Over the past few months, chatter about Toronto’s municipal election has heated up, especially on Twitter — everyone’s favourite social media network. (Seriously, Facebook is over. Get on Twitter.) It was through Twitter that a group of engaged Torontonians first banded together, united by a conviction that the 2010 race should focus on the issues facing our city, and not simply the personalities of those in the horse race. (I think the mayoral drama of last week is a prime example of this misplaced focus.)

Under the name #voteTO, this group organized its first public event last week: #voteTOin416 — an urban issues forum featuring presentations from various community groups, or, as NOW Magazine put it, “an idea bonanza for civic nerds.” Each presenter was given a mere 4 minutes and 16 seconds to make the case for their issue as a ballot issue (hence the 416 reference). With the Annex Live venue packed to capacity with hundreds of eager Torontonians, speakers touched on topics as diverse as cycling, bed bugs, the stray cat problem, fair trade purchasing policies, and landlord licensing.

I carried the Fair Vote Canada flag with a presentation on the need to bring in proportional representation to Toronto elections. Democracy is in a pretty sad state in Toronto. We’re one of the most culturally diverse cities on this planet, yet 9 of 10 councilors are white, and 8 of 10 are men. Way too many of us will never get to elect anyone to city council, and the dismal voter turnout – 41% – reflects this disillusionment that I know many of us feel. You can watch my presentation above. Dave Meslin of Better Ballots also pitched the crowd on municipal voting reform. Judging by the audience response, the idea is a popular one.

Anyway, this “rock concert for city council junkies” was great, and given the venue was filled to capacity it sounds like there are plans to host more events in other areas of the city, and possibly a mayoral debate. To stay in touch, follow #voteTO on Twitter or join the #voteTO Facebook group.

Check out some media coverage of #voteTOin416 from the Toronto Star and NOW Toronto.

Finally, for those of you who are still wondering why the heck there is a # in #voteTO, it’s because the group’s name started off as a Twitter hashtag, something tweeters use to keep track of popular topics of discussion. Learn more about hashtags here!

Today’s post is a welcome to the Green Party’s newest member: NHL star Georges Laraque!

I don’t tend to follow professional sports, so I the first time I heard of Georges Laraque was this spring when it came out that he had decided to go vegan and get involved in animal protection issues after watching the film Earthlings. Of course, this immediately put him in my good books! But the more I learned about him, the more impressed I became — particular with respect to his tremendous commitment to so many issues, like animal welfare, Haiti relief, mentoring youth, and so much more.

Given his strong devotion to these issues, it’s only natural that Georges Laraque has chosen to become more involved with the Green Party. No other political party recognizes that animals are sentient beings who have value in and of themselves, and who deserve our respect and consideration. No other party would end the commercial seal kill on Canada’s East Coast. No other party opposes trophy hunting. No other party has a plan to improve treatment for animals on farms, recognizing the need to move away from industrial, factory farming that is most abusive to animals.

I’m also thrilled about the many recent successes the Greens have seen in Quebec. Our new deputy leader, Jacques Rivard, a well-known former environmental journalist in la belle province, has been getting loads of publicity, and our polling numbers have been strong. Rivard is set to tour the province this spring, and the Greens will host lectures by prominent Green politicians from Europe.

Laraque announced his new team colours at a screening of Earthlings on Saturday, stating “I want to be part of a group that is working to build a society that is more just, more healthy, and more in harmony with the environment.” Georges, you’re in the right place: welcome to the Green Party!

Here’s something that utterly infuriated me last night: DFAIT is looking to pay someone $100K to play around on Twitter, Flickr and YouTube to promote clubbing baby seals. This is from the job posting:

Social Media and Online Issues Management for the Seal Hunt

Organized opposition to the seal hunt has been increasing internationally since the Government of Canada announced a five-year management plan in 2006.

Well-organized anti-sealing groups are using digital communications to great advantage – effective use of search engine optimization (SEO) techniques, and leveraging Web 2.0 technologies and platforms to build communities of interest have dramatically increased their share of conversation and digital footprint. Tactics also include posting videos, images and other details (frequently incorrect or disingenuous) on platforms like YouTube and Flickr where sharing and viewership are maximized.

