Terrific interview and column by Antonella Artuso in the Sun: EXCLUSIVE: Prof. Jordan Peterson gives ‘Peter Pan’ Trudeau budget a failing grade:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s “gender equity” budget is as shallow and ideologically-driven as he is, professor Jordan B. Peterson says.
“To me, when I look at Trudeau, there’s a couple of things that I see. I see someone who hasn’t grown up, so he’s Peter Pan,” the clinical psychologist said in a wide-ranging exclusive interview with the Toronto Sun.
And being shallow is bad enough, but when you combine it with a mindless devotion to identity politics, Trudeau’s style of governing becomes dangerously divisive:
The “solutions” in the budget are those one learns in the first week of women’s studies, Peterson countered.
The usual markers of radical left ideology are all there — equity, diversity, inclusivity, white privilege, systemic racism, he said.
“I think the identity politics is absolutely catastrophic … We will see a rise in racial tension and tension between the genders as a consequence of this,” he said. “It’s already happening. We’re introducing problems into a country.”
We can only pray that enough Canadian wake up before the next federal election and vote to Make Trudeau a Drama Teacher Again.
More from Jordan Peterson on the subject of Justin Trudeau:
And then there’s this!
Blue Like You2 
You could see all of this clearly in the US during Obama’s reign. Fringe groups like Occupy, BLM, and others were actively encouraged to divide, resulting in riots and violence. It’s sad that Trudeau is leading us there and that there are so many who can’t see it.
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I see Kathleen Wynne doing this too. It’s a leftwing strategy that seems to come from Soros. Justin is a willing puppet.
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From Soros and through Butts to be spread like a virus in Ontario first, and now federally.
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Exactly. Woe Canada.
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trouble posting
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Cara, I have it set up that your comments must be moderated for the moment. So you will have to be patient. I am aware that you had posted at BLY several years ago under different names, and there were some issues with people getting along.
However I am willing to give this a try. We’ll see how it goes and then I’ll decide about the filter.
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Trudeau can go back to drama teaching with a lot more acting experience at the expense of the country. He doesn’t even need fake tears, he can turn them on like a tap for effect as needed.
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It’s the only thing he’s good at – acting. Maybe he should move to Hollywood. They’d love him there.
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He is probably pretty popular in his own riding, after all in the last few elections his riding of Papineau has been amongst the top 5 worst ridings for the Tories in the country so its one of those areas that is pretty uniformly left wing. I’ve generally lived in those latte sipping elitist liberal ridings (Trinity-Spadina, now Vancouver Centre) and unfortunately his viewpoints are very popular and many seem to think those who don’t think like that are backwards. But go north of Eglinton, east of Victoria Park, or west of the Humber River in Toronto or in the case of Vancouver east of Boundary Road, north of the Burrard Inlet, or south of the Fraser River and people tend to be close to the middle. Trudeau won that group in 2015, but if he keeps things up and the Tories aren’t too scary, he could lose them in 2019.
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I did not know Conservatives considered Conservatives scary. This is news to me.
How would they come across as scary. Let us know so we can advise our Conservative friends not to come across as too scary.
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I wouldn’t say Conservatives more swing voters. Essentially Blue Liberals/Red Tories can go either way as some elections like 2011 they vote Conservative and some like 2015 they go Liberal and whichever side they go to usually wins nationally. They were in the Liberal column until recently, but appear to be drifting to the Conservative column.
As for the downtown core, I don’t think you will ever convince more than a quarter to vote Conservative, those areas are just inherently left wing and just in Canada but in most countries.
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I think the left wing strategy Trudeau is using is to appeal to millennials. Angus-Reid has an interesting poll out which suggests with Trudeau, but also an earlier one with Wynne are still competitive amongst millennials, but a huge turnoff to those over 35. The problem is you cannot win by just appealing to that group, you have to also do better amongst older voters too. In many ways they seem to be following the Sanders-Corbyn model who also did well amongst millennials but poorly amongst seniors who have seen those policies in action and know they don’t work.
I am against all forms of discrimination, but reverse discrimination or saying discrimination exists when it doesn’t does not help get us closer to a more tolerant society, if anything it does the opposite. A better solution is yes we should point out where discrimination exists and try to eradicate it but our ultimate goal should be a society where we judge each person as an individual not what group they belong to. I generally follow the golden rule of do onto others as you would like them to do to you and I think that is probably the best way. Off course if someone says they find something offensive or hurtful, I will apologize and change.
That being said I think this is a trap he is using hoping to bait the Conservatives so he can portray them as an intolerant party. Instead we should attack him as being oblivious to the big challenges we face. Otherwise the problem with the budget was not what was in it, the problem is what wasn’t. Where is the plan to deal with the US possibly pulling out of NAFTA? What is the plan to bring the budget to balance considering we now have 3% growth and low interest rates meaning any slowdown in growth or higher interest rates will cause the deficit to grow? We are due for another recession, what is the plan to deal with this? How about the record consumer debt? How about the sky high housing prices and how to do we cool it down to make it more affordable, but not burst the bubble so homeowners see their property values plummet? How will we deal with an aging population and shrinking workforce? What about the pipelines and the Alberta/BC feud? How do we deal with increased automation? Instead of having a budget to deal with the real challenges we face, we have one focused on virtue signalling and I think the Tories should use Bill Clinton’s argument in 1993 which is “It’s the economy stupid” as Trudeau seems clueless on that and that is the area I think where he is most vulnerable. Anybody can virtue signal, it takes skill to manage a $2.5 trillion dollar economy.
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Wynne is now out with her speech from the throne which is her desperate attempt to get attention.
She has promised to fix all the stuff she cut across the board, almost a chicken in every pot.
IMO she is really treating us like imbeciles, and you’d have to be one to return her to power.
There’s never been a worse government in this province or any province in this country. She takes the cake and she can eat it.
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The articles by Fatima Syed and Jaimie Watt posted by Joanne in the previous post are great and hopefully everyone had the chance to read them. Wow, Jaimie Watt echoes what many would say. It hits the nail on the head. Finally, we’re getting media that says it as it is. Great posts, Joanne – nothing new there!! 🙂
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Justin Trudeau is not a leader, he is a front man, when people figure that out there may be some hope for this country. At this juncture he is making a fool of himself and sadly the country.
When a prime minister becomes a cartoon subject in this country and around the the world for his nonsensical antics we can’t be taken seriously.
Andrew made a trip to the UK recently and looked like a Prime Minister, I’m sure those he met felt the same way.
Let us pray for some sanity in Ontario and ultimately in the country.
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More brilliant posts, this is getting better!! Ok, it’s coming from the Sun but, finally, we’re hearing the truth about Trudeau and Wynne rather than the politically correct and heavily biased leftists’ BS. Prof. Jordan Peterson is dead on with his commentary on Trudeau. He observes what many of us have recognized from the very beginning. We’ve uttered many of these views ourselves. Compliments to the professor for standing up with straight talk about the realities we face when so many look the other way or simply jump on the liberal bandwagon!!
What continues to amaze me is that so many people could not (or refused to) see through Trudeau and the Liberal party. I guess it’s “none are so blind as those that refuse to see.”
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Yes this is so great to hear someone actually articulate what we knew all along, as you say Ed. But his comments come at a moment in time when even some die-hard Liberals are having second thoughts.
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Regarding Jordan Peterson, the left is proving the Streisand Effect. If not for their over the top SJW complaints about his ideas, he would be a little known prof at a Canadian university. The lefts efforts to shut him up have resulted in best seller international celebrity status. Buy his book, I did, not only is it good reading, it will p.o. a lefty.
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I borrowed his book from the library. Excellent read. I may buy it for posterity.
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If I were attending the U of T I would take one of his classes as an elective. My guess is his classes probably fill up faster than most profs. Anyways according to the SJWs I cannot call anyone he or she, I have to use zim, zir, or ze or whatever words they’ve made up. He argued language evolves and arbitrarily requiring people to use made up words doesn’t work. Anyways perhaps maybe the other side should insist on being called by gender specific pronouns or is our opinion irrelevant to the SJWs. I personally wish to be referred to as he or him, not ze or zim and if a transgendered person asked me to use gender neutral pronouns for them, I would (as Peterson said he would too) and in return I would hope they would respect my preference to have gender specific instead of gender neutral pronouns used.
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On a side note for any lefties reading this, here is a friendly word of advice, move back towards the centre and quit tacking way to the left. The reason Kenney, Scheer, and Ford are all leading in the polls is not because most are right wing, it’s because most are centrists and the left has shifted too far from the centre. Susan Delacourt even had an article how many Liberals from the Chretien/Martin government aren’t happy with the direction the party is going. One former Liberal MP from the Chretien/Martin government on twitter today mentioned he no longer recognizes the party. SJW agenda appeals well in the downtown cores but is a vote loser in the suburbs where elections are won and lost and where people care about pocket book issues not the latest SJW fad.
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http://torontosun.com/news/provincial/goldstein-wynnes-throne-speech-is-liberal-snake-oil-2
The sad truth.
