Ontario Loyalist

Get lost. Whether you like it or not, Canada was involved in several wars and that needs to be remembered and the lessons learned passed on to succeeding generations. To do what you suggest would not only negate the sacrifice these people made, but would also constitute an attempt to revise Canadian history.

The vast majority of democracies have some form of PR system and they result in representation that much more closely reflects the actual popular vote.

They couldn't if they wanted to, or they already would be doing so.

The NLP is a deregistered party...

The Nazis generally derived their support from political movements/parties that were on the right; conservatives, ultraconservatives, organizations like Stahlhelm, etc. I'm not sure that Germany was ever obsessed with guns the way that North Americans are; gun ownership for hunting would have been largely restricted to the wealth and large landowners. The Nazis were, however, preoccupied with the military, draconian law enforcement, controlling arts and culture, stamping out liberalism in general--all of which are aspects of current conservative regimes. Looking back on the Nazi regime it's easy to discern what they were all about; for for people living in Nazi Germany, the experience was subtle and the consequences unforseen; many believed or accepted the Nazis as a legitimate and natural political reality, as many believe the Conservatives are in Canada. History will eventually show how bad they really were; I wouldn't consider them to be Nazis, but they are certainly not saints.

I guess you already know that you're a loser, so I won't bother reminding you. Never mind, I think I already did...

LOL, if you think Canada's system is "truely democratic" then you are sadly mistaken... like usual.

I wonder what kind of ship they'll name in honour of Harper...

That's irrelevant; they don't run candidates outside of Quebec. Every single elector in Quebec could vote for them and still wouldn't matter. They are not a national party while the Green Party is.

I guess the whole concept of "truely democratic system" is a little to complex for you? Do you want me to clarify what a democracy is?

As opposed to Conservative tax cuts which are just more than offset by user fees and hidden taxes. People complain about "carbon taxes" like we have unlimited resources and the air we breathe is free from pollution... Truckers complain that they are being taxed to much as it is, and that this will be more of a burden. Good; that's the point. The taxes are supposed to force the system to change so that it costs too much to transport fruits and veggies from California which could be being grown more locally. It simply means that these guys will eventually be trucking shorter distances, therefore they have lower or similar costs and are in no different position. If they can't handle it, then they can go look for another job or get their high school equivalency and then go to college to learn a new trade. Life went on after computers we introduced into the workplace, despite hysteria that that caused at the time. Same goes with this.

That, in part, is the point...

I've seen more Conservative campaign ads in the last couple of days than I've seen during entire elections. Wonder what they're gonna call this election funding scandal...

An MP is an MP. Had we an truly democratic system, though, the Greens would have have elected MPs during the last three elections. Irrelevant. The Bloc isn't a national party, therefore has no place in the (English) leadership debate (at least).

Neither is the Bloc. The Bloc only runs in ridings in Quebec, while the Greens ran in all ridings during the last two elections. During the last election 660,000+ people voted for the Greens. The Greens qualify for funding. The Greens have an MP. Canada has a democratic system.

There's no confidence measure here. Harper met privately with three of the four party leaders and told them there is going to be an election. That's all.

You fall for what Steve says quite easily. There's nothing in the act stating it applies only to "majority governments". I think most Canadians will be wondering why we have to have an election now instead of on the fixed date. And as you said, the opposition was going along with the government so Parlaiment was hardly "dysfunctional". Unless "dysfunction" means Steve not getting everything exactly the way he wants, which isn't the mandate Canadians gave him. Minority government=learn to compromise.

How is it not a violation of the law?

You know what I'm talking about. You know the kind of nonsense girls read and watch from an early age. Let's see some examples if you're so keen on sources/proof. No, they don't "encourage" (well, most don't), but they "encourage" women to whatever they want when it comes to relationships, and this sometimes means that the woman "chooses" to be manipulative, gold digging, etc. No, "traditional women" as I see it, at least in Christian society, didn't have to "manipulate"--they were raised to be competant mothers and wives. In other words, they think of themselves first; never a good condition when one is a wife and mother, regardless of how successful they are in the work world. What about the emotional health of men who want to be married or are married but keep finding women who are selfish and "independent"? Face it, there is a natural pattern to life; regardless of how feminists and others try and deny it, when humans are in their late teens and 20s there is a biological impulse to find a partner and have children. So women (and men) who don't want to marry and satisfy themselves with alternate lifestyles are constributing to a breakdown in society and mental unhealth in this society. Look at some of the absurd family structures that are starting to appear in our society--this is in significant part due to feminism. Feminism has always had its sights set on destroying the traditional family structure. The traditional family is ordered and structured and this is mirrored by the society; when the family structure changes, so to does society, but societies have never ever functioned when they become unstable, unstructured, and anarchic. You're misunderstanding what I'm saying. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, though, and accept that you're doing this intentionally.

Studies consistantly show that a father in the household makes kids more well-adjusted and successful in life. Of course, dad himself has to be a positive role-model. If he's just some abusive, drunken loser, then it doesn't matter...

"The power to dissolve Parliament is a royal prerogative that the governor general exercises personally. The Governor General retains certain constitutional discretion whether to accept the advice of the Prime Minister to dissolve Parliament." http://www.gg.ca/media/fs-fd/P5_e.asp I think that if the Prime Minister is going to break the law, "certain constitutional discretion" applies in this case. I'm guessing that Michaëlle either doesn't know or care, though...

McCain must be kicking himself: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/09/01/palin-pregnant.html

Dion had his chat, and according to him Steve is bent on having an election: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/08/31/harper-dion.html But I'm wondering if the GG would actually refuse to allow it?

He was cleared of anything "serious" by Elections Canada; this should clarify it: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/st...72-5374245c7fce So, what we have here is a guy that won a seat for the Liberals, father-in-law tries to ruin his reputation, the Liberals can him, he gets cleared by Elections Canada, tries to rejoin the party, party doesn't let him, so he joins the Greens... I don't know how popular he was, but I'm sure he was a factor in the Liberals' winning the riding (not everybody votes for the party alone); so the manner in which he was treated is going to cost the Liberals. The NDP will never win the riding, but Wilson has a chance.

Actually, there is a good chance that he will siphone voters from both the Liberals and the NDP, so I think the party will do much better in the riding, but will likely now go Conservative. Whatever the case, I think it may cause people in other ridings to seriously consider the Greens and may lead to more exposure in the media even if they don't get in the televised debates. Also, one good thing about not being in the debates is that May doesn't get grilled by the other leaders and can't make a potentially damaging gaff in front of a national audience. I predict that the Green will get between 900,000 and 1.1 million votes.