It Is Time to Bring Down This Government

I understood when Michael Ignatieff passed the Conservative budget. It was important to get money flowing. Brining down the government one the budget would have delayed for months improvements to unemployment insurance (as slight as they were) and infrastructure dollars. But the budget is done.

Todays announcement of layoffs at the CBC was entirely preventable. Never mind that the majority of Canadians support additional funding for the CBC, never mind that last year the Heritage Committee, before the current economic crisis started, after an exhaustive study called for additional funding for the CBC. The CBC didn't even ask for more money. They asked for bridge financing - essentially they asked for a loan against next years budget. Not only did the Harper government said no to all of it but it is clear now that Heritage Minister James Moore irresponsibly leaked the CBC's plans. (It should be noted though that the same government may be willing to give your money to private broadcasters.) This is just the latest in a series of attacks arts and culture.

The CBC layoffs alone are surely not enough to bring down a government, but this is not the only reason, only the final straw.

This government has refused to act on poverty, refused to act on environmental issues, refused to act on employment insurance, and has given only tepid support to infrastructure and economic stimulus.

After refusing throughout the last election to acknowledge that there was an economic problem they have continued to downplay it and pretend that it wasn't as bad as we thought.

This is, in short, an irresponsible government that refuses to govern or even acknowledge reality. The thin infrastructure spending and small extension of unemployment benefits are all that the Harper Government is going to deliver in terms of economic stimulus.

It has been over 3 years since Harper took over the PMO. In that time unemployment is up, the deficit is up, poverty is up, crime is up, just about every major industry in the country is down, the stock market is down, the environment is worse, commodity prices are down, the trade surplus is down, and arts and culture is broken and bloodied.

The Conservative Party of Canada has, in short, in their first 3 years as a governing party brought no new ideas to the table and has accomplished nothing at all except for rewarding their friends and punishing their enemies.

So, we need to get a new government. It is time for Mr. Ignatieff, Mr. Layton, and Mr. Duceppe to bring down the government and call an election.

This is not an endorsement of any of the parties, but it is time for the candidates to hit the campaign trail and lay out their plans for Canada in what is bound to be a very long economic downturn.

Please join me here.

When Did Harper Know About Economy?

November's GDP Numbers are out now:

"Canada's economy continued its slide in November as the country's economic output shrank by 0.7 per cent, according to figures released Friday.

Statistics Canada said slumping construction activity and an ailing manufacturing sector led an industrial race to the bottom in the month, the third one in four in which Canadian GDP contracted.

Canada's national output shrank by 0.1 per cent in October, offsetting a similar gain in September.

In August, the Canadian economy slipped 0.3 per cent, an indication that a financial slowdown had already hit Canada prior to the credit meltdown that really began in September."

Given the number of official and unofficial financial advisors to the PMO it is now clear that Harper knew the economy was going south and cynically (illegally) tried to trick Canadians into giving him a majority before the effects started to be felt.

First of all, Harper himself is an economist. Given that and the official economic advisors on his team and regular meetings by Harper and other members of his government with business and economic leaders Harper must have known what was going on even while he denied it on the campaign trail.





So once more for anyone who doesn't get it yet. Stephen Harper is not a conservative, Stephen Harper believes in nothing at all except his own power, and keeping it.

Harper's budget is a bad one. There is no vision behind it, no plan for the economy, it is about handing out favors to people he might need when the next election comes and that's all.

Still when it comes to the vote Ignatieff was right and Layton was wrong. It is not that the budget is good, or that Harper deserves confidence, or that Harper deserves to stay in power - on the contrary Harper's actions since last fall have been close to criminal. But, people are scared and some aren't too bright. Harper has been lying to them long and hard. Harper has people convinced that a coalition is illegal and the polls unanimously show that people have no appetite for either the coalition or the election. Had the Governor General called an election instead of turning to Ignatieff the result could have been a Conservative majority for the next several years at least.

So, the only real play that didn't risk a long term majority for the little dictator was to allow this budget to go through - allow what stimulus there is start to flow so it can at least help some Canadians. Ignatieff, Layton, and any Canadian who is paying attention now has the task of making sure that people understand that Harper is not on anyone's side but his own, letting people know that coalitions are in fact legal and constitutional and laying the groundwork for the next election which may come as soon as March.

Ignatieff Played it Right

I said yesterday that I thought the budget should be defeated in total, and I still don't like it, it's a bad budget. I also know though that I am in the minority in this. Most of Canada does not want an election and does not like the coalition idea. Ignatieff was right in that what people really want is for Ottawa to do something - for the money to flow out of Ottawa, even if it is not the budget they wanted to see.