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I’d call it Wynne’s last gasp to hold on to power. It’s beyond pathetic that she thinks we are so flaming stupid we can’t see through such blatant bribery. She has highlighted the mess she has made, adding back services she cut and giving out more “freebies” adding to the massive debt. They are not free and we need to ensure she is free of her job come June, free to run off into the sunset.
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I don’t think that she believes that we are all that stupid but she certainly thinks that there are enough of the stupid, the uninformed and the gov’t dependent. Add to that the impending media assault from the radical left and the unions and her chances are in the realm of possibility
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Looks like the liberals next act of desperation as the failure of their policies becomes more apparent is to lower the voting age to 16. I guess there aren’t enough uniformed 18 year olds and millennials to cover their needs.
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Interesting its always left wing parties pushing lowering the voting age, I wonder why? Could it be they know this will improve their chances. In UK it is Labour pushing this as Corbyn knows this would greatly improve his chances of being PM since that group overwhelmingly votes Labour. In BC, there is talk of this too, hope it fails.
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Sometimes I think you should need to prove you are a net tax payer to be eligible to vote.
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Wynne now in desperation is promising free pharmacare for those over 65. While I like the idea, my concern is how will it be funded. The PCs perhaps should maybe expand its availability to those over 65 but have an income cut off so it doesn’t pay for high income seniors or those who are still in the workforce and have workplace coverage. It does seem though Wynne is spending like crazy hoping to buy off as many votes, but polls seem to show her spending programs are popular, but most want a balanced budget and oppose tax hikes suggesting many are like myself like the idea, but only want it done if affordable not no matter what.
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My concerns would be 1) Seniors are already free for the most part other than the $6.50 prescription fee, at least for most necessary drugs. 2) I don’t trust medical professionals to not abuse the system and over prescribe, which already happens in my opinion, and could get worse.
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If that is the case then probably won’t be as successful as Wynne hopes it will be. Hopefully Ford points this out. It seems at this point Wynne is just desperate after all if the government really wanted all these things they had 15 years so hopefully enough people see it for what it is, pure desperation to get re-elected.
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I’m wondering if Wynne will call the election earlier if she keeps tanking in the polls? It’s quite the fall for the Liberals to be at the bottom of the pile after so many years on top. Never in our history have they deserved it more.
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I honestly can’t see any benefit for Wynne in dropping the writ earlier. She can campaign on taxpayer dollars until then.
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Yes Joanne and Wynne truly believes she can still pull off a win. She’s depending on the public servants to pull her through. Apparently, she’s seeing a slight up-tick in the polling numbers. If the NDP implodes again and those folks would NEVER in their wildest dreams vote PC then………who really knows for sure. I seem to have ironed out my posting troubles too Joanne.
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While I have no idea what Wynne thinks, my guess if I had to make one is she realizes she cannot win outright so she is hoping to hold Ford to a minority, come in second in seats and then form a coalition with the NDP to continue governing. I could be wrong, but that is my guess in what her thinking is. Nonetheless if she doesn’t win the most seats and tries to form government I think there will be a big backlash. In BC in 2017 and Ontario in 1985, both involved replacing a government that had been in power for a long time, not continuing a government that had been in power for a long time. Paul Martin in 2006 could have tried to stay in power and ask the other left wing parties to prop him up, but he realized this was the wrong thing to do and would have hurt the party more in the long run so if Wynne is smart instead of power hungry she would not try to stay on if she doesn’t win the most seats.
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It appears the city of Ottawa is the big hotbed of Liberalism, it’s expected the MPP’s there will keep their seats according to polls. Stupid is a s stupid does.
Wynne seems to have great admiration for Ottawa MPP Yasir Naqvi, he has had a few portfolios and did a very poor job in every one.
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Ottawa is a mixed bag. Carleton which is largely rural should be an easy PC win. Unless they do something really stupid, I think we should easily hold Kanata-Carleton and Nepean (these did go Liberal federally, but that was a bad election for us). Ottawa West-Nepean and Orleans are battlegrounds and could go either way as Harper did win those win in office although the trend has not been too favourable recently. Ottawa South is a long shot and only in a massive landslide could we win there. Ottawa-Vanier and Ottawa Centre are off limits but those are the two core ridings and lets remember throughout the Western world, urban core ridings generally vote for left wing parties. Same reason downtown Toronto ones are conservative dead zones so the fact the urban core will still go for Wynne is not too big a concern, its the suburbs that matter and as long as we win those we will win the election. A better way of looking at things is rural Ontario always goes conservative, urban centres always go left wing while suburbs and smaller urban centres determine the winner.
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More on the Liberals SJW agenda https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-liberal-investigation-into-systemic-racism-should-keep-a-low-profile/ and https://www.thestar.com/opinion/star-columnists/2018/03/21/by-linking-abortion-rights-to-jobs-funding-the-liberals-have-opened-up-a-new-front-in-a-culture-war.html . I am no fan of Trump but I prefer a middle ground no the polar opposite. Otherwise we should oppose all discrimination but going out of your way to rub political correctness in everyone’s face is not the solution. It might be popular amongst some millennials, latte sipping liberals in downtown cores, and your SJWs but those groups aren’t where elections are won and lost. It’s interesting that Trudeau and Wynne’s move to the left hasn’t done much to push down the NDP, but helped the Conservatives in both cases as many Blue Liberals and Red Tories are ditching them.
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Canadians, thankfully, are beginning to fight back against the “Divide and conquer – divide and rule” strategies that seem to be the current modus operandi of the Liberal governments of Canada and Ontario. We’ve already been divided into political parties and the current governments are working on subdividing us by gender, sexuality, ethnicity, race and religion. We’re being told how racist and bigoted we are. This must stop now. The country has been pushed so far to the left that we can’t even see the middle ground in the rear-view mirror.
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I’m very suspect about where the accusations of us in anywhere in Canada being bigoted or racist. We are anything but. I’m very tired of activism on that front, it has to be dealt with but HOW?
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You won’t shut up the SJWs, but you can by voting out the Liberals at least ensure they are sitting in the opposition benches not governing ones. My real hope is the Liberals after losing first provincially and then hopefully federally will move back towards the centre like they were under Chretien and Martin. At least when the Tories overstay their welcome, they won’t screw up badly unlike the current crew who sit well to the left of the political centre.
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I know this would drive Trudeau nuts, but how about trying to get Jordan Peterson to run as a Tory candidate next federal election. Probably somewhere in the 905 belt or periphery ridings of the 416 as while I am not sure where he lives, the area around U of T is pretty left wing but I think he could win further out in the suburbs. He would be a great addition to the team and I am sure if Trudeau ever had to face him in question period, Peterson would rip Trudeau to shreds.
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Ha! That’s an intriguing idea Miles. I think he actually mused about entering politics at some point but thought he’d be more effective on the periphery. (Don’t quote me on that but I do recall something about that.)
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I’ve been trying to analyze the facial expression on Wynne in the above Toronto Sun article. I can’t come up with anything close to kind to say. Suffice to say I like the headline, Ontario’s mess affects the entire country to one degree or other. We are still in have-not status which never gets mentioned.
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On another issue, how far will gender pronoun change/wipe out go? Will Mother, Father, Miss, Mrs, Mr,Sister, Brother be changed to just people and everyone can figure out for themselves?
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Whatever happened to the old maxim “majority rules’? Does it only apply to governments now? It seems to have been expunged in societal matters. Anybody with a gripe wins by default.
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SJW Social Justice Warrior I wasn’t sure what SJW referred too
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I think Don Martin’s last word hit the nail on the head. I abhor racism and that is why unlike some here I despise Donald Trump. But as a Red Tory I believe in moderation, not lunging from one extreme to the another which is what Trudeau seems to be doing. Also if we want to create a more tolerant society you focus on what works, not social engineering to create your model society. Case and point is gay marriage. I am quite proud that gay marriage was legalized and fully support it, but had the government pushed the idea back in the 70s there would have been a huge backlash and made things worse for the LGBT community whereas by gradually improving them, people by 2005 were ready for full marriage equality. Likewise when looking abroad, in a country like Switzerland or Israel which has fairly liberal attitudes on gay rights, I would argue they should have gay marriage, but in a country like Nigeria I would simply argue it should be decriminalized, asking for full marriage equality today there would be a bridge too far.
Also you don’t get a more tolerant society but trying to make those in historically advantaged groups look bad. Playing the white guilt card may feel good, but it is more likely to lead to a backlash than to an actual more tolerant society. I think the real problem is Trudeau is listening too much to your ivory tower types who think governments can create an ideal world rather than looking at the world as to how it is, not how one wishes it to be. And lets remember not all women or minorities like Trudeau either. There are many women who are Conservatives and don’t care for his virtue signalling. While for minorities, the Tories got 40% in Scarborough-Agincourt which is a riding that is over 75% visible minority and that was when Trudeau’s approval rating was 5 to 10 points higher than today so quite possible if the by-election were held today, they might win it. Never mind go to any Ford rally in the GTA and you will notice it is a very diverse crowd and I believe he likely will come June win multiple minority-majority ridings (Those are ridings where non-whites are over 50%).
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“There are many women who are Conservatives and don’t care for his virtue signalling.” You’ve got that right!!
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I keep hearing that Trump is a racist but have yet to see proof. If you have seen any evidence of it, any at all, please link.
