can-o-phish

Smear the smearer's!

Nawwww, just "expose" them

All I can say is that if you're a "Young'n" then this is a MUST HAVE for your collection...

As we all know Neil is fairly standoff-ish with interviews, crowd bantering, etc but this performance from '68, just days before his 23rd birthday, is filled with him talking/rapping to the crowd and it's fantastic stuff, almost in the same manner in which Arlo entertains his audience between songs and in many ways just as good as the songs themselves...

His "Cole's Book Store Employment" story in Toronto is classic, and one that Cole's isn't going to be drawing attention to

Exactly and what I've been saying all along. IMO, all parties need(ed) new leaders as the current onces had failed miserably.

The Conservatives are no doubt scrambling and if they continue with their predictable ways there'll be a smear campaign against Ignatieff because they've wasted most of their time trying to make the other parties and coalition idea look bad to Canadians instead of doing their jobs and working with the opposition.

I loved this quote:

If the Liberals want a model of a profoundly divided party uniting under a flawed leader and going on to steady electoral gains, they need only to look across the aisle at Harper's ruling Conservatives.

It's only getting better

Rae could actually come off as the person who saved & united the Liberal party with his statesman-like decision yesterday; putting the party ahead of his own ambitions. Talk about setting a precedent for politicians to follow. Kudos to Rae for his decision.

Harper's short speech last night to the new leader of the opposition was humurous. You literally could see the panic and contempt in his eyes and fake smile. I hope his days are numbered. His party could do far better with a new leader.

Let's keep it between the rhubarb and stay on topic

Looking forward to the next month and a half to see how the Conservatives are going to react to Ignatieff becoming the new leader...if they even try to launch a smear campaign against him it'll show just how weak of a leader Harper is to Canada...he'll probably never see it but like Dion, he should have stepped down and let another take his place...

Just my opinion but with Iggy stepping into the new role he's not going to be chummy chummy with Jack...

Could that be an oxymoron?

With the amount of morons on Parliament hill almost anything is possible

I would LOVE to see a debate between Ignatieff & Harper as I believe Iggy would leave little Stevie a shredded mess with all the lies and BS he's pulled over the last little while...he would expose him for the poor leader he is...

I think Dion is a very intelligent man but his achilles heel was his weak command of the English language; this did not help him in the debates as we, who watched, saw...and what will be forever remembered as his Boobtube Video...

Well, if there's the slightest indication that the Conservatives will win a majority Ignatieff will not back a coalition as it would be almost certain that the GG would not give the coalition power and instead grant Harper a snap election.

The economy is still in free-fall mode with thousands losing jobs and being laid off...this will not be a quick fix no matter what budget is brought in and the card the Liberals have to play is that which sees the Conservatives continue running with their minority until a time when enough Canadians are pissed and have realised they've been duped by Harper and then scream for change...then the next piece of legislation that the Cons try to put through will be voted down and it'll be back to the polls...

Just my opinion but with Iggy stepping into the new role he's not going to be chummy chummy with Jack...

Bob Rae to end bid for Liberal leadership

Aloha,

Brad

Should've read this first as I wouldn't have had to rant in the "other" topic...

Thumbs up for Rae...smartest thing he could've done and has definitely put his party's chance of survival first.

maybe you....

i just know where this is all going.

Glad that you do 'cause I don't have a clue what's going to happen now...

Rae is being a total fuggin' asshole...if he can't face the fact that he's not very popular with a vast amount of voters from his days as Premier, then he's just as guilty as Dion in that he's not helping the Liberal party, he's further damaging it...I was going to send a contribution but have decided not to until they get their fuggin' sh!t together...

The Liberals need fresh blood, someone who will unite the party and put Canada first, party second. In my opinion Rae is putting party and personal agendas first by not recognizing that Ignatieff has the majority of the party behind him...yes, it's democracy to have a choice but when the choice is obvious it is a waste of time and money, time & money that can be used to rebuild the party...

I did laugh over John Stewart's spin on it last night...we can do that?!?

EDIT TO ADD: I just read that Rae has dropped out of the race. Very smart of him and one that the Liberal party will most certainly benefit from.

All signs point to LeBlanc dropping out and supporting Iggy...

Dion Steps Down

Well, 1/4 down, 3/4 to go as all along I've been hoping to see new leaders from all parties as the ones now are infants who cannot run our country.

Dion Steps Down

Yes, that sums it up very nicely. Thanks for the post

Why would someone flag that? It's great for a Monday chuckle

http://isharperprimeminister.ca/

Funny though if the coalition(?) chooses to push for a vote of non-confidence the Liberals could be left in tatters as the polls show that Canadians do not want a coalition supported by the Bloc.

So if an election were held and the mistrust of Canadians thinking that if a Conservative minority happened again the coalition would be granted governing power, better to vote for a Conservative majority.

If the Conservatives are toppled in January, will Harper be replaced or will he still be the Conservatives choice for leader? Anyone?

