Bush calls CIA prisons 'vital' tool - Yahoo! News

Bush calls CIA prisons 'vital' tool - Yahoo! News: "Bush calls CIA prisons 'vital' tool "

Graham, R-S.C., said withholding evidence from a war criminal sets a dangerous precedent other nations could follow. "Would I be comfortable with (an American service member) going to jail with evidence they never saw? No," Graham said.
Also on Wednesday, the
Pentagon' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Pentagon put out a new Army field manual that spells out appropriate conduct on issues including prisoner interrogation. The manual applies to all the armed services but not the CIA. It bans torture and degrading treatment of prisoners, for the first time specifically mentioning forced nakedness, hooding and other procedures that have become infamous during the war on terror.

Wages seen rising in tight labour market - Sympatico / MSN Finance

Wages seen rising in tight labour market - Sympatico / MSN Finance: "Wages seen rising in tight labour market
Posted 8/31/2006

By Louise Egan
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian companies in need of new talent will raise salaries by 3.5 percent next year to attract and keep skilled staff in a tight labour market, according to a survey released on Thursday.
With the unemployment rate at a 30-year low and a booming oil and gas industry in Western Canada sucking up new blood, many firms are hard-pressed to fill vacant positions.
The salary increase, based on forecasts of employers surveyed by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, would come on top of a higher-than-expected 3.6 percent average wage hike in the June 2005 to June 2006 period."

Osprey Media. - Brantford Expositor

Great trend

Laurier driving growth Susan Gamble

Local News - Saturday, September 02, 2006 @ 01:00 Eight years ago, 39 students were rattling around in a newly created university that had little more than high hopes and great expectations. But what started so small and so slowly has burgeoned into an innovative, booming movement thats almost totally responsible for driving downtown redevelopment. And the flood of student residences, faculty buildings, classrooms, food services and resources isnt slowing, say those involved. Were in a situation where we can grow to the extent that we have buildings, says Lauriers principal, Leo Groarke. Although its still in the planning stages, this week Laurier president Bob Rosehart released the conceptual drawings of the universitys next dream project -- a massive five-storey creation to be built on Dalhousie Street, just across from the call centre in the downtown mall. The tentatively named Academic Building will have more residence beds, teaching space, a library area and a food vendor. *** First it was Laurier, then Nipissing University and then Mohawk College throwing their mortarboards into the core. Today, with close to 1,800 students flooding into the downtown for classes, the impetus of the schools is the main factor behind all downtown development, says Mayor Mike Hancock. Although plans for Laurier and Mohawk to renovate the old PUC building fell through earlier this year, that building is being eyed very seriously by Nipissing University. I can hardly wait to see a Nipissing sign on that building, says the mayor. But, he hastily adds, whats happening is about more than just buildings. This is a commitment to the city, Hancock says. The buildings are great because they keep the character of the community, but its the life thats energized here and the momentum were feeling. Its changed how we view ourselves as a city. The growth has spurred on private development, private student residences, restaurants and services. And theres no signs of that growth spurt abating. In fact, says the mayor, with the civic square work, theres been a renewed interest in the dilapidated south side of Colborne Street. With Nipissing looking to expand, the possibilities are endless. *** The numbers substantiate that optimism.
');
-->


