Yet another Harper government appointee is under investigation for allegedly breaking the rules.

On Monday, Saulie Zajdel — a former Tory candidate and “regional advisor” for Heritage Minister James Moore — was arrested in Montreal and now faces a cadre of charges linked to the city's ongoing corruption probe.

Zajdel was, by most accounts, a rising Conservative 'star.' Over a year ago, according to CBC News, he "joined Stephen Harper for a happy-hour pub stop in Montreal as the Conservatives' best hope to win their first seat in the city in a quarter-century."

While his alleged crimes occurred in 2007 and 2008 — prior to his affiliations with the federal Conservatives — the arrest is another black mark for the Tory brand plagued with scandal.

During question period, on Monday, Liberal MP Ralph Goodale recited a laundry list of Conservative government appointees that have gone bad.

The growing list is staggering.

There's Senators Patrick Brazeau, Pamela Wallin and Mike Duffy who are all under

David Suzuki (CP)

It's no secret that David Suzuki and Stephen Harper don't see eye-to-eye on a lot of issues.

The well-known environmentalist has long chided the Harper government for its position on the Kyoto accord, its promotion of Alberta's oils sands and for weakening the Navigable Waters Act.

But Suzuki's latest attack goes well beyond the environment.

In an op-ed piece published in the Globe and Mail on Monday, Suzuki blasts the Conservative government over robocalls, accountability and even the Senate.

We’re witnessing an erosion of democratic principles. When accusations arose that robocalls were used to misdirect people from polling stations, I was appalled that people here would attempt to undermine the very heart of democracy, using a tactic found in banana republics. Even more shocking was the absence of outrage from political leaders, especially Mr. Harper, whose party was the focus of the accusations.

Our current government’s policies are guided by ideology rather than facts. Its tactics

NASA's new class of astronauts. Top row (L-R): Josh A. Cassada, Victor J. Glover, Tyler N. Hague, Christina M. Hammock. Bottom Row (L-R): Nicole Aunapu Mann, Anne C. McClain, Jessica U. Meir, Andrew R. Morgan (photos: NASA)

NASA has picked eight new astronauts, half of them women, according to a press release from the space agency.

NASA said this was the "the highest percentage of female astronaut candidates ever selected for a class." The American space agency announced that the eight astronauts were chosen from among 6,100 applicants, the equivalent of a .0013 acceptance rate.

The AP reports there are currently 49 astronauts at NASA. The newly picked group of eight will begin their training in August at Houston's Johnson Space Center.

NASA's new hire announcement comes on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the late Sally Ride's historic mission as the first woman in space. Ride remains the youngest American in space, either male or female.

NASA stressed that it chooses its astronauts based only on skill. Jay Bolden, public affairs officer at NASA, told CNN: "We have great female candidates in the pool this year. The selection is about qualifications. It has nothing to do with their genders."

In a

Irricana, Alta., councillor Wayne Niblow resigns after being charged with trafficking crack cocaine. Photo via Facebook.An Alberta town councillor has resigned from politics after being embroiled in a crack cocaine scandal.

Wayne Niblow, one of five members of the council of Irricana, Alta, resigned after being arrested and charged with trafficking drugs.

Medicine Hat police note that on May 25, Niblow was arrested with 107 grams of crack cocaine.

"Wayne Niblow, a 36-year-old Irricana resident, is charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking," according to a news release.

He was charged with two other men as part of the investigation. In total, police seized 149 grams of crack cocaine, worth an estimated $15,000.

[ More Brew: Montreal Mayor Michael Applebaum charged in corruption investigation ]

Following the arrest, the Town of Irricana announced his resignation. "Mr. Niblow tendered his resignation on June 14 citing personal reasons for his decision," the announcement read.

Niblow will not be replaced until the town's next general election in four months. He told the Calgary Sun that he stepped

More storms like Hurricane Sandy are just one possible impact of climate change on CanadaWith global carbon dioxide levels reaching a dreaded milestone last month, and the average global temperature still on the rise, it seems that government policies are now starting to fall back on plans to adapt to the effects of climate change, rather than just focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Just last week, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg released a report called A Stronger, More Resilient New York, that outlined a plan to strengthen the city's infrastructure to deal with the effects of climate change.

[ Related: Locales around the world find ways to live with climate change ]

"Six years ago, PlaNYC sounded the alarm about the dangers our city faces due to the effects of climate change and we've done a lot to attack the causes of climate change and make our city less vulnerable to its possible effects," said Mayor Bloomberg in a statement. "But Hurricane Sandy made it all too clear that, no matter how far we've come, we still face real, immediate threats. These concrete

A photo of Miles Ambridge and his Grade 2 Classmates. Family handout"This looks really bad."

That's all it would have taken from one of the 25 people involved in an unfortunate British Columbia elementary school class photograph currently making the rounds online. One person to speak up and we would have avoided a shameful and embarrassing incident.

Considering 23 of those people were Grade 2 students and one of them was a professional photographer, it is pretty clear where the blame lay.

The photo in question shows an adorable class from Herbert Spencer Elementary School in New Westminster, B.C., lined up in their Sunday best. Three rows of students and one teacher are gathered on tiered benches. Several feet away sits the wheelchair-bound Miles Ambridge, seemingly segregated from the rest of his classmates.

Heartbreakingly, Miles appears to be urging his body closer to the group, perhaps in an attempt to be included in the photo.

[ Related: Six-year-old boy catches 100-pound fish ]

The photograph of Miles Ambridge's Grade 2 class first came to light when

Thomas Mulcair's Reese Witherspoon moment continues to be running gag in Ottawa.

Last Thursday morning, the NDP leader failed to stop at a RCMP checkpoint on Parliament Hill, blew through four stop signs all while a RCMP vehicle was in pursuit. A source told CTV News that when he got out of his car, Mulcair asked: "Don't you know who I am?"

[ Related: Thomas Mulcair pulls a Reese Witherspoon-worthy move on Parliament Hill ]

Mulcair claimed that CTV's version of the story wasn't exactly accurate, but that hasn't stopped opposition MPs from poking fun at him.

No other member of Parliament, however, can do it quite the way Liberal Rodger Cuzner did on Monday afternoon.

Cuzner has become a sort of resident poet in the House of Commons.

In the the past he's given us such parliamentary parodies as the 'Bev Oda rap', 'The Ballad of Justin and Patrick' and last Christmas' 'Twas the week before Christmas (on Parliament Hill).'

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Thai monks have been warned not to accept lavish gifts after this video surfaced of monks flying in a private jet. (Screengrab/YouTube)

A video that emerged online recently shows Buddhist monks sitting on a jet, wearing aviator sunglasses and headphones. New York magazine identified one of their handbags as a Louis Vuitton designer tote. They seem at ease, yawning and chatting casually. But their fellow Buddhists suggested the monks shouldn't have felt so comfortable around luxury.

[ Related: Hitler fashion statements confuse, offend tourists in Thailand ]

Associated Press reports the national office warned the monks not to repeat the behaviour.

The director-general, Nopparat Benjawatananun, said they weren't "adhering to Buddha's teachings of simplicity and self-restraint," according to the news wire.

But it isn't easy being a monk.

The New York Times has reported that Buddhist monks in Thailand are straining to keep their values alive among a population that prefers to shop than visit a