NCC Blog

Third-party political advertising

Brendan Steven
RIGHT MINDED - Guest columnist
“Bob Rae is back.” A robotic narrator speaks into the mike. “First he was the job killing Premier who threw Ontario into the worst recession since the Dirty 30’s.” An image of a young Premier Rae appears, smiling, flickering in and out of the shot as the narrator drones on. […]

Posted on January 24th, 2012 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
No Comments

Taxpayers lining up to sign petition and opt-out of the CBC

NEWS RELEASE 
With the federal government struggling to emerge from a $36-billion deficit this year, taxpayers have been demanding an immediate end to wasteful spending.
“This government was elected to balance the budget - that must remain the top priority,” says Peter Coleman President and CEO of the National Citizens Coalition. “If they are serious about the […]

Posted on October 3rd, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
116 Comments

The boring Ontario election is right

What was once anticipated as the election that couldn’t come soon enough, has instead turned into a very dismal affair for many Ontarians here in the southwest.
There appears to be no real opposition to McGuinty.  The complete lack of any real vision by the Progressive Conservatives has been duly noted, and unfortunately seems to be […]

Posted on September 30th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
4 Comments

OntarioAgenda.org Website Launched, Time To Get Province Back On Track

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 7, 2011 - Today, Ontarians for Responsible Government, a project of the National Citizens Coalition, is pleased to announce the launch of its new website, OntarioAgenda.org.
“Many Ontarians have been extremely disappointed by our elected officials’ unwillingness to tackle the tough issues facing our province,” says Peter Coleman, President and CEO of Ontarians […]

Posted on September 7th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
7 Comments

Dog Days of Summer for Dalton

 
Through all the hot weather in Ontario this past couple of weeks, it has been more than apparent that Premier McGuinty and his Finance Minister Duncan are the ones really feeling the heat. These are truly the dog days of summer for the Liberal party in Ontario - and for those two in particular. You […]

Posted on July 27th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog, President's Blog
7 Comments

Conservative Policy Convention

I am currently in Ottawa making the rounds with Stephen Taylor to get the National Citizens Coalition’s message out to as many MPs and others as possible. Our federal government must start to tighten its proverbial belt and go on a major fiscal diet. We placed an ad in the National Post yesterday, timed to […]

Posted on June 10th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog, President's Blog
10 Comments

Harper Gets A Majority Government

Last night’s theme could have just as easily been the famous song from Franki Valli and the Four Seasons - “Oh What A Night”. It sure was an amazing night to be glued to the t.v. set. The NDP rise and the decimation of the Bloc were the central theme early in the evening, along […]

Posted on May 3rd, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog, President's Blog
51 Comments

One week to go in federal election campaign

Aren’t you glad you don’t live in the United States, where they have to put up with a two-year-long campaign for President? Really, I think 37 days is more than enough!
This election campaign has been an interesting one, but a boring one as well. Interesting because of the potential for the Bloc to lose their […]

Posted on April 25th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog, President's Blog
18 Comments

Media and the Polls

When elections start, the media loves to present things like a neck-and-neck horse race. So, the party that is down in the polls receives positive media coverage - all designed to make the public think that things are ‘really close’. After all, this is what helps sell papers and spark conversation.
This election is no different. […]

Posted on March 31st, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
23 Comments

PRESS RELEASE: McGuinty fiddles while Ontarians get burned

Ontario’s taxpayers found little relief in this year’s budget, presented today by Dwight Duncan. It seems that, beyond some minor tinkering, the McGuinty government will continue to do what it has done since first elected - burn through taxpayers’ money and ignore the concerns of economists.
“There is a terrible disconnect between the McGuinty government and […]

Posted on March 29th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
7 Comments

News release: Positive economic trends in budget, job creation, the path to fiscal balance and 5-0-1 victory

March 22, 2011 - The National Citizens Coalition was pleased today with the release of the federal budget. “We came to Ottawa to put pressure on the federal government to start substantial deficit reduction and to start getting its spending under control - and it seems like they are starting to hear us,” says Peter […]

Posted on March 22nd, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
7 Comments

NCC Pops Government Trial Balloon on Arena Funding

The National Citizens Coalition is pleased to see that the federal government is backing away from potential funding for sports arenas across the country.
 
The federal government has now circulated information indicating that they backing off the idea of funding a new hockey arena in Quebec City. Other cities, such as Regina, Edmonton and Halifax have […]

Posted on March 3rd, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
26 Comments

Equalization payments - a sacred cow?

I just finished reading a great article by Kevin Libin from the National Post, where he discusses Canada’s equalization payment system. This program was initially set up to ensure an equal playing field in the delivery of basic services across the country - binding the wealthy or ‘have’ provinces to subsidize the more needy provinces, […]

Posted on February 18th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog, President's Blog
59 Comments

CPAC 2011

I’m at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington DC. CPAC is an annual gathering of American conservatives (and a few curious Canadian conservative observers) where they compare notes, discuss policy and vet the next round of political celebrities vying for more booksales or more name rec for a future bid for the Whitehouse.
Indeed, […]

Posted on February 13th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
No Comments

Press Release: High-stakes for federal budget

Election rumours continue to circulate during the run up to this year’s federal budget, but this should not derail practical economic thinking. The federal Conservatives need to utilize this budget to demonstrate that they have not abandoned fiscal prudence.
 
The Conservative plan to return to balanced budgets by 2016 has been called unworkable by many observers, […]

Posted on February 11th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
15 Comments

Press Release: Ontario nearing bankruptcy under Dalton McGuinty

Ontario is in the worst financial shape in its history, and thanks to Dalton McGuinty there is no simple way out of this hole. Since taking office in 2003, Ontario’s spending has nearly doubled under McGuinty’s watch, climbing from $70-billion to over $120-billion today.
“If the Ontario government had to behave like a real business it […]

Posted on February 10th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
36 Comments

Ontario government’s finances still shrouded in mystery

Ontario’s finances are in terrible shape - and our provincial government doesn’t seem motivated to do anything about it. In the wake of multi-billion dollar spending scandals, Ontario’s government agencies have pledged a greater commitment to transparency and accountability, but they have largely not followed through.
“Enough is enough - and Ontario cannot afford any more […]

Posted on February 7th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
13 Comments

Congrats to Heritage Minister James Moore

It is nice to see someone in Ottawa stand up for free speech so forcefully and not back down to pressure from Iran. You can read about this issue here. You can also watch a video about this here.
It is not surprising that a dictatorship like Iran, with a history of unbelievable brutality towards its […]

Posted on January 20th, 2011 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
26 Comments

Stephen Taylor adds his voice to the NCC

We would like to announce the newest member of our team at the National Citizens Coalition - Stephen Taylor. Stephen has just joined with the NCC - please click here to view our press release announcing this.
You probably know Stephen - he is the founder and administrator of Blogging Tories, perhaps Canada’s foremost political blogging […]

Posted on December 9th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog, President's Blog
7 Comments

B.C. suspends 15% income tax cut and Ontario cuts hydro rates by 10%

What do these two items have in common? You can read about these issues in BC by clicking here, and in Ontario by clicking here.
Both issues are linked to the implementation of the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) in each province. Leaving aside the merits or lack of merits of the HST for a minute, the […]

Posted on November 18th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
17 Comments

NCC launches campaign to protect property rights

Canada is known around the world as a country that values human rights and protects individual freedoms. It is peculiar, then, that as Canadians we have no guaranteed protection of our property rights in our Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Wait, what was that?
That’s right, unlike most other industrialized countries, Canadians enjoy no such protections. Without […]

Posted on October 28th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

NCC Responds to Economic Update

Click here to read our press release responding to the federal economic update that was issued today.
The press release speaks for itself. It is long over due for belt tighening to hit Ottawa - just like it already has for many Canadians.
What are your thoughts?

Posted on October 12th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
7 Comments

“A Coalition if Necessary but Not Necessarily a Coalition”

Do you remember these words - I sure do. They were mouthed by Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff in December 2008 when asked his views of the proposed coalition of the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Quebecois.
I would just like you to read this article by Chantal Hebert from the Toronto Star today. You can read it […]

Posted on October 7th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
15 Comments

Choices presented as politicians return from break

As our politicians get set to return to Ottawa and resume the political grind, there is a great deal of whispering about an upcoming election. Much of this is caused by recent polling data, which has indicated that the federal Liberals and Conservatives have drawn even with each other. You can read an article about […]

Posted on September 9th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
21 Comments

Setting the record straight on the census

NCC President and CEO Peter Coleman was recently asked to attend the federal Industry Committee hearings on the long-form census - and boy, is it good to have some common sense back on the menu. Too many special interest groups have been clouding this issue with claims that the census is essentially their life-line. Thankfully, […]

Posted on August 3rd, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
27 Comments

No more complacency in Ontario

Ontarians have been called complacent many times in the past year. The HST provided an excellent example of BC activism thrown into stark contrast by Ontario’s relative lack thereof.
In Ontario, McGuinty has been very lucky to have avoided waking the sleeping dragon of taxpayer anger. There are handfuls of scandals to choose from, and it […]

Posted on July 20th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

Happy Canada Day

I hope that this email reaches you all as you are getting ready for the first long weekend of the summer - hopefully, one that you can enjoy with your family and friends. With the images of burning police cars from the G20 summit fading into the rear view mirror (that is if our media […]

Posted on June 30th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
15 Comments

Federal MP’s recess for the summer

As they head back to their ridings for the summer BBQ circuit, one has to really wonder what has been accomplished in the spring session of Parliament. Continued debate over the Afghan detainee documents seemed to be the dominating theme, along with the exhorbitant costs of the G8 and G20 summits. Let’s hope that federal […]

Posted on June 18th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
8 Comments

Prime Minister Jack Layton? Not a Chance!!

There is a great deal of noise right now about a potential coalition of the Liberals and the NDP. That’s right - even more posturing in ths fight against the big bad Harper government. You can read an article here to get some background on this.
From my vantage point, there are too many over-sized egos […]

Posted on June 9th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
44 Comments

Hard-working citizens fight back in British Columbia over HST

It has been both fascinating and disappointing to witness the total contempt for taxpayers shown by leaders across the whole country in the last year - and this is certainly the case in the great province of British Columbia.
The Hated Sales Tax, as we call it at the National Citizens Coalition, has been rammed through  […]

Posted on May 19th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
38 Comments

Premier McGuinty finally tells the truth about the HST- and it is not pretty!

After hiding from taxpayers for months, Premier McGuinty is now admitting the real impact of the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) that we refer to as the Hated Sales Tax. You can read an article about this by clicking here.
He is finally admitting what we at the National Citizens Coalition have known since this tax was […]

Posted on May 5th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
48 Comments

Political Games Vs. War Games

The issue of Afghan detainees that has dominated House of Commons debate for well over a year, has finally reached a tipping point that could severely alter the course of Canada’s national security and parliamentary politics.
In an unprecedented move yesterday, Speaker Peter Miliken said that “Parliament has the right to ask for all documents held […]

Posted on April 28th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
69 Comments

It is that time of year again!!

Yes - the dreaded tax season is upon us where we all have to dutifully file our tax returns. This is when we realize just how much money our government takes out of our pockets, and it is not pretty at all!
Most Canadians have gone through a tough couple of years with the economic challenges […]

Posted on April 27th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
9 Comments

Sometimes common sense is in really short supply!

Have you have been following the private member’s bill from Liberal MP Ruby Dhalla that was seconded by none other than Bob Rae? You can read a good article from Peter Worthington on this issue by clicking here.
Bill C428 is an example of the real stupidity of some of our elected officials: Reduce the 10 […]

Posted on April 13th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
46 Comments

Another reason to get rid of $1.95 per vote political subsidy

Have any of you caught the start of the cross country tour that Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe has kicked off in Newfoundland?  You can read an article about it here.
For years the National Citizens Coalition has advocated for the elimination of the $1.95 per vote political subsidy that is paid to each federal political party […]

Posted on April 8th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
78 Comments

More Federal Members of Parliament?