I thought that Ignatieff's approach was shrewd: Force the government to report back and face a confidence vote every three months. So the money starts to flow but the government can still be brought down as early as March. It allows the opposition parties time to exploit the weakness' in the budget and get the public ready for a new government. I hope that he gets his amendment.

Mr. Layton's reaction was predictable and sad. It did not acknowledge political realities. By political realities I mean that had the government been defeated and a budget (any budget) been delayed for another few months the Liberals and the NDP would have been punished for it at the polls. The likely outcome would have been a Harper majority (especially now that Harper isn't really a conservative anymore).

Layton's bitterness is understandable, the coalition is likely as close as he'll ever get to governing. His rhetoric though is tired. His new buzzwords are "virtual coalition" and "get out of jail free card" - they have apparently replaced "kitchen table". Staying on message is one thing but using the same buzz words to answer just about every single question asked makes him sound like a robot.

There is much that I agree with the NDP on, but I fear that they will go no further until they find someone to replace Jack Layton. Jack has brought the NDP back from the brink of extinction, but I think he's done all he can. He has become too predictable, everyone knows what he's going to say before he says anything and fewer and fewer people are impressed. The NDP has had their bulldog, he got them back in the headlines and gained them seats - now the party needs a strategist who can figure out how to increase their power and leverage what power they do have to greater effect. The my way or the highway approach only works if you have a majority government, it's not as effective when you have 37 seats.

Election Post-Mortem

Well, another Canadian Election is come and gone and while it's not good news, it could have been much worse. Yesterday Canadians decided to follow the American example and re-elect a neo-conservative despite a terrible record on everything. But thanks to a combination of Newfoundland, Quebec, Northern Ontario, Toronto, Vancouver and multi-partisan groups such as AnyoneButHarper.ca, voteforenvironment.ca, Anti-Harper Vote Swap Canada, avaaz.ca and departmentofculture.ca Harper was denied a majority.
So, party by party here is how things broke down.

The Liberals: Ran a terrible campaign. Stephen Dion is, no doubt, a great guy and very smart. I think that he upped his credibility over the course of this election. I also think he is done as leader. He simply let Harper pound on him for too long before fighting back and will not ever be PM as a result. His votes with the Conservatives, during the last parliament and his constant abstentions turned away alot of Liberal supporters and rightly so. Personally I'm disgusted that 40% + of Canadians opted not to vote yesterday, but Dion's Liberals did not set a good example. Remember if you don't vote you can't complain. Bright spots for the Liberals include the addition to caucus of Gerard Kennedy and Justin Trudeau. Trudeau will help bring in young Liberals and Kennedy is the best leader available to the Party. Dion is almost certainly gone, Ray will hurt the Liberals in Ontario (and they don't need to be any weaker here), and while Stephen Harper cannot call Michael Ignatieff on his support for the occupation of Iraq, Gilles Duceppe certainly can and will which will hurt the Liberals in Quebec.

Kennedy who was running food banks when Adscam happened is youngish (but not too young), energetic, charismatic and fluently bi-lingual. He has ties to most of Canada: He was born in The Pas, Manitoba but went to school at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. He ran the Edmonton food bank from 83-86 then moved to Toronto where he started and ran the Daily Bread food bank. While he is not a Francophone, his wife is Jeannette Arsenault-Kennedy is a day care professional and Acadian from Prince Edward Island. The Kennedy win is sad on the one hand because Peggy Nash (NDP) was a great MP and did nothing to deserve the loss, but Kennedy's win means the Liberals may have a chance at rebuilding.

The NDP: Ran a better campaign than the Liberals, but not a great one. They picked up some seats, but they primarily took these from the weakened Liberals, not the Conservatives or the Bloc. They did however win a seat in Alberta, which is probably the biggest coup of the election for the Center/Left.

The Greens: Ran a good campaign, even if it was shy on resources. Elizabeth May should have chosen a riding that was winnable. May clearly did the best of any of the candidates in the debate, unfortunately for her this seems to have translated into votes for the Liberals or NDP and not the Greens. The fact that the Greens got 6.8% of the vote and no seats shows, yet again, the urgent need for electoral reform in Canada.

