Conservatives introduce legislation to fix election dates in Canada and to reform Senate

Canadians would go to the polls every four years under legislation introduced today by the federal government.

The Conservatives are proposing fixed election dates for the third Monday in October in the fourth calendar year after the last voting day.

It's part of a wider package of democratic reforms, under which the Conservatives also introduced a constitutional amendment to limit new senators to eight-year terms.

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY COMMENTS:

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservative Government are to be congratulated for introducing democratic reform in Parliament. This shows real leadership and vision.

Pope Benedict visits Auschwitz and speaks about the Holocaust

 

A German Pope Confronts the Nazi Past at Auschwitz

AUSCHWITZ, Poland, May 28 — Pope Benedict XVI prayed on Sunday at the cells and crematories of the concentration camp complex here, on a visit he called "particularly difficult and troubling for a Christian, for a pope from Germany."

"Words fail," said Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger in Bavaria in 1927. The son of a policeman, he was inducted unwillingly into the Hitler Youth and the German Army. "In the end, there can only be a dread silence, a silence that itself is a heartfelt cry to God.

"Why, Lord, did you remain silent?" he said, his voice wobbling. "How could you tolerate this?"
Benedict has marveled that a German could have been elected to lead the world's Catholics only 60 years after the horrors at Auschwitz. His visit thus marked one more milestone of reckoning over the more than one million people who died here, most of them Jews, as well as a significant stop in his year-old papacy.

The images, beamed around the world, were striking: the pope in pristine white walking alone under the infamous lie forged in iron promising freedom through work; two kisses on the cheeks of a Jewish survivor; dark rain that gave way to sun and then, somehow, a rainbow as he finished prayers.

But, in his two hours here, on the final day of his four-day trip to Poland, Benedict confronted the gnarl of the past in a distinctly theological, rather than emotional or personal, way — a trait that is emerging as the hallmark of his papacy.

Unlike his predecessor, John Paul II, who visited here in 1979, he said little about himself, and nothing about his experience in the war. Benedict was part of an antiaircraft unit at an airplane motor factory, deserted and was held as an American prisoner of war — all without firing his gun.

While he spoke eloquently about "forgiveness and reconciliation," he did not beg pardon for the sins of Germans or of the Roman Catholic church during World War II. He laid the blame squarely on the Nazi regime, avoiding the painful but now common acknowledgment among many Germans that ordinary citizens also shared responsibility.

He said he came here "as a son of the German people, a son of that people over which a ring of criminals rose to power by false promises of future greatness and the recovery of the nation's honor, prominence and prosperity, but also through terror and intimidation."

He then cast the war into a larger theological frame: that the Nazis' attempt to eradicate the Jews was an attempt by man to banish, and replace, God. He said that God set limits on man's power, and thus, the war showed the nightmare of a world without God.

"Deep down, those vicious criminals, by wiping out this people, wanted to kill the God who called Abraham, who spoke in Sinai and laid down principles to serve as a guide for mankind, principles that are entirely valid," he said.

"If this people, by its very existence, was a witness to the God who spoke to humanity and took us to himself, then that God finally had to die and power had to belong to man alone, to those men who thought that by force they had made themselves masters of the world.

"By destroying Israel, they ultimately wanted to tear up the tap root of the Christian faith and to replace it with a faith of their own invention: faith in the rule of man, the rule of the powerful."
It is uncertain whether the pope's lack of emphasis on the role of ordinary Germans will anger Jewish groups. Benedict, though, is well known to top Jewish leaders, who have met with him for decades in an effort to improve once bitter relations between Jews and Roman Catholics.

Rabbi David Rosen, a top official with the American Jewish Committee who has known Benedict for nearly two decades, called his omission of a broader, national responsibility "lamentable" but nothing new in the pope's often expressed interpretation of the war.

"Will it make any difference to Jewish-Catholic relations?" Rabbi Rosen said in a telephone interview from Israel. "No, because Jewish-Catholic relations anyway are no longer based upon our view of the past but on the nature of relations in the present, and from that perspective Benedict XVI is as good as it gets."