Just what we do not need- more government officials!! You can read the article here.

I realize that due to population growth, there is talk about adding additional MP’s to make the regional seat distribution more equitable for Ontario, BC and Alberta. Based on the population growth in those provinces, this notion makes sense mathematically- but […]

Posted on April 1st, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
57 Comments

Human Rights Commissions continue to show they need to be abolished

Have you heard the joke about a stand up comedian being heckled by people in the crowd and then heckling back? Sorry- in this case it is not a joke!! Do not know if you have been following the most recent farce of a Human Rights complaint in British Columbia. You can read the article […]

Posted on March 30th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
47 Comments

Ontario Budget to be released this afternoon

The Ontario budget will be released today at Queens Park at 4pm. Will Premier McGuinty continue to show hard working Ontarians that he has no clue how to manage the province’s finances? or will he show some leadership and start to reduce the size of government today?
You can read our press release that has been […]

Posted on March 25th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
8 Comments

Free Speech is not alive and well in Canada

Don’t know if you caught it or not, but Anne Coulter’s speech was cancelled at the University of Ottawa over security concerns from people protesting her appearance there. You can read the article here.
Anne Coulter is a well known provocateur in the United States and speaks her mind on many issues. Her books are always […]

Posted on March 24th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
69 Comments

Time for real transparency, not partisan games

The latest news out of Ottawa on the transparency front is more of the same. Transparency from government is required, especially on the heels of non-stop revelations of careless spending at all levels of government.  It is encouraging that some MPs are publicly supporting the idea of transparency, and this should be a no-brainer. You […]

Posted on March 23rd, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
6 Comments

10 Percenter follow up

We issued a press release last night when we realized that the Conservatives were not going to support getting rid of this waste of taxpayers’ money. You can read it here.
We are glad that common sense still managed to prevail. The government will go forward with eliminating this total waste of taxpayers money and the […]

Posted on March 18th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
22 Comments

MP’s get it right on 10 Percenters

We were glad to see MP’s vote in favour of eliminating the 10% mailers, which were initially intended to be used to inform people in an MP’s home riding about issues that relate to goings on in government.
The problem is that these mailers were used by all federal parties only to slag each other. The […]

Posted on March 17th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
14 Comments

Federal Budget Update

In the federal budget released last week, there was the news that departmental spending was to be frozen for the upcoming budget year and subsequent years as well. We applauded that move, but we still realize that the spending of the past several years has given most departments bloated numbers to start with as the […]

Posted on March 15th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
11 Comments

McGuinty stars in Alice in Wonderland

Did anyone else wonder what Premier McGuinty actually had to say in the Throne Speech earlier this week? I sure did. I know that Throne speeches are usually full of supposed grand visions and flowery words but this one was one for the ages.
In his typical fashion, there were a lot of words said but […]

Posted on March 10th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
27 Comments

Reaction to the Speech from the Throne

The National Citizens Coalition has been campaigning hard for fiscal sense in this year’s budget, and we are being heard. As yesterday’s Speech from the Throne approached, citizens eagerly awaited to see what direction the country would be heading this year. Over the past several years, annual government spending has increased at an unsustainable pace, […]

Posted on March 4th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
3 Comments

NCC Blog: The most important budget in a decade

With the Olympics finished, our politicians are gearing up to resume the daily grind of Question Period.  Don’t let that turn you off of politics though, because the federal budget is set to be released now and it is the most important budget in a decade.
The National Citizens Coalition has been very clear about what […]

Posted on March 3rd, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
12 Comments

Olympic Update

I am sure most of you have spent some time watching various events over the past week or so. There have been many great surprises and lots of tough luck and heartbreakingly close finishes. Kudos to all of the athletes and the hard work they have put in. It has been fun to watch- other […]

Posted on February 22nd, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
25 Comments

Alberta Budget- is there fiscal sanity anywhere?

Alberta Finance Minister Ted Morton released the budget yesterday and indicated that there would be a $4.6 billion deficit. You can read about the budget here.
It has been a long time since fiscal sanity was the name of the game in Alberta- or anywhere else in Canada for that matter. There is an increasing disconnect […]

Posted on February 10th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
10 Comments

Prorogue Ontario Style

Did anyone else see the irony in Premier McGuinty announcing yesterday that he was proroguing Parliament until sometime after the Olympics? You can read the article here.
Proroguing is something that all Parliaments do from time to time and it has been done over 100 times at the Federal level. What was interesting this time is […]

Posted on February 10th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
11 Comments

Tales From The Tax Trough

We just held our media release for Tales from the Tax Trough VI! With budget preparations taking place across the country and in Ottawa, it is more important than ever to remind our politicians that we are watching them closely.
Check out our official press release, by clicking this link.
We have mailed copies of Tales […]

Posted on February 4th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
8 Comments

Victory for Western Farmers: Supreme Court Ruling on Wheat Board

It was great to see the recent Supreme Court decision on January 22 when they declined to hear an appeal from the Canadian Wheat Board (“CWB”). The CWB had challenged an order from the federal government that had rightly asked the CWB to stop using forced members money to fight CWB political battles. You can […]

Posted on February 2nd, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
20 Comments

Five New Senators Appointed - Start the Fake Outrage!

Prime Minister Harper today announced the appointment of 5 new Senators to fill the vacancies in the Senate.  As a result of this move, the Conservatives now outnumber Liberals in the Senate with a 51-49 edge, with an additional 5 independent senators for a total of 105 Senate seats. Please see this article in the […]

Posted on January 29th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
33 Comments

Reckless Media Coverage of Prorogation?

This blog is a follow up to a blog last week where we talked about prorogation- we got lots of comments back and some were critical of the blog when we made reference to the fact that prorogation had been done many times and by the Liberals as well who are so critical of this- […]

Posted on January 26th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
42 Comments

Federal Cabinet Shuffle

The federal government cabinet shuffle yesterday, while not a major one, had all the usual pundits pontificating as to what the shuffle would mean.
With every government, there comes a time where you have to move underperforming cabinet ministers around, demote some, promote some and move some sideways into new roles and yesterday was no exception […]

Posted on January 20th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

To Prorogue or not – that was the question

There was a lot of debate in the year end media interviews with Prime Minister Harper over whether or not he was going to shut down Parliament until after the Olympics and proceed with a new Throne Speech followed by a budget in early March.
With the decision to prorogue having been made, if you follow […]

Posted on January 11th, 2010 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
31 Comments

It couldn’t happen to a better group of people!

With all the hot air being emitted by the 16,000 people attending the Copenhagen Global Warming fear mongering conference, it was with great irony and a little chuckle to watch Copenhagen get hit with 4 inches of snow and below freezing temperatures. (Oh by the way- Copenhagen has not had a white Christmas for 14 […]

Posted on December 18th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
27 Comments

Tales from Tax Trough- Politicians are reading it!

As part of our program to expose government waste and to encourage politicians at all levels to treat taxpayers hard earned tax dollars with respect, we mailed copies of Tales from Tax Trough to all federal Members of Parliament. Several have responded with letters thanking us- and there is one update that needs to be […]

Posted on December 10th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
9 Comments

HST Political Battle Heats Up

Now it is about to get really interesting. The Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) has been a hot topic for all taxpayers in British Columbia and Ontario for months now. We have taken a decidedly consumer first stance in this campaign and we have been very present in the media in our effort to educate taxpayers […]

Posted on November 27th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
19 Comments

Stop the 10% mailers

It is high time that the practice of the 10% mailers be stopped and this waste of taxpayer’s money ended. For those of you who are not familiar with these political mailers- here is some background. All Federal members of Parliament have the ability to send mailers to households equal to 10% of the households […]

Posted on November 20th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
32 Comments

Federal By Election Results

The ink is barely dry on the morning newspapers and all of the political pundits and arm chair quarterbacks are weighing in on the results of the 4 federal by elections last night. They are picking winners and losers as they usually do.
What these by elections show in our opinion is that there will be […]

Posted on November 10th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
19 Comments

Tales From The Tax Trough

With staggering deficits being run by provinces and the federal government alike, I hope that our politicians have had their fill because it is time to turn off the spending taps.  The notion of prudent stimulus spending seems to have escaped Canada’s leaders, as the clamour to spend our ear-marked ‘stimulus’ dollars has left our […]

Posted on November 5th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
4 Comments

Where’s the plan Dalton?

Yesterday’s economic update by Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan was a sobering snapshot of how badly things are going right now in Ontario. Lack of leadership, no vision and no clue as to how to move the province forward have been trademarks of McGuinty and his crew for many years.
One of the humorous quotes in […]

Posted on October 23rd, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

Time to ‘check’ stimulus spending and photo ops at the door

The attention given to the conservative logo at a stimulus project announcement has gotten out of hand; however that is only part of the problem. Article here. First of all, the so-called ‘logo-gate’ scandal has received far too much outcry from the Liberals as Prime Minister Jean Chretien and his party was masters at it […]

Posted on October 19th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
20 Comments

Premier Stelmach is looking over his shoulder

Premier Stelmach’s televised address on Wednesday has received mixed reviews. It is no wonder. The province is facing declining revenues and out of control spending over the past several years is not being papered over any more by ever increasing revenues. For the Premier it is time to go back to basics and do the […]

Posted on October 16th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
13 Comments

Ehealth Scandal Continues to grow

News continues to filter out about the level of waste, mismanagement and incompetence related to the Ehealth Scandal. Over a billion dollars of Ontario taxpayers money has gone down this cesspool of incompetence with no end in sight.
Calls for a public inquiry to find out what really happened and where the money was wasted have […]

Posted on October 15th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
17 Comments

The Unelected Senate is at it again

No wonder people continue to look to making significant changes to the unelected Senate. Their most recent shenanigans related to them proposing changes to a crime bill that was passed unanimously by all parties in the House of Commons (yes- the ELECTED Members of Parliament. You can read the article here.
For decades the Senate has […]

Posted on October 9th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
72 Comments

McGuinty’s disregard for Taxpayers

Many of you have been following the disgraceful eHealth scandal and the $1 billion in spending to try and move Ontario towards electronic record keeping. All that money spent and no progress in sight. Yesterday a cabinet minister was forced to resign and another in a very long series of apologies was given by the […]

Posted on October 8th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
15 Comments

Another Week another non confidence motion

It was no surprise to read in the papers this week that once again, the Liberals are going to put forward a non confidence motion in the House of Commons today. They say that they are not going to vote with the Conservatives again on any money bill (budget or ways and means bills). I […]

Posted on October 1st, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

National Citizens Coalition Unveils HST Tax Calculator

Please go to our website at www.nationalcitizens.ca to read about our new detailed campaign in Ontario and British Columbia to Stop the HST. Click here to go to our web site and follow the steps to use the calculator to see how much this tax grab is going to cost you and your family each […]

Posted on September 28th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
6 Comments

HST Battle is Just Beginning

I was not amused but not surprised to read this article this morning. In the article some of the dirty backroom negotiations between the federal and provincial governments  are now just being made public through the media. In this article Premier McGuinty admits that even he has not read the fine print by saying” I’m […]

Posted on September 24th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
25 Comments

A Majority Government?

The media has made a great deal about the video of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s speech to party faithful that was secretly recorded and then sent to Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff’s office who then duly forwarded it on to the various news networks.There was a great hue and cry about the tape and that it […]

Posted on September 14th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
28 Comments

Back to School For Politicians

 
With the last long weekend of the summer behind us and kids back to school, Ottawa is gearing up for its fall session starting on Monday.
It is apparent that the Liberals and their leader Michael Ignatieff are getting ready for an election and the posturing from all three opposition parties has started in earnest. As […]

Posted on September 10th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

Layton Meets with Harper

As part of the usual dialogue with opposition leaders, it is common practice for the Prime Minister to meet with opposition party leaders before the start of Parliament to see if there is any common ground in moving legislation forward. These meetings are also used to exchange ideas and to try and see if there […]

Posted on August 26th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
19 Comments

Fall Election Winds are blowing?

