I'm Going To Keep Saying It Untill People Start Getting It!

If you don't participate in a high risk lifestyle, if you manage to keep your pants on, you won't have to worry about stuff like this:

HIV on the rise in Ontario immigrants, gay men

Despite education campaigns and increasing collective knowledge of the causes and effects of HIV, it continues to spread, and in Ontario the rise is especially alarming.

[snip]

The incidence of HIV among gay men is also alarming, said Remis. His findings indicate there have been 3,800 new cases of HIV among gay men in the past five years, representing a 28 per cent increase.

Remis attributes this increase to several factors. A chief cause, he believes, is that many gay men are experiencing "safe-sex fatigue," and they're simply tired of being bombarded with the safe-sex message.

[snip]

Ask a homosexual journalist what he thinks the problem is and guess what you get?

Shaun Proulx, a journalist with Gay Guide Toronto, said he believes increased use of the powerful drug crystal meth among the gay community is contributing to the increase of HIV. He experimented with the drug for a story on the subject, and has first-hand experience.

"Crystal meth is called HIV's little helper because of its way of loosening inhibitions, of making you do things you wouldn't normally do," said Proulx. "You could have decades of safe sex practices behind you and abandon it all because you don't care."

It's the drugs fault. Don't look at the people taking the drug and indescriminately sticking their dicks in other men's asses, nope. That would be wrong-wrong-wrong! Blame the drug instead.

(On a semi-related note, how long before the folks on the lib-left start screaming that it was the gun that made this woman literally "go postal"?)

Are these folks so completely helpless that they can't take responsibility for their own actions? HolyCrap!

The article continues:

The numbers point to a sharp need for increased intervention efforts, Remis believes. Those efforts must be more concentrated and more highly funded, and must target small group intervention and personal intervention, both to the infected and uninfected, to reduce the chance of spreading the disease, he said.

[snip]

Research efforts also need to be increased dramatically in order to better understand HIV and the issues that surround it, he said.

Remis said he expects the problem to continue to grow, and said it will only be slowed by increasing research and education dramatically. Ontario's problem, he said, could be a microcosm of what can be expected to occur across the nation.

"I think the bottom line is this is a big epidemic. It's a major public health challenge for Ontario and for Canada as a whole," Remis said. [Video clip of the news story can be seen here]

So they're looking for more cash? Lets look at current projections for federal funding towards aids research:

(values in Millions)
2003-2004 = 42.2
2004-2005 = 47.2
2005-2006 = 55.2
2006-2007 = 63.2
2007-2008 = 71.2
2008-2009 and beyond = 84.4

Some quick math shows that between 2003 and 2010, our federal government projects to spend $363,400,000.00 on this issue.

To add a little perspective, in 2004 our federal government put a paltry $1,774,331.00 towards breast cancer research.

How's it feel knowing that a very real issue that can effect you, your mother, wife, sister or daughter gets only 1/20th as much. I don't know what it tells you but to me this shows that the 51% of our population who are female are only 1/20th as important as the homosexual community (2-3% of the population).

Here's some more interesting math. Assume $25 million (on average) spent annually since aids first reared (pun intended) it's ugly head way back in the 1980's: 25 years X $25 million = $625,000,000.00. Add the projected ammount and you get: $988,400,000.00

That's just shy of a billion dollars spent because these individuals refuse to keep their friggin pants on. That's just in Canada and doesn't take into account private donations. And they wan't more?

How's it feel knowing that a billion of your tax dollars are wasted because some guy likes to get his colon rubbed by another guys dick?

Individuals within the homosexual community have the ability to "opt-out" of their high risk lifestyle. You, your wife, sister, mother or daughter don't have the chance to "opt-out" if breast cancer chooses to strike.

Class Warfare

One of the differences I was slow to notice (although it has occasionally been much in the news) between the US and Canada – is the lengths to which the income redistribution schemes go. I was thinking on this topic again this weekend due to being very close to such a situation right now.
We moved my wife’s mother nearby (from Oklahoma) some years ago as her health began to fail. The city has several senior’s apartment complexes and she’s been living in one for about 5 years. However, as her health began to fail quickly over the past year, we’ve had to start looking at a nursing home or extended care facility. So, with this experience, I’ve been able to compare to the care and cost of my grandmothers final years in Alberta. When my grandfather died, the task of caring for my grandmother fell on my mother, with some help from me.  After a short stay in a senior’s complex in Cold Lake, my grandmother was moved to the extended care facility, which was an adjunct to the local hospital. (She was suffering from severe senility.) I found it interesting that she was actually continuing to accumulate wealth during that period, since the cost of the extended care facility was less than her monthly pension cheques (or checks for those south of the border).
The difference here in the US is that, generally, all the care facilities are privately owned. The general rule of thumb is that you get to pay the full cost of the facilities until such time as you have, basically, spent yourself into the poor house … somewhere around less than $4000 in assets. At that point the government takes over and covers your costs under Medicare and Medicaid (Medicare is automatic after … I believe … 65).
So, the inequity or difference that I see is that, in Canada, the taxes I pay (paid) cover everyone regardless of position or wealth … while in the USA the taxes only cover those that were grasshoppers during their productive life (as opposed to ants).
Whereas my grandmother managed to accumulate additional wealth after her entry into the extended care facility … her advanced senility ensured that she didn’t need anything except cigarettes … the cost for putting my MIL into the local nursing home is $160 per day. PLUS we have to allow them to obtain her medications – negating any value from her medical insurance. Before medications, that amounts to $58,400 per year for a semi-private room (as in ½ of a standard hospital room). Currently about 75% of the residents there, though, are housed using my tax dollars.
What a splendid example of a) the ant and the grasshopper, and b) class warfare carried to the extreme.

I've Got A New Friend!

His name is Patrick and here are some excerpts of a post he recently put together about me...
(As usual my responses are in [ ] square brackets)

Richard Evans: Clueless Intolerant Misogynist

There are certain things that can be expected from ignorant people, and name calling as a substitute for honest debate is certainly one of them.

[Ummm... Notice Patrick how the title of your post is ALL ABOUT NAME CALLING. I would suggest that you visit www.dictionary.com and do a search for the word "irony".]

Likely one of the most intolerant bloggers in Canada, Richard Evans has outdone himself with his latest post. An excerpt:

[WOOHOO! I'm one of the MOST INTOLERANT BLOGGERS IN CANADA!!! This excites me beause once you take away the lib-left spin what remains is that I'm one of the most principled and steadfast Canadian bloggers. That's a compliment Patrick. Thank You.]

[snip...]

The only thing this post will result in is Evans boasting something akin to “if the moonbats are upset with me I must be doing something right”. Evans is a fringe element of society, and doesn’t deserve any exposure he does currently get.

[And yet you chose to give me the exposure you say I don't deserve. Please make up your mind.]

My new friend Patrick isin't extending this hand of friendship to just me either. Nope. Here's what he had to say about our new Prime Minister, Stephen Harper...

Stephen Harper Wants to Kill Your Mother and Kick Your Kids

You know it’s true.

Those empty, shifty eyes communicate his contempt for life. He will not kiss your baby, as his primary instinct is to bite whatever is placed in front of his face.

