Today's news article review is entitled, ''Strict' conditions on accused killer weren't worth paper they were written on', wonderfully written by Michele Mandel of the Toronto Sun.
My response is below with room for your comment below that, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah, 30, is charged with first-degree
murder in slaying of Bridget Takyi, 27.
As family and friends
prepare to hold a candlelight vigil in memory of Bridget Takyi, the man
accused of killing and setting her on fire was remanded in custody again
Friday.Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah remains behind bars, as he should have been when
he was first charged with threatening to kill her back on Dec. 5, 2012.
“She was afraid; she was nervous,” says her cousin, Kingsley Yeboah,
as the family prepared for the Saturday evening vigil and her Feb. 2
funeral. “That’s the reason why she pressed charges against him. She was
hoping for protection.” Instead, the hardworking 27-year-old was brutally slain after
dropping off the couple’s two little sons at her mother’s home so she
could leave for work.
Sources have confirmed Owusu-Ansah, 30, was already known to police
when he was arrested last month on eight domestic violence charges
involving Takyi, including three counts of assault — one dating back to
2009, two of assault with a weapon and two of possessing weapons
dangerous to the public, in addition to threatening death.
For some unknown reason — the proceedings are subject to a
publication ban — justice of the peace Peter Wilson decided he should be
released. Wilson set bail at $5,000 — no deposit — and released Owusu-Ansah
into the care of a surety who assured the court that he would remain at
his side 24 hours a day.
In addition to house arrest, Owusu-Ansah was not to contact Takyi in
any way or be within 500 metres of her Etobicoke address; he was not to
possess any weapons or “explosive substance” and within 60 days, he was
to attend “any assessment, treatment or counselling for any psychiatric
issues” and allow his surety to confirm his participation.
Those “strict” conditions weren’t worth the paper they were written on. Police believe his surety was sleeping when they allege Owusu-Ansah
slipped out in the early hours of Jan. 19. “There’s no evidence to
suggest he did anything wrong,” says Homicide Det. Sgt. Brian Borg of
the surety. “He feels horrible about it.”
Owusu-Ansah was arrested for first-degree murder at a Mississauga gas
station just hours after Takyi’s body, burned beyond recognition, was
discovered at 7 a.m. outside her mother’s apartment building near
Eglinton Ave. W. and Martin Grove Rd. As she approached her parked car
to head to Pearson airport where she worked as a waitress for Air
Canada’s Maple Leaf lounge, police say she was repeatedly stabbed and
then doused with a flammable liquid and set ablaze.
At the scene, they found a $10 gas can and the box for a knife called “The Best Defense.” Now, at the site where the beautiful Ghanian native died such a
horrific, agonizing death, her family and friends plan to gather at 5
p.m. Saturday with white candles and questions. So many questions. How could somebody accused of beating their estranged partner and threatening to kill her still be allowed out on the streets?
And will anyone hold that JP accountable? “Somebody like him shouldn’t be out on bail,” insists Takyi’s cousin.
“He should at least have had some sort of tracking bracelet so they
could detect where he was.”
Why not mandatory GPS anklets? If our justice system is going to
insist on giving house arrest to people charged with violent crimes,
then there must be a better way of monitoring them.
The cases are
legion: accused Eaton Centre shooter Chris Husbands was on house arrest,
teenaged cop killer Nadeem Jiwa was supposed to have a curfew,
double-murderer Nathaniel O’Brien was being “monitored” by his parents. Takyi went to the authorities for protection. But they let her down. “I hope things will change now because the system is not working,”
Yeboah says. “If somebody like him can be out, I don’t think that’s
right, I don’t think that’s right at all.”
Where was Justice for Bridget Takyi?
my response.....
When you consider that in just one week, we have Justice Charles Hackland's decision concerning a City of Toronto action being reversed on appeal for making a 'error in law' that could have resulted in a democratically elected mayor removed from office
essentially on the basis of a resolution that Toronto council had no authority
to pass and now, we have a fellow who should never have been released from jail with 8 domestic violence charges outstanding provided with a no deposit set bail only to attack and kill his wife. Is it any wonder our Social Agencies and Police throw their hands in air in despair? This poor woman went to these agencies looking for help! Her life was in danger. The Police knew it. The Women's shelters knew it! Why didn't the JP? This sorry state of affairs begs the question....could we reduce or even eliminate this problem if our judiciary were elected?
Democrat Hon. Thomas P. Amodeo, elected to the Buffalo City Court
American states have judges (up to the State Supreme
Court) who are elected by the voters. Judges are then answerable to the people. Governor or Legislative Appointment: In 4 states, judges are appointed by the governor or (in South Carolina and Virginia) the legislature. Gubernatorial appointments
usually require the consent of the upper house of the legislature or
the participation of a special commission such as an executive council.
