Reader Tips

Reader Tips 74 Comments

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, welcome to SDA Late Nite Radio. Tonight, for your delectation and pursuant to our Thursday night wild-card show, here is Bugs Bunny playing the role of our Right Honourable Prime Minister, with Rocky and Mugsy playing The Coalition Thugs, and a cameo role for the (second) policeman playing Her Excellency the Governor General, in the classic Bugs and [the Coalition] Thugs (1954, 7:12).

By the way, did something happen this week, or is there a bug in my SDA Comments per Day program?

I think something must have happened, because Vitruvius’s Experimental Election Predictor hit 15.87 today, the highest it’s been since 1984, the second highest ever in the years of data I have since 1962:

In other words, ladies and gentlemen, on the biggest issue of the year, here and as reported elsewhere, according to (for what they’re worth) the best polls we have available, Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition(s) have been blown out of the water. Hornblower is smiling. The next big battle will be in late January, or before. Keep your powder dry.

And don’t forget that when Mr. Harper achieved his first term as Prime Minister, it happened over Christmas. It’s three years later now, and it’s that time again. Between now and late January, and especially over the upcomming annual gatherings with friends and family, remember to gently and kindly remind people of what’s going on here (yet don’t, I think, in general, yell at them, or, in general, they won’t be interested in listening).

Your Reader Tips are, as always, welcome in the comments.

74 Replies to “Reader Tips”

  2. Please vote down the Government in January. The Liberals might be reduced to 10 seats in English Canada.

  3. When I first pulled up the page with your graphic on it, Vitruvius, I thought I was looking at a chart of the US M3.

  5. Did I hear Owliver right when he said this evening to Lloyd (paraphrasing), “This isn’t a reprieve so much as it is a stay of execution for Harper”? He and Scott Reid should get together.
    Then there was the Bloc guy (I think he was bloc…maybe PQ?) whose head I thought should have exploded from the cognitive dissonance when he said (again, paraphrasing, and please correct me if I got this completely wrong), “we are not separatists; Quebec is a nation and we are marching toward independence.”

  6. One of my favourite books when I was young was ‘Flowers for Algernon’.Dion’s career is similar,except I am not sad.

  7. It seems with the polls the way they are, Harper may be wishing for an election after all (again). I wonder what would happen is he put forward the exact same fiscal update in January? 🙂
    Dion’s final parting gift is the ticket to a conservative majority.

  8. The Ipsos-Reid poll states that 62% of Canadians are angry at Le Coalition.
    Does this number sound familiar? It is EXACTLY the same percentage of voters that we were told all week were against Harper and thus in support of Le Coalition. In other words, the Radical Left mouthpieces saw that the Conservatives had won 38% of the popular vote in the recent election, so they pulled out their calculators and did the math: 100% – 38% = 62%
    On & on they went:
    – 62% of Canadians support the Coalition
    – 62% of Canadians elected a Coalition to govern Canada
    – 62% of Canadians want Harper defeated
    And on & on & on it went.
    Anyone who has worked on a farm knows that bullshit can be shoveled forward for a time but eventually you look down and there’s nothing more left to push forward.
    Such is the case with most everything that comes out of the mouths of Canada’s Left these days.

  9. vitruvius – what a perfect, perfect find with that Bugs Bunny cartoon.
    heh, Bugsy is Harper; then we have Mugsy, the driver, as Dion. And the Boss, Rocky, is Layton. What a riot. Thanks so much.

  10. “Do you tink hit’s izzy….
    Take 2
    Do you tink hit’s izzy to form…..
    Take 3
    Do you tink hit’s izzy to form a coalish….
    Take 4
    Iggy, do you tink my job is izzy?

  11. Johann, “we are not separatists; Quebec is a nation and we are marching toward independence.”
    That would be Bernard Landry, the same twit that made the racist comment, “it is because of people like you that we lost our referendum”, to a hotel clerk of Mexican origin on referendum night.

  14. There may be another bonus to this attempted coup by the ‘coalition of fools’. The media and COF are blaming the evil Harper for turning a ‘political’ crisis into an ‘unity crisis’. He has created this by calling the Bloc Quebecois,’separatists’. Harper must be truly evil. Correct me if I am wrong,but is the separation from Canada not the ultimate,premiere,numero uno goal of the BQ…………. But now it is so wrong to mention that fact. Marlene Jennings was on Newman’s show saying that Harper is “whipping up hate'” by mentioning this. WTF. Are we now to believe that it is wrong to call people who vote for separation ‘separatists’. Are they telling us that they only vote BQ because of other reasons besides separation? Nah,couldn’t be….. I’ll bet that the federalists are upset about all Quebecers being lumped with the BQ,but they are not the people that Duceppe represents.This ‘unity crisis’ is a fabrication and the blackmailing BQ may have just shown us their cards.