Benedict's visit to Poland was his second trip outside of Italy since John Paul died in April 2005 and Benedict was elected to replace him.

On a tour of places important to John Paul, Benedict, though less charismatic and not Polish, still drew huge and enthusiastic crowds, culminating with what the police estimated as just under one million worshipers at an outdoor mass in Krakow.

More directly than he had done elsewhere on this trip, Benedict urged Poles in his homily not to dilute their faith, on display in the crowds here in the last four days, as many in other more secular European nations have.

"I ask you, finally, to share with the other peoples of Europe and the world the treasure of your faith," he said.

But the visit to the Nazi concentration camp was the heart of the trip, a destination that Joaquín Navarro-Valls, the Vatican spokesman, said earlier this weekend Benedict had specifically asked for. As Cardinal Ratzinger, he had come here twice before, in 1979 with John Paul and the next year with a group of German bishops.

He began his trip with a long walk several paces ahead of his entourage, under the sign in German that translates as "Work Shall Set You Free." He then walked over the gravel pathway, past the old brick barracks, to the wall where prisoners were executed. He prayed alone in front of it, bowing at the end.

Next to the wall, he met with 32 survivors of the camp, all but one Polish Catholics. He gave a double kiss to the only Jew in the group, Henryk Mandelbaum. Another survivor, Jerzy Bielecki, told the pope how he escaped from Auschwitz in 1944 by slowly collecting parts of an SS uniform, then sewing them together. He said he left with a Jewish woman, whose life was saved.
After visiting the cell of a Catholic priest killed there and a center for dialogue, Benedict led an interfaith service, stopping first in the rain under his white papal umbrella to read stones etched with inscriptions in the languages of prisoners there.

"The place where we are standing is a place of memory," he said. "At the same time, it is the place of the Shoah," the Hebrew term for the Holocaust.

Twice he asked where God could have been in the face of such destruction. But he could not answer the question.

"We cannot peer into God's mysterious plan, " he said. "We see it only piecemeal, and we would be wrong to set ourselves up as judges of God and history. When all is said and done, we must continue to cry out humbly yet insistently to God: Rouse yourself! Do not forget mankind, your creature!"

In deference to still-raw Polish memories of Germans, Benedict had spoken on this trip in Italian, or, in shorter prayers and greetings, Polish. Only at Birkenau, a death camp that is part of the Auschwitz complex, did he speak in his native German, in a prayer.
"Lord, you are the God of peace," he said. "You are peace. A heart seeking conflict cannot understand you."

copyright
The New York Times Company

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY COMMENTS:

As a Roman Catholic I believe the world must never forget the Holocaust and that is why I respect and admire Pope Benedict for his visit to Auschwitz.

Prime Minister Harper and the Canadian media

 

Prime Minister Harper thumbs nose at Canadian media

Harper says he'll take his message to local news outlets after Ottawa press gallery refuses to play by his rules

COPYRIGHT THE TORONTO STAR

OTTAWA — Stephen Harper says journalists on Parliament Hill are biased against his government so he'll be avoiding them.

The prime minister says the parliamentary press gallery seems to have decided to become the opposition to his Conservative administration.

He told a London, Ont., TV station on Wednesday that he is having problems with reporters in the capital that a Liberal prime minister would never face.
So Harper says he will take his message out on the road and deal with the less hostile local media.

"Unfortunately, the press gallery has taken the view they are going to be the opposition to the government," Harper told London's A-Channel.

"They don't ask questions at my press conferences now.

"We'll just get the message out on the road. There's lots of media in the country who do want to ask me questions and hear what the government is doing."

The comments were sparked by an incident Tuesday when two dozen Ottawa reporters walked out on a Harper event when he refused to take their questions.
The prime minister does not want to hold press conferences unless his staff choose which journalists ask questions from a list they compile. The Ottawa press gallery has refused to play by those rules.

