Gold-digga

Phil McColeman has found a way to get money for his empty funding announcements: dig for gold! And then take it to Oliver's Jewellers! OHHH YEEAAAAAHH!


Phil might also have been digging to China – he probably would have gotten there faster than Stephen Harper.

Everybody to the YMCA – oh wait, we can't

Remember when your parents promised that Santa would bring you an XBox and then all you got were socks and some fruit? Well that's Christmas for Brant this year.


Two key projects in Brantford were denied funding: the much-needed Laurier-YMCA downtown sports complex, and the Brant Cultural Centre project. We also learned that Mohawk College has only a one-in-four chance of getting funding to take over the old Expositor building. And the much-needed water treatment plant in Oshweken, which should have been built three years ago, has not even been commenced.

Despite all Phil's bragging about being best friends with Aboriginal Affairs Chuck Strahl and Infrastructure Minister John Baird, he has failed to score funding for two key educational projects, and one crucial native reserve project.

It's ironic that in this recent political cartoon, Phil has to wear a nametag because, just like in Ottawa, nobody knows who the heck he is. When Brant's voters realize how much he has promised, and how much he has failed to deliver, he'll probably wish that nobody knows his name in Brantford as well.

Phil McColeman: Soft On Crime

Phil McColeman regularly sends out taxpayer-funded flyers about how tough he is on crime. Yet in the next breath, he advocates scrapping the long-gun registry in a letter to the editor.

The police consult that registry 8,600 TIMES PER DAY while fighting crime.

These long-guns are the weapons used in the majority of shooting murders in Canada, including 85% of domestic shootings. These long-guns are the majority of weapons seized by police in relation to crimes.

Yes, the long-gun registry is very expensive. But it keeps us safer from gun-wielding criminals. The next time Phil McColeman tells you he's tough on crime, tell him he's a liar.

Cheque it out!

A lovely photo of Phil trying to purchase votes.
Notice that he signed the cheque with his own name,
even though the money is from the government of Canada
and belongs to the taxpayers, not him.

Making the List

Phil McColeman has made the list! The list, that is, of MPs who handed out cheques with Conservative Party logos on them, when that money actually belongs to the taxpayers of Canada.

Granted this list is from a Liberal website, and this blog is non-partisan. But let's face it, the Liberals do have a good point here.

Cheques and Balances

So it looks like Phil isn't the only MP handing out oversize cheques in a pathetic attempt to buy our vote. The entire country is in an uproar over the fact that Conservative MPs are handing out giant cheques with their names on them. Let's look at the facts:

a) Canada is in a recession, and we do not have much money.
b) Stephen Harper wasted the budget surplus, giving Canada a structural deficit. That means that even when the recession ends, we will still have a deficit.
c) Phil McColeman, and his friends all over the country, are handing out giant cheques like we have money to waste.


If you live in Brant you've no doubt received several taxpayer-funded mailouts from Phil McColeman, bragging about all the spending he's doing. (Same thing if you check out his website).

It's utterly shameless. The money is not there to be spent. We already have an aging population that will put a huge financial strain on this country in a couple years. We don't need irresponsible MPs like Phil McColeman increasing the national debt by spending money that they don't have in a sad attempt to purchase votes.

Phil's Flag Flap Comes to an End

Apparently the riding of Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry has been proclaimed the most patriotic riding in Canada… or rather, the riding most willing to overlook their MP defacing the Canadian flag. Thank goodness that Brant didn't win that dubious title. Embarrassingly, we placed third.

There is still no excuse for using taxpayer dollars to deface flags with promotions for Conservative MPs. The flag is a proud symbol of our great country, not of partisan politics.

Phil Gets a Reality Cheque

Phil McColeman, who has shown an amazing lack of imagination in the past, has been called out along his Pork-Barrel Propaganda Parade for using the same oversized cheque at every single event. Read on…

Given the number of spending announcements at which the giant cheque has appeared, we figure, to use a hockey metaphor, we have a save percentage of over 90% -- as in, we've saved our readers from seeing this ridiculous prop that often.
…
Adding to the oddness is that it's the exact same cheque taken from announcement to announcement and doctored to suit the particular project.
…
As for the giant cheque, perhaps it could make a few fundraising appearances on its own, maybe even raise some money to help reduce the deficit that will result from all this free spending.

This last point is so funny I want to cry: we're going to be paying off Phil's follies for a long, long time.

Green Hope for Brant

If you really want Brant to become a "Green Hub," with sustainable long-term jobs revolving around environmentally-friendly technologies…


…you're not going to get any help from this political party.







.

Huffy Duffy Comes to Brant

Couldn't have said it better myself:

Duffy's Senate nod shows lack of integrity

The gall of Stephen Harper and his acolytes is beyond the pale.

