Rex Murphy shares his thoughts on Jack Layton's passing

[APG19912009]

It's been 6 months to the day, and Jack we still miss you, and we needed you. You were the great hope for a country and a people in a cynical era. You gave us the ability to believe in the institution of democracy and government again, you were able give us the hope that not all politicians are the same and that fear can be conquered for a hopeful future. No one, will be able to fill your shoes Jack, we miss you. RIP dear friend, i hope to see you in the future :)

[teeray12]

It was Layton's 5th time running for PM. Why did it take so long for him get noticed? Many QC voters thought he was "the new guy", too funny. Too soon to say this, but he was very very overrated. The NDP have wacked-out policies. If QC hadn't used the NDP as a rebel vote towards their Bloc, the NDP would've done the same old 15-19 seats as usual, and Jack wouldn't be the 'hero" he is today.

[sweiland75]

Canada has not matured enough for the NDP to form the government.

[sweiland75]

I would counter these trolls (not actual critics) with mistakes by the Harm...err Harper government but I'm afraid there just isn't enough room here.

[Jamespot24]

Whats with all the commie love towards Rub-n-Tug Jack?

[sweiland75]

@Jamespot24 Thank you for helping to give conservatives a bad name, with your deliberately stupid comment.

[soares50]

RIP Mr. Layton

[guysmileytoo]

Jack went off into the great beyond . . . to find the sleeziest Rub n' Tug that's out there.

God speed, Jackie,

You deserve to find a kinky little Asia freak with an enternal, never ending bottle of hand lotion.

[jonesyboypoom]

I wish Harper would die instead!

[MrBrational]

Rex , you used to be cool. Now you're just reading CBC propaganda off the teleprompter like a robot.

[jonesyboypoom]

@MrBrational

Your name doesnt suit you whatsoever. Your a fucking retard!

[MrBrational]

@jonesyboypoom hey , you're comment is very offending to mentally handicapped people. I'm filing a human rights complaint.

[testmark1]

@MrBrational lol

[bgibb101]

@pasadign - I quoted UK shooting deaths. Mind you, we can always ban blunt instruments, baseball bats, garden tools, kitchen knives and scissors. Will we all be a lot safer then?

[bgibb101]

@pasadign - I corrected my own mistake about Switzerland.

[bgibb101]

Smiling Jack, the man who was caught butt naked in a chinese whorehouse, who lived with Olivia in a subsidised $800 a month apartment on their $170,000 combined income, who spat on & harrassed peaceful pro-life protestors outside Toronto's first abortuary, then demanded that the police arrest them. Smiling Jack, who was born into wealth, who sent his children to private schols, who supported homosexuality & euthanasia, who lived off our dime and was buried on our dime. Good riddance!

[dustlandfairy]

@bgibb101 Classy!

[ballinmissy]

@bgibb101 wow - how insensitive. Jack was a good politician that devoted his life to improving the lives of people like yourself. You probably had to look very hard/make things up to make a stab at him. His quality of character was beyond any politician, and in my opinion Jack was incredibly brave given his situation. If you want to make a stab at the political system, you're well in your rights to do so... but posting slander for the sake of it is immature.

[bgibb101]

@ballinmissy - Insensitive? Was Layton being insensitive when he spat on peaceful pro=life protesters in Toronto and demanded to know why the police hadn't arrested them before he arrived on the scene? Was he being insensitive when he called people who believed that marriage was between one man and one woman. "homophobes" and "bigots?" Was Layton being "insensitive" when he, the great defender of public healthcare, had a hernia operation in a private clinic in north Toronto?

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 When did he spit on pro-life protesters? When did he call people homophobes and bigots? Cite your sources. And that clinic was grandfathered into the Ontario healthcare system. Anybody receiving services there would have no idea that it was a private clinic and neither did Jack. Visit their website and tell me how you would know.

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 I'd be far more concerned about the cop who leaked that information. He wasn't charged with any crime at the time or since. As far the apartment, I'm sure you're just forgetting to mention that where they lived was a housing cooperative. Housing cooperatives have people from a variety of incomes, poor to well-off. They want tenants from a variety of incomes. That's the whole point. When it became an issue, they moved but they should not have had to.

