Socialists should be horrified by any mention of promoting one individual as superior to any other. Aren't all people equal? Shame on the socialists for allowing a state funeral for their leader, it makes him superior to all of their members.
Let Layton be at peace, don't use his death for political gain.
34 comments:
Everything possible has already been said about Jack Layton,so I won't try to add to the mass of accolades,except to ask in which Church should the atheist Layton be made a Saint.
Do the Scientologists go that route?
Oh,hell, forgot to mention we should celebrate Layton with another national holiday,and maybe name a mountain in B.C. after him.
Oh,damn,"Pearson Airport". That could be renamed "Layton International". I mean,most people today have only a vague idea of who Pearson was.
And Prince Edward Island,who the hell remembers Prince Edward?
Layton Island!
I knew you couldn't do it! (Stay classy that is.) Primarily, it is a government decision along with his family, to have a State Funeral. It recognizes that he was the Leader of the Opposition and had served a long time in the government. It allows the general public to pay their respects, which they would not be able to do if it were a private funeral. More from the GOC web site:
http://www.commemoration.gc.ca/faq-eng.cfm
(Nice to see you getting your talking points from the National Toast.)
I don,t remember any other opposition leader getting a state funeral..He served a long time in Government???2003 is a long time..Give us all a break Southern Quebec Jack did nothing for Canada other than sign on to try and overthrow PM Harper with a coalition.He basically BS his way to popularity and all the lefties fell for his smile like they fell for Trudeau,s charisma.Boy what a group of losers.And the voters in Quebec should know by now to quit trying to screw Canada by backing losers.
Jack Layton is the first Leader of the Opposition to be given a State Funeral.(Probably because he was in office at the time of his death.) State Funerals have also been held for at least 10 Cabinet Ministers.
Don't you feel smarter now, Bertie?
Not really,,You still did not mention..Exactly what did he do???He was leader of a socialist party.Big deal he was opposition leader..What exactly did he do for CANADA that was so spectacular and warrants hero worship by the lefties in this country..Oh yes i forgot he could smile & BS you at the same time..Well I guess we will all be getting state funerals then.
If my sources are correct, the last Leader of the Opposition to die in office was Sir Wilfred Laurier, formerly Prime Minister. So there aren't many precidents for this occasion. After much consideration, I agree Mr Harper was right to make the offer because of the office held by Mr Layton. It was, however, up to the family to say yea or nay. They could have said, no, a more modest funeral would better fit in with the values Mr Layton espoused.
a more modest funeral would better fit in with the values Mr Layton espoused."
His lifestyle was very much at odds with the "values" he gave lip service to. Layton had no problem with running up the highest expense account of any MP in Canada,yet he lived only a short distance away from the capitol.
Add up all the income Layton and wife got from Canadian taxpayers and it's almost 1.5 million a year. Layton's take was closer to that of the CEO's of the corporations his Party railed against than the ordinary Canadian they claim to represent.
He also had no problem claiming two living allowances,one each for he and his wife,when they lived together,and at one point they lived in subsidized housing.
Jack was typical of socialist/communist leaders throughout history,it's all "we stand together,united in labour",but what they really mean is ,"you do the labour,I'll reap the rewards."
On the face of it, Robert Standfield, Premier of NS and LOL, who came within a whisker of being PM in 1972, would warrant a state funeral as much as Jack Layton.
I don't know if one was offered in 2003, but his funeral was private.
There is a very long list of former LOLs, including Preston Manning and Gilles Duceppe; would some advocate state funerals for them?
With about 10 living former PMs and GGs, the list of those elgible for the honour is already long.
The more the honour is awarded, the less significant it becomes. This is why it is important to reserve the honour for truly significant contributions to Canada.
Olivia Chow approved this send off for her anti war peacenik hubbie who constantly claimed that he was "working for the common family":
"The procession headed along the Highway of Heroes route on Highway 401 with police guard to Ottawa."
"The pall bearers were members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police"
"The lying-in-state for Layton took place in the foyer of the House of Commons. It was open to the public on Wednesday from 12:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The public will be allowed to enter the rotunda, sign the official book of condolence, and then make their way to the foyer pay their final respects to the NDP leader."
"When the casket leaves Parliament Hill for Toronto on Thursday, there will be a 15-gun salute."
"The casket will be brought into Toronto City Hall by pallbearers from the Toronto Police Service. A vigil guard will be mounted by Toronto police."
"12:45 p.m. - Pallbearers will bring the casket outside City Hall followed by family. Procession consists of a mounted unit along with the Toronto Police Service's pipes and drums."
"3-5 p.m. - Reception at Roy Thomson Hall; closed to media"
Jack Layton illustrated daily that socialism is for the people, not the socialist.
A media whore, gone to that great rub and tug in the sky.
Conservatives...classless cretins to the end.
Call us what you like,SQ,but we're NOT guilty of deifying a charming trough feeder whose main purpose in life was to look out for number one.
