Man overboard: Flaherty flounders as Harper bails
Some days a boy is just left shaking his head.
Two years ago Stephen Harper threw me out of the Conservative caucus allegedly for breaking caucus confidentiality. When asked to prove it by the media, he could not.
This weekend the Harper Conservatives not only eavesdropped on the national caucus meeting of another party, but then bragged about to the media and released an audiotape. What’s worse? Utter hypocrisy, or a total lack of ethics?
Ah, but this is just the start.
Since staring death in the chops – the kind of political oblivion Mr. Harper visited upon me, heaped upon Stephane Dion, dumped on Bill Casey and anyone else who dared question or oppose him – our subprime minister has been showing just the kind of guy he really is. Apparently, he’s willing to say, or do anything to retain power.
First, he used an economic crisis for millions of Canadians as an excuse to try and screw his opponents on Parliament Hill. In his glee, he forgot any measures to help families or create jobs.
Then, realizing what a dickhead move that was, and after defending it for one day, he threw it overboard. Then he also threw overboard a move to take away the right to strike from public servants.
Along with this, he cancelled a vote in Parliament that would have defeated his government, and pushed it back to December 8th.
Then he threw his finance minister overboard, having him announce a budget for January that he had just announced for March.
Now, as I wrote this, comes news Harper is actually considering shutting down Parliament entirely to prevent any vote from taking place until a budget is read – two months from now.
It could not be any clearer right now what matters to this person, which is what I have been saying here for two years. Stephen Harper is obsessed with himself, with holding and exercising power, and with political brinkmanship. He orchestrated the last election when there was no need for one, simply to avoid the coming financial mess. During the campaign he lied to voters about the economy, the banks, the deficit and the opposition. In Halton, voters were told Liberals would scrap child care payments, jack up the GST and run a deficit – messages which had been repeated in millions of dollars worth of government propaganda funded by taxpayers. All lies. And no sooner had the vote happened, but this guy was in Peru saying the economy was 1929 all over again, and bailing out the banks with $75 billion.
If there was ever an election which was financially and intellectually stolen, it was this one.
And over the last three days we have proof after proof that the Harper agenda has virtually nothing to do with the welfare of the Canadian people. Unethical, dishonest, unprincipled and hate-driven, it is a dead party walking.
Eight more days.
182 comments ↓
Wow. I thought I had seen it all. The comment in the Star says the Con party members says they’ve done nothing unethical. They’re kidding right? Man, Garth, I wish you were in the HofC!!!
Garth, Can Harper prorogue the house? Is there anything the opposition can do to stop this? How is Harper allowed to put off the vote for a week? I just don’t know the procedural rules. Thanks
He can delay the vote by a few days because the government controls the Parliamentary agenda, but he cannot avoid it – without shutting the House down and coming back with a new Throne Speech. That would be absurd, since the last one has not been voted on, and is just 2 weeks old. Gutless desperation. — Garth
“Layton held a telephone-conference meeting with his caucus Saturday morning that was recorded by a Conservative member. According to the audio tape, Layton appears to take credit for the possibility of a coalition.”
Umm, wth is Layton doing inviting the pimple? Or did the con-cons do something illegal? And Layton not only recognized the potential to work on some of the opposition parties’ common ground long before the last week’s developments, but was able to work with the Bloc from the top to put a coalition structure in place. Isn’t that we pay these guys to do? Duh, the Con-Cons are so out of touch, I’m dumb founded.
Courtesy of the Libs’ November 28th release.
Amount of fiscal stimulus recently announced by:
United States : $1,859 billion
China : $726 billion
United Kingdom : $518 billion
Japan : $341 billion
Germany : $264 billion
France : $93 billion
Canada (2008 Fiscal Update): -4.3 billion
Doesn’t that really say it all? That’s a minus folks, for those like me, who are eyesight challenged and can’t afford a new eye test, let alone the script.
I was totally creeped out when I heard about this. I couldn’t read the transcript on Kadie’s blog. It’s so embarrassing, not for the Bloq and NDP but for the Conservatives.
If he prorogues? Won’t that cause all kinds of instability, especially the markets? I cannot believe how irresponsible he is???
Then he threw his finance minister overboard, having him announce a budget for January that he had just announced for March. – Garth
If only he hadn’t given Jim the life-boat of a budget in January. Flaherty should have been fed to the sharks.
In his glee, he forgot any measures to help families or create jobs. – Garth
Exactly. Is usual MO. is to sneak a distasteful measure in with needed legislation. That way if the opposition votes it down, he can claim they voted against the needed stuff.
This time he slipped up. Reducing paper clip usage is all the Economic Statement does. It does not deal with the issues at hand.
Just think, if this stink hadn’t happened, it would have been steady as she goes, towards the rocks, until March.
Garth, can an emergency vote be demanded? can the opposition not challenge the PM to keep parliament in session during difficult times? can the opposition just stand and demand the PM talk to Canadians to tell them he will honour his word to let the vote take place Dec 8th…????
Garth your overviews are great and bang on and much appriecated by far more people than you know….
On another not I think this coalition is our complete change of government as is PE Barach Obama… and change it is… think… these leaders have a chance for all to shine with a common goal work for Canadians by working on jobs jobs jobs and a future for children and grandchildren… all for one and one for all even the all those who voted Conservative…two losers gone bye bye and save 32 million!
I too am shaking my head.
I think it is now obvious that this CPC government cannot command the confidence of the house. It may be best to vote them down as soon as possible so that we can give a coalition a chance. If too much time passes then the GG may not have the choice to ask other parties to try their hand at government. I actually think the three opposition parties together could get some good legislation passed.
Also, I wonder how badly Flaherty has “cooked” the books. I can’t help but feel all the scrambling we are seeing from these monkeys is in part because they don’t want Canadians to see how poorly they have really been doing (oh yeah, and their desire to hold on to power no matter what the cost).
Ethics? Harper? That is a definite OXYMORON!
A rarity: Harper in surrender mode
BY DON MARTINNOVEMBER 30, 2008 5:15 PM
OTTAWA — What you’re seeing is a first — and perhaps a last. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, his pride sacrificed before the fall, is in full white-flag-waving surrender mode.
The Conservatives engaged full reverse policy thrust over the weekend to avoid their defeat to a coalition of the whining, an unholy alliance of Liberals and New Democrats in cahoots with the Bloc Quebecois who, incredibly, still insist nothing has been done to derail their lunge for power.
The once-defiant Conservatives withdrew their provocative move to axe public funding of political parties on Saturday and terminated plans to deny civil servants the right to strike on Sunday.
Then Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced his federal budget would drop within 24 hours of the House of Commons reconvening in late January, including an infrastructure stimulus package of some sort.
Pragmatism, which took leave of Stephen Harper’s senses last week, finally returned as a survival strategy, served up with a hefty slice of humble pie that rarely appears on this prime minister’s menu.
Yet the lunacy lingers still. The opposition coalition is pressing ahead with its salivating lust to form a cobbled-together government in eight days and the Conservatives are planning to re-open their war room Monday to prepare for a possible election over the Christmas holidays.
If the opposition trio thinks voters will punish Harper in any premature election, finishing him off politically and permanently for the flaws of a fiscal update he has now corrected, it’s their turn to miscalculate.
There would be no way to sell their conniving behaviour except as the re-awakening of the Liberal’s entitled-to-power mentality. And because the coalition would be unwieldy at best as an instantly dysfunctional clash of left-leaning ideologies propped up by separatists, Canadians will likely be heading to the polls within six months no matter which way the Governor General rules if the government is indeed defeated next week.
In other words, party interests would triumph over the national interest in a dark time when stable government is essential.
The craziest part is that the Liberals have done precisely what any decent Official Opposition should do — dug in hard against unacceptable government action to force change. And the Harper government has reacted the way minority governments should, by bending to the will of rivals to rethink a bad move.
The update was indeed a seriously flawed document, sending inconsistent messages at a crucial time by floating make-believe deficit-free projections with no link to grim reality while taking action to eliminate the right to strike against public servants who aren’t inclined to sacrifice paycheques for a few per cent more on the pay grid.
The economists unleashed plenty of moaning and groaning that the document’s belt-tightening focus went against prevailing wisdom that all government vaults should be opened for a mega spending spree, even though it makes sense to curb nice-to-haves and focus money on need-to-have priorities and take some time to design proper stimulus programs.
But the bottom line was that Harper made a serious mistake when he ignored his chief of staff and pleas from several ministers not to include in the fiscal update the partisan death of a program that gives political parties $1.95 a year for every vote received in the previous election.
He faced a wall of condemnation from not only all the usual suspects, but his supporters as well. It was such an obvious political sabotage mission that nobody ever seriously believed it was a cost-savings move.
Of course, if Harper’s aim was wanting to sow mischief in a Liberal leadership now being renegotiated, contaminate the goodwill of a Parliament where he had pledged to play nice, fabricate a needless constitutional crisis and trigger a pointless election with potentially dangerous economic consequences, all for the stealth-like purpose of achieving his majority, it may become mission accomplished if his opponents force fed-up Canadians to the polls for the second time in a calendar year.
But creating such deliberate chaos for craven political purposes is, hopefully, beyond the scope of even Harper’s cunning genius.
So what we’re seeing now is the end of that fearless bravado that Harper personified with such aloof ease.
He’s been reduced in status to that of a mere political mortal, scrambling to save his skin as a bully suddenly vulnerable to defeat from his weakling political rivals — and from inside his own party.
dmartin@canwest.com
By Markus D. on 11.30.08 7:04 pm
Markus….right on buddy…they are just no cooked they have been deep fried in pork…. thats why I am calling for the RCMP to lock up all the shredding machines and other areas of confidential destruction… McCallum mention on the news he wants to know which mattress the PM has the $3 Billion reserve fund hidden in…. I think they have overspent on government friendly Afghanistan contracts with no receipts…. Bush did! Big time!!!! Monkey see Monkey do… eh bye.
To the opposition
Do not let Harper recover. Tear him to pieces. Do let show mercy.
Protect Canada from this diseased sociopath and his destructive mind.
If you give even the slightest room for Harper to react he will continue to fight, even if it leads to the annihilation of the Canada that we love.
Do NOT let up, bring Harper down so hard that he can’t ever get up again.
It IS what he would do to you in a heartbeat!
Save our Canada from the demon within.
The issue here is that if the opposition parties do not go through with voting the government it will give Harper a virtual free hand to do anything he wants. Once he wins several confidence votes he will have the right to call an election anytime the opposition votes non-confidence.
We know that Harper does not keep his word. How can the opposition back down? How long can Harper delay the inevitable?
If Layton The NDP are so stupid as to give a Conservative the Co -ordinates then they deserve to be taped and you want idiots like Layton and the NDP to form a coalition with the Liberals and lame duck leader. Be careful what you wish for.
It is obvious that the NDP and Layton had no intention to agree with what was in the budget update. In fact the Conservatives could have given everything the NDP demanded and they still were plotting before hand to overthrow the government. That explains why he stated they were going to vote against the government before even the update was officially announced.
Every other party including the Liberals and NDP would have done exactly what the Conservatives did to the NDP if the roles were reversed. Layton wants power so bad he can taste it and would make deals with anybody including the seperatist Bloc. Btw,
This whole thing is all about power. Harper wants to keep it and Dion, Layton and Douceppe wants it and everyone will do whatever it takes to either retain it or gain it.
Layton is a snake in the grass and knows full well that this is the only way he will ever get close to governing Canada.
I say, let the opposition defeat the Conservatives and seize power (if the GG agrees of course and that is not a given) and the economy be damned. It will last probably less then six months and then the Conservatives will get a majority the next election. So Garth go ahead and tell your Liberal and NDP and BLoc masters to fill their boots and bring down the government.
Personally if I could I would fire all 308 MPs because they are all a bunch of scheming liars who do not deserve to be where they are. It is really to bad the GG couldn’t do that very thing.
Ethics? Harper? That is a definite OXYMORON!
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 11.30.08 7:08 pm
Or is that mutually exclusive?
Ladies and gentleman.
Look this taping of an NDP Caucus conference call is unethical at best or illegal literally coming from the PMO.
And then they released it to CTV.
Does anyone believe Mr. Harper didn’t authorize this? This is a weak attempt to discredit Jack and Gilles as being nefarious backroom plotters to the downfall of democracy. Er, except Mr. Harper did the same thing in 2004 – only in Harper’s world is there a cone of silence and by implication he never talked to the other party leaders. Give me a break…
The optics of taping a private conference call does not trump the contents of the conversation within the NDP caucus.
Which makes me wonder has he done this in the past to other Parties?
By Margaret Bedore on 11.30.08 7:13 pm
So if I understand Don Martin correctly, the best thing for the opposition parties to do is put their alliance on hold, now that they have shamed Mr. Harper into retracting the unsavoury elements of Flaherty’s update.
I think he may have a point. Harper is on the ropes, thanks to being threatened with a non confidence vote.
Maybe the opposition should continue in that way for a while longer. Everytime Harper is made to backtrack gives them more ammunition against him come the next election.
The opposition are gunning for him. He tried to call their bluff and they made it clear they won’t sit on their hands. Harper now knows this, he won’t be able to pass stuff unopposed, and he’s going to have to govern or else go for a walk to the GG.
