Federal Election Called for Oct 19, 2015

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by JohnnyB

Posts this about a young woman running to become an MP who tweeted nasty insults as a teenager.


Thanks this post about the Duffy scandal and obvious public deception in the PMO.


OMG. WTF?

The Duffy scandal has caused every single reporter in the country to lose their minds and ask the same question over and over and over for the last year and especially the last month. It's embarrassing to watch. It's an on going investigation so no one is going to be able to answer any questions anyway but reporters can't stop doing the same thing and expecting a different result. They just want to make sure everybody thinks this is a big deal and a terrible signal that everything the government does is crooked as a barrel of snakes. So in relative terms, the Duffy thing is way over blown and way out of proportion.

As of today, there is one person who can reasonably expect to get a vote in my riding and that is absolutely by design. No one wants to waste time or money on us rubes who are just going to vote like a herd of donkeys anyway. So we get a party who puts roughly thirty seconds of thought into their offering to us. I know which one I'm more insulted by. You're more than welcome to tilt at whatever windmill you like.

[Swift]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

The Duffy scandal has caused every single reporter in the country to lose their minds and ask the same question over and over and over for the last year and especially the last month. It's embarrassing to watch. It's an on going investigation so no one is going to be able to answer any questions anyway but reporters can't stop doing the same thing and expecting a different result. They just want to make sure everybody thinks this is a big deal and a terrible signal that everything the government does is crooked as a barrel of snakes. So in relative terms, the Duffy thing is way over blown and way out of proportion.

You know why though? Harper severely limited his availability to the media over the past couple of years. Now that he's campaigning, reporters actually have access to him, and of course they're going to hammer him with questions about the Duffy affair while they can.

Honestly, I'm blown away that anybody in the Conservative camp thought it was a good idea to have the election this early, and have Harper in front of reporters all the while knowing this was bound to happen this month. If he'd called the election later, he would've avoided all of these nasty, mean questions.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by Cameron Swift

Honestly, I'm blown away that anybody in the Conservative camp thought it was a good idea to have the election this early, and have Harper in front of reporters all the while knowing this was bound to happen this month. If he'd called the election later, he would've avoided all of these nasty, mean questions.

Or earlier. If this election had happened in April, the Conservatives likely would've cruised to another majority.

[JohnnyB]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

The Duffy scandal has caused every single reporter in the country to lose their minds and ask the same question over and over and over for the last year and especially the last month. It's embarrassing to watch. It's an on going investigation so no one is going to be able to answer any questions anyway but reporters can't stop doing the same thing and expecting a different result. They just want to make sure everybody thinks this is a big deal and a terrible signal that everything the government does is crooked as a barrel of snakes. So in relative terms, the Duffy thing is way over blown and way out of proportion.

As of today, there is one person who can reasonably expect to get a vote in my riding and that is absolutely by design. No one wants to waste time or money on us rubes who are just going to vote like a herd of donkeys anyway. So we get a party who puts roughly thirty seconds of thought into their offering to us. I know which one I'm more insulted by. You're more than welcome to tilt at whatever windmill you like.

Having a free press that is pressing an issue with the incumbent party is not something I have a problem with. I would much rather have them filling that role than otherwise. We don't have that where I live. It's convenient for the government, but is not good for public political discourse. I would rather the thread they found keep being pulled to see how far it runs than the press just relax.

As for the candidates in your riding, I'm sure you're right that no party wants to invest really heavily in ridings where they don't think that investment is going to pay off. I imagine that's not a partisan issue and there will be ridings across the country where there are lesser quality candidates from each of the parties. I imagine there are also good candidates running in places where they don't stand such a great chance.

You and I will have to respectfully disagree about whose views are more quixotic here.

[John Doe]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

The Duffy scandal has caused every single reporter in the country to lose their minds and ask the same question over and over and over for the last year and especially the last month. It's embarrassing to watch. It's an on going investigation so no one is going to be able to answer any questions anyway but reporters can't stop doing the same thing and expecting a different result....

Maybe if he actually answered their questions they would ask new ones and it wouldn't be so embarrassing for you. The questions have nothing to do with the actual case against Duffy and everything to do with who from the PMO knew what was going on with regards to the payment, so hiding behind the "ongoing investigation" card is at best disingenuous. Unless, of course, Harper expects to get charged.

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by JohnnyB

Having a free press that is pressing an issue with the incumbent party is not something I have a problem with. I would much rather have them filling that role than otherwise. We don't have that where I live. It's convenient for the government, but is not good for public political discourse. I would rather the thread they found keep being pulled to see how far it runs than the press just relax.

As for the candidates in your riding, I'm sure you're right that no party wants to invest really heavily in ridings where they don't think that investment is going to pay off. I imagine that's not a partisan issue and there will be ridings across the country where there are lesser quality candidates from each of the parties. I imagine there are also good candidates running in places where they don't stand such a great chance.

You and I will have to respectfully disagree about whose views are more quixotic here.

