Kelly Velonis Liberal

Guess who abstained from the vote? Local hero Mark Strahl didn’t have the COURAGE to take a position against what is the evidence based barbaric practice of conversion therapy. The entire house of commons voted in support of the ban - Mark was one of seven that couldn’t find it in their hearts to do the right thing. Chilliwack-Hope deserve better.

A good article by Michael Harris, shared by a friend: Conservative politicians are notorious for talking mock-war on the deficit while in opposition, only to di...scover the joys of deficit spending when they get their hands on the cash. HALIFAXHow fitting that an absurd CPC leadership convention, where the party that wants to run the economy demonstrated that arithmetic is a problem, should be followed so rapidly by a ludicrous promise from the winner. Even without the dead-onarrival victory of Erin O’Toole at the end of a flawed and dismal process, to make one of your first promises to erase the federal deficit in about a decade is comedy in hot pursuit of farce. Not a decade, mind you, but about a decade. Nonsense. For one thing, your average politician has trouble projecting what will happen in the next 10 months, let alone 10 years. How much would a promise from Andrew Scheer have been worth touching on matters 10 years out? As the great Rafe Mair once put it, the square root of bugger all. Reality check? Neither Erin O’Toole, nor anyone else, has a clue what Canada will be facing in 2030. Given his party’s swallow-the-leader proclivities, it would be a minor miracle if O’Toole is even around in 10 years. And it is irresponsible fantasy economics to trot out such a hackneyed promise of slaying the deficitthe kind only an ideologue could love. Second, O’Toole bases his promise on 10 years in power, in other words, back-to-back victories. Cheeky stuff for someone who has never won an election as leader, and who is a member of a party which has suffered back-toback losses nationally because it fell completely out of touch with Canadians in its zeal to impose an unwanted, northern Republican ideology. Third, how dumb does O’Toole think people are? Conservative politicians are notorious for talking mock-war on the deficit while in opposition, only to discover the joys of deficit spending when they get their hands on the cash. The Harper government, where O’Toole had a senior role, is a classic case in point. Harper inherited a $13.8-billion surplus from the Liberals in 2006-2007. In just two years, the Conservatives had turned that into a deficit of $5.8 billion. Prime Minister Harper also added $150-billion to the national debt. In nine years, the Harperites ran only two surplusesone inherited from former PM Paul Martin, and the other the bogus product of creative accounting going into an election year. Compare that to the Liberals. Back in 1994-1995 the federal deficit was was 4.7 percent of GDP. By 1997-1998, the Liberals balanced the books. Painful stuff, to be sure, including controversial cuts to transfer payments. But after getting rid of the deficit, Liberal governments then ran surpluses for the next nine years. They also retired $90-billion from the national debt, an accomplishment that was more than wiped out by Harper’ decade of deficits. And where did O’Toole get the target of 10 years to dump the deficit? It just so happens that was the target of the Republican Party in the United States, a target whittled down to eight years by Cadet Bone Spur, Donald Trump, back in 2016. Instead of keeping his promise, what did this fiscal conservative do? Trump put the deficit on steroidsa whopping $984-billion in 2019, and $1.02-trillion in 2020. He also added over $3-trillion to the national debt, which is the real giant sucking sound coming from our neighbours to the south. Never mind the Russians, it’s the Debt Clock that’s coming for Trumpland. It is telling that Erin O’Toole would raise the prospect of balancing the budget, when no one even knows how large the deficit will be before COVID-19 runs its course, and without saying how he proposes to do it. In the U.S., Trump paid for his top-heavy military spending and ludicrous tax-cut for billionaires by slashing Medicare, and the budgets of the Environmental Protection Agency, Health and Human Services, the Centre for Disease Control, and Education. What would O’Toole cut? Two more points off the GST? More of those useless meat inspectors? There is always a short honeymoon for new political leaders and Erin O’Toole is no exception. For a few months, he will be fluffed up by the usual suspects in the Conservative-leaning media. They will cast the appropriate lights and shadows over his career to date, and stick rhetorical pins in PM Trudeau. But the fact is this: until O’Toole shows he has undergone a real conversion on the road to 24 Sussex, he has an indisputable record as a faint carbon copy of the guy he once called boss. Erin O’Toole sat around the cabinet table when Stephen Harper kept democracycritical information from the political opposition, including basic info on his budget cuts and spending programs. O’Toole mimics Harper’s decades-long fawning over the fossil fuel industry, captured in his continued opposition to a carbon tax. Even Deutsche Bank has more vision than that, announcing it won’t finance any new oil sands or coal projects. Along with Jason Kenney, who is now eyeing coal projects in the Rockies, O’Toole has his head buried in the tar sands. O’Toole also wants to dump two of the Trudeau government’s key environmental bills, one banning tankers from British Columbia’s northern coast, C-48, and another making review changes for large projects, C-69. Coincidentally, both pieces of legislation are strongly disliked by the energy industry, whose T-Shirt this politician likes to wear when jogging. Erin O’Toole voted for the Harper government’s infamous Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Practices Act. The question he must answer is, where was his progressivism and inclusiveness back in June of 2015? That’s when he supported legislation that placed already marginalized communities under clouds of suspicion, and encouraged Canadians to report on their neighbours like the child-informants in Orwell’s dystopian masterpiece, 1984, who turned in their parents to the Thought Police. As for O’Toole’s pledge to get tough on China, I wonder where that grit was when Chairman Harper sold off Nexen, a Canadian company, to the China National Offshore Oil Corporation back in 2012? But of course that was all about Big Oil and free trade, right? Now he’s for human rights. Right? Michael Harris is an awardwinning journalist and author. The Hill Times

Our free weekly grocery program for seniors needs your help. We want to continue to provide this service to the 50 plus seniors who are in need. We need food d...onations of coffee, toilet paper, peanut butter and canned goods. We need funds to continue purchasing fresh produce and other essentials. We are so thankful for all the individuals, businesses and volunteers who make this program possible. Help us continue to provide food to our seniors in need. See more

Despite the pandemic challenges, the needed investments in our communities continues on.

Today a peaceful march will take place in Chilliwack to honor the life of George Floyd and demonstrate that "Black Lives Matter". There are many in this community that want to end the rampant racism and violence that is polluting the USA and Canada. This peaceful march has been organized by brave youth in our community who will make a difference, I am in awe of their courage and dedication to bring change.I wish I could be there marching alongside everyone who is able to attend. Due to the number of people expected I am not able to attend in person. I am sure there are many people who due to our current situation cannot attend yet fully support this march. I am proud to live in a community where there are those willing to take a stand against injustice and work to bring change.

#Pride is about so much more than a parade. As (virtual) Pride season kicks off across Canada, let’s keep building a world where everyone feels safe and free to be who they are, and to love who they love. #LoveIsLove