Voices for Democracy

Oh the Drama!!!

Posted by Cindy Lee on May 1, 2011 at 1:21 am Accountability, Activism, Democracy, Economic Issues, Hypocrisy 2 Responses »

May 012011

Being a theatre person of some experience I just can’t help but be on the edge of my seat right now. What has come to be clear in Election ’11 (#elxn41 for you tweeters) is that this is OUR Canada, and not Stephen Harpers!! The dips and turns of the plot are something even the most skilled playrwrights must be eyeing with envy. The plot continues to thicken, and – damn the polls – the end surely will be a surprise. Regardless of the outcome on Monday there is something which Canadians must remember – Stephen Harper & the Conservative Party of Canada have been found in Contempt of Parliament, and must be held accountable.

I’ve been having a recurring dream of Harper winning a minority, and when the GG is presents his decision to form a coalition government, Stevie has a temper tantrum with John Baird, and the two of them refuse to play by the rules and stomp and kick and pick mean fights and throw mud and sand. They won’t leave the playground until the big mean principal (GG) hauls them off by the ears and takes them to the Principal’s office to give them a lesson on the rules. Yes, Mr. Harper, there are rules. It is those very rules which protect Canada from unsavoury politicians who hold Canada, Canadians, and our Constitution in contempt. Contempt. CONTEMPT!! (Ahhh… that felt good.) I expect that in reality the ending may be somewhat different than in my dream, but I am sure of this – Steven Harper will NOT have a majority, and may not even have a minority. Won’t that be fun?

I’ve already cast my vote, and it was empowering. In my riding there truly is only one party to vote for to unseat the Harper Conservatives, and I refuse to cast a vote which may put a Con back in Ottawa – any Con, but particularly the Con in my riding. It’s encouraging in my riding to have a fantastic candidate who is brilliant, young, energetic, honest, experienced, and gosh darn it…. people like him. I’m going to take a final kick at the can & observe the count. What fun! I continue to urge voters to vote strategically. That means vote for Linda Duncan in Edmonton Strathcona, and for Elizabeth May in Saanich Gulf Islands (although I would vote for Elizabeth no matter where she was running – she deserves a seat!). If you are in doubt, got to Catch22Campaign.ca and ProjectDemocracy.ca.

It Now Comes Down to the Battle Between Two Little Books

Posted by Emily Dee on April 28, 2011 at 10:46 am Uncategorized 4 Responses »

Apr 282011

The common misconception about Stephen Harper is that he brought Republican style, divisive politics to Canada.

That’s certainly true. His connections to the American Tea Party/Religious Right/Republican movement, are vast and well recorded. But this brand of conservatism originated in Canada when Harper was just a lad, pulling wings off butterflies, or whatever he did to pass the time.

And it started with a battle between two little books, both written by Conservatives, in the same era, but with completely different visions.

Our Canadian, dysfunctional "poli"-amorous family?

Posted by Ted Chartrand on April 27, 2011 at 5:36 pm Uncategorized Comments Off

Apr 272011

The Canadian dysfunctional “poli”-amorous” family

There was a time in Canada, not so long ago, when voting was simple. For the most part, it was a decision between two political heavyweights: the Liberal Party of Canada, or, the Progressive Conservative Party. The former was slightly left of the political centre; the latter slightly right. This seemed to work reasonably well. After all, we are a people of moderation.

These two old parties were akin to normally well-behaved children. Occasionally, one would step out of line and we’d have to send it to the naughty chair; the other enjoying our favour for a period of time. This didn’t leave the good child alone; it could play with a neighbouring child, the NDP, if and when it chose to do so.

But, a couple decades ago, political family life became more complicated. Our Progressive Conservative child suffered a terrible trauma, resulting in multiple personality disorder. Two new personalities emerged: one called itself “The Bloc”; the other “Reform”.

Western Masochism and Redneckerology

Posted by Emily Dee on April 26, 2011 at 1:06 pm Uncategorized Comments Off

Apr 262011

In her 1999 book, Hard Right Turn, Brooke Jeffrey describes a 1993 election debate in the B.C. riding of North Okanagan—Shuswap.

At a town-hall meeting in the riding of Okanagan—Shuswap, a large crowd listens patiently to the speeches of the candidates during the federal election in the fall of 1993. Several of the candidates made lengthy presentations about the platforms of their parties and their positions on the major issues of the day. The Reform candidate, Darrel Stinson, stands up for only a few minutes of his allotted time, looking nervous and out of place.

He tells the crowd everything they need to know is in the Reform “Blue Sheet.” “Read it. If you have any questions, we’ll be happy to answer them.” Then he gives them the telephone number of his campaign office. Twice. During the question-and-answer period that follows, several people ask Stinson about his party’s position on specific issues. “I haven’t looked into that one myself but I know we have a position somewhere here in this,” he says, holding up the “Blue Sheet.” It falls to me, the Liberal candidate, to inform the audience of Reform’s position, quoting from the sheet as a furious Stinson looks on. (1)

Strategic Link-Fest

Posted by Fern Hill on April 26, 2011 at 7:07 am Democracy Comments Off

Apr 262011

During every Canadian election, strategic voting comes up, with people arguing passionately on either side.