What was his excuse last time, that he wasn’t being allowed to govern. What’s changed, Steve?
Get rid of these conservative clowns while we have a chance.
They simply do not have the rights of the average Canadian worker on their minds.
Harper is George Bush’s mirror image….and soon Canada will mirror the US if we don’t get rid of them ASAP.
Yes Garth eight more days and all hell will break loose if the opposition actually defeats the government. IT ain’t going to be pretty for the public although the Mps and their respective parties will still be drawing their paychecks and subsidies from the public trough.
Yes,Garth in eight days the Liberal calvary on their white steeds will be riding to our rescue and they haven’t even been up front and told us what they would do different and how much it is going cost the ROC of Canada to obtain and retain the Bloc support. Hell we don’t even know who the Liberal PM will be. Iggy or Dion or even Rae ??
Events of the past 72 hours are ample evidence (as if more was needed) that Harper should not – must not, at all costs – be given a majority mandate.
Now really is the time for the Opposition to take up the mantra: I want my Canada back.
I’ll Huff
And I’ll Puff
Then I’ll slooooow your House down.
He He….
Thanks Ben for stating the obvious–Harper’s sole raison d’etre is to decimate the Liberals, to thwart all opposing views to his radical beliefs and to insure the continuing degradation of the Canada we used to be.
Van: I will take your Liberal/NDP/BLOC coalition scenario over the current Con bumbling, fumbling, flip-flopping, backtracking, side-stepping, back-stabbing comedy of errors.
Harper: Please, don’t, oh please–I take it back, I take it back…please don’t be mad at me….I won’t do it again….I promise….heh,heh,heh….
By Van on 11.30.08 8:04 pm,
The problem is that now that the snowball has started rolling, no matter whether it is the coalition or the Conservatives, in order to maintain power one or the other will only survive through some kind of “buy-out.” At this point both sides will be courting the Bloc.
The Conservatives have had no difficulty during their last mandate in pouring money into Quebec in the hope of gaining their majority. It did not work. Who will they try to buy this time?
I had hoped that the Conservatives had learned to co-operate and consult but it is clear that they never learn.
At this point it comes down to who you distrust the least. I admit that I never trusted Stephen Harper because he was once clear on his hard right agenda but once in a leadership position he began to use double meanings and vague language to disguise that agenda.
While the media interpreted the softened rhetoric as “moderating his views” it was only that he altered his language.
Do I have concerns about where a coalition of the opposition parties would take the country? Of course I do but I am even more concerned about the agenda that was evident, if masked, in the economic update.
If the opposition gives in there is nothing to prevent the Conservatives from pushing ahead on an even more radical and destructive path of robbing the middle to grease the palms of the financial class.
Clearly this backstepping demonstrates a lack of leadership. An inability to lead this country. The Harper government came into power with a huge surplus mis-handled the money. Period
Now they want averge Canadians to “tighten their belts” to cover up for their very own mismanagement.
We must remove him from power before it’s too late.
A mysterious web site, conservativesforprentice has appeared, advocating Environment Minister Jim Prentice as the next Tory leader.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/11/30/canada-coalition.html
NDP, Liberals reach deal to topple minority Tory government
Last Updated: Sunday, November 30, 2008 | 9:51 PM ET Comments0Recommend631CBC News
The NDP and Liberals have reached a deal to topple the minority Conservative government and take power themselves in a coalition, CBC News has learned.
A deal has been negotiated between NDP Leader Jack Layton and Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion that would see them form a coalition government for two and a half years, the CBC’s Keith Boag reported, citing sources.
The NDP would be invited into cabinet and get 25 per cent of seats, Boag said, adding that the party wouldn’t get the position of the finance chair or the deputy prime minister’s post.
“That’s the big step forward tonight,” Boag reported.
The Bloc Québécois wouldn’t be a part of the coalition, but would have to support it, he said.
“The most difficult question is who’ll be the leader,” Boag said, adding that Dion, who negotiated the deal, believes he has the right to be prime minister.
Opposition parties say they have lost confidence in the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper after Thursday’s economic update by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty failed to provide a stimulus package for Canadians.
Since then, the Liberals have been in negotiations to form a coalition with the NDP, and the concessions made by the Conservatives this weekend have done nothing to change the party’s view that Harper must go.
Go coalition. Begone Harper!
Ethics? Harper? That is a definite OXYMORON!
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 11.30.08 7:08 pm
Or is that mutually exclusive?
By James – Chatham on 11.30.08 7:37
oxymoron [oksi?mor?on] (plural ?mora), a figure of speech that combines two usually contradictory terms in a compressed paradox, as in the word bittersweet or the phrase living death.
Well coming from just a wee bit East of Vegerville, I always thought that a paradox was probably a couple of Mallards or Pintails, but if you are sure that it is a compressed contradiction, I will cut you some slack and allow that the Liberal hater Carper is a pressurized incompatibility!
Now as to the event that the Hoouse of uncommoness gets to vote eventually on the idea regards the public funding of political parties, I would like you to give serious consideration to an amendment to the current formula. The amendment would be to ban all private sourced funding and only allow equal and proportional public reimbursement from the National Treasury. This would ensure that these radical religious renegade reformers are reduced to and restricted to visible sources of imbursements. Accepting bribes and blatant bully pulpit purses should be banished for fear of life imprisonment for treasonous behavior and attitudes!
Now another suggestion. All speeches and political policies should be analyzed by publicly funded unbiased psychologists and publicly reported in the media! Any attempts to bribe the shrinks should be punishable by ten years hard labor cleaning latrines in public places!
[My tooth/jaw ache is getting worse now, please pass me the Tylenol 3!]
Ethics? Harper? That is a definite OXYMORON!
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 11.30.08 7:08 pm
Or is that mutually exclusive?
By James – Chatham on 11.30.08 7:37
oxymoron [oksi?mor?on] (plural ?mora), a figure of speech that combines two usually contradictory terms in a compressed paradox, as in the word bittersweet or the phrase living death.
Well coming from just a wee bit East of Vegerville, I always thought that a paradox was probably a couple of Mallards or Pintails, but if you are sure that it is a compressed contradiction, I will cut you some slack and allow that the Liberal hater Carper is a pressurized incompatibility!
Now as to the event that the Hoouse of uncommoness gets to vote eventually on the idea regards the public funding of political parties, I would like you to give serious consideration to an amendment to the current formula. The amendment would be to ban all private sourced funding and only allow equal and proportional public reimbursement from the National Treasury. This would ensure that these radical religious renegade reformers are reduced to and restricted to visible sources of imbursements. Accepting bribes and blatant bully pulpit purses should be banished for fear of life imprisonment for treasonous behavior and attitudes!
Now another suggestion. All speeches and political policies should be analyzed by publicly funded unbiased psychologists and publicly reported in the media! Any attempts to bribe the shrinks should be punishable by ten years hard labor cleaning latrines in public places!
[My tooth/jaw ache is getting worse now, please pass me more Tylenol 3!]
So Layton has finally shown his snake-in-the-grass colors. Good. The man has no more respect for democracy than you could fit in a thimble. Willing to form a coalition with the party that stands for the Separation of Quebec from Canada? I’m sorry, has he not considered what they would require to hold up their side of the coalition? Or is he so unslaggably thirsty for power that “at any cost” is fine with him? What a pathetic excuse for a man, and even poorer for a MP who is supposed to be representing the will of the Canadians who voted for him!
As for the Liberals, they can’t even agree on a leader, but we are supposed to believe they can lead the country, through what could very well be the worst recession since the 30′s? I don’t think so!
Harper may have miscalculated by including the measure to cut the pigs from the trough so early in this game, and at such a time as this. But he has removed those controversial measures, and still the coalition refuses to back down. And, we see they began their plotting well before they had any reason to do so.
Canadians are not as dumb as Layton, Duceppe and whoever else will head up the Liberals, seem to think. This whole situation reeks of the worst type of self-interested politics. Squeal piggies all you want, nothing good can come of this putrid deal, and eventually you’ll become the bacon you deserve to be.
The C.B.C. is reporting a deal has been reached!Harper,I dont want to hear any crying,remember Cadman…
Clearly this backstepping demonstrates a lack of leadership. An inability to lead this country. The Harper government came into power with a huge surplus mis-handled the money. Period
Now they want averge Canadians to “tighten their belts” to cover up for their very own mismanagement.
We must remove him from power before it’s too late.
By Glen on 11.30.08 10:46 pm
It may very well be too late already. If one of the big three automakers goes bankrupt and fails, that will sink most of the auto makers since they for years have acted as multiple sourcing vendors. Then the other 2 of the big three are also down the tubes. This will in turn kill off the dealer networks. This will cause an additional panic. There will then be no source for repair parts for all those used units now in service, plus at least 2 of the big 5 or 6 banks in Canada will also be drawn down the financial sewer. This is why Carper and Fliperty are appearing like two scared little boys that don;t know whether to crap or go blind! I know that they know we are sitting on the brink of the Mother of all Depressions. 1929 and 1907/8 will look like a mild recession in comparison. They are coasting, boasting, and lying while they wait for the Chicago lawyer to lead the way! So get your coalition cobbled together, bring down these Regressive Preservatives before they can fumble the files worse than they have already. Get the sharpest minds from the Canadian financial world together into a think tank boiler room session to save the economy NOW!
Cancel the leadership convention and replace it with a full membership mail in ballot vote on 27 Feb.2009 so that all members in good standing as of 01 Feb’09 can express the true will of the party without any backroom bullshit!
On that note, why have I not received my receipt for my membership cheque and for my election support donation, Garth?
My address has been the sane for 41 years and it is printed right on my cheques! [I know, they want my money, not my ideas, and can't be bothered to do the clerical deal!
[The tylenol 3 and 2 ounces ain't working, it is going into a mygraine soon]
This fellow doesn’t believe the article:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081130.WBSteele20081130210014/WBStory/WBSteele/
Would the National Post be that sleezy to plant a story like that? Yup.
I apologize Mr. Iggy.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081130.WBSteele20081130210014/WBStory/WBSteele/
Sorry Mr. Iggy. Should have known better than to believe that sleezy rag.
I made this prediction last night on G&M
Watch people Harper is going to Prorogue before Dec 8 if it looks like the opposition isn’t going to back down. No way Harper can stand the thought of being kicked out of power on a confidence motion or Coalition. For once I think Steven Taylor may be right on something.
* Posted 30/11/08 at 12:50 AM EST | ———
Now Robert Fife over at CTV is saying he heard Harper is going to do just that. Garth is absolutely right in saying that Harper will do anything to hold on to power even if it means shutting down a 2 week old parliament. The man needs to be thrown in jail. Haper you are a ASSHOLE. Sorry for the language folks but the man needs a good slap, really good slap.
Grewal tapes, NDP tapes – good grief, we have our own Watergate here in Canada and our own Nixonian.
That’s a pretty provocative picture and link (from Ivison … sheesh – it may as well be Duffy) there Garth.
Obviously I can’t speak to Mr. Ignatieff’s motives, but these two videos, along with this corresponding commentary lead me to believe that Liberals shouldn’t be piling on M.I. just yet.
http://bcinto.blogspot.com/2008/11/michael-in-media-on-sunday.html
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081130.WBSteele20081130210014/WBStory/WBSteele/
That said, if things do fall through because of Mr. Ignatieff then he can probably expect a big fallout from within the Liberal ranks.
Oh Santa, please bring us a new Prime Minister and a coalition government.
I don’t think Ignatieff is opposed to the coalition, with Dion as PM. Their leadership convention will go ahead in May anyway.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jii7m7498qA
Don’t let this CRAPPY CON government continue because if they do, they will sell every asset owned by Canadians to American interests to offset their 25% increase in spending.
Harper can play the role of defeated bully until the opposition thinks they’ve won but if Harpo is not taken out, he will rise and wreck havoc on his opponents like all bullys and cowards do.
Give us back my Canada. Defeat those CON/REFORM/ALLIANCE neo-cons. Get rid of them. Do not allow them any power.
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/546198
Calm down Jack please. It’s a distraction.
Well, I for one am enjoying the unencumbered Garth.
Iggy won’t be saving Harper anytime soon if you caught him interviewed on CTV with that right leaning hag.
Hilarious watching the conservative cock roaches running in circles.
Time to hammer Harper and save the country.
“. . . When asked to prove it by the media, he could not. . . . he’s willing to say, or do anything to retain power. . . . All lies. . . . [but he cannot avoid it - without shutting the House down and coming back with a new Throne Speech. That would be absurd, since the last one has not been voted on, and is just 2 weeks old. "]
Most here already know he is a Type A personality. Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts, absolutely. He doesn’t now, and never will have absolute power. It would be too dangerous for our country.
Again, it is of far greater importance for the opposition parties to give and take. If the Throne Speech just given has not yet been voted on, and harpo wants to delay parliament for two months, surely that will give the opposition more than sufficient time to organize themselves into some semblance of unity and order.
In the meantime, let him commit political hari-kiri. He’s had three kicks at the can now, and failed to win a majority. Three strikes and your out!
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A differing look at what happened in India. Some neat sites further down on the right. — http://tinyurl.com/3yf2nu
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If the UK goes through with this — adopts the Euro as currency — it will mean the end for tax-haven status for the Channel Islands, just off the north coast of France where John and I grew up (Cdn. by birth).
