fellowtraveller

what an odd attitude. The budget was bland and little there to be challeneged. The Opposition knew that Canadians knew that Canada had weathered the recession storm better than most of the world, and Harper was more or less untouchable on the economy. They had to invent another excuse, and did. Bad choice.

Well that is actually two big and diametrically opposed challenges for Jacques. First, get everything for Quebec that he has promised and they are going to expect. Next, keep any kind of power base in the 45 seats he has in the rest of the country. because he will really need that if the Quebecois don't fully approve of what he accomplishes. If he does accomplsih anything, it will be at the direct expense of the ROC.Poor Jacques.

That just increases the pressure on Jacques Layton to deliver the bacon to Quebec in the next four years. He has a clear and overwhelming mandate to represent the province in Ottawa. I wonder how he plans to champion their interests to their satisfaction?

Troll time.

Ahh, the arrogance canot help but emerge.newsflash: Alberta frankly does not give a shit what Quebec does or thinks, electorally or otherwise. We respect your right to determine your future, but no longer concede that you have any right to determine ours. Leave . Stay. Whatever.

That is wonderful news. Now send back that $8 billion per year you don't need after all. The return address is : Edmonton, Alberta.Thanks. Merci.

so you approve of the payment of ransoms, or military intervention in all circumstances to rescue a citizen?

just curious , but how do you feel about people like journalists who get kidnapped and ransomed by the govt.? They too voluntarily go into war zones where bad things happen.

Wouldn't a better comparison be to compare Levy to Hitler? It would be less harsh, for starters.

Does Levy have the same large body of work that Mallick fans enjoy. I'm not familiar with Levy, I did not realize there were any smalltown right wingers in Toronto.

I'm with you. Trueau would be a goldmine both for the Tories and the separatists, a win-win. Anything that brings the Quebec question to a definitive answer serves all of us.But comparing Truydeau to Kennedy is goofy, one has done nothing and the other had a lifetime of service and accomplishment.

Wow. That is a horrible, insulting comparison. Heather Mallick. Wow.

It must be the first time recently it has happened in Quebec, you may have noticed that Quebec can be a tad defensive about linguistic and ethnic purity. It is not the first time that somebody has fallen afoul of official languages. For example, John Crosby of Newfoundland could not really speak either of them and he did pretty well.

Jacques Layton should be howling for the dissolution of the CBC and the return of the $1 billion annual subsidy to general revenue. He has a mandate to deliver pails of extra federal gravy to Quebec right now and he will need every spare dime. Oh wait, he doesn't sign the cheques....

Why would you expect an employer to provide a life along with a job? Baggage handling is unskilled labour and should be paid accordingly.

Lots of tradesmen here make that much and more, and their union benefits will be far better than what a middle manager gets.

Yeah, kind of reminds me of 13 years worth of Chretien. I know you were equally outraged then too.

And the labour movement excells at pressuring members to vote and contribute to the NDP. And of course virtually every union member has a huge and unfair advantage- they have a job to fund that contribution. They also get tax breaks available to every Canadian who chooses to contribute.

Maybe everybody in your world pays into EI, but not in mine. You see, I'm one of those strange, weird Canadians that are self employed and do not pay EI premiums and cannot draw EI. You may have heard of us, we are similar to the homeless in many ways, except of course we don't get welfare either. I also pay 100% of Canada Pension, compared to your 50%. Have you ever visited my planet? I've been to yours many times.

Why would the guy from Alberta need to speak French in his constituency? If he is from Lethbridge, Japanese would be more useful. Seriously.I don't think Jacques Layton would want to stifle a separatist mouthpiece in his caucus, after all Jacques does have to keep everybody in Quebec happy and on his side. I feel sorry for Jacques, it is a hopeless, thankless task.

Check Lonely Planet Thorn Tree travel forum, he is not alone in travelling Afghanstan, Iraq, the tribal areas of Pakistan and many other dangerous places. It's a testosterone thing amongst travellers(male and female),a oneupmanship game that can have a tragic ending. His choice, his consequences. I wish him the best.

Oh, you are taking about the past again, sorry. The actual answer in todays economy is BC,AB and SK for all the gravy in the foreseeable future. The Maritimes have structural economic issues, Quebec wouldn't contribute a farthing if they had one, Manitoba is a chronic welfare case and Ontario is still counting on an industrial base that will continue to evaporate. So, our choices are the tooth fairy or the West to pay the bills for everybody.

Really? Name one 'forestry consulting company' that has thousands of employess.Take your time.

He has at least three votes: me, Harper and Jacques Layton.

Yep, the Lone Bureaucrat Theory, very popular amongst Liberals.. I blame everything on the Rogue Bureaucrat Chuck Guite, who randomly scanned the Montreal Yellow Pages and unilaterally decided to mail $200 million dollars to every second ad agency. Coincidentally, all those selected were Liberal-friendly and in Chretiens back yard, yet remarkably Jean Chretien remained completely unaware. Bad, bad Chuck.