Federal Election Called for Oct 19, 2015

[killer_carlson]

Originally Posted by evman150

We have way more to worry about from right wing fear and ignorance-driven governments than we do from IS.

um....

No.

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by flamesfan6

stuff

The point is, the whole thing is a load of crap...none of it really based in anything but rhetoric...it was so thick in propaganda and deprecation that it might as well have been a paid for ad by the left....and its in a daily paper in the largest city in Canada instead.

Ridiculous.

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by evman150

We have way more to worry about from right wing fear and ignorance-driven governments than we do from IS.

Speaking of thick....wow.

[flamesfan6]

Originally Posted by transplant99

The point is, the whole thing is a load of crap...none of it really based in anything but rhetoric...it was so thick in propaganda and deprecation that it might as well have been a paid for ad by the left....and its in a daily paper in the largest city in Canada instead.

Ridiculous.

tell me what's inaccurate about it? seriously.. tell me honestly that harper isn't playing the fear card this election? and we should be concerned about global warming..

In 2 replies to your post, you haven't said anything other than it's "propaganda", which it is not. You haven't actually said any fact behind your opinion that it's inaccurate.

[JohnnyB]

I sympathise with concerns the author of that article has over disregard for climate change, curtailing of civil liberties and the political rhetoric of fear, but it's a pretty sensationalist article.

Still, the pigeonholing rhetoric of 'lefties vs. righties' is just as damaging to political discourse.

[evman150]

Originally Posted by killer_carlson

um....

No.

Nice to see you're all buying in! - you and the acolytes thanking this post.

No wonder we have the government we do. Independent thinking is obviously not a strong suit of some Tory voters.

In the long run, IS is bordering on meaningless. Governments which wantonly erode our democracy, on the other hand, do meaningful damage.

For example - the removal of the long-form census, in itself, does more harm to Canada than IS will ever do.

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by evman150

Nice to see you're all buying in! - you and the acolytes thanking this post.

No wonder we have the government we do. Independent thinking is obviously not a strong suit of some Tory voters.

We have the government we do because the last bunch of thieving lunatics were horrible #######s too. Do you see a theme starting to emerge? Or are you sure the next crew you elect is going to be different?

[Mr.Coffee]

I would agree that Isis does not represent a realistic threat to our country. Maybe the odd issue or two, but not a threat to the country's security. Fareed Zakaria did a special on Isis and he nailed it essentially saying the threat is not realistic because they a) aren't that big b) are too radical in their lifestyles to sway the masses in the bigger picture Middle East c) are bleeding money because oil was a primary source of revenue until it got slammed d) if the world really wanted to would squash them in a second and e) if they really were so strong and mighty etc they wouldn't need to do the mass propaganda machine they've invented because people would naturally move their direction. There is nowhere to go now for Isis.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

#### it.

This thread has become useless for anyone wanting to talk about this election campaign or understand platform / party positions. It took less than two weeks.

To those of you campaigning in here, you are an example of what is wrong with this entire process.

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

Relevance isn't the issue and I'm more bitterly annoyed than angry. There just is no conversation or honest curiosity or inquiry available here, or where it is it needs to be searched for amongst pages of self-serving crap.

I recognize that this thread does not exist to serve my purposes nor are people here required to post about this topic in the manner that I would find most useful or enlightening, much less most interesting. But I'm just venting my frustration with it all.

I mean, in fairness, it's not just this thread. This is really just symptomatic of the reasons I have completely lost... I was going to say "lost interest in participating in this process", but that's not quite right: it's more like I've lost the will. It's not just boring. It's demoralizing.

I'm sure someone will now make a smarmy sarcastic post about how no one particularly cares, so whoever wants to grab that low-hanging fruit, give yourself a pat on the back.

Honestly, the worst part of this thread has been you stopping in to bitch about it every few pages. Beyond that, you've contributed absolutely nothing. If this site bothers you so much, why didn't you just stay away after they banned your last account?

[JohnnyB]

Some comparison on Canada's 2030 carbon emissions goals with similar economies, from an article in the BBC. The article is focused on Australia's goals, but points out how Canada is lagging even more.

Figures from the Australian think tank, the Climate Institute show that Mr Abbott's new plan will cut emissions by 20% of 1990 levels by 2030. The US on the same basis will cut by 32%, the EU by 40% - and the UK will have reduced carbon dioxide by 66%.

The only countries to do less than Australia in this analysis, are Canada and New Zealand.

[Daradon]

Originally Posted by evman150

We have way more to worry about from right wing fear and ignorance-driven governments than we do from IS.

A controversial statement, but not untrue. We have had what, two attacks and two deaths based on religious propaganda from this region? Meanwhile millions of lives, their freedom and health, are contingent on our government. One that is going down an increasingly authoritarian slant, circumventing freedoms and balances of power, fudging election protocols, ignoring/fighting science, and generally selling out the poor in favor of the rich.

It's not even a contest. And should you argue that that same government is keeping us safe from those ISIS threats, and that's why it's not worse, well, your just not paying attention. The whole spy regime of the US (which is where we get our information) has not uncovered one real threat on their own. Threats will be stopped, as they always have been, by vigilant local services and good citizens. There is no big brother saving us here. But he is taking our freedoms.

[CroFlames]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Some of this stuff (although well known by many) is just appalling behaviour in a so-called democracy.



If you removed all the references to Canada and Harper from the article, would any of the CPC supporters on here think the article was talking about an open and fair democracy? I think that's what's most frustrating about hearing the "Yeah, but oil! Ma jerb!" or the "Well I benefit from UCCB and income-splitting" stuff. We seem to be perfectly okay to sacrifice real, fundamental, democratic principles in exchange for minor economic benefits or the fear of hypothetical economic consequences. You're selling your democracy for pennies on the dollar, IMO.

