Say it ain't so, Warren!

I'm not a big fan of bloggers. I can't even really tell you why I'm doing one myself. That being said, I've found myself being a fan of one blog in particular (you can see by the link section on the right). Warren Kinsella's blog offers an interesting mix of Canadian politics from an insider's view, while maintaining a punk-rock ethic that has always reassured me that there are still some people in this political game that are what I'd consider "the good guys". I've always thought that the best way to change a system is from the inside out...
That's why I was so disturbed to read an article today in my media scan, which has been posted, in various forms, in the Toronto Star, the Toronto Sun, the National Post and the Ottawa Citizen. In it, Mr. Kinsella is accused of using his considerable political clout to stall/kill a proposed environmental law on behalf of it's intended target, the chemical industry.
Now I don't know Warren Kinsella personally, but after reading his site for a while, I find this a little hard to believe. I'm hoping this is a case of exhageration on the part of the media (because that wouldn't be the first time that's happened!) That's why I'm hoping he'll respond, either directly through email or on his own site, in either case I'll post his rebuttal. Here is excepts for the arcticle in question:

Bill 133, the proposed environmental legislation that would slap fines of up to $100,000 a day on corporate polluters, has been sent to committee instead of the legislature for debate, which has some opposition members up in arms.

Warren Kinsella, by all accounts, a Liberal party insider, and recently a registered lobbyist for the Coalition for a Sustainable Environment, is being named as the reason for the bill being sent to committee, rather than to the floor. The coalition is made up of corporations that are against the legislation.

Speaking in the legislature, NDP Leader Howard Hampton stated, “You bring forward Bill 133 about six months ago, with lots of rhetoric, and then for six months it languishes on the order paper. Nothing happens. On March 14, Warren Kinsella signs up as the lobbyist for the chemical industry that wants this bill watered down. Now, just days later, the bill doesn’t come forward for debate; it goes out the side door to committee.”

Ouch. Let's keep an eye on this one.

UPDATE: Warren's reply was brief, and posted on his site: "I don't ever comment here on client matters, ever, and I'm not about to start."