Evening Star

And well you should be frightened: There's a spectre haunting the country after all. Look, guys, you can try to resist the revolution all you want. Consolidate your class position, keep the workers divided, spread your opium. Yeah, it's working for now. But we're growing in number and concentration. We're starting to realize our strength. And we're taking aim at the whole damn system itself: Prepare to say goodbye to private property, to bourgeois individuality, to the family. Workers of Canada unite!

Yeah, to be clear, my comment just now was not a comment on your own work or productivity AT ALL, Jack. -- If anything, I was mainly just thinking about how much more I can get done on some days when I'm just more focused - whether it comes to work or reading or practising or working out or whatnot.

I actually tend to believe this as a general principle, even outside of the workplace. (Doesn't change my opinion of unions though...)

Yeah, I like the idea that each individual worker (and not an organized union) is the equivalent of an entire corporation.

Unions are democratic institutions.

Pretty much all I did was list statistics! How did my biases influence those? -- I can see how there is room for bias when it comes to interpreting the statistics, which is what you were doing.

We've had a woman Prime Minister already! Pupatello is my MPP. She's popular locally but I didn't know she was considered a real heavyweight. This is interesting. I'm scanning her Wikipedia. She's more accomplished than I realized! If we're thinking of Ontario Liberals, what about Kathleen Wynne?

Comparing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_federal_election_2011#Results_by_province to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_federal_election_2008#Results_by_province : their share of the popular vote rose by 7.5% in BC, 4.1% in AB, 6.7% in SK, 7.4% in ON, 7.9% in NB, 5.6% in PE, 5.4% in YT, and 4.3% in NT. There were slight gains in MB and NS and a slight loss in NL. The only place where they lost a significant share of the popular vote (8.2%) was in NU. Any party would be pleased by these gains. They just seem small compared to the radical shift in QC.

I don't have statistics on hand right now but I'm a little sceptical that right-to-work legislation has generally made workers better off in the jurisdictions where it was applied. (Fwiw, my experience in non-unionized vs unionized workplaces is the opposite of yours. Your experience may indeed be broader though.) Be that as it may, even if you're right, I still don't think the route to power for the NDP lies in abandoning everything they ever stood for and embracing RTW and constitutional property rights...

You're hoping for the NDP to embrace right to work legislation?? The Conservatives don't even openly advocate that yet...

They have, at least for now. The question is whether they will maintain their dominant position vis-a-vis the Liberals, which is a slightly different question. They won 44 seats outside Quebec. Prior to 2011, their record for the entire country was 43 seats in 1988. So I think it is safe to say that they did better in English Canada than they typically do. (By the way, that number is still 10 greater than the Liberal total for the whole country.)

Oh, maybe you're right

Looks like I might end up voting in this one...

Thanks. I'm not sure I actually understand that graph tbh.

Could someone give me a primer or a link on what some of the main issues and trends are? My impression was that at least Doer's NDP had been very well-liked. Has Selinger made mistakes?

Broadbent made the point on P&P tonight that in Europe, some of the most progressive left parties are "Social Democratic" parties and some of the most conservative ones are "Socialist" parties.

He did win two elections before this one. He has shown more warmth etc but he's still a long way from winning any prizes for charisma, right? Maybe I'm wrong though. In a certain way, I actually like Harper's awkwardness.

I don't entirely agree: Stephen Harper and Dalton McGuinty are not charming or charismatic leaders but they have been successful in elections. I think what most people look for is someone who actually has ideas and values, who seems to sincerely believe them, and who can communicate them in a way that makes sense. All parts are important imo and the Liberals have been failing on all sides (platform/policy as well as leadership). This doesn't necessarily explain Chretien though...

Should they replace their entire caucus and membership as well? I know Bob Rae, Justin Trudeau, etc don't stand for much but I still don't think they'd actually be willing to embrace policies that are further right than Harper's. Maybe I'm wrong, however, and they really are that shameless: They could turn Paul Martin's 1995 budget into some sort of holy book in that case. This might conceivably work if the CPC ends up being as fiscally irresponsible as I expect them to. Still, who would take the LPC seriously if they swung that far right after they tried to run an NDP campaign in this election? (They won a majority in 1997 so maybe it's not a problem, though...) From my perspective, if anyone is offering a distinct 'third vision' now, it's the Green Party. Maybe the Liberals could merge with or co-opt the Greens? Or just rip off their ideas like Dion did? Didn't seem to work out too well for him, though... (I'll be honest: I don't really see the Liberals resurging and am not too troubled about it. People who like what they stood for in the 60s and 70s can vote NDP. People who like their 90s fiscal conservatism will probably be OK with the CPC. The Greens offer something in the middle, economically, with socially progressive stances, actual principles on foreign policy, and new and interesting ideas when it comes to environmental policy.)

What about paying for a "smart investment advisor"? Is that hard work on the part of the investor?

It's not necessarily hard work either, though.

I always liked Dion too.

Exploring local restaurants is one of the best parts of visiting unfamiliar cities! What kind of Philistine eats McDonald's when they're travelling?

Well, yeah, an MP's job extends beyond his votes in the Commons, which is important to remember.

Do you really think that Congressmen aren't whipped simply because the American people are more knowledgeable and politically engaged? Or is there more to it? Why are British MPs given more independence?