Cdn-Firearms Digest Monday, September 1 2008 Volume 12 : Number 051 In this issue: B.C. anglers catch a fish this big- Canwest News *NFR* Local candidates keen to hit campaign trail- The Edmonton Journal Stage set for October election- Canwest News Police hunt armed robbery suspect - Toronto Star [LETTER] U.S. violent crime dropping - Toronto Star ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 01 Sep 2008 17:13:40 -0600 From: "David R.G. Jordan" Subject: B.C. anglers catch a fish this big- Canwest News *NFR* B.C. anglers catch a fish this big http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=c8a76228-aa97-4492-bcd1-28cfffca2547 Image & Caption Fishermen display the 318-kilogram sturgeon they plucked out of B.C.'s Fraser River - -Handout Matthew Ramsay , Canwest News Service Published: Monday, September 01, 2008 VANCOUVER - A hook baited with salmon meat was enough to tempt a 318-kilogram Jurassic monster from the depths of the Fraser River and more than enough to keep a local fishing guide and his clients busy. Rod Toth was on the river near Chilliwack, B.C., Aug. 27 when he hooked the massive sturgeon. For nearly three hours the five men wrestled to bring the sturgeon to the surface, taking turns cranking the reel, slowly hauling the fish through the murky water. "We didn't see it until the very end," Toth said. And when Toth's four clients finally laid eyes on the sturgeon, well, some language is best left on the river, said the guide. "They just went crazy," Toth said. "I don't think we can print some of the words coming out." With Toth at the helm, the clients grabbed the sturgeon by the mouth so they could hold it to the boat and carefully bring it to shallow water. On shore they tagged the fish, held onto its rough skin for the mother of all fish photos and released the sturgeon. It's measurements were epic - 318 kilograms, 3.2 metres long and 1.4 metre in girth. For 40-year-old Toth, it was without doubt the biggest fish he's seen in his eight years as owner of Bent Rods Guiding. He estimated its age at between 70 and 80 years old. "It's older than my dad," he noted. But it's not the oldest, or biggest fish of its type, said Mary Sue Atkinson of the Fraser River Sturgeon Conservation Society, a group that began tagging the fish in 1999. "Fraser River sturgeon are the largest fresh water fish in the world and they are the second heaviest (behind the beluga sturgeon)," said Atkinson. "They're living dinosaurs from the Jurassic age." The fish can live up to 150 years, grow to six metres and weigh more than of 600 kilograms. The longest ever caught was 3.4 metres, hooked in 2003. A second fish of the same length, weighing 360 kilograms was caught in 2006. The fish are listed as a threatened species - still recovering from intensive over-fishing in the early 1900s. They're at the top of their food chain and have been known to head out to sea. The fish will eat just about anything but prefer salmon and oolichan. One sturgeon was found to have a dead cat in its stomach, said Atkinson. There are an estimated 55,000 sturgeon in the Fraser River. © Vancouver Province 2008 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:28:44 -0600 From: "David R.G. Jordan" Subject: Local candidates keen to hit campaign trail- The Edmonton Journal Local candidates keen to hit campaign trail http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=3045a102-a2f6-43c5-a2e1-f0d9bd2254a6 PM has picked date to drop election writ Florence Loyie and Robin Collum Published: 7:38 am Federal candidates in the greater Edmonton area say they are primed and ready to hit the campaign trail as soon as the writ is dropped for a fall election. An election call could come as early as this week. Prime Minister Stephen Harper is scheduled to meet with federal Liberal Leader Stephane Dion on Monday to discuss whether their parties can find any common ground, but neither has voiced much expectation of a resolution. Harper has been hinting for weeks about a possible fall election. Canwest News Service learned this week that Harper has picked the day he will ask Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean to dissolve Parliament, although his advisers refuse to say which day that is. Some pundits are speculating the campaign could begin as early as Sept. 5, while others are betting on Sept. 7. If the writ is dropped on either of those two days, the election could be held no sooner than Oct. 14. Whatever day the campaign starts, organizers for the Conservatives, Liberals and New Democrats in Alberta say they have a full slate of candidates ready to go. All of Alberta's 28 seats in the House of Commons are currently held by Conservatives. All but two of the incumbents in the greater Edmonton area are seeking re-election. Ken Epp, MP for Edmonton-Sherwood Park, and Edmonton-St. Albert MP John Williams have both announced they are retiring from politics and won't be seeking re-election. The Liberals feel they have a good chance of winning several ridings in Edmonton, said Kevin Feehan, the party's election readiness co-chair. "We think we have very strong candidates, certainly stronger than the incumbents, and we think we can win two or three of the Edmonton ridings this time around," he said. "We are quite excited about the prospect of going back to where we were in the 1990s and the 2001 election and having three or four seats in the city." Every Liberal candidate in greater Edmonton has been campaigning actively since Christmas and they have their signs and brochures ready to go, Feehan said. Brian Stokes, an organizer with the NDP, said his party feels they have a good chance of defeating one or two of the city's incumbents, particularly in Edmonton-Strathcona, Edmonton-East and Edmonton-Centre. Linda Duncan, the NDP candidate for Edmonton-Strathcona, said she