Canadian Government Falls on No-Confidence

[daigong]

Canada's minority Liberal government fell Monday night with an expected vote of no-confidence in the House of Commons. Fuck. Nothing like campaign morons bothering u. Well, let em freeze their nuts off.

Well. Who ya gonna vote? I'd go for Communist but Marijuana comes a close second.  

[Happosai]

bah... there isn't a "Communist Marijuana" option... BUUUUU!!!

[ctz]

I vote for Yaguchi. I guess she has enough spare time to be prime minister of Canada.

[Asmodai]

Yeah, any of the alternatives are good.

Vote Conservative, or NDP, or Green, or even Bloc, just please don't say that corruption is OK by voting Liberal.  

[TheQuickening]

Yeah, any of the alternatives are good.

Vote Conservative, or NDP, or Green, or even Bloc, just please don't say that corruption is OK by voting Liberal.

This isn't a personal crack, but corruption will always be present regardless of which party is in power.  Substitute "Liberal" with any one of the other party names, and it will still hold true.

I personally WILL vote Liberal.  Why? In IMPO:
- The Conservatives are too right-wing, and are, at times almost (if not) racist towards people who are not WASP.  

- The NDP are too left-wing.  Some good ideas, but they're not practical.

- The BQ want Quebec to become it's own country.  I personally like having it in Canada.

- Green Party is too focused on environmental issues.  Other than that, they really don't have much in terms of a political platform to stand on.

- Communists...looks good on paper, but like the NDP, it's just not practical in real-life use.

- Marijuana Party...I personally don't smoke the stuff.  But I definitely agree that it might not be such a bad idea to legalize the stuff.  At least then it can be regulated and taxed.

[Asmodai]

Well none of the parties are willing to actually forward progressive policies.

The main ones I can think of would be:

1) Scrapping the Income Tax Act and doing a complete rewrite and included within that
(A) Moving the top tax bracket from $103,000 to $250,000 or $300,000.
    $103,000 is not wealthy in this country. It's stupid to pretend that it is. Charging a 50 cent on the dollar surplus on incomes reduces ambition and discourages success.
(B) Removing loophole exceptions that allow the extremely wealthy to pay virtually no taxes through the use of Income Trusts
(C) Replace Income Trusts with lower corporate and capital gains taxes to encourage investment in Canadian business (on an even playing field for wealthy or not-so-wealthy Canadians).
(D) Empower Canada Revenue as an enforcement agency to have more audits and more severe penalties for people who cheat on their taxes.

2) Reinvest in public health-care and promote efficiency  by giving doctors more control over their private practices, clinics, and billing. Also:
(A) Triple the number of MRI machines in hospitals
(B) Encourage more doctors to stay in Canada rather than moving to the States by changing the top income tax bracket (see above, patriotism is the only reason why there are any cardiologists in Canada at all).
(C) Work on getting graduates from foreign medical schools living in Canada the ability to practice.
(D) Nurses are among the most underpayed and over-worked professionals in Canada. Find space in the budget to fairly compensate them for their work and expertise.

3) Scrap unnecessary government departments - Heritage Canada, the CBC, etc. that duplicate services already being done more efficiently by the private sector. Spend the money on things like education and health care.

4) Eliminate the Senate. It's expensive and doesn't do anything productive.

5) Eliminate the Governor General. See the reasons given for the Senate.

I could go on for another 30 points, but you get the idea. None of the political parties are willing to rock the boat too much though.

This isn't a personal crack, but corruption will always be present regardless of which party is in power. Substitute "Liberal" with any one of the other party names, and it will still hold true.

In my opinion, the corruption extends far beyond recent precedent. Certainly the corruption is on another scale entirely than it was under Mulroney or Trudeau.

I think every Canadian should read the Gomery Report http://www.gomery.ca/en/phase1report/summary/ before going the polls, at the very least so you'll be making an informed decision.

Normally I would vote Liberal, and I've campaigned for the Liberal party in the past, but I'm probably going to vote Conservative this time even though they're not that much closer to my beliefs than the Liberals are.

What Canada needs IMHO (and what it will probably never have) is a strong and reasonable libertarian movemement.

[TheQuickening]

Well none of the parties are willing to actually forward progressive policies.

