Canadian Politics

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Some biologists from other provinces should mind their own damned business.

 

I wonder if he has stopped beating his wife?

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Conservatives stonewall the NDP into frustration.

 

IDK how other legislatures work, but the House of Commons daily Question Period is a general chance for the opposition to put it to the government, and this example is one of how to make your opponent look particularly bad.  The PM's parliamentary secretary avoided answering the Leader of the Opposition's questions by dragging up an old gaffe, and he did it three times.  Clearly there are security implications here, and Mr. Calandra was being a good boy in the boss' absence (He's in New York.)  Eventually the Speaker took the advice of Joan the Maid ("Passez outre") and took the floor away from Mr. Mulcair, cutting off his remaining time.

 

There has been a lot of criticism of the "neutral" Speaker of the House of Commons over the current term, and since this office is elected by the members, I expect Mr. Scheer won't run again for this position.  He has not been the world's most popular Speaker.

 

I was sorry when I read this that I didn't watch QP today.  I am sure it was hilarious.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Justice is served?

 

Recent changes in the sentencing act now allow judges to lay on sentences consecutively.  In a TV appearance the lawyer for this miscreant stated there would be no appeal, so free room and board for the rest of his unsavoury life.

 

This will cost the taxpayers of Canada a bundle.  I point out that a couple of .22 calibre bullets would be a lot cheaper.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

John Baird, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Quits.

 

Generally speaking, in Canada, this post is the dauphin.  Mr. Baird has held various cabinet offices and would be considered to be the next party leader, so quitting in an election year, this Ontario MP has now thrown the fox in the hen house.

 

The article is by one of CBCs most astute Ottawa observers.

 

The next week or so will be interesting as the Harper Valley government shuffles itself.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Supreme Court of Canada rules in favour of assisted suicide.

 

Legislatures given a year to fix up various codes.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

And the new sausage contains: Cabinet Shuffle

 

Poilievre has been a good boy, so now he gets a plum.  Would you like gravy on that?

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

The Maple Leaf turns 50.

 

The fiftieth anniversary of our "new" flag is today.

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

And such a lovely flag it is.  Same color palette as Japan!

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Yes.  The colours were granted by King George V.  The College of Heralds actually granted a special shade of white 'Argent Canadensis'.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Amendments to Bill C-51

 

Well, its a start.  There is still nothing in there for improved oversight.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

When you 'rat' you had better be sure of your nest.

 

The former leader of the Alberta Wildrose party crossed the floor to the Conservatives taking most of her members with her.  However, she was defeated for a seat in the next legislature by Carrie Fischer (not Princess Leia).

 

Wildrose is currently down to a rump of five seats, but we'll see what happens next.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

This old dog gets two barks.

 

Mr. Martin knows the ropes as well as anyone could.  Long time finance minister then prime minister, he'd make a great advisor for Justin should the worst happen and the Liberals form the next government.

 

IMHO it is time for Mr. Mulcair to get a little seasoning.  If you want to find out about someone, give him power.  We sure found out about Mr. Harper, and the result is not pleasing. 

 

An NDP minority would change things quite a bit, and since a minority needs to tip toe through the House on kitten feet to get anything done, it would be great training for them.  All those idealists will get their cherished ideals dipped in the cesspool of reality.

 

Oh, and I happened to be in the park at Goderich when the overloaded CSL laker 'Paul Martin' went aground trying to leave the harbour.  I guess it couldn't handle all that salt.  (Goderich is the only Canadian port on Lake Huron).

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Gotcha Stevie!  Again!!

 

Yet another piece of the Harper agenda bites the dust.  I can't imagine what kind of legal advice he is getting from his sycophantic PMO cronies, but it sure isn't in line with either the Constitution act of 1982, nor anything else unless you want to institute the Code of Hammurabi.

 

These rednecks from Western Canada are going to go home with their tail between their legs after the next election.  May the Almighty save us from the Liberals, but it is beginning to look like the "Natural Ruling Party of Canada" will be at the helm once more for this leaky old ship of state.  There is the devil to pay and no pitch hot.

 

The Trendy Pee will probably lose Quebec, and Ontario will go Liberal federally followed by electing the Big Blue Machine in the next provincial election if only the provincial conservatives find a good replacement for Tim Hudak.  Heck, it might even look like the good old days (new speak: good is bad; bad is good; Big Brother is Watching you; war is peace; etc.)

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Federal budget 2015.  CBC current coverage.  The material on this link will change through the day.

 

The punditry notes that a lot of this budget is pie in the sky by and bye.  Most of the goodies don't kick in until 2017 or later.  This, of course, depends on the Conservatives getting re-elected in October.

