Liberal leader believes in lies, again.

He can see for miles - Peace, order and good government, eh?
...
But what really caught my eye in her reporting on the speeches at
the Canadian Jewish Congress celebration held in Toronto yesterday
evening was her quote from Michael Ignatieff, who said of Iran (among
other things):

This is a state seeking weapons of mass destruction.

It's interesting that someone who finally had to issue a mea culpa
in the matter of an invasion of Iraq based on lies about weapons of
mass destruction would be so quick to repeat such an accusation.
...

Ignatieff = Harper...

blogging a dead horse: How far will Ignatieff take the Liberals into Harper's camp?

... But hidden beneath his rhetoric, Michael Ignatieff has already moved his party as close to the Conservaitve Party as any leader has in two decades. ...

Election or ... prorogue again?

It’s not too soon to prorogue right? | Terahertz

Olivia Chow's response to our "let them stay" letters

we move to canada: olivia chow's response to our "let them stay" letters <full post

* The Committee recommends that the government immediately implement a program to allow conscientious objectors and their immediate family members (partners and dependents), who have refused or left military service related to a war not sanctioned by the United Nations and do not have a criminal record, to apply for permanent resident status and remain in Canada; and that the government should immediately cease any removal or deportation actions that may have already commenced against such individuals.

What does the Federa Budget 2009 mean? Initial Report Card and analysis

Budget | CUPE

Federal Budget 2009: Initial Report Card

January 29, 2009 02:49 PM
How well did the budget deliver on these three key areas of concern?

1. stimulating the economy,
2. protecting the vulnerable, and
3. saving and creating jobs by rebuilding the economy

more »

• Federal Budget 2009 and Water 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Early Learning and Child Care 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Municipal Infrastructure 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Privatization 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Health Care 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Employment Insurance (EI) 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Post-secondary Education 01/28/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Pensions 01/28/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and the Environment 01/28/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Aboriginal Issues 01/28/09

» view all items on: Budget

Liberal caucus gagged by Iggy

Firebrand: Iggy gags caucus III

Well, today comes confirmation that Ignatieff is muzzling his caucus
and is attempting to control the access his MPs have to the media. The Globe and Mail reports that

At his first caucus meeting as leader in December, [Ignatieff] made it clear the caucus speaks with one voice and it is his.

“He
laid down the law at the beginning. You could hear a pin drop,” a
Liberal insider said about the way Mr. Ignatieff outlined the new
one-voice strategy. He said Mr. Ignatieff possesses discipline and
firmness. “You know when you leave the room who the leader is.”

In addition, Ignatieff is banning "Liberal strategists" from appearing on TV panels without approval.

Canadians deserve better

James Laxer: The Liberals and the Road Not Taken

The Harper-Flaherty budget doesn’t do the job. New spending of about $6
billion this year and again next year, will create about 60,000 jobs.
It won’t make a dent in the rising tide of new joblessness that is
forecast to engulf Canadian communities from coast to coast. The layoff
notices are going out every day. The descent of our economy into
deflation is proceeding. Within a few months, the utter inadequacy of
the government’s policy will be evident to millions of Canadians.

More about the budget removal of funding for medical research in Canada

Hell, Upside Down: So Liberals Don't Support Stem Cell Research Eh?

While the Toronto Star regurgitates Liberal marketing saying "Liberals Put Tories on Probation" the headline in the Globe and Mail
today would indicate that the Liberals are either not watching Harper
closely enough or they agree with his anti-science idealogy. If not why
didn't they include funding stem cell research in their amendments:
...
The news spread like a virus through the research community yesterday
as the country's top scientists wondered whether the oversight was a
mistake. Genome Canada supports 33 major research projects in areas
such as genomics, agriculture and cancer stem cells with operating
grants of $10-million a year. The projects employ more than 2,000
people. By comparison, medical research grants from the federally
funded Canadian Institutes of Health Research run in the
$100,000-a-year range.

It also remains unclear how the budget
will affect the funding abilities of Ottawa's three government
research-granting agencies, including the CIHR.

No We Can't

Montreal Simon: Ignatieff and the Coalition that Won't Die

Michael Ignatieff had a chance to do the right thing, and stand up for the rights of poor Canadians, women, and children.

But instead he sold us all out. He'll blow Stephen Harper and "swallow hard" for the price of a meaningless amendment
...

He didn't even have the
guts or the decency to ask for changes to Employment Insurance, so many
more Canadians could be eligible for benefits, instead of being driven
into poverty and misery. Now there are two Conservative Parties in Canada: Harper's LibCons, and Ignatieff's ConLibs.

