News round-up

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Stories about the funding of religious schools in Ontario:

Tory's tumble
The important point is that Mr. Tory would not endow his minority faith schools with any rights that Catholics don't already enjoy. And indeed, those who believe every Ontario student should receive the benefit of the provincial curriculum have good reasons to support paying private schools to accept closer secular oversight. Which leaves only one tiny thing unclarified: what Tory meant when he blurted out "It's still called the theory of evolution" as the first part of his answer to the reporter's question. His handlers can do all the damage-control they want, but they can't bury or whitewash that one.
Colby Cosh, National Post, September 7

The hypocrisy of McGuinty's Liberals
Predictably, Dalton McGuinty's henchmen have seized on the religious-school funding issue to recreate Jean Chretien's anti-creationist propaganda campaign against Stockwell Day in the 2000 election campaign. Yesterday, Ontario Education Minister Kathleen Wynne did her best chicken-little routine, falsely implying that John Tory's proposal to fund Ontario's private religious schools would lead to the elimination of the accepted science curriculum. Given that Premier McGuinty and co. intend to continue funding Catholic schools, this election tactic is hypocritical and crass.
David Asper, National Post, September 7

Liberals, Tories aim for weak spots as campaign nears
The Liberals and Tories took aim at each other's Achilles heel Saturday, cementing Ontario's controversial health-care tax and public funding for religious schools as dominant issues leading up to an election campaign that won't officially begin until Monday.
Canadian Press, September 8

Tory takes a leap of faith
For John Tory, there was a seductive appeal to campaigning on a promise to publicly fund the province's religious schools. Not only did the Ontario Opposition Leader feel strongly about the matter, it had the added bonus of distinguishing him from his archrival, Premier Dalton McGuinty. He could present voters with a clear alternative to a leader whose policies were similar in other areas to his own. . . . Mr. Tory knows firsthand that religion is a deeply divisive subject in Ontario. The 53-year-old grew up in the corridors of provincial power. As a teenager, he was president of the Young Progressive Conservatives and in the early 1980s he served as principal secretary to former premier Bill Davis. The party's downfall in 1985 after 42 years in office was blamed on Mr. Davis's promise to provide full funding to Catholic schools.
Globe and Mail, September 8

How Bill Davis came to see the light
Reviving the debate over putting public money into religious schools will certainly open old wounds. In 1984, premier Bill Davis spent a good deal of his remaining political capital to extend full funding to Catholic high schools before retiring to the domesticity of Brampton, Ont. It was one of the more perplexing turnarounds in provincial history. Even Cardinal G. Emmett Carter had not expected such a spectacular victory. And some have argued that the decision Mr. Davis sprung on most of his cabinet and all of his caucus eventually resulted in the Tories' fall from power, ending an unprecedented 43-year reign. . . . The decision made by Mr. Davis is a central factor in the current debate, but the full story of just what happened has never been a matter of public record.
Globe and Mail, September 8

Smitherman slams Tory's handling of religious schools funding issue
Minister says price tag for plan is $100M higher than PC leader promises
Toronto Star, September 9

Liberal lead over Tories slipping in Ontario: poll
The Liberal lead over the Progressive Conservatives has dipped to five points even as a majority of voters oppose John Tory's plan for faith-based funding, according to a new Ipsos Reid poll released as the Ontario election campaign officially begins today.
CanWest News Service, September 10

My vision for Ontario's schools
When Ontario votes on Oct. 10, I want my fellow citizens to know this: We're putting education at the centre of our campaign. We are going to fight for public education. I am proud of our record and we're getting results, but there's lot's more to be done. I think it's especially important in this election that Ontarians understand what is at stake.
Dalton McGuinty, National Post, September 10

Proposal to fund religious schools dogs Tory; McGuinty vows no new taxes (again)
Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory's plan to fund private faith-based schools drew tepid support from even his own supporters Tuesday as a new poll suggested he faces an even steeper uphill climb to defeat Ontario's governing Liberals. If there was a silver lining in Tory's day, it was the sight of his principal rival, Premier Dalton McGuinty, awkwardly repeating a promise he made - and broke - four years ago Tuesday: no new taxes or tax increases.
Canadian Press, September 11