The Bloc: Ran a great campaign and, if they would finally give up the separatist ghost could play a much more significant role in National politics. A merger between the Bloc and Liberals would be tough to beat in an election. A merger between the Bloc and NDP could conceivably form a government. There are many signs that Bloc voters are ready to abandon separatism, but so far no political party has been able to make the right appeal to lure them from the separatist party. It may be that only the Bloc itself can do that.

The Conservatives: Ran a weak campaign, but won by default. Low voter turnout certainly helped them, as did the fact that no other party was able to effectively show people an alternative. Ok, when I say no other party I mean the Liberals. The Greens showed people an alternative, but couldn't convince people that the Greens would wield any power. The NDP showed an alternative but couldn't convince people they were a realistic possibility for government. The Liberals simply spent most of the campaign on the defensive and were unable to persuade voters to bother leaving the house on voting day. Given all of that though the Conservatives showed a great weakness. There was no reason why they shouldn't win a majority, they failed because (given their current policies) they have reached their limits.

In the aftermath of this election, publicbroadcasting.ca will return to more arts and culture stuff, but will continue to be somewhat political. I am also moving so it will be quieter than usual for a bit. Do stay tuned though, details of the Unparty to come.

Thanksgiving: What Will Future Generation Be Thankful For?

For most people the election will be put on hold tomorrow as everyone sits down for Thanksgiving dinner. It is unlikely though that most dinner tables will totally avoid the taboo topic of politics. If yours drifts in this direction, take a poll around the table. Ask people what your children and grandchildren and great grand-children will be thankful for when they site around their Thanksgiving tables in the future.

Will they be thankful for a reduction in greenhouse gasses, cooler temperatures, clean air and clean water or will they be thankful for a 2 cent reduction in diesel fuel prices?

Will they be thankful for a strong national health care system or will they be thankful that 14 year olds are getting life sentences?

Will they be thankful for a stronger more diverse national economy, and revamped infrastructure or will they be thankful that corporate board rooms got a big tax cut?

Will they be thankful for a strong public education system and a chance for everyone to go to university or will they be thankful that the $100/month day care credit was adjusted for inflation?

Will they be thankful for a strong, vibrant Arts and Culture sector, for music and film and literature that talk about them and their lives and experiences or will they be thankful that they didn't get a PM with a French Accent?

Obviously the Conservatives represent one side of this equation and (while they may have differences on the details) the Liberals, NDP, Greens and even the Bloc (if you're in Quebec) agree about the other side.

This election is actually shaping up to be very, very close. According to CPAC/Nanos the numbers currently look like this:

Conservatives 32 (-1) Liberals 28 (+1) NDP 22 (no change) BQ 10 (no change) Green 8 (no change) 18 % of people remain undecided

I know that other polling firms are showing different things, but in the last election Nanos was pretty close to right on the money. The table below will show you their final polling numbers compared to the actual result.



The other thing to keep in mind is the 18% undecided. There is a gulf in ideology between the Conservatives and the other parties. If people were going to vote Conservative they'd vote Conservative. It's far more likely that they are contemplating which of the Center/Left parties to vote for (Liberal/NDP/Green etc).
Although I don't have actual nationwide numbers on this at this point this example from the Winnipeg Free Press shows what they have found locally.

"What's more, voters who remain undecided going into the campaign's final weekend -- about seven per cent -- are leaning heavily to the opposition parties. About 30 per cent are seriously considering the NDP, 25 per cent are leaning to the Liberals and 16 per cent to the Greens, compared to 26 per cent who are leaning Conservative."

So, by their numbers anyway 71% of the undecided are going to break to the left on voting day but, due to the divisions, if we are going to take out the Tories we need to be motivated, we need to get our friends and relatives and neighbors and co-workers motivated and we need to vote strategically. Check out Anyonebutharper.ca or voteforenvironment.ca for information on strategy.

You Have A Choice

Canada: Do The Right Thing

I pointed out yesterday that voting strategically is a win-win-win situation. Today, at least to an extent Elizabeth May has agreed with that assessment and I feel the need to expand a bit on what we gain this time through strategic voting. As I said yesterday, strategic voting means more seats for the NDP than they would otherwise have, it means at least 1 seat for the Greens which they would otherwise not have, and it means a Liberal minority government. With only 5 points (and a margin of error of about 3 points) separating the Conservatives from the Liberals this is do-able. I know that many people find strategic voting objectionable, but this is no time for that kind of sentiment. There is too much at stake and everyone in Canada, except the Conservative Party, would gain from it.