Stephen Harper was fitted with porcelain veneers before he entered a life of politics because he used to file his teeth into sharp points, which made kitten-eating far less of a challenge.

Stephen Harper is sedated for most public appearances, which gives him that half-human appearance.

Stephen Harper is a vapid, uninspired politician that will lead Canada to the deepest, darkest recesses of hate and intolerance. Stephen Harper likes only one colour: white.

Stephen Harper should never smile, it’s painful enough to watch, but it appears to be more painful for him.

For his display of MoonBattery above and beyond the call of duty, Patrick will become a permanent resident in the MoonBat directory on the left hand side of this page. Congratulations Patrick.

From The Mailbag...

For Immediate Release Contact: Eric Odom
January 20, 2005 :: 775-830-7848
Blogging Man 2007 Goes Live
Controversy Instantly Erupts

(Reno, NV) Only a few days after going live, Blogging
Man has attracted attention on a massive scale. As a
result of liberal backlash, the websites second day of
being public brought more than 3,000 visitors in to see
what it was all about.

Blogging Man 2007, a gathering of more than 5,000
political bloggers, is set to take place in October of
2007 in Reno, Nevada. The convention will take its spot
in History as a stepping stone for Independent Media
and will launch the online community into a new realm
of public awareness. It's because of this that the far
left side of the political isle has allowed nothing to
hold them back in attacking the vision with shallow,
baseless accusations and personally insulting the
speakers involved. "If this is what we see in only two
days of being public, you can be sure we'll see a lot
more action over the next 20 months" says Eric Odom,
Chairman of the Reno based convention. Odom goes on to
say "some of these attacks have been downright nasty
yet humorous at the same time".

John Wolcott, a liberal blogger who was a columnist on
media and pop culture for publications such as Esquire,
Harper's, New York magazine, and Vanity Fair, calls it
"a forthcoming jamboree that threatens to be the
singular non-event in postmodern non-history: Blogging
Man 2007, being held at a bingo parlor in Reno, Nevada,
brushfires permitting." Through the comment feature of
a blog called "Three Bulls" the users seem to focus on
guest speaker Pamela aka "Atlas", a blogger in New York
who sees more than 4,000 visits per day, and apparently
the only thing that can be discussed is her breasts and
how she would make a good Barbie doll to make sexual
positions with the Ken doll. Tbogg Blog goes after
guest speaker Warner Todd Huston saying "Come see me at
Blogging Man 2007., I'll meetcha at the iHop Bacon
Bar." Even one of the biggest blogs on the Internet,
DAILY KOS, posted a request for information on the
Blogging Man organization and has pretty much called
for a full scale "liberal watchdog" to keep an eye on
what Blogging Man is up to.

Needless to say, this event will put Nevada on the New
Media map and the organizers couldn't be happier with
its instant success.

To find out more about Blogging Man 2007 visit the
official homepage at www.bloggingman.org
###

Fellow bloggers,
As you can see in the above press release, we've had
our hands full with the Liberal attention we've already
received. With that being said, I'll be honest and say
we could use a little help.

As many of you may know, in 2007 5,000 bloggers will
come to Nevada and network with the blogosphere in a
way that to date has not yet been seen. This event is
vital in moving today's media into a new realm of
public awareness and we hope the
conservative/libertarian community will rally behind us
in this cause.

To do this we will need A) Advertising dollars, and B)
Links coming into our website.

We know we can't just have both appear out of thin air,
so we must turn to you with a hope of finding the help
we need.

Here is our request and offer to you in exchange for
your help:

--Blogger Sponsorships--
Our sponsorship packages are built for medium to larger
companies, however, we've decided to put together a
special sponsorship package that will be very
beneficial to both you as the sponsor, and us as the
organizers.

Basically, for only a one time $20.00 sponsorship fee
you'll get a 200 X 200 blog ad from now until the event
in October of 2007. I think you'll agree that this is a
deal that simply cannot be beat. In our first week of
being live on the Internet we watched more than 5,000
unique IP addresses crawl across our pages and this is
simply unheard of. Needless to say, your ad will not go
unnoticed.

PLUS!
Your ad will be listed on the physical "Wall of Blogs"
that will be displayed in the main room of the event
venue for the entire 3 days of the conference.

To sum it up...
You get an ad here:
http://www.bloggingman.org/wall-of-blogs.html
You get a link on our Blog here:
http://www.bloggingman2007.com/
To sign up for your space (only 250 available) visit us here:
http://www.bloggingman2007.com/
If you have any questions feel to contact me at any time.

Warm Regards,
Eric Odom
Chairman - Blogging Man 2007
eric@bloggingman.org
http://www.bloggingman.org
775-826-7373
http://www.bloggingman.org/blogger-sponsorship.html

Hell, if it gets the MoonBats all worked into a lather, I'm all for it. I think my newly acquired "Ralph-bucks" are going to send me to Vegas. Woohoo!

I Was Going To Take The Day Off...

... but then I came across this:


Credo of the Left:

“When I am weaker than you, I ask you for my rights, for that is your way.”

”When I am stronger than you, I take away your rights, for that is my way.”

Posted by: Monty at January 29, 2006 02:07 PM

found at AGWN...

Happy mail!

Look what was in the mail today...

Dear Albertan: Enclosed is your Alberta 2005 Resource Rebate. This $400.00 per-person rebate is being provided by the Government of Alberta as a non-taxable, one-time bonus to all Albertans in recognition of their role in building this province. Funds for this rebate are from part of the years’s provincial surplus, the rest will be saved or invested to build Alberta's future. For more information on the rebate, please visit www.gov.ab.ca
Congratulations, and thank you for helping build this province.
Premier Ralph Klien

When I cashed the cheque at the local grocery store, the woman in front of me had one for $2000. I bet she was one of the few Canadians that spent the much needed funds on her three kids, as I DID NOT SEE ANY BEER OR POPCORN!!!
CBC Radio led the top of the hour all day with varying reports of Native alienation of the CPC vicTory. The only apparent reason given for all of this "reported" angst, is the "hidden agenda" of a CPC government eliminating all Native Rights...
When Native Canadians have a 5% G.S.T(the only tax paid by most Treaty Indians on-reserve), and a little ca$h to help them raise their families; what will the CBC talk about then? I guess they’ll just have to keep finding all of the people in Alberta on welfare that ACTUALLY wanted the government to spend THEIR money on social programs(for them).

I really do wonder how many Albertans that voted Liberal/NDP/Green, are sitting at home with their families, 2000 dollars in hand, saying:
“Ya know, the government really needed this money for more social programs!”

It's The Sex Stupid

This article says the conservatives didn't win a majority for two reasons; queers and abortions.

[...]
At Toronto's gay concentration, virtually every Torontonian knows gays. They have gay friends and gay co-workers. They have gay relatives. They see gay tendencies in the young children of their friends and, as they become older, speculation turns to confirmation. They have bonds with all these people and often a strong loyalty toward them, too. They don't want to see them disparaged, even implicitly. They don't want their vote to be read as an insult to gays. For many, a vote for Conservatives, knowing it would deeply offend a friend, a relative, a co-worker, would show disloyalty.
[...]
The abortion issue produces more visceral sex-based opposition to the Conservatives. Canadian women have more than 100,000 abortions a year. Put another way, for every 100 babies born, 32 are aborted. Among women in their twenties, about 2.5% will have an abortion this year. Among those who don't, many fear that, but for fortune, they might face the same choice.