The main ones I can think of would be:

1) Scrapping the Income Tax Act

2) Reinvest in public health-care and promote efficiency  by giving doctors more control over their private practices, clinics, and billing. Also:

3) Scrap unnecessary government departments - Heritage Canada, the CBC, etc. that duplicate services already being done more efficiently by the private sector. Spend the money on things like education and health care.

4) Eliminate the Senate. It's expensive and doesn't do anything productive.

5) Eliminate the Governor General. See the reasons given for the Senate.

Dude, DEFINITELY agree with you on all these points.  Especially on the Income Tax Act and the Senate.  

If I may give my 2 cents on the examples you gave, I agree the CBC doesn't need to be a Crown Corporation anymore, it can do perfectly well on it's own. It's time the government let it go.  For Heritage Canada, I think it should be a part of the Education department.  Granted, there is no federal Education ministry as it is deemed a Provincial responsibility.  I think the feds needs to take a more active role in promoting education along with the provinces.

I think every Canadian should read the Gomery Report http://www.gomery.ca/en/phase1report/summary/ before going the polls, at the very least so you'll be making an informed decision.

At the very least, people should at least make an effort to find out the basics of each party's position/platform.  So many votes are "wasted" on people who just vote based on "the look of the candidate's face" or the fact that "he/she stopped by my house and we talked".  None of that means shit.  People need to go online, or go and get some pamphlets, for fuck's sake, and find out what these parties stand for!

What Canada needs IMHO (and what it will probably never have) is a strong and reasonable libertarian movemement.

When you say "libertarian", are you talking generally-speaking? Or were you referring to the actual Libertarian Party of Canada?

[Asmodai]

If I may give my 2 cents on the examples you gave, I agree the CBC doesn't need to be a Crown Corporation anymore, it can do perfectly well on it's own. It's time the government let it go.  For Heritage Canada, I think it should be a part of the Education department.  Granted, there is no federal Education ministry as it is deemed a Provincial responsibility.  I think the feds needs to take a more active role in promoting education along with the provinces.

Absolutely. Unfortunately Canada's division of powers, while good for 1867, isn't good for 2005. Of course changing that means amending the constitution, which means problems with Quebec. :evil:

At the very least, people should at least make an effort to find out the basics of each party's position/platform.  So many votes are "wasted" on people who just vote based on "the look of the candidate's face" or the fact that "he/she stopped by my house and we talked".  None of that means shit.  People need to go online, or go and get some pamphlets, for fuck's sake, and find out what these parties stand for!

I would add to that list votes based on party loyalty. The "My grandmother was a conservative, so I am too!" votes.

When you say "libertarian", are you talking generally-speaking? Or were you referring to the actual Libertarian Party of Canada?

I meant generally speaking. The Libertarian Party of Canada has quite a few ideas, but I'm not sure that they're reasonably attuned to the reality of what most Canadians expect. I also think that if change is made too rapidly it would be destabilizing socially and for the markets.

The Libertarian Party of Canada also lacks the expertise, candidates and organization to form an effective government. It might someday form the basis for an effective and reasonable libertarian movement, but it has a long way to go.

[ytl]

NDP is responsible for ruining Vancouver all these years, the Glen Clark was one corrupted fuck.  Even when he got caught, it's the gov't which paid for his denfence.  Pathetic.

BC fast ferries construction doubled the budget from 210 mil to 460 mil and the service got delayed for 3 whole years before debut.  Not to mention all those stupid accidents afterwards...........then sold to US company at dirt cheap price.  Talk about greed, NDP has a greed like Cheney and co.  We are talking about HUNDREDS of MILLIONS here.

Conservatives = racists.  

"In the 2000 federal election, ........ This contest was notable for a controversy involving Canadian Alliance candidate Betty Granger, who made comments about Asian students that many interpreted as racist."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_Granger

"Granger was widely criticized for remarks that she made to University of Winnipeg students concerning an "Asian invasion" of Canada's universities. She was quoted as saying that "Canadian students can't get into some of our university programs in Vancouver and Victoria" because of an influx of Asian studets, and made reference to "a well-monied population buying up blocks and blocks of real estate" in British Columbia (Broadcast News, 18 November 2000). Concerning a recent influx of refugees from Hong Kong, she was quoted as saying "There was a realization that what was coming off these boats was not the best clientele you would want for this country."" By the way, she even was accused of being a racist dated as early as 1993 but just no proof to show she actually made those comments. She also was being accused AGAIN in 1996 but again she got away with it.