On the Environment: If you have grown up in the last 50 years you have heard that the environment is important. That we need to do something to protect it, reduce emissions, stop global warming ... but it has always been something we should do someday, eventually, in the next 10 years or 20 years. Well the time has come to do something, not someday but next Tuesday. Stephen Dion's carbon tax plan is actually modest by carbon tax standards, but it's a start. I know Mr. Layton prefers 'cap and trade' but environmentalists and economists almost universally support the carbon tax model to get the most benefit while doing the least harm. If you'd like a few examples - try Al Gore, Kenneth Green (of the American Enterprise Institute), David Suzuki, Elizabeth May and of course, as of yesterday, 230 of Canada's top economists.

I know people will say that the timing isn't right, what about the economy, etc. but if you'll notice the timing is never right to do something about the environment. If they economy is strong they say 'you'll sink the economy' when the economy is weak they say 'not right now, wait for the economy to improve.' The reality is we've already put this off for far too long, this is a revenue neutral plan which means that the average Canadian won't pay any more than they already do (they'll just pay in a different way) and many will actually save money. The time to do something about the environment is Tuesday.

Beyond the Environment, Mr. Dion has stated that the Liberals would
restore and increase arts and culture funding, boost higher education, provide funds for infrastructure improvement (helping Canadian cities and boosting the economy by creating jobs), provide funds to re-invigorate manufacturing, provide 1.2 billion to help farmers modernize and improve efficiency, and he has said he'd move quickly to insulate Canada as much as possible from the coming economic storm.

This may not be everything on the wish list of the NDP and the Greens but it's a pretty good list and far better than we'd get under Harper. The reality is that neither the NDP nor the Greens are going to form the next government (unless it's by coalition) The NDP (as of this morning) is 13 points behind, and the Greens are 20 points behind and no party has ever covered that kind of ground in 5 days. But the NDP and the Greens can both be in Parliament, with a larger number of seats, helping to craft legislation IF and only IF enough people do the responsible thing, vote strategically and get Stephen Harper and the Conservatives out of office, otherwise we do nothing on the environment (for who knows how long) and everything that I listed above is off the table.


Below is a Widget from anyonebutharper.ca to help you vote strategically. If you don't like this one have a look at voteforenvironment.ca and see what they have to say.

The End of Conservative Canada? Help Make it Happen

So far today a group of 80 Economists, and the National Post both attacked Harper's platform. Even Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach apparently doesn't think Harper's economic plan does enough.

"Alberta's Progressive Conservative premier wants to meet with his provincial counterparts to discuss the state of the Canadian economy, even though Stephen Harper called the same proposal by Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion "panicking."

Stelmach, although he still wants a Harper Majority, also openly criticized Harper's Nuclear Policy.

""Albertans will decide, not the federal government, if we have nuclear power in this province," the premier told reporters Tuesday. "No other jurisdiction other than Alberta.""

It would appear that everyone now knows which way the wind is blowing.

According to the latest Nanos Poll the numbers look like this:
Conservatives 34% Liberals 31% NDP 18% Bloc 11% Greens 6%

When split by region the Nanos poll says that Liberals continue to lead the Conservatives in Atlantic Canada, are ahead of the Conservatives 22 - 20 in Quebec (Bloc at 46%) and are now solidly ahead in Ontario 40-31% with the NDP at 22.

Harris-Decima largely agrees with the conclusions of Nanos although the numbers vary slightly Cons at 31% the Liberals at 27% and the NDP at 20%. Harris-Decima also agrees that the Liberals lead the Conservatives in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. They also point out that the Liberals have pulled ahead of Conservatives among urban voters (representing 80% of Canada) and amoung urban women the Liberals enjoy a 9 point lead.

Although the hope, at the start of the election, was to prevent Harper from gaining a majority - if things continue the way they are currently going a Liberal minority is not out of the question, especially if people vote smart. Although there were cries today
against strategic voting, especially from the Greens, if it is done the right way strategic voting would actually help everyone.

According to Voteforenvironment.ca the seat projection at the beginning of the election looked like this: Conservative 141, Liberal 73, NDP 35, Green 0, Bloc 57, IND 2. However if we vote strategically things could look more like this: Concervatives 97 (-44 seats), Liberals 109 (+36 seats), NDP 46 (+11 seats), Greens 1 (+1), Bloc 53 (-4 sorry Bloc, it's the whole separatism thing), IND 2 (no change). So while the Greens and NDP could lose a little campaign cash they gain seats. If you feel bad about not voting for them donate $10-20 - they only get $1.82 per vote/per year in Federal funds so they would actually come out better financially (and the whole gaining seats thing).

