So we're having an election or something

[Horza]

It's not that weird. The country is huge but the population is not. I think something like 95% of them live near our border. And that is still something like 11% of our population.

Not disparaging my Canadian neighbors, but giving them equality politically isn't realistic, no matter if I wish it were so.

And Australia? Really? They're as fucked up as we are or worse with only 20 something million people. Don't be fooled by the cool Aussies that post here.

What?

Universal healthcare, low low firearm homicide rates, 5% unemployment and falling, public debt at 5% of GDP and falling, decades of economic growth locked in by the Chinese and Indian booms...

[Lord O' Bones]

What?

Universal healthcare, low low firearm homicide rates, 5% unemployment and falling, public debt at 5% of GDP and falling, decades of economic growth locked in by the Chinese and Indian booms...

Sorry. I meant the social opinions of the populace not the system of health.*

*In which case size does matter.

[Durckad]

Did anyone else read the thread title as 'So we're having an erection or something?' Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?

Thought not.

Erm, carry on with your important discussion thingie, I'll just let myself out... :wideeyed:

[Horza]

Sorry. I meant the social opinions of the populace not the system of health.*

*In which case size does matter.

Not really.

Our conservatives don't go for the crazy stuff in anywhere near the degree or kind their American cousins do. Our Opposition Leader has tried to whip up a Tea Party atmosphere over the carbon tax (in another difference we have a legislature that, um, legislates for things) but the result was meagre and a PR nightmare, as the Australian electorate doesn't regard ranting and raving as persuasive political speech (as the 01-04 anti-Howard protestors found).

[Lord O' Bones]

Not really.

Our conservatives don't go for the crazy stuff in anywhere near the degree or kind their American cousins do. Our Opposition Leader has tried to whip up a Tea Party atmosphere over the carbon tax (in another difference we have a legislature that, um, legislates for things) but the result was meagre and a PR nightmare, as the Australian electorate doesn't regard ranting and raving as persuasive political speech (as the 01-04 anti-Howard protestors found).

Perhaps my impression is skewed by the fact that I had to often go about with my US Navy uniform on. But Melbourne, Hobart, Esperance, especially Darwin, and even Sydney seemed like Alabama with a different accent to me.

ETA: Also, the size matters thing isn't irrelevant.

[delete this account pls]

Perhaps my impression is skewed by the fact that I had to often go about with my US Navy uniform on. But Melbourne, Hobart, Esperance, especially Darwin, and even Sydney seemed like Alabama with a different accent to me.

ETA: Also, the size matters thing isn't irrelevant.

You think? :P

Because every other city in the world that I know of LOVES when 5000 drunken obnoxious foreign military personnell descend upon them for days.

[Lord O' Bones]

You think? :P

Because every other city in the world that I know of LOVES when 5000 drunken obnoxious foreign military personnell descend upon them for days.

Hah!

I was lucky in that I was on a ship with less than 350 crew, yet we went everywhere by our lonesome for various reasons. There were never any more than 200 yanks ashore at any point and it was glorious.

ETA: Aside from being uncomfortable, that stupid uniform got me a lot of attention from the ladies. I'm not saying it's right or good, but it happened.

[Salome the Persian Witch]

And we Canadians are so polite that half of our election thread is about Aussie policy and no one says anything!

Oh, wait....

[TrueMetis]

And we Canadians are so polite that half of our election thread is about Aussie policy and no one says anything!

Oh, wait....

Right time to break some stereotypes, get your own thread you Aussie bastards.

(Was that impolite enough?)

[Lord O' Bones]

Right time to break some stereotypes, get your own thread you Aussie bastards.

(Was that impolite enough?)

They have one. You guys don't. Oh, the irony.

[delete this account pls]

ETA: Aside from being uncomfortable, that stupid uniform got me a lot of attention from the ladies. I'm not saying it's right or good, but it happened.

Oh, no doubt. I've witnessed the crew of a US aircraft carrier on shore leave before :laugh:

Anyway, sorry for the threadjack Canadians! Back to election talk. It's aboot time we got out of here.

[Aemon Stark]

The Liberals? Oh yeah, since their track record is so spotless. I'd rather vote for Hitler than the stupid ass liberals. Like it or not, the economy under Harper is in far better shape than it would be with any other party. His foreign policies are insane but at least he knows how to handle the economy. The NDPs are incapable of running a province, much less the whole country. Notice how they completely screwed up Nova Scotia in such a short time. The Bloq and the Green parties are even worse than the Libs, as mind boggling as that is.

I'd be hard pressed to say that Nova Scotia has been screwed up... other than ongoing attempts to repair the decades of fiscal damage inflicted by Liberal/PC governments. I'm not happy with budget cuts, but there isn't a whole lot of choice in the matter - and better that it be done by a party which won't try to eviscerate collective bargaining rights in the process.

[Salome the Persian Witch]

I'll take a boot to your....

Um, thank you lovely Aussies and LOB for the delightful conversation and insight.

