The sacrificial lamb has a name.

Michelle D'Auray, public servant.

The Harper government claims a senior bureaucrat gave it the go-ahead to avoid rules governing the look and feel of its Economic Action Plan website.

Right.  Like I said before, harper & Co. can't get rid of all public servants.  They need a few to kick around and blame for their own stupidity and corrupt actions.

Of course harper and Hang-'em-high family man Vic have nothing to back that claim.  In fact, the paper-trail clearly shows that the TB public servant team leader advised against it.

As current president of TB, Stockie Day is trying to justify Toews and harper's actions, claiming Michelle D'Auray, secretary to TB recommended that the exemption be granted.

But guess what?

Day’s office and the Prime Minister’s Office did not respond to requests to produce the d’Auray document.

This blame the public servant is just the latest in harper's half-assed attempt to brush away criticism over violating very clear TB rules that forbid using federal government sites and resources for partisan purposes.   Earlier on, in committee, they tried to say things like the use of Google Map hampered their ability to maintain a common look and feel.

Wow.  Odd how inserting a Google Map function can throw off an entire design, create a new one, and add in a youtube clip of harper playing the piano.

Some people may not think that this particular abuse of tax dollars, and politicizing what is supposed to be a non-partisan public service is no big deal, but it is far from an isolated incident.  We've been paying for many such CPC/harper promotions, and our federal public service has been used as harper's personal marketing team since he took power: oversized checks carrying the CPC logo, public service websites linking to that tiresome piano playing video, unrelated sites linking to federal budgets, the economic action plan, harper's photo popping up all over the place, public servants used to push the economic action plan ad signs, partisan statements on public service sites...

Where is the clout to enforce accountability on politicians who brazenly thumb their noses at the public while stealing their money to do so?

Every time we do nothing more than shake our heads and say, well, it sucks, but that's politics, we give these corrupt actions our stamp of approval through our simple silence.

For all the griping about taxes, you would think more Canadians would be royally miffed at having any political party dip into our pockets to pay for their own marketing needs - and using those tax dollars to misrepresent their deeds, as well.

Stockwell does math...poorly

Nearly $1.7-billion in promised cuts to government spending will come almost entirely from attrition in the public service, suggesting a relatively pain-free opening round as Ottawa begins to trim its record deficit.

Uh-huh.  Didn’t believe it in March, don’t believe it now.  Neither does Carleton University economics professor Frances Woolley.

“I think [the federal government] is being optimistic in saying they’re going to be able to make it through attrition," she said.

And this is why -

Treasury Board President Stockwell Day...said about 11,000 public servants vacate positions each year – mainly through retirement – and not hiring replacements will be Ottawa’s main source of savings.

Even if exactly 11,000 jobs were left unfilled, finding $1.7-billion in savings assumes the average compensation of the departing workers is $155,000, which she said is high. (No kidding!!!  The average is 68,000.00 and that includes executives) Further, pension obligations mean a retired public servant is not off the books. Internal transfers will also be a challenge, she said, because retirees are often leaving senior positions while cuts will likely affect more junior workers.

But hey, it’s a good excuse for harper to butcher his favourite kicking dog. 

And this affects non-public servants as well.  By not replacing 11,000 retiring workers, services, quality, and even efficiency will suffer through lack of sufficient staffing.  Like here.

Has the big beast had enough?

 Why do these lines of Yeats come to me now?

The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

When John Baird made an announcement that really should have been made by the President of the Treasury Board, Stock Day, and when that announcement is such a blatant lie contradicting what Day has been saying, you need to ask why, and why now.

“We won’t see the massive cuts to the public service that happened under the last Liberal government,” said Baird. “I don’t envisage anything like that.”...As an example (of how important public servants are), he cited the 300 public servants who work at his former ministry, Infrastructure Canada. “We could not have done the economic action plan without them. They delivered it.”    

Sure.  Baird valued public servants so much when he was head of Infrastructure that he short staffed them while drastically increasing the workload.  They were then blamed for the slow process of loosening up stimulus funds.

