normanchateau

It's not just lies and misleading claims. The lazy leftwing media have totally missed the story of infiltration of CPC by religious conservatives as happened recently in Richmond. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Actually I'm sure they were elected democractically by their constituancy assocations. So either let the voters choose, or have some guy at the top parachute a candidate in that fits more correctly with the party line. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yes, they were elected democratically in the same way that a surge of instant new members resulted in Chuck Cadman losing the CPC nomination in his own riding. If Harper has no problem with candidates like Reid in Richmond, I suspect it's because Reid and Harper see eye-to-eye. Or are you saying that there's no candidate Harper would block even if the candidate were racist, anti-Semitic, sexist, or all three?

Clearly we were not willing. I believe we could have sent a token handful of troops if we were willing. However if you prefer to believe that Tonga, Moldava and Fiji were more able than Canada because they weren't in Afghanistan, you are welcome to that belief. We should probably give thanks that neither Tonga, Fiji nor Moldova chose to invade us at that time since every conceivable Canadian soldier was abroad.

Yes, it's an outrage alright. Almost as bad as Harper not being able to say he loves Canada. Personally I have no problem saying I love Canada but I prefer not to be greeted with the ubiquitous "Merry Christmas".

It's not just lies and misleading claims. The lazy leftwing media have totally missed the story of infiltration of CPC by religious conservatives as happened recently in Richmond.

Shoopie, your argument makes the assumption that calculating the appropriate number of troops to deploy in Iraq is somehow done relative to population or GNP. Countries sent as few or as many troops, relative to population and GNP, as they wanted to. Some countries sent thousands, some sent hundreds, some sent a token handful. The US welcomed any number, even those under 100. Canada could have chosen to send a token number, but Canada preferred not to.

I share your opinion that for a majority of Canadians, other issues will determine how they vote. I view CPC opposition to decriminalization as merely one symptom of a larger syndrome...social conservatism. Social conservatism is not a defining feature of the NDP, BQ, Liberals or Greens, or even the former Progressive Conservatives. But apparently it's a feature of Stephen Harper. Stephen Harper's opposition to including sexual orientation in hate crimes legislation is another symptom. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt here and assuming that social conservatism rather than homophobia or religious conservatism motivated him to oppose C-250. Opposition to social conservatism won't determine who Canadians will vote for but perhaps it will determine who many won't vote for. In my opinion, if CPC wishes to present itself as fiscally but not socially conservative, it will need to select another leader, preferably one who would appeal to former Progressive Conservatives.

Uhh, you know Canada could not have gone. We had no way of getting our troops there, we has insufficient troops <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Below is a partial list of some of the countries who not only joined the Coalition of the Willing, but actually sent troops there: Dominican Republic Honduras Tonga Moldova Fiji also deployed 240 troops to Iraq but they are under a UN banner and therefore not officially part of the coalition. Here's the link: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops...t_coalition.htm Do you seriously believe that Canada is militarily weaker and less capable of getting our troops to Iraq than Tonga, Moldova, the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Fiji?

Remarkably reminiscent of the deer-caught-in-headlights look of Stephen Harper when he was asked if he loved Canada.

Besides lying, the lazy media often are guilty of omission. For example, I've not come across a single story in the mainstream media during the campaign about Harper's opposition to including sexual orientation in hate crimes legislation. Nor have I read any recent stories about the religious conservatives now running for the CPC. British Columbia has at least three such candidates. For example, Darrel Reid, the CPC candidate in Richmond, British Columbia, is a former President of Focus on the Family, a religious conservative group. Reid is not only anti-abortion and anti-SSM, he is also anti-stem cell research, an extreme position he shares with George Bush. The Reagan family actually condemned George Bush for his anti-stem cell research stance as it might have reversed the symptoms of Alzheimer's that Ronald Reagan suffered from in his final years. The local Richmond newspapers pointed out how even some members of the CPC constitutency association resigned after Reid was elected as the CPC candidate, thanks to a huge and sudden influx of new religious, conservative members. But the incompetent and lazy mainstream media never reported this story nor did they describe, except very superficially, the other religious conservatives running for CPC in BC.

The UBC Canadian Federal Election Stock Market is now open for trading. Those of you who feel certain of a party winning a certain percentage of the popular vote or a certain percentage of the seats can put your money where your mouth is. The minimum investment per trader is $25 and the maximum is $1000. There is no commission. If there were, I wouldn't be posting this message. So far there's been little volatility and the trades largely reflect polling numbers. However, this could change dramatically after this week's debates...a good reason to get in pre-debate if you're confident as to who will perform better in the debates. Those of you who feel confident about a CPC minority (or majority) would be wise to get in now before the polling numbers actually have CPC ahead. Here's the link: http://esm.ubc.ca/

Well, I'm glad we agree that young people should not have permanent criminal records for simple possession but it remains the case that they do. As you know, even a pardon won't erase that record as far as US authorites are concerned. Yes, not smoking marijuana is one solution. It's a solution perhaps as effective as not drinking alcohol was during Prohibition. Another solution is to vote for any party other than Harper's party. The NDP, BQ and Liberals support decriminalization whereas Harper has said he won't re-introduce the decriminalization legislation tabled by the Liberals.

