Death And Elections
September 3, 2008, Matthew Good We have lost another three brave young men in Afghanistan because of a reckless foreign policy agenda bent more on placating our southern neighbours than ushering in any sort of realistic ‘new day’ in a country that has been at war for decades.
In a country where international relief supplies are easier to obtained on the Black Market than anywhere else, where promises made by foreign powers have rarely become a reality despite propaganda to the contrary, one has to seriously wonder why the people of this country have remained largely silent while 96 Canadians have returned home in coffins. To some that might not seem like a lot, but, in truth, we have lost more lives given the small size of our contingent in Afghanistan than any nation involved in combat operations.
As I have exhaustively pointed out in the past, there is a vast difference between supporting our fighting men and women and supporting the policies that place them in harms way. They are, by no means, one in the same. That said; I will not launch into a protracted entry about my views regarding the conflict itself, as I have written a myriad of entries that can be sourced using the search function.
The Looming Election
It’s no secret that Stephen Harper intends to ask the Governor General to dissolve Parliament and force a federal election, most likely on October 14th, breaking a legislative election pledge passed in the House that there would not be a federal election until October 19th of 2009. Given the disarray of the Federal Liberal Party, and its lack of what I consider a real leader, it makes sense. By breaking the legislative promise that Harper himself proposed and was successful in passing, the Conservatives have a chance at gaining a majority.
The truth is that Stéphane Dion is not, in my opinion, PM material. The NDP, of course, do not have the sort of national support required to win the PM’s office, with the Bloc’s potential remaining as limited as ever given their mandate. Thus, by the end of next month we could very well see a Conservative majority in the House and the dawning of a new age of unobstructed Conservative rule in Canada. The groundwork is already being laid…
» Tories pledge $80M to reopen Ford plant in Windsor, Ont.
» Tories unveil $60 million of pre-election goodies.
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It is a sad time in Canadian Parliamentary history.
Yeah, interesting both Libs and Conservatives are neck in neck in the polls, but Dion is way behind Harper in the polls as leader candidate. The Libs would have been way better off with Ignatieff. Dion is weak!
Re laying the groundwork - don’t forget the astonishing arts/culture/heritage cuts that came down at the end of August…www.departmentofculture.ca for a nice little summary of it all…
looks like im gonna be spoiling my vote…again and on purpose. just another brick in the wall…
Another 3 brave young men lost in this futile fight. Cpl. Drew Grenon - 23 years old and only two weeks away from the end of his second tour for fuck sakes. It’s so sad and it’s so fucking futile. They’re never going to “win” this thing. The Taliban come and go, they seem to have free haven in Pakistan who’s (US allied) government doesn’t have a clue and is rife with Taliban sympathizers. The US is fucking around (no disrespect to the troops there - please understand) in Iraq when - if they really wanted to do something about terrorism they wouldn’t have gone there in the first place.
The more i learn about Afganistan and the Canadian mission the more pissed off I get. These young soldiers were engineers - spending most of their time fixing up the same shit that the Taliban blows up over and over again. This will go on forever if we carry on like this. I hate to say it, because I mean no disrespect to the men and women who are there (and thier families at home) - but we’re wasting lives doing what we’re doing.
Next up - the 100 lives lost milestone. That will create some headlines and more unproductive head shaking and hand wringing.
Unless we can develop an effective strategy to defeat the Taliban soon - bring our boys home.
Elections - If Dion seriously wants to be PM, why doesn’t he bide his time, allow the Conservatives to carry on while the Libs get their shit together? He’s going to get pounded in and October election. Maybe he figures it’s his only chance. Politicians…
I’m so pissed off today - that’s my rant.
