Resurrection
Dennis Saunders, currently writing Neomugwump and formerly of The Moderate Republican, woke his blog up, so I'm pleased to drop him back in the list just in time to point out this very thoughtful post around the Rick Warren controversy.
Short version for those of you who don't follow the USAmerican politics, Obama has asked Prop 8 opponent Rick Warren to deliver a prayer at the Inauguration, making many of Obama's gay supporters feel abandoned or thrown overboard, while Obama panders to the right wing somehow. I think it's more complicated and smarter than that. Dennis agrees. Go read.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Running out of ammo
Perhaps it's just as well that the Prime Minister convinced the Governor-General to let Canada sit out the entire financial crisis, because meanwhile, the United States is quickly running out of ammo to throw at it. Reducing the prime rate to one quarter of one percent is a desperate attempt to encourage spending, because your rate of return through saving on US treasury bills is now a little lower than the rate of return through adding the change you find in your couch to what you already have hidden under the mattress.
No wonder Iggy seems cool to the prospect of a coalition - who the hell wants to govern during the next couple of years?
Perhaps it's just as well that the Prime Minister convinced the Governor-General to let Canada sit out the entire financial crisis, because meanwhile, the United States is quickly running out of ammo to throw at it. Reducing the prime rate to one quarter of one percent is a desperate attempt to encourage spending, because your rate of return through saving on US treasury bills is now a little lower than the rate of return through adding the change you find in your couch to what you already have hidden under the mattress.
No wonder Iggy seems cool to the prospect of a coalition - who the hell wants to govern during the next couple of years?
Thursday, December 11, 2008
More irony
The man who said (in a bald lie) that "The opposition does not have the democratic right to impose a coalition..." during his television address a week ago, has decided that even without proving he has the confidence of the House, he should exercise his democratic right to name senators - a dozen and a half of 'em!
As Frank magazine used to put it, Stephen Harper is a Great Canadian(tm).
The man who said (in a bald lie) that "The opposition does not have the democratic right to impose a coalition..." during his television address a week ago, has decided that even without proving he has the confidence of the House, he should exercise his democratic right to name senators - a dozen and a half of 'em!
As Frank magazine used to put it, Stephen Harper is a Great Canadian(tm).
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
I suppose as the economy gets worse, ANY job is a good job
Bob Rae sure did look happy as the final obstacle moving out of the way for Iggy's coronation. And no wonder. Does Bob want to be the guy who, in the face of popular opinion deciding that Canada's parliamentary system is somehow "undemocratic", has to pull down the Tory government? Bob took a stand - he said Harper's government was too far gone, had accused his caucus of being traitorous, separatist sympathizers, and no budget was going to fix it. Bob had the conviction to carry through with the coalition plan.
Ignatieff, though - there's a guy who has few enough convictions to lead a Liberal Party. Call him separatist, call him traitor, call him undemocratic - the important thing is to keep all the options open for as long as humanly possible. I'm sure the Tories will waste no time testing this lack of conviction - expect more exciting poison pills in the budget.
Meet your new Liberal caucus - chew toy to the government once again. Because that worked super-well for Dion.
Bob Rae sure did look happy as the final obstacle moving out of the way for Iggy's coronation. And no wonder. Does Bob want to be the guy who, in the face of popular opinion deciding that Canada's parliamentary system is somehow "undemocratic", has to pull down the Tory government? Bob took a stand - he said Harper's government was too far gone, had accused his caucus of being traitorous, separatist sympathizers, and no budget was going to fix it. Bob had the conviction to carry through with the coalition plan.
Ignatieff, though - there's a guy who has few enough convictions to lead a Liberal Party. Call him separatist, call him traitor, call him undemocratic - the important thing is to keep all the options open for as long as humanly possible. I'm sure the Tories will waste no time testing this lack of conviction - expect more exciting poison pills in the budget.
Meet your new Liberal caucus - chew toy to the government once again. Because that worked super-well for Dion.
Everybody's got a price
I brag this is an ad-free blog, but once a year, I break the rule to get myself in a poker tournament. Who knew the price was so cheap?
Anyway:
I brag this is an ad-free blog, but once a year, I break the rule to get myself in a poker tournament. Who knew the price was so cheap?
Anyway:
I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!
The WBCOOP is an online Poker tournament open to all Bloggers.
Registration code: 851558
Monday, December 08, 2008
Countdown
In all of the coverage of the end of Dion's days as leader of the Liberal party (and let's be clear, it's not the coalition generally coming apart, it's the Liberals who are so impatient and dumb they demand the resignation of someone who has already resigned), Stephen Harper seems to have successfully dodged the bullet this time out. But I don't think he has. Instead, I think the Christmas break will just reinforce to opposition members that the Prime Minister has been acting in an increasingly abusive and autocratic manner, and they aren't going to forget easily that they've been painted with the brush of words like "traitor". Should the Liberals get their crap together quickly, even with someone as lukewarm on the coalition as Iggy has been, they should still manage to topple the government, if only to prove to Harper that hiding behind the vice-regal skirts only gets him so far.
The Tories have one save up their sleeve, and I don't think I've heard a syllable about it since Thursday - Harper now has seven weeks to resign and let the Tories find a replacement. Either way, I believe this Prime Minister will be gone before the snow is.
In all of the coverage of the end of Dion's days as leader of the Liberal party (and let's be clear, it's not the coalition generally coming apart, it's the Liberals who are so impatient and dumb they demand the resignation of someone who has already resigned), Stephen Harper seems to have successfully dodged the bullet this time out. But I don't think he has. Instead, I think the Christmas break will just reinforce to opposition members that the Prime Minister has been acting in an increasingly abusive and autocratic manner, and they aren't going to forget easily that they've been painted with the brush of words like "traitor". Should the Liberals get their crap together quickly, even with someone as lukewarm on the coalition as Iggy has been, they should still manage to topple the government, if only to prove to Harper that hiding behind the vice-regal skirts only gets him so far.
The Tories have one save up their sleeve, and I don't think I've heard a syllable about it since Thursday - Harper now has seven weeks to resign and let the Tories find a replacement. Either way, I believe this Prime Minister will be gone before the snow is.
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