will be ready to go whenever the election is called. Duncan has held her party's nomination for the riding since just after the last election. She said she's been door-knocking and holding events for about a year already. Duncan secured office space in her riding after only a short search last week, something she thought would be difficult this time around because of low vacancy rates. "If the election had been called in the spring -- one of many times people said the election would fall -- it would have been tougher," Duncan said. Tim Uppal was given the nod as Epp's replacement as the Conservative candidate in Edmonton-Sherwood Park in late 2006, and has been unofficially campaigning since then as well. "We've been preparing, because it's been a minority government for a long time," he said. But Uppal said that he's still trying to figure out operational details like setting up phone lines and finding a campaign office. "We've already done some work and are working as hard and as fast as we can," he said. Harper has predicted the election will likely result in another minority government. floyie@thejournal.canwest.com rcollum@thejournal.canwest.com © The Edmonton Journal 2008 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:49:23 -0600 From: "David R.G. Jordan" Subject: Stage set for October election- Canwest News Stage set for October election http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=e4b7d745-0156-49e3-86f1-8fcdd7a27a4e Image & Caption Liberal leader Stephane Dion speaks to journalists after meeting with Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper at 24 Sussex Dr., Harper's official residence, in Ottawa Sept. 1. Dion said there would be a general election. - -Chris Wattie/Reuters David Akin , Canwest News Service Published: Monday, September 01, 2008 OTTAWA - Liberal Leader Stephane Dion says Prime Minister Stephen Harper will call a federal election because he has refused to give Harper a blank cheque to govern. Dion met with Harper for about 15 minutes at the prime minister's official residence Monday afternoon and said there is no common ground politically between the two parties. "Yes, there will be an election. Yes, it's official," Dion said. Dion said Harper is determined to call a general election when there is no need for one. Kory Teneycke, a spokesman for the prime minister's office, said it is clear the opposition wants to force a vote. "There are a number of things the government would like to move forward on. We are simply looking for broad areas of agreement where the government can proceed," Teneycke said. "There is very obviously no common ground there . . . The opposition obviously wanted an election." The meeting means the stage is set for an election call, which is expected this week. The stakes are personally high for both Harper and Dion as well as NDP Leader Jack Layton and Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe. Depending on the election's outcome, three of the four parties now represented in the House of Commons could be looking for a new leader after the election. Harper will begin positioning himself as a leader who is a steady, trusted hand in a time of economic uncertainty. Dion says Conservatives wasted a healthy budgetary surplus left to them by the Liberals and that Harper's economic management has brought the country to the brink of recession. © Canwest News Service 2008 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Sep 2008 11:54:46 -0700 (PDT) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Police hunt armed robbery suspect - Toronto Star http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/488123 Police hunt armed robbery suspect Aug 30, 2008 06:28 AM Stacey Askew staff reporter Police are looking for a man who robbed an armoured car company at a TD Trust in Oakville. The suspect stole a large amount of cash from outside TD Trust near Lakeshore Rd. and Appleby Ln. around 11:23 p.m. He carried what was believed to be a semi-automatic handgun and was wearing a disguise. He is described as a male, 5-foot, 7-inches to 5-foot, 9-inches tall with a thin build. Anyone with information is asked to contact Const. Jeff Weyers at 905-825-4747 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Sep 2008 11:58:09 -0700 (PDT) From: Bruce Mills Subject: [LETTER] U.S. violent crime dropping - Toronto Star http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/488488 U.S. violent crime dropping Sep 01, 2008 04:30 AM Re: Cut poverty and cut crime, Letter Aug. 29 Your letter writer should have researched recent crime stats. Canadian, U.S. and UN sources reveal that violent crime is dropping both in the United States and Canada, but violent crime is dropping 20 per cent faster in the U.S. With its liberal crime fighting policies and gun bans, Great Britain now is the most violent place in Europe with the number of shootings and knifing attacks skyrocketing, says the UN. The letter brings to mind the clueless American columnist, who said, "With the crime rate dropping so fast, why are so many criminals in jail?" Joel Sturm, Thornhill ------------------------------ End of Cdn-Firearms Digest V12 #51 ********************************** Submissions: mailto:cdn-firearms-digest@scorpion.bogend.ca Mailing List Commands: mailto:majordomo@scorpion.bogend.ca Moderator's e-mail address: mailto:drg.jordan@sasktel.net List owner: mailto:owner-cdn-firearms@scorpion.bogend.ca FAQ list: http://www.canfirearms/Skeeter/Faq/cfd-faq1.html Web Site: http://www.canfirearms.ca CFDigest Archives: http://www.canfirearms.ca/archives To unsubscribe from _all_ the lists, put the next four lines in a message and mailto:majordomo@scorpion.bogend.ca unsubscribe cdn-firearms-digest unsubscribe cdn-firearms-chat unsubscribe cdn-firearms end (To subscribe, use "subscribe" instead of "unsubscribe".)