Well, things are different this time. Strategic voting has never had the Internet and social media backing that it does now. Canadians are connected as never before and many of them clearly see the threats that a Harper majority represents.

And some people have been working for months to get ready for this.

A member of one such gang, CRUSH, Michele MacKay, has been on it. Continue reading »

What's in a Preposition?

Posted by Emily Dee on April 25, 2011 at 9:00 am Uncategorized Comments Off

Apr 252011

“Look. I’ve got to suck up to Quebec, so just shut up and let me get on with it.” Stephen Harper (Harperland, Lawrence Martin, 2010 P. 82)

James Laxer recently wrote a piece Stephen Harper: Now He’s The Champion of National Unity, in which he questions Harper’s new found love of a united Canada. He invoked memories of Harper’s Reform Party under Preston Manning, who had an Abraham Lincoln complex, hoping to invoke “A House Divided” in his handling of Quebec.

With a recent surge of NDP popularity in Quebec, Laxer believes that anything is possible. I still feel that Gilles Duceppe is pretty popular in this province and doubt that the NDP will capture many more seats, but stranger things have happened. It would be wonderful if a federalist party made inroads into the province. And I believe that this election will not be decided by the polls but at the polls.

Will Stephen Harper Recreate a Constitutional Crisis?

Posted by Emily Dee on April 24, 2011 at 8:12 am Uncategorized 1 Response »

Apr 242011

In 2008, when the opposition attempted to bring down the Harper government on a vote of no-confidence, because he refused to present a budget providing stimulus, it created a constitutional crisis.

Not because what they were doing was wrong, but because Stephen Harper realized that the only way to save his job was to convince the Canadian people, that what they were doing was wrong.

And not just wrong, but dangerous and illegal. A coup d’état. An overthrow.

A Tale of Two Elections

Posted by Emily Dee on April 23, 2011 at 8:17 am Democracy Comments Off

Apr 232011

It was the best of times,
it was the worst of times,
it was the age of wisdom,
it was the age of foolishness,
it was the epoch of belief,
it was the epoch of incredulity,
it was the season of Light,
it was the season of Darkness,
it was the spring of hope,
it was the winter of despair,

This election campaign has been one of the most bizarre on record, with incredible displays of democracy, and just as incredible displays of attacks on democracy.

We’ve witnessed hopefulness with unprecedented engagement, especially of youth, and if the polls are correct (which I severely doubt) an unprecedented display of apathy toward serious charges of Contempt of Parliament.

Quo vadis, Canada?

Posted by Ted Chartrand on April 22, 2011 at 6:59 pm Democracy, Economic Issues, Social Issues 2 Responses »

Apr 222011

At the ripe old age of 58, I can say that I’ve been politically aware for almost a half century. I thank my Dad (God rest his soul) for that. Politics was never far from Dad’s mind and was often a topic of dinner discussion (or should I say indoctrination). A quebecois, he was Liberal red through and through – a great admirer of Louis St-Laurent – despised John Diefenbaker – totally devoted to Lester Pearson – tolerated Pierre Trudeau (he was just too slick, don’t you know – but, he was a Liberal). He respected Robert Stanfield and Joe Clark; they were honourable men (even though Conservatives). You get the picture? He never referred to Diefenbaker by name – it was always “the British bulldog”. I could relate to that – those wobbly Diefenbaker jowls and all and that ear-grating Anglo accent as he bellowed “Mes chers canadiens et canadiennes”. So one day while watching Lester Pearson on tv, the vision “Porky Pig” jumped into my little mind – I think I was 11 at the time – and I shared that vision “Hey, Dad, he sounds just like Porky Pig”. Ooops!! That was a mistake. I got a stern dressing down for being disrespectful to our Prime Minister. Oh well.

While walking down this memory lane, I’ve had to think about what we’ve accomplished as a people, as a nation, over these past 50 years – where we were then and where we are now and what got us from there to here. What are the demarcation points and “eras” that shaped our society and what inspired us to move along the path?

To my mind, there are five eras roughly broken down into the five decades from the 60′s to present. The eras coincide with government headed by “Pearson”, “Trudeau”, “Mulroney”, “Chretien” and “Harper” eras. Clark, Turner, Campbell and Martin I view as inter-regna.

Older Entries

Suffusion theme by Sayontan Sinha

Voices for Democracy

Oh the Drama!!!

It Now Comes Down to the Battle Between Two Little Books

Our Canadian, dysfunctional "poli"-amorous family?

Western Masochism and Redneckerology

Strategic Link-Fest

What's in a Preposition?

Will Stephen Harper Recreate a Constitutional Crisis?

A Tale of Two Elections

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