Balancing jobsjobsjobs with destroying the planet

Brilliant one minute speech New Zealand MP James Shaw made to an almost empty house. Before going into politics, Shaw was a consultant at PriceWaterhouseCoopers and HSBC.
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Call for Heave Steve! National Campaign

Damn good tune. Yeah, it came out two months ago - keep posting it till everyone knows the words.

Then we need to pick a day for a national sing-along - I suggest the day the writ drops - with people right across Canada posting themselves with their own Heave Steve signs  - just like the folks in the vid - to some central site for possible re-mix including everyone if Lon Borgerson agrees to it.  Cross-party participation. So who's up for organizing this?

Lon Borgerson, NDP candidate for Prince Albert, and friends... 26,830 views, coming up on 500 "likes".  

Well, the ship of state is sinking and the seas are getting rough
The captain's drunk with power and we have had enough
He's cutting all our rations, pulling tricks out of his sleeve
Only one thing we can do, we've got to heave Steve

Heave Steve! Make him walk the plank
Heave Steve! He's gonna break the bank
Heave Steve! We'll have ourselves to thank
If we all join together and just Heave Steve!

The temperature is rising and the weather's no fun
The glaciers are melting and there's water on the run
We're burning up the oil when we've got the wind and sun
And with Stevie at the helm, nothing's being done

CHORUS

There's pirates down on Bay Street hiding treasure from us all
There's pirates getting richer while we all take the fall
There's pirates in the wheelhouse making robocalls
There's pirates in the statehouse helping Stevie run it all

CHORUS

And the ships don't get our grain cause they're waiting for the rail
And the economic action plan has built another jail
And Duffy's on the poop-deck, and seniors wait to no avail
Cause Stevie and his buddies won't deliver mail

CHORUS

So if you want a good voyage and a fair and equal boat
And you want all your mates to live long and stay afloat
You don't really need a sea, an ocean, or a moat
To throw Stevie overboard you just need to vote

CHORUS (Twice)
CHORUS (and Farewells)

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Paul Calandra attacks Glenn Greenwald and CBC

I think Calandra read off his bit of paper from Steve rather well today, don't you? 
Love the bit about how :

"CBC only admitted to their cash-for-news scheme after The Wall Street Journal forced it out of them"

...  by cleverly reading Greenwald's byline alongside those of Greg Weston and Ryan Gallagher at the top of the CBC article.

A byline that has also graced the pages of The Guardian and the New York Times, where, presumably, Greenwald also got paid as a journalist.

And I'm sure the actual subject matter of the CBC article :

New Snowden docs show U.S. spied during G20 in Toronto 

"Stephen Harper's government allowed the largest American spy agency to conduct widespread surveillance in Canada during the 2010 G8 and G20 summits.  

An NSA briefing note describes the American agency's operational plans at the Toronto summit meeting and notes they were "closely co-ordinated with the Canadian partner."

had nothing at all to do with monkeynuts using his parliamentary privilege to refer to constitutional lawyer/author/journalist Glenn Greenwald as a "Brazilian-based former porn industry executive". 

Transcript ... for Steve's scrapbook : 
Mr. Paul Calandra, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister :

Mr. Speaker, the CBC’s Journalistic Standards and Practices make clear that and I quote : 

To ensure we maintain our independence, we do not pay for information from a source in a story.  

When CBC’s The National aired a report about U.S. activities during the G8 and G20, neither Peter Mansbridge nor Greg Weston disclosed that they had paid their source, Glenn Greenwald. Greenwald is a Brazilian based former porn industry executive, now assisting Edward Snowden leak national security information.  

CBC only admitted to their cash for news scheme after The Wall Street Journal forced it out of them. CBC is trying to justify the violation of their own ethical standards by claiming that Greenwald is a *freelancer*. 

Mr. Speaker Greenwald has strong and controversial opinions about national security and of course, that's his right, but when CBC pays for news, we have to ask why furthering Glenn Greenwald’s agenda and lining his Brazilian bank account more important than maintaining the public broadcaster’s journalistic integrity?

h/t Canadian Cynic for this link to Greenwald's blistering debunking of the unfortunate WSJ article referred to by Calandra :
 http://utdocuments.blogspot.ca/2013/11/wall-street-journals-alistair-macdonald.html
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Fakers and Cons

Still adding to the list of Con fakery below, if you have more suggestions.
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What does it cost to change the world?

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What do MasterCard, Visa, Bank of America, Paypal and Western Union all have in common? They help you pay for what you want? Well, yes... that is unless you want to help WikiLeaks make the world a better place. To see the shocking details, please go to wikileaks.org/​support.html.

