Steamboat Tony Wants To Privatize The Census

The so-called minister in charge of the census, Tony Clement, held a news event yesterday in which the following transpired:

Mr. Clement said statistics users are free to spend their own money to gather the demographic data they need if they don’t like what Ottawa collects.

“All these provincial governments and these social institutions and private businesses – we’ll get them some data that will be useful and reliable,” he said. “If they don't want to use that data, it's up to them. They can pay for it another way. … You don't have to rely on the government of Canada.”

Hands up everyone who would like to substitute private interests like business as the gatherers of intimate details of your daily life?

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More Enemies For The List

Christ, the Conservatives are going to need a super computer to keep track of all of their "enemies". Tony Clement has added Stats Can to the list of groups on which it is open season. Why else would he say in the Sun:

“I believe that Stats Canada should be an objective organization, a professional organization,”

Thereby implying that it isn't at the moment. This opens the door to every loon on Team Nutbar to claim that Stats Can is nothing but a Liberal front organization that controls our minds using Z rays. Way to go Tony. Your psychopathic master must be very pleased with you.

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Ready, Aye Ready

Thomas Walkom in today's Star gets it right:

What's intriguing about Obama's effective nationalization of GM and Chrysler is that he hasn't bothered with the nuisance of demanding equity shares that might allow the public to benefit from any gains. He simply argues that if the companies want U.S. government money, they will have to do what the U.S. government wants

What's intriguing about Canada's role is that, save for their 20-per-cent-of-production demand, our governments haven't even done that. They are not, for instance, requiring job guarantees. Nor are they demanding that manufacturers build so-called cars of the future in Canadian plants.

In effect, Ottawa and Queen's Park are telling the car companies this: If you want Canadian taxpayer money, you'll have to do what the U.S. government wants.

The Harperites and their little friends at Queen's Park, have given up our sovereignty without getting anything in return. Way to stand up for Canadians, boys.

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It's All About Ethics, You See

“Is it unethical for health-care professionals to support the administration of drugs that are of unknown substance or purity or potency, drugs that cannot otherwise be legally prescribed?” Mr. Clement said in a speech.

If the Health Minister truly believes this, shouldn't he call someone in to investigate this breach of ethics?

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Why The Conservatives Deserve To Lose

Making poor Tony Clement look like a complete idiot by supporting the WHO's harm reduction strategy and opposing Insite. Such a position tends to generate such tongue-in-cheek paragraphs as:

Mr. Clement has never clearly stated why the government supports needle exchange and rehab programs but so sternly opposes the existence of a facility where drug users can actually use the safe needles and be encouraged to enter rehab. The sticking point appears to be that, at Insite, drug users cannot be arrested and prosecuted.

The government seems to be like Homer Simpson proclaiming loudly that they love addicts so much that they want to help them, while under their breath mutter to themselves how much they hate them and want them in jail. It would be really funny if it was a sitcom, but these guys are supposed to be running the country and representing Canadians internationally. I know that the WHO is a UN agency and is therefore anathema in the eyes of the Tory base, but it is taken seriously in the real world and so the government might be a tad worried that it is making Canada a laughing stock (yet again) on the world stage.

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