As a result, DFAIT would like to engage a firm to help meet described objectives attached herein.

Opposing the seal kill at Queen's Park last week

That’s right: $100K for some staffer at a rich PR firm to sit on a computer all day and post government lies and propaganda on various social media networks.

What’s most striking about this is that DFAIT spending has been slashed to the bone since the Conservative government seized power. They slashed $639 million from DFAIT’s budget over three years. Foreign service recruitment has been frozen, and staff at many Canadian embassies have been let go. Several foreign missions have been closed, and others have experienced 50% budget cuts. Many foreign policy experts are deeply worried about how an under-resourced DFAIT will possibly be able to help Canada effectively promote itself on the world stage, and export industries industries engaged in international trade are worried this neglect will leave all industries less able to market products abroad.

It is astounding that the Canadian government is not willing to provide even basic resources for some sectors of DFAIT, yet is eager to shell out six figures to promote the seal slaughter online through DFAIT. (Note that this is addition to the efforts of the DFO, which already makes a feeble attempt through YouTube and Twitter to prop up sealing.) Is there no conception of how damaging the seal kill is to Canada’s international image? As Tabatha Southey recently opined in the Globe, “Abroad, increasingly, Canada’s image is seal meat, asbestos and the oil sands.” She’s right. Our insistence on clubbing and shooting baby seals, blocking international climate agreements, and handing over Afghan detainees for torture has helped make a name for us on the international scene — very bad one. Gone are the days when Canadian travelers proudly displayed our flag on their backpacks.

It’s noteworthy that the job posting acknowledges people who care about animals are effective in getting the anti-sealing message out online. Yet the bulk of social media buzz about the seal truly is truly grassroots, and this is why the strategy of paying someone a hefty salary to tweet full-time about the benefits of slaughtering baby seals is doomed to fail. Regular people, including an overwhelming majority of Canadians, are opposed to the commercial seal kill and care enough about it to engage with others online. No amount of artificial social media organizing by the government will be able to counter the honest and organic concern of millions of people in Canada and around the world who oppose the barbaric slaughter.

On a final note, this job posting belies one of the government’s favourite talking points: that animal rights groups are soooo well funded that it’s just, like, so hard for the government to compete with them. As this posting demonstrates, it’s the government that has access to unlimited public coffers and is clearly not shy about using taxpayers’ dollars to prop up this tiny, outdated industry.

The government will undoubtedly continue to waste our money on these misguided efforts, but it is time to wake up and realize the seal kill is a losing game. The overwhelming negative global response to this shameful and bloody practice is why governments around the world are closing their borders to seal products. It’s time to transition sealers into sustainable industries, like coastal ecotourism, and relegate the seal kill to where it belongs — the history books.

This is the resolution that Green Party leader Elizabeth May and acclaimed British journalist George Monbiot will debate at tonight’s Munk Debate. The two will argue for a robust, global response to the climate crisis in order to halt out-of control global warming, against Bjorn Lomborg and Lord Nigel Lawson, who will oppose such an effort.

I’m beyond excited for this debate, and to be lucky enough to have a ticket to the sold-out live debate! I’ve been a huge fan of George Monbiot’s writing for years, and have no doubt that watching him share the stage with debater extraordinare Elizabeth May be unforgettable. I pity their opponents!

I’m hopeful this debate will help refocus attention on the Copenhagen climate meetings set to start later this week, where a successor to the Kyoto Protocol will be negotiated. Specifically, I hope debate will help get Canadians riled up about the shameful stance our country has taken by refusing to live up to our legally-binding greenhouse gas emission reduction targets, lying and obfuscating on the issue, and standing in the way of those who do care enough to act to preserve our collective future.

In his column yesterday, George Monbiot scathingly opined that Canada has become to climate change what Japan is to whaling. It hurts, but he’s right. We’re an international pariah on the issue. There’s a movement to dump us from the Commonwealth. No surprise, since our government’s stance on climate change contradicts the position taken by the rest of the Commonwealth at last weekend’s meetings, with Harper calling any chance of success in Copenhagen a “long shot”. This stands in stark contrast to the optimistic view expressed by other leaders, like Australia’s Kevin Rudd, and France’s Nicolas Sarkozy, who refuses to accept failure. Even Queen Elizabeth II has emphasized the importance of action.

