Nice heir, though.

Conservative strategists recognized too late the obvious pitfall of crafting an election strategy around making fun of their main opponent's 'nice hair'.

Turns out just about everyone likes nice hair.

Last week the Cons sought to rectify that mistake by electing Rona Ambrosia as their own hair apparent and interim leader.

"We're going to be nice hair all the way all the time from now on," promised the new leader, pledging to usher in a new era of 'sunny ways glaze' after a whole decade of apparently just getting the tone wrong.

Fellow MP ShamWow Tony Gazebo best summed up this new direction in grooming for the Cons : "At the end of the day, we're moving ahead with going forward."

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Framing the future of a national energy export strategy

Corporate oilbidness sponsorship of next week's annual conference of federal and provincial energy ministers caused a few ripples in our  national  media yesterday.

The Government of Alberta Natural Resources webpage lists $180,000 in corporate sponsorship fees for the
"Framing the Future of Energy and Mines"
Energy and Mines Ministers' Conference,
July 16 - 19, 2011

Gold Sponsorship - $30,000
Silver Sponsorship - $20,000
Bronze Sponsorship - $10,000
Just like the Olympics!

Particular mention was made of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers' $30,000 gold sponsorship fee to a government conference where a national energy strategy will be discussed.

Yo, media guys! You know what would have been more useful? Coverage of CAPP's sponsorship of a federal cabinet ministers' meeting in Alberta last week to promote the tarsands.

Last week CAPP hosted Environment Minister Peter Kent, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney, Minister of Public Works Rona Ambrose, and Minister of State of Foreign Affairs Diane Ablonczy in a roundtable discussion following tours of Syncrude and Suncor.

Kenney said the tour enabled them to "go back to parliament and around the world, and defend Canada's oilsands as an environmentally responsible production of energy".
He said the tarsands "constitute the future engine of the Canadian economy" :

"We're talking in 25 years about over $2 trillion in economic growth estimated to be some $700 billion in federal and provincial government revenues. ... There was a lot of bad mouthing about this industry and our government has consistently stood up in defence of the Alberta oilsands ... we will stand up for this incredible growth of our prosperity."

Kenney also pledged his ministry's continued intention to "fine tune its immigration program" to deliver the skillsets the tarsands requires.

Fun fact : There are more than 20 Alberta MPs in the federal caucus.
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Sisters in Spirit update - NWAC not consulted

Last week APTN News reported that not only does the Cons new missing persons initiative entirely bypass Sisters In Spirit, the very group which initiated research into the nearly 600 missing and murdered FN women and girls in the first place, but SIS can no longer use the SIS name or continue their research when applying for grants.

Status of Women Minister Rona Ambrose invoked support from the Sisters' parent organization, Native Women's Association of Canada, to blow off criticism in the House :

"Most important, we are working with and have the support of NWAC "
and
"In fact, we have been working with NWAC for the last couple of years in order to implement these concrete actions."

APTN News : NWAC kept out of the loop on missing women's announcement

Native Women’s Association of Canada president Jeannette Corbiere Lavell said she was only informed by the government the day before Status of Women Minister Rona Ambrose stood in the Vancouver police department to say her government was following through on their $10 million commitment.

Lavell said the Conservative government did not consult with NWAC staff or those involved with the organization’s groundbreaking Sisters in Spirit project in the lead-up to the announcement.

"NWAC was originally led to believe that it would be invited to join in a discussion with the Department of Justice…about the allocation of the $10 million ," said Corbiere Lavell. "This did not occur."

Lavell further notes that the new initiative "reinvents" the work already done by SIS [at a new RCMP centre that will use up half the money], folds their research on murdered FN women into a general pot of violence against all Canadians, and excludes provinces east of Manitoba from access to funding.

She also confirmed Status of Women's embargo on the SIS name and continued research.

So why did Lavell stand with Ambrose on that podium in Vancouver last week and imply NWAC's endorsement?

Because, explains Lavell, they need the money and Aboriginal women have been waiting for it. They have to comply with the new SIS-squashing rules so they can access funds to continue related work.

Nice. Someone better call Ambrose on her bullshit in the House next week.

As Cathie from Canada put it : "Trying to make it disappear just like all those women have disappeared."

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And as for Canada's conditional endorsement of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples this week : See Pam Palmater at Non-Status Indians.

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Sisters in Spirit shut down

It was only last week that Status of Women Minister Rona Ambrose praised Sisters in Spirit when she announced details of a $10 million national strategy to address "the disturbing issue of missing and murdered Aboriginal women" :

"The journey truly began with an initiative called Sisters in Spirit that was led by the Native Women’s Association of Canada. The association has undertaken an incredible amount of research... they have brought to light the shocking extent of these horrendous acts of violence."

Yet Rona's Status of Women government webpage announcing the new strategy makes no mention of Sisters in Spirit at all and now the APTN News reports that Sisters have been excluded from receiving any of that $10M.
Instead they must apply to Status of Women for less money under new rules which will prohibit them from continuing to use the name Sisters in Spirit, or maintaining and extending their research database of nearly 600 missing aboriginal women, or lobbying government.
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Con MP Shelly Glover, Parliamentary Secretary for Indian and Northern Affairs :

"That project was finished. Don’t mix apples and oranges. That project was finished, now we’re working with them to pursue other projects."

Other projects? Bullshit.

Sisters in Spirit is their database and their advocacy work and their vigils. That's who they are.

.

So where's that $10M going? A good chunk to the RCMP.

Get more details in a very good 2 minute news vid from APTN. Go.
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Then write an effing letter :
Rona Ambrose : Ambror@parl.gc.ca Phone : (613) 996-9778
Shelly Glover : Glover.S@parl.gc.ca Phone : (613) 995-0579
SWC NDP Irene Mathyssen : Mathyssen.I@parl.gc.ca Phone : (519) 685-4745
SWC Lib Anita Neville : Neville.A@parl.gc.ca Phone : (204) 983-1355
SWC Bloc Nicole Demers : Demers.N@parl.gc.ca Phone : (450) 686-2562
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