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I have never seen any evidence of racism from Trump either.
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I guess it depends on how one defines racism, but Trump has done numerous things I would call racist. Calling Mexicans murders and rapists, saying an American born judge was unfit to oversee the Trump University lawsuit because of his Mexican heritage (Even Paul Ryan called this a textbook case of racism), The Obama birther lie, pardoning Jo Arpaio who was investigated under the Bush administration for Racial profiling and convicted, referring to Haiti and several African countries as Sh**holes, refusing to rent out to Black tenants in the 70s which the Justice department investigated and he settled with them. Otherwise not one offs thus why I see him as a racist. Maybe not a KKK or Neo-Nazi type, but definitely intolerant if you ask me. I think one can oppose virtue signalling, support free speech of those with intolerant views, oppose affirmative action, or oppose SJWs and not be racist, but insulting certain groups repeatedly is what I call racist.
Note I was not a huge fan of Hillary Clinton although to be fair she was fairly centrist unlike Trudeau or Wynne (those two are more like Bernie Sanders than Hillary Clinton) and she was more akin to the Chretien/Martin government or perhaps would even be a Red Tory. My preference was John Kasich as I think he would have been better than any of the GOP or Democrat candidates.
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As usual, interesting commentary here. Come here and get up to date news and pick up so much more. The wisdom of the people. You cannot beat it.
By the way, 12 Rules for Life — is that the name of the book by Jordan Peterson that some of you have noted? Yeah, I agree, Peterson running for the Conservatives — excellent idea.
Thanks!!
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Yes I am very pleased with the tone of debate here, Ed! Not everyone holds the same point of view but we all are respectful of each other which is awesome. I am actually finding things much better now in terms of having to “babysit” the comments. Really good crew here.
Jordan Peterson has an excellent website where you can read more about his book and also watch some of his videos. What a great mind he has!
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How about that, Ontario’s minister of finance making a announcement and calling the medical people behind him “eye candy”! Talk about stupid ! How could that thought even enter his mind?
We could imagine he spotted some hot chick and got bedazzled but that wouldn’t be politically correct to even mention.
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That comment will come back to haunt him, I am sure.
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Nothing I’ve heard or seen of it today. You know the story, If Doug Ford had said it it would be splashed on all the front pages of every newspaper. Haven’t seen it at all.
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Very true. Well I hope someone captures it in an election ad.
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It seems like it is Gerald Butts who is really pushing the party leftward http://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/furey-youd-think-sooner-or-later-trudeaus-going-to-have-to-cut-gerald-butts-loose and many MPs apparently especially those in more right leaning ridings are worried he is damaging their prospects. I have mixed feelings on whether Trudeau should dump Butts. On the one hand it would be better for Canada as much like Ontario his ideas are quite damaging, but on the other hand I figure keeping him just increases the chances of Trudeau being a one term wonder.
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Butts is a straight up Marxist, no doubt about it. It’s astounding that he has somehow influenced policy in Ontario and now the entire country without being called out. Another abject failure of the media, although many of them would consider it a success I guess.
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Butts is running the show, directing operations from behind the curtain. I do think Trudeau goes off script occasionally for effect, it makes it look better to let him play silly beggars , his India disaster is exhibit A.
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Just watched the local CTV Kitchener news. They interviewed a couple of women who rely on disability pensions who obviously can’t do it in a world where apartments are over $1,000/month and subsidized apartments are in short supply. Imagine if the money given to wealthy friends of liberals given the opportunity to operate wind mill farms was instead directed toward people who need it. Imagine if electricity was still the ‘Ontario Advantage’. Yes I’m that old (slogan from the Bill Davis era)
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I think ‘Ontario Advantage’ was when the slogan was “live better electrically” and people were heating their homes with electric heat.
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BTW, does anyone know what with Sandy? Did she decide to shut down her blog?
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That’s strange. I think she sometimes gets fed up with politics. I see she’s still got her twitter account though, but it’s linked to her jewelry site.
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Hi Liz and Joanne,
Yes, I did shut down my blog. I sent a final comment to everyone who had recently left a comment so it wouldn’t be a surprise. Didn’t just shutter it this time, I outright deleted it altogether. Motivation completely lacking to write about the Trudeau Liberals and this latest Ontario fight. I would have kept going had Christine Elliott won for ONPC, but Doug Ford? I just can’t get enthused. Sure I will vote PC but I just can’t support him to the extent I would have had to on my blog. Besides, my visitors are way down — even though Bill and Jack both often put my titles up on their news sites.
Overall, I think the blogosphere is being replaced by Twitter. Which is a shame because Twitter has become an unbelievable liberal cesspool. I changed that account as well as Joanne noted. My jewellery shop keeps me busy and it is there that I can be creative.
Now that I see you are back again Jo, I will stop by from time to time and leave a comment.. However, in the meantime, if anyone wants to contact me, they just need to go to my jewellery shop at studiomadelyn.com and leave me a message, what Etsy calls a “convo.” I will respond and give them my personal email address.
Thanks to everyone who supported my blog over the last 13 years. It was appreciated!!!!
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Great to hear from you Sandy! Thanks for keeping us all posted. Good luck with Studio Madelyn.
We will miss your political blog, but glad you’ll drop by here from time to time.
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Hi Sandy, glad to hear all is well. Can’t blame you for moving on to a more relaxing venture. Best of luck.
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I recently read a post (I think on Instapundit) speculating that blogs may make a come back with the distrust of data harvesting and other cesspool aspects of social media. I must say the respectful discourse here is much preferred. I’m still on twitter, but got rid of FB around 2012 or so. Don’t miss it one bit
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Greg, I read that same article. I know many people signing off Facebook and moving back to blogging because of the distrust of FB. I can see that.
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Here’s another interesting article about Facebook’s future. http://thechronicleherald.ca/opinion/1556180-leger-has-time-come-to-unfriend-facebook-once-and-for-all
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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/dear-mr-trudeau-how-not-to-turn-fashion-diplomacy-into-a-fashion-disaster/articleshow/63031177.cms
Some fashion advice for the famille Trudeau from the Times of India – not their greatest fan.
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Good timing with a liberal MP with an Indian background pulling out the race card on CPC members calling out Trudeau’s ‘costumes’
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Yes I’ve been following that on twitter. Hilarious!
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Ha that was funny! Thanks for the laugh.
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Thanks, Joanne, for the website. Terrible, I’ve never heard of the professor before. I’d like to hear more Conservative voices in this country. Instead, all we see and hear is Mercer and programs like “this hour has 22 minutes.” It’s all about the Liberals. Last week, “this hour ….” took a low blow shot at Doug Ford re: selling drugs. Obscene considering what happened to his brother.
We need a country-wide station expressing a Conservative viewpoint. As it is, the Liberals have had a decided advantage for years what with the CBC broadcasting across the country and CTV not much better, and Global neither.
In every nook and cranny in this country, the CBC propaganda has a hold on its’ audience. I think a Conservative outlet would make quite an impact across this land.
We’re sort of like a banana republic when it comes to main stream media. The same with major service providers, there are too few having that major impact. It’s the monopolies that kill objectivity, creativity, and growth in our Canada. Just my opinion, just thinking out loud.
I, too, enjoyed Sandy’s blog. If only we all had more time. 🙂 And bubba Brown, still looking for you. LOL Gradually, more familiar names are appearing here!!
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Hi Ed. Yes I’ve pretty much given up on Canadian media too. I actually watch Fox and last night they had Jordan Peterson on the Greg Gutfeld show! Tucker Carlson has him on quite often as well.
The Toronto Sun is one of the few Canadian newspapers worth reading anymore.
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I actually don’t watch Fox News much. I guess you could say I would be a liberal if I lived in the US as our median voter is quite a bit further to the left than theirs so I find their style of conservatism a bit too right wing for me. I prefer the British version as opposed to American version. In terms of media bias, I find the media is good at covering things from the Red Tory perspective, but agree they do a bad job with those further to the right. In many ways it seems there are 20 years behind the curve when most were close to the centre so they do a good job of covering those slightly left and slightly right of centre, but those further to the left and further to the right not so much and over the last 20 years it seems both sides have moved further from the centre. I remember 15 years ago when I could have a healthy debate with those on the left and even though we had our disagreements it was still quite respectful, whereas today I find it much harder to discuss things with those with different views. Lets remember on the left, both Bernie Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn got unfavourable coverage while on the right here, Christine Elliott and Michael Chong get reasonably favourable but ones like Kellie Leitch and Doug Ford were widely trashed.
I also think too a lot with the media has to do with where they live. I lived in downtown Toronto until recently and now downtown Vancouver and in those areas I find a lot tend to not understand the country as a whole and wrongly assume everyone thinks like they do. Since most of the national media live in the large urban centres, their viewpoints are mainstream for there, but not the whole country. Smaller newspapers tend to be much better as they are located in smaller communities which are more populists and not so left wing.
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One positive aspect of a shorter campaign , there is less time to mess up which is what happened in the last days of the Tory and Hudak campaign. I think maybe Ford is tuned in to that.
Wynne and company have to be running on empty, people are starting to realize where all her goodies are coming from and we will be paying for decades. Her finance minister might see “eye candy” around him but things are not looking that sweet for their chances no matter how much he tries to sweeten the pot.
