I didn't blog about any of the leadership races, but did have an opinion.
I think the Liberals got it right, but the NDP could not have got it more wrong.
I'll post on why I like Justin Trudeau later, but first want to explain why I am rejecting Thomas Mulcair and the NDP. (don't get mad until you read it all)
I first got back on the horse, with the idea that there would be a spirit of co-operation between all opposition parties, since the need to get rid of Stephen Harper could not be more urgent.
Then I watched the news coverage of the protests over Harper's Bill C-51, and saw many NDP members carrying signs with Justin Trudeau's image, blaming him for the Bill.
First off, it would have gone through no matter what, and no one wants to be seen as not having concern for the nation's security, especially during an election year. The Liberals fought for amendments that would have removed the worst elements. The NDP waited, saying they hadn't yet made up their minds. Odd, given the Draconian nature of the un-amended document.
I think they waited to see which way public opinion would swing, hoping to gain some leverage.
When it looked like there was enough opposition, they flatly turned it down, even voting against their own amendments. Some pundits see it as a smart political move. I see it as a disaster.
They let Stephen Harper completely off the hook, neutralizing what should have been an important election issue. Now he can shift focus to the economy, something many people believe is his strength. It's not of course, but there's nothing like those taxpayer funded ads, and big fat cheques, to convince Canadians otherwise.
Thomas Mulcair also came out of the gate attacking Elizabeth May. Thems fighting words. You do not attack Elizabeth May unless you are prepared to go a few rounds with me. I was already angry with Mulcair when he went after Libby Davies, because she dared to sympathize with the Palestinians. Then of course there was the caucus revolt against Jack Layton and the whole "pooling" scam.
However, even given his shortfalls, I was still prepared to promote him for prime minister, if he was deemed to have the best shot (not based on polls months before an election).
On my Facebook page, I have many discussions, some of them quite heated, since I have friends from all political stripes; even ones who want to kill me, or at least shut me up.
NDP supporters don't want me to speak ill of Mulcair, constantly saying that we need to work together. ABC and all that. However, what they are really saying is that I should just get behind Thomas Mulcair. Yet, if I bring up the Bill C-51 fiasco, many will immediately start slamming Justin Trudeau's "support" of it.
He's not a wizard and doesn't have a magic wand. If he did, Harper would be sunning himself on Alcatraz Island. Or better yet, on one of the polar drifts, broken away because of global warming.
Bill C-51 is now a distant memory for most Canadians, which is sad because it really is a horrible bit of legislation, though I think much of it will be nullified by the Supreme Court.
When Pierre Trudeau enacted the War Measures Act, in response to the terrorist FLQ kidnappings and murder, many Canadians were appalled. This was nothing short of treason. However, polls of the day either supported Trudeau or had no opinion. History gives it credence.
Despite the attack on Parliament Hill being perpetrated by a mentally ill homeless man with a gun, it gave Harper his false flag war, and an excuse to further erode our civil liberties. I can't tell you how many people I speak to, who still believe that ISIS was behind it.
If Bill C-51 is going to be used as an election issue, Harper will win that debate. Let it go until after the election. There's nothing anyone can do about it now.
From Anger to Hissy Fit to Oh My Gawd!
So here I was, all peeved and throwing darts at my autographed picture of Tom Mulcair (kidding I don't have one), and to relieve some tension I took out my blog. I was just going to publish a couple of silly attack style pieces. That'd fix him. (Like he cared)
But then when I started doing a bit of research, I discovered that almost everything the NDP uses to sell this man to us, is a fabrication. I soon realized that this was not a person of principle, but kind of a buffoon. His entire career was based on advancing his career. No one likes a headline more than Mr. Mulcair.
I started getting a knot in my stomach, not unlike the knot I got in my stomach, when it looked like Stephen Harper was going to win the election in 2006. I want Harper gone too, but I'd like his replacement to be worthy of the job.
With all of this conflicting emotion, I decided to start another blog. One that just challenged some of the things people believe of him, with my usual list of sources. In fact, a lot of what I discovered, could not be made up. It's just too weird.
Justin Trudeau grew up in the public eye. We feel like we know him, and can't deny the accomplishments of his father. But what do we really know of Thomas Mulcair?
I went on the NDP site and notice that they only have about a third of their candidates in place. Are they hoping to create so much hysteria around Mulcair, that they can again push through paper candidates like they did in 2011?
How is that any less undemocratic than the unfair elections act or Harper's gerrymandering? Besides, Mulcair will no doubt self destruct before election time anyway. He always does.
If they were really hoping to use the cult of personality to win, they should have gone with someone like Peggy Nash, who has the creds to back it up. She could have generated some excitement. A woman, strong and smart, with a good union background.
However, when it comes down to it, my politics are in this order:
1. Canada
2. liberal
3. Liberal
4. Green
Canada is first, so in the final days, I will promote and vote for who ever is best to take down Stephen Harper. However, I think that everyone should forget talks of ABC, strategic voting, or heaven forbid, coalitions.
All parties are jockeying for position, and need to focus on what their party has to offer. I visit Facebook pages of my NDP freinds and they are often more about Justin than Steve, so I don't apologize for any partisan rants, though I'm often just messing with people.
We need more political debate in this country. That's how we got into this mess in the first place.
You've just lost me as a reader. I want Harper gone. Period. The only way to do that is with Strategic ABC.