 

The big gift in this budget is for families with kids.  Starting in July they get a nice cheque from the feds with the new child care tax allowance.  But a family with kids under 18 contains only one or two votes, and there are less of them than there are singles including seniors.  Good for them, but what about me?  Seems there is nothing in there for me, so why should I let the Conservatives run roughshod over the country as they've been doing recently?

 

So, now, the Harper government is all in.  They have challenged the opposition to come up with something comparable for their platforms for October, and soon.  Because of the way this budget is written, there is very little wiggle room for either of the opposition parties to make adjustments without offending some sector of the voters.  We are now in the political playoffs and it will be interesting to see who the eventual winner(s) are.

 

There are some people who think that after this budget is passed by Parliament there will be a snap election for June.  Team June is forgetting that the new family benefit cheques don't arrive until July 1st.  This puts me firmly in the Team October group simply because you don't create a benefit then throw away any advantage that may accrue by holding a vote before the benefit is in the hands of the people.

 

Overall, I think this budget is nothing but a cynical advertisement for the Conservatives looking for re-election.  Well, we'll see what happens because there is still a lot of dirty linen to be washed before October.  Maybe we are coming to another October Crisis.

[EyeofMobius 27]

Well the pre-season is happening right now in Alberta. The recent PC budget has ruffled many feathers for putting more taxes on the average working citizen, less service for all and hardly a sniffle for higher income earners as well as corporations. I sort of hope we can show some cracks in the conservative power base that the rest of the country can see.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Seems the Alberta Heritage Fund has taken a real hit.  The surprising thing is that the Prentice government hasn't tossed in a sales tax.  They probably will if they get re-elected, but is the Wildrose Party any better?  Where can Albertans go?

[RipRap 4,400]

Speaking of Alberta, they went to the NDP...

Ending the PC Dynasty of 40 Years... As a majority government (53/87) seats. Troubling signs for the federal government. Rachel Notley is now the Premier of Alberta and the first non-PC leader in 40 years to become premier.

It did remind me of the 2011 Election that sent the late Jack Layton as the official leader of the opposition.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Ha!  I didn't get up this morning until after 8:30, and what a nice surprise for Steven Harper and his gang.  If you cheese-off enough people long enough, look what happens, and especially in your so-safe Conservative home base.

 

Here's hoping that the new government manages to suppress all that socialism in the grass roots and is able to govern without spending everyone else's money into provincial bankruptcy.  [Rae day, Rae day!]

[EyeofMobius 27]

A week goes by and we are all still here in Alberta. The letters to the editor are rife with doomsayers these days. A petition was started to oust an NDP MLA the day after the election too bad those people seemed to miss out voting someone else into that position.

 

Voter turn out was at a record high of 56%, as far as recent times go.

 

The carcass being autopsied this week isn't the Alberta, Canadian or even world economy as some would havve you believe; it's just the rotted unflattering husk of the PC party.

 

Best new meme out it all though is a picture of Steven Harper smiling with the thumbs up, surrounded by an orange border with a heading that says "Proud to be from NDP country."

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

I think the Trendy P will be OK in Alberta after looking at the debacle that occurred in Ontario when they were unexpectedly handed the reins here.  They were not prepared to govern as they didn't think they could win.  The resulting fiasco under renegade Liberal Bob Rae helped put paid to both the NDP and the Liberals for a while in Ontario.  The chances of an NDP recovery in Ontario this century is pretty slim as the memory of the electorate is pretty long.

 

We now have a nice, shiny new Conservative leader here now and everyone is waiting to see if he will get backed by the Big Blue Machine, since he wasn't supported by them in his leadership bid.

 

Meanwhile, the fourth estate is having a hay day crucifying Elizabeth May for getting a little loaded at the press dinner and putting both feet in her mouth at one time.  This is too bad because she is worth all three of the federal leaders and then some.  Too bad she has all the environmental nutz attached to her party.  The Greens would be better if they didn't hug the trees quite so tightly.  Even trees need to breathe.

 

The federal Conservatives are showing just how far right they can be as they continue to harass Omar Khadr, even though the courts have released him conditionally while he fights the U.S. conviction in the U.S. courts.  Stevie Wonder-which-way-the-wind-is continues to go against the courts, and one is left hoping that he gets sent packing with the rest of his redneck crew in October.  Problem there is many people don't want a P.E.T. clone.  This could give Tom Mulcair his chance, but hopefully not with a majority.  We always do better with a minority government in Ottawa.  Anyway, even here in staunchly Conservative southwestern Ontario, there is starting to be some serious grumbling about the current ID 10 T errors in the PMO and the government in general.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

From today's mailbag.

Law Enforcement Profiling in Canada

The RCMP is at it again!  RCMP picking on the Blacks again!!
When will it ever end?