We have been relatively quiet on the blog scene this summer because we believe that everyone needs a rest from the political hot air and the only hot air they need to be feeling is warm summer breezes.
A sure sign that summer is over is the posturing that has started from all three opposition parties, […]

Posted on August 25th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
31 Comments

NCC Poll: When will the next federal election be?

1.       This fall
2.       Next Spring
3.       We can’t afford an election any time soon
4.       Who Cares!

Posted on August 11th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
14 Comments

The Toronto CUPE Strike Summary

With the Toronto City strike in the books we wanted to let our Toronto and Ontario members know, one last time, how Mayor Miller was able to “negotiate” a deal with the unions. The following are exerts from an e-mail send out by Toronto City Councilor Cliff Jenkins to his constituents.
 
1. Settlement with City’s Inside […]

Posted on August 5th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
8 Comments

David Miller has some explaining to do.

News of the potential deal to end the strike of 30,000 Toronto CUPE workers has been greeted with relief but also a great deal of skepticism. It is a well known that CUPE has David Miller in their pocket because they were largely responsible for getting him elected.
As well, it looks by all accounts that […]

Posted on July 30th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
12 Comments

Does Jean Chretien deserve the Order of Merit from the Queen?

a.       Definitely!
b.      Yes
c.       No
d.      Are you kidding me??

The NCC has added a new polling feature to our web-site. We will be changing the survey question weekly. Click here to suggest a poll question.
Click here to vote

Posted on July 20th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
44 Comments

Congratulations to Liberal MP Michelle Simson

It was amazing to see Liberal MP Michelle Simson publish all her expenses on her website.  Finally a MP who is willing to show some fiscal leadership and responsibility, you can read a full article on it here.
The NCC has been pushing for greater transparency and responsibility for taxpayer’s money for decades and it is […]

Posted on July 9th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

Congrats to Tim Hudak on Winning the Ontario PC Leadership

Congratulations to Tim Hudak for securing the leadership of the Ontario Progressive Conservative party. The election in October of 2011 is now underway.
Hudak should immediately call on Premier McGuinty to delay the implementation of the HST until after the next provincial election in 2011. The overburdened Ontario tax payers did not give Premier McGuinty a […]

Posted on July 7th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

Canadian Human Rights Commissioner tries to muzzle Ezra Levant

Recently there has been a lot of discussion about Jennifer Lynch, the head of the Canadian Human Rights Commission. Many of you may not know her though as she tends to stay out of the spotlight but she carries a very heavy hand when dealing with free speech and human rights.
As they say “a picture […]

Posted on June 15th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
33 Comments

Federal Government Stimulus Report Card

Yesterday Prime Minister Harper gave his update on the economic conditions and the roll out of the infrastructure stimulus package. It is amazing to see how accustomed we have become to speeches of $50 billion deficits and huge spending projects.
What struck me though was the political posturing by everyone on this. The presentation was slick […]

Posted on June 12th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
16 Comments

Selling Harmonization with Your Own Money

As if harmonizing the sales taxes in Ontario wasn’t bad enough, now McGuinty is planning on selling this tax grab using taxpayers’ dollars!
According to insiders, the Ontario government plans to launch an advertising blitz to win over the skeptical public on the 13% harmonized tax. This blitz will feature how harmonization savings by businesses could […]

Posted on June 3rd, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
17 Comments

The “50 Billion Man”, Liberal Hypocrisy and the Media

In previous blogs and press releases we indicated our organizations displeasure with the rapidly increasing size of the federal deficit. We understand that there will be deficits because it would be tough to balance the books when revenue has dropped so much. We are pushing hard to try and bring some fiscal sanity back to […]

Posted on May 28th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
20 Comments

Liberals Senators want to end pre election spending

The hypocrisy of this proposed bill by Liberal Senator Dennis Dawson is truly astounding. Imagine an unelected senator, who has never had run a political campaign, proposing a bill to eliminate political party spending three months BEFORE an election is called. You can read an article on it here.
As an organization, we have long advocated […]

Posted on May 27th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
22 Comments

The Deficit Grows

Yesterday, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty commented on how the federal deficit may be “significantly more” than originally projected. According to Flaherty this is due to the economic slowdown that is “more severe” than expected. You can read a full article on the growing deficit here.
Kevin Page, Ottawa’s Parliamentary Budget Officer, estimates that the deficit for […]

Posted on May 26th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
20 Comments

A Great Victory For Workers

We were thrilled to see that the Supreme Court dismissed the application for leave to appeal by the PSAC against two brave freedom fighters. The fact that the Supreme Court judges refused to hear the appeal of the Ontario court decision is a great victory for hardworking Canadians who just want to earn a living […]

Posted on May 11th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
12 Comments

The Question Period Joke

Question period should be an effective debate between opposing political views to develop a consensus on policies that would benefit all Canadians.  Unfortunately, our question period has eroded into a joke that is very similar to immature hockey banter.
Question period’s normal behavior would not be tolerated in most high schools but has somehow come to […]

Posted on May 7th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
23 Comments

Another Election?

The Liberal Party is threatening a third election in less than four years if Stephen Harper and the Conservatives do not ease restrictions on the number of hours people have to work to qualify for Employment Insurance. Is this just a threat or are the liberals ready to take the plunge (again)? 
The Conservatives currently […]

Posted on May 5th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
56 Comments

Congratulations to Free Enterprise and Porter Airlines

Free enterprise strikes again! I was thrilled to see Porter Airlines is  being revitalized with more staff, more jobs and more flights. Imagine that, a company with a proper business structure and a great market is expanding its services even during this economic recession. Read an article on Porter and Mayor Miller’s history here.
A ceremony […]

Posted on April 27th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
11 Comments

Say No to Big Government Campaign Goes to Ottawa

I arrived in Ottawa yesterday for a couple of days of meetings to discuss our Say No to Big Government Campaign with media and various other Ottawa folks. The NCC is seen as one of the very few organizations in this country that continues to push for some fiscal sanity. I was amazed watching clips […]

Posted on April 22nd, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
13 Comments

Canada Needs its own Version of the American Tea Party

We watched with great amusement the media coverage yesterday of the “Tea Party” events that were going on all across the United States. April 15 is tax filing date in the States and rallies were set up in many cities to protest the big spending and outrageous stimulus package. Some of the left wing media […]

Posted on April 16th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
14 Comments

Ignatieff and Tax hikes

When asked a question at a Chamber of Commerce meeting yesterday about how we are going to pay the federal debt back, Michael Ignatieff indicated that “we will have to raise taxes”. You can read the full article here. It was interesting to see Michael O’Shaughnessy, Mr. Ignatieff’s press secretary, go into full damage control […]

Posted on April 15th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
30 Comments

Miller Strikes Again!

Toronto city councilors voted on April 7th to eliminate cost-of-living and merit increases for non-union city staff this year. One hour later, they voted to keep their own 2.42 per cent raise. Including this year’s increase councilors “earn” $99,153.
This is simply unacceptable. Obviously they recognize that in these times of economic uncertainty, when businesses […]

Posted on April 9th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
20 Comments

NCC Says Goodbye to Murray Kash

It is our regret to inform you that Murray Kash, a lifelong friend and employee of the National Citizens Coalition has passed. We are dedicating this blog to Murray to let our members know a little more behind the voice of the NCC for the last ten years.
Murray was born on September 16, 1923. He […]

Posted on March 31st, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
5 Comments

BC Gag Law Ruling: A Good First Step

The B.C. Supreme Court struck down a portion of the law limiting third-party political advertising. You can read the full article here.
The NCC has been campaigning for this since our last president Stephen Harper constitutionally challenged gag laws in the Canadian Supreme Court in 2004.
This is a great first step, but the fight is not […]

Posted on March 30th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
8 Comments

The Ontario Budget: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The NCC congratulates Premier McGuinty and Finance Minister Duncan for finally listening to our call for decreased corporate tax rates. We have been calling for this decrease since he was first elected. Sometimes persistence pays off! 
That being said, we have composed a list of the good, the bad and the ugly regarding Ontario’s budget.
The Good:

Corporate […]

Posted on March 27th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
32 Comments

Our Call for Decreased Civil Servant Salaries

Recently Peter Coleman, President and CEO of the National Citizens Coalition, was featured in an article by Kathleen Harris discussing the salaries and bonuses that some Canadian civil servants receive. You can read the full article here. We have been receiving some inquiries on this article and would like to take this opportunity to clarify […]

Posted on March 18th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
21 Comments

Government Layoffs, or lack there of

Here is an e-mail from one of our NCC members:
I was asked a question about layoffs in the US and Canada and something suddenly crossed my mind. The US has announced 500,000 to 600,000 layoffs in each of the last several months —the total is enormous and doubtlessly going to increase.
The same thing is happening […]

Posted on March 16th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
16 Comments

Say No to Big Government Campaign

Today, the National Citizens Coalition launched a new campaign “Say No to Big Government”.
The NCC has three main goals for this campaign:

MP salaries, perks and pensions must be decreased. All MP’s should take an immediate 5% pay cut. Now more than ever top down leadership is required.
There must be a top down examination of all […]

Posted on March 11th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
27 Comments

John Tory to Step Down

A press conference has been called for 2 pm today where it is expected that John Tory will step down as the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. This comes after his humbling defeat last night in a by election in a formerly safe riding for his party. You can read our press […]

Posted on March 6th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
24 Comments

We could use some global warming

I don’t know about you, but I am getting kind of sick of winter. The bone chilling temperatures are continuing even though we turned the calendar to March.
I have always been skeptical of global warming and all of the fat cats like Al Gore making millions spreading misguided information. This article caught my eye and […]

Posted on March 4th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
52 Comments

Negativity in the Media

We all know that the vast portion of the media like negativity and crisis because that is what sells. A recent article caught my attention and you can read it here.
The headline says “TD Bank profit slips to $712-million”. I know we all have legitimate complaints about banks and their non-stop service charges, but for […]

Posted on February 26th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
21 Comments

CBC needs a reality check

The CBC was back at it again yesterday, saying that their revenue is dropping and they are looking to the federal government for more money. You can read the article here.
This request has reconfirmed my belief that the CBC lives in their own little world. The federal government should not give the CBC any more […]

Posted on February 23rd, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
70 Comments

Layton’s 5% Solution

One of Jack Layton’s proposed solutions to the economic difficulties we are going through is a 5% pay cut so employees can help out their employers. You can read the article here.
Here is my suggestion for Jack: try and regain some of your badly damaged reputation, stand up in the House of Commons and show […]

Posted on February 10th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
43 Comments

Mike Duffy takes on Equalization

It was great to see Senator Mike Duffy take on Premier Robert Ghiz from PEI over his complaint on equalization payments. Senator Duffy indicated that it was not smart for the Premier to align himself with Premier Danny Williams from Newfoundland. You can read the article here.
As usual the media tried to pounce on Duffy […]

Posted on February 9th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
33 Comments

Canadian Politics in the Caribbean

I am writing this blog from the deck of the Celebrity Solstice on the first annual National Citizens Coalition cruise. The purpose of this cruise is to promote the NCC and give many of our members a chance to mingle and interact with our panel of guest speakers (Lorne Gunter, David Frum, Peter Worthington and […]

Posted on February 5th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
No Comments

The Curious Case of Quebec and Canada

Quebec currently receives 59% of federal equalization transfers and has a per capita provincial debt of about $16,000 for every man, woman, and child in the province. What is more, due to Canadian Official Bilingualism, the entire Canadian economy is paying billions of dollars a year for a culture that is quickly declining in relative […]

Posted on February 3rd, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
95 Comments

The Death of the Coalition

It was great  fun to watch all the political square dancing going on in Ottawa yesterday. I have to admit some of the actors in this drama were more than pathetic, as was demonstrated by Jack Layton’s petulant behaviour.  Even the national media, who normally give Layton a free ride, found his comments hard to […]

Posted on January 29th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
30 Comments

NCC Reacts to Federal Budget

The National Citizens Coalition was disappointed to see that the size of the federal government continues to grow while no efforts are being made to reduce the size of the bloated federal bureaucracy.
Our comments with respect to the budget are reflected in our press release which you can read here, and our newspaper ad that […]

Posted on January 28th, 2009 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
25 Comments

Fiscal Sanity? Part 2

It is more than apparent that the cold weather gripping most of Canada has had a chilling effect on any sane and fiscally prudent thought process coming out of Ottawa. The intentional leak to the media of a potential $64 billion deficit for the next two years is a trial balloon that needs to have […]

Posted on January 23rd, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
18 Comments

Federal Budget (cont.)