  15. CTV shows a pro-coalition rally on Parliament Hill today, and whose mug is in the very first shot in a tight close-up?
    Judy Rebick.
    Steve Paiken is doing a show on TVO about recent events; evidently Canada has one province: Quebec.

  22. Maybe I’m cynical, but this whole thing was Dion getting back at Jack Layton for costing him the election. Why else blab about the coup BEFORE you vote down the Government? Why send the tape late and looking amateurish? Now, when Harper appoints Dion to the Senate on Christmas eve, Taliban Jack is toast.

  23. Dion to the Senate? Ian buddy, just because the egg nog is in the stores 3 weeks early doesn’t mean you should overindulge. At least you could ease up on the rum you’re adding to it.

  24. ET: vitruvius – what a perfect, perfect find with that Bugs Bunny cartoon.
    heh, Bugsy is Harper; then we have Mugsy, the driver, as Dion. And the Boss, Rocky, is Layton. What a riot. Thanks so much.
    Brilliant, Vitruvius. Couldn’t agree more with ET, as I almost always do. I’ve always loved classic WB cartoons since childhood some decades ago, and this has always been a standout. It’s taken on all new meaning. Thanks! — Norm

  25. Robert w. I could only watch a little over two minutes.If you have an e-mail I will send him my thoughts. BTW,CTV had a clip of a pro-democracy(Harper)rally tonight in Edmonton. This lone fellow with a dissenting voice challenged one of the organizers…I know this is not relevant but he looked a feminine Clay Aiken…Anyways,when he was told “thanks for showing up,we admire your courage,but you really don’t have an argument”. He replied,”I don’t need an argument”.Too true,why back up anything with facts when you have emotion beating in your skinny chest.

  26. From Coyne’s;
    Notes On The Crisis: The End
    kody
    Dec 4, 2008 21:43
    [ Looking at the poll numbers (which mirror the reaction I’ve been referring to all week) as compared to the media’s reaction, as I’ve also done,
    Kate at SDA accurately summarizes events thusly:
    “Meaning Canadians are in the process of rejecting the propoganda of mainstream talking heads and pundits. If you want the pulse of the nation, talk radio is where it’s at, baby. In all of this mess, they were the only ones who got it right. ”
    Note to the mainstream media:
    learn from the downfall of the New York Times. Continue on with your myopic worldview that ends at the Toronto/Ottawa coctail party scene, at your own peril. ]
    Bet that caused some latte to spill !

  28. In the middle of the last election, I came across an article that suggested that one thing the Conservatives needed to do in order to supplant the Liberals as the Natural Governing Party of Canada (on a permanent basis) was to conquer the federalist territory of Quebec.
    The author had noted that Harper had studied enough of Canadian electoral history to learn that long term political success in Canadian elections sided with the Quebec federalist side and not with the Quebec nationalist/separatist side. However, the author made one further point: the Quebec federalist ground would need to be surrendered by the Liberals. I do not remember the author (may have been Tom Flanagan). I cannot find the article but would love to reread the article in consideration of recent events if any other SDAers remember reading said article.
    I was away from the site for most of November; when I came back I noticed the spike in comments Vitruvuis alludes to in an understatement. Yet, I thought I would restrain myself and see what happens. It appears that, once again, caution pays dividends and the suspension of Parliament allows for a thoughtful process to proceed.
    Thanks in advance to anyone who posts a link to the aforementioned article.

  30. Posted by a CBC commentor:
    “…… I’ve already received death threats from conservative supporters on Jack Layton’s facebook page just because I voted NDP. I urge moderate conservatives to renounce violence on behalf of their more fundamentalist counterparts and no longer issue these political fatwas….”
    Death threats … towards CBCers….by conservatives…..WE’RE NOT MAKING THIS UP!!!
    http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/04/constitution-expert.html

  31. Dear edncda,
    Rather than just calling the fellow a liar, I decided to post this on the Jack Layton Facebook group I just joined:
    An “Adrian Weber” has stated on a CBC News forum that ” I’ve already received death threats from conservative supporters on Jack Layton’s facebook page just because I voted NDP.” I would most appreciate it if he or someone else could direct me the specific dates & times where these occurred. Thank you.
    If I get any response I will let you all know. Why do I think I won’t hear a peep?

  32. Here’s a new name for the Coalition…BL oc-LI beral-ND p. The BLIND Party. Also, anybody have the e-mail for Ed Broadbent? I have a special message for him and Boob Rae.

