who wound up looking like chickens?

Well, well, well... by golly... look which chickens clucked their way out of their coops first.

Quoting head Conservative-hen Peter McKay, "When they play chicken, they wind up looking up like chickens." Looks like the Tories like to have their words and eat them too.

tory definition of "undemocratic"

In the most recent fiscal update, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty included a controversial measure that was set to strip all political parties of public funding. The Conservatives went further by saying that the measure would be a matter of confidence. All three opposition parties proceeded to retaliate by threatening to form a coalition government instead forcing an election. When the Tories started to sense that the opposition parties were not joking around, they quickly flip flopped on the measure by apparently pushing its introduction to a later date.

PMO Communications Director Kory Teneycke then had the nerves to say that he's surprised "the opposition parties would act in such an undemocratic fashion". I question how the conservatives define the term "undemocratic". The incumbent governing party always has a fundraising advantage over its opposition opponents. The existence of public subsidies for enables ALL parties to keep the government accountable, run proper campaigns, and to uphold the principle of democracy. By taking them away, the opposition parties will be at a huge disadvantage. Now that is what I call undemocratic.

By disguising this measure as fiscal prudence is utterly disgusting, political and highly partisan. If the Conservatives had been more fiscally prudent from beginning instead playing retail-politics with economically-null policies like the GST cuts, maybe we wouldn't be in this situation.

If the opposition parties are to form a coalition government, I would be highly supportive of it. Each and every single opposition MP from the Liberal, NDP and Bloc parties were elected democratically in the exact same way Conservative members were elected. Unlike Teneycke, I think it is extremely "democratic" for these elected members to band together to stop such a corrosive and divisive government.

peter milliken re-elected speaker

It took 5 ballots, but they did it. The members of the 40th parliament of Canada has chosen Liberal MP The Hon. Peter Milliken (Kingston and the Islands), once again (for the fourth time), to be the servent of the house and the bipartisan moderator for the circus that is minority parliament.

The fact that Peter has been elected twice as an opposition member to the speaker's chair says a lot. First elected to the house in 1988, he is a veteran MP and well respected by many in all parties.

Even though Milliken, in his 5-min "campaign speech" for Speaker, said that disorder is inevitable in a minority, let's hope the 40th Parliament isn't as soap opera-ish as the 39th. (Despite the fact that us bloggers and junkies love political drama).

Many said he wasn't going to survive today's vote... but he did it. Congratulations!

michael ignatieff, the next great liberal pm

Yes folks, It's that time again. It's the time when endorsements start pouring in from politicians, pundits and those of us in the blogosphere for who we believe should be the next leader of the Liberal Party: Bob Rae? Dominic LeBlanc? Michael Ignatieff? (so far).

Though considered a long shot, New Brunswick MP and Harvard Law graduate Dominic LeBlanc threw his hat into the ring. Dominic is young, intelligent, and has amazing oratory skills. This race will definitely give him great exposure. I believe he is a rising star in the party and will have a bright future in Canadian politics.

I live in Bob Rae's riding of Toronto Centre. He is one of the most skilled politicians in the country and is one of the best statesmen Canada could ask for. Bob is my MP, I have volunteered for both of his latest campaigns and I have the utmost respect for him.

I work in Michael Ignatieff's riding of Etobicoke-Lakeshore. During the 2008 election campaign, I frequently bumped into him canvassing outside Old Mill subway station. I found Iggy to be extremely personable, sincere, and approachable. I supported him in his 2006 bid to lead the LPC, because he came with minimal baggage, an impressive resume, and arrived without any ties to the Chretien/Martin feuds. Ignatieff has exceeded the expectations of many after his 2006 election into the House of Commons. Though he has only been an MP for a little under 3 years, Iggy has shown to the rest of the house, as deputy leader of the Liberal Party, his poise, his eloquent parliamentary debating skills and his ability to be a leader. Our party needs someone like him, who has something Stephane Dion doesn't, which is the courage and ability to stand up and fight back when extreme partisans, like PM Harper, start using negative tactics to smear the opposition.

The Liberal party, under Stephane Dion, has aimlessly floated more to the left, resulting in the vote splitting between the three other left-leaning political parties. Our party is in desperate need of structured, strong and determined leadership to bring us back to the center. Especially with the economic crisis looming over our country, Canadians need to be reminded that the LPC is the party that has a record of bringing the country out of tough times. As a world reknowned author, historian and intellect, Michael's past writings has shown himself to be a pragmatic liberal on domestic issues such as Canadian culture and human rights. I personally believe pragmatic liberalism is where most Canadians sit. He has also shown himself to be a man with conviction and with hawkish stances on issues relating to internatonal affairs. His right-leaning views on foreign affairs may be seen with disdain by those to the left, but also foreshadows that he will be able to reach out to conservatives and help make the LPC into the big-tent party we were so proud of.

