Fishin' for Scandal?

Curtis at Spin Cycle was nice enough to give us props when we started out. We thank him for that. We have lots of time for Curtis. But to have him lump us in with these poor misguided souls was unsettling.

Just because we are on the left (obviously), doesn't mean we are a shill for the government. Unlike the Premier, we prefer to skate on the Left wing - not at Center. Besides, Doer hardly needs our help, wouldn't want it, and wouldn't want to be remotely associated with it! We're too radical for him.

Are we anti-Tory? Sure. But, make no mistake, we don't only throw at the right. In Arsehole 'chute-land' any deserving pol or pundit is fair game. Dung sticks where it belongs! Manitoba's Health Minister and the Premier are no exception (see here). We know we suffer from anal hyperbolitis; but the opposition and media also need to account for their shortcomings. Their recurrent ja' accuse hyperbole is juvenile. The facts please: just the facts.

As for Curtis's analysis of the issue, I find it interesting and insightful. He appears to be saying the government hedges it's bets in how it deals with potential scandals. Fair enough. But by commenting on process rather than context, isn't Curtis doing the same thing (i.e hedging his bets)? Is this issue really worthy? Is it really a 'scandal'?

Bad optics for Doer? Sure. Bad press? ibid. "Scandal"? Hardly.

What we are talking about is standard industry business practice - albeit flawed. And, unfortunately, our Health System is indeed part of an industry so large that today's red flag does little more than distract us from its real problems. Yes, $20M over 8 years is a lot of money. But in perspective, at 1% of the WRHA's annual budget, is this really our biggest problem? Should it be fixed - sure. But, if you want real corruption in health care, take a look at what Siemens has been up to.

The envelopes? Well our guess is they contain "free" supplies, software, support, etc - which we all pay for one way or the other. So, isn't it better it is "free"? Does anyone actually think the bidding mega-corps don't factor in the cost of the "free" stuff into their original bids? Fools.

If the OAG investigation does find that individuals at the WRHA personally profited from the contents of these envelopes: I, Smart Arse, will eat Fat Arse's shorts and post it on YouTube!

In the meantime, we're calling a red herring a red herring. For anyone to seriously think the WRHA tendering process is corrupt is absurd. Only the naive, or politically motivated, would actually try to advance such an argument.

Our health care system has bigger problems. Not the least of which is a Minister of Health who is not up to the job!

Groundhog Day Redux

Winnipeg's wee-Hughie came out of his hole today.

He's been so invisible, we were starting to wonder if he done croaked or somepin.


What we were really wondering though is how did he manage to take time away from gnawing on the cardboard shoulder pads of Heather Stefanson's sexy white pantsuit to burrow into the allegedly shady business deals of the WRHA?

Who knows. But here are some interesting facts about the noble land beaver:

• They are the most solitary of the marmots
• They are one of the few species that enter into true hibernation
• They pose a serious threat to development by undermining [the] building [of] foundations
• They prefer to retreat to their burrows when threatened
• When alarmed, they use a high-pitched whistle to warn the rest of the group
• Experts on: "They’re known for their aggression [with] a natural impulse to kill ’em all and let God sort ’em out. You have to work to produce the sweet and cuddly."

Whizzing wee-Hughie may get some traction on this whole WRHA thing - certainly the usual suspects among the local bloggerati have glommed onto it (even though it's probably a tempest in a teapot) - but a more likely result is that Hugh saw nothing but his pathetic shadow and it's six (at least) more years of Doer.

Coming next: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck...

The Manitoba Metis: Forever the Whipping Boy

Great news for Chartrand and the fight for Metis hunting rights in Manitoba.

But we feel obliged to try to answer the question posed of Mr. Goodon, the successful plaintiff, on CBC's noon show: why was the province so hell-bent on fighting this?

It's a good question. Sure, there's probably a good mumbo-jumbo legal answer - legal precedents around rights etc, but the real reason is political.

Why would a Premier who has so steadfastly avoided even the hint of disagreement (never mind the picking of fights) with almost any group he has ever encountered, allow a fight like this to go on for almost five years?

Because the Metis are the perfect whipping boy. As one visitor commenting on the local CBC story wrote, summing up the prevailing sentiment of the dominant culture: "The Metis were not here first, don't forget [they] ... are half white."

Mr. Doer is no dummy. Being neither Indian nor "white," the Metis constitute the perfect "Other" for the Premier. A trusty wedge he can introduce when courting the support of those two much larger constituencies that begat the Metis. And Mr. Doer has done so brilliantly. Don't believe us? Find another significant lobby group that Mr. Doer has given the finger to like he has Chartrand in the last ten years.

Don't bother - you won't find one.

Despite today's legal victory, this will not be the end of the legal friction between the Manitoba Government and the Metis.

Knowing there is little sympathy among either Indians or whites for the cause of the Metis - Doer will continue to use the Manitoba Half-Breed as his political whipping boy because he has judged there is no electoral downside - and because he thinks he can get away with it.

And now for something completely different: praising the good

Someone in the street the other day said we were nothing but nattering nabobs of negativism. We disagree.

We can spot a silver lining amidst the storm clouds of late capitalist ennui as good as the next arsehole.

For instance, one of the the more glorious, unexpected benefits of the present clusterphuck in Ottawa is the singular absence of this idiot from the airwaves and printing presses of Manitoba.

Praise the good!