Most women do not slough off their past abortions easily, and they certainly do not want societal reprimands for their past misfortunes. Neither do they want others to suffer any such stigma, or limit on their freedoms. These women's mates do not want any of the stigma to rub off on them, or to be limited themselves by unwanted obligations.
[...]

Right. Anyone who thinks that forcing ones sexuality onto others and an inability to keep ones pants on may be the real problems please raise your hands.

Think about it. If the queers weren't trying to force homosexuality into a heterosexual culture, they wouldn't have such a fight on their hands no?

If women were capable of keeping their pants on they wouldn't have the need to use abortion as a form of birth control no?

Is it the sex or is it selfishness coupled with a lack of personal responsibility?

Just a little update for the pro-abortion folks: This is what you're defending...



h/t Mitchieville for the graphic.

Vote For Pedro

I've had another guest column in our local paper, the Cambridge Times:

Vote for Pedro and dreams come true

By Brian Gardiner

(Jan 26, 2006)

Vote for Pedro. I did a double take, confirming that my eyes weren't playing a trick on me.

In the middle of one of Canada's most bitter, most divisive election campaigns, there it stood. On a Hespeler street, amid the clutter of Janko Peric and Gary Goodyear lawn signs, stood a simple white sign with black letters.

Vote for Pedro.

It was a moment of pure levity in the middle of the first winter campaign in more than 20 years; humour where it was least expected. Yet my next thought was also unexpected: Why not vote for Pedro?

Canada's electoral history is full of fringe candidates and parties. The most famous, and humourous, was the Rhinoceros Party of Canada. The Rhinos were a registered federal party in Canada from 1963 until 1993. They ran in every federal election in those years, on a platform they described as "two feet high and made of wood".

Promises made by the Rhinoceros Party included repeal the law of gravity and reduce the speed of light, add illiteracy as Canada's third official language and annex the United States.

Modern federal parties took a page from the Rhino platform when they promised to legalize pot. Unusually, the Rhinos also promised to legalize pans, spatulas and other utensils.

More poignantly, the Rhinos also promised that if elected they would break every promise and immediately demand a recount. Who says voter cynicism is new?

The recent election had its own fringe parties.

The Natural Law Party argues that heightened personal consciousness is the panacea for Canada's political and social problems.

The Marijuana Party of Canada is running on the single issue of legalizing pot. No mention in their literature of whisks or espresso makers.

Compare that to what Pedro, from the movie Napoleon Dynamite, offers voters. He has "a sweet bike, he's really good at hooking up with chicks, plus he is the only guy at school who has a mustache". His platform?

"Vote for me, and all your wildest dreams will come true."

Now at the end of the current election, with the two main leaders arguing over a ban of weapons in space, whether homosexuals should be allowed to wed and whose tax cuts are favoured amongst which economists, doesn't Pedro's simple one-sentence platform say it better?

Vote for Pedro? Why not.

It is my second go at guest column, the first time being:

Mom No Longer Remembers Christmas

What A Great Morning!

Lib-left heads exploding - *pop* *pop* *pop* *pop* *pop* *pop* *pop* *KABOOM!!!* - the last one is particularly fascinating:

The new Prime Minister of Canada is Stephen Harper. I can say, without fear of any reasonable contradiction, that Harper is the single worst human being to ever be Prime Minister of Canada. The best thing the disgusting Canadian media was able to say about him - and they were desperately looking for nice things to say - was that he doesn't suffer fools gladly. His disdain for humanity is quite obvious. He has been a life-long political policy wonk, and his biggest job prior to entering politics as a candidate was President of the National Citizens' Coalition (note the url), an extreme right-wing lobby group which was originally founded by insurance companies to destroy the Canadian health care system. Harper's entire life has been dedicated to two goals: increasing the amount of corporate control over politics and wrecking the single-payer Canadian health care system. He's a real nasty piece of shit, and the disgusting Canadian media won't be able to hide that fact for very long. His Conservative Party has nothing to do with the policies of the old Progressive Conservative Party, and is expressly modeled on the American Republicans.

Wow, someone's a little bitter...

Seeing this next bit just made my entire day!

A little preamble first:

Way back in October I first came across Dylan's blog (Right of Center Ice) and was rather annoyed that he'd call himself a conservative when, in my mind, he clearly wasn't. I put a post together on the topic and he protested saying that it wasn't fair that I'd pick on another conservative like that. In fact, he protested to Stephen Taylor of the BT's and it's one of the primary reasons I got punted from the group. To quote Stephen:

"Richard,
It has come to my attention that your blog is in violation of the standards of the Blogging Tories community. In particular, your blogpost http://nomoresocialism.blogspot.com/2005/10/outing-liberal.html can easily be labelled as 'trolling', which goes against BloggingTories standards outlined here (#8): http://www.stephentaylor.ca/archives/000331.html as such, I am removing your blog from the Blogging Tories blogroll."

Now I'd belying if I said I wasn't a little bitter.

Imagine my delight this morning when I read that Dylan, who adamantly swore he's conservative, and his co-author, Luke, voted for the Progressive Canadian's and Liberals respectively.

"As a critic who has seen many former 2003 PC party members ditching our newest efforts to renew the PC name as a moderate, centrist alternative to the Liberals and neo-Conservatives; I would feel hypocritical to abandon my party after such a surprising losses in Brome-Missisquoi, Sudbury, and nationally. Perhaps sitting out of federal politics for a while is in order. Re-evaluation of what I believe it means to be a Christian engaged in politics is in order, as well as reflection on my own political beliefs and how do they contribue best within our political economy - both of which will determine any re-newal or new memberships in any political party." - Dylan

and

"I have to say that I voted for the Liberals, hoping without abandon that they might pull the rabbit out of the hat again and take a minority government again. When this did not happen I was disappointed because I'm frightened with what Harper and his neo-con cronies might do and say now that they are in power." - Luke

Note to Dylan and Luke: Thank you for finally comming out of the closet. One votes for crooks and the other votes socialist-lite. How completely special!

Note to Stephen Taylor: These are the twerps you stuck up for a few months ago. How's it feel??

Note to everyone else: Sign-up with the Anti-Pc League. We're going to blow the BT's right out of the water. It'll be moving off of blogspot soon and will have an aggregator and all of that neat stuff. Changes should all be made by mid February.






On a slightly different note. Did you know that Duceppe used to be a member of the Marxist-Leninists Communist Workers’ Party? Yup he was. For 3 years aparently. Now, why wouldn't the lib-left and MSM bring that up at the same time they were picking on Harper for working for the NCC? Things that make you go hmmmmmmm....

WOOHOO!!! I'm Better Than A Yugo!

I'm a Chevrolet Corvette!

You're a classic - powerful, athletic, and competitive. You're all about winning the race and getting the job done. While you have a practical everyday side, you get wild when anyone pushes your pedal. You hate to lose, but you hardly ever do.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Cautiously Optimistic

I've been extremely quiet the past few days in regards to our recent election. It's been that way on purpose. I've been watching and listening and really chewing on what's been put before me. I was finally ready to post on my thoughts when Kate from SDA directed me to this post from "The Winds of Change":

Frankly, Canada's conservative party is a generation away from being a consistently sustainable political force - to become one, they're going to have to develop their base of supportive organizations, talk radio, plugging into the think-tanks, etc. Even the USA's Democratic Party, often the butt of TV jokes from all sides these days, is in better shape that Canada's conservatives when you really look at the lay of the land.

