How Will You Vote

[Slim]

Actually, whether you like it or not, the Liberals have just won the election (albeit with a minority).   See you in 2007, lads.

Canada really needes a new govt!

Sorry, you forgot the last part of my post

Down with Libs and their fibs!

 

[RangerRay]

The man is just boring. If you pay attention to politcs then you notic when Paul Martin gives a speach or Duceppe give a speech they get right into it and are cheering and whatever. A harper speech is just dull, he shows no emotion what so ever he basicaly just reads a piece of paper in the the same tone of voice for 20 min take a couple questions and leaves.

You should watch CPAC which shows entire speeches, rather than just the 5 second clips that the CBC wants you to see.

You would see that Harper is passionate, knows what he is talking about, and even has a sense of humour.  He answers reporters questions directly without trying to straddle a fence.

You would also see the dithering that is Dithers.  "Umm...I...er...ah...now let me be very clear...er...uh...this is a very, very important issue...uh...I LOVE CANADA!"

 

[silentbutdeadly]

See thats the problem! maybe he is boring, but i think boring and getting to the issues is what we need. Not "really into his speech"and takes money from us and scandal! At least he is doing something i.e 5% GST, $1200 per yr for children till the age of six. What have the Dictator done hmmmm gun ban! thats all they can come up with Gun ban! hahaha

 

[ChopperHead]

Actually I do watch cpac. Is still find him boring though, alot of people do. Compared to Paul Martins speeches Harpers are usually quite tame and uneventful. Like right after the Gorenment fell and the leader had their speeches to their party members. Paul Martin had his party shouting and cheering and raising their arms etc you just dont see stuff like that from the conservatives and I think that this is very important if they plan on attracting much of the youth vote. they have to make things exciting.

Im not saying i dont support his ideas and his policys though don't get me wrong just they need to be more upbeat and lively and get people involved because if you dont then the message gets lost because people arent paying attention.

 

[winchable]

I think perhaps if they shake shiny metal objects and make loud whooping noises, they would have as good a chance of attracting the youth vote.
I prefer Harper's speaking to most politicians, I've never liked Paul Martin's. That is of course a very subjective topic though.

They just looked like assholes cheering the fall of their own government, imo

 

[silentbutdeadly]

hahah no sh*t! they were cheering for what? everyone in the commons doesn't think you can do the job! yeah woooo hoooo!

 

[RangerRay]

Well, we in British Columbia have had our share of flamboyant prime ministers.  Bill Vander Zalm and Glen Clark come to mind.  They were also probably our worst.

Since 2001, we've had a pretty boring guy (Gordon Campbell) running the province, and he's managed to turn this province around economically.

As for that Liberal "pep rally" after their government fell...it was truly a nauseating experience to behold.  It is said that "wrapping oneself with the flag is the last resort of a scoundrel" or something to that effect...

 

[Slim]

They (the Liberals) seem to be about as out-of-tune with the nation as its possible to be.

Martin aught to get a new set of handlers as the ones he has now must all be from Salt Spring Island or some other such layed back place...

 

[ChopperHead]

lol ya I know it was stupid to be cheering that you just lost the confidence of the country but my point was that the Paul Martin gets right into his speeches and gets people involved and I think that works alot better then just standing there reading a piece of paper. If you want to get youth out to vote and vote for you then you have to get them involved and excited with the polical party and procceses in gerneral.

 

[Slim]

lol ya I know it was stupid to be cheering that you just lost the confidence of the country but my point was that the Paul Martin gets right into his speeches and gets people involved and I think that works alot better then just standing there reading a piece of paper.

So do Mr Rogers, MR Dressup and the Ringmaster at the average circus...

The problem is that there's nothing of substance behind any of them, just smoke and mirrors!

Same with the Libs under martin.

 

[Kat Stevens]

People seemed to really get into Hitler's speeches too, judging from the newsreels.

 

[a_majoor]

They (the Liberals) seem to be about as out-of-tune with the nation as its possible to be.

Normally I agree with you, Slim, but given the fact that a party of known thieves and incompetents is still ahead in the polls and likely to squeeze out one more minority (despite what we would like), I wonder just who is out of tune with what here? Why this should be is a very complex subject (saying it is because the 38% of Canadian who bother to vote are idiots just doesn't explain it).

 

[jmackenzie_15]

I wonder what percentage of those 38% are in the military...
and what % of military personnell actually vote?

