Alberta Election Tomorrow!

With Alberta seeming to have the choice between one right wing party and well another even more right wing party it seems like Alberta will have it's first most exciting election in a long time. With the Wildrose holding onto a lead and the PC slightly edging upwards tomorrow  is going to be something to watch. For political Junkies like me this is very exciting. So here are my projections for tomorrow night. As you can see I give the Wildrose a strong lead, because the PC a few days ago I thought might be able to really bridge the gap, but the latest polling says otherwise.

Wildrose : 41%         46 seats (Majority)
PC          :34%          38 seats
Liberals   :12%           0 seats
NDP       :12%           3 seats
Alberta Party:1%        0 seats


As you can see even though the Alberta Liberals have the same percentage as the NDP they end up with no seats, because there votes isn't as concentrated in specific areas like the NDP. It is a shame that the Alberta Liberals will go from official opposition to no seat status even though they may come up with more votes than the NDP. I guess this only proves we need democratic reform, because as you can see the Liberals will get a substantial amount of support, but no seats to represent those people. Also the Wildrose will get a majority even though they didn't get the majority of the seats.

NDP Not Legalizing Pot

The NDP seems to want to lag behind the Liberals when it comes to the smart on drugs plan. The NDP apparently according to George Soule the NDP wants to decriminalize pot (making it no longer illegal to have). While the Liberals are now the only party fully in favor of legalizing and taxing marijuana. The main difference is that marijuana will be legal to buy and sell, and the NDP will only allow someone to have it without facing prison time. 


But George Soule said that the NDP would want before decriminalizing a study to be done. A study! I can't believe I am hearing this from the NDP. Asking for a study when it comes to Marijuana a subject that has been studied hundreds of times over is like asking for a study on tobacco. This is a delay tactic! We don't need a study on marijuana we need to get over this issue and legalize it already!


Policy Review 
NDP seems to support having a study on the matter, and possibly decriminalizing it.
Conservatives want to put people with six pot plants in jail for six months.
Liberals want to radically move away from the "War on Drug" agenda as soon as possible and legalize the plant that has proven to reduce crime in many countries.


Read more here

The Way to Toronto's Heart is Public Transit!

A message to local Liberals, provincial Liberals and even federal Liberals. People want public transit funded! In a recent poll 74% of people in Toronto said that they would favor a 0.5% sales tax increase if it meant that the money would go to public transit in Toronto. With all areas having a majority of no less then 67% of people supporting it. If the Liberal party of Canada wants to get back the riding rich city of Toronto and it's suburbs it has got to jump on the public transpiration system.

Environics’ Darren Karasiuk said this debate has made people more willing to consider a tax to pay for transit expansion.
“I can’t think of a time transit and transportation has received as much attention as they have in the last few months,” he said. “The public recognizes this as an issue and they’re ready to think and have a meaningful conversation about it.”

Public transit is the way to go when it come to improving the environment , the economy and traffic. Liberals have somewhat seen this opportunity by proposing a high speed rail system, but if Liberals want to get the daily commuters of Montreal we have to look at local transportation and infrastructure. Remember the Stephane Dion 70 billion dollar infrastructure fund . We need more policies like that were people can see the results right before there eyes. It seems the public is ready for it and so should the Liberals be.

The poll’s suggestion that 905 voters back the tax may be its most important finding. The suburbs are the key battleground in provincial and federal elections. They also have less transit infrastructure and far lower ridership numbers than the city.

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Climate Skeptic In The West

It seems I have one more reason I don't want the Wildrose alliance to win. But Alberta's according to recent polls have them at a 7% point lead. The PC are in second, the NDP and the Liberals way far behind. 

"We have always said the science isn't settled and we need to continue to monitor the debate,"

Yes the Wildrose is saying that the science isn't settled, and therefor don't have a major plan to reduce emissions. Even though 97% of climate scientist agree that humans are causing man made climate change. Even the PC in the oil rich province of Alberta agree that global warming is real and CO2 emissions are causing it. This isn't just Danielle Smith personal belief this is party policy.

A Wildrose official confirmed Smith's statement reflects a longtime party policy.

 I don't know why I didn't remember this before Rick Mercer went with Danielle Smith for a day and they discussed global warming, and she admitted her skepticism of climate change. I think that having one of the most polluting provinces in Alberta led by a party that doesn't believe in a science that is fully settled ruins any chances of achieving the needed 80% reduction of CO2 emissions by 2050. 

Read more here

Harper Meet Keedle. Your Black!

