From: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Cdn-Firearms Digest) To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Subject: Cdn-Firearms Digest V5 #6 Reply-To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Sender: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Errors-To: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Precedence: normal Cdn-Firearms Digest Friday, August 30 2002 Volume 05 : Number 006 In this issue: Senior civil servants use up entire budget for bonuses Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer Re: Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer the truth will set you free CPA Meeting in St. John's Re: NOT "Hinder," should be "Hider!" Re: Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer Unsolicited Letter from RFC Kingston Italian Garand registration info Dogs can be shot - no explanation needed ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 15:08:51 -0600 (CST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Senior civil servants use up entire budget for bonuses Sounds just like our schools, doesn't it? Everyone gets a passing grade whether they've earned it or not! http://www.nationalpost.com/components/printstory/printstory.asp?id=A15467FD-E5ED-495F-B1BE-F8DFE5B5B876 Senior civil servants use up entire budget for bonuses $25-million allotment Bill Curry National Post OTTAWA - Senior public servants have awarded themselves the entire $25-million budget allotted for performance bonuses, and an outside firm received a $240,000 contract to supervise the payout, documents reveal. Some 3,600 federal executives received bonuses of an average 7.06% of their salaries last year, under the government's "at-risk" pay program. The payments are referred to as "at risk" because they are either rewarded to strong performers or withheld from poor ones. But there was apparently little at risk last year, as bureaucrats awarded themselves the full $25-million. In each of the two years since the concept of "at-risk" pay was introduced, more than 96% of executives received bonuses. Critics were quick to denouce the payments yesterday. "It's a tidy coincidence when they don't give the ordinary civil servants a 7% raise, that they have turned around and by the back door given the executives a 7% raise and called it 'at-risk.' There is no risk when 100% get it," said John Williams, an Alliance MP and chair of the House public accounts committee, who has been a harsh critic of the at-risk program. Pat Martin, an NDP MP, also criticized the bonuses, and the government, for handing them out in a "sloppy way." "I really disapprove of using bonuses as a way to retain senior executives," he said. "If they want to attract and retain quality people, they're going to have to compensate them well and then expect them to do a good job every day, not to reward them when they do." Mr. Martin added it was "outrageous" the government had awarded a $240,000 contract to the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche to study the way it hands out performance bonuses, even though an independent board has been doing the same job since 1997. "That's absurd that they had to seek an outside third party to facilitate the fair distribution of something as simple as performance bonuses. That's a scandalous waste of money," he said. Mr. Williams laughed when told of the contract. "This is really complex stuff. You take a person's salary and times it by .07, and come up with the amount of the raise, and we're going to pay them a quarter of a million bucks to do that? It just boggles my mind that we have human resources personnel in the government by the thousands and we have to go to an outside contract to tell them how to handle a raise?" Dan Kingsbury, a Treasury Board spokesman, said the Deloitte & Touche report, which was submitted in March, 2002, is considered confidential but will be made public in the future. Carol Stephenson, the president and CEO of Lucent Technologies, who heads a federal advisory committee responsible for monitoring bonuses and pay levels, defended the contract. Her committee requested that an outside accounting firm be engaged to come up with more detailed statistics than her committee of volunteers would be able to compile, she said. As for spending the entire $25-million, Ms. Stephenson said a closer look at the numbers shows departments aren't simply spending what they've been given. "Not everybody got 7%. Some performance bonuses are higher, and some people got nothing. So using an average, that's really just an arithmetic calculation, as opposed to how you actually manage performance budgets." Among government departments, the Office of the Governor-General's Secretary gave out the largest bonuses in terms of percentage, at 9.19% of their executives' salaries. The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, and the Privy Council Office all gave around 8% in bonuses. At the low end were the Canadian Dairy Commission, at 4.3%, the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, with 5.05%, and the Canadian Centre for Management Development, at 5.77%. The documents were obtained under the Access to Information