A few years ago, B had to physically restrain me from standing and asking a question of a speaker at a dinner we attended. The topic was "child poverty". That subject is back in the news following the release of a report on child poverty rates by federal riding. "The government (that's you and me, by the way) needs to legislate an end to child poverty," said some idiotic head of some advocacy group on TV today.
Seriously?! How can you legislate an end to poverty? The poor will always be with us, said some sage; it still holds true. But one of the major causes of child poverty is unwed teenage mothers selfishly keeping their babies. That's a big problem and what I was going to ask the speaker about when B held me back. I am sorry I hadn't. Why is this such a taboo? Why can no one point out that your average teenaged girl is not equipped to support a child -- especially when the father is not around? It's the supreme act of selfishness and usually done by self-involved girls who, by keeping their babies, get some respect from "the system".
Don't get me wrong, I am not talking about self-sufficient women who are able to support their children. I am supportive of women who can fend for themselves, but not for those who can't. I am a typical example of how that doesn't work. The offspring of an 18-year-old unwed teen, I was put up for adoption before I had even been born. Arranged in advance of the birth, my adoption was a text-book case about how the practice benefitted everyone -- the mother, the adoptive parents and society in general. Having found my birth family, I am eternally grateful I had not been raised by them. Instead, I was given a wonderful mother, father and large extended family -- something which would not have been possible had my birth mother not selflessly given me away.
Every time I see a teen pushing a stroller, I feel very sorry for the child who will have been robbed of advantages he/she might have enjoyed had he/she been adopted. Couples desperate for a child would not have to travel to Romania or China, Canadian babies would be placed in a good home and the young mothers would be able to get on with their lives.
Monday, June 18, 2018
Everything else has failed
The US has had absolutely no success in preventing illegal migrants from entering its southern borders, so now the draconian measure of separating children from their parents -- regardless of age -- has been adopted. Maybe it will actually work? Maybe people will stop trying it if they know they will lose their children.
By charging all entrants as criminals, the law allows officials to take the children. Actually, it requires the state to take them in criminal cases, so that's how they're doing it. Here in Canada, we're doing the opposite. We're encouraging illegal migrants to cross into Canada, effectively jumping the queue and making it longer for those following the rules and obeying the law. Do you think we could get our educated, employable Scottish nephew into Canada a few years ago? Not a chance. Same for B's elderly mother. She had to die alone in a nursing home in England while all we could do was wait for the call. At least we have her ashes -- those we were allowed to import -- and she is with my parents and brother in Beechwood Cemetery, where B and I will eventually be planted.
Thank you Justin Trudeau for being such an irresponsible dope. Nigerians and Haitians are flying into the US -- designer luggage and all -- and simply strolling across unmanned border points right into waiting tents, free medical care and food. The trick here is that the regulation that would force them to be turned away only applies at legal crossing points, not through fields and back lanes.
It's outrageous and the government has no plan to do anything about it. Duh!
Europe also has its own horrendous migrant problems. Is the entire continent of Africa simply emptying out? (See "Africa, a stupid continent" 17-11-2017.) Seems like it, as hundreds of thousands of illegals flee name-any-country. Frankly, I would not want to live anywhere in Africa, because every country is a warring, poverty-ridden dictatorship, but there has to be some way to stop this chaos. There is, but it would not be pretty.
The G7 did nothing about any of this. It cost $700 million and accomplished zip. The incompetence and ineptitude of world leaders is breathtaking.
By charging all entrants as criminals, the law allows officials to take the children. Actually, it requires the state to take them in criminal cases, so that's how they're doing it. Here in Canada, we're doing the opposite. We're encouraging illegal migrants to cross into Canada, effectively jumping the queue and making it longer for those following the rules and obeying the law. Do you think we could get our educated, employable Scottish nephew into Canada a few years ago? Not a chance. Same for B's elderly mother. She had to die alone in a nursing home in England while all we could do was wait for the call. At least we have her ashes -- those we were allowed to import -- and she is with my parents and brother in Beechwood Cemetery, where B and I will eventually be planted.
Thank you Justin Trudeau for being such an irresponsible dope. Nigerians and Haitians are flying into the US -- designer luggage and all -- and simply strolling across unmanned border points right into waiting tents, free medical care and food. The trick here is that the regulation that would force them to be turned away only applies at legal crossing points, not through fields and back lanes.
It's outrageous and the government has no plan to do anything about it. Duh!