In most of these states, judges serve a term (ranging from 6 to 14
years) and then may be reappointed in the same manner. In Massachusetts,
New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, judges enjoy lifetime or near-lifetime
tenure. Merit Plan: In 23 states, judges are nominated by a nonpartisan commission, and then appointed by the governor. Judges serve a term and then are
subject to a retention election, where they run alone, and voters can
either approve another term or vote against them. Terms vary but on the
whole are less than those in appointment states. Nonpartisan Election: In 15 states, judges run for election. Their political affiliations are not listed on the ballot, and so voters, unless
specifically informed, do not know a candidate's political party. These
judges serve a term and then may run for reelection. The terms range from 6 to 10 years. Partisan Election: In 8 states, like New York for example, judges run for election as a member of a political party. They serve a term in the range of 6 to 10 years for the most part and then may run for reelection. This is, one could argue, more democratic than having judges be
appointed. If a judge makes too many decisions that are out of line
with what taxpayers believe, he or she can be removed.
Ontario Attorney General Chris Bentley
While there are some very compelling arguments for and against a person being either appointed as a judge or justice of the peace by the provincial Attorney General or
elected by the people, I would suspect that many people would agree that no matter what method, a judge or justice of the peace must be impartial and the selection of
judges should not be based on politics, but on a person’s ability to be fair and impartial. Cynics may argue that
the voting public isn’t equipped to determine the most qualified
candidate, especially those susceptible to
influence by special interest groups but judicial decisions become law and can have a great impact on the taxpayer. So, should the taxpayer have the final say in selecting the judiciary
that presides over our court rooms?
Today's article, presented verbatim is entitled 'Moderate Muslims show courage speaking out against extremists', by Peter Worthington of the Toronto Sun, based upon a book report. My response is below with room for your comment below that, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
Farzana Hassan's latest book, Unveiled.
It's somewhat misleading to
compare Farzana Hassan to Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the extraordinary woman from
Somalia who fled to escape an arranged marriage to a Toronto man, and
became an MP in Holland and a powerful voice against Islam's treatment
of women. Hirsi Ali sought refuge in the U.S. as Islamists vowed to assassinate
her, as they killed a Dutch movie producer who filmed her story.
Courage, integrity and insight distinguish Hirsi Ali.
Those same traits could be used to describe Hassan, who writes a
column in the Toronto Sun on themes similar to those Hirsi Ali explores.Just as Hirsi Ali wrote books about her Muslim background (Nomad and
Infidel), so Hassan has written about her background and concerns
involving Islam (Prophesy and the Fundamentalist Quest and her latest
book, Unveiled). Unveiled is important because much of it deals with Canada and
Toronto -- especially the closing chapters. Hassan is more restrained
than Hirsi Ali, and seeks to reconcile differences between Muslim
newcomers and other Canadians. But she, like Hirsi Ali, is repelled by
the oppression of women by the Islamic faith.
And even moreso by Muslim women who think Shariah law is enlightening. A practising Muslim who grew up in Pakistan, she says, "Perhaps 9/11
was the starting point in my public career as a reformist Muslim." She was appalled at the jubilation in Pakistan at 9/11, that someone
had "stood up to America, the big bully and 'Great Satan.'"
Palestinians, too, danced in the streets. Even so, she recalled Jewish women coming to the mosque in Mansfield,
Mass., to sympathize with Muslims who were experiencing a backlash of
New England opinion. Even U.S. President George W. Bush went on TV to
say Islam was "a religion of peace" -- a debatable issue, but a view
devoid of knee-jerk Islamophobia. Still, Hassan questioned Islam's values, and has been labelled an
apostate. She questions Islamic fanaticism, as does her colleague
(mentor?) in Toronto, Tarek Fatah, president of the Muslim Canadian
Council (MCC), who opposes Islamists and jihadists. Canadians are encouraged to view the Canadian Islamic Congress (CIC)
as a middle-road representative for Islam. Yet, she notes its positions
are "pro-Palestinian, pro-Shariah law, pro-orthodoxy." One wonders if
CIC plays a double-game? Most Muslim organizations (including CAIR-Can) have ties to the
Muslim Brotherhood now in ascendency in the Middle East. Only MCC
challenges the Brotherhood. That makes MCC -- and Fatah and Hassan
potential targets. In Canada, Islamists uphold Shariah and "insulate their children from
Western influence "¦ demand outrageous faith accommodations in public
schools, engage in surreptitious polygamous relations," perform genital
mutilation on girls, indulge in "honour killings" for infractions as
minor as girls refusing to wear veils. Hassan recalls Toronto's Valley Park Middle School turning its
cafeteria into a prayer hall on Fridays, and girls barred from attending
swimming or gym classes at other schools unless they wore long clothes
that fully covered their bodies. As for Muslim prayer rooms in schools, Farzana quotes Liberal MPP
Kathleen Wynne (a leading contender to be Ontario's next premier):
"We've had religious accommodation in our schools for many years. We are
simply providing space. It's a practice that's making us stronger." Maybe that's a signal that more school cafeterias will become Friday prayer rooms if Wynne wins the premiership. Muslim girls are the big losers -- confined to the back of classes
and all that. Even Catholic secondary schools in London and Kitchener
now provide Muslim prayer halls. Freedom of speech and tolerance are being exploited by Islamists to
impose restrictions and dogma -- with even moderate Muslims fearful of
speaking out. Women are rendered invisible and anonymous by the burka, and by
"upholding the uncontested guardianship of the husband over the wife."
