Charlie Smith Should Publicly Apologize to the Prime Minister and The Chretien Family or Be Fired by the Floundering Georgia Straight Newspaper
In my reading pile was a note to remember to read Charlie’s absurd recent piece on the Indo-Canadian Community (he’s always pandering to that community. Even they’re tired of him).
This is the same guy who writes supportively of prostitutes running for public office and drugs being legalized. He regularly attacks top provincial reporters like Sean Holman and refers to me as “an NPA supporter” when I have clearly been critical of every single party in this country. He tries to discredit legitimate commentators and reporters (because we laugh at the Georgia Straight’s unbalanced, decidedly left-wing bile), but his world is perfect.
Not so fast, Charlie.
In my search, I found his most recent offering and had to check the calendar to make sure it wasn’t the first day of April.
Of all the times Smith gets it wrong (and that’s 99.9% of the time), and is simply writing to bolster the chances of his far left-wing pedigree (be it COPE, the NDP, etc), his column speculating that if Jean Chretien dies from last week’s brain surgery, it will help the Liberals win the next election, goes so far beyond anything he has tried to engineer from his soiled little perch that I am left almost speechless. Speechless, because it is the most macabre idiocy I have read from any print journalist in ages.
First of all, to illustrate what a complete whore Smith is, he doesn’t even bother doing any homework, instead, just simply throws out the hypothesis that this is even possible, as a result of his anything-goes strategy to kill off a Conservative government that has served this country well. He manipulates the data of the latest EKOS poll showing the Tories and Grits, neck and neck (EKOS always favours the Liberals), and then goes further to degrade Mr. Chretien’s right to a decent convalescence, with speculation of the former PM’s death (my God, who would do such a disgusting thing?) and then drags the current PM into it by making further insane statements about how Mr. Harper might be saying things about one of his predecessors for political gain.
Honestly, this is just beyond words.
Then, to demonstrate how lazy he is, Smith’s claims of everything from Liberal fiscal prudence under Chretien (thanks to policies maintained by Paul Martin, after they were implemented by Don Mazankowski and Michael Wilson–and a booming world economy) to Trudeau’s death giving Mr. Chretien a third win (no, that was actually delivered by the then heavily divided conservatives) to any possibility of an Ignatieff win now (the Grits do not have the money to run even half an election) are just stunning in their misinformation and inaccuracy.
But to speculate on the motivation of the current Prime Minister for offering Mr. Chretien a full and speedy recovery and then to add to the complete craziness by handicapping a future election by adding the possible death of Chretien is just beyond disgusting. It’s easily the most despicable piece of writing I’ve seen in years.
We can all disagree politically, and even say or writes things about one another that we might regret or remain over-the-top, fine–fair ball, but this piece by Smith is just entirely unforgivable.
Charlie. You’re a far left-wing loon AND a contemptible joke as a writer.
You should apologize or resign for being such an idiot (with my sincerest apologies to well-meaning idiots everywhere).
What a shameful man…
Brace yourselves and read Smith’s abominable column, here.
Thank you.
I had a hard time moving my bowels today. Thankfully, Smith’s howler of an article had me laughing so hard, I pooped myself..
Better that than the bed, I guess…
[Translate]
You’re most welcome.
[Translate]
Alex,
This is a disgraceful column, and you know it. It’s probably defamatory. It says more about you than it says about me.
Charlie Smith
[Translate]
Let me get this straight (no pun intended): You write for a paper that could very well be the soapbox for the far left–with little balance if any on almost any given issue. You routinely and embarrassingly, for you and your paper, attacked the best investigative reporter in the province, Sean Holman (when we were colleagues at 24hours–including attacking Pierre Karl Peladeau, the best media baron in the country for the crime of being a conservative); you try to discredit my legitimate story against Silly Hall for the firing of Ark Tsisserev by bringing up that I was formerly an NPA director (even though you’ve read all the columns I wrote appropriately critical of them, through the Sam years right through to today); you bitch about my position that the climate change liars you support are taking bread off the table of the poor; you pander to the Indo-Canadian community by trying to rile them with false claims as you yell nonsense about Vancouver’s racism…and now, you are plaintive when I call you out for all those infractions as well as for despicably dragging a 76 year-old man recovering from life-saving brain surgery–who served this country as Prime Minister– along with the current Prime Minister, into a column that ties them together by speculating that the death of the former might be a political death knell for the latter and you have the testicles to even think of showing up here??? To say what?! That you’re a disgusting far left loon that should be ashamed of himself and who couldn’t contain his bile for the current PM so he had to lay odds that a former one might bolster the electoral chances of Iffy–just to finish off the Harperites, who you’d love to see at the bottom of the St. Lawrence?
