God speed, Mother Nature

I don't think any of us really want to say goodbye... (If you don't know the song "Guns, Guns, Guns" by the Guess Who, you might not get my reference. If you don't really care what I'm saying here, please, still listen to the song. Thanks in advance. :) ) 

With the level of political apathy in this country, people are so blissfully unaware of the policy changes happening RIGHT NOW that directly impact our environmental responsibilities, we won't even get a chance to mourn Mother Nature. Too dramatic? Doubt it. 

Let's quickly recap what our current government has done to shit on our environment before I get into the topic at hand, shall we?:

• Rewrote fisheries laws that protect fish and their habitat = green light for off-shore oil exploration and extraction  AND  allowing federally subsidized pipeline projects to go through/under streams and lakes unchecked 
• Erased the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 
• Number of federal environmental assessments before the Omnibus Budget Bill killed the CEAA: anywhere between 4000-6000. AFTER destroying the legislation: between 20-30. Barf. Barf all over you, Kent and Harpie.
• Killing of endangered species or destruction of their habitat is now allowed if the National Energy Board has a project that they deem necessary... this is very open ended. JUST GREAT!
• And that's not all, folks! (I just don't want to make this much longer.)

Soon-to-be problem: Last week, Minister of What's Left of the Environment, Peter Kent, began hinting at his next move. He wants to "streamline" the Species at Risk Act (SARA). The last time he said the word "streamlining", our oceans, lakes and rivers became fair game for oil developers, Parks Canada Agency lost 40% of their staff, and third party committees to oversee our government, to make sure they're upholding environmental laws, were kicked to the curb. See why I'm skeptical?

Photo provided by the SARA website. Thanks, gov't!

Yes, SARA needs reviewing and updating, but that is NOT what this gov't will do. As all of the environmental laws they've changed so far are being specifically tailored in order to reap whatever Mother Nature has to offer, blindly, recklessly, and without monitoring, I can tell you that any changes to the Species at Risk Act from this government will spell disaster for vulnerable species in this country. 

Count your blessings now, people. But please, soon, wake the fuck up. Tell your MP that you are concerned about what Minister Kent may do to the Species at Risk Act. Let's get this ball rolling before they get a chance to mess this one up too much.

"Eagle all gone and no more caribou... God speed, Mother Nature, never really wanted to say goodbye." 

                                                   - The Guess Who

The Joke's On Us

April Fools! 

Oh wait... it's September. *sigh* That means it's true... Click here for the chilling details.

I have finally found something so ludicrous and wrong to the point of hilarity to blog about. (I do believe I have mentioned many times how much I suck at keeping up with things. If you still read these, merci buckets!)

If you were asked to think of a "champion of democracy, freedom, and human rights", and a "world statesman", or even an "award winner", who would you think of?

Disclaimer: This photo does not belong to me nor did I create it. The author is a mystery. 

But if I ever find the person who created it, I will personally nominate them for a world statesman award.

I think of people like Aung San Suu Kyi, Ban Ki-moon, and Vandana Shiva to name only a few highly deserving of such titles. These kind of people dedicate their lives to protecting the basic human rights of their people - and subsequently, the rest of humanity (if it's happening somewhere, it can happen anywhere). They see connections between economics, the environment, our well being as a species - connections that most world leaders don't have the imagination to even begin to comprehend. 

If by chance you thought "I know one!! Stephen Harper!" (I was going to finish this sentence with a string of expletives and insults, but decided it wasn't very dignified), you agree with a group in the U.S. called the Appeal of Conscience Foundation. You are also an idiot and probably can't read. 

