Poll: Canadians! How will you be voting on Nov. 27?

[kami]

<< The Alliance does serve a useful role in opposition but I just can't vote for a guy who thinks the earth is 6000 years old >>


yikes, I didn't know this!! Who wants a narrow-minded idiot for PM? Oh well, I was never even considering the alliance anyway. I don't really see any other choice than liberal......again, for the third time!

 

[GL]

Actually, there is a very good chance the Alliance will join forces with the Bloc. And they'll both be able to explain it to their supporters...it goes something like this:

Alliance excuse
It's better to be in government in a coalition with the Prodigal Son, than it is to have the Devil (The Liberals) be in government. We can advance Alliance policy by holding a carrot in front of the Bloc's face...and that carrot is...

The chance to leave Canada! We know the Quebecers want out anyways. So let's let them have a national referendum on the issue that is legally binding. Then we'll have our own issues dealt with in a national referendum.

The Bloc's excuse
Sometimes you have to sleep with really unsightly people to get what you want. We will sleep with these conservative anglos long enough until they let us have what we want...a seperate Quebec.

My analysis
A lot of the Alliance voters don't give two sh*ts about Quebec...why would they care if the Alliance got in bed with the Bloc for so long as to let Quebec out of confederation. To them, the Alliance would only be a catalyst for an imminent situation. So it's better that way...less costly, etc. While in power, the Alliance would re-open many issues that really have already been dealt with in the past by the Canadian public, and I don't think I need to mention what these issues are. In dividing the public along several lines (i.e. religious ones), the Alliance would have a better chance of winning a majority government with the absence of Quebec since they let them leave.

I will never vote in a regional party. I care just as much about Quebecers as I do about Albertans. If Alberta were to be taken by some huge ice storm, I'd be the first to send over a generator and food supplies. I don't quite understand a lot of the West's bad feelings about Quebec, and vice versa. I have a strong feeling it has something to do with ignorance. We are so far apart (geographically) that Westerners seldom trek out east to Quebec and experience it, and Quebecers seldom trek out west.

Alas, you just gotta love when a regional party exploits anti-Quebec or anti-English sentiment to push policies that will ultimately ruin their supporters. No one province could seperate from Canada and be self-sustaining. The province would either have to keep close ties with Canada anyways (i.e. use the Canadian dollar) or sell out and use the U.S. dollar which would defeat the purpose of seperating from Canada to be an independent state.

Which reminds me...
Don't you guys know that one of the Alliance's goals is to use the American dollar in Canada? Does anybody know how f*ckin stupid that is? The only reason our economy is as good as it is, is because our dollar is so low it's damn cheap for GM, Ford, and the like to build all their products here and then export them south.

...and about Cretien being weak on criminals
Stockwell in his infinite wisdom blames Cretien for the early release of that sex offender and fails to realize that it was Harris' Ontario government that had jurisdiction over the matter and in fact, let him go early, 2/3 of the way through his sentence. But everybody knows water flows up Niagara Falls, right Stock!

...and about the Alliance's promise to stop catering to big business
Right. On one page of their official brochure they state this fact. A few pages later, they mention lowering taxes for the high tech industry. Way to go Stock...you aren't catering to big business...after all, Nortel only accounts for 30% of the TSE index!

As a staunch critic of Ontario's Tories, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'd much rather have Joe Clark's Tories become the official opposition, or even the government, before Stockwell's Canadian Reform Alliance becomes the official opposition or government.

-GL

 

[Javelin]

Not even the Alliance would be stupid enough to form a coalition with the Bloc. The overwhelming majority of Canadians will not accept a seperatist party holding the balance of power in parliament. And the Bloc has also repeatedly stated that it has no intention of supporting a hard right wing party virutally no support in Quebec and a leader who can't put two sentences together in French.

The Alliance did not actually propose to use the US dollar but they suggested that it be discussed. But this is still troubling. The Alliance should clearly state its positions on these issues, its not good enough to say that you'll look at it later when you're in power. This is an election campaign... a party's platform should state what its positions are. If the Alliance doesn't come clean with its intentions, I have no choice but to assume they have a hidden agenda... you expect me to trust them? Come on Stock, we're not that stupid.

 

[Blackhawk2]

Quebec will try to separate if the Liberals become elected again. Quebec is fed up with the current government(rightfully so) and France will support their separation from the rest of Canada. When Quebec goes other provinces might also decide that they've had enough of Ottawa.

