Just when things looked pretty dim for the Tories, along comes Dion with a big Christmas present.

It looks like Dion, buoyed by an uptick in the polls, has decided to take back control of his campaign, and start doing the things that got him into trouble in the first place.

Now he's got his party back in the same confused state it was three weeks ago.

What's really stunning in the comments section is how utterly and overwhelmingly negative the sentiments are towards Dion, and this in the G&M! This is a huge development in the campaign.

This ought to put some spring back in Harper's step.

There are rumors upon the court..Sir Iggy of Grey Matter spaeketh coyly of Lady Steffy the Green! All the while the jesters prance and distract the court.

And what of Prince Rae?

Odious times approach and a darkening shadow encompasses us all...Which Knight shall save us?

Syncro

I cannot for the life of me believe that Dion can be so jaw-droppingly ignorant of the most basic principles of economics, or so utterly unread in economic history that he could, with a straight face, propose such a patently catastrophic measure for the Canadian economy in a time of financial instability and tightening of credit. If this moron were captain of a ship in a storm he'd be demanding that the scuttling charges be blown in order to let more water out. The man is dangerously stupid!

The comments to the article are priceless. Especially from Liberals.

Dion was looking pretty pompous in his photo ops in Toronto yesterday. heh.

Oh, and The Economist recommends Harper.

Go read the comments in the Taber article at the G&M, you get the impression that a room just cleared & watch the overnite polls to see if this got traction.
*Note that CTV.ca has Yet to post this article from their sister news org.

If I was Harper and thinking about my political career, I'd be more worried about Flaherty and Prentice who's French has improved remarkably over the summer.

The election is basically over. The only real questions that may change anything will be the spending report on Afghanistan (which to me looks reasonable for a war, but clearly way more than The Accountability Party was telling us voters) and the jobs report (which comes out tomorrow). The problem for Harper is that Canadians are heading to their Thanksgiving dinner tables with their families and will be discussing the economy, Harper's response/non-response to the economy, Afghanistan and who to vote for after the weekend.

Whether you agree with Harper's action/non-action plan for the economy or not, given the anxiety of Canadians right now, those are not the questions Harper would want us to be discussing going into the election, those are not the ballot questions he wanted, which isn't good for him (although I suspect it only means status quo as far as number of seats in the end).

Tories....do not screw up on this one. You need an overnight, widespread, devastating response to Dion's lunacy. Go nuclear!

And if he goes ahead with the Green Shift the West is screwed.
Is this what Canada wants?
We have seen it in 1981 and there will be a backlash.
Alberta and Saskatchewan are stronger now and won't be walked over.
Separation anyone!

How anyone could vote Liberal after watching Mansbridge interview Dion on the National on Wed evening is utterly incomprehensible.

So...

In a time of severe economic turmoil, Dion wants to implement one of the greatest changes in Canadian taxation since the introduction of the GST.

BUT, it's not a critical part of his platform, so he doesn't really want to talk about it.

I'd vote Marxist-Leninist before I'd vote for this lunatic.

A Flip Flop? Dion told Peter Mansbridge he may delay the Green Shift considering the state of the economy to which Mansbridge retorted, if the Green Shift is revenue neutral as you claim, why would you delay it?

Don't need to worry about separation, skipper--that gurgling sound you hear is Dion's campaign circling the drainpipe.

But I must agree with Rich, to the Tory warroom (EZRA!): please do not let this pitch, right down the middle, get away. Don't whiff. Don't bunt. I want to hear that perfect sound of the bat smoking the ball, a home run, and Dion finally breaking into tears (as he appeared ready to do in the English debate).

Skipper- Not only is the West screwed, but all of us as well. No one in their right mind would ever buy into this bullshit.
If I'm wrong, then I'm gonna exercise my option on that piece of property in Tennessee. Screw health-care, I'd rather die prematurely in a free country that live a long life in a dysfunctional
Socialist dictatorship.

If Dion gets in, will Albertans in general contemplate separation?

I suspect not.  And I'm someone who thinks that maybe they should.  Yet for all the occasional hand-wringing about Alberta separation in the Central Canadian hegemonistic media, it's my opinion that this meme is trotted out more to emphasize how "different" certain Westerners are from Central Canadians, thus reinforcing a negative and stereotypical view of Westerners in general and Albertans in particular.