George Monbiot considered tonight’s Munk Debate of such great importance that he has broken his self-imposed ban on air travel to be here in Canada tonight. Why? Because Canada’s continuing sabotage has consequences beyond our own borders. The Harper government strategy of blocking climate change negotiations sours the entire process. If we’re not going to lead the way in this fight, it’s time for Canada to get the hell out of the way.

If you want to tune in, it’s easy — the Munk Debate will be webcast live on the Green Party’s site. But for even more fun, why not meet up with friends and check out one of the live showings across the country? There are screenings set up at locations from coast-to-coast, and campus Green clubs will have a strong presence.

This should be one great debate!

Exciting new today out of Quebec — Elizabeth May has brought former Radio-Canada personality Jacques Rivard on board as the Green Party’s new Quebec deputy leader. Rivard replaces Claude William Genest, who has served as deputy leader since 2006.

I’m thrilled the Greens have been able to attract a Quebec deputy with Rivard’s impressive profile, experience and background. You can check out his bio for complete details, but here’s a brief paragraph from today’s press release:

Besides having had a distinguished career with Radio-Canada, he also collaborated with CNN, in the United States, on environmental projects linked to the Arctic. He was a member of the Society of Environmental Journalists, was a Nieman fellow and received a grant from the Rasmussen Foundation, which allows journalists who focus on the environment to study at Harvard University. For the past ten years, Mr. Rivard has been invited to Honduras, Mexico and France as a guest speaker on environmental issues.

The Green Party is committed to building our profile in Quebec, and I’ve no doubt that having Jacques Rivard on board will be of enormous assistance.

And before I run to class… a huge thank you to Claude William Genest for the hard work he put into building the Parti vert du Canada in Quebec over the three-plus years he spent in the position.

This entire fare hike situation is completely unacceptable. I understand there is a shortfall in the TTC budget, but forcing users to pay for the underfunding and mismanagement of Toronto’s transit system is not the solution. The fare grab will not solve the transit mess. By imposing the budget burden on those who can least afford, the fare hike will only further depress TTC ridership and lead to future budget shortfalls. It’s a vicious cycle — the TTC admits that for every 10 cent rise in fares, TTC ridership goes down by 3%, and TTC general manager Gary Webster says the 25 cent fare hike means risking the loss of at least 11 million transit users. Hiking fares will make the budget problems worse, as fewer riders means less revenue, more budget shortfalls, and more fare hikes.

There are ways to make up for the budget shortfall that do not involve gouging TTC users. Transit riders are a comparatively less wealthy segment of society and can ill afford to bear this burden, and the fare hike essentially imposes a new tax on low-income people. Imagine if the city voted to raise property taxes by 11% in one year — people would be outraged! Of course, taxing higher-income property owners would be highly unpopular and few politicians would want that on their record. But taxing the poor with a transit fare hike? Apparently, they’ve got no problem with that. (As an aside, politicians beware. The fare hike means I’m significantly less inclined to support TTC Chair Adam Giambrone if he runs for mayor in 2010, and I’m betting others feel the same.)

Instead of screwing transit riders, who help to make our city a greener, less congested place to live, Ottawa, Queen’s Park and City Hall must make transit a priority and provide secure and stable funding for the TTC. It’s a simply matter of priorities — if governments valued transit, they would find the money, or find ways to raise it. We could easily make progressive use of the tax system for TTC funding. The principle is simple — raise taxes on what we want to discourage, and lower taxes on what we want more of. Why not tax motorists more, and funnel that money to public transit? Introduce a congestion tax. Make motorists pay to drive downtown. Increase car registration fees. Tax some other group of rich people who can afford it.

The only good thing in this situation is that transit riders are starting to get angry, and it looks like a TTC rider’s union has sprung up. The group offers a series of investment-focused solutions that could help return the TTC to its former status as an award-winning transit system. Transit rider unions in other cities have helped lower fares and expand service, and I’m hopeful this group will have an impact. As the only OECD country without a national public transit strategy, it’s about time citizens force the government to adopt one.

