HUMOUR:

ALL THE POLITICIAN THAT MONEY CAN BUY:

LOCAL POLITICS WINNIPEG:

WINNIPEGERS OPPOSE SECRET CORPORATE GIVE-AWAY:

The following news item from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) is about a recent poll that says that 80% of Winnipegers think that the secret deal with Veolia for "consulting services" in relation to upgrades to Winnipeg's sewer system should be made public.

There are a huge amount of questions that flow from this issue. The first that comes to my mind is "why" present city employees are not capable of laying out plans for such upgrades. They may or may not be capable, but it has never been made plain why such plans could not be done on the present city payroll. Either our present city employees are capable or they are not, especially the more highly paid managers amongst them. Who knows, and if they are not we will never know why.

The second question comes from an observation. The secrecy of the contract with Veolia is merely one more outrageous example of a persistent culture of secrecy surrounding City Hall and its relations to consultants. Our present Mayor Sam Katz may be a particularly arrogant defender of this culture, but he is hardly unique. He can also hardly be suspected of benefiting personally from this deal. Katz is the dinky little Mayor of a dinky little city in the middle of nowhere, and his personal wheelings and dealings are several levels of magnitude below those of an international company such as Veolia. It would take some serious creative accounting for Sam to be bribed on this matter. The Mayor's unyielding defense of this rather unique form of civic contracting is more related to his desire to preserve secrecy in other matters than from anything related to this particular deal.

It should also be noted that the public opposition to this secrecy on the part of the other mayoral candidate for Mayor Judy Wasylycia-Leiss lacks substance. Like most political promises it lacks enforceability ie a written commitment to either carry through with exposing the deal or cancelling it altogether. This means a "no-escape" provision to her promise such that it cannot be reneged on "in light of new information" if she wins. Put it in writing before a notary public Judy !

Even more importantly it lacks generality. While the present contract may be particularly large, and may have options for yet another billion dollars attached to it such things are hardly unique to the Katz administration. Neither are they a particularly "right wing" invention, even though it may be argued that public defenders of traditional "morality" are generally more corrupt than their opponents. The leech-like behavior of "consultants" was as much a feature of the Mayoralty of that darling of the left Glenn Murray as it was of any right wing administration. The only difference is in the sums involved.

Let the reader note that Judy has not made any promise to have all city contracts open to public scrutiny ie available of the City of Winnipeg website. The only contract that she has more or less promised to open to public scrutiny is the Veolia one. Cough up with the rest Judy, including others that might be undertaken in an administration of your own. No generality in democracy from Judy.

The other salient fact about Judy's promise is that it lacks "enforceability". If her promise were connected with another promising to set up a process for both recall and generalized public referenda about major capital projects she would be much more believable. That, however, is something quite remote from the ideological commitments of our so-called "left" these days. In general our "left" has evolved into an elitist position of distrust of ordinary people whose only difference from the elitism of the "right" is that it has an academic brown shirt squad in the post modernists. But realistic social democratic politician hardly call on such things in "real time". Mostly they act by evasion, a more traditional and less rhetorical way of coming to power.

So...if Judy were to couple her promise to put this item into public view with a)a written guarantee, b)a similar guarantee to put any give-aways to her own friends into public view and c)a similar written guarantee that the public could block such actions and also remove the politicians who go back on such promises then I'd be inclined to vote for her.

Well pigs don't fly and Judy will do such thing. Therefore Molly will do what she has always done ie not vote. This is for the purpose of making it plain that there is another way of doing politics that is considerably different from the habit of many of merely "kicking the bastards out" whether they be right wing bastards or left wing ones. This is, of course, a long range point of view, but it is better than taking a short term view of the "lesser of two evils" and accomplishing nothing. That's what voting in this election will do.

Here's the item from CUPE. While it has to be admitted that the poll in question was a politically motivated poll this fact is both obvious and trivial. I would be utterly surprised that the number who think this contract should remain secret is less than 80%. In actual fact the 20% who said they preferred secrecy are probably people who recognized the poll for what it was and answered this way just to be difficult. Here's the story.

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Winnipeg residents reject secret sewage contract—poll
Survey shows eight in ten want Veolia contract details made public

A Probe Research survey shows that 78 per cent of Winnipeg residents believe that all the details of the 30-year contract the City of Winnipeg entered into with the private contractor Veolia Canada should be made public before the October 27 municipal election.

Meanwhile, the poll—commissioned by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE)—shows overall opposition to the Veolia deal is also strong as 61 per cent of Winnipeggers oppose it, with 39 per cent in support.

“Clearly Winnipeggers have serious concerns with the mayor and council’s decision to enter into a 30-year deal with a private company to maintain and operate Winnipeg’s wastewater treatment plants,” says CUPE National President Paul Moist.

“For the past two years, concerned citizens have called for the city to be open and transparent about contracting out our wastewater plants,” says Moist. “And for two years the city has ignored these calls.”

“Winnipeg voters deserve to know the scope of this deal,” he says. “They deserve to know how much this deal will cost them and their children 30 years from now. They deserve answers to these questions before they go to the polls on October 27.”

Moist says keeping water and wastewater services in public hands is a key priority for CUPE and its members. CUPE has mounted campaigns opposed to water privatization across Canada and the world. CUPE has also worked with other community organizations in opposition to Winnipeg’s decision to seek out a private partner to operate and maintain its wastewater services since 2008.

Probe Research conducted the citywide telephone survey of 601 Winnipeg residents between September 16 and September 30. The margin of error is ±4.0, 19 times out of 20. Full results of the survey can be downloaded from the electronic version of this release at cupe.ca.

CUPE is Canada’s largest union representing more than 600,000 workers, including 26,000 in Manitoba.


For more information, contact:

Liam Martin
CUPE Communications Representative
Tel: (201) 612-0901
Heather Fraser
Senior Communications Officer, CUPE
Tel: (613) 237-1590



Read the poll by Probe Research
(271 kB)

Read the Veolia fact sheet
(34 kB)

CANADIAN POLITICS:

WHAT IS HARPER'S SECRET ?:

The story of the "power pair", Rahim Jaffer and Helena Guergis continues to develop by the day. The latest is that Canada's Ethics Commissioner has excused herself from investigating the so far secret (how typically conservative !) "allegations against Guergis because it is "not within her mandate". What this means is that whatever Guergis is guilty of is probably not connected with how she allowed her husband to use the perks of her office as a junior minister. What exactly Guergis is accused of and probably guilty of (beyond sharing her husband's cocaine) has been conveniently buried beneath an RCMP investigation which will no doubt take an extended time, especially as the government will apply all sorts of pressure to extend such time.

What are the skeletons in the closet ? Molly has noticed that one thing that was "in the news" a week ago is no longer such ie how Guergis got a "sweetheart deal" on her recent purchase of an Ottawa house. If the "influence" on the bank was from her and her husband's organized crime contacts then yes; it is not within the purview of the Parliamentary Ethics Commissioner. But it is still criminal. Look for this to be thoroughly buried for a long time to come. *It seems to have been forgotten by the mass media in the last week. for memory's sake here's an article from the Toronto Star a week ago about this particular pit that the couple has gone swimming in.