A candidate's past may come back to haunt them. Bob Rae's record as Ontario's NDP Premier from 1990 to 1995 will hinder him more than it will help him in his bid to achieve the leadership and the trust of voters across the country. Especially during tough economic times, we all know too well that Stephen Harper will play the fiscally-irresponsible-NDP-turncoat card. Harper will play the card and he has every right to play the card. Bob Rae will have to work extra hard to convince the people of Ontario that he has in fact changed. Michael Ignatieff doesn't come without his own personal baggage. For over 3 decades, from 1978 till 2005, he lived and worked outside of Canada. Critics can accuse him for being out of touch with the Canadian reality. His hawkish views on foreign policy , as previously stated, such as his past support for the Iraq war, may not sit well with some Canadians. After comparing both Bob Rae's and Iggy's past baggage on a scale, I believe Michael Ignatieff will have the best chance to help the party succeed in the future.

Iggy officially launched his bid for the leadership Thursday. As promised in his press conference, he plans to bring change, optimism, and renewal to the natural governing party of Canada. I believe he will be a Prime Minister, the people of Canada can trust.

the post 2008 GOP/LPC dilemma

Yesterday night, with the election of Senator Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States, the political landscape of our neighbour down south was swept with a tide of blue. Not only did Obama make history as the country's first ever African-American president, he also became the first Democrat in decades to win typical GOP-strongholds like Virginia, North Carolina, and Indiana. The Democrats also saw increases in their majorities in the Senate and the House. It was a great night for the party of FDR and JFK.

So where does this leave the Republicans? Nobel Prize Laureate Paul Krugman predicts that it will take a while for the GOP to get themselves out of an identity rump and their disconnect with the average American voter. An interesting point Krugman makes is that, after an anti-incumbent-protest election (like the one we had yesterday) occurs, moderate politicians like Senator John Sununu (R-NH), Senator Libby Dole (R-NC), and John McCain usually lose or get voted out off office, leaving party hardliners from conservative states like Senator Saxby Chambliss from Georgia, South Carolina's Lindsey Graham, and Alaska's favourite hockey mom governor, Sarah Palin to take control of the party. These conservative hardliners slowly become out of touch with moderate voters, who now make up a fair portion of large urban centres in what are typically GOP-held states.

You know the party is in a rump when there is much talk about failed US VP candidate Sarah Palin being the future of the party. I can draw a sad, but true, comparison between the soul searching of the GOP and that of Canada's federal Liberal Party. After two years of misguided leadership under Stephane Dion, the LPC is in dire need for strong leadership with conviction and clarity. Yet, an IPSOS-reid poll shows Liberals would prefer kindergarten teacher and rookie MP Justin Trudeau to be their next leader. As a card-holding member of the party, I fear the worse for my own team, as some members unrealistically and foolishly yearn for the days-long-gone of Pierre Trudeau, as the GOP is doing with the years past of Ronald Reagan.

Democracy is like the economy. Major political parties like the LPC and the GOP, if not wiped out by a great depression, will go through its up's and down's and go in and out of government. It's just a question of how long it will take them to climb out of their political-identity recession.

day of hope, change and optimism

The day everyone in the world has been waiting for has finally arrived. After eight years of divisive Bush policies, many Americans and people from all over the world see today as the day of hope. Many see today as the day of opportunity for the most-influential-country-in-the-world to open a new chapter with a clear direction of change and optimism.

The voter turn out for the recent Canadian federal election was a sad 59.1%: the lowest in Canadian history. Conversely, with the high energy of Obama-mania, the economic crisis, and the yearning for change, the United States can see one of the highest voter turnouts in history.

Don't let others shape your future, as Mahatma Gandhi once said, "Be the change you want to see in the world". So I encouarge all my American friends, family and colleagues to go out and vote and volunteer!

I personally have optimistic hope that positive and real change is coming to the US. Here are my predictions for tonight:

President
MCCAIN- 185
OBAMA - 353 (Kerry States + NV, CO, NM, IA, OH, VA, NC, FL)

Senate
DEM - 58 (Dem incumbents + AK-Begich, OR-Merkley, NH-Shaheen, NC-Hagan, CO-M.Udall, NM-T.Udall, VA-Warner)
GOP - 42

House
DEM - 251
GOP - 184