Both Voteforenvironment.ca and Anyonebutharper.ca have easy tools to help you figure out who has the best chance of beating your local Conservative and Anyonebutharper.ca's widget is mobile, so you can take it and put it on your web site, blog, Myspace etc.

Strategic Voting Made Simple

Impression on Last Nights Debate

If you were watching the Canadian English Language Leaders Debate last night, good for you! If you were watching the Biden vs. Palin debate don't you feel ripped off? I mean the excuse that 'what happens in the US deeply affects us' doesn't really work. The US Vice President doesn't affect us very much and doesn't even affect the outcome of the US election very much. So people who watched Biden v. Palin really just wanted to see Palin crash and instead nothing happened, she didn't score, she didn't blow it. The Canadian Leaders debate on the other hand was really very good.

So, one at a time:

Stephen Harper came across as pretty vacuous. He defended the Conservatives but didn't really say what they wanted to do. He provided no excuse for the Conservatives not having a platform and didn't really talk about what they wanted to do. His general theme seemed to be 'everything is fine, we don't need to do anything.' Now if you've watched Stephen Harper over the years you know that the Conservatives want to do SOMETHING and the fact that they won't really say what it is or why they need a majority is just scary.

Stephen Dion was very clear on what he wanted to do. The sad fact is that if Stephen Dion didn't have such a strong French accent he would be running away with the election. His ideas are clear and reasonable. His math works, everything is paid for without raising taxes (shifting but not increasing). Sadly it would appear that racism is alive and well. In a bi-lingual country candidates are still at a disadvantage if they have a strong French accent to their English. (The exception being Jean Chretien who spoke neither official language).

Jack Layton had by far the best one liners of the debate. What you heard from Jack though was pretty much what you expected to hear from the NDP. Jack is, by all accounts a great guy, and a good leader unfortunately I think the NDP is stalled and only a new leader with a broader agenda and appeal will move the party forward.

Elizabeth May, what can I say about Elizabeth May? I've heard it several times today - 'the Greens are here to stay'. Obviously the Greens aren't going to break out and win this election. However I think they will continue to grow, they will continue to draw supporters from other parties (they seem to be a natural home for ex Progressive Conservatives who do not feel at home under the Alliance/CPC). The platform is fiscally responsible, environmentally friendly and socially progressive. To me May was the clear winner of both debates, but instead of winning the election she has won validation for her place at the table and a strong future for the Green Party.

Gilles Duceppe, had he not been a separatist might have made a good Prime Minister. He is always smart, articulate, well informed and has a platform that would resonate with alot of Canadians if he didn't claim it for Quebec only. Perhaps, some day, if the racism mentioned above dies down and Francophones are more at home in a broader Canada Duceppe and the Bloc will merge with another party and bring to all of Canada the good things they want for Quebec. You do not, after all, have to be separate from the other parties in order to look out for your particular province.

Vote Swap Group Investigated By Elections Canada

According to the CBC Elections Canada is now investigating the Facebook Group Anti-Harper Vote Swap Canada.

"Chief electoral officer Marc Mayrand said Friday that Elections Canada is looking into the scheme.
In an interview with Canadian Press, Mayrand said it may be nothing more than "organized strategic voting," but it could also fall afoul of a law prohibiting people from selling votes or accepting bribes for them."

To me this smacks of another Conservative blunder. Surely only the conservatives could have called for this investigation, since they have no one to swap votes with and are the only one with anything to lost. However, by calling attention to the group they have provided publicity for it and increased it's numbers.

As for the investigation itself there is absolutely no way that they can find any wrongdoing. There is no money changing hands, and this can hardly be construed as a 'bribe'. The people in this group are doing nothing that politicians across Canada and around the world don't do on a regular basis.

When politicians swap votes it is generally for something larger: They agree to vote for a bill in exchange for a vote on a different bill, they agree to support a bill if it includes an amendment that benefits them or their constituents, they agree to support a candidate in exchange for some reward down the road if that candidate is successful. This is simply how the game of politics is played.

The individuals looking to swap votes aren't getting anything nearly as grand in their deals. They are not getting funds set aside for their riding. They are not getting a cabinet post or coveted ambassadorship. They are not gaining favor with a powerful party insider. They are simply doing their best to make the small amount of democratic power afforded to each citizen stretch a little farther.

