Thank you, Mr. Speaker and thank you, Members. Mr. Speaker, I enjoyed Mr. Picco's story earlier today about I.C. Clearly and Fiscally Cat. Mr. Speaker, while I have a tremendous amount of respect for Mr. Picco's oratory skills and sense of history, on occasion he has been known to suffer from factual dyslexia, an ailment that causes him to mix up most of the simple facts.

You see, Mr. Speaker, I have also had the same story and the facts are somewhat different than Mr. Picco led the House to believe. Mr. Speaker, there was a man named I.C. Clearly who came from a land, far from the east, with bad clothes, a thick accent and a passion to make a difference to his people. Mr. Speaker, Fiscally Cat was an experienced and wise sage who knew the intricacies of the realm. Fiscally Cat saw, in I.C. Clearly, the potential to do great things and tried to do all he could to assist him. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, often the best intentions go astray.

Fiscally Cat counselled I.C. Clearly with his thick accent and clothing but, finally, despite his substantial efforts, was forced to concede that bad taste was not curable. In fact, Mr. Speaker, the situation only worsened when I.C. Clearly began to believe his own rhetoric. I.C. Clearly began to listen to the radio to hear his voice. He crafted his speeches in search of the elusive soundbite. I.C. Clearly began to believe that he, and he alone, was capable of bringing sense to the chaos. In his own mind, Mr. Speaker, I.C. Clearly was a martyr who had achieved myth-like status.

Mr. Speaker, to all others, throughout the land, it became clear that his ego had overtaken his sense of reason. Mr. Speaker, the moral of the story is that Fiscally Cat vowed solutions over soundbites. On the other hand, to I.C. Clearly, the solution is secondary to the soundbite. I know this story well, Mr. Speaker, I see clearly.

-- Applause