Who else enjoys the opposition making an ass of themselves?

[Hedley]

Hold another election

I disagree - the country has voted TWICE, and each time the
Conservatives were voted into power as MINORITY governments.

We hold a third election, I'm certain we'll get the same results.
So, what's the point of having another election, so soon after
the last one?

It would appear that Canada's citizens really, really, want to
have the current arrangement of seats in Parliament, which
I think is actually a great arrangement.

The worst thing for Canada is when ANY single party is handed a
majority government, which is basically a licence to become
dictator and steal the country blind for 5 years. Not good,
because absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The Conservatives played a dirty trick, when they tried to cut
the funding of the other 3 parties. It backfired on them, and
had the unintended consequence of strongly uniting the
other three parties.

In case you haven't noticed, between the three other parties,
they have MORE seats than the Conservatives, so any claim
by the Conservatives that a coalition of the other three parties
is somehow "undemocratic" is hiliariously ludicrous propoganda.

The "coalition" of the three looney parties isn't going to work,
of course - they have far too many differences.

But it's fun to watch in the mean time, and with a bit of luck,
Parliament will be completely gridlocked and unable to do anything
at all, which is the best that the taxpaying citizens of Canada could
ever hope for.

[Dust Devil]

the last two elections hardly had the same results. The soon to be Prime Minister had a record low number of seats and the Cons nearly have their Majority. I think if we hit the polls again the Cons will get their Majority once and for all

[North Shore]

Is it possible for the conservatives to form a coalition thereby becoming a majority?

...Ahh... they are a coalition... the Progressive Conservatives (after some promise-breaking by Peter MacKay) were swallowed by the Harper-led Reform Party and became The Conservative Party of Canada.

Coalition on the right, and now one on the left.

As for Duceppe... well, if he wasn't a separatist, then I'd probably vote for him, as he came across as being pretty well-informed and articulate in the debates during the last go-around..

DD, don't think so - people just don't like Harper.

[costermonger]

the last two elections hardly had the same results. The soon to be Prime Minister had a record low number of seats and the Cons nearly have their Majority. I think if we hit the polls again the Cons will get their Majority once and for all

I strongly doubt it, as this whole mess is a spectacularly failed game of brinksmanship initiated by Stephen Harper.

[xsbank]

"As for Duceppe... well, if he wasn't a separatist, then I'd probably vote for him."

That's like saying that Jack the Ripper was actually a pretty good guy cause he really had a great knowledge of anatomy. Sheesh.

I do like the idea that if this 'coalition' goes through that nothing will likely happen in parliament for as long as they are there. Unless they start fiddling with "bailouts" (read: lining their own and their supporter's pockets with taxpayer's money).

[Flybabe]

.....Unless they start fiddling with "bailouts" (read: lining their own and their supporter's pockets with taxpayer's money).

I don't even want to comment to that, I'll start another war.

[Siddley Hawker]

xs on the CBC Montreal open mouth radio show at noon today, they had Andre Arthur on the air commenting on the coalition. For those outside Quebec, Andre Arthur is now an independant member of Parliament in Ottawa, but he used to be the Quebec equivalent of Blather McHaggis, what's his name, used to have a phone-in radio show in Vancouver, Jack Webster???
Anyway, Arthur was saying the coalition should probably last at least till the new year, but not longer. He said "Ow in da hell can you have a coalition with three guys that hate each others guts the way them three clowns do??"

[mantogasrsrwy]

It's ironic that now Quebec is its "own nation" a coalition will give it the balance of power within Canada. I say that because if it truely were it's own nation and not part of Canada, Harper would have had his majority. I guess it's politically incorrect to mention that, but I've never been one to be politically correct. Flame away.....

[Wilbur]

The notion that the Jackass Layton and NDP will somehow slide up the middle and replace the Libs as the dominant centre-left party is ridiculous. They're a gang of economic kooks that even their provincial wings don't take seriously. I just don't see a large percentage of Canadians wanting to be unemployed and living in complete economic chaos. No, the NDP will more likely be the party to be decimated as the votes they've taken from the Libs in the last couple elections return to the Libs.

