Fallen Government

[Herb_The_Perb]

But you have checks and balances in the US.

In Canada, when a party has a majority government, like the Liberals did from 1993-2004, it's essentially a dictatorship. There is no chance of a separate-but-equal Congress or SCOTUS stopping any legislation that the ruling party wants to pass.

That used to be true until late 2000, when the Supreme Court selected the president by temporarily eliminating due process.

Since then, there have been almost no checks and balances. The new breed of Republicans are as ruthless as Attila the Hun (but they do practice better grooming and hygiene.)

And corrupt as hell too. Even with nearly full control of the government, they are being investigated and indicted left and right. Just yesterday a Republican congressman had to resign after being exposed for taking $2.3 million in bribes from defense contractors. The Republican House leader had been indicted, and the Republican Senate leader is under an ethics investigation. White house aides have either been indicted, or remain under investiation. There's a huger bribert scandal under investigation involving Republican lobbyinsts and former government officials.

In a more balanced system, Bush would have been impeached by now over lying about the war and presiding over national-securoity leaks.

 

[Sonny]

As far as patronage goes, the Liberals and Conservatives are no different from each other. The sponsorship scandal is rooted in a few bad apples operating from Jean Cretien's PM Office. Paul Martin at least had the courage to call an independent inquiry which would have resulted in the end of his career had he been found quilty. He obviously knew he was clean. The bad apples are gone. He also had the courage to set aside personal religious tenets to forward an unprejudiced secular position on gay marriage. While there is much to be done in this country, who can say that the economy is not pretty good, particularly looking at the performance of other western countries (including the USA, which has a humungous deficit and terrifying national debt).

Stephen Harper is one scary right-wing ideologue, who refuses to put forth a complete and revealing platform, and who wants to stuff his personal beliefs down the throat of every Canadian. Kiss the country good-bye with "GBM" Harper (apologies to our esteemed Perbert GBM poster but the moniker fits our beloved and popular Stephen). If you don't like what the Liberals have done in their 17 months, you can be sure the Conservatives would have been worse.

Jack Layton is a reasonably intelligent nice guy who got totally snookered by Harper and Duceppe into a no-win situation. The NDP have good conscience but are economic dim-wits; the best they can do is be involved supporting a minority government and their platform is far from Harpers, so what do they gain by this election?

My bet is if Canada does see Harper and his party for what they are, and therefore vote against him and against NDP too (as a vote for the NDP may mean a Conservative minority), then there may be a thin Liberal majority. Even Quebec may vote Liberal to keep Harper out, because Cretien's gone and there is certainly no love for Harper there, and Quebec is middle-left at heart.

If the Conservatives want power in this country, they would be well to resemble, but do a little better than, the real Progressive Conservative party from the late 60s and early 70s with the best non-elected PM the Tories ever had, Robert Stanfield - not telegenic nor charismatic, but a honest and intelligent politician who embraced all of Canada.

 

[dittman]

jesus herbie if you knew anything about american politics every congressman and woman pluse senators could be tried and found guilty of accepting bribes. Bar none it is a fact of life, just get over it and if you dont like the system work to change it instead of whining and bitching about it, and without throwing your vote away.

get over 2000, the supreme court can do what it pleases accept any case they want as long as the process is followed. Politics is a contact sport, besudes sam rayburn and lbj make todays republicans look like choir boys.

 

[metoo113]

I'd vote for a party who promised when elected to arrest every Bloc member and throw them in jail like the traitors they are.

Try having a political party in the US that is dedicated to splitting up the country and see how long they would last.

 

[shawn]

Bush is the terrorist

But you have checks and balances in the US.

In Canada, when a party has a majority government, like the Liberals did from 1993-2004, it's essentailly a dictatorship. There is no chance of a separate-but-equal Congress or SCOTUS stopping any legislation that the ruling party wants to pass.

Our system can be good, because things can get done.

But it can be bad when the King, I mean Prime Minister, is as evil as Jean Chretien was.

I do not see eye to eye with you politically Mike, but I agree with a lot of your points when it comes to pooning. Lets hope there will be no changes to the freedoms and choices you guys enjoy on a daily basis. Why don't you ask guys you SF Mike how the Bay Area has changed since what we refer to as "Black Thursday" It was the day the Feds shut down almost all the AMP's in the city claiming it was to bust Human Traffickers. Turns out they were here willinging and deported back to Korea. If this can happen in the most Liberal city in the United States with exception to Boston, It can happen to Vancouver.

Also for all the 420 lovers out there. The Supreme court in the US ruled a few months ago that Federal law wins over State Laws and they shut down many Cannibas clubs as well. Just some food for thought when you go to the polls

 

[Quarter Mile'r]

And when you do go to the poles the biggest change this country needs
is for an educated vote, not a vote to just oust those asshole Liberals!

"With the little girly dumfuck voice here",
Oh, well, lets give Steven harper a chance, he looks like a clean cut fucking
goof !............Yeah for sure !

This is what makes me so sick about Canadian voters, throughout time and
memorial they vote for the opposition after the power party gets caught with
there fingers in the cookie jar.

And no its not a wasted vote voting for the little guy just to split the
opposition............think people !

It's a movement to get rid of the "BIG" two party problem.

Oh, almost forgot, if the Conservative/reform/alliance/evangelists get in
power, I want to revive this thread a year or two from now to see WHO gets
to eat what !! ..............anybody game???

If they do get in, god help our pooning places aren't shut down like in the
evangelist south!

Fuck I hate politics!



...............QM'r

 

[James]

Well, on the off chance that On-fucking-tario doesn't decide it all before we have an after lunch beer and a trip to the ballot box.....

Vancouver Centre should be fun to watch. "Bend with Svend the Diamond Boy" Robinson against that little troll Dr Hedy Fry.

Just think, if she goes back to practicing medicine, they could both be shoving something up your ass.

Which leads one to ponder that old, and often repeated, question. With all these quacks "practicing" medicine, or "practicing" law, when do you think that one of them will get it right?

 

[dirtydan]

You Canadians don't appreciate how good you have it.

I wish it were this easy to change regimes in the US.

It's your own fault. All that revolution stuff spoiled everything. Now if you had been a bunch of good little colonists then just think of the system of government you would have had.

 

[dirtydan]

But you have checks and balances in the US.

In Canada, when a party has a majority government, like the Liberals did from 1993-2004, it's essentailly a dictatorship. There is no chance of a separate-but-equal Congress or SCOTUS stopping any legislation that the ruling party wants to pass.

Our system can be good, because things can get done.

But it can be bad when the King, I mean Prime Minister, is as evil as Jean Chretien was.

So tell us Mike, was there a dictatorship from 1984 to 1993 and from 1958 to 1962? And really what was different between the crap that happened under Chretien than the crap that happened under Mulroney. It seems for some strange reason there isn't a Conservative supporter that can remember a damn thing before 1993.

GEES I WONDER WHY?

 

[Herb_The_Perb]

jesus herbie if you knew anything about american politics every congressman and woman pluse senators could be tried and found guilty of accepting bribes.

So ditty, are you saying that I don't know anything about American politics, and that therefore prevents electeds from being tried for bribery?

Or are you saying that if I study it enough, after I learn something they can then be tried for bribery?

And why do you hate America so much that you never capitalize it?

 

[niteowl]

I hate when people say we should just chose the lesser of two evils.

The lesser of two evils is still evil.