The government body that oversees $38 billion in federal infrastructure spending has had its knuckles rapped for being poorly staffed and hiring unqualified employees.  Infrastructure Canada has had either no human resource plan or insufficient plans in the three years audited since the Conservatives came to power, said the report.  "The department has faced and continues to face a significant shortfall of staff," said the audit.

"My understanding of last year is they didn't add a single staff, net," said Kennedy.  "That is a recipe for bad performance. It's also a recipe for political interference. Shortcuts are taken when people aren't there and when people aren't trained."

Baird now claims there will be no cuts to departmental budgets, and spending will increase for defence, airport security, and law and order.  This certainly hasn’t been the case so far under Harper.


Although Demers (PIPS) says politically-driven public service cuts have been going on for many years, the process has accelerated under the Harper Conservatives. The 2007 federal budget mandated across-the-board savings of five percent in every government department.

Nor has the guy who actually is supposed to decide what to cut in the public service sent the same message.

Just days into his new job, Day cut 245 positions from government boards and agencies, principally related to the arts.  On the day he was appointed, he boasted of being the new Dr. No and warned of cuts to come.  The words of CON liars aside, logic tells us the public service has been, and will continue to be under attack.

Since the government has already promised that funding transfers to the provinces are safe and ruled out tax hikes, that leaves government programs as the obvious target to curb spending.

...Day earned a reputation as a zealous cost-cutter when as Alberta labour minister he was caught in a furor over hospital staffing when then-premier Ralph Klein's government attempted to chop public-sector wages. As a candidate for Canadian Alliance leader, he advocated cutting funding for departments like Health Canada.

So why send Baird out to lie on behalf of Day?  Day’s bragging of cuts is too recent for him to do a flip-flop, and he has reduced his feeble credibility to the negative zone over his non-existent criminal comments.

That still leaves us to wonder why Baird was sent by the master to make any comment on this at all.

The rough beast, perhaps, has been vexed to nightmare and is waking up.  Public servants are generally passive, grumbling from time to time about the little things, putting up with the partisan nature of their Ministers, adjusting after each election.  But push them too hard, from too many directions, and they will kick up more than a fuss.

In the past year, Flaherty has openly stated that their pensions and benefits are very generous and considering the context, there is little doubt these will be under attack.  Public servants are being forced to violate their own commitment to non-partisan service through pressure and instruments such as MEPs.  They are being muzzled.  They are being used as scapegoats while the political bosses who forced them despite their best advice walk away unscathed.    The list of public servants served up as fodder simply because they were doing their job and doing it well is lengthy.

Then, Colvin came along.  The moment I saw him on video, I knew he would be a catalyst for change.  Linda Keen was admirable, but so wonderfully tough she was viewed by some as abrasive.  Not so with Colvin.  He clearly didn’t want to be in front of cameras, he was obviously pained by the whole process, and he came across as very sincere.  His actions cost him.  Seeing Colvin take a beating day after day without quitting on his role as a public servant was not only inspiring to public servants, it also tweaked a little guilt each time their political bosses asked them to cross a line.

Then, along come Munir Sheikh.  Well, well, well.  Resign a gem of a job on principle.  A principle held dear by any decent public servant.

Public servants have to be wondering who is next, and what will be asked of them by this government.   They have to be waking up to the reality that they are nothing but a resource to be kicked around by this government, then tossed aside for political reasons.

Bad enough if your pay, pension, and benefits are threatened.  But when you are asked to toss aside your integrity by someone who doesn’t even give a damn about you, when you are used as the kicking boy, then you cannot go home each night feeling good about that eight or so hours of your life, day after day.

I’m guessing there are rumbling coming from the beast that is the public service, and Harper is realizing that this particular beast need only roll over to crush him.  Public servants have learned under this government the importance of saving e-mails and memos.

Entropy : a function of a system's tendency towards spontaneous change

So that’s what harper’s ideology is based on.

Entropy and the census:

Back in mid-July the long form sucked because it generated bad data :
PMO spokesman Dimitri Soudas suggested the census generated bad data, noting in a widely circulated e-mail that “21,000 Canadians registered Jedi knight as a religion in the 2001 census.”

