I Have Never Voted for a Winning Candidate

OK Canada. Are you ready to vote.

I already have since I will be working at a poll during the election.

For an election the pundits claimed would be a yawnfest it sure hasn't turned out that way. This election is anyone's guess.

I don't want to jinx my candidate but, I was talking with friends the other day and it occurred to me that I don't think that I have ever, in a Federal Election, voted for a candidate who actually won his/her seat. Not withstanding that, I never miss a chance to vote.

Hold on to your hats. This might be a first for me.

Prime Minister Layton a Remote but Interesting Possibility

Whoever said this election was going to be a sleeper. Not me for sure.  Anything can happen at this point although it does look like the Liberals are tanking. Just goes to show you, a little honesty can sink a campaign faster that a scud missile.

Could the NDP become the official opposition? What for many was unthinkable, is now within reach but I am not sure it is the cause for celebration I once thought it would be. We just keep splitting the vote allowing Harper to stroll up the middle. I am not sure what that gets us.

I am probably one of the few Canadians with a Coalition Yes sign is the window. I think we need to try the alternative. What we have had over the last few years just isn't working.

Historically minority governments govern in a cooperative fashion. Minorities have given Canadians some of our best legislation over the years. What we have seen recently is just the opposite. The Harper "my way or the highway" bully boy politics  should not work in a minority but both the Liberals and the NDP have for the most part been too weak, or lacking in self confidence to challenge the status quo.  

So, I have my fingers crossed. It looks like Harper will win again supported by less than a majority of Canadians all thanks to our broken electoral system. Faced with that probibility, the best outcome would be a weak Conservative win, a defeat of their first budget and a coalition government. Jack Layton as Prime Minister? Doubtful but not out of the question.

If Harper gets a majority what does that leave us with. A country more divided, more polarized, more bitter than ever before.

Get out and vote Canada.

Sometimes You Have to Wonder

I have to say that the Canadian electorate, when it comes to accessing political systems, parties and leaders are one of the most screwed up groups of people in the world.

First let me say that our great fear of change allows us to be lead around by the nose by politicians who work their butts off seeking that magic 40% or so voter support. Reach that number and a majority government is almost guaranteed. 

Doesn’t that sound really dumb?

Yet, try to talk about Proportional Representation and most Canadian’s eyes glaze over. This seemingly bright nation can’t seem to figure it out. Our first past the post system is screwing us.

I was reading the results of a very recent Angus Reid poll yesterday and I confess that I came away shaking my head.

If you look at Canadian’s voting intention 34% would vote for the Harper Conservatives, 26% would support the Liberals lead by Michael Ignatieff and 18% would support the NDP.

Ok, I guess we could easily come to the conclusion that Canadians like Harper and his bunch.  

Not so fast though.  Canadian were asked to select up to six words or expressions from a list, that best described the party leaders.

• When it came to Stephen Harper the five words chosen most often were secretive, arrogant, dishonest, out of touch and uncaring. Only 2% thought he was exciting.
• The NDP’s Jack Layton in contrast was described as intelligent, down to earth, honest, compassionate and open.

What do you think? A kind of collective schizophrenia? Go figure.

Surprisingly, the divisive debate over the long gun registry, supported by about two thirds of Canadians seems to have done little to boost support for the Liberals nor the NDP nor did it hurt Harper.

Encouragingly, the Green Party moved into double digits nationally for the first time at 11%. Interestingly in British Columbia the Greens very nearly surpassed the Liberals. Higher than the Bloc nationally but our voting system will guarantee a large number of Bloc seats and the Greens will continue to struggle to elect anyone.  

In Saskatchewan where citizens seem to like getting screwed over, support is still high for Harper and his bunch of loyal, but not too bright foot soldiers.
Very few people think we will or should have an election in the fall so in the meantime Harper and his gang will carry on dismantling our country, the Liberals will continue to gaze at their belly buttons and wonder how they ever were so dumb to pick Iggy over Bob Rae, Gilles Duceppe, the avowed separatist and perhaps the best politician of the lot, will continue to build up is Canadian Federal Government pension and Jack Layton will dream about being Prime Minister and prepare for his last election as leader.