For sure having a free press is important but this issue is getting way over killed in the media. The proportion of coverage is overwhelming and obvious.

And yes, I'm sure all parties stack the deck in their favour and f' over certain ridings in the process. All parties also lie, cheat and steal. So if we don't need to talk about my idiot liberal candidate, what are we even talking about Duffy for?

Originally Posted by John Doe

Maybe if he actually answered their questions they would ask new ones and it wouldn't be so embarrassing for you. The questions have nothing to do with the actual case against Duffy and everything to do with who from the PMO knew what was going on with regards to the payment, so hiding behind the "ongoing investigation" card is at best disingenuous. Unless, of course, Harper expects to get charged.

The questions about Novak? The guy whose name is front and center at the trial? Those questions have nothing to do with the Duffy criminal trial?

Also, I think you're confusing not answering a question with not getting the answer you want. The whole media frenzy centers around "Harper was buddies with Wright and now Novak and they both knew so therefore Harper must have known". The answer you're getting is pretty standard "Duffy and Wright are the ones who did this. That's all I know". Expecting a different out come is kinda nuts.

[edslunch]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

For sure having a free press is important but this issue is getting way over killed in the media. The proportion of coverage is overwhelming and obvious.

And yes, I'm sure all parties stack the deck in their favour and f' over certain ridings in the process. All parties also lie, cheat and steal. So if we don't need to talk about my idiot liberal candidate, what are we even talking about Duffy for?



The questions about Novak? The guy whose name is front and center at the trial? Those questions have nothing to do with the Duffy criminal trial?

Also, I think you're confusing not answering a question with not getting the answer you want. The whole media frenzy centers around "Harper was buddies with Wright and now Novak and they both knew so therefore Harper must have known". The answer you're getting is pretty standard "Duffy and Wright are the ones who did this. That's all I know". Expecting a different out come is kinda nuts.

Harper has been pretty hostile to the media over the years. This is an opportunity for payback and they smell blood. Personally I'm enjoying it

[edslunch]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

It also has to do with Harper's reputation for having a very tight grip on both the party and the PMO. For someone with a perception of wanting to be in control, it becomes hard to believe when he says he knew absolutely nothing.

They say the attack ads on Trudeau work because there's an element of truth. Same applies here - this issue wouldn't stop conic it didn't fit so well with Harper's perceived MO

[Slava]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

For sure having a free press is important but this issue is getting way over killed in the media. The proportion of coverage is overwhelming and obvious.

And yes, I'm sure all parties stack the deck in their favour and f' over certain ridings in the process. All parties also lie, cheat and steal. So if we don't need to talk about my idiot liberal candidate, what are we even talking about Duffy for?



The questions about Novak? The guy whose name is front and center at the trial? Those questions have nothing to do with the Duffy criminal trial?

Also, I think you're confusing not answering a question with not getting the answer you want. The whole media frenzy centers around "Harper was buddies with Wright and now Novak and they both knew so therefore Harper must have known". The answer you're getting is pretty standard "Duffy and Wright are the ones who did this. That's all I know". Expecting a different out come is kinda nuts.

I think that you're unwilling to draw the obvious link here. Its not just that Wright and Novak are Harpers buddies. Wright was the Chief of Staff at the time and Novak is today. Semingly everyone in the PMO knew what was going on, and the only one out of the loop was the PM. Weird how that would work, eh?

[GullFoss]

The conservatives are cynical and are going the wrong way on a lot of issues including income inequality and carbon change. Meanwhile the ndp policy is a joke and would be awful for so many in western canada.


So, the more i think about this election the more i think the conservatives are right. This elwction boils down to one simpe question: Is justin ready?

If hes not..you take the devil you know in harper. If he is, the the liberals have the best policies and the best attitude. Im on the fence for whom i want to win, but will be voting for kent hehr because crockett has been a poor representative.

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by Nuje

Yeah. If anyone views this as a non-issue, that's sad.

Private money to pay back stolen public funds. It wasn't done for good will. It was done because they got caught, and wanted to say "it's paid back, leave us alone" in an obvious attempt to sweep it under the rug. Any talk of firing people over it? No. Any talk of implementing measures to uncover all abuse and prevent future instances? No. How is that piss-poor an idea of accountability acceptable?

For only that reason it's newsworthy.
When the Liberals stole 5 million in the sponsorship scandal, none was repayed.
It's about time accountability also meand being required to be pay it back, though 90k is pale in comparison.
It did help put the Conservatives in power though, as it was a big deal in the 96 election.

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by Slava

I think that you're unwilling to draw the obvious link here. Its not just that Wright and Novak are Harpers buddies. Wright was the Chief of Staff at the time and Novak is today. Semingly everyone in the PMO knew what was going on, and the only one out of the loop was the PM. Weird how that would work, eh?

Oh no no no. Big mistake. I'm unwilling to care even slightly. I'm unwilling to assume things I can't know. I'm unwilling to be enraged about 90k, or to assume that 90k automatically equals untold millions in squander and scandal as the NDP would have you believe. I'm sort of more interested in what I can expect from the next guys in charge.