I see that Mike Duffy is coming to Brantford (at $150 per person) to raise money for our MP and the local Conservative Party. Mr. Duffy is one of those Senate appointments that Stephen Harper promised he would never make as he believed only in an elected Senate. Having watched Duffy's so-called coverage from Ottawa for two or three years before his cash-for-life appointment, his fawning over all things Harper was obvious. His grovelling paid off with the Senate appointment.

Now he is being used to raise money for the Prime Minister and his MPs who promised us an elected Senate, not an appointed one. Longevity does not mean effectiveness -- Duffy was in Ottawa a long time, but his coverage of events became increasingly partisan and his loyalty to Mr Harper was rewarded.

Is there any integrity left in the Conservative Party?

-Rick Trebilcock, Brantford

Phil's Funds Fall Flat

Remember that time Phil McColeman promised truckloads of money for Brant? And then he couldn't figure out what to spend it on so he asked city council to come up with an idea? And then city council decided they wanted to fix up the roads? Remember that?

Well promise made, promise broken. It turns out the money won't be coming after all – Phil and the Conservatives only want to spend money on things that make for good photo-ops and ribbon-cutting ceremonies. It is painfully clear that Phil and friends think of Brantfordians as chumps who can be bought off with propaganda and a few strategically-placed taxpayer dollars. (That's pork-barrelling, by the way.)

In other news, there are less and less jobs in Brant every day.

In even more news, Phil came under criticism for continuing to do nothing about land-claims issues. So much for his "number one priority" last election! Well lucky there's another election coming this fall…

Phil McColeman: Not with a strong voice but a whimper

As our MPs relax into summer, it's a good time to review how they performed in Ottawa during the recent sessions of Parliament. During the last election, Phil McColeman promised leadership and a strong voice in Ottawa. In terms of leadership, he has failed to take a stand on any important issues. In terms of a strong voice, Phil has been nothing but a trained seal in the House of Commons, posing pre-planned questions to fellow Conservative ministers, and delivering speeches about how awesome the Conservative government is. Here's a chart showing what Phil talked about every time he opened his mouth:


It's heartwarming to see that Phil spends his speaking time setting up other ministers for an easy score instead of asking questions about, say, land-claims issues, or the need for medical isotopes, or really anything that matters at all.

Predictably, McColeman also voted just as Stephen Harper told him to every time. For example, even with the constituency of Brant that has many Italian-Canadians, Phil voted against a bill that would have recognized the injustice done to Italian-Canadians who were interned during the Second World War. (In 1988, Brian Mulroney's Progressive Conservative government offered an apology and compensation to Japanese-Canadians who suffered similar mistreatment). Strong voice for Brant? As if!

With behaviour like this, it's no wonder that Phil was recently listed as a nominee for Canada's Worst MP. Too bad there's no category for Most Obedient MP, or it would be a shoo-in.

Visas on Demand; Phil cubre su culo!

After the Harper government decided to make an international incident in their poor handling of their relations with the Czech Republic and Mexico and singling them out in requiring Visas to come to Canada. Phil managed to cover his butt and "save the day". A last-minute intervention by Brant MP Phil McColeman has helped 49 Mexican singers and their escorts land in Brantford last night after almost having their trip cancelled. Almost two months of work went into plans for a children's youth choir from Mexico City to stay in Brantford as part of a swing through Michigan and Ontario. But the itinerary was almost scuttled after the Canadian government announced that Mexicans and Czechs needed visas to enter Canada.

So Phil's government creates an international incident and now they are heroes for not screwing over a Mexican band??? How about the thousands of couples with wedding plans this summer who have to change or cancel their plans due to the lack of notice or travellers who have non-refundable deals to vacation in Mexico? Or students who have to cancel their studies-abroad plans because it takes two to three month to have a temporary Visa issued to them?


Well at least Phil will have a group of tourists who he can give more of his vandalized flags to.



Our visitors will probably wonder why the Canadian flag now has www.philmccolemanmp.ca on it and wonder what kind of shameless "idiota" would self-promote himself like that. Aye carumba!

Food for thought: what does Phil stand for? Besides pork...

"You are what you eat..."







Pork BBQ on Parliament Hill
May 06, 2009

Attached is a photo taken today of Brant MP Phil McColeman, Larry Miller Chair of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, and Curtiss Littlejohn, of the Canadian Pork Producers

Letters to the Editor from the Brantford Expositor, from the past month:

Paper should focus on asking MP tough questions

Posted 5 days ago

Recent concern by the Expositor about the selection of Lloyd St. Amand as the Liberal candidate for the riding of Brant is unfounded and misguided.
It is strongly recommended that, rather than focus on the opposition, perhaps the writer of the piece should be focusing on current representation of our riding.
It is very clear that more attention needs to be paid to the record of our current MP. In case there is some confusion, I've formulated some questions that the writer who questioned St. Amand's credibility could ask:
1) Why, when the taxpayers in the City of Brantford are spending millions of dollars dealing with land claims issues in court, hasn't Phil McColeman asked a single question about land claims in the House of Commons?
2) Why does Phil McColeman think that foreign affairs with Cuba are more important than issues in our riding?
3) When major announcements about land claims come from Six Nations, why does Phil McColeman not know anything about them? Isn't he "friends" with elected Chief Bill Montour?
4) Why is Phil McColeman opposed to Employment Insurance reform that would have offered immediate relief to hundreds of residents in the riding of Brant before the summer began?
5) Why does Phil McColeman support blatant political advertising that suggests that his government has achieved so little?
6) Instead of why they think they're doing such a great job, why doesn't the Conservative party spend government advertising money on saving or creating taxpayers' jobs?
7) Why does Phil McColeman support a party that has continually shown that it does not know what it is doing with the country's economy and finances?
It is my earnest hope and desire that the author of The Expositor editorial questioning St. Amand's candidacy finds the time to ask the questions that really matter to the citizens in the riding of Brant, and not waste our time by attacking the opposition.
Michael Skrzypek, president Brant Federal Liberal Association Brantford

&

Tough to answer where our MP stands on issues

Posted 7 days ago


Mr. Kastronovic, in his July 2 letter, shows that he did not read carefully the story about the flag. Our former MP, Lloyd St. Amand, conveyed concerns he had heard about the flag sent by Phil McColeman to households in Brant. This was supported by the fact that many of your readers submitted letters voicing a similar concern -- namely, that they found the inclusion of Mr. McColeman's website on the flag offensive. I do not believe the Canadian flag should be used for political propaganda.

The "contest" that Mr. McColeman took part in (with 30 other Conservative MPs) was obviously to identify supporters. I have not heard or read Mr. McColeman's stance on the current economic situation and solutions specific to Brant, how the record deficit of $50-plus billion is going to be retired, how employment insurance can be improved or how his government will attempt resolution of land claims. It is impossible for me to answer the question: "Do you think Phil McColeman is on the right track on the major issues of the day?" when I have no idea where he stands.

K. Babineau Mt. Pleasant

Footage of how Phil really scratched his face!!!

Since Youtube videos appear to be all the rage lately, I found footage of how the face of our MP for Brant, Phil McColeman, was really scarred. The abrasions on his forehead and across his nose have left Phil looking as though he's had a run-in with a bear. Or bumped heads with a deer.



Just watch the video for the first minute.

Phil does the darnedest things...

Take MP's 'embarassing' story at face value














Posted By SUSAN GAMBLE, Brantford Expositor
June 19, 2009
It's easy to misstep when you're a rookie MP in Ottawa.
Just ask Phil McColeman, who is sporting the scars from an embarrassing run-in with a window ledge in Bytown.
The abrasions on his forehead and across his nose have left Phil looking as though he's had a run-in with a bear. Or bumped heads with a deer.
The truth is far more mundane, says the politician who was caught by the camera while presenting a giant cheque to Caralyn Smith, the winner of his public safety essay contest. Caralyn, of Ohsweken, wrote an "excellent submission" and won $500 for her efforts.
"I tripped in a restaurant," says Phil. "It was tight quarters and I stumbled over a chair, hit my nose on a ledge and because my glasses were on, they tore the skin. It looked way worse than it was."
Unfortunately, Phil was dining with Gary Lunn, minister of state for Sports.
"I just know now when the Olympic torch comes to Brantford they're not going to let me touch it."
Phil's face became the subject of ribbing in the house, too, when Transport Minister John Baird quipped, "That'll teach you to mess with me!"
"It's been totally embarrassing," says Phil mournfully.
"Just tell people I'm really fighting for my constituents in Ottawa!"

Sadly I see we have Mr . Magoo for an MP...
and no Phil is not fighting for his constituents. He has yet to mention land claims, Caledonia or any local issues involving Brant in Ottawa. How exactly does one stumble over a chair? I sincerely hope Mr. McColeman stumbled his way to a cab and did not drive that evening. Phil is definitely making Brantford proud (sarcasm). I agree with Phil, it would not be a wise idea to have the flame near him.

While Phil was busy sending "sexy" flags out...

... the isotope crisis reached Brantford.