With the federal budget quickly approaching the National Citizens Coalition will continue to be a strong voice for responsible and accountable government.
This blog will be dedicated to any opinion of what the government should do in this extremely important budget.  Please feel free to pass this blog along to your friends and colleagues as […]

Posted on January 15th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
22 Comments

Fiscal Sanity Required by the Federal Government

Now that the holidays are over we look towards the presentation of the federal budget on January 27th. The speculation over budget allocation will continue to dominate the news in the coming weeks. The National Citizens Coalition believes that fiscal sanity needs to be the order of the day in Ottawa.
Some are saying that the […]

Posted on January 13th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
34 Comments

Forced Union Dues Used to Ban Israeli Academics

It was only a matter of time before Sid Ryan, head of CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) Ontario opened up and voiced his opinion over the Israel and Palestinian conflict- you can read the article here.  CUPE has called for a ban on Israeli professors in Ontario universities “unless they explicitly condemn the university […]

Posted on January 6th, 2009 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
56 Comments

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

I just wanted to drop a quick note to everyone to wish you all the best of the holiday season. This fall has been a political roller coaster and it is not likely to change in the New Year. The agenda has been dominated by bailouts, senate appointments and far too much political posturing.
Here at […]

Posted on December 23rd, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
6 Comments

Enough is Enough

The National Citizens Coalition was pleased to see the Governor General give our federal politicians a time-out.  With her decision to prorogue parliament until January 26, we hope cooler heads will prevail.
It is now time for politicians off all stripes to stop their brinkmanship antics and to work together to craft a budget that will […]

Posted on December 5th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
21 Comments

Stand Up For Democracy!

The proposed coalition government is a disaster waiting to happen. The separatist party that wants to break up Canada would have veto power over any decisions that this unelected coalition would make. OUTRAGEOUS!!
The Liberals would gain power to elect the next Prime Minister without first getting a mandate from the Canadian electorate.
The newly elected members […]

Posted on December 3rd, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
74 Comments

The End of Federal Political Party Welfare?

We were pleasantly surprised to hear rumors of possible cuts to taxpayer funded subsidies of political parties, which you can read about here and here. This is an issue that the National Citizens Coalition has been fighting for years – end welfare for politicians.
Many federal parties are understandingly upset about these cuts, as many have […]

Posted on November 27th, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
51 Comments

Professor Moon Delivers Surprising Report

The NCC is pleased to see Professor Moon’s surprising review of the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC).  Contracted by the CHRC to conduct an impartial review of the commission’s hate speech powers, Moon’s report can be read here.
Included in the report are two key recommendations.  The first recommendation is to repeal Section 13 of the […]

Posted on November 25th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
13 Comments

Government Bailout Follow up

Today’s blog is a follow up to our blog on Friday, November 14th. The potential news of a government bailout for North American car manufacturers generated a great response from NCC members.
One NCC supporter asked that we follow up with General Motors of Canada to get their input and response.  The response, which you can […]

Posted on November 19th, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
32 Comments

Government Bail Outs?

There has been a great deal of talk in recent days about the government bailing out the big three automotive manufactures.  All three of these companies have made it clear that without government support they will run out of cash in early 2009.
We are living in unprecedented economic times.  While the pressure continues to mount […]

Posted on November 14th, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
53 Comments

Obama’s Historic Victory

Last night, Barack Obama won a historic election and the results will have repercussions around the world. People will no longer be able to blame George Bush for all of the world’s problems and a potential new political era is about to begin in Washington.
Obama’s convincing win is a result of a well run campaign, […]

Posted on November 5th, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
38 Comments

Federal Cabinet Announced

The Cabinet for the 40th Parliament of Canada was announced today!
It is disappointing to see the number of federal cabinet posts has increased, but it is encouraging to see that there appears to be more bench strength in the picks that were made. Click here to view of complete list of the new federal cabinet.
The […]

Posted on October 30th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
9 Comments

Picking the Federal Cabinet

There are many columns in today’s papers, which you can read here, here and here, that talk about the possibilities for the next federal cabinet.  Along with predictions, many of these articles also discuss the process the Prime Minister must go through to balance regional representation and gender in his cabinet.
Instead of trying to balance […]

Posted on October 23rd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
15 Comments

Politicians and Deficits

At the recently completed Premiers conference there was a great deal of talk about running provincial deficits in the face of tough economic conditions.  Many of our country’s provincial leaders indicated that they are prepared to run a deficit if the economy took a bad enough hit!
Here is a news flash to these so-called ‘leaders’ […]

Posted on October 22nd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
23 Comments

Time To Get On With It

With the election behind us, it is now time for our federal government to get back to work.  In the coming months it would be nice to see politicians in Ottawa put their differences aside and work together for the betterment of the country.
The economy and our government’s strategy to get through these tough economic […]

Posted on October 20th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
34 Comments

Get Out and Vote!

This long and bitter election campaign is finally drawing to a close.  No more polls, no more yelling and no more spinning.  At last, it is time to head to the polls and cast your ballot. 
I would like to send my sincere thanks to all of you who have read and commented on our blog […]

Posted on October 14th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
48 Comments

Finance Minister Bob Rae - A Scary Outlook for Canada

There is no doubt that the economy will be the prominent issue on voters minds come Election day.   But it is frightening to know that many Canadian will cast their vote based on political rhetoric rather than fact.
Our blog yesterday discussed the facts behind the current economic crisis facing Canada.  We also sent this press […]

Posted on October 10th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
18 Comments

Chicken Little: The Economic Sky is Falling!!!

I continue to watch the media coverage of the current international banking crisis with absolute amazement.  To say that our national media is being irresponsible in their reporting of the facts would be a massive understatement.  This Chicken Little attitude, that the economic sky is falling, has resulted in some panic nation wide.
Like many other […]

Posted on October 9th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
14 Comments

What Can a Government Do in Tough Economic Times?

The Conservatives released their campaign platform yesterday, which you can read here.  For the most part this document is just a summary of the daily announcements made by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.  However, it does contain a few new measures to provide help to the manufacturing and aerospace sectors.
This is by far the most moderate […]

Posted on October 8th, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
12 Comments

The Conservative Platform

The Conservative Party will release its platform today, which will likely detail what they have said during the campaign and undoubtedly there will be a couple of new items to be disclosed.
As I said in the blog posting yesterday, it will no doubt have the least amount of new spending in their proposed plan. By […]

Posted on October 7th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
8 Comments

It’s the Economy Stupid!

This quote was uttered by Presidential candidate, Bill Clinton during the 1992 U.S. election campaign.  This statement was true then, and is very true today regarding the Canadian federal election campaign. 
With the significant financial problems in the United States there is no doubt that there will be some ripple in the Canadian economy.  While the […]

Posted on October 6th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
19 Comments

Debates Part Two

I watched the leader’s debate last night, and was pleasantly surprised to hear some discussion on a few key issues. However, it would have been nice to see a little more debate and far less bickering.
My favorite shot of the night came from Jack Layton during the healthcare segment.  Layton accused Harper of wanting to […]

Posted on October 3rd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
17 Comments

Debate, What Debate?

I watched the French leaders debate last night to get a feel for what is going on.  I came away hoping tonight’s debate is a whole lot better.
Throughout this entire campaign we have been working hard to raise issues that are important to hard-working Canadians like you.  Choice in healthcare, the economy, curtailing human rights […]

Posted on October 2nd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
24 Comments

Stand Up For Free Speech

Twenty-five days into our federal election and we have still heard nothing of substance.  The media, our political leaders and party insiders have all wasted plenty of hot air and money to say absolutely nothing!
Enough is enough!
The erosion of free speech in this country should be at the top of the national agenda.  Yet we […]

Posted on October 1st, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
12 Comments

Debates, Debates, Debates

Canadian voters will get a well deserved break from campaign rhetoric as all five party leaders hunker down and prepare for this weeks debates.  A couple days of quiet will be a welcomed relief from the mudslinging and finger pointing that has dominated the majority of this election campaign.
What we hope to see in both […]

Posted on September 30th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
17 Comments

Spending, Spending, Spending - Part Two

The NDP have just released their election platform, a $51.6 billion spending orgy. 
In the platform, Jack Layton promises to end child poverty by 2020, introduce a cap-and-trade program to protect the environment, and invest an additional $750 million a year in transit. 
How does Jack plan to pay for all these big promises?   By increasing corporate […]

Posted on September 29th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
19 Comments

Spending, Spending, Spending

The Liberals released their spending plans and detailed spending information yesterday- it was enough to give you  indigestion. The ghosts of the past are back- big nanny state spending items like the Kelowna Accord and National day care were back in their plans. In today’s difficult economic times, Canada cannot afford these social engineering programs. […]

Posted on September 23rd, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
13 Comments

Where did the Green Shift Go?

It was amusing to see the Liberals back track on their Green Shift campaign last week.  When the media questioned Stephane Dion on the Green Shift policy, he responded by stating he never claimed it was the major plank of his policy platform, and in fact it was the media who said it was.
Incredible!  From […]

Posted on September 22nd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
1 Comment

State of Economy Heats Up Election Trail

With the disturbing economic news coming from south of the boarder - the collapse of another investment bank and the merger or another financial institution with the Bank of America - the state of the Canadian economy has become front and centre on the campaign trail.
What this country needs now is a federal government that […]

Posted on September 17th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
No Comments

Liberal Reality Check Needs A Reality Check

During an election it is only a matter of time before the Liberal party decides to take a shot at the National Citizens Coalition and Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s tenure as our President.
We have been through two federal elections since Harper left the NCC, and now that the third is underway the Liberals are back […]

Posted on September 16th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
12 Comments

Week One in Review

Well, we have survived the first week of the federal election campaign! 
There was a lot of noise, and a lot of yelling but not much in the way of substantive policy details.  Let’s hope that changes in the coming weeks. 
Each Monday throughout this campaign we want to leave this blog open to your comments and […]

Posted on September 15th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
21 Comments

Healthcare Anyone?