It's a useful meme, in that it builds social and political cohesion amongst the English-speaking Central Canadians.  It's really a call to the battlements more than anything else — if it's fear turning into action that the media wants, they talk about Quebec separatism, which is always taken much more seriously (and virtually always leads to further concessions towards Quebec).

There will be no concessions to Westerners.  And if Dion triumphs on Tuesday, you can expect the punishment of Alberta (and, by implied extension, the remainder of the West) to commence tout de suite.

After all, the temerity of those people!  How dare they not vote Liberal?

Garth

"I will only Green Shaft you this much!"

Hans-Christian Georg Rupprecht, Commander in Chief

Frankenstein Battalion
2nd Squadron: Ulanen-(Lancers) Regiment Großherzog Friedrich von Baden(Rheinisches) Nr.7(Saarbrucken)
Knecht Rupprecht Division
Hans Corps
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”

I see Ted, like his leader, is overreaching again.

Also like his leader, he's positively giddy at the prospect of a financial meltdown.

The Green Shift/Shaft would indeed "stimulate the economy" ... in Quebec and Ontario. Like its ancestor the NEP, it will transfer tens of billions from the oil and gas and coal consuming/producing provinces to those that do not.

My question is this:

If the LP does get into power and try to implement the Green Shift, what will be the reaction of the three most western provinces?

There had better be the mother of all rebounds because I can't see Harper running a viable minority government for more than the time it takes Rae and Iggy to dump Dion's lifeless body in the St Lawrence.

By the way, why do easterners lecture Alberta about the need to "clean up" Fort Mac when they are still dumping raw sewage in the St Lawrence?

These are not connected images, by the way.

I see some signs of a rebound, but maybe not past 150 seats. There could be a nasty Italian style parliament ahead. And frankly, Harper does not deserve a majority after failing to lead on the freedom of speech issue. That is like an own goal for a conservative leader.

So if the Green Shift is supposed to be painless and a boon to everyone's tax return why would it be delayed in tough economic times?
C'mon Tory war room, these are two pretty simple dots to connect.

Right! Connect the Green Shift costs with concerns over the economy, pensions, jobs in an empathetic manner and run with it.

Peter:

forget the st. lawrence,

the city of toronto consumes as much land per year as the oilsands impacts and I have yet to see them announce how they propose to reclaim that land.

And quebec hydro's james bay and smallwood reservoirs have submerged a land area nearly 3 times the size of PEI. Unless they gave all the caribou water-wings (and the moose, bear and hare) there was a huge environmental impact there as well.

The point is that ALL human endeavours have an impact on the environment. as long as we do as good a job as possible and within reason in minimizing that impact we should feel no shame in engaging in such endeavours.

Just cannot stop myself from imagining Dion at the next G7 meeting, with The Messiah... while Dear Leader is up to his nostrils in the credit system swamp, Dion is mumblefratzing away in the background about how a Global Green Shaft will save them all.

Prance that Green Shaft all over the world stage and make us really laugh, M. Professeur de Sociology - we could use some comic relief (while not busy looking for buying opportunities).

The Day After Tomorrow (if, you know, today was next Monday)

The Wednesday morning management meeting of the XYZ Widget Company was called to order. "Gentlemen," the CEO said, "we have a crisis. As you're all aware, the making of widgets is energy intensive. This new "Green Shift" carbon tax will make us uncompetitive. We've worked hard and long to earn our place in the world widget market, but I fear that place is no longer secure. Our costs will rise and we cannot simply pass them along to our customers. The marketplace is too competitive. Oh, my! Whatever shall we do?"

At this point, I must interrupt for some analysis. I will use the technique pioneered (as far as I know) by Scott Adams referred to as "Which is more likely?". In short, it's a profound analysis technique based on putting forth two possible outcomes, and asking yourself which scenario is more likely?

