Calgary Centre Member of Parliament Joan Crockatt has more CRAP for us than we suspected. It seems to prove that she is really in the running for the best CRAP of the Year Award. The former journalist has the advantage that she can disseminate CRAP on behalf of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources.
Fondly referred to as Crappies, CRAP Awards are named after the political practice of sending out news releases that are nothing more than Consolidated Reports on Approved Policies (CRAP). CRAP is the result of political party leaders not having the time to approve all the releases and speeches made by the members of their caucus and as long as the CRAP follows the guidelines of previously approved policies, they do not need approval. MPs are graded by the Leader’s office as to how well they stay within the approved guidelines.
The Best CRAP of the Year Award is saved for the politician sending out the best news release or making the most original speech based on a good CRAP.
Crockatt’s latest CRAP from the Natural Resources Committee tells us that Canada’s oil and gas industry has extended our average life spans. Not only that but an expert witness, University of Toronto geography professor Pierre Desrochers, assured the Commons Committee that every indicator of human well-being improved because we use carbon fuels. His theory is that we should share the benefits of our oil and gas with the rest of the world—“especially developing economies.”
Since there is no question but the Industrial Revolution of the mid 1700s benefitted from the ready availability of coal to power the invention of steam engines, you have to admit that the coal had benefit. It also created lots of pollution. Oil and gas came into common use later in the 1800s. That also created pollution but it also allowed science to move forward as more human labour was taken over by machines.
But since the Harper Conservatives are not interested in problems created by pollution or in solutions offered by science, they would much rather export oil and gas to developing nations that do not care about science or pollution either.
It is interesting to note that Crockatt tells us of the advice of one bureaucrat to the parliamentary committee was that Canada has an economic opportunity (with Alberta’s tar sands) but needs to act quickly. He might be right.
Ms. Crockatt’s CRAP is certainly earning her attention. She will probably continue to bury us in CRAP until the federal election next year.
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Copyright 2014 © Peter Lowry
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