(=_=)
2015-01-11 23:33:19 UTC
Now our Prime Minister-in-a-closet is going to pretend that the acts in Paris
are somehow a threat against HIM personally.
"Tight security" for our scaredy-cat PM in a single room at Kingston's City
Hall? That security plus the number of media probably left room for just
enough attendees to call a quorum for the meeting.
THIS is just another example of him pandering to the fears and hatreds of his
rightwing supporters. . . . And costing us, the taxpayers, still more for his
phony antics.
__________________________________________
Stephen Harper paid tribute to the country's first prime minister Sunday,
marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of Sir John A. Macdonald by saying
the Scots-born politician "forged Canada out of sheer will."
"Never forget, there was nothing certain or inevitable about what Macdonald and
his fellow fathers of Confederation accomplished. It was in fact remarkable,"
Harper told a room full of dignitaries — including two former prime ministers —
under tight security at the historic city hall in Kingston, Ont.
"Without Sir. John A. Macdonald, Canada as we know it — the best country in
the world — simply would not exist," Harper said to applause.
Macdonald's political career as a Kingston alderman began the year the
cornerstone of Kingston City Hall was laid, 1843, and after his death the first
prime minister of Canada lay in state in the same room where Harper delivered
his remarks.
Harper called Macdonald "a shining example of modesty, hope and success," that
mirrors the country itself.
{my comment: Sir John A was also a notorious gambler, heavy drinker, a
candidate who took bribes, and a man who married his first cousin.)
The Royal Canadian Mint showed off the template of a new Macdonald $2 toonie,
and a refurbished portrait of Sir John A. was unveiled.
It was a decidedly non-partisan event — with former Liberal prime minister John
Turner and Progressive Conservative Kim Campbell in attendance — but Harper's
comments dovetailed with his Conservative party election message this year that
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is unready to govern despite his lineage and
high-profile name.
"Nation building is never complete," said Harper, noting the "challenges and
opportunities" are even greater for the country as it approaches its 150th
birthday.
"So as we proudly participate in the celebrations of 2017, let us always
remember that so much of it was made possible by an ordinary man of whom little
was expected but who, given the opportunity, did extraordinary things," said
the prime minister.
Transport Minister Lisa Raitt, left, and Canada Post CEO Deepak Chopra unveil a
stamp of Sir John A. Macdonald during a ceremony at Kingston city hall to mark
the bicentennial of the birth of Canada's first prime minister Sunday. (Fred
Chartrand/Canadian Press)
"That, in my mind, is really what this country is all about, like none other in
the world: A country where what you've done and where you're going always
matter more than where you're from or who you know."
Ted Hsu, the local Liberal MP who won't seek re-election this year, saw nothing
partisan in Harper's remarks and said it was a fitting tribute.
"One of the things that made Canada possible was (Liberal) George Brown
crossing the floor, and the (founding) party was known as the
Liberal-Conservatives," Hsu said in an interview.
"Different parties getting together, different religions getting together,
different languages getting together, people living in different geographic
regions of Canada getting together — I think that's the legacy of Sir John A.,
so it's very appropriate that it not be partisan."
Anniversary spurs re-evaluation
The bicentenary of Macdonald's birth has spurred a fresh round of historical
review and research, including some unflattering depictions of Macdonald's
policies and attitudes toward Canada's First Nations. He helped implement and
defended the residential schools system in the 1880s, a blight on the country
whose impacts remain felt to this day.
Harper did not raise the schools issue in his speech but did allude to
Macdonald's "faults and failures" — specifically Sir John A.'s notorious
battles with the bottle.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said so much good came from Sir John A.
Macdonald, calling him an ordinary man of whom little was expected. (Fred
Chartrand/Canadian Press)
"Whatever (the cause), Macdonald was acutely aware of his own humanity and, as
a consequence, very forgiving of it in others."
Two native elders blessed the event before the prime minister's speech. A
handful of enterprising protesters — one leading a donkey, another a sheep —
paraded on the streets outside where local and national police made a show of
providing very evident security.
Campbell, Canada's only female prime minister who served for just over four
months as a Progressive Conservative in 1993, said in an interview that
Macdonald should be viewed as a man of his times who shared the prevailing
opinions of the day toward natives.
"We've built a society with the rule of law and with respect and protection for
people that enables us to be resilient. And it started with Sir John A.
Macdonald at Confederation," said Campbell.
"The fact of the matter is he really did have a vision and he followed it up.
The building of the railway, the creation of the Northwest Mounted Police so
that there would be law and order on our side of the border in the West. On the
American side it was a no-man's land and the rule of the gun."
Harper did not make himself available to the large media contingent on hand for
the event and did not take questions from reporters afterwards.
______________________________________________
Likely Harper slipped out without talking to the media was because he
anticipated some embarrassing questions. Like: 'If you say you're so proud of
Sir John A's role in uniting Canada, why are you working so hard to now divide
it' ?
are somehow a threat against HIM personally.