Jack Layton is now the real leader of the Opposition

James Laxer: Jack Layton Is Now The Real Leader of the Opposition: Ignatieff Plays Hamlet

Meanwhile, Jack Layton has become the real leader of the opposition. He showed courage when he reached out to the Liberals to form a progressive coalition that could provide Canadians with the leadership they need to cope with the economic crisis. He tried the option of working with the Liberals. Michael Ignatieff has walked away from that option. Layton has retained his integrity and his clear understanding of what the country needs. Progressives now have one party and one party only available to them: the NDP.

This budget won't lead Canada out of a recession...

James Laxer: This Budget Won’t Lead Canada Out of Recession: Ignatieff Should Defeat It

Depending on how you interpret the budget, the government is committing itself to direct new spending of about $10 billion to $12 billion, on infrastructure and housing, over the next two years. Some of this depends on matching provincial and municipal funds, which may never materialize. Much of it depends on how much the government actually spends, a crucial matter since the Harper government has left most of the previous infrastructure money it promised in earlier budgets unspent. At most, the new direct spending by the government amounts to about $6 billion a year.

These numbers may sound big. In fact, they are puny. The Canadian Gross Domestic Product totals about $1.5 trillion a year. Six billion dollars a year amounts to just over one half of one per cent of our country’s GDP. Economic announcements and forecasts tell us that Canada is on track to lose hundreds of thousands of jobs over the next six months. The Conservative government’s planned spending would create, at most, about sixty thousand short-term jobs.

The various tax measures in the budget will be equally ineffectual in stimulating the economy.

Let's hope the coalition continues

Accidental Deliberations: On best-case scenarios

After all, the coalition also reflects the best chance in the near future to demonstrate the viability of cooperative politics.

Who did you say you would trust with your money?

Accidental Deliberations: On balance sheets

Now, none of the parties should be in particular trouble based on those
totals. But it seems fairly clear that the NDP was careful to ensure
that it could afford its 2008 election expenses, while the Libs have
cut their margins the closest even while receiving far more federal
funding than the NDP. In effect, the NDP has run a party that's
sustainable at a donation level just under $4 million a year; the Libs
don't appear to have done the same.

Dion to step down very soon?

Dion planning to quit, report says

Federal Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion is planning to step down, possibly as early as Thursday, the Toronto Star reported.

The paper cites Liberal party insiders who say Dion will make an announcement then stay on as leader until a successor is chosen.

Layton sets Dion Straight

Dipper Chick: Layton burns Dion- video

"If you can't do your job as the leader of the opposition, I don't know what you're doing running for the job of prime minister." - Layton to Dion, in reference to Dion and the Liberals voting with the Conservatives, abstaining and sitting out votes instead of standing up for their constituents against Conservative bills.

For Election '08 Canada, the NDP may be the way forward

Borges Blogue: Militantly Undecided

The Federal Liberal Party no longer seems to represent the interests ordinary Canadians during this election campaign. They do have an impressive scheme, called 30-50, 30 percent reduction in the number of people in poverty, 50 percent reduction in child poverty. However their plan to implement is ridiculous, a few thousand dollars in tax credits is hardly the way to tackle poverty, which is simply an expression of the class antagonisms that are intrinsic in the capitalist system.

The New Democratic Party of Canada is far from advocating the democratic and socialist transformation of society for the betterment of all Canadians, however they do understand that the current system is not working, and have committed themselves in the past, and in the future towards reducing the gap between rich and poor, fighting poverty and inequality. The party is the only one that seems to genuinely care about the needs of the working class during this election campaign. That is why, for this election, one must support the NDP, while remaining and identifying as a Liberal.

Reason to switch

Accidental Deliberations: Reason to switch

What's more, with more Lib voters willing to switch, there's also a
higher upside to their actually following through. If the NDP can carry
all of its current support plus the Libs and Greens who would be
willing to switch, then its support would reach 35.42%. In contrast,
the Libs' similar best-case scenario would be 33.95% of the vote.

With the Cons likely stuck with a relatively poorly distributed support
level in the mid to upper 30s, that point and a half could make the
difference in determining whether the Cons remain in power - or whether
a minority NDP government is able to start reversing the damage done by
Harper over the past two and a half years. Which means that for voters
who are inclined to vote based on stopping Harper, there's another
strong reason to make the NDP their choice.

Liberals seem to be losing to the NDP

Queer Thoughts: Gerard Kennedy's hopes for redemption is going...

Liberals try to steal NDP votes.

Dipper Chick: An appeal to progressive Canadians

Where I live, voting NDP not only beats a Conservative, but it elects a strong New Democrat who gives me and my fellow East Van residents a real voice against Stephen Harper and his Conservatives, unlike a Liberal MP who would have abstained or voted with Harper when it really counted in the last parliament.

What Dipper Chick Said

Dipper Chick: Awaiting the launch of notanenvironmentalist.ca


So if he's not a leader, can't/won't take on Harper, and he's not actually a green crusader....

what exactly does Stephane Dion have to offer?