A brickbat for Canada Post

This week Canada Post Corp issued a special stamp to publicize mental health. "Support mental health or I'll kill you!" -- just kidding.

If you want to buy one, it'll cost you an extra 10¢, which goes (it says here) to the Canada Post Foundation for Mental Health. (Do the words "going postal" mean anything to anyone?)

So far so good, right? But get this. Just as you pay GST on a postage stamp -- Canada is one of about three countries in the world that adds a tax to a tax -- so you have to pay GST on your 10¢ donation! A book of 10 mental health stamps will cost you $6.40 + 32¢ GST, total $6.72. Only in Canada you say?!

If you want to support the struggle for better mental health, Walt suggests you make a donation to a registered charity. You'll get a receipt for income tax purposes...and you won't have to pay GST!

A bouquet for Canada Post

Canada Post Corp. has unveiled its stamp issuing programme for the rest of the year. Walt is happy to tell you that this year we're going to have some really nice, Christian Christmas stamps.

It hasn't always been so. Christmas stamps have been issued since the 1960s. For over four decades they have almost always featured religious and/or secular designs that bore some relationship to Christmas: nativity scenes, Santa Claus, Christmas trees, that kind of thing. And they have almost always carried the legend Christmas/Noël.

But in this century the winds of political correctness are blowing through Canada Post. In 2005 they decided to produce, in addition to a nice three-stamp set of creche figures (from St. Joseph's Oratory in Montréal), an "unChristmas" stamp with a nice picture of a snowman...and no reference to the holiday. So the heathen (surely "non-Christian", ed.) minority was appeased. Now they had their own "winter holiday stamp".

The next year, the position was reversed. Canada Post issued one small stamp marked "Christmas/Noël" showing the Falardeau Madonna and Child, and three "winter" stamps. Since the three-stamp set includes the stamps to be used on mail to the USA and overseas, people in those countries might well conclude that Canadians forgot about Christmas.

Quite understandably, Christians complained. "We're not a minority yet!", they said. And in 2007 we went back to the status quo ante, with one secular stamp and a set of three religious Christmas stamps.

And last year, Canada Post went the other way, with three "winter fun" stamps and one smaller (but very beautiful) Christmas stamp featuring a sculpture of the Baby Jesus created by Canadian sculptor Antonio Caruso. But at least the "winter fun" stamps had the words "Christmas/Noël" printed in the corner, in tiny type.

This year we're getting a beautiful set of three more sculptures from the nativity scene by Caruso, in a large format, bearing the words "Christmas/Noël". The anti-French gang will be annoyed that "Noël" is in much larger type than "Christmas", but then "Noël" is a word in English too. Right?

The Muslims, Hindus, Jews etc etc will have to make do with a smaller stamp featuring a Christmas tree. Or it might be a Hannukah bush. Who knows? But if you look closely, it does say "Christmas/Noël".

So...three cheers from Walt for an apparent end to overarching political correctness. May I be the first to wish you MERRY CHRISTMAS!

131

Pte. Jonathan Couturier, age 23, RIP

This past weekend Senator Colin Kenny, chair of the Senate committee on national security and defence, advised Canadian Prime Minister Harper to develop an exit strategy, or, as the Globe & Mail put it, "organize Canada's retreat."

"What we hoped to accomplish in Afghanistan has proved to be impossible," Kenny wrote. "We are hurtling toward a Vietnam ending."

Predictably, Senator Kenny is now being attacked by Brigadier-General Jonathan Vance, the commander of Task Force Kandahar, and no less than Governor-General Michaëlle Jean. Easy for them to stay on Mr. Harpoon's message. They don't have to leave the base and risk being blown to bits by an IED.

Yes, it's a classic case of shoot the messenger. 131 Canadians have died in Afghanistan, but even a senator is not allowed to ask why, let alone suggest that perhaps we've made a colossal mistake. Shame.

Footnote: Canadian Press reports that Pte. Couturier's brother has told Le Soleil that the young soldier thought the mission was futile. His sister-in-law added that Pte. Couturier no longer wanted anything to do with Afghanistan.

Our good intentions in Afghanistan -- a liberal delusion

That's "liberal" with a small L. Although a big-L Liberal government got us into the Afghanistan quagmire, it's a Conservative government that keeps us there, even though the death toll continues to mount?

Why? Because we delude ourselves that we can bring "transformational change". Just yesterday "Call me Steve" Harper said, while sitting at the side of the arch-liberal Obama, that in 2011 Canada would be "transitioning"* from a military role to a "developmental role". Ah yes, bringing the benefits of peace, democracy and civilization to the benighted heathens.

As Margaret Wente points out in a good column in today's Globe and Mail, it ain't gonna happen. The Afghans don't want "transformational change". They are happy with their society the way it is...or the way it used to be before the westerners started mucking around.

Even if they did want to let their girl-children go to school, have free and fair elections, etc, etc, all those fine things aren't going to happen until they have a government capable of imposing its will on the entire country. As Ms Wente says, "elections hardly matter if a winner's incapable of governing. Afghanistan doesn't need an elected figurehead. It needs a good, tough warlord."

Furthermore, she asks, "If our effectiveness is zero, why are we willing to have Canadians blown up for two more years?" And she answers her own question, "Because no one wants to broach the subject."

Walt is willing to talk about the elephant in the room. Walt says, we are not our Afghan brothers' keepers. Let them sort out their problems for themselves and by themselves. Let Canada get out of Afghanistan now.

* "Transitioning?" How many times have I heard politicians and pundits use this neologism lately? It's by way of becoming the buzzword of the year. Let me remind all and sundry that "transition" is a noun, not a verb. What's wrong with a simple word like "changing"?

Wearing it

Walt's not going to say "I told you so" just yet. My prediction was that "Call me Steve" Harper would still be in office at the end of the year. So surviving one vote this coming Friday leaves us with a couple of months yet to go.

The comic figure in this week's episode is Jack Layton, leader of the Few Democrats, pictured at left.

Having made sport of the Liberals for not joining his party in voting against the Harper government 79 times, Comrade Jack has now decided that on Friday his party will, er, vote with the government. It is rumoured that Jack is headed for Payless Shoes to see if they have any size 14DDD flip-flops!

Chantal Hébert has an excellent column in today's Toronto Star. I quote only the first sentence: In hindsight, Jack Layton would have been well advised to fall on his sword over the summer and ask the NDP to start looking for a successor.

"The new sheriff is a nig...!"

Remember that line from the Mel Brooks classic, Blazing Saddles? The good townspeople of Rock Ridge are startled to discover that the governor has sent them a new sheriff who happens to be...ahem...of the coloured persuasion. So they embark on a campaign to get rid of him.

It is said that art mirrors life. Walt says that life imitates art as art imitates life. (Not as poetic. ed.) The good people of the US of A seem to have suddenly woken up to the fact that they have elected a "nig" as president. (Come to think of it, isn't there a bit of a resemblance between Obama and Cleavon Little?) So now, it seems, about 49% of them want to get rid of him!

This is not Walt's opinion. It is the analysis of former president Jimmy Carter. The peanut farmer says that the real reason Obama's approval ratings have plummeted is the racism of the American people.

Racism is still around, Carter says. So is liberal guilt, Walt says. C'mon folks, give the new nig a chance!

130

Private Patrick Lormand, RIP.

Meanwhile, 2500 more Canadian troops are getting ready to depart from Edmonton to put their lives on their line in Afghanistan.