[John Doe]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

The questions about Novak? The guy whose name is front and center at the trial? Those questions have nothing to do with the Duffy criminal trial?

Also, I think you're confusing not answering a question with not getting the answer you want. The whole media frenzy centers around "Harper was buddies with Wright and now Novak and they both knew so therefore Harper must have known". The answer you're getting is pretty standard "Duffy and Wright are the ones who did this. That's all I know". Expecting a different out come is kinda nuts.

The questions about Novak are about Harper having trust in him. What does that have to do with Duffy?

And I think that you are confusing responding to a question with answering a question. There is a difference. If you answer a question, you actually talk about what was asked. Talking points are not usually answers.

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by John Doe

The questions about Novak are about Harper having trust in him. What does that have to do with Duffy?

And I think that you are confusing responding to a question with answering a question. There is a difference. If you answer a question, you actually talk about what was asked. Talking points are not usually answers.

He's answered that question like a hundred times. I just heard him on ctv answering that exact question. The standard answer he gives is that he trusts everyone who works for him. Novak works for him...ergo? Now you're just not listening. "Meeting adjourned".

http://www.insidehalton.com/news-sto...l-intensifies/

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by John Doe

The questions about Novak are about Harper having trust in him. What does that have to do with Duffy?

And I think that you are confusing responding to a question with answering a question. There is a difference. If you answer a question, you actually talk about what was asked. Talking points are not usually answers.

You mean talking points, like Mulcair's response to questions about his comments made, when he was a liberal, and whether he still believed government should get out of the way of Business, where his response was not an answer in any way, shape or form.
Is that what you mean by talking points?

[Weitz]

Just watched the opening of the National. The silliness of this trial continues.

[John Doe]

Originally Posted by EldrickOnIce

You mean talking points, like Mulcair's response to questions about his comments made, when he was a liberal, and whether he still believed government should get out of the way of Business, where his response was not an answer in any way, shape or form.
Is that what you mean by talking points?

Yes, that is exactly what I mean.

[John Doe]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

He's answered that question like a hundred times. I just heard him on ctv answering that exact question. The standard answer he gives is that he trusts everyone who works for him. Novak works for him...ergo? Now you're just not listening. "Meeting adjourned".

http://www.insidehalton.com/news-sto...l-intensifies/

The answer he gave yesterday about trusting everyone who works for him is a new one. Previously his stock answers were "I don't accept the premise" (without explaining what part of the question he didn't accept or why when asked) or that "the two people responsible are Wright and Duffy blah, blah, blah..."

Harper is claiming that nobody in his office besides Wright knew about the payment and claims to have held everyone responsible to account. We now know that Novak did in fact know right from the beginning, and furthermore, from a statement by Kory Teneyke, that it would be "unfathonable" to believe that if Novak knew he didn't tell Harper. So either Novac knew and told Harper or he knew and didn't tell Harper. In the former case, Harper is lying when he says that he didn't know. In the latter case, Novac let Harper stand in front of parliament and the media and say things that were false. The media has been asking questions about the latter case, and Harpers answers have nothing to do with these questions.

[Red Slinger]

Originally Posted by Weitz

Just watched the opening of the National. The silliness of this trial continues.

The trial itself might be silly and the actual damage done by Duffy and the gang relatively inconsequential. However, the foundation of western democracy (IMO) is an ethical, accountable government.

When you look around the world, one of the factors that distinguishes Canada from a 2nd or 3rd world country is the level of corruption in government. Corruption in government is a very slippery slope. If the ethics of our government aren't consistently, thoroughly, dogmatically, relentlessly monitored and enforced it's a short trip to (for example) an American-style government, which is a short trip to an Italian-style government, which is a short trip to a Morrocan-style government, etc., etc. I'm not suggesting that Canada is in any imminent danger of becoming, like say, Somalia but it's very easy to lose what we value one tiny, incremental, almost unnoticable step at a time.

While is may seem silly, vigilance is paramount even if it seems over the top sometimes.

[Fuzz]

The official Conservative party line on this a few days ago was
"A spokesman for the Conservatives maintains Novak did not open his email and that he was pulled away from a conference call on the matter."

Now, ignoring the ridiculousness of not opening an email from either the Chief of Staff or the PMO Lawyer regarding an ongoing back-and-forth we now know for a fact form Perrin's testimony that Novak was in the call the whole time. So either Novak lied to whoever at the that CPC made this statement, or they tried to cover this up. If Novak lied, get rid of him. If the CPC is lying to us, we need to get rid of them.

It's a consistent pattern here. Lie, get busted, make another lie. Frankly, I care a lot less about Duffy than I do Harper and the CPC continuing this charade that only 2 people knew about this. I do not take kindly to being lied to, least of all by the PM. It's a big deal because we can't trust him. You want someone running the country who not only had knowledge of bribery in his office, but has consistently lied to us about it?