Canada is going to become the only country in the world that will:
…no longer appeal on behalf of Canadians facing death sentences in other democratic countries. it will no longer appeal on behalf of Canadians facing death sentences in other democratic countries.
That is a reversal of over 40 years of policy. If we voters put a couple of Conservative governments in Ottawa how many years and how many policy steps are we away from bring back the death penalty?
Sounds like a crazy question doesn’t it?
But it isn’t.
“We will not actively pursue bringing back to Canada murderers who have been tried in a democratic country that supports the rule of law,” Day said. “It would send a wrong message. We want to preserve public safety here in Canada.”
Day’s statement is a flat out appeal to fear, ignorance and abuse of government power This is a slippery slope.
This policy has not been brought into the House.
Yet.
Two federal conservative candidates have been dumped by the Conservative Party. Mark Warner, Toronto Centre who is making the news and Brett Barr from Guelph. While there are several concerns what jumped out was this:
Barr, like Warner, is shocked and angry – furious at being told he wasn’t campaigning enough and, more importantly, that he was failing to enter information from his canvassing into the central party information registry.
CMIS.
Published 1 year, 2 months ago
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Take a bit off of the fastball, Bene.
I’m not a fan of capital punishment; Michigan (where I grew up) doesn’t have the death penalty and I like it that way.
However, I don’t see the pitch to fear and ignorance. It may sound good to some law-and-order types who might like capital punishment, but a bigger bottom line is better relations with the US.
What I think Stock’s up to is that he doesn’t want to pester Washington about people on Death Row in the US when it isn’t going to do any good. If anything, such intervention by a foreign cabinet member will tend to make governors or state parole boards (most capital punishment cases are at the state level) circle the wagons, not wanting the “nosy foreigners” to tell them how to run their state; criticism from other countries tends to bring out the reactionary in a lot of people.
If Stock has any geopolitical capital to spend in Washington, he’d rather use it where it can do him some good, like cooperation on various cross-border law-enforcement issues. Spending it on a anti-capital-punishment crusade might be noble, but rather unproductive.
Stockwell Day is floating a trial ballon Mark.
Why?
Montana wants Smith dead.
Smith had his fair trail.
He admits he cold bloodedly murdered two men and he has been on death row since 1982.
If there are no laws or treaties with the US to return the Smiths to serve life without parole on the Canadian taxpayer dime then Canada and the US need to make one or just forget current domestic policy, international policy, human rights, sovereignty; prior government commitment to Canadian prisoners in the US and hand over free reign to Day and Harper so they can stop ‘pestering’ Washington.
We can’t be pesky foreigners now, can we?
How un-neighbourly of us.
I don’t doubt the legislation is drawn up, this is the New Conservatives, but at least Day can’t slid this into the ‘law and order’ bill this session.
Forget our Charter, forget our laws and signatures on international treaties - any US branch of government that believes in an eye for an eye has just been told to try, execute, and bury all the Smith’s they want to.
How dare Canadians tell the Canadian government what to do.
Day flew his trial ballon, we’re responding.
Doesn’t matter if we don’t agree with the death penalty, no matter what side of this border we are sitting on.
There were 53 executions in the US in 2006, 43 in 2007.
If Stockwell Day wants to spend geo-political capital with the US, voters in Okanagan—Coquihalla have a decision next election. Meantime we get to watch the US execute whoever the hell they want to.
I have no intentions of taking a bit off this fastball.
Nickleson, McKay, Day, Harper.
They’ve been pushing for years.
Steven Harper, November 1, 2007:
“Seeking clemency for Canadians on death row in the United States would be at odds with the federal government’s stance on violent crime, says Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Harper said Friday that while he doesn’t want to reopen the capital-punishment debate in Canada, he also doesn’t want to start a debate on whether his government is willing to repatriate convicted murderers.
“We have no desire to open the debate on capital punishment here in Canada and likewise we have no desire to participate in the debate on capital punishment in the United States,” he said at a news conference in Halifax, where he was speaking to an aboriginal group.
Harper is not fooling anyone.
Ronald Smith asked Montana for the death penalty.
His execution is not going to bring Harvey Mad Man and Thomas Running Rabbit back to their families.
The families want Smith dead.
Either way, the federal Conservatives are getting exactly what they want, along with their brownie points with the eye for an eye crowd in Canada and the US.
Finally, a true scriptural Christian perspective on the “Gay Morality Debate.” A must read for any Christian needing to defend against the secular progressive attacks on Christians who stay true to their faith and the word of God. Here is the link:
http://www.amazines.com/