The R Rated Blogger

Spying against the opposition party? Sure why not. But using an employee that the Canadian public foots the bill for.

A Conservative staffer is being paid through the House of Commons budget to shadow Liberal leader Stephane Dion.

The revelation, complete with video footage of James Murray, a Conservative Resource Group senior researcher, shadowing Dion at an event last week, has been posted to the popular video website YouTube by the Liberals.

Titled Tory Spy Revealed, and set to the catchy Pink Panther theme music, the video shows Murray at the Bradley Museum in Mississauga, Ont., where he videotaped Dion's speech. The video then shows Murray, wearing sunglasses and a big green coat, beating a hasty retreat once he is spotted, only to turn and point a camera at Liberal Mick Gzowski, who was filming him.

In the script, the video focuses on the fact Murray is paid through the research budget the House of Commons allocates to the Conservatives.

"He is a House of Commons employee," the video flashes in black and white. "Your tax dollars at work. Shadowing Dion across Ontario and filming Dion in the House of Commons. The government is spying on the official opposition.

When the truth about Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky came into light, it was Newt Gingrich leading the charge against Clinton being impeached. Statement after statement Gingrich wailed on about how the president has sullied the Oval office.

In an interview that will be aired today, Newt Gingrich tells Focus on the Family's James Dobson that he had an affair when Bill Clinton was being investigated for his relationship with Lewinsky.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich acknowledged he was having an extramarital affair even as he led the charge against President Clinton over the Monica Lewinsky affair, he acknowledged in an interview with a conservative Christian group.

"The honest answer is yes," Gingrich, a potential 2008 Republican presidential candidate, said in an interview with Focus on the Family founder James Dobson to be aired Friday, according to a transcript provided to The Associated Press. "There are times that I have fallen short of my own standards. There's certainly times when I've fallen short of God's standards."

Gingrich argued in the interview, however, that he should not be viewed as a hypocrite for pursuing Clinton's infidelity.

"The president of the United States got in trouble for committing a felony in front of a sitting federal judge," the former Georgia congressman said of Clinton's 1998 House impeachment on perjury and obstruction of justice charges. "I drew a line in my mind that said, 'Even though I run the risk of being deeply embarrassed, and even though at a purely personal level I am not rendering judgment on another human being, as a leader of the government trying to uphold the rule of law, I have no choice except to move forward and say that you cannot accept ... perjury in your highest officials."

As long as nobody knows about it, it's alright.

Holy chicken shit FIFA



Why are you so contradictory?

FIFA officials have expressed support for hijab-wearing players in the past. For example, at a women's tournament in 2005 in Pakistan, Cristina Ramos, a member of the FIFA women's football committee said female players could wear scarves and long pants out of respect for "Islamic principles and ethics."

Two very good points made by couple of Canadian politicians in the whole Asmahan (Azzy) Mansour, hijab incident.


"You can't hide a bomb under a hijab," said a laughing Khan, "I would hate to see what is happening in Europe come here, to be honest with you. I am very conscious of the security of Canada and Canadians. I have done a lot of work on that issue but I think an 11-year-old girl, all she wants to do is play soccer. Let her play the game. People are talking about burkas. A hijab is not a burka, for godsakes. I think there is a misunderstanding. But no one is telling anyone how to dress. I come back to the RCMP. If they can change their uniform, an old institution like that, we changed that, then I think saner heads can prevail."

Wajhid Khan, Conservative MP

"I was so shocked that Charest, first of all, would get involved in this. How does a hijab get in the way at all playing soccer. My sadness is it will stop girls from playing sports. We need to look at what is in the best interest of the children, especially the girls - it is real sad."

Liberal Senator Mobina Jaffer

More on MPs defend girl at centre of soccer controversy here.

You need the world body to decide if a 11 year old girl girl can play soccer.

The supreme authority of world soccer will tackle the question of hijabs on the playing field Saturday in Manchester, England.

The group's turf includes Quebec, where the Islamic head scarves are banned.

The discussion will be part of the annual general meeting of the International Football Association Board, Nicolas Maingot, a spokesperson for the Federation Internationale de Football Association, said yesterday in Zurich.

IFAB "is the only body able to modify, amend or change the laws of the game" in force for 250 million players worldwide, 40 million of whom are women, Maingot added.

The football board consists of FIFA and four large British soccer associations.

A great and bitter rivalry is emerging. One day, people may talk of Macdonald and Mackenzie, King and Meighen, Pearson and Diefenbaker, Harper and Dion.

An ad by the Parti Quebecois has caused a bit of controversy in Quebec. The ad in question depicts Quebec under Jean Charest’s leadership as a battered woman. The Ad featured on the website www.bondebarras.tv, shows an actress playing a teacher and a mother who feels like a battered woman because of the rise in the cost of nurseries from $5 to $7 a day.

She describes her feelings under the Charest Government in terms of being in an abusive relationship.

“When I first chose him, the relationship was like a honeymoon, full of good intentions, promises… then one day I realized that he had lied to me. I had to endure this for 4 years, it's been hell. It's necessary that I have to put an end to this relationship. I had enough, help me”. Then a voice over comes on and says “Help Genevieve put an end to this unhealthy relationship.”

You can view the Ad in question here. It's in French, so is the article.

There is an English summary of this story here.

The Supreme Court Of Canada has ruled that it is unconstitutional for the Government of Canada to use the secretive “security certificate” system to deport non-citizens suspected of terrorism ties.

The high court found the current security certificate system violates the Charter of Rights and Freedom (Canada's bill of rights), Charter’s section 7 - the guarantee that the state will respect principles of fundamental justice whenever it acts to restrict an individual’s liberty or security of the person.

That means, the court said, the law must provide a fair hearing before an impartial judge, and respect the right of an individual to know the case against him, and the opportunity to answer allegations.

The current system allows “closed door” evidentiary hearings, and bars the individual suspected of being a risk to national security from hearing the evidence against him. That leaves judges in the awkward position of challenging the secret evidence, and providing a deportee with only a “summary” of the allegations against him.

In translation, prior to the Courts ruling any charges brought against suspected terrorists were heard only behind closed doors by a judge. The defendant could not be present at these hearings and the defense lawyers were only given rather sketchy summaries relating to the case.

If convicted then the men may spend years in jail fighting the deportation orders, they are also labeled terrorists and eventually be sent back to their home countries.

The Supreme Court of Canda has called this type of prosecution fundamental violation of their human rights.

You can read the Supreme Court's ruling here