Canada survived the election. Why not, we're certainly in practice, the third election in seven years, and the good news is that there will NOT be another Federal election for 4 years. Maybe that's the best news.
The Conservatives and Stephen Harper now have a majority government and a mandate to do with Canada as they will, not to be hindered, stymied, threatened or made ineffective as they so piously pleaded in their previous minority status whilst they ruled.
Throughout the campaign, with canned, planned rhetoric void of fire but hinting of brimstone, they attempted to instil fear in the hearts of the electorate at the possibility of yet another minority and potential coalition conspiracies galore. Mission accomplished. Please, now, with that majority, please do not repeat that canned speech one more time lest you drive us all around the bend, never to vote again.
The Bloc Quebecois was wiped out, left with four seats, having occupied those many fine leather chairs in the House of Commons for far too long --and what other destiny could be more appropriate for a naval-gazing, regional, separatist, non-representative Canada-destroying party? Gilles Duceppe, their fierce leader failed to survive the NDP onslaught in Quebec, and he is resigning. From what he is resigning we know not, for without party status, nothing remains but indignant whispers and a few crocodile tears.
Smiling Jack Layton, the upstart fiery cane-wielding New Democratic leader was the real story for the night; wounded or not, Jack and the NDP swept Quebec at the expense of the Liberals and Conservatives to become the 'official' opposition with over a hundred seats. Heady stuff for Jack. He gave a speech that was befitting a Prime Minister. Blew the Liberals and Michael Ignatieff out of the water like a surfacing whale. That was good news for him.
The bad news is that as official opposition facing a strong majority Conservative government across the floor, even with 104 seats he probably has less power now than he did when the government was a whining minority suffering the whims of aggravated opposition ---and Jack was often deal-maker of choice.
Hastily scribbled on the back cover of the Liberal Red Book is Michael Ignatieff's resignation; he will likely to return to academia---and Justin Trudeau, yes, the son of Pierre Elliott T. himself --is already considering acquisition of that broken leadership and it's broken toys. Go figure. That didn't take long.
Thing is, with the central-left Liberals it's either take on Justin and die or try to reinvent themselves, lick the wounds, and maintain silence and dignity if at all possible, without trying to alienate the electorate any further than they apparently already have .
Bottom line, left with only a paltry 35 seats, for the Liberals, it's either that or conjure up a leaderless merge with the Leftist NDP, Bob Rae seems to like that idea, visions of sugar plums at 24 Sussex Drive dance in his head, but the crabby old boy's Red Tie Power club has 4 years of vacation ahead of them to figure out how to politely remove Iggy from the seat of power and put Justin in charge without offending Bob anyway. Oh, tell them not to bother; Iggy resigned today. That was easy.
Way out in the greenest part of B.C, out on the Saanich-Gulf Islands , a place I always wanted to visit since it's always green on Saltspring, there's Elizabeth May, the leader of the Green Party, who made her own history by being the first Green member of Parliament, let's repeat that, the first elected member of the Green Party of Canada to be sent to Ottawa. Watch out, boys.
Listen up, Stephen. Now Elizabeth can storm the leader's debates without the stigma of being the only party leader without a seat. Now she has one. and it's a nice Green one just like the dozens conveniently vacated by the Bloc for this special occasion, and the point is, --shall we recall,-- she whupped a Conservative to get it too. Feisty girl. She is going to restore civility to the House of Commons single-handed.
That's good news. Canadians are tired of watching children at play, and by the way, Canadians are entering dangerous territory with a government that not only prorogued parliament twice, but was also ruled in contempt of parliament. How soon we forget? uh-uh...Will the majority status "improve" that marginal tendency to dictate? What shall we have, a majority anarchy?
So, that's the bad news? That's the pointed question. Maybe the bad news really is that we're just facing another 4 years of the same old political partisan gamesmanship.
As my brilliant friend John says, "We shall see what we shall see". Just don't hold your breath while you wait.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Showing posts with label Canadian election. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Canadian election. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Campaign 2011: Off to the Races...and ( yawn.....)