Act by Ottawa researcher Ken Rubin. There are five levels of executives in the federal public service. At the bottom level, bonuses averaged $5,642, while at the highest level, the average bonus was $16,673; the highest single payout was $22,860. Salaries for executives range from $84,700 to $160,900. Deputy ministers have their own pay category, and up to 25% of their salary can be considered "at risk." Salaries for deputy ministers range from $153,000 to $259,900. CEOs of Crown corporations receive between $98,400 and $398,900. Public service executives also receive a ranking from their supervisor based on whether they achieved the goals they set for themselves the year before. The rankings consist of three categories: workers who exceeded expectations; workers who met expectations; and workers who did not meet expectations. Figures show that executives at the highest levels were more likely to receive favourable rankings. In both 1999/2000 and 2000/2001, only about 4% of executives were assessed as not having met the requirements of the job. Since taking over the committee last year, Ms. Stephenson has urged the public service to increase the number of public servants who receive poor marks. She has said her committee will refrain from recommending further increases to the "at risk" pay program until the government shows a commitment to ensuring the program does not reward poor performers. The Treasury Board, which approved the money, stated that should any department wish to hand out larger bonuses, the money must be found from within their existing budgets. But in fiscal year 2000/2001, the average government payout was 7.06%, meaning bureaucrats spent the $25-million they were given but, on average, did not use their own money for bonuses. © Copyright 2002 National Post ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 15:48:30 -0600 (CST) From: Joe Gingrich Subject: Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 02:05:51 -0600 (CST) From: Al Dorans Subject: Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer RFC Ottawa/FED UP Canada Protecting Canadian Freedoms .............................. Dear Edward, August 29, 2002 In response to your request for a good, knowledgeable Ottawa lawyer on the Firearms Act, I would recommend Scott Murray. Al, Can you provide some information to us concerning a constitutional lawye?. Perhaps Mr. Murray can work this arena as well? If we can win a constitutional challenge the gun law will go as well. Gary Bretikreuz has provided enough research into this aspect of the firearms act that should provide the impetus necessary for a victorious constitutional challenge. One more question. Do you know of a Canadian song writer that could write, sing, and record "The Gun Law Blues"? No Gun Grabbers though! Joe ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 15:57:40 -0600 (CST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Re: Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer Joe Gingrich wrote: > One more question. Do you know of a Canadian song writer that could write, > sing, and record "The Gun Law Blues"? No Gun Grabbers though! Bruce Cockburn? How about Stompin' Tom? Yours in Liberty, Bruce Hamilton Ontario ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 16:10:08 -0600 (CST) From: Paul Ryan Subject: the truth will set you free > Peter Kearns wrote: > > You may have forgotten Paul that to either contribute to, or receive the NFA > Member Digest you must be a paid up member. You never renewed, so you don't > get what dues paying members get. You weren't banned. Your membership > lapsed. > Peter, Who ever told you that was lying to you or you are trying to lie to this list. My membership expires in the 31st of August 2002. I was banned from posting to the NFA Digest by Jim Hinter sometime in late April or early May for continually pressing for financial accountability and an election to comply with the NFA's own bylaws and an existing Court Order. If you wish I can provide you with a copy of the e-mail from Hinter banning me from posting. Paul Ryan NFA#18915F ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 17:25:51 -0600 (CST) From: "The Penney's" Subject: CPA Meeting in St. John's Guys, I believe the CPA meeting is being held at the Fairmont Hotel in St. John's, NF. How about sending them a FAX and let them know your feelings on the Firearms Act, their see-sawing on their support of the Liberal's gun law and what kind of support they can expect from the RFC if they sell-out once again? Regards, Sean Penney Contact the hotel at: [deleted] [Moderator's Note: While I laud the idea, I don't think we'd come off looking too good if we tied up the *hotel's* fax machine with messages that don't concern the running of the hotel. Now, if you could get an on-site fax number for the *CPA* *convention* *itself*, that would be another matter...BNM] ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2002 00:18:18 -0600 (CST) From: Peter Kearns Subject: Re: NOT "Hinder," should be "Hider!" Bruce Mills wrote: > What about me, Peter? I'm still a member, as far as I know - I even finally > received my copy of the Canadian Firearms Journal (after four months waiting). > Not only was I banned from sending messages, I was removed from the list(s) > entirely, so I couldn't even read it/them. > > So much for membership having its privileges... > Peter Kearns wrote: Yes, I heard hinter had removed you. (He runs the list, and is a petty dictator, so I guess you pissed him off. What you should remember is that if you criticise Hinter, or Dave, (the guy who pulls Jim's strings, and the real president of the NFA,) you have make bloody sure a whole lot of people receive the message. I cc more than 150 members who are NOT subscribed to the NFA Member Digest whenever I send a rant to that list. Hinter may be a weak corrupt and ineffectual president, but he obviously realizes that if he unsubscribed me, it would cause him a lot of problems. Did you get a copy of the bylaws yet Bruce? I have copies of the original, Tomlinsons "new and improved version," (which is what him and Hinter will try and slide through by referendum,) my amendments and Mike Martinaoff's proposals. Tomlinson's suggested bylaws, (written exclusively by him,) are designed to keep Hinter in power, and keep power from the members or the Natuional Board. Hinter and Tomlinson buried my proposed amendments, but had to quickly resurrect them when I pointed this out, Hinter said in the NFA digest "frankly I've never seen tem." I replied he is a liar and reproduced his email message to me acknowledging receipt. Same happened with Martinoffs. If you wish I can forward you copies of the NFA Digest, (Bruce,) that may be of interest to you. As a member you are entitled in my opinion to know absolutely everything that goes on in YOUR NFA. E-mail me offline at pkearns@dacro.com if you want copies. (Bruce.) > > Simon says: If Paul were an NFA Member he could read Hinter's written > > answers this week to such questions from me as: Is there now, or has there > > ever been a bank account for contributions to the Billboard Campaign? > > Please answer Yes or No. Has the NFA ever paid any money to Davidson, > > Gregory, Danyluk for legal work relating to the "Dealer Challenge?" Please > > answer Yes or No. > > For the benefit of those memebers who *have* been *banned* from even reading the > NFA "Members" mailing list, what did Hinder have to say? > Peter Kearns wrote: He sent an e-mail to the NFA Digest on 25/08/002 saying he would answer "in a few days." That turned out to be ANOTHER HINTER LIE, as we have seen nothing yet. He is sending smoke and mirrors type emails to the digest, to let everybody know he is still National President, but from reading his submissions, it is clear all he is doing is using his NFA computer to surf the internet looking for articles that other people wrote, AND THEN ATTACHING THEM TO HIS MAILS. Before he answers. There NEVER was a Billboard Campaign bank account. NO money was paid to my lawyers to retain them to fight the Dealer Challenge. Any monies donated to the NFA for these SPECIAL ACCOUNTS, (NFA Legal etc..) WENT directly into the general account. The NFA currently has ACCESS to only $10,000, while they have bills due for $24,000. The other money is still frozen and nothing has been done because even though DAT knows firearms law, he is completely useless at recovering money, and Hinter is plain lazy and won't do anything as long as his salary cheque doesn't bounce. As I said before, him and DAT are as bad a bunch of liars as the GOF were. In a recent submission to the digest I wrote exactly that, and added that Hinter and Butts should not be allowed to run for re-election unless the GOF were reinstated, as they are equally to blame for what happened. (DAT sent nme a snidey email saying I should set up a rival organization with the GOF. Hell, I detest both camps equally! Did you know Hinter is considering buying the Jeep from the NFA? (A sweetheart deal no doubt.) The MAC doesn't exist any more as far as I can see, as Randy C is now VP(F). So the MAC doesn't have a chairman any more. So much for the "elite" taking advice from members representatives! regards, Peter ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2002 00:23:14 -0600 (CST) From: "Marc Mousseau" Subject: Re: Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer > Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 02:05:51 -0600 (CST) > From: Al Dorans > Subject: Seeking a Good Ottawa Lawyer > Scott was successful in winning the case for his client. The judge accepted > Scott's argument and ruled that Bill Baldwin was not guilty. Bill had stored > his firearms properly in a safe storage container, namely his locked apartment. > In handing down his verdict, the judge advised the Crown that this case should > never have come before the court in the first place. Does this mean there exists a precedent that considers firearms locked in a house to be safely stored, even if they are not locked up within the locked house? This would be a very good precedent to use against storage charges. Al, can provide more information about this case? - -- Marc ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2002 00:26:10 -0600 (CST) From: Al Dorans Subject: Unsolicited Letter from RFC Kingston RFC Ottawa/FED