Plus other aspects. These are some of what Hassan, Fatah and the MCC oppose. And that makes them apostates and subject to threats -- and requires
both courage and conviction to stand up for what's right, and for
Canada.
Genghis Khan
my response....
According to Uzaer Ahmed of Toronto, Genghis Khan was one of the most brutal rulers in history. One of the
keys to his great conquests was his use of horses in the battle field.
But would you say that the Mongolian horses were evil, or that the way
they were used was evil? It would be preposterous to say the horses were
evil. Well, crazy as it sounds, that’s what today’s media is doing. Even though it’s clear that certain terrorists are using Islam as a
vehicle to achieve their own evil desires, the media never fails to link
them to Islam with Orwellian propagandist terms such as “Islamist
Toronto
Uzaer, who wrote this for the National Post is a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, which has been spreading
the message of love and peace for over a century and finds it extremely
disturbing when the media refers to any terrorists as “Islamic". Islam is not evil, the way it is being used by these terrorists is evil.
If Anders Breivik were Muslim, the headlines would’ve been scattered
with references to Islam, yet not if he were of any other religion. We
need to examine this troubling truth.
Peter Worthington has gone on record since as saying that Premier-elect 'Wynne tends to see things differently. For example, only McGuinty’s veto
when she was education minister prevented her from authorizing a
version of Shariah law in Ontario to the horror of many Muslims who
came to Canada to escape Shariah'.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Prime Minister Stephen Harper gets it! Will Premier-elect Kathleen Wynne get it, too? Only time will tell!
Today, I present an article entitled 'Pond hockey ignites Canadian tradition', by Darren Lum of the
Haliburton Echo, a Metroland newspaper published on January 21st. Below is my response and below that, room for your comment, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
The Trailer Park Boys Scott Neilson,
from front left, Brad Park, Jeff Wilson, Jesse Johnson and Ryan Wood is
the only local entry at this year's Canadian National Pond Hockey
Championships in Haiburton. This is the team's first entry to the
national championship. They will play this weekend starting on Friday at
1 p.m. and 4:20 p.m. on Head Lake and 8 a.m. and 9:40 at the Pinestone
Resort on Saturday. Finals are Sunday. Absent is Jeremy Miscio. DARREN
LUM/HALIBURTON ECHO/QMI AGENCY
Come this weekend, Haliburton will host a Canadian winter fantasy. With hockey players of every type skating, passing and shooting pucks,
Head Lake and the pond in front of the Pinestone Resort will be a
showcase of Canadiana with the Canadian Pond Hockey Championships Jan.
25 to 27 and Feb. 1 to 3. Although last year the event was cancelled,
mainly due to weather, it has returned, leaving behind Huntsville for
the Haliburton Highlands for the first time since it started in 2006.
Founder Neil Lumsden appreciated the volunteer efforts in Muskoka, but
thinks the Highlands offers less of a corporate atmosphere and more of a
community one. “It extends even further into the community and I think when it comes to
building an event that will last … the idea is to find the location we
have … it’s limitless other than the weather,” he said.
Lumsden co-founded the event with Mark DeNobile and Dorian Andrewes. The
inaugural event was at the Deerhurst Resort in Huntsville seven years
ago. It drew 110 men’s teams and 20 women’s teams from seven provinces
and five U.S. states.The event grew from there. By 2007, the event expanded to two weekends to accommodate growing
popularity. Teams have come from the U.S., Scotland and as far as Japan.
Games have two 15-minute halves and are monitored by an off-ice
official. Without any offsides and icings, the game is a free-flowing
affair (with no body-checking) involving four players a side sans
goalies. Teams are allowed two substitutes that can be switched on the
fly. Equipment is at a minimum with just skates, sticks, hockey gloves,
shin guards, helmets and sometimes elbow pads. Goals can only be scored
from within the attacking zone.
Former NHLers the likes of Steve Larmer,
Bryan Trottier, Scott Thornton, Brad Delgarno, Gary Leeman and Vincent
Damphousse have played, as well as musician Jim Cuddy. Walter Gretzky
has been an honourary member. This year’s honourary chairperson is Walt
McKechnie. Lumsden is a former CFL player, who played for the Toronto
Argonauts, Edmonton Eskimos and the Hamilton Ti-cats. He said sport,
like this event, has always been about the people more than anything
else.
“When it’s all said and done you don’t remember who scored the goals.
You remember who you were playing with. So, the people you meet in sport
are what’s really important,” he said. “I met and got to know a lot of
really great people that played and continue to play in this event. So,
for me that is a highlight.”
He’s reminded of a year when ice conditions deteriorated because of warm temperatures.
As Lumsden was making the call to stop play, he remembers a guy came up to him.
“Look, this is pond hockey. Don’t worry about it. It’s not going to be perfect,” the man said. “So, everyone took their skates off and put their boots on and played like [it was] street hockey,” Lumsden remembers.
It was a testament to the kind of people drawn to this event. This event is more than just a game. It goes deeper.
