"All together now:
The working class can kiss my ass,
I've got the boss' job at last!"
Posted on 12/06/2005 10:17:28 AM PST by GMMAC
Toronto Sun
December 6, 2005
BAUBLE-HEAD SVEND
By MARK BONOKOSKI
The cesspool of political "entitlement" and "corruption" in which the federal Liberals are trying not to electorally drown is no longer a one-party domain now that a jewel thief has been acclaimed as Jack Layton's NDP candidate in the riding of Vancouver Centre.
No longer can Jack call the kettle black.
No longer can Jack talk ethics.
How can Jack Layton accuse the Liberals of "helping themselves" in the sponsorship scandal, for example, when he has given his blessing to Sunday's endorsement of Svend Robinson, a politician who helped himself to a $50,000 antique ring while still sitting in the House of Commons.
Truth is, he can't.
"What Svend did was take responsibility for his actions,"Layton is quoted as saying. "He co-operated."
Pondered his move
He did what?
Truth is, Svend did no such thing. At least not at first.
What he did was wait a couple of days.
In fact, it could be argued -- and it has been argued -- that Svend Robinson pondered his next post-theft move right up until the moment he became aware that video-surveillance cameras had been trained on the public auction of high-end jewelry that had been held in the boardroom of the Vancouver International Airport by the Brampton-based Federal Auction Service.
Otherwise, if feelings of guilt had truly taken over, why had he not called the police straight away, or have a lawyer do it for him, and set the defence wheels in motion for what he later defined as a "totally inexplicable and unthinkable act."
He is, after all, a bright and educated man.
He knows five-finger discounts are wrong.
Jack Layton also said that the 53-year-old Robinson had "paid his price in full."
Truth is, he didn't.
Truth is, he got a kiss, and the first one came early.
Despite acknowledging that it has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to theft, Federal Auction Service decided to make an exception of Robinson, expressed "sympathy" at the onset for whatever it was the long-time politician was going through, and said it would not press charges.
That nasty bit of work was left to the police and, in the end, Robinson pleaded guilty and received a conditional discharge. No jail time, no criminal conviction.
"In Canada, we don't kick people when they're down," Justice Ron Fratkin said during sentencing, indicating that Robinson had "fallen far further than most -- all for a bauble, a trinket, a ring."
So what, then, was the "high price in full" that Robinson actually paid that gives him entitlement to seek the trust of public office one more time?
It was Jack Layton's position that the "high price" Robinson paid "in full" was not only having to resign from his seat in the House of Commons, but also the fact that he had to face a little public humiliation.
Of course he had to resign.
He was a thief.
And of course he was humiliated. Thieves who are both well-off and powerful usually are humiliated -- one hopes -- when the flip side of their supposedly honest public persona is caught red-handed committing a criminal act.
Last year, when Svend Robinson called his press conference, when he broke into tears, when he was comforted on camera by his partner, Max Riveron, and when he attempted to explain away his how "something just snapped in this moment of utter irrationality," I compared what happened to him to what happened to an 85-year-old former cleaning lady with advanced Alzheimer's who lifted a $3-packet of chicken from a Toronto Loblaws.
There was no comparison.
The old woman, who had no idea what she had done, was taken into a back room, held until the cops arrived, and was then given the choice of criminal charges or a lifetime banishment from all Loblaws outlets.
Unlike what happened with Federal Auction Service and Svend Robinson, no "sympathy" for the old woman's situation was expressed by Loblaws, at least not until her treatment became a story written here.
Only then did the flowers and the apology arrive.
Robinson told the judge he cracked after a visit with his sister, who has multiple sclerosis.
If he had stolen the ring with the intention of giving it to his sister, the opinion here might be somewhat more tempered.
Fact is, however, he didn't steal it to give to her.
He stole it to give to his partner as an engagement ring.
And it wasn't a $3 packet of chicken, it was a $50,000 antique diamond ring -- not a mere "bauble" or a "trinket," as the judge said, as if he were trying to downplay the importance of its value.
So what's next for this convicted thief if the voters in Vancouver-Centre choose to either forget or forgive?
Sponsorship critic in Jack Layton's next caucus?
Just say no
Bottom line, the federal leader of the NDP should have refused to sign Robinson's nomination paper, not anoint him with an unopposed candidacy.
Jack Layton should have said no.
Instead, he has put himself in the position of talking one line and walking another.
And that makes him no better than those Liberals whose lack of ethics he today condemns.
I knew what you meant.
Did he happen to flick a forked tongue at all? That guy is a puke/snake/weasel. Hopefully, Harper will get in.
Its funny, CBC, Mope-n-Wail, etc had headlines today or yesterday 'Liberals Surging in polls...' And garbage like that. Harpers 2% GST cut alone is enough for me, not to mention his stances elsewhere!!! I wonder how long it would take for unemployment rates to decline with that cut alone, and make the cost of living easier everyone (particularly for me as a student!!).
Also note that in my scenario the Coservatives would have a bare majority in the ROC - 117 out of 231.
What we need is a red-hot Tory in Quebec to split the Bloc vote, which is a weird amalgam of left and right; and a continued de-fusing of the 'fear of Harper' syndrome engendered by the Establishment media in Anglo-Canada.
To elect a majority government, the Tories need to take 20+ seats in Quebec, plus make inroads into the Metro areas in Anglo-Canada. These are projects for the next election.
"Thus, the Conservatives can form a minority government without the support of either the Libs or the Bloc."
Er, not quite.
Under parliamentary law, they would form the government, since they'd be the party with the most seats; but they need a majority (153) to get any laws passed - that means some kind of coalition or deal with one of the other 3 parties.
Take your choice: Bloc (separatist traitors), Liberals (devil incarnate), or NDP (bleeding heart leftists).
THAT's the problem with this country's politics.
Of course I meant a minority Conservative government supported by the NDP.
I can live with that.
Easily. Bones can be thrown!
"All together now:
The working class can kiss my ass,
I've got the boss' job at last!"
" a minority Conservative government supported by the NDP. "
Getting in bed with the NDP would be a mistake that every Conservative in Canada would regret for a long time.
GOT TO get a majority - minority governments are nightmares.
My current prediction: Conservative 114, Liberal 107, Bloc 65, NDP 22.
I can tell you IF the Liberals are surging in the polls in Ontario, then frankly there is NO hope whatsoever. The country needs to break up in that event.
I forget but how many seats did the Tories have in Quebec when Mulroney was in? Of course he was from Quebec which helps. This is maybe what is at the root of it. The usual suspects would rather vote for a criminal than a Westerner. If that's the case, then separation is the only answer. You notice that the United States has had a President from States from all over the country, Mass. California, Texas, Arkansas,. It doesn't seem to matter in the United States but then they have a much better political system. I don't even regard our system as Democratic. It's not. When you can form a Majority govt. with 39% of the votes of the electorate, it's NOT democratic. ONE area is controlling the entire country. I don't want any more of it.
You said it perfectly. That's what I don't want anymore of. It's a lose lose situation for us.
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