The Federal Republic of Canada

cybercoma · November 11, 2011

Ya why not?

WWWTT

It's just something worth thinking about.

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

I'm still going to promote the monkey in a fez though. I think the General RoboGov is too intimidating for the children.

No no no General RoboGov?

A tranformer!

And when he is in GG mode he has laser eyes,left arm machine gun,15' tall and talks in a robot voice!

Aswell he has a hot girlfriend!But when he is in GG form she gets pissed off and goes out drinking and partying with her friends.This pisses off GG man(I haven't thought of a good name for him yet) even more and then he secretly flies back to cybetron.Everyone starts looking for him and ask his girlfriend where he is but she's always drunk.

Ok you get the idea now.

WWWTT

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

I believe there was a general agreement at the time that she would come to the decission of setting a deadline and budget release etc,etc,..

I'd like to know on what you're basing that belief, given that what I recall is that Peter H. Russell, one of the constitutional experts called to Rideau Hall, didn't reveal those stipulations Jean placed on her meeting of Harper's request until essentially the end of Jean's tenure as vicereine.

------

Interestingly, here's Russell's take on the matter:

While some who question the constitutionality of Governor General Jean's granting of a prorogation in 2008 disagreed on whether she made the right decision, they all agreed that she had discretion in the matter and was not bound by Prime Minister Harper's request... There is no precise formula to guide the governor general or those who judge his decision in what is inescapably a judgment call.

[+]

Edited November 11, 2011 by g_bambino

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

And if they didn't introduce that budget would she dissolve parliament and call an election? What could she do?

There's no way to answer that but with speculation. If the government didn't introduce a budget, the Opposition could carry out the vote of non-confidence it had planned in December, after which either the House would put forward a new person to be appointed as prime minister or the writs of election would be dropped. Or, if parliament let enough time pass with no budget forthcoming, meaning the government would eventually run out of money, something akin to the dismissal in Australia might occur. It's impossible to say for certain.

cybercoma · November 11, 2011

No no no General RoboGov?

A tranformer!

And when he is in GG mode he has laser eyes,left arm machine gun,15' tall and talks in a robot voice!

Aswell he has a hot girlfriend!But when he is in GG form she gets pissed off and goes out drinking and partying with her friends.This pisses off GG man(I haven't thought of a good name for him yet) even more and then he secretly flies back to cybetron.Everyone starts looking for him and ask his girlfriend where he is but she's always drunk.

Ok you get the idea now.

WWWTT

If we're going to have a robot Governor General, my vote is for Geoff Peterson.

For reference:

GostHacked · November 11, 2011

Does the Queen of Canada have ultimate powers over our government? Even if I happened to have voted for the current Prime Minister, is he really the top dog? Can he be given marching orders? Are they purely symbolic or is there more to it?

If the Queen (someone who I did not elect or vote for) has ultimate power over our government and Prime Minister then we need to get rid of the Monarchy.

If the Queen does not have ultimate power over the Prime Minister, then more reason to turf the Monarchy.

What vital roles in our government does the Monarchy play? Can we do without them? Are people clinging onto something that is not needed for nostalgia reasons or historic reasons?

cybercoma · November 11, 2011

The Prime Minister is not the top-dog. The Queen is.

GostHacked · November 11, 2011

The Prime Minister is not the top-dog. The Queen is.

Then I'll take the stance and say we turf it.

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

I'd like to know on what you're basing that belief, given that what I recall is that Peter H. Russell, one of the constitutional experts called to Rideau Hall, didn't reveal those stipulations Jean placed on her meeting of Harper's request until essentially the end of Jean's tenure as vicereine.

[+]

Who cares what Russell thinks?

Are you suggesting the GG would call an snap election?Or that Harper would not to return to parliament or fail to release a budget?

Why are you making a mountain from a molehill?

WWWTT

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

If the Queen (someone who I did not elect or vote for) has ultimate power over our government and Prime Minister then we need to get rid of the Monarchy.

The Queen is the government, technically. If the government were to be only who you voted for, well, we'd live in a one party dictatorship, wouldn't we?

In truth, the law is penultimate in our system; even though the Queen is vested with all executive authority, she's still also bound by many laws, one of which being that she cannot, except in certain constitutional or parliamentary crises, act without the advice of ministers who hold the confidence of the elected House of Commons..

Then I'll take the stance and say we turf it.

And then.....?

[+]

Edited November 11, 2011 by g_bambino

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

If we're going to have a robot Governor General, my vote is for Geoff Peterson.

I guess he would be good if your going for something like a "stand up,late night comedian" type GG.

Ya I could see the appeal there.

WWWTT

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

Who cares what Russell thinks?

We engaged in this discussion should; he was there at Rideau Hall to offer his advice to the Governor General.

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

If we're going to have a robot Governor General...

We already have a robot prime minister, and I wonder about the Queen sometimes. Adding a robot governor general will only draw criticism that the government doesn't reflect Canada's diversity and overrepresents the robot community.