After some minor distractions, we at Incoming Bytes are once again compelled to discover that the political campaigns in Canada's election are in full swing. The fact is, nothing exciting has happened. An election? Really??
The campaigns are already half over, so now what ? Nothing is new, or different, but should we expect it to be? The Canadian electorate has a right to be skeptical.
The glorious "Corporate-Approved" television debate was held sans Elizabeth May, the Green Party leader, but that didn't seem to make any difference; the one-on-one's were not exciting anyway, the counter-attacks were bland to non-existent, overall, it was dull and yawn-worthy; the participants performed much as were expected.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the Conservative (minority) leader now wants a majority and is offering the saving of Canada from the coalition and the separatists and other terrible probabilities, and is insisting a majority will result in better government too.
But will it? Not likely. Is anyone really convinced? Isn't that fear-mongering? It doesn't work.
Michael Ignatieff, the intellect PM wannabe poo-poos the idea of a Conservative majority, saying that Harper et al cannot be trusted. He's probably right, for although all politicians seem trustworthy while campaigning, no politicians can be trusted once they are ELECTED. There is a subtle difference. The Liberal fortunes in this election are questionable. Polls aren't being nice..that's it.
The question the electorate really should be asking is:
" WHO can be trusted?"
The answer must be " Nobody" ; --and certainly not a "Michael Ignatieff Liberal " government either.
Liberals promised to protect Canada's Universal Health Care system-- (well, doesn't EVERYBODY PROMISE ? ) --but previous Liberal Governments reportedly hijacked a stash of cash from health care and U I to help defeat the deficit back in Paul Martin /Chretien days, balance the budget, play games, fun for all was had, --downloading costs to the provincial governments. Private clinics seem to be encouraged, popping up here and there....how cute.
The thin edge of ( the USA private health care health-care-only for money system ) wedge was smacked into the skulls of Canadians ...imagine that. Shall we trust Iggy? No. Shall we trust Stephen, who is on record as being pro-private enterprise in the field of health ? No.
There is little wonder Gilles Duceppe and the BLOC Quebecois plunk themselves down in plush leather chairs located in our Federal House of Commons, the better to keep an eye on federal scoundrels.
Nice office.... C'mon, Gilles,,, you got into the debate as a special interest representative, throwing red herrings around left and right, confusing the issue, so why can't you spread candidates far and wide across Canada so you would be a REAL Federal political party, and some people might even be tempted to vote for you? What's the matter, you afraid of losing ? We think so, but in the Big Bloc book, it's better to sit and whine, isn't it, and NEVER have to actually prove you have a better idea, a better system. Right. Form your own country. Ever heard of:
"Those who flee oppression oft' flee to oppression of their own?"
Stranger things have happened. What if Gilles did win a majority?
Being on location in Ottawa all the time, the Bloc can complain, promote the removal of not only Federal funds, by blackmail or otherwise, but help malcontents, even encourage in-house traitors to remove the very Province of Quebec itself from Canada..
....*alas.. Gilles and Co. are always content to decorate debates, sit on comfy leather, complain, and threaten another referendum.
A few tries later later Gilles has discovered it's quite a lot of fun and more profitable to blackmail Ottawa for big bucks and keep milking the glorious and generous Canadian Cow.
Imagine that. No fear of majority a la Gilles.
It seems that Jack Layton, the New Democratic leader, unhindered by his recent surgery and EXCELLENT medical treatments via the Universal Canadian Health system has recovered quite nicely ---whether it was a real hip replacement or not.....or just a little bit of metal, they say, not a real hip replacement, no matter what sis said. Just a slight family misunderstanding, it was.
Everyone says Jack did very well in the "official debates" ....and he continues to travel the country, recovering, shaking hands, smiling and laughing...and progressing surprisingly well in the polls too. Go figure. The Liberals and Michael are nervous, not surprisingly.
As for Elizabeth May, being excluded from the debate doesn't seem to have harmed her positive attitude at all. She hasn't got any "seats" yet, but she's got lots of Green and a pretty green platform to stand upon while she watches with interest, deciding which of the parties she should really consider a full merge with. Go figure... "Only in Canada", you say? (Yawn......)