 

[Muerto]

Last I heard France didn't want to have anything to do with Quebec. And the fact that the next referendum will be a country wide vote, I don't think we have to worry about Quebec leaving.

 

[Blackhawk2]

Muerto, if you think Ottawa will be able to tell Quebec how they must hold a referendum think again. They have already held a referendum on their own, they will do it again.

 

[Blackhawk2]

And if your not worried about Quebec leaving your naive.

 

[Javelin]

I suppose the issue of Quebec was bound to come up sooner or later... this is one area in which the Liberals and Chretien in particular deserve a lot of praise. The clarity bill is probably the finest piece of legislation to come about in the last 15 years.

The seperatists can ask any question they like but the rest of Canada does not have to negotiate the break up of the country if (a) the question is not clear and (b) if the majority is not clear. Just look at what is happening in the U.S. If the seperatists win on a crooked question by a bare majority with possible electoral fraud, like in the last referendum when a disproportioned amount of No votes were rejected, there is no way the Federal government should and will negotiate anything. 50% plus 1 is not sufficient to break up a country. The seperatists would then be left in a situation where they could either declare unilateral independence, something which the Supreme Court has deemed illegal and unconstitutional(and BTW, Bouchard praised this decision) or do nothing and ignore the referendum results.

The rest of Canada will no longer stand by and be blackmailed by seperatists. We refuse to appease seperatists, like Mulroney did. Chretien and Dion did the country a great service with the Clarity Bill, its a fine legacy to leave... now only if Chretien would leave. But let it be clear, Canadians will not put up with any more appeasement of seperatists and if Stockwell really wants to play footsie with the Bloc there will be hell to pay.

 

[Muerto]

Blackhawk2

Don't get me wrong. I don't want Quebec to leave. That would destroy Canada. One third of our population lives there which means one third of our tax payers.

I seem to remember hearing that the next referendum would be a Canada wide vote but I could be wrong, although I think it should be. But I don't think the Quebec people want another referendum any time soon. There are more important issues at stake like health care, education, unemployment, etc.



EDIT: Well said javelin. And I have to agree with you too that the clarity bill is probably the best thing to come out of partliament in a lont time.

 

[StageLeft]

I am still undecided - although I know for sure I am not voting for Liberals or BQ. BQ is a farce, what a joke...Liberals? Come on, time to step the hell down...I'll add something meaningful later...

 

[Muerto]

I know that the Liberals haven't exactly kept their word on everything, like ditching the GST. But I think they're still the best party. BQ wants to tear up Canada, the PCs are dead, and the Alliance is way too right wind for my liking. I suppose the NDP might be ok but I don't know how they expect to pay for all the stuff they want to do. It's all about choosing the lesser of all the evils.

 

[eakers]

well im voting liberal because i dont want the alliance to win. If they do the only good thing is that we could have a referendum on any issue including legalization of marijuna

but they want to ruin everything canadians are proud of. boo-urns to them indeed.

*kathryn.

 

[GL]

If the Alliance get in power, the first thing I'll do is get a petition going for a referendum on getting Stockwell Day to stop taking so many goofy photographs of himself. He's not photogenic and he looks goofy in whatever photo-op he is in

-GL

 

[shabby]

Im voting for Doris Day

 

[GL]

Eug,

I don't quite believe it either, but when you think about it, things really do make sense if both were to form a coalition government. The CA would gain power in Canada by allowing Quebec to leave (the west's votes would now count for a lot and Ontario wouldn't be able to decide the government on its own, so the CA would ensure further election victories assuming their popularity in the west remained at current levels). And of course, the Bloc would achieve its goal of a sovereign state. As ridiculous as this sounds, neither party has ruled it out...so technically it's still a possibility. When you take it at face value, it sounds ludicrous, but when you look at the end, instead of the means to that end, there's some substance to this rumour.

You have to remember that Bouchard was Mulroney's right-hand man...sat in Cabinet for goodness sake! As I said, the Bloc will get into bed with anyone as long as it achieves its goal.

-GL

 

[Blackhawk2]

<<...and Ontario wouldn't be able to decide the government on its own...>>

GL this is what makes up your idea of Canada? From the statement above I take it Ontario should have all the power, ie Ontario = Canada. Up until now I've always thought that Canada was made up of provinces, silly me.

