Sona Goes Under the Bus Again?

He said he didn't do it, but it seems that Elections Canada begs to differ in the case of Michael Sona and the great robocall election scandal of 2011. 

Panda-er No More

Today, the whole country was in a tizzy because two panda bears arrived at Pearson Airport. The two bears, a male and female whose names I couldn't be bothered to look up, will be spending the next five years at the Toronto Zoo before spending the five years after that in Calgary. It's a big deal because a) pandas are awesome and b) it was a deal negotiated by Prime Minister Stephen Harper himself on a trip to China last year.

Now, I have nothing against pandas, they're endangered creatures worth saving, and I'm sure the millions of people who will visit the animals in both zoos will get something valuable out of it. What Harper got yesterday at Pearson was a great photo op, but meanwhile in Ottawa, right outside the PM's office building no less, his presence as envoy might have been slightly more appreciated to people desperately in need of political appreciation.

A group of Aboriginal youth called collectively the Nishiyuu Walkers arrived in Ottawa yesterday. Initiated by an 18-year-old named David Kawapit Jr.,who lives in an isolated community called Whapmagoostui in northern Quebec, the Nishiyuu Walkers, inspired by the Idle No More movement, embarked on a 1,600 kilometre trek from their home on the coast of Hudson Bay to Victoria Island in the Ottawa River and on to Parliament Hill. The walk by Kawapit and about half dozen others became a greater inspiration, and by the time the group arrived in Ottawa yesterday they were 270 strong, according to organizers. In a day and age when the apparent laziness of youth is remarked upon and lamented, nearly 300 people made a 1,000 mile journey on nothing but their own two feet, with the supplies on their back, in the middle of a harsh, northern Canadian winter.

Perhaps they should have done it wearing panda suits.

The Escape Hatch - A Robocall Update

It's hard to believe its been almost a year since Pierre Poutine became a national scandal, and by "Pierre Poutine" I mean the somewhat clever nom du plume of the perpetrator(s) of the robocall scandal and not the charming eating establishment in Downtown Guelph.

The investigation, it seems, has reached an impasse. At least from the public perception of it. At last report, as many as five individuals with the Marty Burke campaign in 2011 had accessed a Conservative database of voters from the same I.P. address that M. Poutine used to go about his dirty business. But still, despite the ongoing ambiguity, that doesn't mean that the players in this vicious political game of Clue aren't still making news.

Who Is Pierre Poutine?

Not that one, the other one.

It's the most pressing question of our time. Bigger than "Who is John Galt?" which is now so ubiquitous that Lululemon put it on a bag.

On a recent post on #CDNPoli, blogger Brian-Michel LaRue, "a 29 year old Canadian-American from Montréal, sometimes journalist, sometimes DJ, professional traveler, quite the amateur photographer and writer," revealed Pierre Poutine as Andrew Prescott, local blogger and deputy campaign manager for Marty Burke in last year's Federal Election.

Well, case closed then.