on error resume next
MM_FlashCanPlay = ( IsObject(CreateObject("ShockwaveFlash.ShockwaveFlash." & MM_contentVersion)))
From 39 full-time students in 1999, Laurier has leapt forward with 103 students in 2000; 200 in 2001; 295 in 2002; 632 in 2003; 922 in 2004 and 1,263 in 2005. This fall, there are 1,653 students enrolled, plus about 100 part-timers. Nipissing started with 30 students in 2002 enrolled in a concurrent program with Laurier -- so theyre counted in the Laurier total -- and thats jumped to 565 students this fall, plus an additional class of 35 area students that is an overflow from the enrolment in North Bay. Add in Mohawk students who have traditionally stayed in the east end of the city and have been coming into the core for classes at the Odeon building for the last few years. This year there are about 25 Mohawk kids in the core. This weekend marks the beginning of a mass influx of students as they return to the downtown. Laurier and Nipissing first years are assured of a residence bed, providing a more protected environment, says principal Groarke. First year is a transition year and we provide a more structured environment with dons and people watching over the students who might face issues of alcohol, drugs, gambling or sex. After that year, theyre expected to go and find accommodations elsewhere in private residences. To accommodate those second, third and fourth year students, private residences have cropped up all through the downtown -- from the 30-bed Rizzo Building on Colborne Street to a multitude of three and four bedroom houses converted for student use. Many are listed on a North American website called www.places4students.com. Some landlords, like Harold Mannen, have found creating small student residences to be a perfect sideline. I have 39 beds in the area but not all are targeted at students, says Mannen, who started the projects because of Laurier. I really love it and the kids are great. Ive had no trouble whatsoever. Mannen is also a downtown businessman, owner of the John Peel Restaurant. Theres now a vitality about the downtown that wasnt there before. Look at all the new buildings. Theres renewal happening all over and its not because of the casino. Every bit of it is due to Laurier. *** Growth doesnt always come evenly in the downtown. Groarke describes the process in terms of steps where, for a while, the schools are short of beds and classrooms, then theres a building boom and, for a while, there are too many beds and classrooms. When we started, the issue was trying to attract students. Very quickly that turned to having a problem finding buildings to fit the students. Despite the new Wilkes House and Faculty House that are just online, Laurier is back at capacity again. New housing at Lucy Marco Place (the old Y building) and the new East civic square building are welcome, but theyve come online a bit late for this year, Groarke says. Residence beds, classroom space and faculty offices have to keep apace of each other. Nipissing is also bursting at the seams, says Sandra Reid, the director of the Brantford campus. In a perfect world wed have five more offices in our building, at least three more classrooms, a gym and some large group instruction rooms. The cramped quarters mean the school is constantly problem-solving and partnering. For example, it uses the Brant Community Church when bringing large groups of students together. Aside from about 580 students who are also counted as Laurier students, Nipissing has a new class of 35 area students who are an overflow class from the North Bay campus after that location was swamped with acceptances. As well, Nipissing does a huge business in Additional Qualification courses or professional development for teachers. During the summer, for instance, 150 teachers from around southern Ontario were in the downtown upgrading their skills in Nipissing courses. Offering the concurrent courses for Laurier students to get a bachelor of education was a winning idea. With just 30 students in the program in the fall of 2002, Nipissing is growing at a dizzying pace and a switch to a five-year program for the B.Ed means automatic growth. Well have 700 students here next year and were developing whatever new courses the area school boards tell us they need for additional qualifications, says Reid. *** Laurier didnt want to own any Brantford buildings when it came to town. Now, it owns seven facilities and is planning the eighth. Part of the campuss huge success, says Groarke, is being creative in both programs and solutions. We havent duplicated Waterloo here. If youre willing to be inventive and creative and look for programs that are a little bit outside the box, you can keep attracting students. Groarke said some programs, like criminology, have been highly successful while others, like the education program done with Nipissing, hit the jackpot. President Rosehart predicts the school will soon move into the 2,500-student range which will make it more of its own entity, rather than a satellite campus. *** Theres plenty of talk about how much money the city has contributed to Lauriers growth. Rosehart calculates Brantford has corporately invested between $10 million and $12 million, but he is quick to point out that that amount is almost the same as Lauriers investment so far. The citizens of Brantford have invested privately, as well, contributing between $3 million and $4 million in donations and scholarships. Nipissing paid for the total renovation of its Market Street building -- about $1.4 million -- and expects to be sinking more into the area. Everyone is hoping the provincial government will eventually pony up some capital funds for new buildings. But in the meantime, the schools point out they and the students are making a giant contribution to the Brantford economy. A study released last year by Adventus Research in Guelph showed that construction and renovation costs are bringing millions into the downtown and the economic impact of the students, teachers and programs is between $39 million and $49 million each year. Spin off effects include restaurants, the retail food industry, housing units, retail clothing and transportation. People who dont frequent the downtown can barely believe the changes happening -- including having to make a lunch reservation at some eateries if you want a seat. Other cities are beginning to study Brantfords success in order to recreate it for their own downtowns. Theres even, says Mayor Hancock, renewed interest in the south side of Colborne Street -- the remaining dregs of the once worst downtown in Canada. Come back in 100 years and see our growth.