“Once you get here and play it’s kind of special. And that to me … to watch people play and enjoy, that’s all I need,” he said. On Friday night McKecks Tap and Grill in Haliburton will host an event
scheduled for 9 p.m. Confirm with McKecks ahead of time by calling
705-854-0012.
Current Pond Hockey action!
my response.....
Judging by the number of players that come back year after year, Pond Hockey must be more than just a game, as Neil suggests. Similar tournaments, like the one invading Haliburton this weekend are active across Canada and the United States.
The Skatin' Kates
The "Skatin' Kates" barnstorming hockey team. Traveled the North
Country by dogsled and toboggan, taking on all challengers during
the winter of 1925. They left behind a trail of broken hearts and
dented twine.
The Pepper Brothers
The Pepper Brothers--Pip, Pep, and Pop, practicing the infamous "Pepper
Pond Power Play." Note: Horse-drawn Zamboni in background.
More Current Pond Hockey action!
Very popular with the older crowd, this year marks the first time for a GreyBreads division, for those over 50 who are just plain tired of chasing youngsters around the rink. Our Precision Label Slo-Timers will be playing again this year. As Neil's Pond Hockey tournament has been active since 2006, many of the originals players fit nicely into this category.
Pond Hockey 2013 in Haliburton!
Friday night, when Pond Hockey is finished for the night, the party will be on at McKecks Tap and Grill in Haliburton. Owned and operated by Walt McKechnie who played with the Leafs way back when, this is a popular 'watering hole' and is expected to fill up early.
Today, I bring you an article entitled, 'Liberals rewriting the language of gun control', by Melvan Jacob of the Chicago Tribune. Below is my response and below that, room for your comment, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
The phrase “gun control” may be disappearing from the
American debate, jettisoned by the very people who have long favored gun
control. Initiatives are now described as attempts to promote “gun safety” or
prevent “criminal access to guns” or pass “gun violence legislation.”
This month, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who has a master’s degree in
speech and communication from Northwestern University, urged gun reform
activists to make sure their pitch emphasizes the war on crime. “It’s
all about criminal access,” Emanuel said. “It’s not about gun control.
It’s about criminal access. That changes the debate.”
On Thursday, Vice President Joe Biden was asked about “gun control”
at a Google+ online event and said: “I don’t view it as gun control. I
view it as gun safety.” The Atlantic’s Molly Ball likened the shift in rhetoric to estate tax
opponents complaining about the “death tax” and gay-marriage activists
calling for “marriage equality” — in both cases, finding a more
effective way to frame their positions.
Jonathon Schuldt, an assistant professor of communication at Cornell
University, noted that Americans care deeply for personal freedom,
making “control” a word that evokes government regulation and may have
negative connotations.“It’s really easy to justify why one is against
‘control,’ ” he said. “But it’s way harder to be against ‘safety.’ ” “Subtle, tiny word changes can have a surprisingly big effect on public opinion,” Schuldt said. “Gun control” has a long history in American politics.
A
groundbreaking federal law was even called that — the Gun Control Act of
1968. But that was an era when even the National Rifle Association
endorsed some new gun restrictions, and even Democratic President John
Kennedy carried an NRA card. These days, the opponents on the gun issue seem more polarized, with
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., referring to “gun
grabbers” and Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., calling the NRA “enablers of
mass murder.”
Yet with the abandonment of “gun control” and the focus on “criminal
use,” perhaps left and right are moving closer together, at least
rhetorically. “It’s not about keeping bad guns out of the hands of good people,”
Biden said. “It’s about keeping all guns out of the hands of bad
people.” Which doesn’t sound much different from the conservatives’ old bumper sticker: “Guns don’t kill people — people do.”
Good for me...but not for thee?
my response......
Are Barack Obama and Joe Biden little more than
political operatives who got elected by masquerading as
centrists and reelected by repeatedly calling Mitt Romney an insensitive
rich guy? No Presidential duo in the last 50 years has attracted nearly as many
financiers, paid off more
financial supporters with government jobs, fired more personal insults
at those with whom they disagree with or given more non-substantive
interviews. As time passes, will it become evident even to the
disinterested that these two are at best superficial thinkers and anything
but leaders?
Food for thought?
Americans are still asking, "Where are the survivors of Benghazi that the President was
willing to let die with his orders of "Stand Down". Both he an Hillary
are very careful keeping these 25 survivors away from the media but they
have a tale to tell. Were they left for dead before they were rescued by two
brave men? Why are they incarcerated and held incommunicado. Why have
they been silenced by the administration? Are they even still alive?
What are their names, where do they live, which country are they being
held in against their will? Will Americans ever get any answers?
More Food for thought?
Unfortunately, too much of the blame goes to certain main street media; for lack of a more descriptive, albeit accurate term, who are supposed to be the 'adversary to power' no matter which party is in the White House or runs Congress but most of these main street media types currently act as nothing more than Obama's apologists. Even Greta van Susteren says, “Apparently, President Obama wants his
usual media pass and Fox challenges his policies — which happens to be
the media’s job,” Have certain main street media totally abdicated their traditional
4th estate role? Would Obama and Reid and the rest feel
so secure in their pomposity and position of power if these media types were doing their job?
Obama and the 20 thieves?
