JUNE 6, 2007

       Two somewhat political stories jumped out at me this week.  It’s stuff we hate hearing about but when it comes to complaining, strangely we love to hear about the governments.

       The first was the Governor General’s visit to Winnipeg.  This role has been questioned for many years, usually it’s asked, “What exactly does she do?”  And after all these years of wondering, I can honestly say I still have no idea.

       Don’t get me wrong, she seems like a very nice person and always appears to be friendly but as for her actual job description and how it benefits Canadians I’m still a little lost.

       What did her Manitoba visit consist of?  There was a trip to a graffiti gallery and then she was honoured at a university.  What for?  Again, I’ll get back to you on that.

       What do I know?  I know that she’s paid a pretty penny for doing what I’m not sure she does.

       The second story that got me thinking this week was the busting up of an illegal gambling ring. 

       Manitoba Gaming Control Commission officials complained to police that people were having Texas Hold ‘Em tournaments that weren’t provincially approved.  So of course the cops moved in, shut ‘em down and left the gamers with nowhere to play.  Pardon me, nowhere to play except at provincially-sanctioned events.

       This action angered not only gamblers but other people who question the power that governments have when it comes to how taxpayers spend their hard-earned money.  Closing down a gambling operation because the government hasn’t given you permission to use your money in that way is wrong.  Does anybody else see a control problem here?

       If I have this correct, the government only wants us losing money gambling when they are on the receiving end and able to profit from it.  Now that I think about it, that’s not a bad idea.  Sure I’ve had to convince myself that being greedy is a good thing, but it’s a win-win situation for the government when I look at it from another angle.

       And what have we learned from all this?  Questioning the government’s methods and policies is wrong and no matter how much the rules are in its favour, we just shut up and accept it.  When’s the next election anyway?