Phil Dabbles in International Law, Slow Head-Shaking Ensues

Phil McColeman, in addition to doing virtually nothing over the past year, has now decided that he is an EXPERT in international and constitutional law. He gave a speech about the so-called "Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act", a law that became subject to a constitutional challenge the day after it became law.

First, Phil says that Canada should strip anyone of citizenship if he or she engages in terrorism. Okay. Terrorists commit terrible acts, true. Terrorism should be condemned in all its forms, true. But at the same time, it is literally illegal under international human rights law to make a person without any citizenship. You simply cannot turn someone into a stateless refugee. But human rights, that's never bothered Phil or the Conservatives.

(BTW, the only reason that Phil was not around Parliament during the recent tragic shooting was because he left for work at 10:00 a.m. that day #stopthegravytrain).

Second, Phil says that CSIS should be able to spy in foreign countries, and that the Canadian constitution is the only relevant law in such a situation. Mm-hm. So don't know if you've heard about this new idea that's been around since, oh, about 1648, and it's called "sovereignty". It's the idea that one country can't just go barging around in another country without the latter's permission. But it's all gravy, Phil says, because democracy-lovin' Canada doesn't like the governments in the countries whose sovereignty we'd be violating. So if the government of a democractic country like Benin decided to send its secret police into Canada to start snooping around, without telling the Canadian government, Phil would be totally fine with that. Or if a country like, say, Russia decided to start rustling up trouble in a country like, say, Ukraine, Phil would be totally fine with that too.

P.S. Thanks Phil for reminding us that terrorism is bad. You want a cookie? Great. Now please stop blowing smoke and start addressing substantive issues like Ontario's sagging economy or environmental damage and global warming.