[findernightrose]

Jack Layton we miss you.

[CanadaAuroraBorealis]

I would like and respect the NDP and Jack Layton a lot more if they would put Anti-Crime and Anti-Gang on their political agenda more than they put Gay Rights.

I do not think Gay Rights is one of the more important issues affecting this society.

[Squeaks90]

@CanadaAuroraBorealis Actually the NDP was the party to suggested recruting a young person into a gang a crime. It'd well outlined in their platform! Their crime tactic is prevention.

[paradigm71]

@CanadaAuroraBorealis Gay rights isn't even on their agenda right now, nor was it during the campaign. Regarding anti-crime, no party is more anti-crime than the NDP - we want to stop crime before it happens by getting at the root causes of crime.

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - "we want to stop crime before it happens by getting at the root causes of crime." The NDP want a national handgun ban, which would only leave the guns in the hands of criminals. When Britain banned handguns in 1996, guncrime increased by 92%. We don't need more gun control, we need more crime control, but socialist governments have a habit of restricting the rights of the law abiding because of the behaviour of the lawless. You can start by making the punishment fit the crime!

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 I don't know if your statement is accurate, but even if it is, gun crime increasing because of a handgun ban is preposterous. Obviously, the ban had nothing to do with the crime rate increase. The US has the least restrictive laws on handguns and the highest murder rates. Canada and the UK both have much lower rates of murder than the US and tighter gun controls.

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - Why has gun crime increased in leaps and bounds wherever guns are banned? Because the criminals know that their victims are defenseless. Those states (USA) that allow concealed carry have the lowest gun crime because citizens can and do defend themselves. Every household in Switzerland has one or more military assault weapons due to their volunteer army where all men between 18-55 MUST do military service. Yet Switzerland has virtually no gun crime and stats aren't even kept .

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 Switzerland myth. I call bullshit. Switzerland has the second highest personal ownership of handguns AND the second highest rates of handgun murders, along with the US. Also note if you want easy access to handguns, Switzerland isn't it. They make you account for every bullet.

Tightest gun control laws to the loosest and note how the murder rate climbs.

UK's murder rate per 100,000 (2010): 1.35

Canada's murder rate per 100,000 (2010): 1.62

US murder rate per 100,000 (2010): 4.8

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - OK, Switerland recorded 34 killings or attempted killings involving firearms in 2003, compared to 69 cases involving bladed weapons and 16 cases of unarmed assault. Cases of assault resulting in bodily harm numbered 89 (firearms) and 526 (bladed weapons). As of 2007, Switzerland had a population of about 7,600,000. This would put the rate of killings or attempted killings with firearms at about one for every quarter million residents yearly. Far less than the USA.

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 You just finished saying how Switzerland doesn't even bother keeping stats of gun crime offences because they are so few. Now you come up with stats disproving that argument. Switzerland also has a strong gun control regime providing bullets for this citizen militia and requiring they keep track of when they're fired. Getting a handgun if you're not part of the militia is difficult. So if the death rate from guns there is lower, it may very well be because of gun control.

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - "You just finished saying how Switzerland doesn't even bother keeping stats of gun crime offences because they are so few. Now you come up with stats disproving that argument. " Yes, and I corrected my own mistake.

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - Gun crime in the UK for 2009/10: overall, 40 homicides were recorded. Those involving guns included seven with shotguns, twenty seven with handguns, four with "other" weapons and one with an airgun. Criminal offences overall for the same period invloved the use of 585 shotguns, 3,748 handguns and 1,515 imitation firearms. Not to mention 4,928 air guns. Not good stats are they?

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 The entire UK had only 40 homicides? There were a lot more than that, my friend. The Guardian referred to 600 per year. An no, they're not all gun crimes. Regardless, the US had 9,369 homicides committed *with* firearms in 2002, almost 40% of the total homicides. If having easy access to guns and being tough on criminals (the US has the 5th highest incarceration rate of 80 countries) leads to a safer society, than the US should be heaven on Earth. (NationMaster . com source).

