On the Debasement of Canadian Democracy

 
This post (about Dalton McGuinty and Chris Bentley's contempt of the Ontario legislature and the Toronto Star's partisan attempt to belittle it) describes something that we should all take seriously.

The Star article mentions that finding a minister in contempt is unprecedented in the legislature's 220 year history. But this was only two years after the harper government was found in contempt for both the Bev Oda lying scandal and the harper cabinet's refusal to share vital cost estimates with the House of Commons.

"How fast you learn the downhill slide."

Is it the case that familiarity (with universal suffrage) breeds contempt? Or are we on a deliberate downward slide as the masters of society have decided that democratic oversight and the rule of law are simply too pesky to be bothered with in the hellish neo-liberal future that their shriveled brains have in store for us?

Congrats to Chavez!

Hugo Chavez won re-election last night. This is a good thing. The concern trolls can go fuck themselves. US client regimes rape, torture and kill innocent people. The US rewards them. Chavez wins elections and reforms his country legally and democratically, and he's described as a dictator. He's in a genuine struggle with murderous oligarchs who already instigated a coup against him and ripped up Venezuela's constitution (before Chavez loyalists in the military and his supporters in the streets took their power back). If Chavez occasionally departs from the rules to stay in power and work to provide education and housing and healthcare to his fellow human beings who his opponents (and their US puppet-masters) would rather condemn to illiteracy, homelessness and disease, ... well so be it.

Mark Weisbrot describes the significance of this latest Chavez victory quite well here:

But Venezuela is part of a "Latin American spring" that has produced the most democratic, progressive, and independent group of governments that the region has ever had. They work together, and Venezuela has solid support among its neighbours. This is the former president of Brazil, Lula da Silva, last month: "A victory for Chávez is not just a victory for the people of Venezuela but also a victory for all the people of Latin America … this victory will strike another blow against imperialism."

It's true. For centuries these countries have been under the thumbs of blood-sucking oligarchs. Occasionally a Zapata or a Sandino or an Allende or a Guevera or an Aristide would emerge to lead resistance, but since 1945, the southern countries of the Western Hemisphere have been condemned to poverty, misery and oppression. Now, with the USA's strength declining and the people's eyes opened and their hearts stronger, the people of South America (at least) are slipping free.

The US imperialists aren't going to be happy. Well, too fucking bad.

As depressingly slow as it is, the victories in South America and in the Middle East, which the imperialists are trying to either subvert or destroy are real and they are happening. Idiots like Barack Obama imagine that they can manipulate things to the oligarch's perpetual advantage but this will not be the case. The growing autonomy of Egypt is an important thing. The dismal failure of capitalism is a real thing. The ecological crisis is a real thing.

In a few years, the new versions of the Romney vs. Obama show will be unable to conduct a debate because their droning and platitudes will be drowned-out by the hordes outside calling for their blood.

Ephemeral asks ...

If we root for Al Pacino in "And Justice For All" then would we root for the lawyer of Tori Stafford's killer if he turned on him?

God is not Great

I liked Hitchens' books For the Sake of Argument, The Trial of Henry Kissinger and at least a good part of No One Left to Lie To. I read somewhere that his book on Orwell was, unoriginal, to say the least and I think there's no justification for his support for the US invasions in Afghanistan and Iraq.

I think there's even less justification for his absurdities on that score having read his God is not Great. If he thinks Zionism is based on pointless delusion and that Christian apocalypse fantasies are ludicrous, then why does he imagine that the box-cutter armed Muslim hijackers are such a vital threat to civilization that they require the legitimation of wars of aggression and imperialism?

That aside, God is not Great is the book-length trashing of religion that I wanted Richard Dawkins' God Delusion to be. Religions are old stories, cooked-up by small, geographically limited communities in ancient times, to attempt to explain a confusing existence. Whatever sincerity they possess has always been marred by cynical, power-hungry deviants and sadists. Religion poisons everything and it's time has past. It is not a neutral thing, producing good or evil depending upon who is using it. It lends itself best to bad things and it is so easily deformed by frauds and monsters because of its inherent properties.