I an surprise of events Harper told Canada that the War on Drugs have failed. Now when I heard this I was on the verge of an aneurysm. Harper a Prime Minister who in the time of lowest crime rates in Canadian history put in place minimum sentencing and continued a U.S style War on Drugs crusade is now admitting that the war on drugs is over. But don't hold your breath the 10 billion dollars (or one accounting error) are still going to be built.

"What I think everybody believes," Harper said, "is that the current approach is not working. But it is not clear what we should do."

So Harper doesn't support the War on Drugs, but his crime bill says otherwise. Harper can't have it both ways. He can't say he doesn't support the War on Drugs then pass bills in the House of Commons that continues the same reckless crime policy that even the U.S is moving away from. Unless Harper chucks his crime bills and puts money into rehabilitation this statement makes him a hypocrite.

Drugs, he said, "are illegal because they quickly and totally — with many of the drugs — destroy people's lives." 

 The Liberal Party of Canada has had a clear stance on this. Stop the Americanization of our Prison system and end the support of drug cartels and legalizing pot!

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"Tory Spin" That Is An Understatement

The Conservatives government released a report that states they have emitted 692 megatonnes of CO2 in 2010. Which is by the way an increase of 2 megatonnes. The Conservative government should take no credit on the environment at all. Since they cut billions of dollars in Green jobs initiative and undid the Kyoto accord. Since 2006 it was clear Harper would do nothing to achieve Kyoto. Now this report only shows us that nothing is being done. The Conservative plan to reduce emissions to 607 megatonnes. The Environment Minister (no surprise) has a complete different spin on it.

"This is not a blip. This is a continuing trend and when you look at the statistics revealed in today's report noting that, yes, emissions have grown since 1990 — 22 years ago — by 17 per cent, Canada's economy has grown by more than 60 per cent," the minister said.

Case in point by 2012 according to the Kyoto protocol that Harper disgracefully undid we are suppose to this year be 6 percent below 1990 levels. First Even though this is the 2010 report I don't expect at all that the 2011 report will show us reaching our Kyoto target .Second I don't expect the numbers to get any lower in the next coming years as well. In fact when the numbers for 2011 come out I am almost ready to bet a Canadian penny that the emissions will go up, because it is easy to reduce emissions when the economy is in a standstill. With the inaction coming from Ottawa it won't be surprising that Harper. It seems that Hannah Mckinnon puts it right.

"The government would be better off to stop wasting its time trying to spin their abysmal record on climate change into anything positive," wrote Hannah McKinnon of Climate Action Network in a statement to CBC News.

Inheritance Tax on Rich Popular!

According to a new poll I wrote about some days ago the inheritance tax on the rich is apparently popular.

that 69 per cent of Canadians support the introduction of an inheritance tax on any estate valued at more than $5 million.

I have been talking about this for some time. Which I still holds can provide 3 billion dollars and it wouldn't even allow major taxes to be payed by the top 1-2% of Canadians. The rich in the U.S don't seem to mind and some rich are even asking that their taxes go up. The "Buffet Rule." It seems the center of Canada is with this plan.

Because if all 31% are against and Harper conservatives support is at 32% it shows that only the right is against it.,and Harper in the last election got 40% of the vote that leaves for the sake of argument the people who jumped to the right wing party since 2004 and gave Harper his majority. If the Liberals support a Death Tax it would get the people we need from the Conservative party to our party. Now I am not saying this will help us win election, but obviously it won't hurt us in elections.

Cut Money To Health for Aboriginals (Apprently their Healthy enough)

Aboriginal communities require an enormous amount of aid. We known for many many years that aboriginal communities have one of the highest rates of poverty and have very high rates of health problems. Bob Rae hit the right nail on the head when he said Attawapiskat is our third world.

"We talk a lot about the Third World, we talk about Haiti, we talk about poverty in other parts of the world," he said. "This is our Third World. It's right here at home. These are our fellow citizens."

Governments have for years haven't done much for the aboriginal communities. Harper unfortunately has no excuse to continue this inaction. The National Aboriginal Health Organization has been told the government will not be funding the 4.4 million dollars to this organization. 4.4 million. To put that in prospective the elimination of the penny is going to save the government 11 million. Also the F35 contracts cost 15-25 billion.

I think this shows the priorities of our Conservative government. they are willing to do almost anything imaginable to balance the budget from eliminating trivial things like the penny to eliminating funding to a first nations group that is of no doubt requires much more money then just a minor 4 million, but when you talk about fighter jets or Corporate tax cuts money isn't an object all of a sudden. Fiscally responsible NO! Morally responsible Hell NO!    

