SpankyMcFarland

I don't object to delays caused by political bargaining. I do object to any uncertainty in the rules governing that bargaining.

This is the British Cabinet Manual which clears up quite a few questions about the sequence of events after an election: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/toews-election-campaign-stop-raises-need-for-cabinet-rules-1.1171619 AFAIK we have not updated ours in some time: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/toews-election-campaign-stop-raises-need-for-cabinet-rules-1.1171619 There seems to have been a peculiar amount of secrecy about our old manual. Clearly, all this stuff about minority governments and Queen's Speeches should be laid out in black and white and made public: http://parliamentum.org/2011/10/18/the-manual-of-official-procedure-of-the-government-of-canada/ http://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/13/1009/thehouse_20151017_33105_uploaded.mp3

Electric Warrior was my first album, followed by Led Zep Ii and Argus. I had a hard time comvincing my mom there was nothing wrong with the record during a Whole Lotta Love instrumental section. Marc Bolan had a great guitar sound.

I disagree about Chrétien.

This is like the British radio show Desert Island Discs where they ask for 8 fave songs to bring. I have spent too much ofmy life trying to sort THAT out without bringing up the albums as well. It's just too much to cope with. One of my favourite albums has a resonance here - Argus by Wishbone Ash. It really did not get the attention on this side of the water that it deserved. Dark Side and Revolver would have to be there as well, and a Thin Lizzy album and maybe Ziggy. OMG that's five. Honourable mention must go to albums by the original Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, the Kinks, and one guilty pleasure that I have difficulty confessing to - Back to Black by Amy Winehouse. There's something dark and beautiful in there that really killed me softly like nothing has for decades. So I have given you eight instead of five, like the British DID format. Lists like these are mainly about imprinting, what you heard when you were still willing and able to listen. It takes at least fifty years, two generations, to decide if music is any good.

Leaving aside the veracity stuff, I thought it was convincing on its own terms and gave an authentic portrayal of a how a soldier lives, including the costs involved. Eastwood is not a great artist but has still made some extraordinary movies, my favourite probably being Bird which brought Charlie Parker's music into my life. And I can tell you of Detroit relatives of mine who could be straight out of Gran Torino.

And speaking of which, if you would forgive me, I have a very North American question; why did he never get his teeth fixed? They were OK for Dracula but a suave Bond villain should surely look the part?

Yeah, they pulled a Wales there, losing Sexton, Peter O'Mahony, and Paul O'Connell to injury and still managing a win. Joe Schmidt is the best coach Ireland has ever head. He varies his approach within the limitations of his players and plans meticulously. I am surprised he hasn't been lured away yet by England or France - they certainly need him. The French are a brutally physical side, and NZ may lose some players to injury, but they just don't seem to have any team spirit or direction at the moment. Sexton is back for the Argentinian game but O'Connell is finished for the tournament. I would fancy Ireland's chances against Argentina and Wales are awkward buggers to beat. Canada's backline really came good after the Irish game. The back three looked excellent, especially Van der Merwe.

Harper was correct to look north and talk about the Arctic but our defences are pitiful up there.

Here's an example on an important topic: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-election-2015-justin-trudeau-interview-1.3219479

For me it was Harper and his constant campaigning. Every critic had to be maligned, every bill had to be given a silly, misleading name. Maybe that is just the modern political system but I felt he was ramming his message home 24/7.

I don't think we should nickel and dime these guys. They really do have a hard life. Grant them a few comforts, I say. They've earned them. Maybe if they are a bit comfier they'll think twice about calling their buds for dodgy business opportunities.

They were hardly viscous because they did not stick. I should not talk about typos.

The Fords are a big gamble. I can't see how that helps the vote outside the GTA at all, esp. on the female side. It's a defensive move that looks like damage-limitation in that particular part of the country.

Do you really think they are worried about what Canada is going to do next? Our Arctic military exercises would hardly strike fear in the Danes let alone the Russians.

My take on things above may be entirely impractical. It may not be feasible to reduce the concentration on the leader in a federal campaign. I just feel he might have picked up more PC and fiscally conservative Liberal votes if he had reduced his own profile.

Given this late point in his premiership, Harper should have been giving more time to major party figures. If Harperism is to persist, it needs to inhabit other bodies. At the very end, he started saying 'it's not about me' in the ads but it was too late then, probably. Ever since Pierre and Brian, we have distrusted sexy guys in Canada. Chrétien was the absolute antithesis of glamour. Have you ever met anybody who thought he was sexy? I sincerely hope not. Kenney, Clement, Raitt and Rempel are convincing talkers. They should have been given more air time to emphasize the competent team image for the future.

Every country reports on every other country these days. Does not mean much. We will see if Justin or whoever is any tougher on Sechin and Yakunn than Harper was.

You are entirely right there. When it comes to culture and celebrity, we are giants.

No, they don't. For them, we are a satellite of the US. Once you leave Canada, the country disappears from the news. Nobody will change that. Harper certainly did not. We need to be more realistic about our place in the world.

The Bloc and Conservatives worked together on the niqab issue so an alliance might make sense. It would be funny to see, though, in view of Harper's previous pronouncements.

How much time each day do you think Vlad devotes to the subject of Canada? New management in this country will not change that number. Nobody pays attention to us. We should know that by now.

If they lose, the Consevatives might ponder why they made this such a personal contest between Harper and Trudeau. Leaving questions of competence etc. aside for a moment, Trudeau is liked way beyond his party and Harper is disliked even by some Conservative voters. It was their biggest weakness and they went with it as one of their central themes. Giving more time to other candidates, esp. women, might have been a better idea e.g. Raitt and Rempel. And what on earth was he doing associating himself with those degenerate Ford brothers who make a mockery of anything he might say about drugs or women's rights? Good grief, as some of my fellow geezers are fond of saying here.

For Consevatives, there is no alternative. Strategic voting for them means cheering on everyone else but the Liberals to split the non-Conservative majority and continue minority rule.

Post-Harper, if that happy event happens, I don't think one man will loom quite as large in our country.