 

[Slim]

Normally I agree with you, Slim, but given the fact that a party of known thieves and incompetents is still ahead in the polls and likely to squeeze out one more minority (despite what we would like), I wonder just who is out of tune with what here? Why this should be is a very complex subject (saying it is because the 38% of Canadian who bother to vote are idiots just doesn't explain it).

I think Churchill said it best when he said;
"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter."

 

[Jarnhamar]

Normally I agree with you, Slim, but given the fact that a party of known thieves and incompetents is still ahead in the polls and likely to squeeze out one more minority (despite what we would like), I wonder just who is out of tune with what here?

Exactly what runs through my head every time I think about politics.

 

[Sh0rtbUs]

Exactly what runs through my head every time I think about politics.

See theres your problem right there. I try not to think about Politics too much, it hurts...

 

[Glorified Ape]

Well, the Liberals haven't been much better.   I don't know what's worse, preening to the US or suckholeing France because your son-in-law is a major shareholder in their largest petroleum consortium - Bush or Desmarais, you lose either way, no?

I look at which approach is likeliest to get myself and other CF members killed over idiotic, political non-sequiturs and then pick the other one. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against war when it's necessary, I'd just rather not get my stomach spilled all over the ground because some idiot in Ottawa with a fetish for all things south of the 49th parallel decided solidarity with idiots was more important than sensical policy... call me selfish, but that's my view.

The Liberals are the worst, but all parties really bother me with their ideas on Health Care because they all pander to the easy "more money" option.   I don't mind two-tiered health care as it already exists and it will help to show us how our antiquated Kim-Jong Il delivery system is no good.   I consider it an agent for positive change; as long as universal coverage is maintained (and a healthy balance is brought to management of health care) I could care less who is delivering it.

The problem, as I see it, is that the public system would suffer. I agree our system needs serious reforms, but I suspect the introduction of a private tier would only drive it further into the ground.

Why not.   I think we've established that jail isn't a deterrent, but that's not what tough sentencing needs to be for.   Bruce Monkhouse babysits these assholes everyday; listen to him.   We are not dealing with these people in the manner that we should.   Story the other day was about a guy with 42 counts that were all tied to sexual indecency and children moving to a community that didn't want him and was at risk to re-offend.   Guy with 15 prior counts of car-theft kills a family man while outrunning the cops in a stolen vehicle.   Karla Holmolka takes part in the brutal rape, torture and slaying of two teenage girls and we let her out?

Firstly, because I don't believe dangerous offender status is something that should be handed out on a standardized basis, the ad-hoc/individualized consideration that's currently in place seems more appropriate, given the extremity of the repercussions of such a label. As for 14 year olds in adult court, I don't see how giving a kid an adult record and sentence for juvenile offences before he can even drive a car is going to help things - all you're doing is ensuring the kid never snaps out of it by dropping a yoke around his neck that will follow him for the rest of his life. If it's a serious offence like murder or rape, fine, but doing it over a fistfights (read: violent offence) is idiotic. Teenagers will fight, especially the male ones, and having laws which ignore this reality, as well as idiotic zero-tolerance policies in schools, does nothing but make sure teenage boys are saddled with records and prison/juvie time for stuff they would have received a stern talking-to about 30 years ago.

Agree with you here - definitely an eye-scab or whatever you mentioned earlier; this smells of pushing us into bed with these kinds of people.   Oh well, at least the Conservative Party will allow me to possess copious amounts of firearms so I can keep them off my property.

Indeed, and maybe we'll be so lucky as to have religious decrees posted all around our government buildings. Perhaps they'll be good enough to outlaw abortion and, if we dare to dream, outlaw gay people! Then maybe we can get some of that sweet sweet lynching I've heard was so popular down south... just imagine - we could have our very own pogroms. Harper seems like an open-minded guy - maybe he'll take a few pointers from 'down under' and get us some of that Muslim-free immigration policy that Wes is saying has become so popular with the Aussies.  :

If I want the neo-Na..er... National Citizens Coalition as my PM's think-tank, I'll vote Harper. But until I get the call from Ghandi that flying pigs have been spotted over a frozen hell, I'll stay away from old Hit...um... Harper.

Disagree; what's wrong with taking the politics out of election dates?   We have this in BC right now and it isn't that big of a deal, but if we are going to tool around with parliamentary democracy, it has got to be thourough and not just tinkering.   I want to see the Senate fixed, Quebec addressed, the nature of the PMO and the GG addressed.