Harper has groused publicly about an anti-Conservative bias in the media before — but not since becoming prime minister.

"I have trouble believing that a Liberal prime minister would have this problem," he said Wednesday.

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY COMMENTS:

While I have nothing but great admiration and deep respect for Prime Minister Stephen Harper I am concerned this 'war' with the national media could esculate and hurt the Conservative Government. I can only hope that the Prime Minister's advisers are giving him the right advice.



"But the press gallery at the leadership level has taken an anti-Conservative view."

Canada pledges $40 million more aid for troubled Darfur region of Sudan

OTTAWA (CP) - Canada is increasing aid to Sudan's violence-plagued Darfur region by $40 million.

Peace is still possible in Darfur, Prime Minister Stephen Harper predicted as he announced the aid on Tuesday.

But Harper said a recently brokered peace deal must be backed up by actions to stabilize the region.

Half of the new aid money will be spent on food aid, water and sanitation, basic health care, and protecting refugees in Sudan and in neighbouring African countries.

Harper said Canada's new contribution will help lay the foundations for a peace process that he predicts will take a long time to complete.
"And that is exactly what today's announced support will help to do," Harper said.

"We will aid in the peace process by enhancing the African Union's ability to assist in the initial implementation of the Darfur peace agreement."
Harper made no mention of whether Canada will provide peacekeeping troops for the region, taking no questions from reporters after making the announcement.

Earlier this month, however, the prime minister suggested that any help for Sudan would not include any major troop contribution.

Canada has been providing military and technical assistance to the African Union Mission in Sudan, including sending Mounties to train civilian police forces.

Other Canadian military and civilian experts have assisted with strategic planning, logistics and air operations, training, information support, and communications.

Prior to Tuesday's announcement, Canada had allocated $170 million since 2004 to support the African Union mission, making it one of the top three international donors.

The money has been used to lease commercial helicopters and transport aircraft, pay for fuel and buy basic equipment, including helmets and protective vests.

Canada has also lent armoured personnel carriers to African Union forces deployment in Sudan.

Copyright © 2006 Yahoo! Canada Co. All Rights Reserved

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY comments:

Thank goodness for the international leadership and vision of Prime Minister Stephen Harper in showing the world that Canada does care what happens in Darfur.

A BLOCKBUSTER .....

 

At $77 Million, It's Code Green For 'Da Vinci' Code

Special to The Washington Post
Monday, May 22, 2006


At the box office, Audrey Tautou, Tom Hanks and "The Da Vinci Code" overcame bad reviews.


Surviving critical brickbats, threats of boycott from religious groups, and a kept-under-wraps promotional campaign, the screen adaptation of Dan Brown's hugely popular novel about dastardly shenanigans in the Roman Catholic Church debuted with an estimated $77 million in domestic ticket sales.


CLICK HERE for entire WASHINGTON POST article.

Michael McCafferty comments:

This is one hell of a remarkable and extra ordinary story. No wonder the book is a blockbuster around the world -- and I predict the movie will be a smashing hit.

Iran is going for force Jews to wear the Star of David

Iran Considers Identity Badges For Jews, Christians

Tehran, Iran —Human rights groups are sounding alarms over a new law passed by the Iranian parliament that would require the country's Jews and Christians to wear colored badges to identify them and other religious minorities as non-Muslims.

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY COMMENTS:

This smacks of 'Nazi' Germany in the 1930s. The free world must never forget the Holocaust
and speak out strongly against what is happening in Iran. I am shocked by this and hope world leaders will have the courage to speak out.

Australia Prime Minister John Howard and Prime Minister Stephen Harper

 

Australia Prime Minister John Howard speaks to Canadian Parliament

OTTAWA (CP) - Australian Prime Minister John Howard blew into Stephen Harper's Ottawa with a bracing blast of conservative geopolitics Thursday.

Howard, the first foreign leader to visit Canada since Prime Minister Harper's Conservatives took office, delivering a rousing speech to a joint session of Parliament in which he lavished praise on the United States as a global power, lauded an alternative to the Kyoto protocol on greenhouse gas emissions, and cautioned that nuclear non-proliferation shouldn't be used to hinder Canada and Australia's uranium industries.

