We Shall Overcome

The end of the Wheat Board did not come about this week. A government obsessed with executive power has had their decree from the Ministry of Agriculture overturned.

"Barley Freedom Day" did not arrive yesterday. Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl is disappointed, and so are the grain farmers who believe the Canadian Wheat Board should no longer have a monopoly to market Prairie barley exports.

-The Globe and Mail

I've always been a big supporter of the Wheat Board. What I don't understand is why there is no respect for people who need the Wheat Board to survive. Barley is a livelihood for so many small farmers in the prairies. I don't question that the Wheat Board costs barley farmers money in times when there is a high barley price, but the inequality in prices over time, and the inequality in terms of access to markets make the Board a better choice than a free market.

This appears to be a crusade on behalf of the big corporate farmers. They are able to fulfil the fole of the Wheat Board within themselves, while individual farmers are not. As the Globe says, two thumbs up for democracy, and another two for the Judge responsible, Madam Justice Dolores Hansen.

A Bizarre Collision

Today,at the UBC Board of Governors retreat, Stephen Owen was ratified as the new Vice President of External and Community Relations at the University of British Columbia. Effective July 27th, 2007, Mr. Owen will no longer be the MP for Vancouver Quadra, and the race to succeed him will (if it hasn't already) begin. Stephen Owen was the first man I ever cast a ballot for, and I hope he will do as well in his new job as he had in his old one. I have faith in his ability to seperate partisanship from practise, as I couldn't very well do my job in good concience if I did not beleive that people have that capacity. Stephen is incredibly well respected on the Hill, and I do have faith that he will be a good representative of UBC in all his capacities.

So, who is in the race to succeed Owen?
Becca Coad, NDP
Joyce Murray, Liberal
Dan Grice, Green
Deborah Meridith or Mary McNeil, Conservative

What am I doing about it? Well, the one promise I will make is that I will try my absolute damnedest to make Post Secondary Education the Number One ballot issue of this election. The Canadian Millennium Scholarship Foundation is coming up for renewal, and it is imperative that it be renewed.

So, why the title? It's just not often that Liberal and Student politics intertwine in such a clear way.

Hi! I'm a Liberal!

I dislike how youtube works - just give me the damn code, I say!

I think that these are amazing. So much better than those other ads on ... senate reform. And that blog that insults the French. In French. It's so counterintuitive, it just might work. Or... it could reveal to the constituency that Harper most needs to win exactly what he thinks. But who knows?

Manitoba Election Mode

Well, Manitoba is in election mode. Now, do any of you remember when we were all convinced that there was going to be an election in the Spring of this year. How foolish we all were. Today, I was looking over the budgetary estimates for my department, and had to decide if there was going to be an election before the end of April next year. I wasn't sure, although I have that inclination.

Anyway, there are two other things that I wanted to mention, and that is that I really hope that the Manitoba Liberal Party can pull off a couple more seats in this election, and I'm going to be interested in seeing how the Liberal provincial vote changes, realizing of course that there is not a neccecary correlation between the provincial party performance and national performance, but it does prove as an indicator as to how the Liberal brand is showing.

Finally, Alanis Morrisette is hilarious.

My Deepest Condolences

Cross Posted to An External Affair

There are times like these where you don't really know what to think. Times like when I found out about the September 11th attacks, or the Columbine Shootings. This, coming on the heels of the Shooting at Virgina Tech, is one of those times.

Tim does raise some interesting points over at UBC Insiders, though.

I am, however, reminded of one thing, and that is the importance of a functioning campus safety and security network. I feel incredibly blessed that there are mechanisms on UBC's campus that do their absolute best to help make this institution the safest possible. Our Blue Light Phones, for example, are a beacon, quite literally, of safety on campus. Campus security patrols too are important. But I think that the most important thing for development of a safe campus is Safewalk.

People rag on Safewalk all the time, especially at the yearly Safewalk service presentation to AMS Council. And there are some legitimate arguments - the cost per walk is often above thirty dollars. But they do more than just walk. They also patrol around campus, acting as students who we can count on. The Safewalk logo is the most recognizable brand on campus, and everyone knows who the people are in the red coats. So, yes, perhaps Safewalk costs a fair amount (mere pennies a student, by the way), but when faced with the choice that we see today, between 31 dollars or 31 lives, there's no contest.