The Liberals would, I think, have a fighting chance with a decent leader. Dion is unfortunately not it. And Harper knows it. All of Canada knows it, I think. Bah. It’s incredibly frustrating to think that we could be stuck with this megalomaniacal control freak– and possibly give him even more power– simply for lack of a better alternative (though I’ll go on record as saying bumbling Dion actually IS a better alternative). To be honest, I’m actually quite curious as to how Dion’s Green Shift plan would work in practice… don’t know that it’ll ever happen, though.
As a side note… those “Stephen Harper is sooooo awesome!” ads that have been running DRIVE. ME. NUTS, especially the woman who says “I like the fact that he’s a family man with small children!” Yeah. Glad to see you have your voting priorities straight, lady.
Out of curiousity, why do you believe Dion would not be an effective leader? Have you researched his position on various issues? Or is it just the conservative talking points that people are believing?
I’ve had the immense pleasure of meeting Stephane Dion a couple of times and he is exactly the type of leader this country needs. He doesn’t make rash decisions, surrounds himself by people who will provide advice and he is a thinker, not a reactor.
To say he’s not a leader is more a comparison to Harper as a leader and I’d pick Dion hands down anyday.
A conservative majority will only be possible if people keep their minds closed of the man who brought us the Clarity Act.
I find it a bit disconcerting that you’d make a statement about Dion like that without providing substance as to the reasons why.
My parents, lifelong NDPers, will be voting Liberal in the next election because of Dion. You look beyond the accent, look beyond the conservative commercials, see the man when he’s under pressure, you wouldn’t be making blanket statements like that.
Having watched the Apology in a gym full of survivors, there was applause when Dion made some remarks as he came across as sincere. Dion believes in a just society. As should all Canadians.
Where does Canada stand on foreign policy issues? I always thought of Canada as more progressive towards policy compared to US. Maybe im misinformed.
Conservative Majority? Polls say Liberal minority, and they’ve been gaining momentum all summer. But we’ll see how the campaigns go.
I feel I should bring attention to a little known politician who has managed, beyond my belief, to be elected some 6 straight years in my local riding. Without question she is the most narrow minded of all the conservative MP’s, formally the first reform candidate to run east of Manitoba…http://www.cherylgallant.com/
Some highlights of her “ideas” were to install antiaircraft guns above my place of work… Last election she was shipped to a “conference” all campaign such that she was unable to be reached by the media she so often makes a fool of herself in front of with her ridiculous claims (lies mostly) on human dignity, marriage, the economy, etc. I would rather her not drift into obscurity this year in the hopes that she loses… Please…
This is what we have to live with day in day out.. bombarded by mail campaigns that litter our streets with propaganda papers, none of which have been sent out by any other party.. today I received 3 “news letters” in the mail.. I see no stop with the election forth coming.
-Dan
As with most things important to the American Nation, this Administration has failed. Afghanistan was successful except for Tora Bora in the first six months. Then their was an opportunity for maybe a year to transform Afghanistan from a Narco State to a place of laws and peace. But Bush/Cheney only used Afghanistan as the stepping stone to Iraq. America promised its allies that pacifying Afghanistan would be light work. Another lie and now the Afghanistan/Pakistan area is the most dangerous place in the world. Thanks to the PM, he allowed Canadian troops to be deployed to an American nightmare. Canada has bleed enough for the NeoCon agenda.
Could a snap Canadian election be forecasting an Obama victory? If Harper believes Obama will be the next President, wouldn’t he want to take advantage of present fertile ground? As Matt says, “it makes sense” to call an election early because the political landscape is void of a popular opponent.
Yeah I think they’re (Conservatives) timing it before the American election and betting on the Democrats. Even if Republicans win they’re still stuck with a spineless throwaway-vote Liberal party and New Democrats/Bloc Quebecois who can’t honestly always work with them.
I don’t think it’ll be ALL doom and gloom under a Conservative majority, just like. Mostly.
Rick Hillier of TD Bank says if you don’t support the operation in Afghanistan - you’re unpatriotic.
I’ll be moving my accounts.
As much as I don’t support him, his party or it’s policies, you’ve got to hand it to Mr. Harper.
