Canadian Politics

[andytheace]

Dare I bring up the topic? Sure why not. I'm a little surprised that nobody more politically minded than myself has brought up the topic already (is there some unwritten rule against it?). What do you think of the coming election? Do you that anything will really change? If so, what? Are people finally fed up with the liberal party

Comments

[andytheace]

On an unrelated note, has anybody been watching the tv show "Commander in Chief" on ABC? It's not quite as technical as West Wing, but it's still not bad. Since seeing my first episode last week I've been wondering if perhaps Hilary Clinton might have had a hand in this show. President Allen seems to have very Democratic policies (is she a Democrat?) and I could see Hilary Clinton doing this to soften people views to having a female president.

[jamincan]

I think she's supposed to be an Independent. I also think Hilary is far more ruthless than Allen seems to be (from the one time I watched it). That said: Clinton 2008!

[andytheace]

I'd say she's got a fairly good shot at winning.

Nobody like Bush 2008!

[jamincan]

I have no doubt he'd love to try, and I'd love to see him fail trying. :-P The Republican Party might have a bit of an issue with his candidacy though.

[jamincan]

Hmm, where to start

[irishdeviant]

I'm a little in the school blitz right and I'm sure I'll make an opinion on how to vote during Christmas holidays. Canadian and American politics are very different in a lot of ways. We have a lot more appointed positions here than in the states and we pay far more taxes than our Southern neighbours. However, I would say that Opposition government and not the general public is fed up with the minority government. Major issues have been passed through legislature and other than scandal issue, Martin's has been playing it safe. Neither of the party's leaders have done anything ridiculous in public which I find amazing since I'm from BC where our leaders do really stupid things like create gambling rings, go crazy with new expensive transportation goodies that don't work, or drink and drive in Hawaii

[andytheace]

yep, I'm Canadian through and through. The rest of my family may not be, though, in a year or two. You have you wait 5 years to get Naturalized (funny term, like me being a legal alien, maybe I should make a post about that lingo).

[irishdeviant]

Alright :) I wasn't sure. I'm a legal alien too. MWAHAHAHA. -_____-;;;

[quikchange]

me too.

[alex_the_greate]

I just got back from Parliament Hill and Question Period and I feel obliged to inform you that the government is still in tact. I've heard rumours that it won't last until December though.

[andytheace]

Alex what exactly do you do for your job?

[alex_the_greate]

I work for Environment Canada, in the Electricity & Industrial Combustion Division. Mostly I look at spreadsheets.

I was at Parliament Hill today because the student program advisors organized a tour of the buildings and we got to sit in and observe Question Period from the public gallery. Afterwards we were supposed to meet the minister of the environment, but since he was in Montreal we met his parliamentary secretary instead.

Had you worried for a minute there, right? Haha :)

[jamincan]

Worried that you were an MP for your co-op term? Now *that* would be an impressive resume.

[zedinbed]

I find it increasingly that the Liberal party is the party that defines what canadians want their country to be. A peaceful, open-minded, fiscally balanced country that is independent of foreign governments dictating our policies. With the NDP, I see a party that knows it will not vcome to power in the mid-term, so it just plays a game of cat and mouse and throws its powerful sway vote whichever way suits it best. The Cons just keep shooting themselves in teh foot by their emphasis on teh wrong policies and their close ties to the States in the current very anti-American Canada while other parties like the green Party don't have aplatform that can be considered even reasonably workable by any long shot.

[quikchange]

What is it about the Green platform that you find unworkable?

[zedinbed]

I really don't get how you can cut back on taxes and increase social spending at the same time.

[quikchange]

They're not actually lowering all taxes. Taxes on bad things like industrial pollution will be raised significantly. And subsidies to environmentally harmful actions will be cut to provide money for promoting ecologically safe practices. It's about reallocating existing levels of taxation and funding rather than increasing or decreasing them.