Scenario A

"Quick, bring me a phone book and my chequebook!" the CEO demanded, "I have the answer! I'll call the university and immediately fund the creation of high paying green jobs there. The ensuing research will surely provide us a way to reduce our carbon footprint and save our company! Not to mention the benefits we can realize by selling the technology to other industries. If only their research can be commercialized in time to retain our market share, preserve shareholder values and keep the board from punting our pasty, white butts through our corner office windows! But, yes, I'm sure we'll be fine! Our new Prime Minister promised that he loves us all, every one of us, and that we'll all be better off! I can feel it already! We're saved! Oh joy!"

or Scenario B

"Quick, bring me the employee list and an axe!" the CEO demanded, "I have the answer! We'll relocate our widget factory to Elbonia. They have no environmental regulations whatsoever. And they have a highly motivated, well trained workforce that will work sixteen hours a day, seven days a week, for forty Elbonian dollars a month! And with any luck at all we can get a massive government grant for supporting third world development. We're saved! Oh joy!"

So, Which is more likely? Scenario A or Scenario B? As an engineer who lost a software development job I was rather attached to when my company moved the work to its newly opened offices in India, I bet I know...

Question for extra credit:

If you were a polar bear, what choice would you make?
a) Leave the factory in Canada and work on my swimming.
b) Move the factory to Elbonia and work even harder on my swimming.
c) Mmmmmmmmmm, yummmmmm... a seal! I'm going swimming!

Dion appeared on the local CTV news in Halifax tonight, and completely melted down in his first three efforts to answer a question on what exactly he would have done different than Harper in the last couple of weeks. He asked to start over, and apparently his handlers tried to press the station not to show the first five minutes of the interview. They did anyway, much to my surprise. Someone needs to get it on YouTube, it is hilarious.

I see Ted's telling fairy tales here now.

Let's not forget that over at Joanne's Blue Like You, Paulstuff unearths a beauty that should see the end of John McCallum. See, it seems that the Toronto Star has an article dated Jan. 2008 in which McCallum comments at the event staged when Harper reduced the GST another cent. According to the article McCallum said that Harper's comments advising of an economic downturn was a "gimmick".

Not exactly what the Liberals are saying now, is it?

Gord Tulk wrote:

"If the LP does get into power and try to implement the Green Shift, what will be the reaction of the three most western provinces?"

Unknown, but unlikely to be anything Central Canada cares about.  As long as it's not a credible separation threat (and it won't be), Central Canada will ignore the West in the same way the neighbourhood bully ignores the scrawny little kid.  That's what we are to mid-Canada (or perhaps the more apropos image is one of a yappy little dog — annoying, but ultimately nothing to feel threatened by).

A credible separation threat would require civil disobedience and illegal actions, and Westerners might actually be more respectful of Canada's laws than Ontarians or the Quebecois, so I don't see much prospect for that.  If the LP gets back into power, I foresee a great deal of sullenness from Westerners, many of whom will see the repudiation of the CPC not in political terms but in terms of the semiotics, i.e., said repudiation will be interpreted as Central Canada affirming the second-class nature of Western Canadians' citizenship.  Central Canadians will gladly take sullenness — the attitude of Senator Keith Davey ("Screw the West, we'll take the rest!") is alive and well in Canadian politics.

The expectation in Central Canada?  Westerners should shut up and go back to their role as hewers of wood and drawers of water for their mid-Canada masters.

I guess we'll see soon enough, eh?

Garth

"Separation anyone!"

Skip

It's should be "Separation everyone".

http://poll.pollcode.com/h1p_result?v

It would be nice if everyone would go here and vote so we I can have a larger sample, then perhaps I will have something to show when people call me STUPID for suggesting that separation is an option.

Dear fellow westerners,

Harper was right, the Green Shaft will screw everybody. It would be the coup de grace for Ontario's manufacturers.

Lets keep our weapons trained on the Liberals, not our fellow Canadians.

As for Dion, it was wonderful of him to offer up this incredible gift after his scaremongering, and that of the other three midgets, was starting to hurt.

The CPC war room should be all over this. Harper needed a break. He now has one.