Suppose a lot of multi-zillionaires who launder their money through there will have to find somewhere else to park their stash! — http://tinyurl.com/6ezjpl
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Kelly Hayes of castanet.net interviews Charles Fipke, who made a fortune finding diamonds up north. He spends some of his time here.
Notice he says “happened so quick”, and “reducing taxes”; why didn’t CRAP cut income tax rates to give us more cash, instead of cutting a consumption tax?
Ooohhhh, I forgot. CRAP is a brain short of a fully-loaded sewer system . . .
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The man who is arguably one of Kelowna’s wealthiest residents, says the economy will turn around, but not anytime soon.
Charles Fipke, who became famous and filthy rich after founding the first diamond mine in Canada, says he was surprised to see the world economy take a dive.
“I’m really surprised that it happened so quick,” says Fipke who was at UBCO Monday for the unveiling of the Fipke Centre. Fipke donated $7 million for the centre’s creation.
“He says world governments must meet and find a solution to the global economic crisis.
“I’m an optimistic person and I think the governments will group together and generate a lot more spending. Maybe they’ll reduce taxes and that will help the consumer.”
“Fipke says the turnaround will take some time.
“Hopefully, there will be a turnaround soon, but I think it could be a year or two before things get back to normal.”
“Despite the economic slowdown, Fipke is basking in another major mineral discovery.
“He’s been in Africa looking for gold and nickel.
“I just came back from Yemen, Africa where we’ve been exploring for nickel and gold. We’ve found three major nickel deposits.”
“Fipke says the world’s leading geologists say the discovery in Yemen is one of the top projects in the world.”
No amount of backtracking on Harper’s part will change the fact that he used a financial crisis as an opportunity to take partisan shots at his opponents, while doing nothing whatsoever to help ordinary Canadians. He has proven time and time again that he is far more interested in playing power games than in actually doing what is good for the country, and there is every indication that he will continue with this same behaviour regardless of how much time he buys or how often he promises to behave himself.
Enough is enough.
BTW, I got that nice note from the Liberal Caucus in the mail last week, sympathizing with my sudden lack of a Liberal MP and saying that the party is always there to help. It was very reassuring.
Oddly enough, I’ve received nothing at all from Lisa Raitt. No “Hello, I’m your new MP” letter, no info on her constituency office which finally opened a couple of weeks ago.
And her website still says this:
Lisa is currently in the process of setting up her constituency office. Once it is open for business, we will post the relevant contact information here.
One would think that the current crisis would be the perfect opportunity for her to reach out to her constituents and explain the actions of her government and her Prime Minister.
Maybe I’ll just have to ask her.
BTW, have you heard what the progressive blogosphere has been calling this little maneuver?
THE MAPLE SYRUP REVOLUTION!
I love it!
Glen wrote:
>Get rid of these conservative clowns >while we have a chance.
It appears your wish may come true and you may regret it because the likely result in the long run will be a Conservative majority when a imho an election will take place in late spring or early summer. It could very well be with out Harper which may not be such a bad thing for the Conservatives.
>They simply do not have the rights of >the average Canadian worker on their >minds.
What a crock. Personally I agree that the Federal public servants shouldn’t have the right to strike and I was one for 35 years.
>Harper is George Bush’s mirror >image….and soon Canada will mirror the >US if we don’t get rid of them ASAP.
I doubt even you believe that BS. For one thing Harper has intelligence. Secondly even with Harper the Canadian Conservatives are closer to the democrats then with the Republicans. Besides, Canada will never mirror a Bush USA regardless of who is our PM because the vast majority of Canadians are closer to the centre.
Sadly, Dion, when he showed the outline of an agreement with the NDP fro a coalition reminds me of Chamberlain when he waved a peace deal in the air as he left his plane after a trip to Germany in 1938.
Personally I think Layton was already planing for this during the election. At that time Dion rebuffed him but since politics is all about power things change. For Dion he will not go down in history as the only Liberal leader who wasn’t PM and for Layton he will be able to claim he led his party in to being part of the government. The fact is there will always be an asterisk by both names because neither of them were and never will be voted in by Canadians to be the government and PM..
This whole sick state of affairs will tarnish Conservatives, Liberals and NDP and the Bloc will be laughing all the way to the bank.
Cut it out Garth . You have me ROTFLMAO at the insane incompetence we are being treated to on a daily basis .
It would be high comedy if it weren’t so ,very,serious .
Glen Wrote.
>Clearly this backstepping demonstrates >a lack of leadership.
During the last Parliament he was being crucified for not changing his mind before and now you are crucifying for changing his mind. Make up your minds folks. Which is it. Do you want a leader who doesn’t change his mind or do you want who does. You can’t have it both ways.
>An inability to lead this country.
It is very evident that Layton and Duceppe had no intention of allowing Harper lead this country. Even Layton’s own words said this was organized long time aga.
>The Harper government came into power >with a huge surplus mis-handled the >money. Period
Liberals brag about the 12 billion dollar surplus like a badge of honour. A huge surplus like that is just as bad as a deficit because both indicate poor budgeting.
>Now they want average Canadians to >“tighten their belts” to cover up for >their very own mismanagement.
Harper wanted to tighten politicians to tighten their belts and the opposition went ballistic when federal party funding was to cut. May be you should be directing your anger at the Liberals, NDP and Bloc for political parties and politicians not tightening their belts.
>We must remove him from power before >it’s too late.
Do you honestly think things are going to change with current atmosphere in parliament? I strongly doubt it very much. A change of government and the method the opposition to obtain it will only exacerbate it.
I am coming to the conclusion that the only solution is another election because the house is so poisoned with mistrust,lying and the fight for power on all sides of the house.
The only positive result from this disgusting fight over power and that is all it is is that a majority government will be assured after the next election which I predict will be called in January 2009. It could be even sooner if the GG arrives at the same conclusion as I have. Hopefully she will if she truly is thinking about Canada and the public.
Who is the liar?
Here is Laytons comments during their Cacuas meeting
Quote:
“Let’s just say we have strategies. This whole thing would not have happened if the moves hadn’t been made with the Bloc a long time ago and locked them in early,” Layton says. “Because, you couldn’t put three people together in one or three hours. The first part was done a long time ago.”
The key comment here is ” The first part was done along time ago.”
However, the NDP has strongly denied they had a plan to unite with the Bloc before hand.
“Not at all, this is absolute nonsense,” said Brad Lavigne, the NDP’s communications director.
Lavigne told CTV Newsnet Sunday afternoon that the “lines of communication” between the NDP and the Bloc have been open, but that there was never a “deal” to form a coalition.
You be the judge.
The COALITION will save our Canada from this disgraceful Harper sociopathic dictatorship
By Ben on 11.30.08 9:27 pm
You haven’t proven anything except that you have no idea what a sociopath or a dictator is. Sad but true.
My feeling is that if Harper’s government still looks like it will fall on December 8th, sometime after 5:30pm next Friday he will announce the prorogue of parliament. He will then run his ads for 2 months against the Liberals/NDP and Bloc (he’s already asked for money from his supporters – I hope the NDP and Libs do too) and upon return he will release his budget on the 2nd day back. That budget will have so much spending it will be very difficult for anybody to vote down.
I feel confident in my prediction because I believe in Harper’s need for power. He doesn’t care about the economy, nor democracy – only power.
Prediction: Harper will show his true stripes as a coward and prorogue parliament so he does not loose the looming vote of non-confidence.
He will then come back sometime between January and March with a budget (which he will then loose under non-confidence) and expect the Governor General to call another election, rather than let a coalition govern.
This, of course, puts the GG in a terrible situation. What will she do? Hopefully the right thing, which is let the duly elected members of the opposition form a government.
Harper had his chance, played his cards and will lose this one. He has also openly shown himself to be an egomaniac of epic proportions and a person without one shred of ethics or integrity. He does not deserve to be Prime Minister.
Some interesting tidbits are beginning to surface in the media about a “dump Harper” movement growing in strength.
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20081130/websites_tories_081130/20081130?hub=Canada
http://a-view-from-the-left.blogspot.com/2008/11/conservatives-for-prentice.html
While these web sites may, or may not be, legitimate, there have been a number of other columnists that have been reporting widespread unhappiness with Harper’s current actions.
If Harper does prorogue parliament this will be seen as a huge affront to democracy since the Throne Speech has not even been voted on by the house, and it will only give the Governor General more rationale to allow a coaltion to take control of government.
One way or another it would appear that the bully Stevie has crossed the line of no return.
I wonder if some Conservative MPs who did not agree with the latest economic update and Harper’s penchant for trying to set up a dictatorship in Canada will cross the floor and join the Liberals, or at the very least sit as independents until Harper is booted out by the Conservative Party executive.
Hmmmm… can the Conservative caucus have their own vote of non-confidence in Harper and oust him from the leadership position and put someone like Jim Prentice in on an interim basis?
Perhaps if they approached the opposition parties with that scenario the opposition would agree to work with a non-Harper-led Conservative Party.
Here’s a serious question to ponder for everyone:
If the Harper government could be so short sighted and literally goof up like this….how on earth to people beleive they are competent enough to lead this country through and economic crisis?
I mean anyone that lacks that kind of insight and vision simply cannot be trusted. I honestly think something is wrong with Harper…what a huge gaffa.
Harper is certainly no visionary in the form that this country needs right now….not with the proposals his government put forth.
Two ‘most excellent’ [Ed Grimley] feel-good photo[e]s**—Clement don’t look too happy either
http://www.garth.ca/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/angry-jim.jpeg
http://multimedia.thestar.com/images/6e/60/3d0b0e6c4dde9007bc36ee1fafc1.jpeg
**Dan Quayle made me change the spelling, when he surprised all the kiddies at the spelling bee.
Harper’s mission (to remake Canada in the neo con western reform image) was doomed to failure from it’s inception. Canada is Canadian always have been and will be…we have had our troubles, but people from all regions are allowed to speak..of course we have the BLOC hey they are people also and have organized with peaceful political means…not with guns and bombs storming hotels and the like. I have respect for their hard work and a understanding of voices. Their children also have the right to choose and they may choose different as appears the case. Harper was and is Dictator…known to those inside to treat his party members as he treat the opposition and the public…. Hidden Agenda…. Yes… and many non political people just knew it in their guts… the sixth sense… just knowing right from wrong… thank you Canada…
A spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office said there was nothing unethical about covertly listening in to the private NDP deliberations, taping those discussions and releasing them to the media.
If Conservatives don’t see this action as unethical, then they need to look the word up in the dictionary…..
“not conforming to approved standards of social or professional behavior.”
If you are interested in finding out more about yourself and others, take the moral politics test at http://www.moral-politics.com/xpolitics.aspx?menu=Home
Garth do you support a Finance Minister Jack Layton? As a business person it should make hot bile invade your throat. L
This makes a lot of common sense.
Theory: Conservative MP Mike Allen was accidentally “invited” to the NDP caucus conference call
All speeches and political policies should be analyzed by publicly funded unbiased psychologists and publicly reported in the media! Any attempts to bribe the shrinks should be punishable by ten years hard labor cleaning latrines in public places!
[My tooth/jaw ache is getting worse now, please pass me more Tylenol 3!]
By Truth B Told on 11.30.08 11:06 pm
ROFLMAO! Hey, I just saw a paradox fly over this morning.
Based on the pure crap political speeches generally consist of, I thought they had been anal-eyesed already by the proofreader?
As to finding unbiased Shrinks…Good luck. They are generally dedicated fans of one theory or another, and usually their own.
Way things are going we will have to rename our country to Cannota.
I only hope that Bob Rae and Michael I. don’t screw this up for us. Although I prefer Bob, if M.I. has the majority of the caucus behind him, and Dion will not be the leader of the coalition, should there be one, then it seems more democratic to let M.I. lead for now. Or maybe the Liberals should put the leadership issue to a vote that includes all Liberal MPs, not just the caucus.
Nothing’s going to happen in 8 days, and Harper will still be the PM as he will prorogue Parliament to prevent a coalition from voting no confidence. This thing will go from ugly to uglier to ugliest very quickly…with no real resolution. I mean, even if Harper is sent packing, who’s to say the coalition gov’t will be better? Are we sure we’re not just suffering from “the grass is greener on the other side” syndrome? Not only are we having an economic crisis, we’re also having an identity crisis as a nation…
“Eight more days.”
he’ll turtle.
PSAC calls on all members to back coalition
By Kathryn MayDecember 1, 2008
OTTAWA — Canada’s largest public servants’ union is planning to join a national campaign to support a coalition that could topple the minority Conservatives.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada is joining a number of groups, including the Canadian Labour Congress, to hold rallies across the country this week to back a Liberal and NDP coalition after the Conservatives failed to provide the much-needed stimulus to kickstart a weakening economy.
The union is also urging its members to call, fax or e-mail their MPs to voice their support for a coalition government.
The decision comes after the Harper government yesterday backed down on plans to ban public servants from striking when it introduces legislation to limit public servants’ wage increases to 6.8 per cent over four years.
The call for the rally, expected to be held Dec. 4, will be posted on PSAC’s website today and says “this week all Canadians, including PSAC members, have a unique opportunity to uphold and strengthen Canadian democracy.” The union asks its member to rally “in favour of a coalition government to make Parliament work.”
