April Reign

Speak your mind even if your voice shakes

conservatives

Defective Politics

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The leadership race doesn’t seem to have had the intended effect of strengthening the Liberal party.

Though I suppose one could legitimately argue it has weeded out those with very right wing ideology.

Harper told a crowd of party faithful that the support of former Mississauga-Streetsville Liberal MP Wajid Khan and now of Mark Persaud, a former chair of the federal Liberal party’s multiculturalism committee, shows people are realizing the “failure of the Liberals to match talk with action” when it comes to new Canadians.

This has nothing to do with New Canadians and everything to do with social conservatism.

The conservatives have found a supportive base for their stance against women’s issues, including reproductive rights, for their stance against social programs and their willingness to allow religion to dictate policy.

This statement is very telling

Khan said his “disillusionment” with the Liberals began in 2005, particularly after Paul Martin’s government signed a budget deal with the “socialist” New Democrats to extend the life of its minority government. Khan said his decision to defect was made easier by Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion who, he said, has no foreign policy, no economic credentials and no commitment to “family values.”

family values

Code for getting back to the good old days when men were men, sheep were nervous and the poor did the right thing and died off or went into the woods where decent people didn’t have to deal with them.

The NDP might want to take note of this part of that quote

after Paul Martin’s government signed a budget deal with the “socialist” New Democrats to extend the life of its minority government.

If he has publicly stated that he is disillusioned with a party for working with the NDP is there much chance that Harper has any intention of entering into or honouring any agreement with a socialist party?

Next we’ll have calls to check for Reds under the beds..but I digress.

We have seen the disasters that have been created by bowing to the religious right in the States.

Abstinence programs that have resulted in higher pregnancy rates, cut backs of services that are pushing poor people into even greater poverty, children threatened with death for questioning whether scripture is belief or fact, threats to women’s autonomy.

Harper doesn’t even believe this crap himself but he’s very much an ends justifies the means kinda guy, as well as a big spoiled baby who wants to get back at every person who ever thwarted him and their family, friends and supporters.

Canadians are not Father knows Best the way much of rural America is. They are much more likely to not only support but live a life where both partners work and where daycare and other supports are needed.

It is more important than ever that we make sure these people get to the polls. The pulpit masters will certainly be doing their bit to get the fundamentalists out there.

Lapierre resigns

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Lapierre has announced he will be leaving by months end.

Leaving the NDP in the unenviable position of deciding the fate of the Tory party.

Unenviable because no matter how Layton plays it, the NDP will have their feet held to the fire for either causing an election or not causing it.

It will be interesting to see how Harper plays this.

And so it ends..

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notebook

I had a bad feeling about this year, and I was unfortunately right about that.

Personally I lost a mom, a cat, two jobs, and had two serious health scares.

Politically saw the election of Harper and crew, a renewed and emboldened attack on women’s rights and freedoms, the realization that though the wheel was invented, many still want to put corners on it and have a nuanced discussion over who should be using it, continued death and destruction by the powerful who stand to gain more.. upon the many who have nothing left to lose, and the death of a puppet who had turned on his masters. [Read more…] about And so it ends..

Foodbanking Women’s Issues

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I’m sure when foodbanks first started popping up they were considered a stop gap. A temporary fix to a major problem.

I’m sure there was an assumption that advocacy and research would be done to target the reasons for and solutions to most of the underlying causes.

Of course capitalism itself requires a certain level of poverty and unemployment to continue, it therefore, owes something to those upon whom the illusion is built.

Of course we know that despite the studies and proposed solutions the Liberal and Conservative governments have seen fit to reward corporations with tax cuts, and creating class warfare upon the poor.

The Conservative government has now taken the same approach to women’s issues. [Read more…] about Foodbanking Women’s Issues

Lessons from 1984

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Status of Women Minister Bev Oda says the Conservative government has removed “equality” from the mandate of the status of women program because it wants to instil the belief in equality in every government department, agency and office.

That’s right we want to take away the concept of equality to ensure equality. Now if you aren’t understanding that logic you likely belong to one of those special interests groups.

A lot of issues are not women’s issues, they’re Canadian issues,” Oda said, explaining the government philosophy behind a series of moves that have provoked a week of Opposition criticism and protests by women’s groups.

snip

“If you want to advocate for more opportunities for women to enter the workforce, you should be talking to the minister of human resources and social development,” Oda said. “If it’s aboriginal women, it’s the responsibility of the minister of aboriginal affairs.

“We believe as a government that every part of the federal government has to be founded in the belief of equality,” Oda said.

Not actual equality mind you, the belief of equality.

Now if you want to see a demonstration of such belief, look to the south where they have cured hunger! Though there are still some who are food insecure. But hey we all have insecurities!

Oda said the term feminist “doesn’t bother me. It’s not pro or con. All I know is that I stand for what’s right and what’s wrong

Exactly! She stands for the right and as usual they are wrong.

We can take heart though that the other members of the conservative cabinet are already brushing up on women’s issues.

Stockwell Day, Conservative MP for Okanagan Coquihalla, disagrees with that assertion and noted there will be no cuts to services. He added that he doesn’t know anything about the word equality being stripped.

“Status of Women was established in 1976, and there are going to be no cuts in service, the women’s program will continue to receive all of its funding,” Day said.

Er…maybe not.

A woman’s right to life

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The center will appeal to the Nicaraguan human rights council and the Supreme Court, arguing that the law violates a women’s right to life.

Think about that sentence for a minute…..

Has it sunk in?

A woman’s right to life

Who would ever have imagined in the year 2006 almost 2007 that we would be debating whether or not a woman’s life was worth saving.

Nicaragua has decided to enter the debate. Resolved that a fetus, even a dead one, takes precedence over a woman.

The public prosecutor for crimes against women is investigating whether doctors fearful of punishment even before the newly-passed abortion law had gone into effect stood by while Jazmina del Carmen Bojorge, 18, died from complications to her pregnancy.

Bojorge was awaiting her second child when she and her 5-month-old fetus died this month in a public hospital in Managua. Bojorge’s family says they took her to a hospital when she complained of limb pains and weakness. When her condition worsened, doctors say they determined her fetus was dead, but Bojorge went into shock before they could save her.

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Ana Isela Vega, who was three months pregnant when she suffered a miscarriage this month, was refused the necessary procedure to evacuate her uterus in a public hospital in the city of León, said Marta María Blandón, Central America director of Ipas. According to Blandón, the doctors worried they could not operate for legal reasons. Under pressure from women’s groups who explained that the law did not forbid removing an already-deceased fetus, the doctors finally operated.

Of course we know that anti choice types only create these types of laws because of their great love of children.

Um…maybe not

Asked in an interview this month about the case of an 8-year-old Nicaraguan who was raped in 2002 and whose family fought successfully to get her a legal abortion the following year, Navarro replied, “If a 9-year-old is raped, she should have the baby, because that child has rights.”

I’m guessing he wasn’t talking about the 8 year old child.

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