July 13, 2010, the long form sucked because it was intrusive and applied heavy-handed tactics:
"I think that government forcing people, threatening to put people in jail if they don't tell the government how many bathrooms they have is a bit heavy-handed, and a bit ridiculous frankly," (Baird) said in Ottawa.

Yesterday, August 5, 2010, the long form didn’t suck anymore, in fact was quite good:
“Yeah, there are groups that are upset. … Hey, listen, they had a good deal going,” Mr. Clement said Thursday following a meeting with fellow MPs in Ottawa.  “They got good, quality data and the government of Canada was the heavy.

August 5, 2010, the long form is still great, but once more uses heavy-handed tactics which Harperites want no part of:
Mr. Clement, however, said Ottawa no longer wants to act as data collection enforcer for statistics users. “It worked for them. Doesn't mean it worked for other Canadians.”

August 5, 2010, who the hell needs it anyway?:
“All these provincial governments and these social institutions and private businesses – we’ll get them some data that will be useful and reliable,” (Clement) said.

Great!  Useful and reliable.  From the HarperCONs.  Like this useful and reliable data upon which the decision has been made to spend 9.1 billion taxpayer dollars on unreported criminals:

“If you ask, is there unreported crime in Canada, there’s unreported crime, there’s no question about it,” Nicholson (said)…“I get anecdotal evidence and there are certainly some studies on that.”

Wow!  Anecdotal evidence!  Think of the cost savings! 

Finley can go hang out in the Market in Ottawa, and for the price of a pack of cigarettes and a little pocket change, she can gather reams of anecdotal evidence on the need for adult literacy programs, job training, transitional programs for people who lives have suddenly been shot to hell.

Leona Aglukkaq can join her (just need one Parl. Assistant handing out cigarettes that way) to get plenty of anecdotal evidence on the need for rehab centres, safe injection sites, half-way houses, temporary shelter.

Prentice can borrow a fishing rod from Scott Reid and go hang out with the natives on the Wabigoon River system catching fish no one can eat while they swap anecdotes. 

Oh, this could add up after all.  A better solution to collecting useful and reliable evidence at low cost with little to no intrusive methods would be to send a few MPs with their Parliamentary aids to hang out where the real Canadians go.  The place where common sense is found.  Tim Horton’s. 

Wait…still to expensive.  All those Parliamentary photographers…

Got it!  Create a new Ministry, the Ministry of Truth.  Put Max Bernier in charge.  Hell, if he can get useful and reliable info on the long form by receiving over 1,000 e-mails without even asking for input, just think – think what he can do if he’s on a mission!  And if anyone is worried about their personal anecdotal information getting into the hands of a hot biker chick with ties to the Mafia and Hell’s Angels, don’t worry.  Maxie doesn’t print out the e-mails.  He doesn’t even save them.  But he remembers each and every one.
Then Maxie can call whatever Minister may be interested, pass on the useful and reliable info, and the said Minister can make changes that affect all our lives.  Over the summer, of course.  When the House isn’t sitting.  Cheaper that way, and really, average Canadians just aren’t that interested in how their tax dollars are spent, or how their lives will be affected by sweeping changes.

If any of you need any further convincing, just think of the savings:  we could get rid of all researchers, planners, strategists, policy makers, and legal teams from all departments.  That would mean far less support/admin. Staff, and barely a handful of HR staff.  Communication staff?  Why pay those assholes!  Since PCO has to vet every piece of communication they produce for the public as it stands now,  just get PCO to make the products from the start.  In fact, we could get rid of PCO altogether and have the lot done by the PMO!!!!

This is very exciting.  I can’t wait to stop at Timmie’s on the way in tomorrow and gather useful and reliable information so I can put together a portfolio and apply for a job with the PMO.

Care to help a fellow blogger with a few anecdotes?

Field Day - Or is that DAYzed and CONfused?

His mother would be so proud.  Doris had his name in print more than any other Canadian, today.

A few gems:

Best blog quote:

Doris' cheery crime shoppers philosophy on prisons seems to be : If you build them, they will come. (Alison at Dawg’s Blawg - great photoshop as well!) 

