Eh, Canada: Stephen Harper's Speechwriter Abused Copy-Paste Privileges
(I'm unsuspending coverage of Canada's federal elections today, but maybe later this week I'll un-unsuspend it, depending on the actions of Congress and also my horoscope.)
Remember when you were in grade school and that kid got caught copying someone else's homework? That's exactly what happened in Canada this week — just substitute international politics for "grade school," a Conservative speechwriter for "that kid" and a speech about Iraq for "homework"…
Stephen Harper's 2003 speech urging Canada to join the U.S. assault on Iraq was plagiarized from one given by the Australian prime minister two days previously, and the man who wrote it resigned Tuesday as a researcher for the Conservative election campaign…
"Pressed for time, I was overzealous in copying segments of another world leader's speech," [speechwriting scoundrel Owen] Lippert said in a statement issued by the Conservative Party, five hours after the Tories accused the Liberals of "desperation" and "gotcha journalism" in revealing the plagiarism.
Good lord, the Tories can't even react to accusations of plagiarism without plagiarizing John McCain!
RSS
is anyone under standing this
who and the hell came up with the number 700 billion $ why not 200 or 100 or 1 trillion why cant we start at half and make there azz'z work alittle
And yet the similarity in beliefs and message meant that it took five years to figure out the similarity was due to plagiarism.
Thanks for the unsuspension! We un-unappreciate it.
Yeah, it's kinda depressing how frequently (and badly) our politicians are copying all the buzzwords and catchphrases from the American election. Still, with five (five!!) parties duking it out, you had to figure they'd run out of fresh material eventually.
That being said, if I hear "gotcha journalism" or "elitism" one more time on our side of the border, I'm staking a hobo to death with a roadside campaign sign.