[...]

The Conservatives can survive and thrive with just 3 basic principles:

1. Give Canadians stability in government - do not rock the boat on anything that isn't an overwhelming political plus, and be willing to do only a few new things fairly well.
2. Pick the wedge issues to fight about very carefully.
3. Work to change the game underneath.

So...

Cut the hated national GST sales tax/VAT as promised (yes, it's on top of provincial state sales taxes), and dare the other parties to oppose it. This is key. Succeed there, fulfill that pledge which the Liberals made before more than once and did nothing about, and that will be a huge win.

Launch sweeping investigations of Liberal corruption that extend beyond just Gomery. That party was systematically corrupt, and has used its position in government to impair investigations. Get in, turbocharge and broaden the investigations instead, and be able to say to Canadians "we cleaned up the mess."

Under the banner of reforming the system, take a fast, hard wrecking ball to many of the mechanisms and entrenched appointments that have been built to give (and will continue to give) the Liberals unfair advantages in the system. Running those engines until the Liberals come back and pick them up again is historically a mistake, and has also left Canada with an unresponsive quasi-PRI style political system that really does need a shakeup. The scandals have created a major housecleaning opportunity. Use it aggressively and early, especially in terms of cleaning out entrenched appointments in the bureaucracy. Then get on to governing. After AdScam, nobody will pay attention to any screams of outrage from the bureaucrats involved, the liberals, or their media allies.

I share Mr. Katzman's views on the way forward for the conservatives at the federal level. Every single point is bang on. The only point I would add is that Harper needs to keep Prentence away from a cabinet post. You'll do well to read the whole thing and I hope the conservative strategists do as well.

On a provincial note, I think it's going to play out as I've predicted earlier. The idea of Alberta separation from confederation has been stopped dead in it's tracks. For now anyway. The idea and implementation however, of an Alberta "Firewall" will bloom within the next year and a half.

The Alberta PC government is tired and it's going to get turffed as soon as a viable alternative is found. That's going to be the Alberta Alliance Party. The next provincial election is slated for 2007. We'll get the Alliance government at the provincial level and the "firewall" shielding us from the parasites to the east. That's my quick and dirty prediction anyway.

On a lighter note, I must say that I'm extremely pleased with the way the MoonBat's heads are exploding upon Harper's becoming our Prime Minister.

Here are a few choice quotes:

Ti-Guy Says:
January 24th, 2006 at 11:42 am

Nope. When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

Progressives have got to close ranks and give the regressives the treatment they've meeted out to us over the last while. Mobilise, focus on a specific target and swarm, swarm, swarm. If they're on the defensive enough, they'll have to focus on what are real issues of governance, and not on the time-wasting innanity they've managed to distract themselves (and annoy the rest of us) with for the last decade.

It's not that difficult to do; just settle on a particular snippet of egregious dishonesty (whether willful or as a result of them being woefully misinformed; it shouldn't matter to us in any case), outrageous hatefulness or just simply one of their loony fundamentalist policies (whether free-market or religious or whatever) and badger them. This isn't payback; they've co-opted practically all public discourse with their nonsense and it's time for sensible people to reclaim it.

And I think progressive bloggers should just stop giving the trolls a stage and boot them and ban them and delete their comments. Whatever they've wanted to express with they're trolling we've already heard, and "freedom of expression" does not mean "freedom to make noise", which of course does not exist.

and this one from babble,

Originally posted by stupendousgirlie: I know there are many
people who feel that with the election of Stephen Harper's government, that a
new dark and evil force walks the corridors of power in Ottawa, that private
health care is coming, that women will use back alleys to have abortions, that
gay couples will lose the right to marry.

I don't believe any of it. There is a difference
between having members of a party who share those views and actually enacting
those kinds of regressive policies and that difference is reflected in the fact
that such a small minority will force those extreme elements into silence - for
now. *We all hope*

Well not now, because Stevie got a slim minority, and with some luck and some assistance from the bigotted majority in that party over the coming months showing their true slimy colours, hopefully we can rid the Canadian political landscape, at least east of Manitoba, of these clowns in the next election.

Just because these evangelicals do not have the power to create socially conservative legislation overnight doesn't mean they don't or won't want to eventually. Why would anyone want to give them the opportunity? Any monkey can balance the books, it's the rest of their "vision" for Canada that has many scared, and rightly so. If Ernst Zundel was a financial wizard would anyone advocate him for Minister of Finance? So why would anyone advocate known bigots, known racists, for government? Because of their economic plan?

Of course one can argue that there are racists and bigots everywhere but the difference with the cons is they have made clear there intention of enacting legislation that reflects their "values". Until Harper disavows clearly these "values", that they have no place in a decent society, then this fight will not only go on but just get hotter. Should be interesting.

So there you have it folks. We now return you to our regularly scheduled program of MoonBat baiting and beating.

Our Voices Were Heard!

Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to present the new Prime Minister of Canada. Mr. Stephen Harper!

The new way...

Ya know, one simply has to love it, when your local CPC candidate finds his way onto America's left-wing fortress, CBS' 60 minutes, and gives every crybaby-environut exactly what they deserve.
Reality.
I just voted for him. Proudly.

A Reminder

Beyond the corruption and financial mismanagement associated with the Liberal party and it's government, there are a few other things I'd like you to think about before you go and vote today. Primarily, I'd like you to think about your values.

I Am Also Canadian

I don’t live in Ontario. Nor do I live in Quebec. I don’t see hockey as the lifeblood of the nation. The CBC speaks neither for, nor to me. In fact, I was happy when they were on strike.

I don’t speak French nor do I wish to. When I was young and had it forced down my throat in elementary school, I resisted. When given the opportunity to make my own choice of a second language I chose anything but. I don’t regret it. I see having two different labels on all consumer products as wasteful and inflationary.

I see this forced duality as destructive. I see the results of our great "cultural mosaic" experiment as being outright disastrous. We cannot be one nation when we’re divided into so many fragments. I know that at the hands of Liberal governments, our once singular culture has been replaced with one of constant turmoil. Ethnic group competes against ethnic group. Region competes against region.

I don’t buy into Ontario’s claim that it’s the center of Canadian civilization. Nor do I buy into the idea that Quebec is distinct.

I don’t hate the United States. In fact, most days I admire them. Other days I’m indifferent. They’re an industrious nation. They know their history. They know where they came from. They understand the perils of communism and socialism and resist both.

I disagree with Canadian socialism. I believe that individual responsibility is more important than state provided entitlements. The government doesn’t owe me a job or a paycheck in lieu. The government isn’t responsible for my health. Ken Dryden isn’t responsible for raising my children, I am. I believe that it takes a family to raise a child and the village can go to hell if it doesn’t agree.

I believe the family is the cornerstone of society. I feel the manner in which my federal government continues to allow the sexual exploitation of our children undermines that. Why do they feel so adamant that a 45 year old man should be able to have sex with a 14 year old? I also feel that taking marriage away from a husband and wife and giving it to sodomites was a mistake.

