Photo Credit: Hamilton Spectator

The PM, proving to be quite uncreative when it comes to governance, has again suspended parliament. As The Economist put it (7 Jan 2010), “Stephen Harper is counting on Canadians’ complacency as he rewrites the rules of his country’s politics to weaken legislative scrutiny.” But the “gathering storm of media criticism” they forecasted is fading from the horizon, as Harper surely assumed. The PM is undoubtedly counting on (or planning) something else to fill up screens over the next months (Olympics, more shimmering stimulus projects, etc.). It is no coincidence that the he will drop the budget the day after parliament reconvenes on 3 March, sure to be filled with so many exciting goodies that we’ll go into a fiscal sugar coma, and the prorogation will hardly be a memory.
(more…)

Depends on the tune - Photo Credit: Global News

HCBAX9NPSJB8 It is a truism that the Conservative’s base votes. When it comes to the nitty gritty hardship of going all the way to that local community building and making an X, the core supporters of said party are never apathetic (except arguably about what the Conservatives are doing).

The base on the Left? What base on the left? There may be a few who remember the union-championing roots of the NDP and never sway from supporting said party. There are certainly some environmental activists who swear to vote Green all Green and nothing but Green so help them Mother Earth. What is the Liberal core, and really how can either of the other two (the Greens are actually rather right when it comes to social policy but we’ll play the perception here) ever expect to match the one recognized haven for the socially conservative vote, especially given that despite enacted policy the Conservative Party also manages to cling to the illusion of fiscal conservativism?
(more…)

The Monkey House

Bored and dipping in the whiskey last night, I decided to engage in a little social investigation. I have long been curious by the human tendency to, once provoked, enter into group-think mentalities and demonize potential outsiders. In civil, civic discourse, this trend is reversed by sophisticated rhetoricians through the disarmament of their opponent, first through finding common ground and then, point for point, countering hostile suggestion with legitimate fact, all the while ignoring the hostile tone of their opponent. Well, sometimes it is nice to return slight for slight, but the skilled debater always returns to the facts that support his or her opinion. Now, in the case of political discussion, there may not be only facts but there are reasons behind the opinion and it is to these which one must turn if one’s position is to be defended.
(more…)

Photo Credit: Igougo

A few months ago I wrote a paper for a poli-sci class predominantly in response to an article we were instructed to read by Juan Linz. Linz had contrasted presidential with parliamentary democracy, leaning heavily towards the latter as the preferred system of government for most democracies. I couldn’t help but take issue. After all, Linz had never seen the likes of Stephen Harper. Harper, I argued, was already proving that there are several ways to make a mockery of Parliamentarianism’s famed ‘checks and balances,’ the devices often cited by those like Linz as the selling points of the system. Indeed, Harper had (incredibly) exemplified how a prime minister with a penchant for despotism could effectively rule a liberal, democratic state almost autocratically, and that it was high time for Canada to reconsider its parliamentary system as a means to facilitate democracy.

And then things got even worse…
(more…)

The yellow-bellied turtle

On December 30th, two weeks after the House of Commons ended its last sitting of 2009, the Conservatives presented themselves with a belated Christmas gift, unexpectedly proroguing Parliament until March 3rd. It was to resume sitting on January 25th. As a result, the House of Commons will be vacant for nearly three months. The Conservatives assert that this is to allow them time to consult with Canadians, particularly regarding their economic action plan, before releasing their budget on March 4th. Is this what hockey fans would call “a turtle”, or is it a brilliant strategic move that once again demonstrates the Conservatives’ ability to outfox the Liberals?

Most Canadians have seen a few hockey fights. First there’s some verbal sparring, maybe some shoving, and then two guys go at it, sometimes by prior arrangement. It’s a good way to vent frustrations and stir up the crowd. Other times, a player is a pest or has done something that deserves some retribution. In this case, when the first punch is thrown the guy on the receiving end (the pest) refuses to fight back, unwilling to take the thumping he might richly deserve. He won’t put his money where is mouth is and either skates away or falls cowering to the ice, gloved hands covering his head – he is a turtle. The net result is that someone who deserved some payback doesn’t actually get much of it, and his team, in fact, gains an advantage.
(more…)

Any follower of professional poker knows that Stephen Harper just went “all in” by proroguing Parliament. It’s because he now holds all four aces.

Ace number one is an opposition in disarray. Iggy is nowhere to be seen or heard. Gilles is emailing-in his commentary. And Jack is basking in the knowledge that eighteen percent of Canadians would vote NDP even if he were a mustachioed blow-up doll.

Ace number two is a reluctant but growing acknowledgment by the national media of Harper’s management of the country relative to the rest of the sinking world, H1N1, his piano playing and yes, Afghanistan. They, like he, know that the majority of Canadians don’t give a rat’s ass what the Afghans do to each other if it means finding and eliminating those who are building the roadside bombs that kill our selfless troops.
(more…)

Canada’s Conservative Party would win a strong majority if an election were to be held today, according to a newly released poll by the Ottawa Citizen’s website. Canadians favour the Conservatives over the Liberals 45% to 26%. 12% of Canadians would vote for the NDP. These results come just 2 months after the Conservatives won a minority government with 37.6% of the vote.

So why the drastic change in public opinion? Canadians are just simply fed up with thinking about the prospects of another election or a coalition government forming. Almost two-thirds of respondents indicated they would prefer Ignatieff find a compromise with Harper to keep the Conservatives in power. After all, $300 million of taxpayers money was spent on the recent election. The poll also indicated the Liberals attempt to form a coalition with the Bloc a major factor in the shift of support towards Harper. As well, 7 out of 10 respondents agreed with the decision to prorogue government.
(more…)

Imagine what Canada could have done with the election budget… saved thousands of jobs, stimulated the economy, given everyone in Canada $10…

There are many things that could have been done but instead Harper wasted $300+ million and accomplished nothing. Now the government is prorogued and there will likely be an election again within the next year or two regardless of what happens when the prorogation period is over.

What will happen in the next election?
(more…)

Harper is definitely out in the cold, but he’s hoping this break will let him ignite the Conservative pilot light.

PM Stephen Harper asked Santa for a prorogation of parliament and he got it… Well actually he asked Governor General Michaëlle Jean but either way, he will be having a long Christmas holiday.

For those of you who are not up to date, firstly, take a look at Michael’s post regarding the Liberal and NDP alliance. To summarize, the Liberals and NDP decided that they were sick and tired of Harper’s inability to take action to save the economy so they decided that if they formed a coalition, then their combined seats would give them a majority. It is important to note that the Bloc Quebecois support the coalition in the no confidence vote, but they are not technically part of it.
(more…)

How any Canadians can trust Harper is beyond me. After over 2 hours of discussion with Governor General Michaelle Jean, a decision to prorogue parliament has been made. Aside from over exaggerating the Liberal-NDP coalition and a quick advertising campaign that directly mislead Canadians about the coalition, Harper still felt compelled to look directly into the TV cameras and lie to Canadians yet another time.

On Thursday Dec. 4, 2008, he stated that:
(more…)