SpankyMcFarland

Hey, I was going to say that.

Aren’t all opinions a bit of a mix?

I think we give politicians too hard a time. In our system, anybody can stand for office. If you don’t like the job they’re doing, put your name in the ring.

We are blessed to live in a liberal democracy but one of the downsides is we can’t blame anybody else for our politicians. We deserve the ones we have.

If you need a GP, pop over to Harley St. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/may/19/patients-paying-550-an-hour-to-see-private-gps-amid-nhs-frustrations

In terms of improving the spatial distribution of Canadian grads, firstly the problem has to be recognized. The data is clear but the Dean of my local med school doesn’t talk about it publicly. In my town we are getting more young GPs from Cairo than St. John’s. So firstly, admit that the med school is no longer able to do one of the things it was set up to do. Let me emphasize that most of the reason for this is not controlled by the med school. You’d need an army of brave sociologists and psychologists to explain why young people love cities now. Secondly, start considering what this means. Maybe the med school should not consider expansion if all it’s going to is send docs to places that have them already, especially itself? Thirdly, incentivize doctors in the periphery aggressively. Get serious about the bonuses. If you have to pay them four times what they earn in Toronto, do so. Offer them university appointments as well. Of course, you’ll run up against strong but subtle opposition from the medical associations on that. Fourthly, consider alternatives to CMGs on site - foreign doctors, nurse practitioners, telemedicine, better public transport. We’ve all seen how great Zoom is. I think AI will be a big help in the coming decades.

I don’t know the numbers on this but I’d be very surprised if thousands of doctors are no longer working in Canada because of their position on Covid. For example, I don’t think we lost anyone in my health region, although in fairness we had little Covid for the first year. I can say that few left my province on the issue. Things may have been said back and forth to employers and the authorities but for the majority the storm blew over.

A censure option should accompany any impeachment. In my opinion, Trump deserved censure for his first offence and impeachment for the second.

I think politicians and other public figures should be tough enough to put up with some abuse, and should certainly not be allowed to use lawsuits to stifle legitimate criticism, but there has to be a limit somewhere.

What’s striking about the Dominion case is the volume, specificity and duration of the false accusations and clear evidence that the people making these very serious claims of criminal conduct knew them to be completely false. The US has a very high bar for defamation but Fox felt sufficiently nervous about losing the case to settle for a fortune. The Internet seems to have unleashed all sorts of utterly mad theories that people have no compunction about airing, even on TV.

If it’s the same thing you should contact those people who have been defamed and get a lawsuit going. Plus I’m talking specifically about allegations of election fraud against companies doing the counting. Failed impeachments mean nothing in a chamber that votes along party lines.

There’s a reason Dominion won zillions. Everyone gripes when they lose games or elections and every Canadian party that does better on the popular vote than on seats becomes, briefly, a supporter of PR, but that’s quite different from a TV network pushing specific, QAnon-style allegations for months about private companies and criminal election fraud that it knows to be without any foundation. That goes beyond stating an opinion.

We need an inquiry. I think that’s abundantly clear at this stage.

Would you at least concede that those cuts were easier with Preston Manning as the real (non-Quebec) opposition than if the Liberals had been in those benches? In that sense, Chrétien was fortunate to be pushing an open door.

Both of them did their bit. The GST doesn’t get enough credit here nor does Mulroney generally. Chrétien made a clear break with Pierre Trudeau on spending. I think a PC govt would have had a hard time delivering such cuts.

We need to start turning the ship of state around as Chrétien did. It is going to take a while.

Given that most top executives are Republicans, the party needs to have a conversation among its own about ESG.

Some topics are battier than others. I mentioned three examples that people have fairly strong opinions on. If he indulges the Bernier wing of his party, he will alienate ordinary Canadians.

Reebok underwear. Takes care of me. Smartwool socks. Take them off for the shower and that’s about it. Perfect nursing home wear for which I am ready. Costa coffee. Kinder and gentler than Starbucks. Nespresso has changed my life. I feel like I’m somewhere fancy every morning in my house. Apple iPad. Makes all this ranting possible. I’m thinking of abandoning my faultless Samsung smartphone and getting an iPhone just to make things easier with my favourite tablet. Toyota. A comfy ride that holds the road and stays going. Once upon a time, I was driving my Chev on the TCH without a care in the world when the rear axle went and I found myself skiing in July. A moment when brand loyalty came under review. Tetley’s Tea. I’m still searching for better black tea and have yet to find it. McVitie’s Jaffa Cakes, Sharwood’s Mango Chutney, Robertsons Golden Shred, Fry’s Turkish Delight and HP Sauce. It’s all about imprinting. They got me young. I’m not sure Canada (or anywhere beyond Belgium and Germany) should be allowed to make beer. The only relatively local product I actively like is Blanche de Chambly. (Disclaimer: choices in my remote locale are limited.) If you love IPAs, well, I’m willing to pretend to celebrate your sick and twisted choices in life. Dealcoholized Canadian beer isn’t too bad because it differs so little from the original. Regarding wine, this is one of my fave reds from SA, not pricey at all: https://www.nataliemaclean.com/wine-reviews/flagstone-dragon-tree-cabernet-sauvignon-shiraz-pinotage-2014/290087 For whites, any Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from NZ is good for me. Better stop now.

Honestly, how many Canadians care about this nonsense beyond the select demographic here?

Well, we’ll all get PP. I didn’t dislike O’Toole and I’m not exactly campaigning actively for anybody out there. Plus my riding went Conservative last time and will probably do so again. When you say left you surely mean centrist voters? Leftist voters on the left of the Liberal party and into the NDP would never have gone for O’Toole. JT has had his run and it’s up to PP to decide whether he wants to be a one term wonder or not. If he kowtows to the convoy/Bitcoin/anti-vax crowd on the tribal right, I suspect he won’t be around long. Obviously, he shines in debates but successful PMs have qualities not fully tested in Opposition. The ability not to respond to every criticism is one such virtue and we’ll see if he is disciplined enough for a long run.

The behaviour of many members of the Convoy in Ottawa was disgraceful and Poilievre was foolish to be ambivalent about it. I suspect those alt-right sympathies he has will be a major element in the Liberals’ next campaign. These days in North America, conservatives appeal to a fringe that can be fairly wild. Assuming they win, I’d like to see a minor course correction from the Tories on budget deficits, China and the like but certainly nothing approaching what the Right in the US have planned for their country.

Be that as it may, not every Georgian welcomes closer links with Russia: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-65645527

More bad news in Russia’s backyard: https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/18/china/china-central-asian-states-summit-xian-xi-jinping-intl-hnk/index.html

Looks like he was fired, to answer the OP question. We can agree on that much? The Dominion case revealed that Carlson was more sceptical of Stop the Steal than he let on. At the same time he could see the money in it for Fox and came down hard on anybody at the network who wanted to reveal the truth. That doesn’t sound like the behaviour of a conscientious journalist to me but perhaps our conservative friends can resolve these unsettling matters?