Interesting article sent to me by an avid reader, Ross M., from the National Post.
Liberal propaganda: your tax dollars at work
John Turley-Ewart
National PostAugust 5, 2005
Political news is scarce when the House of Commons is on summer recess, and politicians are flipping burgers and pancakes, giving canned speeches and inviting the media to staged photo-ops. Last week, however, an interesting piece of political news was delivered right to my door by the Liberal Party of Canada.
Members of Parliament have a legitimate need to communicate with constituents, and MPs often distribute what in political circles are called “10 percenters.” By law, these information bulletins must be non-partisan; and, as their name suggests, cannot be sent to more than 10% of households in a given riding. Yet the 10 percenter that landed in my mail box, enclosed in a House of Commons envelope, and delivered at the expense of taxpayers, seemed more like a campaign ad than a “non-partisan” information bulletin.
Characterized as a message from my MP, the bulletin contained what the Liberal party brass in Ottawa want Canadians to see as the face of their party—a smiling, happy young girl; and, on the flip side, the face of Stephen Harper’s Tories, an obstinate, angry little white boy who refuses to listen.
Beside the happy-faced girl are an assortment of sunny bromides. We learn, for instance, that the Liberal government in Ottawa is “Building an Early Learning and Child Care system across Canada with a $5-billion investment to improve access and affordability.”
Does this qualify as non-partisan news? I doubt that’s the way it would strike the people of New Brunswick, where the federal government refuses to make a deal with Premier Bernard Lord, who wants to ensure that parents who choose to stay at home and raise their children receive the same benefits as those who choose to place their children in daycare.
But flip the flyer over and things get worse: The pretense of non-partisanship evaporate entirely.
Beside the face of the troubled-looking little boy we are told that the Conservative party “has no policies to increase the number of child care spaces or improve the social infrastructure in our communities.”
This is not only a partisan statement, but also patently false. A quick review of the Conservative Party Web site makes it clear that the Tories have a clear policy on child care. In essence, the Tories propose providing money directly to parents for childcare so that they can choose how to spend it, be it on daycare or as a means of easing the financial burden of a stay at home parent.
I called my MP’s office to enquire about this tax-funded Liberal Party propaganda and was informed that the 10 percenter was the work of the Liberal Party brass in Ottawa and not the local Liberal riding association. What I have not been able to answer is why the Liberals are using our tax dollars for partisan purposes and sullying Parliament by using House of Commons envelopes to deliver these flyers.
It seems that despite the Gomery inquiry and revelations about public monies being used for partisan purposes, the Liberals still have no shame when it comes to raiding the public fisc to keep themselves entrenched in power.
I betcha if the Conservative Party did this there’d be absolutely nothing made of it in the media.
PTBC was founded by Mr. Johannesen in 2000.
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