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• As a Liberal it has galled me for years that Canadians, given the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, still believe that Conservatives are better at handling an economy.

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• No one argues that Conservatives are very good at accruing and protecting their own wealth. But somehow this has translated into the misconception that they are good at or even care about protecting or enhancing the wealth of others.

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• It is not a recent phenomenon. During the depression of the 1930’s Canadians elected R.B. Bennett as Prime Minister because he was a millionaire. The logic being – if he knows how to make money for himself he can do the same for the country. His economic policies did make money for himself but sadly plunged the Canadian economy further into depression.

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• After 13 years of Liberal governments with an unprecedented string of balanced budgets and a booming economy Stephen Harper has decided that Canada should once again run a deficit. With tax cuts for the wealthiest Canadians and program spending for those that don’t need it things are becoming reminiscent of George Bush Sr.’s trickle down economics.

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• The problem is it never trickles down. Conservatives conserve, keep, save for themselves.

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• The time has come to set the record straight.  Conservatives shrink economies while Liberals grow them.

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• Toronto’s Pride Week is aptly named. For the queer communities it is a moment to celebrate. For everyone else it is an opportunity to reinforce their complete and utter acceptance. For me it was an experience that made me especially proud – of my city, my country and for the Pride Committee – who put on one of the best run events in the World.

• Yesterday’s parade was my third and it has never been bigger or better. Generating tourism worth close to 100 million dollars into the city is quite an accomplishment but raising awareness and bridging the gaps of understanding is what it is really all about.

• To be in the parade looking out at the spectators one knows that every person in attendance was an equal and active participant.

• One only has to speak to one of the many tourists in Toronto for the event to be reminded of how good things are here and how, sadly, some must return to intolerance and bigotry.

• We still have much to do but the tide has turned on injustice and we are forcing ignorant ideas into the shadows. The close-minded are wary now; more cagey. Where there was once bravado in their hatred now there is fear of being found out.

• The time has come to put the words Pride Week and Pride Parade in italics because every day is a day in which Toronto’s queer communities should be proud – proud of what they have endured in the name of just being who they are and proud that they never stooped to the vile levels of their detractors.

• Pride Week is no longer just for our queer communities because yesterday I was extremely proud to join them in this celebration of diversity.

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• Recently there has been some erroneous information circulated as to my position on the South of Eastern development proposal and I have received some emails asking where I stand.

• This is an example of the emails I have been sending in response.

• I am a resident of the affected area; we live one block north of the proposed site. I have talked with a lot of fellow residents and I have heard a range of opinions about the proposed Smart Centres project. They range from seniors who want to shop at a store like Wal-Mart, to Queen Street business owners who are worried about the impact the development might have on them and the community.

• It is unfortunate that when Toronto Film Studios was “encouraged” to move no one planned ahead for what type of development could occupy this extremely contaminated land. Personally, I would have liked to see a new buyer put in place before moving them down to Filmport.

• I wouldn’t have planned for this development to come to my neighbourhood. But now my preference is that our community engages in an open and positive dialogue with Smart Centres to ensure that our wishes are respected. If the development does go ahead, it should best meet the needs of our community. Talking is better than simply cutting off discussion with angry protests.

• As you know, the decision for whether the project will go ahead rests with the Ontario Municipal Board. The Board could decide either way. Should the project go ahead, I want to be in a position to have our concerns taken into consideration by the developers. I think we in the community should make our views clear – including those who oppose this development – but we should continue to be open to dialogue.

• Personally, I want a development that will create a mix of employment opportunities. We have a lot of single parents and seniors in the area who depend on the employment that comes with this type of retail development. But I believe that the key to success in this project is a design that is integrated into the neighbourhood and which provides mixed employment opportunities, including higher-paying jobs that will be offered through professional office spaces.

• Thanks for your interest in this issue.

• Andrew

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• When Jack Layton helped trigger the election that put Stephen Harper into office he effectively killed Kyoto. He did this on a roll of the dice that he could improve his Party’s standing in the House of Commons. As it turned out, his gamble worked.

