The Rants of Issachar
Saturday, January 21, 2006
Two more days 'till election day, and the FUD is worse than ever...
The elections on Monday and I'm hoping for a Conservative government.
The FUD that I posted about on the 6th of December has only gotten worse. The attack ads are ridiculous and they'd be funny if they weren't so corrosive to the democratic process. The one implying that Stephen Harper's going to impose some sort of military control on Canadian cities is particularly repugnant. The one implying that Mr. Harper is some sort of north of the 49th version of George W. Bush is just ridiculous. Last I checked, George Bush wasn't advocating publicly funded medicare. Rather than attack Conservative policies, it's easier to attack Mr. Bush's. Well I'll remember not to put my X next to Mr. Bush on my ballot on Monday Mr. Martin...
Unfortunately, some people actually believe what these ads imply. The Liberal party should be ashamed of themselves. And don't try to say that the Conservatives are doing the same thing. They're not. They are attacking the Liberals and their record, but that is not automatically FUD. An attack ad is not automatically FUD. The NDP has put up ads attacking the other parties, and I haven't seen any that qualify as FUD.
The worst and most recent bit was the phone in to a shaw cable radio show accusing Saskatoon MP Maurice Vellacott of sexually assaulting his church secretary at North Park Church. The call came from Liberal opponent Chris Axworthy's campaign office. The accusation was false and in fact Mr. Vellacott has never worked at or attended North Park Church. Despite suggestions that Mr. Axworthy's friend George Laliberte was the one making the call, Mr. Axworthy suggests that someone unconnected to the campaign entered the office and made the call. Possible, but I doubt it. Please note, that there's no proof that Mr. Laliberte made the call beyond Mr. Vellacott's team saying they recognized his voice. (Hardly conclusive evidence and Mr. Laliberte denies it). I doubt that Mr. Axworthy came up with this plan, but with the example made by the Liberal campaign so far, I'm not terribly surprised a Liberal party worker might think this was a good idea.
Still, on a lighter note about the attack ads in general, check out John Stewart. (It's the Indecision 2006 video that starts out talking about Bin Laden).
So my pitch to everyone... Let's end the corruption and culture of entitlement in Ottawa. Vote against the Liberals. But it's not enough just vote against something. We need to vote for something. So let's also vote for a party with a positive vision from Canada and a clear platform. Vote Conservative. I'm sure you won't agree with everything in their platform, (I don't), but representative democracy isn't about finding the candidate that believes exactly what you do. It's about electing the people with the best policies. If you're still unclear on the Conservative platform, take a look at the interview Peter Mansbridge had with Stephen Harper. The video is better, but I can't find it online.
The FUD that I posted about on the 6th of December has only gotten worse. The attack ads are ridiculous and they'd be funny if they weren't so corrosive to the democratic process. The one implying that Stephen Harper's going to impose some sort of military control on Canadian cities is particularly repugnant. The one implying that Mr. Harper is some sort of north of the 49th version of George W. Bush is just ridiculous. Last I checked, George Bush wasn't advocating publicly funded medicare. Rather than attack Conservative policies, it's easier to attack Mr. Bush's. Well I'll remember not to put my X next to Mr. Bush on my ballot on Monday Mr. Martin...
Unfortunately, some people actually believe what these ads imply. The Liberal party should be ashamed of themselves. And don't try to say that the Conservatives are doing the same thing. They're not. They are attacking the Liberals and their record, but that is not automatically FUD. An attack ad is not automatically FUD. The NDP has put up ads attacking the other parties, and I haven't seen any that qualify as FUD.
The worst and most recent bit was the phone in to a shaw cable radio show accusing Saskatoon MP Maurice Vellacott of sexually assaulting his church secretary at North Park Church. The call came from Liberal opponent Chris Axworthy's campaign office. The accusation was false and in fact Mr. Vellacott has never worked at or attended North Park Church. Despite suggestions that Mr. Axworthy's friend George Laliberte was the one making the call, Mr. Axworthy suggests that someone unconnected to the campaign entered the office and made the call. Possible, but I doubt it. Please note, that there's no proof that Mr. Laliberte made the call beyond Mr. Vellacott's team saying they recognized his voice. (Hardly conclusive evidence and Mr. Laliberte denies it). I doubt that Mr. Axworthy came up with this plan, but with the example made by the Liberal campaign so far, I'm not terribly surprised a Liberal party worker might think this was a good idea.
Still, on a lighter note about the attack ads in general, check out John Stewart. (It's the Indecision 2006 video that starts out talking about Bin Laden).
So my pitch to everyone... Let's end the corruption and culture of entitlement in Ottawa. Vote against the Liberals. But it's not enough just vote against something. We need to vote for something. So let's also vote for a party with a positive vision from Canada and a clear platform. Vote Conservative. I'm sure you won't agree with everything in their platform, (I don't), but representative democracy isn't about finding the candidate that believes exactly what you do. It's about electing the people with the best policies. If you're still unclear on the Conservative platform, take a look at the interview Peter Mansbridge had with Stephen Harper. The video is better, but I can't find it online.