[Icebound]

... people just don't like Harper.

How can you like a self-avowed libertarian who lies so blatantly to make political points.

Even simple, easily disputed lies, such as his vehement comment in question period today that "the coalition wouldn't even have a Canadian Flag at their signing" when in fact the Canadian flag (and no Quebec fleur-de-lis) is clearly there behind them.

Who claims that the coalition has "no right" to power, when in fact it is clearly legal within the laws and constitution of Canada, and is not even precedent-setting.

Not to mention other semantic half-truths, such as placing the BQ into the coalition, while they are not... although they agree to support it.

Whether the "coalition" is a good idea or not, is certainly up for debate... lively debate as we have seen.... but to make these blatantly incorrect statements with such fierceness as if his volume is going to turn them into fact.... well, that just makes him an easy target to "hate".

So is the financial statement's assertion that there will not be a deficit another example of such lies, especially in light of the parliamentary budget officer's assessment?????



...

[Invertago]

People seem to think this coalition stems from Harpers shot at cutting party funding. The coalition has been in the works since the election. Read the transcripts of their meeting. Besides, there is no way they could put this together over the weekend, it is not like the three stooges where buddies before hand.

[BibleMonkey]

I'd say there's three possible events that could occur next; the GG calling time out most likely.

Harper is going to talk to the unelected French lady before anyone else, as would be convention when she returns from her vacation . Behind closed doors he could politely point out his 'legal' but nuclear option: He could tell her that he appointed her-he can fire her - ask the Queen for a new GG -obviously one more aligned with his two best choices .

The GG can effectively dismiss the Pm-but the Pm can effectively fire the GG-by asking the Queen to dismiss her -since the PM is the dude that asks the Queen to appoint her. Queen will have to go along with Harpers new choice-locked in by the Balfour Declaration of 1926 and the Statute of Westminster 1931 .

. Weird setup, but true.

That`s the bad cop-he will then switch to good cop-He could then convince her that proroguing the commons would be seen by voters ( most of whom don't really know much about her job anyway ) as being a "reasonable compromise`` , time to `let emotions cool``-all that crap.

He could convince her to play ball -come out smelling sweet-it would be better ( for Harper-not necessarily the country ) than having her anoint a coalition, or call an immediate election before his comparatively well moneyed machine has 30 days to catapult the propaganda-and definitely better ( for Harper ) than letting the coalition rule. . She could be maneuvered into it-most people would buy proroguing -not fully acknowledging the economic damage occuring absent leadership if it`s spun as the best choice.

Then Harpers comparatively well financed machine get`s a month plus to do an expensive blue sweater media soothe-the guys with the nice haircuts and suits are stable`` - while the economy sinks, the rudderless country gets 30 days of economic taking on water-before the 2009 January parliament do over.


He could avoid the lost confidence vote more easily in 40 days than now-the opposition might fracture, he could give the coalition almost no excuse to squack by tweaking the budget, or he could otherwise regroup-so that he`s only backed into two corners instead of one now. .

If That fails-
He could win a majority in 30 days -far more probable than winning one now. He ain`t stupid.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King-Byng_Affair


===============

We can only hope that Mr Bush will send in troops to liberate us from the despots that lead us-followed by the cargo jets fulla U.S Federal-reserve notes-for-reconstruction-to Baghdad type bailout...

