RUPERT AND THE DANCING BEAR...

It's not a new children's story, although it features plenty of juvenile delinquent-like characters. The CON bench is strategically playing their games, greasing the slush machine to fill every crack, spark as many ribbon-cutting events as possible.

That aside, they are again dancing carefully between their covert secret agenda and appearing like polished, nearly-professional servants. For example, they were standing up loud and clear when it came to slapping down the late-night cartoon cretins from Fox's lamentable Red Eye show, who jested that Canada's soldiers needed time "to do some yoga, paint landscapes, run on the beach in gorgeous white capri pants."

It proved to be a great distractor from the current economic and fuddle-duddle that continues to stick to Stephen Harper and his government's boots.

Funny that, one of the rare exclusive interviews just over a month ago Harper granted, where he made one of those well-timed 'addressing the nation' news-drops (despite the fact that he presides over Canada, not the US) was for Fox. "We haven't had to bail out any of our financial institutions" the so-called leader said, conveniently forgetting this.

And who did he have time to meet in New York on that recent jaunt? Perhaps Glen Sather, an expert on trying to live off yesterday's achievements (at least Glen accomplished his; Harper's 'crowning glories' didn't even happen under a CONserfative administration). Maybe Rupert Everett in Blithe Spirit? Nope, it was none other than Rupert Murdoch, he of Blighted Spam.

And coincidentally, the rumours of a 'bail-out' package for a few chosen private broadcasters has been the talk of Ottawa -- along with the slow, restless smothering of the Mother Corp.

What's a newscaster/reporter to do? While the bungling management teams and sinking advertising dollars are reducing the industry to that of town crier, it's unlikely that the media will truly delve past the surface, lest they offend the current bosses.

So on one hand, you have Harper and his band tightly winding the rules to let in the likes of Faux News, hoping that they can work their 'dumbing-down' magic on the Canadian public. On the other, CON seals are up and about denouncing a Fox program for the quick 10-second TV clips at home.

Of course, it's the same faux news outlet that Harper ran to back in 2003 when he tried to sell John Howard's speech as the general sentiment among Canadian public. Nope, we haven't heard an apology for that fib, either.