Home » Posts tagged 'federal government'

Tag Archives: federal government

Olduvai
Click on image to purchase

Olduvai III: Catacylsm
Click on image to purchase

Post categories

Post Archives by Category

We Can’t Keep Expecting the Federal Government to Fix Things

February 24, 2018

We Can’t Keep Expecting the Federal Government to Fix Things

Whatever your solution may be, the path to change a nation starts locally.

It’s happened again, another tragedy in America, and once more we hear the cries for systematic change echo from coast to coast. Instead of berating you with countless policy prescriptions in the aftermath, and whether or not they will deter these events in the future, I would like to offer a piece of advice to those seeking to come out of this with more than just “thoughts and prayers” that I think has been grossly overlooked and underutilized in society today. Rather than entrench ourselves in the emotional mudslinging within social media anytime an event like this occurs, we ought to turn inward, towards our own backyards and communities, and recognize that the path to political change starts locally, not nationally.

We need a new — or rather, old — approach regarding societal problems that have become deep-rooted today. Right now, the cultural norm, whether due to technological advances that put us in closer contact with one another or the process of political centralization, is to call for change on a federal level any time a problem is observed. This wasn’t always the case, and I rather believe this practice taking hold is a contributing factor in these tragedies.

Diversification and Innovation

Before social media allowed us to criticize the viewpoints of people on different continents from the comfort of our living room, and before politics became completely centered around what the federal government was doing, people aired their grievances in their local communities. If you noticed what you thought was an urgent problem within your child’s school, for example, you wouldn’t tweet at a senator in Washington, D.C., you’d go to your local school board meeting. And as it turns out, that’s still the most effective route.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Stéphane Dion approves export permits for $11B in LAVs to be sent to Saudi Arabia

April 14, 2016

Stéphane Dion approves export permits for $11B in LAVs to be sent to Saudi Arabia

Documents say past sales have not been linked to violations of civil or political rights in the kingdom

Media placeholder

Documents obtained by CBC News are shedding light on the strategy the federal government is using to justify the sale of light armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia.

The newly revealed documents from Global Affairs Canada confirm that Foreign Affairs Minister Stéphane Dion has signed off on export permits to ship $11 billion worth of the $15-billion vehicle sale to the desert kingdom.

These documents also say that it’s rare for a foreign affairs minister to personally sign off on export permits, but that this is an exception because the deal is so high profile — and worth so much money.

The deal with Saudi Arabia was struck by Stephen Harper’s government, and when it was announced the Conservatives used the opportunity to tout the thousands of jobs it would create and sustain in southern Ontario.

But since the sale of vehicles by General Dynamics Land Systems was announced, questions have emerged over Saudi Arabia’s human rights record.

Saudi rights violations noted

The documents acknowledge these concerns noting; “the reported high number of executions, suppression of political opposition, the application of corporal punishment, suppression of freedom of expression, arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment of detainees, limitations of freedom of religion, discrimination against women and the mistreatment of migrant workers.”

The document goes on to say that Canadian officials “engage regularly with Saudi officials” when required to raise human rights issues of concern while at the same time describing Canada’s military alliance with the kingdom as having been “cemented” during the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

“Saudi Arabia is a key military ally supporting international efforts to counter ISIS in Iraq and Syria as well as countering instability in Yemen,” the documents says.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

When The Economy Collapses The Government Will Implode : “The Support Mechanisms On Which We Depend Will Break Down”

February 1, 2016

When The Economy Collapses The Government Will Implode : “The Support Mechanisms On Which We Depend Will Break Down”

For twenty years Micheal Rivero of What Really Happened has been exposing the lies and corruption emanating from the Federal government, Wall street bankers, and big business.

In his latest interview with Crush The Street he sounds one of his most dire warnings yet:

“When the economy implodes here in the United States it’s probably going to take the Federal government with it.”

The implications, as Rivero notes in the following must-see video, are such that the entire system upon which we depend for essential services will completely fall apart. That means access to food, basic supplies and even your bank account will become next to impossible:


(Watch at Youtube)

The Federal government has become trapped by its own web of mendacity. They have been lying to the American people so long they have to go on lying. 

They can’t stand up there and say “Alright, you caught us… we lied about the economy, we lied about the true scale of unemployment, we lied about 9/11, we lied about torpedoes in the Gulf of Tonkin, we lied about the assassination of John F. Kennedy… because the first time they admit openly that they’ve lied to the American people, the entire web of deceptions going back the last century is going to unravel completely and the government will fall.

While a nearly unfathomable thought for most Americans, a complete breakdown of the Federal government and the services tens of millions of Americans depend on is a real possibility and one that has been proven time and again throughout history, especially during times of economic, financial and monetary disruption.

Rivero urges vigilance and contingency planning because like we saw when the Soviet Union fell, such a breakdown could last many months:

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

How Tories Dumped Your Interests at the Pump

October 6, 2015

How Tories Dumped Your Interests at the Pump

Oil is cheaper by half. So why don’t feds try and deliver savings to drivers?

Oil prices have plunged by 50 per cent since last year, but you would never know that looking at what people are paying at the pump. What gives?

Don’t ask the Conservatives. They halted the department in charge of telling us how much their Big Oil backers are profiting from those market-defying high prices.

When will the feds return to the business of revealing just how much we are getting screwed? The day this election is over, they say.

It’s a prime example of preemptory political damage control, and here are the details:

There is a quaint term in the oil refining business called the “crack spread.” This is the profit margin between the cost of buying crude oil and the retail price of produced gasoline. The “crack spread” keeps widening as Canadian consumers as they shell out almost as much per litre even though crude oil prices are roughly half what they were a year ago.