The third wave

In the ‘third wave’ world in which platform companies operate, taxes will increasingly become voluntary. Governments will thus have to compete with each other to provide the best services at the lowest possible costs to attract the world’s best platform companies, and their workers. Over time, this should mean that governments which provide the most efficient Regalian functions, and at the lowest costs (Hong Kong? Singapore? ...) stand to survive in their current structures. Hong Kong is adapting to this economic reality. And that is great news for the local economy.

Telecom Decision CRTC 2006-XX

Your communication rights - use them follow this link for the full crtc ruling . A move in the right direction for customers at long last - PR

Telecom Decision CRTC 2006-XX: "Your right to register a dispute or complaint
You have the right to dispute charges and to file a complaint about the service you receive. There are processes in place to assist you if you are having difficulties getting service or answers from your phone company.
Disputing phone charges
You have the right to dispute any telephone charges on your billing statement that you believe are incorrect. If you dispute a telephone charge, the phone company will investigate your claims, and will make the results of its investigation available to you. The phone company cannot consider the charges that you are disputing to be past due, but you are required to pay the undisputed portion of your bill.
As a general rule, the phone company cannot threaten to suspend or cut off your phone service over any amounts that you are disputing (see 'Your rights when the phone company wants to cut off your phone service' section).
Various scams and frauds exist that may affect your telephone service and could lead to additional charges on your phone bill. You are responsible for keeping yourself informed and protecting yourself against various scams and fraud. For more information about known scams and fraud, contact your phone company.
Complaints
You also have the right to complain to the phone company if you have any problems with the service you receive. If you have a dispute or complaint, the first step is to speak to your phone company. If the representative handling your call cannot resolve the problem to your satisfaction, you can ask to speak to the service manager or a supervisor in the customer service department.
If you are still not satisfied with the answer you are getting, you can contact the CRTC. The CRTC will ask the phone company to respond to your concern shortly thereafter. You should receive "

CRTC unveils phone "Bill of Rights"

If you are tired of being abused by the telephone monopoly -It seems that you ahve some tools to fight back . Please do so
PR
CRTC unveils phone "Bill of Rights": "CRTC unveils phone 'Bill of Rights'
16 rights cover everything from rules about protecting privacy to right to service for disabled"

Privacy advocates warn of Big Brother

Why do we bother with a bill of rights? PR Privacy advocates warn of Big Brother: "Internet and privacy experts also fear the federal government will revamp Internet surveillance legislation as early as this fall, giving law enforcement officials and Canadian Security and Intelligence Service agents access to personal information without a warrant.

Deisman, an Internet law expert, says Internet providers have been 'intimidated' into complying with the incoming surveillance act.

'There were even suggestions that Internet service providers would have to keep people on staff to respond to police warrants on a 24-7 basis,' he said.

'If we read between the lines of this legislation, this is how the government has scared them into doing this on their own.' "

Value for money? Which deadbeat are you happy with?