When I was in Journalism at Centennial College in the early '70's, I was taught that
is the task of the fourth estate to challenge Government and their
policies. The German Press failed to do so from 1933 onwards and the
result was Hitler. The Russian Press failed do so and they got purges
and the Gulags. The Chinese Press is not doing so and there is
consequently no real opposition. Will anyone challenge Obama on his policies? Has anyone vetted or investigated him? When you consider all
of the tales he has given, especially during the 2008 Campaign, a little oversight could be a good idea. What about the fact that median family
income has fallen by $3,000 or house prices by 30%, or the fact that the
REAL unemployment figure is closer 15% than the 7.8% he claims.
British WW2 Prime Minister, Winston Churchill
There is so much more but Main Stream Media will not tell you or challenge him,
nor will the likes of MSNBC or ABC, or NBC or CNN, now they have a new Left
wing boss. If a leader like Churchill doesn't emerge soon, it looks like it will be up to main street Americans to challenge this Administration...and main street media!
Today I bring you and article by Nicholas Keung, the Immigration Reporter for the Toronto Star, published on Thursday January 24, 2013 entitled 'Immigration backlog: Anti-fraud measures add years to citizenship process'. Once again, it is presented verbatim, below is my response and below
that, room for your comment, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
Mana Golnazi, an Iranian engineer, had already passed her
citizenship exam when she was asked in Juy to leap another hurdle on her
way to citizenship: a residence questionnaire. She has since learned it
will take up to four years before it's assessed. SUPPLIED PHOTO
Extra scrutiny introduced by Ottawa to crack down on citizenship
fraud means thousands of immigrants will have to wait as long as nine
years to become full-fledged citizens.Until recently, immigrants with permanent resident status had to wait
three years before filing a citizenship application, which would then
take about 21 months to process in routine cases — for a total of about
five years.
Last May, the federal government introduced a more rigorous
“residence questionnaire” for some applicants, to establish proof that
they’ve actually been present in Canada. Applicants were told the
detailed four-page forms — which must be accompanied by proof such as
tax returns, pay stubs, and airline tickets to document even brief
absences — would take 15 months to process.
But this month, those applicants are learning they’ll have to wait four more years to get their files assessed.
Mana Golnazi, a Toronto engineer who came here from Iran in 2008, calls the process “frustrating.”
“We feel like we are held hostage by the government,” she said.
Golnazi, 33, was asked to fill out the questionnaire after she passed
the citizenship test in July. She was shocked when she called to get an
update on her application and was told she’d have to wait 48 months.
“I went to school here. I work hard. I pay taxes. I volunteer in the
community. I am a good citizen. Where’s my rights after all these
years?” said Golnazi, an IT business analyst.
“I can’t vote in the system that I’ve been contributing to. I do what
good citizens do, but they don’t want to give me the same rights.” Many citizenship applicants have expressed similar frustration and anger about the delay on online forums. Golnazi — an avid volunteer for The Weekend to End Women’s Cancer,
the Terry Fox Run and the Salvation Army — said she has been out of
Canada only twice since her arrival, for a total of 28 days.
She took a
vacation to England and visited her mother, who was battling cancer in
Tehran.
Applicants can travel outside Canada, but need to obtain visas with
the passport of their home country, which can be inconvenient and
costly. According to the immigration department, about 60,000 citizenship
applications were referred for further examination between May 7 and
Sept. 28, 2012. Of those applicants, 11,000 were asked to fill out the
questionnaires.
“When a residence questionnaire and further investigations are
involved, it is no longer routine ... The time needed to process
non-routine cases varies from one case to another,” said department
spokesperson Paul Northcott, adding that officials don’t keep track of
the processing time of these cases. Officials could not say how they decide which applicants must
complete the questionnaire. Neither could they provide statistics on the
rate of acceptance or rejection for those who fill it out.
Alexis Pavlich, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s spokesperson,
said the Conservative government has admitted a higher number of
permanent residents each year than the previous Liberal government,
which has put pressure on citizenship processing times. “Our government is committed to protecting the value of Canadian
citizenship, which is why we are cracking down on residency and
citizenship fraud,” Pavlich said in an email.
“This increased scrutiny has produced longer wait times in some
cases, but will result in a cleaner, faster system in the long run.” MP Kevin Lamoureux, the Liberals’ immigration critic, said there are
more than 300,000 permanent residents with citizenship applications in
the backlog. “These processing times are totally unacceptable. We have thousands
of potential citizens who are being denied the right to vote,” he said.
Palestinian immigrant Wael Saadeddin Gharbiyeh was sponsored to
Canada by his Canadian wife in 2000. He passed his citizenship test in
April 2010 but was handed the residence questionnaire after an officer
questioned him about having an expired passport from Jordan. Gharbiyeh, who has a degree in accounting and finance from the South
Illinois University Carbondale, calls the immigration department
regularly for updates. Last August, he was told it would take 15 months
for his file to be assessed.
When he called again in early January, the department said the wait time now stands at 48 months.
