Role of the Supreme Court of Canada

[CDNBear]

roflmao...you sure you want to stick withthe Rastafarians as your rebuttle to the Sikh religion?

It wasn't a rebuttle, it's a simple fact. Rastafari is a legitimate religion. It's holy sacrament is Ganja. Their right sare being infinged upon, while the Sikhs are not. Ganja, represents a much lessor danger to society then a weapon. Not to mention the philosophy of peace the Rasta believ, as apposed to the militancy expressed throughout the Sikh community and with the very words you brought in here.

I'm sorry, could you point me to the SC ruling that forbade First Nations from practicing their faith like you would have them do with the Sihks.

There isn't one. At least not to my knowledge. We aren't stupid enough to think it appropriate to sport weapons in public. We've matured in someways, and joined the 21st century society in observances of good order and respect of the values of Canadian society.

Those antiquated beliefs may still play a part in our ceremonial culture, but it doesn't consume our day to day lives. That would be just ridiculous. It's 2009 man, not the 15th century. Why would I need to sport a Tomahawk, or my blade? Why does a Sikh need to sport a dagger? I'll tell you why, because some Guru told them to and they haven't the mental accuity to join the enlightend in the 21st century.

 

[Niflmir]

Niflmir;1136997]

The following might help you understand why the courts claim to have jurisdiction to do so.

As of March 2004, the Canadian government knew that Mr. Khadr was being tortured.

I have already said that I have reluctantly reached the conclusion that Canada should seek Khadr's release.

Sleep deprivation is not torture.

Water boarding most definitely IS torture.

If he were tortured, I would support DEMANDING his release.



Currently, there is a trend in law to constrain the conduct of Canadian citizens abroad following Canadian law. The first use of this trend that I saw was the laws to convict sex offenders when they return to Canada for committing pedophilia abroad, typically in countries where it is not illegal. If the jurisdiction exists to convict said offenders, than the jurisdiction exists to constrain the actions of consular officials. In the interest of justice, this is the stance that the courts have taken.

The two are completely different. Consular officials are acting as representatives of the Canadian gov't, If they are complicit in torture, I would be overjoyed to see them charged and convicted.

I don't like supra-national law,

International law is a joke, especially on the subject of human rights.

Fair enough.

The charter of rights doesn't have much punitive power. It's a matter of perspective, but where there isn't a law which dictates a punishment, usually there isn't much they can do. All they can really do in this case is chastise the government. Torture or not, sleep deprivation for the purposes of stressing somebody before interrogating them is definitely unconstitutionally unusual punishment. Our consular officials are therefore constrained to object, in the eyes of the charter; there is really no power to do anything but officially chastise in any case.

As I said, it is funny to me, because if the current government brought him back and tried him here, they could be seen as upholders of justice and righting Liberal wrongs. But the more they sit on their hands, the more it becomes their wrong. Which of course only matters if it actually becomes more and more prominent in the media. It is hard for me to gauge that from abroad.

 

[Mowich]

Supreme Court upholds law in cross-border beer case

"In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled provinces have the constitutional right to restrict the importation of goods from another province, as long as the primary aim of the restriction is not to impede trade."

Beer not freed: Supreme Court upholds law in cross-border alcohol case | CBC News

This ruling has implications that could go far beyond buying beer in another province.

 

[Mowich]

How 'Free the Beer' ruling could impact the B.C.-Alberta pipeline war | CBC News

Supreme Court's 'free-the-beer' decision privileges one part of the Constitution over another | CBC News