Alec Saunders SquawkBox

When we lived in the US, we quickly developed the habit of doing most, if not all, of our Christmas shopping online.  Amazon, and other online retailers, made it just too easy.  Returning to Canada was a real shock.  Amazon.ca, aside from the core books and CD’s, offers nothing like the variety and selection fo Amazon.com.  Well, this year you have an alternative in WowyZowyToys.  It was founded by my friends Mary-Pat and Kevin, and features a great selection of toys — interesting, different and fun — for all ages.

In the late 1980’s, I worked for a company called Vestronix.  We built a C source code generator, called PRO-C.  During the period of time I worked there, our stock went from pennies, to over $4.00/share, and back to pennies. Many people (including yours truly) lost their shirts.  The company’s business plan was suspect, to be sure, but it was the combination of a group of overly enthusiastic stock promoters, and the work of a fraud artist, that caused the meteoric rise and fall of the stock.  You see, Jim Reid forged contracts, which company officials naively booked as revenue.  So, Jim was convicted and spent 19 months in jail in 1993.  In 1995, the principal promoter of the stock, Rob Kelly, was also convicted and fined $257,000.

Jim’s back, and he’s back at it!  This complaint alleges fraud on a scale that makes the Vestronix fraud look just plain silly.  It makes for fascinating reading.

Andy Abramson has set up a blog to track traffic about the Nokia N90 cell phone.  There is some major buzz in the blogosphere about this phone. 

I am slack jawed at Stephen Harper’s latest statement.  According to the Globe and Mail, he will re-open the Same Sex Marriage debate, if elected. The Globe writes:

Mr. Harper said he was determined to bring the legislation before a free vote in the House. He told reporters Tuesday he would not rein in cabinet ministers as Prime Minister Paul Martin did last summer when Parliament legalized same-sex weddings.

The Tories would restore the traditional definition of marriage — between one man and one woman — if that’s what MPs decide, Mr. Harper said. But, if MPs voted it down, as they did in June with a clear majority, he said he would consider the matter closed.

There goes Ontario.  Not bad, just one day into the Campaign Stephen.

We have another election upon us here in Canada.  For those unfamiliar with our system of government, it’s parliamentary, and modeled on the British system.  One of the many consequences of that is that a political party can form the government without having an outright majority.  Later, if the minority parties band together, they can kick the governing party out.  Technically, the government no longer "has the confidence of the house".  They can’t pass any bills, because the opposition will block them.

That’s what happened on Monday night.  The Conservatives, NDP, and Bloc Quebecois voted to censure the Liberal government, giving notice that they would no longer support the governing party.  Yesterday morning, Paul Martin, the Liberal leader, went to the Governor General and asked her to dissolve parliament.

Over the last little while, ordinary Canadians have been doing a lot of talking about this.  While I was in Toronto last week, before the dissolution of Parliament, this topic came up over and over. Most people can’t see the logic to what the opposition parties have done.  Polls show public opinion little changed from the last election, with the Liberals still holding on to a small lead over the Conservatives. 

Strategically, it seems a risky bet.  The Bloc will certainly make gains in Quebec, at the expense of the Liberals.  Here in Ontario, people are going to either hold their noses and vote Liberal, or there will be a wave of strategic voting for the NDP.  I don’t believe that the Conservatives will make any gains.