I don’t bash religion or speak ill of those who practice it even though I myself may not. I believe that spirituality holds a very important place in our society. It’s our foundation and the source of our indelible rights.

I believe that I have a right to own property. Unrestricted. The money I earn is my property. When the government demands taxation without providing appropriate representation they are stealing and misusing my property. I should be able to own land. I should be able to own a firearm.

I don’t believe that gun control works. I don’t believe that we’re getting value from the gun registry. I believe that when you take firearms out of the hands of law-abiding citizens, you leave firearms in the hands of the criminals alone. You leave the law-abiding citizens defenseless.

I believe that as a sovereign nation we need to be able to defend ourselves. Without regret. We need a military that understands that it’s job is to win the peace by killing. We need a government with the intestinal fortitude to allow them to do it.

I believe in racial profiling if it will help prevent terrorist attacks.

I believe in being polite but not being politically correct.

My voice will be heard.

My name is Richard and I am ALSO Canadian!

Reposted from the October archives.

Paul Martin and Jack Layton tried to make this election all about values. You have a choice to make today. Are you going to let those two idiots tell you what your values are or are you going to tell them?

Think about it for a minute and then get your ass out and VOTE!

Short and Sweet

I had a great time at our get-together yesterday and I'd like to thank everyone for comming out. I can tell this is going to be a regular thing and that it's only going to grow from here. That is extremely cool.

Some pics below...

Keeping posting and reading to a minimum today because my head still hurts. (Actually it doesn't really, I'm just using it as an excuse to unplug for the day)

Darcy from Dust My Broom did a great round-up on the event. Check it out and then follow the links to the write-ups put together by the other attendees.

See ya in the AM...

Three Hours Left...

... Until the second "Calgary and Area Blogger Meet and Greet".

Details are a couple of posts below this one.

Note re pre-registration: It looks like we've still got some room left so a few walk-in's will be welcome as well.

The Redneks are Comming! The Redneks are Comming!

An interesting read from the Globe and Mail:


"It could involve a seismic power shift. Already, the country is witnessing a demographic and economic tilt to the West, rich in energy and situated alongside the dynamic Pacific trade routes; the political ground is also moving. The triangle of Ottawa-Montreal-Toronto that has largely controlled federal politics since Confederation would be joined by a second triangle anchored by Calgary and including Edmonton and parts of the Lower Mainland of British Columbia."

heh

Blogger Meet and Greet - Calgary!

Scroll down for the new stuff - this reminder will be on top until Saturday...

Blogger Meet and Greet!

Appitizers and Bevvies are covered (up to $400.00 total)!

Don't ask how or why, just accept it.

Here are the details:

• Who: Invitation is open to any Bloggers / Commenters who can make it.
• When: From 1:00 - 5:00 Saturday January 21, 2006
• Where: Ranchman's Restaurant and Bar - 9615 Macleod Tr. S, Calgary

The fine print:

• The budget is set and can't be changed. The Chronicles picks up the first $400.00 of the total tab. Anything more than that comes out of your own pockets... An RSVP to resenvt@hotmail.com with "Ranchman's" in the subject line is requested to get your names on the list. No RSVP = No Soup For You.
• As this adventure is open to all political stripes, all participants must be on their best behavior. I know, that's a given but one never knows what'll happen when a bunch of extremely opinionated people get lubricated and start discussing politics or social issues.
• The Polly Clause: Slapping your host is not permitted.
• Neither the Chronicles, myself (Richard Evans) or the Ranchman's will be held responsible to ensure your safe passage home afterwards. That will be your own responsibility. If you're going to drink too much, ensure you have a ride arranged.

I'm keeping a running tally below of the folks who intend to participate and by the looks of it, we'll be in some great company.

Confirmed Attendees:

Mike R. from Project Alberta

Richard from Cannuckistan

Aizlynne and Greg from Exposed Agenda

"Huck" from BumfOnline

K. Robinette from Albertans for Responsible Government

Darcey from Dust My Broom

Al Romanchuk from the comments sections

"Johnny Pockets" from Gods & Artists

"Spiral Tunnel" from Canmore - a PA Contributer

Shane O. from Cyrano's Steel

Thai-Guy

This post is just for you thai-guy. Before we get to the point however, let's take a trip in the "Way-Back Machine" shall we? Alrightythen! Here we go...

Here's what thai-guy had to say way back when Robert M. first started contemplating removing conservative commenters from his blahg:

Ti-Guy Says:
December 20th, 2005 at 11:55 am

Wow. Whatever would I do without the trolls? I’d have to actually argue thoughtfully all the time…*ugh*

It would be good to get some fresh ones, though. The ones that are here have gotten really stale.
I’d vote Jeff and Richard off the island, definitely. What’s really irked me about them is that I thought your blog was special to them, but I’ve since come to learn that they troll everywhere like this, in the same way. They’re not only hateful; they’re unfaithful.

Otherwise, this is always a tricky question. It’s up to you. I think sometimes things said here are potentially actionnable or have a really negative impact on you as a blogger, and those things I know I wouldn’t put up with.

Right. Now to the point of the post...

Our new commentor thai-guy was rather adamant that he didn't want the likes of my good friend Jeff or myself posting comments on the blahg...

[It would seem that Haloscan has this neat little function where you can make it so that people like thai-guy can't spew their drivel on your site any more. Lets see if we can find it...]

It wasn't long after thai-guy made those comments...

[...login... username... password...]

that Robert M. took socialist action and decided to silence dissenting opinion.

[...manage comments ]

That was completely fair in my opinion. It's Robert's blahg and he has a right to do as he pleases.

[...now where did that IP go? Right. There it is...]

I didn't bitch much. Just a single post. A very short single post.

[...ban ]

Life was good.

[..."ban single IP or IP range?" WTF? Alright... IP range! ]

I didn't think much of it untill the minions from the blahg started trolling over here looking for the arguments that they whined about over there.

[..."confirm ban IP?"... yes ]

Long story short, our new commentor thai-guy is now a FORMER commentor.

Any bets on how long it takes him to run back to the blahg and complain that the "right" is suppressing "free speech"?

Update: Well, that didn't take him long at all:

Ti-Guy Says:
January 21st, 2006 at 6:18 pm

I got banned? Seriously, I didn’t know. The last thing I posted was something to Jeff yesterday about how he was a false-Christian on a roller-coaster to hell (…well, I put it more charitably) and haven’t been back.

Ah..ha ha! I don’t think La Evans appreciated me implying he and his rubber-room pals were having their hoe-down at a gay bar.

Geez, how humourless and censorious. The trolls can dish it out, but they sure can’t take it.

Hypocrisy - thai-guy taught me how to spell it and now he shows us the proper deffinition.

I Had To Do It!

I took a stroll over to the blahg this evening and here's what I found. I've added my own comments in (italics)...

CONSERVATIVE THUGS ASSAULT LIBERAL CANDIDATE
January 19th, 2006 Robert McClelland-->
The Dan Report is reporting that Liberal candidate in the Kitchener-Conestoga riding, Lynn Myers, was assaulted by supporters of the Conservative candidate at an all candidates meeting.
Entry Filed under: -Conservative Party, -Elections 16 Comments Add your own

Paladiea Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 10:53 am

Connies are thugs.