Since 2006, when elected as a minority Prime Minister, Stephen Harper has:

1. Been involved with honestly countless scandals, the most crass being the time his party hired auto-dialers to call Canadians en mass days before our last federal election to misdirect and misinform voters (election fraud, in simple terms)
2. In one weekend, smashed to bits Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms by arresting and holding over 1000 people in Toronto during the G8 Summit without charging over 90% of them with any crime (oh yeah, he sure is a champion of democracy, freedom, and human rights!)
3. Prorogued parliament to avoid discussing issues in a public forum - HA! Democracy. Yup.
4. Cut all funding to UNESCO because Palestine was recognized by the organization as a country (I think our  UNESCO World Heritage Sites designations should be revoked for such petty, ethnically provoked, disgusting behaviour)
5. Shifted Canada's trade focus to only free trade agreements, which only promote economic inequality in the world
6. Focused Canada's trade relations to specifically China - the most powerful anti-democratic nation in the world
7. Recently cut substantial funding to northern Aboriginal groups - perpetuating racial disparity in this country
8. Removed most watchdog agencies within the government, and continues to ignore the rest
9. Cut all funding to women's groups within Canada, including daycare programs, shelters for battered women, etc
1. Cut all funding to The Native Women's Association of Canada which helped provide health care to the most unhealthy population of people in Canada: Aboriginal women
10. Removed the most effective and resourceful components of our federal environmental policies 
11. Cut funding to Planned Parenthood - the reasoning? Because the program does not rule out abortions in foreign countries where they are legal. HELLO! It's legal here!! Way to be non-biased and "not bring up the abortion issue." Assholes
12. Ignored pleas for help from the Lubicon Cree - being directly impacted by friends of Harper who are developing the tar sands
13. On the same topic, Attawapiskat... need I say more?
14. Etc, etc...
15. Been honoured with an award from a Jewish-founded organization days after dramatically denouncing a country that is against Israel. I hate to be cynical, but I just don't think this is a coincidence. Especially since even suggesting Harper deserves this award is laughable! Why else would he all of a sudden be on this group's radar?

Harper does not come CLOSE to believing in equality (unless you're rich, run an oil rig, or sell cheap junk made by child slaves), democratic values (unless you can help his campaign by either lying, stealing, or donating over the legal limits), and freedom (unless you completely avoid dissent and never question his motives. Ever.). He believes in himself. And his own version of God. And he now believes he deserves recognition for horse shit.

Yup, give the man an award! It'll be a riot! 

Ugh... I try to laugh, but the joke is totally on us. This robotic overlord represents you and I to the rest of the world. *shudder*

I'm going to have some wine and ride my bike. You know, the regular activities of a Pinko on a near-autumn evening.

No quote again. 

Black Out, Speak Out

If a tree falls in the forest, does Peter Kent care?

So much to talk about these days. I'm very behind on this! Let's start with the bottom feeders and work our way up, shall we?


Oh Peter... This still image was taken from this uh, very, er, uh, interesting video. Uhhhhh. (He says uh and er a lot. I apologize for suggesting you listen to him when he no longer has a teleprompter to guide his speech.)

Any time this man speaks, I can hardly keep myself composed. Not because I generally dislike him (though this is true), but because everything that comes out of his mouth is utter trash. Not only that, but he does it always with a smug look on his face, and often a smirk, as if he knows he's simply a hack and is actually proud of it.


In the past two days, coinciding with the terrible first anniversary of the Harper Conservative narrow majority election win (which I no longer recognize as being legitimate since the robo call scandal, by the by), our Minister of What's Left of the Environment* Peter Kent has spewed so much nonsense that it must be a joke. It must be. No one can lie this openly and have a job, let alone be IN CHARGE of something at a national level.


First lie: Cuts to Parks won't impact seasonality of canals or national historic sites. 
Actually, sir, it was already released in the Ottawa Citizen on April 13th that specifically the Rideau Canal National Historic Site is definitely either shortening the season (when it closes, not opens) or daily hours of operation this summer. One can reasonably infer that this will definitely be occurring at many other parks and historic sites across the country - seeing as though cutting front of the line staff means not as much front of the line work can be done. Also known as, cutting services that we the public pay for!