Public servants are supposed to be non-partisan, but PSAC has always publicly supported “labour-friendly” candidates during elections.
PSAC president John Gordon rejected suggestions that such a campaign contradicted the bureaucracy’s non-partisanship.
“Public servants are taxpayers and they have a right to make a statement on who should be the government or not,” he said late Sunday night. “Just because you work for the public service doesn’t mean you have to abrogate your right to express who should be government. It’s a democratic society.”
Mr. Gordon said the union was willing to restrain wages and do its bit for the economy when it agreed to the government’s 6.8-per-cent deal, but was incensed when Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s economic statement offered no stimulus package for the economy and then heaped “another slap” on federal workers by taking away the right to strike and collective bargaining, rolling back wages of workers whose contracts were already settled and gutting pay equity .
To read the rest see:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/psac+calls+members+back+coalition/1015156/story.html
The Hill Times, December 1st, 2008
PM Harper opts for more costly minister of state positions in bigger Cabinet
Critics question ‘radically increased Cabinet,’ and ‘junior Cabinet ministers’ with ‘suddenly huge pay.’
By Harris MacLeod
Prime Minister Stephen Harper took steps Thursday to trim expenses in the federal civil service, eliminate the per vote subsidy for federal political parties, and other belt-tightening “lead by example” measures, but Mr. Harper also opted for the more costly position of naming 11 ministers of state over the less costly position of secretaries of state when he unveiled his much larger 38-member ministry on Oct. 30.
There are 11 ministers of state serving in the Conservative government’s ministry. While ministers of state are not technically members of Cabinet, they are members of the ministry, and the combined cost of the $74,000 pay increase for the 11 ministers of state is $818,400. The total operating budgets for ministers of state can be up to $642,590, which could potentially bring budgetary expenses for the 11 new ministers of state to $7,068,490, or $7,711,080 with the minister of state salaries.
Back in the Cabinet shuffle on Jan. 4, 2007, Mr. Harper appointed six secretaries of state, five of whom were promoted from being backbench MPs, and one, Senator Marjory LeBreton, who was given a secretary of state portfolio in addition to being a full Cabinet minister as leader of the government in the Senate.
On Oct. 30, when the new Cabinet was sworn in, four of the six MPs were promoted to full Cabinet ministers, one, Sen. LeBreton was already a Cabinet minister, and Helena Guergis (Simcoe-Grey, Ont.), originally Secretary of State (Foreign Affairs and International Trade) (Sport), was promoted to minister of state (Status of Women). Diane Ablonczy (Calgary-Nose Hill, Alta.) who was sworn in as a secretary of state (Small Business and Tourism) on Aug. 14, was also promoted to minister of state. As of Oct. 30, the secretary of state position is no longer in use.
“I don’t think minister of state, or secretary of state will mean anything to Canadians, but I think that Canadians will understand going from a smaller cabinet to a bloated Cabinet in difficult economic times and I don’t think that will go over very well. That is sending the wrong message to Canadians, to the public service, to all of those people having to tighten their belts, and here we see government itself loosening its belt.”
To read the rest:
http://www.thehilltimes.ca/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=2008/december/1/minister_of_state/&c=2
Eight more days.
An interesting coincidence?
In eight more days, Quebec decides if it wants a Liberal leadership, or separatist leadership.
Already, Mme. Marois is using Harpo’s delay of the inevitable as another sign of Ottawa showing complete lack of respect for Quebec. Of trying to reduce interest or participation in provincial election or possibly distract from his federal problems by using the Quebec election.
Like I have said, Harpo is dangerous to Canadian unity.
We must remove him NOW!
For those who are “harping” on the power grab by the Opposition…
Funny how you do not see the whole thing was brought about by Harpo’s obsession with power in the first place! Never, ever, corner a wounded animal. That is what he tried to do with the Opposition.
As far as talks between the NDP and Bloc, well, that is just good contingency planning, and something any good political party should do. Who could have guessed the Harperites would give them such a nice present!
Canadians have been interpreted that IN THE LAST ELECTION they gave Harpo another chance as they wanted COOPERATION IN THE COMMONS. This is what the CPC REFUSED TO DO – which resulted in the present crisis.
Seems the Separatists, and the socialist NDP are actually doing what Canadians want to. Now, with the Liberals on board, perhaps we will see the cooperation THE MAJORITY OF CANADIANS VOTED FOR!!!
You blogroaches from the CPC war room are clearly showing your double standards. You were given a chanCe, and youR demi-god sub-Prime Minister Harpo the unclean blew it for you.
Do not blame the opposition. they are doing their jobs – AT LAST!!!
Does anyone have details of PSAC rally in support of the coalition on Dec 4
Best line I’ve heard so far today, by Scott Brison…
“I knew (Harper) had the ideology of George Bush, but now see he has the ethics of Richard Nixon”, (re NDP conference call recording).
—————————–
If the coalition brings together economic experts regardless of political affiliation, to hammer out a viable stimulus package, which is what Obama is doing, and Harper hasn’t done, they will gain respect from the majority of Canadians (at least 64% anyway). I will have even further respect if Garth is one of the experts they listen to. And TS whoever you are.
Richard Nixon/Harper should stand in our H of C and state he is indeed a crook, then turn and walk out never to be seen or heard of again in public. It’s just that simple… we once had an Admiral in the Navy that had his ring of spies and it was not happy times and he fell from grace having little or no respect…. All leaders who do not have the confidence of their own mind live in fear they may be found out act in the manner Harper has…. As Garth Turner has mentioned many time it was living hell for members of his party…. Bill Casey and Garth were and are strong politicans Salute!
PM’s best hope: Liberal divisions
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Coalition said close, despite concessions
Another tumultuous day of high-stakes political intrigue has set the stage for a week in which Stephen Harper’s Conservatives will fight to retain power.If all else fails, Harper could have one desperate option left – prorogue Parliament,
Dec 01, 2008 04:30 AM
Comments on this story (10)
Chantal Hébert
OTTAWA
The bridges Stephen Harper’s minority government burnt last week will not be rebuilt easily, if ever.
The abrupt withdrawal of the plan to end direct public political financing Saturday does not change the fact that the Prime Minister wanted to use the cover of an economic crisis to financially strangle the other parties.
Nor can yesterday’s about-face on suspending the right to strike of civil servants diminish the fact that last week’s fiscal update sent a powerful signal that the government sees the ongoing economic storm as an opportunity to settle ideological scores.
From the perspective of the opposition parties, there is no guarantee that the Conservatives will not be back with more of the same as soon as the threat of instant dismissal from government is removed. The window to replace the Harper government without plunging the country into an election will not remain open beyond the next couple of months.
Against this backdrop, even a full-fledged bouquet of olive branches might not bring some semblance of peace to the House of Commons.
As the government looks to neutralize at least one party in the lead-up to a Dec. 8 confidence vote, the Bloc Québécois – because it would not be part of an eventual governing coalition – theoretically should be the weak link in the opposition line-up.
But there are early signs that the prospect of a progressive coalition in power in Ottawa is popular in Quebec. Few Quebecers would mourn the demise of a government whose re-election most of them did not support and whose intentions toward their province are not necessarily benevolent.
http://www.thestar.com/Canada/Columnist/article/546309
What La Presse is reporting on the Quebecois nation
Québécois in favour of a coalition
76% support a coalition if the Conservatives are defeated, while only 9% want another election.
62% would support BQ representation in cabinet, while only 33% are opposed, as is Gilles Duceppe.
56% do not want Stéphane Dion to be Prime Minister in the coalition government, while only 38% do.
The Bloc québécois now is at 36%, the Liberals at 28% (an increase of 5 points since the election) 15% support the NDP and 15% the Conservatives (a drop of 7 points)
http://www.members.shaw.ca/nspector4/
This makes a lot of common sense.
Theory: Conservative MP Mike Allen was accidentally “invited” to the NDP caucus conference call
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 12.01.08 9:01 am
Read that too Bill and thought the same. Disgusted that the cons should release it to the press. But it shows the lack of moral integrity of the cons. Not that we didn’t know that already.
Garth do you support a Finance Minister Jack Layton? As a business person it should make hot bile invade your throat. L
By Leasa on 12.01.08 8:25 am
Rumours, rumours, rumours – no doubt instigated and spread by your con pals Leasa.
Amen, there IS sometimes justice in this world, that isn’t bought, jerry-mandered or otherwise corrupted. Thanks for the post Garth.
Ending public funding of political parties, plots of coalition government, the CPC complaining of dirty tricks by the NDP and Bloc makes for good diversions and helps to keep peoples minds off of how many days Parliament has sat this year and what they have accomplished.
Something comes to mind.
Only a white man would make a fire for everyone to see.
From Dances with Wolves.
.
Does anyone have details of PSAC rally in support of the coalition on Dec 4
By Margaret Bedore on 12.01.08 10:16 am
Margaret – I googled the PSAAC cite. Nothing specific mentioned about the Dec. 4 rally, but you could contact them via email by clicking on the region in which you live. I believe they also offer and 888 number, no doubt in Ottawa.
See: http://www.psac.com/about/contacts-e.shtml
Hope that helps.
To contact members of the PSAC National Executive, click on the appropriate link below:
National President
National Executive Vice-President
Regional Executive Vice-President Atlantic
Regional Executive Vice-President Québec
Regional Executive Vice-President Ontario
Regional Executive Vice-President National Capital
Regional Executive Vice-President Prairies
Regional Executive Vice-President British Columbia
Regional Executive Vice-President North
Regional Vice-President Countries Outside Canada
Hmmm! Seems the Coalition Government is very ready, and as President-elect Obama has led the way to inclusiveness of good thinking people, perhaps Canada will find the integrity to do the same?
One thing is a must…no backing down, off, or otherwise relenting to remove this disgrace of a government from any form of power. Rid Canada of Harper, let the true Progressive Conservatives rise again, and let’s be about moving forward.
In fact, we should never elect another majority government, they simply do not work for the benefit of all Canadians.
Make these well paid MP’s work together to bring the very best ideas into action. Enough of the overpriced kindergarten.
It will be interesting to see what happens if Harper tries to prorogue Parliament. It would put the Governor-General on the spot because she is the only one who can actually prorogue Parliament. Prorogation is traditional done on the advice of the PM.
However, this situation is unprecedented and an argument can be made that she should not allow a PM to use that power so early in a mandate simply to save a government that has lost the confidence of the House.
By C. B. Innes on 12.01.08 11:32 am
If Harper tries this cowardly escape means (proroguing Parliament) the GG should remove him immediately, or use whatever power she has to remove this escape path.
Think of like the Law chasing the fleeing criminal. NO ESCAPE ALLOWED!
Let the new Coalition Govermnet then immediately pursue the Cadman Affair, and all the other pending investigations that clearly define Harper as a scofflaw. Bring ‘em down HARD and permanently. We deserve an honest government. DEMAND ONE!
Garth, Thank you for your great article. There are a lot of truth in it. The Lib, NDP Coalition with the support of the Bloc, who by the way saved Canada by refusing Harper from getting a majotity, should get rid of this Harper governement NOW. Do NOT give them a chance to breath, suffocate them NOW. It will make Canada a better country afterwards.
Garth – I do hope you’ll allow me to post the COMPLETE article by Lawrence Martin below. If not, I will, as usual, post the URL. Often I disagree with LM’s opinions.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081201.wcomartin01/BNStory/National
The humbling of a Prime Minister
From Monday’s Globe and Mail
December 1, 2008 at 12:11 AM EST
Elizabeth May tells a story from the televised election debates. The rules stipulated that leaders were allowed to bring in blank paper for note-taking. “I’m seated next to Stephen Harper,” the Green Party Leader recalls, swearing she isn’t imagining things, “and I look down on his little table. His paper isn’t blank. He’s got all these notes, already prepared. It was like to hell with the rules. I do what I want.”
That was then. This is now.
Now, a domineering Prime Minister known for running a minority like he has won a landslide is on bended knee, petitioning for survival. In a matter of days Mr. Harper has recanted on his plan to withdraw public funding for political parties, has disavowed his intent to eliminate the right of public servants to strike, has moved up the timing of his budget and moved back the timing of a confidence vote.
The sight of him semi-prostrate before the likes of Stéphane Dion and Jack Layton is not something many would have believed. He hasn’t done the full revocation yet. He hasn’t come forward with a plan for major stimulus in the budget, as opposition parties demand. That could come later this week. But whatever the outcome of the current crisis, one thing is clear: This is a Prime Minister who is getting his comeuppance. You live by the sword, you die by the sword. He isn’t dead, but he is mightily humbled. History won’t forget these days.
Many of us thought he might be changing his ways. I’d written countless columns about his autocratic tactics, but thought that with his election win in October we were seeing a new Stephen Harper, that he was more relaxed and secure. He made some impressive personnel changes and seemed to be displaying a little more bipartisanship. But his opting to play power-monger politics in the midst of a global economic crisis last week showed there was little change. It confirmed the worst suspicions.
Having dug himself into this chasm, the Prime Minister is now making the right moves – especially if he signals more economic stimulus – in trying to dig himself out. He had little choice, given the scathing media reaction, to eat crow on his economic update. With his pullback, he now leaves the opposition parties with less ammunition. He makes it look like they are the ones who, with their continued coalition-plotting, are engaged in a power grab.