According to research by economist Robyn Allan, this yardstick of gas pump profit margins ballooned by 87 per cent above the 14-year industry average of 17.7 cents. Canadians buy over 43 billion litres of gas per year, so this year’s yawning crack spread adds up to big money for refiners. Canadians are on track to shell out over $5 billion in extra money to the oil industry in 2015 due to this apparent price-gouging at the pumps.

And what is the Harper government doing to protect Canadian consumers from such predatory profiteering? Making sure you don’t hear about it. Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) regularly publishes their Fuel Focusreport every two weeks detailing gas prices and refinery margins. That was until last summer.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Unions representing federal scientists protest ‘partisan interference’

May 19, 2015

Unions representing federal scientists protest ‘partisan interference’

Representatives from Canada’s major public sector unions, including thePublic Service Alliance of Canada, the Canadian Association of Professional Employees and the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada will protest “the muzzling of Canada’s public scientists and partisan interference in the development of public science” by holding “mobilization and information activities” at Tunney’s Pasture.

According to the advisory, similar events slated to take place in Montreal, Quebec City and Vancouver.

Back on the Hill, the Commons Chamber may be shuttered for the week-long Victoria Day constituency break, but Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and International Trade Minister Ed Fast are still slated to join representatives from Canada’s beef and pork sectors in the House Foyer later this morning to take questions on the latest rejection of US meat labelling requirements by the World Trade Organization.

In Toronto, meanwhile, New Democrat Leader Tom Mulcair, who will join the “McGill Four” MPs — Charmaine Borg, Matthew Dubé, Mylène Freeman and Laurin Liu — for a panel discussion after speaking to theMcGill Alumni Association.

Also in Toronto today: Finance Minister Joe Oliver, who will be the keynote speaker at the 2015 PCMA Private Capital Markets Conference, and Transport Minister Lisa Raitt, who will do the honours on behalf ofMinister of State for Sport Bal Gosal at the SEEDS Orientation Event

 

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Watchdog Group Wants Audit of Taxpayer-Funded Ads

April 28, 2015

Watchdog Group Wants Audit of Taxpayer-Funded Ads

‘It’s false advertising,’ says Democracy Watch.

An independent government watchdog group has called on Canada’s auditor general to review taxpayer-funded spending on government advertising. Democracy Watch has also launched a letter-writing campaign through its website, demanding the office look at what it describes as “questionable” ad initiatives in the past.

The group’s co-founder, Duff Conacher, said the federal government is spending public money on ads that mislead or advertise for initiatives that don’t exist.

Government ads can be seen on TV, radio, billboards and the Internet and are paid for by taxpayers’ dollars. There’s currently no oversight to make sure money isn’t spent on partisan ads, though in the past, citizens have complained to Advertising Standards Canada about government ads they felt were misleading.

For example, the government’s current ad blitz will cost $13.5 million for April and May, according to a Canadian Press storyon Monday.

Those ads highlight measures in the federal budget, which was introduced last week, but hasn’t been passed by Parliament.

“The ads are being done, the measures have not been passed, they don’t exist. Therefore it’s false advertising,” Conacher said. “They may never be implemented if the budget bill does not pass before the fall election.”

 

Conacher wants the auditor general to do a quick audit of the current government ad campaign, which promotes its budget plans, such as tax programs for families. Democracy Watch also wants an audit of another government ad campaign from last fall that advertised tax relief measures.

After that, he said, he’s calling for a comprehensive audit of all advertising going back to 2006.

Political not informative

He said previous ads campaigns, such as one claiming the government treats military veterans well, and another that caused a scandal in 2013 advertising a training grant program that didn’t exist, were political in nature. They did not help to inform Canadians about services available to them.

 

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Students Tell Government They Won’t Work For Free On Logo For Canada’s 150th Birthday

January 21, 2015

Students Tell Government They Won’t Work For Free On Logo For Canada’s 150th Birthday

Many young Canadian designers are expressing outrage that the federal government would ask them to work for free.

The Association of Registered Graphic Designers (RGD) has launched a campaign to boycott the Canadian Heritage ministry’s competition to find a logo for Canada’s upcoming 150th birthday in 2017.

Anchored with the hashtag #MyTimeHasValue, the campaign seeks to highlight how design competitions have become a means for companies and governments to obtain free work from designers, particularly when they’re young. The logo competition is open only to post-secondary students.

While the creator of the winning logo will receive $5,000, RGD president Stüssy Tschudin says that doesn’t even begin to be fair.

“Imagine 500 students enter the contest. Each student spends 10 hours on a design, which totals 5,000 hours of work. At minimum wage in Ontario ($11), this amounts to $55,000 worth of free labour,” said Tschudin in an email. “The fact that one of those students will receive a prize doesn’t negate all of that other free labour.”

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

 

Harper To Ontario: Focus On Economy, Not ‘Confrontation’

December 5, 2014

Harper To Ontario: Focus On Economy, Not ‘Confrontation’.

MARKHAM, Ont. – The Prime Minister chastised the Ontario government on Thursday, saying it ought to focus less on “confrontation” and more on getting its fiscal house in order.

Stephen Harper made his comments at an event in Markham, Ont., where he was asked why it has been so long since he met with Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne. The two last met a year ago and Wynne has repeatedly voiced her frustrations over not being able to sit down with the prime minister.

“I meet regularly with premiers across the country and we anticipate we will have another meeting at some point in time,” Harper said, before launching into a series of sharper comments.

“We all know that the government of Ontario has some pretty significant challenges. I would encourage the government of Ontario to focus on those things, not on confrontation.”

Harper did not mention Wynne by name, but took time to compare his federal Conservatives with Ontario’s governing Liberals.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Olduvai IV: Courage
Click on image to read excerpts

Olduvai II: Exodus
Click on image to purchase

Click on image to purchase @ FriesenPress