The day after I finished it, some guy at Yonge and Dundas tried to give me a pamphlet on Islam and, later in the afternoon, a whole troop of Mennonites (or Amish) were belting out some hymns on the opposite corner. Having my contempt for the continued adherence to these incoherent myths so recently strengthened, I found the whole thing hard to take.

These idiotic stories are pointless diversions. They deform your lives. Abandon them.

Disgusting Liberal Hackery at the Toronto Star

Glenn Greenwald is forced to ruefully observe that Democrats who decried bush II's regime of illegal spying on US citizens and his regime of rendition and torture (denied by bush II in that dunce's own clumsily fraudulent way) are now completely onside with Barack Obama's stated claims of the right to detain US citizens without charges and even to assassinate them. These former defenders of the US Constitution are now enthusiastic destroyers of it. All due to the sickness of partisan politics.

Is this disgusting Toronto Star article evidence of the same disease amongst Canadian Liberals when it comes to Canadian parliamentary democracy? Are the Liberal Party supporters who were so enraged by harper's abuse of the power of prorogation, his contempt of Parliament, his omnibus legislation and his election fraud going to show themselves as infinitely understanding of such crimes if only a Liberal politician is doing it?

I hope and pray that this article is not symptomatic of a trend among Liberals. That it is an isolated case. And that respect for the spirit and the forms of our limited democracy is stronger than partisan ties.

Energy Minister Chris Bentley faces extraordinary punishment — possibly jail time — after opposition MPPs used their majority in the legislature to ram through a motion to probe the $230 million cancellation of two power plants.

Oh my! How horrible! Those nasty opposition MPPs are "ramming through" a motion to force the government to provide information that they, as the people's representatives, have a right to see! And poor Chris Bentley might have to go to jail (on an outside chance) just because he's violating the spirit and the letter of the law and the basis of parliamentary democracy! What is this world coming to when elected governments are forced to be accountable for their decisions????

“It’s a very difficult thing to have to listen to,” a sombre Bentley told reporters Tuesday after the 53-50 vote to send his fate to the legislature’s finance committee.

Kindly Chris Bentley! I'm starting to feel as bad for him as I did for those victims of police brutality at the G20 in Toronto or in the cells of the Ottawa Police Service that Bentley presided over and didn't do shit about! Oh, poor, poor, stupid Chris Bentley!

In their zeal to investigate how Liberals scrapped the plants to save the seats of five Grit MPPs in Oakville and Mississauga, the Progressive Conservatives and New Democrats believe the minister could be in contempt of parliament.

Why not just say "fanatical zeal" and get it over with? Why not just come right out and say that it's not fair that the Liberal Party of Ontario has to respect the right of the people's representatives in the legislature? Why not just come right out and say that you (as journalists or as employees of the Liberal Toronto Star) don't believe in open, responsible government when it's your team on the hot-seat?

If the legislature concludes Bentley is — something that has not happened to a minister in the 220-year history of an assembly predating Confederation — he faces penalties as severe as incarceration.

Another way to put that would be "No minister of any government in the legislature's 220-year history has ever demonstrated so much contempt for it's rights." Why is this continuously being framed as some unreasonable thing that is going to happen to poor Chris Bentley? Why are we hearing more from him about his reaction to this process and still nothing from the people (our representatives) who are initiating this process? (I already know btw, this is just typical partisan hackery. These are rhetorical questions.) 

Rallying behind him, Premier Dalton McGuinty charged opposition MPPs are smearing an honest man for political gain and setting a “terrible precedent.”

“These attacks, these threats, this heavy handed, unprecedented process — using the full force of the legislature against one MPP — these are decidedly not in keeping with the standards and traditions we seek to uphold,” McGuinty told reporters at a hastily called news conference at Queen’s Park prior to the noon vote.

