SpankyMcFarland

Now, now. Just because you didn't get any seats here. What did your mom tell you about being a good loser?

One question is whether the current media environment will force the PMO to take a stronger role than Trudeau says he wants in controlling the message. How much diversity of opinion from different government spokespersons is politically acceptable? We are about to find out.

So you fear a paper form more than a large government agency devoted to mass surveillance and completely unaccountable to Parliament? What can I say? The attitude of self-described conservatives on this issue is a real eye opener. There seems to be no concern about liberty and privacy from many of them. If the government wants it, who are we to question seems to be their attitude, except when it comes to the census for some barmy reason.

The first press conference by Ambrose was not promising. She is going to have to be a lot more media friendly than she has been. A new standard has been set by the government.

Do you really think we are going to see Snowden-like revelations about massive misuse of census data down the road, as we have seen with CSIS surveillance of citizens already? To me, the threats are not even remotely comparable. We have a security establishment within this country that is not accountable to Parliament and snoops on us as it sees fit. It has also allegedly designed software that, in conjunction with GCHQ, has been used to spy on businesses across Europe, in countries like Belgium and Ireland, that have no discernible links with terrorism at all. The situation should be of serious concern to any sensible person. BTW we are talking about this in a forum where CSIS could easily be spying on us right now. Of course, I fear CSIS far more than the census.

Community care can work if properly resourced, which it usually is not. In the US, individual rights have trumped concerns for health and safety and psychiatric care has been neglected. The pendulum has swung too far away from institutional care because it is expensive and unpleasant to think about. Some patients still need hospitalization and there are nowhere near enough beds available, even in Canada. In the specific matter of mental illness and homicide, the key group is a tiny fraction of mentally ill people - young, male, paranoid schizophrenics who are not taking their medication and are showing evidence of aggression. For such patients, a more paternalistic approach is justified, in my opinion, to protect them and society.

Is there a link?

In the end, Carson and Trump will be discarded as candidates. They have no knowledge of the job they applied for. Rubio, Bush, Kasich, even Christie will gradually move up the field as reality bites.

I have the opposite take on that. The intrusion into our privacy posed by the long-form census is clearly delineated and is balanced by the benefit it brings to us. However, government surveillance as typified by C-51 seems to have no proper oversight at all and its full extent is only revealed when there are leaks like Snowden's, mainly from other countries. As far as I can tell, the threat posed to my privacy by such surveillance is much greater than that of the census.How many people will go to jail for not filling in the census, do you think?

I would find such a move very odd if she did. Has it ever happened before in Canada's history? The Conservatives have lots of excellent potential candidates, although I am surprised so many of them risked ruling themselves out of the real race by running for the consolation prize.

Wouldn't that be a bit odd, though? Conflict of interest and all that. Has an interim leader run before?

The experience in Ireland (multi-seat STV PR) has been shaped by the reality of coalition government for decades. This has forced parties from all parts of the political spectrum to form coalitions. There has been a drift to the right since the eighties but that has probably more to do with the influence of global trends than the voting system itself which tends to encourage compromise and, I would say, has a centralizing tendency on policies, if anything.

Politicians evolve faster than bacteria. In an STV system, you could see a Conservative-NDP coalition after a prolonged period of Liberal rule.

I fully expect my provincial pension - if I live to receive it - to be reduced in the future. Everybody should make that assumption and plan to supplement their pension with their own funds.

But won't it affect snowbirds as well?

Here's a happy mortgage story: http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/mortgage-pay-off-three-years-1.3302229 There's a natural human tendency to spend and to admire and envy those who show their status by spending. We really have to encourage frugality again. For many young people it will become a vital skill as good jobs gradually disappear.

'Minor' law-breaking went on for decades connected to those crimes, until quite recently, and included intimidation of witnesses (and lots of other people) and perjury. We may not be done with this problem: http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-as-punjab-simmers-sikh-radicals-revive-khalistan-bogey-in-uk-2140413 http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/sikh-lives-matter-protesters-arrested-demonstrators-clash-police-central-london-1525247 http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/kotkapura-clashes-two-dead-sikh-protesters-clash-police-after-desecration-holy-book-1524099

Actually, yes and no. You don't have to be a dual citizen to be considered vulnerable to this legislation, just somebody who COULD be eligible for another citizenship, which would include many new Canadians who have renounced their previous citizenship or who never had it themselves.

Well, it became an issue in the campaign among new Canadians, and rightly so.

I think she's at the wrong end of her career for the interim job. An elder statesman would be best, like Bob Rae, someone who can't be suspected of scheming for their own ascent to power way down the road.

There's a fair bit of luck involved in the timing of a run which looks like wisdom if you're successful. You may only get one good chance to be leader. The next time, somebody better may have come along.

I'm surprised she did that. Lord knows how old she will be when she gets a chance again.

She is also photogenic and an excellent debater. Bit of charisma going on there.

OK, of the declared interim candidates SO FAR TONIGHT, I would go for either O'Toole or Rempel, with O'Toole being the less divisive candidate within and beyond the party.

What? Et tu Smirky? Rempel is going for the junior job now? 10% of the caucus wants this thankless post. Who ISN'T running for it? Will any of the losers run in the main event? Calandra has supplied some truth about what went wrong. The rest are still making it up. A frank debate about errors made would be beneficial for the party.