Click

Jeffrey Simpson flips the switch:

Technically, of course, he’s correct. If the three opposition parties vote down the government on the coming budget, there’ll be an election. A government seriously wishing to forestall that possibility would be negotiating with one or two of the other parties to find common ground, as happens in other countries with proportional representation systems where minority governments are the norm.

In Canada, however, our parties still act as if majority governments are the norm. They haven’t developed the instincts of operating in minority situations, so they make demands on each other that can’t be met, posture endlessly and play brinkmanship electoral games.

It is sad in 2011, that the obvious is having to be pointed out. Our electoral system doesn't work with more than two parties contesting elections. Many of us "out here" know that and would love to see it changed. However, there is an power lust among our political class that deludes our pols into believing that if their party can just play the right game, they will get all the power, unchecked by anyone. It is a sickness and it has all but destroyed our politics.

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Shorter DiManno

Sure Oda lied, and she should be fired, but at least she put the boots to a bunch of God-damn Communists and Jew haters, posing as Christians.

I love the way DiManno uses the old "I'm not saying they are Anti-Semites and Communists but...." routine. It is smear at it most primal. Rosie should stick to writing love letters to the military. True, they are pathetic, middle aged adolescent twaddle, but at least they are amusing.

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And...Poof

Just like that, all of the talk of capitulation disappears into a cloud of smoke. The Conservatives got what they wanted, the last news cycle before escaping for a week, was dominated by breathless Liberal accounts of Layton's evil intent, rather than of Bev Oda's lack of candor. Liberals, is there no Conservative trick they won't fall for?

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Musical Interlude

Fight on brothers and sisters. Canadians, you know the Conservatives are watching this battle with interest. If the Republicans can destroy the benefits of working people (and more importantly the right to collective bargaining) in the States, the Conservatives will adopt the policy as their own. This fight matters.

Republicans and Conservatives both use the tactic of blaming unions for the raping of the economy by Wall Street. It is the oldest tactic in the book. Wealthy Wall Street traders and bankers are an abstraction. Your neighbor, who is a teacher is real and he has a better pension than you. Kick him and you will feel better, since you will never get at the Wall Streeter (since we will never allow that to happen). It is bait and switch 101 and the Republican/Conservative movements are masters at.

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Ralph Is Getting Ahead of Himself

Courtesy of Kady, Ralph Goodale is demanding the government turn over documents:

February 15, 2011 -- Mr. Goodale (Wascana) -- That, given the undisputed privileges of Parliament under Canada's constitution, including the absolute power to require the government to produce uncensored documents when requested, the government's continuing refusal to comply with reasonable requests for documents, particularly related to the cost of the government's tax cut for the largest corporations and the cost of the government's justice and public safety agenda, represents a violation of the rights of Parliament, and this House hereby orders the government to provide every document requested by the Standing Committee on Finance on November 17, 2010 by March 7, 2011.

This is all well and good, but it would be a lot more impressive if we had a few documents pertaining to Afghan detainees, in the public domain. This just seems like another exercise in the ever evolving Liberal strategy to appear "progressive". I am not holding my breath for the government to respond to this demand with anything other than maybe an offer to form another committee. And I certainly don't expect the Liberals to do anything, other than whine about it.

Friday Morning Update: Hebert nails it ("it" being the Liberal's modus operandi) by examining another issue, Bev Oda:

As it did over the census, the Liberal opposition has turned to the social media to put pressure on the Conservatives. Given the alleged seriousness of the offence, one would think the party would turn its mind to putting its money where its mouth is in Parliament rather than on Facebook and Twitter.

If Harper was the leader of the official opposition, he would already be taking steps to withdraw the confidence of the House from the government.

The Liberals are just not to be taken seriously and Harper knows it.

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Hey Egyptians

If you want to know how a democracy works, don't look at the B.C. Liberal Party. Apparently, they believe that rural voters should get more votes than city voters. If Canadians want to know why our politics is screwed up, on the other hand, this is a textbook example. Making rural voters our masters ensures we are dominated by the concerns of a tiny minority of the population. It is a perversion of the idea of one person, one vote and an insult to the idea of democracy.

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Looking For The Oasis

Nicholas Kristof on America's Middle East policy:

The truth is that the United States has been behind the curve not only in Tunisia and Egypt for the last few weeks, but in the entire Middle East for decades. We supported corrupt autocrats as long as they kept oil flowing and weren’t too aggressive toward Israel.