McGuinty staking future on religious school stance
Premier Dalton McGuinty has clearly staked his government's future on a single issue -- opposition to public funding for religious schools. In a series of speeches, press conferences and ads in the past 48 hours, McGuinty stated that public education is "threatened" by Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory's proposal to extend funding beyond just the Catholic system to all "faith-based" schools.
Ian Urquhart, Toronto Star, September 11

John Tory's hornet's nest
For John Tory, the man who wants to be premier of Ontario, the news on the doorsteps isn't good. Nobody wants to talk about the health tax, leadership or the economy. Instead, it's all about religious schools. Most people are flatly opposed to Mr. Tory's promise to fund more of them. Tempers run highest in Toronto, where the Conservative candidate is hoping for a breakthrough. Raise the issue at any dinner party, and watch everyone start yelling. "I can't understand why he made it an issue," say more Tory supporters than I can count.
Margaret Wente, Globe and Mail, September 11

John Tory's problem: too much rubber chicken
I am talking here of the rubber chicken dinners every politician attends in hopes of securing endorsements from this or that civic group. A generation ago, this meant going to the Rotary Club, or a local church. But times have changed in multicultural Ontario. And the hottest rubber-chicken gigs are now splashy dinners hosted by ethnic and religious groups in grand hotel ballrooms. . . . I'm betting that Tory hatched on his school-funding idea sometime between the chicken and the dessert -- when he was shaking hands with a steady stream of parents, each of whom trotted up to the head table to tell Tory why the state should pay for his kids' religious education. In a private session after the event, community leaders gave Tory the same message. "This is what our base wants," they told him. "This issue will guide how our people vote."
Jonathan Kay, National Post, September 11

Broken promises in Canada aren't necessarily fatal
Dalton McGuinty, meet Jesus Christ. You have something in common, apparently, though it has nothing to do with faith-based school funding and, most assuredly, nothing to do with walking on water - no matter what time of the year an Ontario provincial election might be held. No, it's all about broken promises.
Roy MacGregor, Globe and Mail, September 11

Tory cuts medical students a break
Mr. Tory said it might have been a mistake to enshrine support for Catholic schools in the BNA act, but that those schools have proven to be successful. He said he wants to offer the same benefits to other religious minorities.
Globe and Mail, September 12

McGuinty's critics seize on school selection
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, who has been accused of hypocrisy because of his position on faith-based schools, literally sidestepped the issue yesterday -- ignoring his Catholic alma matter in favour of a secular public school two doors down.
CanWest News Service, September 12

Earlier: Stories about the funding of religious schools in Ontario

Stories about allegations of abuse and cult practices at Grenville Christian College:

Anglicans weigh sanctions against priest
Probe launched into alleged abuse at Grenville College
Globe and Mail, September 7

Grenville probe widens to include ex-teachers
The investigation into Grenville Christian College has widened with allegations of abuse involving former teachers -- allegations that will be heard firsthand Saturday at an inquiry established by an Anglican bishop of Eastern Ontario.
Globe and Mail, September 8

Earlier: Stories about allegations of abuse and cult practices at Grenville Christian College

Stories about the polygamous cult at Bountiful:

B.C. attorney general again reviews decision not to lay polygamy charges
Yet another review has been ordered on whether criminal charges can be laid against members of a B.C. polygamist colony. This time, high-profile lawyer Leonard Doust is being asked to review a report that concluded there wasn't enough evidence to charge members at the breakaway Mormon sect in Bountiful, B.C., with sexual offences.
Canadian Press, September 7

Look at polygamist colony again, B.C. A-G asks
Attorney-General Wally Oppal has asked for a second opinion on a special prosecutor's report that recommended Canada's anti-polygamy law be referred to the Supreme Court of Canada for a test of its constitutional validity. Mr. Oppal has asked B.C.'s Criminal Justice Branch to hire Vancouver lawyer Leonard Doust to review the report submitted last July by Special Prosecutor Richard Peck, which recommended that no sexual assault charges be laid against residents of the polygamous community of Bountiful in southeastern B.C.
Globe and Mail, September 8

