Catpaw – diary of an angry cat

Every once in awhile my spam catcher works in overdrive and holds a legitimate message. No idea why, maybe it tweaks upon a few key words here and there. I’m reprinting a message sent to me, via a comment on the TTC mess. Although I’ve approved the comment to show, I thought it should get a better viewing:

Please distribute this widely.

You may have heard that OCAP is having a TTC action (see below). We are looking for help with flyering.

Flyering Times:

1) Outside/Inside Broadview Subway Station:

Tuesday, December 8th: 4:30pm

2) Outside/Inside Dundas West Subway Station:
Wednesday, December 9th: 4:30pm

Also, if you would like to sign up to to do outreach, or organize a separate leafleting time, please email us at the OCAP office at: ocap@tao.ca

Lastly – if you have access to a photocopier let us know.

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Angry about the TTC Fare Hike?

It’s time to make transit affordable!

Public Action Against the Transit Fare Hikes
Saturday, December 12th
1pm
Toronto City Hall (Queen and Bay)

The Toronto Transit Commission is facing a $100-million deficit in its operating budget for next year. On November 17th the Commission ignored community outrage, and instead voted for a TTC fare hike of 25cents/fare and an increase of over 10% per monthly pass. In the new year, they expect us to pay $6 for ONE round trip on transit! Riders already cover more than 80% of TTC operating costs and it is by far the least-funded mass transit system in North America. This increase is outrageous and unacceptable – and we should refuse to pay!

Lately, we’ve been hearing a lot about shortfalls and deficits. We cannot forget where these deficits come from. When the economic
crisis hit, the federal and provincial government quickly found BILLIONS of dollars of public money to bailout banks and corporations.

Now these same governments want us to believe that they can’t find any money to support public transit? As usual, big business gets bailed out, and the people get sold out. Worst of all the bourgeoise socialists affiliated with the NDP on Toronto City Council behind such trying to end the special diet and trying to prevent those eligible for Ontario Works from receiving it.

For poor and working people in this city, especially for families, transit costs are already too high and often unaffordable. This fare hike will hurt the people who are already struggling to make ends meet. The TTC deficit should not be loaded onto the backs of people who need transit.

It should not be paid for by riders and it should not be paid for by the workers who run the buses, subways and streetcars.

Paying more for transit is only one attack on already inadequate public services. Lay-offs and deeper cuts to all essential services like Welfare, Disability, and the Ontario Drug Benefit are coming next if we don’t fight back. Our communities demand affordable transit, real income levels, affordable housing, childcare, and education.

Transit is a necessity and it is a basic right. Not only are we fighting this fare hike, but we are demanding that transit be federally funded and affordable for everyone. If we mobilize, and together refuse to accept this fare hike, we can take back transit.

Come out December 12th

Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP)
ocap@tao.ca / 416-925-6939

http://www.ocap.ca

Rhode Island Senator Rod Driver has offered to donate money for every second George Bush, Condoleeza Rice and Dick Cheney hold their breath while being waterboarded. He said he would donate $100 per second to whatever charity the unholy trinity chooses.

Nice to see American ideals of right and wrong creeping back into the political arena.

Waterboard for charity

British MP and now ex Speaker of the House Michael Martin resigned today in disgrace over his mishandling of the MP expense scandal. The growing contempt the British public have for the politicians took another hit when it was announced that Mr. Martin, the first Speaker in over 300 years to be pushed out of the job, would be rewarded with a Peerage and a hefty pension. His many, many years of public service should have qualified him to retire with honour and dignity. Instead, his willingness to help milk the system and contribute to such wholesale fraud, will be all he is remembered for. Oh and for taking a Peerage he was unworthy to hold. This is not the way to make it into the history books.

Yes, it has been standard practice to offer ex-Speakers a Peerage, but previous holders of office have never brought this hallowed office into such disrepute. Mr. Martin is certainly not the worse offender in the “I’ll charge everything including sink stoppers to the British public” scandal, but he was the guardian of the public purse. It was his job to ensure the MPs behaved and did not profit from their positions. Instead, he helped the scandal along by ignoring the abuses and in some cases encouraging them. Any other person who behaved so badly, would be bounced on their ear, pension be damned. But to actually reward him with a Peerage?

And the British politicians wonder why there is such a fury among the voters.