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - The safest STATES in the USA are the ones that allow their citizens to carry sidearms for self defence.

[paradigm71]

Canada had 144 firearm homicides. The US is about 9x our size. So that would be 1,350 comparatively. So homicides in the US are ONLY 3x that of Canada. Firearm homicides, though, are 6X that of Canada. So the US not only had more people killed, but twice as high a proportion of these people are killed WITH firearms. The UK had 14 killed with a firearm during the same period. They have 55 million people.

[EruditeCanadian]

@paradigm71

Those stats you posted indicate that in the USA, where guns are more common, they are used more often in homicides. They do not indicate that more homicides occur BECAUSE there are more guns.

If you look at more statistics on homicide globally, you will find there is little to no direct correlation between homicide rates and gun ownership, with many instances of countries with strict gun laws or bans having a significantly higher homicide rates than the USA.

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 Btw, according to the British Home Office, your 92% increase in gun crime is not true. England and Wales are presently experiencing the lowest crime rate in 12 years. All crimes have decreased except for sexual offences. Look up the article entitled "Murder rate lowest for 12 years" by the Guardian. So I'm not sure where that stat comes from.

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - The increase in gun crime is a national overall figure from 1997 to 2008. Yes, gun crime (at least the fatalities) have gone down, bu the number of illegal guns in the hands of criminals has not. In December 2010, Birmingham city police erected a ShotSpotter Gunshot Location System in a high crime area. If gun crime is going down, why spend money on this sort of technology? You can expect other UK cities to follow.

[paradigm71]

@bgibb101 Not just gun crime. All rates of crime have gone down with the exception of sexual assault cases. And that they even believe is because of an education program designed to get more women to recognize sexual assault when it happens. Just because crime rates are going down that doesn't mean there aren't areas where crime is still high. That's like arguing that global warming isn't true because it snowed in August in Ontario.

[paradigm71]

How can you know how many guns are in the hands in the criminals? Maybe they have gone down, maybe they haven't. The violence and crime has gone down.

[bgibb101]

@paradigm71 - The UK police estimate that there is over four million illegal guns in the UK. mainly East-European 9mm handguns, Ingram Model 10 sub-machine pistols and Chinese built AK-47. The guns are still out there. Yet Tony Blair in his socialist wisdom decided that by disarming the UK's law abiding gun owners he would somehow make the country safer? Even the UK Olympic shooting team cannot practise there! They have to go to Norway or France. Absolute lunacy.

[lolitathebitch]

Jack dies of assisted suicide. That is why his family don't want to tell what the other cancer was. Because, that other cancer didn't kill him.

[paradigm71]

@lolitathebitch That's ridiculous. Everybody saw how sick he was at the press conference.

[westeightyone]

@paradigm71 It could have been a progression of the first cancer. We don't know one way or the other because Canadians weren't presented with medical records informing us of his condition. That placed Jack Layton in the position of being able to lie to the Canadian public about the details surrounding his condition. In other words, we had to take Jack Layton's word for it that the first cancer hadn't advanced and that an unidentified second cancer had developed.

[VoiceOfModeration]

We cant forget about his public DISservice as well however.

[marshallmacduncan]

Well Done Tribute!

[ralphyization]

Even though, I've always been an NDP supporter, I've not necesarily been watching his back! I've come to realize, that maybe the NDP does attract some "serious" talent!

[Bellalinski]

Beautifully said. RIP Jack.

[avro206]

Very likeable and able political leader. Too bad he never got to sit in opposition very long. I respect Jack but in the end he was just a leader of party. He never saved a life, or was a hero. He had his own ideas which some people shared. Firemen, Policemen and doctors are real heros. Note that I have not bashed Jack in any way shape or form.

[Truehuman11]

finally this ass hat is dead. fucking commie.

[Bojaxs]

@Truehuman11 So mad. So much hatred. I pity you. Do you ever get tired of being angry and depressed everyday you wake up?

[sweiland75]

@Truehuman11 What's it like to be disowned by your parents?

