Category: New

Leadership in Lethargy.

by Peter Lowry

The wise writer in these days is wary of certain subjects. They are subjects that offer no wins. It is when, no matter what you say, somebody is convinced you are wrong. Good examples of this are about children and gender selection and our schools. I jump into the fray reluctantly only because that Looney-Tunes premier of Alberta has once again embarrassed her province. She has assured the horse’s asses who are the extreme right-wing members of her United Conservative Party (UCP) who want ignorance to prevail about children and gender in Alberta schools.  

It seems also to be appropriate to respond to the assertion that parent’s rights are being pushed aside by us on “the dangerous of the left which caters to the loud minority in this province and country” as claimed by one delegate. There are no more dangerous topics than parental rights and gender selection. And that topic topped the list of resolutions past by the UCP gathering.

Little kids like to play in mud and there is no muddier topic. There is also the point that few are the little girls who have not wished at one time or another that they were born a boy. And visa-versa for little boys. And there are very, very few times in which that thinking becomes serious.

What the teacher has to consider is that some youngsters also like to act out. They will sometimes make outrageous claims that are not in their best interest. There, we parents have to rely on the teacher’s judgement as to whether or not the situation needs or could be helped by the involvement of the parents.

Children go to school to learn more than their ABCs. They are learning about themselves and their classmates. They are learning about their teachers. And they do tend to brag. It reminds me of the time our daughter’s grade one or two teacher smiled and casually told the wife that our daughter had told the class that her mother goes to downtown hotels with lots of men. The wife looked at her and said, “Well, that’s true.” She paused for effect. And then added: “I sing with a 22-piece orchestra.”

But the sad note in all of this is that Danielle Smith and the ‘Take Back Alberta’ crazies passed extremist resolutions at the UCP meeting that should embarrass any thinking Albertan. Alberta does not deserve the bad press this gets across Canada.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

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Poilievre’s Poison Persists.

by Peter Lowry

Another two years of conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s poisonous attitude in the House of Commons and there could be a lynching rather than an election. The only thing we do not know is who would bear the brunt of all the vehemence and who would need to be ferried across the Styx. Canadians would be fooling themselves to consider any of the party leaders worthy of election as prime minister. But we are faced with stark decisions and we need to be sure just what we want.

A big part of the problem is prime minister Justin Trudeau. His weaknesses as a leader and failings in office are there for all to see. The one thing you can say for him is that his intentions are honourable. He has embarrassed us. He is only human. He tried hard at leading us through the pandemic and deserves a few ‘attaboys’ for his news conferences in front of Rideau Cottage. He lacked the maturity in international relations to do a very effective job in that area.

There are many differences with Trudeau’s main opponent, conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. This is an interesting trade-off. Pierre Poilievre came east from Calgary to find an electoral district where his French name was not a problem. He found it on the outskirts of Ottawa. The closest Poilievre has ever come in life to a real job is being a member of parliament.

But as an MP, Poilievre is bringing the House of Commons into disrepute. He encourages the hurling of insults and slurs across the Commons. He makes it difficult for the liberals and other parties to maintain a sense of decorum.

Instead of offering the House the responsible criticism of an opposition party, Poilievre’s people devote their time to insults and lies about government programs. While they might call for parliament to “axe the tax,” they have no alternative proposal for Canadians to slow global warming, by modifying Canada’s high level of greenhouse gas emissions.

The problem Canadians are facing is that within the next two years, we will have a federal election. None of the smaller parties in the House are offering any leadership possibilities either. It leaves us with the choice of the limited qualities of Justin Trudeau and the meanness of Pierre Poilievre.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

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Warnings on Wars.

by Peter Lowry

We need to smarten up. Foreign wars do not belong on Canadian streets. Thankfully those Canadians of Russian heritage, as a group, are not fond of Russian President Vladimir Putin. They don’t like his war on the Ukraine. And they undoubtedly realize how they are outnumbered in Canada by the Canadians of Ukrainian heritage. It leaves our government free to aid Ukraine in its valiant effort to ward off Putin’s army.

But we are not as lucky with the Middle East. With the increased immigration of followers of Islam, today, they outnumber Jewish Canadians by about three to one. Luckily the Jewish population is more integrated with those of European origin and they have been known to fight well over their weight class. While a few of the foolish among us might act on their sick antisemitism, I would strongly advise against it.