That's my opinion, and I'm sticking to it.
The campaigns are already half over, so now what ? Nothing is new, or different, but should we expect it to be? The Canadian electorate has a right to be skeptical.
The glorious "Corporate-Approved" television debate was held sans Elizabeth May, the Green Party leader, but that didn't seem to make any difference; the one-on-one's were not exciting anyway, the counter-attacks were bland to non-existent, overall, it was dull and yawn-worthy; the participants performed much as were expected.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the Conservative (minority) leader now wants a majority and is offering the saving of Canada from the coalition and the separatists and other terrible probabilities, and is insisting a majority will result in better government too.
But will it? Not likely. Is anyone really convinced? Isn't that fear-mongering? It doesn't work.
Michael Ignatieff, the intellect PM wannabe poo-poos the idea of a Conservative majority, saying that Harper et al cannot be trusted. He's probably right, for although all politicians seem trustworthy while campaigning, no politicians can be trusted once they are ELECTED. There is a subtle difference. The Liberal fortunes in this election are questionable. Polls aren't being nice..that's it.
The question the electorate really should be asking is:
" WHO can be trusted?"
The answer must be " Nobody" ; --and certainly not a "Michael Ignatieff Liberal " government either.
Liberals promised to protect Canada's Universal Health Care system-- (well, doesn't EVERYBODY PROMISE ? ) --but previous Liberal Governments reportedly hijacked a stash of cash from health care and U I to help defeat the deficit back in Paul Martin /Chretien days, balance the budget, play games, fun for all was had, --downloading costs to the provincial governments. Private clinics seem to be encouraged, popping up here and there....how cute.
The thin edge of ( the USA private health care health-care-only for money system ) wedge was smacked into the skulls of Canadians ...imagine that. Shall we trust Iggy? No. Shall we trust Stephen, who is on record as being pro-private enterprise in the field of health ? No.
There is little wonder Gilles Duceppe and the BLOC Quebecois plunk themselves down in plush leather chairs located in our Federal House of Commons, the better to keep an eye on federal scoundrels.
Nice office.... C'mon, Gilles,,, you got into the debate as a special interest representative, throwing red herrings around left and right, confusing the issue, so why can't you spread candidates far and wide across Canada so you would be a REAL Federal political party, and some people might even be tempted to vote for you? What's the matter, you afraid of losing ? We think so, but in the Big Bloc book, it's better to sit and whine, isn't it, and NEVER have to actually prove you have a better idea, a better system. Right. Form your own country. Ever heard of:
"Those who flee oppression oft' flee to oppression of their own?"
Stranger things have happened. What if Gilles did win a majority?
Being on location in Ottawa all the time, the Bloc can complain, promote the removal of not only Federal funds, by blackmail or otherwise, but help malcontents, even encourage in-house traitors to remove the very Province of Quebec itself from Canada..
....*alas.. Gilles and Co. are always content to decorate debates, sit on comfy leather, complain, and threaten another referendum.
A few tries later later Gilles has discovered it's quite a lot of fun and more profitable to blackmail Ottawa for big bucks and keep milking the glorious and generous Canadian Cow.
Imagine that. No fear of majority a la Gilles.
It seems that Jack Layton, the New Democratic leader, unhindered by his recent surgery and EXCELLENT medical treatments via the Universal Canadian Health system has recovered quite nicely ---whether it was a real hip replacement or not.....or just a little bit of metal, they say, not a real hip replacement, no matter what sis said. Just a slight family misunderstanding, it was.
Everyone says Jack did very well in the "official debates" ....and he continues to travel the country, recovering, shaking hands, smiling and laughing...and progressing surprisingly well in the polls too. Go figure. The Liberals and Michael are nervous, not surprisingly.
As for Elizabeth May, being excluded from the debate doesn't seem to have harmed her positive attitude at all. She hasn't got any "seats" yet, but she's got lots of Green and a pretty green platform to stand upon while she watches with interest, deciding which of the parties she should really consider a full merge with. Go figure... "Only in Canada", you say? (Yawn......)
That's my opinion, and I'm sticking to it.
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