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

We engaged in this discussion should; he was there at Rideau Hall to offer his advice to the Governor General.

The point I am getting at is that this Russell person is making much about nothing!And so are you!

Everything turned out without much controversy on the part of the GG.

It was Harper and the conservatives that have continuously stirred the pot(if you know what I mean).

The conservatives have always made much ado about our GG,senate,justice system for their benefit!

But when they need these institutions they turn and act as if we will just forget!

WWWTT

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

We already have a robot prime minister, and I wonder about the Queen sometimes. Adding a robot governor general will only draw criticism that the government doesn't reflect Canada's diversity and overrepresents the robot community.

I don't know man.

If we had a GG that was 15' tall,left arm machine gun,laser eyes, a hot girlfriend and that can transform into a fighter jet that would be awesome!

Oh I forgot ,he also talks in a robot voice!

Monarchon!

Ya thats will be his name.

Oh ya and by the way he dumped his girlfriend.

He has an even hotter girlfriend now!

Don't mess with Monarchon!

WWWTT

cybercoma · November 11, 2011

Then I'll take the stance and say we turf it.

Although I agree that it's pointless now, bambino is right. There's really no way to replace it without overhauling the entire system of government. That's just an invitation for bigger problems. We don't have the problem now because the number of parties is limited, but if we got to a point where there were many parties vying for control of the government, the Crown will be a necessary referee.

Edited November 11, 2011 by cybercoma

cybercoma · November 11, 2011

We already have a robot prime minister, and I wonder about the Queen sometimes. Adding a robot governor general will only draw criticism that the government doesn't reflect Canada's diversity and overrepresents the robot community.

You do have a sense of humour! :lol:

cybercoma · November 11, 2011

By the bye, Monarchon is an awesome name for our Robot Overlo... erm Governor General.

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

Although I agree that it's pointless now, bambino is right. There's really no way to replace it without overhauling the entire system of government.

Yes and Monarchon would't allow it.

He would vaporize anyone trying to launch an anti monarchy campaign.

And after vaporizing his opponents he would transform into a jet,fly to his hot girlfriends house and makes out with her!

Thats how cool Monarchon is!

WWWTT

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

We already have a robot prime minister, and I wonder about the Queen sometimes. Adding a robot governor general will only draw criticism that the government doesn't reflect Canada's diversity and overrepresents the robot community.

Ya but he doesn't have a left arm machine gun and he can't transform into a jet!

Sounds like a piece of junk robot to me.

Whats going to happen if we get invaded by an allien robots?

Hey never thought of that did you buddy?

Thats ok we got Monarchon and his even hotter new girlfriend!

WWWTT

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

The point I am getting at is that this Russell person is making much about nothing!And so are you!
Everything turned out without much controversy on the part of the GG.

I don't believe I'm making much out of anything; this is a discussion forum and we're discussing. You said the governor general's decisions can always be predicted (i.e. his or her actions are pre-set and could be carried out by a computer); but, I've demonstrated that such isn't the case. Sometimes the governor general has to make a decision without advice or even a clear precedent to follow; when, as Russell put it, "there is no precise formula to guide the governor general or those who judge his decision in what is inescapably a judgment call."

I don't believe the parliamentary dispute at the end of 2008 was "nothing"; it was unprecedented. And there was controversy, before and after the Governor General's decision to prorogue, with stipulations. What will she do? was a widely asked question before; was her choice right? was asked after. Russell's whole paper I linked to deals with the speculation, the criticism, and what became clearly evident at the time: the general misunderstanding of the Crown's role in our constitution.

It was Harper and the conservatives that have continuously stirred the pot(if you know what I mean).

I'm not going to ignore the role the other political parties played in the aforementioned dispute. But, yes, the Conservatives have shown a penchant for pushing the system to its limits; in the space of a few months they drew both the governor general and the speaker of the House into a fracas (and lied about the way governments are chosen and coalitions, to boot).

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

Although I agree that it's pointless now, bambino is right. There's really no way to replace it without overhauling the entire system of government.

Doesn't the fact that it would require an overhaul of the system to be rid of the monarchy kind of indicate to you that the monarchy may not actually be pointless?

[c/e]

Edited November 11, 2011 by g_bambino

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

Ya but he doesn't have a left arm machine gun and he can't transform into a jet!
Sounds like a piece of junk robot to me.

Harperbot, maybe. But, do you have any idea what the Queen's packing in that permanently affixed handbag of hers?

[sp]

Edited November 11, 2011 by g_bambino

WWWTT · November 11, 2011

(i.e. his or her actions are pre-set and could be carried out by a computer)

This is incorrect.

I must appologize that I have bein joking around on this thread and this appears to have attributed to the confusion.

WWWTT

g_bambino · November 11, 2011

This is incorrect.

It is? You said:

[W]hen there is a constitutional crisis in Canada(usually caused by the conservatives) then the GG has a tremendous amount of support and essentially turns into the robotic monkey playing the cymbals

Just after, you said it was your opinion, not a joke.

Okay, well, no biggie.