And the those who want to parade in support of the Palestinians of Gaza would be far wiser to make a donation to the Red Crescent. While not to disparage the efforts of the United Nations in Gaza, the Red Crescent are on the ground and are trying to do the humanitarian job. (I am sure that the Red Cross in Canada is a reliable conduit for donations to the Red Crescent.)

Those who are proud of their parading around Nathan Phillips Square or in front of the American consulate on University Avenue in Toronto in support of Hamas don’t realize the problems they are creating for their fellow emigres. The thing is that the only times you want to gather in large numbers in Nathan Phillips Square are for entertainments, winning sports teams and when the Toronto Maple Leaf team is on the ice rink.

One of the main concerns is for those Middle East immigrants who continue to wear the traditional garments of the desert. As an idiosyncrasy, a fashion statement or a financial necessity, this traditional garb is a label that is not in fashion in Canada at this time.

It might attract some unwanted attention when tempers are inflamed about the tactics of terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah. All who come to Canada for sanctuary, should feel safe. We live together in peace.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]

Poilievre of the People’s Party.

by Peter Lowry

It is becoming clear that conservative leader Pierre Poilievre wants to win the next federal election simply because he is not Justin Trudeau. All he thinks he has to do is continue to lie about Trudeau, misrepresent government policies and appeal to the greed and baser instincts of his followers. He actually believes the pollsters who are telling him that his plan is working.

The pollsters are telling the conservative leader that four out of ten Canadians think they will vote for him. The pollsters forget to tell him that the public mood could change if the vote is two years away. Much could happen in the next two years.

You get the idea watching Poilievre in action that this man thinks very little of Canadians. He really needs to spend more time dealing with what they want than what he wants. Especially the ones who vote.

Back when I was working regularly on election campaigns, we would do some of our own polling in the riding to to see how things were going. One of the things included in these polls were a few questions that we could read as a barometer of the interest level in this or that candidate and whether the person being interviewed was likely to vote. When less than six in ten voters are making an effort to get to the polls, these questions become more important.

One of the conclusions we came to about these answers was the cockier the candidate about winning, the higher the drop-off factor. There was the occasional upset.

And with Poilievre demanding an election right away to be on the carbon tax, you wonder how foolish he could be. His “Axe the Tax” campaign says a great deal about Mr. Poilievre. It says he does not give a damn about the environment. He fits in so well with his vaccination deniers, his crude and uncaring truckers who visited Ottawa last year and blocked border crossings to the United States, hurting our economy.

More Canadians are realizing all the time that Poilievre is not even a conservative. He acts and talks like a libertarian. He wants little or no government, he wants no government regulations, he wants no protection from inflation, nor does he care about global warming. and he does not care about the consequences. If he was honest, he would be part of Maxime Bernier’s People’s Party of Canada.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]

Vanishing Volunteers.

by Peter Lowry

A friend of mine was fired the other day. And there is no severance pay for a volunteer. He was a volunteer at Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) here in Barrie, Ontario. He had been an enthusiastic volunteer before the pandemic, and had been delighted to be welcomed back. What he did not know was how the hospital had changed. It was his usual enthusiasm that got him fired.

I had seen the changes at the hospital as a patient and knew that few were welcoming the changes. Our skinflint conservative government had destroyed what was once a well-run hospital. What used to be good hospital food has become awful. The wait times in emergency are starting to be measured in 12-hour increments. The most important job in the hospital seems to be the job of getting the patients out of there. And the management changes appear to be a disaster.

There is no doubt that the management of a hospital is a special skill. And the management of volunteers is a more complex skill. Add to that the anger and frustrations being left by the pandemic and the hospital has serious problems.

Where the hospital used to have the luxury of a waiting list for replacing any of its 750 volunteers, they are having to work with about 250 active volunteers at this time. And from what I hear about the management of this very valuable resource, the numbers will continue to be heading down.

One thing, for sure, if the hospital insists on a zero-tolerance policy, those numbers will get worse, not better.

Managing volunteers requires a pro-active management. It requires an open-door policy. It means gathering regularly with your volunteers, appreciation of them and a comradery. And if you are going to have volunteers between 60 and 90 years old, you better have managers for them who can talk to them.