“I feel betrayed. They can’t put my life on hold like this,” said the
Toronto father of two. “We are not asking to jump the queue, nor are we
asking to be granted citizenship without scrutiny. What we are asking
for is a reasonable time frame for the processing of our citizenship
applications.”
Each year, 160,000 people receive Canadian citizenship. But the
refusal rate has crept up over the past five years, from 1.4 per cent to
3.5 per cent. Besides passing the citizenship test, applicants must
have basic command of English or French, and no criminal record.
Residents of a quiet east-Toronto neighbourhood are
stunned to learn that terrorist Omar Khadr may be moving into their
picturesque, tree-lined street when he returns to Canada.
TOM GODFREY | QMI AGENCY on May 11th, 2012
my response.....
With all due respect to Miss Golzani, obtaining Canadian citizenship is a
privilege and not a right! Her right to citizenship rests with Iran but if
she chooses to make Canada her home, wouldn't she be best advised to
follow the surprisingly simple process for becoming a Canadian citizen,
assuming that facts and circumstances are on her side and she doesn't
fail to meet
minimum requirements?
Momin Khawaja leaves the Ottawa courthouse under
RCMP protection on May 3, 2004. The constitutionality of Canada's
anti-terror law comes under the microscope Friday when the Supreme Court
of Canada delivers a series of major rulings on the legal definition of
terrorism.
photo Tom Hanson, the Canadian Press
Some taxpayers, like Marilyn say, "We finally have a government in place
that is prepared to tackle the Liberal's immigration mess and to better
protect Canadians from immigration fraud. Canada has been subject to
extensive abuse by 'Canadians of convenience' and is deemed to be the
sucker of the world for having such lax immigration policies. This must
stop.
Said Namouh is an unrepentant terrorist. From his apartment in Quebec,
he spread al-Qaeda propaganda over the Internet and posted anonymous
messages threatening the West with “slaughter” and urging violence until
“religion will be for Allah alone." by Stewart Bell, National Post
Veeh says, "Wait times up to 10 years are NOT
uncommon. There are nations where newcomers are NEVER permitted to apply
for citizenship. Canada has seen its hospitality abused in the past by
those who use this nation as a 'safe haven' after 'freedom-fighting for
their homelands'. This is about national security. Let's do it right.
Reduce complaints by reducing immigration numbers? Prefer that, would
you?"
Fawzi Ayub is a 45-year-old member of Hezbollah who uses the alias
Frank Boschi and “should be considered armed and dangerous,” according
to his entry on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list.He is also a Canadian. by Stewart Bell, National Post
With so many horror stories about undesirables gaining entry in the not-to-distant past, is it not our right as taxpayers to expect reasonable security at our borders?
Today I bring you a subject dear to the hearts of many Canadians...our justice system. Or more commonly known as our injustice system for it's many lapses. Court foibles, ostensibly created by lack of accountability have certainly made standing around the water cooler more interesting! This latest chapter is entitled 'let us defend innocent men' by Terrence Corcoran, published in the Globe and Mail. Once again, it is presented verbatim, below is my response and below that, room for your comment, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
Let us now defend innocent men: Frank Dunn, Vic De Zen, Andrew
Rankin, John Felderhof — all convincingly acquitted of corporate crime.
They need defending against the persistent and slanderous media-fed
belief that, in cases like these, acquittal does not end the presumption
of guilt. It’s the Canadian system — of regulators, enforcement,
police, government and even the judiciary — that failed to find them
guilty of the wrongdoing they actually must have committed.
This must stop, this Canadian media ritual. Whenever some corporate
accused is found not guilty, the hunt is on for an explanation of what
is portrayed as a miscarriage of justice. And so, after an Ontario
Superior Court Judge this week acquitted Frank Dunn and two other former
Nortel executives of fraud, the insinuations began. A Globe and Mail
reporter trotted out the familiar complaint: “Canada’s reputation
remains intact as a place where convictions of white collar crime cases
are rare.”
Such sentences contain the built-in assumption that a “white collar
crime” has occurred, and implies that the Canadian system has failed
because there was no conviction, which means the guilty were not found
guilty. A Reuters news story followed the same logic, quoting a
Washington lawyer making the same charge. “What the verdict here
[Nortel] tells people is the difficulty of trying to prove these kind of
cases. Financial fraud cases are notoriously difficult to prove.”
In other words, a crime or fraud is assumed to have occurred, but the
regulators, prosecutors and others in Canada — including the courts —
are just not capable of marshalling the evidence and reaching the
conclusion that we all know to be true. Others said the Nortel
acquittals proved, again, that the RCMP’s Integrated Market Enforcement
Teams (IMETs) was inadequately trained or staffed, or lacked the legal
and financial sophistication necessary. If only Canadian authorities
were more competent, committed, experienced, dedicated, and aggressive —
or perhaps less steeped in the ways of the corporate establishment —
then Canada’s corporate criminals would be behind bars rather than free
men.
Other legendary cases in this parade of innocent men include Vic De
Zen, Andrew Rankin and John Felderhof. Let us all, as Canadians,
recognize once and for all that these men, along with Mr. Dunn, have
been found not guilty and have been acquitted of the allegations against
them. Vic
De Zen: The former founder and CEO of Royal Group Technologies, who was
dragged through an outrageous mud field of innuendo — ranging from drug
dealing suspicions, hints of money laundering and fraud — before he was
charged. After a monster trial, the case crashed in 2010.