9 Comments:
Posted by: 
CarlaQuote: "The elections on Monday and I'm hoping for a Conservative government."
Really?? I pretty surprised - I always thought you were a complete NDP'er.
CarlaQuote: "The elections on Monday and I'm hoping for a Conservative government."Really?? I pretty surprised - I always thought you were a complete NDP'er.
Posted by: SarahAndrew, serious question? Do you actually *like* Stephen Harper? Really? Seriously? I know you support his platform, values etc. But do you like him as a person and potential leader?
Even if I was a righty, I could never vote for a party with a leader who is as much of an asshole as Stephen Harper. The thought of him as PM literally makes me nauseous.
SarahAndrew, serious question? Do you actually *like* Stephen Harper? Really? Seriously? I know you support his platform, values etc. But do you like him as a person and potential leader?Even if I was a righty, I could never vote for a party with a leader who is as much of an asshole as Stephen Harper. The thought of him as PM literally makes me nauseous.
Posted by: issacharDo I like Stephen Harper? I don't know him personally. I neither like nor dislike him. I have no personal feelings about his one way or the other. He didn't come off terribly well in Preston Manning's book, and since I respect Mr. Manning quite a bit I was a tad skeptical about him at first. But he's overcome that for me in the last year or so. The interview with Peter Mansbridge is a great example of how I think he's done that.
Mr. Harper is clear on policy and he thinks it through a lot. I like that. I'm electing him for to lead the country and make some good policy, not to hang out with me on the weekends. He might be fun to hang out with on the weekends, he might not. I don't know, and it doesn't matter.
Still, why do you say he's an asshole? Seriously, why?
issacharDo I like Stephen Harper? I don't know him personally. I neither like nor dislike him. I have no personal feelings about his one way or the other. He didn't come off terribly well in Preston Manning's book, and since I respect Mr. Manning quite a bit I was a tad skeptical about him at first. But he's overcome that for me in the last year or so. The interview with Peter Mansbridge is a great example of how I think he's done that.Mr. Harper is clear on policy and he thinks it through a lot. I like that. I'm electing him for to lead the country and make some good policy, not to hang out with me on the weekends. He might be fun to hang out with on the weekends, he might not. I don't know, and it doesn't matter.
Still, why do you say he's an asshole? Seriously, why?
Posted by: SarahOh you know, racism, sexism, homophobia, Bush-buddy - all things I don't like in a PM. Here's my favourite reason to stick pins in his effigy - "In terms of the unemployed, of which we have over a million-and-a-half, don't feel particularly bad for many of these people. They don't feel bad about it themselves, as long as they're receiving generous social assistance and unemployment insurance." That's up there with Barbara Bush's comments after Katrina.
Now Andrew, I wasn't asking you whether you wanted to play a round of Ultimate frisbee or poker with him, but really you have to have some feeling that he's a nice person deep down, don't you? Unfortunately I don't.
As for policy, I really haven't heard much over his bitching about a previous Liberal PM's wrongdoings. He talks about wanting a "transparent government" but his past dealings with corporate funding of politics appears more than a little murky.
Anyhow, its moot now. It looks like he's in. Until the next minority government falls.
SarahOh you know, racism, sexism, homophobia, Bush-buddy - all things I don't like in a PM. Here's my favourite reason to stick pins in his effigy - "In terms of the unemployed, of which we have over a million-and-a-half, don't feel particularly bad for many of these people. They don't feel bad about it themselves, as long as they're receiving generous social assistance and unemployment insurance." That's up there with Barbara Bush's comments after Katrina.Now Andrew, I wasn't asking you whether you wanted to play a round of Ultimate frisbee or poker with him, but really you have to have some feeling that he's a nice person deep down, don't you? Unfortunately I don't.
As for policy, I really haven't heard much over his bitching about a previous Liberal PM's wrongdoings. He talks about wanting a "transparent government" but his past dealings with corporate funding of politics appears more than a little murky.
Anyhow, its moot now. It looks like he's in. Until the next minority government falls.
Posted by: issacharSee, now that's just FUD.
Stephen Harper is not a racist.
He is not a sexist.
He is not homo-phobic.
Those are straight up smears. They are the same tired slanderous lies I've been hearing for the last 12 years.
Bush buddy? He's a Conservative. Conservatives share some policies with Republicans. They disagree on others. End of story. If that makes someone a "Bush buddy", then anyone in the western world not actually supporting a social democratic party is a Bush-buddy.
