, 12.28.2018 03:27 PM

How will I vote in 2019?

Well, if Trump hasn’t killed us all before we get around to voting, this is kind of where I’m at, as 2018 grinds to a close. All pricing subject to change without notice.

LIBERALS: Like them on most social policies, dislike them on economic stuff. Trudeau seems a phoney to me, most days.

CONSERVATIVES: Like them on most fiscal and energy policy, appalled by their retrograde environmentalism and the anti-immigrant/refugee dog whistle crap. Scheer hard to take seriously.

NDP: There’s little to like. They’re just not ready. They – all of them, not just Singh – have taken what Layton left them and wrecked it. A mess.

GREENS: Feminist, pro-diversity, social justice, equal opportunity, prosperity, democracy, personal and global responsibility, sustainability. I like May. If they can purge the anti-Semitic BDS types, I may just vote Green in 2019!

47 Comments

  1. Miles Lunn says:

    Agree with a lot here, but don’t think I could vote Green with Elizabeth May as leader, seems too left wing for me. Now if Mike Schreiner who is the Ontario Green Party leader was federal I might be more open. I wish we had a party that was to the right of the Liberals, but left of the Conservatives. Liberals under Chretien and Tories under the old Progressive Conservatives certainly fit that mold. I will probably go Conservative, but no guarantees, but don’t plan to campaign or donate to them. Luckily my riding of Vancouver Centre is a fairly progressive one so usually the Tory candidate tends to be more centrist than you find in the more rural areas.

    • Jim says:

      This is kind of cool yet creepy at the same time. You’ve pretty much summed up my exact feelings/thoughts on the current political scene. Can I vote for you?

  2. Jack says:

    For what it’s worth, here’s where I’m at…

    Liberals:

    Like the general direction of the government and the sincere interest in at least trying to govern for a broader cross section of Canadians (sure as shit wasn’t the Harper gov’s approach). The problem is that they’ve ostensibly pushed billions of dollars out the door and you would be hard-pressed to find tangible results for those investments. Recent Abacus data shows that a weak point for the Liberals is on “tax change impact” and “use of tax payer money”. For a party that roared into power promising sweeping changes to directly improve/impact the middle class, they’ve completely disappointed on meeting their own rhetoric and its showing. They need a radical new approach to this issue if they expect to retain a majority.

    Conservatives:

    This is still the same part of Harper circa 2015. Its a cesspool of tacit acceptance of dog whistle politics, underneath a facade of severely overrated economic expertise. They’re not offering anything different than what was presented to voters in 2015; a set of tired old rhetoric and inexplicably spiteful policies. Scheer is a different shade of Harper, not a change. At least Harper would have had the balls to quash Bernier, but Scheer let Mad Max walk all over him and I cannot see that as an endearing quality in a leader.

    NDP:

    Warren makes a good point here and one that I’m afraid doesn’t get emphasized enough in coverage of this party. New Democrats have been in a downward spiral long before Jagmeet’s emergence. They’re a party that had the opportunity to be something different for Canadians and chose instead to have Mulcair – a dinosaur of Quebec politics – tear the party apart for the sake of his own vanity. They had their chance in 2015, but squandered it. Lets not pretend like anyone – not even Layton’s ghost – was going to revive the party in a few years. They’re facing a long rebuild here and would be better served in accepting that reality.

    Greens:

    Why?

  3. Kenton says:

    People often talk about the weird coalition Trump has built. What about the strange coalition of voters built by Canadian Liberals?: 1) People who treat a 47-year-old condescending (bad) actor like the “teen” (?!?) heart throb PM this country needs; and 2) those who hold their noses, look the other way (because, hey, #winning) and point at Blandtew or Harper every time another Zoolander character flaw is accurately noted.

  4. Kenton says:

    People often talk about the weird coalition Trump has built. What about the strange coalition of voters built by Canadian Liberals?: 1) People who treat a 47-year-old condescending (bad) actor like the “teen” (?!?) heart throb PM this country needs; and 2) those who hold their noses, look the other way (because, hey, #winning) and point at Blandtew or Harper every time another Zoolander PM character flaw, ethical lapse or grope is accurately noted.

  5. Ronald O'Dowd says:

    Unless they royally screw it up, I’m still Liberal.

    • Walter says:

      They already have screwed up quite badly.