Read More here

Rick out Romney a Shoe Win to Win

With Rick Santorum suspending his campaign (A.K.A I am quitting this race) Romney is for sure going to win his nomination. Ron Paul is staying and so is apparently Newt Gingrich. These people don't have high polling numbers or neither the money to move forward. So now that the slow march to the nomination is practically over ( I am now moving my intentions to possible V.P choices) I will research every likely V.P hopefully I will have the time before Romney announces. 

It seems like Ron and Newt won't let the march go so well, but hey it fun to hear them speak and especially the debates. I don't think Romney will go to another debate considering why rock the boat that has just caught wind. Romney has bigger things to worry about like the fact that women don't have such a high apporval of him and the fact that independents don't either. Other problems include a somewhat growing U.S economy and Obama's approval rating flirting with 50%.

So to recap Obama and Biden VS. Romney and ?. I love watching U.S elections they are always so much fun to watch. 

Meanwhile In Onatario

The recently elected minority in Ontario is going to have to present a budget that is going to need at least 2 members of the opposition to vote in favor in order to stop an election. Dalton Mcguinty is going to need help from the NDP since the Conservatives have stated that they won't support the budget. The NDP haven't quite given an official statement on whether they will vote for the budget or not, but they have brought some ideas to the table. Some of them I like! One of them is to increase the taxes on the richest people in the province. I am in favor of making people who have gotten so much out of the province paying some more to help balance the budget. We need shared sacrifice to pay off our deficits.Dalton Mcguinty is willing to work with the NDP to make the budget.

A poll I wrote about yesterday said a majority are behind the idea that people who are rich should pay more taxes. I think with the Liberals and the NDP working together in Ontario (even though I still think their are many things they should still do) Ontario could get a real progressive budget.

We are More Genourose Then I thought.

According to a new poll done recently a vast Majority of Canadians are willing to pay higher taxes to combat income inequality. As we know income inequality has risen over the past 30 years in Canada and it is something we must tackle and apparently the country as a whole believes that as well.

The survey showed that 77 per cent of respondents agree that widening income gaps are a big problem for Canada that will have long-term consequences and 71 per cent agreed that income inequality undermines Canadian values.

Liberals and New Democrats are the strongest supporters of paying more taxes to combat inequality, and interesting enough 58% (that a majority!) of Conservatives also believe in paying more taxes to combat inequality. The poll also asked what Canadians thought about higher Corporate taxes. No surprise 73% of Canadians support making Corporations pay the previous 2008 corporate tax rate. That was Ignatieff's plan in the election (ain't so radical was it) In fact a majority of Conservatives agree in making the corporate tax rate go back to the 2008 level. It seems even Harper's Conservatives don't like to the Harper policy.

The Broadbent Institute says the poll shows that the problem of income inequality is not an ideological one and that even the wealthy agree that they should play their part in addressing it.

 Read more Here

Way To Stand Out!

The Alberta Liberals released there platform for the upcoming election in 2012. In the platform is a radical policy (at least I think) to try and reduce tuition cost of universities, and apparently try to completely eliminate it by 2025. Alberta tuition is the 4th highest in the world  country. Now I do think that tuition in Alberta should not rise and even slightly reduce for now. But to eliminate it I think it comes to a point where the government could better use the money. I am all for forgiving debt to people who want to become doctors, but it get's to a point especially in the future where universities will want money and the government will be too strapped to pay for it. In Quebec the tuition hikes are needed in Alberta a reduce is very welcomed. Being a fiscal conservative I think that high subsidization of education is good and more money for low income families are good as well, but free is too much money. We have to have priorities, and education should be on the top of the list, but our government has other places to put money into especially in Alberta when it comes to Health Care. If lower waiting times and balanced budget's mean students paying some money I think that is fair. Maybe Alberta can afford it, because it has oil , but I still say the money can be better spent. I am still routing for the Alberta Liberals in the 2012 election.

Finally! Justin Get's Some Good Press

After the swearing in parliament one would just think it would be a slip of the mouth and only end up being a bad day for Justin. Then came along his comments about an Independent Quebec (although I still think the media over did it, I have changed my view on the comment and now think it was wrong for him to say he would support an independent Quebec if Canada became Harper's Canada). But now on to the Good press Justin got this week. Even though he made his opponent bleed (I do hope the senator is okay) he get's points for beating the so called winner coming into the match. Raising money for a good cause no doubt might give Justin some good press he well deserves.