Canada Election Dirt: Dion Shows His Green Shift Hypocrisy

Opinion

Barry Artiste

Much like Environmentalist Dr. David Suzuki lambasting the Conservative Government over it's Environmental Policies.

Environmentalist David Suzuki went on a Cross Country, town to town tour in a older Diesel Spewing 50 passenger Tour Bus, in which a conventional passenger van would have sufficed considering Dr. Suzuki traveled with only a handful of staff.

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion and his Green Shift plan, also smacked of hypocrisy or "do as I say and not as I do", when Dion and his political wonks took to the skies of the Great White North.

Dion not  only took his first Environmental step in a modern fuel efficient and clean burning jet, but in a polluting aging 20 year old jet.

Now, though Dion upon arriving at the airport on the other hand could be forgiven this Faux Pas, as it clearly shows Environmentalism is not Dion's Thing.

Environmentalist Dr. David Suzuki was clearly aware of his Faux Pas.

So I guess the Election Gloves are off, as a Tit for Tat war will be a brewing, with Political Parties all trying to show their Environmentalism in their glad handing travels.

One wonders who will be the first to use a Horse and Buggy to get around, though I would not put it past NDP Layton to use a Bicycle built for two.  

Though I surmise NDP Jack Layton wishes to portray a more Edgy Rock Star look, taking a page from the Obama Book, may opt for Black Leather togs to go with his Party's new persona.  

Perhaps  Conservative Stephen Harper and Liberal Stephane Dion, and Fringe Candidate Green Party Leader Elizabeth May will now have to do the same.  As my photo attest who will be the more environmentally of the bunch and to see who can leave the least Carbon Footprint.

My related story yesterday on Politicians try to Rock out their Image as well to get the youth vote, certainly shows Politicians will do anything to take a page out of the Obama Rock Star playbook.

http://www.nowpublic.com/world/obamarama-canadian-politicans-take-rock-star-note#comment-181949

http://www.ottawasun.com/canadavotes/news/2008/09/07/6686181-sun.html

Election foes rip Dion's dirty jet Other parties lambaste Grit leader for pollution-spewing campaign plane

By PETER ZIMONJIC, NATIONAL BUREAU

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion is under fire for chartering a 29-year-old, pollution-spewing jet to criss-cross the country campaigning on his Green Shift plan.

After Sun Media revealed Dion's last minute charter with Air Inuit yesterday, Conservative MP Jason Kenney accused Dion of failing to live up to his green credentials by chartering an aging aircraft that is 35% dirtier than the Conservative or NDP jets.

'HYPOCRISY' "Dion is prepared to lecture Canadians about the environment but he won't walk the talk," said Kenney. "He's using the dirtiest, least environmentally friendly campaign plane of any party underscoring his own hypocrisy on the environment."

Dion has made his Green Shift, which seeks to impose a carbon tax on individuals and businesses who pollute in exchange for a series of tax cuts and tax credits, the central plank of his election campaign.

READY FOR MONTHS While the NDP and the Conservative parties have had their modern Air Canada Airbus jets at the ready for months, the Liberals only secured their jet in the last week.

The Boeing 737 Dion chartered from Air Inuit is a 29-year-old former cargo plane that first flew for a courier company before being sold to the Saudi state-owned oil company Aramco, which used the jet for more than 20 years before selling it to a low-cost passenger airline which then sold it to Air Inuit, based in Montreal.

The jet is now mostly chartered from Air Inuit by the federal government to evacuate first nations communities in the far north.

Today the campaigns kick into high gear after an early morning visit by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean, at which he will ask her to formally dissolve Parliament.