"Harper Government" found in contempt of parliament for third time in one year - Page 3 - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

Tinordi · 03-10-2011, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by octothorp

I watched CTV and Global last night and both made a pretty big deal of it. Are they Liberal cheerleaders as well?

My simple minded partisan brain cannot compute. You mean I cannot just vilify opinions contrary to the party that I blindly support?

Slava · 03-10-2011, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by octothorp

I watched CTV and Global last night and both made a pretty big deal of it. Are they Liberal cheerleaders as well?

You know how this goes. There are Harper apologists everywhere here, and they will always put that last line of defence that "The Liberals did this first" or when times are really tough "The NEP..." rather than admit that the CPC has shown disdain for parliament and its processes through the last five years.

Have they done some good things? Absolutely. Have they made some excellent decisions? Clearly? But have they been accountable and transparent? Absolutely not. In fact they are probably the least transparent and accountable of any government in decades.

peter12 · 03-10-2011, 11:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubecube

Oh, well then allow me to suggest a good introductory textbook for you:
The Power of Critical Thinking by Lewis Vaughn and Chris McDonald.

Critical thinking is a grade school myth.

rubecube · 03-10-2011, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peter12

Critical thinking is a grade school myth.

Phew. Good thing it's not used in legal or political proceedings then.

peter12 · 03-10-2011, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubecube

Phew. Good thing it's not used in legal or political proceedings then.

Maybe legal proceedings, definitely not political proceedings.

Anyway, no one answered my primary assertion that this was an institutional problem exacerbated by a minority government. You guys...

TylerSVT · 03-10-2011, 01:14 PM

Id love a Conservative Majority... Minorities are such a piss off. Harper has done a damn good job during the recession of keeping Canada going strong.

Liberals are in a frantic mess, NDP has a leader who is waning, Bloc hate Canada..... Pretty much the only party that makes any sense is the Conservative party.

I like Harper though, im sick of the elections we have every 2 years... when was the last time a prime minister had a real 4 year term without an election in between?

WilsonFourTwo · 03-10-2011, 02:21 PM

nm. Really, i just don't care anymore.....lol

Parallex · 03-10-2011, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by killer_carlson

I know it sounds great to have all these social programs, but someone is going to have to pay for it. That someone is largely Alberta and Calgary in particular.

Okey. If that's how you feel I heartly recommend that you vote out the guys currently in office who are indulging in a spending orgy that would make a drunken sailor blush, refuse to release cost estimates (one of the things they were cited for contempt for), and according to the budget office publically under-estimate the long-term cost of numerous program/purchases/deficit numbers.

It's sad, the one thing that I'm conservative (small c) about (Deficit Spending) and the Tories can't even do that right.

northcrunk · 03-10-2011, 03:04 PM

Has anyone who considers themselves a "harper fan" actually been watch parliament on a daily basis for the last 2 years?

Boblobla · 03-10-2011, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by northcrunk

Has anyone who considers themselves a "harper fan" actually been watch parliament on a daily basis for the last 2 years?

I would rather pull out my toenails with a pair of rusty pliers than sit through a parliamentary session.

northcrunk · 03-10-2011, 03:27 PM

yeah it can be painful sometimes but I think it is very important to watch what our political leaders are doing instead of relying on talking points and political partisan advertising to know whats going on in Ottawa.

Devils'Advocate · 03-10-2011, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NBC

Hardly a shining beacon of unbiased, journalistic integrity.

But I digress...

My point was that you seem dismayed that there is a very partisan political climate in Canada approaching that of the U.S., and then call Mr. Layton "Taliban Jack" for his past suggestion that we negotiate with the Taliban (which my link shows that the U.S. is considering now). Why would you participate in the same acrimony that you seem to be disheartened by?

NBC · 03-10-2011, 04:38 PM

Because it is probably the funniest political "nickname" I've heard.

And just because a random internet link tries to pass something off as fact, it does not always make it so.

Resolute 14 · 03-10-2011, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SebC

fyp

To me, a good coalition is one that includes a solid block of the political spectrum. (E.g. Liberal-NDP and no Conservatives is okay, Conservative-NDP with no Liberals is not okay.) Ignoring the shenanigans caused by first past the post, one logical result of this is that the median voter is included. Of course, in Canada, things are complicated a bit the Bloq, as I'm not sure where "destroy Canada" falls on the political spectrum.

Why don't you just be straightforward and admit that the only government you think is "okay" is one ruled by the Liberals?

Devils'Advocate · 03-10-2011, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NBC

Because it is probably the funniest political "nickname" I've heard.

Ah, partisanship is just fine so long as it suits your fancy. I see.

Resolute: You have voted federally for something outside of Conservative and Reform?

Resolute 14 · 03-10-2011, 05:08 PM

Nope, and as none of the other parties have even attempted to court my vote, that should not be unexpected. It is also beside the point as I was discussint SebC's comical argument that he wants a coalition that represents a "solid block of the political spectrum", but one that represents the right, centre and left is not good enough, apparently. Only one that represents the centre and left.

Parallex · 03-10-2011, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

Why don't you just be straightforward and admit that the only government you think is "okay" is one ruled by the Liberals?

Because that wasn't what he said at all? He basically just said that he thinks a good coalition would be one where the partners logically sit next to each other on the idealogical spectrum. Nor did he make claim to which should be the primary partner.

SebC · 03-10-2011, 05:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by burn_this_city

Judging by this post so long as the PM is a Liberal its good.

That's not accurate. A Conservative-Liberal coalition would work too.

burn_this_city · 03-10-2011, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by octothorp

I watched CTV and Global last night and both made a pretty big deal of it. Are they Liberal cheerleaders as well?

I wasnt referring to the news agency, just the comment section at the bottom of the articles.

Tinordi · 03-10-2011, 05:27 PM

Why are we fixated on right, center and left. Reducing parties down to the simplest of the simple of labels is a problem.

Here's what I see, a government that is totally opaque and unwilling to work within parliamentary rules and procedures. A government that is basically in a 24/7 continuous campaign mode. I think it's a big problem.

Do I think the Liberals or NDP are much better? I don't know but I think it's hard to be worse. I don't see real policy from this government, I see policy as a means to score cheap points (tough on crime), I don't see any vision for this country. I especially don't see any type of progressive economic or international policy that will position Canada in the next 30 years. Our big economic bet is to hope that oil development caries us through, even when there are big risks to that, not specifically that the world may just move on from oil and that climate change is actually a really big problem. Internationally, we're a nobody, and not positioned to really go out and develop the business and trade ties that can help us with an alternate economic vision. We have no partners outside of the U.S. We have no other solid leads. The one area that was our big advantage, immigration, we're now eroding by making it more difficult to get in. Where's the vision? Where's the progress?

We stayed afloat during this recession thanks almost entirely to the financial and fiscal framework developed by the Liberals of all people. I'm not holding that against the Conservatives but staying afloat is not something I want to keep doing, I want to see another step in that agenda. What the Conservatives have done is basically become the Liberals, with budgets that look identical to them. Well sure, but to say then that somehow the Conservatives are better fiscal managers because they copied from another party is just bewildering.

I see a guy who is doing whatever it takes to prop himself up and pin down the other guys. I don't want a wrestling ring for parliament, I want an actual government.

rant over