The opposition will argue that the PM’s intent was clear, that he doesn’t deserve a second chance, that he cannot be trusted – and that, indeed, he did have a hidden agenda, it being total political control via his party non-funding plan. Mr. Harper did not reveal the funding reform plan or some of the other measures in his election campaign or in his Throne Speech. They were inserted at the last minute in the update. He once denounced Joe Clark for losing his 1979 minority on the basis of a gasoline tax that the Tory leader had not campaigned on. “You can be principled without being stupid,” Mr. Harper said of Mr. Clark. But last week Mr. Harper proceeded to do a similar thing.
The PM also told everyone he was familiar with the mistakes leaders made in the Great Depression of the 1930s – belt-tightening instead of stimulus. Mysteriously he didn’t heed it, at least not in his economic statement.
If defeated on a non-confidence motion, he will hope the Governor-General allows him to fight an election. He might wish before seeing her to retract his attempt to pressure her. He said Friday that Mr. Dion “does not have the right to take power without an election.” This is blatantly wrong. The Opposition leader does, in fact, have the constitutional right in a minority government and the Governor-General has the authority to confer it.
Up until now, the Prime Minister has been able to get away with his strong-arm tactics, his disavowing of his own election law being another recent example. But the economic update did much to expose the essence of him. My suspicion is that we don’t know the half of what went on in his first term and that if there were more journalistic inquiry the extent of his attempts to put a stranglehold on the system would be found to be startling.
Last week, a bureaucrat with close ties to the PMO, said Mr. Harper has told colleagues, “When I’m hiring someone, I want to see fear in their eyes.” It may be an apocryphal story, but like Ms. May’s, it seems to fit the mould. In any case, the fear isn’t in the eyes of others now. It’s in his own.
What are the chances that Michael I will be able to control these buffoons and not tank an economy that is already under pressure? If this fiasco isn’t cooled off soon it will become a powder keg in the west. It is almost laughable that a party that wants to destroy our nation is now being being considered to govern.
Proroguing parliament during these extraordinary times would be political suicide (or should be). It is worse than irresponsible, it is criminal, unethical, and manipulative. It is astounding to me that the GG has so much power, but is unelected. That’s a lot of responsibility on one person’s shoulders. I also think the PM has too much power. Any PM.
Coalition Government Policy Suggestions
Back in June 2007 there was the possibility of a Federal Election. So I decided to submit a comprehensive plan to Jack Layton on how he could become the next PM of Canada. All he had to do was to move to the center and attract all of the Anybody But Harper voters and politicians into a coalition type of government. The following is a set of random policy items that I deemed to be close to what the NDP considered to be important.
* Possible Policy Issues in order to attract public attention *
1: Bring Canadian troops home from Afghanistan (in 2002, it was OK. In 2007, it is not OK. We should not be operating in the middle of a large Islamic Region while fighting in a local civil war.)
2: Stop the implementation of the North American Union and terminate NAFTA so that a system of domestic pricing can be used in the Canadian Economy for our natural resources.
3: Set-up a wide ranging Rural Development Program that will help to bolster the Agricultural Sector and enhance rural communities.
4: Set-up a Program to develop Aboriginal Economic Zones that will help to solve many of the outstanding issues.
5: Set-up a Special Economic Zone in Quebec
6: Set-up a Program to clean and protect Canada’s water resources.
7: Set-up a National Program to integrate Foreign Doctors and other medical personnel into Canada’s Health Care System.
8: Stop importing food and other items that are ingested by humans or animals from China.
9: Repatriate the manufacturing of some key items from China back to Canada.
10: Set-up a Program of Forestry Work Camps for prisoners and detainees.
11: Set-up a Program to rapidly develop the Hemp Industry.
12: Develop the Monolithic Concrete Dome Construction Industry in Canada (suitable as disaster shelters: see website: http://www.monolithic.com/).
13: Immediately ban all Genetically Modified foods and crops in Canada.
14: Immediately ban Aspartame from soft drinks and food products in Canada.
15: Immediately ban adding sodium fluoride to drinking water in Canada (keeps population docile for controllers).
16: Set-up a Youth Training Program.
17: Adjust the current firearms system so that qualified persons can be trained to carry concealed weapons.
Over the weekend someone said that if the opposition are serious about this coalition then they should be looking at a set of policies that could carry them up to two years. So I will also be posting some of the past suggestions that I made to the Conservatives before I found it necessary to write them off.
Cheers.
However, this situation is unprecedented and an argument can be made that she should not allow a PM to use that power so early in a mandate simply to save a government that has lost the confidence of the House.
By C. B. Innes on
———————
C.Bl I am sure that the coalition is two steps ahead of any crap Harper is trying to dream up to get out of this mess.
However, this situation is unprecedented and an argument can be made that she should not allow a PM to use that power so early in a mandate simply to save a government that has lost the confidence of the House.
By C. B. Innes on 12.01.08 11:32 am
I agree with CBI. It would be illogical
for the GG to decide to send the country back to the polls so soon after the last election when we have a minority government with so little real focus on the problems of the country and so many contradictory statements.
It may be a very awkward position for the GG to be in if Harper asks to prorogue parliament but the motive should be so abundantly clear that she should realize this is no time for our government to take a break from working on means to help Canadians and employers in trouble and to instill some sense of confidence in the direction we are going.
Van 11:30.08
All i know is the Liberal Calvary will be riding in with $$ Billions for us in the Automotive assembly field. Thats what Iggy,Dion,Rae and Layton all have said on TV and in the printed media. So i fully expect them to deliver that money before x-mas ! They are now on record for their remarks.
12.01.08 11:53 am
I apologize for my post above which, somehow, I must have hit the ‘Say It! button twice. Garth used to have a feature that if you’re post was accidentally repeated 2X, it rejected your’re 2nd post. Or, maybe, I screwed up and C&P’d 2X within the one post. Sorry about that.
‘to instill some sense of confidence in the direction we are going’
BY PAT G ON 12.01.08 12:04 PM
Confidence is the key word. As for Iggy? I don’t think anyone cares. As a Liberal? I must admit having Mr. Dion sitting in the seat Mr. Harper just vacated would give me some personal satisfaction but that’s just me.
It really doesn’t matter who’s leader. Flip a coin or something.
By Go Green on 12.01.08 11:01 am
Margaret & others who might be interested. I thought the list for the regions would show up as a link when I posted them. My bad.
Can someone please explain why cutting public funding of all federal political parties would be so damaging to the Liberal, NDP and BQ, but good for the Conservatives?
Also, why should the Canadian Government be providing any funds to the BQ at all? Seems rather stupid to me.
Well, at least these developments will put us on a path to a saner government. One way or another. As someone who voted for you last time, I really hope I see your name on the ballot again.
By Dee on 12.01.08 12:15 pm,
Where the Conservatives make an error is in believing that the reason for the outcome of the last election was that they liked Harper and disliked Dion. The people I talk to people have said that was never the issue. In fact, most said they liked Dion better than Harper but they found him difficult to understand and they voted as they did because they feared the impact of the green shift.
Ironically, on most issues (other than mainly his separatism and Quebec parochialism), of the three opposition leaders, the one whose judgment that I would trust the most is Duceppe.
This is a suggestion that I sent to the Conservatives in November 2005. I now offer this to the Coalition Government for consideration.
[Comment: FYI, earlier in 2005, I submitted a very detailed proposal on how Harper and the CPC could put together a Coalition Government. However, it seems that he never used ANY of my many constructive suggestions.]
A BOLD PROPOSAL FOR ATLANTIC CANADA
The Canada Party has been exploring a variety of ways to restructure the economy of Canada. One of these ways is to establish a number of economic zones in various locations spread out across Canada. However, the only way that an economic zone would be feasible in Atlantic Canada is if the current Provincial Governments could come to an agreement to amalgamate the existing provinces into one new political and economic entity. One large Maritime Province with one efficient provincial government and one large economic environment.
If the current provincial governments can succeed in coming to such an agreement, a Canada Party Government will use all of its resources in order to develop this new economic zone as soon as it is feasibly possible to do so.
We would encourage a variety of private enterprise investors to set up in this zone bringing with them a broad range of industrial activity.
A Canada Party Government will also contribute funds to build the following facilities:
1: Up to 250 million dollars for a Major Sports Complex that would include a stadium, an arena, and a variety of other facilities.
2: Provide the funds to build a Regional Medical Centre in the vicinity of the Sports Complex. This could cost up to 500 million dollars.
[I refer you to research the following Website information.]
http://www.monolithic.com/
http://www.monolithic.com/gallery/sports/index.html
http://www.monolithic.com/gallery/sports/crenostad/index.html
*************
Cheers.
The following is one of the key items that I sent to the CPC. I now offer it to the Coalition Government for consideration.
RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
A Coalition Government will be proactive in finding ways to bolster the Agricultural Sector. To begin with, we will be implementing a multi-faceted Rural Development Program.
Firstly, as a way to help the family farm, we will make it easier for family farmers to join together and form Corporations. This should enable them to keep their farms going and to provide a greater level of long-term stability.
A Coalition Government will also implement a plan to move many Canadians from the larger cities out to the smaller communities. We will be providing a number of different incentives in order to attract this movement to these rural communities. This program will also provide many benefits to the current residents of those communities.
This program will establish a concept of modern communes or collectives in various regions of rural Canada. The population for these communes could range from 1000 up to 5000 men, women and children. All types of people could be eligible to join these communes, as long as they are honest and hard working.
Determining the composition of members required for each commune will be an important function in order to ensure a successful operation. In most cases, these communes would be built in or adjacent to a small town.
The type of rural region chosen to establish any of these communes will determine what type of occupational skills will be required from the people who wish to move to these rural locations. However, there will still be opportunities for people with no specific job skills.
Some of these communes would be ideally suited for many of our recent immigrants.
The Canada Economic Investment Corporation (CEIC) will be responsible for building these communes and for providing the start-up funds. The CEIC will also oversee the operation of these communes to ensure that everything is functioning as planned.
The funding for various social programs that these communes will be providing could come from various government departments.
This concept could also be used for the Aboriginal Economic Zone Program.
ABORIGINAL ECONOMIC ZONES
In a recent email, I suggested setting up a Special Economic Zone in the Province of Quebec. In some ways, some Aboriginal Reserves already operate as a Special Economic Zone in some minor ways. For example, the operation of casinos and the selling of tax free cigarettes.
As a way to help the Aboriginal Community improve their economic situation, we will be establishing Aboriginal Economic Zones. In my opinion, the only way to solve the many Aboriginal problems is to give them a meaningful economic base for them to operate in.
The main Aboriginal tribal groups are currently divided into too many smaller groups, which in our society and economic system is not advantageous for them. My idea involves exchanging reserve lands in the southern parts of the provinces for much larger tracts of land in the northern parts of our provinces. This will require the support of the provincial governments.
This will be a voluntary program whereby different Indian Bands across the country can join together to form large communities on these larger reserves. These new Aboriginal Economic Zones will be established in various parts of Canada. The larger community will then be given the responsibility of developing these larger tracts of land in the best way possible.
A Conservative Government will supply the funding and the expertise to start up these Aboriginal Economic Zones. However, there will be some conditions. They would have financial and other help from the Federal and Provincial Governments for the first five years.
These zones will function as municipalities with an elected Mayor and councilors. There will be no more Band Chiefs in control of anyone. If these zones develop properly, after five years they will become fully independent. Everyone will become a full fledged Canadian citizen and tax payer.
One of the new areas that they could become involved in is operating the new Detention Work Camp System.
In the meantime, there is one way to start the ball rolling. There are some choice tracts of land in the southern parts of some provinces that could be redeveloped in a meaningful way if they were owned by private developers.
However, it is my understanding that the only way any reserve land can be sold or even leased is if the Federal Government gives its permission to the Indian Band to do so. A Conservative Government could, on a case by case basis, look at giving some permission to sell certain lands if it is really worthwhile for that Indian Band to do.
*****************
Cheers.
This is a sports program that I sent to the Conservatives in February 2006. I now offer it to the Coalition Government for consideration.
[The Program}
A Coalition Government will establish a One Billion dollar Sports Infrastructure Fund. This Fund will be used to build a variety of new sports facilities across Canada.
The facility that is currently on the top of the list is a new soccer stadium for the Canadian Soccer Association. The exact location for this stadium is to be determined, but it will likely be built somewhere in the GTA.
There are many locations on the list for a new stadium. The priority for determining which stadiums get built first is still to be determined.
There are a number of University locations that would like a new stadium for their teams. Some of these locations would also like to host a Canadian Football League team.
In the Maritimes, we have Halifax, Moncton and Saint John.
In the Province of Quebec, we have Quebec City, Sherbrooke and Montreal.
In Ontario, we have the GTA with more than one possible location, Hamilton, London and Windsor.
In Western Canada, we have Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Red Deer, Kelowna, and the Lower BC Mainland.
We have been looking at a scenario where we may be able to start building three or four of these stadiums at the same time. One of these stadium projects may even include an inexpensive indoor stadium using a new concrete dome construction technique that has been developed in the past decade.
In addition to these stadiums, this fund will build new arenas, indoor soccer facilities, outdoor FieldTurf soccer fields, and a variety of other facilities that will meet the needs of many Canadians from sea to sea to sea.