With the first week of the election winding down, I have taken some time to reflect on the events of the past few days.  The bad ads, suspensions, resignations and the insults being hurled have all got my blood pressure rising! 
As I have said in earlier posts, why can’t these politicians focus on issues that […]

Posted on September 12th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
15 Comments

Free Speech

One of the core values of any democratic society is the right to free speech.  During this federal election campaign we want to hear what our politicians have to say when it comes to free speech. 
As many of you are aware, Canada’s federal and provincial Human Rights Commissions are becoming nothing more than a cesspool […]

Posted on September 11th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
21 Comments

Time to Move Debate Forward

Enough with the negative.  Let’s put this mudslinging nonsense behind us and start talking specifics.
Yesterday, we commented on the Liberal leader’s unnecessary smear tactics.  As things turned out the Conservatives were no better.  By now I am sure you are all aware of “Puffin-Gate” and are ready to move on with the real issues.
I have […]

Posted on September 10th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
37 Comments

Let the Mudslinging Begin

We are only three days into this election campaign and it would appear as if all parties have come out of the gates swinging. 
The first shot came from Liberal leader Stephane Dion yesterday, when he insisted on calling Stephen Harper a liar.  Later in the day Dion continued with his accusations, declaring that Harper was […]

Posted on September 9th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
20 Comments

Election 2008

Surprise, Surprise -  The federal election is underway!
Prime Minister Stephen Harper met with the Governor General yesterday to dissolve one of the longest ruling minority governments in Canadian history.  It is no great surprise that this dysfunctional government has finally been put out of its misery.
We have been busy here at the National Citizens Coalition […]

Posted on September 8th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
11 Comments

Countdown to an Election

Stephane Dion and Stephen Harper had a little sit down over the Labour day weekend to discuss what it would take to extend the life of this government.
Oh to have been a fly on the wall for that meeting!
It is hardly a surprise that the meeting between the two did not go well. Nor is […]

Posted on September 3rd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
14 Comments

OUCH

Ouch!….Pass It Along
The National Citizens Coalition is pleased to announce that we are bringing back a campaign that was used to great success in the 1970’s and 1980’s to highlight wasteful government spending and show just how your tax dollars are being wasted.
The Ouch! Pass It Along campaign is a great way for NCC supporters […]

Posted on July 24th, 2008 by NCC Staff in NCC Blog
No Comments

Carbon Tax

Carbon Tax - The Shift Doesn’t Have to Happen
The National Citizens Coalition today announced that they have launched a multi-media campaign to ensure that all Canadians are made aware of the dangers of Stephane Dion’s proposed Carbon Tax.
Dion’s plan, which was introduced in June 2008, would impose a tax on all carbon emission products, placing […]

Posted on July 9th, 2008 by admin in NCC Blog
52 Comments

McGuinty Charest Photo Op a disgrace

If you are living in Ontario you should be very scared of the recent meeting between Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and Quebec Premier Jean Charest. Their talk about devising a cap-and-trade program between Ontario and Quebec will be nothing more than a cash transfer from Ontario to Quebec.
I find it totally incredible that Dalton McGiuinty […]

Posted on June 3rd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
16 Comments

Forced Dues Blues Update

On May 14th   April Luberti and Jeff Birch were in the Ontario Court of Appeal to defend an earlier decision handed down by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, which ruled in their favour to uphold their legal right to return to work during a union strike and not be fined for doing so.
This case […]

Posted on May 28th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
8 Comments

Election Gag law coming to Alberta?

Last week, I was shocked to hear rumblings that Premier Ed Stelmach is considering imposing election spending limits on third parties during the next provincial election.
During the recently provincial campaign, a group called “Albertans for Change” took out a very expensive series of radio and television ads criticizing Premier Stelmach for having “no plan”. What […]

Posted on May 13th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
10 Comments

Forced Dues Blues Court Case to be heard on May 14

This blog is an update to our recently posted blog of April 22, which you can read here.
The battle that April Luberti and Jeff Birch’s union have waged against them will continue on with an Ontario Court of Appeal hearing to be held in Toronto on May 14.
This David and Goliath battle pits April and Jeff […]

Posted on May 8th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
No Comments

2008 Colin M. Brown Freedom Medal

The National Citizens Coalition recently held two very successful dinners in Toronto and Calgary to honour Preston Manning C.C. with the 2008 Colin M. Brown Medal of Freedom.  Named for the late founder of the NCC, the Freedom Medal recognizes outstanding Canadians who share Colin Brown Sr.’s unshakable belief and courage to defend Canada’s freedoms […]

Posted on May 6th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
2 Comments

NCC Helps Two Ontario Employees Fight the Forced Dues Blues

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today announced that they will be helping two Ontario workers, April Luberti and Jeff Birch, in their fight against big union bosses who refuse to respect their right to work.
In 2004, the federal civil service went on strike.  While initially supporting the strike, over time both April and Jeff decided […]

Posted on April 22nd, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
16 Comments

NCC Congratulates Stelmach Government for Changes to Gas and Oil Royalties

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today extended their congratulations to the Stelmach government for taking the NCC’s advice and introducing legislation that is aimed at fixing the unintended consequences of Alberta’s new oil and gas royalty framework. 
During the recent provincial election, the National Citizens Coalition ran a series of print and radio ads that disapproved […]

Posted on April 14th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
5 Comments

Free Speech Debate Roars On

We have been watching, with great interest, the free speech debate that has been roaring on in the blogosphere. Individuals like Ezra Levant and Mark Steyn have done a great job shining a light on the hypocrisy of Canada’s Human Rights Commissions and their callous disregard for free speech and freedom of expression.
The recent decision […]

Posted on April 11th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
25 Comments

McGuinty’s Tax and Spend Budget Oblivious to Economic Slowdown

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today responded to the 2008 Ontario budget with great concern over a tax and spend policy that will do nothing to help this province in the face of hard economic times.
“This is nothing more than a have money – will spend budget,” said NCC president Peter Coleman.  “The Liberals have […]

Posted on March 26th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
10 Comments

Federal By-Elections

While watching the results of yesterday’s Federal by-elections, it struck me that our national media was having a love in with the Liberals and their victories in Toronto.  Meanwhile the bigger stories of the night – the collapse of the NDP vote, the Conservative win in Saskatchewan and the very tight race in the riding […]

Posted on March 18th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
30 Comments

Alberta Election Victory Not a Mandate for Big Spending

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today extended their congratulations to Premier Ed Stelmach and the Alberta PC party for their majority victory in Monday’s provincial election. However, the NCC also reminded the Alberta government that now is the time to get on with the prudent financial management of the provinces economy.
“This victory is by no […]

Posted on March 5th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
3 Comments

NCC Says End the Wheat Board Monopoly

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today announced that they will be launching a multi-media campaign to ensure that western farmers are given a choice in the marketing of their crops, and that the Canadian Wheat Board monopoly comes to an end.
“In March of 2007 western barley farmers voted 62% in favor of having a choice […]

Posted on March 5th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
11 Comments

NCC Reacts to Federal Budget

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today responded to Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s budget speech by welcoming a somewhat conservative budget, but also expressing concern over a government that is still too big.
“There were some positive announcements made in this budget,” said NCC president Peter Coleman.  “A tax free savings account will be welcomed by most […]

Posted on February 27th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
14 Comments

NCC Ad Campaign Urges Premier Stelmach to Return to his Conservative Roots

With a key election campaign underway in Alberta, the National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today announced they will be running a series of print and radio ads in that province to ensure the issues most important to Albertans are debated during this historical campaign.
“Scaling back on government spending will be the key to electoral success for […]

Posted on February 5th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
6 Comments

Pro Worker Ads

It appears as if the Pro Worker ads that the National Citizens Coalition and the Merit Contractors Association have been running for the past week, have struck a chord with some union leaders in Alberta.  The ads, which you can view here, attack the Alberta Building Trades Council and the Alberta Federation of Labour for […]

Posted on January 31st, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
10 Comments

Free Speech and Freedom of Expression - Part 2

This commentary is a follow up to our last post, which generated a lot of great feedback.
A great column by Ezra Levant was published yesterday at the Globe and Mail online which you can read here.
Kudos to the Globe and Mail for posting this online but we have to ask where the main stream media […]

Posted on January 22nd, 2008 by admin in NCC Blog
25 Comments

Ezra Levant – Freedom Fighter!

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees all Canadians the following fundamental freedoms;
1) freedom of conscience and religion
2) freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of press and other media of communications.

Yet, Ezra Levant, the former publisher of the Western Standard, has been brought before the Alberta Human Rights Commission for expressing these […]

Posted on January 14th, 2008 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
55 Comments

No Place for Partisan Politics at the CBC

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today reacted to allegations of political bias at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), by calling on the federal government to privatize the CBC and stop wasting taxpayer money on this outdated crown corporation.
“The CBC receives over $1 billion a year in taxpayer dollars.  It is unethical and irresponsible for any […]

Posted on December 18th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
71 Comments

NCC Reacts to Ontario Throne Speech

The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today responded to Dalton McGuinty’s uninspiring speech from the Throne, noting that it was short on specifics, and offered no hope to Ontario’s manufacturing industry that has been hit the hardest by the high Canadian dollar.
 
“Dalton McGuinty spent the entire election campaign in a bubble, protected from any real debate […]

Posted on November 30th, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
3 Comments

Senate Reform Necessary for Democratic System

(TORONTO, November 14, 2007)   The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) announced today that they will continue to push the federal government to reform Canada’s Senate, making the Upper Chamber both democratic and accountable to Canadian taxpayers.
“The Senate was originally set up to provide a useful function as the House of sober second thought on all government […]

Posted on November 14th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
23 Comments

Military Families Dinner

My wife Janet and I had the pleasure of being invited to Families First- A Night to Remember in support of the Military Families Fund on November 3rd at the Canadian War Museum.
The National Citizens Coalition has always been a strong supporter of our military, and their efforts to bring peace and stability to countries […]

Posted on November 7th, 2007 by admin in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
No Comments

Economic Statement Puts More Money in Taxpayers’ Pocket

(TORONTO, October 31, 2007)   The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) praised the Conservative government today for presenting an economic statement that puts more money back into the taxpayers’ pocket. The NCC has consistently pressured the federal government to return the massive surplus back to hard working Canadians, and we are pleased to see the government provide […]

Posted on October 31st, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
11 Comments

Health Care Tour Visits Vancouver

The National Citizens’ Coalition was in Vancouver on Monday for another successful stop on the Face the Facts: Cure Canadian Healthcare tour.
The luncheon, held at the Fraser Institute, was filled to capacity; the media presence was great, and Dr. Schumacher’s presentation was well received.   Judging by the questions asked after the presentation, it would seem […]

Posted on October 30th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
6 Comments

Time to treat taxpayers with respect!

The peace and quiet from a federal political perspective was broken with a bang on October 16th when the Throne Speech was presented to Canada. The speech was a very clever political document outlining the Conservative agenda for the upcoming fall session of parliament.
 
The decision to have the speech read by the Governor General in […]

Posted on October 24th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
10 Comments

National Citizens Coalition responds to Speech from the Throne

(TORONTO, October 17, 2007)   The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today responded to the Conservative Governments’ second Throne Speech by praising the government on a plan that is realistic and meaningful to taxpayers.  However, program spending and the size of government have significantly increased under the Harper Conservatives and the NCC believes there could have been […]

Posted on October 17th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
13 Comments

Healthcare access should be top priority of McGuinty Government

(Toronto, October 11, 2007) The National Citizens Coalition (NCC) today responded to the Liberal party’s majority victory in the Ontario election by setting out clear priorities for Dalton McGuinty and the Ontario government to follow over the next four years.
 
“Access to healthcare should be the top priority of the Ontario government over the next four […]

Posted on October 11th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
3 Comments

Conservatives need to provide meaningful and immediate tax cuts

The National Citizens Coalition says the federal surplus of $14.2 billion is an embarrassment and that the federal government needs to stop feeding at the public trough and provide meaningful and immediate tax cuts for low and middle income Canadians.
“In 2006 Canadians voted for change, they voted for a government that would stop wasting their […]

Posted on September 28th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
4 Comments

Healthcare Tour Continues

The National Citizens Coalition’s Face the Facts: Cure Canadian Healthcare tour continued last night with another successful town hall meeting at the University of Alberta.  Dr. Schumacher’s discussion was very interesting and was followed up with an engaging question and answer period.  Many good ideas were exchanged, and we would like to thank all the […]

Posted on September 20th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
6 Comments

NCC Healthcare Tour Kicks- Off

The National Citizens Coalition’s Face the Facts: Cure Canadian Healthcare tour kicked-off with a rousing success this past Monday in Calgary. Dr. Albert Schumacher is leading the charge in this grassroots campaign that is designed to find ways to improve our healthcare system in a meaningful way.
The media coverage of this campaign has been outstanding, […]

Posted on September 19th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
11 Comments

The Cost of NDP Government

I have a little theory about political ideology that goes something like this: 
“Everyone is an NDPer until they get a job.”
Now my theory may be way out in left field, but I have always found that in our younger, and more specifically our educational years, most Canadians lean towards the left of the political spectrum, […]

Posted on September 6th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
4 Comments

National Citizens Remembers Ken McDonald

The National Citizens Coalition was truly saddened last week with the passing of Ken McDonald.  Ken was a close friend of the NCC, a longtime member of the Board of Directors, a mentor, advisor, prolific writer, father, grandfather, and great grandfather.
Ken was 93 years young and had a mind that was unparalleled.  His memory and […]

Posted on August 27th, 2007 by admin in NCC Blog
6 Comments

Disgust and Outrage!

