

Hell, apparently, has frozen over

With exquisite timing, the CBC publishes a firearms-friendly article...

One Toronto gun owner said recently that he found shooting at targets a calming activity, a way to focus. (I suppose like meditation.) My dentist father, who loved small instruments and intense study, would probably agree.

My father joined the Doctors and Dentists gun club. Their insignia, I kid you not, was a hypodermic needle crossed with a pistol.

The club seemed to attract a disproportionate number of psychiatrists. Perhaps they joined because they loved the symbolism of the weaponry.

Primum non nocere.

*

Cue the spooky theremin music

"There is the possibility that extraterrestrials are trying to infiltrate the government," Liberal Leader Stephane Dion said Wednesday.

"I'm not saying it's what happened. But certainly all the experts of alien lifeforms who have spoken (say) ... this is the pattern that you need to check."

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Wow, PowerCorp and the Tamil Tigers must really be jealous seeing as how one woman managed to infiltrate the government and supposedly make money or advance whatever cause she is working for (her self esteem?)."

"These PowerCorp and terrorist guys have been trying for years and according to the MSM, they never managed to infiltrate the Liberal Government."

*

Unrepentant mass murderer...

Who covered up for his accomplices... wants out of Canadian jail...

-- VANCOUVER — The only man ever convicted in the 1985 Air India bombing wants out of jail. Inderjit Singh Reyat has served 20 years behind bars for two separate convictions related to the incident that claimed 331 lives in a blast off the coast of Ireland.

On Wednesday, his lawyer Ian Donaldson asked the B.C. Court of Appeal to reconsider holding his client in jail while he awaits trial on a perjury charge.

Justice Ian Josephson labelled Mr. Reyat an “unmitigated liar under oath” in his ruling that acquitted Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri of the bombing deaths.

*

CAW President, apparently not...

The brightest kid in his class...

The Canadian Auto Workers union says it's surprised that General Motors wants $1.5 million in compensation for the blockade at the car giant's Oshawa headquarters.

CAW Local 222 president Chris Buckley says the company's court action to have the blockade removed was expected. But Buckley says the $1.5 million sought in damages from the union local and five of its members - including himself - was a shock.

Guess what, genius... actions have consequences.

*

I know it's not as entertaining...

As promiscuous, large-breasted biker chicks... but back in the world of actually governing and setting policy... Beloved Supreme Leader Dion is busily engineering another trainwreck...

Stéphane Dion is delaying the launch of his carbon-tax plan over resistance from some caucus members who fear he will botch the selling of the proposal.

Understandably, this has made many Grits nervous; explaining a carbon-tax plan is technical and difficult enough. It is complicated by the fact that Mr. Dion is not regarded as a good communicator.

"I think there is a concern that the communication is so weak that it will never get properly launched. That is the problem," says a senior Liberal insider."

"How do you deal with those?"

"They don't know. They don't have a clue."

(h/t reader rich)

Round round get around, I get around

Yeah... get around round round... I get around...

Bernard Côté, a senior staffer in the office of Public Works Minister Michael Fortier, was forced to quit after it emerged that he dated Julie Couillard last year, at which time he discussed a federal real estate project in Quebec City with her.

The Kiss of the Spider-Woman... part deux.

So... unless I'm misreading this... the Globe, and the Liberals, seem to be imputing that Ms. Couillard is in the habit of bestowing her favours on powerful men... in hope of receiving some considerable remuneration.

Now, there's a name for that... damn... it's on the tip of my tongue...

Hey, Julie... good luck on ever getting a LUNCH MEETING, never mind a date again... in this country, anyway.

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

Heh. I'm reading a book called "The Biker Trials" about the Hells Angels-Rock Machine war in the 1990s, and guess who shows up at least twice?

You know, when guys like Maurice "Mom" Boucher call you a slut, you might want to re-think your conduct.

**********

WELCOME YET AGAIN READERS OF CANADIAN CYNIC

Two links in one post... looks like CC has a little sand in his thong today. He's awfully concerned this time... about "l'affaire Couillard."

I guess there's just something here he finds particularly appealing.

*

The best comedy...

"...is cruel and irreverent and Fox, for all its many flaws (Family Guy, I’m looking at you), is aware of this irrevocable comic law."

"Anyone hoping to make a comedy that 'treads sensitively' would have to either be a fool – or a Canadian."

(via shaidle)

Don't blame the cops...

