From the Prime Minister's Web Site (http://www.pm.gc.ca/)

Renewal of NORAD Agreement to be voted on by House of Commons

May 1, 2006
Ottawa, Ontario

Extract:

“The Speech from the Throne committed this government to submitting significant international treaties for vote in Parliament,” said the Prime Minister." +

Extract from Throne Speech, 04 April, 2006:

"Significant international treaties will be submitted for votes in Parliament."
http://pm.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?id=1087

The Toronto Red Star report sounds a lot like some Liblogger trying to make the Tories look like they have some kind of "hidden agenda" by using sensational language.

Who do they think they're fooling, besides the moonbats?

Well, it's the MSM, after all.

What exactly is this article inferring? Are we not supposed to want to be part of the North American Areospace Defence Program anymore? Have the Canadian Armed forces been improved to the point that we can protect our own soveriengty?

Slow news day? Just make it up I guess! More fear mongering from the MSM.

"sources"... forced Mr. Harper, to relent.
although Mr. Harper's staff feel they don't need to return the calls fromTorStar. hmmmm.

where would we be without TorStar on a slow news day.
...where will the CBC be on budget day?

".where will the CBC be on budget day?"

God willing, at the curb wearing a sign that says "Will twist facts for food"

May I suggest in addition this guest-post at "Daimnation!":

"NORAD continued indefinitely and expanded" (April 29)
http://www.damianpenny.com/archived/006367.html

Mark
Ottawa

Hmm. The Tories are forced to "admit" they did this deal, as if it was some big secret. Later they have to "admit" the deal has been in the works since the last government, so of course they don't deserve any credit. Ahh the breathtaking 'have it both ways' double standard of the MSM

Johanneson will remember his words one blogging morning "this is a test, this is a test, this is a test..." --- repeated at least thirty times as blog opening. The Cons leading the cons, how clever.

You can't ignore the facts and 'facts' are required for informed decisions.

I can think of a few reports from blogs WITHOUT ANY SOURCES being identified.

Why don't you all try focusing on the 'bread and butter facts'. You're droning back-stabbing mode is really redundant to say least.

sp. of Joel Johanneson? Who's he? People are indeed funny, remember?

The Star said "Calls to Harper’s office were not returned."

Who would want to? They obviously can make up stories without any facts so why bother?

This invisible message will self-destruct in

+
Visit by Haiti's president-elect Preval kept almost invisible
Canada.com - 4 hours ago
OTTAWA (CP) - Rene Preval, Haiti's president-elect, was in Ottawa on Monday, but his visit was almost invisible, with few of the normal trappings associated with a foreign dignitary. There were no news releases ... + googlenews

The Liberal Party of Toronto worked out this deal but now it's some kind of nefarious deed because the Conservative Party of Canada has signed it! oooh scary!

Is credibility absolutely meaningless at the Party's newspaper? Does anything they print have any meaning?! besides advertising, come on...

Daimnation site cites:

the pact will also include "watching for drug trafficers" -- from those flourishing and proliferating poppy fields in Afghanistan?

Noone to my knowledge has questioned or recommended a 'real' actually edible crop replacing the present contraband with MSM reports citing profits from this illicit crop being deposited in UAE. Perhaps the allied soldiers can be assigned to ensuring the world's heroin fields be eradicated as a protection to our North American youth?

Let's encourage the Afghanis to secure a viable agricultural base, no? THE FIRST STEP towards independence and sustainability, no doubt.

Time to ask the relevant and hard questions in the fight against terrorism and ensure undue profits are not hidden agendas behind the war machine. What current cargo loads is Canada Steamship Lines (owned by Paul Martin and sons) currently doing with? Ships parked in Bahamas as tax haven, right?

Point is, an illicit economy is going nowhere be it liberal, conservative, whatever.

The public expects legitimate, transparent gov't and it's not achievable for both parties are two sides of same coin. They work with and for each other, not for the public good. Charades are pointless if you don't count the stock portfolios.

Facts will equivalate to the truth, even if they turn up later than expected. Based on public's ability to read facts, we won't see a majority government for decades. That's a fact.

The facts are the MSM particularly the Globe and the Star will do anything to make Harper and the Conservatives look bad, with a hidden agenda and American sympathizers. The Star is upset because Mr. Harper will not talk to its reporters i.e. Delacourt and Travers. Why should he if you watch both of them on Newman's program I wouldn't give them one minute of my time. Harper's media strategy is working. The public does not care about the whiney press and they are held in about as much esteem as politicans these days. One day they will learn. In the meantime we Torys will have to grin and bare it.

Actually,it is a prime grade A example of the type of dishonest spin journalists have been using against the right in this country for years.It absolutely oozes inuendo.
It is not even election time and still this rag cannot resist the opportunity to misrepresent a story to defame Harper......No goddam wonder so many Torontonians are scared shitless of him.

Helen: You have a good point. Only idiots like us (my wife limits my masochism) watch Newman and Duffy, plus our media . Real Canadians live normal lives--and vote accordingly.

Mark
Ottawa

"The public does not care about the whiney press and they are held in about as much esteem as politicans these days."

Helen - according to a recent poll, journalists esteem was lower than politicians.

That's pretty bad. The Star/Globe are furious at Harper's media freeze out so they're torpedoing him at every turn. Funny thing - it isn't working.

It's a good thing it's not working O-Tory.

The bottom line is that Harper signed on the bottom line for this deal while he didn't for the day care or native deals. So it is his deal and he didn't trumpet it, so I guess The Star was correct. Its okay if he signs it. The Liberals would have anyway. Its not like we actually have a choice.

Steve d How do you equate our NORAD commitments(note: NORAD is our commitment to the defence of our continent) with a bulls**t childcare program? Perhaps if you knew anything about either you would kindly shut the f**k up.

Quiet...Quietly...Secret shhh... do not spread this secret... keep it quiet... it's a state secret...do not read the story on pain of secrecy...norad alert... a secret vote even... shush... fyeo...

Leak +

Elizabeth Thompson, CanWest News Service
Published: Tuesday, May 02, 2006

OTTAWA -- Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government has quietly voted to pay out a million dollars to the families of four Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan over the course of the past year, the Montreal Gazette has learned. +
via leaderpost

Back on topic....the Toronto Star is being described as MSM?
Ha! Laughable.
Red Star is a third rate rag written by ideological hacks for the benefit of cretins.

If that is Mainstream Media then the MSM is truly lost.
OMMAG

The MSM continue to erode their believabilty

I can see the Toronto Star building from where I sit.

Does anybody have a spare rocket launcher?

... Don Cherry shared this with moi... secrets with Cherry: Those frenchies, 'spose. +

Ottawa to review CBC's mandate
Campbell Morrison
New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal
2006.04.27

Canadian Heritage Minister Bev Oda is preparing for a major review of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's mandate, including domestic public radio which is struggling to maintain audience. +
via newsbeat1.com
http://www.cbcwatch.ca/?q=node/view/1877#comment

CBC: $1 billion in taxes, 5.8% Audience Share. Forced to pay for ...
(I suppose we could set CBC funding in the constitution.) ... To that end, the CBC should be funded not by a dollar amount but by a formula. ...
www.cbcwatch.ca/?q=node/view/88/209 - 16k -

The Toronto Star has obviously never heard of STANAFORLANT, which in principle does the same thing for the Atlantic as the extension of the NORAD agreement, and more. It is also worth noting the "STA" part: the force exists as a real naval task force. I don't know whether they were involved in recent antipiracy actions off Somalia or not.

Oh yes - a Web search informs me that STANAVORLANT is now known as SNMG 1 and is currently under the command of a Canadian officer.