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Premier Christy Clark's dismissal of polls stuns Angus Reid VP

Jenny Uechi
May 19th, 2012

Photo of Christy Clark in Tokyo from Facebook

If Premier Christy Clark's government trusted Angus Reid enough to hire them, she shouldn't dismiss the company's poll simply because she didn't like the result, Angus Reid vice president Mario Canseco said.

"If this is a government that can trust our research, why is it now suddenly — because the NDP has a 27-point lead — being cast aside as a bunch of has-beens who get elections wrong," Canseco told the CBC on Friday. 

John Weston issues apology to Daniel Veniez

Jenny Uechi
May 18th, 2012

John Weston, the Conservative Member of Parliament for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country issued a written apology to Liberal opponent Daniel D. Veniez for his campaign’s distribution of "misleading" material relating to Veniez’s role as President and Chief Executive Officer of Skeena Cellulose Inc. 

After Veniez filed a defamation suit in B.C. Supreme Court against Weston last April, Weston sent a letter to Veniez dated May 11, which stated: “I know of no basis for a suggestion that you acted unethically, dishonestly, or unlawfully”. The Vancouver Observer contacted Weston for comment but did not receive a reply in time for publication.  

In response to Weston's apology, Veniez issued the following statement:

#Flahertyjobs tweets mock Jim Flaherty's "no bad jobs" comment

Jenny Uechi
May 15th, 2012

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's "no bad jobs" comment backfired on social media today, with people from across Canada posting crappy jobs (many of them fictional) with the hashtag #flahertyjobs.

"The guy who has to explain Climate Change to Peter Kent" tweeted @DanSpeerin, who started the trend earlier this afternoon.

Tories' deceptive attack on pensions jeopardizes future of Canadians under 54

Ellen Woodsworth
May 10th, 2012

I was part of a powerful forum “Pensions at Risk” hosted by MP Libby Davies a couple of weeks ago. There were speakers from COSCO the Coalition of Senior Citizen Organizations, CARP, the National Union of Public Employees, journalist Bill Tieleman, and myself.

The auditorium was a full, but I don’t think anyone was under 54. We were all discussing the changes proposed in the budget to change the Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement system but as we talked it became clear that this is part of a much more serious dismembering of the Canada that once made us proud to be Canadians.

This is part of a political attack on Canada, the concept of universality and our wonderful social programs: pensions, education, health care, welfare and housing which have been available to everyone from coast to coast to coast.

"Breaking News: Stephen Harper did not operate a brothel during election!"

Jenny Uechi
Apr 11th, 2012

On Redditt today, readers had a strong reaction to David Ball's story yesterday in the Vancouver Observer about Republicans popping up in Canada to knock on doors for Tory candidates.  Here's how the conversation was going when last we checked in:

 

[–]catcircusringmaster 5 points 3 hours ago

As much as I have issues with the CPC this one seems a little weak and shouldn't distract from bigger issues. The article states: 'Although Front Porch volunteered and made phone calls for Fantino in hopes of winning a contract, he did not hire them.' These sorts of 'demos' are common in business. If the staff was there for only a day or so, it's hard to see how they would be such a big factor. That's not to exclude any suspect participation in other ridings, but it doesn't seem that strong to me in this case.

[–]dafones 13 points 16 hours ago

And nothing will happen, because El Harper and co are somehow magically bulletproof.

[–]ClassicalFizz 9 points 14 hours ago

They are bulletproof because their base doesn't care if they are criminals or not as long as they win and pass the trough their way

[–]gobrowns1 6 points 10 hours ago

They are bulletproof because your average Canadian is more concerned with when Rihanna is coming to town, rather than spending 15 minutes to update themselves on national politics. I never thought that a nation with so much freedom would value it so little.

[–]spolio -2 points 4 hours ago

so true, this just is Canada's way of saying, we have no faith in our electoral system anymore, its not that we put little value on freedom or what ever you feel like calling it. everyone i talk to says the same thing, no amount of voting is going to change anything, like the song "won't get fooled again", the new boss is the same as the old boss, out for themselves and to screw the country, they are getting what they can then retire outside of Canada, that is why more are interested in Rhianna, with enough support she will come to your town. the govn. on the other hand will squeeze you till you scream them lay you off and retire with a golden plated pension while you and i get to work till we die penniless. but for now we still have freedom of speech, sort of, coming to an end soon near you.

[–]AFX_Has_No_Meme 1 point 1 hour ago

...we have no faith in our electoral system anymore, its not that we put little value on freedom or what ever you feel like calling it...

I don't think you know the difference between enjoying freedom and placing a great deal of value on freedom.

...no amount of voting is going to change anything...

This is completely false. The Conservatives won by such a small margin in several ridings during the 2011 federal election that had about 70% of voters turned out, rather than 61.4%, it could very well have radically changed the results and yielded a government with very different policies than our current government.

[–]glove_pond 2 points 14 hours ago

This. How and why is none of this gaining any real traction?


[–]Ceribia 2 points 13 hours ago

If you take this comment literally it's hilarious.

"Vote Conservative as they are somehow magically bulletproof and thus unstoppable by mortal men.

[–]teh_d0ct0r 11 points 14 hours ago

Tories flaunting the law and lacking ethics? What a revelation!

[–]narcoleptic_racer 1 point 1 hour ago

Don't forget our arctic presence, the strong and stable mandate and protecting families.

