Dion to step down as leader

[peter12]

Originally Posted by Slava

This thread left me behind when I read this! Who would eve dream that out of the two of us you are the card carrying Liberal!!?

There are lots of liberal-minded people (see, classical liberals, libertarians) that would much more comfortably fit in the (c)onservative wing of the Liberal Party. The problem is, there is no philosophy, no intellectual movement to bring us in, it's all about power and personality. Two HUGE turnoffs.

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

The Liberals are a centre-left party (as opposed to the centre-right CPC and far-left NDP) whose policies can move slightly to either side of the spectrum depending on the leader or issue. Historically, when the Liberals have been in power, they've tended to be more centrist, and when they're in opposition, they've been more left-wing.

Consider, for example, Paul Martin. His fiscal policies were centre-right (balanced/surplus budgets, paying down the debt, lowering corporate taxes, etc.), but his social policies were more on the left side of the spectrum (legalizing gay marriage, decriminizing possession of small amounts of marijuana, etc.)

And that's the thing... You're blaming vote splitting on the left, while arguing that the left wing party(-ies) are a hell of a lot farther away from the Liberals ideologically than the Conservatives are. Simply put, the Liberals arent losing to vote splitting. They've lost support across the board.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Slava

This thread left me behind when I read this! Who would eve dream that out of the two of us you are the card carrying Liberal!!?

Lets just say that I like to keep an open mind. I joined the Liberal party a long time ago, I have donated funds to them, however I wouldn't say I'm active anymore.

I kept my membership active so that I can continue to get platform and policy information from them.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by EddyBeers

Far be it from me to stand up for Dion, but he disclosed his hearing impairment 4 weeks before he blew his CTV interview.

However when he disclosed it, he said it effected him in loud crowds. The CTV interview was in a stone quiet room, and his followups on the question certainly didn't indicate that his confusion was over not hearing the question, it came across as not understanding the question, and those are two different things.

[MarchHare]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

And that's the thing... You're blaming vote splitting on the left, while arguing that the left wing party(-ies) are a hell of a lot farther away from the Liberals ideologically than the Conservatives are. Simply put, the Liberals arent losing to vote splitting. They've lost support across the board.

I'm not blaming vote-splitting for the result at all, but it was certainly an advantage Harper and the CPC had going for them in this election. Dion was a poor leader who ran a horrible campaign, and there is still some remaining dissatisfaction with the Liberals over the Chretien-era scandals. That's why they lost.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

I'm not blaming vote-splitting for the result at all, but it was certainly an advantage Harper and the CPC had going for them in this election. Dion was a poor leader who ran a horrible campaign, and there is still some remaining dissatisfaction with the Liberals over the Chretien-era scandals. That's why they lost.

You can ad to that, the Liberals completely misread the issues that the Voters were interested in, so beyond the horrible leader and the badly organized campaign that never really kicked off the ground. The Libs couldn't explain their policies or what they stood for, then they stole a page from Jake Layton's playbook and started acting like a party that couldn't win and they made blind bluster spending promises, all on the backs of nobody being able to explain or define their key platforms.

The Liberal's seriously need to redefine themselves as a party, plugging in a better leader isn't going to help them, especially if the Conservatives start pork barreling Quebec to break the blocks hold on their voter base.

[old-fart]

Nice presser by Dion. If he wasn't being characterized as a whiney wimp before, that interview will solidify it. Pathetic display, and making a lot of people say "thank god we didn't vote this fool in".

Glad he's staying on for 6 months or so to get punched in the face by Harper. Looking forward to Rae taking over - might be the easiest "target" of them all. Go Rae Go!

[MarchHare]

Originally Posted by old-fart

Nice presser by Dion. If he wasn't being characterized as a whiney wimp before, that interview will solidify it. Pathetic display, and making a lot of people say "thank god we didn't vote this fool in".

Glad he's staying on for 6 months or so to get punched in the face by Harper. Looking forward to Rae taking over - might be the easiest "target" of them all. Go Rae Go!

If Rae becomes Liberal leader, I'll join you guys and (grudgingly) vote Conservative next election.

[GGG]

I'm hoping Ignatief will win. I really want the Conservative Fiscal Policy and the Liberals social policy. The problem with the conservatives is that there are to many of the social conservatives affecting policy. I would say some of the most productive governments have come from fiscally right liberals. Romonow in Saskatchewan, Martin as finance minister for example.

[Rerun]

Bob Rae - 60 year old white guy Lawyer
Frank McKenna - 60 year old white guy Lawyer
Michael Ignatieff - 61 year old white guy University Professor

I think the Liberals should elect someone young who is a 10 on the hotness scale...

such as 34 year old MP Ruby Dhalla... <<< wolf whistle >>>

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Rerun

Bob Rae - 60 year old white guy Lawyer
Frank McKenna - 60 year old white guy Lawyer
Michael Ignatieff - 61 year old white guy University Professor

I think the Liberals should elect someone young who is a 10 on the hotness scale...

such as 34 year old MP Ruby Dhalla... <<< wolf whistle >>>

I disagree with her soft on Bart Simpson Policy.

But I'm completely onboard with her hotness policy, suddenly watching prime minister speeches would be . . . . welll . . ..

I'll be in my bunk

[getbak]

Yes. Canada needs a PMILF.

[Resolute 14]

With her as leader, I might actually vote Liberal...

As long as my local candidate manages to get his flyer to me BEFORE the election.