The only "little guy" Layton took care of was himself. The "little guy" nickname was given to him by his massage therapist,who pronounced him ," a generous little guy".
Jack Layton, the so called "common man" purported to be the voice of the poor and the downtrodden was nothing but an illusion. A career politician who lived off lavish expense accounts courtesy of the taxpayer. A walking, talking contradiction.
His death, while tragic, as all cancer deaths are, doesn't suddenly elevate him to sainthood.
While Jack liked to wax poetic about "working families" and "kitchen tables", Jack looked after Jack and Jack was first. Travelling the couple hundred miles between his Toronto home riding and Ottawa, he and Olivia were the top recipients of reimbursed expenses....to the tune of one million dollars a year....and that's over and above their annual salaries. They both claimed a housing allowance....living under the same roof! This is a prime example of socialism for everyone else, but the leader.
Jack Layton was a hypocrite. I feel for the loss experienced by his family, but that's where it ends for me.
I didn't agree with anything Jack said when he was alive and his death hasn't done anything to change my mind. I'm glad to see Jack receive a state funeral as it is befitting of the office he held when he died.
Fine comment to make on Equality & Superiority esp when Right Wing Extremists such as your self promote a Totalitarian/Authoritarian like Harper: a snake is more Humanitarian then Harper
I'm almost scared to post, especially as I am using my real name! But has anyone asked why the PMO went this route? Perhaps it's because at a State Funeral the Government is represented and no one will imagine booing etc. A private funeral would have been, perhaps, bad optics -- does the PM go (if invited) and if so how will he be received? This was the PM has a specific and dignified role and he is seen as generous and good-hearted. Of course, it may also be true that the PM thought Layton deserved the honour for the courage with which he faced an illness so many of us have, or have had in the family. Layton may also be seen as a representative of Canadians coping with cancer. Regardless, I think the State Funeral - motivated by politics or not - was the right decision.
K.W.M... drinking the orange Kool Aid no doubt? You forgot fascist.
It must rankle the military to give a salute to a man who would have been glad to trash and destroy all that they hold dear..
"...but we're NOT guilty of deifying a charming trough feeder whose main purpose in life was to look out for number one"
Thank you! Merci, mille fois! You have described Stephen Harper in a nutshell!
I'm glad to see you finally got the memo from BT Central. But I'm surprised you have not mentioned the orange CN Tower lights planned for Saturday night. Though nobody in the outrageosphere has explained why, it is apparently a bad thing. Whether it is the $33 worth of electricity to run the lights for the night (even though they are on every night), or the fact that we are not keeping whatever the right wing does at the top of the news, it is unclear for what reason the orange tower is bad.
The best part of all this is it again demonstrates the growing divide between Harper and those who support his party. He threw the socons under the bus in the debates, and you didn't get it. He asked normally Liberal voters to lend him their votes the day before the election, and millions did, preventing Jack Layton from becoming Prime Minister, and you didn't get it.
Stephen Harper is acting more and more like the Liberal he once was all the time, mainly because he wants to get re-elected and hopes the Liberal vote lenders will support him again. You'll have to form yet another far right party to get a vehicle for your views.
So the millions of Liberal vote lenders not only stopped Jack Layton becoming PM (because they knew NDP would come in second, not third), they saved Canada from now having a former Quebec separatist as acting Prime Minister.
You're welcome.
I have to agree with SQ as well. I was pleasantly surprised at your earlier post on Jack Layton. There was no indication there that you would now become a dipper or change any of your views, but I was impressed at your taking the high road there.
Obviously, I am impressed no longer.
Consider all the activities the State funeral will create:
Thousands of hours of overtime at the CBC and all the other TV networks
Hundreds of newspaper articles
Travelling expenses by government employees and MPs, services employees and ordinary citizens
Hundreds of hotels rooms booked
Thousands of restaurant meals eaten
Tourism to view the CN Tower ablaze in orange
Tourism to view the Niagara Falls ablaze in orange
CBC documentaries in commemoration
Layton's death will be a the largest stimulus project of 2011, probably generating tens upon tens of millions of dollars in economic activity.
"Thank you! Merci, mille fois! You have described Stephen Harper in a nutshell!"
"I have to agree with SQ as well. I was pleasantly surprised at your earlier post on Jack Layton."
I can't even imagine what would have been posted by either one of you if a Conservative Opposition Leader had passed away. What about a current Conservative Prime Minister?
Have you seen any of the obscenely hateful things that were posted on Twitter and left blogs moments after the announcement of Layton's passing about the Prime Minister?
THIS post questions a State funeral. It's precedent setting and her post DOES NOT insult or disrespect his death. It merely asks a question that is valid.
You 2 are unbelievable.
For goodness sake, the man was Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition when he died - surely, this in itself warrants a state funeral. After all, we give the same honour to cabinet ministers who die in office.
The suggestion that a state funeral somehow makes Mr Layton superior to anyone is rather peculiar. Are we all inferior to D'Arcy McGee, John Buchan and John Diefenbaker? No. We honour them for their service, not because we believed them to be superior.