[xsbank]

1. They are ALL lying
2. What is actually wrong with the economy? Why do we need a bailout? Park the 2nd BMW and take the bus for a while, Buttercup.
3. Should I buy a gun and start hoarding food?
4. How can you say that the way Harper has run the country is worse than Chretien, who presided over the Chicoutimi fraud, the sponsorship scandal and who cancelled the helicopters, among many others?
5. Or Paul Martin, who did - what?
6. Haven't we just had some of the best years economically, ever?
7. What exactly did Harper do, other than to remain true to his calling as a politician and try and screw the opposition?
8. If the Bloc are palatable (do you hear any Liberal apologists actively supporting the Bloc?) how bad would a party have to be before Liberals would turn up their noses? The Rape and Pillage Party? The Baby Burning Party? Eat a Zombie Party?
9. The NDP have never held power in Canada, always the bridesmaid - can you see Curly being a leader?
10. The Bloc's sole purpose and raison d'etre is to take Quebec out of Canada. How can you see them dealing with the Olympics, Alberta tar sands, Saskatchewan potash, Ontario automakers? Umm, Bombardier?
11. ANOTHER PM from Quebec?
12. A PM that even the Liberals, who voted for the dork, can't stand?
13. I give up - I'm going to work. Stay safe out there, that's more important than all this crap.

[Driving Rain]

So let me get this straight, the fate of Canada and the USA rest in the hands of two people with African ancestry.
Interesting times.

[Dust Devil]

don't we all have African ancestry?


Ohhh there's a debate for ya

[Siddley Hawker]

How can you see them dealing with the Olympics, Alberta tar sands,

Quebec environmentalists have already nixed the idea whereby so-called Alberta dirty oil would be sent to Quebec via the existing pipeline network for further refining. They have, however, raised no objection to the dirty money being sent eastward in the form of transfer payments.

A PM that even the Liberals, who voted for the dork, can't stand?

That would, as Yosemite Sam might say, be a "bit of a quandry, suh." Not only can they not stand him, they have deemed him unfit to lead the party. However, they seem to have no questions about his fitness to lead the country.

One question about the coalition has yet to be raised. Which one do you thing will venture forth west of the Ontario/Manitoba border to explain to the inhabitants just how this great this coalition is for them. I think Moe is off the hook on this one, seeing how he's purely provincial. That leaves Larry and Curly to take up the slack. It's a dirty job, but somebody's gotta do it.

[Changes in Latitudes]

don't we all have African ancestry?


Ohhh there's a debate for ya

Go back to Pangea, hippy.

[Driving Rain]

Interesting reading over at the Bourque Newswatch. It's rumoured that Ken Dryden and 15 or so other MP's are going to break ranks and sit as independants.

http://www.bourque.org/

[Topspin]

Hold another election

I disagree - the country has voted TWICE, and each time the
Conservatives were voted into power as MINORITY governments.

We hold a third election, I'm certain we'll get the same results.
So, what's the point of having another election, so soon after
the last one?

You don't account for all the pissed off (Now ex) Liberal voters. Harper wasn't that far away from a majority, it is a very real possibility.

Classic left extremism, accomplish the means with zero regard for the ends. 90% of what's going on is actually beneficial to the Conservatives.

It may cause you to throw up in your mouth a little, at the thought of what's happening in Ottawa. However even more disgusting is the fact that some voters are lapping it up when the parties involved essentially announced their intent to destroy the country fiscally, in the name of Quebec, to gain power. Not to mention the fact that this move will more than likely, completely eradicate moderate left wing supporters for years to come. I thought that result was obvious enough that a high school grad could see it.

Things like this actually make me consider discarding my dream of finishing flight school, and getting into politics. I mean it's like a Vat of money, and everybody gets a ladle for the frenzy, and no responsibility to come with it. Getting elected to public office might be the new equivalent to winning the lottery.

[Hedley]

Getting elected to public office might be the new equivalent to winning the lottery

What on earth is "new" about it?

Has everyone forgotten Jean Cretin's phone call to the gov't bank,
to buy out his hotel?

Has everyone forgotten that Brian Mulroney admitted to taking
huge bribes from Carl-Heinz Shreiber while PM? The half-million
dollar kickbacks that Airbus paid, in order to sell each aircraft
to Air Canada?

Does anyone here have a clue about Mackenzie King's Liberal
government being caught in a massive customs scandal?

R.P. Sparks, the association’s chairman, wrote Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King in February 1925 about his astonishing discovery of the extent of corruption in the department of customs.

