Harper just announced a $100M ‘fund’ for assisting manufacturing in Ontario. How insane is that? Here is the Prime Minister of the country telling everyone that he (and only he) has a handle on the economy and is the best leader for the economy and the country and yet he ‘bombs’ the election with a $100 million pledge to ‘support’ the manufacturing sector in Ontario. So, does that mean the plan is NOT working, Steve?
Or does that mean there never really was a plan? Just ‘wingin’ it, are we?
Or is that pledge just another bald-faced lie? Maybe what he really means is that over the next seven years, his government, if re-elected, will set aside up to and including the sum of $100M for the manufacturing sector but, like all his promises, it will NOT actually be spent. Budgeted for? Yes. Spent? No.
They need to keep it to post false surpluses, silly.
Imagine that you are a worker in a union and contemplating voting to go out on strike for better wages. Just before the union calls the vote, the corporate owner gets up and says, “Look, don’t go out on strike and I will seriously contemplate adding what I can to the wage level. Someday. Maybe.”
Most members would laugh at such audacity. BUT NOW IMAGINE that the owner had said that very thing several times before and never delivered…? What do you suppose the response might be? Should be?
And NOW imagine that the owner follows that up with, “Despite our books being balanced and in the black, we are forced to give the richer shareholders bigger dividends and cut back on your benefits. Sorry about that. Life is tough. In fact, it is so tough that we have to put our pollution in your air and charge you more for water. So, suck it up, guys. Do your part and vote for me.”
I may be over simplifying this but tell me I am wrong………………go ahead…………..make my day.
Our Off the Grid Home 
It’s interesting to watch the election promises unfold.
A billion here. 4 billion there. A coupla hundred million for this, a few million for that…….The endless , expensive “promises” tossed around with about as much concern of the ultimate cost to the Canadian taxpayer as the cost of confetti at a wedding.
NONE of these people running for office give two squeaky farts about balancing the budget or spending within their means…. And if the excess 50 Billion spent so far this fiscal year are any indication , the Conservatives are the worst of the lot so far as “fiscal responsibility” is concerned, regardless of their endless advertisements to the contrary…. I can just hear the director of the Conservative tv commercials,
” Ok everyone, remember to smile when you lie to the camera….”
Unfortunately whom ever becomes Prime Minister after Oct.19….they are playing with OUR money…..
That being said, I for one am not going to lose one nights sleep over voting strategically to kick Harper’s endlessly expanding derrier to the curb.
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I agree, as you know, but, basically, he is just the month-old fish in the fridge. He smells as he lies. Trudeau and Mulcair seem to be just slightly fresher fish, one just past his due date and the other still frozen. Like anyone, I would definitely remove the obviously stinky fish first but I am not looking forward to smelling either of the other two.
Sal hates my stupid analogies but she is not here.
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Remember the comment from Kim Campbell in her short term as Prime Minister about. The economy. Her message of hopelessness filled people with despair. Canadians need hope not political spin.
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The opposite of political spin is TRUTH not hope. The Canadian people need truth from politicians…not much more than that but, perhaps, absolute honesty and service. That would be good. Politicians are at the centre of the vortex – they should KNOW what is true (in our country) and what is not and, like a good reporter, they should deliver that and that alone. OK, good administrative management would also be nice. But let’s be realistic.
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Ah yesss.
The Right Honourable Kim Campbell.
Appointed Prime Minister after Mulroney ran the SS Conservative onto the rocks….
She envisioned herself the “captain” on THAT sinking Conservative scow.
Blaming her loss to “Joe Sixpack’s ignorance” and “voters don’t want the truth”.
Those particular gems of political wisdom from a PHD in Political Science no less.
A book smart egghead with absolutely zero connection to the grubby masses she was trying to appeal to.
Back to the safe theoretical world of teaching in the hallowed halls of Harvard Kim?
Perhaps we should have endorsed her later suggestion to mandate Male AND female candidates for every party for every riding….To hell with the popular vote(which got her the top seat in the party) lets insist on gender equality for every riding no matter how unqualified the person may be…….
And she ran , and lost to …..wait for it…..serial fibber, Hedy( “the crosses are burning in Prince George as I speak”) Fry……another career opportunist candidate if there ever was one.
Kim Campbell.
What an insufferable, gender biased, self important, elitist snob.
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In the world of evasion, equivocation, propaganda, selective evidence and obsfication one will not hear the truth spoken. Remember the quotation, “The truth, you can not handle the truth.” It seems that most Canadians want it filtered to fit their core beliefs thus the dog whistles. It appears that Canadians will have a minority government and that is not a bad thing if the parties find a way to make it work. I hope they do.
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I like minority governments. Keeps the bastards on their toes, makes for compromise and curtails the PMO’s power. All to the good. But WHO will form that? Trudeau and Mulcair do not like one another (and I agree with both of them on that) and they positively loathe Harper (of course) so that only leaves a two-seat party of the Greens and the small Bloc to ‘cooperate’. I can’t imagine Harper compromising with Trudeau or Mulcair, either. Best case scenario: They BLOW Harper out of the game altogether and then one of them forms a coaltion with Green/Bloc. Not likely.
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The Conservatives just might win by a nose perhaps a few seats. No party will have a majority and Harper will claim victory. He will not form a collation so will need to win a non-confidence motion but can not. I think we will be plunged into a new election. Harper is unable to alter his core beliefs. International events will dictate the course of an election to break the deadlock. The coming crisis will centre in Syria and Russia’s refusal to vacate its only Mediterranean navel base in Syria. As war looms the best spin about security will win the election.
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You have a good point. But I hope it is not right.
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Any way you slice it, things are going to be a lot different the day after the election. No matter what any of the 3 opponents have said before that day, there’ll be a different tone afterward. Whether that change is careful or careless, the result will be the same, the end of the current elected dictatorship. Hopefully we’ll regain some democracy, compassion and reason.
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Interesting point of view and likely spot on. I have to admit that I can live with Harper just as easy as Trudeau and/or Mulcair if they were reigned in and bolted down. Well, OK, I might gag more often with Harper and Trudeau but all three prompt the same reflex. But your prediction is optimistic in a way and that’s good. My real problem is that none of them steps out of the mainstream. No leadership. No fresh ideas. No courage. Rotten personalities in different suits but all coming from the same establishment/institution/mindset. Aaaccchh!
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