Ti-Guy Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 11:36 am

They are thugs. Practically every word that drips from their lips conveys an utter contempt for anyone who doesn’t think like them. The only check they have on their behaviour is the rule of law, which, we have to admit, we (meaning non-thugs) have been forced to implement to protect ourselves from them.

Which is why their gaining control over the legislative process is always a major concern.

Paladiea Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 2:07 pm

I think the Blahg is being boycotted…. *yawns*

Ti-Guy Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 2:28 pm

What else is there to say on this topic? What else is there to say about anything, in fact? It’s probably just my mood, but as far as I can tell, the entire Web is now simply UseNet. Uninformative and a means by which we see, all too clearly, that there are a lot of sick and angry people in the world.

I lurked briefly at Cannuckistan today. One of the commenters is talking about killing lefties with his gun, and Richard’s got a flash animation indulging pedophilia.

It’s astonishing, really.

(ummmm... If I remember correctly, the post and animation in question speaks out against pedophilia. I should know because I made it!)

Robert McClelland Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 2:29 pm

I think the Blahg is being boycotted

I doubt it. I think I just allowed Richard and Phantom to pollute the comments for so long that it will take time for everyone to notice they’re gone. And I think once the election is over and I get back to blogging issues instead of being bored with said election, the discussion will return.

Paladiea Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 2:40 pm

I lurked briefly at Cannuckistan today. One of the commenters is talking about
killing lefties with his gun, and Richard’s got a flash animation indulging
pedophilia.

Yeah, Pete in Midland isn’t the sharpest knife in that drawer, and that’s saying A LOT.

Ti-Guy Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 3:01 pm

Yeah, right…Midland. More like Penetang, if you know what I mean.

Paladiea Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 3:05 pm

LOL

Peter D Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 3:15 pm

Yeah, the Chronicles is pretty gross. Lots of gay bashing etc… But they are the Conservative base, as is Kate over at SDA. Scary shit.

(I'm sorry Peter, did you just equate homosexuals with pedophiles?)

Speaking of SDA, anyone see the thing she wrote for the CBC on the Green Party and environmentalism? If that is how the right thinks on the issue, we better run for the hills Red Dawn style.

Ti-Guy Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 3:20 pm

Speaking of SDA, anyone see the thing she wrote for the CBC on the Green Party and environmentalism?

No, I didn’t, but lemme guess. It went something like this:
Bitch, bitch, bitch. *hiss* *snarl*…The CBC sucks, although when it hosts my rants, it doesn’t….Airbrushing trite designs on helmets for money is the only art worth supporting. God, Canada sucks.

Right?

Peter D Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 4:08 pm

Close, she essentially made fun of the candidate who was living off the grid in an alternative energy home and then made fun of David Suzuki and implied that environmentalists are a bunch of doomsdayers and real people have more important things to worry about, like day to day life.

And I wonder why, geoloigically speaking, we are on the brink of serious trouble for our species.

Paladiea Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 4:15 pm

You and me both Peter.

Ti-Guy Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 4:23 pm

Well, anyway, I had in fact read Kate’s post . All it seemed to say “Environmental problems? What environmental problems? These are just issues for hysterical cause-aholics like David Suzuki build a career on.”

It’s always the same thing with these people. Many decades ago, my relatives in Toronto were sneering at the people who opposed the Spadina Expressway. They knew nothing about urban planning and design and they thought the dense urban core was nightmarish. They saw it simply as a transportation obstacle for surbanites like themselves, which could be neatly solved by an elevated expressway.

Years later, they look around at their barren and soul-less Scarborough suburb and shudder at the thought of a crumbling, rusty, noisy expressway running right down Spadina Avenue.

It’s not that Kate is wrong about these issues, it’s just that she’s says nothing at all useful about them, and she takes up valuable space in a crowded media landscape while she does it.

She’s informational pollution, plain and simple.

Peter D Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 6:11 pm

“It’s not that Kate is wrong about these issues”

I disagree, she is most definitly wrong about these issues

cycles2k Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 6:30 pm

I think the Blahg is being boycotted

I agree with Robert’s assessment. I have been reading My Blahg regularly but refrained from reading or posting in the comments section because it was becoming a chat room.

arthurdecco Says:
January 20th, 2006 at 6:42 pm

Kate and I exchanged a couple of acrimonious emails yesterday in which she threatened to “make an example of you” (referring to me). This all started after I received an unsolicited email from one of her true believers. (I hadn’t realized that she posts everyone’s email address as part of the comment and I was annoyed!)

She really thinks a lot of herself, for sure. It’s common in those faced with public notoriety, even fame of a sort. They start to believe the bullshit after awhile. How could they not? It’s all they hear.

It’s a problem for politicians, judges, ski instructors, hurdle jumpers, surgeons, rock stars, and now apparently, even for bloggers like Kate. lol

How can you convince anyone their opinion is wrong when they have hundreds of people telling them how smart and right they are every day? The sheer numbers count for most of it. Who’s willing to listen to the solitary voice over the noise of the machine? Certainly not Kate. But like you say, Ti-Guy - she’s part of the machine - “informational pollution”, indeed.

I hated to have to show this to you but you need to understand that these folks, and those like them, are the reason Canada is more appropriately known as "Cannuckistan"

Welcome to the socialist utopia!

Bad MoJo...

Don't know why but I woke up this morning with a not-too-pretty-good feeling about Monday's election.

Maybe I remembered that our conservative candidates aren't and that a conservative win will only prolong the inevitable. Alberta seperation.

Union boss Buz Hargrove took a lot of flack yesterday for saying that Alberta values aren't Canadian values. The fact is, however, that he's right.

We are different.

New Media

This One's Been Bumped Up To The Top For The Day As Well...

All the talk recently about election "attack ads" got me thinkin'.

The stuff we've been seeing on TV? Those aren't attack ads...

THIS is an attack ad.

Preemptive Note to MoonBats: I know you're offended! That was the freakin' point!

The Real Threat to Families

The ink was hardly dry on the same sex marriage legislation when worried Liberals called for a report on the constitutionality of what may be the ultimate threat to the moral fabric of Canada. While the media is fussing over the Polygamy report, and Barbara Kay writes pieces about polyromance (I think that was her term - basically swingers who want to sanctify their lifestyle), the real disease festers unnoticed by Canadian Conservatives. What is the threat?

Go Here

Hypocrisy=

"may have violated the CBC's own journalistic standards by publicly endorsing"
Wow. Even I'm offended...

Wakey-Wakey!

NealeNews is reporting the following:

QUEBEC – Elections Canada has been asked to investigate the Conservatives after allegations the party is overseeing a group that operates partisan on-line Web logs. Canada’s election watchdog received a complaint yesterday from a disaffected party member who claims the Tories tried to sway political opinion in cyberspace in the leadup to, and during, the election by setting up the popular “Blogging Tories” website.

The site appears to be a coalition of like-minded individuals who have met in cyberspace to share their political opinions and express their frustrations with Paul Martin’s Liberals. But a Victoria man, Eugene Parks, and Toronto Tory dissident Carole Jamieson allege the venture may be in contravention of the Elections Act and thirdparty financing laws. They say it may have “unduly influenced the election coverage and potentially the outcome of this campaign.”