Original from WikiLeaks on Vimeo.

Couldn't get Vimeo to load so here it is on YouTube.
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h/t West End Bob
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Canada Votes 2011 - FPTP vs PR

Under any of the various versions of proportional representation, Steve would not now be enjoying his majority.

Fair Vote Canada :

"The Conservative party increased their vote percentage by less than two points,” says Fair Vote Canada (FVC) President Bronwen Bruch, “but this allowed them to win 24 more seats than in 2008, when they were already over-represented. Stephen Harper calls this a ‘decisive endorsement’, but we call it a rip-off."

Almost no one tries to claim the first-past-the-post voting system we are currently labouring under is fairer than any of the alternative options any more. No, mostly its proponents just say FPTP is easier for voters to understand.

Really? How did you like figuring out who to vote for this time round? And how did it work out for you?

Under any old prop rep voting system, we could forget about coalitions and party mergers and strategic voting and blaming each other for splitting the vote afterwards. Instead, all voters would be free to 'vote their conscience' and some of that 39% of eligible voters who don't bother to vote now might even feel sufficiently engaged by having, you know, an actual voice in it, to turn up.

As Pogge says : We really ought to fix this. 

Tomorrow voters in the UK are deciding whether to go with Alternative Vote , also known as instant run-off voting. Brebis Noire posted the following funny vid at Bread & Roses that explains how it works. Surprise cameo by Steve as Reform Cat.


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Officer Bubbles irony alert

G&M : 'Officer Bubbles' launches suit against Youtube

"A Toronto police officer whose stiff upper lip made him an inadvertent YouTube sensation and a symbol of police heavy-handedness at the G20 protests has launched a $1.2-million defamation lawsuit against the website.
Constable Adam Josephs was nicknamed “Officer Bubbles” after a video surfaced of him online admonishing a young protester during the summit for blowing bubbles."

Officer Bubbles' lawyer : "The reason we brought the lawsuit is that people have the right to protect themselves against this kind of harassment."

Lolz

Officer Bubbles Statement of Claim

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And now ... a message from CEO Steve

Another brilliant vid from Pale at A Creative Revolution , featuring the smooth but fuzzy blue sweater vocalizations of Reverend Paperboy from the Maple Syrup Revolution and the Beav.

Internet Killed Israeli PR

Gaza flotilla video mashup. Lyrics.

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Harper's Big Live Late Pretaped Youtube Debut

So y'all recall the hype ...

Steve! Live and interactive and unrehearsed!

It's your interview with Steve! Ask him your questions and vote 'em up on youtube!

Steve will have no idea beforehand what wild questions will be thrown at him.

Pick a card, any card...

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So we all troop over to Kady's at CBC at the appointed hour to enjoy a little live blogging of this daring and unlikely foray into new media and we stare at a black screen for oh, an hour or so, waiting.

Steve appears to have prorogued youtube.

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Eventually word comes down from the google gods - It will not be interactive. It is already pretaped, transcripts will be delivered to the real media ahead of time, and Youtube of same to be trundled along some time later.

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When it finally arrives, it's a fireside chat beside a monitor instead of a fire, it's a townhall without people, it's question period without opposition. It is the perfect medium for Steve.

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Transcript and Youtube

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Steve reaches out to Youtube world

As PMO spokesthingey Dimitri Soudas pitches it somewhat awkwardly on YouTube :

Ask Your Questions to Prime Minister Harper

Submit your questions for Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in his response to the Speech from the Throne and the recent budget. The Prime Minister will answer a selection of your top-voted questions in an exclusive YouTube interview next Tuesday March 16, 2010 at 7 p.m. ET.

It must have seemed like a pretty good idea at the time when they were kicking it around the PMO - avoiding reporters while controlling the message, getting down with the new social media, and reaching out directly to the demographic with a solid majority on Youtubeworld locked down - youth.

But as any working clown will tell you, teh youth are a very tough crowd. A sampling of questions submitted to Steve so far :

lol look at this talkcanada guy trying to be all formal and serious on a crap website

can you explain how selling our Natural Resources is good for Canadians

Check out the proper way to crush a beer can with ur head!!! It rulez

why is the quality of this video so shitty?

Mr Harper this a question regarding what has happened to the Afghan detainees. Currently by having retired Supreme Court Justice Iacobucci look into the documents, you have only created a smokescreen to hide behind. You have not chosen a sitting judge who would actually have power to do a proper inquiry. As well you are currently in violation of the Constitution by withholding these documents from parliament. When will you be releasing the documents regarding the Afghan detainees to parliament?