The first of these outdoor FieldTurf soccer fields could be available by September of this year. By the way, FieldTurf is made by a Montreal company.
This new spending program for sports should also have a positive effect for the economy of some of these locations.
Now to the next item.
Canada’s national sports teams and national sport groups are always short of operating funds.
A Coalition Government will establish a National Sports Operating Fund of 300 million dollars to start with. However, we will also be looking at how the National Sport Group executive offices operate. In order to save money on office overhead, it may be better to consolidate all of these different sport groups into one large national group executive office.
Canadians will soon see that a Coalition Government delivers what it promises.
The location for the new Canadian Soccer Association soccer stadium will be settled as soon as possible. We will then take submissions from interested parties who would like to have a stadium built in their locale. Once we evaluate all of the submissions, we will choose the lucky locations for Phase One of this building program.
Now to the last item
A new Coalition Government will be establishing a Canadian Soccer Development Program. The initial funding for this program will be 200 million dollars.
We will be working together with the Canadian Soccer Association and all of the other soccer groups in Canada to improve the calibre of soccer players in Canada.
This new funding will allow the Canadian Soccer Association to hire professional soccer coaches to provide soccer skills training to the many young boys and girls who are participating in soccer programs in all parts of Canada.
The long-term goals of this program are as follows:
1: Improve the calibre of our national teams for international competition
2: As soon as it is feasible, we would like to establish a Canadian professional soccer league for men and one for women.
3: To qualify a Canadian Men’s Team in the 2010 FIFA World Cup competition.
We do not have a lot of time to work with. However, using outdoor and indoor training programs our national players will have many more opportunities to develop their skills and to add to their playing experience. Many of the Canadian soccer players who are playing in foreign countries could be enticed to come back to Canada to play. Those players who want to play soccer on a full-time basis will have a chance to earn a living in Canada as a result of this new funding.
Recently, CBC Newsworld ran a documentary on the Ethnic soccer leagues in Montreal during the 2004 season. This was very enlightening. I can assure all of the Ethnic soccer players in Montreal that when the final details of this program are implemented, your situation in Montreal will be greatly improved. This would also apply to Ethnic soccer leagues in other regions of Canada, such as Toronto and Vancouver.
Let us now discuss the concept of a “Team Quebec”. When Gilles Duceppe floated this idea a few weeks ago, it was laughed at. However, there is one place where a Team Quebec is feasible, and that is in La Francophonie Games.
A Coalition Government would be willing to contribute some extra funds to the Province of Quebec so that they can upgrade the sports teams that could compete in La Francophonie Games. A number of French-speaking countries have World Class soccer teams. It would be interesting to see how well a Team Quebec soccer team can compete against those high calibre teams.
Furthermore, a Coalition Government will be exploring the feasibility of combining the Commonwealth Games and La Francophonie Games as a means of increasing the public interest in these Games.
***************
Cheers.
Careful what you wish for. You may just get it.
Coalition? Sure, Harpo’s out. Now for the big question: WHAT’S IN?
Sorry, but I just don’t see it. No plan, no preparedness, no nothing.
Stimulus? Sure. It’s been tried in Japan, FDR did it in US (the “new deal”). To the umpteen degree. It DOES NOT WORK. It will make this recession/depression even worst and much, much longer than necessary.
Me, I am happy. I KNOW what is going to happen and am ready and positioned to make a bundle from the stupidity of others. How? Simple: Austrian economic theory.
Have a merry Xmas! I KNOW I am going to have one!!!
If the opposition gives in there is nothing to prevent the Conservatives from pushing ahead on an even more radical and destructive path of robbing the middle to grease the palms of the financial class.
By C. B. Innes on 11.30.08 9:46 pm
OK CB … I want $5,000 from YOU immediately, because I don’t want to be excluded from that [financial] class.
Have you heard about the new TS=FA plan put forward by Harper/Poschman? The potential saving is actually FA.
I will confirm to you when I receive the $5,000. Thereafter, don’t ever speak to me again.
ORNERY member of the Harper JUST-US Country Club.
“Oh Santa, please bring us a new Prime Minister and a coalition government.”
By AToryNoMore on 12.01.08 12:30 am
I second that motion.
—–
“…we once had an Admiral in the Navy that had his ring of spies and it was not happy times and he fell from grace having little or no respect…”
By David Bakody on 12.01.08 10:26 am
I KNEW this whole thing reminded me of something – The Caine Mutiny”.
When will Harper start muttering conspiracy theories and fingering and clicking his little metal balls (no rudeness intended)?
—–
None of the present contenders for Liberal leader should be the interim PM. This is not a time for showing off. Get some good guys with proven records in the important portfolios and get on with it.
Get us through this mess and worry about the shining glory later.
We have an emergency here, folks.
—–
It really doesn’t matter who’s leader. Flip a coin or something.
By Dee on 12.01.08 12:15 pm
—-
I second THAT motion, too.
Hear Ye, Hear ye, Hear ye
Henceforth, when any leader becomes so self centered and obnoxious that they attempt to rule rather than govern, ignoring the will of the people in an extraordinary display of raw self centered ego-maniacal stupidity it shall be referred to as:
Pulling a Harper
Let history record this to be true.
Thank you : )
By Paully on 12.01.08 12:40 pm
Cutting funding….Harper’s conservatives received only 37% for this system of their total amount as compared to 60% plus…also the government in power is able to do things oppositions can not… Garth mentioned the 10% ers and dominating and controlling the the Post Office…dare I bring up ADSCAM.. also those who have non tendered contracts most likely were government friendly ie: Haliburton in the US and Dynamic Engineering…the list goes on… once out of power if ever they would cry wolf knowing just how it works… Kinda like now with that now posted letter the GG.
In a Democracy people have rights and those who vote or contribute to any registered political party have that right. These people are Canadians albeit the views do not reflect the vast majority, they have family they homes and yes they pay taxes… Turn on your TV, read your history books, when people are denied basic rights and especially the right to give voice they act with violence. I give full credit to the BLOC and the separatist for taking this path… I have live and worked with separatist…10OO’s now work and live in Alberta and beyond… The Bloc Sir/Madame does not have to convince those who live outside of Canada they must convince those who live in Quebec… The peoples of Quebec are smart brave people and many have gave their lives for the freedoms you now enjoy (even your question) During WW II Quebec had more soldiers fighting for Canada per/cap than any other province… they were also handicapped in so much that most if not all instructions for equipment was not written in French…but they soldiers on, recently in Afghanistan on their tour the said no! to many American/English field tactics and employed their own saving lives… These people sir are a credit to our country unfortunately many have not lived or worked alongside them to understand. I have and would in heartbeat again… and having lived and worked in Quebec I found the culture and lack of BS most pleasant.
Addendum to above.
this path should read: their path of democracy vs violence…
gdb
Ethics? Harper? That is a definite OXYMORON!
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 11.30.08 7:08 pm
It may not be an oxymoron. Paid volunteer I always thought would be an oxymoron, but apparantly not for some Olympic 2010 B.C. civil servants.
What are the chances that Michael I will be able to control these buffoons and not tank an economy that is already under pressure? If this fiasco isn’t cooled off soon it will become a powder keg in the west. It is almost laughable that a party that wants to destroy our nation is now being being considered to govern.
By Duane W on 12.01.08 11:54 am
Duane – you make me laugh. Stevo years ago tried to create a firewall around the west, notably Alberta. Stevie is all about divisiveness. He doesn’t care about the majority of Canadians who are left-centrist leaning. At his latest convention in Winnipeg he confronted his ultra right wing, religious, 3 strikes you’re out core base, etc. who are angry that Stevo hasn’t been able to push his & their agenda through Parliament. Your base must realize that the majority of Canadians don’t want a Karl Rove/Bush agenda in this country. We’ve seen th mess they created in the US and most of the world have denoucced their policies. Canadians do not wish to go down that path. Your ultra right wing ideology will never gain majority consensus in this country. If you choose to go it on your own, good luck. IIRC you were a have not province before, and once your tar sands resources run out, and your land is desimated by toxins, you might be in the same situation. I’m assuming, I know, that you’re a westerner.
Why Harper called an Election over his own Fixed Election Date.
And knowing this (An Economist by education/non experienced) and the best he could do is jump all over the working class?
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The National Bureau of Economic Research said Monday that the U.S. has been in a recession since December 2007, making official what most Americans have already believed about the state of the economy……….
Here comes the coalition I expected to see. Good riddance to the poor or totally lacking judgement of Harper and Flaherty both. Neither of them have a shred of credibility left and have no deserved right to bear the title of “Honourable”. One can only hope they one day find themselves on the unemployment line to enjoy a taste of what it is they expect the rest of Canada to be willing to endure at their expense.
Let Harpo try and prorogue the house if he so chooses, bets of luck to him. Somehow I doubt Gov. General Jean would allow it.
I wish we had a Barak Obama here. He’s appointed Bob Gates (a Bush appointee), Hillary Clinton (what can I say) & so many INTELLIGENT, SMART people to his Cabinet. But, he’s the boss !!! Instead, with Harpo we get political strategists.
Reality Check for Harper!
Opposition set to present coalition to Governor-General
Coming reality check for Harper supporters Conservative supporters organize Canada wide and Rideau Hall protests
Good, let them come out into the daylight from under their rocks. When they meet with Real Canadians they may get their asses kicked right back under the rocks.
This could be far more interesting than the 1968 Chicago Riots…and damn well should be. These minority morons refuse to grasp the meaning of democracy, and have willfully supported a despotic tyrant named Harper.
Gloves OFF! Stand UP for Real Canadian values, and rid us of these scumbag, lieing, POS’s that were financed by the Far Right of the American Rethuglican party.
Where is Madame Guillotine?
Can someone please explain why cutting public funding of all federal political parties would be so damaging to the Liberal, NDP and BQ, but good for the Conservatives?
Also, why should the Canadian Government be providing any funds to the BQ at all? Seems rather stupid to me.
By Paully on 12.01.08 12:40 pm
I don’t know, but could it be that the CPC pass a collection plate around in church on Sunday morning for their religeous political arm party’s benefit?
That would be another good reason to ban all private political donations and make political party funding strictly from the government coffers ONLY!
It may not be an oxymoron. Paid volunteer I always thought would be an oxymoron, but apparantly not for some Olympic 2010 B.C. civil servants.
By Marc on 12.01.08 1:23 pm
that would seem well qualified indeed.
However, I prefer the examples given by the Three Classic Oxymorons.
1. Military intelligence
2. Government Budget
3. Legal Brief
HA HA, Garth, I guess you didn’t appreciate my questions. Your board, your prerogative.
We should call it the Santa Claus Revolution.
Van,
So you worked fore the public service 35 years? Essentially to me that indicates you are perhaps of the older population enjoying pension splitting etc?
You my friend are out of step with reality. I recommend you do some brushing up on modern day economics.
Harper placates to the wealthy. Public funding to political parties was implemented to discourage wealthy contributors. Harper wants that because that is what he is all about.
By the way, average Canadian worker does not equate to the public service. This Harper clown has essentially eroded the middle class throughout his leadership( if you want to call it that).
Bush bailed out the wrong people and Harper does the same on the backs of average Canadians. The middle class is the backbone of any country. If you don’t look after them….the country will waste away and your leadership is doomed.
Waky waky Van….you’ve been in retirement slumber far too long.
Alberta Block?
Garth,
So the latest Conservative talking points in the House is the Alberta people will separate from Canada if this unholy alliance takes place.
Good grief Conservative members of Parliament you are supposed to be representing Canada – not inciting the break up of Canada.
Wow!!!!!! Looks like there really is a Santa Claus. After all the petty insults Dion suffered at the hands of Harper & co. it appears he will be PM. The look of anger & hate on Harper’s sulky face in opposition will be quite precious. I hope Dion kicks him out of 24 Sussex on Xmas eve.
Can someone please explain why cutting public funding of all federal political parties would be so damaging to the Liberal, NDP and BQ, but good for the Conservatives?
Also, why should the Canadian Government be providing any funds to the BQ at all? Seems rather stupid to me.
By Paully on 12.01.08 12:40 pm
Paully, thats a great question.
The problem is that the liberals, NDP, and Bloq all rely on government funding for their parties because the people that vote for them don’t actually believe in them enough to donate to them. Even the MPs don’t financially support the parties.
The conservatives on the other hand receive support through donations from their members for their operating costs. They support the party through memberships, volunteering, donations and voting.
Thats is the primary difference between the parties. The conservatives believe in personal responsibility. The other parties believe the government should take care of things. Government meaning tax payers.
If the pork barrel was ever taken away from the political parties that would be the end of the libs, dips, and bloq. The cons would do quite well.
That was Chretien’s doing. He stopped corporate and lobby group donations. Maximum donation one can give now is $1100/year. When you do the math it shows that those that vote conservative support the party financially. Those that vote for the others don’t.
Starting Now: America’s Second Great Depression
Martin Weiss Ph.D. MONEY MARKETS 12-01-08
http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/starting-now-americas-second-great-depression-3-28428
Dion will be the Leader during the coalition. Wow. Dion has been underestimated by his own party, other parties and the media. He is a SMART & INTELLIGENT man. No, he’s not a party hack, but he’s the most honest & trust worthy political leader that I’ve seen in the last 20 + 30 years. He ACTUALLY cares & wants to do the best for Canadians and, IMHO, is not out for power, for power’s sake.
