Month: June 2005

I’ve decided to have some fun while holed up in my hotel in downtown Detroit. The conference is over for another day and I thought that I’d mix my penchants for graphical design and slagging on the CBC into one afternoon commercial endeavor.

I’ve set up an account over at cafepress.com, where you can design your own t-shirts. I’ve made one that is sure to be a must have for any Conservative convention or summer BBQ leader’s tour.

Buy one for yourself, buy some for your friends…

Also available in simple T, women’s tank top and a mug.

Click here to buy

This post is all about money. It’s about those who print it, those who control it and those who donate it to the Liberal Party of Canada. In the spirit of my previous posts concerning the Board of Directors of the CBC, Via Rail, and Canada Post, I present two more Crown corporations which are headed by Liberal-friendly donors. Of course, the executive boards of these corporations are appointed by the Liberal cabinet, so this should come as no surprise in this country. But to those outside of this country… yes, this goes on, and yes, you’re right… it’s called “corruption”.

I present the proportion of donations from the current board of directors of the Royal Canadian Mint by recipient party:

These are the ladies and gentlemen that print our money. Kids, take note… if you want to be a leader in the public sector in Canada, make that cheque out to the Liberal Party. You might just get lucky! Jobs based on merit? Only true if you’re a Liberal.

Let’s move on to those that control the money, the chaps that run the Bank of Canada. Yes, these money managers managed to donate a hefty chunk of change to the Liberal Party of Canada. In fact, out of every $100 donated to political parties by the current board of directors of the Bank of Canada, $99 went to the Liberal Party. How does the government reward these outstanding individuals? Give them a seat at on the board. Here’s a graphical representation:

This is outrageous! Is anyone aware of the incredible partisan-based appointment of directors at our nation’s crown corporations? Tell your friends! Email them this post. I can only think of a handful of corrupt nations in which one party (or family) controls the money supply. I didn’t think that Canada was one of them. This is what is scary about politics in Canada.

On this Saturday afternoon, I find myself among scientists and colleagues in the Motor City. I’m here at a conference participating in science-related stuff (and I’m doing the tourist thing too). We’ve been put up in a fairly swanky hotel (for grad students) and we’re taking full advantage of our per diems too.

I expect that blogging should be light during the extended weekend, depending on what Detroit has to offer. If it lives up to its billing, I’ll be blogging a lot. And, if I’m actually surprised by the charm of the city, posts may be intermittent but might even find themselves part of a sort-of mini tourist blog. However, I’m here to, uh, do lots of work and present the lab’s scientific poster and research, so blogging should be sparse.

I’m a day late on this but I’d also like to wish a belated “happy St. Jean Baptiste day” to my friends in Quebec and in the rest of Canada. Quebecois Blogging Tories also wish everyone a happy St-Jean Baptiste day and do it better than I could hope to accomplish. We accept the Quebec question as a sort of national past-time, however, in Quebec it is their obsession.

Qu’est-ce qu’on veut, au juste?

Moi, si j’étais Charest, je ferais comme Lucien Bouchard: “Adios amigos, et démerdez-vous avec vos contradictions. Elisez un gouvernement de gauche, puis plaignez-vous que l’Etat occupe trop de place. Ou élisez le PQ, et votez contre l’indépendance. Bref, amusez-vous… Moi, je vais jouer au golf.”