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Probe Helena Guergis mortgage, Liberals ask ethics czar

Tory minister received $800,000 for new home without down payment

OTTAWA–The Liberals are asking the federal ethics commissioner to look into a big mortgage given to embattled Tory cabinet minister Helena Guergis.

They want to know if Guergis received preferential treatment to finance an expensive new home.

Liberal MP Marlene Jennings wrote to commissioner Mary Dawson on Tuesday, asking her to look into reports that Guergis was given a mortgage for the full $880,000 cost of the Ottawa home.

Jennings says reports suggest a Bank of Nova Scotia branch in Edmonton granted the mortgage without requiring a down payment.

She notes that the conflict of interest code for MPs stipulates that no MP or family member shall accept – directly or indirectly – any gift or benefit that might be perceived as an attempt to influence the MP.

Guergis, the minister of state for the status of women, came under opposition fire in February for throwing a tantrum at Charlottetown airport.

And last week, she faced further calls for her resignation after it was revealed that several current and former staffers had written letters to newspapers praising the minister – without identifying their links to her.

Guergis's husband, former Edmonton Tory MP Rahim Jaffer, has helped keep the spotlight on the minister. He was fined last month for careless driving after charges of cocaine possession and impaired driving were dropped.

CANADIAN POLITICS:

CONSERVATIVE CORRUPTION:

Ex Conservative MP Rahim Jaffer has become the subject of outrage to the average Canadian and amusement to those who take politics as a spectator sport. From accomplishing the almost impossible in being beaten by an NDP candidate in Edmonton of all places to having an aide imitate him on a talk show his is a hard act to follow. It's very hard to top being caught over 0.08 while driving and having cocaine found in one's possession at the time of the arrest and getting off with a "driving without due care and attention" slap on the wrist. Mr Jaffer, however, has managed to top himself, as the following story from the Toronto Star about the events that preceded his arrest details.

There is only one person on the Canadian political scene that gives Jaffer any competition for the title of loosest cannon, and that is his wife, sitting Conservative MP Helena Guergis. While the public may wonder how anyone could escape and double whammy change of drunk driving and cocaine possession (political interference ???) the spectacle of someone throwing a vandalistic temper tantrum at airport security and not only not being charged but actually being allowed to proceed onto the plane may be equally mystifying. Guergis also apparently took a page from her husband's book and had her staff fake letters to the editor from supposed 'unconnected' members of the public. the latest pit that she has fallen into is that there are now demands for a investigation on the part of the Ethics Commissioner concerning the details of her house purchases. A fine pair indeed. Obviously meant for each other.

Here are the sordid details of Jaffer's night out before he got nailed. It begins with a high end party at a Toronto steak house attended by 5 characters of ill repute plotting how to soak the Canadian taxpayer. Their escorts for the night are three ladies of the same.

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Former MP Rahim Jaffer connected to alleged conman

Jaffer boasted to businesses: I can get government money easily

Kevin Donovan
Staff Reporter
The booze was flowing on the back patio at Harbour 60 Steakhouse in downtown Toronto.

Nazim Gillani of International Strategic Investments, four business associates, and three busty hookers dined in style last Sept. 10.

Former MP Rahim Jaffer, a self-described peddler of government grants, credits and loans, was in fine form, chatting up prospective clients. Early the next morning, Gillani would greet the day with a colourful email to the night’s guests: “Mr. Jaffer has opened up the Prime Minister’s office to us,” he boasted, unaware at the time of how Jaffer’s night had ended. Gillani is a character. By last September, at least two major police departments and the federal taxman were after him on fraud or tax evasion allegations.

Sixty kilometres north of the dark wood panelling of Harbour 60, a dozen Ontario Provincial Police officers were setting up a RIDE check, a routine stop and sniff assignment that is the bread and butter of the Caledon OPP detachment. Sgt. Mike Garant was the boss. Ten-year veteran Kim Stapleton, a by-the-book officer, was also on duty. Often praised for her work, Stapleton was one of a group of OPP officers selected to travel to the Olympics to work on a security detail in the new year. With other Caledon officers that night, she set up a highly visible RIDE checkpoint just north of the road that snakes past the Pumpkin Patch Childcare Centre. Proudly displayed in their tiny OPP detachment is a MacLean’s article on strict policing with the headline: Caledon: Where you can’t get away with anything.

The intersection of Gillani, Jaffer and the waiting RIDE program is central to the unanswered question surrounding events that Thursday night – how did Jaffer escape serious charges with a slap on the wrist? And its raises another question – was the former MP selling government access he did not have?

Nazim Gillani lives and works out of a rented, million dollar, two-storey home on a busy stretch of Kipling Ave. in Etobicoke. Hanging around the house at any given time are a former CFL offensive guard who once faced steroid production and marijuana possession charges (they were dropped); a lawyer suspended three times for not cooperating with Law Society probes into his business ; a creeping nest of would-be-titans-of-finance; and an odd parade of 20 something interns from business schools across the country.

In the driveway there is usually a Porsche Turbo, two BMWs, a sleek Infiniti, a Mercedes, and a lumbering old white van. Gillani owns none of his empire, at least on paper.

Gillani, the ceo of ISI, is a 43-year old wheeler dealer whose company boasts it “has been successful in obtaining grants and loans from various Government bodies.” A typical day for Gillani involves a late breakfast on the Queensway, an afternoon meeting around the kitchen table at the house, an early evening visit to his “Bloor Street Office” (the VIP lounge at strip joint Club Paradise) and a dinner like this one.

At Harbour 60, Gillani was doing what he always does: Talking big about deals. Gillani – “Naz” to his pals – has a habit of finding new businesses, promising to take them public. As the first part of that process he convinces owners of companies to pay him cash to cover his fees. Businessmen who have walked away angry say Gillani owes them hundreds of thousands of dollars, and they received nothing in return. Some speculate that Gillani raised money for them, and kept it. Though some would like to complain to police, they say they are reluctant to because Gillani has told them he has compromising photographs of them at strip clubs.

Keeping a close watch on Gillani at the dinner, as he always does, was former Toronto Argonaut offensive guard Mike Mihelic, his six-foot-five inch, 310 pound vice-president of business affairs (who owns most of the cars in the driveway).

Mihelic and Gillani, that night, were feeling heat from York Region Police, who were probing their involvement in a $1.5 million wire transfer fraud against home buildings supply company Rona, a case unrelated to Gillani’s investment schemes. The allegations of investment fraud were being looked into by the Integrated Market Enforcement Team, an RCMP-led task force.

Gillani was visibly drunk; Jaffer was not, though he drank steadily.