It's a lot like bailin' out the Titanic... with a toy beach bucket.So... the first gun charge, is what... deductible?

(h/t james at jagwire)

Deeply held religious value, huh?

As the wise man Jagger once observed... "She was practiced at the art of deception... I could tell by her blood-stained hands."

Gynecologists say that in the past few years, more Muslim women are seeking certificates of virginity to provide proof to others. That in turn has created a demand among cosmetic surgeons for hymen replacements, which, if done properly, they say, will not be detected and will produce tell-tale vaginal bleeding on the wedding night.

The service is widely advertised on the Internet; medical tourism packages are available to countries like Tunisia where it is less expensive.

I don't know what's more appalling... the self-deception... or the hypocrisy.

*

Taking care of the sheep(le)...

And punishing the sinners -- no, not God -- the Alberta Human Rights Commission...

Consider: The Alberta Human Rights Commission hands out tax dollars in the form of public grants to promote very controversial social issues and at the same time they have the authority to rule on speech and punish opinion via their tribunals.

The same applies in every Province.

*

Pay me now...

And pay me later...

Just as Elmasry's fascist attack on Maclean's has set back Muslim-Gentile relations, by portraying all Muslims as a bunch of Saudi-style wackos, Lund undermines the credibility of the gay lobby, by painting it as an illiberal bunch of bullies, who can hardly wait to start "punishing" people as an act of vengeance for their own grievances.

That's the shame of these human rights commissions: they reward and foster a sense of victimology and grievance.

**********

RELATED: Speaking of bullies

"My parents are much better behaved than I am. Had some neckless bouncer come on my property and refused to leave, I would have called the police. Not my sweet parents -- they're old fashioned, and believe in being courteous, even to bullies."

*

Tasers 3 - Smog 9500

Remember all the coal-fired generating stations the Ontario Liberals were gonna shut down by 2007?

Air pollution comes from a variety of sources, including motor vehicles, factories and smelters. But the Liberal argument in 2003 about unhealthy air hinged on replacing coal with cleaner sources of energy.

This didn't happen, of course, so it's fair to attribute some of the 9,500 premature deaths cited by the OMA to the continued operation of the Nanticoke, Lambton, Thunder Bay and Atikokan plants.

I wasn't too happy about Dalton's big OHIP lie... but I don't think it kills thousands of people every year.

But don't worry, now he's promised to shut them down by 2014.

*

In other "non-gun club" news

Maybe this is just me... but somebody tries to smoke you... you might just wanna play ball with the cops.

-- TORONTO -- A 19-year-old man is recovering in hospital after being shot this afternoon.

However, police said the victim is being uncooperative and they have not yet determined if the person who brought him to the hospital has any connection to the victim.

**********

RELATED: What's a teenager's life worth?

Six years? No... really?

-- BRAMPTON -- Two teens convicted for their role in the ambush shooting death of a Brampton teenager were sentenced to one year in custody.

Now 18 and 19 years old, both were young offenders when Dwayne Lloyd, 17, was gunned down on May 24, 2005.

They were "active participants" but were not armed, court heard. The older of the two had a walkie-talkie the night of the killing, the younger was on a bicycle, and both acted as "scouts", warning their group of eight friends that Lloyd and his friends were approaching.

Two adults, Garfield Powell, 31, of Brampton and Ojore Carrington, 31, of Malton pleaded guilty to manslaughter in February. They were both handed six-year prison sentences for their roles.

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"4 years - mandatory release after two thirds of sentence."

I stand corrected.

*

Media celebrated "Holy Men"...

Strangely silent on genocidal Mugabe...

While this politicization of the food situation in "his" country was being completed, President Robert Mugabe benefited from two things: the indulgence of the government of South Africa and the lenience of the authorities in Rome, who allowed him to attend a U.N. conference on the world food crisis—of all things—despite a five-year-old ban on his travel to any member of the European Union.

This, in turn, seems to me to implicate two of the supposed sources of moral authority on the planet: Nelson Mandela and the Vatican.

By his silence about what is happening in Zimbabwe, Mandela is making himself complicit in the pillage and murder of an entire nation, as well as the strangulation of an important African democracy.

And it's not just Saint Nelson who's dropping the ball here...

And it seems he bears a charmed life in Rome. He was there only recently as a guest at the funeral of Pope John Paul II and was able to claim that he was on Vatican soil rather than Italian territory.

Which in turn raises an interesting question: What is it going to take before the Roman Catholic Church has anything to say about the conduct of this member of its flock?