While I don't approve of this partisan blustering, I am partly grateful that it has been presented here. It just shows what a shameless bull-shitter McGuinty is. It shows that even when he's being hypocritical and pompous he still comes across as a total dweeb. He tries to twist the fact that it's HIS government that is so unprecedentedly bad into blaming the opposition for having to resort to unprecedented actions (in this legislature) to deal with it. What a shameless, lying, dishonourable man. (And I find it hilarious to portray McGuinty's hypocritical yammering as his "rallying behind" Bentley. McGuinty has made Bentley the fall guy here. (Although it is of his own free will that Bentley has decided to spit on the principle of the rights of parliament and democratic accountability.)

The premier had been scheduled to make a “good-news” announcement at the University of Toronto’s Leslie Dan School of Pharmacy, but scuttled it late Monday night to refocus on the political crisis that has engulfed his one-year-old minority administration.

 Awww! Those nasty opposition MPPs! Such party-poopers! McGuinty was going to announce some "good news"! But you assholes, standing up for the rights of the legislature against the miss-use of public monies, had to instigate a crisis and spoil everything! Oh wait; It's McGuinty's government that instigated the crisis!!!! Assholes! 

Tory Leader Tim Hudak conceded it’s “a sad day” for the legislature but said the chips must fall where they may for Bentley and the Liberals.

 Obviously, I don't like Tim Hudak. I can't even be sure that either the Ontario PCs or the ONDP won't stoop to the same depths of the Ontario Liberals in this political culture that has been so totally debased by stephen harper at the federal level. But I do know that in this instance, Hudak, as leader of the opposition, is legitimately empowered to do what he's doing here, and the essence of what he's doing (whether he's genuinely loyal to the traditions of democracy in this province and in this country) is defending the important power of democratic oversight. It's as simple as that. So to instead write that he "concedes" that what he's doing is terrible, to twist his words "sad day" for the legislature and make it seem like he is the one doing all the damage and causing the "sadness" is simply atrocious. 

“They made the choice and now they have to live with it,” said Hudak, adding “it’ll be up to committee” to recommend to the legislature by Nov. 19 whether the minister should be jailed or face “the appropriate sanction.”

The crisis stems from the delayed release of 36,000 pages of documents related to the Liberals’ cancellation of power plants in Oakville and Mississauga.

More details are expected to emerge as witnesses appear before a legislative committee, which has until Oct. 24 to begin hearings.

McGuinty noted Bentley is at risk being the first minister ever found in contempt of parliament in the Ontario legislature, a serious offence with “profound consequences for his career, his reputation and his life.”

For fuck's sake! Can we make this less about McGuinty's snivelling about poor Chris Bentley and more about what is actually going on here????? That McGuinty is denying the people's representatives some very basic information about his use of our money??? That McGuinty is (unprecedented for this legislature's 220-year history) in contempt of parliament????

Ignoring the premier’s emotional appeal, the Tories and the New Democrats exploited their political advantage, although the two parties differ on strategy moving forward.

Naked partisan hackery. I don't know what else there is to say.

“We’re less concerned with penalizing Bentley,” said NDP House Leader Gilles Bisson, noting the important thing is finding out why at least $230 million was spent for partisan electoral reasons.
Horwath emphasized that the committee wants to investigate the power plant debacle, not Bentley’s personal conduct.

“It’s not all the responsibility of the minister, the premier has some responsibility to hold here as well,” the NDP leader said.

Did you read that? Hudak says it's a sad day for the legislature. This statement is presented as some sort of “concession.” It's even being presented that Hudak is saying that Bentley's potential punishment is what makes it a “sad day” for the legislature! And, finally, at the very end of the article, we hear the ONDP member say that they're not even concerned with going after poor lil' Chris Bentley!! For fuck's sake! Was the whole article an exercise in diversion, spiced with partisan self-interest and slathered with contempt for parliamentary demcoracy?

This is the nadir of Canadian democracy people. The Toronto Star reveals itself as a hopelessly hypocritical liberal rag. The Globe & Mail's coverage of this brings to mind Jon Stewart of The Daily Show hooting “Awwwkwaaard!” what with their corrupt support for the anti-democratic stephen harper.