[–]ngwoo 7 points 15 hours ago

We should just start listing the rules the Tories didn't break.

Breaking News: Stephen Harper did not operate a brothel during election.

[–]JonPublic 1 point 4 hours ago

He's less Nucky Thompson and more George Remus.

[–]Hohenems 2 points 15 hours ago

Don't be fooled! That cat hotel thing at parliament is just a front!

[–]BeefyTaco -1 points 13 hours ago

legal in ontario now biiitch

[–]ALIENSMACK 7 points 15 hours ago

How many election rules must they break before their majority government is declared null and void ? This is getting ridiculous.

[–]narcoleptic_racer 1 point 58 minutes ago

There's a fair step between allegations and actual proof. By the time a court gets to spew out a decision on this as well as the voter suppression scandal, we'll have had 2-3 more elections by then.

[–]spolio 0 points 3 hours ago

i think they will have to break them all before anyone of authority steps up. or a revolution Canadian style, peaceful law abiding citizens, nope that would be rude, sorry can't do it.

maybe they are sorry and all is forgotten, hugs. now that is Canadian Style.

[–]chambee 3 points 16 hours ago

and why am I not surprised

[–]CuriositySphere 0 points 10 hours ago

 

Canadian democracy is a fucking joke.

British Columbia Premier Clark announces new cabinet appointments...over weekend

Linda Solomon
Mar 24th, 2012

Not sure, but it looks like Premier Christy Clark is getting more media shy by the week.  Today she chose the quiet of the weekend to announce changes to her cabinet. 

The Provincial government's website annouced today that Clark appointed. John Yap, as Minister of State for Multiculturalism. Yap currently serves as the chair of the Immigration Task Force, a committee examining the current system of economic immigration to Canada.

 Clark also appointed Moira Stilwell, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health with a specific focus on health care innovation. Stilwell has worked as a radiologist and nuclear medicine physician at B.C. Women's Hospital, St. Paul's, Surrey Memorial and Abbotsford Regional hospitals.

Thomas Mulcair wins final vote to become leader of the NDP

Gerrit De Vynck
Mar 24th, 2012

Photos by Gerrit De Vynck

9:30 p.m. EST -- Thomas Mulcair is the new leader of the federal New Democratic Party.

Defeated leadership candidate Brian Topp (left) shakes hands with new NDP leader Thomas Mulcair (right)

The Montreal MP and former Quebec caucus leader won every round of voting this weekend, climbing from 30 per cent in the first round to 38 per cent in the second and then 44 per cent in the third to make a date with Brian Topp for the fourth and final round.

Topp narrowed the gap in the last vote, but Mulcair still won with a handy 57-per cent majority.

Even if two thirds of those who voted for Nathan Cullen in the third round voted for Topp in the fourth, Mulcair still would have won.

A Mulcair supporter celebrates seconds after the Montreal MP wins the NDP leadership election

NDP Leadership Convention and vote: live blog

Gerrit De Vynck
Mar 23rd, 2012

The 2012 NDP leadership convention has begun. Organizers say more than 4,500 delegates have gathered at Toronto's Metro Convention Centre to choose the party's next leader.

5:00 p.m. EST -- Martin Singh finished off the day's speeches, telling delegates about both his past and his hopes for the future.

Throughout the campaign, many dismissed Singh as an inexperienced candidate with no chance of winning. But during his speech his core group of supporters, including his wife and three children, stood near the stage, chanting his name with the same ferocity other candidates got.

Martin Singh called for a nation-wide pharmacare plan

The Nova Scotia businessman began his 20-minute time slot with a cartoon video explaining why he, a white Nova Scotian with Anglo-Saxon roots, was a Sikh. 

He said he had found the religion in high school, married an Indian woman and was now an active member of the Sikh community.

Robocall scandal leads to apathy and disenchantment at family dinner table

Wendee Lang
Mar 12th, 2012

Flickr photos of Vancouver robo-call protest by Popeye Logic

I was raised in a home where politics was not a private matter, where one’s opinions on government and policy were considered crucial.

Walking into my parents’ kitchen on the Sunshine Coast, one is likely to be overwhelmed by aromas of fresh bread, and a slowly perculating brew, intermingled with the soft scent of cedar that drifts up from one of my father’s dusty plaid jackets. Between the gentle smells of my childhood, however, will come the inevitable assault, as my parents argue fiercely about the state of our nation, and the ever-drowning ideals of political decency.

Or so I had grown to expect. In today’s kitchen morale is low, and the arguments uninspired.

I'm supporting Dewar

Ian Reid
Mar 11th, 2012

I hate leadership contests.   And I really hate this one because it reminds me over and over again of the painful events of last summer. 

It reminds me of Jack’s bittersweet victory. Of a leader who had really just come into his own. Of a leader who had managed to seize Canadians’ attention with a strong and positive vision of what Canada could be, once it was wrestled away from Harper’s dark dreams.

But all that remains unfinished.  And the NDP is in a leadership race.

If there’s one thing I want to see happen in this race, it’s that we elect a leader capable of finishing Jack’s project.

What does that mean? 

To me it means a leader whose political essence mirrors Jack’s:  A leader who is as much the happy warrior as Jack was.

I think that person is Paul Dewar.  Here's why.

I first met Jack when I was running for city council in 1990.  He was passing through town and, as I had a strong interest in housing, Bruce Yorke invited me to a meeting he had set up out at the airport. 

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