If Canada had a different system - if it was proportional, or if there were runoffs, or anything beyond first past the post the vote swapping wouldn't be necessary and wouldn't work. However, the fact that these people are alert, informed and engaged and are showing a little ingenuity in expanding their democratic rights is no reason for elections Canada to do anything except perhaps applaud them.

Vote-Swap: Vote Your Conscience AND Vote to Win

Many Canadians are faced with a dilemma: They don't like Stephen Harper but who do they vote for? The candidate they like the best or the candidate with the best chance to win? Well now you can have your cake and eat it too. A new Facebook group called Anti-Harper Vote Swap Canada will allow you to trade your vote with someone in another riding. So if you're in a riding where the Liberals and Conservatives are neck and neck and you want to vote NDP you can trade your vote with a Liberal in a different riding where the NDP and the Conservatives are neck and neck. The end result? Ideally it means the Liberals pick up a seat, and the NDP picks up a seat and the Conservatives lose two seats (with both parties gaining a seat on the Tories). Or in the words of the groups founder, Mat Savelli:

"The concept of the vote swap is simple: in a completely legal fashion, it allows voters in different ridings to swap votes to best ensure the Conservatives don't win. Let's say your preferred candidate has no chance to win your riding. You can swap that vote out with someone else in the group so that you can vote for the party that has the best chance to stop the Conservatives from winning the seat. This allows you to vote for your party of preference (and thus keep smaller parties alive) while doing your best to keep the Tories out of power."

Time to Unite Against Stephen Harper

In his speech at the Democratic convention Barack Obama laid out plainly the choices before Americans, pointing out the failure of George Bush neo-con policies on almost every front. Canadians will soon have a similar choice to make. Stephen Harper is, perhaps more than Bush himself, a George Bush style neo-conservative. Harper's policies are essentially the same as those of George Bush even when those policies benefit the US and harm Canada.

Since taking over as Prime Minister Stephen Harper has waged a non-stop attack on Canada and everything Canadians value. He has repeatedly assaulted Canada's natural environment right down to allowing Canadian lakes to be used as toxic dump sites at no cost to polluters.

Although he promised open accountable government, Harper has lead one of the most secretive, authoritarian governments in Canadian history.

And while he was elected in part due to corruption on the part of the Liberals, Harper has lead one of the most deeply corrupt governments in recent memory. From the in-out scheme to the Cadman affair and beyond.

He has waged a relentless assault on the arts from attempts to kill the Canadian film industry, to a copyright bill that is good for big media companies but bad for artists and that would make most Canadians into criminals to his rejection of a Heritage Committee recommendation that would have strengthened and improved the CBC and most recently his cuts to export subsidies for the arts.

He has been no friend to Canadian cities, he has bungled the economy (one of the few areas the Tories are supposed to be good at) and may soon take us back into deficits.

He reneged on his promise not to tax income trusts, costing many small investors - including retirees small fortunes, because Harper had promised not to tax these trusts many were buying them until days before his announcement.

Finally he has done considerable damage to Canada's reputation abroad. From refusing to attend the world aids conference to insulting the Chinese people (and Canadian athletes) by his absence from the opening ceremonies. His administration has interfered in foreign elections by leaking private information and left classified documents with girlfriends. The have also damaged Canada's reputation as a refuge from wars and war crimes by deporting asylum seekers.

In short Stephen Harper's government has been inept, corrupt, incompetent, immoral and staunchly anti-Canadain on almost every important issue. So, like the Americans, Canadians have a choice to make between the failed policies of the Bush Administration (echoed by Harper) and a reversal of that course.

Stephen Harper and his Tories have never enjoyed more than about 35% support in Canada, yet they manage to cling to power. If they truly care about Canada it is time for the Liberal Party and the New Democratic Party to put aside their differences, focus on areas of common ground and at least temporarily come together in Coalition.

If the next election results in anything less than a majority parliament, Stephen Dion, Jack Layton and their parties should make it clear to Stephen Harper and the Governor General that they will act in concert and prevent the Harper Neo-Con agenda from going any further, that they can and will form a coalition Government and will block any further legislation by Stephen Harper until given a chance to do so.

To this end I have created a Facebook Group to act as a kind of petition in and of itself. While everyone is certainly welcome and encouraged to use the group to share information and ideas, and everyone is also encouraged to write to the Jack Layton and Stephen Dion and tell them to get over their squabbling and get Canada back on track - just joining the group will send a signal to everyone involved.

Please join at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=29529380865 and invite your friends, family and co-workers to do the same!