Is it really the case that neither the professional political class nor the professional media grasps the significance of Canada's parliamentary system? Leftist pinkos like me might think that our democracy needs to be improved. But we don't think it's something to be abused and derided.

I have to say that sometimes the comments section of online corporate news breaks one's heart, but as of this writing, the comments to this story are uniformly unsympathetic to Bentley and the Star's hackery.

"Arbitrage" - An Important Movie?

If you haven't seen it, Woody Allen's 1989 film "Crimes and Misdemeanors" is a good one. I remember at the time reading how the actors (especially Martin Landau and Alan Alda) played their characters as much nicer people than Woody Allen had intended them to be. The result was a much more believable story. Because few people live their lives full-time in "asshole" mode. There's often a thread of logic rationalizing their idiotic or selfish behaviour, allowing them to see themselves as good people; sane people in an insane world. (Again, one of the great significances of the Margaret Wente plagiarism scandal is how it exposes the extent to which so many people don't have to justify their views in a genuine debate. With no counter-arguments [that they have to defend themselves against] people like Wente get to drift along in blissful smugness, believing they're vindicated.)

I think something similar might be happening in the film "Arbitrage" starring Richard Gere:

I was reading an interview with Gere about the film and he was saying that he wanted to play the character (a corrupt Wall Street tycoon and a philanderer trying to cover-up the accidental death of his mistress) sympathetically. His character wasn't supposed to be a cartoonish villain, but a flawed, selfish, rather ordinary man.

Saul Landau from CounterPunch has an ambiguous response to the film; Is it a loathsome attempt to paint a sympathetic portrait of a man who epitomizes the super-corrupt US ruling class, or is an attempt to paint a realistic portrait of this archetype?

What emerges is a Hollywood portrait of the modern villain. Gere’s character no longer resembles the one he played as the “Pretty Woman” millionaire. In “Arbitrage”, he portrays modern evil, a compelling looking man willing to do whatever it takes to help himself, in business and lust, but without social conscience or a sense of responsibility.
This façade of a philanthropic patriarch. who philanders as naturally as he dines with his family, emerges on screen as a realistic portrait of the kind of felon who could wreck the world economy and think only of saving himself as the world collapses around him. Realism, Hollywood style. Justice? Not in the “Arbitrage” script, nor in the reality of the US economy or justice system. Attorney General Eric Holder has ordered raids on marijuana distributors that have licenses, he’s prosecuted John Edwards and former Yankee pitcher Roger Clemens, all unsuccessfully, but has indicted none of the criminal bankers who broke the system. Will a film about this lapse of governmental action provoke the AG to arrest a real bad guy?

The film's catch-phrase - "Power is the Best Defense" - seems to show an awareness of the issues involved.

Because to a great extent, these Wall Street criminals aren't evil super-geniuses cackling and giddy. A lot of them are just stupid shmucks. They buy up financial junk because there might be a big pay-off, sometimes they get burned, and they cast about for some way out of their predicament. Enormous wealth means comfort, pleasure and security. It's not a world they want to leave. Walking around in their bubbles of privilege they justify gross social inequality by denigrating everyone else (the 47% from Mitt Romney's blathering) and looking for other people to blame for all that's wrong in their worlds.

[SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT!]

Gere's character accidentally kills his mistress by falling asleep at the wheel of a car. Martin Landau's character deliberately murders his mistress and successfully covers it up. But at the end of the film (set a year after the events of the film) he appears to have re-connected with his wife. He's a genuinely loving and happy family man and successful, caring physician. The body of his mistress is quietly mouldering away somewhere, forgotten. He's a criminal, but he sees himself as a decent guy who has been given a second chance. He's a murderer.

"Arbitrage," if it gets across the way that our elites function and gives us a grown-up understanding of the pathetic reality of the so-called "1%"  could be a very worthwhile movie.

Another Busy Day = Another Video

Right now it's 8:43 p..m. and I'm cooking tomato sauce ... "I make good spaghetti sauce, mother fucker!" (Looking for the first video brought me to the Joe Walsh tune that I haven't heard in years, so ...)