These people are a marvelous resource beyond reception, wheeling patients to departments and clinics and ambassadors for the hospital. They speak other languages, can visit patients who need visitors and can assist staff in so many ways. You get to know their capabilities by working pro-actively with them.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]

The Gall of the Geopolitics.

by Peter Lowry

It is becoming clear after all these years of studying our politics, that Canadians are dealing with far more political factions and causes than are needed to govern this country. Instead of concentrating on the outward view of foreign relations, trade and peace, Canada’s federal government is constantly having to deal with low-balls from pesky provinces. And, frankly, the feds are not handling them well.

But who in federal politics really wants to deal with a wanton child like Quebec? Squabbles with a country-sized Ontario. And the schizophrenia of greedy Alberta. Add to that the angst of the big cities trying to go to the top dogs instead of the go-betweens. There is no discipline here—nor traffic cops to direct the rat race.

Canadians used to have the reputation, at least in the United States, of being polite and pleasant people. Boy, is that ever a lot of BS to-day.

Our parliament is supposed to be a forum of polite discourse on the appropriate legal structure to serve the needs of Canadians. We just appointed a new Speaker who thought up a few suggestions on how we could improve the qualities of that discourse. What he heard back was not polite enough to be called a discourse.

In a bilingual country, we have one province that thinks they can keep our majority language outside their pristine, pure, French-language-only province. Instead of putting the needs of the Quebec population first, their politicians do their best to maintain their seigneurial rights that dictated how the province of New France was to be run for its first 200 years.

We all seem to get the feeling that our federal government desperately needs some relief from whiny, dissatisfied and over-reaching provinces that have this country by the gonads. As much as I liked Justin Trudeau’s father, he left us with a constitution that now nobody knows how to re-open. You couldn’t if you really wanted to.

Maybe, sometime in the distant future, while the world is still allowing us to live off its bounty, more intelligent Canadians will have a series of referendums to achieve a better union. Let’s just hope that it will not be too late.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]

Finding Ford’s Fault.

by Peter Lowry

Ontario premier Ford’s trials are about to be taken over by the Mounties. We have been racking our brains trying to think of a Canadian senior politician who has gone to jail before. It might be Ford’s legacy. Parents could admonish their children with the threat of being good or going to jail like premier Ford. It could also be a race to see if he gets incarcerated before American Donald Trump.

Oh well, Ford never was much of a politician. He was hardly up there with William Lyon Mackenzie who actually did get thrown into jail by the Americans for violating their neutrality over Canadian rebellions.

But then Mackenzie was a Reformer and he made his bones by taking on the Family Compact that ran Upper Canada in his day.

Doug Ford is running Ontario today for a new kind of Family Compact and he is doing it his way. It might not be a very democratic approach to politics but you have to remember he got all his political training at Toronto city hall from his late brother, crack-cocaine smoking mayor Rob Ford. It is where the younger brother Doug was introduced to all those developers and their representatives who hung out at city hall.

I imagine that some of the premier’s lawyer friends have their juniors scouring the law books trying to figure out with what the premier might be charged. Whomever was the master-mind trying to give those developers a chance at $8 billion in profits out of the Ontario Greenbelt had to be a high-flyer. Frankly, if it was Doug Ford, it would also be vividly obvious that he really did not know what he was doing. It gives new meaning to the James Cagney, 1959 movie: Never Steal Anything Small.

It is easier to feel sorry for the political underlings who thought they were doing something important for their bosses. Not that they don’t deserve the disapproval of their peers. It is likely that they did not know the scope of the effort until it was too late. The perpetrators could never expect that a scheme that egregious could be kept in house—so to speak.

It ties in well with Mr. Ford’s Highway 413. That is also designed to put an un-needed, multi-million-dollar highway in place, from which developers can benefit.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]

Alienating Alberta?

by Peter Lowry

It is highly unlikely that many people in eastern Canada would worry about alienating Alberta. Over the years, there might have been some envy of the scenic beauty of the province and the crude oil royalties for the provincial government of the day to spend.

But the truth is that the Alberta government is a minor league player in the hockey game of life in Canada. The province might have two NHL teams but is hardly in a position to dictate to the federal government how Medicare should work, what eastern consumers should tell the “Feds” about the need for electricity and to create its own pension plan with money from the Canada Pension Plan.

And please be assured that for the provincial government to be headed by an aggressive, pugnacious and out-to-lunch person such as Danielle Smith, is not doing much for the good reputation Alberta had in eastern Canada. The province had long been forgiven for the silly “freeze in the dark” business and we all had a good laugh.

Mind you I always thought the best laugh in Alberta was the Fraser Institute. It is the place where thinking tanked in the west. It is a think tank that hires academics to write papers for them to support their libertarian point of view. Mind you, the University of Calgary seems to me to be the perfect breeding place for libertarians.

There are arguments about the amount to which Alberta would be entitled if it bailed out of CPP. This is a complex formula because of the somewhat lower age profile of Albertans to the rest of English-speaking Canada. Yes, technically, there is more being put into the fund by these younger Albertans, but later in life, they will draw more and that is when it all balances out.

Even if we could find a formula for divvying up the CPP, Albertans would still get the dirty end of the stick because of the higher cost for the management of a smaller fund. The CPP is highly rated because it is a well-managed fund, producing excellent results. Both the Canada and Alberta funds would suffer because of the costs of splitting the Alberta fund and establishing separate managements. If you want losses in the millions, that is a good way to achieve them. Alberta could also make lots of lawyers rich when the province and feds go to court to sort out who pays for what.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]

Trudeau Turns Tactical.

by Peter Lowry

It caught us by surprise last week when Justin Trudeau caved in on the carbon pricing on heating oil. It was good to see him get off his high horse for once.

What amused me about the announcement was the Toronto Star ran the story on the front page on top of a special front-page advertisement for Toronto’s Mount Pleasant Group—the management service of the major cemeteries in the city. The copy on the ad said: “Burn the candles. Use the good china. The special occasion is always today!”

I could not think of a more appropriate positioning for Trudeau’s conciliatory offer—or depending how you feel about it, his death-bed repentance.

But what we should hope is that this could this just possibly be the beginnings of an offensive against that pathetic Pierre Poilievre and his lies? PP has been getting away with far too much for too long.

But when the liberals need the entire Atlantic provinces to support them in the next election, the increase in taxes on heating oil was cancelled—until after the election has to be called. The four provinces in the east are needed to offset the solid conservative attitude of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

What the three years mean is that there is obviously a support payment coming down the pike to encourage people to switch to heat pumps for home heating instead of oil. Heat pumps can save a lot of energy and have the advantage that they also mean easy home air conditioning in the summer.    

What we should also remember is that the carbon tax is a very important tool to control greenhouse gases. If we are going to save this planet for future generations, we have to drastically reduce the pollution. Wildfires, Tornadoes, Hurricanes and floods are just being sampled today. Mother Nature is just giving us a small taste of what is to come.

And the serious storm that came up so fast, in Acapulco, Mexico the other day was just one more of Mother Nature’s surprises. You would think that events like that would help convince even a jerk like Pierre Poilievre that global warming is serious.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]

Calandra’s Cabinet.

by Peter Lowry

It is obvious that Ontario MPP Paul Calandra is living in the wrong century. He might have been more successful back in the late 19th Century. It was then, that people would collect curios and display them in their cabinet. Cabinets were the museums of those days. And the more surprises in the cabinet, the more you could charge for the public to see them.

The trick in many of the cabinets of that time where the efforts required to tell whether the display was of something real or something made up to confound the public and the experts. And there are few today equal in skill of Paul Calandra in deceiving the gullible among us.

Paul proved to be that man who was in the right place at the right time. Back when he was parliamentary secretary to the prime minister of Canada, in the Harper government, Paul proved his prowess. He towered over those weaklings who came before him. He proved he knew the difference between right and wrong and he never gave parliament the right answer. If the subject of the day was pigs, Paul would talk about cows. He once broke down and cried in the House of Commons because he claimed his conscience bothered him, but I don’t think he ever did come to the subject of the day’s question.

Premier Doug Ford needed a whipping boy. He was being attacked from the left, right and centre for his obvious scam with the Greenbelt. The media were murdering him. It was time to bring up the pinch hitter. Calandra had been marking time in the Ford cabinet as government house leader, minister of long-term care and minister of legislative affairs. I thought he was enjoying his retirement.

But, oh boy, was I wrong? It was as though the legislature had caught the wild wind. Paul Calandra was ready and waiting to take over as minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs—and he only had to give up long-term care. And he gets to sit up there with the big kids because he is also answering questions directed to the premier. It would take another blog to relay all the made-up stuff he says he is doing to clean up after the mess the previous minister left.

But it is all quite meaningless, just like the new minister.

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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry            

Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to:

[email protected]