  33. The path to Conservative dominance
    It turns out I was using incorrect search criteria. My apologies to the author, Andrew Steele; it was not Mr. Flanagan. The article was also written after the last election. Oh well, the article is still a good read. A few excerpts follow:

    The surer course is to capture the federalist pole from the Liberals in Quebec. This might mean fewer seats in Quebec in the short-term, but it would form a solid intellectual foundation that could be maintained for generations. This position would have coherence – pro-Canada in both Quebec and the rest of the country – as opposed to being contradictory, like the existing coalition of “francophones and Francophobes.”
    To undertake this strategic shift would require increasing the support of Quebec allophones for the Conservatives, a similar strategy to their methodical micro-targeting of East Asian Canadians in Ontario and B.C. It would mean targeting the Anglophones of Montreal and displacing the Liberals as their choice.
    It would also require one development Mr. Harper cannot control: the Liberals selecting a leader and a strategy to sacrifice the federalist pole in Quebec for a play to the soft nationalist vote. Mr. Harper cannot seize the federalist pole alone; it must be willingly surrendered.
    The result would be the complete reorientation of the Canadian party system. No longer would the dominant force be a Liberal Party built around a strong national government to protect minority rights, with a weaker Conservative Party that can only win a majority of seats by forging an ends-against-the-middle compromise with Quebec nationalists.
    Instead, a strongly pro-Canada nationalist Conservative Party would be the dominant party. The Liberals would likely fade away in time after losing their primary anchor in the party system. The chief opposition party would be a pro-Quebec, social democratic NDP/Bloc hybrid, strong in those hotbeds of the anti-establishment: downtown Vancouver, downtown Toronto and francophone Quebec.
    Politics would be much more similar to the 19th century. There would be a traditionalist Blue party intent on building a unique pan-Canadian identity, and a radical anti-authoritarian Red party dedicated to a cosmopolitan and differentiated Canada. The two parties would bracket the centre, fighting over the middle vacated by the once dominant centrist behemoth.
    This strategy would bring the Conservatives back to where Diefenbaker left off: The project of building a strongly nationalist, British North American alternative to the United States. It would attempt to build a unified “Canada” of more than just laws and flags, but of one culture and one people, if two languages. Perhaps George Grant even wrote the future Conservative slogan in Lament for a Nation: “Canadians first, foremost and always.”

  34. P.S. For anyone interested, the charge made by “Adrian Weber” was at 11:28pm ET on Dec 4th.
    I just followed up on the CBC forum, asking “Adrian” to bring to my attention on Facebook precisely who made the death threats to him. I went on & on & on about what a serious thing such death threats are (which they are by the way) and that the perpetrators must be found & punished. I told him that I would be immediately contacting the RCMP on his behalf once he provided the evidence.
    What I didn’t say, but perhaps he’ll think about, is that making false accusations is also a crime, like crying “Fire” in a theatre when there isn’t one.
    We know that many on the Radical Left won’t be sleeping well for 2 months. Perhaps this will be even more the case for our death threat “victim” tonight!

  35. Pete.please do not e-mail Broadbent.The more attention he receives,the longer he will stick around.Ignore the man.Chretien has slithered off.Maybe Ed will also. Hopefully the next time we hear or see either of them will be on an episode of “Whatever happened to …” and there will be a short interview of Ed,Jean and Joe Who sipping tea and sneering in their soiled diapers under a bridge.

  36. “Hopefully the next time we hear or see either of them will be on an episode of “Whatever happened to ..”
    Or that they are dead!
    Horny Toad

  37. I had this thought today — if Don Cherry was governor-general, a lot of this would never have happened.
    Don Cherry for G-G !!!

  39. I don’t know wallyj, was Dion ever as smart as the main character in the book?
    Or are you refering to the mouse?

  40. From the National Post:
    Big Loser: Derek Lee. CBC was desperate to fill air time as they waited for Stephen Harper to finish his chat with Michaelle Jean, so they made the mistake of interviewing Lee, who promptly compared Harper’s request to suspend Parliament to the burning of the German Reichstag by the Nazis in 1933. Yeah Derek, they’re exactly alike: a party of murderous thugs burning Parliament to the ground is just like the Prime Minister driving to Rideau Hall to request a temporary halt in proceedings while he prepares a budget. How astute of you to spot the similarities.