      Do you mean that if they don’t screw up even more?

      • Ronald O'Dowd says:

        Walter,

        I mean should it reach the perception point where it’s likely no longer recoverable, I will sit out the election under those circumstances.

  6. Gyor says:

    “They – all of them, not just Singh – have taken what Layton left them and wrecked it. A mess.”

    I suppose there is some truth to this, it’s not like anyone has shocked me with their brilliance in cacus or outside, although to be fair Erin Weir has had a nightmare dumped on his lap, so I’ll give him a pass.

    And the truth is while the NDP has not been inspiring lately and the blame can be shared, the lions share of the blame remains Jagmeet’s, he is the leader, much of the problems can be completely traced directly to his choices, divisions between him and thr cacus, his abuse of power in reguards to Erin Weir, his bungling of the investigation into the accusations against MP Christine Moore, which was filled with double standards.

    • Mark says:

      Agree with you mostly. Nathan Cullen continues to be a cut above the rest of his caucus colleagues and has definitely not contributed to the current mess the NDP faces. He could possibly re-build what Layton did.

      • Jim R says:

        I’m not a NDP supporter, but every time I’ve seen Nathan Cullen on TV (usually CTV’s Question Period), he comes across as *much* more knowledgeable, articulate, and rational than just about all of the other politicians. The NDP could do a lot worse than picking him as leader.

  7. Brian H Potts says:

    I’ll eat a Maine Coon Cat if you vote Green in 2019.

    • Robert White says:

      Kinda like “We’ll shoot this dog if you don’t buy this magazine” [National Lampoon] ad, eh.

      My last cat was a Maine Coon Cat named Dudley. He lasted 19 years longevity wise. Great breed of cat for longevity and good temperament too.

      P.S. If Warren votes Green I, for one, hope you choke on the furballs.

      RW

  8. Dave Abbey says:

    Green. I think you will fund the issues on BDS were resolved at special mtg in Calgary in late 2016

  9. Mark says:

    I live in Victoria, but outside Elizabeth May’s riding, and she is my mother’s MP. I have met her and she has become very involved in the Sidney and Gulf Islands communities. I value her dedication, tremendous work ethic and commanding knowledge of many issues. While I voted Green in 2015, after years as a Liberal supporter, her party’s anti-Israel wing will likely prohibit me from voting Green again unless they can convince me otherwise. I agree with your assessment of the other parties too.

  10. Robert White says:

    The Liberal center of politics in CANADA is the safe bet going forward. Conservatives are mired in the past and are unable to project vision for CANADA going forward. They consistently have no plan of action to ameliorate a downed economy whereas the Liberal Party is at least doling out the standard care packages to failing industries. A Conservative Government is an impossibility in light of incumbent status and two term orthodoxy per government in waiting as per usual.

    Please name me one Liberal fed government that won with a majority first term and was booted for the second?

    Elizabeth May was abusive to her staff as her office in Parliament was renovated & painted. Third Party Review exonerated her I guess but I know a bad customer when I see one and May is most assuredly one of those nasty customers IMHO. Furthermore, no Financial & Fiscal Conservatives in CANADA would dare vote Green if they wanted a strong economy and prospects for jobs.

    The Green Party will never make it to the helm federally. Voting Green is a wasted vote and always has been at the federal level.

    Clearly, the Green Party needs new life with a green thumb approach. Elizabeth May is a great politician but yesterday’s woman.

    I’m a committed Liberal as long as Orange Jesus Cheeto-head-in-Cheese is still muckraking around down South.

    RW

    • Jim says:

      Oh, good gravy! Is this post meant to be a parody of an over-confident Liberal?

      The idea that Trudeau has no chance of losing because all previous rookie Liberal PM’s have received second terms is a ridiculously myopic perspective to cling to in these disruptive times.

      Believing a Conservative Government to be an impossibility reeks of the arrogance that allowed Trump to seize power south of the border.

      Those who wish to see Trudeau remain in power and those who wish to see Scheer kept far away from it would best be reminded that pride goeth before the fall.

      • Robert White says:

        I am very supportive of Mr. Scheer as I believe he has the people & leadership skills necessary to lead, but he has no chance against Trudeau’s incumbent status as most incumbents win and challengers lose with a high degree of probability.

        Statistically, Scheer has no possible chance of beating Trudeau.

