Roundup: Offering disinformation in a clownish motion

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Yesterday was a Supply Day for the Conservatives, and they decided to push a motion about access to vaccines – but because they are committed to a certain number of narratives that don’t belong in the real world, it was about as cartoonish as one might expect.

Part of the premise of why this so ridiculous is because the notion that sufficient vaccine supply could have been delivered in January and February – let alone right now – belies a belief that we live in some kind of post-scarcity society like in Star Trek: The Next Generation, where replicator technology basically eliminates these kinds of problems, such as supply chain issues, or the time it takes to scale up manufacturing, or the time to actually make the vaccine itself. It also seems predicated on the belief that Canada is apparently the only country in the world suffering from the pandemic, and that we should have some kind of claim to all of the vaccine first (even though we were far less badly hit than many, many other countries). There is a blatant falsehood in the motion where it claims that it was the federal government that recommended that the interval between first and second doses be extended to four months – that was not a federal decision. It was a recommendation by the arm’s length National Advisory Committee on Immunization, and they weigh their recommendations based on the current epidemiology, and it was in there considered opinion that there was a greater good in getting as many people their first dose as quickly as possible given supply constraints, and that the four months is likely to shrink as more doses arrive. More to the point, provinces decide whether or not they will accept NACI’s guidance or not, and not the federal government. The inclusion of this in the motion is pure disinformation designed to stoke anger. Finally, it ignores that the reason there are increasing “lockdowns” (and in most parts of the country, they’re not real lockdowns) are because premiers failed and didn’t properly control spread – most especially in those provinces where they re-opened too early, in spite of warnings that the new variants would cause spread faster, and yet they went ahead and did it anyway. This, again, is not on the federal government and it was always a fallacy that we could have vaccinated our way out of the second or third wave without lockdown measures.

https://twitter.com/robert_hiltz/status/1387827704204906497

https://twitter.com/robert_hiltz/status/1387847095357485057

 

Of course, this is happening in the shadow of an oncoming surge of new vaccine deliveries, which has Ontario and Quebec are promising that everyone should be eligible to get a first dose before the end of May, which is not far from what O’Toole and company were demanding in their clownish motion. So, was this is a play to try and claim victory when the vaccination numbers start to climb? Or is this just a play to the base where facts don’t matter when there are emotions? Either way, it’s not the best look for the party that considers itself the government-in-waiting.

Good reads:

  • During the first ministers’ teleconference last night, Doug Ford was “desperate” for more border measures (which he’s responsible for enforcing).
  • Harjit Sajjan announced that former SCC Justice Louise Arbour will conduct another review of the military and help guide a new independent reporting system.
  • Figures from Operation Honour were released, and over five years, there were 581 sexual assaults reported, plus another 221 incidents of sexual harassment.
  • While the piece contains more than a little hyperbole, here are some of the problems being flagged with Bill C-10 on amending the Broadcast Act to include web giants.
  • Erin O’Toole insists the Conservatives didn’t do anything wrong when they were investigating General Vance allegations in 2015 and then appointed him CDS.
  • The Conservatives have rented the ballroom of an Ottawa hotel to serve as a broadcast studio for their campaign, whenever an election might be called.
  • BC’s minister responsible for childcare is pointing out that the promised federal cash could accelerate their own plans for their system. (See! Federalism!)
  • Heather Scoffield is unimpressed with Pierre Poilievre’s (sanctioned) slighting the Bank of Canada and trying to insinuate that they are in cahoots with the Liberals.
  • Matt Gurney sees the appointment of Louise Arbour as mere distraction theatre away from the government’s handling of the General Vance allegations.
  • Colby Cosh calls out the luxury tax in the federal budget for its feel-good uselessness, but notes that Conservatives have no moral ground here either.

Odds and ends:

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