He’s actually quite a brilliant strategist. I’d love to sit down and play a game of Risk with him.
[quote comment="63809"]Rick Hillier of TD Bank says if you don’t support the operation in Afghanistan - you’re unpatriotic.
I’ll be moving my accounts.[/quote]
Done and done. Months ago. Credit Union all the way.
Its about time. Maybe now we can improve our justice system so that people dont get 20 months house arrest for putting someone in a wheelchair after attacking them with an ax. Oh, maybe we can actually get a senate that is elected rather than appointed. Maybe we’ll continue to see a reduction in the GST. Maybe immigration can actually be cleaned up so that we dont have drug dealers among other not-so-honourable people fleeing to canada for refuge. I’m sorry, call me narrow minded or ignorant or whatever, but I really have a tough time seeing how a Conservative Majority would be a bad thing…
[quote comment="63895"] I really have a tough time seeing how a Conservative Majority would be a bad thing…[/quote]
Perhaps, if you don’t count the further americanization of a country that is entirely not America. We’re already so far down the ass pocket of the US that the last thing we need is a majority government that will no doubt continue down that road and further align us with the most hated country on the planet.
In my mind at least, that is a bad thing.
“These young soldiers were engineers - spending most of their time fixing up the same shit that the Taliban blows up over and over again.”
They were combat engineers, they set the conditions for friendlies and enemies. Their work is arguably more dangerous than the infantry (which is their secondary role and makes up about 50% of their training).
Tania - you like Dion that’s clear. But you assume all of Canada is informed of his credentials. They’re not, and that is his and his parties responsibility and it is for that reason specifically - not his resume - that he is behind in the polls.
He lacks the charisma and presence to take on Harper at this time.
[quote comment="63915"]
Tania - you like Dion that’s clear. But you assume all of Canada is informed of his credentials. They’re not, and that is his and his parties responsibility and it is for that reason specifically - not his resume - that he is behind in the polls.
He lacks the charisma and presence to take on Harper at this time.[/quote]
This. Yup. ‘Zactly my thoughts.
I think he’s got some good ideas and potentially could do a good job. And I’d choose him any day of the week over Harper (and there’s got to be others like me, in which case, maybe dude’s got a shot). But he’s not wowing anyone, and that’s what he needs to do to win over middle-of-the-road voters. Plus, his Green Shift is reeeeeeally misunderstood and is interpreted in the mainstream media and the minds of the general public as “oh no increased taxes!!!” and “I’ll pay more at the pump!!!”, and that’s just not helping.
(How many people actually RESEARCH a candidate’s stance on issues? Very, very few, I’d say. It’s mostly media soundbites, summaries in the paper and, let’s face it, surface impressions. The media plays a huge role, like it or not. I don’t believe in newspapers endorsing candidates in their editorials, but our local paper does, and, wouldn’t you know it, that’s usually the candidate who wins… whether at the civil, provincial or federal level.)
matt’s latest sums it up (as much as a full length post can) nicely
[quote comment="63913"][quote comment="63895"] I really have a tough time seeing how a Conservative Majority would be a bad thing…[/quote]
Perhaps, if you don’t count the further americanization of a country that is entirely not America. We’re already so far down the ass pocket of the US that the last thing we need is a majority government that will no doubt continue down that road and further align us with the most hated country on the planet.
In my mind at least, that is a bad thing.[/quote]
Because pissing off the states and being confrontational with them is a much better way of doing things. I cant stand some Canadians sometimes who take the US for granted. Honestly, if we were to be attacked or bombed or in some kind of help, who would be the first country we go crying to? The US. We need to maintain a good relationship with them as it is very important of our countries well being. We are honestly just like Americans, save a few minor differences. Ive always been amazed at how, as Canadians, we seem to identify ourselves by being “not american” or by hating the US.
I am also curious as to what you mean by “further americanization” of Canada…