Jaffer is known in Ottawa, where the Edmonton native was an MP for a decade, as a party animal. To those assembled at Harbour 60 though, Jaffer explained that he could not stay out all night. He had borrowed his wife’s Ford Escape, parked it at the Kipling Street house, and Mihelic had driven him to Harbour 60 in the Porsche. Jaffer said his wife, Helena Guergis, the minister of state for the status of women, was returning from a business trip and he had to get home to the house they shared in Angus.

The night progressed from cocktails to wine to liqueurs.

The women were supplied by 23-year-old Jasmine of high class escort agency Cachet Ladies. Gillani tells his friends he is engaged to Jasmine, whom he met a year ago on an escort date.

Jaffer, as he often does, told businessmen that he and his company, Green Power Solutions, were experts in obtaining government money. “I can get it, no problem,” he said. His company’s promotional material boasts a “thorough knowledge of government policies and incentive programs.”

“I have access to a green fund,” Jaffer said at the table.

A few weeks before the Harbour 60 dinner, Jaffer and Gillani held court at another steak restaurant, La Castille in Etobicoke. Gillani told a group of invited businessmen that his company could arrange start-up financing, and that Jaffer could come up with federal government funds. Jaffer explained that he had expertise, particularly in securing what he called “green loans” at very low interest rates.

Though Jaffer has not been an MP since he lost an election in 2008, he still gives out his MP business cards and did so at La Castille.

(Former and current associates of Gillani were granted anonymity for this story for several reasons, primarily because they fear physical retribution from Gillani and his associates.)

Also on hand at both steakhouses was Dr. Hai Chen, a business associate working with Gillani and Jaffer on a murky deal Gillani calls the ‘China initiative.’

At Harbour 60, Jaffer and Chen made plans for the first of two trips to Shanghai to grow business contacts between Canada and China. After Jaffer said he could secure Canadian government money for businesses, Chen said he could do the same in China. There was much talk around the table of “green” projects, particularly a Canadian venture where waste could be turned into solid fuel.

Shortly before 11 pm, the dinner party ended. The bill for dinner and drinks for nine was more than $3,200. Gillani paid and he and his guests went to the parking lot. It’s unclear where everyone went, but Jaffer and Mihelic drove off in the Porsche. There was much talk at the dinner that some would head off to Club Paradise.

Constable Kim Stapleton was going off shift and left her fellow officers at the RIDE program in Palgrave at 12:45 am. A diligent officer, she activated her mobile radar detector as she drove south through Palgrave on Highway 50. The speed limit in the small town was 50 kph. The detector beeped and clocked the approaching Ford Escape SUV at 93 kph.

“I’ve got a high miler here,” Stapleton said into her radio, turning on her lights. She told Sgt. Mike Garant back at the RIDE program that she was pulling over an SUV.

Walking up to the car, the female officer shone her flashlight in at the driver. Rahim Jaffer looked back. Stapleton smelled alcohol and asked Jaffer several questions.

“I smell alcohol, I am doing an alc test,” Stapleton radioed to Garant.

Pulling a roadside breathalyzer unit from her cruiser she administered the test, which showed positive for alcohol. Stapleton radioed for a male officer to join her because she was arresting Jaffer. Stapleton called for a tow truck to take away the Ford.

Sgt. Garant sent an officer down to Stapleton’s position. The officer searched Jaffer and found a bag in his pocket, which turned out to be cocaine.

The police officers looked inside Jaffer’s car and found a stack of Helena Guergis’ business cards. They drove Jaffer to the Caledon East OPP detachment and administered a blood alcohol test, which showed a level above the legal .08 level (police have not released the level or amount of cocaine). In Ontario, the penalty for being found guilty of driving above the legal level is a one year licence suspension, a $1,000 fine and a requirement to install an ignition lock that prevents a vehicle from starting unless the driver provides a sober breath sample.

Officers at the OPP detachment conducted a strip search of Jaffer, which police say is standard protocol when drugs are found on a person.

Stapleton charged Jaffer, 38, with driving over the legal blood alcohol limit, speeding 93 kph in a 50 kph zone; and possession of cocaine. He was released from the station around 6 am on Friday, Sept. 11.

The news of the high profile former MP’s arrest did not trickle out for a week. The morning Jaffer was charged, Gillani sent out an email to investors that was full of positive bluster.

“As most of you may have heard, we had a rather earth moving experience last night at dinner with Rahim Jaffer and Dr. Chen. Mr. Jaffer has opened up the Prime Ministers’ office to us and as a result of that dinner – he today advised me that is just as excited as we are and joining our team seems to be the next logical step,” Gillani wrote to a dozen close associates. (Tory insiders say Jaffer has no such access). (Well he doesn't now-Molly )

When news of Jaffer’s arrest leaked out the next week, it was front page news. Toronto lawyer Howard Rubel was hired to defend Jaffer. Jaffer told associates that the cocaine was in his jacket pocket, which was hanging in the back seat of his car, which he said meant he would likely get off on a technicality. The police maintain the cocaine was in his pants pocket.

OPP officer Stapleton, with the realization that this high profile case was likely coming to court during her Olympic duties, prepared her notes and understood that if needed she would fly back to testify.

Meanwhile, York Regional Police detectives charged Gillani, Mihelic and several others in November with fraud in connection with a deal Gillani allegedly orchestrated. A former senior employee of Rona was coerced into using his computer and finance knowledge to wire $1.5 million of Rona money to a dummy account in Hong Kong. Jasmine, the Cachet Ladies escort, was with Gillani in his bedroom when detectives arrived to make the arrest. Sobbing, she pleaded with them not to take her boyfriend away.

Two of those accused have said they will plead guilty in return for providing evidence against Gillani. No findings of guilt have been made and the case continues in Newmarket court later this month.

At IMET, the detectives who investigate financial market fraud allegations, senior officer Kevin Harrison said through a spokesman that he is aware of Gillani, but won’t confirm that an investigation is underway. Gillani has previously faced charges of carrying a handgun in B.C., and is being probed in a tax evasion case. Neither of these cases have been resolved.

Jaffer and Gillani’s friendship and business association cooled by November, though Jaffer and Chen are still friends. Jaffer had four brief court hearings on the cocaine and driving charges last fall and early winter. His lawyer showed up; he did not.

For the OPP in Caledon, the Jaffer arrest was a routine case. That’s why officers were surprised to be told in early January by Crown Attorney Marie Balogh that she did not want a trial. Instead, she was seeking a guilty plea on reduced charges. A pre-trial conference – the matters discussed are secret – was held on Feb. 18, 2010 before a judge. Caledon OPP were notified that the deal with Jaffer was made at “the most senior levels” of provincial law enforcement. OPP Caledon pushed back but to no avail. ( No luck for the OPP- Molly )

The next night, Jaffer and Dr. Chen had dinner to discuss their recent trip to Shanghai and another planned for April. Jaffer told Chen his wife was flying in from Prince Edward Island – he was hoping to pick her up at the Toronto airport but heard she was delayed.

Chen said he learned the next day from news reports that the delay came because Charlottetown airport staff had asked Guergis to take her boots off for screening and the minister threw a tantrum. Guergis later apologized.