"You wouldn't have stopped me if I was a polar bear."

[RipRap 4,400]

Starting Monday, the race to the electing the government is on, and there were several pamphlets being given out to every household, starting with the Liberal Candidate here. (I haven't seen ones from the other parties, but it may escalate beginning June 1).

On other news of note:
Following Baird, Mackay will not seek reelection

 

I wasn't surprised actually, giving that I haven't seen him participate in the house for quite some time now. 

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Actually, what we are seeing is the curse of that fixed election date.  Elections are supposed to be held randomly some 45 days after the Governor General signs the writ dissolving Parliament.  I very strongly object to the Americanization of our electoral system, however informally it is being snuck in.

 

This is a trial balloon, and I hope it gets forgotten by whomever gets elected in October.  All the gum beating about this and that electoral reform is most displeasing.  I've yet to see any idea that could have come from any more advanced thinking than a male rabbit.

 

We don't need a homogenized Parliament.  Look what's happening to the south, and you can see clear reasons why.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

... and they're off ...

According to the polls we could be looking at a Conservative or NDP minority with the other party as official opposition.  This means the Liberals might well hold the balance of power.  Instead of dashing about like a Roman Legion, the government in power will have to pussy-foot to get things done.  In this case, Canadians have always had a better result.

[timmie 988]

The NDP has been doing really well in the latest polls. Any obvious reason for that? Does it have anything to do with their extraordinary win in Alberta? Let's hope they perform well in the general election.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

With the Alberta win, the NDP has become a viable party versus the Conservatives.  The Liberals are still paying the penalty for the Sponsorship Scandal, and won't do much in Quebec this time around.  Public memory is longer than politicians memory.

As can be seen on the Poll Tracker (link above), things are very close.  Indications are for a minority government.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

A view from the U.K.

Beware the NDP, my son
The jaws that lie, the claws that spend.
Beware the LPC, and shun
The frumious CPC.
 

[Haljackey 17,398]

The NDP has been doing really well in the latest polls. Any obvious reason for that? Does it have anything to do with their extraordinary win in Alberta? Let's hope they perform well in the general election.

Easy answer: the Liberal party voted for the Conservatives' anti-terrorism bill (C-51) and ever since then they have been getting clobbered in the polls.

Many people, including myself, have distanced themselves from the party since then. I've been a federal Liberal party* supporter my whole life... until that moment. I've been picked up by the so-called 'orange wave' or 'orange crush', which are the terms describing the NDP's gains in the polls and their* victory in Alberta.

 

*The provincial Liberal parties are not affiliated with the federal one, however the NDP ones are.

[A Nonny Moose 8,262]

Tomorrow night's opening debate should be fascinating since four of the major parties (if Greens are considered major) will be represented.  The watershed will be Justin Trudeau.  If he manages to survive and not become a quivering, whimpering lump in the corner, it will give him some experience he lacks.

I don't think Mr. Harper will survive this one very well, so it will be interesting to see how he fares when his script runs out.

[RipRap 4,400]

The election date is set on a weekday in the middle of October this year. That means there'll be less university students to vote because they are with their studies (You could imagine me having to vote on a riding 2 hours away from me; last year I barely made it to the civic elections in my district); and discourages people from having the hassle to go to the polls. That's how you know that Harper's unfair elections act divide and conquer. He had already alienated the immigrant population of Canada (C-51 and C-24) and our economy is on a dive despite their claims of a balanced budget. I had read both Budget bills; the middle and lower classes will be taxed while the upper class would get tax breaks. Add the taxable UCCB and there'll be some families that will be bumped up of the tax bracket, and it would end up hurting people more. Income splitting will only benefit the top 10%; that's unfair for the people who had been working double, even triple jobs to support their families.

North Winnipeg was predominantly an NDP riding but last elections former Liberal MLA Kevin Lamoureux (who had been a great help with the immigrant Filipino families) was elected. With the NDP choosing a Filipino candidate Lamoureux will have a tough reelection campaign. The NDP will have a tough battle here though because of the unpopular Selinger government. In the end, it will be up to Mulcair's performance in the debate tomorrow.

On my side of the turf (Kildonan-St.Paul; I literally live in the border of ridings), there's a 3-Way race between a Conservative replacing Joy Smith (I liked Mrs. Smith but she is not running), Liberal Mary Ann Mihychuk and NDP Suzanne Hyrnyk. Both Mihychuk and Hyrnyk have experience in politics, but I think the conservatives will win this riding because people will be split to the either Liberal or NDP candidate. It will be up for the leaders tomorrow to prove what it takes to win this contested riding or me.

  Edited August 5, 2015 by Tonraq