Jacques Bureau, the minister of customs, responded to the allegations by defending those who worked for him especially R.R. Farrow, his deputy minister. And despite his established reputation as a shameless bootlegger, Bureau promoted J.A. E. Bisaillon to chief preventive officer for Montreal.

The RCMP tried to curtail the rampant smuggling, but repeatedly failed. One of Jacques Bureau’s first acts as customs minister was to withdraw the Mounties form the Quebec and British Columbia borders.

Bisaillon was charged with conspiracy. He’d also confessed to depositing all the custom duties into his private bank account, which would explain why he had a balance of $65,000 even though he had an annual salary of $2,300. Even with this damaging discovery, the Montreal judge acquitted Bisaillon of all charges. Even more incredible is that he kept his job as chief customs officer in Montreal for the next ten months.

Canada's government has a long, shameful and
unrepentant history as completely corrupt and
without any morals whatsoever. The more you
dig, the more dirt you find.

We can only marvel at what corruption the
government has managed to conceal over the
years, and has never been heard of.

Who knows how many hundreds of millions of
dollars of the taxpayer's money, that the government
has stolen, and gotten away with?

[Siddley Hawker]

From the Bourque site...

"Bullshit", said one Liberal power-broker, who was quick to point out Dion is tilting at Liberal history for the sake of a short stint at 24 Sussex.
"Dion is nuts", he told Bourque, "I am ashamed he is leading the party of Laurier, Pearson, Trudeau, and Chretien - my God, Chretien, the guy who poured out his federalist heart against Rene Levesque's country-killing forces so long ago

Something's a little off here. Wasn't Chretien one of the brokers, along with Broadbent, that got this effin' fiasco off the ground?
By the way Hedley thanks for that link. That looks like a pretty good site.

[Nightshiftzombie]

Pot meet kettle.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ ... ional/home

[costermonger]

90% of what's going on is actually beneficial to the Conservatives.

That's an... interesting interpretation.

[Topspin]

90% of what's going on is actually beneficial to the Conservatives.

That's an... interesting interpretation.

OK, admittedly I got a little bit carried away with the 90%. However explore this...
I would think it is safe to say, that should the coalition form a government and fail, election. Alternative, election. The only way to avoid one is for the coalition to succeed, what are the probabilities of success?
Now Harper was what, a dozen seats away from his majority? All the chips are on the table here, if this coalition fails, how much more support is the conservative party going to receive?

[C23flyer]

For anyone who needs a diversion from the non-stop political turmoil, the following is from Derek Hatfield (our sailor in the Southern Ocean, competing in the Vendee Globe, Around the World Alone race):

Daily Report:Dec 2nd
Hello from Algimouss Spirit of Canada,

Great sailing for the last 24 hours, a personal best in mileage at around 368 miles. Knock on wood (carbon), the weather forecast is still showing the possibility of cutting the corner on the St. Helena High and making some miles on the leaders. I'm watching this very closely as I don't want to get caught in the high pressure system that is coming, it will be brutally windless in this area for a few days on the weekend. The temperature is still very warm and daytime it's shorts and t-shirt and night time a fleece. I can feel the coolness in the air as I head south and it won't be long until the full layers of long underwear and fleece are required. Of course, on deck, it's foul weather gear all the time due to the spray and waves breaking over the boat. Top speed last night was 22 knots with sustained surfs on 18 knots for long periods of time, it was fantastic sailing. Today I've had to back off a gear from the genoa to the solent as the wind is getting up to high 20's. The boat is on the very edge of control and I felt it better to save the genoa to fight another day, given that it's the only one I have on board.

Word from back in Canada is that the government is in a bit of turmoil and the economy is at scary levels. I'm sure more than one of our sponsors are feeling the pinch of the recession. Hang in there and never give up on your goals. I feel a little guilty that I'm out here away from all of these woes but maybe some of you following the race can at least find it a motivating diversion from the financial situation.

Take Care,

Derek