On March 9, 2010, crown attorney Balogh told a hearing (in front of a different judge) that she was withdrawing all charges – speeding, driving over the legal blood alcohol limit, and cocaine possession – against Jaffer because there were issues with the evidence and she saw no reasonable prospect of a conviction. She replaced the charge with one count of careless driving, to which the former MP pleaded guilty. He was fined $500 and also voluntarily made a $500 payment to a cystic fibrosis charity.

In Ottawa, politicians speculated that Jaffer received a deal – the judge described it as “a break” – because of political connections. Former Stephen Harper spokesman Kory Teneycke said that is “ridiculous.”

In Toronto, former associates of Gillani speculate that Jaffer has “rolled over” on Gillani, provided evidence, and in return was given a good deal on his drug, speeding and drunk driving charges. ( Possibly-Molly )

Jaffer lawyer Rubel said it that is “laughable.”

Neither Gillani, Mihelic or Jaffer would respond to interview requests. Gillani cancelled numerous appointments with a Star reporter.

“Last night I woke up in excruciating pain and my feet were the size of footballs. I don't know what it is - but I haven't moved at all,” Gillani wrote in one cancellation email.

Kevin Donovan can be reached at (416) 312-3503 or kdonovan@thestar.ca

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Further Molly Comment:

I can't say that I'm surprised by this sort of story. Over the years I've come to believe that while left wing politicians may be more annoying overall that right wing ones beat them hands down for sheer unmitigated dishonesty and corruption. This tendency reached truly astronomical heights in the USA, but as far as I can determine it is universal. I explain it by the shrivelled conscience that seems to go with the pursuit of power through right wing politics. Not that every conservative shares this disability, but it seems to be characteristic of their leaders.

Left wing politicians can indeed be venal, but the evidence is that right wing ones are very much more so. I think this is because their concept of "morality" has shrunk down to attempts to control the sexual behavior of others. If all it takes to appear moral is to condemn the behavior of those who say "have sex with knotholes in trees" then items such as theft and telling lies simply don't register as "sins" in such a world view.

Just to close it should be noted that Jaffer's little deception on the talk show happened in 2001. In 2006 that infallible judge of character and pillar of morality Prime Minister Steven Harper appointed him Chair of the Conservative caucus in Parliament. Think about this as you watch the conservative wheels spin as they attempt to distance themselves from him and his battle-axe wife. This pair gave lots of warning about their tendencies a long time ago, but to a Conservative politician such things are unimportant. Getting caught big time is, however, quite important.

CANADIAN POLITICS:

THE NEW FEDERAL BUDGET:

After presenting an incredibly lenghty Speech From The Throne that was long on platitudes and short on substance the federal Conservative Government has presented its budget. This presents a quandary for the opposition as no party wants to risk an election, and they have to figure out a way "to be seen as opposing" the budget while not opposing it in fact. Ignatief, the leader of the Liberal Party, has set the tone by saying that the Liberals will vote against the budget while making sure that enough of their MPs are out of the House to make sure that it will pass.

The Throne Speech was, of course, nothing, and its major "blip" has disappeared 2 days after its presentation. I refer to the bizarre idea of making the national anthem "gender inclusive". That sort of thing was, of course, cooked up by Conservative strategists who thought that they could outflank the "left" (as it is). It failed because the average person, of whatever persuasion, came in first with their opinion before academic feminism did. The cynicism of the general public is very correct here. For something that should cost nothing it is guaranteed that at least a million would be spent on revising the words of a song that very few people know the full words to anyways. The million would not be paid out to such as the federally funded "feminist" quangos like the 'National Action Committee On The Status Of Women'. It would go to corporate buddies of the government.

Molly may actually be in a 1% club for knowing the first two verses of the national anthem. Only God and the IODE only know the others. To say the least "nobody cares". but there are other things that people actually do care about. Here's the statement of the Canadian Labour Congress on the budget.