Ombudsman Rips Family Responsibility Office
Ontario’s Ombudsman, André Marin, released a scathing report today on the province’s Family Responsibility Office (FRO).The agency is charged with enforcing child support orders in the province and, Marin found, is fundamentally failing to do its job.Here are a few facts and quotes from Marin’s press conference.
Support payment arrears are at an “all-time historical high” of $1.35 billion because of the agency’s “lackadaisical” attitude toward collection.
Welfare payments are up $200 million as a consequence and “dead beats in this province have been having a free ride on the backs the citizens of Ontario,” he said.
Just 70 per cent of the 185,000 support orders filed annually with the office are compliant, which the FRO defines as someone who pays at least 85 per cent of order. Marin found one instance where a prison inmate was deemed to be “compliant” because he was in no position to pay, and thus took the agency’s numbers “with a grain of salt.”
When confronted with specific problems, FRO offered “platitudinous excuses or outright evasions,” Marin said.“I can tell you for the last decade it has been the bane of existence for overseers in this province,” he said.“It has been a money pit for the government and it has been the source of immense frustration for those receiving child support payments.”“We need to fix this and put it to rest once and for all,” Marin said.

Alberta Mounties retain jobs despite criminal convictions, investigation finds

are there different standards for government organizations? PR
Alberta Mounties retain jobs despite criminal convictions, investigation finds: "Alberta Mounties retain jobs despite criminal convictions, investigation finds
* * * * Jason van Rassel, CanWest News Service; Calgary Herald
Published: Monday, August 07, 2006
CALGARY -- Assault and impaired driving convictions led to reprimands and pay deductions but no firings for Alberta RCMP members disciplined in the past 18 months.
The Calgary Herald used access-to-information legislation to obtain written decisions involving 10 Alberta RCMP members who have been disciplined since the beginning of 2005 four of whom were also criminally charged in connection with their conduct.
During the past 18 months, nine officers and one civilian employee appeared before a three-member RCMP panel that hears cases alleging serious breaches of the force's code of conduct."

Creative approaches to age discrimination

Job search techniques: Smashing the gray ceiling

Article By: Virginia Bola

For decades, women have chaffed at the invisible glass ceiling which prevents their moving into the high executive brackets that their competence, knowledge and skills have earned. The same amorphous barrier confronts older workers both in terms of advancement within a company and, most especially, when a job change is required. There is an adage in the military that if a rank above major has not been obtained within 20 years, it never will be. The ranks of early military retirees are sprinkled with majors who knew that 10 or 15 more years would never bring a Colonel's cluster.

How can such "unwritten rules" be fought? No lawsuit can prove that you were the best individual for the job. No employer is unintelligent enough to state that your age is the stumbling block. You sense the discrimination, you become aware of the sideways glances and the emotional response of an interviewer, but you feel powerless to change their perspective and their bias.
Sitting across an interviewing desk, often facing an individual the same age as your son, your esteem erodes and your confidence self-destructs. Impotent, humiliated, and angry, you accept that nothing you can say is going to change anything. You continue job hunting with a mounting sense of frustration and an indisputable anticipation of failure.
If you have nothing to lose, why not attack the problem head-on? Prejudice and discrimination survive only in the silence of unexamined judgments and, often unconscious, illogic. Confront the situation and at least you create the opportunity for the white light of reason to enter the fray.
Try these approaches to prompt more honest interaction and possibly more rational conclusions.
1. You need to be the one to put the age issue on the table. Offer it gently, as one area of needed exploration regarding why you fit the employer's needs. Bring it up objectively, as something that can be discussed unemotionally, without triggering lethal interviewer defensiveness.

2. Acknowledge your age as a basis for emphasizing the experience of a lifetime and the value that such experience can provide to any employer. Concentrate on describing how business has changed over the course of years and how deftly you have adapted to those changes and incorporated new ideas and technical advancements into your work performance.

3. Acknowledge common misperceptions about the weaknesses of age: hard-to-break habits, lack of flexibility, technological ignorance, and distrust of authority, especially if young. Then use your sales ability to eliminate those misperceptions, probably already resonating in the interviewer's head.

Habits: Remind your host of the ability to adapt and reshape yourself which has kept your thinking young. Stress your relish for new challenges and innovative approaches. Cite some examples from your past about how smoothly you have been able to change to new workflows and procedures.