  41. Research shows:
    Fire. Them. All.
    We are not making this “stuff” up.
    …-
    “CBC to retune its TV news division”
    “”We’ve done a considerable amount of research on this,” Mr. Keay said. “It’s not stuff that we’re just thinking up and doing.””
    “Its website will be called upon to handle breaking stories first,”
    “Newsworld will not necessarily wait for the definitive word on a story before beginning to report,”
    “The broadcaster said the revamp is strategic, rather than an effort to cut costs.”
    http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081205.wcbc05/BNStory/Entertainment/home

  42. ““He’s going to carry the can,” said one of his chief strategists.”
    Mao Stlong say, my nephew Boob Lae has goody can.
    How many cans you wan?
    Can-Can Boob goody for flee LaeDays.
    …-
    “Rae steps in as coalition’s chief salesman”
    Sample Comment:
    ” Conrad in Van from Canada writes: Rae is an appropriate surrogate for Dion. Stephané has just been terrible when it mattered most. Dion has failed too many times. Rae can kick the verbal-snot out of any of Harpers mouthpieces like Baird or Van Loan but most importantly Harper himself.
    Ignatieff might be better election time but Rae is the man we need right now. I watched him with Don Newman moments after the news broke that the House was under lockout. Rae pulverized the whole lockout move in two seconds. He clear and concise why this was bad for Canada.
    Dion came on and just made no sense at all. Making the move seem almost like a good thing. They need to promise to pay his leadership debts and send him far away from the Canadian public for the next few months.
    He is political kryptonite for the Liberals right now”
    http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081205.wparlliberals05/CommentStory/politics/home#comments

  43. ” Rush hour traffic across the Ottawa River ground to a halt yesterday as commuters were forced to detour around the Chaudiere Bridge, which was closed due to structural damage.

    The Department of Public Works, which owns the bridge, discovered “deterioration of the masonry arches” during a routine maintenance inspection Wednesday.

    “We have to close the bridge for security reasons,” said Public Works spokeswoman Nathalie Betote Akwa. “We are trying to open the bridge for cars and pedestrians as soon as possible.”

    However, the bridge remains closed until further notice as workers try to determine the extent of the damage. ”

    Having worked at Public Works I can tell you it is the most radical department in government. I do not believe for a second this is anything less than a shakedown for more infrastructure funds designed to make Harper look bad.

  44. I know the contest is over (and I hope no one else has already ‘come’ up with this) but I have a new name for the menage a trois.
    Premature Ejacoalition

  45. Re: maz2 link to Bob Rae “stepping in”, my colleague just had me ROFLMAO with a comment:
    “Dig UP, stupid!”

  46. Brent Weston at 1:16 AM, thank you for pointing to that excellent analysis. It gives hope that the past 35 years of “…anti-establishment… radical anti-authoritarian…cosmopolitan and differentiated…” creep, might not be allowed to permanently supplant the true nature of our Canadian culture after all.

  47. For a prediction of how coupscam will unfold, I’m going with Right Honorable Terry Tory who posted a great analysis to SDA on
    December 1, 2008 10:52 AM.
    I wonder if Mr. Tory’s insight is inspired by a little inside information.

  48. (Via SWJ) Jennifer Harper, Blogging dangerous for foreign journalists
    Blogging can be a dangerous business.
    More bloggers and online scribes have been jailed worldwide than any other breed of journalists, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which released its annual “prison census” survey Thursday.
    Almost half — 45 percent — of all media workers jailed worldwide are bloggers, Web-based reporters or online editors, representing the largest professional category for the first time in CPJs prison census.
    “Online journalism has changed the media landscape and the way we communicate with each other,” said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. “But the power and influence of this new generation of online journalists has captured the attention of repressive governments around the world, and they have accelerated their counterattack.”
    …

  49. (Via SWJ) Jennifer Harper, Blogging dangerous for foreign journalists
    Blogging can be a dangerous business.
    More bloggers and on[snip] scribes have been jailed worldwide than any other breed of journalists, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which released its annual “prison census” survey Thursday.
    Almost half — 45 percent — of all media workers jailed worldwide are bloggers, Web-based reporters or on&*(% editors, representing the largest professional category for the first time in CPJs prison census.
    “On[snip] journalism has changed the media landscape and the way we communicate with each other,” said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. “But the power and influence of this new generation of on@#6* journalists has captured the attention of repressive governments around the world, and they have accelerated their counterattack.”
    …

  50. “”On[snip] journalism has changed the media landscape and the way we communicate with each other,” said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. “But the power and influence of this new generation of on@#6* journalists has captured the attention of repressive governments around the world, and they have accelerated their counterattack.”
    In other words,most bloggers don’t kowtow to tinpot dictators,and are a threat to us journalists who do.Why must the bloggers insist on going out into the real slums/ghettos/war zones and getting the real story,instead of staying in the Hilton bar and sucking up drinks from the benevolent leaders? They are a threat to our grant money and must be punished.

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