"Australia, as you know, is an unapologetic friend and ally of the United States," Howard told a Commons chamber that's heard all-too-frequent criticism of Washington in recent years.

Fresh from a visit to the White House, Howard told a chamber packed with Tory MPs, staffers, lobbyists and party functionaries - but noticeably light on Liberal Opposition MPs - that the U.S. "has been a remarkable power for good in the world.

"And the decency and hope that the power and purpose that the United States represent in the world is something we should deeply appreciate," Howard said to sustained applause.

The 23-minute address, just the second in the Commons by an Australian prime minister and the first since 1944 during the Second World War, came the day after Harper forced a vote in the House that narrowly extended Canada's military deployment in Afghanistan by two years into 2009.
Harper introduced Howard by stating Canada and Australia have a shared history, "shoulder to shoulder standing up for right, when right needed to be defended" in world affairs.

Howard, picking up on the theme, told the Commons that "terrorism will not be defeated by nuancing our foreign policy.

"Terrorism will not be defeated by rolling ourselves into a small ball and going into a corner and imagining that somehow or other we will escape notice."

He also cautioned U.S.-bashers.

"For those around the world who would want to see a reduced American role in the affairs of our globe, I have some quiet advice. That is, be careful of what you wish for. Because a retreating America will leave a more vulnerable world."

Howard, whose 10 years in office and three successive election victories are seen by some as a model for Harper's Conservative movement, also touched on another issue that deeply divides Canada's political landscape.

He said Canada and Australia have "common interests" in the area of climate change. Australia never signed the Kyoto protocol on reducing greenhouse gas emissions - although unlike Canada, Howard said his country is on target to meet the Kyoto targets.

Like Harper's Conservatives, Howard argued climate change requires the involvement of major polluters China, India and the United States in a new framework.

As for those massive uranium reserves shared by Canada and Australia, Howard warned that a proposed Global Nuclear Energy Partnership - while "laudably" seeking to curb nuclear proliferation - must not "work against the interests of countries such as Canada and Australia."

The three-day official visit - which included a private dinner at 24 Sussex Drive on Thursday night - marks a public recognition of the political affinities between Howard's Liberal-National coalition and Harper's Conservatives.
Political analysts say Harper's recent election platform was patterned on successful Howard prescriptions.

No surprisingly, the same types of opponents who target Howard in Australia are opposed to the Harper government.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Canadian Auto Workers union on Thursday called the Howard visit an insult, saying the prime minister dismantled Australia's public service.

The environmental group Greenpeace also took the opportunity to denounce both Howard and Harper for embracing the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate as an alternative to Kyoto.

Greenpeace called the Asia-Pacific Partnership a non-binding fraud designed to help coal-producing countries dodge Kyoto commitments.

Their complaints aren't likely to move either Howard or Harper, who both appear to revel in combating political orthodoxy.

The Howard address recalls the last time Conservatives were in power in Ottawa under Brian Mulroney, when U.S. president Ronald Reagan and British prime minister Margaret Thatcher each twice addressed a joint session of Parliament.

The only other Australian prime minister to address Parliament was John Curtin on June 1, 1944.

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY COMMENTS:

I admire the Prime Minister of Australia. John Howard is an outstanding and remarkable leader for Australia.
I am pleased Prime Minister Howard has come to Canada for an official visit. He is truly an excellent world leader.

Canada must show international leadership in Afghanistan

 

Prime Minister Harper says Afghan debate important for Canada

Prime Minister Stephen Harper will lead off Wednesday's debate on whether to extend Canada's military mission in Afghanistan.

INDEPTH: Afghanistan

The debate, scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. ET, will decide whether Canada's 2,300 troops will come home next February or stay in Afghanistan until early 2009.

On Tuesday, Harper said the mission is a vital one.

