Compared to Harper, I’m a rank amateur. I don’t suppose you actually want to address any of my points instead of latching onto my little insult?
Well goody for you. They certainly have their own problems. However, you’ll notice that in none of my posts to this thread have I actually complained about party policy or ideology. My complaints about Harper are all about tactics and leadership style. I hate the arrogance, petulance and pushiness and I find it disappointing that so many of my fellow Canadians seem to confuse that with “leadership.”
Heh, you make a very good point. How about this: By current parliamentary standards, he’s a brilliant tactician.
'Cause you said he was an actor, not that he looks like one.
And when I point out that he’s not an actor you say:
So, I say he is in fact real, with his own business, and you say:
So now I say, I’m not sure what you don’t get?
Not actor.
Real guy.
Own business.
Conservative supporter.
Probably not paid for ad (I sent him an email to find out. He’s probably busy, you know working with real tools at the moment though.)
You know, you could have said “Oh. Thanks for that. I was wrong. I thought he was a paid actor.” Instead you have to keep changing your position to make yourself look right, and me look wrong.
I’m done with all of this now. Except I’ll report back when I find out if he was paid or not. But then you won’t believe me anyway…
Ahhh those cheesy goofy grinnin’ lame sweater wearing Harper ads. I nearly died the first time I saw him turn to the camera and crack that cheddar smile of his.
Stephen you come off as a cold fish in public… get over it, trying to give us the warm and fuzzies ain’t gonna work.
It’s like dad trying to dress up in his Sunday best for church when you know every other day of the week he’s in a soiled wife beater and stained work pants leaning against the couch with a beer in his hand and empties all around. It just doesn’t seem natural.
As for an issue… still none. The Conservatives tasted power and like every other party now will use every tool available to politicians (Even the ones they have railed against previously) to keep and expand it. The polls look good so Stephen is going for the gold before Parliament reconvenes and some other goof up or scandal makes Canadians rethink their position.
Harper has one thing going for him. The Liberals really botched their leadership pick. Dion may be a qualified fellow and a decent person, but he makes Harper look like Mr Charisma. I loathe to watch the debates where I will once again be most impressed with the Fricken’ Seperatist leader over the other Bozos.
Oh. Thanks for that. I was wrong. I thought he was a paid actor. I still think that regardless of whether he is, the ad makes him look as if he is a paid actor, and this completely undermines the message of the ad (which was my original assertion).
While you’re asking him if he was paid, ask him whose idea the empty toolbelt was.
Heh, Harper is a stone cold bastard, and those ads make him look phoney as hell - he looks just like a stone cold bastard pretending to be all warm and fuzzy. He just looks embarassed.
Personally, I think Harper would do better to play to his personality. "Hello, I’m Steven Harper and I’m a bastard. But I’m your bastard … " sort of thing.
Fact is that people sort of like their politicians to be bastards. Better than nice but ineffectual.
Another election? I though I just voted like last week or something.
I suppose since my Dad runs for the Green party in Provincial elections then my vote is pretty much cast. It’s just as well, I can’t stand the leaders of any of the major parties.
This probably isn’t the right thread, but does anybody else get the feeling that the Liberal party picked a fall guy for this election and that once they get their house in order they’ll go with their real guy?
As I type this we have a commercial that ends with “Canada. We’re better off with Harper.” Is that really the best they could come up with? That reads to me like, “Fuck it, you might as well because those other guys are even bigger idiots than me.”
You know, after thinking about Leaffan’s point and rewatching the ad several times, I’m thinking that it might be a nail bib and not a toolbelt at all. If that turns out to be the case, I’m going to feel pretty stupid.
Well, on the one hand, I know this is going to add fuel to the fire. On the other hand, I found it funny and legitimate political satire. You decide - Adolph Harper loses it.
I just came in here to say " I guess I’m the only one voting Green then".
I didn’t actually know there was a Federal Green party until yesterday, but there is, and I’m voting for them. I am a single issue voter and the only thing I care about/want is more gas tax and a carbon tax. I looked up the Green party candidate in my riding and he looks pretty cool, so that seals the deal.
The tool belt is his. He just finished a drywall job and he had things like drywall screws, a tape measure, and a pencil in his tool belt.
He was contacted a few weeks before, asking if he would be willing to provide a statement. (He’s done some volunteer work for the regional MPP.) So he agreed. The statement was a collaborative effort between what Mike wanted to say and what the party wanted to hear. They tracked him down after work and the rest is history.
Oh, and incidentally, he did not get paid one red cent for the commercial.
