Friday, January 1, 2010

I've Been Practicing my Goose-Step But I Keep Kicking Things.

I hope Herr Harper will be patient with me. This is not as easy as it looks.

My first march across the living room, I kicked my dog in the head. While he was yelping, I did an about face and nearly kicked over the Christmas tree.

Undaunted, I continued goose stepping while doing a Nazi salute. Don't try this at home.

But as soon as I'm out of traction, I promise I'll get back to it. (Do you think he's watching?)

Heather Malick weighed in and gave her impression of our new dictatorship, for the UK Guardian.

Shafting democracy in Canada
The prime minister's suspension of parliament has created angry voiceless citizens whose votes have become meaningless
Heather Malick
January 1, 2010

If there was a gold medal for shafting democracy at the Winter Olympics, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper would win it. Just before the games open in Vancouver, he has halted parliament in its tracks, suspending it for the second time in little more than a year.

Canada will not have a House of Commons until March 3. Instantly, we are a part-time democracy, a shabby diminished place packed with angry voiceless citizens whose votes have been rendered meaningless. Harper didn't even visit the governor-general of Canada for the formality of asking permission as he did last Christmas. Instead, he phoned her and got his PR man to send out an announcement to the nation ....

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