UP Canada Protecting Canadian Freedoms .................................. Dear Firearms Owner, This is an unsolicited letter that I just received from Jim Shepherd in Kingston. For decades, Jim has been a staunch supporter of gun owners and the RFC. Professor Al Dorans Director, RFC Ottawa Chairman, FED UP Canada ............................................................................. From: "James L. Shepherd" To: Subject: Date: Thu, 29 Aug 2002 16:42:48 -0400 August 29, 2002. To all firearms-related organizations- For a very long time, I have been a member and active supporter of many firearms- oriented organizations but this is fast coming to a close. I am FED UP with organizations that cannot or more properly stated, will not, get together and form a united front to fight the government's gun laws. As a Director of the Frontenac Rifle & Pistol Club here in Kingston, Ontario, I can say with some authority, that a very large number of firearms owners feel the same way as I do. The support for all organizations is going to fade unless all of you get rid of that 'I want to be the leader or I won't play' attitude. Who the hell cares who runs the show? Just get the job done. I have a Commando dagger with an inscription on the blade that you would all do well to heed- 'UNITED WE CONQUER'. The other side of the coin is obvious-'DIVIDED WE WILL BE CONQUERED'. I sent a letter to EVERY MP and Senator and cassette tape to all members of the Legal & Justice Affairs Committee when Warren Allmand was chairman. I sent countless other letters to MPs and Senators. I have organized meetings to discuss C-68, attended and participated in many other meetings and answered virtually every anti-gun letter written to our local newspaper. I am a life member and monthly contributor to the NFA (a member since Bill Jones first started it as FARO), a member of Canadian Shooting Sports Association, Federation of Anglers and Hunters, etc., etc.. UNLESS YOU PEOPLE PUT AWAY YOUR PETTY DIFFERENCES AND START WORKING TOGETHER FOR THE COMMON GOOD OF EVERY FIREARMS OWNER IN THIS COUNTRY, I WILL, BEFORE VERY MUCH LONGER, TERMINATE MY MEMBERSHIP IN ALL FIREARMS-RELATED ORGANIZATIONS. I NO LONGER INTEND TO WASTE MY TIME, EFFORT AND MONEY SUPPORTING A BUNCH OF SELF-CENTERED ORGANIZATIONS THAT PUT THEIR OWN SELF-INTERESTS AHEAD OF THE GOOD OF THE PEOPLE THEY SUPPOSEDLY REPRESENT. While I may not always agree with Professor Al Dorans, his suggestion of having a central office in Ottawa, financed by all firearms organizations is one thing that EVERY FIREARMS OWNER I HAVE TALKED TO SUPPORTS. Ottawa is where it all happens. I know it, you know it, and so does every firearms owner in the country. Are you going to wait till the horse is out of the barn before you close the door? James L. Shepherd ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2002 00:30:17 -0600 (CST) From: "Rod Regier" Subject: Italian Garand registration info Could someone who has access to a registration certificate for a Beretta or Breda Garand that was based on a verified application provide details on what was recorded as the make and model? TIA ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2002 12:35:53 -0600 (CST) From: "Richard A. Fritze" Subject: Dogs can be shot - no explanation needed NOT AN AUTOBAHN: Cattle lumber across a road near Havre, Mont., where they are being moved to summer pasture. BRENT MCCOWN/THE HAVRE DAILY NEWS/AP/FILE Ranch country gives urbanites tips on etiquette By Todd Wilkinson | Special to The Christian Science Monitor BOZEMAN, MONT. - For city slickers on the East and West coasts contemplating a move to the wilds of Montana, there's something you should know. They don't plow all the dirt roads out here. To get from your front door in January to the nearest outpost of civilization, you may want to get a set of chains for the BMW - or a snowmobile. You should also be aware that you'll likely have to haul your own trash to the dump. And if a stray Angus tramples your daffodils, it's up to you, not your ranching neighbor, to keep cattle out of the garden. These and other friendly bits of advice are articulated in the "Code of the West," a document being handed out to prospective transplants in more than a dozen western counties as part of their newcomer initiation. Call it the unofficial guide to cowboy etiquette - Emily Post in chaps. "You wouldn't believe what some people complain about," says John Vincent, a recently elected commissioner of Gallatin County, Mont., which has just created its own "Code of the West" manual. "They move to Montana in search of a perceived western lifestyle and build their log castle at the end of a dirt road. Then they want taxpayers to pay for paving a path to their driveway because they don't like dirt getting on their shiny new SUV." What Mr. Vincent is really echoing is Code of the West rule No. 1: If you're headed to the Rockies in search of a quieter pastoral life, put a muzzle on the whining. Remember, this isn't Scarsdale or Beverly Hills. Adoption of the code by government officials, who are serving it up as a prelude to traditional visits from the Welcome Wagon, symbolizes how much the