Wanda Watkins is the mother of fallen Canadian soldier Pte. Lane Watkins, who was laid to rest on Monday July 16, 2007.  Shortly before her son’s funeral Mrs. Watkins read a family statement encouraging Canadians to be proud of our military and their efforts in Afghanistan.
 “The deserve our respect.  In supporting them, you’ll make
   our […]

Posted on July 18th, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
23 Comments

Mayor Miller’s Flip Flop

We went and attended the Toronto city council vote yesterday to see if Miller and his left leaning city council would do the right thing and withdraw their ridiculous motion that was going to have emergency services and fire trucks remove their support the troops decals from their vehicles this fall.
It was apparent when we […]

Posted on June 21st, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
22 Comments

Will Common Sense Prevail in Toronto?

You would think that in a time of war, and in a time of a NATO sanctioned mission to free oppressed people in Afghanistan that our politicians would be behind our troops. Think again.
In today’s Toronto Sun you can read about the cold shoulder that Mayor David Miller and certain city councillors in Toronto are […]

Posted on June 20th, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
32 Comments

Canadian Troops Committing War Crimes – Says Quebec Anti-War Groups

In today’s National Post, Canadian nationalism has taken another blow in the province of Quebec. Anti-war groups in Quebec have sent letters to the homes of soldiers on Canadian Forces Base Valcartier calling for them to refuse deployment to Afghanistan, and lambasting the Canadian Forces as committers of war crimes.
This letter writing campaign has come […]

Posted on June 12th, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
45 Comments

Dion and Liberals Obstructing Reform

As John Ivison in today’s National Post puts so beautifully, “Asking senators to reform the Senate is like asking an alcoholic to blow up a brewery.” With reform and accountability still at the top of the Conservative governments to do list, it comes as no surprise that the senators themselves have been stalling the Prime […]

Posted on June 8th, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
22 Comments

Harper’s Stance on Global Warming and Kyoto a Breath of Fresh Air

The focal point of the G8 Summit this year has been the doomsday scenario Global Warming presents. With most leaders from the eight powerhouse countries marching to the beat of Al Gore’s drum, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has shifted a lot of attention towards himself by standing up for his governments’ belief that Kyoto’s […]

Posted on June 6th, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
32 Comments

Who is working for Whom?

In a perfect world, Canadians elect politicians to go to Ottawa and work hard for the citizens of this county and for a better Canada.  A Canada we can all be proud of.  But the world isn’t perfect, and this article in the Globe and Mail highlights what our elected officials are doing with their […]

Posted on May 31st, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
29 Comments

The Terminator in Toronto

California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger arrived in Toronto yesterday to meet with Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and to sign agreements on both stem-cell research and climate change.
After reading reports here, here and here about the Governor’s whirl-wind day in the city, one has to wonder if the visit was anything more than a photo-op.
Arriving in Toronto […]

Posted on May 30th, 2007 by Kylie Young in Uncategorized, NCC Blog
11 Comments

It is not a photo-op, it’s his job!

Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a surprise visit to Kabul, Afghanistan yesterday to meet with frontline Canadian workers and Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
While visiting our troops, the Prime Minister reaffirmed our government’s support of the thousands of Canadians who put their lives on the line everyday in order to bring prosperity, peace and democracy to […]

Posted on May 23rd, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
6 Comments

You know Parliament is an embarrassment when…

Many Canadians were outraged when our federal government decided it would be a good use of taxpayer time and money to question Hockey Canada’s decision to name Shane Doan as the national team captain. Most did not think our politicians could sink any lower.
But, the very well-paid men and women who represent us in Ottawa […]

Posted on May 17th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
3 Comments

Environment Not Top Priority

A recent poll by Innovative Research Group Inc. indicates that the environment is not the top political priority amongst Canadians.
This article in the National Post outlines what many NCC supporters have been saying for quite some time – Canadians want a healthy environment, but they don’t want to pay for it.
Stephen Harper and the Conservative […]

Posted on May 15th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
27 Comments

The Time for Honest Debate is Now

When it comes to health care in Canada, everyone and his brother is ready and waiting to weigh in on the debate.  Unfortunately, most arguments are based on misconceptions and a fear of losing so-called free health care.  This op-ed in today’s National Post is a great example.
The problem with these arguments is that health […]

Posted on May 14th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
22 Comments

Senate Bill Delayed – Again!

One year seems like an awfully long time to pass a bill that is only three clauses long.  But when the bill in question (S-4) proposes to limit Senate terms to eight years, it is no wonder the dust collectors in the Upper House have pulled out every trick in the book to delay it.
This […]

Posted on May 10th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
4 Comments

What a waste of time and money!

This article, penned by Geoff Matthews in today’s Toronto Star, paints a colourful picture of how our well paid federal politicians have chosen to represent us in Ottawa.
Instead of address issue like the inefficiency of our countries crime labs, sky rocketing gas prices, or the lack of doctors in Canada – Our federal representatives are […]

Posted on May 3rd, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
48 Comments

Al Gore: An environmental inconvenience

Former Vice-President and climate change advocate, Al Gore recently spoke out against our government’s climate change plan calling it “a complete and total fraud”, which you can read about here, here and here.
However, before Canadians jump on the Al Gore environmental band-wagon, we should remember that this is the opinion of a man who made […]

Posted on April 30th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
37 Comments

Climate Plan Finally Unveiled

The government has finally unveiled their much anticipated “Made in Canada” climate change plan, which you can read about here, here and here.
The long awaited policy will undoubtedly attract criticism from environmentalists, who will argue that the plan doesn’t go far enough in the fight against global warming.  An argument that has already emerged here […]

Posted on April 27th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
41 Comments

Let’s Show Our Support

It is difficult to open today’s paper and see the photo’s from yesterday’s service at CFB Gagetown honouring eight soldiers killed in Afghanistan this month. 
Further reading of our national newspapers reveals little mention of those men and women who have lost their lives serving our country.  Instead, The Toronto Star, The National Post and The […]

Posted on April 26th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
1 Comment

What About the Recession?

Recession, Recession, Recession!
This is the warning we heard just last week.  If Canada tries to meet the targets set out in the Kyoto Protocol we will go into our worst recession since the Second World War.
So what happens when our government creates a plan that almost meets the targets of the Kyoto protocol?  Does this […]

Posted on April 25th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
47 Comments

Kyoto vs. the Environment Part 2

Open any national newspaper today and you will be bombarded by a slew of articles taking various positions on the hot-button issues we have come to know as climate change.
This article in the Globe and Mail warns of the many economic benefits Canada will miss out on if we choose to ignore our obligation to […]

Posted on April 20th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
No Comments

Kyoto vs. the Economy

Score one for the Conservatives in the constant legislative and political battle we have come to know as “Climate Change”. 
This article by Stephen Chase in today’s Globe and Mail confirms that the government has secured a high-profile and credible endorsement confirming that the Canadian economy will be crippled if we try to meet the Kyoto […]

Posted on April 19th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Canadians over-taxed – Big Surprise!

Surprise, Surprise! This article in the National Post confirms what most hard-working Canadians have been saying for years – We are over-taxed!
 
The article which comes from The Fraser Institute’s 2007 Canadian Consumer Tax Index states that “the average Canadian family spends more on taxes than on necessities of life.”
 
Since 1961 the tax bill for […]

Posted on April 17th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Green Remarks Revolting

“In times of conflict or international emergencies, we can continue
Canada’s reputation as peacekeepers and add programs for ecological preservation to protect vulnerable ecosystems.”
                        -Green Party of Canada Foreign Policy
 
With such an unrealistic position on foreign policy it comes as no surprise that a Green party candidate would pen an article describing his elation over […]

Posted on April 13th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Is the Liberal Ship Sinking?

This article in today’s Chronicle Herald demonstrates how the once all mighty Liberal Party of Canada is moving left and sinking fast.
Since winning the Liberal leadership in December 2006, Stephane Dion is quickly becoming the biggest train wreck in Liberal history.  With so-called ‘star” candidates of the likes of Paul Martin, Bill Graham, and most […]

Posted on April 12th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Vimy Ridge Ceremony

I watched the Vimy Ridge ceremony on Monday and felt a great sense of pride in our country and for those soldiers who fought in such a terrible battle that had such devastating casualties.
To see the memorial sitting high up on the hill and to realize that our very brave soldiers had to fight their […]

Posted on April 11th, 2007 by admin in NCC Blog
No Comments

Time to Move On

We received several media calls with respect to Gerry Nicholl’s departure from the National Citizens Coalition yesterday. We said that we wish Gerry well and we thanked him for all he has done while he was at the NCC. We wish him well in whatever  path his journey takes him.
The National Citizens Coalition is much […]

Posted on April 5th, 2007 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
8 Comments

American Frontrunners Slowing Down

For all you out there who are interested in American politics I just got a news release from McLaughlin and Associates, which details a recent poll they have conducted.
Here it is:
Upon comparison of our latest national poll results with the results of our November, 2006 post-election survey, it appears that the early start to the […]

Posted on April 2nd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
1 Comment

What’s Going On in Quebec?

Lots of analysis is going on in the media these days as to what’s wrong with the Parti Quebecois and more generally with the separatist movement in Quebec.
My view?
Well it seems to me the problem with the separatist political movement in Quebec isn’t that it’s separatist, but that it’s Marxist.
In other words, both the PQ […]

Posted on March 29th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

The Right Not To Remain Silent

I had a column in yesterday’s Calgary Herald, examining the Supreme Court’s terrible ruling of a few weeks ago which upheld the election blackout law.

Posted on March 28th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

The Cost of Victory

A week before the Quebec election, Prime Minister Stephen Harper poured $3 billion into La Belle Province.
The PM says he did this to end the “fiscal imbalance” but many believe the real goal was to help Jean Charest’s Liberals defeat the nasty separatists.
And if that was his goal, it worked — the $3 billion ensured […]

Posted on March 27th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Flaherty No Ronald Reagan

 
Check out a column I wrote, which appears in Sun Media papers today.
In it, I suggest the recent federal budget is a signal the Conservatives are heading down the wrong track.
And by that I mean, the Conservatives are ceasing to be conservatives.
 

Posted on March 26th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Who’s Tory Now?

If the federal Conservatives keep acting like Liberals, the next thing you know they will be creating their own Sponsorship Program.
Oh wait a minute . . . it seems they are creating their own Sponsorship Program!!
Sigh.
Thanks to Janet Neilson for the tip.

Posted on March 23rd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Ontario Budget Blues

Did a live interview on CHCH TV about the Ontario budget.
Ahh, live television — is there anything worse?
First off I had to stand outside in the chilly wind for about an hour in one of those “remote” interviews where you stand staring at a lens, pretending you can see the host. And then the audio keeps […]

Posted on March 23rd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Good Riddance to Bill 257

Well the House of Commons did something right for a change.
Last night MPs voted down Bill C-257, which would have made it a crime for companies to hire replacement workers during a strike.
Simply put this Bill was a terrible idea.
If passed it would have undermined Canada’s economy, given more powers to union bosses to cripple […]

Posted on March 22nd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
4 Comments

Blackout Ruling Skewered

Bob Tarantino, who happens to be a lawyer, has an excellent legal analysis of last’s weeks horrid Supreme Court ruling on the election black out law.
Key quote: “The majority decision is so poorly reasoned it almost beggars belief.”