Instead of assuming that Mr. De Zen is another Canadian the system
failed to nail as criminal, let us note the unequivocal words of Ontario
Justice Richard Blouin: “I am unable to conclude the defendants
committed any dishonest acts, were deceitful, or employed any other
fraudulent means to deprive, or put at risk of deprivation, the
company.” He continued: “I find in this case the evidence to be
overwhelming that there was no attempt to conceal anything.”
The Crown has appealed the De Zen acquittal, but that is not reason
for observers and the media to continue to trot out Royal Group as an
example of unpunished illegal behaviour. The judge found no case.
Andrew Rankin: Once portrayed as the centre of a vast Bay Street
insider trading ring, Mr. Rankin was acquitted in 2006 after a court
review. The vast insider ring proved to be nothing of the sort. Mr.
Rankin was not part of whatever was going on, which mostly appears to
have been the work of another man whose evidence was used against Mr.
Rankin. The review court even went so far as to say that Mr. Rankin had
been the victim of a “miscarriage of justice.”
John Felderhof: Mr. Felderhof is the global symbol of Canada’s
alleged inability to convict the guilty. He became the central
prosecutorial target in the wake of the Bre-X gold mine scandal of 1996,
but after a trial that achieved notoriety for its length and
hard-fought legal battles, Mr. Felderhof was acquitted.
No Canadian corporate crime story can be written without citing the
Felderhof/Bre-X case as a template for Canada’s inability to come up
with big corporate crime convictions, as if Canada were filled with
corporate malefactors who escape punishment. It is long past time to
purge Bre-X from the Canadian corporate psyche.
The Nortel executives, including Mr. Dunn, are likely to continue to
be portrayed, in the indirect and slanderous way that is now typical, as
men who escaped just desserts. If only Canada had tough corporate
crime-fighting regime like the United States, where settlements and
convictions seem more numerous.
Certainly settlements are common in the United States, but they do
not mean that crime is more effectively punished or even exists. Nortel,
after all, settled a U.S. class action suit and paid out $2.4-billion
on the grounds that Mr. Dunn as CEO and other executives had cooked the
books. Many would assume that Mr. Dunn was therefore guilty.
But as we now know, the Nortel settlement was a function of the now
routine business of corporate capitulation in the face of regulatory
attack or class action activism. Nortel’s settlement implied the guilt
of a man who a court this week ruled, firmly and with conviction, was
not guilty.
It is time to stop the endless prosecution and implied conviction of innocent men.
my response.....
Is it possible that Terrence has been drinking 'kool-aid' served by the accused or is he just playing devil's advocate, attempting to elicit the opposite reaction?? If any accusation made about lack of accountability in our justice system could lead to an elected judiciary, this article by Terrence best summarizes the most popular examples of injustice and might just be at the top of the list. Like OJ, when you lose in a civil trial, how many really care about the jury pool in the criminal trial. When Nortel was forced to pay out $2.4-billion because Mr. Dunn as CEO and other executives had cooked the
books, is what came after mere prologue?
But for shock and surprise, the Felderhof acquittal may still reigns supreme as having the greatest chilling effect on business investment regulation in Canada, specifically Canadian Mining stock investment. I mean, wasn't Felderhof the gold-mining geologist of record for Bre-X, a company found to be involved in a 'salting' operation? His escape and refusal to return from the Cayman Islands was not unlike OJ's much publicized travels down a Los Angeles freeway before his arrest and like OJ's defense team who jumped on any excuse to deflect attention away from the star of the show, Felderhof's acquittal was a damning indictment on the prosecution team who where accused of being woefully inept by the conclusion of the trial.
Contemplating the next bubble?
So, is it time to stop the endless prosecution and implied conviction of 'innocent men' as Terrence suggests? Or, no matter what, once your reputation is lost in the court of public opinion, it can be very difficult, if not impossible to get it back! While unlike OJ, who today languishes in a Nevada jail, is Felderhof just a free man in name only as one who has turned into the poster boy for everything that is wrong with our justice system and one who may not be 'purged from the Canadian corporate psyche' any time soon?
This afternoon, I bring you verbatim, an interesting update on the Teachers dispute with the government, by Laura Kane and Kristin Rushowyof the the Toronto Star, titled 'Buzz Hargrove calls on teachers to resume extracurriculars. Below is my response and below that, room for your comment, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
As Toronto elementary and secondary teachers gear up for a Tuesday
rally — one scheduled for after school, now that daytime protests have
been deemed illegal — their unions are facing increasing calls to bring
back extracurricular activities or risk losing public support. And it’s not just students and parents asking for the return of
sports and clubs in Ontario schools — one of the province’s best-known
labour leaders also says now is the time.
“It’s very difficult to accomplish anything if you don’t have public
support, and I’m concerned that they’re losing it because of the
withdrawal of extracurricular activities,” said Buzz Hargrove, former
president of the Canadian Auto Workers Union. While he believes it is Dalton McGuinty who deserves the “lion’s
share” of the blame for the current strife, by forcing contracts on
teachers through Bill 115, the loss of support for both teachers and the
Liberal government could lead to a Tory premier.