“They’re using a third-party agency to get elected,” said Parks, a former Conservative supporter who now says he is an opponent. “It’s pure hypocrisy.” Parks said he was approached by senior Conservative MP Diane Ablonczy in December 2005 after a Tory caucus retreat in British Columbia and asked to head what he described as a preelection initiative on behalf of the party. “At the time I was somewhat willing, but my loyalty to the Conservative Party was somewhat shaky,” he said.

Personally I don't think this is being used to try to shut the Blogs down. It's too late in the game for that.

I'm thinking they're trying to plant the seed of doubt. I'll bet dollars to donuts that the lib-left is going to be screaming "Harper Stole the Election"! in the next few weeks.

They tried it after the last 2 US elections so why not here? Hell, I'd even wager that some of the idiots who post over at babble and the blahg will blame Karl Rove and Halliburton...

Good timing... Bad call.

I thought Pierre Bourque would turn out to be Canada's Matt Drudge. Boy, did I make a mistake *snicker* I'll say...

by Joshua Heller
~~Bourque Exclusive~~ Trudeau back in hospital. Breaking: Former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau is back in hospital. This afternoon a source reported that the ailing 80 year old statesman had been admitted to Montreal's General Hospital yesterday.

Hmmmmm. Should I post? Whatever...
Thanks "Dourque".

More Entitlements

Immigration Minister Joe Volpe is once again under scrutiny for some spending. You may remember last year Joe's expenses came under the raised eyebrow when it was revealed "he charged more than $7,000 in meals to taxpayers between March 2 and June 1."

Now comes news that he took a couple of limo rides. One unknown, and one $1,000 trip to Buffalo, down the road from his Hamilton riding. (correction his riding is Eglinton-Lawrence in Toronto).

Citizenship and Immigration Minister Joe Volpe rented limos to ferry him on long trips from Toronto last year, with one ride to Buffalo and back costing more than $1,000, Sun Media has learned.

Leaked documents detail a 12 1/2-hour trip to the nearby U.S. city last March that included an $850 fare, $127.50 tip and $68.43 in GST for a total cost of $1,045.93.

Another 10 1/2-hour trip to an undisclosed location from Pearson airport cost $522.

Nice. As Tasha Kheiriddin says "Geez, when my friends and I go shopping we usually pile into a rental car for $50 a day." Or just drive yourself Joe!

The fattest rat...

Earlier in the day Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh became the latest first cabinet member admit the Liberals have a big challenge." Of jumpin' ship. H.M.C.S Canada has new managment...

WOOHOO X 2

WE GOT OUR 50,000th VISITOR TODAY!

That's beyond cool...

On another note, our Anti-PC League is pushing the 100 member mark.

CHEERS!

WOOHOO!!!

I've been BANNED from the BLAHG

I have to admit that Robert's been far more patient than most socialists but he gets all pissy when you pick on the NDP. Socialists hate it when they're (correctly) compared to Nazis...

Here's what got me booted:

RichardEvans Says: January 16th, 2006 at 12:17 am

Peter D Says:January 15th, 2006 at 11:40 pm

I agree, socialism is always socialism. But the Nazi's believed in private enterprise, controlled by a ruling elite (aristocracy). That is wholly un-socialist.

Wow, that sounds alot like NDP policy...

Lets have a look:

While there are issues at work in the global market economy that concern the NDP, we understand that if we want a seat at that table then there are rules we will need to use. Ultimately, it is how we organize our economy, the investment we make in ourselves as we build a wealthy and just society that will distinguish our country, and from which others may learn.
The NDP is as serious about prosperity as it is about social justice.

Here are some key principles we bring to the economy and jobs:
First, we are committed to annual balanced budgets.
Second, we are committed to creating a competitive tax regime by maintaining the GST, reducing income taxes on lower income Canadians, and targeting carefully managed, monitored and enforced incentives to encourage investment and the development and production of leading edge environmental and other technologies...

Yup... The ruling elite controling the economy... only in our case it's the SCOC-ocracy

Lets see what the lexicon sez about ND's shall we?

New Democrat: The physical and semantic veneer applied to an old-time sociologist Liberal attitude which sufficiently disguises traditional Leftist Redistributionism as a market-friendly, Third Way moderate social philosophy which wants to use the means of successful Capitalism to accomplish the ends of Benign Utopian Socialism. A New Democrat encourages Market success so it might be regulated into traditional redistributionist social programs to help the very victims that the old-fashioned Democrats created. A New Democrat is an old Socialist with a new look and the same old goals: Che Guevara with a shave and a credit card, Jane Fonda waving an American flag, Karl Marx with a stock portfolio.

Does that shoe fit about right Peter?

Remember kids, if the MoonBats aren't pissed you're doing it wrong!

Ahhhh... The sight of victory.

God Bless Canada
I am pissed off. I just watched Stephen Harper end his platform speech on the National with the words "God Bless Canada". God Bless Canada? That is a nice kiss to the Socons Stephen,:) Hahaha
Ya know, you had better start getting used to seeing a LOT more of this... This guy is great, I mean, he ain't crying or saying sorry, or even taking it down. He's just saying what he wants to, and in the end, isn't it all that really matters?
"but where the fuck do you think you are anyway, Texas?"
He's at the Prime Minister's Office, MAKING RENOVATIONS!!!
"Newsflash, you are not running for Pope, so stop blessing people!"
Aaaaahahaha :) I like the cut of that dude's jive.
"You must really think you have this all sown up if you can start in with that kind of nonsense. You need a humbling," Yup. Read the title, and while your at it, suck on this...


So always remember, whenever you see entertainment gold like this, don't EVER stop until the enemy surrenders...
Myblahg
"I didn’t want to have to take this step, but this blog used to generate some good discussion. However, ever since a few rightwing trolls set up permanent camp here and began polluting the comments" - low intelligence quotient + non-existent cognitive skills + sociopathic self-centeredness + cowardice + attraction to violence + racist tendencies + myopia + sexual confusion + limited vocabulary + limited educational opportunities + unrestrained attraction to “authoritarian” figures = Phantom = Richard = Jeff = Knight of…blah, blah, blah…etc.
Does this sound like a "rightwing troll"? I probably fit some of those "cry"teria, except "cowardice" of course. How in the hell was I even(sorta) mentioned? I only started leaving (a few)comments there for about two weeks. Buy stock in tissue paper companies... And may God continue to bless Canada. God bless America. God bless Texas. God bless Alberta.

The early early bird

Hey, do I detect a trend here? Yesterday, I spoke thus:

While the Mainstreamers worry about if the Liberals can catch the Conservatives, they are in truth closer to the NDP. If PMPM really believes he can still catch PMSH (future), then it is no less incredible to believe the NDP can catch the Liberals.

Liberals in fourth place? That's a new one. Until today. When Douglas Fisher said:

Still, let me be an early bird again this week by suggesting it is not impossible that the determination among Canadians to have a change in government may well produce something truly phenomenal. Not just a finish which has the Conservatives holding 185-200 seats, but one that consigns the Liberals to fourth place in the House of Commons ranking --behind both the Bloc Quebecois and the New Democrats!

Liberals behind the Dippers? Now where have I heard that before? Remember when the rest of the media get on board this train, you read it here first.