 

[Blackhawk2]

P.S now I see why Quebec wants to separate.

 

[j@cko]

kick Stockwell Day right on the BUTT..

 

[NicColt]

Well it's clear that Chretien's abuse of power, corruption and lack of ethics has got to go. Considering that the liberals mismanaged $Bilions in public fund, continuously lied and misslead everyone in their fantasy red book, punished me and stole $2700.00 in extra Taxes from me for no necessary reason and cut back $15Billion in health care. It's a clear enough decision for me.

 

[Napalm]

Doris all the way, baby!!

Napalm

 

[SexEPid]

Too young this election, but, next election I will get into the thick of things.

Pid, TYRP

 

[desy]

Its no mystery why Westerners want Day in. Granted he is a nut but being snubbed by Ottawa is getting tiresome.
The Liberals have done next to nothing regarding western issues.
Bill C-68 gun control, new boating laws, continual disrepect for agriculture and the Internationl problems they face. Cuts in transfer payments for medical and education. They wonder why Alberta is telling them to get lost when it comes to medicare when the Feds only fund 13% of it yet they want to dictate how its should be run?
Lets see I think to be a majority shareholder you gotta anti up more than 50%
The Liberals live and die by Ont so they get whatever they want
IE Cretiens current legal problem giving loans to people in his own riding.
No, I won't be voting Liberal but am still undecided for the other choices.

 

[StageLeft]

Like Desy I am still totally undecided - except to say I'm not voting Liberal and obviously those morons who call themselves the BQ.

I believe that many of the people who will be voting Liberal this election are doing it because:

a) They've never voted any differently
b) They don't know any better.

This does not apply to all people, but I truly fear that the Liberals have such support due at least in part to an ignorant and uneducated population. I'm trying to learn about the different parties...if somebody votes Liberal for some good reasons thats fine and I don't intend to call you ignorant for voting Liberal. However, many people vote without knowing _anything_ about the competition and just vote liberal because perhaps they heard one or two bad things about another party.

As far as I'm concerned if somebody doesn't know jack-sh*t about all of the parties involved they should be responsible enough not to throw their mindless vote into the fray come Nov 27. Sure its their right but they don't have to excercise it.

Some of the reasons I personally won't vote Liberal are:

- chretien is arrogant
- chretian is lazy and doesn't care anymore (he even said he may leave before his term is up)
- Liberals as a whole are lazy now
- trying to cover their asses up (that mini-budget of tax breaks coincided directly with announcement of an election). Then we have their plan to refund health care - well they cut it in the first place; I'm not a moron I know what they're trying to do.
- brain drain. They don't care about it. I was at a party on Saturday and out of 15 people there virtually everone was either going to be an IT student soon, or was in law, or engineer or whatever. Guess where they are going to be working? I graduated with 35 other people from an IT school in January. Want to know where they are? All but 4 of us went to the states. The Liberals have little concern for this, and in time the country is going to stand less and less capable to compete with the states on the technological front.
- our taxes are bloody high. I am not asking for tax cuts but with the taxes we have the least the damned gov't can do is use the money properly. We pay $.25 on every dollar in paying off interest on the country's debt. LETS GET THIS DEBT PAID. The PC's want to pay it in 25 years. When do the liberals want it paid...? Whenever.
- looking at last two comments I make $36k CAN and pay 25-30% of this in taxes and pension and employment insurance. If I moved down to boston I could be making about $55k US and paying less. Damn, this country makes it hard to stay!

 

[denali]

As an American I have a question about the upcoming election that I figured you could answer. Are the Liberals concentrated the the urban areas and the Alliance in the vast rural fly over area like in the states with the Dems and Repubs?

Also for a little bit of humor go here and vote to change Stockwell Days first name to Doris.

 

[desy]

Sorta
They are more province centric than population centric.
We also have 5 legitimate contenders for the Gov't the problem being it is splitting up all the effective opposition to the Liberals who don't even have 50% of the vote but more than double any of the so called oppostion numbers.
In Canada any political party can start up and do well IE the Block or Alliance or NDP cause we only allow two months of political wranglng before an election and a spending cap. This means you don't have to have a bucket of money to buy an election just enough grassroot support.
So basically its turned into regional divisons.