Why mess with what ain't broke? Flexible dates are just that - flexible. It's one of the advantages of incumbency, there's nothing unfair about it. While we're at it, why don't we remove the unfair "advantage" of executive addresses to the public? As for the senate, I agree to some extent. I don't mind its appointed status so much, but the issue of western representation needs to be addressed ASAP. How exactly would we go about "addressing" Quebec? What are your issues with the PMO and GG?

Tax cuts don't bother me.

It's corporate subsidies he wants to cut, not taxes. I don't disagree universally with reducing corporate subsidies, but one has to factor in small businesses. Cutting subsidies to IBM or DuPont is one thing, cutting them to small businesses which may actually need them is another.

Disagree - university isn't that expensive; I paid for it through working for the military (just as you are).   Canada's students seem to be a big pack of whiners.   Why should it be free (or near free)?

See, where you ask "why", I ask "why not"? I guess it's a fundamental difference between commie bastards like me and heartless neo-cons like you. ;D I think that the growing importance (indeed, necessity) of university for an increasing number of jobs is one reason why it should be cheap. I'm not saying free, necessarily, but affordable to the overwhelming majority of the populous. It's not just tuition that has to be factored into the equation, it's also the living expenses vs. time available to work. An ex-girlfriend of mine went to Queen's poli-sci (undergrad) on OSAP and worked her arse off, both in and out of school, through the entirety of her degree. Now she's saddled with god knows how many tens of thousands of dollars in student debt which it will take her years upon years to pay off. A well-educated populous is in the best interests of society.

So they can sit around in undergrad for another couple years because they just like being a student and don't want to get out into the real world? I remember taking part in varsity athletics in one of the countries largest universities and going to small colleges in the US and seeing how real funding makes a difference.   I'm all for making people earn their education - even if it be through a short period of service like the US GI Bill.

As much as I find university badminton to be enthralling in the extreme, I don't think it's a legitimate argument for more expensive higher education. As for "earning their education", I agree - academically. Should people have to "earn" their primary and secondary educations? Maybe we should privatize the whole education system, that way we can have a well-educated bourgeoisie and an illiterate, servile proletariat.  Hyperbole, I know.

As for "sitting around in undergrad", most schools have a maximum time allotment for an undergrad degree - 4 years generally, methinks. If university is just another way to delay "get[ing] out into the real world" (as you put it), why did you go?

Agreed.   That's just silly.

Indeed, and scary when one takes into account the degree of Ameriphilia that must plague the Conservative Party's policy makers to drive them to such pathetic extremes of kowtowing. 

Problem is, I could find a list just as long for the Liberals, and to me there are some even more disturbing implications.

That may be, but until I they surpass the Cons, in my mind, they'll continue to be my preference.

I'm still hoping for a Conservative minority.   It will give them a shot at governing and yet keep them honest.

Bah, government will never be honest. If a government was honest, it wouldn't last the month. People are largely idiots when it comes to government and if they were told all that needed to be done, and was done, to keep the country running and the government operating, they'd cry bloody murder and riot in the streets. Then when the government actually operated according to what the majority thought was "right", things would be even worse than before and people would still be blaming the government.

By the way, you ARE going infantry officer, no?

 

[Infanteer]

I look at which approach is likeliest to get myself and other CF members killed over idiotic, political non-sequiturs and then pick the other one.

You obviously haven't talked to a Canadian soldier deployed on a UN mission; remember it is the Liberals and the NDP who love the "peacekeeping ideology" - which essentially amounts to be deployed to an equally dangerous area but with less equipment and lame ROE's....

As for your other stuff, you're wrong because I'm right. 

 

[paracowboy]

By the way, you ARE going infantry officer, no?

yes, he is. And I find it comforting to think that for every one young officer like you coming into our system, we get three like him.

 

[Glorified Ape]

You obviously haven't talked to a Canadian soldier deployed on a UN mission; remember it is the Liberals and the NDP who love the "peacekeeping ideology" - which essentially amounts to be deployed to an equally dangerous area but with less equipment and lame ROE's....

You're ignoring the mandate and legality aspects. I'm with you as far as the failing of the ideology, but I wouldn't classify it as a political non-sequitur. I'd also wager, judging from casualty rates, that peacekeeping's less dangerous than, say, Iraq (which is what I was referring to).

As for your other stuff, you're wrong because I'm right.    

Dammit, you always cut to the core of me. ;D

yes, he is. And I find it comforting to think that for every one young officer like you coming into our system, we get three like him.

Care to elaborate? I thought about responding in kind, but decided I'd take my own advice and be absolutely sure of what it is you're saying before replying.