Posted on March 21st, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

More Budget Talk

 
I’m going to be a guest on the Rogers Cable TV Show Money Line tonight at 7:30 PM to discuss the federal budget with Toronto Sun business editor Linda Leatherdale.
Oh and here’s more evidence the federal budget was a train wreck: Sheila Copps liked it.
 

Posted on March 21st, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Talking Budget with Duffy

Here’s me on Mike Duffy Live this afternoon.
I was discussing the federal budget with Tasha Kheiriddin. She thinks it’s a smart political budget; I hate it.
You can see the segment here.
(Click the tab marked “Are the Tories Moving Left?”)

Posted on March 20th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Budget Reaction (It’s bad)

Some reactions to the budget:
“The $200-billion in program spending Mr. Flaherty has budgeted for this year works out to about $5,800 for every man, woman and child in Canada. Even adjusting for inflation and increases in population, that’s more than Paul Martin spent in his frantic last hours. It is more than the Mulroney government […]

Posted on March 20th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Budget Blues

 
Somebody remind me again, who is running the federal government, Conservatives or Liberals?
I have to ask because today’s budget sure looks like something the Liberals or maybe even the NDP could have concocted.
Yes, there were some targeted tax cuts for families and a few tax changes to help business, but overall this budget was all […]

Posted on March 19th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
6 Comments

Budget Fun

The best part about this afternoon’s budget won’t be the actual budget, but the Opposition Parties reaction to it.
The Opposition doesn’t want an election right now, so there is no way they will vote against the government’s fiscal plan, no matter how much they might hate it.
Consequently, the NDP, the Bloc, the Liberals will all […]

Posted on March 19th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Blackout Ruling a Disgrace

When the Supreme Court of Canada ruled Thursday to uphold the election blackout law (by a 5-4 margin) it took a stand that was both dangerous and ridiculous.
Dangerous because the Court (a body which exists to protect our freedoms) essentially ruled in favour of political censorship and ridiculous because it endorsed a law that’s practically […]

Posted on March 15th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
17 Comments

Supreme Court to Rule on Blackout Law

The Supreme Court of Canada will release its decision tomorrow morning at 9:45 am EST on Paul Bryan’s constitutional challenge to the federal government’s election “blackout” law.
Paul — with the financial support of the National Citizens Coalition — is challenging an archaic and undemocratic law which bans the transmission of voting results on election night.
Section […]

Posted on March 14th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

NDP - Liberal Merger a Bad Idea

There has been a lot of talk lately about “uniting the left.”
The idea being the only way to stop the “Evil, Neo-Con Harper Juggernaut” is for the Liberals and New Democrats to join forces.
Let’s leave aside the fact that far from being a juggernaut, the Tory government has only a slight minority and no real […]

Posted on March 14th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
5 Comments

Forget Election Talk

More and more political pundits are coming to the conclusion that we will have a federal election either in late spring or early summer.
And certainly the signs are out there: the anti-Liberal attack ads, the “pre-election” spending spree, the Tory candidate “boot camp”.
So I am going out on a limb, swimming against the tide, defying […]

Posted on March 13th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Kyoto’s Only for Starters

 
At a pro-Kyoto rally yesterday, Greenpeace’s David Martin made an interesting comment.
Make no mistake about it — global warming is a reality. The debate is over,” Martin declared. “(Kyoto) will work. It has to work. Kyoto is just the beginning. We need much, much deeper reductions.” (emphasis mine.)
Martin is essentially admitting that for him and […]

Posted on March 12th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
4 Comments

Taking Out the Trash

Toronto’s Ruling Soviet Council has moved swiftly and decisively to smash counter-revolutionary activity in the outlying region of York — formerly the independent city of York.
What sort of activity?
Well, the residents of that region had contracted with — horrors of horrors — a private company to collect their garbage!!!
Needless to say this struck right to […]

Posted on March 9th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Pork and Free Speech

One of the arguments used by those who favour election gag laws — laws which severely restrict how much non-politicians can spend on political ads — is they stop money from influencing elections.
Yes we can’t have citizens spending their own money to express their own viewpoints. That would destroy democracy!
Yet it’s apparently OK for politicians […]

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Quebec’s Political Future

 
A little while ago, when the Quebec “nation issue” was dominating the debate in the House of Commons, NDP leader Jack Layton came up with an interest way to keep the country united.
He said since Quebec was generally a left wing province, the best way to keep it in Canada was for the rest of […]

Posted on March 6th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

A Great Man’s Legacy

Today marks the twentieth anniversary of a great man’s death.
His name was Colin M. Brown.
Maybe you never heard of him, but Colin was an important person in my life and an important person in Canadian history.
For one thing, he was the founder and first president of the National Citizens Coalition.
But that’s not what made him […]

Posted on March 5th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Windsor Liberty Seminar

When you think of Windsor, my home town, you usually think of cars and maybe of casinos.
But libertarians and conservatives should also think of it as the place that hosts the annual Windsor Liberty Seminar, a wonderful event that helps to promote my favourite cause: individual freedom.
This year’s Seminar will be held on March 24th, […]

Posted on February 27th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Liberal Hypocrisy

Liberal leader Stephane Dion says he will oppose extending certain provisions of the Anti-terrorist Act because they infringe on civil liberties.
Well since when do the Liberals care about infringing on civil liberties?
After all, this same Liberal Party imposed a draconian gun registry, which infringes on the civil liberties of gun owners.
This same Liberal Party supports […]

Posted on February 27th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Angelina Shrugged

Journalist, author and perceptive conservative thinker, Paul Tuns wonders why the Council for Foreign Relations would ask actress Angelina Jolie to join their group.

Paul, if you gotta ask you’ve been spending too much time reading Edmund Burke.

Actually, if rumours are true that Jolie is going to star in a movie version of Atlas Shrugged I […]

Posted on February 26th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

Pierre II

So Justin Trudeau will run for a Liberal candidacy. 
Who knows this could be the first step on a political career that ends up with Justin becoming Prime Minister, just like his dad Pierre. 
I guess Karl Marx was right when he said, “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.” 
 

Posted on February 23rd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
1 Comment

Friedman vs. Gore

Economist David Friedman has an excellent posting on the politics of global warming. (You can also read this in today’s Financial Post.)
After reviewing the science behind the issue, Friedman concludes that “global warming is probably real, is probably but not certainly anthropogenic, is probably not going to have large effects on size and frequency of […]

Posted on February 22nd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
1 Comment

A word (or two) about those polls

The media and a lot of Conservative sympathizers are going ga ga over all these polls which seem to show Liberal leader Stephane Dion is in a free fall.
The latest is an Ipsos Reid poll which indicates Dion actually ranks behind Stephen Harper and Jack Layton when it comes who Canadians think would make the […]

Posted on February 21st, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
No Comments

O’Rourke’s Latest

 
No one is better at explaining economic policy in a way non-economists can understand than American writer P. J. O’Rourke.
So I am looking forward to reading his latest Opus — On The Wealth of Nations.

Of course, when it comes to deciding what to read, I am always mindful of something O’Rourke once said: “Always read […]

Posted on February 20th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Alder Vs Greenie

Check out radio host Charles Adler’s spirited analysis of Stephane “Greenie” Dion’s leadership shortcomings.

Posted on February 19th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Letter of the Day

In case you missed it, Sun Media columnist Greg Weston had a great column on why Bill 257 is a bad idea.
In response I wrote a letter to the editor, which was printed in today’s Toronto Sun as “The Letter of the Day”.
Here it is:
MPs must do what’s right

Greg Weston’s column (”Anti-scab bill a […]

Posted on February 16th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Valentine’s Day Massacre

Here’s a news release I just sent out:
NCC Says Today’s Kyoto Vote Could be a Valentines Day Massacre for the Economy
(Toronto February 14)The National Citizens Coalition says the Liberal Party wants to immediately implement the Kyoto Accord even though such a move could trigger an economic recession in Canada.
“Today’s vote on Kyoto could go down […]

Posted on February 14th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Privatize the Post Office

The C.D. Howe says it’s time to privatize Canada Post.
The group has come out with a report which says opening up the Postal service to competition would lead to innovation and better service.
And if any organization needed a does of innovation it’s the Post Office.
Just think about it. How do you mail a letter?
You stick […]

Posted on February 13th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Kyoto Skeptic Speaks Out

Dr. Tim Ball is one of the climate experts who doesn’t buy into the “humans cause global warming” theory we are supposed to accept as gospel.
Naturally this has led elements of Left to brand him as a heretic or worse — a pawn of evil oil companies.
Dr. Ball recently defended his reputation while delivering a […]

Posted on February 9th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Kyoto Meets McCarthy

 
The political climate over … well the climate inspired me to write a satire on the Kyoto hysteria.
You can read it here.

Posted on February 8th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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NCC Takes on Bill 257

Here’s a news release I just sent out:
NCC Ad Campaign To Oppose Bill 257
(Toronto February7)The National Citizens Coalition (www.nationalcitizens.ca) is launching a multi-media ad campaign to stop Bill 257, a proposed law which would ban federally regulated companies such as banks and airlines from hiring replacement workers.
“This bill is bad for Canada’s economy, it’s bad […]

Posted on February 7th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Global Warming? Don’t Blame Ontario

Toronto Sun columnist Lorrie Goldstein has a good column today highlighting the political ineptitude surrounding the fight against “global warming”.
Goldstein skewers the Liberal environment critic, David McGuinty, who just happens to be the brother of Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty.
Noting how David is trashing the Conservative green record, Goldstein adds: “Why doesn’t he phone his brother, […]

Posted on February 6th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Liberal Strategy Revealed

 
Anyone who believes Stephane Dion really cares about the environment is forgetting one key fact: Dion is a Liberal.
And the only thing Liberals really care about is getting elected.
Already we can see the outlines of the cynical election strategy Dion and his buddies are concocting.
Yes they will portray themselves as the “Defenders of the Environment” […]

Posted on February 5th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Myth Busting

People who work for the media like to think of themselves as hard-bitten cynics who “tell it like it is.”
Yet, it seems to me much of the media is more into myth-making than in reporting cold hard facts.
Here are some of the more prominent media myths of late:
Myth 1. Liberal leader Stephane Dion is an […]

Posted on February 2nd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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A Not so Angry Man

Here’s an interview I gave to Beryl Wajsman on the radio show The Last Angry Man.
We discuss the evils of big government.
And despite the name of the show, Beryl is not really all that angry, passionate yes, but not angry.
You should also check out Beryl’s group The Institute for Public Affairs of Montreal.

Posted on February 1st, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Climate Change Politics

Yesterday in the House of Commons Liberal leader Stephane Dion called Prime Minister Stephen Harper the worst thing you could call somebody these days: a “climate change denier”.
No doubt, Harper will vehemently deny this serious charge –but surely that’s not enough.
Surely, the only way the Prime Minister can truly establish his eco-friendly credentials is to […]

Posted on January 31st, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Cultural Conservative

Just discovered a great blog from Terry Teachout, drama critic for the Wall Street Journal and music critic for Commentary.
Teachout is also a raririty in the world of culture in that he is also politically a conservative.
Check it out.

Posted on January 30th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Hooray for Attack Ads

I was an in studio guest on the Gary Doyle Show recently and at one point during the interview Gary said he thought “negative political attack ads” were bad for democracy.
Immediately I disagreed, telling him “I love attack ads.” Indeed, I have produced dozens of them over the years.
A shocking admission, I know.
In Canada we […]

Posted on January 29th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
3 Comments

Banking on Jack

Here’s the unofficial motto of the NDP: When in doubt attack the banks.
And so no one should be surprised that NDP leader Jack Layton, his party floundering in the polls, has come out flailing against the big, bad banks.
More specifically Layton wants to ban banks from charging fees when customers use automatic teller machines.
“We believe […]

Posted on January 26th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
2 Comments

Harper’s First Year

January 23rd, as we all know, marked the first year anniversary of Stephen Harper’s federal election victory.
How has Harper done on his first 365 days on the job?
Rondi Adamson answers that question in an excellent column which appears in the latest issue of the Christian Science Monitor.
Check it out.

