FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Is a man who can't tell the difference between a proper massage therapy clinic and a brothel smart enough to hold any position in government, let alone be PM or Leader of the Opposition."

Ask yourself... if the Mainstream Media...

...even had so much as a picture of Stephen Harper walking down the street in front of a shabby Chinatown brothel... you think it wouldn't be front page news? --
Professional journalists... your ethical & intellectual superiors.

**********

UPDATE: That's some "massage clinic"

The setup at 787 Dundas St. W. impressed the ex-cop.

The guy who ran the place controlled traffic with a red and green light system from the second floor where he could see down a stairway to the street.

"The setup was amazing ... when the police showed up, the manager flicked on the red light switch -- which told the girls to pretend it was a legitimate business -- rubs only -- keep it clean and the green light meant they could perform sexual services," he says.

"Police were cracking down on underage girls from Thailand," a former asian crime unit cop says.

**********

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"This is like Elliot Ness getting caught in a Speakeasy in 1930, then claiming he didn't know booze was illegal."

**********

RELATED: Old Pols close ranks

-- LONGUEUIL -- Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe dismissed a story Saturday about New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton having a massage in 1996 in a licensed clinic where there may also have been sex-trade activities, saying "there were no charges."

"I have nothing more to say," Duceppe told reporters.

Funny how the career politicians & mainstream journalists all lost their minds over "child soldier" Omar Khadr... but, suddenly... nobody seems to give a crap about "child prostitutes."

Hang on a sec... we give bail to terrorists?

No such thing as a bad boy, anymore...

-- BRAMPTON -- A Toronto security guard, Mohamed Hersi, 25, who is accused of terrorist activities was released on $200,000 surety at Brampton court on Friday.

The University of Toronto health sciences grad was arrested last month as he was about to board a flight at Pearson airport to Egypt and then Somalia.

He was charged with planning to participate in terrorist activities and counselling another person to do the same.

**********

RELATED: Coming soon...

...to a neighbourhood near you...

-- Marrakesh, Morocco -- Most of the dead were foreign nationals - among them French, Dutch and Canadian tourists. At least 20 more were injured.

The bomb exploded at lunchtime in the well-known Argana cafe on the main square.

**********

LAST WORD: Bright lights, big city...

...never a long gun registry around when you need one...

Police are investigating after a man in his 20s was shot dead inside an Etobicoke apartment building Saturday morning.

Police were called to a building on Bergamot Ave., near Islington Ave. and Rexdale Blvd shortly after midnight.

It is Toronto's 21st homicide of the year.

**********

UPDATE: Homicide victim id'd

The victim has now been identified as Jordan Telfer, 21, of Toronto.

I've gotta see what Lloyd & CTV...

...do with this hot tamale, er... potato...

-- TORONTO -- Jack Layton was found laying naked on a bed by Toronto Police at a suspected Chinatown bawdy house in 1996, a retired Toronto police officer told the Toronto Sun.

The stunning revelation about the current leader of the New Democratic Party comes days before the federal election at a time when his popularity is soaring.

At first the policemen didn't realize they were interviewing one of the best-known Toronto politicians who was married to Chow, also a Metro councillor and now the incumbent NDP MP for Trinity-Spadina.

Hmmm... might be time for a little cap & trade...

The officer's notebook indicates he asked the suspected john: "Did you receive any sexual services?"

He replied: "No sir, I was just getting a shiatsu."

The cop: "Why did you have all your clothes off?"

The suspected john: No answer.

The policemen warned the councillor about the dangers of hanging out in suspected bawdy houses that could be run by Asian triads.

"I remembered lecturing him on a lot of these triads, they'd videotape the customers and extort them afterwards. Jack went pale. I said to him you have to understand it's quite possible," he says.

"He came on a bicycle. I escorted him down and he went away on his bike."

[more at sda]

**********

UPDATE: CTV does NDP damage control

On the one hand... there's a police officer AND his notebook...Lloyd simply says Jack Layton was...

"...mentioned in a police officer's memorandum."

And that's it.

And, we're back to another 20 minutes of royal wedding millinery.

**********

RELATED: Waiting for the Liberal spin...

...in three, two, one...

The Prime Minister is a blackmailer.

Of course.

**********

UPDATE2 @11:50: CTV has a political spot...

...every Friday night called "Gallery Talk"... surely they'll delve into this. I mean... they've got Don Martin & Jane Taber... who pride themselves on being "political journalists."

And... silence. Not one freakin' word. If anything it's a Layton lovefest... Jack's at Stornoway... Iggy is toast.

Funny how that works.

**********

LAST WORD: The Globe weighs in

NDP Leader Jack Layton was found in a "massage clinic" when "it was visited" by police in 1996, a report revealed Friday evening, though he was not charged with an offence.

Mr. Layton spoke on the matter to reporters briefly Friday evening. He did not take questions, and went immediately to a rally.

And Globe readers are also quick to throw down...

I can't wait for Jacko and the Dippers...

...to shut down all those nasty nuclear... wait a minute...

Toronto’s iconic wind turbine on the edge of Lake Ontario has been brought to a grinding halt by a combination of a bearing failure and, ironically, high winds.

The lazily spinning, three-bladed turbine at the Exhibition grounds has been frozen since mid-March. It’s the latest hiccup for the project which was launched in 2002 when 427 investors raised $800,000 to buy 8,000 shares in the 750-kilowatt generator.