Gord, I can almost gaurantee that western separation will become a hot topic of discussion and that there will be serious efforts made to that effect. I will be looking to join these efforts should the unthinkable happen and the Liberals form the government, whether minority or majority. I moved to Alberta from Ontario just before the NEP and people here will not put up with that sort of transfer of funds from this province again. It absolutely devastated us.
I can't believe how the Liberal party is still held in esteem in Ontario despite the gross dishonesty and corruption in that party. Having been raised there, it baffles me because most Ontarians were much more sensible. I can only attribute it to the fact that many Albertans are tranplanted Ontarians, the ones that understand personal responsibility and hard work, not relying on the gov't to provide for us. Many of the ones that stayed in Ontario obviously do not share this ethos.

RLP:

I'd love to see that video.  Googling the incident turns up absolutely nada, however.

Oh well.  Just one more golden opportunity the War Room's missing out on...

Garth

Where is the green shift calculator, the one where I put in how many cubic feet of natural gas I use, how many kilowatt hours I use, and where I live? Where is the calculator that says Costco's electrical bill will be 5.5% higher, and that cost could be recovered by laying off 2 workers?

How much more would it cost to run Ipsco? To drill in the Bakken? Most of the money is going to come out of Sask and Alberta, but most of the money is not going to come back here.

I fully support Stephane Dion's upholding of the Greenshift. This is very courageous of him and I applaud him.

The Libs complain about PMSH being 'the dictator,' and so on ad nauseum.

Could the CPC War pick up on this sinking,
rudderless ship? Either Dion is the so-called Leader or not?Do they even communicate with each other?
The New Rat Pack...and what a sleazy bunch.Not a team.Watch yer back boys!
Does Canada want these guys leading?Do they have a platform?
I can't believe it....

John Ivison's article on Dion being disconnected from reality. Excellent!
War room, here is some more.

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2008/10/09/john-ivison-dionmania-hits-a-road-bump-called-real-life.aspx

There are plenty more Christmas presents for the Tories:

The Conservatives shouldn't worry so much, because the most recent Liberal Lies have been exposed:

Dion must be crying heavy tears by now:

He’s been trying so hard to talk Canada into a recession in the hope of boosting his own electoral chances. But then came the International Monetary Fund saying that Canada’s economy was sound and would outshine all other G7 countries in 2009, and now we learn that Canada also has the “soundest banking system” in the world.

At least you can use your tears to put out the fire that’s burning your pants … get it?

Plus, we also know now that the blood of the listeriosis victims is on the hands of the Liberals, not the Tories.

Just a slight clarification: the "you" in the part where I talk about tears is rhetorically addressed to Citoyen Dion, who must be crying big tears now, and not to the author of this post or any commenters.

Duffy Prime Time - NOW

Dion can't comprehend, Duff is attacking

Disastrous Dion clip

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrliDQs1Jps

Why would these Eastern piranhas like Ignatieff or Dion abort a plan specifically targeted to disburse the West’s money & resources to Ontario & Quebec who have debased themselves with debt? They have even admitted it.
This is why the global warming scam was created so enthusiastically. Gave them an excuse to rape the West of its power, money & taxes. All the while Imperial Ontario squeezes its "Hinterland” for the mistake of voting in socialists who know nothing but pillaging others, never creating let alone produce anything but hot air dogma, that ends up in poverty, death, corruption, crime, insecurity & theft of peoples money by elitists.
Dion & Layton with Ignatieff are the worst, being academics who have never lived in reality land their whole existence.
They have a undying government tit sewed on there mouths.

Manny:

That's just gorgeous.  ;-)

The Duffster...oh man, can't stop laughing!

OMG,

Geoff Regan plays this off as a physical impairment.

Get stuffed.

Baaawwaahahahahahahah!!!!

That's gold Manny!!!!!

Syncro

Good God! What was so difficult about that question? I wonder how many other interviews he has started anew.

Do people actually think this guy is ready for Prime Time?

What would you have done if the Canadian people voted you in as prime minister?

Bwahahahahaha.