demographics of the region are changing - and of how deep the cultural divisions run between the ranching set and those flocking to the New West in Range Rovers. Indeed, during the 1990s, 3 million new immigrants poured into the sparsely populated Western interior. They demanded expanded services such as police and fire protection, new schools, paved roads, and snow plowing. The trouble is, providing these services could bankrupt many rural counties. In addition to the growing fiscal burdens they bring, transplants are often smitten with the idea of living closer to nature or in agricultural landscapes. Yet they sometimes find themselves repelled at the authentic elements of their new environment. Just recently, for instance, a judge in Idaho ruled on behalf of subdivision owners who wanted farmers to stop burning their fields in the fall, a practice the growers consider essential to maintaining soil fertility. The newcomers considered the smoke a nuisance. The homeowners filed suit under a clean-air law, which in court, trumped any sentimentality for the old mores of living off the land. To bridge the growing cultural divides, many counties are putting out their version of Miss Manners meets the West. This summer, Gallatin County joined Canyon County in Idaho as the latest code adherents. Gallatin's manual is borrowed from earlier ones in Larimer and Gunnison counties in Colorado. Code of the West books, in fact, are hardly new. Former Larimer County Commissioner John Clarke attributes the idea to famed Western novelist Zane Grey. "The men and women who came to this part of the county during the westward expansion of the United States were bound by an unwritten code of conduct," says Mr. Clarke. "The values of integrity and self reliance guided their decisions, actions, and interactions." EVEN before them, native Americans had a few things to say about the way whites adjusted to their new surroundings. Or didn't. "America is a country characterized by the mobility of its citizens, and strangers have been intruding into new places all the time," says Patricia Limerick, a historian at the University of Colorado at Boulder. "Indians have the longest story to tell about seeing their neighborhood inundated with newcomers." In one sense, Ms. Limerick says, the new codes enable locals to smugly put newcomers in their place. She sees elements of class conflict embedded in the code-book movement. "There's something funny about pretty darn rich people being treated as unwise bumpkins by the rural inhabitants," she says. For suburbanites accustomed to Starbucks and Pottery Barns, the codes warn of new western realities: . In many states, dogs that wander into a neighbor's pasture and start harassing livestock can be shot. No explanation needed. . Some newcomers believe irrigation ditches that run across their land are their own private creeks. They're not. Under age-old water laws, ranchers have the right to sue anyone who uses the channels for swimming or lawn watering. Two years ago, when Montana real estate agent Toni Bowen first recommended that Madison County adopt the code, her husband and fellow land broker didn't think it was a good idea. "He thought the notion of handing newcomers a sheet of paper telling them how to live ... might dissuade people from moving here," Ms. Bowen recalls. "But I would rather have customers prepared to survive rather than being disappointed." In fact, many transplants pouring into this corner of Montana are thankful for the provincial advice. "They love the Code of the West," Bowen says. "There are things in there that immigrants don't even think to ask." Yet many locals still have their pet peeves. A favorite one: the propensity of newcomers to lay on the horn when frustrated. Says Mr. Vincent: "I'm planning on having bumper stickers made that ask people the question: "Did you move here to be in such a hurry?" ------------------------------ End of Cdn-Firearms Digest V5 #6 ******************************** Submissions: mailto:cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Mailing List Commands: mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Moderator's e-mail address: mailto:acardin33@shaw.ca List owner: mailto:owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca FAQ list: http://www.magma.ca/~asd/cfd-faq1.html and http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/Faq/cfd-faq1.html Web Site: http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/homepage.html FTP Site: ftp://teapot.usask.ca/pub/cdn-firearms/ CFDigest Archives: http://www.sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca/~ab133/ or put the next command in an e-mail message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca get cdn-firearms-digest v04.n192 end (192 is the digest issue number and 04 is the volume) To unsubscribe from _all_ the lists, put the next five lines in a message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca unsubscribe cdn-firearms-digest unsubscribe cdn-firearms-alert unsubscribe cdn-firearms-chat unsubscribe cdn-firearms end (To subscribe, use "subscribe" instead of "unsubscribe".) 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