Compounding the issue was the bankruptcy of the Dutch windmill manufacturer, Lagerwey, which rendered the maintenance contract and warranty useless, said Ms. Saxe.

"Picture an NDP minority government..."

"...swollen with dozens of inexperienced and wide-eyed MPs – some of them recruited from university campuses and NDP youth groups because they thought campaigning would be a hoot, and be over before they had to start their summer jobs — trying to put together a cabinet and a governing program while desperately pleading for ongoing support from a tired, angry and disillusioned Liberal rump, sharpening the knives for yet another leadership vote."

"That could be Canada’s government."

**********

RELATED: Remember, folks... you might...

...just get what you wish for...

From the day he arrived in politics as a shaggy-looking Toronto city councillor in 1982, Layton's had a free pass from the media, in part because his message resonates better with political journalists, who tend to be more left-wing than the public.

But because Layton's chances of governing have always ranged between remote and zero, the fringe-thinking guy is simply not held to the same policy or even personal standards as those who are more likely to govern us.

**********

LAST WORD: Iggy's broken record...

“And what was I doing? Reaching out to the base. I was seeking out the base. We worked hard under the radar to mobilize our base with all the modern techniques. I've spent a year-and-a-half on that bus. A year-and-a-half on open-mike town halls. What was that about? It was to get the base back. It’s to get the base back. That’s what those rooms are telling you — the vote, the base is back. We’ve had a whole operation under the radar for a very long time to get that base out.”

C'mon laddie... spit it out.

Call me a sceptic... I just have this...

...tiny, nagging suspicion, that... despite all his unceasing, frenetic pre-election slagging... Michael Ignatieff, come next Tuesday, will be only too happy to be Jacko's little organ-grinding dance partner...

In his attack, Ignatieff said the NDP's $70-billion platform would dig Canada farther into deficit, and Layton's plan to immediately hire 1,200 doctors and 6,000 nurses at a cost of $25 million would stomp on provincial jurisdictions.

C'mon, Michael... get out the chapstick... 'cos you're gonna be needing it.

Rearranging the deck chairs on the...

...well, you know...

Gotta have priorities, I guess

-- TORONTO -- A high school created a century ago as a unique testing lab for would-be teachers and a haven for the academically gifted has to pack up and find new digs after the University of Toronto said it will need the downtown space for itself.

The University of Toronto Schools has had a special partnership with the University of Toronto since its inception in 1910: Their programs were linked, and the university sent its student teachers to the “independent” high school, which earned a reputation for creating Rhodes scholars and mathletes.

Screw that egghead stuff... behold the future of Canadian education...

Thinking with the big head... so last millenium.

The rough & ready Globe and Mail...

...always first on the scene with important breaking news...

-- Apr 28, 2011 -- The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency on Thursday said for the first time that a target destroyed by Israeli warplanes in the Syrian desert in 2007 was a covertly built nuclear reactor, appearing to counter assertions by Syria that it had no atomic secrets to hide.

Wait a minute...

-- Sept 29, 2007 -- Syria accused Israel on Saturday of making excuses for spreading what it described as false reports that an Israeli air raid targeted a site linked to weapons of mass destruction.

How do these "professional journalists" hold their heads up in public?

I don't get it.

**********

RELATED: Here's the real story...

...which, by the way, you will never see in the Canadian media...

"The International Atomic Energy Agency... about as useful as grease nipples on an emu."

He's willing to rewrite the Constitution...

...to appease the Separatistes... what wouldn't Jack Layton promise the rest of us?

-- OTTAWA -- The NDP platform, which is 26 pages long, contains 19 pictures of Jack Layton and 12 pages of text. Even so, those 12 pages list 146 bullets’ worth of policy, with another 59 sub-bullets, for a grand total of 205 policy promises.

The platform’s title is Giving Your Family a Break: Practical First Steps. If there are 205 “first steps,” how many second, third and fourth steps will there be?

This could be interesting.

Deputy Prime Minister Michael Ignatieff...

...it does have a certain ring to it...

-- OTTAWA -- Liberal Senator Larry Campbell told Postmedia News on Tuesday that if Harper were returned to power on May 2, it could be time to discuss merging the NDP and the Liberals.

Hmmm... if Iggy has to choose between being Deputy PM... or slinking off to Hah-vuhd with his tail between his legs... which do you think he'll choose?

Ignatieff also told reporters Wednesday he sees common sets of values between both parties. “We have certain values that we have always shared and we’ve shared for 60 years.”

Yeah... that's what I thought.

What is it good for? Absolutely nothing.

-- UNITED NATIONS -- An attempt by the United States and its European allies to condemn Syria in the United Nations Security Council was rebuffed on Wednesday.

Western nations failed to secure the simplest of Security Council measures: a press statement calling on Syria’s leaders to stop the violence against their own people.

Never mind a statement... looks like Bashar is getting champagne & flowers...

"The brutal crackdown by Syrian President Bashar Assad may finally be getting the attention of world leaders -- but apparently not enough to stop Syria from becoming the newest member of the U.N. Human Rights Council."

Tonight's CTV Moonbat Moment

Oops... the corpse that used to be Lloyd Robertson just slipped up and asked the Prime Minister if he could work with "an NDP-led Coalition." --

He immediately pulled it back... but it was a golden moment. I should have been counting all the times ol' Lloyd used the words "dictatorial" & "controlling."

