{"id":23490,"date":"2016-08-17T04:38:23","date_gmt":"2016-08-17T11:38:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=23490"},"modified":"2016-08-17T04:38:23","modified_gmt":"2016-08-17T11:38:23","slug":"squatchs-open-thread-16082016","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2016\/08\/17\/squatchs-open-thread-16082016\/","title":{"rendered":"Squatch’s Open Thread 16\/08\/2016"},"content":{"rendered":"

It is late and I cannot sleep because of the heat and humidity, currently at 88%.  To make matters worse, my one neighbour has been in and out slamming the door each time, as well as running up and down her stairs with lead feet.  This is not the first time for her antics.  I have been awakened by her before.  Temperatures on Friday and into the weekend are supposed to hit 33 C (92 F) — oh joy! NOT! — with high humidity.  Tomorrow I have physio and then I will relax in the heat if I can.<\/span><\/p>\n

Short Takes<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

CBC<\/strong><\/span><\/a> — Mauril Bélanger, the long-serving Liberal member of Parliament for Ottawa-Vanier, has died at age 61. Bélanger was diagnosed wIt is late and I cannot sleep because of the heatith ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease, following the 2015 federal election, and his condition had deteriorated rapidly. <\/p>\n

\"mauril<\/p>\n

Mauril Bélanger 15\/06\/1955 – 16\/08\/2016<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Honourary Speaker of the House<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

At the moment when Bélanger should have been celebrating his eighth electoral triumph as the member of Parliament for Ottawa-Vanier, he had struggled to find his voice to make a victory speech.<\/p>\n

And yet even in his final days, Bélanger summoned his remaining strength eight months later to attend a vote in the House of Commons where his colleagues backed his private member's bill<\/font><\/a> to make the lyrics of the national anthem more representative of all Canadians. <\/p>\n