INDEPTH: Canada's Military

"What we are doing there is not just protecting our national interests, but [we are] providing international leadership and providing real advancement to the standard of living and human rights of the Afghan people. These are important things for which Canada should stand."

The opposition parties believe that if Canada extends its stay in Afghanistan it won't be able to respond to other trouble spots such as Darfur, Sudan.
"Did [the prime minister] realize that this would render Canada incapable of responding to other situations in the world?" asked NDP Leader Jack Layton.
Harper says that, for Canada, the priority is Afghanistan.

"We understand that a commitment of this magnitude creates some real constraints on our ability elsewhere," he said.

Casualty count raises questions
On Wednesday night, after a six-hour debate, MPs will vote on a motion for a two-year extension of Canada's diplomatic, development, civilian police and military personnel in Afghanistan, including funding and equipment.
Increasing casualties, including the deaths of 15 soldiers since 2002, have caused many Canadians to question how long Canada should be in Afghanistan.

The Liberals suggest that may be why Harper is putting it to a vote now — so that the mission extension is dealt with well before a possible election looms next year.

"It's not about whether or not the mission should be until February 2009," said Liberal defence critic Ujjal Dosanjh. "Now the question is whether or not it should be extended."

Layton also says MPs haven't been given much time to prepare.

"What we don't know is the nature of the extended mission. Canadians have not been told about it. MPs have not been told about it, yet they're going to be asked to vote on it after a few speeches on the House of Commons."
But Harper says MPs have had lots of time to decide.

"Members of this House, the parties of this House, have had five years to decide what their position is on this mission. We want to be sure that our troops have the support of this Parliament going forward."

Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay has just returned from a trip to Afghanistan. He says Afghan President Hamid Karzai has asked about Canada's involvement after next February.

"They want to know that Canada is going to be there," said MacKay.

Copyright ©2006 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - All Rights Reserved

Michael McCafferty comments:

I agree with Prime Minister Harper -- Canada is providing international leadership. Canada must show a solid commitment to our role in Afghanistan.

President Bush has announced a major plan to fortify USA Mexico border.

President Bush announces plan to fortify Mexico USA border

WASHINGTON -- U.S. President George W. Bush revealed plans Monday to send thousands of National Guard troops to bolster patrols along the southern U.S. border in a rare Oval Office speech striving for compromise amid a national furor over illegal immigration.

Bush called for "dramatic improvements in manpower and technology'' at the border with Mexico, including sending in as many as 6,000 guard troops as part of a $2 billion US security push that will include new fences, cameras and unmanned aerial vehicles.

Michael McCafferty comments:

Since illegal immigration has become a political hot button issue in the USA I seriously wonder how much of this plan is sheer politics. America is becoming 'fortress' America.

We in Canada must express our serious disapproval over the fact that by 2008 we will need passports to visit the USA. I wouldn't doubt that some over enthustiastic American politicians will want to fortify the Canada USA border.

Canada should be a leader in calling for a UNITED NATIONS PEACE KEEPING FORCE in Darfur.

Canada can help in Darfur to bring about peace

copyright FOCUS ON THE FAMILY
Today’s Family NewsMay 12, 2006
Canada is not ruling out participation in a United Nations-sanctioned peacekeeping force for the war-torn Darfur region of southern Sudan, the National Post reported Wednesday.

Under questioning in the House of Commons, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Tuesday that Canada stands “ready to assist” the people of Darfur, but that no decision has been made on what role it will play, such as whether troops will be deployed.

Earlier in the week, U.S. President George W. Bush ordered that emergency food deliveries be sent to Darfur – a region the size of France – in the wake of a humanitarian crisis that has claimed an estimated 200,000 lives and left three million more homeless in the past three years.

Bush and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan have both said a more robust international peacekeeping force is needed to supplement a 7,000-member African Union force that has proven ineffective. A UN peacekeeping force could end up being double that size.