ReplyDeleteYou're doing a great job of dealing with the ad hominem attacks on your other blog! I've tried to have some rational discussions about concerns (Israel support, no wealth tax...) with fellow dippers and am startled by the unsupported vehemence with which he's defended. It's like saying something bad about God. I might still vote NDP, but my allegiance has been wavering for a while now.
ReplyDeleteShouldn't this smear job on Mulcair be accompanied by scary music and an angry black and white picture of him?
ReplyDeleteMulcair was the best enviroment minister Canada has ever had, the only region in North America to drop in carbon usage, was Quebec during his time as Enviroment Minister. He increased the amount of enviromental inspections, while finding savings. He changed the constitution of Quebec to protect the Enviroment. He resigned rather them accept being punished for refusing to give park land to developers.
He's gotten a ban on plastic microbeads. He's the only one who wants to get rid of a corrupt Senate that is unfixible that will block any meaningful enviromental leglistation.
And when Mulcair came out against Bill C-51 it was still very popular, extremely popular, and he still came out against. The war against ISIS is still popular, he's come out against it.
As for the Sattellite Offices the "trial" was done mostly in secret, where the NDP was not allowed to call witnesses or evidence, in an institution that was not designed to be a court.
Secret trials in unaccoubtable illegal "courts", support for bill C-51, this is the sort of thing one expects from Justin Trudeau's idles in the human right's abusing, Totalarian Communist China. The combination frankly makes Trudeau as scary as Harper, and fear for Canada should either one become Prime Minister.
As for defending EMay, our lady of the dumping raw sewage into the Ocean, we know of the backroom alliance between the Greens and the Liberals.
Also Tom Mulcair is the only one with a plan to help the poor, via affordible housing.
Trudeau sat idle during these 4 years, doing NOTHING while everyone else did the real work, in parliament.
Trudeau deserves to be a cashier at McDonalds, no offense intended to cashiers, not Prime Minister.
.. Mainstream Media should be running your observations at least twice weekly.. plus flashing back to your older outstanding articles .. !
ReplyDeleteI think Gyor just proved Marie's point and Indexer, ABC campaigns have not worked in the past. They only allowed Harper to play the victim. There was a strong strategic voting campaign last election, but it started too early, allowing CPC strategists to do their own targeting. I'm going with policy and platform until we get closer to election time.
ReplyDeleteMulcair speaks with forked tongue... Just another career politician, exactly like Harper and Layton, with 0 experience working out in the the real world trying to make ends meet... All three of them made their life's work living off the public purse... Why do Canadians even vote for people like that? Just career politicians who are in it for themselves and never in it for Canada and Canadians... I'll take a real man, with some "real world" work experience, like Justin Trudeau has, over people like Harper and Mul(I don't)cair every time...
ReplyDeleteWill the REAL Thomas Mulcair please stand up?
http://www.macleans.ca/politics/ottawa/the-interview-ndp-leader-tom-mulcair/
As Mulcair and the NDP once again bring up the Harper inspired specter of a "coalition" let Canadians never forget what happened in the 2011 election...
ReplyDeleteIn 2011 The Harper Gov. was brought down because they were CONVICTED (in Parliament) of Corruption and Contempt by the Liberal official opposition supported by the other opposition parties ... An uninformed and apathetic Canadian "general public", driven by a Harper propaganda coerced "media", fully supported by the NDP, totally ignored the real reason the 2011 election came about... Instead Canada's (primarily CON controlled) "media" allowed Harper, again with the NDP's full support, to change the election conversation from Contempt and Corruption, by Harper and his CONS, to talking about a nonexistent "coalition" which most Canadians did not want nor agreed with... As well the Canadian public was duped into voting for the visual of a man campaigning with cancer and a cane who had jumped on board with Harper's propaganda to gain seats in parliament at any cost, especially in Quebec, including catering to Quebec separatists by adopting the entire Bloc Quebecois agenda... As a result the Canadian electorate punished (read rewarded) that behavior by Harper and his gang of CONS with the MAJORITY CON GOVERNMENT Harper craved to carry out the destruction of Canada in every aspect of Canada's well being...
Unfortunately, it would seem that Harper is once again blessed with an NDP, and it's leader, Mulcair, that would rather go after the Liberals and their leader, Justin Trudeau, than ensure the defeat of Harper and his gang of CONS, just as they did in 2011... While Harper and the CONS failed miserably in trying to define Justin Trudeau and the LPC with their Bill C-51, because Justin Trudeau and the LPC were too smart for Harper... Realizing that the greatly over reaching CON Bill C-51 was a "done deal" the day it was tabled, the very politically astute Justin Trudeau, correctly noted, that Canadians are entitled to BOTH the security for Canadians offered in part by Bill C-51 as well as the protections offered by Canada's robust judicial system alongside Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which Justin's father gave to all Canadians... Mulcair on the other hand was more than happy to do what Harper couldn't do with Bill C-51... While Justin Trudeau and the LPC remain committed to making Bill C-51 acceptable via well thought out amendments to the Bill... Amendments that in fact have already made Bill C-51 slightly less onerous than it was when it was first tabled by Harper and the CONS... Mulcair's only concern is with getting seats in Parliament regardless of the cost to Canadians... What Justin Trudeau and the LPC missed in regards to Bill C-51 was that Mulcair and the NDP would be so unscrupulous as to be more concerned with their seats in parliament than doing what is in the best interest of all Canadians, just as it happened in 2011...