Not even a pretense of objectivity. Amazing.

If a thousand years of selective breeding...

...and a dash of... divine right of Kings... spits up a half-baked Chuckie Buggerlugs... I'd say it's way past time to reshuffle your playlist...

-- ROSTOCK, Germany -- Karin Vogel wakes up in this graffiti-pocked east German city and drives to the hospital where she is a therapist who counsels elderly people in chronic pain.

If a few thousand people would just disappear, Ms. Vogel would be leading a far more enchanting life. She would be the queen of England.

The Royal Wedding?

Good grief, people... get a life.

**********

RELATED: If only there was a way...

"If you live anywhere in North America, the easiest way to ignore this week’s nuptials between the apparently affable-but-who-cares Bill Windsor and his pretty-but-I-see-girls-twice-as-gorgeous-on-the-subway-every-day bride Kate can be summed up in two words: Sleep in."

A funny sort of...

...Middle Ages democracy...

-- CAIRO (AP) -- A majority of Egyptians believe laws in their country should observe the teachings of Islam's holy book, the Quran, according to the results of an opinion poll by a U.S.-based research center.

In a result that doesn't bode well for the country's lingering sectarian issues, the poll showed that only 36 percent of those questioned believe it is "very important" for Christians and other minorities to freely practice their religions, suggesting the influence of these militant groups, who have incited hatred of the country's 10 percent Christian minority.

Apparently though, "Religion of Peace" doesn't necessarily translate into "Religion of Obeying the Law."

Post-Mubarak Egypt also suffers from a security vacuum that has led to a dramatic surge in crime. Economic problems are also deepening and the country has had to borrow from the International Monetary Fund.

In fact... that whole pesky "Peace" thing is getting a bit of a rough ride.

The poll results also showed that more than half of all Egyptians would like to see the 1979 peace agreement with Israel annulled, highlighting the deep unpopularity of the treaty, which is central to U.S. policy in the region and was scrupulously adhered to by Mubarak.

I guess you can always blame it on the Great Satan...

The United States, Egypt's strongest foreign backer since the mid-1970s, continued to garner low approval ratings, with only 20 percent of Egyptians seeing it in a positive light, up from 17 percent in 2010.

The coming culture wars

France draws a line in the sand...

-- AFP -- French police fined a woman for wearing a full-face Islamic veil, the first reported enforcement of a ban on the garment on the day it came into effect, a police source said Tuesday.

Interior Minister Claude Gueant insisted on Monday that the ban would be fully applied, in the name of "secularism and equality between men and women... two principles upon which we can not compromise."

**********

RELATED: A little closer to home...

...what "Canadian" magazine says...

"We should support only those non-Muslim candidates who are willing to present and support a Private Members’ Bill making it a hate-crime to publicly associate Islam to terrorism, whether in written, spoken, printed, broadcast or electronic media."

Yeah... bye-bye free speech... good one.

Look at how well that's working in, let's say... Syria.

You just keep piling it up...

...higher & higher... creating your very own "Bullshit Mountain"...you really think nobody's gonna notice?

Aren't these the very same folks that Iggy...

...was sucking up to... during the Leadership debate?

The brutal crackdown by Syrian President Bashar Assad may finally be getting the attention of world leaders -- but apparently not enough to stop Syria from becoming the newest member of the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Yeah... that's who we should be listening to... the United Nations.

Well... it could've been way worse...

...at least she used ink... and not the blood of a hundred cats...

Margaret Atwood scrawls a list of nouns and adjectives on a dinner napkin, in two columns: On the right (interestingly enough) are negative leadership characteristics (“dictator,” “mean,” “always right, like God” — gee, whoever could she be talking about?) and on the left are their more desirable opposites.

And … well, for some reason, she thought Canadians would be interested in her napkin. And for some reason, the Toronto Star agreed!

Obviously... Ontario gets it...

...but then again, they've been sheep-dippered once before...

The Nanos poll released Monday also suggests the Liberals are trending down in vote-rich Ontario, showing their lowest level of support (29.3 per cent) since the start of the current campaign.

That leaves them trailing well behind the Conservatives (47.8 per cent), but ahead of the NDP (16.9 per cent) and the Greens (5.4 per cent).

Sorry, Peace Moonbeam... no NDP miracle here.

Two words... Bob... Rae.

So, lemme see... a Harper majority, or...

...holy hemp butter... Finance Minister Olivia Chow?!?!?

-- OTTAWA -- Under that scenario, the NDP would still come in second in seat count to the Conservatives, but the support of the third-place Liberals would give Mr. Layton a working majority in the House of Commons.

“We’re in terra incognita here,” EKOS president Frank Graves said.

Whoa, whoa, Franko... pump the brakes.

I'm just trying to get my mind around an NDP cabinet... or, gawds forbid... what the military might look like under Governor-General Libby Davies. That's not terra incognita, my friend... that's terra psychedelia.

But okay... let's... just for a moment... abandon reason and imagine that Jack Layton performs a country-wide Vulcan mind-meld and gets these hundred mythical seats.

I imagine that'd be enough to send Count Ignatieff running for the U.S. border. Hmmm... and that would probably be enough to put Iggy's ol' college roomie, Commie Bob, in the drivers seat on the Big Red Bus.

So that fairy-tale Coalition thing... that could actually happen?

Well, I'm thinkin'... not in this version of the multi-verse.

As always, though... get out there and cast your vote, folks... or, however this thing shakes out... this one's on you.

**********

RELATED: All those NDP promises...

...who's gonna pay for that stuff?

-- VANCOUVER, BC -- "Taxes have grown over the past 49 years to the point that government is now the largest expenditure facing a family," said Niels Veldhuis, Fraser Institute senior economist and co-author of the Canadian Consumer Tax Index 2011.

Scratch a Dipper... find a hypocritical carpet-bagger...

"Last year, Chow claimed $530,000 in expenses, Layton claimed $629,000."

That's why we call him...

...Premier McSlippery...

"A change by the Ontario Environment Ministry this year allows sewage sludge to be regulated as manure rather than as a pollutant."

Think it couldn't ever happen here?

Think again...

A Montreal mosque was viewed by the U.S. military as a hub for Islamist militants, according to newly leaked “secret” intelligence documents from Guantanamo Bay.

The Pentagon's “Matrix of Threat Indicators” lists the Al Sunnah Al Nabawiah mosque in Montreal as one of nine global houses of prayer where “known al-Qaeda members were recruited, facilitated or trained.”

Several figures who passed through the Al Sunnah Al Nabawiah in the late 1990s did end up detained in other jurisdictions outside of Canada – including Guantanamo Bay – after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States.

The most significant prisoner is named Mohamedou Ould Slahi, who actually served as an imam at the mosque for about a month.

Hmmm... Montreal, Montreal... that sounds so familiar...

-- MONTREAL -- A Montreal man has collected Quebec government welfare cheques for almost 20 years, even as he criss-crossed Europe to meet six other men who’ve since been either killed, convicted or linked to global terrorism, lawyers for the RCMP and CSIS allege.

**********

RELATED: Whatever happened to the...

...compassionate, intellectual left?

“The antiwar movement should have been furious at Obama’s ‘betrayal’ and reinvigorated its protest activity,” the authors write. “Instead, attendance at antiwar rallies declined precipitously and financial resources available to the movement dissipated.”

The difference is that Democrats abandoned the pacifist cause when one of their own decided to use force.

Funny how that works, huh?

**********

THE COMPASSIONATE INTELLECTUAL LEFT REPLIES:

Band on the Run

Or... you can vote for Tim Hudak... and scrap this thing entirely...

"Exempting these vehicles will save many Ontario drivers time and money while posing no risk to the environment or the air we breathe," Environment Minister John Wilkinson says in a statement.

Gotta love Premiere McSlippery's timing here.

"The Liberals use the 30-second clip..."

"...to attack the NDP on a variety of issues: Inexperience, nonsensical economic policies and, intriguingly, not being principled on the long-gun registry vote."

"So, apparently, the Liberal Party of Canada, God’s gift to democracy, consider allowing free votes in Parliament to be … unprincipled."

"Good thing they’re here to make Parliament work and counter the Tories’ disrespect for our democracy."

*********

NDP GOES WITH THOSE TRICKY "FACTS":

During the English-language debate, the NDP Leader landed what some are calling a knock-out punch when he accused Mr. Ignatieff of having the “worst attendance record in the House of Commons of any member of Parliament.”

“If you want to be prime minister, you’d better learn how to be a member of Parliament first,” Mr. Layton charged. “You know, most Canadians, if they don’t show up for work, they don’t get a promotion. You missed 70 per cent of the votes.”

**********

LAST WORD: Deck chairs... Titanic

"In Mr. Chrétien’s era, Ontario was the pathway to Liberal majorities. Now, Mr. Ignatieff will work frantically to prevent it from being the pathway to a Conservative one."

What professional journalists...

...apparently cannot ever do... you know... call things by their proper names...

"Fifteen-year-old Toronto resident Klayton Wynter died Saturday evening at an area hospital after "AN INCIDENT" in the mall's parking lot."

So that's what we're callin' it these days... "an incident"?

'Cos what I'm seein' here is murder with a CAPITAL M. Some sociopath tore into this kid so extensively that he bled out and died. No "incident", no "misunderstanding"... just murder.

Why would you soft-pedal this story? This is, in fact, every parents worst nightmare come true. I know this. I am the father of a fifteen-year-old boy.

Don't try pretty this up, Tamara. Put down your thesaurus. Call this thing by it's proper name and perform a valuable public service.

We stop being horrified by murder... gawds help us all.

**********

UPDATE: Teens killing teens

On Tuesday, homicide detectives announced that one suspect, 15, was charged with second-degree murder in the region's sixth murder of the year.

The suspect's name can't be released under provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

If Michael Ignatieff is working his way...

...backwards from World War I... how long will it take him to apologise for the "Highland Clearances"...

And he said Parliament should issue an apology for the decision by British Columbia authorities to refuse to let Sikh passengers disembark in Canada from the liner Komagata Maru in 1914.

Heck... he's already back to 1885.

**********

RELATED: Playing by Liberal rules

**********

UPDATE: Volpe busted

A Liberal Party canvasser has been dismissed after removing Green Party campaign flyers from mailboxes and replacing them with Liberal materials while door-knocking with Toronto incumbent Joe Volpe.

It's never too late, to get your...

...Doctorate of Nerd.

So Nonny... you're there @ the computer...

...all by yourself at 3 o'clock in the morning... desperately trying, yet again... to attract my attention with what you probably imagine is witty repartee... The sad & indisputable fact is, though... I apparently have a more or less permanent lease on that vacuous and, no doubt by now, painfully throbbing space between your ears...

Posted by Anonymous to halls of macadamia at 2:58 AM, April 24, 2011
Posted by Anonymous to halls of macadamia at 2:59 AM, April 24, 2011

Now, I've obviously... in your mind anyway... offered you some sort of grave personal offense that causes you to return here... sometimes dozens of times daily... to spew threats & call me silly names.

I'd like to tell you that I feel your pain, Nonny... but honestly, after all this time... it's just kinda boring. It actually got to the point where other commenters were asking me to stop you jamming up the comment threads.

But, hey... here's what I'm gonna do. You bundle up all of that anger & anguish and write me an email and tell me what I've done to deserve all this attention... and I'll feature it here at the Halls.

Now, I'd prefer if you left out all the usual stuff about molotov cocktails and shooting and nazis... but I will understand if you just can't manage that.

You just get it all off your chest... and maybe, just maybe... you'll feel better.

I can't be any fairer than that. I get that you're probably gonna be a little late getting outta bed tomorrow... but I look forward to your reply.

You truly do... get the kind of government...

...you deserve...

What Steer represents is just the latest dash of reality in a recipe for disaster that has been pressure-cooking since the Liberals under Jean Chretien steered clear of stirring this ugly pot.

The Liberals and the NDP, meanwhile, think they can rehabilitate scorpions, and turn seasoned criminals into social workers.

Some 41,000 missing deportees -- all deemed unworthy, criminal, or dangerous -- is no small number.

And who's against building more prisons for the violent ones? Ask the opposition candidate in your riding.

It's time to get serious about crime.

Speaking of Audacity

President Obama declared today's 41st annual Earth Day proof of America's ecological and conservation spirit — then completed a three-day campaign-style trip logging 10,666 miles on Air Force One, eating up some 53,300 gallons at a cost of about $180,000.

And that doesn't include the fuel consumption of his helicopter, limo, or the 29 other vehicles that travel with that car.

Remember back... you were a kid...

...somebody made you angry... it was time to slash & burn?

-- Yeah... me neither.

-- TORONTO -- A 33-year-old man remains in hospital with critical injuries after he was hacked with a machete during a brawl outside a North York nightclub early Friday.

Two other men, aged 26 and 27, were treated at Sunnybrook hospital and were later released following the 2:50 a.m. melee at the Las Brisas Del Mar nightclub on Rivalda Rd., in the Sheppard Ave.-Weston Rd. area.

In an unrelated incident at the bar in March 2010, the outdoor patio and front facade was heavily damaged by an arsonist. Surveillance video from the club captured an image of a man who ignited a trail of gasoline.

Police believe he was exacting revenge for being kicked out of the club after a dispute.

Think it couldn't happen to you?

Think again.

Iggy does priggy...

...while Jack gets jiggy...It gets better...

Yet another Middle East Massacre...

...must be Friday...

"A four-year-old girl was reportedly among the victims, shot in the head by a sniper according to opposition activists."

**********

UPDATE: Bashar goes ballistic

Security forces in Syria have shot dead at least 12 people at funerals for anti-government protesters killed on Friday.

At least seven people were reportedly shot dead in the Douma and Barzeh, both districts of Damascus.

Ask Professor Zinfandel

"This is the list of the 10 Most Sophisticated Electorates in the World According to Michael Ignatieff. Quebec goes at the top. Michael Ignatieff can fill in the rest."

**********

UPDATE 17:00:

Just back from the local advance poll... that's 2 more votes for Conservative incumbent Daryl Kramp. Scrutineers say the word is that Prince Edward & Hastings Cty. stations have been quite busy.

Sucking up to somebody else's gawd?

I'm sorry... all this very public faux-religiosity... just smacks of pandering to me...

Thanks to the miracle of Canadian diversity, an out-of-place leader trying to look at ease while wearing someone else’s religious headgear can come across as open-minded and accessible to a broader range of multicultural voters.

“It’s strange but true,” says Dr. Siemiatycki. “There are some places of worship that leaders can’t enter, and some they can’t enter often enough.”

You've gotta wonder... does this sort of thing actually fool anybody? I mean, they wouldn't do it if it didn't work, right?

Come back, Stephane...

...all is forgiven...

Waking up in Montreal to stunning polls showing the NDP is suddenly the first choice of Quebeckers, Michael Ignatieff is campaigning in two urban ridings where not even big-name candidates in the province can assure Liberal wins.

To counter rising interest in the NDP, the Grit Leader points to his star candidates as evidence his party has people who are ready to fill key cabinet roles.

But the mere fact he needs to campaign on behalf of two of his stronger candidates underscores what the polls are saying: Things aren’t looking good for the Liberals in Quebec.

More rainbows & unicorn farts...

...from the folks who were looking to make Elizabeth May a Senator...

Indeed, the NDP’s traditional role is that of “social conscience,” prompting a discussion of issues that would otherwise be ignored by the two major parties. Jack Layton thus has carte blanche to promise a chicken in every pot, or pot in every chicken, if NDP members are so inclined.

In this election, however, that is no longer true. Should the Liberals cobble together a coalition government after the votes are counted, NDP members would be elevated from conscience-keepers to cabinet colleagues.

And remember, Michael... if they'll do it with you... they'll do it to you.

A Liberal-NDP coalition government would likely be an unstable, left-leaning mess which would last less than a year before collapsing and plunging the country into another election.

Yet another 300 million dollar election?

That's just what we need.

But, but... Michael Ignatieff says we're...

...living in a brutal dictatorship...

"Canadians share second place among the most contented people on the planet, according to a global survey that asked respondents to rate their own lives."

**********

RELATED: Iggy slips, Liberal Party organ...

...slams into hyperdrive...

"Mr. Harper has been setting this trap ever since Stéphane Dion’s ill-fated attempt to take power 2 1/2 years ago. Now, Mr. Ignatieff has wandered straight into it. He has 11 days to find his way out."

Or, is it just possible Adam... that instead of that "evil chessmaster Stephen Harper's" longstanding diabolical machinations... your aristocratic Harvard-trained hero simply tripped over his enormous silver tongue?

Of course not.

**********

THE COMPASSIONATE, INTELLECTUAL LEFT REPLIES:

"Elect a Harper majority and we'll see what dictatorship is like."

"Hahahahahahahahahahaha!"
Posted by liberal supporter to halls of macadamia at 7:23 AM, April 21, 2011

Yup... gotta love that "kangaroo courts for free speech" thing, huh Libby?
Mark it on your calendar... the day comedy died in Canada.

**********

LAST WORD: Irony... not dead at all

Earle was just on Adler and described himself as a leaning left socialist, and a Layton supporter.

Blessed are the Peacemakers...

...whoever they might actually be...

Ignatieff — long known to be a supporter of the decision to invade — was part of an academic advisory team that helped U.S. state department and American military officials conduct strategy sessions.

He was one of the leading liberal voices supporting the war and his workshops and writings helped former U.S. President George Bush's administration push the message that the war was necessary.

Ignatieff distanced himself from the Iraq war and the Bush administration after he returned to Canada and was appointed deputy leader of the Liberal Party.

What else is Michael Ignatieff not telling the Canadian people?

And somebody remind me... who exactly was it... that actually sent Canadian troops into Afghanistan?

"You say tomato..."

...I say... sweet.. holy crap... on... a cracker...

The Million Dollar Man

If only there was a political party with the balls to start cracking down on crime...

-- TORONTO -- Efforts to deport a habitual criminal with 76 convictions have cost taxpayers as much as $1 million — and he may still remain in Canada for another year.

Uriah Walford Steer, who is in a Montreal jail while fighting deportation, is slated for an immigration detention review on April 30.

Steer, 39, of Toronto, has been detained since August 2010 for committing crimes in Montreal. He was sponsored here from Jamaica by a parent in 1993 and deported in 1999 for criminal activity.

He snuck back in 2000 with fake documents and filed a refugee claim that was accepted by an Immigration and Refugee Board. Steer claimed he will be killed if returned to Jamaica.

He has been fighting deportation since 2006.

Do yourself a favour... think before you vote.

What Canadians can expect...

...for their 300 million dollar Iggy-engineered election...
The fact is, the only reason we're going to the polls now... is Iggy and his coalition buddies setting up that initial vote of non-confidence. Now he tells us... election be damned... he gets a chance, he'll do it again.

So there it is, folks... from the Leader of the Opposition's own mouth... unless there's a Conservative majority... stand by for Prime Minister Ignatieff. And given the "show me yours, I'll show you mine" nature of politics... is it that far a stretch to imagine Defense Minister Chow... or, gawd forbid, Finance Minister Duceppe?

Steve Janke has more...

"After that, the platforms will be combined as well. Whatever you think you were voting for, forget about it. The Liberal platform be put on the table along with the NDP platform, subject to horse-trading as Michael Ignatieff figures out what price he'll have to pay for Jack Layton's support."

"And talking about paying, in all likelihood the combined seat count of the Liberals-NDP coalition twosome will not be larger than the Conservative caucus, so the Bloc Quebecois will have to be on board with this. And they won't come cheap."

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RELATED: Ya feelin lucky, punk?

The question now is whether Mr. Ignatieff’s words will create the same level of alarm that attended the failed 2008 attempt by the Liberals and NDP to form a coalition government, or whether Canadians will embrace the highly unusual scenario of a party forming government weeks after finishing second in the polls.

Remember... friends don't let friends vote Coalition.

I blame Marvel Comics

The eminently forseeable consequences of... NOT ACTUALLY BEING... one of the X-men...

“With the training and the confidence that comes with it, I’m sure he probably thought he could overpower the gunman.” --

Of course, that should actually be gunmen... as in two of them.

Let me say that again... two armed thugs.

Now I don't care how strong your kung-fu is... fists against multiple armed assailants... that's a Jackie Chan movie... a crazy fantasy... a way to get yourself killed.

Which is why, folks... virtually every city in North America (even Belleville, Ontario, population 45,000) has special heavily-armed & armoured "tactical teams" that deal with situations like this.

A witness told him dozens of people were in the restaurant and they could have been hurt or killed if his brother hadn’t intervened.

While I realise Kearn Nedd's family has to try make sense of this tragic event, the cold, hard fact is... no cop worth his years of training would have, even for a second, considered jumping an armed thug in a room full of innocent bystanders... never mind there's a second armed hostile watching the first guy's back.