Bush also urged the UN Security Council – and countries like Canada – to do their part now that a peace settlement has been finalized between the Sudanese government and the main rebel group in Darfur. Canada played a role in helping broker the deal.
“The European Union, and nations like Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Japan have taken the leadership on other humanitarian issues, and the people of Darfur urgently need more of their help now,” he said.

When asked by NDP leader Jack Layton why Canada had yet to give the UN “a positive answer” on its involvement in Darfur, Harper said, “We are expecting requests for assistance on governance and humanitarian assistance. At this moment, it does not appear that there will be any request for military assistance, but we stand ready to work with our international allies to improve the situation in Darfur.”

In April 2005, Canada committed $90 million in humanitarian and other aid for the people in Darfur and Sudan’s southern region.
The suffering began three years ago when Sudan’s Arab Islamic government enlisted Arab militias, called the Janjaweed, to undertake an ethnic purging of the largely African populations – many of them Christians – in the southern part of the country. As World magazine reported this week, “A handful of rebel groups fought back, and the ensuing war has left Darfur one of the most dangerous and miserable places in the world.”

Michael McCafferty comments:

Canada should play a major role in calling for a UNITED NATIONS PEACE KEEPING FORCE to go into Darfur, and Canada should be part of the United Nations peace keeping efforts.

Premier Ralph Klein of Alberta has given his last major speech in Alberta as premier.

Premier Klein thanks his wife and father in his last major Alberta speech

EDMONTON (CP) - Ralph Klein thanked his wife, his dad and the people of Alberta in his final major speech to Albertans before he retires as premier.

"This will be my last speech and I'm sort of sad to be leaving, but I understand there is life after politics," Klein told reporters Wednesday before speaking to the sold-out crowd of Tory supporters. Klein confirmed before the dinner that he will be making a speech in Washington later this spring, but there will be no other major speeches before he leaves office by the end of the year.

CLICK HERE for entire MacLean's report on Premier Ralph Klein.

Michael McCafferty comments:

I like and admire Alberta Premier Ralph Klein. He is truly a prairie populist in the tradition of John Diefenbaker. Klein in Alberta is affectionately known by many as King Ralph. The title suits Ralph Klein. He is a man of the people and has given Alberta very good government. He will be missed after he leaves.

Mental illness is a serious health issue in Canada. The Senate of Canada committee on social affairs has issued a major report on mental health in Canada.

Canadian Senate panel calls for funding for mentally ill

Copyright
CTV.ca News Tue. May. 9 2006

A Senate committee is recommending raising taxes on beer, wine and alcohol to pay for $536 million a year in mental health initiatives.

The Senate social affairs committee also proposes the creation of a permanent Canadian Mental Health Commission in its final report, entitled "Out of the Shadows at Last."

Its mandate would be to educate Canadians about mental health. The commission would also create a national Knowledge Exchange Centre and would oversee a 10-year national anti-stigma campaign.

Another notable recommendation in the report was the development of 57,000 affordable housing units for people living with mental illness.

The cost would be funded by raising the excise tax by five cents a drink. That translates to five cents a beer, 25 cents on a bottle of wine and 85 cents on a bottle of alcohol.

The change would not apply to light beer. In fact, the Senate report recommends cutting or eliminating taxes on drinks with a lower alcohol content.

"We understand that change costs money," said Liberal Senator Michael Kirby, the head of the committee.

"The committee's proposal to increase the federal excise tax on alcohol by a nickel a drink will help to shift consumption to lower-alcohol products while also covering most of the cost of the proposed Mental Health Transition Fund."
The Senate committee made a total of 118 recommendations in its final report released Tuesday.

It had previously released three interim reports on the topic of mental illness, mental health and addiction in Canada in November 2004.
The final report was applauded by numerous mental health and well-being advocacy groups.

"I think the committee has done a marvelous job," said Dr. Donald Milliken, president of the Canadian Psychiatric Association.

"Particularly this idea there should be parity between serious physical illnesses and serious mental illnesses.

"In a society such as ours, it really is important we provide for these people the best possible care that we can," Milliken told CTV Newsnet.