Call me a big silly, but
I didn’t see anything wrong with Flaherty’s Finance Update. 5 years of no deficit sounds good to me, if you can believe him.
As for peroging Parliament, that sounds good also. I like perogies. Dismiss all the limousine riders and hangers-on for two years. Imagine the taxpayer money we’d save.
No Stimulus puleeeeeze. We’ve been stimulated into this mess and need to come back to our financial cents. Keep the wallet closed. Government financial interference in private enterprise always leads to more disaster.
I really hope I see your name on the ballot again.
By George on 12.01.08 12:42 pm
I predict Garth will be back. If folks are nice to him.
And he will be singing;
Buddy you?re a boy make a big noise
Playin? in the street gonna be a big man some day
You got mud on yo? face
You big disgrace
Kickin? your can all over the place
We will we will rock you
We will we will rock you
Watch out Ms. Lisa, nodding diminutively behind Mr. Flaherty when he speaks, isn’t going to carry you forever.
This is probably going to win me no friends, but I want say something. I respect a Woman who can challenge my mind, who can stand with me when the shit hits the fan, and is intelligent enough to do whatever is necessary to make me understand when I am wrong.
Which doesn’t happen often. Gurgle, smirk. and laugh….
Take from my words what you will ladies, but someone who rides the coat tails of political correctness and the womens rights movement does not further your quest to be accepted as equals. In my view.More at the end of my post.
That consideration was discussed briefly by female journalists in the US during their recent election campaign, in respect to Sarah Palin. I believe they were right, and I also remember that she was chosen by an old white guy. Apparently.
Personally, I was unsure of the better Dem candidate as Hillary perhaps represents moeofthesame, and Obama an orphan who has been carefully crafted to be the great hope. I am somewhat pleased that Hillary is going to be involved as we the citizens of the world move forward. I think she is a much better representative of women than Ms. Palin.
I would also add that the female gender is not a great deal less prone to policies I would liken to scorched earth policy, when it suits their agenda.
My attempt for today to make some people think.
As promised, more at the end of the post.
Ladies, you are already equal. Perhaps more than. How you see it, how you perceive your own worth is what makes the difference.
One last word of advice from an old white guy, for what it’s worth. Don’t get caught up in the bluster and the smoke. You have a great deal to contribute, you always have and you always will.
Valpy also revealed that early in his time as prime minister, Stephen Harper was told by Alex Himelfarb, then the Clerk of the Privy Council: “Prime Minister, your biggest problem is in Rideau Hall”, meaning Jean and her potential to be a “loose cannon.”[38]
Ah, here comes the usual FUD to scare the masses with unfounded claims by the Harperites. Read the plethora of neo-con comments. They are seething like boiling pond scum now!
None of them grasp what a true ‘majority’ is and they will NEVER see one with Harper. Canadians did NOT give Harper a majority mandate. Not even close.
Leadership candidates agree to Dion as PM
After the chicken hearted cons face reality, perhaps, some will actually start acting as Canadians, and work with the truly ‘New’ government of, by, and for the PEOPLE, while they GET IT DONE!
BTW, I must say that Ignatief didn’t look too happy that Dion was heading the coalittion. I recall when I attended a LPC rally in Hfx in July that Rae’s speech was the most well rec’d. I am still an undecided supporter of Rae or Iggy.
In the best interests of Canada, I do hope the opposition can take down these neocons.
This is why I love our country..this is why we can work together so well!
“I think he’s about to play the biggest political game in Canadian history,” the Prime Minister said, adding that he would not want to have to govern the country in hard times while being beholden to socialists and separatists, referring to the NDP and the Bloc Québécois. – Globe and Mail.
And there we have it. Mr. Harper is not prepared to have his minority government work with opposition parties on the economic problems we face, due to ideology. (Note he was prepared to work with them to bring down Paul Martin’s government.)
Your choice, Mr. Harper. Don’t let the door hit you in the butt on the way out of the PM’s office.
Most could have seen this…but rumour is what it is… Remember the mailers of Halton. My pal Jack Cafferty said it so well once when someone asked him why he had such a silly question…: >>>>Give me break we are running a 3 hour show here got to fill it something <<<< so goes the media ….hence CNN it’s like that old rock cowboys ride by every seceen and people keep buying tickets… why because there are fans millions!… and Ted Turner knew it… and you and I are poltical fans… others are just watchers ….silly them ha ha.
Well writen Garth. One of England’s most notorious Kings found parliament a touble some affair. Charles the 1St only called upon parliament when he needed money to pay his armies. Do we have a Stephen the 1st using the same program?
“Pour billions into the economy”…The government has no money. Where will those billions come from? They will come from the already beleagured tax payer or add to the debt for your children. Will they evaporate like the trillions that the Americans have poured into the fire?
I’m not a great Royalty supporter, but in this case only a regal expression applies to Canada…..
We are most Royally Screwed.
Democracy rules!!
I’ve often thought that Stephen Harper might be a sociopath. No, seriously, I mean it, and without disrespect.
Look at the definition(s) and compare it to his behavior. His attempt to eviscerate the opposition in this economic statement, ease of lying about what another parties platform, controlling nature …
Maybe I’m reading too much into this behavior, but …
This ridiculous situation we have in Ottawa can be directly attributed to the bonehead decision of Harper, not content with defeating the opposition, taking it upon himself to try to annililate them. Having said that, I cannot believe that the majority of Canadians want to see Mr. Dion as PM. I think they made that clear in the last election. In fact, in Ottawa, I believe we are really devoid of leadership period, in any party. There does not appear to be a leader who is driven by anything but hatred, and/or a lust for power. Should this coalition take shape and take over the reins of power, I strongly suggest the coalition draft Mr. Manley as our new PM. He is the only person at this point in time who holds any credability in my opinion. As for the individual MP in all parties, I would suggest they grow a spine.
Hopefully GG Jean has bigger ones than Steve. Wouldn’t take much, because Bullies never actually have big ones, which is why they are a Bully to begin with.
GG Jean has lived and seen first hand the horrors of a despot. She should have little trouble spotting those characteristics in Harper.
That was Chretien’s doing. He stopped corporate and lobby group donations. Maximum donation one can give now is $1100/year. When you do the math it shows that those that vote conservative support the party financially. Those that vote for the others don’t.
By Smitherenzes on 12.01.08 2:30 pm
I think there’s a lot of ‘underground’ money going to the cons – religous groups, big oil, etc. that we’ll only find out, if ever, once Harpie is out of govt. I know that his AB base & his Bay St. cronies are supporting him, but he’s only got so many supporters. Personally, I think he’s got money rolling in from the US cronie repuglicans (under the table) who don’t give a shit if that they can’t get a tax rebate. They’re more interested in seeing one of their own pushing their agenda here in CDA.
How anyone could actually believe Stevo has the best interests of average Cdns must be delusional.
My 4:42 pm should have read: credibility…meaning trustworthiness and expertise!
Has anyone looked into Harper’s ancestry? He sounds remarkably like Charles I of England.
(From Wikipedia:)
“Charles famously engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England. He was an advocate of the Divine Right of Kings, which was the belief that kings received their power from God, and many subjects of England feared that he was attempting to gain absolute power.”
Hmmm…sounds familiar.
“Charles I was shy and diffident, but also self-righteous, stubborn, opinionated, determined and confrontational. Charles believed he had no need to compromise or even explain his rules and that he was only answerable to God. He famously said: “Kings are not bound to give an account of their actions but to God alone.”
Yikes. They must have been separated at birth.
If my memory serves me well, things did not turn out well for Chuck the First.
The Aymara language, spoken in the Peruvian Andes, has a different view of the past and the future than most other languages.
We speak of “going forward into the future”, “seeing ahead”, and similar turns of phrase. In Aymara, they position themselves at one hundred and eighty degrees to that stance, and have their backs to the future, which they can’t see, and their eyes turned toward the past, which they have already experienced.
It’s not as strange as it sounds. The more you think about it, the more sense it makes.
I suggest the Harpos have a good look into the past and see if anything rhymes back there.
I strongly suggest the coalition draft Mr. Manley as our new PM. He is the only person at this point in time who holds any credability in my opinion. As for the individual MP in all parties, I would suggest they grow a spine.
By wjp on 12.01.08 4:42 pm
You’ve got to be kidding wjp. Manley was a stooge for Harper. I could not believe that he actually allowed himself to be associated with Harper to head a report on A’gan. It was`a no win situaion.
This is beautiful! Elegant, even.
I read the Glum and Stale piece and there were 666 comments… My favourite was – Prorogue, Harper steps aside for Prentice, LPC fast-track Ignatieff into the leadership, topple the budget in January, election Feb 2009.
The battle of the eyebrows, one year sooner than expected..
You must be a bit sore about missing all of this fun, GT. I would love to be in on it myself.
I like what the coalition is putting forth vis-a-vis infrastructure spending, etc. Let us hope that we can get this country back on track, and indeed, shine, in the next two and one half years.
Oh, and has anyone else seen Dipper Chick’s use of the Conservative’s My Campaign feature to flood the letters to editors with support for the coalition? Such beautiful irony…
So you worked fore the public service 35 years? Essentially to me that indicates you are perhaps of the older population enjoying pension splitting etc?
BY Glen.
You bet I have and yes am enjoying pension income splitting like very other Canadian who has a pension. You got a problem with that?
This coalition had better not even think of removing the pension spitting provision or they will be really decimated in the next election which you can bet will be coming within the next 12 months. Layton’s ego will get the better of him and he will try to take over Dion’s position by the back door
In the best interests of Canada, I do hope the opposition can take down these neocons.
By Go Green on 12.01.08 3:23 pm
They could put Alfred E.Mewman in the PM’s chair and I wouldn’t care .
“What me worry ? “
If you ever had any doubt that the National Post is nothing but a partisan propaganda rag, check out the LAUGHABLE headline they just put up on their web site:
Liberal coalition could make Canada a colony of Quebec
Seriously, they are SUCH a-holes!!!!!
good for a laugh though. We’re not laughing with them, we’re laughing AT THEM.
They could put Alfred E.Mewman in the PM’s chair and I wouldn’t care .
“What me worry ? “
By Men With Hats on 12.01.08 5:10 pm
Let us never forget that Americans did that with AEN’s inbred offspring, Bush, and look at what happened!
Prime Minister Dion–Thank goodness, at last a prime minister who is not filled with hate, animosity and the desire to annihilate the opposition.
Finally 64% of Canadians will have a representative government. Even the Separatists.
Van: Why would they think of cancelling pension splitting when it was their idea?
Having said that, I cannot believe that the majority of Canadians want to see Mr. Dion as PM. I think they made that clear in the last election. by WJP.
If the October 12th Nanos popularity tracking poll just before the election is any indication. They most indeed rejected Dion as PM.
The results of the poll is:
Conservative leader Stephen Harper 32%
NDP leader Jack Layton 19%
Liberal leader Stephane Dion 16%
http://www.nikonthenumbers.com/topics/show/111
Please someone give Stephen a gravol–he must be very dizzy from all the flip-flopping he’s been doing the last 4 days.
Here’s a thought. What if the MSM REFUSED to publish any statements made by politicians unless they are verifiably TRUE! Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Hi Garth, FYI anyone (just found this)
90 Percent of U.S. Infant Formula May Be Contaminated with Melamine; FDA Abruptly Declares Chemical Safe for Babies.
http://www.naturalnews.com/024947.html
By Van on 12.01.08 5:08 pm
Van, you have now stated clearly that your opinions are all about you. I’m not surprised.
Typical spoiled civil servant. Some go left, per se and some go right. All depends on what’s in it for them.
If you can’t do better than this, shoosh. Don’t make me shine my Rifle.
There isn’t going to be a coalition. So chill out. Your fangs are showing. It’s just another game of posturing. That’s not new, is it?
This could be far more interesting than the 1968 Chicago Riots…and damn well should be. These minority morons refuse to grasp the meaning of democracy, and have willfully supported a despotic tyrant named Harper.
Gloves OFF! Stand UP for Real Canadian values, and rid us of these scumbag, lieing, POS’s that were financed by the Far Right of the American Rethuglican party.
Where is Madame Guillotine?
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 12.01.08 2:00 pm
Your comments are disturbing to say the least. Morons you say well buster Canada is still a free country where people can protest and rally freely and it is very evident that your form of democracy is very selective.
It is unfortunate to see that you have such intolerance for others who disagree with your views. I expected more from you of all people.
Funny stuff this. What is odd is that we haven’t heard anything about Harper and crew talking with any of the 3 opposition parties directly about what it would take to get them onside. Rather than guessing (removing measures about the $1.95 and unions) why not talk with them and find out how to get the NDP or Bloc to step away from the Liberals and to help the CPC stay in power? If Harper talked with the NDP, or did a public talk through the media asking what they needed to keep parliament moving he might have got an answer and at least had a fighting point in the media (ie: ‘they said this would do the trick but they changed their minds’).
Silly stuff, if it wasn’t going to be so expensive (election or gov’t change).
Van: Why would they think of cancelling pension splitting when it was their idea?