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The 2010 Federal Budget:
Canadian Labour Congress Analysis
1. Summary
The Budget contains no big surprises but is still a big disappointment. Despite the fact that unemployment is and will remain very high, economic stimulus measures effectively end after this year. A few very small new investments in jobs and skills will be made, but they do not amount to even the beginnings of a strategy to build a new economy. There will be a temporary extension of EI work-sharing, but about 500,000 unemployment claims filed during the Great Recession will still be exhausted. Corporate tax cuts continue, and are even modestly increased in this Budget, so the burden of deficit reduction will fall on government programs. Despite very low interest rates and one of the lowest debt levels in the advanced industrial countries, federal program spending will be slashed. Spending on international assistance is to be frozen.
While the world’s and Canada’s economic recovery is still very fragile, the Harper government has decided to focus on eliminating the deficit. Creating jobs would help balance the books at far lower cost.
2. Impact on Jobs and the Economy
Since October 2008, almost 500,000 permanent, paid jobs have been lost as the manufacturing and forest industry jobs crisis intensified and spread to other sectors. In the last Budget, under intense pressure, the federal government passed an economic stimulus package that, combined with ultra-low interest rates, seems to have stabilized the economy. The Budget estimates that the stimulus package has saved or created 130,000 jobs as of today.
But, a significant proportion of layoffs that occurred in the last few years are permanent, the result of bankruptcies and plant closures. Unemployment is expected by the Budget to average 8.5% this year, and 7.9% in 2011, and the real rate of unemployment — counting people who have been forced into part-time jobs or have given up looking for jobs — is already over 12%. Many unemployed workers are able to find only very low wage, insecure jobs.
We face a severe social and poverty crisis as tens of thousands of workers, who are unemployed through no fault of their own, exhaust their EI benefits and as the incomes of working families fall. The crisis has also had a devastating impact upon retirement savings and pension plans.
The CLC called on the government to build on existing stimulus measures and to launch, in partnership with the provinces and cities, a major, multi-year, public investment program which would create jobs now, promote our environmental goals, and build new “green” industries for the future. The current infrastructure program is far too small to have much impact on the jobs crisis, and excludes the larger and longer term projects which would have the greatest positive impact on our future economic potential. We also called for investments in job-creating public services, such as child care and home care.
The CLC also said that the federal government should invest directly in sector renewal strategies to save jobs and promote successful restructuring in hard-hit industries, such as auto, forest, and fish products.
What We Got
The Budget praises corporate tax cuts as its key economic lever, and maintains already announced stimulus measures only for this coming year, as expected. Stimulus money not spent in 2009-2010 will be carried over, but the program will end in March of next year. The Budget also adds some very modest new job creation initiatives. New measures listed under the category “building a strong economic foundation” total just $1.5 billion over the next two years (on top of funds already committed). One hundred and eight million dollars will be spent over three years on employment and skills measures aimed at youth, including Aboriginal and at-risk youth. About $500 million will be spent over two years on programs to build a more innovative economy, including through support for the National Research Council, and university and college research. There are small increases for regional economic development agencies, some very minor green jobs programs, and more support for basic infrastructure (including $175 million over two years for Marine Atlantic, and $330 million over two years for First Nations infrastructure).
Billed as a job creation measure, the Budget eliminates remaining tariffs on machinery and equipment, as well as on industrial inputs to manufacturing. These tariff cuts will be front-end loaded but phased in over five years, and will save business $200 million next year, rising to $300 million per year when the process is completed. The net effect on jobs may be negative if these tariffs result in higher imports at the expense of Canadian producers. Also, they eliminate a key bargaining chip in ongoing trade negotiations.
3. Employment Insurance
What We Wanted
EI is a critically important program for Canadian workers. Laid-off workers deserve adequate benefits to support themselves and their families. And EI is an effective form of economic stimulus which can help maintain hard-hit communities.
Our EI program has left far too many Canadians, especially women and lower wage, insecure workers, out in the cold. Only half of all unemployed workers qualify for benefits, and the average weekly benefit for those who do qualify is just $343. The more than 800,000 unemployed workers now on EI qualify for an average of just 38 weeks of benefits, and tens of thousands of workers who lost their jobs in the early stages of the crisis have already exhausted their claims. EI benefits have been temporarily extended for five weeks for all workers who file their claims before September 11, 2010, and up to 20 weeks for a few older workers under an extension program that will be phased out from June of this year and closes in September. But this is not enough in a jobless recovery. Provincial social assistance caseloads are starting to rise rapidly.
The CLC has called for a uniform entrance requirement of 360 hours of work across the country so that more unemployed workers will qualify. We want higher weekly benefits based on the best 12 weeks of earnings before a layoff, and a replacement rate of 60% of insured earnings. We also call for longer benefits of at least 50 weeks in all regions. As in the United States, benefits should be extended on an emergency basis for at least 26 weeks so long as unemployment remains so high. Work-sharing agreements under EI currently cover about 160,000 workers saving many from layoff, but they are about to run out, and must be renewed. The unemployed must also be given access to long-term skills training.
What We Got
The only EI measure in the Budget is a welcome extension of EI work-sharing. Arrangements can be extended for a further 26 weeks to a maximum of 78 weeks until March 2011. This measure is keeping some 30,000 workers from being laid off.
4. Pensions
What We Wanted
The crisis has exposed major faults at the heart of our pension system. Our public pensions — Old Age Security (OAS) and the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), plus the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) — provide a secure income in retirement, but the maximum value of public pensions falls well short of replacing the 50% to 70% of pre-retirement income needed to maintain living standards. Meanwhile, the private part of our pension system is in deep trouble. Only about one in five workers in the private sector now belongs to an employer pension plan. The average pension plan is seriously underfunded because of low interest rates and the recent collapse of stock markets, placing pensions at risk if employers go out of business. Those without pension plans must rely on high cost RRSPs, which will leave many with very low incomes in retirement.
The labour movement believes that Canadians should not have to “fend for themselves” in retirement. We have called for a phased-in doubling of benefits under the Canada Pension Plan, from 25% to 50% of pensionable earnings, financed by a modest increase in worker and employer premiums. This will require federal/ provincial agreement. The pension priority for the federal budget is to improve the Guaranteed Income Supplement (or GIS) which is paid to low income seniors to bring their incomes up to a minimum level. We call for an immediate increase in the GIS of 15% or about $100 per month, at an annual cost of about $1 billion. This measure would ensure that no senior lives below the poverty line.
The federal government should guarantee pension benefits in the federal jurisdiction up to $2,500 per month, and work with the provinces to create a national pension insurance system.
What We Got
Consultations on reform of the pension system are promised before the next meeting of federal and provincial finance ministers to be held in May, with the process to be launched this month.
5. Public Spending Cuts: Putting Deficit Reduction Before the Real Priorities
Economic stimulus from increased government spending in combination with low interest rates helped stabilize the economy. Deficits have financed programs which created jobs and helped the unemployed at a time when the private sector was very weak. As even the International Monetary Fund argues, the recovery is largely driven by government stimulus measures, and countries risk a quick return to recession if anti-crisis measures are withdrawn too soon.
The Budget argues that we have to move back quickly to balanced budgets through cuts to social programs, public services, and public sector jobs. For the Conservatives, deficits are the problem, not unemployed workers and their families. For them, balancing the books today is more important than helping people and building a better social and economic future.
Deficits are not a problem when they are used to finance public investment programs which create jobs for people, raise our economic potential, and further our environmental and social justice goals. And they are not a problem when the total government debt today is the lowest of the advanced industrial countries (53% of GDP in 2008-2009 compared to 102% in 1995-1996), and interest rates are at an all-time low. The federal debt is just one-third of GDP, and the cost of servicing that debt is very modest, just 2% of GDP. The federal deficit run this year (2009-2010) sounds scary in dollars, but is still less than 4% of national income, far lower than it was in the early to mid-1990s.
With low interest rates, we can and should finance public expenditures which create jobs now while raising our productive potential and the future tax base.
What We Got
As expected, the Budget focuses on balancing the federal government books at the expense of new investments. Significant spending cuts are to be imposed and potential new investments are to be foregone even though the government notes that Canada’s overall debt is very low by comparison to other advanced economies. As a result of economic recovery, the end of economic stimulus measures after this year, and net changes to spending and revenues, the deficit is forecast to shrink from $54 billion in 2009-2010, and $49 billion in 2010-2011, to under $2 billion in 2014-2015. In this coming year, 2010-2011, there are spending cuts of $800 million, and spending increases of $1.1 billion, but from then on spending cuts gather pace and begin to bring down the deficit. By 2014-2015, federal government program spending is forecast to shrink to just 13.2% of GDP compared to 15.6% this year — a difference of about $35 billion in annual spending. The burden of spending cuts is spread across three major areas: the administrative cost of government including strategic review of programs, international assistance, and military spending.
Deep cuts are imposed on Canada’s international assistance programs. After reaching $5 billion per year this year, spending will be frozen rather than increased at the planned rate of 8% per year. This means spending will be $1.8 billion less than planned by 2014-2015, and will be $4.5 billion less than planned over the period from now through 2014-2015. The planned rate of increase in military spending is also to be reduced from 2012-2013.
In this Budget, the focus is on cuts to federal departments. Compared to the existing path of planned spending, there will be $15 billion in cuts over five years starting in 2010-2011. The federal government will cut, by a total of $6.8 billion, the operational cost of government. Departmental budgets will not be increased to fund increased demands as a result of population growth, the increased cost of goods and services purchased by government, and the 1.5% increase in annual wages already in place. Operating budgets will not rise by 1.5% this year to pay for wage increases, and will be frozen for the next two years. Departments will be required to reallocate from the remainder of budgets the means to fund these wage and other cost increases. A lot of the burden will likely fall on jobs as vacancies arise and are not filled, and there may be layoffs. The government plans to meet with unions to discuss “all compensation costs.” The freeze on operational spending will be effectively extended to federal Crown corporations. On top of this, the government expects to cut another $1.3 billion over five years through program review. It is clear that, contrary to previous years, savings achieved through the program review will not be allocated to new programs, but to the deficit.
It is too early to predict what will be the results of these cuts, but they will have an impact on jobs and the economy that will limit the impact of the stimulus package this year, and slow economic recovery moving forward.
6. Fair Taxes
What We Wanted
If the government wants to return to balanced budgets over the medium-term without cutting the programs and services needed by working families, there is scope to raise taxes. In the next fiscal year (2010-2011), the two-percentage-point GST cut will cost the government over $12 billion in lost revenues, and their corporate tax cuts will cost almost $9 billion, without any significant impact on real job-creating business investments. Any so-called “structural deficit” — the deficit that would exist after an economic recovery — is almost entirely the result of short-sighted Conservative tax cuts. The CLC has supported higher personal income taxes for very high income earners and a return to the corporate tax rates in place before the Conservatives took office.
What We Got
While tax revenues will rise in line with the forecast economic recovery, the government has more or less stuck to its promise of no tax increases. The promised cut in the general corporate tax rate, from 22% when the government took office to 15%, will continue. On top of the phasing out of some tariffs, the Budget also cuts taxes by $30 million per year for Canadian companies which operate internationally by “improving Canada’s system of international taxation.” In fairness, the Budget also proposes to raise about another $400 million per year by closing down tax loopholes.
Conclusion
The priority in this Budget should have been jobs and support for the unemployed, not deficit reduction. The jobs crisis is still very much with us. Our national debt is low, and interest rates are and will remain very low. It is up to governments to deal with the human impacts of the crisis, and to set the stage for shared progress in the next economy.
Canadian Labour Congress
www.canadianlabour.ca