"Tight security" for our scaredy-cat PM in a single room at Kingston's City
Hall? That security plus the number of media probably left room for just
enough attendees to call a quorum for the meeting.
THIS is just another example of him pandering to the fears and hatreds of his
rightwing supporters. . . . And costing us, the taxpayers, still more for his
phony antics.
__________________________________________
Stephen Harper paid tribute to the country's first prime minister Sunday,
marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of Sir John A. Macdonald by saying
the Scots-born politician "forged Canada out of sheer will."
"Never forget, there was nothing certain or inevitable about what Macdonald and
his fellow fathers of Confederation accomplished. It was in fact remarkable,"
Harper told a room full of dignitaries — including two former prime ministers —
under tight security at the historic city hall in Kingston, Ont.
"Without Sir. John A. Macdonald, Canada as we know it — the best country in
the world — simply would not exist," Harper said to applause.
Macdonald's political career as a Kingston alderman began the year the
cornerstone of Kingston City Hall was laid, 1843, and after his death the first
prime minister of Canada lay in state in the same room where Harper delivered
his remarks.
Harper called Macdonald "a shining example of modesty, hope and success," that
mirrors the country itself.
{my comment: Sir John A was also a notorious gambler, heavy drinker, a
candidate who took bribes, and a man who married his first cousin.)
The Royal Canadian Mint showed off the template of a new Macdonald $2 toonie,
and a refurbished portrait of Sir John A. was unveiled.
It was a decidedly non-partisan event — with former Liberal prime minister John
Turner and Progressive Conservative Kim Campbell in attendance — but Harper's
comments dovetailed with his Conservative party election message this year that
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is unready to govern despite his lineage and
high-profile name.
"Nation building is never complete," said Harper, noting the "challenges and
opportunities" are even greater for the country as it approaches its 150th
birthday.
"So as we proudly participate in the celebrations of 2017, let us always
remember that so much of it was made possible by an ordinary man of whom little
was expected but who, given the opportunity, did extraordinary things," said
the prime minister.
Transport Minister Lisa Raitt, left, and Canada Post CEO Deepak Chopra unveil a
stamp of Sir John A. Macdonald during a ceremony at Kingston city hall to mark
the bicentennial of the birth of Canada's first prime minister Sunday. (Fred
Chartrand/Canadian Press)
"That, in my mind, is really what this country is all about, like none other in
the world: A country where what you've done and where you're going always
matter more than where you're from or who you know."
Ted Hsu, the local Liberal MP who won't seek re-election this year, saw nothing
partisan in Harper's remarks and said it was a fitting tribute.
"One of the things that made Canada possible was (Liberal) George Brown
crossing the floor, and the (founding) party was known as the
Liberal-Conservatives," Hsu said in an interview.
"Different parties getting together, different religions getting together,
different languages getting together, people living in different geographic
regions of Canada getting together — I think that's the legacy of Sir John A.,
so it's very appropriate that it not be partisan."
Anniversary spurs re-evaluation
The bicentenary of Macdonald's birth has spurred a fresh round of historical
review and research, including some unflattering depictions of Macdonald's
policies and attitudes toward Canada's First Nations. He helped implement and
defended the residential schools system in the 1880s, a blight on the country
whose impacts remain felt to this day.
Harper did not raise the schools issue in his speech but did allude to
Macdonald's "faults and failures" — specifically Sir John A.'s notorious
battles with the bottle.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said so much good came from Sir John A.
Macdonald, calling him an ordinary man of whom little was expected. (Fred
Chartrand/Canadian Press)
"Whatever (the cause), Macdonald was acutely aware of his own humanity and, as
a consequence, very forgiving of it in others."
Two native elders blessed the event before the prime minister's speech. A
handful of enterprising protesters — one leading a donkey, another a sheep —
paraded on the streets outside where local and national police made a show of
providing very evident security.
Campbell, Canada's only female prime minister who served for just over four
months as a Progressive Conservative in 1993, said in an interview that
Macdonald should be viewed as a man of his times who shared the prevailing
opinions of the day toward natives.
"We've built a society with the rule of law and with respect and protection for
people that enables us to be resilient. And it started with Sir John A.
Macdonald at Confederation," said Campbell.
"The fact of the matter is he really did have a vision and he followed it up.
The building of the railway, the creation of the Northwest Mounted Police so
that there would be law and order on our side of the border in the West. On the
American side it was a no-man's land and the rule of the gun."
Harper did not make himself available to the large media contingent on hand for
the event and did not take questions from reporters afterwards.
______________________________________________
Likely Harper slipped out without talking to the media was because he
anticipated some embarrassing questions. Like: 'If you say you're so proud of
Sir John A's role in uniting Canada, why are you working so hard to now divide
it' ?