[letmatch]

Am not Canadian, but i lived over 10 years in Toronto , this part of the world is a part of me

we have lost one of the brave and greatest politician Jack Layton .... far well good man

[MrBigyellowbus]

@L0RENTI Get off this video if all your going to do is hate on a great man. I guess that's what Christians do best though. Hate, hate, hate, everyone who doesn't believe exactly what they do. Is being an extremely good person not good enough for you? If Jack was the same awesome person, but christian, would that make him better?

[xmacd]

Neither fractious nor volatile. You've been drinking the Koolaid Rex.

[MetaView7]

Re: state funeral for the opposition leader

in a world where opposition leaders are often offered a bullet,

Canada sets an example to the World: free speech and mutual respect,

even when the opinions are not agreed.

Stephen Harper should be given a Nobel peace prize.

[joshyboy1983]

@MetaView7 Harper did it because it was the right thing to do.

[frogandtoad57]

So well said, Rex. Thank you.



[frogandtoad57]

So well said, Rex. Thank you.

[skrinkaman]

The doctors should not of done the hip surgery, that's probably what spread the cancer.

[only1nabil]

"love is better than anger"

[skrinkaman]

@only1nabil that's pretty obvious

[DarkEclair]

Though I mourn his passing, and weep for this country's loss, I know that his legacy will live on. There has never been a more genuine politician in Canada, nor has there been one who cared so much about the people. You could support the opposing party, and at the end of the day, he would still treat you with the same compassion as any other human being. Rest in peace, Mr. Layton. Though you did not fulfill your dream, you have made strides yet to be seen by any other.

[SalteeMAN]

It doesn't matter if you didn't or don't agree with the NDP Party, you have to applaude the man for what he has done.

[tbdaemon]

I figured it was the cane that got him - cursed by Lucien Bouchard's separatist wraith for freeing Quebec from the Bloc :/

[32KOAST]

Canada has lost a great man.

[Lef204]

This commentary perfectly sums up the sense of being Canadian ... Rex Murphy, thank you for your raw intellect ... Jack Layton, thank you for your fearless leadership ... the result being service, loyalty, and compassion. Simply Canadian.

[N0namez9999]

Thank you Rex!

RIP Jack we love you.

[hatrockscave]

Rex is by far the most eloquent newsperson out there.

[VinceFS]

Hey Christine Blatchford. The reason "people weep for those they have never met and in some instances likely never much thought about before," is because "not many people leave a hospital room having faced off with cancer, get smacked with a broken hip just to make things even a little more tricky, launch into a national election as a leader of a fractious and volatile party and then turn in; the most energetic, the most attractive, the most brave campaign of anyone, leader or follower EVER!

[KoreanSatan]

@VinceFS Christine Blatchford is ugly both inside and outside, no respect for him at all

[landau31]

@KoreanSatan Christie Blatchford is only telling the truth. I wonder how you look like judging by your name.

[yirphd]

@landau31 truth? haha! Blatchford is merely giving an ill-informed opinion. What we saw in Canada was genuine grief. No PR campaign in the world could ever duplicate the spontaneous outpouring of emotion from all corners of the country. The problem with Ms. Blatchford and her cohorts is that they live in an ideological bubble. They only talk to each other and dream of a Canadian far-right utopia. They wanted Canada to spit on Jack's grave. They are utterly astonished now that reality has set in.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

What your comment reveals is the narrow-minded, self-centered arrogance of a person who would sink to calling anyone who didn't board the grieve-y train ignorant and heartless.

Layton wasn't assassinated for his politics and he didn't live on a pauper's salary.