A-G appoints lawyer to revisit polygamy report
B.C.'s Attorney-General has appointed power lawyer Leonard Doust -- one of 17 lawyers on the Air India prosecution team -- to take a more "aggressive approach" in reviewing allegations of misconduct in the polygamist community of Bountiful.
Vancouver Sun, September 8

Warren Jeffs: Prophet or monster?
'Prophet' of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been compared to the Taliban in Afghanistan, while others have called him a 'tyrant'
Daphne Bramham, Vancouver Sun, September 8

Feared more than loved
Warren Jeffs is said to have more than 80 wives -- about a dozen his father's widows
Daphne Bramham, Vancouver Sun, September 8

Tough job picking a jury for Jeffs
Leader of North America's largest polygamist sect has few 'peers' as questionnaire disqualifies many
Daphne Bramham, Vancouver Sun, September 11

Witness list at Jeffs trial almost a family affair
Mothers will be pitted against daughters, sons against fathers when the trial of Warren Jeffs, the polygamous prophet, begins possibly on Thursday. The splitting of families on the witness lists echoes the fissure Jeffs has caused in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS) and also the deep and unbridgeable gap between those who still believe in the FLDS and those who don't.
Daphne Bramham, Vancouver Sun, September 12

Earlier: Stories about polygamy

Stories about Islam, veiled voters, and the West:

Quebec debate over face-covering during vote rouses everyone except Muslims
Federal and Quebec political leaders have unanimously blasted an Elections Canada decision to let Muslim women wear traditional face coverings when voting in three federal byelections in Quebec. Muslims groups say they are mystified about the uproar, saying they never asked for any special treatment.
Canadian Press, September 7

Muslim women won't have to unveil to vote
Muslim women with their faces covered by niqabs or burkas will be allowed to vote in three Quebec federal by-elections Sept. 17 without removing them, Elections Canada said yesterday. The women, however, will have to present a valid piece of identification with a photo and another document proving their identity. If they do not have these two documents, a woman with her face covered can have her identity confirmed by another voter in the same polling station.
Montreal Gazette, September 7

Criticism of PM led Tories to kill Khan report, MPs say
16-day trip to Middle East cost $38,000, but Foreign Affairs officials say no one has seen ex-Liberal's final version of document
Globe and Mail, September 7

Continue article >>

Canadians with faces veiled can vote
The announcement will be deeply divisive in Quebec, where there is both a sizeable Muslim population and heated opposition to this and other types of accommodation -- a touchy word in the province that refers to concessions it might make to its religious and cultural minorities.
National Post, September 8

Growing up Muslim
Four teens say they appreciate most things Canadian; freedom of speech is near the top
Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun, September 8

PM rips 'veil' ruling
Threatens action if agency doesn't back off decision to allow women to cover their faces when voting
Toronto Star, September 10

Wrong to let veiled women vote, Harper says
Stephen Harper is accusing Elections Canada of overstepping its boundaries by deciding that veiled women can vote without revealing their faces in upcoming federal byelections in Quebec. "I profoundly disagree with the decision," the Prime Minster said yesterday after wrapping up a summit with Pacific Rim leaders gathered in Australia. "We just adopted this past sitting in the spring, Bill C-31, a law designed to have the visual identification of voters. That's the purpose of the law. That was the law adopted, I think virtually unanimously by Parliament, and I think this decision goes in an entirely different direction."
CanWest News Service, September 10

Ismaili Walk for Kids raises $330,000 for United Way
While many kids were busy doing as little as possible over the summer, Aly Lalji, 12, and his brother Rehman, 14, of Burnaby, spent August canvassing to raise money for the United Way. "I like to help people," Aly said.
Vancouver Sun, September 10

Voting while veiled
The decision last week by Elections Canada to permit voting by "electors wearing face coverings for religious practices" is not as smart as it could be, but it is not as dumb as it sounds. Indeed, the bureaucrats who devised the new rules must have been surprised by how swiftly and negatively three of the four federal political parties reacted to the announcement (only the NDP approved of the rules). After all, the regulations for "veiled voting" are based on a June, 2006, report by the all-party Commons committee in charge of setting election laws.
Lorne Gunter, National Post, September 10