How about on December 10th when you said that an ounce is still a ton of weed? The law, as it currently stands, permits authorities to jail people for up to six months for possession of less than an ounce and Stephen Harper favours that law. :angry:

Martin's government already has it in law... It is the Harper rednecks that want to use the notwithstanding clause.... to repeal that right of Canadian homosexuals.... Harper brought it up on the first day of the election campaign..... He wrote about it in his letter to the Washington Times.... but he didn't spell out that he'd have to use the "notwithstanding" clause.... George Bush and Stephen Harper, proud men who chose heterosexuality, standing tall and moral, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from the Arctic to the Mexican border, to protect Americans and Canadians from the North American homo threat.

The "gateway drug" theory was thoroughly discredited in Conservative Senator Nolin's Special Committee Report on Illegal Drugs. The Senate Committee, after reviewing the evidence, recommended legalization, not mere decriminalization. I wonder how many people who oppose decriminalization/legalization have even read the report or looked at the actual evidence. In the Netherlands, after marijuana became available in cafes, hard drug use declined. Not a big surprise given that entrepreneurial marijuana dealers, but not the cafes, usually have other "products" to sell to the kiddies. One problem the Dutch cafes are facing right now is that while they can sell the marijuana, it's against the law in the Netherlands to grow it. So the Dutch cafes need to import marijuana in order to sell it. A number of Dutch politicians are complaining about the flow of money out of the country and into the hands of organized crime. The VVD, a fiscally conservative Dutch rightwing party, is demanding that the government permit the legal growing and taxation of marijuana. It would be interesting to know if the Dutch politicians got the idea from Canada's Fraser Institute which first proposed this: http://www.cbc.ca/stories/2004/06/09/canada/pot_fraser040609

One unequivocal conclusion is that the federal Conservative Party represents NEITHER the French-speaking NOR the English-speaking Quebec ridings.

Personally I don't favour criminalization of handguns (beyond the restrictions already in place) any more than I favour criminalization of marijuana. Gullibility is not exclusive to the supporters of any one political party.

No, I'm not claiming a right wing bias in the media. I think salience is a very good term and relevant here. Not only is decriminalization not yet salient to most people, it's probably not yet salient to the media. But I sincerely believe that if it does become salient to the media, it will become salient to the Canadian people.

This is hardly a reason for Harper to announce in British Columbia that he will not re-introduce the decriminalization bill tabled by the Liberals and supported by the NDP, BQ and a majority of Canadians. It's low on most Canadians' radar because (1) the law is frequently not enforced and (2) the media have chosen not to focus on it. If the media were to actually bring this up, it would remind people just how outrageous Harper's position is.

Why would the CBC have a pro-Martin bias? As Minister of Finance, he slashed hundreds of millions from the CBC budget causing numerous people to be fired. His cuts to CBC were even larger than those proposed by Preston Manning. At the time of those cuts, only the NDP stood up for the CBC.

Hey normie how's it going? Still campaigning hard for the Liberals I see. Good for you! One thing though, I've seen you slip up a time or two and think I might be able to help you. When discussing politics, it's best not use terms or strategies that give away your identity. Like for instance, 'strategized voting'. You don't want people to realize you're not just some Typical Canadian and then discount your comments. Don't be afraid to dumb it down a little. Hey, you're talking with people that don't know how to spend their own money, after all. Remember, win at all costs, and keep up the good work! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Well I must say I'm sincerely flattered that you think I'm campaigning for the Liberals. Suggests at the very least that I sound somewhat convincing. I would never suspect that you are campaigning for Stephen Harper. Mostly because of how unconvincing you are... And I seriously doubt that I would ever use a term like "strategized voting". I much prefer the term "strategic voting".

Harper's letter is good. No question about it. Nevertheless, the Washington Times is correct in describing Harper as a social conservative. He is a social conservative. It takes a social conservative to favour permanent criminal records and potential jail sentences for possession of a few grams of marijuana. It's a position shared by Stephen Harper and George Bush. It's a position opposed by the NDP, BQ, Liberals and 69% of the Canadian population. Of course there is other evidence as well that Harper is a social conservative. Canadians tend not to elect social conservatives. The last three Conservative PMs, Joe Clark, Brian Mulroney and Kim Campbell were socially liberal. No matter how many letters to the editor Stephen Harper writes, there's no escaping his social conservatism. There's no way that Quebec these days will ever vote for a social conservative and Quebec seats are essential for a federal party to have a stable majority. I predict that the next CPC leader will not be a social conservative.

I don't think I've changed. Maybe you've just become used to me.

Yes, Err is obviously a troll. The evidence is perfectly clear. Err doesn't support Harper and anyone who doesn't support Harper is a troll, not to mention morally inferior, illogical, violently opposed to honesty, in favour of corruption and worthy of being banned from mapleleafweb. The best CPC strategy is to ignore CPC nonsupporters and talk exclusively to supporters. Great idea!

More good news for the Liberals. Yesterday's CTV poll asked people whether they approved of Martin's handgun ban: In Quebec, 70% approved. In Ontario, 56% approved. The national approval rating was 54%.

To date, Ipsos-Reid more than other pollsters has tended to show the Liberals and CPC relatively close to each other. Here are the December 13th, 2005, Ipsos-Reid numbers: Liberals 36% CPC 27% NDP 17% BQ 13% And in Ontario, the Ipsos-Reid numbers of December 13th show the Liberals with a remarkable 19% lead over the Conservatives.