The Conservatives are trying really hard to lose my vote. The election, assuming it happens, is a waste of time and money. This latest bailout to GM and Ford is just an absolute farce. You may as well just throw the money into the ocean.
But Dion’s “Green Shift” plan really IS an economic disaster waiting to happen. And Le Ministre de l’au-delà’s link is so offensive and stupid it makes me want to vote Conservative to piss off whoever made it.
It’s a very tough situation to be a voter in.
Boy, that’s damning with faint praise. Paul Martin was the Peter Principle manifested in real life in a head of government.
I’m glad to see the election come, even though I live in one of the ridings (Guelph)that’s having a by-election killed. The primary object of the election needs to be the defeat of the Conservatives. Harper’s “I’ve formed the government; screw the idea that a minority needs to govern gingerly.” is anathema to the way that the Canadian system works. (He has even less of a clue than W had to the south of us when he decided that his stolen mandate was absolute.) I was seriously undecided in the by-election although the NDP candidate (Tom King) was one of the most impressive I’ve seen. The objective of that election had to be keeping the Conservatives (no, they’re not Tories) from getting an additional seat in southern Ontario. Strategic voting was the order of the day. Then Dion started to talk about the foolishness of bringing a new general election. A King sign went up the next day.
If Harper can’t be stopped, the secondary goal needs to be getting Celine out of the Liberal leadership. I Just hope that can happen without a Conservative majority.
I find myself liking the Conservatives because they’re lowering taxes and paying some attention to our criminally neglected military. I’m not a big fan of Harper due to his lack of charisma but he seems to be doing a decent enough job leading the country. I don’t like the Conservatives drug policy as I realize illegal drugs are never going away, no matter how much we criminalize users and dealers. But aside from that, they seem to be doing alright, trimming lots of fat from government (which can be an overinflated jobs program at times) and keeping taxes and debt low. I support the mission in Afghanistan, mostly because I can imagine how hard it must be for people over there to try to make a living with nothing in a war-torn country. I’m glad our guys are over their and I’m proud of the work they’re doing. But the Conservatives aren’t a single issue party and according to the news, support for the Afghanistan mission is at an all time low. So while the Conservatives should be stepping up, they mostly seem to just be slinging mud. I’m not impressed. I want to hear why they’re good, not why the other guys are bad.
The Liberals haven’t done anything visible to clean up their party. I remember the sponsorship scandal- the Liberals taking money that was supposed to be used to hold the country together and funneling it back into the party coffers. Dion (also graced with the charisma of a dead fish) doesn’t reassure me. I’m sure he’d rather we all just forget what kind of crooks his party was filled top to bottom with. And his carbon tax plan is just dumb. Let’s allow companies to pay for the right to pollute via a byzantine red tape emissions trading scheme. That’s almost as good of an idea as a gun registry! So it’s safe to say I’m not voting Liberal this year.
The NDP… well… how does that saying go? If you’re not a socialist by your 20’s you have no heart. If you haven’t given up socialism by your 30’s you have no brain. Something like that. Jack Layton… no thanks.
The Bloc… I live about as far away from Quebec as one can get and still be in the same country. I’m sure the Bloc would do their best to include Columbia- Britannique in their governance… right?
The Greens… what can I say about them? Nothing, because that’s pretty much what they are. They’re not going to form a government in Canada in 2008 or anytime soon thereafter.
I’m probably voting Conservative, for all the good it will do (South Nanaimo tends to vote NDP) but I don’t think it makes much of a difference. Harper is just shuffling the deck chairs on the Titanic. A minority government led by the Conservatives is about to be replaced by a minority government led by the Conservatives. And in 12-18 months we’ll have another election when Harper throws another hissy fit because he can’t cram his ideas through the non-cooperative Parliament. Leaves me wondering what the hell the point to this is.
However, I am still very pleased that we can call an election in September, do it in October and have the new government up and running the next day.
Last night there was a short news brief on a local Conservative (previously Liberal) Member of Parliament who is retiring.
The sponsor who’s business’ commercial paid for the short news brief was the competing NDP candidate.:smack: I’m going to be teasing him about that one!
Don’t forget the copyright legislation and (as a subset to Arts funding) Bill C-10 to be sure that the contents of Canadian films is morally acceptable.
I’m curious how you think the system works. Minority governments don’t as a rule last very long. Typically less than a year and rarely longer than 2. The Conservatives have held power for more than 2.5 years now. Had the opposition wanted an election there have been numerous times they could have caused one. They didn’t, so the government oddly enough governed.