“It’s kind of a pox on all your houses by the general public, and
unfortunately that could very well lead in the election to Tim Hudak and
the Tories, who are going to be much tougher with teachers and unions.” He said the unions should focus now on the Liberal leadership contest and upcoming election. “I’d also try to convince the new premier to come back to the table
and see if there’s a way to resolve some of the issues the teachers are
so offended by,” he said.
Hammond, who was not available for an interview, tweeted Monday: “We
hope to meet with the next Premier & have a full and frank
discussion about a number of issues.” That sentiment was echoed by Michael Barrett, president of the
Ontario Public School Boards’ Association, who said, “I see no movement
at all until that point, after the 25th, the Liberal leadership
convention.”
One side “has to blink,” he added. “But I think that’s a tough one,
because teachers don’t have much left in their arsenal” after a court
ruled early last Friday that the elementary teachers’ one-day protest
was actually an illegal strike, and shut it down. “But public opinion is shifting,” noted Barrett, a trustee with the
Durham District School Board. “I’m starting to see a lot of anger.
There’s still a lot of support, but I’m seeing more anger with regards
to the situation.”
Toronto District School Board Trustee Howard Goodman, in his
newsletter to parents, said he can’t understand the teacher unions’
tactics. “Personally, their position baffles me, as I see it reducing support
for the valid complaints that the unions (and boards) have raised about
Bill 115.” Advocacy and research group People for Education’s forum on this
topic said webviews are up as more and more parents talk about the
issue.
Annie Kidder said parents are now talking about “what teachers would
have to do in order to get parents’ support back,” with the suggestion
that if extracurriculars resume, parents would be willing to organize a
demonstration in support of teachers and against Bill 115. “I think, as this goes on, it becomes harder for parents to stay
completely on-side,” he added. “Even for the ones who were, after a
while you’re not so much remembering a wrong that’s been done in some
people’s minds, but you’re seeing the continued day-to-day impact in
your kids’ school.”
While Hargrove does not believe that the leadership of the Elementary
Teachers’ Federation of Ontario is too militant — he says they are
reflecting the mood of teachers — he does think most teachers would
support the return of extracurricular activities. He added that ETFO and its president Sam Hammond should have remained at the bargaining table longer before Bill 115 was passed.
“I haven’t talked to Sam Hammond, but the government claims they were
only at the bargaining table for an hour ... I think if I’d been
heading up the organization we would have tried to make the best of a
bad situation by staying at the bargaining table,” he said.
High School Kids.
my response.....
While these Labour folks are incensed by what is happening in Ontario and have lead the charge to cut out
extracurricular activities in protest by warning it won't be
"business as usual," does this action only perpetuate the tawdry behaviour of those who should know better and continues to victimize kids?
This you tube provides a little more detail....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJ4vdg_8jFo
Using "unprecedented, autocratic"
legislation to dictate contracts, then promising to repeal the
anti-democratic law is a "disgraceful misuse of government power,"
Sam Hammond, president of the Elementary Teachers' Federation of
Ontario has gone on record as saying "Unprecedented, autocratic
legislation to dictate contracts, then promising to repeal the
anti-democratic law is a disgraceful misuse of government power and every working person in this province should be alarmed by the steps taken by this minister of education today."
More High School Kids.
So, in his own words, we have a Union leader lamenting the loss of the good old days of government malfeasance and in a you tube video, we have a government doing an abrupt about face. Thankfully, there is a movement afoot to provide kids with extracurricular activities provided by parents. Is this to provide kids with what they need without teacher involvement? Do we even need teachers involved in extracurricular activities for our kids? Do we even want teachers involved in extracurricular activities for our kids? Is this just a temporary backlash or will this turn into a popular revolt? Besides, what kind of lessen have our kids been taught through this experiment?
Even More High School Kids.
A free online network www.Schooltree.org says they have provided over 5000 Ontario schools with live community web pages
where parents can connect with local school administrators and each
other safely, easily and privately. According to their website, "Not every parent can take a day off work and many find it hard to
stay on top of news developments," says Schooltree.org Director Jono
Landon. "They're scrambling to make arrangements that aren't always the
most reliable." Schooltree.org allows parents a safe, private forum to share
updates and work together to save programs under threat from the
continued teachers' ban on voluntary activities. "People are trying to
make up for their kids' lost sports and extracurriculars to whatever
degree they are able," explains Landon, who speaks with parents across
Ontario. "They're stepping up to support each other and school programs
for the sake of the kids."
Elementary School Kids.
As Buzz suggests, if I were a Union leader, I would also be concerned that the teachers are losing public
support because of their
withdrawal from providing extracurricular activities, 'which could very well lead to an election win for Tim Hudak and
the Tories, who are going to be much tougher with teachers and unions'!
Will the teachers listen to Buzz or is it already too late? What do you think?
More Elementary School Kids.
nb...this is not an endorsement for Schooltree.org and parents should do their own due diligence.
