Bacon Mints!

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Harper and his Conservatives have lost the moral authority to govern

Danielle Takacs: Galloping Around the Golden Horseshoe: "When a government starts trying to cancel dissent or avoid dissent is when it's rapidly losing its moral authority to govern"

But we shouldn't give in to his strong arm tactics, the man has shown a complete lack of respect for the Parliament Canada elected and to let his get away with it all and come back stronger to laugh at the success of his gamesmanship later (which will happen if he passes a budget with very minimal concessions) is not in the best interests of this country and nor is it the best solution for this economic crisis that Canadians most want their Parliamentarians to deal with right now.

Canadians could have had a budget and response to the fiscal crisis before the end of this month. Harper instead wants them to wait two months when people need help NOW.

Canadians could have had a government that brought in common and economically sound policies 62% of Canadians voted for. It appears they won't get that before the New Year, but it is my hope they still will.

This is justice delayed, let it not be justice denied.

This is not how democracy works

1337hax0r.com » Harper does not have confidence of the house.

This is not how a democracy works; this is how a dictatorship works. This is how monarchs have historically enforced their will. In England, France, and throughout Europe, a common tactic to maintain power against a legislature which does not support the executive is to simply shut down said legislature. I had hoped the Canadian government would show its robustness and strength against this direct attack on our democracy. I had hoped that the office of the Governor General would perform the one check that it seems to have — Ensure the democratic will of the people and their duly elected representatives.

I hate to say this, but today, our democracy failed. A minority in our country, both parliamentary and democratic, has forcefully taken power from the democratically elected parliament and the will of 60%+ of the population.

Since Harper was opposed by a majority of the house, since Harper had lost the confidence of the house, he effectively locked the doors to the House of Commons, shutting down any parliamentary democratic dissent in order to maintain his power over the executive.

Think about that for a moment — Harper shut down the legislature of Canada so he can remain in power. He shut down our system because he lost the confidence of the house. Harper shut down our representative democracy in order to save his own ass. Harper has established the unitary executive in Canada. This time it’s official, since none of the opposing elected representatives will have any recourse against him due to the shut down of parliament.

I strongly encourage all non-Conservative MPs to continue meeting in a public parliament setting. If the House will not hear the will of the people, then the will of the people must meet somewhere else. We cannot have a majority of our elected representatives shut out simply because Harper wants to stay in power. It may sounds absurd, but it is vital that the legislature keeps on meeting regularly. It would be wise for the coalition and the Bloc (and any Conservative MPs who want to come) to set up a provisional parliament which will continue to meet regardless of the will of the PM who does not have the confidence of the house. This is especially important considering we are heading towards a recession and we need the legislature.

Canada's Coalition - The Guardian Gets It

Rolling Back the Tide of Extremism, One Post at a Time: Canada's Coalition - The Guardian Gets It

Canada is not turning into Italy, which tends to change governments as frequently as some people change underwear. And it is not a coup, as some of its critics are suggesting. Rather, it is a strategic parliamentary move, made by three parties who hold a majority of the seats in the lower house of parliament to unite for a common purpose in a time of crisis. Canada will survive it. And, it may be, however rare in our history, the best thing for the country.

The Conservatives may have won more seats this year, but
they still only won a minority. That's not much of a mandate, and
certainly not enough of a mandate to push through a radical agenda by
Canadian standards, which is what Harper was evidently looking to do.
Indeed, the Conservative's reality-denying economic plan does
not include a stimulus plan but does include such right-wing proposals
as revoking public sector workers' right to strike for one year and
banning pay equity complaints from going to the Canadian Human Rights
Commission.

Very cool animals!

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Rhetoric, mean-spirited words and jingoism a la Stephen Harper

Peterborough Politics: Parties Working Together Democratically A Threat To Democracy???

Parties Working Together Democratically A Threat To Democracy???

Yep, haven't we heard these talking points for the past week? Haven't we heard this same tripe being spewed from Stephen Harper's gab for all that time? Mr. Harper's speech tonight brought forth no new information, no offers to work with others and not even an admission of his own guilt in this situation. Nope, it's everyone else's fault, so say he. And abou

Harper hijacks our airwaves to fundraise for the Conservatives

Accidental Deliberations: So that's what it was for

Thirty-one minutes after a speech in which the prime minister had used
the word “separatists” more often than the word “economy”, people in
Halton on the Con list started getting urgent phone calls from Ottawa
asking for $500 donations, “to save Canada from the coalition.”

Harpo can't stop lying to Canadians

Impolitical: Everything you need to know about Stephen Harper...

In fact, every constitutional experts has said the coalition is legal and legitimate.
Yes, it is. There are the things he says and then there are the things
that experts say. He's flat out wrong. The coalition has the legitimacy
of every vote given on October 14th to the majority of members that
outnumber Conservative members.

In
a pre-taped rebuttal broadcast shortly after Harper's address, Dion
defended the notion of a proposed coalition government "as normal and
current practice in many parts of the world."

Moreover, the
Conservatives have lost the confidence of the majority of members of
the House of Commons, meaning "they have lost the right to govern,"
Dion said.

In our parliamentary democracy, that's the
way it works. Canadians need to suck it up and get used to coalitions
working together. We have had minority government since 2004 and what
we're seeing now is a progression out of the results Canadians have
consistently given in successive elections. Whining about the
government being defeated on a confidence vote is offensive to our
traditions. We haven't seen it in a while, but it certainly doesn't
mean it's "undemocratic."

Mr. Harper has sown the imminent
defeat of his government. He should act in the tradition of great
parliamentarians before him who have similarly faced the prospect of
defeat. Be a democrat and allow a vote. Be a leader and take your
result. Anything less and he's consigned to go down in history fighting
for his job by inflaming the nation and corrupting our democratic
traditions.