About that journalist Bro' thing...

The vile hypocrisy on Parliament Hill with regard to explicitly shielding some politicians from public opprobrium, is nauseating.

This happened:

Except for Frank Magazine, there was a reverent hush from all journalists assigned to the House of Commons and Canadian politics beat, though some bienséants guys muttered about Matt Millar's flouting the rules of an implicit gentlemen's agreement around protecting politicians' *personal* lives.

You may recall the histrionic, outraged shriEEEking tirades expressed by Moore when the Museum of Science and Technology hosted a sex-positive and informative exhibit?

PatRiotChick aka @PatOndabak created and promoted the #RideMeWilfred hashtag on Twitter. The cone of silence around James Moore's sexting, from established PPG reporters, just solidified.

The PPG Bros won't address the CPC unofficial "Do as we preach not as we do" modus operandi when Harper Cons' purported christian family values are transgressed by the ongoing sex libertarianism of Vic Toews, Peter MacKay, Bruce Carson, Patrick Brazeau, Pierre-Hughes Boisvenu, Don Meredith (and likely many others) until, in the latter's case, there's a witness/complainant courageous enough to denounce the predatory aspects of power.

Someone whined about violating the *privacy* of the government employee's BlackBerry that contained the self-incriminating sexting between VanGirl & Moore. 

My co-blogger asked:

My response:

Juxtapose how Harper Con MPs reacted when they learned Vikileaks tweets had been posted from a government IPS provider.

Yet not one peep from the CPC benches on this very *personal* exploitation of a taxpayer-funded BlackBerry for non-governmental use.

A journalist that I greatly admire for his rigorous writing disappointingly displayed his complicity with the Brotherhood, exhibiting deference for Moore's recent resignation to spend more time with his family.

Fortunately, Frank Magazine did not obey the Bro's code, and wrapped-up the whole typically disingenuous CPC act, thus.

Seems to me, in light of the commitment that's required to care for a child with special needs, Mrs Moore is the one who could have benefitted from an adventure on the side, to restore and sustain her energies.  But I suspect the Brotherhood would NOT have expressed the same depth of compassion for an outside-the-conjugal-bed idyll she might have pursued, as they overtly did for Mr Moore.

Hissing vs Pissing

This is what Antonia Z tweeted about earlier, here and here.

It's not politically correct to call it this, but a real cat fight has broken out between B.C. Premier Christy Clark and Alberta Premier Alison Redford. One of my colleagues jokingly called the war of words between the two women "premier-on-premier violence."

While it hasn't come to blows, the rhetorical rage between Canada's two most western premiers has ramped up to an uncharacteristic hissing match.

By some accounts, things didn't go well between the two last Thursday, when Clark flew to Edmonton for a surreptitious meeting at the Alberta legislature.

It would have been refreshingly honest for Licia Corbella to start off her piece of dreck with: "It's sexist and a cliché for me to call it thus, but ..."

Men have disagreements, conflicts, disputes, and quarrels with one another. Jason Kenney may call an Alberta CON colleague a "complete and utter asshole" - though it's viewed as rude and tactless, there's a tendency to shrug it off as the virile way men conduct themselves when they do business.

Cons for the pre-born. After? Not so much.

A member of the NDP says the Speaker of the House of Commons, Andrew Scheer, demanded that her 3 month old infant be removed from the House before a vote in connection with the bill on the abolition of the gun registry, yesterday. The office of the Speaker refuses to confirm or deny these allegations.

The MP for Verchères-Les Patriotes, Sana Hassaina gave birth to a boy that she named Iskander-Jack, in memory of the former NDP leader. She had recently returned to work and since she is breastfeeding, her husband who is on paternity leave accompanies her to Parliament. She was warned the vote would take place and finished nursing her baby. She searched the crowded lobby for her husband but not finding him, entered the House with her infant.

Once inside, she was told by a page that the Speaker wanted the baby to leave.

News item, in Google translate.

Original version here.

The CONtempt Party that's providing one of its MPs an opportunity to explore the legal status of the unborn - and reopen the abortion debate - won't let a tiny infant stay briefly in the House while his mother votes.

"Family values" - unless it's inCONvenient.

Grand merci to lagatta who provided the original news item.

UPDATE: @vickyatclc links to this - labour standards & women breastfeeding in the workplace.

CBC coverage of incident and Speaker's denial.

Pat Robertson gives marital advice.

Yes. That Pat Robertson.

The one who said: "Feminism is a socialist, anti-family, political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."

You'd expect Pat Robertson to believe that marital vows are inviolable, especially that which refers to caring for one's spouse "in sickness and health until death doth do us part", right?

Not so. It's apparently okay if you're a old white Republican man and your wife is afflicted with Alzheimer's. Then you can divorce her because, for all intents and purposes, she's already dead.

Bonus for TeaParty Republicans: if your ex-wife loses her health insurance when you divorce, goes into a coma and is denied life-support because she can't pay for it, your people will cheer for you.

via floridaline.

Nature or Nurture?

Are Republican politicians and their supporters born bent or does belonging to the GOP turn them out that way? From the Washington Post:

[Recently disclosed] financial reports showed that the party used tens of thousands of donor dollars for luxe hotels, private jets and other questionable expenditures. [...]

