MIRAMICHI – When Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited Miramichi last February, he delivered a one-liner, and a promise, that Miramichi MP Tilly O’Neill-Gordon, and many Miramichiers haven’t forgotten.
When Harper was asked on that visit if his government’s plans to kill the controversial federal long-gun registry would in any way jeopardize the 200 well-paying federal jobs at the registry’s central processing centre in Miramichi, his answer didn’t leave much up for interpretation.
“You can be absolutely clear that there will be no loss of federal employment in the Miramichi area,” he said.
O’Neill-Gordon has that quote plastered across her office wall on Parliament Hill and she said yesterday that even though the majority of MPs, including herself, have voted to dismantle the long-gun component of the registry’s database, she still has every reason to believe those jobs are secure, based on everything she’s been told.
She said she had a conversation recently with the processing centre’s new CEO, Gilles Maillet, and he said that in the event that portion of the registry is abolished it would have no affect on job security.
“He said that they would be just blended into other jobs that are already there, and that they’re busy anyway,” said O’Neill-Gordon.
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“Giving the Canadian registry the kiss of death and the Canadian way of living the kiss of life is a long and unpredictable process — there are still committee hearings and the thrice-accursed Senate that need to be surpassed — but it is at least a hope.”
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/westview/acts-of-orwellian-feminism-69450762.html
I agree BTDT the battle is far from over. I think you are going to find a substantial increase in usage by police departments between now and the time it comes before the Senate in order that they can justify their position of keeping it.
What the government should do is take all the employees of the gun registry and give them each a shovel.Have half of them take their shovels and go around Miramichi and dig holes in the ground,next have the other half fill in the holes in the ground made earlier.They all do this until they each reach retirement age.This would be a much more productive way of spending taxpayers money because at least the employees would get some fresh air and exercise instead of sitting in the Gun Registry’s offices and twiddling their thumbs!
I still don’t understand the cost – I really cannot fathom spending $2 BILLION on a database even including all of the telephone calls and 200 salaries. Is this a Black Ops budget for JTF2? Is it a case of a supplier charging $10M and sliding $5M into a project that shall-not-be-named? And why do you think the US military pays $500 for a hammer?
Re: #4 — “I really cannot fathom spending $2 BILLION on a database… ”
I can. When it comes to computers the people that make the decisions are illiterate and they take “advice” because they don’t know better. Anytime a government decides to create a new program they need a “watchdog” who knows the ropes and can spot the scams. So far they haven’t picked up.
Maybe that can change.
What the hell is it that makes government jobs sacrosanct while the rest of us take our lumps? I don’t mind if they are job shifted to other positions where the occupant is retiring, but there should be a number of jobs deleted from the total federal payroll. What the hell are we doing? Why are there no sunset laws for useless departments/programs? Do we wait until all but one of us are on the government tit? This crap pisses me off.