Second lie: This government is improving and contemporizing (is this a word?) environmental assessments across Canada.
You cannot improve and contemporize policy if doing so removes it's efficacy. You just can't. It is literally impossible. If you improve and update a car by removing parts of the engine and rearranging components of the transmission, it doesn't matter how much you buff and wax it, the damned thing just won't run.
By putting the National Energy Board front and centre for assessing environmental impacts of their own projects, how transparent and fair do you really think they will be? ESPECIALLY when they have now removed "light" pipeline construction from even being assessed under the act entirely! 


Third lie: This government is concerned with stewardship and conservation.
HA! Hahahahaahahaaaaaaa! Phew, that was a good one!


Fourth lie: Charitable organizations are laundering money offshore to sabotage our government.
This isn't so much a lie as just an ignorant, false, misleading statement. Until I see proof of an environmental organization in Canada that holds a charitable status laundering money in order to stop this government from doing further damage, I don't believe it. 
But if this evidence comes forward in favour of Mr Kent's drivel, I will take this statement back, admit that I was wrong, and immediately send the organization in question my next pay cheque.


Folks, PLEASE start paying attention! What is happening is bad. Really bad. Our government, the people we PAY, are continually undoing years of careful planning, hard work, and unfathomable progress in our federal policies and services. No, they are going beyond undoing. This government - whether it's the status of women in Canada, child care services, public services, the environment, social programming, health care, justice, veteran services - is systematically undoing what Canada is. 


This is happening. I'm actually not being dramatic. They've been doing it for years, even as a minority when they backed opposition into a corner, threatening dreaded elections. The question isn't how far will they go, it's how far will you let them go? How long before you don't recognize your own country anymore?


Now I'm exhausted AND riled up. Arg. 


"Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you got 'til it's gone? They paved paradise, put up a parking lot."   - Joni Mitchell 




* Thank you Sean for that lovely, witty title!

Lisa Raitt: Minister of Labour Fuckery

"A work stoppage is not in the best interests of the Canadian public or Canadian businesses."  -  Minister of Labour, Lisa Raitt

*heavy sigh*   

I don't even know where to start with this nitwit. Here I go...

Can someone please explain the concept of unions and legal strike action to our federal Minister of Labour? Did no one give her briefing notes when she was appointed? Or a heads up about what unions do?


OF COURSE strikes inconvenience people! If they didn't, they wouldn't work! *Someone give the lady an award, she has figured out the magic behind strikes!*


Just to clarify, Ms. Raitt, no one WANTS to strike. It isn't fun. It means hard times and added stress to life. And I'm sure these people like their jobs. Or else why fight for them? 


Your role, as Minister of Labour, is not to step in and strip a union of the right to strike. This is wrong. So to do it continually just because you can is disrespectful and therefore disgusting. What should happen is the workers strike, show everyone (including government) how valuable and important their services are, and in this way, they get more backing for their voice at the bargaining table to get a fair deal. To completely silence that voice is a recipe for labour union catastrophe. 

Yes folks, not only did our very own Minister of Labour brashly disregarded the striking rights of an Air Canada union in October of 2011, she is stepping in AGAIN. This time, blocking 8 600 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers at Air Canada from walking off the job. Her actions are beyond reproachable. This is NOT the role of government. They should have NO role. This is between the employees and the employer. 

Problem with these situations is that once they happen, a precedence is set. No union is safe now. But this is *exactly* what our government wants. They want workers who will simply do what they are told and be happy to simply get paid. Never mind health and safety, or fair wages, or benefits. Let's just all take a giant leap back 30 years ago! Wooo! Time warp! (I should have done something witty with that as the theme to this blog... like... "Rocky Horror Strike Show" or "Rocky Horror Raitt/Union Showdown"... and I could have painted her up like a sweet transvestite... HA! Okay, I'm done."


So please, write to the Minister of Labour, Lisa Raitt, or the Prime Minister. Seriously. Express your concerns about how our federal government treats unions. 


Thank you for making it to the end! Here is your quote of the blog:


" It is one of the characteristics of a free and democratic nation that it have free and independent labour unions." - Franklin D. Roosevelt


Well THAT explains it! The Conservatives hate democracy, so why would they want unions? Ah, mystery solved. Someone give me an award, but bigger than hers. ;)


Goodnight world.