The reality is that Jack Layton requested donations be made in his memory to an NDP 'think tank' rather than a non-partisan charity ( Cancer, Aids, Shelters,etc ). It was all about him and his party even beyond the end.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone That's a rather incoherent post. I'll ignore your silly insults (they remind me of Yosemite Sam) and focus on the main issue. So, you wanted Jack's death to be non-political, just to avoid upsetting your delicate conservative sensibilities? Ha! Fact: politicians tend to be political. You're just angry because respect is being given to someone from the "other team". :-P If it were a conservative requesting donations to a conservative think thank, you'd be jumping for joy.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

The post is coherent, Daffy Shmuck..It's your inability to read with your head up your ass that's your problem.Thanks for confirming your prejudice with your ' conservative sensibilities' blather. I'm non-partisan. Unlike the bigotted sheep that you've proven yourself to be with your nonsensical comment about giving respect to someone from the ' other team' , I'm not limited to only finding fault with politicians from a certain party. What's selfish is selfish regardless of the party.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone You conservatives are capable of the most astonishing hatred. So you're "non-partisan"... hahahahahahaha. Btw, you forgot to call me "cotton' pickin' varmint"... :-D

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

It's because I'm non-partisan that I don't blame the NDP for you being a selfish, narrow-minded idiot.

You're a fool who just happens to support the NDP.

Your reluctance to acknowledge the difference between a donation that would benefit Canadians of every political stripe ( cancer research, Aids research, shelters ) and a donation that would benefit only those who subscribe to NDP ideology , says everything that needs to be said about you ( and none of it is good ).

[yirphd]

@westeightyone blah blah blah More name-calling, shots in the dark toward the big bad enemy that you know nothing about (but you prefer it that way). If you're really non-partisan, then you're doing a bloody good impersonation of a far-right tea-partier. :-D ("if it walks like a duck... etc. etc.). So, let me be the grown-up here and ask you a constructive question. Why not make a donation "in memoriam" to Jack Layton to the charity of your choice? Who is stopping you?

[yirphd]

@westeightyone You say I did name calling... because I called you a conservative??? :-D So, you're non-partisan because you understand the mechanics of the Westminster system? huh??? You're clearly a conservative calling yourself non-partisan just to gain an edge in the debating game. You're only on this forum because you want to spit on Jack's grave.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd I said you were name calling because you called me as a ' tea partier' and 'Yosemite Sam', etc. You branded me a Conservative because I found Layton's request for donations to an NDP think tank selfish.

He served his party not Canadians with that request because a heck of a lot of Canadians don't support the NDP. You're clearly an idiot if you think that a non-partisan person wouldn't notice the difference between a donation that would help all and a donation that would help some

[yirphd]

@westeightyone Alright then, my apologies for calling you a tea-partier, and Yosemite Sam... (I can bet my life that I won't get an apology in return... your list of names is too long!). AND then you go on to do more name-calling! :-D ("...clearly an idiot", etc.)... I simply don't accept your argument. Everyone - partisan or not - will understand that Jack Layton wanted to help Canada in accordance with his beliefs in how to achieve that fairly. You have a poor debating style.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd I couldn't care less if you call me names. I called your attention to your hypocrisy. Throw the stone and I'll throw it back at you twice as hard. You clearly are an idiot.. Everyone - partisan or not - doesn't accept that Jack Layton thought about helping every Canadian when he made a request that's designed to help only those Canadians who embrace his party's ideology. You can't imagine how much your opinion of my

' debating style' means to me, but everybody else reading this can.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone Gosh, you're really bad at debating aren't you? Much name-calling, but no logic. It's pretty hard to take you seriously. I'm here trying to have a reasonable argument and you're this big rage-a-holic who doesn't listen to what I'm saying. Sad :-P

[westeightyone]

@yirphd I've been using logic on an illogical person. I don't take you seriously and I seriously doubt the cognitive abilities of anybody who would take you seriously. You haven't been trying to have a 'reasonable' argument. You've been trying to make excuses - and failing miserably - for Jack Layton making a selfish request

that only benefits the NDP. You accuse me of much name-calling and then you call me a ' big rage-a-holic' .

I'm way too busy laughing at you to be angry.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone And you didn't answer a single one of my questions! You didn't even try! You are avoiding them because you don't know how to answer them. Excessive name-calling is a sure sign that you've lost the argument.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd According to your so-called 'logic', you lost the argument right at the start. Then again, you never had a real argument to start with. I've explained the difference between making a donation to a non-partisan charity that benefits every Canadians and making a donation to an NDP think tank. You're either just too stupid to get it

or you're too stupid to admit that you get it. In any event, you're embarrassing yourself.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone In my view, Jack was the one who wanted to help ALL, not just SOME. That is the foundation for the entire social democratic philosophy. Conservativism - however well meaning - simply does not accomplish that. It would have been Jack's view that Ed Broadbent - someone with a formidable intellect - would be in a good position to advance the debate about how society's goods should be distributed. People like you simply don't want that debate to ever happen.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

Jack Layton was the one who wanted to help his political party ( SOME Canadians ) not all Canadians

( the MAJORITY who do not support the NDP ) by requesting that donations be made to an NDP think tank.

