Election Results and 21st Century Civil Society
January 20, 2012 | 3 Comments
Last week, the Government of Canada announced that it will be doing away with an archaic law that bans the release of federal election results before the closing of polls. In regards to the decision, Minister for Democratic Reform Tim Uppal noted: This ban, which was enacted in 1938, is out of place and unenforceable[.] [...]
For Jack
August 22, 2011 | No Comments
I’ve been absent around these parts of late. Lots going on: a new business started a first child on the way. But I’ve found myself shaken from life’s tunnel vision by the passing of Jack Layton. I’ve never cried openly like this over a politician before. Such is the sincereity that Jack often evoked as a [...]
Because That’s What’s Really At Stake Here…
May 30, 2011 | 7 Comments
Let me be blunt, I find myself thoroughly disenchanted with Canadian politics right now. I probably shouldn’t be. After all, there is a majority government in power with which I’m on record as having fundamental disagreements. Additionally, “my guys” have the greatest number of seats in the House they’ve ever had and occupy the role [...]
Bridging the Divide
May 13, 2011 | No Comments
Those of us who comment frequently on politics spend no small amount of time bemoaning the lack of engagement that average Canadians display with the country’s political process. Opinions vary as to the reason(s) for this disengagement. Some people believe that politics has just gotten too vitriolic and venomous, laced with a partisan rancor that [...]
Why We Should All Thank Michael Ignatieff
May 6, 2011 | 4 Comments
In every election there must be a pinata. That one candidate at which everyone takes a whack. The candidate who takes on the lion’s share of abuse from all corners. Opinions will vary from election to election about who the official electoral pinata is, but this time around there is little debate to be had [...]
Why Progressive Voters Should Welcome a Harper Majority
May 4, 2011 | 14 Comments
No matter what way you cut it, this past election was a tough one for progressive voters in Canada. A Stephen Harper majority is a pretty steep price to pay for eradication of the Bloc and the improved fortunes of the NDP. But with all due qualifiers in place, there are some reasons that Canadian [...]
Did Anybody Get the License Plate of that Truck?
May 3, 2011 | 1 Comment
Election 41 has come and gone and the changes it wrought couldn’t have been more dramatic and counter-intuitive to our original sleepy prediction. Throughout the last two-odd weeks of campaigning, there was a lot of talk about political realignments coming to fruition in this election. The results last night certainly made good on those predictions, [...]
Some Politics Aren’t Local
May 2, 2011 | 1 Comment
Former Speaker of the House in the US Congress Tip O’Neill is perhaps most famous for acknowledging the everyman nature of successful politicians in his perennial quote that, “all politics is local.” The full quote from O’Neill’s autobiography runs, This was the only race I ever lost in my life, but in the process, I [...]
A Different Kind of Change Election
April 27, 2011 | 13 Comments
So it’s now official that the EKOS poll placing the NDP ahead of the Liberals was not an outlier. Both Angus Reid and Forum Research have polls out that not only confirm the numbers presented by EKOS, they actually present rosier pictures for the NDP. What many predicted would be a sleepy, non-event election that [...]
Coalition! Coalition! All I hear is Coalition!
April 25, 2011 | 2 Comments
If there has been one constant in cacophony that has been our latest federal election, it has been the theme of coalitions. Stephen Harper made efforts early on to frame the ballot question as a choice between a strong, stable Conservative majority and a reckless, unstable Opposition coalition. The drum beat of that frame has [...]