Flexibility: Discuss your dislike of unproductive routine and your preference for trying new methods of approaching tasks. Stress those times in the past when you were able to develop creative solutions to long-term problems and how your resourcefulness helped your previous employers.

Technology: Identify new technical advances within your field and address how you have internalized those changes. If you have successfully transitioned from dictating to a secretary to email and instant messaging, if you have moved from a manual adding machine to competent computer literacy, then small changes like learning new software or novel production systems should be a snap.

Authority issues: You have attained authority in the past and you have also worked under a variety of supervisors in your long career life. Clarify your relationship with power: the respect you extend to those who are knowledgeable, the loyalty and support you offer any leader of your team, the self-respect you enjoy which allows you to participate in group goals enthusiastically without feeling that you need to be in charge or command the top title.

4. Once you have demolished the myths of age, emphasize its strengths: reliability, mature judgment, lack of impulsivity, timeliness, a strong work ethic, and the ability to perform without outside distractions such as personal relationship problems, child commitments, and social responsibilities.

Undoubtedly, there are individuals out there who have their own issues with hiring someone who reminds them of their father or who have had problems in the past with an underperforming older worker who was difficult to terminate. There will always be those you cannot reach, no matter how convincing your logic and your presentation.
There are many more who are open-minded and seek not to make rash judgments. Address their semi-conscious fears face to face and the interview may end successfully - for both you and your lucky new employer.

Virginia Bola operated a rehabilitation company for 20 years, developing innovative job search techniques for disabled workers, while serving as a respected Vocational Expert in Administrative, Civil and Workers' Compensation Courts. Author of an interactive and emotionally supportive workbook, The Wolf at the Door: An Unemployment Survival Manual, and a monthly ezine, The Worker's Edge, she can be reached at http://www.virginiabola.com/

The Epoch Times | Worse Than Any Nightmare�Journalist Quits China to Expose Concentration Camp Horrors and Bird Flu Coverup

There is true evil in the world. Conentration camps flourish and prisoners organs are harvested for profit. Be aware , tell others of the horror and try to stop it PR

The Epoch Times Worse Than Any Nightmare�Journalist Quits China to Expose Concentration Camp Horrors and Bird Flu Coverup: "Worse Than Any Nightmare�Journalist Quits China to Expose Concentration Camp Horrors and Bird Flu Coverup
Over 6,000 Falun Gong Practitioners Detained in Secret Concentration Camp in China; 425 Bird Flu Patients in Two Facilities
Epoch Times StaffMar 10, 2006


A reporter from China who worked for a Japanese television news agency and specialized in Chinese news recently escaped to the United States after being wanted in China for reporting on controversial issues. (The Epoch Times)
[High-resolution image ] A long-time reporter who worked for a Japanese television news agency and specialized in news on China told The Epoch Times that some little-known and very frightening things are happening in China today. To protect his identity, The Epoch Times will refer to him as Mr. R."

Court crisis?

Why not fix it ? How about regular business hours - and special courts to deal with less serious matters? PR

Osprey Media. - Brantford Expositor: "Courts in crisis over judicial shortage

James Wallace
Queens Park - Saturday, July 22, 2006

For the past decade, a succession of elected officials helped butter their
political bread by announcing crack downs on all manner of crime.

They've targeted child pornographers, marijuana grow house operators, street
racers and even pit bulls.

They've put more cops on street, built more jails, not only to deal with
increasing and increasingly complex crimes but to cope with a population
that has grown by several million people over that time.

Inexplicably, the same politicians have resisted hiring more judges to hear
the inevitable increase in new cases created by their crackdowns and
population growth.

As a consequence, courts across Ontario are struggling with crushing
backlogs, Crowns are increasingly being forced to plea bargain, police are
letting petty criminals off the hook and children and families are being
forced to wait for justice.

'The whole system is off balance,' Heather McGee, president Ontario Bar
Association, told Osprey News.