* You might not agree that air travel is simply a convenience, that at times it is necessary. But Lisa Raiit says, it's "vital" to our lives. I'm sorry, but we *can* survive without air travel. It's quick, easy, and cheap for what it actually costs (yes, I'm talking about the environmental impacts as well). The general public uses planes because they make our lives easier, not because we have to. If we didn't have them, we, the general public, would adjust accordingly. 

Change, NOW!

That's right, I don't want your pocket money*, I'm talking change in the political upheaval sense. 

(This painting and resulting photo does not belong to me, though it should.)

It seems that at least once a week, a news item comes out regarding decisions or announcements made by our current federal government. These news items always add to my ever growing rage.


Since I've been MIA on this sorry excuse for a blog for a while, I figure I will make a simple list of my current annoyances. That way, I get my thoughts out in the open, maybe release some tension, AND spread my rage to my lovely subscribers - which can only help inspire the change that I'm looking for... right? :D


OH! And I've included a lot of fun links, so click on them! Teehee... I know which one my favourite is...

• John Baird pulling Canada's contribution out of the international pot of money that makes up UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization)
• His reasoning? The United Nations decided to recognize Palestine as a nation. What a piece of shit! As if he has the right to drop funding on behalf of all Canadians over something based solely on religion. Holy hell, this makes me angry! 
• What do we deserve? Baird should be horse whipped, and the UN should drop all of Canada's UNESCO World Heritage Site designations.

• Anything that has come out of Peter Kent's ugly mouth since he was appointed Minister of the Environment. Oh man... I can't believe this tripe this ass-wipe is getting away with.
• Example 1: Pompously taunting opposition members because they were DENIED attendance to the last Climate Conference - and just to point out, there is a long-standing precedence that opposition members are to be part of the Canadian delegation to these conferences... to REPRESENT ALL OF CANADA. 
• Example 2: Giving the Calgary Chamber of Commerce  a *wink wink, nudge nudge* that they'll have no problems from HIS ministry when it comes to resource development. Streamlining project approvals, apparently... "Environment Minister Peter Kent made no apologies Thursday for making economic considerations a primary concern for his department."  (Read more here)  

Watch the video here.

• Bill C-10. Holy eff, what to even say about this travesty? Again I say, anyone who voted for these screwballs, or anyone who didn't vote, can kiss my arse. This bill will literally put people growing pot plants in jail longer than pedophiles that have sexually abused children. DOES THIS SOUND LIKE A CANADA YOU WANT TO LIVE IN? Please say no. Or else move to Iran and witness as much injustice as you wish! 

• Changes to Old Age Security: How should we save money... hm... oh! Instead of being truly fiscally responsible by not buying 65 SINGLE ENGINE fighter jets for $140 mil a jet, pouring money into dying industries like the tar sands and oil extraction, wasting money by scrapping expensive programs instead of revamping them (LONG GUN REGISTRY: they're even going to DESTROY the information the program gathered... bu wha?!!?), we'll just force our seniors to work an extra 2 years before they can finally rest! Oh goody! 

Okay, I could literally go on and on and on and on, and this has taken me long enough (I've had to go back and delete some longer rants... though funny and very thought provoking, I know what it's like to see long portions of text and have your brain shut off. :D).

I do, however, feel a touch better. I feel like I have now identified my adversaries (much like our lovely government did in some documents, referring to aboriginal groups and tar sands opponents as ADVERSARIES and not ALLIES of tar sands and government supporters... what the shit is going on in this country?!?!)

Best response to that tripe can be viewed here! :D  

Alright folks, I know you've probably heard this quote a bajillion times, but hear it again! Or, read it, again... you know what I mean...

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." 

                                                                               - Ghandi

* Unless you have quarters to give me... I never seem to have enough for laundry. Grrrr

Can YOU define "ozone" ?

Me! Me! I know, I know!!!! *hand frantically waving in the air*  - more on ozone later. 

