Detention

Look at the big, bad, scary teachers' unions falling like dominoes, tripping over themselves to agree to Dalton's contract terms. Solidarity, huh? There's absolutely nothing solid about these losers.

Scared by the threat of an election. Cowering in terror at the thought of being marginalized by the public for disagreeing with the government. Disgusting. This can't be the will of the union rank and file any more than blowing union dues on supporting the Liberals is. But ultimately, it's understandable. Nobody wants to get into Premier Dad's bad books.

You geniuses who for months talked about how Dalton taking on the unions would lead to his undoing, or to another general election, had it exactly backwards. Dalton doesn't need the unions. They need him. Just like everyone else needs him if they're going to stay relevant.

Oh, but still. Still you cling to the possibility of a general election over this enforced deal Dalton's pushing. Never mind that every single group of people that Dalton's faced since 2011- from the NDP propping up the budget to the Catholic Church caving and mandating GSA's in Catholic schools- has turned tail and ran. You have to imagine the scenario where someone (not you, but someone) stands up to Dalton.

Every week I read about another showdown between Dalton and whoever the hell it is this week, and every week it's the exact same outcome. Dalton wins. And he wins not because he's right, but because the other side loses their nerve. Nobody has the balls to carry out their threats.


Even our friend Bob Hepburn of the Toronto Star had to find this out the hard way when he learned after the fact and to his horror that Dalton fudged the numbers on Ontario Place to make the case for closing it so that we could have Vegas North on the waterfront. Maybe he should have thought twice before making Dalton what he is today.


The one exception is the PC Party of Ontario. Who voted against the budget. Who, good heavens, want to allow beer in corner stores despite the violent backlash that will occur because of taking that position. Who call out the unions for not representing the will of their members.

In a province where whatever the government does becomes generally accepted wisdom- where nobody dares to stand up to McGuinty when the chips are down, not even the feared teacher's unions- these people are the only ones who can be counted on to fight back. At all. Chances are they are braver than you.

So once more, with feeling. Vote for the PC Party of Ontario and don't give McGuinty back his majority. Yes, even in Vaughan, because the Liberal candidate in Vaughan is yet another one of these union bosses who knows who his masters are, something which cannot be said about the PC Party candidate.

"Generic Eric" Has A Nice Ring To It

So today, the Liberals laughed themselves stupid about Tony Genco becoming the PC Party nominee in Vaughan, because he lost last time, and then, in Kitchener Waterloo, the Liberals nominated Eric Davis.........the guy who lost last time.

It must be nice to be so thoroughly cushioned against reality.

Public Service Announcement

It is with the utmost pride and sincerity that I present the draft constitution of the Ontario PC Student Association (OPCSA). This is a potentially historic moment in Ontario's PC Youth movement.

Yes, after decades of talk, this is finally coming to a vote. The bitter debate and division between the OPCYA and OPCCA have finally been pushed aside, leaving the potential for the two youth wings affiliated with the PC Party of Ontario to become one. The vote will happen in Cambridge on October 12th. You can read the open letter from outgoing OPCYA President Grant Dingwall here.

The youth and campus members of the PC Party of Ontario who support this initiative (and there are many) believe that the party will be better served by a single, strong, streamlined group of youth that fosters the development of youth associations in ridings and campus clubs on campus. We are doing our part to help the PC Party of Ontario by reducing duplication of effort and red-tape associated with youth programming, because it's never too early in life to start doing the conservative thing.

I predict you will find lots of pro-merger youth working on the newly called by-elections, organizing on campuses, or involved in your riding associations. That's because we are committed to victory, both now and in the future. Let the games begin!

They're Not Even *Trying*

Today, I was informed that the Liberals are dropping flyers in Kitchener Waterloo that make the claim that 96% of people in the area have a family doctor. (I've debunked this scam before, by the way.)

The (very ill) voter who received this flier and told me about it didn't seem to agree with that assessment.

I guess he's just part of the unlucky 4%, and that means there's "more to be done," huh Liberals?

You know why they're doing this, right? Because they think they're never going to get called out on it, and if they are, nobody's going to care.

Are they right? I don't know. You tell me.

Soft Bigotry

"It’s not only wrong to waste taxpayers’ money in this way; it’s doubly wrong to waste it so utterly pointlessly, since there’s every reason to believe the Liberals would have won those seats even without the cancellation, had they not panicked." -Martin Regg Cohn

A glimmer of truth from Mr. Regg Cohn amongst his attempts to spread blame for the power plant fiasco around. The Liberals had no need to cancel the power plant, because chances were good they were going to win anyway. It constituted overkill. It leaves a bad taste in one's mouth. A Liberal government should be able to win majorities without doing such disreputable things.

So when an ORNGE chopper pilot is suspended for speaking out, or funding is cut for a provincial agency that deals with improving women's health, you can bet that people like Cohn are going to register mild-to-moderate displeasure and then forget about it in a couple of days. What an annoyance. Now they have to write columns and newspaper articles about Liberals screwing up and doing stuff they wouldn't ever tolerate from Conservative governments. And on a day when Canada won its first gold medal at the Olympics, too! Le sigh.

Why did this chopper pilot have to be grounded? Couldn't we just go the usual Liberal route and compile a list of homophobic things he may or may not have said, and then have Steven Del Duca go nuts about it on Twitter?

Or maybe the Liberals could put that data from Elections Ontario that went missing the other week to good use and make it publicly known that this pilot voted for Mike Harris at some point in the past? That'd kill any credibility he had instantly.

Naaaah. We know the Liberals will do all of the above and more, but the fact is that nobody would report on it. Only for those rare occasions when the press gallery and Ontarians in general sit up and take notice do they go the extra mile. After all, wasn't it Chretien who said, "It's always good to keep expectations low?"

Attn: Steven Del Duca

 

Lasciate Ogni Speranza

A long serving MPP quits, throwing the QP rumour mill into overdrive. What could have caused this departure? Divisions within caucus? Leader's office being too controlling? Trouble on the home front, perhaps?

Well, no such luck when it comes to the Don of Vaughan, Greg Sorbara. Two days after he quit, and nobody- nobody- dares to speculate. When Elizabeth Witmer packs it in, you get an avalanche of tweets saying she did it just to stick a knife in Hudak's back, even though she herself said differently. But Sorbara? Above all suspicion.

Is it even that hard to believe that the combined weight of ORNGE, the looming battle with teachers over negotiating new contracts, the ongoing battle with doctors, the revelation that we're pouring money into underpowered green energy projects that yield nothing, and Sorbara's own leadership ambitions being frustrated by Dalton doing his best Bill Davis impression made him decide to get out of la cucina before things got too hot? Sure, that's not too much of a stretch. But apparently it's too much to handle for the press, or for the Twitterati.

OK, how about something a little easier to digest? How about the fact that the Liberals are behind misleading survey calls in the Waterloo region talking about a fictitious PC Party plan to "lay off thousands of teachers"? Are we going to let this pass unnoticed?

Don't everyone rush forward at once.