I'd be interested in seeing a source supporting dmorris's claim that "all the income Layton and wife got from Canadian taxpayers and it's almost 1.5 million a year".
In fact, the Leader of the Opposition's salary amounts to $233,247 per annum, while the base salary of an MP is set at $157,731.
The statement that "Layton's take was closer to that of the CEO's of the corporations his Party railed against than the ordinary Canadian" is pretty far off the mark.
Average salary in Canada: $42,988
Average salary of a CEO in Canada: $6.6 million (not including compensation packages that can amount to $24 million)
Source.
Brian,
Layton's and Chow's travel expenses and how they were at the top of all MP's is well documented.
It is these travel expenses (and housing allowances) that total one million dollars a year.
Look it up rather than wishing it not be true.
Eskimo, I needn't look up the couple's travel expenses and housing allowance, I remember well the figures and the surrounding controversy. This is not what I questioned, rather it was the statement that "all the income Layton and wife got from Canadian taxpayers" amounted to "almost 1.5 million a year". As you and I well know, travel expenses and housing allowance are not considered income.
(As an aside, I wonder what the travel expenses and housing allowance of the average Canadian CEO might be.)
I can't even imagine what would have been posted by either one of you if a Conservative Opposition Leader had passed away. What about a current Conservative Prime Minister?
It isn't my problem that you are unimaginative. I'm just not as hatefilled as you apparently are, so my words would likely be similar to Hunter's previous post. Respectful.
Have you seen any of the obscenely hateful things that were posted on Twitter and left blogs moments after the announcement of Layton's passing about the Prime Minister?
I am hearing this meme on the radio too, of course no specifics, the words are too obscene to repeat. Convenient, eh? Check out "neoconservative" for a concrete example of a Jack hatefest from your side. Can you now cite some other blog to back your claim?
THIS post questions a State funeral. It's precedent setting and her post DOES NOT insult or disrespect his death. It merely asks a question that is valid.
No, the post does not question the State funeral itself, since this is a decision that is completely within the Prime Minister's discretion. It instead disingenuously makes a straw man argument that "socialists" should be against having a State funeral. Hunter doesn't say if she is against it herself.
Her stereotypical "socialists" should be against making their leader superior to their members in her view, despite the fact that they already made him "superior" by making him their leader in the first place. But logic goes out the window when you are trying to marginalize your political enemies and demand they adhere to your stereotypes. It would be great for the CPC if all the social democrats followed the Hunter model and had no leader at all, and just remained an amorphous inarticulate completely equal to each other mass that the CPC and its henchmen could more easily rule.
You 2 are unbelievable.
Always trying to marginalize anyone who disagrees with you, eh? In this post, Hunter tried to put down NDP supporters, while of course saying the funeral shouldn't be used for political gain, like she did in the paragraph above.
And that's why we all love to read this blog.
dmorris said:
"Add up all the income Layton and wife got from Canadian taxpayers and it's almost 1.5 million a year".
Let's see....one million to travel between Toronto and Ottawa plus the $233K and $157K (your numbers)in salaray is pretty close to 1.5 million per year.
Reading comprehension and basic addition are not your strong points, yes?
Eskimo, why the insult? At the risk of bringing on more, I point out that travel expenses and housing allowances are just that: expenses and allowances. They are in no way considered income - not by the Canada Revenue Agency or even the OED.
You throw out the figure of "one million to travel between Toronto and Ottawa". Are you suggesting that Mr Layton and Ms Chow were paid this amount? Or do you mean that they spent this figure in travel between the two cities? You're not being clear. Either way, the amount is a fabrication. You will not be able to provide a source in support of the figure.
From the communist Toronto Star:
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/887101--layton-and-chow-the-million-dollar-power-couple
How about a freebie from a union:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/05/17/layton-chow-went-to-disney-world-on-u-s-unions-dime-records/
Lorne says:
http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2010/11/09/lorne-gunter-duke-layton-and-duchess-chow-at-least-owe-us-transparency/
The Western Standard:
http://westernstandard.blogs.com/shotgun/2010/11/the-good-life-on-the-left.html
Yet another one:
http://www.zoomers.ca/group/thecoffeeshop/forum/topics/expense-comparison-facts-for?xg_source=activity
What's the distance between Toronto and Ottawa that warrants one million a year? Even if they worked year round and travelled between the two cities once a week, that's over $19,000 per week!Good grief.
More denial, Brian? Or do you want to throw in the towel now?
Eskimo, you've presented five links, not one of which supports your figure.
Jack's salary: $233,000
Olivia's salary: $157,000
Jack's expenses: $628,000
Olivia's expenses: $530,000
Total: $1,548,000 Canadian tax dollars.
Finally.
This week long Jack-o-polooza is over.
I wonder if the "mourners" will be able to use Pay-Pal to purchase the inevitable commemorative plates and limited edition DVD of today's Vaudeville show.....
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