        Any notion that he could beat Trudeau is too silly.

        I am an Anglican, and know the King James Bible front-to-back in my sleep. I have no pride in anything as I am devoid of pride and always have been.

        I graduated from university saddled with unserviceable debt and wound up completely bankrupt for life. I am subsisting on Anti-social Assistance and have next to no possessions. In brief, when I look into the mirror in the morning whilst brushing the few remaining teeth I have left I have no sense of ‘pride’ whatsoever.

        Living on less than $10,000 per year in Canada’s capital where the federal government typically pays the average worker six figures is most assuredly a lesson in humility as opposed to pride.

        RW

      • Fred from BC says:

        “Oh, good gravy! Is this post meant to be a parody of an over-confident Liberal?”

        Nope, it’s just Robert…always trying too hard…

  11. Gord Tulk says:

    The greens are sexist, pro-ghetto, anti-justice, plays favorites, want us all to be poorer, want proportional rep to paralyze change and May is an erratic fraud.

    • Walter says:

      True, but the media likes them so they are portrayed as a viable party.

    • The Doctor says:

      I think it’s true that if any other leader of any other party had done that cringeworthy drunken gong-show meltdown that may did at the PPG dinner, their political career would have been over. At the very least, not party leader anymore. But May gets a free pass.

    • Dr. David Robinson says:

      Nuts! Gordon, it is called spewing when you stick 7 wild and derogatory assertions into a single sentence. It takes some talent, but you have anything real to say?

  12. Gord Tulk says:

    For you greenies out there – here is an outstanding article on energy consumption and technology.

    https://www.realclearenergy.org/articles/2018/12/11/energy_and_the_information_infrastructure_part_3_the_digital_engines_of_innovation_jevons_delicious_paradox_110368.html

    It explains Jevon’s paradox. To wit the more energy efficient something becomes THE MORE energy gets consumed. According to an expert friend this is already starting to happening in LED lights and is set to explode energy consumption.

    Thus the only way to reduce energy consumption is to have negative economic growth. And negative economic growth is bad for the environment. So greenies you have a choice – lower carbon dioxide production or a cleaner environment. You can’t have both.

  13. Steve T says:

    The Greens benefit from what all rump parties enjoy; that is, the freedom to not be particularly challenged in the media or the public eye. They know they will never be in power or opposition, and they have no (federal) record to be critiqued on.

    If the Greens faced the questioning and scrutiny of the CPC, Libs, or NDP, their incompetence and lack of depth would shine brightly.

    • Fred from BC says:

      Yeah, same thing the NDP used to enjoy (and still does, to some extent). I’ll never forget the little bantam rooster Jack Layton in that one televised debate where he pointed at the Liberal and the Conservative squabbling and proudly proclaimed that “this is why nothing ever gets done in Canada!” (or words to that effect).

      The news media subsequently declared Layton to be the ‘winner’ of that debate, didn’t they?

      Wasn’t long after that, that I stopped watching the debates entirely; once Elizabeth May was allowed in, there was really no point. I much prefer the American format, frankly: show me *only* the two people who could possibly form government, let them elaborate on their policies and demonstrate why they are better than the alternative.Let them confront each other and defend themselves as concisely and eloquently as possible. Don’t give me the SCREECHING GONG SHOW that we have here in Canada, where everyone yells all at once and the loudest one wins (or the most sarcastic one, sometimes).

      Let the fringe parties duke it out with the NDP in a separate debate, please. Government is too important to play games with.

      • B E says:

        Perhaps too much importance is placed on debates altogether. The candidates know that they aren’t there for serious debate, just to push lines that they hope get repeated in the media. Elections are supposed to be decided on policies so I can’t tell what debates really add.

        In the same vein, I have mixed feelings on the government’s debate commissioner. On the one hand, it legitimizes the format, but on the other hand it could open the door for further regulation of leader debates in the future and make them more substantive.

    • Dr. David Robinson says:

      Seems to me that Scheer is enjoying “the freedom to not be particularly challenged in the media or the public eye.” Lies about the carbon tax and his own pathetic climate policy, stupid comments on the food guide, claims he could do better dealing with China. By comparison, May is a model of probity and carefully developed policies.

