It’s a good thing PMS informed us last fall that if we were going to have a recession we would have had it by now.

Real gross domestic product declined 0.7% in January following decreases of 1.0% in December 2008 and 0.7% in November 2008.

A dramatic reading of posts taken directly from online Christian fundamentalist forums.

Heh.

One of the ironies of the past week is that Meir Weinstein, the leader of the Jewish Defence League of Canada and former North American spokesperson for the banned Kach movement, called for George Galloway to be banned from Canada as a terrorist apologist. Hence we have a bona fide terrorist apologist, Meir Weinstein, calling someone else a terrorist apologist. Kach has been listed by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization since 1994 and has been banned by Canada since 2005 .

Update: Uh oh!

Moshe Feiglin, in case you were wondering, thinks Hitler was, “an unparalleled military genius” and that, “Nazism promoted Germany from a low to a fantastic physical and ideological status.”

I think the JDL is about to find out why it’s not a good idea to throw stones when you live in a glass house.

If the conservative’s want to make Kathy Shaidle the face of conservatism then I say we should give them all the help they deserve.

Why is CTV promoting a hardcore pornographic website?

Oh noez!

CP: 36%
LP: 33%
NDP: 13% < --we're doomed!
BQ: 10%
GP: 8%

Oops, silly me, that’s the wrong poll. That one is from August 14th, 2007. Here’s the latest earth shattering–at least for the NDP or so I’ve heard–polling numbers.

I don’t see any problem with the government bailing out the media sector even if it tacks on an extra ten bucks on my cable bill. Nationally they employ just as many people as the auto sector and they are vital to our culture and democracy. I would object however, to any loosening of the rules on foreign ownership and Canadian content. Canada’s media sector should principally serve the interests of Canadians, not Rupert Murdoch’s Rushpublican empire.

The Minister of McCarthyism, Jason “scurry in a hurry” Kenney, strikes again.

Border security chiefs have declared the Respect MP “inadmissable” because of his views on Afghanistan and the presence of Canadian troops there…

But Mr Kenney’s spokesman said: “George Galloway is not getting a permit — end of story.

It’s long been established that the Conservatives are shameless vote whores, but never in my wildest imagination did I actually think these despicable bastards would introduce McCarthyism into Canada just to pander to a few Jewish voters.

As part of a “zero tolerance approach towards anti-Semitism,” the federal government is reviewing all its public service grants to remove state support from groups that advocate hatred or express support for terrorism.

On the surface one might believe that this is sensible policy. The problem however, lies in the very real campaign by conservatives and Conservatives to brand everyone who disagrees with them as either a terrorist supporter or anti-semite. Disagree that Hamas is a terrorist organization and you’re a terrorist supporter. Attend a Tamil separatist rally and you’re a terrorist supporter. Accuse Israel of being an apartheid regime and you’re an anti-semite.

This conservative witch hunt has become an integral part of the way their movement operates over the past several years and this McCarthyist mindset has clearly infected the Conservative Party who now look to spread it to the Canadian government.

A young man struggles against the pressure to Twitter his life away.
Catch the Season Premiere, airing Friday March 20, 10 PM ET/PT.

I don’t know if this has made its way around the blogosphere yet, but here’s the latest robot out of Japan.

I seem to recall writing two posts last Friday before heading out of town for a few days. One made fun of this deluded right whinger who thinks everyone named Kinsella is related and the other noted the 83,000 Canadians who began their Harper holiday in February. I’m not sure what happened to them or even when they disappeared, but baring a more mundane explanation for this occurrence I suspect the deluded right whingers were somehow involved.

Yeah, we’re screwed.

The worst-case scenarios on climate change envisaged by the UN are already being realised, say scientists at an international meeting in Copenhagen.

In a statement outlining their six key messages to political leaders, they say there is an increasing risk of abrupt or irreversible climate shifts.

Can we start hunting climate change deniers to extinction yet?

Apparently the blame for Ontario’s auto industry woes lies at the feet of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation who decided to give away 22 foreign cars instead of saving GM by giving away domestic cars.

Okay, Stageleft, I’ll see your Dinga Dinga, Dinga Dinga, Dinga Dinga Dee and raise you a Stalin Commands You to Dance! from Mezmer Games.

Shorter Deficit Jim: Come on, lets get this liberal, deficit spending, wealth redistribution orgy going.

Update: David Akin smacks down Deficit Jim’s and PMS‘ bald faced lies that the opposition is stalling their liberal, deficit spending, wealth redistribution orgy.

We all need to keep the pressure on the opposition to act.

Let’s say it one more time: The legislation has not yet been tabled nor will it be until March 26. Even if the entire opposition crossed the floor today and the House of Commons consisted of 308 Conservative MPs, there would be nothing for them to “act” on because, and I hate to belabour this point, the legislation will not be tabled until March 26.

It looks to me like the Cons are trying to put the liberal, deficit spending, wealth redistribution cart before the liberal, deficit spending, wealth redistribution horse. Par for the course for the Conservatives I guess, but you’d think that after 3 years of selling out their principles they’d have at least learned to get their ass covering propaganda right.

Me two years ago.

You’ll see that this tank is a waste of taxpayer dollars that will not help us in Afghanistan and once we’re out of Afghanistan will only become a $650 million rusted monument to the outdated cold war thinking that still holds sway over our military.

Reality today.

Lieutenant-General Andrew Leslie, Chief of the Land Staff, said he can not explain why he is still waiting for the badly needed tanks. “Quite frankly, it’s taking an awfully long time,” Gen. Leslie told the Senate committee on national security and defence. “They bought 100 Leopard 2s. Forty are still in Europe and 40 are currently in Montreal and they’ve been in Montreal since I believe November of last year. And I do not yet have my hands on those Leopard 2s with which to train our soldiers.”

These tanks are only going to see action if Rick Mercer decides to take one out for a test drive again.

More on Steve’s tank boondoggle and from Impolitical.

Try and wrap your head around this one. “The global crisis wiped a staggering $50-trillion (U.S.) off the value of financial assets last year…” That’s 70% of the GWP (Gross World Product) of $70 trillion in 2008.

I just got word that Kellogg’s employees learned today that the company is downsizing their operations across the globe. In London, Ontario, 25 salaried employees were laid off. Kellogg had net earnings of $1.15 billion in 2008.

More to come as details become available.

Update: Damn! I thought I had my first ever scoop but the Omaha World Herald sort of beat me to it.

Jobs have been eliminated in restructuring efforts at the Kellogg’s cereal plant in Omaha, but details were sparse today…

Local union officials said the job cuts appeared to be in management positions and that the 500 union workers at the plant had not been affected.

Taliban Steve.

The Conservative government says its policies are line with those of Barack Obama’s on talking with the Taliban.

In the end they always come around to the NDP’s way of thinking.