According to a report from the past week, Dr. Christopher O'Brien, president of the Ontario Association of Nuclear Medicine, says 75 people at his hospital in Brantford are waiting for scans that require isotopes. "These patients will eventually get their tests done; we just don't know when. It's serious in the sense that I don't know if I'm missing cancer on patients who are waiting to get the tests," said O'Brien. Some Ontario hospitals have coped with the shortage by cancelling non-urgent tests. But now the shortage is so acute that some are faced with postponing procedures. O'Brien describes the situation at his hospital as precarious. Phil McColeman MP for Brant who has yet to bring any local issues to Ottawa like he promised; did not mention this or land claims during this legislative session, he only made false claims this year. Luckily one Member of Parliament from British Columbia did raise this issue, Dr. Keith Martin, whose Constituency Office is 4300 km/ 41 hour drive away from the Brantford General Hospital! On Thursday, June 11 he rose in the House of Commons to ask:

Hon. Keith Martin (Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, Lib.):

Mr. Speaker, the minister talks about thallium as an option. We have learned today that the supply of thallium is running out. At Brantford General Hospital, 75 patients right now are waiting for the tests that they need.

I want to ask the minister a simple question. What is her plan and when is she going to release the plan to enable Canadians to have access to isotopes and the thallium that they need for the tests that they require to save their lives?

Where was Phil on this? If a Member of Parliament from across the country is a better advocate of local issues than our current Member of Parliament for Brant, one has to ask what the hell is Phil doing in Ottawa??? The kind of questions Phil asked this year are enough for an end-of-session post...

Here's a good comparison of a productive Member of Parliament and...Phil:

Minister Finley makes sure the trained seal on her left is clapping in unison...

Phil puts the FLAG in flagrant disrespect!

MP's flag decal violates official national protocol

I am writing with regards to the flagrant disrespect of the Canadian flag that is being shown by our elected federal representative, Mr. McColeman. Not only is this no more than a feeble attempt at commercializing our flag and Canada Day, it certainly does violate normally accepted protocol for the use of the national flag of Canada. According to Canadian Heritage Dignity of the Flag, "nothing should be pinned to or sewn on the National Flag of Canada" and "The National Flag of Canada should not be signed or marked in any way." Mr. McColeman may find ways to interpret the printing of his website along the border of the flag as being acceptable, but I, along with many other individuals, find it reprehensible.

Furthermore, I believe that Mr. McColeman and the Conservative Party may have violated the intended privacy of the National Register of Electors, since: "Under the law, the voters list is shared with registered political parties and members of the House of Commons each year, as well as with candidates during an electoral event. The information shared consists only of electors' names and addresses. By law, parties and members of the House of Commons may use this information for communicating with electors, such as in soliciting contributions and recruiting members. Improper use of the information contained in a voters list is an offence." Although Mr. McColeman may be "communicating with electors" I believe that the manner in which he has used this list is inappropriate. And, obviously, he did not bother to "scrub" the list to eliminate duplicate individuals in a household, so he has therefore wasted more of his advertising budget (which still comes from the taxpayers' coffers I am sure).

As for me, we proudly fly a Canadian flag on our front porch. We don't need some paper commercial image which breaks flag protocol and proper ethical use of private citizens' information. Mr. McColeman and his cronies don't need to count me in their sham poll; we recognize Canada and our Flag proudly every day of the year.

Gary Ferris Brantford

and

Real surprise for our MP will come in next election

I couldn't agree more with Lloyd St. Amand about the advertising package we, as constituents, received from Mr. McColeman.

As soon as I saw that our MP had the audacity to put his email address on the bottom of a flag, the entire package went to the trash. As did the one mailed to my deceased mother.
Mr. McColeman is surprised at people's reaction to this. Not half as surprised as he will be during the next election when we remember how he chose to waste taxpayers' money.

A suggestion, Mr. McColeman, would be to use some of your monies to update your files.

Elizabeth V. Smith Brantford

Phil decorates the Canadian flag...

Brant MP makes 'no apologies' for flag decals
When a two-year old decides to write on the walls with a marker or crayons, it is completely innocent and cute even. When a Member of Parliament decides to use taxpayers' money and the Canadian flag as advertising space, it is completely ridiculous and disrespectful: Lawyer Lloyd St. Amand called The Expositor on Monday to express concern over the recent mailout of 76,000 Canadian flag decals by Phil McColeman; the flags, paid for out of McColeman's member's advertising budget, carry in red letters on the bottom McColeman's web address - www.philmccolemanmp.ca. Phil responded "That's what the budget's intended for. I'm actually quite flabbergasted that people are criticizing this."
Phil you're not flabbergasted, you're an idiot! Heritage Canada has a page on their website on "flag etiquette" for morons like Phil. He should read it as soon as possible, after reimbursing taxpayers, apologizing to his constituents and a time-out like the two-year old who writes on the wall. After mailing out coupons to his constituents, I would have thought Phil would have learned by now...
On another note I was reading about incremental conservatism by Professor Tom Flanagan, a former Conservative campaign manager. I think I know what incremental conservatism is...

This must be what Phil's promised funding is being used for...

This is what MP for Brant, Phil McColeman and Aboriginal Affairs Ministers Chuck Strahl do with the money that was reannounced for the Water Treatment Plant... while residents of Oshweken have to boil their water, their Member of Parliament is hard at work.

