The Liberals are going to try another fund-raising idea.  In this case, private get-togethers on March 27. 

Michael Ignatieff will even attend.  By video conference.

Sounds like a great idea, except for one thing.  These get-togethers are hardly private, what with Liberal Party resources being applied to make them happen.  So as party functions, the money the host puts into the party for food or space (the Liberal Party suggests renting space might be a good idea for larger parties) ought to be counted as contributions to the party, subject to all the normal restrictions (can only come individuals, can't exceed $1100 in a year, must be reported in full, receipts must be issued, etc, etc).

Funny, but the Liberal Helpings website neglects to mention any of that.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 02:13 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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It would be funny if it weren't so sad.  Canwest, a private broadcaster owned and operated by the Asper family, is suffering in these economic times.  So is the CBC, our taxpayer-funded public broadcaster.

Ironically, one of the potential solutions for Canwest is not available because of rules designed to keep Americans off Canada's airwaves.  It's ironic because the CBC is looking to more American content to save its financial bacon.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 01:13 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Ontario premier Dalton McGuinty has dealt a body-blow to home sales in Ontario.  By promising to impose energy audits on home sales, Dalton McGuinty has made selling a home a far less attractive proposition. 

And if you are a retiree living in the home you bought forty years ago, you are in for a world of pain if circumstances force you to sell.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 09:45 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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One of the problems inherent is trying to improve an organization is that in setting goals and expectations, you are implicitly stating that these are where you are currently failing.

For the Liberal Party, everyone knows that the party needs to work on fundraising.  There's no point in trying to deny that, what with the data available at the Elections Canada site for all to see. 

But it's just the money, right?  I mean, the Liberal Party is still a great force for progressive ideals, right?

Douglas Ferguson, writing at the En Famille website, lists all the failings of the Liberal Party.

It covers essentially everything.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 09:11 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Sorry for the delay in getting to this, but real life just gets in the way.  These last few days have like that, and shockingly, it has had nothing to do with Barack Obama's visit.

I know, it seemed like nothing was happening but The Visitation.

Like most Canadians, though, Barack Obama's visit had absolutely no impact on me whatsoever.

But it has provided me with some grist for the blogging mill, and in particular, the comments made by Bob Rae.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 05:46 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I've been delving deeper into the fundraiser that was to be held in British Columbia, hosted by the white supremacist group Volksfront International.  As you might recall, I posted about this fundraiser, noting that it looked like it had not been properly licenced by provincial authorities.

In just under 24 hours, Volksfront International announced via a forum posting that the fundraising element of the Mid-Winter Gathering had been canceled.

So what was the fundraising for?  Apparently it was for Richard Kemp, and that makes for an interesting story.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 12:37 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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In my last post, I looked into a fundraiser planned in British Columbia by the white supremacist group, Volksfront International.

Now a new posting has appeared in a white supremacist forum that had been promoting the gathering.  Suddenly, without explanation, the fundraiser is off.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 09:39 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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The Volk are coming to British Columbia!

That's right.  In just five days, on February 21, the Volksfront International will be having their first ever annual Mid-Winter Gathering.

There will be a raffle.  There will be poker.  There will be all sorts of fundraising.

Which makes me wonder if these white supremacists remembered to apply for their Class B gaming event licence. I'm not certain Volksfront would be eligible given the nature of their organization.

Gee, could this post put their plans in jeopardy?  Wouldn't that be a shame.

Update: Shockingly, it seems that this is exactly what has happened.  Within 24 hours of this post going up, Volksfront International announces there will be no fundraising at the Mid-Winter Gathering.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 09:02 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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After a general election, candidates are required to submit a complete accounting of donations and expenditures to Elections Canada.  They have four months to do it (as per 451(4)).  The last election was held on October 14, so we're at that time.

For candidates who submitted early, the material is now online.  I grabbed Navdeep Bains' filing, essentially at random, and found the Liberal MP's filing to be very curious.

Call it New Math, but the numbers don't add up.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 02:33 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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You might recall the controversy surrounding the projected being implemented at Queen's University in Kingston, in which trained facilitators would listen in on the conversations of students, ready to jump in and correct politically incorrect speech.

