Tax this, Toronto!

The spendthrift Toronto city council, having run through most of the reserve fund built by previous (and better!) city councils, now wants to tax disposable coffee cups. Of course, council hasn't thought this through.
Paper cups are recyclable and biodegradable. Why are they not taxing the plastic shell cups such as those used by 7-11 for Slurpees, and foam and plastic contains for takeout food? Better yet, tax SUVs and luxury cars, and their accessories - cowcatchers (who the heck in Toronto needs a cowcatcher???), fancy hubcaps, expensive stereo systems. Tax high-end homes, furniture, clothing and accessories. Take it out of the pockets of the wealthy, not the overburdened middle class.

Dalton stops his hopping

Well, it seems that Dalton felt the heat long enough and got out of the kitchen. Some proof that even with a majority, the public's voice and opposition pressure can make a majority government backtrack on its stonewalling and "best defense is a good offense" position. Can't wait to see what the auditor general reports on this...and I hope the report comes out right before the election, so it will be fresh in voters' minds when they go to the polls.

Ontario - Fiberal Free in 2007.

Here's a club I can and would join!

Like Groucho, I've always felt that I'd never join a club that would have me...but this club is different.

Pets.ca, which is a great free site for pet owners, has an amusing thread about a new kennel club, the EKC. Perfect for those of us with rescue and shelter dogs, especially those who are of unknown breed(s)! I like the fact there are no trials or competitions, you're a winner just by being able to join :-).

Dalton's just a dancin' fool

So now Dalton McGuinty is sowwy about all the money his government gaily handed out without any formal grant applications? What happened, he heard from angry taxpayers and decided he'd better backtrack? What about the provincial auditor general investigation, Dalton, are you sowwy you and your minions stonewalled that? Are you going to say sowwy and vote in favour of it? I sure want to know where my tax dollars are going, you'd better have some answers. I doubt if they'll be good ones.

Animal rights groups want to take away your rights

Great article on chico bandido on AR groups and how they want to eliminate your right to own a pet.
And on Caveat about how some people are waking up to the HSUS/PETA agenda.

Light a candle for the dogs killed by Denver, CO

Light a candle for innocent lives, dogs killed for political ambition and gain. Who had done nothing wrong but be a particular shape.

Hundreds and hundreds of dogs, perhaps well over a thousand, were killed in Denver. How did Denver's animal control find these dogs? Many owners were responsible and had licensed them, unwittingly signing their death sentences. Their city attorney Korey Nelson, the architect of this bloody and unjust piece of legislation, keeps repeating the same rhetoric and nonsense in an attempt to defend his vicious law.

Imagine having to run and hide...drive through town with your dog hidden under a blanket so it won't be seized...forced to give your dog to an out-of-town rescue or move out of town to save your dog's life.

Pray for Sonya Dias, Hilary Engel and Sheryl White, who are challenging Denver's vicious, unfounded and unjust law in court.

Pray for all the innocents, dead for no good reason.

Don't pray for the tiny-minded councillors of Denver and their city attorney Nelson, may they all rot in Hell for what they've done.

Hat tip to Caveat for the link to KC Dog Blog with a note from Sonya Dias.

McGuinty tapdancing?

Yes, his feet are on a hot plate and he's gonna get burned....

If the Fibs have nothing to hide about these grants, why are they prevaricating and stonewalling, using their majority to stymie an investigation by the provincial auditor general?

Where there's smoke, there's a Fib with ears burning. I kinda feel sorry for Mike Colle...I wonder if the Fibs are working him over for abstaining from the voting carried by the other LibLemmings on the vague, shoddy, unjust and ill-fated Fib amendments to the Dog Owners' Liability Act.

Please, God, let them all be voted out of office in the fall. Don't make me see Mikey's face or hear Laurel Broten's giggling again. I love the fact that Broten voted for the "pit bull" ban when at the time she had a shar-pei, a "pit bull". Duh. Haven't seen the dog around in a while. It was a nice dog.

Massachusetts is a mess

Apparently Massachusetts, USA was considering a state-wide ban...and check out what the village of Canton did because of one scofflaw family (second last paragraph). Yea, they can't control one bunch of scofflaws, so they pass a breed ban. Ooh, that's sensible government.

Legislators refuse to learn from the experiences of other jurisdictions where breed specific legislation has been a spectacular failure. They also don't take into consideration the increased costs to the taxpayers when BSL is passed - defending lawsuits against the law, against misidentification of a seized dog, increased enforcement costs (which puzzles me since their dog law enforcement was obviously a dud before).

I received a nice note from State Representative Denis Guyer (the only representative to actually respond to my correspondence - I got auto-replies from others and nothing from the rest), which said in part:

"To my knowledge, The Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government will not be making any judgment on the legislation, but rather is holding an upcoming informatory hearing to study the issue further. I have not made any judgment on the subject and will be keeping an open mind during the hearing to make the best and most responsible decision."

Let's hope that the Massachusetts committee has its ears open, unlike the Ontario Fiberals who held sham hearings using taxpayers' money, ignored the expert testimony and barreled ahead with their BS...L, and played with their....Blackberries while people were testifying, which to me was incredibly rude and dismissive. As chico bandido pointed out, some Fibs voted without hearing a word of testimony. That doesn't bode well for a fair hearing in this province for anyone while the Fibs are in power.

The NFL can bite me

Players participating in animal cruelty of any type, including dog fighting, should get the boot. Sports leagues - football, basketball, hockey, soccer - have to take a stand on the criminal behaviour of their players.

Read more about Michael Vick and what he was doing to dogs.

Is PETA involved? A guest column.

From my friend Mkwa, his Ojibway name.

A number of events have occurred recently, reported in the main stream media and on lists I belong to. The most recent was reported in a New York Times article about how a fake protein enhancer made it into pet food. Next, a batch of milk replacer
formula was found to be contaminated. Preceding these was the massive recall of pet foods that, because of adulteration, led to the death of many animals and sickened many more. Veterinarians began calling for the regulation of the pet food industry, which is self regulated at this point.

PETA's main aim is the eradication of all domestic animals. PETA has deep pockets and the personnel.

Dedicated small breeders of traditional pets and hobby farmers do not have deep pockets.

If governments regulate the pet food industry, this will increase the cost to consumers because it's going to cost the manufacturers more which in turn would be passed on to the consumer.

Will this not force many of the aforementioned small breeders to abandon what is, for many, a lifelong passion for a breed of pet or farm animal?

Would that not fit PETA's agenda?

Mkwa