Judging by all the infrastructure projects that have been announced and not given a penny, this must be what the Conservaive government finds as a stimulus...

Phil McColeman, most spoonfed MP in the history of Western Democracy?

Since it has been revealed that Phil McColeman has used Conservative talking points in letters to the editors under other peoples' names and also to deal with his concerned constituents, this should come as no surprise: for Constituency week Consevative MPs have been sent home with scripted talking points for their constituents and local media. You can obtain a copy, HERE, without having to get elected as a Conservative MP like Phil.

This is beyond pathetic, Phil has not come up with one original thought since being elected. He has even snapped his fingers and requested a project from city hall, Monday's issue carried the story of Phil McColeman inviting city council to put together a high-profile project as soon as possible that could be ready to go just as soon as funding is approved from a federal program.

The fact that Phil has to be managed like a child would be embarassing if Mr. McColeman had any shame left. All the letters to the editor from December and January concerned with Mr. McColeman's lack of spine and original thought process was merited and has been validated.

The "Dummies Guide to Politics for Dumb Conservative MPs" covers various topics like the global econmic downturn, the Conservatives' economic action plan, the gun registry, crime reform, swine flu and the success of the Liberal Party of Canada under the leadership of Michael Ignatieff.

In anticipation of Phil's predictable nature and his upcoming badmouthing of Mr. Ignatieff, I suspect that Phil has never read a book by any of Foreign Policy Magazine's top 100 Intellectuals, a group that includes Mr. Ignatieff . I think Phil should challenge himself and come up with one original criticism, or he can solicit advice from high school kids, http://www.philmccolemanmp.ca/EN/8500/87709 , maybe the young adults will give Mr. Ignatieff a more original insult than "Mr. Smartypants"...

I could not count Phil among the 300 least micromanaged MPs in Ottawa.

If you're happy to be sitting in the front row CLAP YOUR HANDS!

On Wednesday, May 6th our Member of Parliament from Brant had the chance to keep one of the front seats in the House of Commons warm, he had a chance to sit next to his main man, Chucky S!
From what I could see, Chuck could not get a word in due to the loud, excessive clapping when anyone said a word on Phil's part...
I truly doubt that they discussed land claims or the standstill in Caledonia.
Phil showed off quite a number of different claps, such as: the Sonic Boom Clap, the rapid clap and interpretive dancing with his hands (for a minute I thought he was trying to use sign language like the lady in the upper right corner). Is this REALLY why we sent a member of the government side to Ottawa from Brant? Enjoy, the picture gallery goes really good with the music from the Youtube video.
If we average out his $155 000 salary by the claps he has probably done this parliamentary session, Mr. McColeman is working for less than the Ontario minimum wage during the 45 minutes that is Question Period...

Phil McColeman, Ghostwriter

When Phil McColeman came under fire for taking credit for a Liberal funding promise, he could have clarified the issue. He could have written a letter to the editor, or clarified on his misleading website that it was not his Conservatives who initially made the promise.

But no, Phil is clearly above partisan squabbles (when he wants to be, of course). Instead, he sends out his supporters with talking points, posing as normal citizens. Check out this recent letter to the editor:

MP's response bore resemblance to letter

Recently, I wrote a letter exposing that MP Phil McColeman took credit for a Liberal promise to build a new water treatment plant in Oshweken. Then Karen George wrote a response defending the Conservatives, listing several stats to help her case, which The Expositor published as well.

McColeman's office also e-mailed me a response on the issue, and this e-mail was nearly identical to Ms. George's letter. Thus, it is evident that the Conservatives are using so-called "citizen" letters to the editor to spread talking points put out by the Conservative Research Bureau.

If Phil McColeman has something to say in response to accusations levelled at him, he should come out and say it himself, perhaps in The Expositor's editorial section. But sending out "citizens" to write letters on his behalf is misleading and underhanded behaviour, and disrespectful to his constituents and your readers.

Josh Bradford, Brantford

Talk about getting caught with your hand in the cookie jar! The original Ghostwriter helped kids solve crimes; Brant's ghostwriter just spreads political misinformation.

Phili Vanilli

Loads of letters have been written into the Expositor regarding the water treatment plant since Phil McColeman made this "new" announcement. Phil McColeman, Member of Parliament for Brant on behalf of the Honourable Chuck Strahl, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development made the announcement that the residents of Oshweken will receive $10 million for a "new" water treatment plant. When I first read this, I was puzzled: This announcement had already been made in 2005 and the funds have also been available since 2005! So will there now be TWO new water treatment plants for residents of Oshweken, or will one plant cost $20 million?!