Why isn't Jack helping Paul more? Asks the CBC.

I heard an almost unbelievable news piece on CBC2 today. They were talking about Jack Layton and how he's attacking the Prime Minister (current) and not the Prime Minister (future). The story was he was having some effect taking away Liberal votes by going hard after Paul Martin. Then they said (paraphrasing) It is unclear how this tactic will stop the bleeding of Liberal votes to the Conservatives.

Now it's Jack Layton's job to save Paul Martin's campaign? Surely Layton thinks, if the rats abandoning the good ship Liberal are going Conservative, they were never going to vote NDP. Similarly, Liberals who switch to the NDP would probably never vote Conservative. Why should Jack Layton care about ex-Liberals running to the Conservatives.

Then again, maybe Layton saw this poll: (note, updated at Ekos research web site for Jan 14th PDF file)

39 per cent of respondents said they would vote for the Conservatives, compared to 27 per cent for the Liberals.

The Ekos poll found support for the NDP sits at 16 per cent, and 12 per cent for the Bloc Quebecois.

While the Mainstreamers worry about if the Liberals can catch the Conservatives, they are in truth closer to the NDP. If PMPM really believes he can still catch PMSH (future), then it is no less incredible to believe the NDP can catch the Liberals.

And with the Gilles Duceppe eye balling Stornoway, could Paul Martin be the fourth place finisher?. Probably not, I must admit, but with a free-falling campaign, the daily scandal pile-on and nasty Jack Layton not helping to staunch the flow, anything is possible.

Cross Posted to the At Home in Hespeler.

This Weekend's Ipsos Poll Questions

I was extremely amused when I pulled these poll questions out of the "in-box".

Thinking of how you feel right now, if a FEDERAL election were held tomorrow, which of the following parties' candidates would you, yourself, be most likely to support or are leaning towards?

The New Democratic Party (NDP)

The Green Party

The Conservative Party

The Liberal Party

Or some other party

Would not vote/None/Would spoil ballot

Don't know

And, thinking of the party you plan to vote for right now, how likely are you to change your mind and vote for another party on Election Day?

Very likely Somewhat likely Not very likely Not likely at all

In this election are you...

Voting for your preferred party or candidate

Planning to vote strategically for some other party or candidate

Regardless of who you are voting for, which party do you think will win the win the Federal Election on January 23rd and form Canada's next government?

The NDP The Liberals The Conservatives Don't Know

Now, forgetting for a minute about the federal parties and what they stand for, and forgetting about which party you might be supporting, which of the federal party leaders do you think would make the best Prime Minister of Canada?

Jack Layton Paul Martin Gilles Duceppe Stephen Harper

Now if Canada has a minority government after the next election, please indicate whether each of the following combinations would be acceptable or unacceptable to you?

Veryacceptable Somewhatacceptable Somewhatunacceptable Veryunacceptable

A Conservative-led minority government supported by the NDP

A Liberal-led minority government supported by the NDP

A Conservative-led minority government supported by the Bloc Quebecois

A Liberal-led minority government supported by the Bloc Quebecois

Recently there has been some talk about the possibility of the Conservatives winning a majority. If this seems likely would you change your mind about who to vote for?

Yes No

The current election campaign has been ongoing for the last month and half. Please tell me whether you think each leader has run a good or bad campaign.

Verygood Somewhatgood Somewhatbad Verybad

NDP Leader Jack Layton

Liberal Leader Paul Martin

Bloc Quebecois Gilles Duceppe

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper

If Stephen Harper and the Conservatives win the election and form Canada's government, do you think they have enough candidates who are capable of being effective cabinet ministers?

Yes No

For each of the following potential election outcomes please indicate whether you think Paul Martin should resign or stay on as leader of the Liberal Party.

Resign Stay on

Conservative minority with Liberals a close second

Liberal minority

Conservative majority

Conservative minority with Liberals a distant second

Assuming Paul Martin does step down as leader of the Liberal Party which of the following people would you most like to see become leader of the Liberal Party.

Former Finance Minister John Manley

Canada's Ambassador to the US Frank McKenna

Former Cabinet Minister Brian Tobin

Minister of Public Works and Government Services Scott Brison

Former Cabinet Minister Martin Cauchon

Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Belinda Stronach

Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien

Current Liberal Candidate and Author Michael Ignatieff

None of the above

And, who do you think is most to blame for the Liberals' current election troubles...?

Liberals' advisors and strategists

Paul Martin

Jean Chretien

None of the above


Now, I'd like to know whether you agree or disagree with each of the following statements...

Stronglyagree Somewhatagree Somewhatdisagree Stronglydisagree

This election has gone on long enough, let's just vote already

I would be more likely to vote Liberal if Jean Chrétien was still the leader of the party

Voting NDP is just a wasted vote

The federal Liberal Party is fundamentally corrupt and does not deserve to be re-elected

Canada will get better government if we have a MINORITY parliament after the next election [authors note: why would they have "MINORITY" all in caps like that?]

Stephen Harper is just too extreme to be Canada's Prime Minister

[ / poll questions]

Notice how there was no mention of Harper resigning or a leadership race for the Conservatives or looking for someone to blame for a bad Conservative campaign.

That's amusing!

Media Changes

This being the last week in the run-up to the election we've changed some of the media in the sidebar. Keep checking back as there'll be new stuff comming out on a regular basis.

Today's feature is "Why'd You Lie?" - Belinda's song - re-mixed for length.

My name's spelt wrong...*sob* I give up...

"That was the point at which I felt there were just too many negatives here."

New Media!

Got an e-mail request to put this together.

So I did.

Seemed appropriate in light of the new liberal attack ads...

Click here to view "native response".

I already did...

"Maybe we’ll win this thing, or maybe we’ll lose, but one thing is certain – I probably would have wet myself."
"Guess I'd better start crafting a stump speech for the little guy."

Or...

Some Liberals, like The Calgary Grit are starting to laugh at the campaign of the Liberal party. In a long winter campaign, the ability to laugh, especially for Liberal supporters is probably very important. James Murray

OR!

"It appears to be a formula for fudge," Goodale
That's already been inside Ralph...

Patience...

You know it's on the way. The way some of these hard-core LOONleftICS are kicking and screaming, how much more fun is it going to be AFTER the election? It's just a nice picture of Harper ACTUALLY enjoying the debate. Martini's expression is worth ,well, a thousand, but here's just a few more... "Iron"icly, I got this pic from the same gallery as this "weird" one...
Speaking of anger, the "Native angle" was present at the top of the hour all day on the radio...
How much better is Bourque compared to Nealenews this campaign? Out on nowhere...

I don't know what's next, but I know it will be Good...

And, uhhhh... Here it is...

Who are we kidding Grey.
"over a decade in the wilderness."I agree.
"balance the budget like good conservatives, ( you know, like Martin did)"How about the "balance" tipping on the surplus side(like martini did ERRATICALLY... Brainwave...) like the Good and Righteous George W. Bush did, with tax CUTS!
"and make sure Harper doesn't do soapy ballads with Bush, - Canadians hate that sort of thing."And yet they are remarkably resilient to evil anti-American rhetoric, huh?
Bye Bye Brainwave.
It's majority time.