The Schizophrenia Society of Canada (SSC) also applauded the report, saying it is a welcome first step toward establishing a national strategy to deal with mental health issues.

"This report provides a blueprint to build an innovative and leading edge mental health system that will enhance services and outcomes for Canadians living with psychiatric illnesses," said SSC President John Gray.

"We congratulate the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology for its important work and Senator Kirby for his leadership on this initiative."

The report says one-fifth of the population will experience mental illness at some point.

SSC Chief Executive Officer Mary Jardine encouraged Ottawa to move quickly to implement the committee's recommendations, particularly the establishment of a Canadian Mental Health Commission.

"The sooner these measures are put in place, the sooner we will begin to see improvements for all Canadians living with mental illness," she said.

© Copyright 2002-2006 Bell Globemedia Inc.

Michael McCafferty comments:
As a person who has a mental illness I am very pleased that the Senate of Canada committee on
Social Affairs has put together a 'major' report on mental health in Canada with very progressive and positive recommendations. I do hope the Government of Canada will implement most if not all of the report.

General Michael Hayden will be the new CIA Director in the USA. Here he is with President Bush at the announcement.

President Bush names general to CIA post

Despite concerns from Republicans and Democrats about the wisdom of installing a military man as head of a civilian spy agency, U.S. President George W. Bush named Michael Hayden to lead the CIA.

The choice of the Air Force general, who once ran a controversial eavesdropping program, was not being well received by Congress, but the president stood by his choice.

"Mike Hayden is extremely qualified for this position," Bush said in the Oval Office, with Hayden at his side. "He knows the intelligence community from the ground up."

As former head of the National Security Agency, Hayden oversaw the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program.

Porter Goss resigned under pressure as head of the Central Intelligence Agency on Friday. Hayden would replace him if his nomination is confirmed.

"There's probably no post more important in preserving our security and our values as people than the CIA," Hayden said.

Michael McCafferty comments:

General Michael Hayden is an excellent and outstanding person to head the CIA. General Hayden has distinguished himself as a remarkable military leader and I am pleased President Bush has recognized the General's leadership ability.

Margaret Trudeau has spoken out on her battle with a mental illness called manic-depression.

Bi-polar manic depressive disorder - mental illness

CTV.ca News
Fri. May. 5 2006

OTTAWA
Margaret Trudeau came forward for the first time on Friday to share her lifelong struggle with bipolar depression, saying it was unbearable trying to cope with her illness under the scrutiny of the public eye.

"It's not easy to live with an illness that impacted my family life for years, that tore away at my two marriages and ultimately the very meaning of my life," said Trudeau, the ex-wife of former prime minister Pierre Trudeau.

"None of this has been easy -- but through all these years, I remember Pierre always said to me, 'Margaret, it's not what happens to you, it's how you react to it that is important,'" she told reporters in Ottawa.

Bipolar depression, also known as manic-depressive disorder, is a mental illness that causes cyclical mood swings, from severe depression to episodes of extreme euphoria.

In her case, Trudeau said, it was the cycles of profound sadness that were crippling.

Trudeau said she first felt the symptoms of depression after the birth of her second son, Alexandre.

"It was never talked about in those days and barely recognized, no matter what sector of society you lived in. And so in the public eye and under public scrutiny, I tried to manage as best I could," she said.

Despite her attempts to cope on her own, her life as the young wife of the prime minister 24 was a lonely one, she said.

"Living at 24 Sussex was very lonely -- a long tunnel of darkness for me -- coupled with the pressures of public life while trying on my own to manage the symptoms of bipolar depression, it was terrifying," she said.

Trudeau told reporters that it was not until her son Michel died in an avalanche accident in 1998 and his father, Pierre Trudeau, passed away in 2000, that she finally sought the appropriate medical treatment.

"I felt I was broken for a long time and now I feel whole," Trudeau said.
"I'm here today to encourage others who live with mental illness to tell them that the treatment works, that there is no shame in coming forward for help."

Trudeau issued a plea for the public to support the Royal Ottawa Hospital's new mental health facility, which will open in Ottawa in November.