]

I voted for the man. I even campaigned for our local NDP candidate who was an MPP when Rae was premier. He lost to the Liberal. I knew that we were in serious trouble when I saw the votes being counted at the polling station in which I was working. There were a lot of votes for the PC candidate and this was in an ethnic lower income neighbourhood (Oakwood Vaughn Rd area).

Anyway, your are correct in that Rae is definitely unelectable in Ontario. He came in at a real bad time - just as we were heading into recession. And he tried some bold policies. While they didn't all work, he had the guts to try them, and to take risks, for which I admire him. He tried to share the pain with his Rae Days, but that really pissed people off. He would be a terrible choice as leader of the Federal Liberal Party though. Although, personally I like him. But they would stand no chance with him as leader.

Thanks for the quick history and a co-worker had similar things to say with regards to Rae's gutsy politics and trying to deal with the recession.

It seems there is an immediate push for Ignatieff to become the interim leader for the Liberals as they seem to think that it's important to have a new leader in place by January 26...

YA THINK!?!?!?!?!

rae and iggy were on question period this morning saying that dion has to be replaced before parliament resumes.

bye bye coalition. i won't miss your ridiculousness at all.

Oh yes, the Liberals will be dead in the water if Dion is still around come January 26th.

I didn't live in Ontario when Rae was the premier, but am I correct in thinking that he's still not very popular with Ontarians? If so, what the hell are the Liberals thinking about backing him? I wasn't impressed with how he treated Dion after it was all over; came across as a self-righteous pompous ass...just my opinion...

A different take on conspiracy.

Recap of the Week and Crisis

It doesn't matter how the Prime Minister acquired the knowledge that the opposition parties had been plotting to overthrow his government. What does matter is what he plans to do with the knowledge.

Since the overthrow is constitutional, the PM must agree that its a legitimate action. But the PM believes that the coup would be damaging to the nation and immoral. So, he knows he must stop it. Shocking as this will be to your media, I state again: it doesn't matter how he got the information.

The coup only works if the Liberals are in. But, there is no hard evidence of the Liberal's involvement in the planning stages of the conspiracy. However, Stephane Dion did disappear from view after the election - hatching something; and Duceppe and Layton would not have invested so much time in developing the thing without some belief that the Liberals would be game.

Once the Prime Minister decides - for moral and patriotic reasons - that he should stop the replacement of his government, he has to decide whether or not he should actively prevent the coup when it happens or before it happens. If you wait until it happens, then you do not control the field. If you force it, you control the field.

So the Prime Minister decides to force the coup rather than wait for the opposition's convenience. He sets up a fiscal update with three poison pills that each of the other parties could never swallow: for the NDP it was some hard-core lefty stuff; for the Liberals and Bloc it was hard-core cash.

The coup, in organization and speed, was stupendous. Liberal leadership started off very strong and the caucus, as we all know and will remember forever, was united in the putsch. Only after prorogation did 1 or 2 Liberal MPs speak out against the coalition of the fast-shrinking majority.

The Prime Minister was in his right and doing his job as Prime Minister in the last ten days. Against, as usual, an onslaught of media venom that was embarassing in its artifice. The Liberals killed their brand in offering to put the federal government in the hands of the Bloc Quebecois.

They then cremated the brand when they accepted Bloc hegemony over Quebec. Federalist Quebeckers can never again trust the Liberal party. Like the Bloc, the Liberal party is a regionalist party representing urban Ontario and the Maritimes. It is not a national party in the way the NDP and Conservatives are national parties. The days of Liberals winning 80 seats in an election are over.

I don't know what to make of this post...

ChuckerCanuck states that the "overthrow is constitutional" yet by definition a coup is the sudden unconstitutional overthrow of a government by a part — usually small — of the state establishment — usually the military — to replace the branch of the stricken government, either with another civil government or with a military government.

So right off the bat this summation starts off on the wrong foot...then goes on to support the phone conversation that was taped and released to the media and this doesn't matter???

Well, I for one would be opposed to anyone taping/recording my conversations no matter what the topic. It is an invasion of privacy. But I have to assume that Chucker thinks that the PM was under the impression that there was some army outside 24 Sussex Drive and on Parliament Hill...

Then more talk of a "coup" and that Federalist Quebeckers can no longer trust the Liberals?...ummm, last time I checked it was the Conservatives that have been further damaged in Quebec, not the Liberals...

The 1 or 2 Liberal MP's that spoke out, spoke out against Dion not being able to hold the coalition together and his weak speech that followed Harper's, not against the coalition...

There are more holes in this than a colander...

It's the holidays! Start up a canned food drive at work. Put on a fundraiser. Be the change.

That's my plan.

It's a good plan Birdy! I've already taken part in volunteer work that people who are less fortunate are benefitting from. If our government won't be the change we still have the opportunity in many forms.