'It's been running thin for so long that all it takes is one major trial or
an incremental increase in population and you lose the ability to deal with
things in a timely and effective manner,' McGee said.

The current and looming judicial shortage is a significant part of the
problem.

'Our judicial complement has been more or less static for the last decade,'
McGee said.
'I think the last time new positions were created was 1999, only two positions were created.' "

Words of wisdom

• 
  Classic Quotes by Milton Friedman(1912- ) US economist
  
  
  A major source of objection to a free economy is precisely that group thinks they ought to want. Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself. ------------------------
• Concentrated power is not rendered harmless by the good intentions of those who create it. ------------------------
• Governments never learn. Only people learn. ------------------------
• Hell hath no fury like a bureaucrat scorned. ------------------------
• History suggests that capitalism is a necessary condition for political freedom. Clearly it is not a sufficient condition. ------------------------
• I am favor of cutting taxes under any circumstances and for any excuse, for any reason, whenever it's possible. ------------------------
• I'm in favor of legalizing drugs. According to my values system, if people want to kill themselves, they have every right to do so. Most of the harm that comes from drugs is because they are illegal. ------------------------
• Inflation is the one form of taxation that can be imposed without legislation. ------------------------
• Many people want the government to protect the consumer. A much more urgent problem is to protect the consumer from the government

Osprey Media. - Brantford Expositor

Osprey Media. - Brantford Expositor: "
City man to face justice in U.S.

By Susan Gamble
Local News - Saturday, July 22, 2006 @ 01:00

Brantfords Shane Ferras has lost the last of his appeals in a bid to avoid being extradited to the U.S. following a Supreme Court decision Friday morning.

Ferras, now 41, soon will be moved from the Brantford jail, where he stepped into custody on Thursday evening, to New York State to face trial on charges of fraud and money laundering as part of a high-pressure stock brokerage in the mid-1990s.

He has no further recourse, Ferrass lawyer, Brian Greenspan, said in a telephone interview from Toronto.

Theyll transfer him to the United States and, hopefully, hell get a trial as quickly as possible so the matter is resolved.

Greenspan said his client is a relatively young man with a young family and a bright future.

Working hard

While fighting his extradition order, which was signed in 2002, Ferras has been working hard as a businessman in sales, said Greenspan.

The Brantford-born Ferras was a two per cent owner in a New York brokerage house clearing $2.3 million in his few years with the company, according to court documents.


On Feb. 15, 2001, all 29 of the companys stockbrokers were arrested, including Ferras, who was back in Brantford at the time.

Despite an order in 2002 committing Ferras to be extradited, his lawyers argued that their client shouldnt been sent to the U.S. based on a case relying on hearsay evidence some of it from alleged co-conspirators who have co-operated with the American investigation.

In a surprising move, this weeks Supreme Court decision agreed to some extent. "

The trial usge must consider the las and the facts and not just be a rubber stamp

Sell the World Who You Really Are

Sell the World Who You Really Are: "Sell the World Who You Really Are
by Don Sexton, PhD
Bedrock marketing insights from the author of Trump University Marketing 101
When I was growing up, my family had a business installing water systems for country clubs, farms and housing developments. Whenever I went and worked alongside my father at those places, I could see how much people respected him for his honesty and integrity. He delivered what he promised. If a system failed at any time of the day or night, his customers knew they could call him and he would arrive promptly to fix the problem.
At that time, I had no idea what marketing was. I certainly had no idea that my father, through his honesty and integrity, was actually marketing on a very high level. But he was - and as effectively as any Fortune 500 company.
Today, I teach state-of-the-art marketing techniques at Columbia University and Trump University. But even the most advanced marketing approaches are closely tied to what my father was doing. Through his actions, he told the world that he had something special to offer.
Stop for a moment and think about the businesses in your area. There are dry cleaners, hardware stores and the rest. But are some of them known for doing something special? Is a certain dry cleaner known for its ability to get a spot out of any kind of fabric? Is a certain hardware store known for having experts on staff who patiently answer questions from do-it-yourselfers? Local merchants who differentiate themselves in that way are miles ahead of other businesses that just open their doors and wait for customers to arrive.
That ability to be special, which I learned from my father, is actually the bedrock of good marketing.

