Logical Fallacies and Weak Arguments: The Case of Scott Reid, MP

I was visiting our 'farm' property in the Lanark Highlands this past month.  The area is represented by Ontario's first elected Reform Party MP and now is a Conservative MP. One of the chores is to check the mail box, usually it contains some severely politically slanted mailing from Mr. Reid.  I almost never find myself agreeing with him. I would like to answer some of his surveys, yet that is darn near impossible.

Below is a recent copy of a mailer from MP Reid.  Rather than rant, I asked my buddy, a Professor in Media Studies, to read the mailer and this is what I got back...

This is what passes as public discourse these days.

A List Of Fallacious Arguments
BILL S-214 Senate Bill

BC Liberals and Right Wing Nasty Campaign

Big Oil is funding the BC Liberals. Earlier this years Christy Clark, BC Premier flew into Calgary and met with Oil Executives and held a fundraiser for her political party. Clark is travelling a well laid road, former Premier Gordon Campbell built the road.

What seems unusual is the urgency attached to these appeals.  Big Oil is eager to attend.  Now there can be only one real good thing these folks care about BC this time out.  Pipeline.

The BC New Democrats are way out front in the polls.  It will take a major miracle for the Liberals to win or a lot more money. Already we are seeing that money in action.  Several attack sites have been set up, many of them created on government time by OIC appointments in the Premier's Office.  Then there are the BC Govt ads on TV.  To date in the two years she has been Premier, Christie Clark has spent 64 million dollars on govt ads.

Then there is the former logging CEO, Jim Shepard  who has raised over half a million dollars with the goal to raising over a million for an extremely nasty series of attack ads on the BC NDP under the guise of a grassroots campaign called Concerned Citizens For BC.  The group can spend as much as they want prior to the beginning of the election period.  They can get money from whomever they wish. No disclosure required.  The Koch brothers could make a donation and we wouldn't know it. You can likely count on Enbridge to donate, especially since they need not be worried about people finding out.

The Liberals manage to out spend the NDP almost two to one every election. This time out they will likely smash their record spending of the 2009 campaign.

We still have to see who else will jump into the fray. Expect independent contractors, forest companies, Insurance companies & resellers, car dealers and Chamber of Commerce.

Look to the nastiest BC campaign ever, if you think your province has nasty campaigns you haven't seen the effort produced by BC's right wing free enterprisers.  Expect the BCTF, BC FED and other NDP friendly groups attempt to match the Liberals gang.



Financial Post: Alberta powerbrokers throw lifeline to B.C. premier as threat of tougher pipeline fight from NDP looms


The Tyee: Right-wing Group Plans 'Blanket Coverage' Ad Blitz against BC NDP

A reason a day not to vote Ontario Liberal

Day One

In the secrecy of shuttered doors at Queen's Park, one of the few places in Toronto without a surveillance camera, Premier Dalton McGuinty and his Liberal cabinet met on June 2, 2010 to amend the wartime Public Works Protection Act, passing regulation 233/10, before the beginning of the G20. 

This is the now infamous “five-metre rule”.  This led to people being held by police for breaking the law, a law they could not possibly have known they were breaking.  It created a great deal of chaos during the G20 and lead to the arrest and detention of hundreds of people. 

Ontario's independent Ombudsman Andre Marin`s report titled 'Caught in the Act', stated the passing of the regulation was unreasonable and told reporters, "For the citizens of Toronto, the days up to and including the weekend of the G8/G20 will live in infamy as a time period where martial law set in the city of Toronto, leading to the most massive compromise of civil liberties in Canadian history, and we can never let that happen again." 

The McGuinty Liberal Government knew what they were doing was wrong.  They did it anyway. 

"Go F--k Yourself" - Anti Abortion GOP Candidate

Over 500 women each and every single day are raped in the United States. That is an astounding number. Imagine for a minute what that means. Each and everyone of these women were assaulted in the most denigrating way possible. They are our sisters, daughters, nieces, mothers, friends and even grandmothers.

" Josh, this is Pat Feeks, a Navy SEAL killed last week in Afghanistan. Take a good look and then go fuck yourself."  Those are the words of the Republican Senatorial Candidate in Washington State. 

State Sen. Michael Baumgartner typed those words into an email to a reporter.  Baumgartner was upset over an interview he gave to reporter Josh Feit. It seems the GOP candidate for Senate does not want to spend time talking about his party's position on abortion and his colleague who is running in the "Show Me State", Todd Akin's talk of Legitimate Rape. 

Jack Layton's Letter released to Media

I recall being at home when they released Jack Layton's letter to Canadians. I was taken by much surprise. Then CBC began reading the full letter. I was hanging on every word. I was wanting some hope. Losing Jack Layton was almost too much.  All of my adult life has been spent moving the social democratic ideas forward.  Losing Jack Layton seemed almost too much.  It was like it almost always is, we get so close you can smell success, only to have it whisked away.

Jack's letter made his passing less ominous. He lifted me up with pride to continue. He gave us a way forward.

Here is the first reading of the letter, on CBC Newsworld,by reporter Andrew Nichols...

Baking with Jack - 22 Minutes

Jack makes Stephen Harper's Salsa and John Baird's chocolate cookies with a little NDP magic added in.  This Hour Has 22 Minutes

Rick Mercer Report - Jack Layton Compilation

Rick Mercer Report - Priceless...

Rex Murphy - Canada's Smilin Warrior Jack Layton