CANADIAN POLITICS:

MUNICIPAL CORRUPTION:
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CUPE calls for public inquiry into Quebec municipal sector:

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There have been numerous scandals over the awarding of municipal contracts, and I expect that this will be an ongoing thing until the end of our present economic system. The following article from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) says how they think the whole system of municipal politics in Québec should be reviewed in light of the recent scandals in the city of Montréal. In the recent municipal elections in Québec the Union Montréal (UM) retained control of the city of Montréal. The major opposition party, the `Vision Montréal`(VM), campaigned on an anti-corruption platform but were caught with their pants down. as their own party was hit with a corruption scandal shortly before the Nov 1 elections. The final electoral confirmed the UM as the leading and controlling party in Montréal, and the VM as a weakened second. The more or less leftist`party Projet Montréal (PM) came third but increased its vote significantly. Such a party, however, is obviously no more resistant to corruption in the long term than other parties. `Leftist/greenoid parties may actually be more susceptible should they ever attain power. That's life.

Alll that is neither here nor there. The important point is that government corruption is hardly restricted to the city of Montréal. It is a constant across municipalities in Canada, and is also very much present in provincial and federal government contracts as well. The call from CUPE is echoed in a more expansive way at the Fagstein blog where the blogger calls for a much wider public inquiry into municipal politics in Canada. Government, by its very nature is corrupt, but it would be wise to make as much of it as possible transparent and to put as many restrictions on it as possible. Here`s the article from CUPE.
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CUPE CALLS FOR PUBLIC INQUIRY INTO QUÉBEC MUNICIPAL SECTOR:
In the wake of municipal elections plagued by scandals and allegations of corruption, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents the vast majority of municipal employees in Quebec, is demanding that the Charest government take immediate action to clean up municipal affairs regulations, notably those governing the project bidding process and party financing.





“It is critical that we restore municipal public and parapublic services to their rightful roles. It is clear to us that making legislative changes to the way municipality’s award contracts is not enough,” asserted CUPE Quebec director Michel Poirier. “We have to be able to justify the contracts awarded to external firms and establish the necessary safeguards to foil any attempts at implementing a system of cronyism or patronage.” According to the union leader, while it is imperative to restore sound contract awarding and municipal management practices, the methods announced thus far are insufficient and serve only as a smokescreen to keep those truly responsible from being identified and avoid a public inquiry into the municipal sector.






The minister has already announced a meeting in Quebec City to discuss ethics and the contract-awarding process. CUPE has asked to be included in these discussions. “We want to be there; we have a unique and vital perspective on the issue. Our 25,000 members have an inside view of what’s really happening with the contracts for snow and garbage removal, IT systems, and water meters.”





Municipalities are among Quebec’s biggest suppliers of contracts of every kind. “Given this, the least that should be done is to make sure these contracts don’t result in kickbacks and handouts to friends of the system. In recent weeks, public services have been shown to guarantee us fair prices, transparency, and accountability. What we need now is for the contracts awarded to external firms—and there’ll always be such contracts—to be above all suspicion as well,” added Michel Poirier.
Party financing to be reviewed
In the same vein, CUPE is also calling for changes to be made to the regulations on municipal political party financing. According to CUPE, this is often the source of contract allocation scandals. “Anonymous donors, companies that pay employees to make contributions to parties, $1,000-a-plate dinners, and the ability to hide the origin of 20% of funds raised—it’s all nonsense! Beefing up rules to promote popular and transparent financing is a critical first step toward cleaning house in municipal politics,” the director of CUPE Quebec concluded.
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If anyone is interested in an anarchist analysis of Québec's municipal elections I can suggest the article 'Ville de Québec: L'opposition sera dans la rue' at the Voix de Faits blog. En Français évidemment.

CANADIAN LABOUR-SUDBURY:

VALE INCO DECISION NOT SURPRISING:
Vale Inco seems to be charging ahead with its seat-of-the-pants training scheme in hopes of restarting at least some production at their Ontario mines and smelters. To say the least this is a chancy ploy. There are indeed ex-workers amongst the non-union personnel who were involved in production for a varying number of years. Consider this for a moment. Too few years ie if you were an Einstein of ass-kissing, and you are still green. Too many means you were promoted so long ago that you can remember mining techniques from the neolithic but nothing very recent. Let alone the fact that those with any direct experience of production will be expected to train managerial neophytes chop-chop. In others words a situation of large moving machinery and potentially dangerous materials that no sensible person would care to be around.




Here from the pages of the Sudbury Star is the most recent union response to this reckless idea. The following came to Molly's attention, as usual, from the strike support site Fair Deal Now.
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Union angry, but not surprised, by Vale Inco's decision to resume some production:
Posted By Carol Mulligan/The Sudbury Star
United Steelworkers Local 6500 president John Fera says he was disappointed and angry - but not surprised - about Vale Inco Ltd.'s announcement it intends to resume partial operations at its striking Sudbury plants.





Vale Inco's John Pollesel, president of production services and support for Canada/UK Operations and general manager of Ontario operations, sent an e-mail to employees Tuesday telling them of the company's decision.





"Training of selected employees is beginning this week to facilitate the process and help us to continue supplying customers, generating cash flow and providing meaningful employment for staff," he said.





Fera said it was "putting it mildly" to say he was disappointed in the Brazilian-owned subsidiary of Vale SA and its chief executive officer, Roger Agnelli.