Layton suggested forming a coalition with the Bloc, the Liberals and the NDP. Why? Because a coalition would supposedly serve all the Canadians ( the MAJORITY if you add the 3 parties together) who didn't vote Conservative.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

Jack Layton abandoned the idea of setting aside political differences for the benefit of ALL Canadians when he requested that donations be made to an NDP think tank in his memory.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone And incidentally, the Broadbent Institute wasn't even mentioned in his letter! Are you criticizing a document you've never read?

[westeightyone]

@yirphd Jack Layton's request that donations be made to the Broadbent Institute ( NDP think tank) was mentioned on the NDP website.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone No, it's wasn't selfish in the slightest. It's what he believed in, and he had the sincerest intention to help Canada by doing so. You talk as though it were a political move calculated to spite the conservatives! And you didn't answer my question... why don't you just make a Jack Layton "in memoriam" donation to your favourite charity?

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

Layton didn't do it to spite the Conservatives and I never said that he did. I said that Layton was selfish because he called on Canadians to support the NDP ( his party ) with donations to The Broadbent Institute

( an NDP think tank ). The NDP mentioned a 75% tax write off for making a donation to the Broadbent Institute on the NDP website ( the offer of a 75% write off has since been removed from the site ).

Non-partisan charities don't get that kind of a write off.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone So political party A wants to support charity A. Party B wants to support charity B. You can say you don't like party A, but that's different from saying that party A has no right to support charity A (and the tax write-off is part of the campaign). I'm glad I was wrong that you think he's spiteful... but I say you are dead wrong that he was selfish. Just the opposite. And, incidentally, all charities are political to some extent.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

Really? All charities are political to some extent when it comes to serving Canadian people. When you donate blood do the nurses ask you which party you belong to ? When Layton received blood did he ask what party the donor belonged to ? Do the scientists who do cancer research refuse to apply what they've learned to patients whose politics differ from their's? Do homeless shelters and food banks turn away people who belong to certain political parties? You're brain dead.

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

When I say 'sheep' I mean NDP supporters like you specifically. It remains to be seen if most people who support the NDP party are as foolish as you are.

[yirphd]

@westeightyone haha more personal insults and name-calling... and - revealingly - NOT answering any of my questions! Maybe you're just the pissed-off owner of an Ottawa florist shop. :-D

[westeightyone]

@yirphd

More of the same because it applies. I don't blame the NDP for your stupidity but it's a certainty that NDP supporters of sound mind are embarrassed to have you associated with them.

[westeightyone]

You wrote that as if you haven't done any name calling. Who's the 'big bad enemy' that you referred to? The NDP is the opposition in a Conservative MAJORITY government. Majority rules. That's a non-partisan fact.

You still haven't acknowledged the selfishness of Layton's request for donations to an NDP think tank. Hardly anybody - if anybody - would have made a donation to the Broadbent Institute if Jack Layton hadn't requested it.

[paradigm71]

@westeightyone How the hell is that selfish? It's normal for the family of a loved one to ask for donations to a non-profit instead of flowers. Jack's life was politics. It makes sense he would ask that people donate to it. If asking people to donate to a favorite cause upon your death is selfish than pretty much everyone is selfish.

[westeightyone]

@paradigm71

Read everything that I wrote you goddamn pinhead. If you can't keep up keep it down.

[lulubelle43]

A fine tribute to a man beloved by many Canadians. We mourn your loss, Jack but our memories of you remind us of your keywords "hope" and 'optimism".

[mamadiggs]

Thank you Rex, you summed it all up.

[soniaisthewalrus]

Perfect.