Category Archives: Politics

Lifes Lessons, Philosophy, Politics

Donald Trump – I Told You So

Finally those Canadians with financial and social stature have come to the table wholeheartedly to denounce Trump. If it’s taken you this long….we needed you in 2014/ 2015. We needed you to speak out emphatically that a man of deviant morals and conduct unbecoming of political party leadership could not ascend to a position of political power. However; most of you were mute. You didn’t want to ruffle feathers. You didn’t want to leave any kind of perception with others that you empathized with his policies and that you could rationalize his character in favor of Republican ideals. You may have been fearful of retribution. I say this emphatically now if you were mute – shame on you!!


Shame on you if you bought into some conspiracy theory about the “deep state” without presenting proof. Shame on you if bought into his lies and deceit. Shame on you if you were so naive that he had nothing to do with the Capitol attack on January 6th, 2021 especially in lieu of his conduct on that day and a reference to a vigilante group of whose name he was familiar. Shame on you if you thought that all women alleging sexual assault conspired together for financial gain by falsifying claims of sexual assault. Shame on you if you discounted the 3,500 – 4,000 lawsuits for which he or his companies were cited in lawsuits as standard practice for business. Shame on you if you believed that he had every right morally to withhold presentation of his tax returns upon request given a quest for the Presidency. Shame on you if you had normalized in your mind a fabrication of Barak Obama’s birth records. Shame on you if you normalized a a man with a tawdry record as his 2016 campaign manager. Shame on you if you had watched episodes of “The Apprentice” and had not picked up samples of his character flaws. Shame on you if you hadn’t surmised that bankrupting companies would correlate with mismanaging a government. Shame on you if you were indifferent by his indifference toward Russia invading Ukraine. Shame on you if you believe that the fabrication of real estate’s market value is an innocuous clerical mishap in the context of a loan application. Shame on you if you believe that paying money to a pornstar in order to conceal a perceived character flaw is all good campaign practice. Shame on you if you believe that engaging in acts of deceit is what can be expected of a Presidential candidate.


Now Donald Trump near the date of his second inauguration has appeared before the media handling a question about whether he would annex Canada by force. Imagine that. Here we are. Canada’s relationship with the U.S. has been severely damaged by the imposition of tariffs and the abrogation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. He is referencing Canada as a “failed state”.

Philosophy, Politics

Trump As President Again

I’ll leave it to the historians to document Donald Trump’s “indiscretions”. Now, Trump is President again! He should not have been restored to hold this office and nor should the constitution / legal apparatus of the U.S. enabled him to access the office given his conviction on 37 counts of financial fraud and other troubles with the law.

The shock amongst us whom intuitively perceived of his moral weakness early is that voters discounted his character so dramatically in lieu of their personal plight that they actually returned him to the Presidency. The thought that this is the best they can do as a leader is outright shocking.

It should go without saying that in absence of moral compass, there is the potential for an absence of moral judgment disposed in administering policy. First and foremost this fundamental predicate should way on the minds of voters upon casting a ballot and if it doesn’t then one is safe to assume that a personal plight is so compromised by current policy that any one different would suffice.      

In visiting punditry post election, we consume the following:

  1. Biden should never have run for a second term
  2. Disenfranchised young men flocked to Trump in a spirit of “aspirational masculinity”
  3. Abortion issue isolated via referendum from candidate selections in some jurisdictions
  4. Latinos feeling alienated via democrat policy
  5. Manufacturing sector still not delivering good jobs to working class
  6. Perceived failure of democrats of weak border policy
  7. Elitism and failure to address wealth gap

Was it a comedy of errors in delivering a message? Were the democrats obtuse in failing to acknowledge sentiments uncovered by the Trump campaign? Did voters need to be told how to vote by Bruce Springsteen and Taylor Swift? What about the non-union worker earning under $15 / hour? What about the inner city communities in San Francisco, Seattle, Philadelphia, and L.A overwhelmed by homelessness and drugs? What were you going to do with tax receipts received via increased rates applied to the ultra rich in context of the people facing financial hardship? Were you going to reduce interest rates deemed usurious? Were you going to apply carry forward tax credit for those looking to get re-trained? What about single family households with a child at home whose spouse is deadbeat? What about specifics on reducing gun crime and gun access? What about the state of a tawdry legal system ineffectual in delivering timely results? What about an education abandoning “excellence” and “performance” as central to delivery.

Get this – half the country voted for a man bereft of good moral character and this speaks volumes.

