Just who are these three kangaroo court "judges"?

There are three of them -- which is highly unusual. I'll get to that in another post. But let's look at those three: Heather MacNaughton, Tonie Beharrell and Kurt Neuenfeldt.

I've written about the plumb stupidity of Tonie Beharrell before. I didn't mention her name -- I just discussed her insane ruling. She was the human rights tribunal member who punished a bus company for trying to reform bus drivers who had absentee rates of up to 118 days a year. You read that right: bus drivers who skipped work 118 days a year, and still got paid, had a "human right" not to be corrected by the bus company. Not just that, but the bus company was ordered to pay them four-figure sums for their "pain and suffering" of being told to get back to work.

You can read that abomination of a ruling here. And here was my blog on the subject.

The good news is that Beharrell, the woman who knew nothing about running a bus company, is now one of the three panellists who know nothing about publishing -- or constitutional freedoms, more importantly -- who is now presiding over Maclean's.

That's the first panellist. Then there's Kurt Neuenfeldt. Here's a ruling Neuenfeldt made a few years ago. It's a case of a tenant complaining about a landlord. The landlord, conveniently, was never served with papers advising him of the hearing. If you think that the mere technicality of not letting the defendant know he was going to be on trial would stop a human rights tribunal chieftain like Neuenfeldt, you don't know human rights commissions.

Here are the "facts" that Neuenfeldt heard from the complainant, Ellen Raweater -- otherwise known as half the story. Raweater, a single mom with three kids, rented a basement suite from the respondent, Steve MacDonald. One day MacDonald complained to Raweater that her 16-year-old son had been causing a disturbance, and he was getting complaints from the neighbours about him.

That's it.

Raweater, naturally, charged MacDonald with anti-Aboriginal bigotry. Her proof: when Raweater caused a fuss, MacDonald asked her if she was going to complain to "Indian Affairs" about it. He didn't kick her out. But he "discriminated".

Years passed. The teenager continued to cause problems. MacDonald had the impertinence to ask about the missing dad, and dared suggest the kid would be "more controllable" if he saw his dad.

Bigot!

There are more petty complaints -- and we never hear the other side of the story. Some of them go to the hygiene of the apartment. Whether or not those allegations are true, they're not human rights complaints based on racism.

Raweater demanded $30,000 for her pains. Neuenfeldt gave her $1,774 and an "order" to MacDonald to stop being a racist.

Gee. If Neuenfeldt called MacDonald a racist, what words will be left to describe the dreaded Mark Steyn?

But neither Neuenfeldt nor Beharrell come close to the queen bee of human rights nannies, Heather MacNaughton. MacNaughton is a social engineer of the first order. Look at this staggering monster of a ruling, in which MacNaughton single-handedly arrogates unto herself the power of the Minister of Education and Finance Minister of British Columbia.

The case was about learning disabled students, and funding for special programs for them. There are a dozen different points of view on the subject; and that is just one of the many subjects that must be dealt with by the Minister of Education; and his needs and priorities are just one of the many demands on the treasury of B.C. that must be juggled by the Treasurer, and ultimately, by the Premier. It's called politics; and if the government doesn't get the balance right, it can be pressured by the opposition (and the media; and other activists); and ultimately be replaced in an election.

But that's too slow and messy. Why not take it to the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal, and get Heather MacNaughton -- not elected to anything, of course; not an expert in education; or budgeting; not having run any business of any size, let alone Canada's third-largest province -- and have her seize control of every damn school in the province.

MacNaughton's stunning ruling issued orders to the entire ministry of education; she took a single complaint, and used it as a pretext for commandeering the whole province. See page 300 of her monstrosity (my bolding; SLD stands for severe learning disabled):

[1024] In addition, pursuant to s. 37(2)(c), I order the Ministry, within one year of this decision, to:

i) make available funding for SLD students at actual incidence levels;

ii) establish mechanisms for determining that the support and accommodation services provided to SLD students in the Province are appropriate and meet the stated goals of the School Act and the Special Needs Student Order;

iii) ensure that all districts have in place early intervention programs so that SLD students can be identified early and appropriate intensive remediation services provided; and

iv) ensure that all school districts have in place a range of services to meet the needs of SLD students.

[1025] Finally, pursuant to s. 37(2)(c), I order the District, within one year of this decision, to:

i) establish mechanisms for determining that its delivery of services to SLD students are appropriate and meet the stated goals of the School Act, the Special Needs Student Order, and the 1995 Manual;

ii) ensure that it has in place an early intervention program so that SLD students can be identified early and appropriate intensive remediation services provided; and

iii) ensure that it has in place a range of services to meet the needs of its SLD students.

[1026] The Tribunal will remain seized of this matter to ensure that its remedial orders are appropriately implemented.

I have no expertise on how to handle severe learning disabled students; and how to weigh their needs against every other competing need in education. Neither does MacNaughton. I have no democratic legitimacy; neither does MacNaughton. I have no accountability to the voters, I have no responsibility to make a budget work; neither does MacNaughton. I would have the humility to say "I have no clue"; and then to say "it's not my job". MacNaughton, instead, said, "I am the boss of this until I tell you otherwise."

Would a woman who commandeers a province's school system and budget, and imposes her own particular priorities, really hesitate to do something as modest as commandeer a magazine's pages and tell them what to print?

Each of these three panellists is an expert in precisely nothing -- nothing except grievances and how little grifters use the now-meaningless phrase "human rights" to liberate a few thousand here, a few thousand there from unsuspecting marks -- or in MacNaughton's school decision, a few million here, a few million there. Their naivete, lack of expertise and lack of legitimate authority is inversely proportional to their zealous arrogance that only they and their supreme moral righteousness can save B.C.

Those are the three moral eunuchs who now stand in judgment of Mark Steyn and Maclean's.