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Heard a snippet on news about a transgender person running for the NDP, a first in Canadian politics. I have to ask, what has sexuality got to do with it? Do we all declare our sexuality when we run for office or apply for anything?
How far is this going to go? Will there be special considerations for some? If not, why make such declarations? IMO, it’s a private matter, anything else is too much information.
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In a Sun column, Sue -Ann Levy’s message to Wynne “from one gay gal to another, it’s not about your sexuality”.
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Sue-Ann’s great. And spot-on.
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Further to Miles Lunn”s comments on the millennials:
Excerpt from “Money Talks”:
“50% of US millennials view Socialism or Communism as the “ideal” political ideology. 51% would prefer to live in a socialist country and only 42% would prefer a free market capitalist one. What is going to happen when the rule of law, private property and limits on state intervention are under-valued by our younger generations..”
“00:45 – 06:18 – What is going to happen when 51% of the US millenial generation say they’d rather live in a socialist or communist country? Michael has even more startling numbers, facts & consequences:”
Listen at the 45 second mark up to the 6:18 mark, further if you are interested in the topics: scary for sure!!
http://moneytalks.net/article-and-commentary/michael-campbell/mikes-saturday-comment.html
I think we need to reach the youth some how, some way. They need to understand the Conservative viewpoint. I’d say the Liberals have owned that territory for a number of years due to their messaging and targeting of that group with organized appeals through the media, etc..
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I listen to that too and in fact his brother was actually premier here in BC and helped turn our province around from the highest taxed and worst growth due to the NDP to one of the most prosperous. My thoughts are it depends on the country.
United States
Trump actually won white millennials narrowly 48% to 45% so I think the GOP problem with millennials is more their race problem as over 40% of millennials are non-white. If the GOP could get back to over 40% amongst Latinos as they did under Bush they would probably be in better shape. Yes a lot of white millennials who vote Democrat are socialists rather than centrists like older generations, but there are still lots of conservatives amongst millennials in the US, just those on the left are a lot more left wing than those older than them. The one positive though is Generation Z which are just coming of age (those born after 2000) are generally more conservative so might just be alteration as silent generation was fairly conservative, boomers more liberal, but Generation X was fairly conservative with millennials more liberal.
United Kingdom
You will notice that those who became adults prior to 1979 is the group where Labour’s support plummets amongst in the polls so sadly I feel younger Brits need Corbyn to win for one term and after he totally wrecks the country they will like earlier generations learn the hard way socialism doesn’t work as those over 60 did from the disaster in the 70s. After one term of Corbyn I think that will ensure the Labour Party never returns to power unless the move to the centre again like they did under Tony Blair.
Canada
Its tough to say here as if you dig more deeply within the millennials, Conservatives do okay amongst those born in the early 80s, but its those born after 1985 and especially 1990 they struggle with. Is it just what stage of life they are at or is a big shift happening? Those in the early 80s would be buying their home, getting married, and having their first children so they are at the stage when people tend to become more conservative as they start paying sizeable amounts in taxes so they care about that not just what free programs they get. By contrast those born after 1990 are either still in college/university or just recently graduated and in an entry level job and still paying off their debt thus would naturally be attracted to left wing parties without thinking about the consequences. If in five years time that group doesn’t shift rightward then I think we need to worry, but if they do then we can just chalk it up to what stage they were at in their life. I do think however social conservatism is much less appealing amongst millennials so the Tories would be better to focus on economic not social issues to do better amongst this group.
It does seem though millennials throughout the Western world are moving away from traditional establishment parties, but direction is unclear as in some European countries millennials are actually more right wing. Although in the English speaking world at least there is definitely a trend amongst millennials to be more left wing.
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Here’s some good news for a Monday morning. Keep up the great work Justin! You’re beatable by the day! https://globalnews.ca/news/4104673/trudeau-liberals-approval-rating-down/
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Explosive comments from the Ontario auditor general: listen to Rob Snow on CFRA.COM
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Yes, Ed, Rob is covering it well this morning. I sincerely hope the AG takes action on our behalf, it’s no good telling us if she doesn’t use her powers to do so. Otherwise why stay in the job. She has taken a lot of abuse from them already, they treat her like she knows nothing when she is very well qualified.
I guess we can’t be surprised, The Wynne and company modus operandi is covering up and lying to us about everything, the truth would put them out of government long ago.
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This is analogous to what happens to criminals when they get desperate. They make mistakes and they get caught. Wynne and McGuinty before her did such a great job destroying the economy they now need to cook the books and do all sorts of invalid accounting practices to hide just how bad off we are.
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Yet another poll that Justin will not be happy about, courtesy of small dead animals :
http://www.smalldeadanimals.com/2018/03/pollspotting-37.html
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Hey, Liz J, maybe the federal liberals are doing the same??? It’s really incredulous!! Imagine how harmful this will be if it gets out of control. In this case, hopefully out of the evil will come good.
Rob and Lowell made great commentary on the auditor-general’s report. For those who did not hear about it:
http://www.iheartradio.ca/580-cfra/hour-1-of-news-and-views-for-march-26th-2018-1.3712979?mode=Article&autoplay=1.3712979
Scroll down to the bar and start at the 5:20 mark up to 18 minute mark.
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I just listened to that clip, Ed. Wow they sure nailed it! Good for Bonnie Lysyk.
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It does appear to be holding., Justin is tanking in support from the male segment of “peoplekind”>
I have to ask, are women really that stupid and superficial? Do they not know they are being patronized?
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Trudeau seems to patronize one of the designated victimhood groups at least weekly and anyone with any common sense can see it for the pernicious BS that it is. The SJF crowd are either too hyper-partisan or simply hypocrites like almost all “progressives” and simply justify or rationalize it.
(note SJF=Social Justice Fraud, I will not use the honourable word Warrior for these non honourable people)
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More free stuff to come, they are so arrogant they will listen to no one, certainly not any Auditor General!
I think I just heard a clip about Wynne offering up free day care up to age 2 1/2 years…if that doesn’t make the AG take action nothing will.
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I just heard that too about the daycare. Wow that woman is shameless! It’s a Hail Mary pass for sure.
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I hope people see through that this is just an act of desperation to try and buy off people. That being said with Wynne’s low approval rating and the fact she has tried everything and nothing has worked yet, I am not sure this will. I do think though the PCs would be smart to find a way to fund childcare for low income and same with dental or pharmacare but not go as far as the Liberals. The reality is this may sound good now but we will pay later for this. You run deficits during downturns not strong growth so if the government cannot balance the budget during strong growth and low interest rates, it will just get worse when growth slows down and interest rates go up.
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I bet the NDP is mad at Wynne stealing all their ideas, and waiting for 15 years to do so!
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But it might help them as at least they seem genuine not phony. I believe the PCs are favoured to win in June, but I think an NDP win is actually more probable than a Liberal one, but both are possible but unlikely (I am talking in terms of most seats, I think the chances of Howarth or Wynne being premier are sadly a bit higher since if the PCs get a minority only, I think there is a good chance the two parties gang up like the NDP/Greens did in BC and the federal Liberals tried to do in 2008 to defeat the Tories. Off course both will pay big time in the subsequent election if they do this). Anyways I think the PCs need to focus on how running up big deficits will cost us down the road. Polls show unlike in 2014 or 2015, most want balanced budgets not bigger deficits and that makes sense. In 2015 our growth was close to zero thus why many were okay with modest deficits, but with our growth at close to 3% which is the highest we are realistically going to get, I think people understand if you are running deficits then, its only going to get worse. The good news is most polls show amongst those above 35, the PCs are well ahead, the problem is amongst those under 35 they are struggling and its a real question mark if that group will show up and will they split the vote or coalesce behind one party.
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Reminds me of a mock election exercise a teacher had us do in grade 7 (this would have been back in the early Trudeau senior days). A friend and I were the PC candidate and campaign manager. We worked on a speech that ended up being somewhat serious in terms of what we would like to see in the school. The NDP and liberal teams speech mostly involved free lunches with dessert, soda fountains in place of water fountains and stuff like that.
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It’s providing free day care for children starting at 2 1/2 years until Kindergarten. It will put a lot of private daycare people out of business.
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Good point Liz. Unlikely Wynne would leave the daycare decision up to parents which would mean more public servants; more Liberal voters.
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Someone please tell me what’s wrong with finding your own “babysitter” for pre-schoolers? There are many retirees who would love to do that kind of ‘work’. Just ask me – I did exactly that for a couple who worked with my son.
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It could be compared to Communist regimes where the children are put into government run care from early childhood. However, in this case it’s just another desperate attempt by Wynne and company to hold onto power.
IMO, someone has to stop the madness.
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May as well just hand over your children to the State at birth.
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Not only would it put private day cares out of business it will also mean a loss for municipal day care revenues WHICH municipalities count on now.
This is also a push by Wynne and the Liberals to get more parents, who would have stayed at home get back into the workforce. More taxes into the system that way.
Also look for a sweeping unionizing of pre-schooler workers from Wynne’s proposal.
It’s all about her desperation to cling to power. She’s counting of those most vulnerable to get there.