Must read analysis of the CONs’ strategy of inventing a crisis to create a need, then apply the results to move toward a very frightening goal.  Brilliant and chilling piece by Boris at TGB

Boris makes excellent points.  It is difficult not to laugh at Dino Doris and his foot-in-mouth disease, but what the Harperites are doing, and how they are managing to by-pass legislation and reality to do it is no laughing matter.  Those speak of a frightening, ideological, very hostile takeover of our rights and democracy.

Letters from the Ottawa Citizen, August 5, 2010:

...Mr. Day might well have borrowed from the Queen of Hearts: Minister Day: “Alice, my dear, are you ready for your sentence?” Alice: “But there has to be a verdict first.” Minister: “Sentence first, verdict afterwards!” Michael Friendly, professor of psychology, chair, quantitative methods program, York University

What Canada really needs are more unbuilt prison cells to deal with the rise in unreported crime. Because unbuilt prisons are so much cheaper than actual prisons, the Conservative government could announce twice as many new unbuilt cells and still save taxpayers money. Add imaginary prison guards and the government can deal with unemployment at virtually no cost. Then we can all go for tea down the rabbit hole. Norman Rosencwaig, Toronto

I await (the Fraser Institute’s) study supporting Stockwell Day’s contention that dinosaurs did indeed once roam the Earth with humans.  Mike Hutton, Ottawa

If Statistics Canada has numbers underscoring the declining rates of crime overall in Canada, yet we need more prisons, what is the game plan of this Conservative government in creating this wealth of new criminals?

Malcontent foreign affairs employees, dissenting board members of the Wheat Board, suspended staffers of rights and democracy agencies, outspoken RCMP officers, representatives of women’s shelters, scientists from Environment Canada speaking out on global warming, or simply the growing numbers of dissenting Canadians who are concerned about these now very transparent attacks on our democracy and rights across Canada?  Kevin Morris, Gatineau, Que.

Now, let’s hear from Dullard Doris himself:

(Day) also questioned the value of information gathered by the census, suggesting data older than a year is "untenable in today's information age."

That was two days ago when Stats Can statistics sucked and threatened the very fabric of our society, but folks, keep up with current events!

Yesterday, Doris wanted to make us all safe by spending 9 billion of our tax dollars building more prisons and revamping existing ones.  They would be needed, he warned us, because of all of those unreported criminals who have committed an alarming number of unreported (and unclassified) crimes!  OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!  Am I an unwitting victim of these faceless scum bags???!!!  Lock them up!!!!!  For doing whatever it is that has not been reported!!!!!  Hire Steve’s psychic hairdresser NOW!!!!!! 

And Stockboy knows this how?

A spokesperson for the justice minister said Day was referring to the General Social Survey conducted by Statistics Canada that asks individuals if they have been victims of crimes and if they reported the incidents to police.  Results of the 2009 survey conducted every five years will not be published until September, but the 2004 report does show a slight decrease, from 37 per cent to 34 per cent, of reported crimes.

Oh...Stats Can.  Totally sucks, except when it doesn’t, and only when you can leave out the parts you don’t like - the vast majority of unreported crimes aren’t reported because people don’t think they are serious enough to report.

Since Walks-With-Angels-Tony wasn’t around to rescue the floundering minister, Iceman Nicholson jumped into the maelstrom.

"If you ask, is there unreported crime in Canada, there’s unreported crime, there’s no question about it, Nicholson (said)..."I get anecdotal evidence and there are certainly some studies on that.”    

Anecdotal evidence.  I see...So we just need to sent in our cute, funny stories, the Minister of Justice will faithfully read each and every one, accord them fair, impartial weight, and develop policies accordingly.  Sort of like the wisdom of Solomon.  Hang on to your babies, ladies!

“We don’t govern on the basis of statistics,” Nicholson said. “We govern on the basis of what we hear from the public and what law enforcement agencies tell us. That has not changed in the four and a half years we’ve been in government.”

Oh?...OH???

In support of Day, Nicholson’s spokeswoman referred to the General Social Survey conducted by Statistics Canada that asks people if they’ve been victims of crimes and if they reported them to police.

That would be Stats Can, the department that churns out statistics...and doesn’t Stats Can tell government what the public thinks?