By Judy on 12.01.08 5:17 pm
Judy, I could care less who idea it was. The fact remains that the Conservatives bought it in and all I am saying is that the Coalition had better not cancel. Governments are bringing in a 30 billion bailout package. The money has to come from somewhere. Well the hell is it going to come from? They have to get it from somewhere.
It’s all about you, Van. Maybe you have a better appreciation now of income trust investors. — Garth
Hi Garth, FYI,
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger orders the new Legislature into work on its first day to deal with California’s dire finances. The state may run out of cash by February or March.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-budget2-2008dec02,0,280439.story
Hi Garth, FYI anyone, artical,
Why going “Made in the USA” for a week left me hungry, broke, and half-naked.
http://www.motherjones.com/commentary/columns/2008/11/practical-values-o-say-can-you-buy.html
It is unfortunate to see that you have such intolerance for others who disagree with your views. I expected more from you of all people.
By Van on 12.01.08 5:28 pm
Oh really Van? You are a consumate hypocrite. Do you, like Harper, forget all the things you have said here on Garth’s blog?
We know who, and what you truly are. try your schmooz on someone that is gullible, like a Harper supporter.
When it comes to intolerance your beloved Harper is King, but NOT of Canada. Try to grasp the concept.
Prime Minister Stephane Dion.
I like it already!
Hi Garth, Re:SPP
Remember/don’t forget PMSH SPP deal to ‘harmonize’ Canada/USA/Mexico standards!
Bush’s last-minute rule gutting worker protections may violate his own guidelines.
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/11/30/bush-labor-regulations-violate/
Finally 64% of Canadians will have a representative government. Even the Separatists.
By Judy on 12.01.08 5:13 pm
The math says it all I think! Harper, the wannabe, but never could be, ‘economist’, will have trouble understanding such simple math.
Dim Jim, of course, will have an explanation…sometime, like Baird and Ambrose would have an environmental plan…sometime.
It is spelled M-A-J-O-R-I-T-Y, Harper’s lost dream of egoentric delusion.
You’ve got to be kidding wjp. Manley was a stooge for Harper. I could not believe that he actually allowed himself to be associated with Harper to head a report on A’gan. It was`a no win situaion.
By Go Green on 12.01.08 5:05 pm
You are entitled to your opinion but I still maintain there is not a leader among the present elected member capable of assuming the PM office. There isn’t an MP with a spine, they are all bobbleheads no matter what party they belong to and could care less about Canadians.
You bet I have and yes am enjoying pension income splitting like very other Canadian who has a pension. You got a problem with that?
This coalition had better not even think of removing the pension spitting provision or they will be really decimated in the next election which you can bet will be coming within the next 12 months. Layton’s ego will get the better of him and he will try to take over Dion’s position by the back door
By Van on 12.01.08 5:08 pm
I cannot with any advantage split pensions, here is one Canadian who cannot…we are both in the lower bracket and if I was to split with my wife, she would have the priviledge of paying the health tax in Ontario…pension splitting was not aimed at the lower income pensioners, as is most of the CPC decisions.
We are facing the most difficult times in most if not all Canadian’s lifetimes.There is no question in my mind that Harper has to go,even in these troubled times we can not have our democracy ruined.What i fear is a money spending spree to build temporary confidence.I certainly hope that people will realise there is not and will not be a quick fix to Canada and the worlds economic problems. I think it would be wise and refreshing for Mr Dion to speak to the people and explain there certainly is no limit to the reasons for the removal of the Harper government.
By Men With Hats on 12.01.08 5:10 pm
Let us never forget that Americans did that with AEN’s inbred offspring, Bush, and look at what happened!
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 12.01.08 5:13 pm
No matter how hard I try I can never top you Billy .
Bravo !
ROTFLMAO
Anyone else struck by the difference in tone, volume and substance between to-day’s Question Period and the “Coalition” press conference?
By wjp on 12.01.08 6:21 pm
I would be inclined to trust Ignatieff (who I absolutely do not trust one iota) over Manley! Manley is a Whore for Hire IMHO. But then you are entitled to your opinion. I simply cannot, in good conscience, agree with you.
Consider, if you will, that Dion is the duly elected leader of the Liberal Party. The Liberal Party has more elected seats than either the NDP or the BQ. Therefore, even though I seriously question Dion’s ability to lead (which may prove to be very good absent the childish behaviour in the HoC under Harper, the Coalition Government has abided by democratic and ethical principles based on law.
The GG will have to abide by the law or discredit herself and her office.
This is an historical moment in Canada, brought about by a despotic egomaniac, the one and only (Thank God) Stephen Harper, aka Caesar Disgustus. Dare I say, it is the final end of the Era of The Dark Nights, brought about by the extremist Far Right, which has used Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) to manipulate the minds of the masses for their own benefit.
Anyone else struck by the difference in tone, volume and substance between to-day’s Question Period and the “Coalition” press conference?
By Herb on 12.01.08 6:54 pm
Yes Herb, I am. I was unable to watch it, but please share your opinion on the matter.
We know who, and what you truly are. try your schmooz on someone that is gullible, like a Harper supporter.
By Bill Muskoda.
Since you seem to think you know everything about me so tell me: Who exactly am I, Bill and what truly am I?
Come on spit it out.
When it comes to intolerance your beloved Harper is King, but NOT of Canada. Try to grasp the concept.
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 12.01.08 6:06 pm
The subject was about your intolerance Not Harper’s. You lose.
If you had been paying attention I also ctitized Harper just as I have the other party leaders. I have also said once before that the only politician I admired was Sir Winston Churchill. But that also escape you. It would appear that maybe you are not as smart as I thought you were. Well, Maybe smart ass but not smart as in intelligence maybe not.
GG’s email addy
info@gg.ca.
I cannot with any advantage split pensions, here is one Canadian who cannot…we are both in the lower bracket and if I was to split with my wife, she would have the privilege of paying the health tax in Ontario…pension splitting was not aimed at the lower income pensioners, as is most of the CPC decisions.
By wjp on 12.01.08 6:26 pm
That is unfortunate but does that mean that me as a middle income pensioner and my wife who is a lower income pensioner should not have access to income splitting? I must add that 2007 Tax year was the first time in over 40 years that I finally received a refund. That is thanks to the pension income splitting provision. I think many others are also benefiting from this provision.
Harpo looked like a guy that had just lost his puppy .
No need to defend Van. Not now. You have made it clear what your motives are. Still, we centrist Canadians are a forgiving People. I am sure forgiveness will be yours if you attend regular meetings.
Hi, My name is Van, and I am a recovering ex civil servant with a comfortable and guaranteed pension who now benefits from pension splitting. I regret my myopia.
That should help you on your road to recovery.
Muskoka,
QP was the usual painful, partisan mayhem with insinuations, insults and talking points flung about. The press conference was rational, dignified and marked by a resolve to get on with the job.
Unless GG Jean bends to Harper’s will again, we should have a government worthy of the name in a week or so. If not, there will be an interesting election that no one wants and no party except the CPC can afford. The outcome will depend on how much voter satisfaction with and faith in his management Harper can generate with the economy running down. Heck, we even could have a new Canadian Government and the Obama Administration sworn in on the same day!
HEY VAN,
I have no problem with pension splitting. None whatsoever.
What I do have a problem with is old, relativily wealthy wing nuts like yourself sucking the living day lights out of my generation of average workers(between 30-40).
Hey….and before you go off rambling about how much you earned it…realize that your generation is the wealthiest by far in comparison to any other generation on record. You lived through no world wars, no depressions, a period of incredible healthcare benefits. You have lived like a king my friend.
I recognize your generation worked hard but Harper’s government placates the wealthiest few( including the older wealthy generation).
It is simply not right to destroy the working middle class the way he has. If you don’t see that he is working towards this..shame on you. You are as arrogant as he.
I cannot with any advantage split pensions, here is one Canadian who cannot…we are both in the lower bracket and if I was to split with my wife, she would have the priviledge of paying the health tax in Ontario…pension splitting was not aimed at the lower income pensioners, as is most of the CPC decisions.
By wjp on 12.01.08 6:26 pm
wjp – IIRC I read that pension splitting only benefitted about 12% of the electorate. We were at a party Sat. eve and only the hosts would benefit from it. We were celebrating his 66th, but he’s still working for the Feds & am sure he makes very good money. His wife only worked for a few years during their marriage. They will defintely benefit. My husband has 7 years min to go before he can retire. We shall never be able to take advantage of it. As well, although I know Garth is pro family income splitting – actually can’t recall what it’s called now – but I am against it. IMO it only benefits families who can afford to have one parent stay at home. That usually means more affluent people or those who have lots of children. In today’s world that’s not a reality for most families. We pay municipal school taxes tho we don’t have children. I don’t mind doing so as children are society’s future.
My impression of Harper’s supporters is that they resent paying any taxes. I wonder if they’d like to pay a toll on every road they droie on, that they’d pay huge health insurance premiums as they do in the US, etc. In other words, I get the impression they’d like to pay next to no taxes, but don’t realize how we benefit from the taxes we pay. They’d like a laissez faire govt. but would likely scream blue bloody murder if one of their children died from a contaminated food stuff imported from China.
That is unfortunate but does that mean that me as a middle income pensioner and my wife who is a lower income pensioner should not have access to income splitting? I must add that 2007 Tax year was the first time in over 40 years that I finally received a refund. That is thanks to the pension income splitting provision. I think many others are also benefiting from this provision.
By Van on 12.01.08 7:17 pm
Not unfortunate for us as I planned it that way, however, my point is the Harper government caters to those reasonably well off and cares little about those who really need it. e.g. cuts in the GST rather than income tax so that those who buy the most benefit the most while those of us who buy food, shelter items etc. get very little.
But who cares about those low income people, they don’t count, right?
Rumour of Parliament proroguing is still alive. Aside from needing time to launch a propaganda war that eclipses that of the election, the Conservatives need to consolidate documents for the shredders. Bye bye Wajid Khan report. Bye bye 18 blacked-out Income Trust pages. Fear from exposure of the treasure trove of suppressed information must be a great motivator for last week’s attempt at decimating the Opposition.
After Harper relocates to Stornaway, with only a 6 month tenure, Dion should do the right thing and initiate repairs to the Prime Minister’s residence that the Sheila Fraser decried, rather than move in. Save a national treasure with an infrastructure program that incorporates green measures, something Roi Harper refused to do.
And as one of the Coalition’s acts, institutionalize cooperation in a way that will forever frustrate Harper’s dream of using Canada as his personal laboratory. Make cooperation a permanent necessity for successful governance. Institute Proportional Representation.
An election does not necessarily have to change anything. The Coalition could agree to maintain the arrangement by only running 1 candidate in each riding, one from whatever party had the largest vote count. Let supporting voters know what the arrangement is. Under that situation, I would have no problem voting for a party that I would not usually support.
As for Question Period insults, being in Opposition would be a relief for the likes of John Baird or Pierre Poilievre, who’ve been forced to show restraint as of late (however I could detect unbearable strain in P.P.’s voice). Put ‘em back in their comfort zone of red-faced foot-stomping, fist-shaking, spittle-flying, screaming and pointing. They would be relieved to let their inner boor back out of its cage.
This is an historical moment in Canada, brought about by a despotic egomaniac, the one and only (Thank God) Stephen Harper, aka Caesar Disgustus. Dare I say, it is the final end of the Era of The Dark Nights, brought about by the extremist Far Right, which has used Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) to manipulate the minds of the masses for their own benefit.
By Bill-Muskoka (not anymore) on 12.01.08 6:59 pm
Not to mention brainwashing and propaganda ad infinitum, ad nauseam .
The subject was about your intolerance Not Harper’s. You lose.
If you had been paying attention I also ctitized Harper just as I have the other party leaders. I have also said once before that the only politician I admired was Sir Winston Churchill. But that also escape you. It would appear that maybe you are not as smart as I thought you were. Well, Maybe smart ass but not smart as in intelligence maybe not.
By Van on 12.01.08 7:12 pm
Touchy, touchy you are. My, my, hit a few nerves have I? Enjoy the pain Van, there is much more coming your way.
BTW, my ass is smarter than your best brain lobe. Who’s the Loser Van? You are!
Not to mention brainwashing and propaganda ad infinitum, ad nauseam .
By Men With Hats on 12.01.08 9:08 pm
Goebbels and Rove would be so proud wouldn’t they?
Heck, we even could have a new Canadian Government and the Obama Administration sworn in on the same day!
By Herb on 12.01.08 7:47 pm
Wouldn’t that be historic? ‘FREEDOM from FreeDumb.’
Touchy, touchy you are. My, my, hit a few nerves have I? Enjoy the pain Van, there is much more coming your way.
Not touchy at all. I am only citing evidence to support my position which you always fail to do.
Billy Boy wrote:
BTW, my ass is smarter than your best brain lobe. Who’s the Loser Van? You are!
If that is the best flame you can fire then you had better pack it in.
An election does not necessarily have to change anything. The Coalition could agree to maintain the arrangement by only running 1 candidate in each riding, one from whatever party had the largest vote count. Let supporting voters know what the arrangement is. Under that situation, I would have no problem voting for a party that I would not usually support. By Dube.
Great idea. It would settle this crises once and for all. But the big fight would be which party would run in which riding.