Posted on January 25th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Friedman Day

Monday January 29th has been officially declared Milton Friedman Day.
Friedman fans are planning all sorts of events to commemorate this great man, but one of the most interesting ideas comes from the Ideachannel, which is holding a “Challenge the Status Quo” contest.
Contestants are asked to produce videos which “challenge government policies or those of your […]

Posted on January 24th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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De Gaulle She Aint

Appeared on the radio show Montreal Today a few minutes ago to give my reaction to French Socialist presidential hopeful Ségolène Royal’s comment on Quebec sovereignty.
In case you missed it, Royal told reporters yesterday,”It goes with our common values, which are Quebec’s sovereignty and freedom. I think that Quebec’s influence and its place in the […]

Posted on January 23rd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Beware Opinion Ahead

Blogger extraordinaire, Stephen Taylor posts about how network regulators want to clamp down on TV spots the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association wants to air.
The CRFA ads extol the virtues of renewal fuels.
Hardly controversial, right?
Wrong.
After carefully reviewing the ads, the Television Bureau of Canada has decided they actually express an “opinion”.
Shocking!
This is Canada, we can’t go […]

Posted on January 22nd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Home Show Report

Went to the Metro Home Show Friday night.
It’s a great place if you’re in the market for showers featuring more electronic gadgets than the space shuttle, or for “lush and vibrant” artificial grass that’s resistant to salt damage, fire and nuclear war, or for furniture that looks like it was lifted from the set of some […]

Posted on January 22nd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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I’m not a repitlian demon

Had the pleasure to give a speech today in Kitchener to the Confederation Club.
I met a lot of great people and had a wonderful time.
Blogger Brian from Cambridge, who attended the speech, has a write up on my talk here.
Check it out.
Key quote: ‘I also had the opportunity to talk to Gerry, and he is […]

Posted on January 19th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Doomsday Nears

In case somebody asks you for the time today, just tell them it’s five minutes until doomsday.
So says the “the elite board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists” which the Toronto Star tells us is “moving the minute hand on their Doomsday Clock closer to the fatal hour of midnight.”
In case you haven’t heard […]

Posted on January 17th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Cartoon Babs

Here’s the latest cartoon entry from the folks at Stop Her Now.

Posted on January 16th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Why Bill 257 is a Bad Idea

Here’s my latest column appearing in Report Magazine.
It’s on why I think a proposed labour law (Bill 257) is a bad idea for Canada and for unionized employees.

Posted on January 15th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Bad Mooo-ve by Dion

The media keeps telling us that Liberal leader Stephane Dion is a real bright guy.
But if he’s so smart why did he recently compare Alberta’s economy to a milk cow?
It’s true.
In a speech delivered in Halifax the other day, Dion was explaining why Albertans should not fear his Kyoto plans, which many believe will gut […]

Posted on January 12th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Iraq and Free Markets

of the knocks on U.S. president George Bush from conservative/libertarian types is that he is a “Big Government Conservative.”
That is he has done precious little to cut down on the size, scope or cost of government in America.
And now it looks like he is exporting these notions to Iraq.
Patrick Basham, of the Democracy Institute , […]

Posted on January 11th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Freezing in Ottawa

OK I believed it when David Suzuki and Al Gore and Stephane Dion proclaimed that global warming was heating up our winter.
Accordingly on my visit to Ottawa I left behind my gloves and hat and warm coat, thinking it would be a tropical paradise.
Wrong!
It’s like 100 degrees below zero out there! I almost died […]

Posted on January 10th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Green Blues

If you believe the media this morning the next federal election will centre on one issue and one issue only: the environment.
Check out the screaming headlines in the papers today: “Harper Goes Green”, “PM Warms to Environment,” “PM Charts a greener course”.
And all this because Prime Minister Harper appointed John “Rusty” Baird as his new […]

Posted on January 5th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Confederation Club Talk

Attention all Kitchener-Waterloo area conservatives!
Mark your calendars.
On January 18th, I will be speaking at the Confederation Club, one of the region’s largest speaker forums.
You can order tickets here.
Hope to see you there!

Posted on January 4th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Gag Laws vs. Freedom

Yesterday I posted about Carol Goar’s column in the Toronto Star praising Canada’s election finance laws.
Well I also sent Star a letter to the editor on the subject, which was not published.
So here it is:
Re: Election financing comes clean – January 3, 2007

Before Carol Goar deifies the politicians behind Canada’s election finance laws, she should […]

Posted on January 4th, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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US court strikes down gag law

Carol Goar has a piece in today’s Toronto Star gushing all over Canada’s election finance laws, which she says will stop the buying and selling of politicians.
What she fails to mention, however, is that these laws — such as the election gag law — also infringe on democratic rights and freedoms.
This is something the American […]

Posted on January 3rd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Ten Cannots

Found these on a libertarian site packed with nifty quotes.
The Ten “Cannots” of Political Economy:
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot help small men by tearing down big men.
You cannot help the wage-earner by tearing down the wage-payer.
You cannot further the brotherhood of mankind […]

Posted on January 3rd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Tuns Not Tens

My friend Paul Tuns has posted on his blog the “Eight most important stories of 2006 that will have a lasting impact”.
Out of his eight important stories, seven will have negative consequences for the world.
This tells me two things: 1.)Paul is a pessimist, 2) he doesn’t believe in the metric system. If he did, he […]

Posted on January 2nd, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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The Top Ten Most Over-Rated Political Stories of 2006

This is a column I wrote, a version of which appeared in the Calgary Sun on December 29th.
Every year at this time, it’s traditional to come up with “Top Ten Lists”.
That’s why we see things like the “Top ten best movies of the year”, “Top ten worst movies of the Year”, “Top Ten `Top Ten […]

Posted on January 1st, 2007 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Glad He’s Gone

I am very pleased the anti-democratic bully is finally gone.
And no, I am not talking about Saddam Hussein.
I mean, I am pleased Jean Pierre Kingsley is stepping down as Chief Electoral Officer. In fact, I have a column in today’s National Post on the subject, which you can read here.
I am also quoted in today’s […]

Posted on December 30th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Good Riddance Kingsley

I am having a hard time containing my glee at Jean-Pierre Kingsley’s resignation as Chief Electoral Officer.
You can read my comments in this Globe and Mail piece and actually see and hear me in this CTV News item and you can read the National Citizens Coalition news release over at National Newswatch.
What a nice post-election […]

Posted on December 29th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all NCC supporters.

Posted on December 23rd, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Lively News

Here’s a story from the Sudbury Star, on the National Citizens Coalition effort to help The Lively Seven, women who are battling against being unionized against their will.

Posted on December 23rd, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Gerry Nicholls and the Blog of No Ideas

J.K. Rowling has announced the title of the latest Harry Potter book; it’s called Harry Potter and the Deathy Hallows.

My first thought when I heard this was, “What’s a hallow?” and my second thought was, what if Rowling wrote books on Canadian politics.
Here are some possible titles:
Stephen Harper and the Income Trust of Doom.

Jack […]

Posted on December 22nd, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Dion’s Dream

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion yesterday announced his “dream team” .  
Here is the team and their assigned duties:

Michael Ignatieff: Try and not look like a sore loser.
Gerrard Kennedy: Patiently await the proper moment to stab Dion in the back.
Martha Hall Findlay: Go around the country reminding everybody that she is a “woman” on the dream team.
Ken […]

Posted on December 20th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Ministry of Christmas Miracles

What would happen if the Canadian government was in charge of Christmas miracles? That’s the question I try to answer in an article which appears in today’s Vancouver Sun.
Here’s a synopsis:

Miracles would be marketed by ad companies associated with the Liberal party.

There would be about 10 times as many angels as required to do the […]

Posted on December 19th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Protecting Which Culture?

It’s bad enough our government hands out tons of tax dollars to “protect Canadian culture”, but now they are giving tons of tax dollars to American companies to “protect Canadian culture.”
Doesn’t make sense does it.
See my reaction to all this as reported in a Sun Media story.

Posted on December 19th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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How the Government Keeps Us Safe

 
It’s easy to lose confidence in our justice system.
After all, the government is allowing a convicted killer to roam around as free as a bird.
Still it isn’t all bad.
Don’t forget all the hard work our judges are doing to protect us from the dangers of Christmas trees.

Posted on December 19th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Person of the Year

 
Time Magazine has named Prime Minister Stephen Harper as Canada’s “Person of the Year.”
That’s quite an honour.
But let’s face it Harper had a lot of help to achieve his success and it’s only fair that we recognize the people who helped make it all possible:
* Buzz Hargrove — Buzz’s inept campaigning skills (in which he […]

Posted on December 18th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Happy Hanukkah

Happy Hanukkah.

Posted on December 16th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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The Mathematics of Senate Reform II

Yesterday I noted the complexity of the “Single Transferable Vote” system the government wants to use to elect Senators.
So to better understand how this system works I asked the Prime Minister’s Office to send me a backgrounder.
It didn’t help.
Here’s the explanation they sent me:
Under STV, voters will rank their preferred Senate nominees, beginning with their […]

Posted on December 15th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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The Mathematics of Senate Reform

Yesterday I participated in a conference call the government set up to explain the workings of the proposed Senate reform legislation.
Most of it was pretty basic: voters will have a chance to vote in a plebiscite; elections will be administered by Elections Canada; standard spending limits in place, etc.
But when it came time to explain how candidates would win I was […]

Posted on December 14th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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When Christmas Meets Capitalism

Here is my latest column from Report Magazine.
It’s very seasonal.

Posted on December 14th, 2006 by Kylie Young in NCC Blog
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Political Greed Strikes Again

Ontario MPPs have voted to give themselves a whopping 25 per cent hike.
How generous!
And just in time for Christmas too.
Must be nice to be able vote yourself a pay hike.
And what did the MPPs do to deserve such a raise?
Are they working harder? Have they done an excellent job? Do they have more responsibilities?
No.
They were […]

Posted on December 13th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
2 Comments

The Secret to My Success

Had dinner with a friend in Toronto last night and since this guy is a night owl, I didn’t get home until 1:30 AM.
The problem is I had to do two radio interviews before 8:00 AM, one on the John Oakley Show, to talk about MPP pay, and one on CHQR’s The Morning News with […]

Posted on December 12th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Give him a Chance

Look I know Stephane Dion is not the greatest Liberal leader in history.
But this is ridiculous.

Posted on December 11th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Dion’s First Test

New Liberal leader Stephane Dion will soon face his first real test.
Will he oppose or support Bill C-257, a private member’s bill that’s making its way through the House of Commons?
This Bill would essentially make it illegal for federally-regulated companies to hire replacement workers during labour disputes.
The Bloc Quebecois and the NDP both support this […]

Posted on December 8th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Taking on the Union Bosses

Lots of unionized employees don’t like the socialist dribble their union bosses like to spew out.
Case in point is Brian who calls himself a “grudging CAW member”.
Brian believes in things like free enterprise and individual freedom and he doesn’t believe union bosses should use his forced dues to promote their propaganda.
Anyway, he recently wrote an […]

Posted on December 8th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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What’s in a name?

We are told Liberal leader Stephane Dion’s commitment to the environment is revealed by the fact that he named is his dog Kyoto.
Well if that’s the case I hope he has a cat somewhere named “Tax Cuts” and a goldfish named “Smaller Government.”
And I guess we can presume that former PM Jean Chrétien had a […]

Posted on December 8th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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Here’s why Harper is Happy

Good for Canada; bad for the Liberal Party.
That’s how I would sum up the results of the Liberal leadership contest.
Stéphane Dion seems like a decent person, but I doubt he is the guy who will help restore the former glory of the Liberal Party.
Pierre Trudeau he aint.
I mean most Canadians are likely saying “Stephane who?”
And […]

Posted on December 8th, 2006 by Gerry Nicholls in NCC Blog
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