At least that's how the program was described in the media, and despite protestations to the contrary, this element was a major part of the program.

A report has been delivered to the university, recommending that the program be eliminated immediately.  The right decision, to be sure, but it is amusing how, buried in the report, is a clear assignment of fault.  This idea that has caused so much heartburn came from the students, and not the faculty or the school administration.

Going forward, the report recommends, the university ought to exercise a great deal more oversight over student organizations who aren't directly supporting the university mission of teaching.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 12:44 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Sometimes people try to derive some humour from Liberal Party leader Michael Ignatieff's Russian heritage.  It is rather special -- most Canadians of Russian descent can't count Russian nobility in their family tree, while Michael Ignatieff can boast a grandfather, Count Pavel Ignatieff.

But besides an accident of birth, Michael Ignatieff has another, more interesting link, with Mother Russia.  That would be a shared attitude with Russia's modern czar, Vladimir Putin, concerning the true nationhood of the Ukraine.

This is important on a number of fronts.  Ukrainians, both at home and around the world, are worried about sharing a border with Putin's Russia, and there may come a time when they'll be looking for the support of the world community.

It is an open question as to whether Michael Ignatieff would side with Vladimir Putin if Russia was to lay claim on the Ukraine.

Also interesting is that this is another example of Michael Ignatieff running counter to Liberal policy.  But then that policy was described by Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj, a Ukrainian-Canadian, who has been dumped from any role in Michael Ignatieff's caucus. 

Borys Wrzesnewskyj's demotion to the backbenches is a big deal in the Ukrainian-Canadian community.

A lot of Ukrainian-Canadians are wondering just what Michael Ignatieff really thinks of Ukrainians.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 08:00 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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The upcoming Liberal Party convention in Vancouver is turning out to be a bust.  Simply put, no one is coming. Not quite no one, but as conventions go, this one will seem empty.

No one in the Liberal Party seems too concerned.  Indeed, I get a sense that top Liberals are secretly relieved.

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Mike Duffy highlights, by contrast, what is wrong with the Senate.  It seems to me that people think that making the Senate work means making it elected.  Well, if we elect a bunch of do-nothings, the Senate won't be any better.

The Senate is seen to be a failure because of who is in it, not because of how they got there.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 10:35 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Thanks to Jane Taber, we have some insight into Conservative planning for the next election.  For a Conservative, it is good to read that the party is not planning to fight the last battle again.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 09:53 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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In his first week, Mike Duffy has done more to make the Senate relevant to Canadians, and in particular, to the people of PEI, than anyone in living memory ever has.

Not bad for a rookie.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 08:25 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Now that Michael Ignatieff has formerly recognized the principle of a one-use only coupon to be cashed in by MPs to vote contrary to the Liberal Party line, I have some questions regarding how this coupon works.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 01:36 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Watch Michael Ignatieff and Danny Williams congratulate themselves for accomplishing nothing positive with the budget vote drama.  It's pathetic.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 07:27 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Michael Ignatieff has decided that the intransigence of MPs from Newfoundland and Labrador is going to be rewarded.  While MPs from other provinces are going to have to toe the party line, the rebels who have been promising to vote against the budget in order to please their constituents and appease Premier Danny Williams will be allowed the latitude to do so.

MPs from other provinces, however, will be forced to explain why they supported the Conservative budget.

They'll also be forced to explain why they didn't take a hard line against Michael Ignatieff.  Apparently if an MP just digs in his heels, he'll get a pass from the Liberal Party leader.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 02:05 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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No matter what happens with the budget vote, Michael Ignatieff has already been wounded by a revolt in his caucus.  Why?  Because the revolt has been slow moving, incremental, and public.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 08:50 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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With the release of the quarterly returns for the end of 2008, you can find all sorts of interesting nuggets.

Seriously, these don't add up to much, but they do pique my interest.

In this case, it's a matter of looking over the money returned by the Liberal Party.

Posted by: Steve Janke at 02:37 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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