What really angers him is the effort the company is apparently putting into getting some plants running again instead of trying to get back to the bargaining table with striking production and maintenance workers.





The union and the mining company bargained for more than three months to try to reach a collective agreement, but Vale Inco's settlement offer was rejected by 85 per cent of the Steelworkers who voted on it.





Fera said he found out about Vale Inco's intent to resume work at some plants when he met Tuesday morning with Pollesel about the strike protocol that had been hammered out between USW and the company in court.





Vale Inco spokesman Steve Ball said the decision was made based on what is best for the company and to ensure there is work for 1,200 management, staff and members of USW Local 2020 during the labour dispute.





The plan is to resume some scale of operation at Coleman and Garson mines, and crush ore from them at Clarabelle Mill.





Copper and precious metals will be extracted and concentrated from the ore and then sold, said Ball. The nickel will not be processed.





There are no plans at this point to operate the Copper Cliff smelter, he said.





Fera said Vale Inco's plan to restart operations on a limited scale has him questioning the position that has been its mantra for several months - that the company must remain "cash-positive in all business cycles."





The union leader said this move makes him question that logic.





Fera challenges how it is "cash-positive" to produce copper that is selling for about $2.70 a pound when nickel is selling for $9.





Ball wouldn't reveal any figures, but he said precious metals sell for considerably more than copper. The goal is to have some revenue coming in, at least enough to keep the people in the plants employed.





Vale is also looking at bringing in a small number of other workers to run operations, said Ball.





Nickel Belt and Sudbury Nickel Belt MPs Claude Gravelle and Glenn Thibeault were quick to condemn Vale Inco for its decision.





They warn about the dangers of running potentially environmentally dangerous plants with inexperienced workers.





"This does nothing to help resolve the current dispute," said Thibeault in a written statement.
"This is a total slap in the face to the Steelworkers union and it's hard-working members."





Thibeault and Gravelle are again calling on the Harper Conservatives to release details of the agreement Vale signed with Investment Canada after acquiring Inco close to three years ago.
Gravelle said he is also concerned for the health and safety of non-unionized staff personnel, who will be tackling new jobs with minimal training.





"This is a big mistake by Vale," said Gravelle. "I worked at Inco for 34 years and I can tell you that a few days of training for replacement workers is not enough to keep people safe underground."
cmulligan@thesudburystar.com
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MOLLY NOTE:
One of the more interesting points raised by the above article is that Vale Inco and the Canadian government have basically made a secret agreement governing the takeover of Inco. Perish forbid that our dear beloved comrade leader Sneaky Stevie Harper could ever be accused of being secretive or hiding anything from either Parliament or the Canadian public. We, of course, would never believe such a thing of our Dear Leader, the heir of the Great Leader 'Brian Il Sung'. Deception is as far away from their benevolent and glorious concern for the welfare of the people as the edge of the universe is from Moose Jaw Saskatchewan. Or do I miss something here ? Could it be that such a agreement should be in public view so the public can see exactly what has been promised ? Is it possible that an audit of at least the members of the present Cabinet to see if they have any investment connections to Vale Inco or any of its subsidiaries is in order ? It seems to this little cat that the Canadian public has a right to know about potential conflicts of interest and that secret agreements are not the way that government business should be done.

CANADIAN POLITICS/ANTI-MILITARISM:

MAYORS AND OTHER VULTURES:

Most Canadian mayors are corrupt in the penny ante way of underhanded real estate deals. Ottawa's Mayor O'Brien, however, seems to play in the big leagues, a 'merchant of death', an arms dealer no less. Not that being a tall tree in the multi-million dollar forest inhibits such a person from the more petty forms of corruption, as the following article from the Ottawa Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT) lays out. The point of the article, however, is that there are greater crimes than influence peddling. Read on...

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The online version of this article includes many images.

Ottawa's Mayor O'Brien, Calian Technologies and the CANSEC War-Industry Bazaar: Democracy under Attack at Home and Abroad:

By Richard Sanders, coordinator, Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT)

For weeks now, while peace activists have been busy campaigning to oppose the use of Ottawa's publicly-funded municipal facilities for private military arms exhibitions, like CANSEC 2009, the City’s mayor -- Larry O'Brien -- was on trial.

The mayor of Canada’s capital city (and founder of Calian Technologies -- a prominent local war industry exhibiting at CANSEC) is one of those colourful corporate-class executives who enters the political arena by threatening to run the government as if it were his own private business enterprise.

While this apparently is no crime, attempted bribery and purported influence peddling, are. These charges became public when a fellow right-wing mayoral candidate, Terry Kilrea, asserted that O'Brien had offered him $30,000 and a plum federal job on the National Parole Board in exchange for withdrawing from the mayoral race in 2006. Kilrea bolstered his claim by signing a legal affidavit that was initiated and paid for by the Ottawa Citizen newspaper.

These much-discussed accusations, revealing O'Brien's apparent disdain for the basic principals of local democracy, have featured prominently in mainstream media accounts of this story. However, there is a far more insidious and largely unspoken dimension to this chronicle of O’Brien’s perceived willingness to undermine democracy.

This hidden aspect of the O'Brien narrative, which the corporate news has not deigned to report, has to do with how Canadian military industries -- like O'Brien's very own Calian Technologies -- supply scores of high-tech products and services for wars that undermine democracy at a global, international level. Like the unseen subsurface mass of an iceberg, this is the much larger yet invisible saga of how Canadian military industries profit from the big business of equipping those whose professional occupation is to wage war.

In practical terms, for Canadian war industries, this means supplying what some indiscreetly call the "US war machine." That's because about about three quarters of all Made-in-Canada military hardware is exported and 80% of those exports are sold, without any federal restrictions, to the United States. Once south of the border, Canadian technology -- much of it in the form of high-tech components -- is assembled into complete, American weapons systems.

Although some of these major weapons are then sold to other governments, they are -- for the most part -- used in whatever war, or wars, the US is then waging. For those who haven't noticed, this usually means either some "regime change" (to physically topple an unwanted foreign government) or "regime maintenance" (to help business-friendly governments retain their iron grip on political power).

Calian, which O'Brien founded in 1982, is one of these lucrative Canadian military industries and, financially, it seems to be doing very well indeed. Calian supplies software, training, personnel and high-technology components and support services to the world's biggest institutions of war. Calian has several subsidiaries and each one is deeply ensconced in the business of war.

Let's take a brief look at a few examples of Calian contracts that have aided and abetted the planning and waging of large-scale armed conflicts.

SED Systems

SED Systems is a wholly-owned division of Calian Technologies, based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. It provides ground services for various satellites including those used by US intelligence and military institutions. For instance, SED has been under contract since 1995 to "control and monitor the RADARSAT-1" satellite. SED also provides "flight operations services to the RADARSAT-2 mission."

Although these two publicly-funded Canadian satellites cost taxpayers over a billion dollars, the Liberal government was quick to privatise RADARSAT. Its state-of-the-art earth-monitoring services have been used for weapons-targeting roles in various US-led wars, most notably in Iraq, Afghanistan and Yugoslavia.