I'll also admit that my opinion is probably skewed by not having any kids or owning home.

I think the prime function of the government is to make sure the economy can function properly, and fairly. Therefore, ma jerb is my primary concern when I'm voting. I'd rather vote for a party that will keep ma jerb stable, rather than a party that would extinguish it through policies.

All the other stuff is secondary, but still important.

If Harper can keep the Canadian economy functioning during global recession (which they did), I don't care that he looks like a lizard when he smiles. He gets my vote.

[Senator Clay Davis]

ISIS is about as much a threat to Canadians as El Chapo is. It's fun to act like ISIS is going to prop up in Canada and begin mass beheadings if we don't go all out with security and defense, but that's just being paranoid as ####. ISIS is a significant threat to people in Iraq and Syria; they are a boogeyman threat to North Americans. ISIS is putting all their resources into simply keeping the territory they have, and unlike Al Qaeda, they are more concerned about taking over the Middle East than attacking the West. They are a terrible and disgusting group, but the direct threat they present to Canadians is basically nil.

[CroFlames]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

I would agree that Isis does not represent a realistic threat to our country. Maybe the odd issue or two, but not a threat to the country's security. Fareed Zakaria did a special on Isis and he nailed it essentially saying the threat is not realistic because they a) aren't that big b) are too radical in their lifestyles to sway the masses in the bigger picture Middle East c) are bleeding money because oil was a primary source of revenue until it got slammed d) if the world really wanted to would squash them in a second and e) if they really were so strong and mighty etc they wouldn't need to do the mass propaganda machine they've invented because people would naturally move their direction. There is nowhere to go now for Isis.

The threat is real, although it's not on a scale some would argue. It's small scale in terms of national security. The shooting of Nathan Cirillo is not insignificant. However, if there is a group crazy enough to carry out a subway bombing in Toronto, or other mass murder scheme, it would be them.

The real problem is what they are doing to the innocent native populations and/or visiting westerners. It's my view that something needs to be done to protect those people who can't protect themselves. Canada and the West's considerable military might as well as diplomatic power should be used to protect the people there from radicals. I'm not exactly sure how this is done, but something should be done.

It's hard to sell to the Canadian public that we are sending troops/material over to protect others instead of ourselves, so they build it up to make it seem like they are protecting Canadians from a huge threat. Everything is politicized.

[Regorium]

I don't like the political aspects of what ISIS means to Canadians. I'd agree that on a personal level, I think that ISIS will never affect Canadians.

However, I still support Canada in taking a stand against ISIS. Not out of fear, but out of a moral obligation to help those in need, and I prefer that my PM takes this strong stance. I agree that fear-mongering about safety of Canadians is over-the-top rhetoric, but I would prefer a PM that will support some sort of action against this group of horrible people.

[JohnnyB]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I think the prime function of the government is to make sure the economy can function properly, and fairly. Therefore, ma jerb is my primary concern when I'm voting. I'd rather vote for a party that will keep ma jerb stable, rather than a party that would extinguish it through policies.

All the other stuff is secondary, but still important.

If Harper can keep the Canadian economy functioning during global recession (which they did), I don't care that he looks like a lizard when he smiles. He gets my vote.

Harper's government is not responsible for Canada's regulatory systems that prevented the Canadian economy from being caught out as badly as others during the financial crisis.

Just as the global financial crisis was developing from before the conservatives got into to power, Canada's regulatory processes that prevented the same problem from getting so bad in Canada also predated the conservative government.

Like other governments, the conservatives were caught off guard and surprised by the financial crisis. Canada's survival was not based on anything they did in the short time they had a government before the crash. Nor was Canada's survival based on some rapid and clever response. The resiliency of Canada's regulatory system saved the conservative government in the same way it saved everyone in the country.

Edit: Actually, to emphasise how it was not their fiscal policy that was responsible for Canada's stability during that crash, it's worth pointing out that the conservatives were actually proponents of financial liberalisation.

[MelBridgeman]

Originally Posted by JohnnyB

Harper's government is not responsible for Canada's regulatory systems that prevented the Canadian economy from being caught out as badly as others during the financial crisis.

Just as the global financial crisis was developing from before the conservatives got into to power, Canada's regulatory processes that prevented the same problem from getting so bad in Canada also predated the conservative government.

Like other governments, the conservatives were caught off guard and surprised by the financial crisis. Canada's survival was not based on anything they did in the short time they had a government before the crash. Nor was Canada's survival based on some rapid and clever response. The resiliency of Canada's regulatory system saved the conservative government in the same way it saved everyone in the country.

Edit: Actually, to emphasise how it was not their fiscal policy that was responsible for Canada's stability during that crash, it's worth pointing out that the conservatives were actually proponents of financial liberalisation.

This is true, yet the conservatives did nothing, if they had liberalized it things could of been worse, so still some credit there.

[The Fonz]

Could anyone tell me why the Liberals are opposed to the Northern Gateway pipeline? Harper's antics are pushing me towards the Liberals, but I take issue with their opposition to this. Perhaps I don't understand it.

[Ashartus]

Originally Posted by The Fonz

Could anyone tell me why the Liberals are opposed to the Northern Gateway pipeline? Harper's antics are pushing me towards the Liberals, but I take issue with their opposition to this. Perhaps I don't understand it.

At least on paper, based on much higher potential environmental effects than other pipelines. Probably also in part based on votes - people in BC are pretty against it and they have a lot more potential to win votes in BC than Alberta.

Realistically I think Northern Gateway is pretty much dead without major changes so it's not a big election issue for me.

[CroFlames]

I wonder if anti-pipeline people know that a pipeline already exists from Edmonton to Vancouver.

http://www.kindermorgan.com/content/...untain_Map.pdf