Even a trained shooter would have been flippin' a cosmic coin trying to instantly disable two armed men. The fact is... an adrenaline soaked situation like this... two armed sociopaths with not a shred of gun discipline or restraint between them... it's a miracle there was only one KIA.

So... I'm sorry to upset the fuzzy-bunny narrative, here... but had Mr. Nedd simply sat & watched these assholes take off a stupid card game... he would still be alive today.

He wasn't a hero... he was a runaway train.

What a tragic, useless waste of a life.

I guess there's so many Snowbirds...

...down there... they're turning NDP...

-- ORLANDO, Fla. -- Florida officials are investigating an unemployment agency that spent public money to give 6,000 superhero capes to the jobless.

Workforce Central Florida spent more than $14,000 on the red capes as part of its "Cape-A-Bility Challenge" public relations campaign.

The campaign featured a cartoon character, "Dr. Evil Unemployment," who needs to be vanquished.

Now... call me wacky... I'm thinkin' handing out faux superhero duds to the Sunshine State's chronically under-employed may not be the best use of taxpayer monies...

Shawn Tyson, the 16-year-old charged with murdering the two Britons was freed by a judge two weeks ago after he was arrested over an armed robbery.

Two weeks... seriously?

Wake up, folks... and smell the Thunderdome.

Why wait for May 2... when Special K...

...can simply look, yet again, into his crystal ball...

First off, the Liberals and the NDP had a shot at working together, about two years ago, but they blew it. The forces of the Left allowed themselves to be scared away off of cooperation/ coalition/ merger by Harper – despite the fact that Harper himself had brought together the forces of the Right, and then won government.

Secondly, Michael Ignatieff feels more comfortable among Rosedalian Liberals. You know, the ones who – over martinis at the Toronto Tennis Club – always felt more kinship with the likes of John Turner or Paul Martin than they did with, say, Pierre Trudeau or Jean Chretien. You know, Liberal lefties who win elections.

Thirdly, Iggy and his Rosedalian senior staff thought they could ignore Jack Layton’s NDP. By becoming a paler shade of blue, they assured themselves, they’d win back government. Thus, the Liberal chief was more hawkish than Harper on Afghanistan, more enthusiastic about the Oil Sands, and more willing to look at Medicare “alternatives” than any Liberal ever should. In so doing, Iggy scared away soft NDP voters, all of whom now consider Iggy to be a paler version of Harper.

What’s the solution for the Left? Same as it was two years ago: listen to smart guys like Chretien, Ed Broadbent, Roy Romanow, and bring together progressives to form a single, formidable political force.

That’s how to beat Harper.

The good news, I suppose, is that those of us on the political left will now have four long years to get our act together.

Oh, buddy... we feel your pain...

I want it back the way it used to be
Now there's a cloud that's hangin' over me
We've all been led astray
We need someone to light the way

...One who delivers all he promises
One who'll convince the doubting Thomas'
Fill out the questionnaire
We're in state of disrepair

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RELATED: More Kinsella Golden Touch

"Things Rocco Rossi could do with his newfound free time... Wander into Union Station naked and on fire."

"See if anybody notices."

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LAST WORD: As the Warren turns...

The soothing, dulcet... "Call of the Minaret"

I do believe I'm feelin' more peaceable already...

-- TORONTO -- “Why doesn’t he show his Jewish cousins being fried by the Nazis?” — “There is no absolute free speech. With freedom of speech there are rules.”

Imam Steve Rockwell, who hosts The Call of the Minaret on Vision TV — and will appear Wednesday with Florida Koran-burning Pastor Terry Jones on the John Oakley Show on AM 640 Wednesday — said there are “consequences” for breaking them.

Yes, my gentle, studious friend... I think we've already had a taste of those "consequences." But you're not finished here... are you?

“If he were to show 100 Jews in flames with soap coming out of the other end he would not have a job the next day!” said Rockwell.

Yup... the perfect media foil to "debate" whackadoodle Pastor Terry Jones.

Like Kate always says... "I'm prayin' for an asteroid."

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RELATED: BCF has video

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LAST WORD: Two words actually... lexan - kevlar

No word yet from Toronto City Hall...

...on Rosedale's recently proposed... "Burn the Witches" initiative...

"Mr. Ho has suggested renaming a major road — 14th Avenue, which stretches from Markham-Pickering Townline Road in the east to Highway 404 — for the same reason: The name resembles the Chinese term for 'sure death'."

Don'tcha just love it...

...when suckass political correctness... shoots itself in the face?

"Real men" don't worry about perjury

I'd love to see Michael Ignatieff giving sworn testimony...You can publicly lie to a whole country... I imagine you can lie anyplace, anytime.

"Liberals say they will post an online poll Monday asking Canadians which new Harper quote on health care they should use to replace one 'that was inaccurate'."

"Inaccurate", huh? Looks like Hanoi Jane is still buckin' for that Senate seat.

You've gotta love the automatic Fiberal reaction here... get caught... and instead of retracting & apologising, you call your opponent a wuss.

Is there anything Michael Ignatieff wouldn't say or do to become Prime Minister.

The answer seems pretty clear.

Meanwhile... in other "the childrens is r futcher" news... I'm with Kate... let them eat debt.

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THANK YOU COMMENT MODERATION:

"it appears to me, I see Harper demanding a majority, or the separatists are gonna fornicate with your daughters goddamit!"