As for the comments Harper made to the Council for National Policy in the US... To me it sounds like hyperbole in the midst of a speech. I'm not particularly impressed with it, but I don't give it too much weight. Much like Scott Reid's "Alberta can blow me" comment. (He's Paul Martin's official spokesman). Or Martin's dire warnings about Harper being the end of Canada for that matter. Hyperbole. I'm not proud of Harper when he's indulged in it, but I don't think those comments are representative of his views. And I know they're not representative of the Conservative platform, because that's been published.
If you haven't heard much about his policies, then I'm afraid you haven't been listening. It's out there. A child care tax credit, fiscal imbalance, GST cut, government accountability, mandatory minimum sentencing for crimes involving guns, guaranteed maximum wait times for crucial medical procedures, respecting areas of provincial jurisdiction. Those are just the big ones.
Oh, and about the "who's funding Harper?" question... Nothing murky about it. He's told us who contributed money to his leadership campaign, and who's donating money to the Conservative party. The flap about fundraising that the Liberals are on about is Harper's campaign to lead the now defunct Canadian Alliance party. That came out of a $100 donation that a white supremacist group attempted to make to Harper's campaign. Harper refused the donation. I'm not a exactly a big fan of Warren Kinsella, but you can read his take on it here. Kinsella's a Liberal and Chrétien loyalist.
If you still think that Harper's funding of politics is murky after that, then I don't think you're being fair on the subject.
Do I think that Harper's a "nice person"? Sure, if I had to bet on it, I'd say he probably is. I suspect that Mr. Layton, Mr. Duceppe and Mr. Martin are all "nice people".
Honestly, I think you've fallen for the smear campaign.
issacharSee, now that's just FUD.Stephen Harper is not a racist.
He is not a sexist.
He is not homo-phobic.
Those are straight up smears. They are the same tired slanderous lies I've been hearing for the last 12 years.
Bush buddy? He's a Conservative. Conservatives share some policies with Republicans. They disagree on others. End of story. If that makes someone a "Bush buddy", then anyone in the western world not actually supporting a social democratic party is a Bush-buddy.
As for the comments Harper made to the Council for National Policy in the US... To me it sounds like hyperbole in the midst of a speech. I'm not particularly impressed with it, but I don't give it too much weight. Much like Scott Reid's "Alberta can blow me" comment. (He's Paul Martin's official spokesman). Or Martin's dire warnings about Harper being the end of Canada for that matter. Hyperbole. I'm not proud of Harper when he's indulged in it, but I don't think those comments are representative of his views. And I know they're not representative of the Conservative platform, because that's been published.
If you haven't heard much about his policies, then I'm afraid you haven't been listening. It's out there. A child care tax credit, fiscal imbalance, GST cut, government accountability, mandatory minimum sentencing for crimes involving guns, guaranteed maximum wait times for crucial medical procedures, respecting areas of provincial jurisdiction. Those are just the big ones.
Oh, and about the "who's funding Harper?" question... Nothing murky about it. He's told us who contributed money to his leadership campaign, and who's donating money to the Conservative party. The flap about fundraising that the Liberals are on about is Harper's campaign to lead the now defunct Canadian Alliance party. That came out of a $100 donation that a white supremacist group attempted to make to Harper's campaign. Harper refused the donation. I'm not a exactly a big fan of Warren Kinsella, but you can read his take on it here. Kinsella's a Liberal and Chrétien loyalist.
If you still think that Harper's funding of politics is murky after that, then I don't think you're being fair on the subject.
Do I think that Harper's a "nice person"? Sure, if I had to bet on it, I'd say he probably is. I suspect that Mr. Layton, Mr. Duceppe and Mr. Martin are all "nice people".
Honestly, I think you've fallen for the smear campaign.
Posted by: SarahHaven't fallen for the smear campaign at all Dear, since I have no vote...
I just really dislike the guy.
SarahHaven't fallen for the smear campaign at all Dear, since I have no vote...I just really dislike the guy.
Posted by: CarlaDid you really say "culture of entitlement" in your blog post???
ha! Look who's fallen for the FUD!!!!
CarlaDid you really say "culture of entitlement" in your blog post??? ha! Look who's fallen for the FUD!!!!
Posted by: issacharWell, at least I've got you using the term FUD. Though I'm not sure how "culture of entitlement" as FUD.
Politicians and political workers feeling they're entitled to ridiculous perks is pretty much par for the course when a party has been comfortably in power for a long time. I think it's fairly clear that many Liberals felt entitled to power and the trappings of power. The party needs some time out of power. They need some new people running the show.
issacharWell, at least I've got you using the term FUD. Though I'm not sure how "culture of entitlement" as FUD. Politicians and political workers feeling they're entitled to ridiculous perks is pretty much par for the course when a party has been comfortably in power for a long time. I think it's fairly clear that many Liberals felt entitled to power and the trappings of power. The party needs some time out of power. They need some new people running the show.