This guy sounds like he just gargled a bucket of cum

i gotta question,?? which u will never reply to, ... why the fuck do you lie stephen Harper??

WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO LEGALIZE WEED ?

He hasn't listened to Canada for a long time, I'm Surprised he wants to start now. :/

What did you do during the time Parliament was prorogued besides sitting next to Wayne Gretzky and coming up with a plan to change the national anthem?

What's with the low-quality vid and the script reading...

I agree that the stimulus package was a good oppurtunity to further our advancements in green energy, but due to your lack of intrest in said topic, my scrotum gets itchy when I engage in sexual intercourse with multiple women. is this because of your lack of intrest in energy efficiency? If so what steps will you take to ensure the cleanliness of my yambag? Will you tax it? WE NEED answers Mr. Harper!

legalize marijuana?

When will your government end the waste of corporate tax cuts? As well, when will post secondary education become a priority for your party?
Furthermore, why are your MP's so disrespectful to Canadians?

WHAT'S YOUR HAIR MADE OF?

Mr Prime Ribroast Minister, CAN I HAS CHEEZBURGAR?

Mr Harper, Will you please sing Tay Zonday's "Chocolate Rain" on live television?

Why have you not requested that the United States release Omar Khadr from the Guantanamo Bay concentration camp? He was just a child when he was arrested in Afganistan. His continuing detention puts Canada's image as a champion of human rights in jeopardy. (thumbs up if you want Mr. Harper to reply to this question.)

My question is how can you live with yourself?As far as being a leader that has plunged Canada into record debt with reckless spending and poor decision making, I cannot see a positive side to this Prime Minister. Absolutely shameful governing period.

legalize marijuana .

stephen harper - can you please quit your job

I couldn't be bothered putting down questions for that dud Harper

Jeez At least make it watchable. I mean it's not 2005 anymore. You are the government and you can't afford a freaking HD camera... sad

I think the prime minister should invest in a steady cam and a better mic for his youtube rep... c'mon...

fucking numpty

How can you possibly justify not legalizing marijuana?

Why are we "fighting" for peace (contradiction)? As a Canadian i hear that we are the peacemakers who care about all beings but yet we barely support those who are less fortunate. If Canada is known as the peacemakers of the world and have great alliances (U.S.A) than why do we waste our much needed money on weapons of war instead of food and shelter for the world?

why wont you legalize weed ?

How much did this little google propaganda exercise cost Canadians?Are cameras for various networks next to be invited in to parliament for your grand eminence to pretend you are addressing the populace when you are merely manipulating us?

testicals. that is all.

I think I have a way to cut the deficit ... stop making Canadians pay for your makeup PM. You want to look the way you do - do it on your own darn dime.

I find it amusing that marijuana is the topic of perhaps 30% of the questions (probably more) and is currently the top 3 asked question

What agreement we have with Israel? Will you send troops for Israel to attack Iran?

BORING

With crime at an all time low, why get tough on it, as well as building more prisons, shouldn't we build more schools and hospitals?Is there nothing to be learned from californias budgeting nightmare experience?

Harper, why have you continued to ignore your own Accountability Act?

why are you such an asshole on climate change?

Would you debate legalization of small quantities of marijuana considering:
A:Tax money saved w/reduced policing/incarceration/court costs
B:Tax Revenue increases. We're able to make wine/beer. 99% do not! Resulting taxation income is massive.
C:Drug cartels make Billion$! Then expand prostitution/guns/armed gangs
D:Create new job markets in these depressed times. Hemp is so useful/environmental.
Considering the facts, how can continued Fed Prohibition of marijuana be justified?

Why won't you call an impartial public inquiry into the Afghan detainee affair?

When will Canada take a leadership role in the world when it comes to the environment? I am sick and tired of the Prime Minister taking a supporting role on such an important issue affecting our lives. Stop using the economy to ignore such a pressing issue. Time is no longer on our side when it comes to this issue. Please act now!

I often hear of you dirty playbook tricks , can you share them with the rest of us to use !Help us all learn to be Cons !

Why bother? Harper prorogued parliament so he wouldn't have to listen to anyone else. What makes you think he's going to listen now?

Legalize marijuana.

Methinks Mr Soudas better get himself a coupla sockpuppets up there pretty damn quick or Steve will be spending next Tuesday night talking about legalizing weed, why Soudas' vid is so crap, and um, testicals.

h/t Kady, who has a couple of questions of her own about the appropriateness of Google gifting free Youtube facetime to Steve while registered as a federal lobby group.
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And here we go : Harper's Big Live Late Pretaped Youtube Debut
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