The agenda for the weekend includes policy workshops and debate, a tribute to outgoing leader Frank de Jong — who is stepping down after an impressive 16 years at the helm — and, perhaps most importantly, choosing a new leader. Although Mike Schreiner is the only contestant, he has generated a huge amount of excitement among party members and is poised to make gains for the Greens in the 2011 provincial election.

If any of you are at the convention and/or happen to be aware of others who are live blogging or tweeting this weekend, let me know and I’ll add them to this post. Good luck to all of you at the convention this weekend!

My great-grandfather was a WWII veteran, and my grandfather spent his career in the Royal Canadian Air Force. I’m thinking of them, and the many others who gave up so much for what they believed in. Looking to the future, I’m hoping our generation can muster even a small part of their courage in responding to the grave threats that face us today — specifically, the crisis of climate change, but also the numerous armed conflicts and abuses of power that happen every day, in every corner of our globe. They unwaveringly believed our world is worth saving, and so should we. Over 100,000 Canadians have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country and our world, and we owe it to them to rise to the challenges we face today.

Mike Duffy: Worst Senator Ever

I’ve been planning a post like this since I first got my blog up and running. In fact, you may even be reading the first entry in a series of posts on the merits (or should I say, lack thereof) of those lucky few who won the patronage lottery with Senate appointments. Today, I’m conferring the esteemed title of Worst Senator Ever upon Conservative senator Mike Duffy.

Anyone who followed the news this week will understand why Duffy is the obvious choice for this distinct honour. You will recall that on CBC’s Power & Politics on Thursday, Duffy appeared (ironically, while wearing a tuxedo) to respond to an NDP report on what Harper’s new Senate appointments cost to taxpayers. NDP MP Peter Stoffer, who presented the report, held his own during the interview while the unelected Duffy spewed a volley of unbelievable insults, repeatedly calling Stoffer a “faker” who pretends to support the military but votes against them at every opportunity. He interrupted and talked over Stoffer throughout the brief interview, and left viewers stunned and likely sickened by his inappropriate behaviour. (It says something about the veracity of Duffy’s allegations that among the first to jump to Stoffer’s defence was Liberal MP Glen Pearson, who pointed to the tremendous respect MPs from all parties have for Stoffer, and his long history of working to support our uniformed men and women.)

As Don Martin at the Post wrote yesterday, “It takes considerable effort to become a complete embarrassment.” Well, in recognition of this massive effort, my reward to Mike Duffy is the title of Worst Senator Ever.

On a standalone basis, Duffy’s stunt on Power & Politics certainly makes him a top contender for this award. But don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m judging Duffy on the basis of only one such incident. Oh, no. This latest performance is only the culmination of a series of incidents that have defined the good Senator in the first year of his tenure, and in the lead up to his appointment, while he still claimed journalistic neutrality. For your reading pleasure, here is a chronological recap.

January 2006 — December 2008: Stephen Harper’s Conservative government is elected in January of 2006. Duffy hosted the CTV politics broadcast Mike Duffy Live during this period. Many Ottawa observers have described his reporting during this period as a severely biased, three-year job interview for a Conservative seat in the Red Chamber. His show became the closest thing Canada had to Fox News.

October 7, 2008: During a live interview on his show, Duffy tries to frame Green Party leader Elizabeth May as out-to-lunch compared to her Conservative electoral opponent Peter MacKay. Duffy describes May’s comments at a May/MacKay debate as “off the wall” and “pretty bizarre,” and asks MacKay if it’s tough to debate someone who is “never going to be in power.” May reams out Duffy for a “significant violation of journalistic ethics.” Duffy cuts the interview short, and May is not invited back on his show.

October 9, 2008: With the Liberals rising in the polls following Stephane Dion’s performance in the leaders’ debates, Mike Duffy airs the infamous Dion interview, where a poorly-phrased question left the Liberal leader asking for a do-over. Despite CTV’s word the false starts would not be aired, the clip appears on Mike Duffy Live that evening and Duffy does his best to make Dion look bad. Many regard the damaging interview as a turning point for the Conservatives in the campaign, and the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council later found Duffy was not fair, balanced or even-handed in his coverage of the interview. In other words, journalistic ethics had been thrown to the wind.