I don't think that the Libs/NDB/Bloc would have any problem workin with Harper's Conservative Party if they felt that he could be trusted. he has, unfortunately, proved that he cannot be trusted. That is the real cause of these problems. If Harper comes out with a make nice throne speach that the opposition supports, he is very likely to then come out with a budget or other confidence motion that makes them vote against the gov't which would then result in an election. If they vote down the throne speach they'd be given the chance to form a coalition.

With the Liberals still lacking a leader and much grumbling over Dion's speech, I'll be surprised if the coalition does last until January 26th.

The opposition parties are pissed that Harper sidestepped a vote of non-confidence and I expect another vote of non-confidence regardless of a coalition being formed or not. They don't trust Harper and why should they? There is a clip of Harper addressing Parliament that there would be a vote of confidence on December 8th and then he went for prorogue.

Most Canadians don't have faith in Dion as leader, nor does the LIberal Party.

Can an interim Liberal leader be found if Dion steps down before January 26th that would strengthen a coalition? That's the big question because if not, then if a vote of nc is held and the government is toppled with no coalition, it would see an election that the Liberals would probably lose more seats. Who's going to vote for a party when there is a question as to who will lead that party and possibly become PM?

The worst part is that at a time when all parties of our government should be dealing with the economy and other important issues, they are now in full political swing and the country is left bleeding.

If there is an election I'm curious as to the voter turnout. The last one was the weakest in Canadian history. I expect the next election will have a huge voter turnout as all of this has grabbed Canadians attention.

Possibly my last post of the day before I fall wayyyy behind at work...

One comment made by a media reporter is one that has stayed with me...

Not verbatim but essentially he said that quite possibly gone are the days that Canada has a majority government from any party so we had better start looking at ways for minority governments to function effectively.

I really have appreciated everyone's views, opinions and being so honest to putting them out there. Personally I have gained a greater appreciation for our system through all of this and the vast amount of media that I've been pouring over, instead of being focussed on work

I think the main thing most of us share on this thread is our frustration with how our country is being governed, or actually at this moment, un-governed.

It does give me faith that there are intelligent people who live in Canada...

Maybe what some of these politicians need is a little bit of "jam" in their neat & tidy lives

If there is ONE person who has strengthened the will to separate Quebec from Canada it is "the most honourable Stephen Harper". Period.

It is not their "only goal", to separate from Canada. They want what's best for their province, in their eyes. Can you blame them for that? If so, blame Alberta as well as there has been talk, though lightly, of separating...

Separatism has been at an all-time low though now the BQ has a hate on for the government and Harper and his Conservatives like never before.

Thanks for that Stevie...he is nothing more than a coward. He should have stepped down and let someone from his party who actually believes in Canada first, agendas second, but then again, try and find a politician in any party who fits that mold...it's going to be a tough search.

In my opinion, Dion's blunder was the lack of preparation on his part for the election. After becoming leader of the Liberals who were crumbling from the Sponsorship Scandal and now the opposition of a minority government, he should have hit the ground on the campaign trail because it was coming, one year, two years, whatever amount of time, it was coming...he had to actually roll up his sleeves and meet the people of Canada and for once listen to them, try to get an understanding of the common people and their concerns, rebuild faith and bridge the gap that had been destroyed by the previous Liberals...instead he waited until an election was called and by then it was too late...I'm quite sure his knowledge of the English language is strong though as we all saw on his "Youtube" video, his command of it is weak at best. Another skill he should have been honing if he wanted to be Prime Minister of Canada, which even though has a beautiful and eclectic group of backgrounds, is still English. And if that meant working 365 a year, so be it. If you're going to be the leader of our country, that is how strongly you should be committed; not showing up when Parliament is in session...

Harper was succesfful in creating panic and mistrust of the coalition by repeatedly calling them "The Separatist Coalition" as if their only collective goal was that they were going to destroy Canada.

And now Parliament is "closed for business" as the economy is sinking every day, factories are closing, countless people are being laid off all because he ran and hid behind legislation until January 26. Does he not realize that a vote of non-confidence can be called without a coalition? It just means that there won't be a coalition; there will be an election. Does he think that his party will keep him as their leader if they lose a vote of non-confidence in Janauary and are toppled?

These parties need new leaders, new blood, new agendas other than their own.

Canada needs a new government and who knows, maybe a coaltion could have given insight and fresh ideas...sure, there would have been major hurdles but if there is never change, then we will forever be in the clutches of an archaic and broken system...

Merry Fuggin Christmas Mr Harper, Mr Dion, Mr Layton and Mr Duceppe!!!

Ask and you shall receive... :content:

Hippie to friend: Dude, I called the Apple Store today and it was so awesome! They were playing Franklin's Tower!!! Can you believe that? Damn I love Apple.

Friend: What did you buy?

Hippie: Oh, I got disconnected and never spoke to a human. But dude, Franklin's freaking Tower? How awesome is that?

Silly Basher, Hippies have no friends!!!