Harper, desuetude, and the folly of provincial jurisdiction:

When the United States filed to have Marc Emery extradited to face charges of trafficing in illegal narcotics it cited the fact that Canada had a law on the books that made the sale of marijuana seeds illegal, thus making Mr. Emery eligible for extradition. Critics pointed out that the law hadn't been enforced since 1968 making the law fall into what is known as desuetude The provinces have allowed the federal government to subidise hospital care insurance (at the very core of the provincial health care perogative), since roughly 1960, under the Diefenbaker government.

Therefore, if the law on marijuana has fallen into desuetude, it can be argued that the provincial perogative of sole responsibility for health care has also fallen into disuetude. It follows that Paul Martin is more than justified in ripping any rebel premiers a new one on health care, it's the perogative of cabinet to do so. Stephen Harper's pledge to uphold a legal right, which the provinces gave up voluntarily, rings hollow as a result. If he said I think the provinces should have more power than they do currently as opposed to saying he would defend those current powers I would respect the logic and nuance of his arguement more but would still disagree.

Also had a great Christmas. I ate too much. We watched the Trailer Park Boys Christmas Special. And my dad gave my sister a gift so touching that she burst into tears. Best. Christmas. Ever.

And if you thought the last 70 posts sucked... Hold on for the ride of your life! Or, um, not.