If you substituted Canada for United States, this would be a perfect summary of Harper's Middle East policy, too. If it is good for Alberta oil interests and gets the nod from Jerusalem, it is good for Stephen Harper. No wonder no one gives a shit what Canada thinks anymore.

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Waah, I Don't Wanna Pay! Gimme!

A telling table from Pew Research:

The Republicans and their Conservative wannabes are terrible at every aspect of governing. However they excel at infantilizing their citizens, to the point where they demand services, while demanding their government stop asking them for money to pay for them.

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A Case Study

On how this government "works".

1. Destroy the census for ideological reasons.
2. Have one of your major constituencies tell you in no uncertain terms it needs reliable data.
3. Scramble about, looking for a way to collect the data, without upsetting the "fallout shelter" base of the party.
4. Seriously consider the most secretive way possible to collect the data, a method that makes the mandatory census method look like a mild intrusion of privacy by comparison. On the other hand, it is done in secret and so the boys in the shelters are not distracted from howling about people wearing veils while voting.

That is our government at work. Makes me proud.

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Fords Declare War On The Working Class

The Fords are dreaming if they think city workers will stand by and let themselves be pushed over a cliff, just so they can reach the bottom first. I admire the Fords in some ways, they are open in their belief that those at the top have too little money and those at the bottom have too much. At least they openly declare their bias toward the ruling class.

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Bad Taste Watch

Apparently, our Industry Minister thinks it is jolly fun to gut the long form census and then rub our faces in it at his fancy party:

Wearing a Foo Fighters t-shirt with a jacket over it, Mr. Clement told The Globe and Mail about a birthday dinner his wife organized for about 36 couples. Before sitting down to eat, all of them were required to fill out a long-form census of 40 questions about the Industry Minister. Given the controversy caused this summer over the government’s decision to scrap the mandatory long-form, all the guests had a good laugh.

I guess it is a blessing he didn't set the original Charter of Rights and Freedoms on fire to light his guests' cigars.

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The Dog That Didn't Bark

Why did Dean Del Mastro bring this up during a discussion about the appointment of Tom Pentefountas to the CRTC (at 6:45)?:

"One area that I think that frankly all parties do a good job of staying out of is the awarding of licenses. Which is something the CRTC does, which I think needs to inherently ... it must be beyond political interference".

It kind of came out of the blue and was not touched on by the members of the panel. It was a very odd remark and given my paranoid nature, leads me to connect the dots. Why would the Harperites put their own man on the CRTC? Are there broadcast licenses coming up for consideration that the Haperites love to be granted, but would not like to have their fingerprints found on? It could be nothing, but on the other hand, it is damned curious.

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Question Of The Day

Has any outside power successfully managed a revolution, at a distance, by remote control? I fear the "West" (do I get a vote?) is setting itself up as a loser, when it is totally unnecessary.

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Fire Sale

The Prime Minister of Alberta puts Canada up for sale. All he wants in return is a pipeline for Alberta.

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Bride Of Frankenstein

Harper has chosen a most compatible person to run his campaign. Jenni Byrne, 34, is:

Described by colleagues as possessing a volcanic temper with a penchant for yelling at cabinet ministers, staffers and senior bureaucrats alike, Ms. Byrne is fiercely loyal to the Prime Minister, his decisions and the small “c” Conservative brand.

That sounds like a match made in heaven.

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Shorter Harper

Just because we are giving up control of our borders, that doesn't mean we are less sovereign. After all, we will still have our own hockey team at the Olympics. Integrating sports teams will come later.

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Diane Finley To Working Mothers

You are unfit to have children.

Let the backpedaling begin!

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Bob Rae, The Personification Of "Wet"

Bob Rae does on border security, what he has always done. He correctly identifies the problem and then turns his head away from it, because to take a firm position (cough, auto insurance, cough) might upset someone.

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Stompin Tom Has The Right Attitude

In "celebration" of the most over-hyped snowstorm in the history of snowstorms, I present Stompin Tom. When I was a kid, what we had last night, was called "winter".

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So Is He A Red Tory Or A Blue Liberal?

I see Rocco Rossi is running for Team Hudak. Yes, we are talking about the former national director of the Liberal Party of Canada and good buddy of the Iggster himself. This is no real surprise to me, as Rossi is to the right of Attila, but it raises further questions about the sincerity of the appeals to the left, from the very blue Liberal Party leadership.

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