Canada Paid for US Timber 'Slush Fund'

From the 2006 Softwood Lumber Deal:

"much of the $1 billion the Canadian negotiators relinquished to the United States has been used to reward the American lumber industry and other friends of President George Bush's administration. Concerns the money would be used for a slush fund may well have been fulfilled."

But wait, it's not that at all...

"We don't like where the money went," said Peter Goldman, the director and managing attorney of the Washington Forest Law Center. "I personally would not call it a political slush fund; I'd call it a timber industry slush fund."

So let's keep in mind the figure $129 million doled out to help Forestry across all Canada. And look at what got dispersed:

$500 million to the Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports, the American lobby group that sparked the latest round in the softwood lumber dispute in the first place

FOUR TIMES as much directly to 'the enemy'

$200 million to the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, an organization created to receive the funds and dominated by timber industry executives

Almost twice as much to AMERICAN forestry, AMERICAN communities, controlled by the very people who started this.

$150 million to the American Forest Foundation, which "promotes the interests of small forest landowners"

More to AMERICAN small forest owners than ALL of Canada got.
--- figures from Andrew Macleod's story in The Tyee

So when we see Dick Harris's smiling face in the paper as he hands over a niggardly $130,000 to talk us into being farmers, WTF are we doing cheering him? It's a slap in the face to the Fort's mill workers, and the electors that supported this clown. Let's keep that in mind if an election is called. You want to support a gov't of sycophants who'll willingly give 1,200 times as much to the American Forest Foundation as they'll give to you? Let's tack on the $2 million to train people for jobs that aren't here and recalculate. That's only 75 times as much to the A.F.F. alone. 250 times as much to C.O.F.I. the bastards who crippled our whole Industry.
Is this the type of 'representation' you deserve? The figures make Chretien's Adscam look bush league. This is ONE BILLION dollars to the blackmailers, to keep up the blackmail, because they're too chicken to stand up for their own country!