(Bumped to top with update. Scroll down for response from Canadian Press)
G&M;
“We have a democratic process, and the government is jeopardizing this democratic process. It’s an additional reason why we must condemn what the government is doing,” Mr. Dion said.
There is unity in maintaining the monopoly on western wheat and barley, he said, and even Quebec producers supported the body.
Well, that’s going to strike a chord with western farmers.
Update – Michelle Macafee of the Canadian Press manages to find a real, live, Manitoba farmer enthused about Stephane Dion;
Daryl Knight, who farms near Decker, Man., said he was impressed by Dion’s position on both agriculture and the environment.
“He seems like he wants the whole country to work together, and that’s a refreshing change because agriculture was never mentioned in the past,” said Knight. “Now we’re part of the country, which makes me pretty happy and proud.”
I’m bored, it’s 10:10pm on your dial, so I figure, what the hell, lets Google Daryl Knight ….
I’ve emailed Michelle Macafee and offered her the opportunity to respond.
Update
Dear Ms. McMillan,
Thank you for your e-mail regarding Michelle MacAfee’s story earlier this week on Stephane Dion and the Wheat Board. You’re right – Ms. MacAfee didn’t realize that Daryl Knight had been a Liberal campaign manager in the last election. She did ask Mr. Knight if he was a Liberal supporter and he told her only that he had voted Liberal in the last “couple of elections.” So she was aware of his political leanings and therefore CP was comfortable quoting him in that context. But more to your point: if we had known he was a campaign manager, we would have either included that information in the story or perhaps we might have chosen not to use his quotes at all. Ms. MacAfee attempted to reach Mr. Knight today to ask him why he didn’t elaborate on his connections to the party, but she couldn’t reach him. CP believes very strongly in its role as an objective news service. Feedback from readers like you helps us do our job better.
Don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions.
All the best over the holidays and again, thanks for your interest,
Lorraine Turchansky
Prairies News Editor
Canadian Press and Broadcast News
And thanks to Ms. Turchansky for the reply.
Albertaman:
First, you should read my posts before you comment. Where did I write that I support either side?
Second, I find it interesting how freedom loving rightwingers like you twist things around so that democracy becomes “oppression of the minority” and “communism”.
Kate: Get a load of this. The CWB is paying $1,000.00 to each of its employees “because of the stress the Government has put them under”. The following is from the National post.
Unbelievable!!
“It is a token of the board and farmers’ appreciation for working in an environment that has been attacked by the government of Canada.”
Bill Toews, a director from Manitoba, said the optics of the bonus and how farmers might view it were all factored into the board’s decision.
“The rationale was the staff have undergone a lot of stress and worked under very difficult conditions that have been imposed on them by what Mr. Strahl has done,” Mr. Toews said.
“If farmers are concerned about what we did [authorizing the bonuses], they will have to place that responsibility on Mr. Strahl, not the board.”
Isn’t the wheat board supposed to be “non prifit”? I could be wrong. In any case, a politically motivated employee benifit paid out by a crown corporation is yet another reason to send in the forensic accountants and find where every last penny has gone to.
iberia, Answer the question: “Would you allow your the majority of your neighbors to impose a law on you that forced you to buy your household supplies from a single supplier that they alone approved and if you didn’t have you thrown in jail”. I woul bet you you will find some way to skirt the question. This is the your type of “Democracy” not mine.
Albertaman:
If I couldn’t abide by it, I’d move. What’s the difference between your analogy and living in a condo? Or living in any municipal area? If you don’t like the rules or by-laws, then you have two options: get the majority of people to agree with you to change things, or move.
I suppose you would be supporting your next door neighbour against the tyranny of the majority if he wanted to burn old tires in his back yard…
Albertaman: Please know who you are talking to…it is NOT lowercase “I” beria, it is lowercase “L” Beria. Google the name “L. Beria” and check out the posts about the russian mass murderer.