Now, about Harper - he wants to run on an "economic platform" - but the policies that saved Canada from the same economic collapse as much of the world was because of regulations that were already there! In fact, since he got into power, the federal surplus has been diminished, household debt of the average Canadian has increased, his cutting taxes for corporations has not translated into more jobs but less for "average Canadians", and he wants to reduce those economic policies that did keep us safe.

And you know what, he's probably gonna get his damned minority government again. GRRRRR.

[Forderz!]

You know, Nova Scotia has probably fared better under NDP leadership than it would have under the PC or the Liberals because the NDP is built upon not screwing the average person.

Regarding the election, my dream parliament consists of:

The Green party having the voting power the Bloc does now, because hey, the environment is important, but I don't trust them with anything else.

The NDP having minority leadership in harsh economic climates.

The Liberals having minority leadership in boom years.

The Conservatives can bugger off ever since the merger.

The NDP/Liberal thing probably has something to do with my extensive time with RTS games. Any money in the bank is wasted money!

[Salome the Persian Witch]

You do know that the Green part has quite a conservative economic bent, right?

Regardless, Conservative "mergers" have happened several times 'cuz there have been a whole lotta crazy right wingers here in Alberta since we found oil. (Remember when they announced the formation of the "Conservative Reform Alliance Party" - and it took the non crazies 2 seconds to realize that they called themselves the C.R.A.P Party!) :laugh:

Before that, we were one of the poorest AND left leaning provinces with our extremism in voting "social credit party".

Good thing - I do see demographics changing, and the extremism shifting with the aging out of the Veterans. (I'm also hopeful 'cuz we're the city that elected Naheed Nenshi as our mayor!) I hope this trend continues.

[Shryke]

Harper is just continuing policies that Chretien/Martin put in place in the early 90's. He also managed to nearly wipe out our years of debt reduction with a needless stimulus package. Still, he hasn't managed to fuck up the economy so that's a plus for him. Every other area I'd give him a minus.

VOTE LIBERAL!!!!!

Seriously. Our economy is in great shape despite Harper, not because of him. He's tried to fuck it up a few times already and opposed the very things Martin implemented that left Canada coming out on top after the recession hit and pretty much tried to dismantle the economic policies that have been a boon to the country because they don't line up with his ideology (see his "Tough on crime" bullshit for the same. We need more prison! What, all our data shows crime rates are falling? Well let's just fuck the census up completely facts don't get in the way)

He also shit our surplus down the pipe for a pointless tax cut. Woo!

[mashiara]

Did anyone else read the thread title as 'So we're having an erection or something?' Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?

Thought not.

Erm, carry on with your important discussion thingie, I'll just let myself out... :wideeyed:

I came in here to post just that thing, every time I see this thread title I read erection instead of election.

:leaving:

At least I can blame the pregnancy. What's your excuse?

eta: Sorry, do carry on. I know practically nothing about Canadian politics but I'm willing to learn, I'll be following this thread if you don't mind. I'll even try to keep my mind out of the gutter.

[Noroldis]

The F-35's (Seriously flying elephants? They have the radar signature of a golf ball) are pretty much the only thing the Conservatives did that i agree with. On everything else there isn't a party I agree with, it's either stupid ideas or no will to actually do anything. So I guess I'll be making a point in the first ever election I can vote in by staying home and not voting.

I'm a lot more concerned with the F-35s' money signature than their radar one. And the fact is that according to the Parliamentary Budget Office, those 65 planes - roughly half the number of our current fighter force of F-18s, by the way - are going to cost us about 30 billions. Meanwhile,our Department of Defense was lying through its teeth like Harper being hopelessly optmistic by claiming they would cost some 17 billions. If the F-35s were made up of $100 dollar bills, IMO they'd really be elephant-sized.

We should have had held a competition between the F-35 and other possible candidates like the Eurofighter to determine which one best suited us (and encourage lower bidding by the manufacturers), but instead that corrupt bastard Harper went ahead and gave a no-bid contract to Lockheed Martin, in the finest tradition of Bush the Lesser awarding juicy no-bid contracts to Republican-affiliated corporations after the invasion of Irak. I don't know about you, but to me that's not our tax dollars being well-spent, or even honestly spent.

[Aemon Stark]

The NDPs are incapable of running a province, much less the whole country. Notice how they completely screwed up Nova Scotia in such a short time.

You know, the more I read this, the more it annoys me. Do you live in NS and do you have anything actually tangible to say about this? The NDP have, if anything, been far too willing to prioritize reigning in spending and improving the fiscal outlook at the risk of pissing off various groups (e.g. Yarmouth in eliminating the Cat's subsidy). And yet I can't think of any major labour disruptions and NS doctors recently agreed to defer fee increases to "help improve the province’s financial state".

Yes, it's been a disaster, for sure...

[Shryke]

Excuse my ignorance, but does America's version of Fox News play pretty regularly on cable in Canada? If so, does Harper tune in to it on a regular basis?

No, it doesn't exist. They tried to create it as "SunTV" (a TV version of the Sun newspaper, which is basically the trashy large distribution right-wing leaning newspaper up here) and the CRTC (the people who regulate television, radio, etc) shot them down because it's not real news.