Harper Tories Studying Liberation Therapy

...I can tell you that we have been in discussions with the federal Minister of Health on the issue of research related to a new treatment for MS known as 'Liberation Therapy'.

A number of projects are now being funded which hopefully will bring more information to bear on the treatment itself.

I have met with constituents who have experienced improvement and relief after taking this therapy outside the country.

As I said, it is up to provinces to decide what services should be funded. Meanwhile, at the federal level, we are working with researchers and with those who are receiving treatment to determine what should be the future involvement of the federal government.

A development of which I have no particular opinon. Although--is the demand for this treatment coming from members of the Tory political base, the West, rural Canada? I get the impression it might be.

Monday Morning Quick Hits

Tories abandon non-whites: Alberta base puts kibosh on ethnic outreach.

And:

NDP abandons cities: gun registry cowardice will hurt candidates in T.O. and Vancouver.

Harper, Abortion, And The Tory Base

Keith Martin has some (unusual for him) wise words:

With respect to the thorny issue of abortion, Mr. Harper should embrace the standard medical position championed by the World Health Organization, the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, and indeed previous Liberal and Conservative governments. This position is to support women’s access to safe abortions in those countries where it is legal. Many members of the Conservative government may have their own personal opposition to abortion, and this must be respected. However, they do not have the right to force their views on others when it runs counter to the prevailing scientific consensus. “Not opening the abortion debate” means respecting the status quo, which has been our nation’s position for many years. If the government claims to be pro-life, certainly they would want to reduce the current toll of 63,000 women a year who perish as a complication of a botched abortion and the hundreds of thousands of children who die as a consequence of their mother’s passing. Furthermore, how can our government actively deprive women from the poorest countries in the world of the same rights and access to medical procedures that women have in Canada?

In this next bit, Martin describes Harper's "out" over the abortion issue:

Mr. Harper can square his opposition to abortion while implementing an effective plan to reduce maternal and childhood mortality by proposing that each G8 country take the lead in one of the inputs required to address this tragic situation. For example, Canada could be the lead nation on training healthcare workers and micronutrients, another country could focus on providing medications, another on access to family planning and safe abortions, etc. In this way, a comprehensive plan that focuses on enabling the world’s poorest to access basic primary care services can be implemented, with the G8 countries dividing responsibilities and target resources.

This was the same means by which the 2nd Bush administration finessed the problem: who funds what would be re-shuffled so that Canada would not be paying for overseas abortions--another country willing to cut the cheques would do that. On the other hand, no policy change necessitated by any defunding would be required, because the overall funding levels would remain as they were.

I wouldn't be surprised if this is not the route eventually taken.

Lets see how it plays on Lifesite.

Has Diane Ablonczy Been Demoted For Being Too Gay Friendly?

Ms. Ablonczy is Canada's Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism). She is also the lady who announced that the Federal government would fund Toronto Pride Week to the tune of $400,000. Now Brad Trost, Conservative Member of Parliament representing the riding of Saskatoon—Humboldt, is saying that this decision has cost her:


Speaking to LifeSiteNews.com from his riding office in Saskatoon today, the 36-year-old Conservative said, "The pro-life and the pro-family community should know and understand that the tourism funding money that went to the gay pride parade in Toronto was not government policy, was not supported by - I think it's safe to say by a large majority - of the MPs. This was a very isolated decision."

Trost also hinted that Minister Diane Ablonczy, who was responsible for the funding, lost the file as a consequence of the embarrassment to the Party. Protesting more than once that there was no "official connection," he said, however, "it should be noted that the file has been reassigned to a different Cabinet Minister since that announcement was made." He added, "The whole tourism program and funding for major tourism events is being reviewed."

Trost claimed that "almost the entire Conservative caucus" including "most of the Prime Minister's Office were taken by surprise at this announcement."


Not sure what "lost the file" means in this context, but the most obvious explanation is that the "Tourism" part of the Small Business and Tourism portfolio has been redistributed to somebody else in what I suppose you might describe as micro-cabinet shuffle.

Also, is "touristic" a word? I think it should be.

PS. Interesting that there is absolutely no mention of this alleged demotion in the MSM. Typically, Lifesite has been used as a kind of Tory back-channel to the SoCon base that they don't really expect anyone else to read. This could well be a load of hooey meant to appease the faithful.

PPS. Ms. O'Malley thinks there might be something to it.

Update: Akin weighs in.

The Catholics Are Attacking!

Canada’s national Catholic news magazine, Catholic Insight, which I have written about on several occasions, has issued a call for the "defeat and removal" of Stephen Harper in his Calgary Southwest riding:

“For Mr. Harper to state that he would not personally support a law limiting abortion is one thing,” said de Valk. “But to go so far as to strong arm his own MPs from supporting the right to life and even, as his spokesperson suggested, whip his cabinet on the matter, is unconscionable.”

Yeah, good luck with that. But nevertheless more evidence that all is not well with Stephen Harper's Conservative base. who are seeing their issues (abortion, HRCs) frozen out of the debate this election cycle. It will be interesting to observe the practical effect of a SoCon revolt, esp. if the election tightens up. Could these guys casting protest votes swing the result in, for example, Ontario exurban swing ridings?