Effective marketing does not live or die on clever ads or databases. It hinges on your ability to tell customers that you have to sell that makes you different. It is a way of telling the world what you have to offer, and who you really are."

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - A little gift for us

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - A little gift for us: "The tax cut will benefit everyone and will make a small dent in the overall tax burden suffered by Canadians. Almost every time we make a purchase, we'll keep some cash that otherwise would have been sucked into the bottomless money pit that is the federal government. That is a good thing.
The Harper Tories promised the GST cut as part of their election platform and, to their credit, they managed to make good on it quickly, despite presiding over a minority government.
It's no accident that the tax cut is taking effect on Canada Day.
The symbolism is just too good for the government to pass up. What better day is there for the Harper government to demonstrate in a real and meaningful way that it's committed to reducing taxes than on our nation's birthday?
As far as we're concerned, then, it's just one more reason to celebrate living in such a great nation that's full of fantastic people and beautiful landscapes.
And if all goes according to plan, we hope to get another Canada Day birthday present in the years ahead, as the Tories have promised to reduce the hated tax by another one point, to 5%, within five years. With any luck, that would be as soon as next year. "

Osprey Media. - Brantford Expositor

All about the ta assessment rip off -PR

Osprey Media. - Brantford Expositor: "Despite that worry, Haggart said the move had to be made.

�The whole system needs to be re-evaluated. It always was hard to explain. Each time I get questions from a taxpayer I take a shot at it. They look at me while I�m talking and say, Yeah, sure.�

�It�s so confusing nobody believes anything they see or what they�re told. That�s why the system needs to be fixed.�"

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Tories earn healthy mark

And now if we can just clean up the provincial messes and we might be in for a real service for the public or people by the government. Hmmm- lets start with an accountability act for the justice system and get our basic liberties back-food for thought . PR

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Tories earn healthy mark: "Harper took us all by surprise with his well thought out top-secret visit to rally the troops in Kandahar, where he also met with leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
In mid-April, his government scored a diplomatic coup when it negotiated an end to the decades-long softwood lumber dispute with the U.S.
And in May we got a budget that, while short on the kinds of tax cuts and spending restraints we'd prefer, at least offered a variety of targeted cuts plus a $100-a-month allowance for parents with preschoolers.
We have also seen the government deliver on its key campaign promises, including a GST reduction that takes effect in a week, an accountability act to prevent a repeat of odious events like the sponsorship scandal, legislation to get tough on crime and a bill to dismantle the costly and pointless gun registry.
Opposition parties, meanwhile, have been unable to mount any kind of meaningful attack against the government. In one memorable moment they collectively dozed off and missed the passage of a budget they had vowed to fight.
Overall we'll give the Tories a B-plus for a strong first term. Liberal, NDP and Bloc Quebecois members will have to settle for a collective D. "

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Stick to the plan, Stephen

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Stick to the plan, Stephen: "We think governments, at whatever level, ought to be providing basic services and letting the private sector take care of the rest.
That approach means the government can leave more money in the pockets of ordinary taxpayers to spend as we see fit.
The alternative -- and we've seen plenty of examples how it works -- is for government to tax, tax, tax and then spend, spend, spend on programs that inevitably grow out of control. "

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Guilt beyond Guite?

And the fall guy is -take your pick ! Bureacracy the new form of despotism. As usual nobody is in charge when it comes to accepting responsibility. PR

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Guilt beyond Guite?: "Is it true?
So we'd like to hear from the Liberal candidates. Do they agree with Chretien that the 'system' is working? If not, what are they going to do when they become leader to ensure that every person responsible for AdScam, has his (or her) day of reckoning? "