A six-month study of RADARSAT's many military functions led to a 52-page COAT report called: "Canada’s Role in the Militarisation of Space: RADARSAT - The Warfighters’ Eye in the Sky and its links to Missile Defense."

SED also supplies "various systems and components" for the so-called " Manportable Surveillance and Target Acquisition Radar" (MSTAR). This US system "locates moving targets and uniquely classifies them as personnel, tracked or wheeled vehicles." MSTAR is said to have "performed admirably in service with U.S. and Allied Forces in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Balkans and other locations." Users of this military targeting system include the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Army. There are now "more than 500 MSTAR radars...in service throughout the world."

As during previous years, SED Systems was an exhibitor at the CANSEC 2009 military trade show in Ottawa this May 27 and 28. This landed Mayor O'Brien in hot water. After commenting publicly that CANSEC should be held on City of Ottawa property, despite a 20-year ban imposed by a 1989 Council resolution, O'Brien was accused of conflict of interest.

Because he still sits on Calian Technologies' Board of Directors, O'Brien stood to personally benefit from the CANSEC trade show because of SED's position as an exhibitor. (Ottawa Citizen, March 29, March 30, March 31.)

Calian Technology (US) Ltd

This branch of Calian Technologies prides itself on helping to facilitate the export of US military equipment to foreign governments around the world. It does this through contracts which provide "Foreign Military Sales management training in support of the International Programs Office of the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA)."

The DLA is the " logistics combat support agency whose primary role is to provide supplies and services to America's military forces worldwide."

But Calian does more than assist the US government agency responsible for getting war technologies into the hands of a million or more US warfighters strategically based around the world. Calian's "management support" is specifically targeted to help the " international purchasers of US weapons systems." Calian contracts include, for example, teaching the DLA's " Foreign Military Sales management course." Could there be any more significant evidence of Calian's support for the international arms trade than this?

F/A-18 "Hornet"

Calain Technology (US) Ltd., has been supporting the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F/A-18 program since 1988. It provides "professional, technical, and administrative support services" to the RAAF's Technical Liaison Office that " include financial and administrative support, logistical analysis and systems engineering support" for Australia's fleet of F/A-18s. Australia uses American F/A-18 fighter/attack warplanes to fulfill various combat roles including the escort of bomber warplanes during bombing sorties, the suppression of enemy air defences, reconnaissance, forward air control, close and deep air support, and day and night strike missions. Australia has used their F/A-18s in the Afghan and Iraq wars since 2001 and 2003 respectively.

Calian Content Management Services (CMS)

Calian CMS provides high-technology software products and services for numerous major US weapons systems, particularly war planes and drones, used in the Iraq War. These weapons systems have also been used in Afghanistan and elsewhere. For more details on Calian's contracts for these weapons systems, click on the links below.

F-117 "Night Hawk"

The F-117 is a wedge-shaped, ground-attack fighter aircraft with stealth features that make it virtually undetectable to radar. First used by the US Air Force in the bombing of Panama in 1989, it was heavily used in 1991 Gulf War and against Iraqi targets through the 1990s. In 1999, F-117s were used during the NATO bombardment of Yugoslavia. Then, beginning in 2001, it was used in bombing Afghanistan to assist and empower the Northern Alliance warlords who have since been encouraged to take political power in that country. F-117s were also used during the most recent Iraq War that began in 2003.

RQ-4 "Global Hawk"

This high-altitude surveillance and reconnaissance drone -- the size of a large business jet -- carries one ton of imaging technology and can photograph targets with one foot of resolution from 200 kilometres away. It uses Synthetic Aperture Radar and Electro-Optical/Infrared imagery to provide data for weapons targeting. America's RQ-4s have been used in the following wars and military operations: Afghanistan (2001-present), Pakistan (2002-present), Philippines (2003) and Iraq (2003-present).

U-2 "Dragon Lady"

This variety of US spy plane was originally operated by the CIA. It has conducted high-altitude surveillance and tactical reconnaissance missions since 1956 and has been used in a great many wars and military operations. For instance, the U-2 is known to have provided data for use in military operations over the following countries: Egypt, Lebanon, USSR, Cuba, Vietnam, Iraq, Yugoslavia and Afghanistan.

C-130 "Hercules"

This cargo plane is the primary means for transporting troops, weapons, tanks and other vehicles into battle zones. Having accumulated over 20 million flight hours, it is probably the most versatile, tactical transport aircraft ever built. Some variants refuel fighter and bomber aircraft, while others have sprayed Agent Orange and dropped the world's largest conventional weapons (the BLU-82) in Vietnam and Iraq. C-130s have been used in countless wars, bombing missions invasions and regime changes including Lebanon (1958), Congo (1960-1961, 1964-1965), Dominican Republic (1965), Vietnam (1962-1975), Korea (1968-1969), Cambodia (1970), Israel (1973), Korea (1976), Zaire (1978), Iran (1980), Grenada (1983), Panama (1989), Iraq (1991), Somalia (1991-1992), Angola (1992), Sierra Leone (1992), Somalia (1992-1994), Haiti (1994-1995), Rwanda (1994-1996), Yugoslavia (1992-1996, 1999), Liberia (1996), Afghanistan (2001-present) and Iraq (2003-present).

F-16 "Fighting Falcon"

This multi-role, high-performance fighter/bomber warplane is used in air-to-air combat and for attacking ground targets. American F-16s have been used many wars and bombing missions including: Lebanon (1982-1983), Iraq (1991, 1992-2003), Yugoslavia (1994, 1995-1996, 1999), Afghanistan (2001-2003) and Iraq (2003-present).

C-5 "Galaxy"

This large, military transport aircraft provides strategic intercontinental cargo services for the US Air Force. In use since 1969, it is one of the world's largest warplanes and was deployed in Vietnam (1970-1972), Israel (1973), Iraq (1991), Yugoslavia (1999), Afghanistan (2001-present) and Iraq (2003-present).

MQ-8B "Fire Scout"

This aerial drone is nearing operational testing for launch from US warships to conduct reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition operations in Iraq. It is also able to fire "Hellfire" missiles, "Viper Strike" weapons and the "Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System." As such, the MQ-8B will be on the cutting edge of advanced killer robots.

Business and Technology Services (BTS) Division

Calian BTS Division recently received major contract to provide advanced military training services for Canadian warfighters in Afghanistan. The Department of National Defence (DND) has just signed a contract with Calian that may bring in close to $200 million for Mayor O'Brien's company. Calian's role is to create and use high-tech computer-simulated synthetic environments to train soldiers. The use of artificial, electronically-created environments allows them soldiers to practice and rehearse the tactics they will use on the battlefield. This Calian contract is for the continued provision of Training and Capability Development Support Services with DND's Directorate of Land Synthetic Environments (DLSE). The DLSE is responsible " to assist in the development and validation of combat development solutions for the Army in operations throughout the spectrum of conflict."

More information, Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT)