At Home in Hespeler

It is being reported through twitter that Tim Hudak has defeated Frank Klees 5606 to 4643.

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Afterthought: Tim Hudak has garnered 55% of the third ballot votes to defeat Frank Klees. Just under 500 of Christine Elliot’s 2900 second ballot votes went to Hudak, while a significant 1400 went to Frank Klees. It was not enough however, and Tim Hudak is the next leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario: a job that will come with daily venom, vicious innuendo spoken of you and, God forbid you should ever win an election, the noisiest 1/2% of the population will burn you in effigy on a daily basis. Congratulations Tim.

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Update: Joanne at Blue Like You, Sandy at Crux of the Matter and United and Strong are all reporting the Hudak victory now.

Tim Hudak Christine Elliott, Frank Klees, human rights, Human Rights Comissions, John Tory, PC, PC leadership, PC leadership convention, PC leadership vote, Progressive Conservative, Randy Hiller, Tim Hudak

United and Strong is struggling with the number of hits, but it appears second ballot results are as follows:

Tim Hudak – 4128
Frank Klees – 3299
Christine Elliott – 2903

Total votes is 10330, which by my back of the napkin math is 14 votes less than the first round.  Hudak is 1037 votes below the 50% threshold, which means a third ballot showdown between Klees and Hudak.

In terms of percentage of vote, both Elliott and Klees gained 2% from round one, at 28 and 32 respectively while Tim Hudak gained 7% (all percentages are approximations and rounded) to jump to 40%. Bottom Line, Frank Klees is going to have to attract over two-thirds of Christine Elliotts votes to defeat Tim Hudak.

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Tim Hudak leads after first ballot voting at the Ontario Provincial Conservative Party Convention with 33% of the vote. Frank Klees follows closely with 30% followed by Christine Elliott at 26% and Randy Hillier at 10%.

From United and Strong:

The Results have come in:

107 of 107 ridings:

Hudak: 3511
Klees: 3093
Elliott: 2728
Hillier 1013

The Roll call for the Second round balloting will be after lunch, with Randy Hillier being dropped from second round balloting.

Ajax Pickering – Elliott wins
Algoma Manitoulin – Hudak wins
Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale – Hudak wins
Barrie – Hudak wins
Beaches-East York – Klees wins
Bramalea-Gore-Malton – Klees wins
Brampton Springdale – Klees wins
Brampton West – Klees wins
Brant – Hudak wins
Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound – Elliott wins
Burlington – Hudak wins
Cambridge – Klees wins
Carleton-Missippi Mills – Hillier wins
Chatham Kent Essex – Hudak wins
Davenport – 3-way tie (Hudak, Elliott, Klees)
Don Valley East – Klees wins
Don Valley West – Hudak wins
Dufferin-Caledon – Elliott wins
Durham – Elliott wins
Eglington Lawrence – Elliott wins
Elgin Middlesex London – Klees wins
Essex – Elliott wins
Etobicoke Centre – Klees wins
Etobicoke Lakeshore – Klees wins
Etobicoke North – Hudak wins
Glengarry-Prescott-Russell – Hillier wins
Guelph – Hudak wins
Haldimand-Norfolk – Hudak wins
Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock – Hudak wins
Halton – Hudak wins
Hamilton Centre – Hudak wins
Hamilton East-Stoney Creek – Hudak wins
Hamilton Mountain – Hudak wins
Huron Bruce – Klees wins
Kenora-Rainy River – Hudak wins
Kingston and the Islands – Elliott wins
Kitchener Centre – Klees wins
Kitchener Conestoga – Klees wins
Kitchener Waterloo – Elliott wins
Lambton Kent Middlesex – Klees wins
Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington – Hillier win
Leeds-Grenville – Hudak wins
London-Fanshawe – Hudak wins
London North Centre – Hudak wins
London West – Hudak wins
Markham-Unionville – Klees wins
Mississauga-Brampton South – Klees wins
Mississauga East Cooksville – Klees wins
Mississauga Erindale – Klees wins
Mississauga South – Klees wins
Mississauga Streetsville – Hudak wins
Nepean Carleton – Hudak wins
Newmarket Aurora – Klees wins
Niagara Falls – Hudak wins
Niagara West Glanbrook – Hudak wins
Nickel Belt – Klees wins
Nipissing – Hudak wins
Northumberland-Quinte West – Elliott wins
Oak Ridges-Markham – Klees wins
Oakville – Elliott wins
Oshawa – Elliott wins
Ottawa Centre – Hudak wins
Ottawa-Orleans – Hudak wins
Ottawa South – Hudak wins
Ottawa Vanier – Elliott wins
Ottawa West Nepean – Hudak wins
Oxford – Hudak wins
Parkdale-High Park – Klees wins
Parry Sound-Muskoka – Hudak wins
Perth-Wellington – Hudak wins
Peterborough – Elliott wins
Pickering-Scarborough East – Elliott wins
Prince Edward-Hastings – Hudak wins
Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke – Hudak wins
Richmond Hill – Klees wins
St Catharines – Hudak wins
St Paul’s – Elliott wins
Sarnia-Lambton – Hudak wins
Sault Ste Marie – Elliott wins
Scarborough-Agincourt – Hudak wins
Scarborough Centre – Klees wins
Scarborough Guildwood – Klees wins
Scarborough Rouge River – Klees wins
Scarborough Southwest – Klees wins
Simcoe-Grey – Hudak wins
Simcoe-North – Hudak wins
Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry – Elliott wins
Sudbury – Klees wins
Thornhill – Klees wins
Thunder Bay-Atikokan – Klees wins
Thunder Bay-Superior North – Hudak wins
Timiskaming-Cochrane – Hudak wins
Timmins-James Bay – Hudak wins
Toronto Centre – Elliott wins
Toronto Danforth – Elliott wins
Trinity Spadina – Hudak wins
Vaughan – Hudak wins
Welland – Hudak wins
Wellington-Halton Hills – Elliott wins
Whitby-Oshawa – Elliott wins
Willowdale – Klees wins
Windsor-Tecumseh – Hudak wins
Windsor West – Elliott wins
York Centre – Klees wins
York Simcoe – Klees wins
York South Weston – Elliott wins
York West – Elliott wins

The roll call for the second ballot will happen after lunch, with Randy Hiller dropped from the second round.

Let the back-room politicking begin.

Follow the votes at United and Strong

Tim Hudak Christine Elliott, Frank Klees, Leadership cpnvention, leadership vote, PC, PC leadership, PC leadership convention, PC leadership vote, Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, Randy Hiller, Tim Hudak

Saturday Fluffernutter – all the fluffy news about those nutty celebrities.

The Black Eyed Pea’s manager,  Liborio Molina,  laid a minor beating on blogger, and complete fuckwad Perez Hilton in Toronto last weekend. Sadly, the beating was only minor.

Oh, I know, I know: violence never solved anything; it’s never the answer. I agree, I accept those arguments. I just can’t help feel that if I was there, I wouldn’t have been able to resist putting a boot to the weasel while he was down.

Jon and Kate Gosselin, of Jon and Kate Plus 8 fame, announced on their show that after ten years, eight kids and little if any dignity, they are separating.

I can’t help but feel when I watch these two these days, that they are two people who had no idea what they were signing on for when they took the TV show, and are caught in the celebrity trap way over their heads.

Ed McMahon (1923-2009)

Known mostly as Johnny Carson’s sidekick, Ed McMahon was a known entertainment entity for over 50 years.  His work includes, outside of the Tonight Show, Star Search, The Jerry Lewis Telethon, TV Bloopers and Practical Jokes and numerous commercials and promotions.

McMahon had been suffering various medical problems the past few years, and past away Tuesday at the age of 86 in the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Michael Jackson (1958-2009).

Michael Jackson’s death comes as both a complete surprise and really not very surprising at the same time. While it was sudden and unexpected, by the same token did any one expect him to live a long life? He always seemed destined to be a tragic character. Once the sudden shock has worn off, his death doesn’t seem shocking in the same way the Heath Ledger or John Lennon’s was.

As for Michael Jackson himself, I have nothing to say that is charitable and will leave it at that.

Farrah Fawcett  (1947-2009)

A far more tragic death of a far more worthy celebrity, Farrah Fawcett was a beautiful woman to the end, and one known for a good deal of smarts as well. Other than a brief period when she seemed to go off the rails a number of years ago, including a sad appearance on Letterman in which she appeared drugged, Fawcett was rarely controversial. Her red bikinied poster is the greatest selling poster of all time, and she will be remembered as a classic beauty for many years.

In her final illness, she displayed courage and class, allowing the cameras in to film a biopic called Farrah’s Story, which documented Fawcett cancer and she  talked about her life.

RIP Farrah Fawcett.

Fluffernutter * little Gosselin's, Black Eyed Peas, divorce, Farrah Fawcett, Jon and Kate Plus 8, Jon Gosselin, Kate Gosselin, Liborio Molino, Marriage, Michael Jackson, Perez Hilton, Prince of Pop, Ryan O'Neil, seperating, wedding, will-i-am

… Geoffrey Arnold Beck

Jeff Beck is the middle of the three great Yardbird guitarists, his time with the legendary band squeezed between Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. Never a great improviser, songwriter or singer he is often underestimated. His renderings of other people music is, however, often brilliant and his guitar playing is as good as any in the rock genre. It is no exaggeration to call him a great guitarist, far more so than the more highly celebrated Clapton, in my opinion.

Beck’s first post-Yardbirds group would feature a young Rod Stewart on vocals and future Rolling Stone Ron Wood on bass. It was considered the template for friend and Yardbird band-mate Jimmy Page’s future band,  Led Zeppelin (the name Led Zeppelin incidentally, emerged from a recording session called Beck’s Bolero, with Beck Who drummer Kieth Moon, Pianist Nicky Hopkins and future Zeppeliners Page and John Paul Jones).

Beck was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year, many years too late (he was, of course, previously inducted as a Yardbird).

Jeff Beck, one of the true greats of rock ‘n’ roll guitar, happy 65th birthday:  enjoy your seniors discount years.

Beck’s Bolero

Beck Bogart and Appice – Superstition

Birthday Wishes, Rockin' and Rollin' and Never Forgettin' Beck Bogart Appice, Beck's Bolero, Carmine Appice, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jeff Beck Group, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, Kieth Moon, Led Zeppelin, Nicky Hopkins, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Rod Stewart, Rolling Stones, Ron Wood, Tim Bogart, Yardbirds

Two years ago, almost to the day, I made an off-handed remark about Toronto being in a death spiral. This somewhat offended James at The Progressive Right, who both commented on it, and had his own post.  I let it drop after that, bringing up only once about six months later. In retrospect, I should have made it a series, the way Kate does Not Waiting for the Asteroid or Y2Kyoto. However, never too late as they say:

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Toronto the Not in a Death Spiral

The mayor of Toronto this week is refusing to force striking City of Toronto workers to allow members of the public to access the garbage transfer stations, as they are legally obligated to do. Citizens, however, who do not stand in long lines to be graced with the privilege of being allowed their legal right, and leave their garbage say, outside the transfer stations will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

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Addendum: memo to the Toronto Sun: this is not a waffle, this is picking sides and he sided with the law breakers.

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Additional: anyone out there know how to add a little swirly effect to the above picture?

Toronto: Not in a Death Spiral David Miller, dumping garbage, strike CUPE, Toronto

The Blue Blogging Soapbox Blogging Tories Site of the Week for the week of June 21st, 2009 is:

Right On

Simple and to the point.

Blogging Tories Site of the Week

I received a call this afternoon from Ontario Progressive Conservative leadership candidate Tim Hudak, ostensibly to thank me for endorsing him in my post last Saturday.  I have been hearing that Hudak is an easy to like kind of guy, and it couldn’t be more true.  I have never seen him in action, but based on one phone call I have no doubt he’s a guy who knows the politicians art of working a room.

The conversation moved quickly and smoothly, ranging from what kind of dog I had (she was being noisy), to my thoughts on the future of the auto industry, human rights commissions, the past and future of the Ontario PC party and my local PC MPP, Gerry Martiniuk, whom is a Tim Hudak supporter. The conversation involved me desperately trying to scribble the odd note, scribble being the operative word.  Here’s a brief recall of the conversation.

Hudak seems to consider the HRCs a big issue, and he had examples at hand of the abuse of the system, including an Ontario town (I can’t recall which one) that has had a eight HRC complaints against them by one citizen, one of his complaints being there isn’t a sidewalk in front of his house (next year he’ll complain he has to shovel the snow on his new sidewalk).

On blogs, Hudak pointed out that the press gallery is shrinking dramatically at Queen’s Park. The net result being there are not enough reporters covering the government and are thus less able to hold their feet to the fire. It’s the blogs that are picking up the slack, and as such, the blogs are becoming more important.

As for the race for leader, he and I both agreed it was a good race, that saw some ideas emerge from all candidates. It was a healthy process, and Hudak is confident he can win. On the vote itself, he said they had scrutineers in every riding on Sunday, they felt the vote was going well, and about 3o% of party members voted Sunday. The rest will have the opportunity to vote Thursday, the results, of course, will be announced Saturday.

Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to get in some question I had prepared, such as inquiring about his four steps to solve the doctor shortage. His ideas are: expanding capacity at medical schools, flexible retirement for physicians, recognize foreign credentials and increase incentives for Canadians studying abroad to return to Canada to practice. However, I feel a big part of the problem is David Peterson/Bob Rae’s old ban on extra billing, and was curious if he’d given any though to rescinding that.

e-health Ontario is another area I would have liked to quiz him, as well as: Caledonia; his favourite Led Zeppelin song (that says a lot about the man); Mike Harris: help or hindrance?; flat tax; the $1,000 newborn baby fund; the HST; who runs PerezHudak.com, and will any known rap artists be smacking him around in the near future?; his solutions for the manufacturing crisis.

While I didn’t get to ask him all that, I did get to tell my son he had been talking to the man who could be the next Premier of Ontario, I had a good excuse for not getting the vacuuming done, and I had a pleasant conversation with a genuinely nice man. I believe he would be an excellent leader, and like Joanne before me, “my interest in Ontario politics has gone from mope to hope and excitement.” And yes, I too am starting to think the PC party might have a chance.

Tim Hudak baby fund, Blue Like You, Bob Rae, Caledonia, David Peterson, Gerry Martiniuk, HRC, HST, Human Rights Comissions, Human Rights Tribunals, Joanne's Journey, Led Zeppelin, manufacturing crisis, Mike Harris, Ontario Human Rights Commision, Ontario Politics, PC, PC leadership, PC leadership convention, PC leadership vote, perezhudak.com, Premier of Onatrio, Progressive Conservative, Queens Park, Queens PArk press corp, Tim Hudak

J. Edgar Hoover had a file too. Here’s a hard and fast rule of 1930-60’s America, don’t piss of J. Edgar or you’ll find yourself with a file. Fast forward to Canada, 2009, and discover another bureaucrat who keeps files: Canadian Human Rights commissioner Jennifer Lynch:

Please, please, look. We have experienced 16 months of invective hurled at us, and at any time when anybody has tried to speak up and correct misinformation, gross distortions, caricaturizations,[sic] then the very next day there’s been some full-frontal assault through the blogs, through mainstream media. I have a file. I’m sure I have 1,200, certainly several hundred of these things.

Twelve-hundred files. On whom? may we ask. Bloggers who speak ill of your institution? Ezra Levant? Mark Steyn? No doubt all of the above, but here’s a question for you Jennifer, do you have a file on Warren Kinsella, defender of the HRC’s? But of course, they’re her files, and she being a mere public servant, none of my business.

Of course, Ms. Lynch says so much more, including defending her job:

I’m a public servant responsible for giving effect to the principle that ‘individuals should have the right equal to others to make for themselves a life they are able and wish to have,’ and I’m going to do it.

I always like to pull out the old UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights which, when people like Jennifer Lynch want to debate these things always seems like a good place to start. Oh, and speaking of starting, here’s something from the second paragraph of the Preamble, you don’t get much more basic human rights than that which appears in the preamble of the Universal Declaration of Human rights:

…the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief

I searched in vain, by the way, for any reference to the “right equal to others to make for themselves a life they are able and wish to have,” whatever that actually means.

At the end of the day, that’s what this fight is about, everybody’s right to speak and think freely, without intimidation from some government lackey, whether in the form of hauling your sorry self before a tribunal, or just keeping a file on you.

free speech, freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy, human rights, Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy Ezra Levant, free speech, Hoover, HRC, Human Rights Commisions, J. Edgar Hoover, Jennifer Lynch, Mark Steyn, UN, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Warren Kinsella

vis ShutterBugging

Picture of the Day Bird Photography, Blue Heron, Grand River, Hespeler, K200D, Pentax

I have been watching the Ontario Progressive Conservative leadership race with some interest the past few months, and slowly but surely made my call on who I think should become the next PC leader. This weekend it all comes to a head, as Progressive Conservatives in Ontario vote for a replacement for John Tory (side note: really, you people want John Tory to run for Mayor of Toronto? You like David Miller that much?). I have at different times written off every candidate in this race for one reason or another, but the time has come to endorse somebody, anybody.

First, lets do away with the caveats: I am not, nor have I ever been, a member of any political party. I did consider taking out a membership for this race, but never did.  I do, however, tend to vote Conservative (not so much Progressive), although my vote has to be earned. I refuse to just give it to the guy who’s the least left wing.

To start with, lets eliminate a few candidates. Frank Klees is a throwback, a seventies Progressive Conservative who belongs to another time, another ballot. He was, in my opinion, un-vote-able in much the same way John Tory was un-vote-able. Memo to Frank Klees: Dalton McGuinty will probably step down in a few years, you would be very comfortable in the Liberal party.

Randy Hillier I liked, and agreed with him on most issues. I hope the next leader has a seat at the table for Hiller. He is, however, not ready for prime time. He has nowhere near the professionalism and polish needed to run a major political party, and may never develop it. It makes him refreshing, but not an appropriate choice.

And then there were two. How can I not choose Tim Hudak over Christine Elliot. Christine Elliot presented one policy that I was big on, flat taxes. This is possibly the best policy option out there, simplifying the tax system, balancing the tax load between private individuals and corporate, yet at the same time lowering taxes for lower income workers. Sadly, I don’t get the impression Christine Elliot is as committed to a flat tax as I am, I get the impression she can speak it with a straight face, but that it is disposable policy. What your left with is Red Tory Liberal lite policies. Thanks, but no.

Tim Hudak, on the other hand, comes in with one big plus, the human rights issue. This isn’t a minor issue, in my mind, this is the issue. Frankly put, if you can’t see what is so wrong with these speech tribunals, then you don’t have appropriate conservative credentials. This may never make it to an election platform, Christine Elliot may be right and it may be too dangerous an issue (I disagree, but lets run with it). However, her un willingness to fight for it, to talk of these judge/jury joint ventures in a negative way indicates she doesn’t get what is wrong with undemocratic, un-judicial beaurocrats passing judgement on the speaking habits of the citizenry.  It’s not so much a major policy issue as it is a litmus test: if you won’t talk about disbanding these kangaroo courts, then you’re not my kind of conservative.

On almost all talking points and policy issues, Tim Hudak passes my sniff test. His conservative credentials are strong. He gives the impression that he has conservative values, not because they are a good career decision, but because he believes in the core tenant that freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy.

freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy Christine Elliot, conservative principles, Dalton McGuinty, flat tax, Frank Klees, HRCs, human rights, John Tory, PC leadership convention, PC leadership vote, Prgressive Conservative Party, Randy Hiller, Tim Hudak

In his “showdown” (wasn’t it showdown who sang, “you p*ss me off, you f*&#in’ jerk, you get on my nerves”? That song makes a lot more sense now.) with Stephen Harper, Michael Ignatieff seems to have let slip his true nature: politician? nope; professor? nope; patriot? nope; Michael Ignatieff, it turns out, is all bureaucrat.

Back in May, Ignatieff was claiming EI must be fixed immediately, in order to help those who are losing their jobs now. So what did he settle on for a fix? A six-person panel, that will consider changes to EI. And if that doesn’t work, no doubt a sternly worded letter will follow.

How this helps people losing their jobs now, it seems unclear. Ignatieff’s demand was that the government should help people now, during the bad economy. The committee, however, will give advice on how to proceed then, when many experts believe the economy will be on the up-tick.  It takes the cold beatless heart of a true bureaucrat to square that circle, a heart that apparently Ignatieff possesses.

pimply minions of bureaucracy bureaucrat, EI, Employment Insurance, Michael Ignatieff, Showdown, Stephen Harper, The Rodeo Song

The Blue Blogging Soapbox Blogging Tories Site of the Week for the week of June 14th, 2009 is:

Biff’s Place

A Canadian conservative, just trying to add a bit to our political debate.

Welcome to the Blogging Tories blogroll Biff. New voices are always welcome.

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via ShutterBugging

Uncategorized

The Blue Blogging Soapbox Blogging Tories Site of the Week for the week of June 7th, 2009 is:

A CAW Workers Voice Of Reason

This blog is posted from a 24 year Chrysler employee and 30 year CAW member. The purpose of this blog is to allow others to see the perspective of the average worker, rather than the views of CAW leader Ken Lewenza.
Coming from a city (Windsor) that labour and the CAW in particular,  has had a strangle hold on for years, Paulsstuff is a breath of fresh air to read.

On a personal note, Paul has been blogging the voice of reason for all of two months, and has made quite a splash, with a mention in the National Post and a link at SDA this past week: plus he has a way cool guitar collection.

Blogging Tories Site of the Week CAW