A basic Google search revealed that former Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, the Hon. Andy Scott had committed $10 million to Oshweken for a new water treatment plant, under the First Nations Water Management Strategy (FNWMS), this announcement is on the Ministry's website under 2005 news releases. Now, why did the government reannounce this funding three years later? The reason is that Stephen Harper became Prime Minister, then cancelled the historic Kelowna Accord and chose not to pursue this project. He probably figured that if the Six Nations had waited this long, they should wait until Brant elected a Conservative MP before getting any money. This is the same Prime Minister who also opposed a UN Resolution on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

A Conservative Indian Affairs Minister has not visited Brant since Stephen Harper became Prime Minister, all because of two words: land claims. Jim Prentice a former Minister of Indian Affairs, only visited Brant during the election and when he was no longer minister in charge of land claims. Why didn't Chuck Strahl make the water treatment plant announcement? Why did the PMO allow another patsy (Phil) to go up and make a reannouncement of something that had already been announced?

The answer will be revealed in the next round of campaign pamphlets full of more false claims by our shameless Member of Parliament. In Mr. Lloyd St. Amand's post-election interview he stated that he had worked hard to secure $10 million for a new water treatment plant in Ohsweken three years ago. He said it's unfortunate that the Harper government hasn't honoured that commitment.

In a letter addressed to Mr. McColeman published a few weeks ago, a letter writer hilariously comments,

Like Milli Vanilli, MP should not take credit

Phil McColeman: I was certainly happy to see some action from the Harper government on the water treatment plant for Six Nations residents, but this is too much. There was a letter in the newspaper about your "new" announcement, pointing out this commitment was originally made by the previous Liberal government.

Is this not shameless? I feel you owe the Hon. Andy Scott and Mr. Lloyd St. Amand apologies and should send out a news release soon. Are you familiar with the band Milli Vanilli? They were also dishonest and took credit for other people's work.

: )

NBC had this old saying to promote reruns during the summer: "If you haven't seen it, it's new to you"



"Phili Vanilli & Chucky S"

Witness: Phil's Committee Meeting

This past weekend I had the luck to visit Ottawa, and took an opportunity to sit in on one of Phil's committee meetings. The Tuesday-morning meeting was scheduled to discuss a review of the Sex Offender Information Registry Act, and to discuss the inquiry into Taser use in Canada.

During the first half of the meeting, the Sex Offender Registry part, Phil spent roughly 80% of his time playing on his BlackBerry under the table, 15% of the time staring distantly out the window across from him, and nearly the rest chewing on his glasses and furrowing his brow. During these two hours, by my count, he made only three written notes.

Other Committee members such as Andrew Kania and Mark Holland asked hard-hitting questions about how to improve the Registry, and illuminated a lack of action by former Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day. They were certainly NOT playing with their BlackBerrys. When Phil was finally called on to speak, however, his lack of preparedness was evident – he asked a witness to repeat facts that had actually been clarified earlier:

(clears throat) Well thank you ah again ah for being here and taking the time as you know this committee is charged with the review of ah this legislation and– and we're hearing from all sides and ah of course there's ah been representation on people who feel it's an infringement on human rights. (clears throat) I'll make a statement and then ask my question. I've spent a lot of time with special needs individuals over my life, both children and adults and it concerns me greatly (clears throat) their innocence, just as all victims I suppose, but especially in this and it's gut-wrenching for me to– to contemplate ah uhh uhh the situations that some of them may find themselves in. Ah so I– I definitely bias towards ah giving you the tools you need to do the job in law-enforcement on the street in a time– on a timely basis. It– it was mentioned earlier I think ah by Mr. Nez– Nezan [RCMP Officer in Charge, National Sex Offender Registry] that the– "the current ah setup is inefficient and the integrity of the data is compromised," that's the note that I made from your comments. Can you expand on that a bit?

We pay Phil $155,000 a year for this???

The second half of the committee focused on the Taser Inquiry, following the tragic death of Robert Dziekanski at the Vancouver Airport. This is accordingly a very high-profile inquiry (and one in which Phil has already made a fool of himself). Once all the reporters, observers, and TV cameras entered the room, Phil could no longer play on his BlackBerry under the table without people noticing. So he spent the rest of the meeting chewing on his glasses and furrowing his brow, and contributed… absolutely nothing to the discussion.

A summary of Phil's performance in the Committee is that he is probably a nice, decent guy, but he is an awful politician. And he really, really likes his BlackBerry.

A couple of MPs who also need to be replaced...

