He actually did what?!: Energizing politics and other unacceptable antics

Do not adjust your television set. We are firmly in pre-election mode. The majority of CPC talking-boxes may reject this claim (even though their own fund raising material say otherwise) but Peter MacKay isn't going to dance to the party tune. Today while speaking to the media in Winnipeg, MacKay admitted that the CPC has talked about the "possibility" of an election.

Meanwhile, Ignatieff spoke to party faithful in Ottawa today and delivered a focused, driven and energized speech. Jane Taber and Roger Smith drew a poor comparison to Howard Dean which just goes to show how little the MSM cares to truly analyze issues driving (what seems to be) an imminent federal election. To Taber's surprise (along with the collective shock of the nation, I'm sure) Ignatieff became excited and passionate about what his party offers to Canadians during his address.

To quote Taber's astonishment:

There was that Howard Dean moment early in the speech in which he actually screamed “yes, yes, yes,” in answer to his own question about whether his party was ready to govern and fight for Canadian families.

The CPC talking-box translation:

"There was that Howard Dean moment early in the speech in which he literally went insane - foaming at the mouth, screaming and ranting into the microphone to the horror of 300 Liberal supporters."

What comparison is Taber trying to make? That his behavior during the speech is the beginning of the end of Ignatieff's election chances? Does Taber really believe that his presence on stage was so embarrassing that voters will turn on the Liberals and vote Conservative? The word "actually" infers dismay at his behaviour and to call his tone "screaming" is being pretty loose with the definition of the word. The audience shouted, "YES!" to his questions and he joined in with them to hammer his points home.

What a lunatic.

To bolster Taber's and Smith's lack of analysis - only the NDP and LPC were targeted as drumming up support for an election. The hypocrisy of the PM and his cabinet ministers as they fanned out across the country, making announcements, denouncing coalitions, and attacking the personalities of Jack and Michael - were mentioned in passing. As if this these types of activities are "all in a days work" for a government representative. I guess who can blame them, that kind of tripe almost is considered "normal" after the last 5 wasted years.

I saw Michael Ignatieff when he was in Saint-Boniface in Winnipeg and he spoke to a much more subdued crowed. Watching today's rally was much more the sort of thing I think we should expect from the leader of the opposition. If the Liberals want to be seen as the government in waiting they ought to act like they are ready to govern - and enthusiastically so!

The gloves are off and the Liberals are ready to talk about the issues that matter to Canadians. What is Harper afraid of?

Perhaps if he was not there wouldn't be the need to instruct and organize the character assassination of his opponents via talking-heads like Taber.

Jack saw the high road and said, "Nah."

Today's Winnipeg Free Press continued to follow the latest insanity rising from the Bloc Quebecois.

Sidenote: Someone should pass a memo to Gilles reminding him that he represents the majority of Quebecois about as much as Harper represents the rest of Canada (38.1% and 37.6% respectively).

My favourite part of the Free Press article was how it highlighted the latest NDP press release on the issue.

In issuing their own condemnation, the NDP sought to upstage the Liberals.

A statement issued by the party said New Democrats were the first to propose a parliamentary motion defending Sikhs' five articles of faith, which includes wearing the kirpan at all times.

The 2001 motion "failed to pass when the Liberals refused to support it," the statement said.

"We stand with the Sikh community in solidarity," it added.

Nice. This is exactly the kind of partisan bull dink that people want to get rid of in parliament. To be honest, I would expect more out of the NDP. I would have thought the New Democrats would take the higher ground and win over voters by being collaborative with the Liberals and hammering the CPC to support the Sikh community.

Instead they pulled a Gary Doer.

Four years ago during the 2007 Manitoba election, PC leader Hugh McFadyen announced that if they were elected they would be more active in bringing back the Winnipeg Jets professional hockey team to improve the province's "cool factor." Just when you thought it was the most ridiculous thing anyone could say, New Democrat leader Gary Doer announced that increasing the provinces "coolness" by bringing back the Jets was their idea first. It was the most partisan thing Doer could do because it didn't offer any vision or plan that was an alternative to the PC's announcement - the thrust of their rebuttal was, "we said it first!" And so, anyone gullible enough to believe these two were left with deciding between the party who says they're going to do it now or the party that said they thought of doing it before the other guys. Fantastic.

Yesterday, Jack Layton could have stood up and said that the NDP have been ardent supporters of Sikh civil and political rights and that the Bloc motion is dangerous to Canada. But he had to sneak a jab in at the Liberals.

If anyone was to posit that a federal NDP government would be some sort of shining light of parliamentary civility and cooperation, as opposed to the CPC and LPC, they should note that the press release beings with the sentence: It’s time to stop playing divisive, political games with Canadian’s religious beliefs. And then the party goes on to play political games and skewer their colleagues on a fundamental issue such as human rights.

Was this done because they don't want to be accused of being in cahoots with the LPC? I doubt it. Was it to remind soft-NDP Sikh voters that the NDP is the party for them in the next election? On the surface, this is the most obvious reason. But how big of a voting block can that be in vulnerable NDP ridings like those in Northern Ontario?

Quite simply, what Jack Layton demonstrated - as all the parties are demonstrate day in and day out - is that hyper-partisan rhetoric is not just an necessary evil in the House but it is entirely appropriate behaviour for elected officials. This poisonous behavior - from all parties - is what turns off so many Canadians. It's why all the parties are stalled in the polls. More importantly, it's why I think we need the Greens in the House. I genuinely believe they'll be a breath of fresh air... well, at least for a week or so and then no one will be surprised if they disappoint everyone and mimic the Bloc, NDP, CPC, and LPC. (But what a week that would be, eh?)

I'm disappointed Jack, you saw the high road and you said, "Nah." But lucky for you no one really pays attention to the politicking in Ottawa these days. And with press releases like these you have no one else to blame for the disengagement but yourself.

Scarier of Two Evils

What's worse than a "tax and spend" liberal? How about a tax-cut and spend Conservative!

Prisons, Planes, and Post-signs - these are the things the Canadian taxpayer is going to be paying for in the next budget. And, as usual, there's got to be a tax out there that needs to be cut. While in the US, Obama is having a heck of a time getting rid of the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of Americans; the Canadian government is eager to allow the Chretien-era corporate taxes expire in order to "keep Canada competitive." It is our spirit of competition that the CPC is keen on promoting because that's what makes Canada economically sound - that is, unless you're a Australian potash company.

We'll hear a lot about "the coalition" and those "tax and spend" Liberals. But let's keep in mind that we have one of the largest governments ever (at 38 ministers - only Mulroney had more, 40, but then again he also had a majority) that cuts consumption taxes, spends down surplus', rejects foreign investment for political expediency, and has racked up the largest deficit in Canadian history.

Never mind that Chretien and finance minister Paul Martin eliminated a $40 billion dollar deficit and organized a $13 billion dollar surplus in 10 years. Never mind that that surplus was eliminated in two years by Harper because Canadians were "overtaxed." Now we're being taxed the proper amount (save for corporations, but that adjustment is coming soon) and we're spending billions on prisons while our crime rate is falling and new fighter jets right after we've decided not to conduct combat missions overseas anymore. And, go figure, after all their tax adjustments and spending initiatives, we're in the red.

Tax-cut and Spend Conservatives: we knew after the PC/CA merger that the "socially progressive" wing would be suffocated to death; but who thought that they would also terminate any hint of fiscal conservatism too?