A couple of Different Approaches to Bullying

NOT MY PRIME MINISTER

As if the RCMP didn’t have enough problems.
The force recently had to hire Reid Morden, the former CSIS head to take a close look at the RCMP’s work environment after several of the senior Federal cops complained that Harper’s handpicked commissioner was acting like more than a bit of an a-hole.

Now they have removed the RCMP officer who was in charge of the Canadian Firearms Program which oversees the gun registry. The action comes just weeks before Parliament resumes debate of the Conservative bill that attempts to do away with the national long-gun registry. Timing is everything.

The Canadian Police Association is asking why Cheliak would be removed from the post shortly before he was supposed to give a presentation on firearms strategy at the annual meeting of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police later this month. He was also going to receive an award for his work at the conference. The RCMP say Cheliak is welcome to attend to receive the award but he may not take part in conference meetings.

When the PMO lays down the law to the RCMP I guess the expected response is “How high Mr. Harper, Sir?”

These right wingers don’t like anyone who doesn’t see the world quite the way they do and they have been working hard to make sure everyone on the payroll understands.

Things are a bit different on the Veteran’s Affairs front. As the federal ombudsman, Pat Stogran, a retired infantry officer, has spent the last three years advocating better treatment for Canada’s wounded veterans. It was only recently however that he got a real sense how screw up this government really is when it come to their handling of claims made by disabled veterans.

But the only realized the enormity of the battle he was fighting after a recent conversation with a civil servant who watches over the government’s purse. He said at a press conference “I was told … that it is in the government’s best interests to have soldiers killed overseas rather than wounded because the liability is shorter term.” The former senior military officer was shaken to the bone by the comment. “After two and a half years in this job it would be tough for me to say to a young person, ‘You know what? You want to join the Canadian Forces.’”

Stogran also circulated a 2002 Canadian Alliance political pamphlet in which then-leader Stephen Harper promises to defend Canadian soldiers the way that they have defended the country.

Rather that act the government most likely will just wait until Stogran’s term expires in November and until the media forget who he is. Until that point he has made it clear he intends to continue to expose this shameful treatment of Canada’s veterans by the Harper government and he will be urging Canadians to speak up for change. “These are your sons and daughters, your brothers and sisters. The time is now to do something about it. Make sure this government understands that this must stop.”

Meanwhile Prime Minister Harper and his band of flunkies continue to drop in the pools. The latest figures show that 70% of Canadians do not support this government.

So wake up Iggy, Jack and Giles. Give the bugger the boot this fall while we still recognize this country.

Are we Going to the Polls?

Just in case you were wondering about the likelihood of an election in the fall, the signs are there and my guess is that we are about 60% certain that Little Stevie will try and taunt the Liberals into forcing us into one.

The one thing we don't know is if Iggy has any more jam than Stephane Dion.

The NDP are pumped and ready to go, the Liberals are Sabre rattling their way through barbecues and town hall meetings, the Conservative/Alliance/Reformers are poised to re-announce just about every program they have ever thought up and who knows what the Bloc are up to.

Look out for a different campaign. Taking lessons from Vladimer Putin, Stevie has abandoned warm and fuzzy for stalwart and steely eyed.

Don't believe me?

What Canadian Prime Minister has ever spent five days observing military exercises. None that I recall. I spent eight years in the Canadian Navy and never saw a Prime Minister although I did see a Defense Minister once. That was Paul Hellier and we all hated him for his unification of the Armed Forces plan, but I do digress.

In the last week we have seen Harper;

• standing on the casing on a submarine. I hear they might have even dived the thing for him
  

• walking around all decked out in full flying gear, helmet and all

• sitting in the door of a helicopter, legs dandling out as it took off. Or perhaps hovered for the photo op.

This is the new militaristic Stevie, ready to take on the enemy.

I for one am having a bit of a hard time seeing the Ottawa dough boy in that light but he is trying hard to impress Canadians. The depressing part is that it might just work.