Europe also has its own horrendous migrant problems. Is the entire continent of Africa simply emptying out? (See "Africa, a stupid continent" 17-11-2017.) Seems like it, as hundreds of thousands of illegals flee name-any-country. Frankly, I would not want to live anywhere in Africa, because every country is a warring, poverty-ridden dictatorship, but there has to be some way to stop this chaos. There is, but it would not be pretty.
The G7 did nothing about any of this. It cost $700 million and accomplished zip. The incompetence and ineptitude of world leaders is breathtaking.
Sunday, June 17, 2018
Alarming
Don't know what's happened to Client Services at the Canada Revenue Agency since I left, but things have tanked. Jamie Golomber wrote a piece in 'The Globe and Mail' the other day about how bad accuracy and accessibility now are. Just to get into the queue, callers have to try 3.3 times and agents blocked more than half of calls received, meaning clients reached neither an agent, nor an automated line.
I remember when the 1-800 system went on line. Although everyone clapped themselves on the back, it was a disaster, which is why the CRA is adopting yet another telephone system to inform callers of wait times -- something everyone else has been doing forever. (Another case of "The Emperor's New Clothes.)
But here's the kicker, when clients did reach an agent, they were given incorrect information 30 percent of the time. Thirty percent! As well as the Problem Resolution Program, I was also in charge of the accuracy surveys when I was there and I don't recall rates being as dismal as that. From what I understood from the article, accuracy surveys are no longer regularly carried out. Big mistake, in my view.
Who's in charge over there? Why does it take a boot in the a-se from the auditor general to make the CRA pull up its socks?
I remember when the 1-800 system went on line. Although everyone clapped themselves on the back, it was a disaster, which is why the CRA is adopting yet another telephone system to inform callers of wait times -- something everyone else has been doing forever. (Another case of "The Emperor's New Clothes.)
But here's the kicker, when clients did reach an agent, they were given incorrect information 30 percent of the time. Thirty percent! As well as the Problem Resolution Program, I was also in charge of the accuracy surveys when I was there and I don't recall rates being as dismal as that. From what I understood from the article, accuracy surveys are no longer regularly carried out. Big mistake, in my view.
Who's in charge over there? Why does it take a boot in the a-se from the auditor general to make the CRA pull up its socks?
Can't stand them
If I hear, or have to look at, that metrosexual creep advertising 'Sure Health' one more time I'm going to smash all my TVs. Same goes for Kurt Browning, his ugly kids and all those loser couples advertising the 'Chip reverse mortgage'.
Also on my list of "never agains pleeeeease" are the stairlift ads hauling fat slobs upstairs, the Revitalist abominations and the ads for a new bathtub..."right over your old one". And while we're at it, how about that ridiculous ad for Midas Muffler?! At the end, whatever "King Midas" touches falls apart. How would that induce people to get their cars fixed there?
It's all so pain-inducing and mind numbing. What has the advertising industry come to?
Also on my list of "never agains pleeeeease" are the stairlift ads hauling fat slobs upstairs, the Revitalist abominations and the ads for a new bathtub..."right over your old one". And while we're at it, how about that ridiculous ad for Midas Muffler?! At the end, whatever "King Midas" touches falls apart. How would that induce people to get their cars fixed there?
It's all so pain-inducing and mind numbing. What has the advertising industry come to?
Wednesday, June 13, 2018
Here's a fresh approach....
This was written by a young Saskatchewan woman. Have a read:
|
"Now this
is the truth of the matter ....read to the end. Three cheers for this young
woman!
Gotta love
the Saskatchewan people........wish more Canadian/American and Brit
politicians had some intestinal fortitude and would wake up!