Pakistani preacher promoting jihad did not violate broadcast standards, VisionTV says
VisionTV says it did not violate Canadian broadcasting standards when it aired lectures by a fundamentalist Pakistani preacher whose appearance on the multi-faith channel sparked dozens of complaints.
National Post, September 11

Elections boss OKs veiled voting
Muslim women wearing face-covering niqabs or burqas will be allowed to vote in federal elections, Canada's Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand said yesterday, and if members of Parliament don't like it, they should change the law.
Ottawa Citizen, September 11

MPs vs. elections chief flap over veils
Muslim women wearing face-covering niqabs or burqas will be allowed to vote in federal elections, Canada's chief electoral officer, Marc Mayrand, declared yesterday, and if members of Parliament don't like it, they should change the law.
Montreal Gazette, September 11

Tories ready to legislate over veil controversy
The Conservative government is prepared to legislate, if need be, to require Muslim women wearing niqabs and burkhas to show their faces to vote, Democratic Reform Minister Peter Van Loan said Tuesday -- as the showdown between Parliament and Canada's chief electoral officer continued to unfold.
CanWest News Service, September 11

Chief electoral officer free to do as he pleases
Canada's chief electoral officer threw up his hands yesterday and said that allowing Muslim women to vote with their faces veiled was a result of a parliamentary oversight and has nothing to do with him. It brought to mind a quip by John Crosbie, who, as federal transport minister in the Mulroney government, said: "No one understands airline fares. Why I should be expected to understand them is beyond me."
John Ivison, National Post, September 11

End this coverup
Rare is the moment when all political parties reach consensus on an issue. But they have rightly done so in response to the ridiculous notion that burka-wearing Canadian voters should be allowed to cast ballots in federal elections without showing their faces. Politicians live in the real world. Sadly, that sometimes means multiple votes cast fraudulently to tilt an election outcome.
Sheila Copps, Toronto Sun, September 12

Taliban stooge
Yvonne Ridley is a strident apologist for Islamist terrorists. So what is she doing at Canadian Islamic Congress fundraisers?
Barbara Kay, National Post, September 12

Earlier: Stories about Islam and the West

Stories about religious minorities in Quebec:

Controversial public hearings begin on how minorities fit into Quebec society
A controversial set of public hearings to determine how immigrants should fit into Quebec society is slated to begin hearing from Quebecers of all origins on Monday night. The commission, headed by philosopher Charles Taylor and sociologist Gerard Bouchard, are holding hearings in 17 Quebec communities, beginning in Gatineau, Que.
Canadian Press, September 9

Commission talks dredge up Quebeckers' ire toward minorities
Muslims, Jews, gays, anglophones, evangelical Christians and immigrants in general. All were singled out in a negative light Monday night at the opening session of a commission into what Quebeckers think is unreasonable accommodation of minorities.
Globe and Mail, September 10

Federal workers blast political correctness
Federal bureaucrats are calling for a crackdown on open displays of religion in government workplaces, using a provincial commission Tuesday to outline their concerns. Ottawa is being drawn into Quebec's explosive debate over "reasonable accommodation" for minorities, as several public servants in this government town condemned concessions being made in their workplace.
Globe and Mail, September 11

Accommodation has its limits, panel told
Quebec's travelling commission on reasonable accommodation seemed headed for a rocky start, with one co-chairman absent as he convalesced from arm surgery and the other apologizing "to all Quebecers" for implying in a recent interview that they lack intellectual depth. Some observers worried the hearings called by Premier Jean Charest to examine ways of accommodating minorities in Quebec society would become a soapbox for bigots. But as the commission began receiving its first formal submissions yesterday, what it heard were mainly thoughtful Quebecers grappling with an issue that has dominated discussion in the province for the past year.
National Post, September 12

Don't undermine sexual equality, Quebec accommodation hearing told
Quebecers appearing before a commission studying reasonable accommodation of immigrants have once again raised concerns about sexual equality. Close to 100 hundred people gathered in Rouyn-Noranda, 640 kilometres northeast of Montreal, for the commission's second stop on its provincewide tour. Many criticized accommodations for religious minorities that undermine equality between men and women.
Canadian Press, September 12