Around 2:00 this afternoon while watching Question Period on CPAC, Ron Cannan, a Member of the Conservative Reform Alliance Party rose to deliver a Statement or SO 31, (The House of Commons ritual allows for fifteen minutes of what are called "Standing Orders 31's" which permit members to read statements. Before Harper's team arrived they were reserved for members praising the achievements of a local school or athlete, remembering a distinguished citizen, or speaking out on an issue of local concern.) As the Hon. Bob Rae puts it best, "the hooting and hollering has returned, and so have the nasty SO 31's, timed just as the Leader of the Opposition is about to get to his feet. So instead of praising local achievement we have the worst kind of personal attack, cheap shot and character smear." Even though it had sadly become routine for Mr. McColeman's colleagues to attack the Hon. Stephane Dion, who has done more for Canada then Mr. McColeman and all his backbench cronies ever will or will read about... I was disgusted with today's line of attack by the Despicable Ron Cannan:

The Conservative MP—”The voice of Kelowna-Lake Country in Ottawa“—rose immediately after Liberal Maurizio Bevilacqua had delivered a statement on the earthquake in Italy this afternoon and announced to the House the following.

Mr. Speaker, I too add my condolences to the folks in Italy. Our prayers and thoughts go out to all those folks in Italy.

But there is an earthquake happening in our own country.

I would like to remind Canadians what the Liberal leader said on April 14th, just last week, and I quote, “We will have to raise taxes”. We thank him for honestly revealing the Liberal plan.

A lot has been blogged and documented in regards to Mr. McColeman being muzzled by his party, Mr. Cannan not only needs to be muzzled but should resign immediately. The earthquake in Italy is a serious matter and nothing our Parliamentarians say can be equated to the loss of life in L'Aquila, Italy. The shocking thing is that Mr. Cannan probably did not write his outlandish statement – it is common knowledge that the Prime Minister's office is usually in charge of writing the smear attacks and forcing some patsy to swallow their self-respect and read them in the House of Commons. This shameful action was well documented by Mr. Glen Pearson in March:

I was upset today - I admit it. The Conservatives have taken to denigrating Michael Ignatieff in their statements just prior to Question Period, much like they used to do with Stephane Dion.
…
Today’s developments almost bordered on irreverence. Prior to Ignatieff giving his statement, another Conservative clone rose in the House to speak of his unsuitability for leadership. Then, to everyone’s surprise, the Liberal leader got up and delivered a deeply reflective statement on the death of the three Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan yesterday.
…
Not sooner had Ignatieff sat down than another Conservative stood up for the last statement before QP and unleashed his torrent at the Liberal leader. To people of finer senses it was jarring. I know that Conservative. He’s a decent man and wants to help others. But he was told to get up and read a speech written by someone else. The entire House just wanted him to sit down and be quiet. His intervention was highly unsuitable and out of place. During one of our finer moments in the House, a man permitted himself to become a patsy for the party and demeaned a meaningful moment and the soldiers’ memory in the process.
…
And for my friend, the Conservative who permitted his party to defeat his own sense decorum, he’s just one of many in that place that can’t discern a sacred moment from a profane one. I will remember those speeches for some time to come and how they not only elevated the House but the memory of those faithful soldiers and a former Speaker as well. And I will recall how quickly one frivolous and partisan remark almost snuffed out a sense of enlightenment for the sake of the irreverent.

Mr. Pearson is too polite to point out the patsy by name, but a quick Hansard search revealed that the Member of Parliament was James Bezan,of Selkirk—Interlake in Manitoba.

The common link between those two jerks is that they are from really Conservative voting ridings, where even a brainless insensitive dimwit can get elected, they have won their ridings with over 50% of the popular vote, so it is up to the local riding association to replace or continue to re-elect these men. Case in point is the Conservative riding association in Calgary West:

Calgary West MP Rob Anders is an outsider even inside his own party. Raise his name with Conservative MPs and they wrinkle their noses like they've just taken a big whiff of the stuff spring uncovers in an off-leash dog park.

But five-term Anders is among the best MPs at winning Conservative nomination meetings in this all-Tory, all-the-time riding. And this week he'll have to fend off a challenge to replace the riding board of directors he controls from a potential rival's move to elect friendlier types eager to dump their incumbent MP.

If you are a resident of Brantford and the name Rob Anders sounds familiar, it is because Mr. McColeman relied on Mr. Anders to help him get elected. Mr. Anders' office sent multiple partisan flyers to Brantford months before the election was called last year. I do not recall if Mr. Bezan and Mr. Cannan sent flyers to Brantford but would not be surprised if they did. A quick dictionary search defines tacit consent as, unspoken consent or tacit approval indicated by smiling, winking or silence. Please email your local MP and articulate your disapproval of such despicable tactics, McColeman.P@parl.gc.ca.

EMAIL, we know how to use it!

Dear readers,

We have decided to open this blog up to YOU! If you have something you want to send us or want to submit a column, you are more than welcome to. You can even CC or BCC us when you attempt to contact our local Member of Parliament.
The email is: mulletphil@gmail.com

Dr. Phil’s Formula for Economic Recovery

Renovate houses.


That's basically it. And build some other things, like a few roads. Never mind that property values in Canada are falling as fast as Conservative poll numbers.