"This was written by a 21 yr. old female from Saskatchewan who gets it . She's worried about the future and this is how she feels about the social welfare system that she's being forced to live in! These solutions are just common sense in her opinion. "The problems we face today are there because the people who work for a living are outnumbered by those who vote for a living". "Saskatchewan population is 48% native. "Put me in charge of food grants . I'd get rid of cash for potato chips or chocolate, just money for 50kg bags of rice and beans, blocks of cheese and all the powdered milk you can haul away. If you want steak and frozen pizza, then get a job . "Put me in charge of Healthcare . The first thing I'd do is to get women Norplant birth control implants or tubal ligation. Then, we'll test recipients for drugs, alcohol, and nicotine and document all tattoos and piercings. If you want to reproduce or use drugs, alcohol, smoke or get tattoos and piercings, then get a job . "Put me in charge of government housing . Ever live in a military barracks? You WILL maintain our property in a clean and good state of repair. Your "home" will be subject to inspections anytime and possessions will be inventoried. If you want a plasma TV or Xbox 360, then get a job and your own place. "Put me in charge of compulsory job search . In addition, you will either present a cheque stub from a job each week or you will report to a "government" job. It may be cleaning the roadways of trash, painting and repairing public housing, whatever we find for you. We will sell your 22 inch rims and low profile tires and your blasting stereo and speakers and put that money toward the "common good.." B"efore you write that I've violated someone's rights, realize that all of the above is voluntary. If you want our money, accept our rules. "Before you say that this would be "demeaning" and ruin their "self-esteem," consider that it wasn't that long ago that taking someone else's money for doing absolutely nothing was demeaning and lowered self-esteem. "If we are expected to pay for other people's mistakes we should at least attempt to make them learn from their bad choices. The current system rewards them for continuing to make bad choices. "AND while you are on Govt subsistence, you no longer can VOTE! Yes that is correct. For you to vote would be a conflict of interest.....You will most likely vote for a 'welfare' government, so you must voluntarily remove yourself from voting while you are receiving a government welfare cheque. If you want to vote, then get a job. "Now, if you have the guts - PASS IT ON..." |
No clue
Obviously, Clerk of the Privy Council Michael Wernick skipped all the classes on public admin when he went to university. Otherwise, he would never have dared criticize Auditor General Michael Ferguson because he would have known Mr. Ferguson was an Officer of Parliament and public servants do not criticize them. Under any circumstances.
But there was the egomaniacal Wernick denying the Phoenix pay system was, as Ferguson had described it, "an incomprehensible failure". Hello Mike, buddy! With tens of thousands of public servants being over-paid, under-paid, or not paid at all for the past three years it is definitely an incomprehensible failure. This clown said it indicated "pervasive cultural problems in the federal public service" and that the chapter dealing with Phoenix in the auditor general's report was an "opinion piece".
After calling it an "opinion piece", meaning Mr. Ferguson basically had no clue about what was happening with Phoenix, the brilliant Mr. Wernick went on to say that the auditor general hadn't offered any solutions. Whaaaat?! If he only had "opinions", how could the AG suggest solutions? And last time I checked, that's not his job, it's yours.
OMG! This guy is delusional! Talk about "The Emperor's New Clothes" this guy's entire wardrobe is missing. And by the way, how do "cultural problems" eff up a pay system?? And also by the way, as head of the PCO, you're supposed to shape the culture to ensure it doesn't cause such huge problems. But conversely, Wernick actually said public servants needed to be willing to take risks and become "more nimble". Does taking risks mean deputy ministers should authorize the roll out of new pay systems before any trials or pilots have been undertaken? Because that's exactly what these highly-paid dopes did to the peril of thousands.
Shocked MP David Christopherson summed it up when he said either the clerk has his head buried in the sand, or the auditor general is off the rails. Frankly, it can only be one or the other and it's obviously the former. Just to confirm his nonsensical explanation, Wernick summed the still-not-fixed mess up this way:
"I think you have to look very deeply at the incentive structure, which is the one in which human beings act, and culture is shaped by incentives and disincentives. And there are opportunities to create incentives and disincentives which reward innovation, creativity, or stifle it."
A gold star to anyone who has any clue what that gibberish means.
Ministerial accountability should have seen the minister's ass out the door long ago, with her deputy right behind it. Sadly, the clerks under whom this would never have happened include Arnold Heney, Bob Bryce, Norman Robertson and Gordon Robertson. Since their tenures, it has been a long line of flunkies, political appointments and know-nothings.
But there was the egomaniacal Wernick denying the Phoenix pay system was, as Ferguson had described it, "an incomprehensible failure". Hello Mike, buddy! With tens of thousands of public servants being over-paid, under-paid, or not paid at all for the past three years it is definitely an incomprehensible failure. This clown said it indicated "pervasive cultural problems in the federal public service" and that the chapter dealing with Phoenix in the auditor general's report was an "opinion piece".
After calling it an "opinion piece", meaning Mr. Ferguson basically had no clue about what was happening with Phoenix, the brilliant Mr. Wernick went on to say that the auditor general hadn't offered any solutions. Whaaaat?! If he only had "opinions", how could the AG suggest solutions? And last time I checked, that's not his job, it's yours.