Then your comment “Typical behavior of a Liberal who imposes their communist ideology” will seem prescient.
Now, now, Eeyore, that’s tough talk for someone who picked the name of a character who lives in a “gloomy place”.
Assuming my undestanding of CWB is correct, to me these are salient points:
– yes, directors elected, except one-third appointed (think of federal election where PM could appoint 1/3 of MPs before ballots counted). Does this not taint the result?
– if CWB good idea supported by wheat farmers, why is it compulsory to use. Sounds a bit like public insurance debate (in this case government got use of reserves required to invest/pay claims).
I admit I am always suspicious of government telling me something is good for me and then forcing me to use it ie CWB and public auto insurance
lberia,
Condo rules are there to prevent the disruption, disturbance, nuisance or risk to safety caused by a onther tentent living in the same building. Freedom with harm to none is the basis of this argument.
eeyore, Good thing we have the typo police like you at work or we would all be lost.
Gees.Get a life man!
Albertaman, I’m not picking on your typing…I couldn’t care less. If I wanted to do that, I’d have a heyday with Revnant Dream’s posts. 😉
I just want you to know that you are debating with someone who apparently idolizes a russian mass murderer, that’s all. Debate with the devil as much as you like…just so you long as you know.
Whoops Sorry Eeyore! A misinterpretation on my part.
No worries, Albertaman. Just trying to watch your back (’cause your front is just nothing to look at, baby!). 😉
I suspect as a result of being made aware of their shoddy fact checking, CP, Ms. Turchansky and Ms. Macaffee will be sure to print a clarification on the story.
I suspect as a result of being made aware of their shoddy fact checking, CP, Ms. Turchansky and Ms. Macaffee will be sure to print a clarification on the story.
I wonder how many of these form letters Ms. Turchansky had to send?
I received one with exactly the same wording.
Should not professional journalists realize that google is their friend too?
Kudos to her for a prompt reply.
CP seems to be sweating bullets – *Liberally*. =TG
On the Update from Canada Press..
I’ll be dadgummed!
Well I’ve been saying for years now that CP and it’s couterparts in the News Biz are usually either incompetent or outright dishonest…Appears they are willing to ‘fess up to Incompetence!
Ok, could give Ms T the benifit of the doubt on this one, afterall she did reply. But what about the other thousand or so “misrepresentations” in the media this last year ?? Or the year before ?? or decade ?? or decades ??
” … feedback from readers like you helps us do our job better … ” Ah huh.
Would Linux support a web-site such as;
‘ A media story appears as presented, warts and all.’ Then, CLICK and the real story(like Mr. Knight’s affiliation) is instantly over written. Cool, eh?? If only I was younger and knew more than to just turn the damn thing on !!
There are some farmers who want the CWB and only the CWB to sell wheat. There are some farmers who want the CWB abolished. There are some farmers who want free choice to sell their wheat either on the open market or the CWB. They want this choice on a day to day basis. That will not work.
They have to decide, one or the other, and should sign in or out of CWB for at least 3 years. As for elected and appointed directors. It is only recently directors could be elected. The majority of decisions made by the CWB were in effect years before this happened. I do hope all those employees enjoy spending the farmers money. Do they ever think of the stress they have placed on farmers by their decisions to open a quota or not. They are like union bosses and executive, they get paid their big bucks regardless of what their decisions cost the workers. How many union execs only get strike pay when they order their workers out, and only if they show up on the picket line. Can a golden handshake be cancelled if it can be proven said employee deliberately acted to get fired. Was his contract negotiated with or without elected directors.
The poor reporters discovering that a false or misleading story will be demolished in minutes via some blog. We should demand public apologies from them all.
Winnipeg Sun
By TAMARA KING, STAFF REPORTER
Quote:
“Meanwhile, one independent Manitoba farmer warns food costs could rise if the wheat board is eliminated.
