can-o-phish

What would your explanation of Layton's coalition be pre or post October 14 for an election? Edit to add: Or understanding of Layton's coalition be as I really see it as Layton's coalition, not Dion's. Dion is stepping down on May 2.

And to be honest, when Layton was calling for a coalition with Dion & the Liberals before October 14th, I had no idea how that would work...still really don't...

Neither are the Conservatives, Liberals, NDP & Bloc...

Well, I can't really answer that question because we haven't been taken there yet, if we get taken there because of a snap election. I was simply speculating given on what Layton was trying for before October 14th, which was a coalition with the Liberals. If a snap election is called what is happening at this moment will pale in comaprison as to what we'll see from all parties as they battle it out once again.

Well, the Bloc wouldn't be part of it as they are only claiming to support the coalition. There would be the coalition of the Libs & NDP, which what Layton wanted before October 14, The Bloc, The Green, oh yeah, and the Conservatives. At the moment the latest spin the Conservatives are putting on the coalition is by referring to it as "The Separatist Coalition"...

If a snap election is called and the coalition disbands, it would show there was never any unity or common ground that they want us to believe at this time. They would probalby tweak their 18 month agreement and take on the Conservatives as there would be a better chance that their voters would stick with them as their party would be governing, in some form, with the two other parties. Remember Layton was hinting at a coalition before the election which Dion was not open to. Now that the three parties have entered in to this coalition, to jump ship if a snap election is called, could very well give Harper his majority.

And at 7pm Harper will address the nation. This would indicate he wants a snap election, using tonight's speech to sway a majority government. That's quite a few votes he has to sway if he's going to run against a coalition who will most certainly stay together if an election is called. PM To Address Nation

The choice isn't any better; it's worse as all the "leaders" have shown just how low they can go or the price for their souls... We (jambanders & canadians ) all know we live in a great country but really, are any one of these so called "leaders" worthy or reflect the qualities of our country? My answer is no, not even close.

Yep, what the finger said! If parliament is suspended I doubt that the coalition will disolve. There seems to be some worry from Canadians about Dion being Prime Minister if the coalition is granted governing power but it is without doubt that May 2nd he'll be gone and then Iggy or Rae will take over... Harper keeps twisting words about the Canadian voters being betrayed, speaking like he has a majority government that's being overthrown. Why in gawd's name he didn't play his cards right, sit down and first hammer out a plan to deal with the economy with the other parties is a mystery...he would've come across as a true leader and also improve his political strength... Layton is in a win/win situation no matter the outcome.

Common sense. Any legislation drafted is viewed from as many angles as possible from whoever drafts it as to how it will be received when introduced. There was a recent article that I will try to find and post a link dealing with exactly this issue and also spoke about Giorno's part in this fiasco and how blame should not be laid at his feet. Edit to add: Holy crap, did I just use the phrase "common sense" in a political thread???

Like I said previously, Harper was definitely advised about reaction from the opposition towards the proposed legislation and decided to play chicken possibly thinking that the all the opposition parties would not challenge the legislation, especially so soon after an election. He found out something entirely different. Most minority governments do not govern for a lengthy period. Harper's Conservatives had a long run... Why? Remember a little thing called "The Sponsorship Scandal"? The Liberals knew that they had lost faith and had to implement some damage control and deal with the fallout and knew that some time had to pass before entertaining the idea of a non-confidence vote. And as I said earlier, you can bet your last dollar that all parties were looking for an excuse to take down Harper and his Conservatives if he won another minority government. And guess what? Harper handed several excuses to them on a frickin' silver platter! What the hell was he thinking? That his government was an untouchable majority? The speculations, theories and pondering will continue for quite sometime after the dust settles... And how that dust settles is still anyone's guess... And like I said earlier, we're living in very interesting political times, despite it being a three-ring circus!

we live in a parliamentary democracy. we vote for an MP. why would you be against that MP being part of the ruling party/coalition? i don't see how this is treating Canadians as idiots. I had always hoped that these guys would come to their senses and form a coalition. never tjought it would happen' date=' but still hoped for it. Harper claims that the other parties made a promise not to form a coalition. I never got that memo. [/quote'] Please re-read my post. I stated that I am NOT against a coalition government. To say that the coalition government is being formed because of the economy is a thin veil and an insult to Canadians. It is most definitely an excuse for political agendas. But that's just my opinion.

Personally I don't feel like I've been "had" but definitely "taken for a ride" My invitation to "agree" upon a coalition government must've been lost in the mail! Not that I'm against a coalition government or democracy but to use the economy as the basis of this coalition is treating Canadians like idiots...a thin veil at best.

Okay, what a FUGGIN LIE!!! "The Majority of Canadians" have NOT agreed. The parties have. This is just political propaganda and lies. Again, now it's NOTHING but Political agendas. And for the record I am a Liberal, but one that has lost faith in the party and politics in general. Shame on the so called "leaders" for turning our government into a pathetic three-ring circus.

And it should go without saying that all parties were looking for a reason to bring down the Conservatives if they won another minority. All Harper and his party had to do was sneeze in the wrong direction and there would have been a vote of non-confidence. I was really hoping that in this time of economic struggle that a leader would emerge and rise above this childish bickering and put our country's best interests first. Not one of our so called party "leaders" has done this. It's nothing but political agendas now. What a frickin' circus we now get to watch!