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I think one of the best attacks Ford could use is to compare Wynne and Howarth’s policies to that of the BC NDP government as both have policies even further left. While no fan of our NDP government here, I would take them over Wynne, Howarth, or Trudeau any day as shocking as it may be, those three are further to the left. I guess 16 years in opposition and failing to win the popular vote or most seats is maybe causing them to be a bit more cautious. So how this all ties in is in BC, the NDP will raise the minimum wage to $15/hour over 4 years not 18 months and will introduce universal childcare over a 10 year period and also dependent on federal funding as opposed to doing it in 2 years. So Ford can easily say the ideas sound good, but we don’t have the money now so he will fix the fiscal situation and once the fiscal situation permits introduce them. Or even better, point out Trudeau already offers a large benefit to pay for childcare for families but it is income tested. Otherwise like Trudeau is doing federally argue pharmacare, dental care, and childcare should be means tested so millionaires like him aren’t subsidized by the taxpayer and only those who truly need it are. That would easily turn what looks like something that helps the Liberals on its head.
Also another policy I would recommend is dusting off the Drummond Report and asking him to come back and take another look at the operations of government and update the report on how to balance the budget and deal with the debt problem. The Liberals under McGuinty commissioned this report so tough to attack it, but Wynne ignored it since the unions didn’t like it and it went against her ideology. Finally on the deficit point out if running one while economy growing at it’s maximum and record low interest rates, the deficit will get much worse whenever the next downturn happens or interest rates rise (which will both likely happen sooner than later) and the province will be in an untenable position if they don’t deal with this.
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Indoctrinate the kids while they’re young. Teach them to depend on the state. End result: government controlling robots. Dumbing down of the education system for many years = a serious problem, I believe. Just throwing out ideas here. On another topic: baseball – Toronto in town. Oh, how I miss my Expos!! One of my favourites: Larry Walker from BC.
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Beware the snake oil sales peoplekind , the goodies are being promised daily, no one will be left out in the desperate sales pitch, you dream of it, you got it.
We won’t want to spoil the scene with such mundane trivialities like massive debt and who will pay for the stuff, that’s for afters. Wynne and her financial experts will tend to that in their usual taxing manner.
Remember, they want your babies in their care, only government can provide safe day care.
It is the ultimate insult. As for the free part, it is not free, the people using it will be paying along with the rest of us for years to come.
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I do a lot of work with clients in Quebec. I remember a few years ago talking to a guy who was a middle class professional using the subsidized $7/day (at the time) daycare they have. It was derisively referred to by several of them as BMW care because most of the people taking advantage of it were 2 income professionals – doctors, lawyers etc pulling up in their luxury SUVs to drop their kids off. The average working class family couldn’t use it because they were generally not 9 – 5ers – no daycare if you working evenings and nights. Basically the 95% were subsidizing the wealthier 5%.
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One of the biggest failings of our older generations is the mantra we tended to live by: “I’ve worked my tail off so my children won’t have to.” We raised the younger generations to believe, by and large, they could have it all now – instant gratification. So when we were finished with our parental obligations the government stepped in by mandating paid maternity leave, full day JK and SK, in-school daycare, promises of daycare spaces. There are promises of paternity leave and government assistance with childcare expenses. With all of their worries provided for the youhger generations began overreaching and many now are at the point where government intervention is seen as a necessity to keep two parents working to pay for the ‘not-a-starter’ home, the new cars, the extravagant vacations, etc. What they don’t seem to realize is that somebody has to pay for all of this. That somebody is the taxpayer and that taxpayer includes them. The children are raised by third parties who tend not to be as heavily invested in the children as the parents are. They are instilled with state-mandated values, mores and expectations that may not be the same as those of the parents. As a result we have more and more young people with low morals and few manners who demand and expect more and more and more from society.
My generation sought out our own childcare and paid our own childcare expenses. Where does personal responsibility come in and government intervention stay out? I’m sick of the constant reach into my wallet by others.
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They need to realize it’s a lot easier to live within your means when starting out than when you land in midlife with growing debt due to buying all the things you thought you couldn’t live without at the outset.
We were taught differently, buy only what you need and budget for the bigger items as you go along.
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I have been dealing with some health AND computer issues, so I’venot been able to keep up to date. During yesterday’s QP, in response to a question from the Conservatives Ralph Goodale alluded to a “senior Conservative blogger” to support his usual meandering non-answer … so I’m curious: does anyone know who the “senior Conservative blogger” is?
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That’s a good question Gabby, can’t think who that might be either so the search is on!
Perhaps Ralphie might better use his time to find out what’s going on around him instead of reading Conservative blogs. His annoying bobble head interpretation with non answers are wearing thin. We’ve had enough of the stuff he classifies as top secret.
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I thought it might have been Dean Skoreyko @bcbluecon who was prominent in conservative circles in BC and still blogs.
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For those here from Southwestern Ontario, it is very sad to learn today that Andrew Lawton has been let go at his talkradio station. Coincidentally, his last amazing interview on Monday was with Doug Ford. That’s a HUGE loss to this part of the province. Kathleen Wynne was scheduled to be his guest yesterday morning.
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“Andrew Lawton
12 mins ·
I’ve been overwhelmed by your support these past 24 hours. I’ll be discussing my departure from the radio in a Facebook Live stream at 1:00pm ET.”
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Do you know whether Andrew will still be writing his opinion pieces for Global?
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I don’t know. I would assume that his live stream is up to watch. I actually listened to his interview with Ford on Monday. I remember Andrew saying that he had Kathleen Wynne scheduled for the next day’s program. Instead, and as per his Live stream he was informed by his employer that he was done yesterday (Tuesday) morning.
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I agree with Anne in swON, well said!! The question today might well be “are we doing our children/youth any favours?” The state wanted both parents in the workforce for selfish reasons:avarice. So much for quality, family life. We grew up with the belief that family was the basic foundation of our society: healthy families, healthy communities, healthy society, healthy country. The sad reality is that our youth may well pay the price.
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The amount of vote buying is very blatant and I hope most see this for what it is. The NDP may be economically illiterate but at least genuine in their ill considered beliefs whereas if the Liberals put so much priority on these, how come they are doing them just now, before an election which they are badly trailing in the polls. Also the centre, not the left is where elections are generally won so trying to out left the NDP might work, but is more likely to backfire, especially if Ford runs on a more moderate platform than many think.
As for childcare, I am all for helping low income families and I think Harper’s choice in childcare back in 2006 and more recently the more generous one by Trudeau is fine, but I don’t believe we should be subsidizing childcare for rich people. As for one parent staying home, I am indifferent on this as I believe it is a personal choice. I think the idea of getting more women in the workforce is admirable, but social engineering really works, changes tend to happen organically. Certainly it would be nice if men played a bigger role in helping out, but that is something that happens due to societal changes, not governments dictating what parents should or shouldn’t do. Also it may not be as big a vote winner as some think. Both Martin in 2006 and Mulcair in 2015 had similar plans and lost while in BC Horgan made a similar promise but over 10 years not 2 and even then he still got fewer votes and seats than the BC Liberals. And in BC the NDP was replacing a government that had been in power for 16 years whereas the Liberals are trying to stay in power after 15 years so big difference.
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I should also add more and more firms nowadays are letting people work from home. The last firm I worked for in the financial sector let people work from home so some with children took advantage of this so they could still work while at the same time care for their child. Obviously this doesn’t work for all jobs, but does for some and in addition perhaps large firms could include daycare facilities which some do and maybe even as a perk pay for it. Low skilled jobs won’t do this, but high skilled ones want the best employees so are often willing to offer generous perks.
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My brief thoughts on the budget https://afiscalconservativepointofview.com/2018/03/28/ontario-budget-in-brief/ . Very short sighted one that is good for today but bad news in the long-run when the bill comes due. I worry this just might work so Ford really needs to go through with a fine tooth comb and show the dangers of it.
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Strange none in the media picked up on Money Bags Sousa calling the people standing behind him in a photo -op “eye candy”. Guessing they are busy digging up some last minute dirt in search of something on Ford.
Anyway, Wynne and company are sure playing the Easter Bunny for those who believe in fairy tales. For those who are in the realm of reality it’s a continuation of their lies and trickery, the same MO that got them elected repeatedly.
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Miles, you stated you were “all for helping low income families” and “don’t believe we should be subsidizing childcare for rich people” but how does one define low income and set a demarcation line? How do you justify refusing assistance to someone who earns a few dollars more than the mandated maximum? That in a nutshell is the problem with government-paid childcare. Either everyone gets it or no one gets it. Governments need to stay out of this issue.
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I would say those below a certain income say 30K get it free then gradually clawed back and eventually say at 60 to 70K eliminated. You could also do it through the tax system with a cheque like Harper did of a certain amount. Not every family can afford to have one parent stay home so it’s important that the government look after are most vulnerable. If we did things that way instead of covering everyone it would save a lot of money. Not looking after the most vulnerable is anyways a non-starter politically for most so I think there are ways this can be done. The people’s guarantee had good ideas here so why not use that as the basis. Yes the loss of the carbon tax creates some issues but if you look at average revenue growth due to economic growth a three year delay or slightly smaller tax cuts could cover this.