What indeed?

*

Actions have consequences

Sounds like this kid is already well into his criminal apprenticeship programme.

-- KINGSTON, Ont. - A 13-year-old boy in Kingston, Ont., who punched and broke his family's TV set got more than just a tongue-lashing from his mom - he was also slapped with a criminal charge.

Police say the teen began bickering with his mother Monday morning when she woke him and told him to get ready for school.

In anger, the boy walked out to the living room and punched the screen of the 37-inch LCD TV, damaging it beyond repair.

The television was valued at $1,000.

The teen's mother called police, who arrested the boy and charged him with mischief under $5,000.

Good for her.

*

Paging Buzz Hargrove...

Hey, buddy... you might just wanna go find another shoulder to cry on.

*

Oh, yeah...

Scarborough. Again.

**********

RELATED: Igor... bring me a brain

Police have arrested two 19-year-old suspects after recovering three antique guns that were stolen from Casa Loma over the weekend.

The non-functioning firearms – a Sten submachine gun, Bren light machine gun and a Bock bolt-action rifle – were stolen during a break-in at the historic Toronto castle early Saturday.

Patrick Maier-Trevizan, 19, of Toronto, and Piotr Baczynski, 19, of Mississauga were scheduled to appear in court this morning.

*

Farmers, deer hunters...

And yes, Mr. Mayor... target shooters... totally off the hook, YET AGAIN...

Mubin Shaikh, the first witness to appear in the much publicized Toronto terrorism case, appeared poised and confident as he described an alleged conspirator showing him a gun loaded with “cop killer” bullets within hours of meeting them.

“He takes out a round and shows me the hollowed out point and says "See these are cop killers,” he testified.

Mr. Shaikh said the conversation took place at a Nov. 27, 2005, banquet-hall rally for Muslim prisoners, which he attended after he was tasked with becoming a mole for security agencies.

Of course, Yasser Ara-splat is actually talkin' out his ass here.

Hollow-point bullets, which spread out on impact, are not designed to penetrate body-armour. They flatten out and transfer all their energy... to what is sometimes euphemistically referred to as... "soft targets"... for the layman, that's simple flesh & bone.

When people talk about "cop-killer" bullets... they actually mean a sharply pointed copper-jacketed slug... with a special teflon coating designed to slip through kevlar... in effect, the exact opposite of a hollow-point slug.

But don't try tellin that to ol' Yasser.

And never let it be said that Jihadis don't have a sense of humour...

"'He hugged me ... I feel something in his pocket,' the witness testified."

"I don't know if I said, ‘Brother are you happy to see me'?"

Although it looks like these geniuses may need to do a little more work on the "undercover" aspect of the operation.

On Dec. 5, he said, the No. 2 ringleader picked him up to go shopping for guns on his behalf. Mr. Shaikh testified they visited three gun shops that day.

The suspect “was very excited because the first thing he asked was ‘hey do you sell any assault rifles here?,” Mr. Shaikh said.

He added the remark made the gun-shop owner “very nervous.”

**********

RELATED: Hey... Mayor Super Dave...

...here's a thought... let's try arresting criminals.

-- WINDSOR, Ont. -- Authorities say they’ve broken up an international smuggling ring that was allegedly using couriers to funnel guns from the U.S. into Canada.

Canadian investigators say they seized 27 firearms as well as ammunition at the border, while another ten guns were intercepted in Detroit. Police say the guns were destined for the Toronto area.

Charged with multiple offences are 21-year-old Denisa Manga and 18-year-old Julio Manga, both of Windsor.

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Prime Minister says... "No thanks"

He's gonna take a pass... on publicly sniffing Maxime Bernier's jockstrap...

"I have no interest in participating in a partisan circus," he said Monday. "The opposition parties, if they wish to go ahead with this, it is their right."

On the other hand, Liberal public safety critic Ujjal Dosanjh says he'll be there with bells on... that Couillard babe is hotter than a two dollar pistol... and ol' Ujjie wants a front row seat...

"This is not really a witch hunt," Dosanjh said.

He said he hopes that Couillard will testify, but he's not going to force her to appear before the committee.

I'm with you Uj... it sure beats rotting away in backbench obscurity, huh?

Maybe you can even do some "deeper" investigation... I hear she has a thing for politicians.

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RELATED: Say, Ujjal...

While you're investigating the sex lives of the "Rich & Famous"...