  14. Walter says:

    It is strange that after 3 years in power not 1 Liberal cabinet Minister can be put into the above average category.
    It will likely be a repeat of the 2015 election where it’s the superior policies of the Conservatives versus the nostalgia (and hair) of the Liberals.
    The question to ask if the Liberals win will be whether or not there will be a separation referendum in Alberta. Canada was likely it’s most united in over a century, and it was destroyed in a matter of 1 term.

    • lance says:

      ^ This.

      And maybe just not one either, but I am unsure if Moe has the cajones. Now…if Wall starts something…well, Mr. Scheer will be out of a job.

  15. Derek Pearce says:

    ( I know for some weird reason way back in the day which I never understood he was your devil-horned nemesis etc wtf was that, however…) Paul Wells on Rosemary Barton the other night said something perfect: back in Chretien’s day the Liberal govt would explain they would do things out of plain necessesity or practicality, but THIS govt, with almost EVERYTHING they do, is communicated as being from a position of moral authority or being “truly Canadian”, and people are gagging and sick of it. Lol and I will not vote for Scheer but Wells is 100% correct. This Lib gov needs to lay off the sanctimony for Christ’s sake.

    • Ronald O'Dowd says:

      Derek,

      Wynne’s last election was Herle’s crunch time. And so it will be for Telford and Butts going into the fall.

      • Doug Brown says:

        Still think the key to defeating Trudeau is to defeat Butts. He has to have some skeletons in the closet from the Ontario Liberal days. He also seems to be somewhat of a hot head who would easily say something offensive if challenged.

        Are Senior Advisors out of bounds for opposition research?

  16. Doug Brown says:

    Freeland is the only standout Cabinet Minister. Have to repeat how truly awful Morneau has been. The Liberals have vacuous trust funders in the two most important positions.

    Agree that Wall is the only politician that excites me. He is by far the best communicator, able to frame issues and admit to challenges which is so refreshing in an era of empty, communications department massaged doublespeak. Even in 2019 his inability to speak French somehow precludes him from national politics. Canada is in for perpetual poor leadership if speaking French remains a prerequisite. Maybe 20% of the population speaks both languages. That seriously limits and biases the talent pool. Most of the truly bilingual come from Eastern Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. People with public sector experience are more likely to be bilingual than those in the private sector. The bilingual are more likely to come from liberal arts backgrounds than business or STEM. Perhaps a contributor to Conservative leadership failings is that few competent conservatives speak French. The Laurentian Elite has established itself as psuedonobility by rewriting the unwritten rules of the game.

    • Pedant says:

      The same Freeland that went on US television and said we should not condemn honour killings because that would offend people?

    • Ronald O'Dowd says:

      Doug,

      Anyone in politics with brains who seriously aspires to hold the highest elective office in the land knows that you have little to no chance to win without mastering French. It’s only been 50 years since that stark reality became the norm.

      That’s precisely to his credit, why Harper went out of his way to become fluent in French. Harper got it.

      • Doug Brown says:

        French language skills are rarely appreciated outside Canadian federal politics. This goes back to my original point about that requirement producing poor politicians.

        • Fred from BC says:

          Stephen Harper also proved that you no longer need to win Quebec to become the Government of Canada.

          • Ronald O'Dowd says:

            Fred,

            That’s more a question of ever increasing Western electoral demographics. That trend is the West’s friend. Ontario is still King while Quebec is in decline. But for how much longer can Ontarians call the tune?

  17. Doug Brown says:

    … and spoke at a “Taking in the Tyrant?” panel while NAFTA negotiations were critical. She suffers the same moral superiority virtue signaling and narcissistic tendencies as many of her intellectually inbred Liberal colleagues. The difference is that Freeland still gets things done.

  18. Isaac Hillier says:

    Warren if you don’t like the Libs on economics and don’t like the Tories social policy, sounds like you are ready to hop on the Bernier train

  19. David Grant says:

    I am tired of these tired anti BDS crap. The real Anti-Semites are the ones who support Israel which are fundamentalist Christians and more recently the likes of Richard Spencer. The reason people have turned to supporting BDS is that they are concerned at the human rights abuses that exist in Israel towards Palestinians. Among those who support BDS are Jews who feel that their religion has been tarnished by the Zionist ideology. The people who support this are not only focused on Israel’s human rights abuses, but have been involved in opposing the human rights abuses in Indonesia, Myanmar, and many other countries in the world.

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