Oh, nonny... you do all the work for me.

Oh, c'mon... gimme one good reason...

...the social & economic juggernaut that is Italy... shouldn't be calling the shots for their European, uh... "partners"...

-- (Reuters) -- France temporarily shut its border to trains from Italy carrying African migrants and protesters on Sunday, a move Rome formally protested, accusing Paris of violating European principles.

That'd be, what, Silvio... the principle that a country should have control over it's own borders?

Italy has began issuing migrants with temporary permits allowing them to leave Italy to travel to other destinations in Europe, a policy which has been criticised by several of its partners, including France and Germany.

FROM THE COMMENTS:

"I suppose it depends on your definition of 'in' and 'Canada'."

You wanna get Mr. "Welcome Back Khadr"...

...jumping up & down and shrieking about evil dictatorships... it ain't that hard...

Just another reason...

...to vote Conservative...

"Step one is to weaken the country, have a weak government in Ottawa, and that is another reason why Canadians, we believe, must choose a strong, stable, national Conservative majority."

Harper was responding to comments made by Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe, who said the two conditions for another referendum on Quebec separating from Canada are Bloc representation in Ottawa and a Parti Québécois government in Quebec.

And what does Professor Zinfandel say?

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff denounced Harper's remarks as fear-mongering to gain votes at a "town hall" event in North Vancouver.

Remember... he didn't come back for you... or Canada.

And just like his buddy, Barry O... if Iggy gets his hands on the levers of power... we're all gonna pay for it for a very long time.

"The federal government posted its largest monthly deficit in history in February at $223 billion, according to preliminary numbers the Congressional Budget Office released Monday morning.

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FUN WITH NUMBERS: Hey... how about PM Duceppe?

The election could produce a Bloc-friendly result in a number of ways. For example, the Bloc could win 60 seats, the Liberals 58 seats, the NDP 40 seats and the Conservatives 150 seats, five short of a majority. The result would surely provoke the greatest political crisis in this country since 1926.

If Mr. Duceppe were the leader of the Official Opposition, the Governor-General would be obliged to turn to him as the “second try” party in the House. On what grounds could he not?

Mr. Ignatieff could escape his reliance on the Bloc only by first gaining, in alliance with the NDP, the absolute security of 155 seats: 42 more than the two parties held at dissolution.

The contribution of the NDP to this result would determine precisely how many cabinet posts Mr. Ignatieff would need to give to NDP Leader Jack Layton.

I wonder how the military would fare under Defense Minister Olivia Chow.

C'mon America... you've had the foreplay...

...now... bend over and grab your ankles.

[*]

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RELATED: Never mind the money...

...what about the cowardice & hypocrisy?

"The United States of America is different. And as president, I refused to wait for the images of slaughter and mass graves before taking action."

Well, Barry... you're waiting plenty now...

Shelling and sniper fire by forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi killed 17 people in the western city of Misrata Sunday, while rocket and artillery attacks on the eastern town of Ajdabiya sent rebel fighters and civilians fleeing.

The city has been under government siege for the last seven weeks, leading to a growing humanitarian crisis. Hundreds of civilians are believed to have been killed by fighting and shelling there.

We're talking Liberals here, right?

Shouldn't they actually be talking about bringing in their big database?

The edgy, topical Globe & Mail...

...absolutely unafraid to ask the really, really hard questions...
Oh look... now they're actually going to provide an option to disagree...
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BREAKING: Tomorrow's Globe Poll...

...a sneak preview...

Will you vote for Michael Ignatieff because...

a) He's a hunka, hunka burnin' love
b) Can't resist a man with the common touch
c) Stephen Harper is a serial killer

Ontario... that horrible racist shitehole...

That headline just makes me ill... that even here in my home province, those reprehensible white supremacists...

-- EDMONTON -- An Ontario man who took a Somali man to an Edmonton park at gunpoint and then shot him to death was handed a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years Friday.

But, hang on... wait a minute... shocker headline notwithstanding, it seems this isn't the resurgent KKK after all...

Abdikadir (Abdi) Abdow, 24, was earlier convicted of first-degree murder for the April 26, 2009, slaying of Mohamed (Malik) Khalif, 20, at the city's Hermitage Park.

Yup, once again... professional journalists... your ethical & intellectual superiors.

Wake up, folks... and smell the manipulation.

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FROM THE COMMENTS:

"Face it -- "Somali man killed by Somali man" -- isn't really news."

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RELATED: Ontario... bad to the bone

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LAST WORD: Somalia, Somalia...

...that sounds so familiar.

You want the good stuff... ask a Lawyer

Yeah, Rodney... tell us all about "The Good Ship Lollipop"...

Holloway agreed that the Sun Sea's arrival was part of a complex, well-organized and likely profitable operation, but "the intention appears to have been to bring the ship to Canada and report to a port of entry, not to enter Canada clandestinely."

Now, Rod... I'll confess I don't have an LL.B on my business cards... but I do know total horse-puckey when I see a big steamin' pile.

And forgive me for treading on sanctified lawyerly turf... but there's an accepted way (as in legal) to "report to a port of entry"...

"He has a doctorate in chemistry, she has very similar qualifications, they both speak very fluent English (and other languages)... and it still took them almost 4 years and thousands of dollars to get their permanent residency cards."