Although it is not unusual for either party to spend money in tony settings to cater to wealthy donors, the Republican National Committee's latest filings captured widespread attention for one expenditure at a risqué nightclub: $1,946.25 for "meals" at Voyeur in West Hollywood, which features topless dancers wearing horse bridles and other bondage gear while mimicking sex acts. [...]

An RNC investigation of the incident found that the Voyeur party was attended by a group of young Republicans who had been at an official party "Young Eagles" event at the Beverly Hills Hotel the same night, according to an internal memo obtained by The Washington Post. The Young Eagles is an RNC program to cultivate 30-to-40-year-olds as major future donors.

While it's hardly news that there's a chasm between what members of the Republican Party loudly proclaim with regard to Family Values©™ and what they actually do privately until photos surface in tabloids, it's interesting that they acknowledge these preferences and orientations within their donor recruitment campaigns.

Male chastity belt?

Did Glenn Beck just page DAMMIT JANET! to the courtesy phone?

Here at DJ! we have an ideological position about male chastity belts and it seems strange to contemplate that on this one point we may be in agreement with Beck. Was that the sound of hell freezing over, just now?

Our perpective on the above apparatus is simple and it was shaped by the Bush/Cheney administration's bias in funding sex education in schools.

The problem with Abstinence programs currently in vogue in the US and some parts of Canada is that they just don’t go far enough. As every religious zealot proclaims in their own defense, boys will boys, men will be men; it’s simply NOT THEIR FAULT they can’t seem to keep their ‘primitive animal’ urges under control and their willies inside their pants.

This manifests itself in the doctrine of strict Catholicism, Orthodox Judaism and Islam and their clumsy attempts to protect men from temptation and sin (aka women). As evident in thousands of years of self-justification from men accused of rape, sexual assault and incest, they say they just can’t stop themselves. And one of the unfortunate side-effects of unleashed male sexuality is female pregnancy. Not to mention the profligate spilling of man-seed. Won’t somebody please think of all the wasted semen?

Thus the time has come for the male chastity belt.

Now contrast and compare if you will, the current situation with regard to a newly elected Republican senator.

Supporters of Senator-elect Scott Brown winced as he offered up one of his daughters as "available" in his victory speech Tuesday night.

On Wednesday, Glenn Beck took to his radio program to sharply criticize Brown's remarks. The controversial host suggested that Brown needed to be "monitored" [...]

"I want a chastity belt on this man," Beck said. [...] Later on in the segment, Beck added, "I'm just sayin', congratulations, now let's monitor him, let's put an ankle bracelet on him, let's know where he is at all times."

During his victory speech Tuesday night, Sen.-elect Scott Brown introduced his daughters, Ayla and Arianna, to the world, thanking them for their help in the campaign. "And just in case anybody who's watching across the country, yes they're both available," he said.

As a mixed chorus of laughter and boos roared up, Brown said: "No, no, no. Oo. Only kidding. Only kidding. ... Arianna is definitely not available, but Ayla is." [...]

This isn't the first time Beck has expressed reservations about Brown. In a column he wrote for Fox News on Tuesday, he said: "I don't trust Scott Brown yet. Americans don't know him. He posed naked in Cosmopolitan magazine back in 1982. I mean — really? I question the judgment of man who thinks anyone wants to see the male body naked...."

Though Ted Kennedy seemingly inherited the bimbo gene that afflicted the male members of his clan, I don't believe he ever offered up his daughter as recompense to campaign workers and party supporters. Or posed for Cosmo.

'Pro-life with their wives, pro-choice with their girlfriends'

State senators in Missouri are wrangling over yet another restrictive abortion law.

Last night, State Senator Joan Bray made an impassioned speech. Here's the text of it (emphasis mine):

“After multiple years on this issue, I’m sick of it. I’m totally sick of it.

I’m sick of women being treated like they are so stupid that they can’t make their own decisions regarding their reproductive rights and their bodies.

I’m sick of women having no options, and being coerced to give birth.

I’m sick of a bunch of men around here, year after year after year, piling up restriction after restriction after restriction on women who found themselves in a very unhappy, unpleasant circumstance of an unwanted pregnancy.

Missouri has the most restrictive abortion laws in the country and, as a result, Missouri’s women are put in danger when they finally do ever get to have an abortion — they’re later and they’re tougher abortions to have because there are so many barriers to Missouri women getting to have a safe and legal abortion.

I am sick of the disrespect for women who come to the Capitol defending a woman’s legal right to choose an abortion.

I am sick that they’re being treated dismissively and rudely.

I’m sick of the ethic around here that men are pro-life for their wives and pro-choice for their girlfriends.

I’m sick of the failure to take steps that would, in fact, reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies, through sex education, contraception, family planning and emergency contraception.


No man in this body will ever have an unwanted pregnancy.

But, mark my word, your daughters, your wives, your sisters, your granddaughters, your nieces will.

And your actions here tonight will disrespect and diminish them.”

Well, apparently the male senators were some pissed over that crack. Here's what the blogger said:

Goodman said Bray had insulted “decent, committed families” and Senate spouses who shoulder the job of being a single parent during the week when the Legislature is in session.

.
At the link, most of the comments are in support of Senator Bray.