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Your suggestion is infinitely more sensible and workable than that of the government. However, it still provides a role for government to poke its nose into creating those child care spaces. I’d prefer that it stay out of it and provide better economic conditions for small businesses/entrepreneurs to take up the cudgel. The law of supply and demand should be encouraged.
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I guess the issue is the market largely works but we do have a responsibility collectively to look after those who fall through the cracks and that is something the state needs to do. But looking after the most vulnerable is much different than having a cradle to grave system the Liberals and NDP want.
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IF Wynne and company get reelected I give up on voting…it’s a commie state. When people can be bought by a corrupt government rife with scandals and sit back taking their freebies knowing the money is coming from a giant credit card with no limit, we know this is a province that has lost it’s way and bereft of basic morals. They have taken charge of every facet of our lives, they know best, think we are not capable of making our own choices.
From McGuinty on we’ve been lied to and reward them with reelection. We are being talked down to, we are their subjects, we have done it to ourselves.
Counting on Ford to keep his head and be the voice of reason.
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I agree with you Liz. The Liberals don’t deserve to be re-elected. Anyone but Liberal.
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Everything this Liberal government does of late is done to deceive the people of this good province, nothing says this better than this quote from John Robson. Playing fast and loose with the numbers and trust of Ontarians is the McGuinty/Wynne legacy.
The Wynne government is hoping that Ontarians aren’t on to them.
” John Robson
14 hrs ·
Twitter
·
All you need to know about fundamental dishonesty of Ontario public finances: new budget shows $6.7 billion “deficit” but “Net Debt” up $16.8 billion. Hocus pocus $10.1 billion in borrowing vanishes when relabeled “investment”… on which interest must still be paid.
Shameless.”
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Obviously the Ontario Liberal government has a very low opinion regarding the intelligence of the voter. Shameless.
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Americans freak out about California’s debt. We could only wish to be like California. Ontario has the honour of being the most indebted non sovereign entity in the world. Hurray for us, and thanks Dalty and Wynney
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I think voters are somewhat schitznophrenic here in that they like most of the new programs, but oppose higher taxes, and want a balanced budget. The problem is it is not possible to do all three. The forum poll out today is not encouraging in top line numbers, but it seems more dislike the budget than do. I can also say from the people I’ve talked to who are not loyal to any party, none of them like Wynne or want to see her re-elected, but most also dislike Doug Ford too so it’s about whom they dislike least. I want Wynne to lose and always felt with Ford as leader it would be more difficult but not impossible
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Greg, if the some of the most recent polls can be believed it seems Ontarians can still be bought. Could it be that we have too much faith in the fact that Ontario voters are intelligent enough to see through the desperation? That would mean that Wynne knows Ontarians better than we think. Quite discouraging. I may have missed it but I haven’t heard any push-back from Doug Ford in a few days or how he’s fighting back against the spin of Wynne?
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What about the people? Why do they continue to re-elect Liberals? Where is their responsibility? How did the people get this way? What about the education system? Is that part of the problem? What about the media? Do they have any responsibility here? When we elect leaders based on their looks, does that not say something? Some say people today always take the easy way out. Or, the fact that parents are both working today and taking care of their children they have little time to think about anything but? What is the government’s responsibility in all of this? Are governments there to support the people or to take care of themselves? Where is the solution?
Pushing to permit 16 year olds to vote: no way!!
http://moneytalks.net/article-and-commentary/michael-campbell/mikes-saturday-comment.html
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I think the most recent forum poll should be a wake up call. The PCs still can win a majority, but it will mean having a strong platform and a strong campaign. Most want to replace the Liberals, but not go off a blind cliff. Ford is disliked by a lot and no doubt his low approval ratings make it more challenging, but Harper in 2006 and Trudeau in 2015 had similarly low approval ratings when the writ was dropped and both overcame it with strong campaigns so I can be done. My advice for Ford would be the following.
1. Try and stick to the People’s guarantee as much as possible. People may not like big deficits but there is little appetite for austerity. I haven’t crunched the numbers but perhaps scrap the tax cuts and replace them with making the first 30K tax free which would be a large tax cut and benefit those most at the bottom not top as Wynne is likely to try and play the class warfare and being from a wealthy family he must make sure this is not the main issue.
2. You cannot outspend the Liberals, but it seems the promise that helped them the most was free prescription drugs for seniors so since that is only $575 million (much cheaper than the dental care and childcare), include this while exclude the others.
3. Don’t say you will find efficiencies give examples
4. Stay on script and avoid making stupid comments as those are the type that can sink the party
5. Spend lots of time rehearsing on interviewing skills and for debates; the debates especially will be make or break so a strong performance there will seal the deal, but a lousy one will mean a likely PC loss.
One possibility to balance the budget is promise asides from health care, a spending freeze in all other departments. Assuming we have normal growth it should only take around 2 years for this. To avoid the unions spending a lot, promise all unions in re-negotiation however much waste they can identify as frontline workers, half of the savings they will get in a raise thus give them an incentive to roots out waste. I still believe choosing Ford was a mistake and may cost us the election, but if the budget made anything clear, we cannot risk Wynne getting back in. If the Liberals were more centrist like they were in the past, I would be less worried, but this budget is even to the left of a typical NDP one.
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That’s a little push-poll of your own Miles LOL. It reminds me of all of those on the left and MSM who not too long ago insisted Andrew Scheer was doing it all wrong and offered suggestions on what HE should do. Good thing he didn’t take the advice.
Here’s my advice for Doug Ford
1) The People’s Guarantee is not representative of anything that resembles the PC party in the traditional sense. With Patrick Brown at the helm I was prepared to either decline my vote or sit this one out. Why? The flip on green energy and carbon tax, PLUS Brown’s soft-Liberal promises in that people’s guarantee. There are a few elements of it that I’d suggest Ford keep but no, Ford needs his stamp on it.
2) Well he can outspend the Liberals if he so chooses but instead reminding Ontarians, each and every time about the waste of Liberal spending will resonate. Keeping some of what the Liberals have promised perhaps but not at the expense of the tax payer.
3) Most people know what finding efficiencies means. The private sector has been through this many times over. Ford should offer whistle-blower protection to public sector workers in healthcare, education and social services because no one knows better how the money is used and/or wasted than front-line doctors, teachers etc.
4) Keep to language that the every day man, woman and child can relate to. So far I’d say it’s working just fine. Change nothing. It’s that appeal that had Ford win the leadership in the rust belt communities. He speaks the true language of the middle class.
5) Practicing for the debates? Maybe……IF they are to be the traditional debate-style, WHICH by the way we haven’t seen in a very long time. It could be that Ford has other ideas about participating in them? Or, being very selective on which he does participate in.
Balancing the budget and cleaning up the Wynne mess will not be possible for a few years to come. Ford would be better to explain that and continue doing what he’s been doing.
The one thing I hope that Ford does is keep letting the base in via consistent messaging and communications with them. The more informed the better.
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It is one poll and obviously we will have to wait and see what others say, but just because its not to our liking doesn’t mean it is false. After all over the last 30 years, Ontario has gone Liberal far more times provincially and federally than conservative so it does seem no matter how awful the Liberals are they have a strong base that will support that. I am not so sure running a truly conservative platform works in Ontario, but considering how far to the left the Liberals have swung I think a centrist one would be a huge improvement. The PCs actually traditionally pre Mike Harris were pretty middle of the road and while Mike Harris did win two back to back majorities, unfortunately it seems the number of people dependent on the government has grown so much since then that we need to slowly wean them off and cutting that much would just ensure four more years of Wynne. Having watched past elections, I think unlike the US, Ford’s style will do well amongst the base but be a turn off amongst swing voters thus why I think he needs to run a very disciplined and well scripted one much like Harper did in 2006.
I don’t like to sound so pessimistic, but the main goal is to defeat Wynne and I am afraid if Ford doesn’t deal with his negatives soon it might not work. Note it is a majority or bust since if we fall short of 62 seats, I believe the NDP and Liberals will gang up like the Greens and NDP did in BC to keep him out (Actually you need 63 seats for a majority, but at 62 we can just tell the opposition we won’t put up a speaker unless they promise not to defeat us). Ontario unfortunately like most of Canada is fairly left wing thus you really have to be close to the centre to win. Off course once he gets into power, he can easily claim the books were much worse than thought and then make much bigger cuts than promised and as long as the cuts are completed 18 months before the next election and the economy turns around he will be fine. I remember in BC when Gordon Campbell was running in 2001 and the New Era document he ran on never mentioned austerity or major cuts and it was only after he got in and the books were opened and much worse did he proceed. He completed the cuts by early 2004 and was trailing in the polls by almost 10 points, but had a year to recover and thus why re-elected in 2005. I could be wrong but based on my observations of elections in the past 20 years, I see little evidence Ontario is ready for a strongly conservative platform. I think the people’s guarantee understood this and although it angered the base, it was what was needed to pick up the swing votes. Once in power, politicians can break their promise and I suspect the books will look much worse so Ford will have that excuse. Yes its frustrating but I feel until the PCs actually get into office its too easy for opponents to fearmonger off us thus we have to be careful. Once in office then its on the record so different story.