In his maiden speech in Parliament, Phil meandered on about his years spent working in construction, and how every Canadian wants a bigger house. Then he proclaimed the virtues of a new construction tax credit, and infrastructure investment. You could almost see the gears slowly turning in his head:

1. I like construction!
2. But housing sales are falling…
3. People can renovate their houses instead!!

Since then, Phil has been rushing around to get Brantfordians building. He went to Brantford city council and told them to 'pick an infrastructure project, any infrastructure project.' Then he did the same thing in Paris. He announced funding toward a new ice arena. He let us know that he's been having lots and lots of meetings with Infrastructure Minister John Baird (who must be pretty darn patient to put up with all Phil's pestering).

All of this is good news for Brantford. But if it stops there – and it does – it is not nearly enough.

In his Parliamentary speech, Phil noted a similar initiative in the early 1990s that kept workers working. It is true that in the recession of the 1980s/90s there was a lot of federal money coming into Brant projects – that's how we built the rail trail, for example. But it was a band-aid solution: Brantford continued to deteriorate throughout the '90s, the downtown crumbled, unemployment stayed high. Why? Because at the end of the day, when the federal money dried up, the workers had the same unmarketable skill-set, and the same reliance on heavy industry that continues to leave town.

What we need to do is invest in retraining our workers with marketable skills, not just keeping them busy for a little while. Invest in people, not just in edifices. We need a government that will invest in sustainable, long-term solutions, such as wind and solar energy manufacturing, and building more hybrid/electric autos. The Conservatives' unimaginative economic plan, on the other hand, says, "Here's a hammer, get to work until the money runs out again."

Brantford is less-educated and poorer than average. This is a huge turnoff for investors choosing where to place their money, and renovating houses isn't going to change this. Let us remember that the single greatest factor for downtown Brantford's turnaround was the construction of a university campus in 1998. That's the type of forward-thinking investment that's needed, in addition to building houses and roads.

In a weary voice, a downtown businessowner once told me, "Brantford's always been a day late and a buck short." That, in as many words, perfectly describes the economic plan of Phil McColeman and the Conservatives.

Tased and ConPHused...

What would happen if somebody had not died? Would they be alive? Would there still be a funeral? Would said person renovate their home?

At the February hearing of the Public Safety Committee on taser use, MPs had the opportunity to see if recommendations had been applied and their results. Our current Member of Parliament, Mr. Phil McColeman brought his palette of skills and experience to this committee.

He asked the insensitive and worst question one could ask at his committee:

"…is it a reasonable question to ask, in a debriefing situation, what the probable outcomes might have been had the taser not been used? "

So, is he asking if such a stupid question is reasonable or, what would have happened if the taser, that caused the untimely and tragic death of Mr. Robert Dziekanski, had not been used???

Commissioner William Elliot of the RCMP has the kindness and patience to not embarrass Mr. McColeman in front of his colleagues and everyone else for such sheer stupidity, kind of like when your parents play Hide-and-Seek with you and pretend that they don’t see you when you’re in plain sight.

Phil’s insensitivity and the inanity of his question was in plain sight that morning and "after McColeman finally winds down his impromptu monologue on what a good idea it would be to include all that wonderful alternate scenario information would be, Elliott has to remind him that, in general, it’s not always a good idea to focus so heavily on speculation although he agrees with the BASIC THEORY behind it."

Commissioner Elliot kindly responded:

“I think it is more appropriate and certainly more common for us to ask our officers to describe the facts and what they perceived, and to record them, and not generally to have them speculate what might have happened otherwise.”

This blog is sincerely embarrassed for Mr. McColeman who ironically had his victory party at the Polish hall in Brantford on election night. This committee is a very important one based on the debate that the taser incident at the Vancouver International Airport has caused. Mr. McColeman is truly out of his depth at this committee, which is a shame. Maybe someone who is familiar with the justice system and its procedures maybe has some law and committee background and who is also an eloquent speaker would have better represented the riding of Brant that morning…

Mr. McColeman thinks that he simply has to show up at Committees and the House of Commons and not put any actual work into being a Member of Parliament. Is Phil for REAL?

We can see why Fil is not in the Phoreign Affairs Committee or Phinance committee…

This post will be entered in this contest. Your constructive criticism is more than welcome!

Phil's "Visit With Agriculture"

On Phil McColeman's latest mailout which was covered yesterday in another Brantford blogger's website , titled:" Tory MP Phil McColeman's Taxpayer Funded April Fool's Joke "
Speaking of Jokes, Phil showed us pictures of him visiting with constituents, Green Briar students and AGRICULTURE. Yes, agriculture:

1. The science, art, or occupation concerned with cultivating land, raising crops, and feeding, breeding, and raising livestock; farming.
2. the production of crops, livestock, or poultry.

See for yourself!

Phil's office is also in the business of selling popular books such as:

Agriculture Joe goes to the City

















and... the Agriculture's Almanac.