“We need to save the wheat board single desk,” said Andrew Dennis at Dion’s stop.” …-
Andrew Dennis is more than “one independent Manitoba farmer”; Dennis is a Liberal Party apparatchik, spouting the Liberal Party line. Dennis was an ex-officio delegate to the Liberal convention, 2006.
Will Tamara King/Winnipeg Sun issue a clarification as to the identity/Liberal Party affiliation of Dennis?
Here is Dennis and Downing:
List of ex-officio delegates to the Liberal Party of Canada leadership convention, 2006
Brandon—Souris MP/Candidate Murray Downing Supporting Dryden E. Andrew Dennis President Supporting Dryden
Nuanced reporting – CP – MSM?
How about their polling – nuanced as well?
Good find maz2. It looks as though this ‘independent’ Liberal farmer thing is becoming a pattern….
rd
Eeyore:
Get your facts straight..Lavrenty Beria was a Georgian, not Russian.
“Debate with the devil”?! Get a grip! I’m not really Lavrenty Beria, nor do I idolize him. Or are you really a cynical donkey who lives in the 100 Acre Woods?
With a little googling I found that Michelle Macafee is possibly married to a Paul Northcott. Not 100% on that.
David Northcott ran as a Liberal in Winnipeg Center in the 2004 election. (Along side of Liberal Murray Downing in Brandon-Souris whom Daryl Knight was campaign manager) Any relation between Paul and David? Brothers? Maybe, maybe not. In any event, there seems to be enought ‘politically involved’ Liberal farmers around pretending to give their ‘independent’ view on the CWB. Whether the reporters know them as such is I guess up for debate…
rd
Well, actually, lberia…yes, I am. How did you know?
I picked the “handle” Eeyore because my personality and outlook on life mirrors his to an extent and I pre-suppose that others do the same thing…I would guess that Albertaman is from Alberta…I would guess that Texas Canuck is a Canadian living in Texas…I would guess that B. Hoax Aware wants you to beware of hoaxes. And I guess that you are honouring L. Beria in some way by posting under his name.
Well Eeyore, until I start advocating torture and mass murder, don’t read too much into the moniker. My real name is taken and besides, just because some people wear monster costumes at masquarade parties doesn’t mean they really are monsters.
i need gov’t only to protect my right to life. nothing alse.
Interesting. I was recently only vaguely paying attention to this Canadian Wheat Board story (mostly via SDA). Then, earlier this week CBC radio, in between phone-in calls about muffin recipes and sweaters had a telephone interview with a local Fort Saint John, BC farmer touting the glories of the CWB, and it caught my attention.
Unfortunately, I can’t remember this farmer’s name, but the whole interview seemed obviously scripted. The farmer gave a splendidly well-organised CWB talking-points presentation, helpfully abetted by the CBC interviewer.
No farmer with an opposing point of view was interviewed.
Obviously, it’s not news to anyone where the CBC’s loyalties lie, but they seem to be getting less subtle about it these days.
Now I really wish I had noted that farmer’s name, just to see what his real interest in the CWB is.
In response to Red Deer’s post of Dec. 22, 6:20 PM.
I am indeed happily married to Paul Northcott.
However, he is absolutely no relation to the former federal Liberal candidate David Northcott.
Michelle; thanks for that, are you a liberal supporter?
Any luck speaking to Mr. Knight?
What, a reporter reads SDA, maybe to get the facts for her next story. So far no liberal farmers from southern alberta have been interviewed, and there are at least 2. One runs a feed lot that Martin visited on a rare trip to the west.
Michelle, thank-you for the clarification.
rd
This blog is quickly becoming home to paranoid Rush Limbaugh types.
Can the moderator use some judgment and require people to have at least a salient fact in their posts, instead of wild specualtion about (for example) who may be married to who, and are therefore Liberals in hiding, plotting against the world.
If not, this blog will play into the streotype of Conservatives — Grampa Simpsons at their typewriter, raging at anything and everything.