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Happy Easter Everyone!
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Going back to topic at him and the whole victimhood mentality that Peterson is against; I think discrimination is still a problem, but I feel we have a better chance of greatly reducing it if we go after where it really exists, then try to just say it is everywhere as I worry types like Celina Chavannes-Cesar will just create a backlash instead of helping the cause. As for the two terms Peterson hates, here are my thoughts:
White Privilege: It does exist to some extent, but its more complicated than most on the left like to claim. It’s true in most white majority countries, non-whites do make less money on average but not necessarily every non-white group (Asian-Americans do better, Japanese-Canadians, Vietnamese in France). A more accurate statement is there are many factors that determine one’s success or failure and you have to look at them all to make an accurate assessment. Asides from First Nations and Blacks in Canada, much of the difference in incomes is largely confined to the first generation and it has generally been the case most of our ancestors struggled when they first arrived but successive generations did better. On a global level, its true the legacy of colonialism did lead to a divide and its true in some places like South Africa and some Latin American countries, the white population does better despite being a minority. Although to be fair you have other groups that do better than the locals such as Chinese in Malaysia, East Indians in Fiji so does Malaysia have Chinese privilege? Does Fiji have Indian privilege? But its important to remember not all majority white countries are considered developed (or first world) and there are some and growing numbers of non-white countries that are moving towards being developed countries so the gap is much smaller than 30 years ago. Never mind throughout human history you’ve had parts of the world that were more prosperous than others and in the majority of cases it was outside of Europe. Otherwise I believe white privilege does exist to some extent, but its not the case across the board and its a lot more nuanced and complex than most think.
Systemic Racism: I realize as a white male I may not notice it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be part of the solution to deal with it, if it exists. The problem I have is the left always claims its there, but can never actually produce evidence of it. Otherwise specify exactly where it exists instead of just claiming its exists. In this day and age, we should ask of all policies for actual evidence, not just blank claims. I also don’t think you can say a group being under-represented somewhere is proof of it, after all there are some areas where minorities are over-represented and its not always low paying jobs either. Instead you need to find the reason before making broad statements. Likewise not every company will be fully representative, you take the average is some will be over some under. Likewise some wrongly assume all of Canada is as diverse as Toronto and Vancouver so if a company is 90% white, must be systemic racism, but if its located in a community that is 90% white you would expect that. In the case of parliament, there is about a 20 year lag on diversity, otherwise percentage non-white tends to be what it was 20 years ago. And that makes sense as one needs to be a citizen to run and at any riding nomination usually one needs roots in the community thus the lag.
Otherwise I don’t think we should dismiss these issues, but I think the SJWs like to make simplistic statements on the issue rather than understand is a complex issue that isn’t black and white.
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Government and SJW/Activists strategy: Make mountains out of molehills. Solution: Don’t take the bait. Stop buying into it.
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I agree. They need publicity and taking the bait gives them more exposure.
Diversity can create division, we are already a country of communities, the list is getting longer. It’s a big concern for all but stupid politicians trying to grab votes.
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Not taking the bait, just saying its a complex topic but certainly the SJW do try to make a mountain out of a mole hill. I think most of us want to stop discrimination where it exists, but I find the SJWs when a group is under-represented or over represented in a negative way they say that is proof of racism without digging deeper.
I do think it would be nice if our side can get someone who is a visible minority to counter them as they wouldn’t then be able to use the line you are a white person who doesn’t understand. I have a friend from university who is Korean and he found the whole employment equity thing quite offensive and said he thinks this whole SJW thing about white privilege is nonsense so we should get people like that in our party to attack them. Not all or as a matter of fact even most minorities buy the SJW argument if anything most don’t. Lets remember unlike most Western countries, parties on the right here tend to do as well amongst non-whites as we do with whites, otherwise when we win, we usually win amongst both groups and when we lose, we usually lose amongst both.
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Ever wonder why both the Star and Metro News have been pushing into prominence articles by Shree Paradkhar and Vicki Mochama respectively, both of whom focus on race and identity issues? Isn’t it picking at a sore, however small, until it festers?
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I cannot stand Shree Paradkhar but she does play well to the SJWs. I think the problem as Peterson states is the left divides everyone into oppressors and oppressed based on what group you are in which is very simplistic. We are all individuals and what is advantaged and disadvantaged is subjective never mind that can change over one’s life too. As a said above if there is systemic racism (I don’t think it is rampant but as a white male maybe I am missing something), then give specific examples and we can judge for ourselves. The problem is a lot of examples they do give are quite questionable thus why people like her just give a blanket term.
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A great many of us have a story of so-called ‘oppression’ and expect all kinds of concessions to be made when the simple answer just may be to get on with life and prove you can make it despite the drawbacks. Been there, done that; didn’t expect the T-shirt or the hat. My parents set the standard through hard work and self-sacrifice and constant assurance. Maybe that’s what is missing for many – it’s always easier to blame the other guy.
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Very true and it seems a generational thing too. Not just minorities, but even many from all demographics find a reason to blame their lack of success. The reality is most of us fail on our first try, but you keep on trying until you succeed and learn from your failures.
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In case you missed it yesterday here’s the interview by CTV’s Evan Solomon and Environment Minister McKenna. It’s not her best work. She appears flustered and unable/unwilling to answer Evan’s questions directly. Kind of like Question Period these days.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100007654546448
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Retweeted Lorrie Goldstein (@sunlorrie):
“What happens when a journalist, @EvanLSolomon, is far more informed on an issue, climate change, than the minister, @cathmckenna responsible for the file: McKenna has ‘no time’ for climate change deniers”
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Trying to get your comments to become filter-free, Cara. I am puzzled about it but will do some research when I get time. More grandparenting this week.
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Even Warren Kinsella said she did a bad job and he is a Liberal. I think her insults on those opposed to the carbon tax were unhelpful too. The Liberals seem to like to insult anyone who disagrees and they need to remember those the insult won’t vote for them and will be more motivated to show up. Yes it’s true I’ve found more and more people are intolerant of different views, but I suspect most who agree with her are already voting Liberal. Jason Lietaer who is a conservative http://www.macleans.ca/opinion/my-fellow-partisans-how-we-can-yell-at-each-other-more-thoughtfully/ and Ian Capstick who is a dipper http://www.macleans.ca/opinion/todays-political-partisanship-is-hurting-canadas-best-and-brightest/ had good articles on this. Also the podcast below I linked with former MP Dan McTeague and Michelle Simson discussed this. It definitely seems like the Trudeau government is much less open to different viewpoints than past governments including even Liberal ones.
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Pollsters will be busy doing their meddling business as we countdown to the election.
Wynne has promised stuff people could only dream of for the entire time her party has been in office. People seem to forget they lie, have a history of lying through the McGuinty, aka McLiar reign. so buyer beware should apply.
It’s going to be tight rope stuff for Ford to balance through all the goodies like free child care, free drugs, free tuition, or say we can’t afford them. Wynne’s free for all is one of the most desperate attempts to stay in power we’ve seen, people need to look in the mirror and see who will pay for them, then look at their grandchildren and the answer is the same.
Wynne’s free for all needs to be matched up with common sense, if not we either need a famine or a revolution.
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I think the best solution is promise those, but do them means tested so only those below a certain income get it free. He can argue it’s wrong that millionaire’s like him are getting subsidized and I think this would work quite well. Also as a way to pay for this, promise a pay freeze until the budget is balanced, but as a way to avoid union members getting too upset promise as a carrot that any waste they route out in negotiations they will get 50% of the savings in higher wages, otherwise show he is willing to work with them. Also promise a specific number in reducing managers and bureaucrats but that it will be done 100% through attrition with no layoffs, just no re-hires when they leave.
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Interesting interview with two former Liberal MPs, Dan McTeague and Michelle Simson https://twitter.com/AM900CHML/status/980541104897617921 . They may be Liberals but they hit the nail on the head. Off course the Liberal party under the Chretien/Martin era were much different than today. Even if a conservative you could at least respect the Liberals then, whereas today its much harder to do so.
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That was a great segment with Dan McTeague and Michelle Simson. I had listened to it live. Yes this is not the Liberal party of the Chretien and Martin years. This is a scary left-wing party.
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Is anyone else following the Cambridge Analytica / AggregateIQ / Christopher Wylie brouhaha? What a strange co-incidence it is that the three main participants named as Canadians are associated with the federal Liberals. Yet they are being accused of interfering in the American election to get Trump elected. It just doesn’t make any sense in that the Liberals and Republicans are poles apart ideologically. What exactly did Wylie do for Trudeau’s Liberals that warranted a payment of $100,000 and a summary dismissal? That’s a rather large pay-out for a product that was deemed unusable. The Libs knew what Wylie was all about because they had paid for his services twice before. It certainly leaves me scratching my head.
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Anybody see Bob Delaney’s recent comment about how he has proud that he has tripled the debt in Ontario. This writes an attack ad on its own. I suggest the PCs start running this on prime time for television and keep this story in the news.