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LAST WORD: Even Moonbat Central... isn't biting

Just don't tell, uh... CTV...

"Two thirds of Canadians believe the Maxime Bernier affair is an important issue."

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WELCOME YET AGAIN READERS OF CANADIAN CYNIC

Always glad to play a little "back and forth" with the undisputed "Prince of Putrid."

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Hey, Steffi... I think I've found...

That big wedge issue you've been lookin' for...

The group representing strip club owners in Ontario is ready to hire a consultant to find loopholes in the rules because their supply of foreign exotic dancers has been cut off for three years.

One route, he said, might be to use foreign student visas, since foreign students can now work for 20 hours a week in any job.

"The legal way is being ignored, so we need to get creative."

Up to 98 per cent of the women who apply overseas for visas get turned down, even after they pay their $150 to $500 application fee, Lambrinos said.

Damn you, Stephen Harper... we need our rental nookie!

"Now the Conservatives plan to stop moving strippers to the front of the immigration line and try to prevent exploitation."

"Again, the Liberals are against this?"

"We've got immigrant doctors driving cabs and badly needed tradespeople not even able to get into the country. But Liberals want to ensure the flow of new strippers and exploited sex trade workers continues!"

C'mon, Stef... this isn't even real work... you can just dust off the ol' "Red Book."

Remember former Liberal Immigration Minister Judy Sgro?

OTTAWA -- Immigration Minister Judy Sgro is defending the government's policy of admitting foreign exotic dancers to work in Canada, saying the strip club business is "a strong industry" with "lots of customers."

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Maybe peace with Israel...

Just isn't their most pressing issue... like, you know... if they could only stop slaughtering each other...

The head of Saddam Hussein's tribe has been blown up in a car bomb in the town of Awja, near Tikrit, Iraqi police say.

Members of the al-Bu Nasir, a 20,000-strong Sunni Arab tribe, held some of the most important security and political positions in Iraq under Saddam Hussein.

Mahmoud al-Nida, the sheikh's brother, was killed by unknown gunmen in 2006.

Baby steps, huh guys?

"Salam Aleikum."

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The importance of...

Getting a second opinion...

An alleged plot by Italian doctors to carry out unnecessary operations in order to make more money has led to the death of five patients, police say.

Investigators say staff at the clinic falsified medical tests in order to get the go-ahead for the operations. In some cases, they say, staff boosted their monthly income by as much as 25,000 euros (£20,000).

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RELATED: Meanwhile, back at the ranch

A Hamilton doctor who admitted having sex with two women he was treating for mental illness had his "permanently" lifted licence reinstated yesterday by the province's medical watchdog.

Waxman, who said he wants to work at a Toronto clinic, should practice only five hours a day, totalling 20 hours per week at first, panel head Dr. Marc Gabel said.

Short hours at first will mean the doctor "will not be under stress," he said.

No such thing as "a bad boy" in Ontario.

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Bubble-wrapping the world

When I went looking for advice on what's involved in replacing my father-in-law's hard-wired, 3 conductor "Electrosaurus"... with a new-fangled 4 conductor electric range... I had no idea I would encounter a philosopher.

As long as you bonded the neutral connection to the chassis of the stove per manufacturer's instructions, you've made it as safe as you can with the current wiring, and it is a level of safety accepted by the code.

Of course, you can always make things safer.

In this case, you could make things safer by rewiring the circuit with four conductors.

But it would be even safer still if you unplugged it or hired somebody to do all your cooking.

There's a limit to what we are willing to do in the name of safety. Eventually we declare it "safe enough".

Now, obviously... and I don't think I'd get an argument here... updating the electrical code is a good thing. I guess, on the other hand, in a situation with an existing installation, you've gotta make a judgement call.

Now I could go off on a tear here... about David Miller's idiotic decision to fight crime by going after perfectly legal pistol ranges... or the statistically insignificant number of (compared to say, vehicle related) deaths by taser, or the "human rights" argle-bargle we've all been so preoccupied with lately... but I think you get the point.

Sometimes you've just gotta apply a little common sense... which apparently, these days, isn't as common as you might think.

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Fiberals didn't get it done... again

"Flee, flee run away"... the Liberal Party of Canada can't bring itself to defeat that horrible Harperite cabal... yet again.

-- Ottawa -- With several Liberals abstaining, the House of Commons has approved controversial Conservative reforms to Canada's immigration laws by a vote of 120-90.

Bill C-50 allows skilled immigrants such as doctors to