Another UK MP bit the dust today. Labour MP David Chaytor was suspended for submitting claims for a phantom mortgage. Sounds familiar? You are right, Labour MP Elliot Morely was suspended for the same accounting errors. Chaytor has been received nearly £13,000 for a mortgage paid off in 2004. He issued this statement:

In respect of mortgage interest payments, there has been an unforgivable error in my accounting procedures for which I apologise unreservedly. I will act immediately to ensure repayment is made to the Fees Office.

The same old story. So sorry – didn’t mean to do it (now that I’ve been caught, that is) I’ll pay it back. No harm, no foul, let’s get back to business now. Just how much money do these people have that they are not even aware of the fact they’ve already paid off their mortgages?

UK Conservative MP Douglas Hogg announced today he will pay back the money he billed the public to have his moat cleaned. Something about this just tickles my funny bone. Imagine the audacity to hand in a chit to be  reimbursed for a moat cleaning. How was it written up? “M’Lord, herein are the details on clearing the estate moat. The damned peasants were uppity and I actually had to pay the little blighters for the work. I swear, governing the unwashed masses just isn’t what it used to be!”

Mr Hogg said, “I believe that my claims fell clearly within the scope of the rules”. But he also went on to say the moat wasn’t claimed for but hadn’t been “positively excluded” from the invoices he submitted. Ohhhh… I admire a well turned phrase. Let’s role that around in our mouths for a bit “Positively excluded“. Mmmm! It sounds like negative billing – if we don’t tell you about it then you have to pay.

Nice try ducks! But it didn’t work. It is nice to see so many MPs cueing up to repay their expenses today. It’s a crying shame that it took such a massive scandal to make it happen. Many are now vowing not to make any claims on behalf of the 2nd home allowance – the primary reason for so much of the abuse.

I do wish they would stop chirping “I believe that my claims fell clearly within the scope of the rules”. Almost everyone of the MPs who have been shamed publicly are parroting this line.

Labour MP Justice Minister Shahid Malik stepped down today over expenditures under the home allowance. While the press is making much about his purchase of a home entertainment centre for £2,600 for his home, there are much deeper concerns that have led to both his stepping down and rumours of a possible investigation for a breach of the Ministerial Code of Conduct that govern his behaviour. His expenses revealed he was paying substantially less rent than the current market price – he is alleged to be paying £400 a month in rent for his first home in his constituency. Yet he has claimed £443 a week for his 2nd residence in London. Admittedly London rents are high, but I’m sure the cost of his 3 bedroom home, if properly evaluated, would be more than £400 a month. He also billed the public £65 for a court summons for unpaid taxes. Mr Malik is also well known for his numerous claims for furniture over the years. He was elected to Parliament in 2005, and in the first year alone made 13 claims for furniture to the tune of £7000. To put this into perspective, that is approximately $12,500 Canadian or $10,600 US. In 2007-08 he submitted 24 more furniture claims. The items included a fireplace, massage chair, fitted closet, various electrical items and a sofa. Let’s not forget his regular maximum claims for food reimbursement of £400 monthly. The man even tried to claim for his Ipod, but in a fit of sanity, it was disallowed.

The concerns that have led to talk of an investigation concern his cosy relationship with his landlord in his constituency. Any member of government, and especially a Minister, should be aware of how their business dealings are perceived. There needs to be a belief that the elected government official is not profiting from their position. Mr Malik’s landlord is also his next door neighbour. He is renting the property for a nominal sum of £100 a week (£400 a month). The owner of the property has admitted he rents a smaller place for much more. Mr. Malik also rents his constituency office from the same landlord, but the cost of £4000 per year is picked up by the government. This is a legitimate expense, but its the slight of hand with the rent on his own place that calls into question his judgement. He is renting at fair market value his office, but renting his own home at well below market price from the same landlord. To compound the notion of impropriety, Mr Malik has entered into the deal with a landlord who was convicted in 2005 for renting a home that the courts labeled uninhabitable.

His justification?

With hindsight of course I would have acted differently on these items but as a new MP, with a Green Book that was full of subjective rules and a guidance team that knew the limits for items, but chose not to share them with MPs, it was inevitable that almost every MP would have items questioned at some point.

He is blaming his expenses on being a new MP. He was new in 2005. He was Justice Minister - hardly a newbie by any standards. Does anyone else see the irony in this? If the Justice Minister didn’t see anything wrong with abusing the expense system, how was anyone else supposed to.

In yet another fit of Parliamentarian Hubris, Mr. Malik has offered to donate £1,050 to a local charity to make amends.

Second home claims for 3 years – £66,000.

Rental arrangements for 3 years in his hometown – £14,400

£1,050 donation to charity to mollify the public – PRICELESS