What the hell is Bill C-31?

A very bad thing...

(an act to amend the Canada Elections Act)

I am concerned.

What do you think?

More on this later.

Nomination Watch!

It's now on Wikipedia!

40th Canadian Federal Election Candidates

Decision Quebec

So, today Quebec is going to the polls. And nobody knows whats going to happen. I mean, all three parties are polling within the margin of error. A statistical tie! Incredible. But who would be best for the country (oops, I almost wrote "nation") or for the Liberal Party of Canada.

Now, I know it seems incredibly cynical, but whenever the Tories say or do something good I think, in the space of a second, "That sounds good!" and "Oh, Crap." So, what is a die-hard partisan to do. Well, I suppose the best thing to do would be to put the country first. However, a close second would be to take the route of Mr. Harper and the gang, and denounce all the good programs, cancel them, and then bring them back in a different form. (Except the Tory form is worse, not because they weren't Liberal programs, but because those programs don't come with the same funding as before. Canada Summer Jobs comes to mind.)

I think that devolution of power, the brand of federal governance that the federal conservatives are espousing, is dangerous and sets a troublesome precedent. Canada must exist as a strong federal state to ensure the national unity, and the inherent benefits of that confederation, is not diminished, and subsequently degrade us into a loosely organized array of bickering republics to the north of the continental United States. Harper seems to want to move our proud country in that direction, and the only way he can do this is with Quebec, the 'thin end of the wedge' if you would. Now, I hate to say it, but there is only one thing that will prevent us from starting down the path to devolution and disintegration. That thing is a PQ victory.

How will Harper work to break up the country (which is, mind you, exactly what he is trying to do) if there is a PQ government. If he did, he'd loose all the seats he has in Quebec, and many of the gains in Ontario, and even in the west (we don't much cotton to leaders who want to end our nation). So, a PQ government will help save the country, because it will not be a majority and there will not be another referendum, and it will prevent the disintegration of confederation.

Now, is this the best thing for the LPC? Yes, because we get one giant gift from a PQ victory. The "Harper Can't Do National Unity" card. And that card will be invaluable during the next election. So, while I won't cheer for the Pequites, because a federalist could never do that, I think that there is some solace in what could be their victory.

Ding, Dong, the Witch is Dead!

Tom Wappel is Gone! Tom Wappel is Gone! Thanks be to all that is good and right in the world.

Democra-who?

The Democrats are choosing who will, god willing, become the next President of the United States. And, even thought my blog, currently a mere (blank space) in the TTLB Ecosystem (We're working on that - we have no idea what's wrong), I feel like I can lend its considerable political weight to a Democratic Primary Candidate.

But who?

I hate to say it, but I just don't know about Barak Obama. I am filled with meh. A je-ne-sais-quoi. An indifference. It's not like I disagree with what he stands for, or his approach to governance, or really anything, but I just can't seem to get behind him. He seems to be political pablum - easy to swallow. I am reserving judgment as it stands, but I just don't see myself getting behind the Junior Senator from Illinois.

Hillary Clinton I do like, althought there is something there that nags at me. I really wish I knew what it was, because it is bothersome. While I disagree with some of her positions, she seems eminently capable. Additionally, had she gotten us into a war in Iraq, I'm pretty damn sure that she would have had a ... I don't know ... plan. I will be watching her as the race unfolds. I don't think she has the propensity to make such gaffes as has happened in the past, but its a possibility. I worry that she could appear Kerry-esque, but this won't be a problem if she's as media savvy as I think she is.

Two candidates who are not running (yet) and I do really like are Al Gore (Gore - Klobuchar 2008!) and Wesley Clark. But, seeing as how they aren't running, I'm not weighing in at the moment. (Run, Gore, Run... PLEASE!) Biden, Dodd, Gravel, Kuchnich... These are the also rans, the Maurizio Bevilacquas of the Primary Vote. Although, I do like that the Chris Dodd podcast is called the Dodd Pod. As for Bill Richardson, well, his wikipedia profile lists him as the 44th President already. Which really just annoys me.

Finally, John Edwards. He's who I'm leaning towards at the moment, but am still undecided. I think Corey may have some thoughts on this guy, so I'll leave it to him.

Any thoughts any of you have would be great - I'd love to hear anything.