C'mon Birdy, I look forward to reading your posts but to say that "Canadians in general have just been had"??? Why do we have a minority government again? Simple. There isn't one party that the majority of Canadians feel can run our country and keep our best interests safe. If there was a party or a leader that had insight and inspired his party and the majority of people we wouldn't be in the mess that we're in now. Harper really fugged up. Up until last week the Liberals did not really have a leader. Then Harper played the "chicken game", thinking that because he'd just won an election that he could hide his "political agenda, ie - cutting party funding" behind allocating funds to help the economy and get away with this after just having an election. There were most definitely advisors that warned Harper of the possible reaction. Giorno cannot take the blame for this. Harper is the leader of the Conservatives and the Prime Minister. He entered into a game of "Political Chicken" and it's backfired big time. A smart leader would have put aside political agendas and tackled the most important issue, THE FRICKIN' ECONOMY. If he had chosen to work with the opposition to find the best approach to begin addressing the failing economy he would have come across as a true leader. But instead he chose the other road. We have most certainly not been "had"...We haven't had one person or party to pick and win a majority of us over. Simple as that. Layton is quite happy with a coalition as it will be the closest he will ever be to an actual Prime Minister. His party will have more "power" than they do at the moment. Dion gets to be Prime Minister if only for a short time. And that's all thanks to Harper because up until a week ago Dion was off the radar and had faded into the sunset. But all this will only happen based on the GG's decision.

Oh, by all means start a fight because the Bloc definitely has an agenda that will put Quebec first. As least we can say we're living in interesting times, poitically!

Well if Monday wasn't interesting enough, next Monday should be a helluva doozy... If I were a gamblin' man I'd say Canada is looking at a coalition if the GG chooses to accept Harper's resignation. Harper's biggest blunder, the ultimate mistake was running his minority government as a majority. The New Libs On The Bloc

Something to consider... Michaelle Jean should refuse Harper's resignation

As I've said in another post/topic, for me there are no leaders that inspire or give hope to our country in this very delicate time. All parties have dug themselves into pathetic holes aruging over the table scraps that are shrinking like the economy. Instead of working together as mature adults to at least find a way to address and start trying to plug the holes of this sinking ship, they have all chosen paths that lead to a dead end...or the bottom of the sea... It's hard to find a website that gives an unbiased view of how most Canadians are reacting to the latest episode of "As The Hill Churns" but on this page Harper & The Cons are not very popular...but I'm sure there are other sites that have him out in front... Where's Guy Fox when you need 'im? Biggest Game

Before the election on October 14th I didn't think that Canadian politics could be any worse but over the past week our so-called "leaders" have managed to take our government to an even lower point...recording phone conversations and distributing to the media; forming a coalition government between two parties that didn't win enough votes for either to become a minority government; looking to a separatist party to help form a coalition...that's just the tip...for gawd's sake the Liberal Party doesn't really have a leader...and for that fact, by definition, NONE of our parties actually have a "leader"... Definition: A simple definition of leadership is that leadership is the art of motivating a group of people to act towards achieving a common goal. Put even more simply, the leader is the inspiration and director of the action. He or she is the person in the group that possesses the combination of personality and skills that makes others want to follow his or her direction. In business, leadership is welded to performance. Effective leaders are those who increase their companys' bottom lines. Or, maybe we do have leaders as our parties seem to be in it for themselves and seem to have forgotten what they are supposed to be doing...looking after our country and also providing inspiration for all Canadians... I read this person's letter recently and couldn't agree more...we have a pathetic three ring circus at a time when our country truly needs leadership... A little decorum from Ottawa, please LETTER TO THE EDITOR A little decorum from Ottawa, please Nov 20, 2008 04:30 AM When we send people to Ottawa to run our country what do we see? Do we see respect? Do we see co-operation, compromise or even amicable discussion? No. We see none of what we teach our children in kindergarten. Politicians don't go to Ottawa to make Canada a better place, politicians go to Ottawa to pursue their own goals, represent their party, try to get their policy through and try to ensure the other guy doesn't get his policy through. No matter what is best for our country, politicians can't seem for the life of them to get along, no one has all the answers, except teenagers and politicians. We hear all the time that the PM is working with the opposition, but is he really? Or is he simply trying to find a chink in the armour so he can get his policy through? What about the opposition? Are they fulfilling their job of keeping the government accountable? Hardly. Following the same tricks used by our PM, they try and find the chink in the government's armour to get their piece of policy through. Once weakness is spotted they pounce. This isn't compromise, co-operation or respect. It's disrespectful, disgraceful and spits in the face of every Canadian who puts faith in their government. What's best for Canada doesn't come from one individual or one point of view, it comes from compromise – doing what's best for Canada rather than what's best for my career or my party. What's best for Canada is a government that works together rather than works apart, compromises, co-operates, respects one another, commits to respect one another, commits to follow the simple rules that we learned back when we knew what was right and what was wrong, when we knew how to get along. What do we have in politicians? Not the morals I want running my country. Christopher McMillan, Calgary

Actually, you are a walnut

Just about fell off my chair reading this!!! :content: Sorry Ms. Hux

People laugh in TDot???...not as much as they should! :content:

Well written Todd and all I wanna do is find myself grooving again to Trey and Phish!