Nice Work If You Can Get It

If you thought Canada's head "human rights" Commissar Jennifer Lynch had a cushy gig, what with her jetting off hither and yon to shmancy conferences on your dime, wait'll you hear about the spending habits of the guy who's in charge of the "human rights" mausoleum, a fellow whose profligacy is on the same epic scale as his edifice. From the Winnipeg Sun (h/t Al the Fish):

It didn’t take Stuart Murray long to learn the lavish spending ways of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

In his first nine months as the museum’s CEO, the former Manitoba Tory leader racked up $27,034 in travel expenses, including taxpayer-funded trips to San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, New York and Washington, D.C.

He even stuck taxpayers with a bill for $767.79 for airfare, accommodations and meals so he could visit the Guggenheim Museum while he was on a personal vacation in Spain in October 2009.

Apparently it was very important for Murray to be at the Guggenheim to discuss the “economic impact on city and region” that a museum can bring, according to the museum’s travel expense documents.

Murray, who was appointed CEO of the CMHR in September 2009, wasted no time taking advantage of the facility’s frequent flyer benefits.

After his trip to Spain the former roadie for the 1970s band Blood Sweat & Tears flew to L.A. and San Francisco in November of 2009 to attend a symposium on Canada’s role in human rights advancement.

Taxpayers’ bill: $2,429.09. Cha-ching...

After itemizing several more of Murray's expenses, the 'Peg scribbler concludes: 

Great pork-barrel job if you can get it. And that’s on top of a job that pays between $167,300 and $196,900, according to museum officials...

Indeed. Getting tapped for one of these jobs is like winning the lottery. Better, even, because you don't have to go to the trouble of buying tickets.