• Two years down the road, instead of apologizing for turning his backs on Canadians and the environment he is again taking a position contrary to his Party’s principles on the hope that it might improve its chances in the next election.

• When every environmentalist, led by David Suzuki, throws their full support behind Stephan Dion and Green Party leader, Elizabeth May, endorses his plan, one has to wonder what Jack is thinking. In fact Suzuki said on National television “I don’t know what Jack is thinking”.

• His weak excuse for not supporting a revenue-neutral carbon tax is merely compounded by his even weaker proposal. As his proposal has no mechanism for enforcement carbon emissions will not be cut and the revenue he hopes to invest will never exist.

• The Liberal plan is simple. We receive tax breaks for the things we want like income, innovation, savings and investment while we tax the things we want to reduce such as pollution, carbon emissions and waste.

• Canadians are prepared to do what it takes to reduce our emissions of green house gasses.

• What we need is a leader willing to take us there.

• Stephan Dion is that leader.

• A revenue-neutral Green Tax-shift is the plan and the only move that makes sense.

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• While most Liberals are licking their chomps over the string of embarrassments falling down upon the Conservative Party, I am growing concerned that these entertaining diversions are distracting us from the menace that is Stephen Harper.  

• The Bernier Affair may speak to poor judgement on Harper’s part and a shallow pool of talent from which to choose Ministers but doesn’t it really just point out how debased the Department of Foreign Affairs has become. Harper didn’t care about Bernier’s incompetence because Bernier had no real power.   

• Meanwhile the Conservatives recently decided it was a good idea to revive the Cadman Affair, an issue that seemed to have lost the media’s interest. Why would they do this? Is it for the reasons being tossed about; that they are trying to pre-empt the use of the tape in a negative ad campaign during an election or is there a more Machiavelli reason?   

• The revival of this issue allows the Conservatives to control the story and how it is debated.  It also distracts us from the real and dangerous initiatives undertaken by Stephen Harper over the past 2 years.  

• Let’s not forget that Harper is systematically trying to undermine the Charter of Rights by killing the Court Challenges Program, shutting down the Access to Information database and questioning the validity of decisions from the Supreme Court of Canada for the mere fact that they disagree.   

• Bill C-10 is overt attempt by Harper to impose his own moral compass by censoring Canadian film and television.  

• Bill C-50 once again demonstrates why Immigrants don’t generally like the Conservatives; because the Conservatives don’t like Immigrants.   

• Harper hates arms length bodies because they prevent him from getting his sticky little fingers on the levers of control. When he campaigned on accountability, we didn’t know that he meant everything should be accountable to him.  

• Harper promised us that we wouldn’t recognize Canada when he got through with it. His latest trick in the unravelling of the Canadian fabric is to distract us with the bumbling and fumbling of his incompetent caucus while he pulls at yet another thread.

• Don’t be distracted.

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• Sometimes people make me sad.  
• The fact that we still need an international day against homophobia is the cause for one of these occasions.  
• I’d like to think that we have evolved enough as a species to be beyond such irrational emotions but unfortunately that is far from the truth.  
• This year, International Day Against Homophobia falls on the weekend on which we celebrate the Queen’s birthday. There’s a joke in there but not one a straight guy can get away with saying. 
• For the most part Canada should be proud of her record in the recognition for lesbian and gay communities. Most of our progress can be traced to the adoption of the Charter of Human Rights. “However, judicial advances will remain only that until a complete, unlimited social acceptance of homosexuality is achieved and homophobia wiped out. To achieve this goal, the Fondation Émergence proposed in 2003, along with partners, to hold each year a special day dedicated to the social recognition of homosexual experience.” http://www.homophobiaday.org/ 
• On the face of things we seem to be close to solving our problem. The truth, however, is that prejudice remains and while there is a lot of talk about acceptance and openness, many gays and lesbians are unable to live their lives as they would choose for fear of discrimination. 
• The answer continues to be communication. Only through continued, open dialogue can we be sure that everyone is getting the message. It is not enough for a person to remain silent, he or she must come to understand. 
• Silence is deadly but it is also very lonely for those who live in fear of being themselves.  
• International Day Against Homophobia is about all people hoping for a prejudice-free world. On May 17^th, if you can’t take part in an organized event, take some time to talk about it with your family and friends.  
• Remember that it is not enough to tolerate. We must learn to accept until we wonder what all the fuss was about in the first place.  