December 2008: Less than three months after he helped throw the election to the Conservatives, Duffy is rewarded with a (possibly constitutionally-invalid) Senate appointment. Prince Edward Islanders are outraged that Duffy, who hasn’t lived on the Island for over 40 years, will represent their province in Ottawa. The only consolation is that at least his show will be off the air.

Pork barrel politics: Duffy fits right in

February 3, 2009: In his maiden speech as a Senator, Duffy insults PEI premier Robert Ghiz, Newfoundland premier Danny Williams, and the gay community. In comments over PEI’s and Newfoundland’s disappointment with the federal budget, Duffy attacked Ghiz for “climbing into bed” with Williams. “You know what happened, what a grotesque scene that is. You know what happens when two politicians climb into bed together. One of them comes out on top and I’m afraid when you’re in bed with Danny Williams, he’s going to be on top.” Many found these comments sexist and homophobic. Even Harper found analogy inappropriate, and Duffy later “withdrew” the metaphor (whatever that means). What is perhaps most galling about this chain of events is that Duffy had the nerve to attack PEI’s premier for looking out for the province’s interests in the federal budget. That’s Ghiz’s job, and it should be Duffy’s job, too.

May 2009: Duffy discards all dignity in a New Brunswick speech by calling Danny Williams “that whack job over in Newfoundland,” and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May “Bucky the Beaver.” I find this particularly low, as he has claimed to find comments about his weight and personal appearance very hurtful. Always a class act, isn’t he?

June 11, 2009: Duffy’s on the road, “hosting” a scripted, by-invitation-only, televised event for Stephen Harper, where the Conservative deliver the first of their economic report cards promised in exchange for the Liberals’ support on the budget. The supposedly-once-neutral former journalist shills for Harper at the bizarre, stage-managed, one-hour event, that a Canadian Press investigation later reveals cost taxpayers $108,000.

June 23, 2009: Duffy tells the Peterborough Examiner he was never interested in a Senate appointment. And what’s more, he would have preferred to sit as an Independent, because he was always a journalist, not a Conservative. The questionable veracity of these statements makes them no less hilarious. Scott Feschuk puts it best: “Mike Duffy was not interested in the Senate the way Kirstie Alley is not interested in whether you’re going to finish that Twinkie.” It was widely known in Ottawa circles that Duffy was shilling for a Senate seat.

November 5, 2009: And now we return to the most recent in this string of embarrassments, where the unelected Duffy attacks the elected Stoffer over the NDP report showing Duffy spent $44,000 on travel in only the first three months of his term as a Senator. Most egregious is Duffy’s defence — that he is spending the money traveling the country and listening to Canadians. First of all, he’s a PEI Senator. Let him spend most of his time traveling back and forth to PEI, listening to Islanders. But this is absolutely not what he’s been up to. Duffy has been traveling the country on taxpayers’ dime, holding private, expensive fundraisers for the Conservatives, and trying to drum up partisan support. He’s not doing the job of a Senator, he’s doing the job of a partisan agent. He’s listening to the needs of Conservative donors, not average Islanders.

One could easily go on about Duffy for the better part of a day — and indeed there are more examples of ways he has embarrassed himself. He said he didn’t want a Senate appointment, yet he took one. He pretended to be non-partisan throughout his career, then belied these words by showing his true colours as as a nasty, venomous, undignified Conservative shill. I suppose it’s possible that Duffy’s pattern of behaviour is actually part of a Conservative master plan to destroy the reputation of the Senate, but I think it’s more likely that he’s simply a mean-spirited hypocrite of enormous proportions who hasn’t an iota of respect for our democratic institutions. For these accomplishments, I’m proud to deliver the Worst Senator Ever award to Mike Duffy. Congratulations, Duffy, you’ve earned it!

If you want to read more, here’s an interview with Safran Foer in the Globe from yesterday, and another from NPR earlier this week. I’m hopeful that Safran Foer’s renown as a novelist will increase this reach of his latest book, as the way society eats and treats animals is a moral and ethical issue deserving of our collective consideration.

UPDATE: You may also enjoy this video interview with the author on the publisher’s website.