A few points in response to westerners noodling about separation, if you will.
1: There are too many Easterners working (and voting) in this province to give separation any traction. Coupled, of course, with the myriad and legion government workers residing in Edmonton.
2: If Albertans had been serious about protecting and securing their economy and rights in the Dominion, they would not have ended up with a laissez faire premier such as Stelmach and instead elected Ted Morton as the leader of the Conservative party. For those not into Alberta politics, Morton is the leading proponent of a plan to protect and insulate Alberta from the very same rape and pillage that, regretfully, we are about to experience. Morton, by the way, placed second in the leadership race and rumour has it that an inordinate number of last minute and possibly Liberal members signed up to ensure victory for our decent, ordinary and current Premier.
3: Previous posters are absolutely correct that Eastern voters and indeed Eastern politicians literally don't give a hoot ( edited down from a flying *&^%$#) about Western grievances or separation threats. Rules and conditions for separation as handed down from our Supreme Court are quite likely to be interpreted as applying only in terms of Quebec being representative of one of our founding nations.
4: People in this country really can't be so uninformed as to believe that they can kill the major engine of our economy and not suffer and yet they still, per current polls, trend towards parties intent on killing the golden goose for short term political gain.
5: In short, turn out the lights Alberta, the parties over and it's going to get ugly. For any newcomers to our fair and much maligned province, this is not hyperbole it's experience talking. As Yogi Berra so aptly said, "It's deja vu all over again."
6: I see a Liberal minority in the making relying on the support of the NDP (trivia question: name a single province whose economy prospered and benefitted under an NDP privincial leadership). References to Saskatchewan's balanced budget under the previous NDP regime will be automatically disqualified due to the number of residents who had voted with their feet and given the province a net loss of population previous to the current regime.

I watched Manny's clip. Threw up in my mouth a little. God help us all if this doofus becomes PM.

I just can't get over the hysteria over the polls. Here is something to consider:

"LP 35, CP 33, NDP 17, BQ 8, GP 7 - Harper leads as best PM (New Nanos Poll)"

A poll conducted by the Nanos Polling company back in August 2008.

Now it is saying 33 CPC, Libs 29. And everyone is running around saying their hair is on fire.

Come election night, Harper will have either 'just over the hump for a majority' or a much larger minority.

Either way it will be a victory. All that is going on now is the 'usual' media hype to be able to indicate a 'Conservative collapse' (reminds me of 2004 and 2006) in their attempt to influence the last minute, undecided voter.

Come Tuesday, the 'committed' voter will show up at the polls. That isn't the Dion supporter. But the Layton and May supporters. Oh did I forget to mention the Harper supporters who both know he is a better Prime Minister and really, really want to have a Conservative majority.

Everyone needs to take a pill and relax over the long weekend. Things are not as the polls seem to indicate, nor as the MSM really wants to portray the Cons and Harper. They are just up to their old tricks again.

Ed the Hun

When we see tired old has-beens like Sheila Copps, Chretien, Paul Martin and even Herbie Grey for God's sake, can we talk talk about bankruptcy PLEASE! They're bankrupt in every sense of the word if that's the best they can muster, time to call it a day. This Country needs to get rid of everything they represent. The unmitigated gall of the old farts out stumping in extreme desperation for Dion, Rae, Iggy Poo and a few other sneering jackasses,is enough to make one ill.
BTW has Dion settled his debt or has he made a deal to scrub it from the record?

If you spot one of them, RUN.

"John Ivison's article on Dion being disconnected from reality. Excellent!
War room, here is some more."

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2008/10/09/john-ivison-dionmania-hits-a-road-bump-called-real-life.aspx

Posted by: Rich at October 9, 2008 7:47 PM

Thanks Rich for that. One of my favorite parts:

"The problem is that if you fund health care and social services with carbon taxes and consumption drops because of economic slowdown, or because of improved fuel efficiency, then your tax revenues drop. Sweden has ended up making up revenue shortfalls by increasing personal income tax rates and employee paid payroll taxes. Mr. Dion might also wish to reflect on this salutary fact: The Swedes threw out their long-standing left-wing government in 2006 in favour of a right-wing coalition precisely because taxes were so high."

I think Dion has drawn his own long knife.

Ed the Hun

National polls are meaningless. The only 2 polls that count are for Ontario and Quebec and in those polls the CPC are in a downward trend, if not a tailspin. Liberal minority on the way vote-splitting notwithstanding.

Heres what has happened, folks.
Ms. May has sold the green votes to the liberals and in return Mr. Dion has to go forward with the Carbon Tax plan.

