Just in time for Canada Day tomorrow, Toronto Mayor Rob Ford returns to work today from rehab. We hope Ford has taken the time to reflect on what he needs to get better, to improve his life and help him understand and be more accepting of others and himself.
However … we can't help but feel like the timing of this is bad, especially since we knew for some time that Ford would be back just before Canada Day.
Ford spent 60 days in rehab. That doesn't sound like enough time to deal with all that we've seen in the last couple of years, and a few issues in the years before the crack video allegations.
Previous coverage:
Rob Ford turned away at U.S. border
Rob Ford retrospective
If you suffer a physical injury, often a date can be targeted for return. Rehab feels like something that shouldn't be tied to a date if the patient isn't ready.
If Ford is returning just to get back into the Toronto mayoral race, well, that isn't a good sign.
Canada is famous for having short election periods. The Toronto mayoral race has been going on for months, even without Ford. Toronto will consider changing this approach and we would second that motion.
When Ford does return, he should know the locks to the office have been changed. Really. Even if he is more ceremonial than anything else, Ford should get those keys as he is still the mayor … at least for a few more months.
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Mohamed Fahmy is a Canadian-Egyptian journalist sentenced to 7 years in a trial where the evidence was horse footage, and press conferences that had nothing to do with Al-Jazeera or Egypt. Sadly, justice in Egypt is a sham. What is sadly not surprising is Canada's reaction to its citizens when they are in trouble outside Canada.
The Harper government has gone against strong Canadian tradition to not be as vocal when Canadians innocently suffer away from home.
The reaction from Australia, where one of the 3 men convicted was from, was considerably more harsh than the reaction from Canada. The reaction from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was more harsh and no Americans were involved.
John Baird is the Foreign Affairs minister, but we heard from Stephen Harper's parliamentary secretary, Paul Callandra, and Lynne Yelich, a junior minister of consular affairs. Yelich's response was written and included phrases such as Canada "is concerned that the judicial process that led to his verdict is inconsistent with Egypt's democratic aspirations." A 5-year-old gets a harsher scolding than that.
A harsh reaction may not get Fahmy some necessary relief, but Canadians expect their government to fight for their citizens, wherever they may be. And the Harper Government hasn't put on the gloves, much less know where they are.
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Peter MacKay has been in hot water for the past couple of weeks. The reported comments from MacKay were that the reason there are so few women appointed as judges is that too few apply, explaining that women have a closer bond to their children than men, that women don't apply to be judges because they fear the job will take them away from their children, and therefore the path to the bench is too demanding for them.
Ouch.
Let's check the numbers. The Harper government has been in power since 2006. On the Supreme Court of Canada, the government has appointed 8 justices, 7 of them men. On June 13, the same day MacKay made the reported comments, the Harper government announces 11 judicial appointments, 10 of them men.
The sexist e-mails MacKay sent out on Mothers Day vs. Fathers Day didn't help matters. The tone about the approach from mothers vs. fathers reinforced the similar sexist arguments for why the Harper government hasn't appointed more female justices.
In the 21st century, men and women can focus on their individual strengths instead of having to conform to 1950s stereotypes.
MacKay was the defense minister for most of the time with the Harper government. But as justice minister, MacKay has not set a good tone. Even by that standard, these comments have been the worst yet.
"As far as more women applying to be judges — we need more women to apply to be judges," MacKay said. "It's that simple."
The tone and language feels similar to Mitt Romney's binders full of women in the United States. The Democratic Party in the States and the Liberals in Canada find female judicial candidates a lot easier because their eyes are more open. The NDP in Canada would likely do so as well, but they have not held power so we don't have a track record.
There are plenty of female lawyers who would love to advance, regardless of their family status. Instead of worrying about "applications," the Harper government could recruit them. Otherwise, the disparity will continue as long as the Conservatives are in power.
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We've reached the halfway point of 2014 and Canada still has 2 female provincial premiers. As we've noted, Canada started 2014 with 5 female premiers.
Kathy Dunderdale was the first to leave, resigning as premier of Newfoundland and Labrador back in January. Replacing Dunderdale has turned out to be more difficult than intended. The Progressive Conservatives have a majority in St. John's, so the next premier will be from that party.
The line to replace Dunderdale was pretty short: Frank Coleman, who was to take over later this month. However, Coleman, citing a serious medical issue in his family, said he would not take over as premier.
Coleman, a businessman, had some issues come up in the last few months. But everything was moving toward Coleman being premier.
Tom Marshall has been the acting premier and will continue in the role until a new premier is chosen. None of the current candidates are women.
Kathleen Wynne (Ontario) and Christy Clark (British Columbia) are safe for quite awhile.
With recent elections in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Quebec, we won't have to worry about provincial election coverage for awhile.
Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Saskatchewan last had elections in 2011 while New Brunswick's last election was 2010. While these provinces will have elections somewhat soon, they aren't as likely to come up with different parties in charge. We will cover those elections when they happen.
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