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McKenna and Solomon should be precise when it comes to the concept of “climate.” On Question Period, they repeatedly used the term incorrectly. McKenna spoke of those “climate deniers, those that deny climate change, etc.. Who in their right mind denies that climate changes? Climate is constantly changing (over time). It always does, it always has. First it was global warming, now it’s climate change. How foolish. What some people do not believe is that man is mainly responsible for the conditions of our climate at this time. In reality, what we should do is adapt to our constantly, changing environment. We cannot fight mother nature!! Clean up our local environments period.
On the same program, the same old, Liberal tactic was clearly evident: talking non-stop to use up the time and prevent the opposition from replying. Oh, yeah, and not answering the question. The moderator should be more firm and cut them off and go after them when they avoid responding to the question. I’d say “quiet, and answer the question.” Seriously.
And stop saying “Canadians want this, Canadians agree on this or that, etc..” They do not speak for all Canadians. They speak for themselves, their government.
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MacKenna is talking down to us “folks”, her arrogance is palpable. She said she has no time for “folks” who do not agree with her. Solomon called her on that, she wasn’t too convincing in her attempt to correct her statement. When people disagree it takes her off her script, she has to explain something she knows very little about.
We recall her saying she is the minister in charge of the weather, how do you explain that one?!
She comes off as abrasive every time she speaks/lectures which most “folks” simply turn off, she can’t be taken seriously.
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You’re right Liz J. MacKenna was backed into a corner of her own making. By the time she was finished she looked like a deer in the headlights and uncertain of her own spin.
This gives Trudeau yet another problem to clean up and spin out of. They’re sure adding up. He’s more beatable by the day IMO.
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She’s also the dummy so qualified for her position she mistook a picture of arctic puffins for penguins. Misidentifying the birds is bad enough, but thinking penguins exist in the northern hemisphere……….
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Here is a link to the puffin penguin story. https://www.therecord.com/news-story/7261543-penguin-puffin-what-s-the-difference-/
How is someone with this demonstrable lack of knowledge given a science portfolio?
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I usually try to avoid listening to any Liberal cabinet minister but maybe I should watch that McKenna-Solomon interview…
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Yes, give it a watch Joanne. Solomon did a good job.
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Just watched it. Yes Evan did an excellent job!!
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John Ibbitson of the Globe and Mail writes on this https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-liberals-need-to-stop-shaming-canadians-if-they-want-their-support/ . I actually think McKenna is just part of a bigger symptom of many in the government who think they are right and don’t just disagree with those who have different views, they have absolute contempt for them. But what they need to remember is insulting people doesn’t make them feel ashamed of their views and then vote for your party, it means the opposite, i.e. they vote against you and are more motivated to see your party removed from office. Whether one agrees or disagrees with a carbon tax, the Saskatchewan Party was elected and Jason Kenney and Doug Ford will become premier if the electorate decides they want them and the proper thing of a minister is to respect the choices. That doesn’t mean they don’t have the right to impose a carbon tax on them as it is within the federal jurisdiction to do so, but you don’t need to insult them.
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Ibbitson is right. Canadians are getting sick and tired of being shamed by arrogant Liberals. It does smack of Hillary Clinton tactics.
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Actually Hillary Clinton was pretty tame compared to Trudeau. Yes she used deplorable but she didn’t insult people nearly on the frequency that Trudeau has. For all her flaws I would take her over Trudeau any day or Obama. At least both had experience and actually understood how to govern, something Trudeau lacks. Trudeau as PM would be like have an arrogant version of Oprah as US president (i.e. celebrity but unlike him she lacks the arrogance).
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Another interesting article https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-how-intolerant-are-canadians-really/ on Trudeau’s virtue signaling. Yes discrimination in Canada still exists, but we’ve made incredible strides over the past 50 years and what was once the norm is now the exception. Never mind we are probably one of the most tolerant countries on earth. No country is 100% free from discrimination so yes we should tackle it where it exists, but also put things in perspective too whereas some like to portray us as a regressive backwards intolerant country when we are not.
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Excellent article. Thanks for sharing, Miles.
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Some Good News:
In A World Of Indecency Rises Some Good : Excerpts:
I have Written several Times about my First Cousin Todd’s Son . . . Jesse, who went missing some 7-Months Ago, while Touring the Mountains of Peru, before Starting His University Medical Studies.
Jessie was just 22-Years-Old when he went Missing . .
. . . That Todd is not a Rich Man, and everything Todd has, he has spent in the Search for his Son Jesse.
And as soon as Todd Realized that Jesse was Missing, Todd was on a Plane to Peru, And He Hasn’t Come Home Yet.
“Mr Galganov”, the Roger’s Manager Said . . . “As of Now, your Cell Phone Service is Free, as long as you’re Searching for your Son, and all the Cellphone Costs you’ve been Charged from the Day you left Canada to look for your Son, have been Credited to your Account”.
AND THEN THERE WAS GAZ MÉTRO . . . Which is the Exclusive Montreal Supplier of Natural Gas, who Notified Todd, UNSOLICITED, that there would be no Bills for Todd’s Winter Gas, as long as He’s In Peru Looking for Jesse.
http://www.galganov.com/editorials/4-3-2018/archives/in-a-world-of-indecency-rises-some-good/#.WsPEJoWmfPM
A story that makes you feel good. Thanks to individuals and companies such as those above.
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Apparently Doug Ford is going to release some of the platforms soon and it will be five priorities. I like the idea as Harper did this successfully in 2006 but it is important to still have a fully costed platform but in announcements and speeches focus on the five priorities as most people have short attention spans. At the same time have a full detailed platform that is fully costed since if we don’t our opponents will fill in the blanks especially on costs as they will claim we are going to make big spending cuts so lets make sure it adds up and get a credible economists like Kevin Page as we did in the People’s Guarantee. Essentially the PCs need to run a classic frontrunner campaign which is don’t screw up and don’t give your opponents any ammo. When trailing in the polls you do things much differently than when leading.
Also start rolling out attack ads and hit the Liberals hard. And have one’s prepared in case of an NDP surge as there is a risk with Wynne’s low popularity the Liberals could implode and the NDP surges so we need to be ready if that happens, not by caught by surprise like the PCs in Alberta in 2015 were. Also in 2011 federally the NDP surge caught many by surprise but because it was late in the campaign it didn’t spread nationally and in Quebec where it largely happened it was the BQ not Conservatives who took the greatest hit for being unprepared. Liberals also took some hit in Ontario as much of their left flank who were more about removing Harper than electing anyone party swung over to the NDP while many Blue Liberals afraid of another Rae like surprise swung over to the Conservatives (It’s why we outperformed most polls by 4-6% in Ontario and thus got our majority even though polls suggested it would only be a minority). In BC, the Tories were better prepared as the NDP is always strong there even if they aren’t nationally thus why they didn’t do too much damage to us there. One good ad to show is Bob Delaney’s recent comments about being proud of tripling the debt and how he would do it again. This is an attack ad that writes itself so PCs should use it. Also hit the Liberals on trust and how they broke their past election promises so that way even if people like the freebies, convince them you cannot trust the Liberals to keep their word based on past record. Likewise as Mulroney did in 1988 bomb the bridge and this was in reference to Liberals leading in the polls but John Turner lagging his party in popularity so they barraged the waves attacking him and linking him to the Liberals thus causing their support to fall so we need to do the same with the Ontario Liberals too as Wynne is less popular than her party. Off course with the NDP, the party might go regional as in Southwestern Ontario, Northern Ontario, and Hamilton-Niagara, the NDP not Liberals is our main opponent whereas in the GTA, Kitchener-Waterloo, and Eastern Ontario it is the Liberals so localized ads can go province wide if need be.
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I was wondering what readers here think about dusting off the Drummond Report and updating it and then implementing it. It seems like a modest realistic plan to get back to balance through efficiencies and not too much pain. And best of all Liberals commissioned it but refused to implement it since it didn’t suit their agenda so that makes it tough for them to attack PCs for using it when they commissioned it and tough to claim its driven by ideology. Off course the members who wrote it up should be called back to update it based on changing circumstances, but it is a good starting point IMHO.
On tax cuts, I think the best solution to avoid getting attacked to easily is make the first $30,000 tax free so that way everyone would get a tax cut, but those at the bottom get the biggest percentage wise. This would also mean a large tax cut for the middle class too. The rates as well as corporate ones may need changing to make Ontario more competitive but do that once in office don’t run on it as unfortunately most don’t understand how lower corporate and top marginal rates help Ontario’s economy so just opens us up to attacks. Both can be done once in office without anyone really noticing.
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Whoa, rotten weather in theses parts today, wet snow, freezing rain on tap. I’m going to speak to Climate Barbie since she has proclaimed herself minister in charge of the weather. “Like you know, like” who else ya gonna call?
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Yes I think we need to register a grievance with the Minister of Weather for sure!
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Just an idle thought: Suppose mankind was around when Earth was but a baby (impossible, I know, but just suppose) would we have been able to change the climate with a carbon tax? Most of us have already changed our behaviour by reusing, recycling, yada, yad, yada. Those of us in areas with lower density populations don’t have the opportunity to avail ourselves of public transportation and depend on our cars to get us where we need to go. How will throwing more money at the government help to change the climate in any way? I just see the tax as a punishment and a pay-off to the government to fritter away on pet projects.Just my opinion.
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