But wait!  Rob mentions listening to what enforcement agencies tell the Hasrperites.  So what have these agencies been saying? (emphasis mine)

Various police organizations - Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, Canadian Association of Police Boards, and Canadian Police Association - have been lobbying MPs to ensure they do not support the removal of long guns from the gun registry. This has been a matter of considerable debate in Ottawa, and some members of the Liberal and New Democratic parties have said they intend to support the removal of long guns from control, which would Allow the Conservative party motion to pass.  The success of the long gun registry in preventing deaths seems overwhelming. (From Toronto Police Accountability Bulletin, No. 54, June 21, 2010.)

Whoops.  No bloody wonder Stevie the Petulant only made a three minute appearance today and took no questions.  The waters are just a bit to rough.

Stocky Doris Day should be a kindergarten teacher

In a fundamentalist christian school, of course.

His intro memo to the staff at Treasury Board is unprofessional, insincere, childish in the extreme, and insulting to those he addresses.

Day may not realize all of that.  He doesn’t appear to be extremely bright, and he certainly isn’t worldly.

Here are a few excerpts from his memo:

Hello out there in Treasury Board land! As your newly appointed President (I'm still trying to get used to that title), I don't mind telling you I'm feeling a little bit overwhelmed.
 
A few minutes ago, I was looking out of my office window beside the Peace Tower in the direction of the Treasury Board building. I was wondering if I could see any of you from here.
 
The newly prepared briefing books (they look huge) are sitting on the desk in front of me. My briefing sessions are just beginning and I can see that I have a lot to learn.

By trying to sound folksy, chatty, and down-to-earth, he comes across as a fumbling, uneducated guy with no clue as to the nature of his audience.

Did you ever read any of those books written by Richard Scarry? Our kids used to enjoy when we would read one called What Do People Do All Day.

...Now my grandkids will be asking me "What do Treasury Board people do all day, do they take care of Treasures?" I'll say, "Well kind of ..."
 
I'll explain to them that I'll be working with people who work hard every day taking care of the money that the Government gets from all the workers in Canada who pay what's called "taxes," which is the money it takes to run the Government.

Now if Stock were really writing this for his grandkids, this would be fine, but his audience is the staff at Treasury Board.  In addition to making one feel like gagging, this is an extremely patronizing way of addressing adults who have been working at TB for years, some for decades.  They hardly need to hear a dumbed-down version of what they do.

I'm also looking forward to meeting as many of you as possible. The Secretary tells me there are over two thousand of you out there, in Ottawa and from coast to coast. I'm not sure I'll have each of your names memorized by the weekend, but I will get a better idea of "what you do all day" as I get the chance to meet you or at least to hear from you through the magic of email and other sources.

Again, while day is probably trying to sound humourous, his level of address is simply insulting to adults.  If he cannot come up with a genial, but serious intro, he should not have bothered.

So let me say "Thank You" again for "what you do all day". Each of you in your own way is making a difference. I'd like to be a part of that with you.  So for now, it's back to the briefing books. We'll talk again soon. And I'll be telling my grandkids about you.

“Stockwell” “Doris” “Day” should listen to communication advisors who would tell him that “quotation marks” are a “sign” of someone who needs “training” in writing to an “adult” audience.

We’ll talk again soon - patronizing, insincere, just plain stupid and inaccurate.        

I find it somewhat frightening that this bumpkin will be running Treasury Board - sort of.  We all know the real captain will be Stay-the-course, steady-hand-at-the-helm, the Big Guy, Himself.

Bunker mentality on display: these guys listen to their own rhetoric so much they have no clue what Canadians are all about.

A very important photo of Steve and notes on the shuffle

Here's the Big Guy, signing the docs for his new cabinet appointments.

Because, you know, it isn’t about the Ministers.  It’s all about Steve.  All the time.

I'm rather disappointed that there's no new Harper on the phone with some important guy for my collection.   I almost have enough of them that if I put one on each page, I can make a little flip book and make it look like he's having an actual conversation, complete with hand movements.