It's no secret that our current government doesn't give a shit about the environment. Some fine examples include: recently slashing over 700 jobs in Environment Canada, trying to sabotage global climate initiatives, cancelling federal environmental assessments for 2 years to help "stimulate the economy", and the overall cause for the aforementioned situations - appointing dip-shits as Environment Ministers. Our current Minister of the Environment is certainly no exception!

* I won't even play around with this photo. It has dip-shit written all over it. Thank you Mr Kent. It's property of the Vancouver Sun, by the by.

I get that ministers aren't always necessarily appointed for their particular ministerial know-how, but this man (like the rest of them) not only has zero experience and interest in the position, he also can't even do a decent job PRETENDING that he knows what's going on. At least Jim Prentice tried! (haha, okay, tried for a Conservative...)

Here comes the ozone question, class!  Two weeks ago in the House of Commons, when asked to define "ozone", Kent refused. WHAT?!? 

(If you can give me a definition of "ozone" in the comments section, you get a prize! For real. So do it! Best answer wins.)

This man is negotiating international treaties about this stuff! He is approving possible legislation on this very topic! ARRRG!

 

And now, the genius that is Peter Kent (you remember him from Global, right class?) is representing us at the Durban Climate Conference. WHERE he has thus far broken an international treaty on behalf of you & I by stating that Canada is pulling out of our current Kyoto commitments, he is therefore sabotaging any hope for a better Kyoto Accord on behalf of Canada, and has further damaged Canada's overall reputation on the world stage. 

UGH! I am so irate over this person right now.

I strongly feel it's time to get rid of the title Minister of the Environment until we have a government that is willing to put qualified, serious candidates in the seat. This is effing ridiculous.

Read the links in this, and please join me in writing to the disHonourable Peter Kent to express our displeasure at his terrible, lackluster representation of our country at international forums:

        Hill Office - Minister of the Environment Peter Kent      (I refuse to address him as "Honourable")

        House of Commons

        Ottawa, Ontario

        K1A 0A6

"It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment."

                                                                     - Ansel Adams

Isn't it, though?

'Til next time... AND DON'T FORGET YOUR CHALLENGE!

Shit-giving

I recently posted a photo onto Farcebook that spoke to me... it wasn't until I realized that it spoke to a childish, whining part of me that I removed it. 


The photo in question:

I get what it's all about. And I'm guessing that the creator of this graphic has suffered years of utter frustration. Frustration from trying to get a worthy message across that continually falls on deaf ears and blind eyes; of believing passionately that something is fundamentally wrong and having no one care; of hoping that meaningful discussion would come from the news, but not being able to sift through the endless piles of celebrity gossip and unimportant tripe...  the causes of frustration for your average justice-mongering human are endless.


But I don't think inciting negativity helps, and this image gives me bad vibes. As the tagline of the image says "The society we live in is seriously flawed" - yes, but paying tribute to the life of a rich, pseudo-celebrity is the LEAST of our flaws, wouldn't you say?


* If someone could explain to me the tweet symbol and direction to iPhone4s, that would be nice... unless the plan is, when marketing folks look at trending, this image will be attached to a bunch of juicy iPhone hits? Not a clue. 


[ Side note: what a useless waste of time Twitter is... people should be spending their limited amount of time on this earth doing important things on computers... like sporadic blogging and surfing Regretsy.com (if you haven't seen the latter, GO! I know I was being slightly snotty with that wasting time comment, but hell, you may as well laugh during your short, earthly life).]


Anyway, my suggestion for a more effective, deeper-rooted image would be a bit more problem-probing, and wouldn't target the death of one person who was brought to fame by the very consumers who are causing the problems in this world. 


Something more liiiiiike:

Or, even BETTER!:

See what I mean about the importance level of a person dying and the public lamenting (though I say enough is enough, already) versus something as trivial as a technological inconvenience, or which rich guido will catch the clap next?


Okay, now my mind isn't as burdened by the posting of this photo. I hope you share my sentiments, or at least understand. Now I can sleep.


No quote for this one... I have created two tonight for the lovely photos above. I hope you enjoyed them. Bonne nuit.