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Last night, for the first time, I went out and knocked on doors as the Liberal Candidate for Toronto-Danforth.

I owe tremendous thanks to all those that joined me; Christina, Margaret, Aaron, Yusuf, Bruce, Rebecca, Gregory, Ava and Brianna and of course my wife Lisa who reminds why politics is fun.

Knocking on doors has always been my favourite part of elections. It didn’t matter who I was representing, it gave me the opportunity to talk to complete strangers and ask them what they thought.

Last night I felt like a kid in a candy store. Leaping from doorstep to sidewalk to doorstep I hungrily devoured this chance to meet my neighbours and engage them on the issues that matter to us.

Everyone I met was glad to see me and my volunteers. Brianna and Ava, who accompanied me, carried their positive, friendly attitudes on their faces. People at the doors couldn’t help but smile when confronted with so much enthusiasm.

Last night was the beginning and it was an unquestioned success.

As long as I have material to drop and am not scheduled to attend an event I will be out there.

I hope you will join me. Even if you have never knocked on doors before, I guarantee you will see how much fun it can be.

I hope you will be able to say that you were there at the beginning, that you witnessed history.

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When you get to the hall early, before anyone has arrived, it is hard to imagine the mayhem that is coming. The silence is eerie and leads one to thoughts of whether or not anyone will actually show up.

You know you have done everything you can. Each member has been called, emailed, dropped and called again. But in the silence, before they arrive, you have no guarantees that it did the trick.

Like a teenager who is hosting a party, the minutes before the guests arrive are excruciating. But then they do arrive and they arrive in abundance.

On April 16^th, when members, supporters, family and friends started pouring into St. Joseph’s Parrish Hall I was lifted up by their warmth and good cheer.

I had a hard time saying hello properly to everyone that arrived and am sure some were missed (for that I apologize). But I quickly realized that I wasn’t the main attraction. These people had come to see each other to talk about what matters to Canada and to witness the beginning of a new chapter for Toronto-Danforth. 

When a room is filled to capacity with so many people that share a common vision and sense of moral duty it can’t help but become a raucous affair.

The noise in the room began with a hum and quickly rose to a general racket. The common thread of the conversations that occurred simultaneously was that we were on the precipice of change. The festive atmosphere was borne out of the shared belief that we were engaging in the first step on the journey toward recapturing Toronto-Danforth for the Liberal Party.

I am honoured to be a part of this journey.

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Harper’s Conservatives knew that very few Canadians would be in favour of placing unilateral power to grant or deny access to our country in the hands of their Immigration Minister. In order to avoid the rancorous debate over this issue they used an American style trick and tacked a “Rider” on to their budget implementation bill. What does immigration have to do with implementing the budget you might ask? Good question.

Harper’s original claims that this measure would deal with the 900,000 person backlog has since been proven false – this rider does nothing to address the concerns of thousands of our residents but instead would simply allow the Minister to use her discretion to decide which kinds of immigrants we accept into Canada in the future.

Harper clearly can’t bear not having the ultimate say in every matter affecting Canada. Since he can’t fire all the immigration case workers – as he did the head of the Nuclear Safety Commission – and he can’t take them to court – as he is doing to Elections Canada – he has decided to render them obsolete through an act of parliament.

The most galling part of this whole episode is that he is now spending taxpayers’ money to try to sell this anathema to our immigrant populations through government advertisements.

Harper’s disdain for objective, arms-length bodies has grown into an obsession. The Auditor General had better start dusting off her résumé.

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