Lifes Lessons, Politics

Hearing of The Secret Service Director

Having caught snippets of the hearing this morning which dealt with the Trump assassination attempt I suspect there will be regrets in the handling of the matter. She should have been fired at the outset instead of putting her through a grilling which appeared more to serve the disappointment of elected officials than to extract information which was unavailable to this woman nine days after the incident pending an investigation which has yet to draw conclusions.. There was much drama but not much progress. The facts actually speak for themselves for the most part just from what’s been conceived through documented accounts of the incident through video footage. The roof was not secured. The premise was not secured. The secured area was not sufficiently wide. The suspiciousness of the individual was not communicated effectively amongst all security personnel through all agencies represented at the event. There was insufficient reconnaissance done prior to the event. This all was clear because of what actually happened.

By firing the woman at the outset, a temporary director could have been installed in order to facilitate the investigation and provide most effective cooperation for making immediate change while gathering answers. Instead, there was grand standing and the wielding of insults akin to the new norm of interpersonal conduct. It was actually bizarre to witness the level of disdain and contempt from U.S. politicians directed to this woman, Ms. Cheatle – the Director of the Secret Service, in the context of the assassination attempt when half of these same congressmen (women) show such complicity for the ease of accessibility of automated weapons throughout America which leads potentially to the utilization of such for facilitating countless mass shootings and death across the country.

U.S. elected officials and candidates of late have perpetrated a decline in civility as exemplified within this hearing. It’s aberrant to the cooperative norm imperative. Outrage is justifiable in context of a security failure, but its best simply to execute the outrage administratively and succinctly instead of perpetrating circus like theatre. None of these politicians needed to verbalize a desire for her to resign or be fired during proceedings but every single one of them which I watched took the occasion as if they felt an incumbency to go on the record.        

Lifestyle, Philosophy, Politics

Beyond Calgary’s Water Pipe Fail

It’s quite interesting to listen to the mayor of Calgary talk water restrictions in lieu of the recent major water main fail. Naturally, the message of conservation is easily heard but for some it’s fallen on deaf ears because the utilization should have dropped more dramatically than it has. 

For good reason the city has asked overtaxed taxpayers to help and we step forward but subconsciously we wonder why with water flowing abundantly through the city in two rivers that such a crisis has emerged. What has the city not done in anticipation of potential water main breaks? Why is it that the city has made decisions to increase urban sprawl via single family dwellings in face of obvious resource limitations and the smaller 21st century family unit? Why do we have office high rises empty in the downtown core thereby impeding the efficient utilization of infrastructure?

I hate to say it but civic generosity is decline and the relatively poor water conservation rate in Calgary in face of a crisis is indicative of the public’s lessening appetite for being neighborly. You see…the income disparity in Canada has grown. Those sensing an inequity wonder whether serving their neighbor any longer serves them altruistically, financially, with their higher power, or the greater good. They turn on the news and see a convicted criminal earn the nomination for a chance at the Presidency. 

So when people are being told how to brush their teeth and skip flushes and scrape their plates without rinse, some will pause and ask…..what about those homeless people you walk by every day? What about the unenforced civil infractions? What about the closed swimming pools? What about the ridiculous tax payer funded public art? What about the bridge we didn’t need? What about frivolous debates amounting to nothing? What about the failure to regulate unnecessary noise? What about…..

Lifestyle, Philosophy, Politics

Passing of Rex Murphy

Rex Murphy was a wordsmith, he possessed common sense, and he wasn’t beholden to other’s opinions and this is why I stood up and took notice whenever he spoke or penned an editorial. I also admire people who actually reach for the best words in order to express a point. His expression was the antipathy of those now so compelled to use the word “fcuk” in every grammatical form because they have been too lazy delve into the depths of the English language. Rex Murphy put context and pragmatism toward thought. He had capacity to empathise in every direction while articulating the best route forward cognizant that we can’t be everything to all people all of the time. Rex had instinct in knowing how not to go too far in presenting a position so that the audience had room to conceive for themselves. Rex coaxed you toward the dictionary because your English teacher may not have been as illustrious.

There was also a mystical kind of delivery because he operated with an intention to provoke. Satire was to be expected and the monotony of tone was purposeful so that he could catch you when the hyperbole went over your head. His thoughtfulness was etched throughout his piece in such a way that even the ardent with entrenched beliefs couldn’t help but be jostled.  

Without the likes of Rex Murphy…we can and will descend to gutter like politics showcased south of our border.