I know you must say they are different party, and she resigned, bla bla bla. First, after making such a comment, there is no doubt her political career ruined and she has to withdrew from politics.  And the Canadian Alliance party after defeat merged with the Conservatives that we know now.

OH, and guess what? After the 2000 INFAMOUS national blunder, the CURRENT Conservatives Party LEADER Stephen Harper (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Harper) actually didn't avoid her, but hired her for campaign organizer in 2002. Oh, I guess that doesn't mean Stephen Harper is a racist too eh? Insensitive towards Chinese? or Politically retarded? Hello????

Always liberal.

[Asmodai]

A major federal department has temporarily banned the hiring of able-bodied white men in an unusual move critics say could spark a backlash against the very disadvantaged groups it is meant to help.

Managers in the Public Works department must hire only visible minorities, women, aboriginals and the disabled, except with written permission from their superiors, David Marshall, the deputy minister, ordered in an e-mail circulated yesterday.

And the Liberals aren't racist?

Different group, same strokes. At least the Conservatives, Greens and Marijuana party haven't refused outright to hire people based on their sex or the colour of their skin.

[TheQuickening]

"In the 2000 federal election, ........ This contest was notable for a controversy involving Canadian Alliance candidate Betty Granger, who made comments about Asian students that many interpreted as racist."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_Granger

"Granger was widely criticized for remarks that she made to University of Winnipeg students concerning an "Asian invasion" of Canada's universities. She was quoted as saying that "Canadian students can't get into some of our university programs in Vancouver and Victoria" because of an influx of Asian studets, and made reference to "a well-monied population buying up blocks and blocks of real estate" in British Columbia (Broadcast News, 18 November 2000). Concerning a recent influx of refugees from Hong Kong, she was quoted as saying "There was a realization that what was coming off these boats was not the best clientele you would want for this country."" By the way, she even was accused of being a racist dated as early as 1993 but just no proof to show she actually made those comments. She also was being accused AGAIN in 1996 but again she got away with it.

I remember when that happened.  A few Asian friends and I were talking about it and we were like "FUCK YEAH we're taking over!!!"      

Seriously though, if non-Asians are so concerned about so many Asians getting into Canadian universities and taking potential positions away, then THEY need to step it up!!! THEY need to fuckin' work harder in high school and get better grades so that THEY out-qualify and get chosen over the Asian students (based on merit/qualifications). Asians students, inevitably, are often branded as "the brainy/hardworking ones".  THAT's why so many of them who apply to university GET into university, because they've worked hard and they've gotten good grades. One can bitch and bitch about it 'til the cows come home, but it's all worth shit unless one actually DOES something about it.  

Granted, there are a certain number of positions that are automatically given to Asians who are "International Students" who are here strictly to go to school, and you can't really do much about those numbers.  However, that's only a small portion of the total population of a university.

[/rant]

[Asmodai]

International asian students also pay vastly higher tuition than Canadian students. They subsidize it for everyone else.  

If we properly funded post-secondary education they wouldn't need so many overseas students to make ends meet.

I absolutely agree that admissions should be race-blind. If someone is the best qualified, it shouldn't matter if they're white or asian or aboriginal.

[daigong]

Man, that debate was so hilarious. Paul Martin getting his panties up in a  bunch but shit...it's the lesser of two evils.

Jack Layton was so

[daigong]

LMFAO. Daily Show finally talked about the election:

and picked up on Harper on Swinger's Clubs.
http://www.miumu.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=2612&mforum=jpmx

Fuck. I dunno who to vote for. They all suck.

[JFC]

Fuck. I dunno who to vote for. They all suck.

They're politicians.  It's what they do. That, and make promises that they can't keep.

[sakurasake]

wow... there are actually 3 votes for Marijuana... i really wonder what they do...

no more liberal for me.... probably voting for conversative...

[Cyrano84]

I voted green party today  

[Asmodai]

Cool. They have a lot of interesting ideas so it would be good for them to get more of a voice in the debates and the like.

[Vikitty]

I voted for the first time today, and I voted Liberal.

[Sponge Bob]

Voted Conservative just now