OMG! This guy is delusional! Talk about "The Emperor's New Clothes" this guy's entire wardrobe is missing. And by the way, how do "cultural problems" eff up a pay system?? And also by the way, as head of the PCO, you're supposed to shape the culture to ensure it doesn't cause such huge problems. But conversely, Wernick actually said public servants needed to be willing to take risks and become "more nimble". Does taking risks mean deputy ministers should authorize the roll out of new pay systems before any trials or pilots have been undertaken? Because that's exactly what these highly-paid dopes did to the peril of thousands.
Shocked MP David Christopherson summed it up when he said either the clerk has his head buried in the sand, or the auditor general is off the rails. Frankly, it can only be one or the other and it's obviously the former. Just to confirm his nonsensical explanation, Wernick summed the still-not-fixed mess up this way:
"I think you have to look very deeply at the incentive structure, which is the one in which human beings act, and culture is shaped by incentives and disincentives. And there are opportunities to create incentives and disincentives which reward innovation, creativity, or stifle it."
A gold star to anyone who has any clue what that gibberish means.
Ministerial accountability should have seen the minister's ass out the door long ago, with her deputy right behind it. Sadly, the clerks under whom this would never have happened include Arnold Heney, Bob Bryce, Norman Robertson and Gordon Robertson. Since their tenures, it has been a long line of flunkies, political appointments and know-nothings.
Sunday, June 10, 2018
Canada is besieged
Just listened to Jagmeet Singh blather on about solar and wind energy instead of pipelines. "A leaky old pipeline might employ workers for the summer or a few years, but we should be putting that money into wind and solar," he raved.
OMG! He cannot be serious! Sadly, he is. I have never been an NDP supporter, so I don't care because the guy is unelectable and only won the leadership by signing up thousands of Sikh members five minutes before the leadership race. Naturally they all voted for him en block. I feel sorry for old work horses like Charlie Angus who are now totally effed. Every time you see poor Charlie he looks like a deer in the headlights. "Wha happened??!!"
The latest issue of 'Corporate Knights' contains a list of the top 50 corporations in Canada. Here's bulletin for Trudeau and Singh: They are virtually all in the oil, gas and communications sectors; not a wind or solar company to be found. So, good luck trying to turn that Queen Mary around. The carbon price rabbit-in-the-hat stunt has failed miserably and with Ford about to chuck it, he'll have determined allies in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
The Gospel today was Mark 3.20-35 and it made me think of the disaster that is Trudeau. "If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand." That's exactly what this fool Trudeau is doing to Canada. Federalism? What's that? He has no clue. As I have said, somebody need to toss him a copy of The Constitution Act of 1982 and force him to read it.
Thought it perfect that Trump called Trudeau meek, mild, weak and a liar. Frankly, he's all of the above. If he and Freeland think they can salvage NAFTA, they've got another think coming. The first thing they have to do is get rid of all those subsidized marketing boards because you can't object to US tariffs when you are protecting certain industries to the tune of almost 300%.
OMG! He cannot be serious! Sadly, he is. I have never been an NDP supporter, so I don't care because the guy is unelectable and only won the leadership by signing up thousands of Sikh members five minutes before the leadership race. Naturally they all voted for him en block. I feel sorry for old work horses like Charlie Angus who are now totally effed. Every time you see poor Charlie he looks like a deer in the headlights. "Wha happened??!!"
The latest issue of 'Corporate Knights' contains a list of the top 50 corporations in Canada. Here's bulletin for Trudeau and Singh: They are virtually all in the oil, gas and communications sectors; not a wind or solar company to be found. So, good luck trying to turn that Queen Mary around. The carbon price rabbit-in-the-hat stunt has failed miserably and with Ford about to chuck it, he'll have determined allies in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
The Gospel today was Mark 3.20-35 and it made me think of the disaster that is Trudeau. "If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand." That's exactly what this fool Trudeau is doing to Canada. Federalism? What's that? He has no clue. As I have said, somebody need to toss him a copy of The Constitution Act of 1982 and force him to read it.
Thought it perfect that Trump called Trudeau meek, mild, weak and a liar. Frankly, he's all of the above. If he and Freeland think they can salvage NAFTA, they've got another think coming. The first thing they have to do is get rid of all those subsidized marketing boards because you can't object to US tariffs when you are protecting certain industries to the tune of almost 300%.
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