Trudeau credited the team at Royal Ottawa hospital in assisting her recovery.
John Scott, chair of the Board of the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group, which governs the hospital and supports the research institute, commended Trudeau for coming forward with her brave story.

"The quickest route to poverty is through mental illness, and it can strike anyone, at anytime, no matter who you are in society," Scott said in a written statement.

"Depression is neither a lack of willpower nor a character flaw. I have listened to our patients and families, our partners in the mental health system, and I have faith that together we can reduce this burden of mental illness.

"Please answer our call for help. We ask that you join Margaret as a champion and ensure that once and for all, stigma and discrimination are replaced by courage and inspiration."

© Copyright 2002-2006 Bell Globemedia Inc.

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY comments:

In 1991 I was diagnosed as having a mental illness called bi-polar disorder or manic depression. In the last 15 years I have been in the hospital 4 times with serious 'espisodes' of manic-depression.

In the last 15 years I have been treated by medication and an excellent psychiatrist by the name of Dr. Charles Messer. He understands the 'demons' I have had to deal with in my life day by day.

Margaret Trudeau's testimony is inspiring to me and I admire her courage in dealing with her
manic depression -- she is a brave lady.

The Conservative Government in Canada is going to abolish the national gun registry.

Canada's Conservatives to disarm gun registry.

Copyright
Global National
Published: Thursday, May 04, 2006




OTTAWA -- The Tories campiagned on law and order and the Conservative Party was not just talking tough.
A Global National exclusive has discoverd the Harper government is appealing to it's base by moving to disarm the controversial gun registry.
Global National has learned the details of how the Conservatives are going to deal with the gun registry during the election they promised to kill it, but that's proving to be more difficult than they thought.
It was a promise that always played well with conservative audiences.

MICHAEL McCAFFERTY comments:
The Conservatives are listening to Canada's gun owners, who have been screaming for years they are law abiding citizens who should not be forced to register their firearms.
Adding to the gun registry's public relations -- huge cost overruns and originally promised to cost taxpayers 2 million dollars the bill is now more than a billion..
the time has come to put an end to this bureaucratic nightmare.
Three cheers for the Conservative Government in keeping their word.

President George W. Bush and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel call on Iran to give up nuclear ambition.

President Bush calls on Iran to give up nuclear ambition.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush demanded on Wednesday that Iran give up nuclear weapons ambitions "for the sake of world peace," as he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel emphasized diplomacy in dealing with Tehran.

Click here for complete Reuters news article.

Michael McCafferty comments:
I commend and suppoirt the strong leadership of President Geworge W. Bush in demanding that Iran give up nuclear weapons ambition. For the sake of world peace !

Conservative Federal Budget offers sweeping tax relief for Canadians.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty.

Michael McCafferty comments on THE BUDGET:
The budget introduced by Conservative Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is very impressive. It is a very remarkable and outstanding budget -- and it is good news for Canada. Thumbs up for a 'first class' budget.

Gordon Barnhart has been named as the next Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan.

Gordon Barnhart named new Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan

Prime Minister announces Gordon L. Barnhart as Lieutenant Governor

April 28, 2006 Ottawa, Ontario

Prime Minister Stephen Harper was pleased to announce today the appointment of Gordon L. Barnhart, Ph.D. as Saskatchewan’s newest Lieutenant Governor.


Click here to read official Press Release from the Office of the prime Minister about Lieutenant Governor deszignate Gordon Barnhart.

Michael McCafferty comments:
I am absolutely delighted and pleased that the Prime Minister would name Gordon Barnhart as the next Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan. Mr. Barnhart is a very remarkable and outstanding Canadian who will bring great honor and integrity to the office.

I first met Gordon Barnhart in 1979 when he was Clerk of the Saskatchewan Legislature and I was a 28 year old Research Officer at the Saskatchewan Legislature. I admire Mr. Barnhart and I am sure Saskatchewan people will come to admire our new lieutenant Governor.