Olivia Chow? No thanks

Olivia Chow's latest political claptrap landed in mailboxes this weeks. It is a "special federal budget edition" that has 5 pictures on 4 pages, all of her. Mixed in with her unbound and shameless ego are ludicrous claims about Chow "in action" and her great contribution to Canadians.

On page 2 she warns advertisers to "Leave our kids alone." Never having met a bandwagon that she doesn't leap on ferociously, she makes devils out of all companies running "exploitative ads that promote unhealthy food products with big profit margins" - as opposed to those with little profit margins?

The latest bandwagon she is leaping on involves obesity in kids. Does she name the companies? Nooooo. Does she give one example to illustrate her claim? Noooo. But she makes a big deal of her so-called initiative - "The Children's Health and Nutrition Initiative" and says "Parents, we can win this one."

What crap.

Is obesity among kids a problem? Yes, for some it sure is. And for more kids than it was 2 or 3 decades ago. But typical of the NDP, Chow looks for villians to blame, then she puts forth half-baked, simplistic solutions. Wrapping herself in the mantle of a saviour, she tries to make an "initiative" look like something concrete. An initiative, of course, is what you call a useless motion with no hope of passing and no possibility of amounting to anything. Chow and Layton between them could paper the Parliament Buildings with the useless initiatives they have cobbled together that have in common long drumroll introductions and subsequent short-life spans.

To attack childhood obesity effectively requires more financial help for single Moms raising two or three kids on inadequate funds, which encourages spending on starchy and fatty foods that satisfy hunger. That's a provincial issue and Chow knows it.

Obesity problems cry out for more attention to physical education programs in our schools - also NOT a federal responsibility. And if we really mean we want to be effective then we need to provide more education for parents who want to learn how to move their family into healthy life style choices. These things will make a difference, but all are much harder to achieve - and much more worthwhile - than pinning a target on the back of a for-profit corporation. It's an NDP formula - opt for the easy and that which makes headlines. Don't worry if it makes better - just if it makes headlines.

There's another beauty in this piece of political bullshit, which is called Making life more affordable for Toronto's seniors. Except it does no such thing.

It starts out by kicking the crap out of the Tories for crimes real and imagined. Then it says, in bold face, that "Jack Layton's NDP has taken action to ensure that all seniors can retire with security and dignity." The big deal? The NDP "introduced and passed a Seniors Charter of Rights" Sounds good eh? It claims that it guarantees - GUARANTEES!! - seniors a secure income, affordable home care, free drug and dental coverage and 50,0000 (sic) new long-term care spaces by 2010.

Don't hold your breath seniors.

Remember Diefenbaker's Charter of Rights? Wasn't worth the paper it was printed on, and the courts made short work of it very quickly. Well, the so-called charter for seniors is NO DIFFERENT. Doesn't change a single solitary thing. No senior is one jot better off than before this "Charter" was passed. Not one senior is one nickel better off. You may hear a lot about the Charter of Rights for Seniors, although I'm betting it will be selectively pumped. Around people with some education, people with some knowledge of how the world works, the Charter won't get mentioned at all unless Layton's desperate for a laugh. But they'll slip it in in certain areas and try to pass it off as if it meant something, all the while knowing that it doesn't mean diddly squat.

Chow and Layton have never let truth get in the way of their egos or their political posturing.

So Tony Iannou - how ya doin' man? Crank up that machine and let's see some sign that you're back in the game. Your country needs you - and if not the country, then certainly your city needs you. You ain't perfect but you're a country mile ahead of Chow.