Earlier: Stories about religious minorities in Quebec

Other stories from the past week:

Pro-life group twice denied club status by college student union
Capilano College Students' Union, a pro-choice organization, is denying that they discriminated against a group of religious, anti-abortion Capilano College students when they twice denied them club status on campus. Union representative Lindsay Clarke said the organization welcomes religious groups but had to draw the line in the case of the Capilano College Heartbeat Club because it planned to take action by campaigning and lobbying government to further a pro-life agenda.
North Shore News, September 2

Full-day kindergarten gets top marks
Catholic board's pilot program shows that all-day classes boost reading, social skills in young children
Toronto Star, September 7

Our infatuation with forgiveness
It's a funny thing. Christianity preaches forgiveness, and even today the squishy willingness to forgive just about anything may deck itself in Christian garb. Yet, the devout Christian isn't nearly as keen to forgive as your typical secularist. "Hate the sin, love the sinner," runs a precis of the Christian position. This neatly captures the tension in the soul of the Christian. . . . It's different with most people today. They don't even believe in sin. They're more likely to conceive all deviance as the effect of some pathology the proper response to which is therapy. So understood, even the worst behaviour is so far from being unforgivable that it's not even forgivable. To forgive, you must begin by holding one responsible, and you can't do that for conduct understood as merely a symptom.
Clifford Orwin, Globe and Mail, September 7

Orthodox Jewish hockey player may have to decide between sport and religion
A young Quebec hockey player may next week be choosing between his religion and his passion -- hockey. Benjamin Rubin, 18, comes from a very religious Jewish Orthodox family and was given permission not to play a number of games during the Sabbath last year.
CanWest News Service, September 7

The everyman tenor
I l Maestro e morto. Yet the voice is still heard, and was near ubiquitous yesterday on the day of Luciano Pavarotti's death. He is survived by thousands of recordings in every possible medium. He can be downloaded for your cellphone -- La donna e mobile -- or for your alarm clock: Nessun Dorma.
Fr. Raymond J. de Souza, National Post, September 7

Gossip, when it's not too nasty, has its good side
It helps us discern moral standards, bond with others and acquire information outside of official channels
Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun, September 8

Case of sextuplets seized for blood transfusions back in court
A lawyer for the B.C. government says it's impractical for a judicial hearing to be held within seven days of a child being apprehended for medical treatment. George Copley told the B.C. Supreme Court that complex legal issues involving the Charter of Rights would prevent a speedy hearing. . . . Four of the babies survived and received blood transfusions against the wishes of the parents, who are Jehovah's Witnesses.
Canadian Press, September 10
Earlier: Stories about Jehovah's Witnesses and healthcare

Workers back on job at Montreal cemetery as burials resume on Wednesday
According to the cemetery, there were 498 bodies awaiting burial at the Roman Catholic cemetery, including 151 destined for mausoleums. Management believes it will take between nine and 12 weeks to complete the burials.
Canadian Press, September 10
Earlier: Stories about the Montreal cemetery lockout

Deportee can stay to change religion
Declaring "everyone has the right to change religion," a federal court judge is allowing a failed refugee claimant who was ordered out of Canada after a criminal conviction to remain in the country to continue a religious conversion. Federal Court of Canada Judge Sean Harrington stopped this Saturday's deportation of a Christian man from Brazil so he can complete his conversion to Judaism alongside his Jewish wife and his sponsoring rabbi. The ruling, in favour of Diogo Cichaczewski, is believed to be the first of its kind.
National Post, September 12

One note, many emotions
For Jews, the shofar blast connotes freedom and hope -- but also fear
Yoni Goldstein, National Post, September 12

Same-sex unions growing at five times that rate of heterosexual ones: census
Same-sex unions are growing at five times the rate of opposite-sex ones according to census numbers that also reveal, for the first time, the number of homosexual marriages in Canada. Some 45,300 couples, both common law and married, reported as same-sex in the 2006 census, up from 34,200. Those numbers represent a 33 per cent surge since 2001, while heterosexual couples grew by just six per cent in the same time period.
Canadian Press, September 12

September 13/2007