About that cabinet shuffle (in which the government takes time off to re-calibrate,  tweak, and fine-tune his ministry)  – what the media is saying:

There is general agreement by journalists that the shuffle was a “minor make-over” meant to:

Reward some members – Christian Paradis, Rona Ambrose

Punish some Ministers such as Lisa Raitt and Peter Van Loan for poor performance

Focus on two main priorities: Security and fiscal restraint

Vic Toews ‘ background in Justice and move to Public Safety suggests more attention will be paid to implementing  tough security laws and policies.

The shuffle was largely viewed by journalists as signaling “no significant change” in the government’s course and offering no new message.  Focus of the government is expected to remain on the economy when Parliament resumes March 3, 2010.  The agenda deals nearly exclusively with the economy and law and order/security.  Actual funding, according to a leaked memo is to go only to projects dealing with health and safety as well as security.

Jack Layton came out with a clever line as he criticized Raitt’s move to Labour: “Jobs, jobs creation and the issue of our labour force should be a top priority and not seen as some kind of penalty box for a misbehaving minister.”  

Economy

Despite the economy coming up in speeches related to the shuffle, senior economic portfolios remain unchanged (Finance, Industry, Infrastructure and transport, Human Resources)

This leaves the government with the same talented team of Ministers under which spending went up by 17.6 % from 2006-2009 and under which revenues were cut, resulting in a 56 billion dollar deficit.

Stockwell Doris Day

Considered to most significant appointment in the shuffle.

Day’s job will be to help plan restraint following the March 4, 2010 budget as the government plans to end stimulus spending and must find areas where cuts to spending can be made.

Journalists agree that Day,  already being called the “new Dr. No in Ottawa,”  was apparently chosen by Harper for his experience as treasurer in Alberta where he preached restraint.  Most believe the real dude behind money matters (other than Harper himself, that is) will remain Flaherty.  Day’s appointment sends a message that Harper plans to stay focused on the economy.  Day can also tow the line although he is prone to making monumentally stupid comments - which I am very much looking forward to.

When he was treasurer for Alberta, Day famously wore a loonie pinned to his lapel to recognize how hard taxpayers work for their “sweat-soaked” dollars. 

That turned out to be laughable, however.

But Day’s fiscal reputation as a penny-pincher is exaggerated.  As Alberta treasurer in the late 1990s, he pledged to respect every loonie he spent as soaked with the taxpayer sweat, but then presided over hefty leaps in government spending as oil prices soared. 

I expect we’ll see more of the same.  Dorky words and gimmicks delivered by Day, meant to sound all folksy in order to pretend the CONs can relate to real people during economic hard times.  Yeah, Day is just a regular guy - who happens to make a hell of a lot more than the rest of us, and who believes humans walked with dinosaurs.

Day’s bland face can easily be mistaken for innocence, at a glance, and Harper may hope that will appeal to people as well.  However, it is simply a lack of any kind of imagination, and indication of an intellect so dim it must remain in shallow water or risk being lost in concepts that include more than one main, overstated principle.

Samples from yesterday showing Day’s brilliance with rhetoric:

“I think we’ll be hearing two words: no and no.”  

“We’ll all sit down and sharpen our pencils and look at the best way to keep the message out: that we’ve got a strong economy, but we need to keep spending under control.”

Be prepared to hear a lot of euphemisms.  There won’t be job cuts;  positions will be declared surplus and that surplus will be eliminated through attrition.

There won’t be cuts to programs and departments;  there will be re-allocation of resources.

Benefits won't be cut; benefits will be equalized.

Soldiers won't be killed; Canada will make contributions on the international stage.

And remember – CONs never, ever lie.  They just occasionally miss-speak.

Bonus: exciting news!!!!!!!  Straight from the PMO!!!!!!!!!!!

 (emphasis mine)

 Truro, Nova Scotia

1:30 p.m. – Prime Minister Stephen Harper will hold a photo opportunity.  He will be joined by Peter MacKay, Minister of National Defence; Scott Armstrong, Member of Parliament for Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley; Darrell Dexter, Premier of Nova Scotia; Bill Mills, Mayor of Truro; and Bob Taylor, Mayor of Colchester.

I can hardly wait.  I hope he finds a phone near by...

"absurd."

A few other words come to mind, but that's a fitting one.