Charlie, I have done a lot of things in my life, but when I did something wrong, I never played indignant fool with anyone. I put my head down and said nothing–but only after I apologized. I took my lumps and learned. Your column was the most pathetic piece of journalistic shit I’ve read in YEARS. It’s gone through the community like wildfire. Even the left coasters are appalled.
IF you had any shame, you wouldn’t be looking to come around here, but instead, would apologize for what you did. I don’t agree with everything Harper has done (like not wearing an AIDS ribbon on AIDS Day or for being too hard) and I certainly never liked anything Chretien did, but they served me and my family, like they did you and yours. There are some lines you just do not cross. And you did, lavishly.
Deal with it. The only defamation is to me if someone ever said something like “You and your colleague Charlie Smith…” You are a complete disgrace, not me.
I run one of the most successful and most read political blogs in Western Canada. How you doin’ Charlie? Still sucking wind?
[Translate]
What a great post Alex!
[Translate]
Yes, I thought so myself. Notice how when Charlie showed up here he whined like a school girl instead of defending his actions, Then again, there is no defense for his actions. Chretien and Harper should be treated with some dignity in their respective positions. They’ve both earned it.
[Translate]
Bravo! I loathe that ‘paper’. Xenophilia is the word I came up with to describe their articles.
[Translate]
Miguel. Thank you so much for stopping by. Welcome! Yes, the Straight is a stunning example of how to make your credibility evaporate. The sex ads in the back are the mark of amateur hour. It’s a disgrace. And then they go on about respect and how they loathe misogyny. Hypocrites. Pls come by again! Take care.
[Translate]
Charlie should stick to union politics, it’s the ONLY thing he knows anything about; and he’s often off target there too. Perhaps he wants to emulate Suzuki in this week’s WestEnder entitled, “Deny the deniers their voice”. Like Islam , holy lies are permitted in the religion of Enviro-science, and there is to be no tolerance of any other beliefs.
It says something about the fear of the Lefty-dorky crowd over the calm common-sense of the Harper government. They’re whistling through the graveyard, folks, the flop-sweat glistens on their foreheads.
[Translate]
Well put.
[Translate]
Alex,
To my knowledge, I have never once attacked Sean Holman’s work. I have asked Sean for any evidence that I have done this.
You have called me a “whore”. You have described me as “lazy”.
You say I’m wrong 99.9 percent of the time.
You have misrepresented my blog post.
You have called me a “loon” and a “contemptible joke”.
You have also described me as a “complete disgrace”.
In addition, you suggested I be fired and you claimed that the company that employs me is “floundering”.
Where I come from, that’s defamation.
I suggest you read up on media law, Alex.
I will not be responding any further on this site to this post.
Charlie Smith
[Translate]
I didn’t misrepresent a thing.
you often sell your integrity to write something inane about how wonderful some global warming alarmist is without showing the other side. You refuse to accept that that kind of nonsense costs the poor and needy at the dinner table. Instead you bump for left wing elites, so long as they suite your fancy. You are, in my opinion, wrong 99.9% of time. If it isn’t getting it wrong on who might be the next Premier to how the federal election may play itself out, yours are the most far fetched, ridiculous positions I read. In fact, I’ve insulted loons everywhere, for which I apologize. Your column speculating on the death of a former Prime Minister is indeed a contemptible joke. It’s well beneath contempt. It is completely disgraceful before a man is even home from the hospital to be making such macabre statements. You’re sick. Would it make you feel better if Mr. Chretien died tomorrow (Heaven forbid!) so that your stupid, ill-thought out theory will somehow come to fruition?
Defamation? Are you sure you want me to reveal my sources that know the GS isn’t doing anywhere as well as last year or the year before? Is that not floundering?
Charlie, pls, you couldn’t re-teach me the law anymore than I’d take writing lessons from you.
The bottom line here is that for too long you have been unchallenged. But now you’re up against me and I will grant you no quarter. You want to be a big boy, great, don’t disrespect Canadian institutions like the Prime Minister’s office or former Prime Ministers who a could be on their death bed. You can say whatever you want afterwards, but what you did was shameful, period. Then again this is typical of the far left, just when one of your idols Libby Davies, harridan that she is, was so unkind to Brian Mulroney when he was almost dying from Pancreatitis. That’s how your ilk operates. A personal insult isn’t enough, you reall y need to hurt somebody.
Back to your rock…
[Translate]
Hi Alex, I did read a few issues of Georgia Straigh, soon realizing that the only thing of value was its price, however I get more balanced views from the left, from equally priced media venues, with much less abuse of paper.
[Translate]
Well put! Charlie Smith is getting pounded in the online pages of the Straight. As well he should.
[Translate]
Alex,
Please, I beg of you, dont inflict Charlie Smith on us New Democrats.
Have a heart.
[Translate]
My apologies…
[Translate]