Boom:

Then it will be on Ontario and Quebec's back to explain why they elected this lunatic.

set you free

The voters in question would no more feel the need to explain their electoral choice to Westerners than you would feel the need to justify the swatting of a fly. Unity, in Canada, refers only to 2 provinces and, provided they tug their forelock when meeting their betters, vote the right way and produce bands with fiddles, the maritimes.

BoomNoZoom,

"National polls are meaningless. The only 2 polls that count are for Ontario and Quebec and in those polls the CPC are in a downward trend, if not a tailspin. Liberal minority on the way vote-splitting notwithstanding."

My point is that all polls are meaningless...including the ones in Ontario/Quebec. I was contacted to give my voting opinion back in September. I lied. On purpose!

I've been contacted 3 times since and have changed my voting intentions every time.

The only polls that matter are on Tuesday 14 October. The rest are just attempts to manipulate.

Ed the Hun

I hope the war room uses all this info wisely and is able to have Mr. Harper speaking as the caring PM (which I know he is!) who does empathize with Canadians fears about the economy. (True we shouldn't have to hold peoples' hands but it never hurts.)
This coupled with an easy to follow description of what the Green Shift will do to Canadians and the CPC 'steady hand at the wheel' and we have a winner IMHO.
It needs to be on TV prime time starting tomorrow.
Sunday or Mon. I think is too late.
But then again, I'm no strategist.

DION'S MELTDOWN: LIBERAL COVER UP
(Bourque)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mv-5biChVrA

Ed the Hun

I feel like Mulder in the X-Files. I want to believe. However, as incredible as it seems among all the multi-billion dollar promises being thrown about with abandon, this election may be lost by the CPC because of a piddling, insignificant, and righteous cut of 45 million in arts funding. I've always been of the opinion that Harper was much more politically brilliant than the media portrayed him but what in God's name was he thinking?

BoomNoZoom,

I certainly understand your thinking. Listening to media 'report' on the election is kind of like watching an episode of the Twilight Zone. Not quite reality.

To deal with the issue, I don't watch MSM (CBC or CTV). Occasionially I'll buy a newspaper. Other than that, I get my news from the internet.

What I think (and I admit -- hope) is that I am quite like many other Canadians. However, watching the CBC isn't what MOST of Canadians do. In that sense I am very much like MOST other Canadians.

So will Toronto go Liberal? Of course. Will much of Vancouver? Yup. But everywhere else, the 'left' will be split.

I stand by a Harper majority (or very close to it) with the smallest %of Canadian voters ever (around 35%).

And remember, a Conservative victory of any type is a victory in the war to destroy the liberal party.

I see what is happening right now as the Battle of the Bulge. One last attempt to seize victory from defeat. (recall the outcome though).

Ultimately the final battle will occur during the next federal election when the liberal party will be destroyed once and for all (they'll be broke or destroyed because of all of the investigations that Harper will launch into past practices -- Adscam, HRDC, long gun registry, etc, etc).

Harper might never have been a 'fan' of Mulroney's but he showed is hand when he said that this 'was only a witch hunt' and the libs had better be careful in wishing that PM's would investigate the behaviour of past PMs.

As the saying goes, the gauntlet has been thrown.

Ed the Hun

I have to say, the question was poorly worded. I will say that much. But, honestly, anybody was a basic grasp of English would have understood the intent of the question. Or, if not, a simple clarifying query should have cleared things up in a matter of seconds. This display was just embarrassing. Imaging this guy negotiating a trade deal, or a peace treaty. Oy!

Ed the Hun

Point taken and heartily agreed with re the MSM. However, I have to ask...excepting the economic turmoil, which never benefits an incumbent, this election should have been the perfect storm bearing down on the hapless Liberal rowboat. An inept and incoherent Liberal leader, party rivals with a vested interest in their leader's failure, an empty Liberal warchest versus an overflowing Conservative party coffer, a mildly resurgent Ndp to split the vote, a track record of steady (and unscary) Conservative leadership, Harper blowing the opposition out of the water in leadership polls,lower taxes...I could go on. All this, and the best we can hope for is another minority? Do you get the feeling that when they replace this moronic talking head professor (hands up all those who had profs that had you wondering who tied their shoelaces for them) with anyone above the level of a house broken chihuaha that we are destined one election down the road to endure another decade or more of Liberal economic ineptness and malfeasance?